When you do the Guruyoga practice with your teacher and old Dzogchen practitioners who have that knowledge, when you work together with them, it helps very much because when we are in that clarity and relaxed in that state, there are no distinctions between those people with knowledge and those without. Even if you do not have much knowledge, it will arise and develop. That is a possibility. This is also transmission. When you apply Guruyoga with the white A in a perfect way with your teacher, you are receiving direct transmission. Of course there are also many different ways for doing direct transmission, but sometimes it is also sufficient with that. And even if we don’t know or discover our real nature, when we apply that method after we have received transmission, then one day we will discover knowledge of our real nature.
In the tantras of Dzogchen teachings, it is explained that if you have received transmission from the teacher, for example, of how to do Guruyoga, with the visualization of the white A and tigle then relaxing, when you try to follow and apply it, you are in this clarity and with this you can discover your real nature. When you apply this many times maybe you can discover your real nature. If you do not realize it, then in the Dzogchen tantras it also says that you should sing the Song of the Vajra.
Natural sound
The Song of the Vajra is the most important essential mantra in the Dzogchen teaching. It is a kind of mantra, but not an ordinary one. It is called natural sound. When Samantabhadra Dharmakaya manifests Sambhogakaya manifestation - all manifestations arise from emptiness, Dharmakaya, with sound - what is the primordial sound for that manifestation? It is the Song of the Vajra, so it is very important for people who have no knowledge of their real nature in order to make it arise, and for those who have that knowledge in order to integrate body speech and mind in that real nature. The Song of the Vajra is always a very important practice. It is also a kind of mantra so you also need transmission of the lung. [Rinpoche gives the lung]
Language of Oddiyana
The Song of the Vajra has a meaning and is considered to be in the language of Oddiyana. There is a translation by Longchenpa and we also have a translation of that in English and you can read and understand what it means more or less. But it is not so easy to understand when you are reading this translation. Even in Tibetan you cannot understand it very clearly because the Song of the Vajra is the essence of the Dzogchen teaching and there are many ways to learn its real sense. One of these is how it is translated and having a bit of an idea of the meaning of the words.
Seed syllables
Another meaning is the seed syllables: each seed syllable represents our potentiality, the sounds of our physical body. In our physical body we have mainly five chakras each of which has many secondary chakras, which in turn are related to other minor chakras. Each chakra is governed by one of these seed syllables. For example, in the Song of the Vajra we have ‘ema kiri’ etc., all these seed syllables govern different kinds of chakras. It becomes very important when we have a little higher knowledge of Dzogchen teaching, then we integrate our physical body, speech and mind in our primordial state. Then these seed syllables become very important.
The Song of the Vajra not only has a connection with our physical body but also with our dimension. We are on our globe, our globe is in our solar system, our solar system is in our consideration of the universe. They all become like a mandala that represents our real condition. Then there is, for example, an inner and outer mandala. We need to integrate everything in its real nature.
All the seed syllables of the Song of the Vajra govern everything so it becomes very important for integration.
Main Dzogchen methods
Then these mantras, for example, when we say ‘Emakirikiri’, we repeat it two times. The first ‘kiri’ is short while the second one is longer. In the same way ‘Masutavalivali’, the first is short and the second is longer. This is related to our solar and lunar energy, to our right and left sides, the front and back of our physical body. For this reason we have these kind of mantras to know what its meaning is.
Another meaning is related to the different verses. The first verse is:
Emakirikiri masutavalivali
Samitasurusuru kutalimasumasu.
Then the next verse is:
Ekarasulibhataye
Cikirabhulibhathaye.
In this second verse the quantity of mantras is different.
Each of these verses represents different kinds of Dzogchen main methods. For example, in the Dzogchen teaching we have the three series, de sum, Dzogchen semde, longde and upadesa. The semde is the series basically related to mind: from mind how we can be introduced directly to the nature of mind. This is mainly introduction – the teacher introduces the student - and is connected to the First Statement of Garab Dorje.
Garab Dorje taught his teaching throughout his life, but at the end of his life, he gave Three Statements, which are like the essence or the key to the Dzogchen Teaching. What are the Three Statements of Garab Dorje? The first is ‘Direct Introduction’. The second is ‘Not Remaining in Doubt’. Even if the teacher has introduced the student [to his/her nature of mind], he or she may not be absolutely sure to have discovered it, so there is a series of teachings for not remaining in doubt. This series of teachings is the longde or space series.
The first series, semde, is related to mind, the second is related to space. What is the difference? The student is introduced from mind to the nature of mind and does some methods for going that way. But even though he has done that, he may remain in doubt, in which case he needs the longde, the space series. Why is space important? Space is the dimension in which everything manifests and if you have experiences, manifestations, etc., you can be totally sure of your knowledge.
