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ISSN 1084-7553
 
  IJTS Vol. 1, No. 2
November 1995

  Editorial Note
  The Dance of...
   Setting
   The Tradition...
   The Guru...
   The Guru...
   The Tenth Day...
   The Eight Aspects...
   Conclusion...
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The Dance of the Guru's Eight Aspects 
by Cathy Cantwell

Picture 1. The first black hat dance (lam-sgron)The Tenth Day 'Chams. The Guru mTshan brgyad 'chams in Rewalsar is performed in the context of an intensive practice session of MahAyoga ritual. From the monks' perspective, the public dance represents a culmination of several days of meditation and mantra recitation. MahAyoga is one of the ''Inner Tantras'' in the rNying-ma-pa classification system, in which visual imagery is relied upon. From the time of empowerment, the practitioner should experience himself and other beings as manifestations of the enlightened deity form, and all phenomena as the attributes of the divine palace and maNDala (transformed circle of the universe). In 1982, the specific practice performed was that of the bDud-'joms Bla-sgrub, a practice designed to ''accomplish the heart/mind (thugs) of the lama'', in this case, in the form of Guru Padma. The main visualisation is that of the maNDala of HayagrIva with consort, surrounded by DAkinI emanations, together with male 'ging', beyond which there is an outer circle of numerous other deities. Above HayagrIva arises the central form of Guru Padma, encircled by his Thod-phreng-rtsal emanations in the four cardinal directions, each one associated with one of the ''Buddha families'',29 and beyond these, his eight aspects (mtshan brgyad) arise above the eight points of the compass. Picture 2. The second black hat dance (drag-'chams)After the completion of the Generation and Invitation to the maNDala deities, together with ritual activities such as making offerings and reciting praises to them, the main practice through which the practitioner fully realises his identity with the lama, is performed. In the first stage (the ''Approach''), the practitioner identifies with HayagrIva, and reciting the mantra of Guru Padma, he imagines the Guru/lama upon his head. Then he receives empowerment through light rays from the Guru dissolving into himself. Finally, Guru Padma and his retinue arise within his/HayagrIva's heart, and within the Guru's heart, the seed-syllable, surrounded by the syllables of the mantra, radiate light, purifying and transforming all beings into the lama. With the understanding that the nature of one's own mind is inseparable from that of the lama, and that all appearances are nothing other than his form, all sounds are his mantra, and all thoughts his mind, the Thod-phreng-rtsal mantra is recited and the ''Accomplishment'' stage effected. A further meditation on accomplishing enlightened activities completes the main practice.

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