Teachings before the Marici Empowerment and Vajrasattva Empowerment – Singapore, September 12, 2025

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Today’s Dharma assembly has two main purposes: one is to transmit the Vajrasattva empowerment, and the other is to transmit the Marici empowerment at the request of several disciples. Although the original plan was to focus on the Vajrasattva empowerment, to fulfill everyone’s wishes, we will also briefly transmit the Marici empowerment.

We actually transmit the Marici empowerment almost every year in Malaysia, and have done so many times already. In Singapore and Malaysia, there are many disciples who diligently practice the Marici practice, and they have personally experienced many miraculous events and stories, so everyone has great faith in this deity and enjoys practicing her. Similarly, many practitioners here have also experienced the efficacy of the Mahakala teachings. We have transmitted the Marici empowerment in the past, including both simplified and extended versions, encompassing different lineages such as the Great Treasure Terma lineage and the Accomplishment Treasure Samadhi lineage, which everyone has already encountered.

Today, the focus will be on transmitting the Vajrasattva empowerment. This Vajrasattva teaching is a “definitive empowerment.” Although the ritual is relatively simple, its content is extremely profound. Many masters in the Kagyu and Nyingma schools currently regard it as one of the fundamental empowerments of the Vajrayana’s highest tantras. The complete extensive ritual requires two days, but today we are using the simplified version.

Why is Vajrasattva so important? It can be said that he is the root deity of the entire Vajrayana practice. In the various schools of Tibetan Buddhism—whether Nyingma, Kagyu, Sakya, Jonang, or Gelug—although the main deities differ, ultimately, these deities are all manifestations of Vajrasattva. For example, the fundamental scriptures of the Nyingma school’s Mahamaya Tantra are the teachings of Vajrasattva; the main deities of the Sakya school, Hevajra and Vajrakilaya, are the wrathful forms of Vajrasattva; the Kagyu school’s emphasis on Chakrasamvara is also a manifestation of Vajrasattva; and the Gelug school’s emphasis on Guhyasamaja practice also belongs to the Mahamaya Tantra system, its root still being Vajrasattva. Even the ultimate attainment is the state of “Vajradhara Buddha”—that is, the state of Vajrasattva. Therefore, from the initial manifestation of the deity in practice to the final attainment, Vajrasattva is indispensable.

In Tibetan Buddhism, no lineage does not practice Vajrasattva. For beginners entering Vajrayana, the first practice is often the Vajrasattva Hundred Syllable Mantra. Many rituals include Vajrasattva practice before and after: initially to purify karmic obscurations, making practice easier; and finally, to repent for any errors in visualization or recitation that may have occurred during practice, thus perfecting the merit.

For those of us who have taken vows—whether Pratimoksha vows, Bodhisattva vows, or Vajrayana vows—completely maintaining pure vows is extremely difficult. Because of insufficient meditative concentration and a lack of steadfast resolve, mistakes are inevitable. Does this mean we should ignore them? Of course not. We must immediately repent, letting the past be the past, and recognizing each day as a new beginning. The most supreme method of repentance is the Vajrasattva Hundred Syllable Mantra.

This Hundred Syllable Mantra is not just the mantra of Vajrasattva, but the common mantra of all Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. It can purify all the sins committed by our body, speech, and mind, especially the transgressions of breaking the samaya vows. In both Han and Tibetan Buddhism, repentance practices occupy a significant place—Han Buddhism has the Liang Emperor’s Repentance Ceremony and the Golden Light Repentance Ceremony, while Tibetan Buddhism has the tradition of monthly smoke offerings, fire offerings, and regular repentance practices. This shows that repentance is not for self-denial or punishment, but to make us purer and more powerful.

It is extremely auspicious for practitioners to consistently recite the Hundred Syllable Mantra daily. This teaching is being transmitted because you actively requested it. In esoteric Buddhism, some teachings require disciples to repeatedly request them, and the guru will only transmit them after observing that the conditions are ripe. For example, I requested certain teachings from my guru for seven or eight years, more than twenty times, before he finally transmitted them. It is precisely because it is so difficult to obtain that we cherish it all the more. Although the Vajrasattva practice is extremely sublime, if it were too easily obtained, people would not easily develop a sense of appreciation for it.

After receiving the empowerment today, those who wish to practice can continue practicing the Hundred Syllable Mantra. Those with ample time can practice the extended version, while those with less time can practice the simplified version. Regarding the mantra, either the short mantra “Om Vajrasattva Hum” or the long Hundred Syllable Mantra can be recited.

This practice is of immense benefit to everyone, both in this life and the next. I hope everyone will generate faith and practice accordingly.

Next, we will first transmit the Marici empowerment, and then the Vajrasattva empowerment.

Om Vajrasattva Hum

This text was compiled by a faithful disciple based on the teachings of the greatly kind root guru. If there is any misinterpretation of the guru’s meaning, I prostrate and repent to the guru and the lineage masters!