The purpose of doing phowa

[dsiluvu]

Hi all,

Recently I've been posed this question about phowa and how it works from a friend...
This is his question...

How come we do phowa to send someone to a pure land but yet they may still end up as a hell being?
What then is the purpose of doing phowa???

I am not sure if my answer for him is completely correct or perhaps there is more but basically it all boils down to the person's own "karma" that will still create the results of where he will end up, right?

[brian]

Basically, Phowa can be described as the practice of conscious dying or transference of consciousness at the time of death. I believe the existence and the authenticity of such practice. But will it be enough for someone who have created a very heavy negative karma to be reborned in hell be saved by Phowa practice? I personally would want to know if this is possible. But I think it is possible because of the power of Phowa and Buddha's practice is everything. Even your Yidam or protector would be able to guide you to where you are supposed to go to practice more and become enlightened one day

[Vajraprotector]

I have not study much on phowa that is done by a Lama for someone else, but phowa itself (meaning if you have received initiation from a Lama and practise it yourself) is said to be a very powerful practise.

In the root Tantra, "GYUD" it is written:
Even if a man is so sinful that he kills a holy man every day and has committed the five Heavy Sins, if he goes on this path of Phowa the veils of sin will not remain. For the men of many sins and for all
beings, this is the Path of liberation which is direct and secret.
 
Naropa says, 'There are nine Gates which are of the world but there is only one which is the gate of Mahamundra (Nirvana). If you shut the nine Gates then you will get the Path of liberation without any
doubt ...."

Marpa Lotsawa said, "From now, if you study Phowa, purify, purify time and time again. Then, at that time, when death is approaching you will know no despair. If, beforehand, you have become accustomed to
this Path of Phowa then at the time of death you will be full of cheerful confidence .... "

Over and above the Nine ordinary apertures of the body called "buga", there is a 'Crest' aperture, and the virtue of doing this practice of Phowa is to be able to think of this crest aperture at the time of death and to direct the consciousness through this gate into the pure land of the Buddha, the Buddhafield.

[dsiluvu]

Basically, Phowa can be described as the practice of conscious dying or transference of consciousness at the time of death. I believe the existence and the authenticity of such practice. But will it be enough for someone who have created a very heavy negative karma to be reborned in hell be saved by Phowa practice? I personally would want to know if this is possible. But I think it is possible because of the power of Phowa and Buddha's practice is everything. Even your Yidam or protector would be able to guide you to where you are supposed to go to practice more and become enlightened one day

Brian... i shall attempt to answer your question

I have been taught...the state of the emotions which we are in at the moment of our death determines where we go after our death. So that is why we must always ensure when someone is on their death beds, we are careful not to disturb their mind, making them worry or sad as their spirit is still around.

For example if you are angry/lustful/fearful etc your consciousness will probably exit out from the lower parts of your body/chakras and you end up in the lower realms maybe even hell.

Hence my teacher has taught us durign the time of someone's death, you should tug his hair at the crown chakra to trigger his consciousness to leave from the top so that he/she will take a higher rebirth.

Also if you are a great practitioner and you are familiar with your death meditations and can focus your state of mind well and leave on the crown chakra on your own, then great... you will take a higher rebirth. But if you are not a great practitioner, hence even if u know Phowa... it does not mean anything.

In terms of a Phowa done for you by your lama... well firstly one must check... is their Guru samaya (relationship) good? If not from what I understand... a bit difficult to help... not even the Dharma protectors can help.

[Big Uncle]

Powa is simply the mind transference of the deceased to a better hereafter based upon the Buddhist understanding of death and rebirth. There are specific meditations based upon specific meditational deities that one can perform like that of Amitabha, Avalokiteshvara, Vajrayogini and so forth. These powa practices are done daily to prepare the practitioner daily so when the actual day comes, the practice will be easy and successful.

In essence, one practices to 'die' on a daily basis. A Lama can also performed a powa ritual on the deceased student according to specific rituals. However, the success rate of the ritual depends very much on the samaya of the student. Powa practice is kept secret and rarely given out because most powa practices is said to shorten the lifespan of the practitioner.

