Through them being pleased, then the sponsor accumulates great merits, which will automatically fulfill their wishes and purify their negative karma, which is the ultimate cause for their particular problem.

Through making pujas one accumulates merit. Accumulation of merit is an indispensable factor in clearing the locality or person of obstacles and renders peacefulness. It helps to free a locality from disease and increase the lifespan, happiness and wealth of its inhabitants.

It also has a positive influence on the spread of the Dharma and increases conducive conditions for a meditator’s development towards the paths to liberation and enlightenment.

Looking into Karma Through Divination

By looking into someone’s future, the diviner or medium can assess the particular situation or cause and recommend how to respond or deal with it. Remedial action, in the form of pujas, evokes positive forces and can result in a change in the person’s fortune.

Pujas will not change a person’s karma, and those requesting and performing a divination should be aware of this. However, pujas can be employed to manipulate the karma in an individual’s continuum. They can induce latent positive potential to take precedence over that which is perceived as the cause of an impending misfortune.

Each individual’s karma may be divided into 2 types: non-specific and particular. Non-specific does not mean that it will not come to fruition, but simply that the time and mode of its fruition are not definite. Every action, whether pleasant or painful, does not necessarily give rise to a specific result. Beings have, as it were, a pool of potential for pleasure and pain, which may bear fruit whenever they encounter the proper conditions.

For example, if we have the karma to have a car accident and we do certain pujas and rituals well, we can avert it by purifying some of the negative karmas so that we may have an accident but not die; maybe we get some scratches or a few injured bones. The karma is there but it can be lightened or lessened.

Similarly, a large snow mountain which melts into a torrential river, if it is allowed to burst down and continue to the bottom of the village, the village will be wiped out completely and destroyed. We cannot make the river return to the mountains or dry the water up, but we can make many tributaries and waterways in many directions to break up the force of the water as it descends to the village, thereby bypassing the village and saving it.

We do not burn the water up, nor make the water return to the mountain, nor destroy the water, nor dry up the water, but we manipulate the water. The village is like us; the water is like our karma.

If our karma is dealt with in sufficient time before it ripens, like the river, we can lessen the effects of the karma or the torrential river to be. We can manipulate karma; play with karma. It can eventually be purified – similar to that of the river; when we have enough room, we dig more and more waterways, the water will become less and less and eventually when it reaches the village, it will evaporate.

Likewise, if someone’s relative is ill, or his business is deteriorating, one may request a qualified practitioner’s divination to discover what puja or ritual would be most helpful in setting conditions right. The success of the puja depends on the strength of one’s own karma.

In performing a puja, deities and the power of truth in the Buddha’s speech are invoked to bring to fruition latent positive predispositions present in a person’s continuum, in order to overcome the negative predispositions that are giving rise to disease, etc. However, if the karma or predisposition to be ill is stronger than the latent positive potential in the sick person’s continuum, the effects of the disease will not be overcome and the puja will remain unsuccessful, but still plant powerful imprints and collect merit for its avoidance in the future.

Also the pujas should be done with the highest motivation on the part of the sponsor. Even if there is no effect immediately, the results will eventually come – any action in relation to the Three Jewels is never wasted.

How is Puja Performed?

Pujas are performed in order to avert obstacles of patrons. Ritualists invoke peaceful or wrathful deities or invoke on the power of truth and make offerings to them. Next, they summon all obstructive forces and through the peaceful means of offering them a ritual cake and the wrathful means of reciting mantras they dismiss them.

If these forces continue to remain, they are driven away by reciting wrathful mantras, scattering sesame seeds, burning special incense and with the contemplation on the truth of emptiness motivated by compassion. They visualise all the wrathful deities chasing the destructive forces far away.

The efficacy of a puja involves the patron making offerings of food and money to the monks and adepts performing it. The merit acquired from this gift is used to trigger the forces of latent positive potential in oneself or others. Thus, one is not transferring merit and stepping outside the laws of cause and effect, but merely using merit to awaken the forces of one’s own or other’s good karma.

