Contents

PART I: THE TWENTY-BRANCH MONLAM

Three Daily Observances

The Observance of Prostration

The Observance of Reciting Sutras

The Sutra of the Recollection of the Three Jewels

Prajnaparamitahridayasutra

The Observance of Dedication

Taking Refuge and Generating Bodhichitta

I. THE BRANCH BLESSING THE GROUND

II. THE BRANCH BLESSING THE PLACE

III. THE BRANCH OF BLESSING THE OFFERING

IV. THE BRANCH OF INVITATION

From the Lalitavistara

You are the Protector of Every Being

From the Abhidhana of Bhadri from Magadha

The request to remain present

V. THE BRANCH OF WELCOME

VI. THE BRANCH OF ABLUTION

VII. THE BRANCH OF DRYING THEIR BODIES

VIII. THE BRANCH OF OFFERING CLOTHES AND ADORNMENTS

IX. THE BRANCH OF OFFERING ANOINTMENT

X. THE BRANCH OF PROSTRATION

Praise from the Sutra of Ornamental Appearances

Praises from the Aryarashtrapalaparipricchasutra

As quoted in Shantideva's Summary of Training

Praises from the Sutralamkara

By the protector Maitreya

Prostrations to the Hundred Lives

By Rangjung Dorje

The Praise of the Twelve Deeds

By Arya Nagarjuna

Short prostration from the King of Aspirations

PART III: REMOVAL OF OBSTACLES

Twenty-One Praises of Tara

The first nine verses were composed by Bhikshuni
Lakshmi. The remainder was extracted from the
tantra by Mahavairochana.

The Seven Protections

By Jikten Sumgön

The Well-Formed

By the First Dalai Lama Gendun Druppa

Praise of White Tara

By Drukpa Padma Karpo

Light of Blessing, a praise of the devi Sarasavati

By Botong Yangchen Gawa

The supplication Clearing the Path of Obstacles

The supplication Spontaneous Fulfillment of Wishes

Book Excerpts

From the Introduction by His Holiness the Seventeenth Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje:

I make the aspiration that when you recite this during the Monlam, each word may first arise in your heart and then emerge from your mouth. I pray that every letter and syllable become a golden image and that every word fill the entire world. May all the sounds of lament and war as well as the poisonous winds in the environment be dispelled. May these words of love and compassion blend with the innate goodness of every single being and coalesce into one powerful force. Like the light of the sun, moon, and stars, may love, compassion, and wisdom shine forth. May they strike every single living being and dispel the darkness of ignorance, attachment, and hatred that has lurked for ages in their being. When any living being meets with another, may it be like the reunion of a mother and child who have long been separated. In a harmonious world such as this, may I see everyone sleep peacefully to the music of nonviolence. This is my dream.

Written by Karmapa Ogyen Trinley Dorje at Gyuto Monastery in Dharamsala on the third of May 2007 c.e., the Buddhist year 2551.

The King of Aspiration Prayers, the Aspiration for Noble Excellent Conduct

XIX. The branch of aspirations
To those, in the worlds of the ten directions, however many there are,
All the lions among humans who appear during the three times—
To all of them without exception
I pay homage with respectful body, speech, and mind.

The force of my Aspiration Prayer for Excellent Conduct,
Brings all the victorious ones directly to mind;
Bowing down with bodies as numerous as atoms in the realms,
I prostrate to all the victorious ones.

In a single atom there are buddhas as numerous as atoms,
Each residing in the midst of their sons and daughters,
Like that, I imagine the whole dharmadhatu
Completely filled with victorious ones.

To those with oceans of inexhaustible praise-worthy qualities—
With sounds containing oceans of tones of melodic speech,
I express the qualities of all the victorious ones,
I praise all the sugatas.

With the finest flowers, the finest garlands,
Music, ointments, supreme parasols,
Supreme lamps, and the finest incense
I make offerings to the victorious ones.

With the finest cloths, supreme scents,
And fine powders equal to Mount Meru,
All displayed in supreme and magnificent ways,
I make offerings to those victorious ones.

With vast and unsurpassable offerings
I venerate all the victorious ones.
Through the power of faith in excellent conduct
I prostrate and offer to the victorious ones.

Whatever negative actions I have performed
With body, speech, and also mind
Overpowered by desire, aggression, and stupidity
I confess each and every one of them.

I rejoice in everyone's merit—
The victorious ones of the ten directions, the bodhisattvas,
The pratyekabuddhas, those in training,
Those beyond training, and all beings.