However, no powa can overcome the accumulation of a lifetime of negative karma. It definitely does not bring salvation to those who had a lifetime of selfishness and negative karma. Therefore, powa practice begins with our transformation now. It would be better practice to transform and cut the causes to go to the 3 lower realms.

[Ensapa]

Hi all,

Recently I've been posed this question about phowa and how it works from a friend...
This is his question...

How come we do phowa to send someone to a pure land but yet they may still end up as a hell being?
What then is the purpose of doing phowa???

I am not sure if my answer for him is completely correct or perhaps there is more but basically it all boils down to the person's own "karma" that will still create the results of where he will end up, right?

Phowa can be achieved either by mantra or by actual practice. The HIK and PHAT mantras can be used to cause the mind to eject from the crown of the head and a sign of the achievement of the practice, but still there is no guarantees that it will work and this practice can be quite dangerous when done incorrectly and can cause insanity. Only qualified masters who have gone through many retreats are able to perform phowa properly but at this day and age many people attempt to learn it from books or place more emphasis on phowa during the time of death rather than study, practice, holding the vows and and applying the teachings because they think it is a quick fix. It is not and it can cause more complications if done by an untrained person.

The real phowa, as Pabongkha Rinpoche as well as following the Gelugpa tradition, these 5 powers are the real phowa practice as opposed to the mantra practice:

The Power of the Attitude
The power of the attitude involves making a plan. You think, “From now on, I will never allow myself to be under the control of the self-cherishing thought.” Make a strong plan like this, “I will never separate from bodhicitta even for one second, from now on, up until my death, and especially today. Until enlightenment, and especially today, I will never separate from bodhicitta.” It is very important to do this. It means you always keep your mind in the state of bodhicitta, of cherishing others.

The Power of Blaming the One
What is the power of blaming the one? It is blaming the ego, the self-cherishing thought. Think, “The reason why I have not become enlightened so far, did not achieve liberation from samsara, didn’t achieve any realizations, and the reason why I have been suffering in samsara so far is ego, this great demon ego. If I keep following this, it will continuously do me the same harm. It will never allow me to be enlightened, or to be free from samsara. It won’t allow me to have any realizations. Whatever unfavorable situations, obstacles, unpleasantness, or discomfort happens, this all comes from ego. All of this was done to me by ego.”

Look at the ego as your enemy. Keep separate from it. Keep away from the self-cherishing thought by seeing at it as your enemy. Then, any time an unfavorable or unpleasant situation occurs, you give it to the ego. You use it like a weapon, like an atomic bomb, to explode the ego. Instead of taking it on yourself, give it to the ego, and destroy the ego completely, so it becomes non-existent. Put the blame for all the problems and undesirable things that happen in day-to-day life and all the suffering in samsara from beginningless rebirths until now on the ego. Knowing that all this is caused by ego, you split from the ego. You don’t follow ego, and then there is space for the mind to be able to cherish others, and to be able to practice bodhicitta.

By having the realization of bodhicitta, one enters into the Mahayana path. Then, by realizing emptiness, all the gross and subtle defilements cease, and you achieve enlightenment. Then, you can enlighten all living beings. You can liberate countless living beings from all suffering and its causes, and bring them to enlightenment. Even before you have the realization of bodhicitta, you will feel the good heart, cherishing and benefiting others, and collect good karma or merit as vast as the sky. Whatever actions you do become virtue; they become a cause of enlightenment.

The Power of Prayer
Dedicate your merits in this way, “Due to the past, present, and future merits collected by me and the merits of the three times collected by others?buddhas, bodhisattvas, and all other sentient beings?may I never separate from bodhicitta during the time of death, during the intermediate stage, during rebirth, and at any time. May I never ever be separate from bodhicitta, and may I have the quickest realization of bodhicitta.” Pray in this way. You can do this while thinking of Lama Yeshe, who is one with Tara.

