Lamrim

Lam Rim (Tibetan: "lam" "path", "rim" "stages") is a Tibetan Buddhist textual form for presenting the complete path to enlightenment as taught by Gautama Buddha. In Tibetan Buddhist history there have been many different versions of the Lam Rim, presented by different teachers, of the Nyingma, Kagyu and Gelug schools. The Sakya have a somewhat similar textual form called the Lam Dre. However all the versions of the Lam Rim are based on extensions of Atisha's 11th Century root text "A Lamp for the Path".

History

When Atisha was invited and came to Tibet he was asked by Changchup Od to give a complete and easily accessible summary of the doctrine in order to clarify wrong views - especially the apparent contradictions found across the Sutras and their commentaries. Based upon this request Atisha (whose presentation of the doctrine became later known as the Kadampa tradition) taught what came to be known as the Lam Rim for the Tibetans. Later he was honored very much for this by the Pandits of his original monastery Vikramashila, in India.

The Kadampa monk and student of Milarepa, Gampopa, introduced the Lam Rim to his disciples as a way of developing the mind gradually. Gampopa's work on Lam Rim is known as "" and is studied to this day in the various Kagyu schools of Tibetan Buddhism founded by his disciples.

As Tsongkhapa's Gelug school is derived from and mainly based upon the Kadampa school, it comes to no surprise that Tsongkhapa wrote one of his masterpieces on Lam Rim: "The Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path of Enlightenment" (Tib. "Lam Rim Chen Mo") which has about 1000 pages, and is primarily based on literary sources. There is also a medium Lam Rim text by Tsongkhapa (200 pages) and a short one, called "Lam Rim Dudon" (Tib.), which is often recited daily by Gelugpas and is about 10 pages long.

Philosophy

The foundational criteria of the Lam Rim is the tripartite division of practitioners, based upon the motivation of their religious activity. (Note that this division is distinct from the Triyana).

Excluded from this division were individuals whose motives revolve around material benefits within this life.

Three kinds of person

Atisha wrote in "Lamp of the Path" (verse 2) that one should understand that there are three kind of persons:

# Persons of low motive
# Persons of medium motive
# Persons of high motive

Persons of low motive are searching with all means for happiness within Samsara; their motive is to achieve high rebirth, typically in a heaven. Buddhists traditionally considered this domain included followers of most non-Buddhist religions.

Persons of medium motive are searching for their own peace and abandon worldly pleasure. This includes the paths of the Pratyekabuddhas and Sravakabuddhas, the traditional goal of Hinayana practice (personal liberation).

Persons of high motive seek (based on their insight of their own suffering) by all means to stop the suffering of all beings. This is the Mahayana paths of the Samyaksambuddhas.

Mind and nature

Although the Lam Rim texts cover the same subject areas, the subjects are arranged in different ways.

The Lam Rim of Atisha starts with Bodhicitta, the altruistic mind, followed by taking the Bodhisattva vows, whereas Gampopa's lam Lam Rim starts with the Buddha nature, followed by the Precious Human Life and Tsongkhapas texts start with reliance to a master, followed by the Precious Human Life, and continues with the paths of the low, medium and high scopes.

Gampopa and Tsongkhapa expounded the short root-text of Atisha into an extensive system to understand the entire Buddhist philosophy. In this way, subjects like karma, rebirth, Buddhist cosmology, the practice of meditation, up to and including tantra are gradually explained in logical order.

The Lam Rim teachings are in essence very similar to the Lamdre (lam 'bras) teachings of the Sakya school of Tibetan Buddhism.

Further reading

Classical Lamrim Books (in historical order)

*cite web|url=http://www.lamrim.com/atishalamp/LampForThePath.PDF|title=The Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment|last=Dipamkarashrijnana|first=Atisha|publisher=Snow Lion Publications|accessdate=2008-07-22
*Atisha's Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment by Geshe Sonam Rinchen, Snow Lion Publications
*The Jewel Ornament of Liberation: The Wish-Fulfilling Gem of the Noble Teachings by Gampopa, Snow Lion Publications
*Engaging by Stages in the Teachings of the Buddha, 2 vols., by Phagmodrupa (Gampopa's disciple), Otter Verlag, Munich
*The Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path of Enlightenment, Vol. 1-3 by Tsong-Kha-Pa, Snow Lion Publications
*Liberation in the Palm of your Hand, Je Phabonkhapa, Wisdom Publications

Modern Lamrim Books & Commentaries

*Practicing the Path: A Commentary on the Lamrim Chenmo, Yangsi Rinpoche, Wisdom Publications, ISBN 0-86171-346-X
*Steps on the Path to Enlightenment, Volume 1: A Commentary on the Lamrim Chenmo, The Foundational Practices, by Geshe Lhundub Sopa, Wisdom Publications, ISBN 0-86171-303-6
*Steps on the Path to Enlightenment, Vol.2: Karma : A Commentary on the Lamrim Chenmo by Geshe Lhundub Sopa, Wisdom Publications, ISBN 0-86171-481-4
*Illuminating the Path to Enlightenment, TDL Publications, ISBN 0-9623421-6-5

External links

* [http://www.abuddhistlibrary.com/Buddhism/A%20-%20Tibetan%20Buddhism/Authors/Atisha/A%20Lamp%20For%20The%20Enlightenment%20Path/A%20Lamp%20For%20The%20Enlightenment%20Path.htm A Lamp For The Enlightenment Path] by Atisha
* [http://www.abuddhistlibrary.com/Buddhism/A%20-%20Tibetan%20Buddhism/Authors/Atisha/Advice%20from%20Atisha/Advice%20from%20Atisha.htm Advice from Atisha] by Atisha
* [http://www.thubtenchodron.org/GradualPathToEnlightenment/index.html Lam Rim:The gradual Path to Enlightenment, Thubten Chodron's online Lamrim Outline]
* [http://www.Lamrim.com LamRim Radio]
* [http://www.lamrim.tv LamRim TV]
* [http://www.lamrim.org.uk Lam Rim Centres]
* [http://www.lamayeshe.com/acatalog/itp_section.html HH the Dalai Lama's Illuminating the Path to Enlightenment]