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How to Make M
andala Offerings 1
How to Offerthe M
andala
A com
pilation of teachings by Lam
a Zopa R
inpochew
ith additional material from
Kirti T
senshab Rinpoche,
Gen Jham
pa Wangdu
, and the Sharpa Choje,
Khensu
r Losang N
yima
Edited by
Venerables T
hubten W
ongmo and Sangye K
hadro
44 How to M
ake Mandala Offerings
Fou
ndation for the Preservation of the M
ahayana Tradition
Education Services
2
How
to M
ake
Man
dala
Offer
ings
© F
PMT,
Inc
., 20
03
Edu
catio
n D
epar
tmen
tFP
MT
Int
erna
tiona
l Off
ice
P. O
. Box
888
Taos
, New
Mex
ico
875
71 U
SATe
l: 1
(505
) 737
-055
0, e
xt. 1
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mai
l: m
ater
ials
@fp
mt.o
rgW
ebsi
te: w
ww
.fpm
t.org
/sho
p
H
ow to
Mak
e Man
dala
Offer
ings
4
3
FPM
T Ed
ucat
ion
Dep
artm
ent
The
aim
of
the
Edu
cati
on D
epar
tmen
t at
FPM
T I
nter
nati
onal
Off
ice
is t
ose
rve
the
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Dha
rma
cent
ers
and
indi
vidu
als
in t
he a
rea
of T
ibet
anB
uddh
ist
educ
atio
nal
and
spir
itua
l m
ater
ials
. T
his
incl
udes
pra
yers
and
prac
tice
tex
ts,
retr
eat
sadh
anas
and
oth
er p
ract
ice
mat
eria
ls,
a va
riet
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y te
xts
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slat
ions
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ity
imag
es f
or m
edit
atio
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nd c
urri
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rm
ater
ials
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dy p
rogr
ams
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PMT
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rma
cent
ers.
One
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ur p
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ipal
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ecti
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osit
ory
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a w
ide
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ract
ice
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imar
ily w
ithi
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e G
elug
tra
diti
on,
espe
cial
ly t
hose
auth
ored
or
tran
slat
ed b
y La
ma
Zopa
Rin
poch
e an
d La
ma
Thu
bten
Yes
he.
We
wor
k in
clo
se c
olla
bora
tion
wit
h th
e La
ma
Yesh
e W
isdo
m A
rch
ive,
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ton
, M
assa
chus
etts
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hich
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ves
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osit
ory
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men
-ta
ries
an
d tr
ansc
ript
s of
tea
chin
gs b
y La
ma
Zopa
Rin
poch
e an
d La
ma
Yesh
e.
If w
e ca
n be
of
serv
ice
to y
ou i
n an
y w
ay, p
leas
e co
ntac
t us
at:
Edu
cati
on D
epar
tmen
tFP
MT
Int
erna
tion
al O
ffic
eP.
O.
Box
888
Taos
, N
ew M
exic
o 8
7571
USA
Tel:
(505
)737
-055
0, e
xt.
1#E
mai
l: m
ater
ials
@fp
mt.o
rgw
ww
.fpm
t.or
g/sh
op
How to Make M
andala Offerings 3
Contents
Introduction4
Mandala O
fferings and the Six Perfections4
How
to Get the M
ost from Your Practice
5T
he Story of King A
shoka’s Previous Life7
The Im
portance of Clear V
isualization9
Multiplying the O
ffering10
Betw
een Sessions10
Mandala O
ffering in Tantra10
The Actual Practice12
Objects O
ffered in the Mandala of T
hirty-seven Heaps
14V
isualizing the Mandala as a Pure R
ealm24
Short (Seven-Heap) M
andala Offerings
26
Four Ways of Offering the M
andala28
The O
uter Mandala
28T
he Inner Mandala
28T
he Secret Mandala
30T
he Suchness Mandala
30
Dedication
31
Appendix One: Illustrations32
Tw
o-Dim
ensional Draw
ing of Objects in the
32 M
andala Offering
How
to Construct a M
andala with T
hree Rings
33
Appendix Two: Mandala Offering Prayers
36
42 How to M
ake Mandala Offerings
Foundation for thePreservation
of the Mahayana Tradition
The Foundation for the Preservation of the M
ahayana Tradition is an
organization
devoted to the tran
smission
of the M
ahayan
a Buddh
isttradition
and values w
orldwide th
rough teach
ing, m
editation, an
dcom
mun
ity service. We provide in
tegrated education th
rough w
hich
people’s minds and hearts can be transform
ed into their highest potentialfor the benefit of others, inspired by an attitude of universal responsibility.W
e are comm
itted to creating harmonious environm
ents and helping allbeings develop their full potential of infinite w
isdom and com
passion.O
ur organization is based on the Buddhist tradition of Lam
a Tsongkhapaof T
ibet, as taught by our founder, Lama T
hubten Yeshe, and spiritualdirector, Lam
a Zopa Rinpoche.FPM
T, Inc.P. O
. Box 888
Taos, New
Mexico 87571 U
SATel: (505) 758-7766Fax: (505) 758-7765
Em
ail: info@fpm
t.orgw
ww
.fpmt.org
4
How
to M
ake
Man
dala
Offer
ings
Introd
uction
The
man
dala
off
erin
g is
an
extr
emel
y po
wer
ful m
etho
d fo
r ac
cum
u-la
ting
exte
nsiv
e m
erit
and
rece
ivin
g re
aliz
atio
ns s
uch
as b
odhi
chitt
aan
d em
ptin
ess q
uick
ly. J
ust a
s gre
at st
reng
th is
nee
ded
to c
arry
a h
eavy
load
, a g
reat
am
ount
of
mer
it is
nee
ded
to le
ad a
ll se
ntie
nt b
eing
s to
enlig
hten
men
t. T
here
’s n
othi
ng t
hat
can
be o
ffer
ed w
ith y
our
hand
sth
at is
mor
e m
erito
riou
s th
an o
ffer
ing
man
dala
s.
The
Tib
etan
ter
m f
or m
anda
las
is “
khyi
l kho
r,” w
hich
mea
ns, “
taki
ngth
e es
senc
e.”
The
ess
ence
you
take
is th
e w
hole
pat
h fr
om g
uru
devo
-tio
n to
enl
ight
enm
ent.
Tha
t’s w
hat
you
get
from
doi
ng t
his
prac
tice,
plus
the
res
ult:
the
unifi
catio
n of
dha
rmak
aya
and
rupa
kaya
. The
re-
fore
, by
doi
ng t
his
prac
tice
you
rece
ive
inco
ncei
vabl
e te
mpo
ral
and
ultim
ate
happ
ines
s.
Man
dala
Offer
ings
and
the S
ix Pe
rfecti
ons
Off
erin
g th
e m
anda
la c
onta
ins
the
prac
tice
of a
ll si
x pe
rfec
tions
. By
clea
ning
and
ble
ssin
g th
e m
anda
la b
ase
with
liqu
id m
ixed
with
a p
achu
g1
pill
you
prac
tice
the
perf
ectio
n of
giv
ing
(wat
er sy
mbo
lizes
pro
sper
ity).
Che
ckin
g th
e gr
ain2 f
or in
sect
s an
d lo
okin
g af
ter
the
base
, kee
ping
itcl
ean,
lead
s to
the
perf
ectio
n of
mor
al c
ondu
ct. R
emov
ing
inse
cts f
rom
the
grai
n w
ithou
t ha
rmin
g th
em le
ads
to t
he p
erfe
ctio
n of
pat
ienc
e.T
hink
ing
of h
ow fo
rtun
ate
you
are
to b
e ab
le to
pra
ctic
e D
harm
a an
dm
akin
g th
e of
feri
ng w
ith jo
y, y
ou c
ultiv
ate
joyo
us e
ffor
t. B
y no
t fo
r-ge
ttin
g th
e vi
sual
izat
ion,
you
att
ain
conc
entr
atio
n. B
y cl
earl
y vi
sual
iz-
ing
the
colo
rs a
nd o
bjec
ts i
n th
e m
anda
la, a
nd b
y m
edita
ting
on i
tsem
ptin
ess,
wis
dom
is
atta
ined
. T
here
fore
, of
feri
ng m
anda
las
help
syo
u to
qui
ckly
com
plet
e th
e tw
o ac
cum
ulat
ions
of t
he m
erits
of m
etho
dan
d w
isdo
m3 a
s it
cont
ains
all
six
perf
ectio
ns.
H
ow to
Mak
e Man
dala
Offer
ings
4
1
Care
of Dh
arma B
ooks
Dha
rma
book
s co
ntai
n th
e te
achi
ngs
of t
he B
uddh
a; t
hey
have
the
pow
erto
pro
tect
aga
inst
low
er r
ebir
th a
nd t
o po
int
the
way
to
liber
atio
n. T
here
-fo
re,
they
sho
uld
be t
reat
ed w
ith
resp
ect
– ke
pt o
ff t
he f
loor
and
pla
ces
whe
re p
eopl
e si
t or
wal
k –
and
not
step
ped
over
. The
y sh
ould
be
cove
red
or p
rote
cted
for
tran
spor
ting
and
kep
t in
a h
igh,
cle
an p
lace
sep
arat
e fr
omm
ore
mun
dane
mat
eria
ls.
Oth
er o
bjec
ts s
houl
d no
t be
pla
ced
on t
op o
fD
harm
a bo
oks
and
mat
eria
ls.
Lick
ing
the
finge
rs t
o tu
rn p
ages
is
cons
id-
ered
bad
for
m a
s w
ell
as n
egat
ive
karm
a. I
f it
is
nece
ssar
y to
dis
pose
of
wri
tten
Dha
rma
mat
eria
ls,
they
sho
uld
be b
urne
d ra
ther
tha
n th
row
n in
the
tras
h. W
hen
burn
ing
Dha
rma
text
s, i
t is
tau
ght
to f
irst
rec
ite
a pr
ayer
or m
antr
a, s
uch
as O
M,
AH
, H
UM
. T
hen,
you
can
vis
ualiz
e th
e le
tter
s of
the
text
s (t
o be
bur
ned
) ab
sorb
ing
into
the
AH
and
the
AH
abs
orbi
ngin
to y
ou,
tran
smit
ting
the
ir w
isdo
m t
o yo
ur m
inds
trea
m.
Aft
er t
hat,
asyo
u co
ntin
ue t
o re
cite
OM
, AH
, HU
M, y
ou c
an b
urn
the
text
s.
Lam
a Zo
pa R
inpo
che
has
reco
mm
ende
d th
at p
hoto
s or
im
ages
of
holy
bein
gs,
deit
ies,
or
othe
r ho
ly o
bjec
ts n
ot b
e bu
rned
. In
stea
d, t
hey
shou
ldbe
pla
ced
wit
h re
spec
t in
a s
tupa
, tr
ee,
or o
ther
hig
h, c
lean
pla
ce.
It h
asbe
en s
ugge
sted
to
put
them
int
o a
smal
l st
ruct
ure
like
a bi
rd h
ouse
and
then
sea
l th
e ho
use.
In
this
way
, th
e ho
ly i
mag
es d
o no
t en
d up
on
the
grou
nd.
How to Make M
andala Offerings 5
This practice pacifies all hindrances to your tem
poral and ultimate
happiness. These depend on m
erit and merit depends on offerings.
The m
ost meritorious object to offer is the m
andala. Therefore, if
you wish to achieve tem
poral and ultimate happiness the best thing
you can do is to offer many m
andalas.
Lama Tsongkhapa offered 1,800,000 m
andalas and achieved all therealizations of the stages and paths. If you w
ish to gain realizations,you should offer m
andalas to your guru every day as his jewel-like body
can bestow the sphere of great bliss in an instant. A
ll realizations de-pend on your guru. O
ffering mandalas to him
/her is like offeringgifts to a king before requesting a favor of him
. Achieving enlighten-
ment in one lifetim
e depends on your relationship with your guru.