The Power of Training
When you know that the moment of death has come, lie down. Many meditators die in the meditation state while sitting, but many meditators also lie down to die. They pass away in the meditation on death while lying down. So, the power of training is to lie down on your right side in what is called the position of a lion lying down, which is the position in which the Buddha passed away. At this time you recall how the Buddha passed away in the same position. You do this because if you remember Buddha, it leaves a positive imprint on the mind, which helps the mind to become virtue. That helps to have a good rebirth. While lying in that posture, you can block your right nostril with your right finger, because the breath coming in there is the breath of attachment. Blocking it helps to not be reborn in the lower realms. However, whether you can do that or not, if you are just able to lie down in this way, spirits cannot harm you, due to this position. You can also remember the Buddha, how Buddha passed away, and lie down in this way when you go to sleep, then you won’t have interference from spirits and nightmares.The Power of the Attitude
The power of the attitude involves making a plan. You think, “From now on, I will never allow myself to be under the control of the self-cherishing thought.” Make a strong plan like this, “I will never separate from bodhicitta even for one second, from now on, up until my death, and especially today. Until enlightenment, and especially today, I will never separate from bodhicitta.” It is very important to do this. It means you always keep your mind in the state of bodhicitta, of cherishing others.

The Power of Blaming the One
What is the power of blaming the one? It is blaming the ego, the self-cherishing thought. Think, “The reason why I have not become enlightened so far, did not achieve liberation from samsara, didn’t achieve any realizations, and the reason why I have been suffering in samsara so far is ego, this great demon ego. If I keep following this, it will continuously do me the same harm. It will never allow me to be enlightened, or to be free from samsara. It won’t allow me to have any realizations. Whatever unfavorable situations, obstacles, unpleasantness, or discomfort happens, this all comes from ego. All of this was done to me by ego.”

Look at the ego as your enemy. Keep separate from it. Keep away from the self-cherishing thought by seeing at it as your enemy. Then, any time an unfavorable or unpleasant situation occurs, you give it to the ego. You use it like a weapon, like an atomic bomb, to explode the ego. Instead of taking it on yourself, give it to the ego, and destroy the ego completely, so it becomes non-existent. Put the blame for all the problems and undesirable things that happen in day-to-day life and all the suffering in samsara from beginningless rebirths until now on the ego. Knowing that all this is caused by ego, you split from the ego. You don’t follow ego, and then there is space for the mind to be able to cherish others, and to be able to practice bodhicitta.

By having the realization of bodhicitta, one enters into the Mahayana path. Then, by realizing emptiness, all the gross and subtle defilements cease, and you achieve enlightenment. Then, you can enlighten all living beings. You can liberate countless living beings from all suffering and its causes, and bring them to enlightenment. Even before you have the realization of bodhicitta, you will feel the good heart, cherishing and benefiting others, and collect good karma or merit as vast as the sky. Whatever actions you do become virtue; they become a cause of enlightenment.

The Power of Prayer
Dedicate your merits in this way, “Due to the past, present, and future merits collected by me and the merits of the three times collected by others?buddhas, bodhisattvas, and all other sentient beings?may I never separate from bodhicitta during the time of death, during the intermediate stage, during rebirth, and at any time. May I never ever be separate from bodhicitta, and may I have the quickest realization of bodhicitta.” Pray in this way. You can do this while thinking of Lama Yeshe, who is one with Tara.

The Power of Training
When you know that the moment of death has come, lie down. Many meditators die in the meditation state while sitting, but many meditators also lie down to die. They pass away in the meditation on death while lying down. So, the power of training is to lie down on your right side in what is called the position of a lion lying down, which is the position in which the Buddha passed away. At this time you recall how the Buddha passed away in the same position. You do this because if you remember Buddha, it leaves a positive imprint on the mind, which helps the mind to become virtue. That helps to have a good rebirth. While lying in that posture, you can block your right nostril with your right finger, because the breath coming in there is the breath of attachment. Blocking it helps to not be reborn in the lower realms. However, whether you can do that or not, if you are just able to lie down in this way, spirits cannot harm you, due to this position. You can also remember the Buddha, how Buddha passed away, and lie down in this way when you go to sleep, then you won’t have interference from spirits and nightmares.

http://www.lamayeshe.com/index.php?sect=article&id=287

This phowa practice is far more important than the phowa practice that comes from mantras, or scrambling to find a lama to do phowa at the time of death. We are alive now, so this is the best practice.

[Q]

Hi all,

Recently I've been posed this question about phowa and how it works from a friend...
This is his question...

How come we do phowa to send someone to a pure land but yet they may still end up as a hell being?
What then is the purpose of doing phowa???

