Practices for Success

The previous versions of this list were geared towards me specifically: my own teachers, practices, etc. I now have three versions of this: one for me, one for students of Khentrul Rinpoche, and one for the general public. This is the General Version. Enjoy! Take what is useful for you and practice it — it works!

Practices to Do for Success

 

 

 

1) GIVE RISE TO BODHICHITTA. DO ALL OF YOUR ACTIONS WITH BODHICHITTA.

 

Make it a habit to think that all of your actions of body, speech and mind will be done for the benefit of others. Cultivate the aspiration to attain enlightenment for the benefit of all sentient beings, and nurture this precious altruistic intention as dearly as mother cares for her child.

 

2) Do TONGLEN!

 

When you breathe out, think that you are giving everything to all sentient beings. Give all your merits of the three times and your body, like a wish-granting jewel, all your possessions, and so on. Give them to all sentient beings as you breathe out, and when you breathe in, take all beings’ sufferings and their causes, all the undesirable things, onto yourself, and destroy your self-cherishing thought.

 

3) REJOICE in the merit, happiness, virtue, positive potential, and amazing, inconceivable causes of happiness, merit, and virtue created by all the buddhas, bodhisattvas, and all sentient beings of the ten directions and three times, and especially your root spiritual teachers, Shakyamuni Buddha, and all other great gurus, arhats, pratyekabuddhas, monks, nuns, lamas, retreatants, and all Dharma practitioners (and any other great spiritual masters with whom you have a connection).

 

Each time you rejoice in your own past, present, and future merits, it doubles or triples them. You collect so much merit by rejoicing, or feeling happiness about other sentient beings’ merit.

 

If you rejoice in a sentient being’s merit, and the level of the person’s mind is lower than yours, you collect double the person’s merit. If the person’s level of mind is equal to yours, you collect the same amount of merit. If the person’s level of mind is higher than yours, then you collect half their merit. Since there are so many sentient beings, you can imagine how much merit you collect. You will want to practice rejoicing all day long, and night. If you rejoice in the merit generated by one bodhisattva in one day, you receive half of the merit. Because bodhisattvas have realized bodhicitta, they seek only the happiness of others, so whatever activity the bodhisattva does collects so much merit, every second. Can you imagine if you get half of a bodhisattva’s merit for one day? Now you can see how incredible it is. It is said by Pabongka Dechen Nyingpo that to get that kind of merit, without rejoicing, would take 13,000 years! You can see that this is a great thing to do, and is so easy to do. You can collect merit within seconds that would take 13,000 years. You don’t need to prepare anything, just your thoughts. You can do this while walking, jogging, eating, lying on the beach: any time. So, this is a really fantastic practice, if you want to have quick success, great wealth, realizations of the path, and benefit others, especially if you want to achieve enlightenment in order to liberate sentient beings from samsaric sufferings, and bring them to full enlightenment.

 

4) MAKE OFFERINGS to your Gurus, Lamas, Spiritual Teachers, and Spiritual Friends.

 

Whenever you meet someone who has the same guru as you, you can offer him or her chocolate, water, or money — anything that you have — with the thought that he or she has the same guru, and so is the same as the guru’s pores. If you offer to many Sangha members who have the same guru as you, then you are making offerings to that many pores of the guru. This is the easiest way to collect a lot of merit through offerings.

 

By offering just one candy, flowers, or a grain of rice to a statue of the Buddha or even a visualized Buddha, you collect a lot of merit. But making offerings to the guru’s pores collects more merit than offering to all the buddhas, Dharmas, sanghas, statues, stupas, and scriptures, not only in this continent and this world but all that exist in all the universes and all the directions. Making offerings to any pore of the guru with this attitude creates much more merit than all of these offerings.

 

No matter how much money you have — even 10 billion dollars — it is nothing compared to this benefit. You will attain temporal happiness and ultimate happiness from this good karma, as well as all realizations up to enlightenment. Even after you achieve enlightenment, the many qualities of a Buddha’s holy mind still cause so many sentient beings to become enlightened. These are the benefits of just that simple act of making offerings to the guru’s pores.

 

These benefits should be understood, so that when you make offerings to the guru’s pores, you think correctly. This is the best business. If your business needs purification, or is short of merit, then this is what you should do to create success for your business.

 

By making offerings to the guru’s pores, with the remembrance that they are the guru’s pores, you collect mind-blowing merits. With this business of making merit, there is no risk, and the benefit is always there, every time, no matter what. There is no risk of deflation or loss. By making offerings, or charity, the karmic result is ongoing. There is no negative change, and it won’t go decrease due to inflation.