Lama Tsongkhapa w
as instructed by Manjushri to leave the m
onas-tery and go to a herm
itage where he w
as to concentrate on bodhichitta,seeing his guru as B
uddha, meditating on the path, and purifying and
accumulating m
erit. Without w
orking on all of these, even if you prac-tice for 100 years you w
on’t gain realizations. How
ever, if you do, youw
ill receive realizations within three years or even in a few
months.
The m
ere wish to m
ake progress doesn’t make it happen. It’s neces-
sary to create the causes, one of which is accum
ulating merit.
How to Get the Most from Your Practice
Basically, offering the m
andala involves mentally offering the entire
universe: all the planets and worlds, all sense objects, and especially
the objects to which one has m
uch clinging, such as one’s body, posses-sions, and friends. A
ll these are offered to the merit field. T
he essen-tial technique of offering is to offer the best quality m
aterials, in thegreatest quantity, and to have as clear a visualization as possible. Inthis w
ay you can create extensive merit in just a short tim
e.
Even if you’re a beggar, by m
aking mandala offerings you w
ill receive allthe necessities for your practice in this and future lives. B
y visualizing andthen offering w
hatever you need in the space above the mandala, you
create the cause to receive it. Visualizing anything golden and offering
it to the buddhas frees you from disease, and offering the m
oon cre-ates the cause for you to be reborn as a god or a holy being. O
ffering
40 How to M
ake Mandala Offerings
6
How
to M
ake
Man
dala
Offer
ings
jew
els,
gol
d an
d en
joym
ents
cre
ates
the
caus
e to
be
rebo
rn in
the
cast
eof
kin
gs.
If y
ou d
on’t
have
goo
d m
ater
ials
, yo
u ca
n ev
en u
se a
sto
ne f
or t
hem
anda
la b
ase
(but
fir
st y
ou s
houl
d as
k pe
rmis
sion
of
the
spir
it la
nd-
lord
, oth
erw
ise
it’s l
ike
stea
ling)
. Lam
a Ts
ongk
hapa
’s fo
rear
m w
as b
lue
and
bloo
dy w
ith sc
abs a
nd c
allu
ses f
rom
mak
ing
man
dala
off
erin
gs o
na
ston
e du
ring
his
eig
ht-y
ear
retr
eat.
Thi
s do
esn’
t m
ean
that
lam
asdo
n’t h
ave
mon
ey to
buy
gol
d an
d si
lver
bas
es. L
ama
Tson
gkha
pa d
idth
is to
em
phas
ize
the
impo
rtan
ce o
f pur
e m
oral
ity. I
f you
are
abi
ding
in p
ure
mor
al c
ondu
ct, y
ou a
ren’
t al
low
ed t
o to
uch
prec
ious
met
als
with
att
achm
ent.
How
ever
, the
mor
e va
luab
le t
he m
ater
ial y
ou o
ffer
,th
e m
ore
mer
it yo
u re
ceiv
e. T
he b
est
is a
gol
d or
silv
er b
ase,
the
nco
pper
or
bras
s. T
he f
ines
t th
ings
to
offe
r ar
e pi
les
of g
old,
silv
er, o
rje
wel
s; n
ext
best
are
sea
shel
ls; r
ice
or o
ther
gra
ins
are
acce
ptab
le. A
sm
anda
la o
ffer
ings
are
of
grea
t co
nseq
uenc
e yo
u sh
ould
off
er t
he f
in-
est
mat
eria
ls y
ou c
an a
ffor
d. I
f yo
u ha
ve e
noug
h m
oney
to
prov
ide
your
self
with
the
com
fort
s of
life
, bu
t yo
u us
e in
feri
or m
ater
ials
for
offe
ring
, the
onl
y re
sult
of y
our
offe
ring
will
be
a de
crea
se o
f m
erit.
By
visu
aliz
ing
the
offe
ring
s as
eve
n m
ore
prec
ious
and
ext
ensi
ve th
anth
ey a
re,
you
crea
te v
ast
mer
its.
For
exam
ple,
im
agin
ing
that
you
’re
offe
ring
a M
ount
Mer
u of
silv
er, l
apis
lazu
li, r
ubie
s, a
nd g
old,
eve
n if
ther
e ar
e no
suc
h m
ater
ials
on
your
bas
e, y
ou r
ecei
ve t
he m
erit
ofac
tual
ly o
ffer
ing
them
. So
in ju
st a
few
sec
onds
it’s
pos
sibl
e to
cre
ate
the
mer
it of
hav
ing
offe
red
the
entir
e un
iver
se. W
hen
you
offe
r w
a-te
r bo
wls
, it’s
goo
d to
vis
ualiz
e th
e w
ater
as
nect
ar. T
he w
ater
app
ears
as n
ecta
r to
the
deva
s, so
of c
ours
e it
appe
ars a
s nec
tar
to th
e bu
ddha
s—
thi
s is
exp
lain
ed in
mah
a-an
utta
ra y
oga
tant
ra. I
t ge
nera
tes
infin
itebl
iss
in th
eir
holy
min
ds. S
o if
you
offe
r on
ly w
ater
, you
get
the
mer
itof
off
erin
g w
ater
, bu
t if
it’s
offe
red
as n
ecta
r, yo
u ga
in m
uch
mor
em
erit
beca
use
of t
he s
uper
ior
qual
ity o
f th
at o
ffer
ing.
The S
tory o
f Kin
g Ash
oka’s
Prev
ious L
ifeSi
mila
rly,
whe
n m
akin
g an
off
erin
g of
ten
cent
s to
the
Bud
dha,
if y
oucl
earl
y vi
sual
ize
the
sky
fille
d w
ith d
olla
rs, y
ou re
ceiv
e th
at m
uch
mer
itev
en if
you
don
’t ha
ve a
sing
le d
olla
r. W
hat’s
the
refe
renc
e th
at sh
ows
that
by
visu
aliz
ing
nec
tar
or g
old
you
rece
ive
the
mer
it o
f ac
tual
ly
H
ow to
Mak
e Man
dala
Offer
ings
3
9
Colop
hon:
Thi
s is
a c
ompi
lati
on o
f te
achi
ngs
by L
ama
Zopa
Rin
poch
e w
ith
addi
tion
al m
ater
ial f
rom
Kir
ti T
sens
hab
Rin
poch
e, G
en J
ham
pa W
angd
u, a
nd t
he S
harp
a C
hoje
, K
hens
ur L
osan
gN
yim
a. E
dite
d by
Ven
erab
les
Thu
bten
Won
gmo
and
Sang
ye K
hadr
o.
Firs
t pu
blis
hed
byW
isdo
m P
ublic
atio
ns, 1
994,
and
late
r by
Am
itab
ha B
uddh
ist C
entr
e, S
inga
pore
. R
epri
nted
wit
h pe
rmis
sion
fro
m W
isdo
m P
ublic
atio
ns a
nd t
he L
ama
Yesh
e W
isdo
m A
rchi
ve.
Man
dala
off
erin
g pr
ayer
s w
ere
extr
acte
d fr
om E
ssen
tial
Bud
dhist
Pra
yers
: A
n FP
MT
Pra
yer
Boo
k, V
ol.
1.
Ligh
tly
edit
ed a
nd r
efor
mat
ted
by K
enda
ll M
agnu
ssen
and
Ven
. C
onni
e M
iller
, FP
MT
Edu
cati
on S
ervi
ces,
Oct
ober
200
3.
Illus
trat
ions
:T
wo-
Dim
ensi
onal
Dra
win
g of
Obj
ects
in t
he M
anda
la O
ffer
ing
was
ext
ract
ed f
rom
a p
rac-
tice
pub
licat
ion
from
Wis
dom
Cen
tre,
Kua
la L
umpu
r, M
alay
sia.
How
to
Con
stru
ct a
Man
dala
wit
h T
hree
Rin
gs w
as t
aken
fro
m A
wak
enin
g th
e M
ind
ofE
nlig
hten
men
t, W
isdo
m P
ublic
atio
ns, (
ww
w.w
isdo
mpu
bs.o
rg).
Inc
lude
d he
re w
ith
perm
is-
sion
.T
he r
emai
ning
line
dra
win
gs th
roug
hout
this
man
ual a
re b
y R
ober
t Bee
r an
d ar
e re
prin
ted
here
by
perm
issi
on.
How to Make M
andala Offerings 7
offering these? Who had that experience? Pabongkha R
inpoche ex-plained this in his teaching called “Liberation in the Palm
of YourH
and” where he tells the story of K
ing Ashoka’s previous life:
Once w
hen Guru Shakyam
uni Buddha w
as going out for alms, he
passed three boys playing in the sand. One boy w
anted to offer a hand-ful of sand to the B
uddha, but was not able to reach the B
uddha’salm
s bowl, so he stood on the shoulders of the other tw
o boys. He
visualized that he was offering gold to the B
uddha, and so he createdthe m
erit of having actually offered gold. By that karm
a, the boy was
born as King A
shoka in a later life and was able to build 10 m
illionstupas in one day. H
e was able to offer lots of service to the Sangha
because he had such great wealth and pow
er.
Through this story you can see how
karma is expandable and how
topractice D
harma. E
ven if you’re penniless you can create extensivem
erit. Being born as K
ing Ashoka and experiencing good results in
that life and in future lives all came from
visualizing sand as gold. Soeven by doing sm
all actions, creating small virtues, things that are easy
to do, it’s possible to create unbelievable results of happiness and per-fections. You should practice creating even sm
all merits or good karm
aall the tim
e. If you’re skillful like the boy in the story so much m
eritcan be accom
plished. But it’s difficult if your practice is unskillful.
The karm
a stories in the Lam-rim
are quite unbelievable, like peoplehaving strange bodies w
ith horns or tails, or the arhat Tseyi who had
gold pouring unceasingly from his hand. T
his was the result of his
having put a piece of gold in the vase of Buddha K
ashyapa in his pastlife. Shakyam
uni Buddha w
as able to explain the precise cause of eachof these occurrences. For exam
ple, he could tell the causes of newdiseases that appear in the w
orld.
The lam
-rim teachings on karm
a show us that w
e shouldn’t ignoreeven sm
all karmas because such incredible results can com
e – thingsw
e can’t even imagine. T
his is the experience of people in the past.W
e’re not able to remem
ber our experiences through our own m
entalpow
er, but if there is happiness, it has come from
virtue. If a personcontinually m
akes offerings of water bow
ls and mandalas, after a few
38 How to M
ake Mandala Offerings
Short Mandala Offering
This ground, anointed w
ith perfume, strew
n with flow
ers,A
dorned with M
ount Meru, four continents, the sun and the
moon:
I imagine this as a buddha-field and offer it.
May all living beings enjoy this pure land!
Sa zhi pö kyi jug shing me tog tram
Ri rab ling zhi nyi dä gyän pa di
Sang gyä zhing du mig te ül w
a yiD
ro kün nam dag zhing la chö par shog
Inner Mandala Offering
The objects of m
y attachment, aversion and ignorance –
Friends, enemies, strangers – and m
y body, wealth, and enjoym
ents;W
ithout any sense of loss I offer this collection.Please accept it w
ith pleasure and bless me w
ith freedom from
thethree poisons.
Dag gi chhag dang m
ong sum kye w
äi yülD
ra nyen bar sum lü dang long chö chä
Phang pa me par bül gyi leg zhe nä
Dug sum
rang sar dröl war jin gyi lob
IDA
M G
UR
U R
AT
NA
MA
ND
ALA
KA
M N
IRYA
TA
YAM
I
8
How
to M
ake
Man
dala
Offer
ings
year
s th
at p
erso
n w
ill h
ave
bett
er m
ater
ials
to
offe
r. T
he r
esul
t is
expe
rien
ced
in th
is li
fe b
ecau
se a
ny m
erit
accu
mul
ated
with
the
guru
-bu
ddha
is
very
pow
erfu
l. T
he s
ame
is t
rue
for
good
kar
ma
crea
ted
with
a b
odhi
satt
va o
r pa
rent
s: th
e re
sult
will
be
expe
rien
ced
in th
is lif
e.
