Ngondro

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Ngondro ( Tibetan སྔོན་ འགྲོ་, Wylie sngon 'gro ) - are preparatory and fundamental practices in Vajrayana . The ngondro practices are profound and powerful means ( skillful means , upaya ) to bring about a profound healing and purification of the own mind regardless of one's own spiritual level of realization. These practices not only prepare practitioners for the path of Vajrayana and the teachings of Dzogchen , but they also gradually lead practitioners to experience enlightenment .

The stages of practice

The external preparations

The external preparations begin with life-changing contemplations that turn the mind away from samsara and are contained in practice texts as "The Four Thoughts". The external preparatory exercises are:

  • the preciousness of human life
  • the ubiquity and profound meaning of impermanence
  • the inevitable principle of cause and effect regarding the consequences of our intentions and actions of body, language and mind ( karma )
  • the futility of the cycle of delusion and suffering ( samsara ).

The internal preparations

These contemplations greatly inspire our renunciation of an urgent desire to escape samsara and follow the path of liberation and enlightenment. They are the foundations for all special practices. The internal preparations are:

  • Refuge in Buddha as a teacher, recognition of the truth of his teachings ( Dharma ) as the path, the example of the practitioners (the Sangha ) as friends on the path, the awakening of confidence and trust in our own Buddha-nature (emptiness / wisdom and clarity / Compassion of one's own mind / consciousness continuum);
  • awakening unconditional equanimity, unconditional love, unconditional compassionate joy and unconditional compassion ( bodhichitta ); the heart of the enlightened mind and a training of the own mind to deal wisely and compassionately with oneself, others and all difficulties, problems and sufferings;
  • Healing and cleansing the four delusions through Vajrasattva practice;
  • Accumulation of merit and wisdom through developing universal generosity and bringing about auspicious conditions / circumstances through the mandala offering;
  • Finally, in the Guru Yoga practice, which is the most important, moving and powerful practice, the union of one's own mind with one's own wisdom (wisdom of all Buddhas) and thus the awakening of the wisdom of realization in oneself.

Healing and purification of the four delusions

It is taught that:

  • Prostrations cleanse the delusions associated with the body;
  • the recitation of the one hundred syllable mantra of Vajrasattva purifies the delusions associated with language;
  • a mandala offering cleanses the delusions associated with the mind; and
  • Guru yoga purifies the delusions of body, speech and mind.

Ngondro versions

There are different versions of Ngondro within the various traditions, the oldest and best known within the Nyingma tradition:

The short Dudjom Tersar Ngondro : It is a short recitation of the preparatory exercises according to the new treasures of Dudjom and maybe even the shortest and most precise. It was written and hidden by Guru Rinpoche in the 9th century for the degenerate age. Düdjom Lingpa (1835-1904) revealed this treasure ( Terma ), his reincarnation Dudjom Jigdral Yeshe Dorje (1904-1987) - known as Düdjom Rinpoche - taught and explained this text.

The Longchen Nyingtik Ngöndro , also called The Preparatory Practice of Dzogchen Longchen Nyingtik , consists largely of the Terma of Longchen Nyingtik "Heart Essence of Expanse" , which are the words of Guru Rinpoche himself and discovered by Jikme Lingpa (1730–1798) have been.

See also

literature

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