 

So, if you can make offerings to the Sangha with this in your mind, whatever you can give, even just for a few days or one week, or just give a general donation to the Sangha, the most important thing is to think that you are making offerings to the guru’s pores.

 

By using these methods, you can collect the most merit. If you collect a lot of merit, suddenly a miracle can happen that you won’t be able to believe — not only great success in business, but suddenly everything booms in your life. Similarly with realizations, miracles can happen. Of course, miracles do not happen without causes and conditions.

 

5) Make offerings to all of your Spiritual Teacher’s students.

 

Give texts, money, food, support, friendship, time, kind words, smiles, service, and anything else that they might need or want. Making offerings to the Guru’s disciples is like making offerings to the Guru’s pores.

 

6) Make offerings to EVERYONE and EVERYTHING — all sentient beings.

 

Never pass by an opportunity for generosity — constantly look for opportunities for generosity. Seal this generosity with view of emptiness.

 

Practice charity even with small things, like giving food to animals and people. You can even offer charity to ants, so that you can collect as much merit as possible.

 

7) DO PROSTRATIONS to all the buddhas, bodhisattvas, the Gurus, and the Triple Gem.

 

Make extensive offering at your altar (or any other altar) to the Guru, the Buddhas, the Dharma, and the Sangha, and all holy beings and holy objects such as all the lamas, yidams, deities, dakas, dakinis, Dharma protectors, bodhisattvas, arhats, pratyekabuddas, shravakas, statues, stupas, t’hangkas, and scriptures, all of which are of the nature of bliss and emptiness, and of the nature of your own root Teacher.

 

9) Keep the So-jong/8 Mahayana Precepts as much as possible.

 

10) Recite the short “Du Sum Sangye” Barchhad Lamsel (Dispelling Obstacles from the Path) prayer to Guru Rinpoche many times.

 

DU SUM SANG GYAY GU RU RIN PO CHHE

NGO DRUB KUN DAG DE WA CHEN POI ZHAB

BAR CHHAY KUN SEL DUD DUL DRAG PO TSAL

SOL WA DEB SO JIN GYI LAB TU SOL

CHI NANG SANG WAI BAR CHHAY ZHI WA DANG

SAM PA LHUN GYI DRUB PAR JIN GYI LOB

 

OM AH HUNG BENZRA GURU PAYMA SIDDHI HUNG%

 

11) Recite the Diamond Cutter Sutra as many as 30 (or more) times.

 

This is a most precious text, where Buddha showed ultimate truth. This is the way Buddha liberates sentient beings, by revealing the truth-not by washing away our negative karma with water, or by taking them from our body with his hand, and not by transferring realizations.

 

For a version of the Vajra Cutter Sutra, go here:

 

http://www.lamayeshe.com/otherteachers/buddha/diamond/vajra_cutter.shtml

 

12) Recite the Arya Sanghata Sutra as many as 300 (or more) times.

 

When you recite the text, you will understand how much merit you collect by printing this sutra. It can bring miracles.

 

For a version of the Sanghata Sutra, go to:

 

http://www.fpmt.org/teachers/zopa/advice/pdf/sanghatajan07llttr.pdf

 

13) Recite the Sutra of Golden Light many times (perhaps 7 times, as a suggestion).

 

For a version of the Sutra of Golden Light, go to:

 

http://www.fpmt.org/teachers/zopa/advice/pdf/sutragoldenlight0207lttr.pdf

 

14) Recite the Heart Sutra many times (perhaps 108 times, as a suggestion).

 

For a version of the Heart Sutra, go to: http://www.lamayeshe.com/otherteachers/buddha/heart_sutra.shtml

 

15) Make as many as 1000 (or more) copies of the Diamond Cutter Sutra.

 

You can print the version that has Tibetan, English, and Chinese on the same page, as this way you are printing more sutras. Print 1,000 full copies (even though it has the text three times per page). If you can’t find this version, then just print the English or Tibetan version.

 

For a version of the Diamond Cutter Sutra,go to:

 

http://www.lamayeshe.com/otherteachers/buddha/diamond/vajra_cutter.shtml

16) Print 5 or more copies of the Arya Sanghata Sutra.

 

For a version of the Sanghata Sutra, go to:

 

http://www.fpmt.org/teachers/zopa/advice/pdf/sanghatajan07llttr.pdf

 

17) Print many copies of the Sutra of Golden Light (perhaps 7 copies, as a suggestion).