So,
if yo
u re
mem
ber
this
sto
ry y
ou’ll
hav
e fa
ith.
Eve
n of
feri
ng o
neti
ny g
rain
to
the
Bud
dha
crea
tes
so m
uch
mer
it,
beca
use
karm
a is
expa
ndab
le. B
ut if
we
don’
t vi
sual
ize
as e
xpla
ined
in t
he p
raye
r, th
enit’
s ju
st o
ffer
ing
grai
n,
or m
aybe
off
erin
g n
othi
ng!
You
’ll j
ust
bepl
ayin
g w
ith
grai
ns!
The
sut
ras
and
tant
ras
can
be r
efer
red
to a
s re
fere
nces
. Acc
umul
atin
gm
erit
by o
ffer
ing
the
man
dala
and
oth
er o
ffer
ings
to th
e B
uddh
a is
aco
mpl
etel
y re
liabl
e m
etho
d to
cre
ate
the
caus
es o
f ha
ppin
ess,
per
fec-
tions
, and
wea
lth. S
omet
imes
whe
n m
oney
is in
vest
ed w
ith th
e ex
pec-
tatio
n of
mak
ing
mill
ions
of d
olla
rs p
rofit
, lot
s of
mon
ey m
ay b
e lo
stin
stea
d. M
ater
ial v
alue
s are
alw
ays g
oing
up
and
dow
n in
the
wor
ld, s
oyo
u ca
n’t a
lway
s be
sur
e of
mak
ing
a pr
ofit.
But
the
resu
lts o
f cre
atin
gm
erit
with
the
Bud
dha
don’
t flu
ctua
te. T
he re
sults
will
alw
ays b
e su
re,
prov
ided
the
mer
it is
ded
icat
ed a
nd is
n’t
dest
roye
d by
ang
er.
For
exam
ple,
the
re a
re e
ight
ben
efits
of
fold
ing
your
han
ds t
o th
eB
uddh
a, e
ven
if th
is is
not
don
e w
ith a
vir
tuou
s m
otiv
e or
eve
n if
it’s
done
with
ang
er! T
he e
ight
ben
efits
are
:
1. h
avin
g a
heal
thy,
att
ract
ive
body
2. h
avin
g pl
easa
nt s
urro
undi
ngs,
ser
vant
s, e
tc3.
bei
ng a
ble
to k
eep
pure
mor
al c
ondu
ct4.
hav
ing
devo
tion
5. h
avin
g co
urag
e to
figh
t de
lusi
ons
and
wor
k fo
r ot
hers
6. r
ebir
th a
s a
hum
an o
r a
god
7. a
ttai
ning
the
ary
a pa
ths
8. a
ttai
ning
enl
ight
enm
ent
The
re a
re a
lso
spec
ific
bene
fits
of m
akin
g pr
ostr
atio
ns. F
or e
xam
ple,
for
each
ato
m o
f gr
ound
cov
ered
by
the
body
dur
ing
pros
trat
ions
we
crea
te t
he m
erit
to
be b
orn
a ch
akra
vart
in k
ing
a th
ousa
nd t
imes
.T
hese
kin
gs a
re u
sual
ly b
odhi
satt
vas.
His
Hol
ines
s th
e D
alai
Lam
a is
the
copp
er c
hakr
avar
tin k
ing.
The
y ha
ve g
reat
pow
er t
o gu
ide
sen-
H
ow to
Mak
e Man
dala
Offer
ings
3
7
budd
ha-fi
eld.
Ple
ase
acce
pt th
em w
ith c
ompa
ssio
n fo
r th
e sa
ke o
f mi-
grat
ing
bein
gs.
Hav
ing
acce
pted
them
, ple
ase,
out
of y
our
grea
t com
pass
ion,
gra
ntyo
ur in
spir
atio
n to
me
and
all m
igra
ting
mot
her
sent
ient
bei
ngs a
s far
as th
e lim
its o
f spa
ce!
Tibet
anZh
ing
kam
ül w
ar g
yi w
o ...
OM
vaj
ra b
hum
i AH
HU
M /
wan
g ch
hen
ser
gyi s
a zh
iO
M v
ajra
rek
he A
H H
UM
/ c
hhi c
hag
ri k
hor
yug
gi k
or w
äi ü
su
Rii
gyäl
po
ri r
ab /
sha
r lü
pha
g po
/ lh
o dz
am b
u lin
g /
nup
bala
ng c
hö /
jang
dra
mi n
yän
Lü d
ang
lü p
hag
/ ng
a ya
b da
ng n
ga y
ab z
hän
/ yo
dän
dan
g la
mch
hog
dro
/ dr
a m
i nyä
n da
ng d
ra m
i nyä
n gy
i da
Rin
po
chhe
i ri w
o /
pag
sam
gyi
shi
ng /
dö
jöi b
a /
ma
mö
päi
lo to
gK
hor
lo r
in p
o ch
he /
nor
bu
rin
po c
hhe
/ ts
ün m
o ri
n po
chh
e /
lön
po r
in p
o ch
he /
lang
po
rin
po c
hhe
/ ta
chh
og r
in p
o ch
he /
mag
pön
rin
po
chhe
/ t
er c
hhen
pöi
bum
pa
Geg
ma
/ th
reng
wa
ma
/ lu
ma
/ ga
r m
a /
me
tog
ma
/ du
g pö
ma
/ na
ng s
äl m
a /
dri c
hhab
ma
Nyi
ma
/ da
wa
/ ri
n po
chh
ei d
ug /
chh
og lä
nam
par
gyä
l wäi
gyän
tshä
n /
ü s
u lh
a da
ng m
i / p
äl jo
r ph
ün s
um ts
hog
pa m
ats
hang
wa
me
pa /
tsan
g zh
ing
yi d
u w
ong
wa
di d
ag d
rin
chän
tsa
wa
dang
gyü
par
/ c
hä p
äi p
äl d
än la
ma
dam
pa
nam
dan
g ky
äpa
r du
yan
gLa
ma
lo s
ang
tub
wan
g do
r je
cha
ng /
che
n pö
i lha
tsh
og k
hor
dang
chä
pa
nam
la z
hing
kam
ül w
ar g
yi w
o /
thug
je d
ro w
äidö
n du
zhe
su
söl /
zhe
nä
kyan
g da
g so
g dr
o w
a m
a gy
ur n
amkh
äi t
ha d
ang
nyam
päi
sem
chä
n th
am c
hä la
/ t
hug
tse
wa
chhe
n pö
go
nä ji
n gy
i lab
tu s
öl
How to Make M
andala Offerings 9
tient beings (one needs power and w
ealth to be able to guide beings).
The result of D
harma practice is alw
ays there, if it has been dedicated.It’s just a m
atter of time w
hen the result will be experienced. If there
are no interferences, it will be experienced soon. It’s com
pletely reli-able; there’s no betrayal regarding the result.
The Importance of Clear VisualizationG
enerating lam-rim
realizations in the mind quickly depends on cre-
ating extensive merit. H
owever m
uch merit can be created in one
day, in one hour, makes it that m
uch quicker to attain realizations ofthe Lam
-rim. C
reating merit depends on how
clearly and extensivelyyou can visualize. T
hat is the key; that is the essential thing aboutm
andala offerings. In the Lam-rim
Chenm
o, Lama Tsongkhapa did not
explain mandalas in detail, but he explained the im
portance of offer-ing the m
andala with a clear visualization. T
his is incredibly impor-
tant advice. If the visualization is not clear, less merit is created. T
hat’sthe secret of m
andalas; the amount of m
erit created depends on clearlyvisualizing the w
orlds, and so on, as explained in the prayer.
The num
ber of mandalas that are done isn’t so im
portant. The goal is
lam-rim
realizations, and quick realization depends on clear visualiza-tion. You create m
ore merit by doing ten m
andalas with clear visual-
ization than a hundred vaguely visualized. The prayer can be said
quickly, but it won’t have so m
uch meaning if done in that w
ay.
It’s not enough to have mere intellectual know
ledge of the path –that doesn’t change the m
ind. If there are seeds but no soil, water,
fertilizer, and warm
th, the seeds won’t grow
. Similarly, in order for
realizations to grow, for the m
ind to be transformed by the teachings,
you need to purify obstacles and accumulate m
erit. Offering the
mandala is one of the m
ost important m
ethods to accumulate this
much-needed m
erit.
Multiplying the Offering
You can also increase the merit of the offering by im
agining that you’reoffering m
any universes, as many as you can im
agine. After construct-
36 How to M
ake Mandala Offerings
Appendix Two
Mandala Offering Prayers
Long Mandala Offering of the 37 Heaps
Let us offer a buddha-field ...O
M vajra ground
AH
HU
M, m
ighty golden ground.O
M vajra fence A
H H
UM
. Outside it is encircled by the surrounding
wall, in the center of w
hich are Sumeru, K
ing of Mountains, the
eastern continent, Videha (Tall-body Land), the southern, Jam
budvipa(R
ose-apple Land), the w
estern, G
odaniya (C
attle-gift Land), the
northern, K
uru; [the eastern minor continents] D
eha and Videha,
[the southern], Cam
ara and Apara-cam
ara (Chow
rie-land and west-
ern Chow
rie-land), [the western], Satha and U
ttara-mantrin (Lands
of the Deceitful and the Skilled in M
antra), [and the northern], Kuru
and Kaurava. [In the four continents are:] [E
] the precious mountain,
[S] the w
ish-gran
ting tree, [W
] the w
ish-fulfillin
g cow, [N
] the
unploughed harvest.[O
n the first level are:] The precious w
heel, the precious jewel, the
precious queen, the precious minister, the precious elephant, the pre-
cious horse, the precious general, and the great treasure vase.[O
n the second level, the eight goddesses:] Lady of grace, lady ofgarlands, lady of song, lady of dance, lady of flow
ers, lady of incense,lady of lam
ps, lady of perfume.
[On the third level:] T
he sun and the moon; the precious parasol,
and the banner of victory in all quarters. In the center, the most per-
fect riches of gods and human beings, w
ith nothing missing, pure and
delightful.To m
y glorious, holy and most kind root and lineage gurus, and in
particular to the deity host of Lama Tson
gkhapa, Kin
g of Sages,M
aha-Vajradhara, an
d their divine retin
ue, I shall offer these as a
10
How
to M
ake
Man
dala
Offer
ings
ing
the
man
dala
, im
agin
e be
ams
of l
ight
goi
ng o
ut i
n al
l di
rect
ions
from
the
man
dala
. O
n th
e en
d of
eac
h be
am i
s an
othe
r m
anda
la.
The
n fr
om e
ach
of t
hese
man
dala
s em
anat
e be
ams
of l
ight
wit
h a
man
dala
on
the
end
of e
ach,
and
so
on. A
noth
er w
ay o
f m
ultip
lyin
gth
e m
anda
la i
s to
im
agin
e an
othe
r w
hole
uni
vers
e on
eac
h at
om o
fth
e fir
st m
anda
la,
and
then
ano
ther
uni
vers
e on
eac
h of
tho
se u
ni-
vers
es’ a
tom
s, e
tc. Y
ou c
an a
lso
imag
ine
a du
plic
ate
imag
e of
you
rsel
fm
akin
g a
man
dala
off
erin
g in
eac
h at
om o
f sp
ace.
The
ent
ire
spac
ebe
com
es fi
lled
with
man
dala
s.
Alth
ough
the
man
dala
bas
e is
sm
all,
you
mus
t im
agin
e ev
eryt
hing
inth
e un
iver
se o
n it
. It
’s l
ike
seei
ng m
any
obje
cts
refl
ecte
d in
a t
iny
wat
er b
ubbl
e, o
r loo
king
at a
mou
ntai
n th
roug
h th
e ey
e of
a n
eedl
e or
look
ing
at a
city
from
an
airp
lane
. It’s
ver
y im
port
ant t
o th
ink
that
all
thes
e ob
ject
s ac
tual
ly e
xist
. The
imag
ined
sym
bol o
f the
uni
vers
e do
esex
ist
as a
cre
atio
n of
the
min
d.
