Thank you for everyone joining us today. It's very nice to see your faces and to meet you virtually.
I feel very honoured to be in your presence. Some of my work dovetails very much with some of your work.
And so please correct me or raise any issues that you see with what I'm presenting today.
This presentation is a kind of a beginning work on devotional literature and stemming from what my dissertation work was,
was really looking at how devotion functions philosophically and epistemologically for the Naghma tradition.
And I did that looking through several four one foundational practises, Ninjago practises, and especially how it is used within Guri Yoga.
Let me NLG or practises and trying to understand what devotion really is for the Tibetan tradition.
So this work kind of just moves from that a little bit in trying to start to explore
how we can look at devotional literature maybe as a whole for Tibetan Buddhism.
And so just to give you a little skewed skip.
So today, we're going to look at three different text.
Two are by the third DOJ option, Jack Tim Venema 19th century and really touching upon excerpts found within these texts on his teacher,
Jaime Rankins, a wonderful also 19th century. And so just for an introduction, the third Gyptian, he was Lenio, holder of the launching Neme Tech.
And about the eight at the age of eight years old, patcher reemphasise Shay heard him speak and told Junkins they won't go about the student.
And so put them to into contact Junkins.
A one poll is recognised at the age of 12 by as a tazi Kenshin jump on them came to me.
And he's also.
Described as being a reincarnation of Jemmy Hlinka and whether that recognition was during his life or after his life is still in question.
But he also holds a special place for the English tradition and also.
An important influencer for the remain movement. So those are kind of them.
That's the main relationship and for devotion, I'm going to look at our highlights for today.
And in doing so, we'll look at three different texts.
The first one is a commentary by the third DOJ option on Guru Yoga call Lomé Nilgiri, Gachet, HRC.
So numb, soothing soul creep to Chow drooped. Quantic Peltier.
And so there's a few points. The attacks where the third DOJ option is really exploring or sharing stories about Jumia and can say one post.
Some of them are miracle stories. One in particular is junkins.
A oneko is sitting outside in the cold and it's snowing and the snow is melting.
And so he's telling this miracle story.
And then other points in the text, he's also giving commentary on how can say one, pose qualities, mirror Buddha qualities and so forth.
The second text I'm going to look at is he.
You'll you look in Gimbal, Monju, Suryadarma, Tom, Matrah Shuk, you took some JoPa shifting to Galway Tair,
which is really recalling past lives for I mean, you can say one pole.
I'm just beginning to translate this text so I don't have a lot to share on it.
But what I do have translated, I want to share with you to show how we can see some characteristics in this text and how it also mirrors
the practises of Morioka and how that their dilution is connecting his teacher to Boota qualities.
And then finally, my last texts and I'm going to touch on is by Lone Jinpa as a lama young tickets sold up deucy trin soke,
which is really a supplication prayer. He's praying to the Linnean Man Masters and praying for to have his own realisation.
And I chose this one simply because I translated this one as well.
So I thought it was a nice way to kind of in the presentation.
So those are the three texts that we're going to look at today just to kind of get an opening,
an introduction to how we might conceive or constitute devotional literature for the Tibetan tradition.
And so just to look at the question,
I'm asking this question primarily because from what I have seen so far and understanding categories of Tibetan literature that we don't formally see,
I see a category called devotional literature.
There's one for one example, Hosie Cabazon in Tibetan Literature gives an outline to try to help the readers navigate through that work.
These different categories.
And so we have some that we might kind of instinctively see as devotional literature and some maybe that we would not consider so quickly,
such as long life prayers or, you know, sometimes we might think consider a song to be devotional.
There can be also other intentions or readings of those text and having other purposes.
But oftentimes we see that, you know, text and literature were written to help raise devotion for Tibetan Buddhists within the tradition.
And then also, I want to point out that we have certain categories that might also contain other types of literature within them.
So Dr. Rustler's work in one of her articles in the Life writing series, it was one of your conferences at Oxford.
She speaks about how there may be smaller or other texts within a autobiography or a biography like a sold for a song or something.
And so within even a piece of work, we find other types of work that we can consider or might consider as devotional or what is what is it?
What is it doing for the reader? What is it doing for the author? And so on.
So I just want to bring up that. When we look at these categories, we don't necessarily seise devotional literature for faith literature.
So that's why I raised this question of how do we constitute something as a devotional
literature if we're not seeing that category being presented from the Tibetan tradition itself.
And so to kind of move forward on this understanding. Here are some examples of what we might conceive as devotional literature, right, sold up.
Verse eulogies, sometimes liberation stories, non Tar's might be considered written to raise faith for the reader.
Long life prayers are praising to the lineage masters.
And I also want to raise our understanding of devotion that it may not necessarily just be for religiosity or connexion, and that's in that sphere.
But also we can understand devotion to political or social or even economic.
Connexion that we see.
So when we look at the word devotion from a Tibetan understanding that this may cover a broader range than what we first understand,
devotion to be in relationship to only religion.
So to begin this understanding of devotional literature,
I define devotional literature as a piece of work or an excerpt of work that has a potential to cultivate devotion for the reader.
