Guru Yoga > Seven Limbs > Offering > Thatness offering Flashcards
What is the verse relating to the thatness offering?
I offer you the supreme, ultimate bodhichitta,
A great exalted wisdom of spontaneous bliss free from obstructions,
Inseparable from the nature of all phenomena, the sphere of freedom from elaboration,
Effortless, and beyond words, thoughts and expressions
What is ‘thatness’?
Emptiness, the ultimate nature of all phenomena.
What do we offer?
Ultimate bodhichitta, a mind of spontaneous great bliss mixed inseparably with emptiness.
Why are the red and white drops called ‘bodhichittas’?
Because they are the basis for developing actual ultimate bodhichitta. Without these drops, we would have no means of gaining any completion stage realization.
What does ‘free from obstructions’ mean?
It means that Guru Heruka’s exalted wisdom of spontaneous great bliss has completely abandoned both the delusion-obstructions and the obstructions to omniscience.
What does ‘Inseparable from the nature of all phenomena, the sphere of freedom from elaboration’?
‘Sphere’ refers to emptiness, and ‘elaboration’ refers to inherent existence, i.e. ultimate bodhichitta is inseparable from emptiness, lack of inherent existence.
What should we do once we have a rough understanding of emptiness?
We should try to generate spontaneous great bliss by training in completion stage meditation.
Why can the clear light mind mix so easily with emptiness?
It is totally free from conceptual distraction. Being completely free from gross objects, the mind of clear light mixes with emptiness in space-like meditative equipoise. With respect to this mind, all phenomena are of one taste in space-like emptiness.
Explain the nature of the actual Guru, Vajradhara.
Vajradhara is sometimes called ‘kyab dag’ in Tibetan, which means ‘pervading all natures’. This means that the ultimate bodhichitta that is Guru Vajradhara’s Truth Body is inseparable from the nature of all phenomena. The two truths are the same nature. Only Buddhas are completely free from grasping the two truths as separate entities.
What does ‘beyond words, thoughts and expressions’ mean?
Ultimate bodhichitta is necessarily a direct experience of emptiness, free from conceptuality. Someone who has a direct experience of emptiness cannot adequately describe this experience in words, but can only point to it by means of analogies.
“Emptiness is said to be inexpressible, but you have described it as clearly as something seen with the eyes.”