 

For a version of the Sutra of Golden Light, go to:

 

http://www.fpmt.org/teachers/zopa/advice/pdf/sutragoldenlight0207lttr.pdf

 

1 Print many copies of the Heart Sutra (perhaps as many as 2000, as a suggestion).

 

After you have printed these texts, keep them respectfully in a high, clean place. You can also give copies to people. If you keep some in your house, you can make offerings and prostrations to them, and in this way collect incredible merit. If you have many copies, when a stupa or large statue is built, these extra texts can go inside them. It has to be the complete text, with no missing pages.

 

You are so fortunate even to see these texts. There is incredible benefit to having them in your house. According to the texts, if you even have one copy of them in your house, your house becomes a holy object, and all the devas of the three times come there and protect your house. This is what you should do to make your life easier.

 

For a version of the Heart Sutra, go to: http://www.lamayeshe.com/otherteachers/buddha/heart_sutra.shtml

 

19) Recite this mantra 10 times a day:

 

I prostrate to all the Tathagatas (I prostrate to all the ones gone as it is):

OM PI PULA KARPAI,

MA-NEE PAR-BAI,

TATHAGATHA-NI-RATHAI-SHANAI,

MA-NI, MA-NI, SU-PER-BAI BI-MA-LAI

SAA-GAR-RAI KAM-BI RAI

HUNG HUNG

JOLLA JOLLA

BUDDHA PI-LOKI-TAI

GHU-HI-YAI AH-DIS-TI-LA GARBHA SVAHA

 

Generally, in the text, it says to recite it three times a day, but you could recite it two times, and keep the text in your wallet or car or somewhere handy. This can help in business and bring wealth.

 

Buddha taught such things because his omniscient mind knows the various ways to help others. He knows exactly which methods fit each sentient being. Out of great compassion, the Buddha gave various mantras to help to remove suffering. He taught these various methods while showing the unmistaken path to be free from samsara, to achieve liberation, and to achieve enlightenment.

 

This mantra is much more valuable than a sky filled with diamonds, gold, and wish- fulfilling jewels. This ordinary kind of wealth is nothing compared to the benefits of this mantra. Just seeing this mantra directs you to enlightenment. Your life becomes irreversibly led toward enlightenment. The mantra can purify the ten non-virtuous actions and the five heinous actions. It can prevent you from being born in the three lower realms. The same is true of touching, keeping the mantra, and also hearing the mantra. Just remembering the mantra becomes an offering to all the buddhas.

This mantra is called the “Great Increasing Jewel Fathomless Celestial Mansion Extremely Well-Abiding Secret Holy Mantra.” See if you can recite it just ten times a day. It is a very, very special mantra.

 

Buddha taught these mantras because different sentient beings appeared at different times with different problems, and requested Buddha for help. Buddha gave various methods, even manifesting as different deities. By using these means for the Buddha and others you are repaying the Buddha’s kindness.

20) Recite this sutra many times:

Arya Mahaa La Khi Nee Sutra, in Tibetan: The Sutra of the Female Arya Great Glorified One

I prostrate to all the buddhas and all the bodhisattvas.

Once upon a time I heard like this. The Qualified Gone Beyond One (Guru Shakyamuni Buddha) was abiding in the blissful realm. Then the Bodhisattva, Great Sattva Arya Compassionate Eye Looking Enriched with Power went to that place where Buddha was and prostrated his head at the feet of the Destroyer Qualified Gone Beyond One (Buddha) and circled three times around Buddha and then sat down in one direction.

Then Buddha looked at the Female Great Glorified One and advised like this to Arya Compassionate Eye Looking Enriched with Power.

Any Bhikshu, Bhikshuni, Upasika, male, female (living in the five precepts), or anyone other than that, who understands the 12 names of the Female One, Great Glorified One, and whoever keeps these names and reads them, or writes them down, or lets others write them down will cast away poverty and will become rich.

Then all the multitudes of Yakshas usually request may they become like that. The Buddha advised these 12 names of the Great Female Glorified One:

Paldenma - The female one having glorification

Tashima - The auspicious female one

Pemei Tengwa Chen - Having garlands of lotuses

Norgye Dhagmo - The female owner of wealth

Karmo - The female white one

Tagpo Chenmo - The famous great female one

Pemei Chen - Having eye of the lotus

Chepamo - Female doer

Wer Chermo - The female great light

Sei Jinma - The female food giver

Rinpoche Rabtu Jinma - The female one giving many jewels

Pal Chenmo - The great female glorified one

SET/YA THER/DUN DZIN/NEE

GREEN/EE SARBA EARTHA SAR/DAA/NEE

SHA/SHINEE ALAK CAMINEE

MEI/NAA SHA/YA SIT DA/YUN/TU

MANTRA PATAA SOHA

OM BREE KUTI PARAMA SUL BAKAI SOHA [Recite three times]

Anybody who recites this mantra three times will enable all their negativities (disharmony, anything against your wishes) to perish and one will become fortunate and have unceasing wealth.