We sometimes we see it for the author itself. But I think that there are texts also operating for the reader.
And in this way, I am borrowing from theories of Rossett theory and how Rossow was written for the reader.
So as an Botten, IKEA devotional literature is similar to how Rossell refers to an actual experience and hence cannot be belong to a character.
The whole purpose of literature is to in is the enjoyment of Rozz.
And so it can only belong to the viewing or reading subject. And that's from a the reader.
And so I guess what I want to bring up for this is that the act of reading for a reader in text is performance,
that there is something occurring for the reader. There is a connexion happening from the reader with the material in the text.
And that connexion may also extend to other elements that are not expressed in the literature itself.
And then also within that as its performance and necessarily it is embodied.
It also may or may not raise up these ideas or experiences of emotion or affect or something else.
And I hesitate to think that the intention of devotional literature is to bring up
emotion because emotion is not really something that is cultivated for Buddhist paths.
It's not something that's helpful.
And as we will see later, devotion is considered as the key element for many tantric practises, especially guri yoga.
That one must have devotion. One must cultivate devotion to realise Buddhahood for tantric practises.
And so we have to start to dissect this understanding that devotion is necessarily emotional.
That it may. It may not be. It may be. But that's not the end result, that there is something more occurring for that individual.
And so in that way, devotion. Does not equate to some sort of emotion.
So, again, just to kind of help us understand where we're going.
Devotion does not imply an emotion, right? We don't have a Tibetan epistemological carrot category.
Devotion is not newin drip or a shade drip. It is a it is a mental state for Obbie, Dharma.
But it is not something that is considered to be.
Afflicted. Also, devotions, signals, connexion between the reader and content,
which represents practise or lineage or a social context, political context, et cetera.
And then lastly, a devotional connexion does affect the reader.
There is some sort of experience that is that is occurring for the reader, him or herself.
And sometimes his affect can include qualities such as weeping or a heart opening sensation or even a knowing quality.
So I am going to even suggest that devotion is a knowing quality for whether it's a reader in the for the literature or in practise itself.
Because as we've seen for a gallery, yoga practises, devotion leads to this knowing.
So I really want to break apart the entomology of devotion, the Tibetan word Mugu Millthorpe itself, as we see it in the six to Chimayo.
It's a verb and can be equated to the word confidence UK or a mind that aspires.
And it's a subdivision of the five object determining mental factors as possessing knowledge for the Dharma,
which apprehends only an actual thing and is not distracted by another object.
So in the context of guru yoga practises is the meditator is focussing on his meditational object,
which is a deity, which is also one's teacher or master in the aspects of a deity.
And so there's a there's a focus. There's the meditator is not wandering away.
But this really focussed on the meditation object, which can, you know,
we see to be dualistic in creation stage practises, but can also, from what I suggest in my dissertation,
that that dualistic focus of meditator onto an object, those that dualism can or may dissolve in that there is this for the completion stage practise.
And there is a there is a knowing quality that continues afterwards and may or may not be dualistic.
So we see Mopar to really be a focus for the mind.
That is not necessarily how we might consider devotion to be in a Judeo Christian Christian context or this idea of.
Maybe blindly or just following after something.
But there's a real knowing quality for the meditator that there's there's some experience and some.
Familiar charity with the object itself. And because of that familiarity and knowing it focuses is interested.
So I've translated Mopar for as interest to kind of demonstrate that quality.
So that's the first half. McGoo. And for the second half.
Gupta. Gupta is. Can be defined as paying respect with a clear mind.
It is the word which connotes the placing of oneself in a lower position.
Sometimes, I think also in contemporary context, the idea of respect or being a student is taken as lesser than.
But it's really just connoting a connexion between a student and a master where the student understands that
the master is offering something that the student is wanting to receive and that this also that the master is.
Emulating qualities that the student also aspires to have and to be.
And so this part of the word, I suggest suggests a connexion.
So there's a connecter connexion and an interest. When we talk about devotion in the Tibetan tradition.
So I want to take this understanding of Mugu into our understanding of devotional literature.
So when is it we see a respectful connexion, an interest between the author and his material?
When do we see a connexion, an interest between the reader and the material and what the material represents?
On a larger scale. So this is how I start to look at some of these pieces of literature and understanding how it is.
It is devotional for the Tibetan tradition. And so for my first scuse me.
Quote, This one comes from the Guru yoga commentary and third, though,
Gyptian starts off as for as long as the face of Junkins a Wankel abides and samsara,
the prophecy stated that no one would need to fear barbarians in Tibet.
And I'll let you kind of read the rest of it.
And I'm going to skip down to the bottom of it just to spare you from reading even a moment of your capacity to pray.
It's done a cause except through wearing my face comes as a great blessing where difficult does not arise and not as a small blessing.
So this one's coming from a guru yoga practise guru.
Yoga practises when a meditator is said to see the face of the deity or see the face of the teacher as mean that they've
had some sort of experience of realisation and knowing of what is being represented by that face or that of Buddhahood.
