The Three Progressive Stages of Practicing the Shurangama Mantra
◎ Chanting the Mantra to Break Through Obstacles
◎ Chanting the Mantra to Break Through Obstacles
“Once you have fully established your precepts” refers to both the purity of your precept essence and the purity of upholding the precepts. Next, the phrase “wear fresh, clean clothes” means that when entering the ritual altar, you must wear clean garments; they do not need to be newly purchased, but must be freshly laundered. For example, you should not wear your meditation robes into the bathroom; you need clean, untainted robes reserved solely for practice. This refers to the purity of ritual garments.
“Light incense” means your ritual altar must be tidy and incense must be lit; this refers to the purity of the ritual altar. “Reside in quiet seclusion” here refers to inner purity: you should set aside all worldly affairs and distractions, banish excessive idle thoughts from your mind, and avoid taking on too many mundane tasks.
We chant this sacred mantra 108 times on the basis of these three forms of purity: the purity of ritual garments, the purity of the ritual altar, and the purity of the mind. We will explain the specific chanting method in detail later.
This passage explains that to establish a ritual altar, you must fulfill five forms of purity. First, receive the precepts in accordance with the Dharma, so your precept essence is pure. Second, uphold the precepts purely. Third, maintain the purity of your ritual garments: prepare a set of clean clothes exclusively for use during practice. Fourth, ensure the purity of the ritual altar. Fifth, maintain inner purity. These five forms of purity act as expedient means for our spiritual cultivation.
2. Formal Practice
This section addresses the formal establishment of the ritual altar and formal mantra practice to break through obstacles. It is divided into three parts. Let us first look at the first part.
◎ Establishing the Boundary to Seek the Buddha's Blessing
“Then establish the boundary, set up the practice site, and beseech the unexcelled Tathagatas of the ten directions who dwell in all present lands to emit great compassionate light from their crowns to anoint your head.”
When establishing a ritual altar, you must first set a boundary. This boundary is not established through the procedural karman rituals of the bhikshu precepts; it is established through mantra practice. You chant the Shurangama Mantra, circumambulate the altar three times, then sprinkle consecrated water, using the mantra to formally establish the boundary, which then becomes the ritual altar for your practice.
Throughout the process of chanting the mantra and sprinkling consecrated water, you must sincerely beseech the unexcelled, honored Tathagatas of the ten directions who dwell in all worlds to emit great compassionate light from their crowns to anoint the heads of all practitioners. This is what we call the mutual resonance of response and connection: the Buddha’s great compassionate light anoints the pure mind of sentient beings, creating a responsive bond between the Buddha and all practitioners. In short, we chant the mantra to request the blessings of all ten-direction Buddhas to establish the boundary. Let us now turn to the second part.
◎ Making the Bodhisattva Vows
“Ananda! In the latter age, pure bhikshus, bhikshunis, and lay male and female donors who have extinguished greed and lust in their minds, uphold the Buddha's pure precepts, make the Bodhisattva vows in the practice site, bathe upon entering and leaving the site, practice the path in all six periods of the day, and remain awake without sleeping for 21 days.”
This passage provides a brief overview of the practice to be undertaken after the ritual altar is established. It says: Ananda! The term “pure bhikshus in the degenerate age” refers to bhikshus who are pure in both their precept essence and their upholding of the precepts. During the boundary-establishment process, sramanas (novice monks) and lay practitioners are not permitted to enter the ritual altar grounds; only pure bhikshus may participate in establishing the boundary. Once the boundary is fully established, fellow practitioners who wish to practice the Shurangama Mantra together may enter the grounds, including bhikshunis, lay practitioners, and other Dharma friends, who may enter one after another.
This passage outlines the three stages of practicing the Shurangama Mantra:
The first stage is to extinguish greed and lust in the mind and uphold the Buddha’s pure precepts. This encompasses both precept upholding and repentance: you must repent for the karmic offenses of killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, and false speech accumulated since beginningless time, and strictly observe the four pure precepts that prohibit these four unwholesome actions, practicing both repentance and precept observance simultaneously.
The second stage is to make the Bodhisattva vows in the ritual altar. We will explain this in greater detail later; here it is only briefly mentioned. The first seven-day period is for repentance, and the second seven-day period is for making the Bodhisattva vows – the four great vows: “Sentient beings are boundless, I vow to save them all; Afflictions are inexhaustible, I vow to put an end to them all; Dharma doors are measureless, I vow to master them all; The Buddha’s path is supreme, I vow to realize it.” You generate great compassion by connecting with the realm of sentient beings, and great wisdom by connecting with the realm of the Buddhas, aspiring for ultimate awakening for yourself and delivering sentient beings from suffering. You practice this for seven days to fully establish the Bodhisattva’s aspirations in your mind.
The third seven-day period requires bathing upon entering and leaving the ritual altar, and practicing the path during all six periods of the day and night. This is when you formally begin chanting the mantra. Whenever you leave the ritual altar, you must cleanse yourself thoroughly before re-entering, and you must focus single-mindedly on chanting the mantra throughout all six periods of the day and night. In total, this practice lasts 21 days, with a fixed timeline for attaining spiritual realization, and you are not permitted to sleep during this period. The benefits of this practice are immense: within these 21 days, you will directly behold all Buddhas of the ten directions appearing before you, eradicate all karmic obstacles accumulated since beginningless time, eliminate both past and present offenses of killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, and false speech, receive the empowerment of all ten-direction Buddhas placing their hands on your head, and those with sharp spiritual faculties may even attain the holy path immediately.