I am not sure if my answer for him is completely correct or perhaps there is more but basically it all boils down to the person's own "karma" that will still create the results of where he will end up, right?

If the person had practised and studied the phowa during his/her lifetime, then this wont happen... instead, he/she will be happy and with great confidence at time of death. Its just like saying someone did a 35 confessional Buddha prayer and prostrations for me.... it doesn't purify my negative karma...

Phowa is very powerful... especially for people in this era when we do not have a long time to do meditations. It is also the quickest way to enlightenment by allowing one to reach Amitabha's pure land. Because life is short and death can come anytime... those who received phowa practice is in deed most fortunate.

[ratanasutra]

Phowa is a very powerful practice, it is a practice in dying well and consciously. Instead of being driven without choice or control through the intermediate after-death state (Bardo) and into a new rebirth in the cycle of existence.

So if we do a practice of phowa very well, we will be very relax, happy and ready when the time of death come but if whole of our life we only did negative actions even the high lama come to perform the phowa when we are dying, where is our next rebirth is still depend on our faith to the lama as well.

The best way is to hold vows, do virtuous actions and to put the teaching to real practice which is mind transformation so that when the time of death come we won't be worry of where we are going to take a rebirth. Let create the cause for it. 

[dsiluvu]

Found an interesting article here of transferring of merits... I never knew we could transfer merits to others, thought it was only meant for us to collect for now and in to the future. Do share your opinion on this!

The Significance of Transference of Merits
to the Departed
 

    If you really want to honor and help your departed ones, then do some meritorious deeds in their name and transfer the merits to them.

According to Buddhism, good deeds or 'acts of merit' bring happiness to the doer both in this world and in the hereafter. Acts of merit are also believed to lead towards the final goal of everlasting happiness. The acts of merit can be performed through body, speech or mind. Every good deed produces 'merit' which accumulates to the 'credit' of the doer. Buddhism also teaches that the acquired merit can be transferred to others' it can be shared vicariously with others. In other words, the merit is 'reversible' and so can be shared with other persons. The persons who receive the merit can be either living or departed ones.

The method for transferring merits is quite simple. First some good deeds are performed. The doer of the good deeds has merely to wish that the merit he has gained accrues to someone in particular, or to 'all beings'. This wish can be purely mental or it can accompanied by an expression of words.

This wish could be made with the beneficiary being aware of it. When the beneficiary is aware of the act or wish, then a mutual 'rejoicing in' merit takes place. Here the beneficiary becomes a participant of the original deed by associating himself with the deed done. If the beneficiary identifies himself with both the deed and the doer, he can sometimes acquire even greater merit than the original doer, either because his elation is greater or because his appreciation of the value of the deed is based on his understanding of Dhamma and, hence, more meritorious, Buddhist texts contain several stories of such instances.

The 'joy of transference of merits' can also take place with or without the knowledge of the doer of the meritorious act. All that is necessary is for the beneficiary to feel gladness in his heart when he becomes aware of the good deed. If he wishes, he can express his joy by saying 'sadhu' which means 'well done'. What he is doing is creating a kind of mental or verbal applause. In order to share the good deed done by another, what is important is that there must be actual approval of the deed and joy arising in the beneficiary's heart.

Even if he so desires, the doer of a good deed cannot prevent another's 'rejoicing in the merit' because he has no power over another's thoughts. According to the Buddha, in all actions, thought is what really matters. Transference is primarily an act of the mind.

To transfer merit does not mean that a person is deprived of the merit had originally acquired by his good deed. On the contrary, the very act of  'transference' is a good deed in itself and hence enhances the merit already earned.

Highest Gift to the Departed

The Buddha says that the greatest gift one can confer on one's dead ancestors is to perform 'acts of merit' and to transfer these merits so acquired. He also says that those who give also receive the fruits of their deeds. The Buddha encouraged those who did good deeds such as offering alms to holy men, to transfer the merits which they received to their departed ones. Alms should be given in the name of the departed by recalling to mind such things as, 'When he was alive, he gave me this wealth; he did this for me; he was my relative, my companion, etc. (Tirokuddha Sutta --  Khuddakapatha). There is no use weeping, feeling sorry, lamenting and bewailing; such attitudes are of no consequence to the departed ones.