Betw
een S
ession
sW
hene
ver
your
min
d fe
els
solid
and
unm
ovin
g an
d ev
eryt
hing
see
ms
to b
e at
a s
tand
still
, you
sho
uld
mak
e m
anda
la o
ffer
ings
and
str
ong
requ
ests
to th
e gu
ru a
nd th
e m
erit
field
. Whe
n yo
u fe
el li
ke th
is, h
eres
yto
war
d th
e te
achi
ngs
can
aris
e an
d in
stea
d of
gai
ning
ene
rgy
to p
rac-
tice
an
d in
crea
se y
our
wis
dom
, yo
u cr
eate
not
hin
g bu
t do
wn
falls
.O
ffer
ing
man
dala
s ca
n pr
even
t th
is.
Man
dala
Offer
ing in
Tan
traO
ne o
f th
e co
mm
itm
ents
of
mah
a-an
utta
ra y
oga
tant
ra i
s to
off
erm
anda
las
six
times
a d
ay t
o yo
ur g
uru.
Thi
s is
don
e du
ring
the
Six
-Se
ssio
n G
uru
Yoga
pra
ctic
e. I
f yo
u do
n’t
have
a p
late
you
can
jus
tvi
sual
ize
offe
ring
the
man
dala
thr
ee t
imes
a d
ay a
nd t
hree
tim
es a
tni
ght.
If y
ou f
ail t
o do
thi
s, it
’s o
ne b
önpo
(tr
ansg
ress
ion
of a
bra
nch
tant
ric
vow
). K
yabj
e Pa
bong
kha
Rin
poch
e sa
id i
n th
e La
m-ri
m t
hat
brea
king
a b
odhi
satt
va v
ow is
100
,000
tim
es h
eavi
er t
han
brea
king
aro
ot v
ow o
f a fu
lly o
rdai
ned
mon
k, a
nd b
reak
ing
a br
anch
tant
ric
vow
is 1
,000
,000
tim
es h
eavi
er th
an b
reak
ing
a ro
ot b
odhi
satt
va v
ow. T
heka
rmic
con
sequ
ence
of
brea
king
a b
ranc
h ta
ntri
c vo
w is
the
sam
e as
that
of k
illin
g da
kini
s. H
owev
er, i
f you
vis
ualiz
e of
feri
ng th
e m
anda
la
H
ow to
Mak
e Man
dala
Offer
ings
3
5
How
to Co
nstru
ct a
Man
dala
with
Thr
ee R
ings
1.M
ount
Mer
u2.
Lü p
hag
po3.
Dza
m b
u lin
g4.
Ba la
ng c
hö5.
Dra
mi.n
yän
6.Lü
7.Lü
pag
8.N
ga y
ab9.
Nga
yab
zhä
n10
.Yo
dän
11.
Lam
chh
og d
ro12
.D
ra m
i nyä
n13
.D
ra m
i nyä
n gy
i da
14.
Prec
ious
mou
ntai
n15
.W
ish-
gran
ting
tree
16.
Wis
h-fu
lfilli
ng c
ow17
.U
nplo
ughe
d ha
rves
t18
.Pr
ecio
us w
heel
19.
Prec
ious
jew
el20
.Pr
ecio
us q
ueen
21.
Prec
ious
min
iste
r22
.Pr
ecio
us e
leph
ant
23.
Prec
ious
hor
se24
.Pr
ecio
us g
ener
al25
.G
reat
trea
sure
vas
e
26.
God
dess
of b
eaut
y27
.G
odde
ss o
f ga
rlan
ds28
.G
odde
ss o
f son
g29
.G
odde
ss o
f da
nce
30.
God
dess
of f
low
ers
31.
God
dess
of
ince
nse
32.
God
dess
of l
ight
33.
God
dess
of p
erfu
me
34.
Sun
35.
Moo
n36
.Pr
ecio
us p
aras
ol37
.Ba
nner
of v
icto
ry in
all
dire
ctio
ns38
.In
the
cent
re, t
he m
ost p
reci
ous
poss
essi
ons
of g
ods
& h
uman
s.
How to Make M
andala Offerings 11
as described in the Six-Session Prayer, you don’t receive this fault. It isnecessary to recite the Six-Session Prayer to be conscious of w
hat youshould practice.
Even those w
ho have achieved the developing stage of tantra have tooffer m
andalas. If you don’t continuously make m
andala offeringsfrom
the time you receive a tantric initiation until you achieve the
completion stage, there is a great danger to your life from
such thingsas spirits.
The m
ore you understand karma the m
ore you will recognize the pre-
ciousness of this simple practice. T
he benefits of making one m
andalaoffering are incredible. T
he disadvantages of not doing so are alsovery heavy. K
adampa geshes w
ould always carry w
ith them their
mandala plates, offering bow
ls, and yellow robes.
By offering m
andalas it’s possible to have visions of deities. One fully
ordained nun saw C
henrezig after making m
any mandala offerings.
34 How to M
ake Mandala Offerings
Appendix One
Illustrations
Two-Dimensional D
rawing of Objects in the Mandala Offering
12
How
to M
ake
Man
dala
Offer
ings
The A
ctual
Pract
ice
The
pra
yer f
or m
akin
g man
dala
offe
rings
can
be fo
und
in a
ppen
dix 2
, p. 3
6. M
anda
la o
fferin
gssh
ould
be d
one i
n co
njun
ctio
n w
ith a
guru
yoga
pra
ctic
e suc
h as
Lam
a Ts
ongk
hapa
Gur
u Yo
ga,
Lam
a C
höpa
, or L
ama
Chö
pa–J
orch
o.
If y
ou’r
e us
ing
grai
n su
ch a
s ric
e, it
shou
ld fi
rst b
e cl
eane
d (in
sect
s and
dirt
rem
oved
, was
hed
in w
ater
and
dri
ed) a
nd m
ade
nice
-smel
ling
with
perf
ume
or s
cent
ed w
ater
. The
bas
e sh
ould
als
o be
cle
aned
the
fir
sttim
e4 with
wat
er t
o w
hich
saf
fron
, sce
nt a
nd a
pac
hug5
pill
have
bee
nad
ded.
Thi
s is
sim
ilar
to s
prin
klin
g sc
ente
d w
ater
on
the
grou
nd b
e-fo
re in
vitin
g a
king
or
guru
to
the
plac
e.
“OM
VA
JRA
BH
UM
I A
H H
UM
”: t
he p
ower
ful g
olde
n gr
ound
. Thi
s is
reci
ted
to b
less
the
man
dala
. H
old
a sm
all
amou
nt o
f gr
ain
in e
ach
hand
. Hol
ding
the
man
dala
bas
e w
ith y
our
left
han
d an
d po
ur s
ome
grai
n on
the
base
with
you
r rig
ht. T
his g
rain
sym
boliz
es th
e ne
gativ
ities
and
obsc
urat
ions
of y
ours
elf a
nd a
ll se
ntie
nt b
eing
s. T
ip th
e ba
se a
way
from
you
so
that
the
grai
n sp
ills
off a
nd r
ub th
e ba
se th
ree
times
in a
cloc
kwis
e di
rect
ion
with
you
r rig
ht w
rist
6 whe
re th
e “b
odhi
chitt
a ve
in”
that
is a
ssoc
iate
d w
ith th
e de
velo
pmen
t of c
lair
voya
nce
is lo
cate
d. T
hink
that
you
’re
wip
ing
away
all
the
nega
tiviti
es o
f yo
urse
lf an
d al
l bei
ngs.
The
fir
st w
ipe
elim
inat
es t
hose
of
body
, the
sec
ond
thos
e of
spe
ech,
and
the
thir
d th
ose
of m
ind.
Thi
nk t
hat
you’
re a
lso
elim
inat
ing
all
unde
sira
ble
plac
es s
uch
as t
he h
ells
and
und
esir
able
thi
ngs
such
as
thor
ns, i
llnes
s, m
isfo
rtun
es, t
he tw
o ob
scur
atio
ns, a
nd a
ll th
e im
puri
-tie
s of
you
rsel
f and
oth
ers
that
hav
e ar
isen
due
to c
lingi
ng to
ext
erna
lob
ject
s an
d th
e in
tern
al m
ind.
H
ow to
Mak
e Man
dala
Offer
ings
3
3
10.
Acc
ordi
ng to
Lib
erat
ion
(p. 2
12),
the
eigh
t god
dess
es st
and
on th
e le
dges
aro
und
Mou
nt M
eru.
11.
Acc
ordi
ng to
Ges
he W
angc
hen
in A
wak
enin
g the
Min
d of
Enl
ight
enm
ent (
p. 6
8), t
hepa
raso
l is n
orm
ally
pla
ced
in th
e ea
st, t
owar
d yo
u. T
his i
s to
over
com
e ob
stac
les t
oyo
ur m
edit
atio
n pr
acti
ce: i
t sy
mbo
lizes
the
pro
tect
ion
of a
ll th
e bu
ddha
s an
dbo
dhis
attv
as. B
ut in
ord
er to
rece
ive
bles
sing
s, p
lace
the
bann
er in
the
east
.
12.
The
var
ious
gur
u yo
ga p
ract
ices
in c
onju
nctio
n w
ith w
hich
one
doe
s the
man
dala
offe
ring
pra
ctic
e ar
e al
l ava
ilabl
e fr
om th
e FP
MT
Edu
cati
on D
epar
tmen
t.
How to Make M
andala Offerings 13
The m
andala base becomes the golden ground, representing our
buddha-nature, with plains as sm
ooth as the palm of a child’s hand.
Now
place more grain on the base. T
ipping it toward you, again rub it
with your w
rist three times counter-clockw
ise. Think that you’re re-
ceiving the qualities, blessings, and attainments of the guru and the
merit field; these enter your body, speech, and m
ind. You transforminto the m
erit field, or your yidam.
“OM
VA
JRA
RE
KH
E A
H H
UM
”: encircled by an iron fence. Place some
grain in the center of the base and then place the first ring. Never put
the ring on an empty base, as that w
ould create the karma to take
rebirth in a place where a buddha has not descended. A
fter placingthe first ring, pour a handful of grain around the edge of the plate,just inside of the ring, m
oving in a counter-clockwise direction.
Now
you begin to place heaps of rice to represent the different objects.T
here are different ways of constructing the m
andala – thirty-sevenheaps, tw
enty-five heaps, twenty-three heaps, or seven heaps – but
here it’s according to the thirty-seven–heap method. W
hen you placethe heaps, think that the grain represents the [respective] object [youare offering]. Instead of thinking that the objects drop onto the basew
ith the grain, visualize that they appear out of emptiness, lighting up
in space like a light bulb when it’s been turned on. C
lear visualizationand clear recognition of each object of the m
andala is extremely im
-portant if you w
ish to quickly complete the accum
ulation of merit.
Don’t rush; go slow
ly and spend time on the visualization to m
ake itas clear as possible. V
isualizing each object in turn, think “I’m offering
this to my guru w
ho is the merit field.” T
hen even if your visualizationbecom
es unclear or gets lost you still create merit. Try to rem
ember the
qualities and function
s of each object as you nam
e it. This is very
beneficial for the m
ind.
After offering each object, dedicate the m
erit to all sentient beings.
The arrangem
ent of the objects offered depends on the purpose ofm
aking the offering. In order to request realizations, the east is placed
32 How to M
ake Mandala Offerings
Notes
1.See n. 5, below
.
2.U
ncooked grain such as rice or barley can be used as the substance for the mandala
offering.
3.In order to attain enlightenm
ent with its tw
o holy bodies (kayas): form body
(rupakaya) and truth body (dharmakaya) it is necessary to com
plete the two
accumulations of the m
erits of method and transcendental w
isdom.