Sincerely,
Tsem Rinpoche
Spiritual Advisor
Kechara House & KWPC Retreat Centre

Here is the full, unedited audio recording of the teaching uploaded on Youtube, straight from the Buddha’s mouth! Watch the video here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1GodFWZEUn4

Alternatively, read the full transcript below.

When we see people have problems, when we see people suffering and having difficulties, we ourselves do not have a lot of ability to help and to assist. We ourselves do not have much wisdom, we don’t have any power, we don’t have any effect, we’re not doctors, we’re not psychologists, we’re not healers. Right now we’re not.

So it’s very hard when we see other people suffer from sickness, suffer from obstacles, suffer from pain or suffer from losing something, or suffer from a loss, a death of a pet or a family. We suffer a lot and they suffer a lot. But you see, this suffering is an energy. This suffering is an energy that can be lust, that can be hate, that can be anger, that can be giving, that can be helping. It’s just an energy and how we direct it is up to us.

So when we see someone that we love and we care about, or other people – a centre member, our friend or anyone – and they need help, our heart goes out to them. Our heart going out to them and our energy put into sorry for them can be directed better. It can be directed in a form of a puja.

What is a puja? I’m not giving you the literal translation. A puja is an expression of your compassion for another person, another being. A puja is an expression, an action, a direct initiative to do something for someone who has an obstacle, who has a problem, who has a difficulty, who has some kind of pain or sickness or fear.

And so, to watch these people have fear and pain and suffering and difficulties, and we don’t do something about it doesn’t make us a better person, doesn’t help our spiritual practice, doesn’t make our minds become enlightened or open up. To do something for them is very, very correct way of opening our minds up – practising emotional generosity, expressing compassion, expressing care.

Why? Because the pujas that you guys are practising are not made up. They’re not ineffective and they’re based on an enlightened Being; in today’s case, Medicine Buddha and last time, you practised Tara. These days, Tara and Medicine Buddha really have a lot of effect, they really have a lot of blessings, they really have a lot and a lot of power to help.

So what happens is that we who do the pujas become a gateway, become a connection to help that person. So instead of just looking at someone and saying, “Oh, poor thing, poor thing; Oh poor this, poor that”, if the child is suffering from whatever reasons and they can’t do well in their studies, they’re going to fail and they can’t move on in their studies, if we do a Manjushri puja for them, it is an expression of our concern and our care; and it has energy and it will bless that person.

If that person is very sick – same thing, we do a Medicine Buddha puja and we can expedite or quicken their healing. So a puja is an expression of our care, our initiative and our sincere concern for another being.

So when people ask you what is a puja, you say not the literal translation (because the literal translation is “to clear obstacles”). But the human definition, the human meaning of puja from my point of view is an expression of your compassion; an expression of your care.

So when you do puja in that way, it is very effective. Why? Any action that is preceded by or motivated by compassion or Bodhicitta has much more effect. Any action we do that is motivated by any form, any level, any amount of Bodhicitta or compassion has more power. Why is that? Two reasons:

1. When it is motivated by Bodhicitta or compassion, you are tapping into your real mind, your Buddha nature. When you tap into your Buddha nature, you push yourself to become a Buddha – very effective for yourselves.
2. A second reason is when you’re motivated by compassion and care, that is the main ingredient for Dharma practice. So for Dharma practice to have effect, our mind must be free of selfishness. Selfishness and Dharma does not match; selfishness and Dharma protector practice doesn’t match; selfishness and Medicine Buddha doesn’t match; selfishness and Manjushri doesn’t match. Selfishness and Dharma practice doesn’t match.

Why selfishness and Dharma practice cannot mix

Hence if we do selfishness with Dharma practice, even after 10, 20 years, there’s not much result. Why not much result? Because our mind is still selfish. So selfishness here is not good or bad. It is a ingredient that must be removed from the soup, until the soup tastes good.