I request the protectors,
The lamps of the worlds of the ten directions,
Who, passing through the stages of awakening, attained
buddhahood beyond attachment,
To turn the unsurpassable dharma wheel.

I supplicate with my palms joined together
Those who intend to demonstrate nirvana
To remain for kalpas as numerous as atoms in the realms
For the welfare and happiness of all beings.

I dedicate whatever slight virtue is accumulated through
Prostrating, offering, confessing,
Rejoicing, requesting, and supplicating,
To enlightenment.

I make offerings to all the past buddhas
And those residing in the worlds of the ten directions.
May those who have not appeared
Quickly fulfill their intentions, and, passing through the stages
of awakening, appear as buddhas.

May the realms of the ten directions, however many,
Be completely pure and vast;
May they be filled with buddhas and bodhisattvas
Who have gone to sit before the powerful bodhi tree.

May all beings throughout the ten directions, however many
they may be,
Always have happiness, be free from illness;
May all beings be in harmony with the aims of the dharma,
And achieve what they hope for.

May I perform the conduct of awakening,
And remember my lives during all states.
In all my successive lives, from birth to death,
May I always be a renunciate.

Following the victorious ones, may I train,
Bringing excellent conduct to perfection,
And engage in pure, stainless moral conduct,
Which never lapses and is free from faults.

In the language of gods, the language of nagas and yakshas,
In the language of kumbhandhas and humans—
In however many languages of beings there may be,
May I teach the dharma.

With gentleness may I exert myself in the paramitas.
May I never forget bodhicitta.
May all wrongdoing and whatever obscures
Be thoroughly purified.

May I be liberated from karma, kleshas, and the work of
maras,
And act for all beings in the world
Like a lotus to which water does not cling,
Like the sun and moon unhindered in space.

Throughout the directions and reaches of the realms
May the suffering of the lower states be pacified.
May all beings be placed in happiness;
May all beings be benefitted.

May I bring awakened conduct to perfection,
Engage in conduct that harmonizes with beings,
Teach excellent conduct,
And perform these throughout all future kalpas.

May I continuously be with those
Whose actions accord with my own.
May our conduct and aspirations
Of body, speech, and mind be the same.

May I always meet with
Friends who wish to benefit me,
Those who teach excellent conduct,
And may I never displease them.

May I always directly see the victorious ones,
The protectors, surrounded by bodhisattvas.
In future kalpas without tiring,
May I make vast offerings to them.

May I retain the genuine dharma of the victorious ones,
And cause the appearance of awakened conduct;
Training in excellent conduct,
May I act in this way throughout future kalpas.

When circling in all my existences
May I develop inexhaustible merit and wisdom,
And become an inexhaustible treasury of methods,
Knowledge, samadhi, liberation, and virtues.

In a single atom there are realms as numerous as all atoms;
In those realms reside infinite buddhas
In the midst of bodhisattvas—
Beholding them, may I perform awakened conduct.

Like that, in all directions,
On the breadth of just a hair there are oceans of buddhas,
As many as in the three times, and oceans of realms—
May I act and be engaged with them for oceans of kalpas.

A single instance of a buddha's speech
Is a voice endowed with oceans of qualities;
It has the pure qualities of the melodic speech of the victorious
ones,
And is the sound that accords with the inclinations of all
beings—

May I always be engaged with the buddhas' speech.
May I be engaged through the power of my mind
In the inexhaustible melodic speech
Of the victorious ones appearing in the three times
Who turn the dharma like a wheel.

As all future kalpas are penetrated
May I also penetrate them instantly;
May I be engaged in and penetrate, in each part of an instant,
As many kalpas as are in the three times.

May I see instantly
Those lions among humans appearing in the three times.
May I always be engaged in their sphere of experience
Through the power of illusion-like liberation.

May I produce in a single atom
All the arrays of realms there are in the three times;
May I be engaged with the arrays of the buddha realms
In all directions always.

Those lamps of the worlds who have not yet appeared
Will gradually awaken, turn the dharma wheel,
And demonstrate nirvana, the final peace—
May I go into the presence of those protectors.

Through the power of swift miracles,
The power of the yana, the door,
The power of conduct endowed with excellent qualities,
The power of all-pervasive love,

The power of virtuous merit,
The power of wisdom free from attachments,
And the powers of knowledge, methods, and samadhi—
May I perfectly accomplish the power of awakening.

