Lama Zopa Rinpoche

understand. You should not see the Hinayana, Mahayana and Vajrayana as three separate
vehicles; that there is the Mahayana and then there is the Vajrayana separate from it. Tantra
is an aspect of the Mahayana. There are many people who think that tantra is a separate
vehicle from the Mahayana. That is a very common belief in places like Singapore and
Taiwan, but it is a big mistake. The Mahayana has two aspects, Mahayana sutra and
Mahayana tantra.
If you try to practice tantra without the renunciation of samsara of the Hinayana, it fails to
become the cause for the renunciation of the whole of samsara—you have to see that the
entire desire realm, form realm and formless realm are in the nature of suffering. You have
to understand that that is the base. Then, if you try to practice tantra without bodhicitta you
cannot achieve enlightenment. Even if you were able to reach the completion stage of
Highest Yoga Tantra, still you would be unable to attain enlightenment.
Of course, practicing tantra without even the renunciation of this life doesn’t become
Dharma—it becomes nonvirtue, the cause of the lower realms. You have to understand that.
The other traditions—Kagyü, Nyingma and Sakya—separate renunciation into the
renunciation of this life and the renunciation of future lives’ samsara, but in Lama
Tsongkhapa’s tradition, renunciation means renunciation of samsara, which includes
renunciation of this life.
Practicing tantra without understanding emptiness does not become the remedy that cuts the
root of samsara, that eliminates ignorance. It only develops more ignorance. That is
unbelievably important to understand.
Therefore, without the three principal aspects of the path—renunciation, bodhicitta and
wisdom—there is no correct way to practice tantra. So, while it is correct to differentiate
between Paramitayana and Tantrayana within Mahayana, to think that tantra is not part of
Mahayana means you practice tantra without renunciation, bodhicitta or emptiness.
Vajrayana combines method and wisdom in one mind
It is impossible to practice tantra properly without emptiness. In Highest Yoga Tantra there
is the transcendental wisdom that realizes emptiness as it is empty and that experiences great
bliss. That great bliss that is non-dual with emptiness generates into the deity, if possible, the
result-time dharmakaya, the pure form, Heruka.
But, when you become Heruka, if you again become truly existent, the real Heruka, that is
incorrect. Your understanding of emptiness must be continuous. As you focus with wisdom
on the holy body of Heruka, your wisdom understands that the deity Heruka that appears to
us sentient beings as a real one is not true. That real Heruka does not exist. It’s like when
you recognize a dream as a dream. Even though it appears, you know it is not true. You
understand that despite appearances it does not exist from its own side. As you understand
that, focus simultaneously on the deity Heruka’s holy body. Meditating on emptiness is the
wisdom side and focusing on the deity’s holy body is the method side. Therefore, method
and wisdom are inseparably combined here in one non-dual mind.
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