Transferring merits to the departed is based on the popular belief that on a person's death, his 'merits' and 'demerits' are weighed against one another and his destiny determined, his actions determined whether he is to be reborn in a sphere of happiness or a realm of woe. The belief is that the departed one might have gone to the world of the departed spirits. The beings in these lower forms of existence cannot generate fresh merits, and have to live on with the merits which are earned from this world.

Those who did not harm others and who performed many good deeds during their life time, will certainly have the chance to be reborn in a happy place. Such persons do not required the help of living relatives. However, those who have no chance to be reborn in a happy abode are always waiting to receive merits from their living relatives to offset their deficiency and to enable them to be born in a happy abode.

Those who are reborn in an unfortunate spirit form could be released from their suffering condition through the transferring of merits to them by friends and relatives who do some meritorious deeds.

This injunction of the Buddha to transfer merits to departed ones is the counterpart of the Hindu custom which has come down through the ages. Various ceremonies are performed so that the spirits of dead ancestors might live in peace. This custom has been a tremendous influence on the social life of certain Buddhist countries. The dead are always remembered when any good deed is done, and more on occasions connected with their lives, such as their birth or death anniversaries. On such occasions, there is a ritual which is generally practised. The transferor pours water from a jug or other similar vessel into a receptacle, while repeating a Pali formula which is translated as follows:

    As river, when full must flow
    and reach and fill the distant main,
    So indeed what is given here will
    reach and bless the spirits there.
    As water poured on mountain top must
    soon descend and fill the plain
    So indeed what is given here will reach
    and bless the spirits there.
    (Nidhikanda Sutta in Khuddakapatha)

The origin and the significance of transference of merit is open to scholarly debate. Although this ancient custom still exists today in many Buddhists countries, very few Buddhists who follow this ancient custom have understood the meaning of transference of merits and the proper way to do that.

Some people are simply wasting time and money on meaningless ceremonies and performances in memory of departed ones. These people do not realize that it is impossible to help the departed ones simply by building big graveyards, tombs, paper-houses and other paraphernalia Neither is it possible to help the departed by burning joss-sticks, joss-paper, etc.; nor is it possible to help the departed by slaughtering animals and offering them along with other kinds of food. Also one should not waste by burning things used by the departed ones on the assumption that the deceased persons would somehow benefit by the act, when such articles can in fact be distributed among the needy.

The only way to help the departed ones is to do some meritorious deeds in a religious way in memory of them. The meritorious deeds include such acts as giving alms to others, building schools, temples, orphanages, libraries, hospitals, printing religious books for free distribution and similar charitable deeds.

The followers of the Buddha should act wisely and should not follow anything blindly. While others pray to god for the departed ones, Buddhists radiate their loving-kindness directly to them. By doing meritorious deeds, they can transfer the merits to their beloved ones for their well-being. This is the best way of remembering and giving real honor to and perpetuating the names of the departed ones. In their state of happiness, the departed ones will reciprocate their blessings on their living relatives. It is, therefore, the duty of relatives to remember their departed ones by transferring merits and by radiating loving-kindness directly to them.

[RedLantern]

The goal of the phowa practice is to learn how to die consciously, and transfer the consciousness at the moment of death to a state of higher bliss.The practice is the last of the six yogas of Naropa,and one of the most profound teachings.It involves mantra and visualization.
Transferring our consciousness to the pure land,what is that?From the Buddhist point of view "Pure  means it's reflection of our own pure thoughts,our own pure ,clean mind.
The profound Path of Phowa,is the holy way of the Buddhas which is Dharma  rapidly realized spontaneneously without meditation effort.So,if one practice this during one's lifetime,when death comes,he or she will be confident ,happy and accept death .

[Tenzin K]

The purpose of Phowa is to learn how to transport one's consciousness to the Pure Land of the Amitaba Buddha, or Dewachen. As Kamil Hill explained it, ''Because of the extent and number of prayers that the Amitaba Buddha has done, it is said that in his Pure Land, even though one has not been realized during life, one may attain liberation.''