May I purify the power of karma,
Conquer the power of kleshas,
Render the power of maras powerless,
And perfect the power of excellent conduct.

May I purify oceans of realms,
Liberate oceans of beings,
Behold oceans of dharma,
Realize oceans of wisdom.

Purify oceans of conduct,
Perfect oceans of aspiration prayers,
Offer to oceans of buddhas,
And act without weariness throughout oceans of kalpas.

All the victorious ones who appear in the three times
Awaken into enlightenment through the excellent conduct
Of various aspiration prayers for awakened conduct—
May I perfect all of these.

The eldest son of the victorious ones
Is called Samantabhadra by name.
I dedicate all this virtue
That I may act with skill similar to his.

May I also be equal to him
In his skill in excellent dedications
For pure body, speech, and mind,
Pure conduct and pure realms.

May I act according to the aspiration prayers of Manjushri
In order to perform excellent virtuous actions.
Not tiring throughout future kalpas,
May I perfect these activities.

May my conduct be without measure.
May my qualities also be measureless.
Remaining within conduct without measure,
May I send out emanations.

Sentient beings extend as far as the limits of space;
May my aspiration prayers extend
As far as the limits of their karma and kleshas.

Though someone adorns with precious jewels
The infinite realms of the ten directions, and offers these to the buddhas,
Or offers the supreme happiness of gods and men
For kalpas as numerous as atoms in the realms,

The genuine merit of someone who
Hears this king of dedications,
Who is inspired towards supreme awakening,
And gives rise to faith in it is more supreme

Whoever makes this Aspiration Prayer for Excellent Conduct
Will be free from the lower realms,
And free from negative friends;
They will see Amitabha soon,

Acquire all benefits and be sustained in happiness—
With all of this their life will go well.
Before long they will become
Just like Samantabhadra.

Whatever has been done through the power of not knowing,
All evil, even the five acts of immediate consequence,
Will be quickly purified
By those who recite this Excellent Conduct.

They will possess wisdom, beauty and the signs,
Be of good family with fine complexion.
They will not be overpowered by maras or tirthikas;
The three worlds will make offerings to them.

They will soon go before the bodhi tree,
And having gone there, they will sit to benefit beings,
Awaken into enlightenment, turn the dharma wheel,
And subdue all maras and their hordes.

The full ripening for those who are involved with, teach or
recite
This Aspiration Prayer for Excellent Conduct
Is known only by the buddhas;
Without any doubt, it is supreme enlightenment.

I dedicate all this virtue,
Following and emulating
The warrior Manjushri who is omniscient,
As is Samantabhadra.

With dedications, praised as supreme
By the victorious ones who appear in the three times,
I dedicate all my roots of virtue
Towards excellent conduct.

When the time of death comes for me
May all my obscurations vanish;
Seeing Amitabha directly
May I go to his realm of Sukhavati.

Having gone there,
May I actualize all these aspiration prayers,
Fulfill them completely,
And benefit beings as long as worlds exist.

May I be born within a beautiful lotus
In that excellent and joyous realm of the victorious one;
And from the victorious one Amitabha directly
May I receive a prophecy.

Having received his prophecy there,
May I benefit all beings in the ten directions
Through the power of my mind
With many billions of emanations.

Through whatever slight virtue I have accumulated
By making this Aspiration Prayer for Excellent Conduct,
May the virtue of this aspiration prayers for all beings
Be accomplished instantly.

By the infinite and genuine merit,
Attained through dedicating The Aspiration Prayer for
Excellent Conduct,
May all beings drowning in the rivers of sufferings
Reach the place of Amitabha.

May this King of Aspiration Prayers
Being about the supreme aim and benefit for all infinite
beings;
Completing this scripture adorned by Samantabhadra,
May the lower realms be empty.

This completes The King of Aspiration Prayers, The Aspiration Prayer for
Excellent Conduct

The supplication Clearing the Path of Obstacles

om ah hum vajra guru padma siddhi hum

I supplicate the dharmakaya Amitabha.
I supplicate the sambhogakaya Mahakarunika.
I supplicate the nirmanakaya Padmakara.

My guru, the wondrous nirmanakaya,
Was born in India, where he engaged in hearing and thinking.
He came to Central Tibet and subdued the haughty.
Abiding in Uddiyana, he benefits beings.