And so here we see the third Egyptian mentioned is so for as long as someone is seeing the face of Joan Kinsey Oneko,
I suggest alluding to the idea of being in that state of devotion,
as it's understood for guru yoga and connecting into the wisdom that is manifesting through the aspects of genuine can,
say, one poet as a deity in glory, yoga. And then so there's the meditator is.
Connecting to that in that moment that they are no longer in some Sara and receive these great blessings and will not have difficulties.
So right away we are seeing connexions between the guru yoga tantric practises
and what those type tantric practises are trying to connect this student.
To the meditation object, and it's all being done through this devotional connexion in relationship to their master.
John Muir and Kinsey Oneko for the third Doderer option. So here I start to see this in this passage,
but also throughout this commentary on GOURI yoga and how he's bringing up Jumia and Kinzie
Oneko and how they are really trying to connect the reader into something larger through this,
through genuine Kinzie. So that excerpt from the Guru Yoga practise, we see it's devotional.
The third Egyptian is remembering his his teacher. He's saying that whenever one remembers the face of German kids, a Wang Po.
There isn't there. There is no pain. There is no sum, Sara. And so it is clearly an expression of devotion and connexion.
But yet this these passages are situated within a larger text, which is a commentary on unglue yoga.
So we would see the name of the text not necessarily titled devotional literature, as we notice.
There is we don't see a category of devotional literature,
but yet here we have excerpts found within the text that are clearly expressing just that, that connexion and relationship.
And so we could. May understand this to be an entirety of devotional literature or we see smaller pieces within that.
And we've got to go on to our next passage. So this one is from the.
Recalling the past lives of genuine, a one poll by the third Gyptian.
And here, my teacher,
Monju Srey yay in space Sebou to teach youths climb to the peak of the mountains of the two accumulations and then in the skip a little bit.
But just to show how it's really starting to describe this same sort of landscape and imagery that occurs within a guru yoga practise.
Right. The the the text itself starts to elaborate upon the landscape and what the meditation object starts to look like.
So here we have John. You can say Wong Po. He's sitting there.
He was born from an ocean of compassion. He's at his kindness, draws in the mind.
One is joyous when they see this Gizzi, Jaime and kids, they won't post sitting like this.
Everything turns to beautiful songs,
and immediately the reader is transformed into a new landscape and a new sort of affect that's occurring from the text itself.
So by. Giving German Kinzie once post name, there's a connexion to him and what he represents.
And then also on another level with a satirical,
logical connexion that the reader may be able to connect into these other aspects that are similar to the yoga practises.
So the author connects these two together for the reader before it continues this week.
Ajemian Kinzie, one post praises. And so generating faith and devotion.
I just want to say many texts are written with an intention to generate faith and devotion.
And Dr. Rosler, in the same article I was mentioning about life writings,
that the texts mirror a specific type of knowing, knowing of enlightenment and Buddhahood.
And so as masters and lineage holders and particular persons are qualified with good traits, readers connect with a religious message.
So and I also would want to suggest that it may not always be a religious message.
There also may be social and political connexions that are occurring through these text.
Whether it's we might see. And affiliation or.
Allegiance to a particular lineage that is not for me to answer necessarily,
but I think it's something to start to look at and incorporate into understanding devotional literature.
And different aspects of that. And so.
I'm going to finish with Loan Temper's. Excerpts from his club, Banks of Blessings.
A prayer so long, a young tick. And this is just the first two verses out of that one.
And I'll just read it. Omar, whom beginning enlist protector, someone to buy a dress amount of Audry, please love me.
Bless me. So I may now realise the self reason risen my nature luminous, essential meaning, infinite peace and ruthless spontaneous conkers.
Please love me. Bless me. So I may now see the self luminous wisdom.
Great light. This prayer goes on for several pages and each verse is paying homage to a particular lineage master of the Nygma tradition and then
asking for the power and the blessings to realise a characteristic or an aspect of Buddhahood as understood by the Nygma tradition.
And so I think this this prayer really lights upon the connexions and what occurs for devotional literature and understanding that there is a.
A connexion and a respect of understanding, wanting to reach out and receive something from.
Uh. The lineage masters or aspects of Buddhahood.
And it's done so through this. These words like 2K I translated here, love me as a tuk tuk J.
And to really to show that there's this kind of there's really a heartfelt connexion occurring here for Long Shimbo.
But I even would suggest that for the reader, as they're reciting it for themselves,
that it's the performing quality of the prayer is allowing the reader to connect into.
Some sort of affective or.
Some sort of medium that allows them to open into these states of realisation or something similar to that there's aspiring to do.
And so I think when we look at literature or we look at specific types of literature within
the Tibetan tradition and understanding that how devotion functions for the lineage itself,
for the for the tradition itself,
that we can start to see how connecting might happen in these pieces of literature that is also similar to the tantric practises,
such as who are yoga. So I think I'll finish there.
I'm sure I'm happy to hear any comments or suggestions or questions.
And I just want you to know this is some very preliminary research on devotional literature as a whole.
So thank you so much for listening.