The Song of Mahamudra of Tilopa

SONG OF MAHAMUDRA by Tilopa

 

Mahamudra is beyond all words and symbols,

But for you, Naropa, earnest and loyal,

Must this be said:

The Void needs no reliance,

Mahamudra rests on nought.

Without making an effort,

But remaining loose and natural,

One can break the yoke-

Thus gaining Liberation.

 

 If one sees nought when staring into space;

If with the mind one then observes the mind,

One destroys distinctions and reaches Buddhahood.

 

The clouds that wander through the sky

Have no roots, no home;

Nor do the distinctive thoughts floating through the mind.

Once the Self-mind is seen,

Discrimination stops.

 

In space shapes and colours form,

But neither by black no white is space tinged.

From the Self-mind all things emerge,

The mind by virtues and by vices is not stained.

 

The darkness of ages

Cannot shroud the glowing sun;

The long kalpas of samsara

Ne’er can hide the Mind’s brilliant light.

 

Though words are spoken to explain the Void,

The Void as such can never be expressed.

Thought we say ‘the Mind is a bright light,’

It is beyond all words and symbols.

Although the Mind is void in essence,

All things it embraces and contains.

 

Do nought with the body but relax;

Shut firm the mouth and silent remain;

Empty your mind and think of nought.

Like a hollow bamboo rest at ease your body.

Giving not, nor taking, put your mind at rest.

Mahamudra is like a mind that clings to nought.

Thus practising, in time you will reach Buddhahood.

 

The practice of mantra and paramita,

Instruction in the sutras and precepts,

And teaching from the schools and scriptures,

Will not bring realization of the Innate Truth.

For if the mind when filled with some desire

Should seek a goal,

It only hides the Light.

 

He who keeps Tantric precepts, yet discriminates,

Betrays the spirit of samaya.

Cease all activity, abandon all desire,

Let thought rise and fall

As they will like ocean waves.

He who never harms the non-abiding,

Nor the principle of non-distinction, upholds the Tantric precepts.

 

He who abandons craving

And clings not to this or that,

Perceives the real meaning given in the scriptures.

 

In Mahamudra all one’s sins are burned;

In Mahamudra one is released

From the prison of this world.

This is the Dharma`s supreme torch.

Those who disbelieve it are fools,

Who ever wallow in misery and sorrow.

 

To strive for liberation

One should rely on a Guru.

When your mind receives his blessing

Emancipation is at hand.

 

Alas, all things in this world are meaningless,

But they’re sorrow’s seeds.

Small teachings lead to acts-

One should only follow teachings that are great.

 

To transcend duality is the kingly view.

To conquer distractions is the royal practice.

The path of no-practice is the way of all Buddhas.

He who treads that Path reaches Buddhahood.

 

Transient is this world,

Like phantoms and dreams, substance it has none.

Renounce it and forsake your kin,

On the strings of lust and hatred,

And meditate in woods and mountains.

 

If without effort

You remain loosely in the natural state,

Soon Mahamudra you will win

And attain the Non-attainment.

 

Cut the root of a tree and leaves will wither;

Cut the root of your mind and samsara falls.

The light of any lamp dispels in a moment

The darkness of long kalpas;

The strong light of the Mind in but a flash

Will burn the veil of ignorance.

 

Whoever clings to mind

Sees not the truth of what’s beyond the mind.

Whoever strives to practise Dharma

Finds not the truth of beyond-practice.

To know what is beyond both mind and practice

One should cut cleanly through the root of mind

And stare naked.

One should thus break away from all distinctions

And remain at ease.

 

One should not give or take,

But remain natural - for Mahamudra

Is beyond all acceptance and rejection.

Since alaya is not born,

No one can obstruct or soil it;

Staying in the unborn realm

All appearance will dissolve into the Dharmata,

And self-will and pride will vanish into nought.

 

The supreme understanding

Transcends all this and that.

The supreme action

Embraces great resourcefulness without attachment.

The supreme accomplishment

Is to realize immanence without hope.

 

At first a yogi feels his mind

Is tumbling like a waterfall;

In mid-course, like the Ganges,

It flows on slow and gentle;

In the end it is a great vast ocean

Where the lights of son and mother merge in one.