4.A
ccording to Kirti Tsenshab R
inpoche, cleaning the base only needs to be doneoccasionally. A
ccording to Khensur Losang N
yima R
inpoche, if you are doingm
any mandala offerings each day, it’s good to clean the base each day.
5.K
hensur Losang Nyim
a Rinpoche explained that a pachug pill is m
ade from cow
-products. T
here is a substance in the folds of the skin underneath the neck of acow
that has the potential to purify whatever the cow
eats, thus the things pro-duced from
the cow – m
ilk, butter, excrement, etc. – also have this potential to
purify. Also, one can add a dutsi rilbu (nectar pill) to the w
ater used to clean thebase. T
he way to clean the base is as follow
s: first place your right thumb in the
centre of the base, dip your right ring finger in the mixture, then rub that finger
around one half of the edge of the base, moving in a clockw
ise direction. Next,
place your right ring finger in the centre of the base, dip the thumb in the m
ixture,then rub the other half of the edge of the base, m
oving in a counterclockwise
direction.
6.A
ccording to Khensur Losang N
yima R
inpoche, the part of the arm w
ith which to
rub the base is the thickest part of the forearm, below
the elbow.
7.A
ccording to Khensur Losang N
yima R
inpoche, when offering the m
andala inorder to request your guru to live long, for exam
ple, at a long life puja, place easttow
ard you.
8.M
ore details from Torch of C
ertainty (p. 98): “Surrounding this are seven four-sided hollow
golden mountains that form
squares around Mount M
eru. Begin-
ning with the m
ountain closest to Meru, each one is half as high as the preceding
one. Betw
een the mountains are lakes w
ith swirling w
aters that possess eight fineattributes: cool, sw
eet, gentle, clear, pure, soothes the stomach and clears the
throat. The lakes are filled w
ith wish-fulfilling gem
s and treasures that belong tothe nagas w
ho live there. The gem
s are composed of the seven precious jew
els. The
four continents and their sub-continents surround all of this in the ocean.”
9.A
ccording to Pabongkha Rinpoche in Liberation in the Palm
of Your Hand (p. 212),
these seven and the great treasure vase float in space between the continents and
Mount M
eru.
14
How
to M
ake
Man
dala
Offer
ings
tow
ard
you
but i
n or
der
to m
ake
an o
ffer
ing
to th
e m
erit
field
, eas
t is
on t
he o
ppos
ite s
ide,
tow
ard
the
mer
it fie
ld.7
Objec
ts Of
fered
in th
e Man
dala
of Th
irty-
seven
Hea
ps1.
M
ount
Mer
u: P
lace
a h
eap
of g
rain
in
the
cent
er o
f th
e ba
se t
ore
pres
ent
Mou
nt M
eru,
whi
ch h
as f
our
face
s, e
ach
of a
diff
eren
tpr
ecio
us su
bsta
nce:
the
east
ern
face
is m
ade
of r
adia
nt, s
ilver
y cr
ysta
l;th
e so
uthe
rn fa
ce is
of b
righ
t blu
e la
pis
lazu
li;th
e w
este
rn fa
ce is
of r
uby;
the
nort
hern
fac
e is
of
gold
.
Eac
h je
wel
ed fa
ce o
f Mou
nt M
eru
radi
ates
daz
zlin
gly,
and
its r
efle
c-tio
n ac
coun
ts fo
r th
e co
lor
of th
e se
a, s
ky a
nd w
orld
on
its r
espe
c-tiv
e si
de.
The
top
of M
ount
Mer
u is
flat
and
squa
re, l
ike
a pl
atea
u. H
ere
are
foun
d th
e fo
ur g
uard
ian
king
s, a
nd t
he p
alac
e of
the
wor
ldly
gods
, who
hav
e in
cred
ible
enj
oym
ents
.T
he s
hape
of
the
mou
ntai
n re
sem
bles
an
inve
rted
pyr
amid
with
the
apex
bur
ied
bene
ath
its lo
wer
leve
ls. T
here
are
eig
ht lo
wer
leve
ls, w
hich
are
like
eig
ht st
eps a
ll ar
ound
the
bott
om o
f the
mou
n-ta
in.
Onl
y fo
ur o
f th
ese
are
abov
e th
e oc
ean,
vis
ible
to
the
eye,
whi
le t
he o
ther
fou
r ar
e be
neat
h th
e oc
ean.
The
asu
ra r
ealm
is
loca
ted
whe
re t
he w
ater
mee
ts M
ount
Mer
u. T
he s
ura
real
ms
are
loca
ted
on t
he u
pper
fou
r le
vels
or
step
s. H
ere
they
hav
e en
joy-
men
ts a
hun
dred
tim
es g
reat
er th
an th
ose
foun
d in
Am
eric
a! A
bove
the
four
th le
vel i
s th
e go
d re
alm
Tus
hita
.8
2.
The
Eas
tern
Wor
ld i
s w
hite
and
sem
i-cir
cula
r lik
e a
half-
moo
n.T
he p
eopl
e w
ho l
ive
ther
e ar
e ta
ll an
d ve
ry b
eaut
iful
with
hal
f-m
oon-
shap
ed f
aces
. The
y ha
ve s
ubdu
ed m
inds
and
lim
itles
s po
s-se
ssio
ns.
The
y al
way
s en
joy
a hi
gh s
tatu
s an
d liv
e fo
r th
ree
hun-
dred
yea
rs. T
hey
eat
rice
and
veg
etab
les.
The
y ar
e a
quie
t, pe
acef
ulpe
ople
who
nev
er fi
ght,
but t
hey
have
no
relig
ion.
3.
The
Sou
ther
n W
orld
(th
is i
s ou
r w
orld
) is
blu
e an
d tr
apez
oida
l(s
imila
r to
the
can
opy
of a
n In
dian
ric
ksha
w).
The
inh
abita
nts’
H
ow to
Mak
e Man
dala
Offer
ings
3
1
obje
ct a
re a
ll m
erel
y la
bele
d by
min
d, it
’s li
ke o
ffer
ing
a m
anda
la in
adr
eam
. Thi
s pr
actic
e cu
ts t
he r
oot
of s
amsa
ra.
The
se f
our
type
s of
man
dala
off
erin
g ca
n be
pra
ctic
ed c
onse
cutiv
ely
or s
imul
tane
ousl
y. T
o pr
actic
e th
em s
imul
tane
ousl
y, fi
rst m
edit
ate
onem
ptin
ess.
The
n, f
rom
the
blis
sful
spa
ce o
f no
n-du
ality
you
man
ifest
as t
he d
eity
. T
he d
iffer
ent
part
s of
you
r di
vine
bod
y, t
he n
atur
e of
whi
ch i
s th
e dh
arm
akay
a, t
rans
form
int
o th
e va
riou
s fe
atur
es o
f th
em
anda
la. T
hen
reco
gniz
e th
at y
ours
elf (
the
deity
), th
e ac
tion
of o
ffer
-in
g, a
nd t
he o
bjec
t of
the
off
erin
g (y
our
guru
) ar
e un
ified
in
non-
dual
ity.
The
pra
yer f
or m
akin
g man
dala
offe
rings
can
be fo
und
in a
ppen
dix 2
, p. 3
6. M
anda
la o
fferin
gssh
ould
be d
one i
n co
njun
ctio
n w
ith a
guru
yoga
pra
ctic
e suc
h as
Lam
a Ts
ongk
hapa
Gur
u Yo
ga,
Lam
a C
höpa
, or L
ama
Chö
pa–J
orch
o.12
Dedic
ation
At
the
end
of e
very
ses
sion
of o
ffer
ing
man
dala
s, r
ecite
the
follo
win
gpr
ayer
wri
tten
by
Lam
a Ts
ongk
hapa
:
May
non
e of
the
se m
erits
bec
ome
the
caus
e of
tak
ing
prid
e in
unde
rsta
ndin
g, r
eput
atio
n, o
r re
ceiv
ing
thin
gs.
May
the
se m
erits
onl
y be
com
e th
e ca
use
of a
ttai
ning
enl
ight
enm
ent.
How to Make M
andala Offerings 15
faces are the same shape as their w
orld, as is true of all the worlds.
Here, m
any people have high realizations.
4. The W
estern World is red and circular. T
he people here haveround faces, live for five hundred years, and have infinite enjoy-m
ents.
5. The N
orthern World is yellow
and square. The people here have
square faces and beautiful bodies made of light. T
hey live for athousand years. T
he standard of life is god-like: there is no fight-ing, food grow
s in abundance; the mom
ent one is born one re-ceives everything one needs. B
ecause there is very little sufferingthere is no desire for religion and the people are unaw
are of death.B
ut seven days before they die, they hear a voice whispering, tell-
ing them w
here they will be reborn and w
hat sufferings they will
experience.
There are not m
any examples of suffering in the w
estern, north-ern, and eastern w
orlds, so it is very difficult for those people topractice D
harma.
6–13. Each w
orld has two sm
aller, similarly shaped and colored sub-
worlds on either side of it. T
hese are the next eight heaps of grainon the base. First put a heap to the left of the m
ain world, then
one to the right (that is, for the eastern world, put the first heap
in the southeast and the second in the northeast, then move on
to the southern world.)
The next four objects are called the four “precious things.” T
heyare the particular enjoym
ents of each of the four worlds; things
that the inhabitants of each world enjoy the m
ost. We should visu-
alize them in the aspect of offerings, but think that in essence they
are realizations of the Dharm
a. They are to be visualized floating
in the sky above their respective world.
14. The Precious M
ountain (east) is a huge mountain m
ade of theseven precious gem
s: gold, silver, lapis, coral, diamonds, pearls,
and emeralds.
30 How to M
ake Mandala Offerings
clinging, you’ll receive the same m
erit as if you had actually made the
material offering.
Each tim
e your recite the Six-Session Prayer you dedicate your body,life, and w
ealth to your guru and then request his help. You shouldactually give up attachm
ent to these things, but instead you still thinkof them
as yours: “my body, m
y possessions.” By verbally offering them
while still thinking of them
as yours, you receive many dow
nfalls.
Therefore, w
hen making the inner offering, it’s very pow
erful tothink, “A
s I have offered my body, speech, m
ind, and the objects ofm
y three poisonous minds to m
y guru, how can I ever again use them
for myself? From
now on I m
ust use them only according to his w
ishes.W
hat does he wish? T
hat I become a buddha to enlighten all sentient
beings. For that to happen I cannot use these objects to carry out theaim
s of my negative m
ind; that would be com
pletely opposite to my
guru’s wishes. I w
ould be misusing m
y guru’s possessions.”
At the end of the prayer of the inner offering, think, “B
y offering theobjects of m
y three poisonous minds and those of all sentient beings,
may those objects and poisons autom
atically disappear from our m
inds.”Im
agine that the three poisons have dissolved into emptiness. E
venthe nam
es, “attachment,” “aversion,” and “ignorance” cease to exist.
3. The Secret Mandala
Here, you m
anifest as a deity and then your own dharm
akaya naturem
anifests as the mandala. T
he aspect is the universe – the goldenground, M
ount Meru, etc. – but its essence is the transcendental w
is-dom
of non-dual bliss and emptiness. You can visualize yourself as the
deity in your own pure land and offer that to your gurus.
4. The Suchness Mandala
Recognize that the three circles – yourself, the action of offering, and
the guru (or subject, action, and object) – are all merely labeled by
mind and do not exist from
their own side. So you are offering the
empty nature of these three. See that the appearance of a self-existent
circle of three is like a mirage or a dream
. As the subject, action, and
16
How
to M
ake
Man
dala
Offer
ings
15. T
he W
ish-G
rant
ing
Tre
e (s
outh
) is
huge
and
mad
e of
the
sev
enpr
ecio
us g
ems:
its
root
s ar
e go
ld, t
runk
is s
ilver
, bra
nche
s ar
e la
pis
lazu
li, le
aves
are
em
eral
ds, w
ith s
apph
ire
buds
, pea
rl f
low
ers,
and
diam
ond
frui
t. T
hink
ing
of w
hate
ver
you
wis
h fo
r an
d pr
ayin
g to
the
tree
, yo
ur n
eeds
pou
r do
wn
from
it
like
rain
. T
his
is b
y th
epo
wer
of t
he o
bjec
t. W
hen
its le
aves
rus
tle, t
hey
mak
e th
e so
und
of D
harm
a. T
he p
eopl
e of
the
sou
ther
n w
orld
lik
e fr
uit,
so t
his
tree
is t
heir
par
ticul
ar e
njoy
men
t.