Learning this practice requires transmission from a qualified practitioner. But how can we help someone who is dying, someone who has not practice Phowa? How can we help ourselves? ''By seeing death,''as an opportunity. Actually using death as an opportunity to achieve realization.''

And we can best help people who are dying, he said, by letting go of fear and helping the loved one to do that. Even in the absence of esoteric practice and years of training, he said, ''Love and trust can go a long way. The less attachment to anything, the better. We want to face death with a mind that is relaxed and stable.''

It helps, to have a teacher. ''At the point of death, for many practitioners, a strong relationship with one's teacher can be powerful, influential.'' The teacher, she said, can create ''merit'' for the person who is dying or who has died.

This does not mean that a teacher, or anyone, can liberate us. ''If a teacher could make someone more enlightened, ''it would all have been done a long time ago! That is something we must all do for ourselves. But the teacher can add an ingredient that gives one more choices.''

But are we not here to learn? Don't we have a mission? Do we really want to just go on and leave everyone behind? What is the point of all this?

''There is no point.''

No one to be helped? No one to benefit from the success of our supposed mission? All Self?

''Once upon a time, ''something looked at itself and thought it was Other. I was watching my dog the other day, chasing its own tail. It was looking at that tail and thinking it was Other. It's like that. There is no point.''


The Phowa of Habits

The pun is intended. For it is by training our minds not to become seduced by lower-dimensional thinking that we develop the habit of transcending. Then when we are faced with the fearful products of our own thinking, we will have the habit of turning away and transporting our consciousness to the Pure Lands. Without this habit, we may get stuck in the Bardos.

And we need this habit because, after death, thoughts manifest instantaneously. ''The very thought produces an effect — it's there!''

''There is a story of the Hell Realms, saying that a Boddhisatva can become caught there, can stray into a world of eternal torture and horror. And yet we are taught that one moment of compassion, and the Soul becomes liberated instantaneously. That's all it takes. One moment of compassion.

''Our whole life,'' she said, ''can be a training for that one moment.''

[buddhalovely]

The Puja system emerged to get protection of unknown powers, from natural calamities, hazards and disasters in the early period:

In the initial stages man was a food gatherer, hunter, fisher and shelter-less living in jungle in small groups. There was no concept of God in that period. The small groups of people lived in isolation. However, they saw the impact of natural calamity on their lives. They experienced the impact of wild fires, thunderbolts, storms, heavy rains, floods, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and they began fearing such phenomenon.

In order to protect themselves from such events, they must have visualized the role of an unknown superpower and started showing reverence to such powers. This culminated in the Vedic period in ancient India when elaborate system of worship of Fire God (Agni Dev), Wind God (Vayu Dev), Water God (Varun Dev), Sun God (Surya Dev), Thunderbolt God (Indra dev) began.

In addition to such deities a system of reverence was also invented to get protection from every element of the environment of the earth. Trees, soil, rivers, hills, animals, reptiles, birds, all became objects of reverence in the Vedic period. We may call it "Animism" which was the system of Puja up to the Vedic period.

[dondrup]

How come we do phowa to send someone to a pure land but yet they may still end up as a hell being?
What then is the purpose of doing phowa???

That person probably had accumulated vast amount of negative karma.  His throwing karma to be hell being is so strong that even phowa practice could not help him.

Phowa or transference of consciousness is done to project or transfer our consciousness to take immediate rebirth in a Pure Land of a Buddha.  If a practitioner realises that he could not achieve enlightenment (due to a lack of time or he couldn’t finish his spiritual training) in this lifetime, he would probably want to do Phowa practice to ensure that he take rebirth in a Pure Land. 

I would like to add on to what had been discussed in this thread that Ganden Lhagyama or the Guru Yoga of Tsongkhapa consists of a Powa practice or the actual transference of consciousness.  If we wish to be reborn in the Tushita Pure Land easily, it is important always to remember the thread of clouds that directly links Guru Tsongkhapa at our heart with Buddha Maitreya’s heart.  Even if we experience sudden death, providing we remember this thread of clouds, we will definitely be reborn in Tushita Pure Land.  This is because our consciousness will follow the pathway of this thread directly to Maitreya’s heart. Hence, if we check, Ganden Lhagyama is a very powerful practice that includes Phowa or the transference of consciousness!