We must take bodhicitta seriously. Especially for practitioners of the Mahāyāna and Vajrayāna, genuine accomplishment is impossible without it. Khenpo Tsultrim Lodrö used to place great emphasis on bodhicitta. At first, I did not fully understand why. Having studied Chinese Buddhism for many years, I assumed that one could begin with prajñā (wisdom). Once prajñā was realized, ultimate bodhicitta would naturally be present, and generating conventional bodhicitta would then be effortless.
Of course, Tibetan Buddhism also acknowledges this approach. Khenpo Sodargye has likewise explained that prajñā can, in turn, nourish and strengthen bodhicitta. However, can we truly expect everyone to gain a genuine taste of prajñā before cultivating a strong bodhicitta? I have met many people who study the Buddhadharma, yet I have encountered very few who possess such an exceptional natural capacity for wisdom. Almost no one hears the Diamond Sūtra's teaching, "Give rise to the mind without abiding anywhere," and immediately awakens.
As long as self-grasping remains powerful, sudden awakening is almost impossible. Even if one experiences a moment of realization, it cannot be sustained, because at the moment of genuine realization there is no self-grasping whatsoever. Could one still claim that self-grasping exists while abiding in meditative equipoise on the nature of reality? Certainly not. In that state, even ordinary appearances have ceased. (Although dreamlike appearances arise again after emerging from meditation, that is another matter altogether.)
If one is to attain genuine realization, one must at least have some experience of meditative equipoise on the nature of reality. While self-grasping remains, it is still possible to glimpse this state, but one cannot remain in it or stabilize it. It continually slips away. Even if realization occurs, it remains superficial and lacks transformative power—it is insufficient even to transcend saṃsāra and liberation from birth and death.
This is what is referred to as "becoming confused after awakening." Chan Buddhism records many such cases in its relevant koan records, and similar explanations are also found in Dzogchen teachings. His Holiness the Dharma King discusses this point in The Ocean of Treasury of Pith Instructions, for those who wish to study it further.
However, for someone who has cultivated bodhicitta over a long period of time—whose bodhicitta has become powerful and whose mental continuum has matured—realization unfolds quite differently. Once such a person awakens, they naturally and effortlessly enter that state again, feeling that everything is exactly as it should be. This is because bodhicitta has already cleared away most of the inner obstacles and greatly diminished dualistic discrimination.
At that point, the mind is exceptionally clear, while the sense of self has become extremely subtle. As soon as such a practitioner sits down to meditate, they quickly enter the state of realization. This is entirely different from our present condition, where we search through concepts—looking for the past mind, the future mind, or the present mind—only to reason ourselves into a dead end.
Je Tsongkhapa taught the Three Principal Aspects of the Path: renunciation, bodhicitta, and the correct view of emptiness. Among these, bodhicitta is the pivotal point. Whether one follows the Sūtrayāna or the Vajrayāna, as long as one practices the Mahāyāna, bodhicitta is indispensable. Once this essential point has been firmly established, the remaining aspects of the path become much easier to accomplish.
Many people ask, "Why have I practiced for so long without any real progress? Why are both my inner and outer conditions so unfavorable? Why do so many obstacles keep arising? Is it because my capacity is too poor?" In reality, there is one remedy that addresses them all: bodhicitta. It is like a universal restorative tonic, capable of nourishing every aspect of spiritual practice.
The difficulty lies in genuinely generating bodhicitta. Yet if we are willing to take it seriously—to truly mean it—we can certainly cultivate it.
—Excerpted and adapted from Genuine Bodhicitta and Conceptual Bodhicitta.
This article is a preliminary translation draft and has not yet been reviewed or proofread by the speaker.
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