16. T
he W
ish-F
ulfil
ling
Cow
(w
est)
is a
lso
mad
e of
jew
els:
with
dia
-m
ond
horn
s, s
apph
ire
hoov
es,
and
a ta
il lik
e th
e w
ish-
gran
ting
tree
. It
s bo
dy i
s go
lden
-ora
nge
colo
red,
hea
lthy,
and
ver
y be
auti-
ful.
Its e
xcre
men
t is g
old.
Wha
teve
r one
des
ires
spri
ngs f
orth
from
its p
ores
. It a
lso
give
s un
ceas
ing
milk
.
17. T
he U
ncul
tivat
ed H
arve
st (
nor
th)
con
sist
s of
cro
ps t
hat
grow
unce
asin
gly,
with
out
need
ing
to b
e cu
ltiva
ted.
Its
fru
it is
per
fect
:sk
inle
ss a
nd c
lean
, eas
y to
pic
k (it
just
falls
off
in o
ne’s
han
d), b
eau-
tiful
and
del
icio
us, s
atis
fyin
g al
l des
ires
.
(If u
sing
four
ring
s, pl
ace
the
seco
nd ri
ng a
t thi
s poi
nt. I
f usin
g th
ree
rings
, the
seco
nd r
ing
is pl
aced
late
r.)
The
nex
t se
ven
obje
cts
are
the
seve
n po
sses
sion
s of
a c
hakr
avar
tin(w
heel
-turn
ing
king
) or
univ
ersa
l mon
arch
; off
erin
g th
em c
reat
es t
heca
use
to b
ecom
e su
ch a
mon
arch
. T
he q
ualit
ies
of t
hese
obj
ects
are
expl
aine
d in
the
Her
uka
Lam
a C
höpa
.9
18. T
he P
reci
ous
Whe
el (e
ast)
is a
veh
icle
for
the
univ
ersa
l mon
arch
,ac
tual
ized
by
and
prop
elle
d by
his
gre
at s
tock
of
mer
it. I
t tr
avel
sve
ry fa
st –
it c
an c
over
the
four
wor
lds a
nd th
e go
d re
alm
s in
a da
y–
and
can
carr
y th
e m
onar
ch a
nd h
is e
ntir
e re
tinue
to a
ny p
art o
fth
e un
iver
se h
e w
ishe
s to
go
to. M
ade
of g
old,
with
1,0
00 s
poke
s,it’
s ve
ry b
righ
t, lik
e th
e su
n.
The
whe
el is
sym
bolic
, whe
n of
feri
ng it
, ded
icat
e: “
By
offe
ring
this
prec
ious
whe
el, m
ay I
and
all s
entie
nt b
eing
s ach
ieve
com
plet
e co
n-tr
ol o
ver
Dha
rma
activ
ities
(lik
e G
uru
Shak
yam
uni
Bud
dha
and
His
Hol
ines
s th
e D
alai
Lam
a).
By
unde
rsta
ndi
ng
the
diff
eren
t
H
ow to
Mak
e Man
dala
Offer
ings
2
9
your
han
ds a
nd fe
et b
ecom
e th
e fo
ur w
orld
s;th
e up
per
and
low
er p
arts
of y
our
arm
s an
d le
gs b
ecom
e th
eei
ght s
ub-w
orld
s;yo
ur h
ead
beco
mes
a b
eaut
iful p
alac
e on
top
of M
ount
Mer
u;yo
ur h
eart
bec
omes
a b
eaut
iful j
ewel
ado
rnin
g th
e to
p of
thi
spa
lace
;yo
ur e
yes
beco
me
the
sun
and
moo
n;al
l you
r in
ner
orga
ns b
ecom
e w
onde
rful
pos
sess
ions
and
enj
oym
ents
of g
ods
and
hum
ans.
Vis
ualiz
e m
any
obje
cts
of y
our
atta
chm
ent,
aver
sion
, an
d ig
nora
nce
in th
e sp
ace
abov
e M
ount
Mer
u an
d of
fer a
ll th
is to
you
r gur
us. D
on’t
visu
aliz
e on
e ob
ject
onl
y: fo
r exa
mpl
e, if
you
hav
e at
tach
men
t for
som
e-on
e, im
agin
e of
feri
ng m
any
num
bers
of t
hat p
erso
n. T
hink
of p
osse
s-si
ons
or c
erta
in t
ypes
of
food
tha
t yo
u lik
e, im
agin
e th
em m
ultip
lied
man
y tim
es a
nd o
ffer
them
to y
our g
urus
with
out a
ny se
nse
of lo
ss. B
yof
feri
ng t
he o
bjec
ts o
f yo
ur n
egat
ive
min
d yo
u re
noun
ce t
hem
and
ther
eby
cut
off y
our
atta
chm
ent
to t
hem
. If t
hey
are
offe
red
sinc
erel
yto
the
guru
-bud
dha,
then
they
bec
ome
his o
r her
s and
no
long
er y
ours
,so
it is
not
app
ropr
iate
to
feel
att
achm
ent
or a
vers
ion
for
them
.
Ord
inar
y be
ings
are
ple
ased
by
mat
eria
l off
erin
gs, b
ut t
he b
est
offe
r-in
g to
mak
e to
you
r gu
ru is
you
r re
nunc
iatio
n of
the
thre
e po
ison
ous
min
ds.
Your
gur
u is
ext
rem
ely
plea
sed
by t
his;
not
for
him
self,
but
beca
use
he k
now
s th
at th
is is
the
only
way
you
will
ach
ieve
libe
ratio
n.
The
ess
entia
l m
eani
ng o
f gi
ving
up
is n
ot g
ivin
g up
the
obj
ect,
but
relin
quis
hing
you
r at
tach
men
t to
it.
A r
enou
nced
min
d is
the
bes
tof
feri
ng.
It’s
no
use
mak
ing
offe
ring
s to
you
r gu
ru u
nles
s yo
u co
m-
plet
ely
offe
r yo
ur b
ody,
spe
ech
and
min
d. A
nd o
nce
you
have
off
ered
your
bod
y, sp
eech
, min
d an
d en
joym
ents
to yo
ur g
uru
you
shou
ld n
ever
agai
n th
ink
of t
hem
as
“min
e” o
r tr
y to
pre
vent
oth
ers
from
usi
ng o
rta
king
the
m.
Som
etim
es r
egre
t is
fel
t fo
r ha
ving
giv
en s
omet
hing
. Thi
s cr
eate
s th
eka
rma
of m
iser
lines
s. T
rue
offe
ring
sho
uld
not
be l
ike
this
; in
stea
d,yo
u sh
ould
com
plet
ely
and
sinc
erel
y giv
e fr
om th
e de
pths
of y
our h
eart
.If
you
sinc
erel
y re
noun
ce a
nd d
edic
ate
wha
teve
r you
off
er w
ithou
t any
How to Make M
andala Offerings 17
levels and so on of sentient beings and teaching them accordingly,
may I lead all of them
to enlightenment.
“By understanding different beings’ capabilities, intelligence, m
erit,and so on, G
uru Shakyamuni B
uddha can show various m
ethodsw
ithout error, not only through his speech but also in variousm
anifestations. H
e possesses all realizations of the w
ords andtheir m
eanings. B
y offering the precious wheel w
e pray to be ableto do the sam
e. This is the benefit of offering this w
heel.”
19. The Precious Jew
el (south) is an eight-sided wish-fulfilling jew
elm
ade of lapis lazuli. It is as bright as the sun, can make night like
daytime, and em
its light rays of five colors that can be seen forthousands of m
iles. These rays bring all success and w
hatever isneeded by sentient beings. W
hen we’re torm
ented by heat, theym
ake us feel cool; when it’s cold, they provide w
armth. T
hey bringall happiness and prevent illness and untim
ely death to all thosew
ithin their range. They also fulfill w
hatever Dharm
a wishes sen-
tient beings have.
Dedicate: “B
y offering this precious jewel, m
ay all sentient beingshave their D
harma w
ishes fulfilled perfectly.”
20. The Precious Q
ueen (west) is extrem
ely beautiful and charming
and has a camphor-scented body and sw
eet-smelling utpala flow
-ered breath. Perfectly dressed, she has a calm
, subdued mind and
gives good vibrations. She is free of the five faults of wom
en: greedand m
iserliness with m
en and other objects, jealousy, anger, andpride, and possesses the eight qualities of a perfect lady: harm
oni-ous m
ind, bearing only sons, of noble birth, of high caste, free of
28 How to M
ake Mandala Offerings
Four Ways of Offering a Mandala
1. The Outer Mandala
This has been described above.
2. The Inner Mandala
The inner m
andala is a powerful rem
edy to the three poisonous minds
of attachment, aversion, and ignorance that cause us to discrim
inateother beings as friend, enem
y, or stranger. It involves imagining your
body transforming into the m
andala and then into a pure realm, as
well as offering the objects of your attachm
ent, aversion, and igno-rance. T
he prayer “dag gi chhag dang...” is recited while visualizing this
offering. This prayer is a m
ethod to counteract attachment and m
iser-liness tow
ard your body, possessions, merits, and the environm
ent. Itloosens the grip of attachm
ent; suddenly it makes no sense to be at-
tached to things any more. T
he mind is transform
ed and feels verypeaceful.
The w
ay to transform your body into the m
andala is as follows:
your skin becomes the surface of the golden ground;
your blood becomes an ocean of nectar;
your flesh becomes beautiful garlands of flow
ers floating on theocean of nectar;
your stomach becom
es Mount M
eru;
18
How
to M
ake
Man
dala
Offer
ings
jeal
ousy
tow
ard
othe
r wom
en, d
oes n
ot g
ossi
p or
hol
d w
rong
vie
ws,
and
rem
ains
una
ffec
ted
by o
bjec
ts o
f the
sen
ses.
She
bes
tow
s bl
iss
and
free
dom
fro
m h
unge
r an
d th
irst
on
any
bein
g w
ho t
ouch
eshe
r. H
er m
ind
is en
dow
ed w
ith lo
ve a
nd c
ompa
ssio
n; s
he g
rant
s al
lsu
cces
s an
d gu
ides
all
bein
gs fr
om p
hysi
cal a
nd m
enta
l suf
feri
ng.
Ded
icat
e: “
By
offe
ring
this
pre
ciou
s qu
een,
may
all
sent
ient
bei
ngs
enjo
y th
e no
n-co
ntam
inat
ed, n
on-d
elud
ed g
reat
blis
s of
ary
as.”
21. T
he P
reci
ous M
inist
er (n
orth
) has
ren
ounc
ed a
ll no
n-D
harm
a ac
-tio
ns, s
o al
l his
pro
ject
s ar
e D
harm
a-re
late
d an
d fo
r th
e be
nefit
of
othe
rs. H
e is
nev
er t
reac
hero
us o
r ha
rmfu
l, bu
t al
way
s ac
ts w
ithlo
ve. H
e ne
ver
gets
ups
et a
bout
or
tired
of w
orki
ng fo
r ot
hers
. He
spon
tane
ousl
y ca
rrie
s ou
t th
e w
ishe
s of
the
uni
vers
al m
onar
chw
ithou
t hav
ing
to b
e as
ked
(he
is a
ble
to re
ad th
e m
onar
ch’s
min
d).
He
is e
xtre
mel
y w
ise
and
skill
ful i
n al
l situ
atio
ns a
nd in
dir
ectin
gth
e ac
tiviti
es o
f th
e en
tour
age
and
the
arm
y.