Therefore, if you do Dharma work with selfishness, it’s harmful for yourself! It’s not effective for others. Why is it harmful for yourself? Because even though you’re practising something so good from great Lamas, after so many years, you have no results, very little result – it’s harmful because you waste your time. You receive something so great, but you cannot…

Like a hungry ghost who, even if you give them very good food, their mouth is the size of a pin. They cannot fit it in, even if you give them such nice food. It cannot fit. Even a little bit, they have to squeeze it in like that. That’s really a hungry ghost.

And when the hungry ghost takes the food and it goes down their long, thin, grey neck, when it comes to their stomach, it burns like gastric. It burns and burns and burns – in fact, the food creates pain. Why? They have the karma to experience that.

So therefore, if you do Dharma work, Dharma practice, Dharma meditation, Dharma anything with selfish motivation or innate selfishness, the effect is very little. Why is it very little? Because Dharma and selfishness is the opposite.

If you have oil and you put a wick on top and you want to light it, but you keep putting water, it will burn out. Even if you have oil, it will burn out. Even if there is oil in the lamp, if you put water, the water mixes with the wick and the fire has to go out even if there is still oil.

So oil is like Dharma – it can light up a room. You can open up the oil, you put a wick on top, floating (like in Chinese temples), and you light it; it lights up and you can see things in a dark room. But if you keep putting water, the light goes out, even if there is oil.

So water is like selfish motivation in this case; oil is like Dharma. Hence, if you have oil and you can light and you can see, why do you need to move around in the dark like this? Why you keep putting water?

Similarly, if you do Dharma work, people think, “How come I do my sadhanas for so many years, I do my mantras for so many years and I do Tsok, and I don’t have any power and in fact, my mind becomes more lazy and worse?” Because you haven’t removed the main ingredient – selfishness.

If selfishness never gets removed, how many years do you have left to your life? How many years? Aren’t you afraid of your death? Aren’t you afraid to be alone and close your eyes and no one can help you? Aren’t you afraid of what you’re going to see after death?

If you are selfish and you cover your actions, it means you’re afraid people know you’re selfish. But you know what? People knowing you’re selfish is quite scary but what’s even more scary is when you die and your selfishness comes back to you. That’s very scary.

So hence, if you’re selfish, your Dharma work cannot get results. So two options: (1) get rid of Dharma work and be selfish or (2) get rid of selfishness and do Dharma work. Of course, it has to be number 2. Very simple. The more selfish we are, the more ineffective our practice is. The more water we put into the oil, the less we can light.

So therefore, instead of thinking of how to get how to get rid of selfishness, instead of blaming, instead of hiding, instead of avoiding, we should just stop the selfishness. You see, if you just stop the selfishness, you win.

Why? You don’t have to put energy to hiding, to avoiding, to defending, to protecting your ego. You don’t have to. Why? Put the energy towards cutting your selfishness out, not toward covering selfishness! Both ways is energy; both ways, you have to use your petrol.

So therefore, it’s time for us to wake up and do something now. Now! Why? What are we waiting for? What result are we waiting for? What time, what year are we waiting for? How many years do we need to wait? How many years? When we started Dharma 10 years ago, 20 years ago we said we’re going to do Dharma.

And then we start and we go, “Oh, it’s difficult, I’ll do it next year. Oh, now I have work, I’ll do it 2 years from now. Oh, when I’m 30 or 40, I’ll do it.” And then we keep making time to delay the real, actual Dharma practice. And what happens? When we look back, 10 years, 15 years, 20 years are gone.

And a lot of these people who ran away from Dharma, they run away from themselves because they’ve been running and running and running, so when they face the real Dharma, they run again. Why do they have to run? Because they never create the causes to face themselves. Never. How do you know that? Where there’s smoke there’s fire.