Through your compassion, grant your blessing.
Through your kindness, lead us on the path.
Through your wisdom, grant me siddhi.
Through your power, dispel our obstacles.
Dispel outer obstacles outside.
Dispel inner obstacles inside.
Dispel secret obstacles in the expanse.
I humbly bow and go for refuge.
om ah hum vajra guru padma siddhi hum

When the wondrousness of your body was first seen,
Your right hand formed the sword mudra.
Your left formed the mudra of summoning.
With gaping mouth and bared fangs, you gazed upward.
Gyalway Dungdzin, beings' protector,

Through your compassion, grant your blessing.
Through your kindness, lead us on the path.
Through your wisdom, grant me siddhi.
Through your power, dispel our obstacles.
Dispel outer obstacles outside.
Dispel inner obstacles inside.
Dispel secret obstacles in the expanse.
I humbly bow and go for refuge.
om ah hum vajra guru padma siddhi hum

When listening to the precious genuine dharma,
Your body was lustrous and brilliant with light-rays.
Your right hand held a volume of the tripitaka.
Your left hand held a volume of Kila.
You've comprehended profound dharma.
Pandita of Yanglesh.

Through your compassion, grant your blessing.
Through your kindness, lead us on the path.
Through your wisdom, grant me siddhi.
Through your power, dispel our obstacles.
Dispel outer obstacles outside.
Dispel inner obstacles inside.
Dispel secret obstacles in the expanse.
I humbly bow and go for refuge.
om ah hum vajra guru padma siddhi hum

When binding those you bound to samaya,
You passed through a stainless, delightful place.
Crossing the border between India and Tibet,
You blessed it as you went.
On Fragrant Mountain
Lotus flowers were born even in winter.
Springs gave forth the amrita of awakening.
In that supreme, delightful place,
Kyechok Tsulzang, you wore the three dharma robes.
Your right hand held a nine-pointed vajra.
Your left hand held a precious vessel
Filled with rakta and amrita.
You bound dakinis and others to samaya.
You saw the faces of yidams and attained siddhi.

Through your compassion, grant your blessing.
Through your kindness, lead us on the path.
Through your wisdom, grant me siddhi.
Through your power, dispel our obstacles.
Dispel outer obstacles outside.
Dispel inner obstacles inside.
Dispel secret obstacles in the expanse.
I humbly bow and go for refuge.
om ah hum vajra guru padma siddhi hum

When planting the buddhadharma,
You practiced in a slate-mountain forest.
You cast your approach kila into the expanse of the sky.
You retrieved it with the vajramudra and rolled it.
Rolling it, you cast it into the sandalwood forest.
It blazed with fire, drying up a lake.
At night, it burnt the tirthikas' land
And pulverized the black yaksha.
Peerless Dukyi Shechen.

Through your compassion, grant your blessing.
Through your kindness, lead us on the path.
Through your wisdom, grant me siddhi.
Through your power, dispel our obstacles.
Dispel outer obstacles outside.
Dispel inner obstacles inside.
Dispel secret obstacles in the expanse.
I humbly bow and go for refuge.
om ah hum vajra guru padma siddhi hum

When subjugating the rakshasas,
You have the appearance of a young boy
With a wondrous form and a fine complexion.
Your teeth are even, your hair blonde and beautiful.
With the form of a sixteen year old,
You wear a variety of precious jewelry.
Your right hand holds a kila of brass.
You subjugate maras and rakshasas.
Your left hand holds a kila of sandalwood.
You protect your devoted disciples.
You wear at your throat a kila of iron.
You are not other than the yidam deva.
Non-dual dharmakaya Dzamling Gyen,

Through your compassion, grant your blessing.
Through your kindness, lead us on the path.
Through your wisdom, grant me siddhi.
Through your power, dispel our obstacles.
Dispel outer obstacles outside.
Dispel inner obstacles inside.
Dispel secret obstacles in the expanse.
I humbly bow and go for refuge.
om ah hum vajra guru padma siddhi hum

When you considered the land of spirits,
On the ground amid a mass of fire
Appeared a lake of bowshot's width.
Within it, you appeared, cool and unharmed, on a lotus.
You abided in wisdom on that lotus.
You became known as Padmakara,
A buddha actually present.
Nirmanakaya of such wonders,

Through your compassion, grant your blessing.
Through your kindness, lead us on the path.
Through your wisdom, grant me siddhi.
Through your power, dispel our obstacles.
Dispel outer obstacles outside.
Dispel inner obstacles inside.
Dispel secret obstacles in the expanse.
I humbly bow and go for refuge.
om ah hum vajra guru padma siddhi hum

When you became the sun of Tibet,
Glorious leader of faithful beings,
You displayed whatever form would tame.
In the pass of Tsangkhala
You bound drala upasakas to samaya.
In hot Tsashö you bound
Twenty-one haughty deva upasakas
To samaya. At Jamtrin
In Mangyul you bestowed siddhi
Upon four bhikshus
Great Kyepak Rikdzin.