Ded
icat
e: “
By
offe
ring
thi
s pr
ecio
us m
inis
ter
may
all
sent
ient
be-
ings
fulfi
ll ex
actly
all
the
wis
hes
of th
e bu
ddha
s.”
22. T
he P
reci
ous E
leph
ant (
sout
heas
t): h
e is
as
larg
e an
d as
whi
te a
s a
snow
mou
ntai
n an
d as
str
ong
as a
tho
usan
d or
dina
ry e
leph
ants
.H
e is
so w
ise,
skill
ful,
and
aler
t tha
t he
does
n’t n
eed
to b
e le
d by
aro
pe; a
fin
e th
read
is
enou
gh. H
e is
dec
orat
ed li
ke a
cer
emon
ial
elep
hant
. H
e ha
s a
larg
e pe
nis,
and
his
tru
nk,
tail,
and
tes
ticle
sto
uch
the
grou
nd. H
e ca
rrie
s th
e un
iver
sal m
onar
ch w
here
ver
hew
ants
to
go w
itho
ut n
eedi
ng t
o be
ord
ered
— h
e ca
n re
ad h
is
H
ow to
Mak
e Man
dala
Offer
ings
2
7
Hol
ding
the
man
dala
at y
our
hear
t, re
cite
the
rest
of t
he p
raye
r, do
ing
the
appr
opri
ate
visu
aliz
atio
n. T
hen
dism
antle
the
man
dala
and
vis
u-al
ize
rece
ivin
g lig
ht a
nd b
less
ings
from
the
gur
u.
If y
ou w
ish
you
can
offe
r a
nine
-hea
p m
anda
la, a
ddin
g an
othe
r he
apin
the
east
for
the
prec
ious
par
asol
and
one
in th
e w
est f
or th
e vi
ctor
yba
nner
. Thi
s pr
actic
e is
som
etim
es a
dvis
ed a
s it
is v
ery
ausp
icio
us t
oof
fer
the
vict
ory
bann
er.
Whe
n co
untin
g m
anda
la o
fferi
ngs (
asa
prel
imin
ary p
ract
ice)
, you
off
er o
nly
man
dala
s of
sev
en o
r ni
ne h
eaps
.
Beg
in s
low
ly,
with
tw
enty
-five
sho
rtm
anda
las,
and
build
up
slow
ly. W
hen
your
phy
sica
l act
ion
beco
mes
smoo
th,
conc
entr
ate
on t
he v
isua
lizat
ion.
It
is im
port
ant t
o op
en u
p an
d gi
ve e
v-er
ythi
ng to
the
guru
, and
to fe
el th
atyo
u ar
e re
ally
rec
eivi
ng y
our
guru
’sbl
essi
ngs.
You
can
even
tual
ly d
o 10
0 m
anda
las
in t
he m
orni
ng a
nd 1
00 a
t ni
ght
as a
com
fort
able
num
ber,
with
out
push
ing.
Whe
n of
feri
ng t
he m
anda
la o
f se
ven
heap
s, i
t’s b
est
to v
isua
lize
all
thir
ty-se
ven
feat
ures
of
the
long
man
dala
. B
ut i
f yo
ur m
ind
cann
otco
pe w
ith t
he e
labo
rate
vis
ualiz
atio
n, a
t le
ast
imag
ine
clea
rly
and
inpr
oper
ord
er t
he g
olde
n gr
ound
, ir
on f
ence
, M
ount
Mer
u, t
he f
our
wor
lds,
the
sun
and
the
moo
n. It
’s a
lso
very
ben
efic
ial t
o of
fer
obje
cts
that
sym
boliz
e th
e re
aliz
atio
ns y
ou w
ish
to a
chie
ve, s
uch
as a
sw
ord,
bell,
or t
ext,
or m
ater
ials
you
nee
d fo
r you
r pra
ctic
e. V
isua
lize
thes
e in
the
spac
e ab
ove
the
man
dala
. Thi
s cre
ates
the
karm
a fo
r you
to q
uick
lyga
in t
hese
rea
lizat
ions
and
mat
eria
ls.
How to Make M
andala Offerings 19
master’s m
ind. He can travel around the universe three tim
es in aday w
ithout shaking or disturbing the rider’s body. He is peaceful
and never violent or harmful to others, perfectly obedient, in-
credibly wise, and able to conquer all opposing forces.
Dedicate: “B
y offering this precious elephant may all sentient be-
ings ride the supreme great vehicle to enlightenm
ent.”
23. The Precious A
nd Excellent Horse (southw
est) is white, of perfect
shape, size, and color, is decorated with the jew
eled crown of the
devas, a jeweled saddle, and various jew
eled ornaments. H
e cantravel around the universe three tim
es in one day and never getstired or sick. H
e is very wise and subdued and can be led by a
thread; a bridle is not necessary. He is m
agnificent looking andprotects his rider from
harm.
Dedicate: “B
y offering this precious, excellent horse, may all sentient
beings attain mundane and supram
undane psychic powers.” (O
ffer-ing the precious horse creates the cause to achieve clairvoyance.)
24. The Precious G
eneral (northwest) never harm
s others as he hastotally abandoned all non-D
harma actions. H
owever, he can never
be defeated in battle. He intuitively know
s the wishes of his ruler
and never tires in his service. He leads large arm
ies of horses,elephants, chariots, and foot soldiers. In tim
es of struggle and hard-ship, visualizing the precious general prevents you from
beingharm
ed by others (the would-be harm
ers are subdued) and protectsyou from
poverty.
26 How to M
ake Mandala Offerings
Hold the m
andala at your heart and, without attachm
ent to the offer-ings, offer them
with devotion. A
t the end of the prayer imagine that
the mandala dissolves into light and absorbs into the heart of the
guru-deity. Think that the guru experiences incredible bliss. T
hen tipthe m
andala base to dismantle the m
andala: toward you if the offer-
ing was m
ade in order to receive realizations, and away from
you if theoffering w
as made to the m
erit field. As you do this, light com
es fromthe guru and enters your body, purifying all hindrances and negativekarm
a of body, speech, and mind. T
hen a replica of the guru dissolvesinto you. T
hink that you have become one, com
pletely unified, with
the guru and have received all his realizations.
Short (Seven-Heap) Mandala Offerings
Start by offering one long mandala of thirty-seven heaps, recite the
four-line prayer and dismantle the m
andala, then begin to constructshort m
andalas. Each short m
andala begins in the same w
ay as thelong m
andala: pouring grain on the base and wiping the base w
ithyour right w
rist three times clockw
ise and three times counter-clock-
wise (or as m
any times as you like), to purify and receive blessings.
While doing this, recite the prayer of refuge and bodhichitta (sang gyä
chhö dang ...) once or as many tim
es as you like. Then pour a little
grain on the base, place the first ring and pour grain around the in-side of the ring, m
oving in a counter-clockwise direction.
While reciting the four-line prayer (sa zhi pö kyi ...) place grain for the
seven heaps:1.
Mount M
eru in the center;2–5.
the four worlds in the east, south, w
est, and north;6.
the sun in the south;7.
the moon in the north.
Hand m
udras for making m
andala offerings
20
How
to M
ake
Man
dala
Offer
ings
Ded
icat
e: “
By
offe
ring
the
prec
ious
gen
eral
may
all
sent
ient
bei
ngs
beco
me
hold
ers
of t
he e
ntir
e co
llect
ion
of t
each
ings
.”
Acc
ordi
ng t
o La
ma
Tson
gkha
pa,
the
prec
ious
hou
seho
lder
is
of-
fere
d at
this
tim
e, in
stea
d of
the
prec
ious
gen
eral
, who
is in
clud
edw
ith t
he p
reci
ous
min
iste
r. T
he p
reci
ous
hous
ehol
der
has
man
ypo
sses
sion
s an
d je
wel
s; a
ll se
ntie
nt b
eing
s ar
e pl
ease
d to
see
him
.
25. T
he G
reat
Tre
asur
e V
ase
(nor
thea
st) i
s m
ade
ofgo
ld a
nd d
ecor
ated
with
jew
els.
It
has
a fl
at b
ase,
larg
e be
lly, a
nd lo
ng n
eck,
like
a G
reek
urn
. The
neck
is d
ecor
ated
with
clo
th fr
om th
e de
va re
alm
s,an
d th
e va
se h
as a
bea
utifu
l tre
e as
a st
oppe
r. T
heva
se c
onta
ins
vari
ous
trea
sure
s an
d gr
ants
all
wis
hes.
(If u
sing
four
ring
s, pl
ace
the
third
one
at t
his p
oint
. If u
sing
thre
e rin
gs, p
lace
the
seco
nd.)
26. T
he G
odde
ss o
f Bea
uty
(eas
t) is
whi
te. S
he s
tand
s in
an
S-sh
aped
danc
ing
post
ure
with
han
ds o
n he
r hi
ps, h
oldi
ng a
vaj
ra in
eac
hha
nd. S
he e
xhib
its h
er b
eaut
y th
roug
h da
ncin
g an
d m
ovin
g he
rbo
dy.
27. T
he G
odde
ss o
f Gar
land
s (so
uth)
is y
ello
w-c
olor
ed a
nd v
ery
beau
-tif
ul. S
he h
olds
a r
osar
y m
ade
of p
reci
ous
vajr
as w
ith b
oth
hand
sat
her
bre
asts
; w
ith t
his
she
gran
ts i
nitia
tions
to
who
ever
com
esbe
fore
her
.
28. T
he G
odde
ss o
f Son
g (w
est)
is p
ink-
colo
red.
She
pla
ys a
lute
and
sing
s, o
ffer
ing
the
mus
ic to
all
bein
gs.
H
ow to
Mak
e Man
dala
Offer
ings
2
5
As
you
reci
te t
he p
raye
r m
enta
lly o
ffer
all
that
bri
ngs
plea
sure
to
the
five
sens
es. I
mag
ine
that
you
are
off
erin
g ev
eryt
hing
, not
leav
ing
any-
thin
g ou
t: al
l th
e po
sses
sion
s of
god
s an
d hu
man
s as
wel
l as
all
the
won
derf
ul th
ings
that
exi
st th
roug
hout
the
ten
dire
ctio
ns a
nd a
re n
otpo
sses
sed
by a
nyon
e.
Visu
alizin
g the
Man
dala
as a
Pur
e Rea
lm“S
a zh
i pö
kyi
...”
At
the
begi
nnin
g of
thi
s pa
rt o
f th
e of
feri
ng,
the
man
dala
is s
een
as im
pure
; the
n it
tran
sfor
ms
into
the
pur
e re
alm
of
a bu
ddha
. T
his
prac
tice
crea
tes
muc
h m
erit
and
the
karm
a to
tak
ere
birt
h in
a p
ure
real
m. I
t al
so p
urifi
es w
rong
con
cept
ions
. Im
agin
eth
e pu
re r
ealm
whe
re y
ou w
ould
like
to b
e re
born
(acc
ordi
ng to
you
rpr
actic
e: T
ushi
ta if
you
r pr
actic
e is
Gan
den
Lha
Gyä
ma;
Kac
hö L
ing
ifyo
u’re
pra
ctic
ing
Vaj
ra Y
ogin
i, et
c.)
and
visu
aliz
e th
at a
ll se
ntie
nt b
e-in
gs a
re th
ere,
rece
ivin
g te
achi
ngs a
nd ju
st a
bout
to b
ecom
e en
light
ened
.It
is v
ery
pow
erfu
l to
imag
ine
your
ene
mie
s th
ere
in t
he p
ure
real
m,
rece
ivin
g te
achi
ngs.
Whi
le r
eciti
ng th
e pr
ayer
, vis
ualiz
e a
rain
of o
ffer
-in
gs s
how
erin
g do
wn
in th
at p
ure
land
.
In p
ure
land
s on
e is
n’t
born
fro
m p
aren
ts b
ut f
rom
lot
us f
low
ers.