When you go to see people, if you read this text first, then when you meet the person he or she will be happy and will recognize you as his or her son and do whatever you say.

If you recite this unceasingly you will not be harmed by Brahma and sages, even if they do wrathful actions, and it will be like having made many offerings of service to many buddhas.

Buddha advised like this. Then the Buddha Arya Compassionate Eye Looking One Enriched with Power rejoiced and directly praised these teachings that Buddha taught.

Here the sutra of The Female Arya Great Glorified is complete.

 

21) Recite the following mantras:

 

a) NAMO DHARMAKAYA SAMBOGHAKAYA NIRMANAKAYA, TATHAGATA, DANA PARAMITA, SHILA PARAMITA, KSHANTI PARAMITA, VIRYA PARAMITA, DHYANA PARAMITA, PRAJNA PARAMITA, SARVA DHARMA SHUNYATA SVAHA (six times daily)

 

b) NAMO HURRI DHIYE HURRI DHI KUMARI GOURI GANDARI CHANDRARI MATAMKI KALI KALI MOHEHI KHARA KHARA PACHA PACHA AWADAYE MURCHAYA MASHAMANAYA SVAHA OM BURU BUA ZUOAH ZUOAH ZUALI MANANI DEWI SARBA SAMSKARA KARINEZA TALE TALE ZUOAH ZUOAH SVAHA

 

c) Ganapati Mantra:

 

OM AH GA HUM PAT SVAHA

 

d) Action Mantra for Completion of Success

 

I prostrate to the Three Precious Sublimes

I prostrate to the Buddha

I prostrate to the Dharma

I prostrate to the Sangha

NAMO HARI DIYEH

HARI DIYAH KUMARI

GOHRI GYENDAWARI

CHENDALI MATANGHI

KALEH KALEH,

MORHAY HI

KARA KARA, PARTSA PARTSA

ABADAYA, MUCHAYA

MARSHARMA NARYAJ SVAHA

OM BOORA BOOPAH

JWALAH JWALAH JWALI

MANA NI TAY PEE

SABAR SAMSKARA

KARAY NIJAR

TALAY TALAY

JWALAH SVAHA

 

Merely by reading this all actions will be successful. Brain sicknesses (headaches), heavy contagious diseases, zombies, and all spirit possessions will be defeated. Merely by remembering this mantra, all of them will let go and will let you go. If you are hungry, you can go into town, recite this seven times, blow on your hand, then wipe your face, and you will find food.

 

You can recite it over water or face cream and then wash your face with the water or put the cream on your face. If you do this recitation, you will be able to answer when there is an argument, e.g. when others are talking about your mistakes. If you chant this mantra on flowers or fruit, then whoever you give these to, that person will like you.

Here the mantra of the completion action is completed.

 

e) The Akashagarba mantra:

Mantra of one of the 8 Bodhisattvas that is called Akashagarbha: Bodhisattva “Essence of Sky”:

OM SOTI KAMBALA SHI VI PULASAMBHAVA DHARNA DHATU GO TSAR SOHA

 

22) Recite the Amitayus Long Life Mantra:

 

Short Mantra:

 

OM AMARANI JIVANTAYE SVAHA

 

Long Mantra:

 

NAMO RATNA TRA YAYA / OM NAMO BHAGAVATE / APARIMITA AYUR JÑANA / SUPINISH CHITATAYE / JORA JAYA / TATHAGATAYA / ARHATE SAMYAK SAM BUDDHAYA / TAD YA THA / OM PUNYE PUNYE / MAHA PUNYE / APARIMITA PUNYE / AYU PUNYE / MAHA PUNYE / AYUR JÑANA / SARVA RUPA SIDDHI / AYUR JÑANA / KE CHE BHRUM / OM BHRUM / AH BHRUM / SVA BHRUM / HA BHRUM / CHE BHRUM / OM SARVA SAMSKARA / PARI SHUDDHA DHARMATE / GAGANA SAMUDGATE / SVABHAVA VISHUDDHE / MAHA NAYA PARIVARA YE SVAHA

 

(This was inspired by Lama Zopa Rinpoche and Khentrul Lodro T’haye Rinpoche. See http://www.lamayeshe.org, go to the ‘Advice’ section. Visit Khentrul Lodro T’haye Rinpoche’s website at http://www.katogcholing.com)