Through your compassion, grant your blessing.
Through your kindness, lead us on the path.
Through your wisdom, grant me siddhi.
Through your power, dispel our obstacles.
Dispel outer obstacles outside.
Dispel inner obstacles inside.
Dispel secret obstacles in the expanse.
I humbly bow and go for refuge.
om ah hum vajra guru padma siddhi hum

In the valley of Palmotang
You bound the twelve Tenmas to samaya.
In the Khala Pass into Tibet
You bound Gangkar Shamey to samaya.
In front of the Damshö Lhanying
You bound Thanglha Yarshu to samaya.
On the peak of Mount Hepo
You bound all devas and rakshasas to samaya.
Of all those great devas and rakshasas,
Some offered their life-essence mantras.
Some began to guard the dharma.
Some promised to serve.
You with great power, miracles, and strength,

Through your compassion, grant your blessing.
Through your kindness, lead us on the path.
Through your wisdom, grant me siddhi.
Through your power, dispel our obstacles.
Dispel outer obstacles outside.
Dispel inner obstacles inside.
Dispel secret obstacles in the expanse.
I humbly bow and go for refuge.
om ah hum vajra guru padma siddhi hum

When you planted the sublime
Dharma like a victory banner,
Samye arose spontaneously, without being built.
You fulfilled the king's intentions.
Great being, you bear three names.
One is Padmakara.
One is Padmasambhava.
One is Lake-Born Vajra.
Your secret name is Dorje Drakpotsal.

Through your compassion, grant your blessing.
Through your kindness, lead us on the path.
Through your wisdom, grant me siddhi.
Through your power, dispel our obstacles.
Dispel outer obstacles outside.
Dispel inner obstacles inside.
Dispel secret obstacles in the expanse.
I humbly bow and go for refuge.
om ah hum vajra guru padma siddhi hum

At Samye Chimpu you engaged in accomplishment.
You repelled adversity and bestowed siddhi.
You placed the king and ministers on the path of liberation.
You defeated the demonic Bön tradition.
You displayed the stainless, precious dharmakaya.
You placed the worthy on the level of buddhahood.

Through your compassion, grant your blessing.
Through your kindness, lead us on the path.
Through your wisdom, grant me siddhi.
Through your power, dispel our obstacles.
Dispel outer obstacles outside.
Dispel inner obstacles inside.
Dispel secret obstacles in the expanse.
I humbly bow and go for refuge.
om ah hum vajra guru padma siddhi hum

Then you went to Uddiyana,
And are now subjugating the rakshasas.
You are wondrous, superhuman.
Your deeds are marvelous, amazing.
You with great power, miracles, and strength.

Through your compassion, grant your blessing.
Through your kindness, lead us on the path.
Through your wisdom, grant me siddhi.
Through your power, dispel our obstacles.
Dispel outer obstacles outside.
Dispel inner obstacles inside.
Dispel secret obstacles in the expanse.
I humbly bow and go for refuge.
om ah hum vajra guru padma siddhi hum

Guide of beings, with glorious body, speech, and mind,
You've abandoned all veils and clearly know the three realms.
You've gained supreme siddhi, the body of great bliss.
You dispel all obstacles to the accomplishment of awakening.

Through your compassion, grant your blessing.
Through your kindness, lead us on the path.
Through your wisdom, grant me siddhi.
Through your power, dispel our obstacles.
Dispel outer obstacles outside.
Dispel inner obstacles inside.
Dispel secret obstacles in the expanse.
I humbly bow and go for refuge.
om ah hum vajra guru padma siddhi hum
om ah hum guru padma tötrengtsal vajra samaya ja
siddhi phala hum ah

That was excerpted from "Outer Accomplishment through Supplication"
in Wish-fulfilling Jewel Heart Scripture of Oral Instructions on the Sadhana
of the Guru's Mind, Dispelling All Obstacles, recovered by the emanated treasure-revealer Chokgyur Dechen Lingpa from beneath the feet of the Great Splendor of Danyin Kala Rongo.