One
doe
sn’t
have
phy
sica
l bod
ies
subj
ect t
o si
ckne
ss a
nd o
ld a
ge, b
utbo
dies
mad
e of
lig
ht t
hat
neve
r ex
peri
ence
sic
knes
s or
agi
ng. W
hat-
ever
is w
ishe
d fo
r sp
onta
neou
sly
appe
ars.
Foo
d an
d dr
ink
are
nect
aran
d do
not
cau
se a
ttac
hmen
t to
aris
e. T
he e
ntir
e en
viro
nmen
t is b
eau-
tiful
ly d
ecor
ated
and
fille
d w
ith w
ish-
gran
ting
tree
s.
The
re a
re b
uddh
as a
nd b
odhi
satt
vas e
very
whe
re. D
epen
ding
on
whi
chpu
re la
nd o
ne is
in, i
t’s p
ossi
ble
to s
ee t
he p
artic
ular
bud
dha
of t
hat
land
and
rec
eive
dir
ect t
each
ings
from
his
hol
y sp
eech
. All
the
soun
dsw
e he
ar a
re D
harm
a te
achi
ngs.
The
re a
re b
odhi
satt
vas
in t
he a
spec
tof
bir
ds f
lyin
g ar
ound
who
se so
ngs a
re te
achi
ngs.
The
gro
und
is m
ade
of l
apis
laz
uli
and
ther
e ar
e lo
tus
pond
s fil
led
with
lar
ge,
beau
tiful
lotu
s fl
ower
s. T
he a
ir i
s pe
rfum
ed w
ith s
wee
t sc
ents
. G
odde
sses
in
spac
e sc
atte
r a
rain
of f
low
ers.
The
re a
re a
lso
man
y da
kas a
nd d
akin
is.
It’s
als
o ex
trem
ely
bene
ficia
l to
mul
tiply
the
off
erin
g, im
agin
ing
that
you
are
offe
ring
man
y un
iver
ses
(as
expl
aine
d be
fore
: se
e th
e in
tro-
duct
ion,
p. 1
0).
How to Make M
andala Offerings 21
29. The G
oddess of Dance (north) is m
ulti-colored: her face and feetare w
hite, neck and breasts are pink, hands and hips are blue, andher thighs are light yellow
. She holds a vajra in each hand, with
her right hand on her head and left hand on her left hip.
30. The G
oddess of Flowers (southeast) is bright yellow
. In her lefthand she holds a vase containing a vajra and flow
ers. She scattersthe flow
ers in the air with her right hand.
31. The G
oddess of Incense (southwest) is w
hite. Inher right hand she holds an incense burner atthe level of her shoulder. T
he incense totally satis-fies w
homever it’s offered to. H
er left hand isin the threatening gesture at her left shoulder.
32. The G
oddess of Light (northwest) is pink and
holds a beautiful lamp on her left shoulder w
ithher right hand held over her head. H
er left handis at her heart.
33. The G
oddess of Perfume (northeast) is rainbow
-colored. In herleft hand at her heart she holds a conch shell containing a vajraand beautifully scented sandal w
ater. With her right hand she
sprinkles this perfume in all directions.
These eight goddesses, visualized in space above the first level of
Mount M
eru, 10 are the emanations of your ow
n transcendentalw
isdom of non-dual bliss and em
ptiness. They should be visualized
as young and very beautiful. They have slender w
aists and enchant-ing faces w
ith fine blue eyes and red lips. Their bodies are fragrant;
they have soft, smooth skin that, w
hen touched, energizes greatbliss. A
ny sounds they make are lovely to hear. V
isualizing the god-desses as exquisitely beautiful in all respects is for the purpose oftransform
ing desire into the path. Imagine that all space is filled
with these goddesses.
(If using four rings, place the fourth at this point. If using three, place thethird.)
24 How to M
ake Mandala Offerings
37. The B
anner of Victory T
hroughout All D
irections (west) has a jew
-eled shaft w
ith three pieces of cloth hanging from it. T
here areinnum
erable small bells hanging from
the banner making pleas-
ant tin
kling soun
ds. The ban
ner is illustrated w
ith different
symbols, such as an eight-legged lion and a special kind of fish. Its
top is crowned w
ith a half-moon and an eight-sided sapphire.
The essence of the banner is all qualities of all realizations. It
symbolizes total victory; by offering it w
e create the cause to bevictorious over the four m
aras. We also create the cause to be able
to benefit others perfectly by leading them according to their level,
and to liberate them from
the fears and sufferings of samsara. It
brings about the auspicious conditions for us to realize the Dharm
aand thus becom
e a holder of the banner of the teachings, likeV
ajradhara.In tim
es of trouble, banners were placed in the roofs of m
on-asteries to overcom
e negative forces. By putting the banner in the
front of the mandala, w
e create the cause to have perfect listening,reflecting, and m
editation and to become a holder of all D
harma
teachings.
Remaining OfferingsN
ow place three heaps in the center, sym
bolizing the realizations ofthe body, speech, and m
ind of the merit field; by offering these w
ecreate the cause to be able to attain them
. Then place the m
andalatop. W
ith a small am
ount of grain in both hands, hold up the mandala.
“... u su lha dang mi ...”: “at the center are all possessions precious to
gods and humans ...” V
isualize clouds of offerings floating in spaceabove the center of the m
andala. These include: your body, your w
ealth,and all your m
erits of the three times as w
ell as all the various enjoy-m
ents of gods and humans.
22
How
to M
ake
Man
dala
Offer
ings
34. T
he S
un (s
outh
) is
in t
he s
outh
ern
sky
abov
e th
e le
vel o
f M
ount
Mer
u. I
t’s li
ke a
gig
antic
mag
nify
ing
glas
s di
spel
ling
dark
ness
(the
dark
ness
of s
entie
nt b
eing
s’ g
ross
and
subt
le d
elus
ions
); lik
e a
clea
rle
ns th
roug
h w
hich
hot
rays
are
focu
sed,
and
it e
mits
bri
llian
t ray
sof
ligh
t. It
s sh
ape
is t
hat
of a
dis
c, w
ith a
gol
den
fenc
e ar
ound
its
edge
. At i
ts c
ente
r, st
airs
lead
to a
pal
ace
in w
hich
the
child
ren
ofth
e go
ds a
re d
anci
ng a
nd s
ingi
ng.
Thi
nk a
bout
the
fun
ctio
n of
the
sun
; for
inst
ance
, how
it c
ause
scr
ops
to r
ipen
.T
he s
un s
igni
fies
all w
isdo
ms,
all
path
s: H
inay
ana,
Mah
ayan
a,an
d V
ajra
yana
. It
sig
nifi
es t
he c
lear
lig
ht,
whi
ch r
esul
ts i
n th
edh
arm
akay
a. T
he s
un is
abs
olut
e bo
dhic
hitt
a; it
dis
pels
the
dar
k-ne
ss o
f ig
nora
nce
gras
ping
at
true
exi
sten
ce, t
he r
oot
of s
amsa
ra.
35. T
he M
oon
(nor
th),
in th
e no
rthe
rn sk
y, is
the
sam
e si
ze a
s the
sun
and
is e
qual
to
the
sun
in
bri
ghtn
ess.
Usu
ally
, th
e su
n’s
lig
htob
scur
es t
he m
oon
but
in t
he m
anda
la t
he li
ght
of b
oth
perv
ade
the
wor
ld. T
he m
oon
is a
lso
disc
-shap
ed, w
ith a
fen
ce a
roun
d its
edge
and
a p
alac
e at
its
cent
er w
here
the
chi
ldre
n of
the
god
s ar
esi
ngin
g an
d da
ncin
g. T
he m
oon
caus
es s
amsa
ra t
o ce
ase;
its
tw
oed
ges
are
the
two
extr
emes
, whi
ch it
elim
inat
es. T
he li
ght
of t
hem
oon
has
the
pow
er to
dis
pel s
entie
nt b
eing
s’ g
ross
obs
cura
tions
.
The
moo
n sy
mbo
lizes
met
hod,
the
met
hods
of t
he th
ree
vehi
cles
;al
so c
onve
ntio
nal b
odhi
chitt
a, w
hose
roo
t is
com
pass
ion.
Its
light
extin
guis
hes
the
dark
ness
of
the
self-
cher
ishi
ng a
ttitu
de,
so t
hat
we
natu
rally
com
e to
che
rish
oth
ers.
The
lig
ht a
lso
prev
ents
us
from
falli
ng in
to t
he b
lissf
ul s
tate
of s
elf-l
iber
atio
n.
H
ow to
Mak
e Man
dala
Offer
ings
2
3
The
moo
n an
d th
e su
n ar
e vi
sual
ized
tog
ethe
r be
caus
e m
etho
dan
d w
isdo
m,
bodh
ichi
tta
and
empt
ines
s, s
houl
d be
pra
ctic
edto
geth
er, s
imul
tane
ousl
y. F
rom
the
tant
ric
view
poin
t the
sun
rep
-re
sent
s th
e cl
ear
light
of
wis
dom
and
the
moo
n re
pres
ents
the
illus
ory
body
. Vis
ualiz
e th
at th
e lig
ht o
f the
sun
and
moo
n di
spel
sth
e da
rkn
ess
of t
he o
bscu
rati
ons
and
ign
oran
ce o
f al
l sen
tien
tbe
ings
. By
visu
aliz
ing
like
this
you
cre
ate
the
caus
e to
ach
ieve
the
entir
e pa
th, b
oth
the
met
hod
and
wis
dom
asp
ects
, tha
t re
sult
inat
tain
ing
the
rupa
kaya
and
dha
rmak
aya.
The
sun
and
moo
n ar
eal
so o
ffer
ings
of
light
.
36. T
he P
reci
ous P
aras
ol (e
ast)
11 h
as a
han
dle
of la
pis l
azul
i enc
rust
edw
ith j
ewel
s an
d go
ld.
Its
thou
sand
spo
kes
are
of g
old,
and
it
iscr
owne
d w
ith a
n ei
ght-s
ided
sap
phir
e. T
he c
anop
y is
whi
te a
ndha
s a
frin
ge h
angi
ng a
ll ar
ound
; the
end
s of
the
fri
nge
are
rich
lyde
cora
ted
with
var
ious
jew
els,
som
e of
whi
ch a
re li
ke m
agni
fyin
ggl
asse
s an
d em
it po
wer
ful
light
. T
here
are
als
o st
rand
s of
pea
rls
hang
ing
from
the
edg
e; f
rom
the
jew
els
and
pear
ls c
omes
a f
low
of n
ecta
r th
at e
limin
ates
the
tru
e su
ffer
ings
and
tru
e ca
uses
of
suff
erin
g of
all
sent
ient
bei
ngs.
The
re a
re s
mal
l gl
ass
vase
s ha
ng-
ing
from
the
frin
ge fr
om w
hich
nec
tar
pour
s as
an
offe
ring
to th
ebu
ddha
s. T
his
nect
ar a
lso
quen
ches
the
thi
rst
and
alle
viat
es t
hesu
ffer
ing
of t
hose
bei
ngs
who
suf
fer
from
thi
rst.
The
re a
re a
lso
smal
l be
lls m
akin
g ve
ry s
wee
t D
harm
a so
unds
in
prai
se o
f th
eB
uddh
a an
d te
achi
ng s
entie
nt b
eing
s ac
cord
ing
to t
heir
leve
l.
Thi
s pa
raso
l is
sim
ilar
to t
he o
ne
that
the
nag
a K
ing
Mai
tri
offe
red
to L
ord
Bud
dha.
Its e
ssen
ce is
all
the
qual
ities
of t
he c
essa
-tio
ns, t
he a
band
onm
ent o
f the
two
obsc
urat
ions
. The
par
asol
can
prov
ide
exte
nsiv
e pr
otec
tion
fro
m s
uffe
ring
and
off
erin
g it
cre
-at
es t
he c
ause
for
one
self
to b
ecom
e an
obj
ect
of r
efug
e, a
ble
tosa
ve s
entie
nt b
eing
s fr
om t
he h
eat
of s
amsa
ra.