So you use an example like this: because they’re not successful in any part of their life. Because they’re not successful in any part of their life, you know when they’re running away from Dharma, they’re running away from themselves. If they’re very successful in other parts of their life and they run away, okay… maybe there is something else involved.

So let’s say that Beng Kooi just works a normal job, she cannot get married, she doesn’t have many friends, people don’t like her and then she joins Dharma. After 5 or 6 years, she runs away. She says, “Oh, Rinpoche’s bad, the Dharma students are bad, the Ladrang’s bad, KH is bad, Yoke Fui is bad, this is bad, that is bad.” They run and tell other people that. Fine. Stupid people listen and say, “Oh, maybe it’s true huh…”

Smart people say, “Wait a minute… but you didn’t do much with your life. Your don’t have many things in your life.” So if you keep saying it’s bad maybe the problem is not Dharma; maybe the problem is you. Why is it you? Because why is it that you fail at everything? You can think that way. My point? This is not criticism for people who left.

This is for us to examine by logic about ourselves – how we run away.

Setrap’s puja main intention is to swiftly alleviate our immediate problems and create a conducive condition for spiritual practice. In response to the sincere prayers requesting for his assistance, his puja brings relief from all sorts of negative energies; ie: black magic, and grants strong protection against paranormal harm.

Benefits:

• Protection from black magic and spirit disturbances
• Removing physical and mental obstacles
• Creating conducive conditions for spiritual practice

This puja is available in the Kechara Puja House in both Small and Medium puja sizes, depending on the scale of the problem. Click here for more information.

Drawing upon the energies of the gentle female Buddha Tara, this puja swiftly fulfills our wishes.

Tara practices are also renowned for generating the energies to invite harmony, success and serenity for all aspects of our lives, especially in relationships, families and spiritual well being.

Benefits:

• Swift assistance to fulfill wishes
• Protection from danger
• Overcomes obstacles, fear and anxiety
• Excellent for relationships and families

This puja is available in the Kechara Puja House in both Small and Medium puja sizes, depending on the scale of the problem. Click here for more information.

Although short, it is rich in meaning and history as it contains the essential concepts of Buddhist beliefs and philosophies.

Based on the Heart Sutra, this elaborate puja combines this powerful text with intricate rituals to clear strong negative influences, especially towards the supernatural.

Extensive offerings and recitations are made throughout this puja, thus generating a tremendous amount of uplifting energy for all. It is also excellent to counter strong paranormal disturbances.

Benefits:

• Generates positive energy
• Removes paranormal disturbances
• Clears negative interferences

This puja is available in the Kechara Puja House in both Small and Medium puja sizes, depending on the scale of the problem. Click here for more information.

Literally translated as “400 offerings”, it traditionally involved the offering of 100 stupas, 100 ritual cakes, 100 lights and 100 men, and could only be done by the wealthiest of nobility due to the tremendous expense involved.

Fortunately, this powerful puja is now available in abbreviated form today.

The extensive offerings and rituals performed during this puja will generate an overwhelming amount of positive energy to clear very severe negativities and dangerous obstacles of health, financial or even supernatural causes.

Benefits:

• Clears the most severe of obstacles
• Overcomes life-threatening health situations
• Helps those in the most dire financial straits
• Powerful protection from the supernatural

This puja is available in the Kechara Puja House in both Small and Medium puja sizes, depending on the scale of the problem. Click here for more information.

Chakras contain a piece of paper, adorned with saffron, which has diagrams, mantras and prayers written on it. These specifically invoke the body, speech and mind energies of the Buddhas.

The outer surface of the chakra is covered with traditional hand-woven Tibetan designs. Chakras are usually hand-made and consecrated by monks in a careful process that include pujas and mantras.

Small and lightweight, chakras offer us great blessings and protection and are easy to keep close at hand. As different chakras contain the mantras and essence of different Buddhas, each chakra will have different benefits and purposes.

VajraSecrets offers various chakras of different deities to cater to individual needs.
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