nd Path, is none other than enlightenment, the realization of our full human potential. But as part of the Mahayana, it goes beyond personal accomplishment and also seeks to relieve all beings from confusion and suffering. These two benefits, for oneself and others, are accomplished through the two meanings, Wisdom and Skillful Means (Tib: Sherab and Tab). Wisdom and Means relate to the polarity of ultimate and relative reality, that strange paradox wherein the diverse forms and phenomena of the material world coexists alongside the ultimate, open and luminous matrix from which they arise! Wisdom is the direct experience and dwelling in that ultimate state. Skillful Means are the ways in which we act in this world to relieve the suffering of those who cannot see beyond the relative. The goal is to engender Wisdom in others, while working to alleviate the infinite ways in which beings experience pain and limitation. Thus, Tibetan spirituality contains many practical methods for helping us in our daily struggles.
Naturally, one of the most important ways of benefiting others and ourselves is through the art of healing. In the Tibetan culture, the wandering chöpa was called upon regularly to minster to all manner of sickness of body and mind. Further, the rigorous life of the the nomadic yogi or yogini required remarkable fortitude and vital strength. Thus, since the time of MaChik, the field of chö developed a rich tradition of healing practices and rituals. These vary in duration, style, melody and performance. But they all share the same fundamental understandings about the nature of sickness and health, and have a similar approach to clearing the deeper causes of illness, while augmenting the forces that bring about health.
Demons of Sickness
For the chöpa, illness is involved with three closely associated phenomena: the five elements, the lha and dre (gods and demons) and karmic debts. In Tibetan medicine and tantric physiology, disturbances of the five elements of earth, water, air, fire and space are the basis of physical illness. These elements are the core building blocks of the outer world, of our bodies and our psyche. Thus their deficiency, excess or impurity has profound effects on our well-being. This knowledge was part of all ancient healing systems, from India, Egypt, Greece and the Middle East, almost up to our own time, when reductionism and mental confusion obscured even these most basic facts. The five elements are also connected with the five poisons, the five directions, the five colors, five dakinis, five Buddhas, and in the case of chöd, the five demons. These relationships form the basis of certain chöd healing ceremonies, as we shall see below. The lha and dre are a complex mix of negative entities, forces, demons and spirits. On the one hand, they are all are hopes (our inner gods) and fears (our inner demons) that need to be resolved and cut through. They are also the personification of all that hinders, obstructs, limits and deludes us. Finally, they are the actual class of non-human entities that we call spirits, ghosts and demons. These are closely linked to the last factor, karma. The demonic, disease-causing forces are termed "len-chak" and "bu-lon," beings to whom we owe tremendous karmic debts, and debts of flesh. Generally the hostile entities and situations that come against us are the forces of karmic retribution. They have a strong link to us, and seek a form of repayment for the suffering we have caused in countless past lives, spiralling through infinity. Generally, this karma is specific in terms of type and intensity. If we took life, we experience sickness; If we took wealth, we experience impoverishment.
The Approach to Cure
Chöd uses the body as the basis for vast generosity to the well known Four Classes of Guests. It is the fourth class, the lower guests of karmic retribution, to whom the healing chöd rites are particularly addressed. The purpose is to balance the five elements, satisfy the lha and dre, and repay karmic debts. Such healing practices, done for others, require the participants to lie down, while the practitioners/chödpas preside over the ritual. All protective lockets, initiation cords and rosaries need to be removed, as we are not trying to ward off demons or prevent their access, but invite them to feast! During the course of these practices, the consciousness of the participants is released though Powa, and is put in a place of "safe-keeping," such as the heart of MaChik, YumChenmo, Troma or other arenas of pure, untarnished Wisdom Mind. The negativity karma and defilements of the individuals is then transferred, through the power of mantra and meditation, to a substitute or effigy (Lingka), which is later offered as part of the feast. While rituals then very in performance from this point, in all cases there is the usual preparation and transformation of the corpse (of the sick individuals), and then offering to the guests in various ways.
The Rituals
The most important and extensive healing rituals exist within the original tradition of MaChik Labdron, preserved in the compilation entitled Rinpoche Tsogley Trengwa, The Precious Rosary of Offerings. These texts, collected by the third Karmapa and later collated by Karma Chagmé, represent the original material that, as far as we know, originated in the earliest days of chöd, directly with MaChik and her close teachers and disciples. In all cases, they are "addendum". That is, they are add-ons, inserted at the appropriate place in more complete daily practices. Any full practice of chöd, whether condensed or extensive, is an appropriate vehicle for attaching a healing ritual. Below is a list of the main healing rituals from the MaChik Tradition:
- The Nail of the Four Elements
- Healing in Six Parts
- The Hundred Changbu
- A special healing section within the Rinchne Tsogley Trengwa
Kunzang Dechen Lingpa has four different healing chöd, largely based on the MaChik system, which included a Six-Part Offering, a Tsok,
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