Customer Reviews

Becoming Vajrasattva: The Tantric Path of Purification

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This book is an advanced work for experienced Buddhist practitioners in the Tibetan tradition. I doubt that other readers would get much out of it. It is like a cookbook, you have to do what it says if you want to satisfy yourself. And if you want to cook, you need the utensils. In this case you need to be studying with a lama, have received initiation and have some experience practicing in order to work with this book.

The teacher of the text is in the Gelug tradition. I am a Kagyu, so that colors what I say. The author is very formal and rigorous. He makes much of what I perceive as minor matters (don't move your meditation cushion, keep it in the same place throughout your retreat). So I filter out some of what he says as not essential.

I was practicing Vajrasattva when I bought this book and I wanted something to keep the practice fresh. This provided it.

If you are practicing Vajrasattva, this book will be very helpful. There are also some things in this book that could be helpful to other practitioners.

Although not a household name among American Buddhists, Lama Yeshe should really go down in history as one of the chief teachers responsible for transmitting Buddhism to the West. He managed to find a voice for this ancient tradition of Tibetan Buddhism that makes it accessible, inspiring, and transformational to contemporary Westerners. This is evident in the several excellent volumes that have been put forth by his student, Nick Ribush, and Wisdom Publications, including this book on Vajrasattva practice.

Purification practice is essential for students of Tibetan Buddhism, and one of the most important tantric practices for this is that of Vajrasattva. This book contains excellent teachings on this very important practice. (It will probably not be very useful to those who have not received empowerment into this practice, or who are not practicising tantra). The emphasis of the book is actually on Heruka Vajrasattva, but I believe it can be of benefit to anyone practising Vajrasattva.

Readers who enjoy this book should also pick up a copy of Lama Yeshe's "Introduction to Tantra", which is phenomenal.

I wanted to let folks know that I have not read this book (yet). The preface provides a clear and specific warning that the material is only for those that have completed Highest Yoga Tantra Initiation and I was able to confirm this with the nun at my local FPMT center. In typcial Buddhist fashion she didn't really provide a "rule" but did offer "it would be best if you waited..." sort of advice. As such I now have a ribbon around this book that says "read me when highest yoga tantra completed". I think this would be a good book for the generally curious and Lama Yeshe's writings that I have read are just amazing, but if you are making a purchase as part of your journey on the path it may be useful to you to be aware of the request Lama Yeshe makes in the preface.

This along with with a few of the other of the Vajrayana sadhanas like the Medicine Buddha sadhana do NOT require empowerment to be able to use. I have verified this with several monks and ngakpas.

With that being said, receiving the empowerment will drastically improve the benefits associated with this particular sadhana.

If you are interested in taking a proactive role in your spiritual and mundane well being I highly suggest the practice of Vajrasattva to burn up and eliminate negative karma that causes us to suffer spiritually and materially.

All of use have done wrong things in this life and in the past incarnations, this is a wonderful and powerful practice to be able to handle our negative karmic debt in a responsible way.

Vajrasattva is like catholic confession on steroids! I recommend everyone Buddhist or not (I am not) to practice karmic purification as a way to help avoid unnecessary suffering in our lives.