The Ocean of Bliss-Pleasure

The Ocean of Bliss-Pleasure

by Longchen Rabjam

I bow at the feet of the glorious Lama,
Who brings down a rain of whatever is wished for
With the precious wish-fulfilling gem from the ocean
Of the thorough completion of the two accumulations.

I, a yogin free from fixed reference points,
Impartial, unrestrained and carefree,
Offer this Dharma song of spontaneous joy
To all beings with faith.

It has been a few years since I abandoned common ways:[1]
Now, practicing the heart of the holy Dharma,
I don’t have ordinary mundane perception,
And the ocean of bliss-pleasure truly bursts forth!

On counting one, two, three,
With the laughter of the bliss of spacious perception,
With the laughter of unrestrained and carefree perception,
I offer this Dharma song of spontaneous joy,
To clear away the darkness of ignorance.

It has been a few years since I abandoned my homeland:
Now, without fixed residence, in various mountain hermitages,
I am not bound by desire or anger,
And the ocean of bliss-pleasure truly bursts forth!

It has been a few years since I abandoned my family and friends:
Now, with the freedom of having no associates,
I don’t need to cater for close relations,
And the ocean of bliss-pleasure truly bursts forth!

It has been a few years since I abandoned my retinue:
Now, in the space without masters and servants,
I am not bound by any 'helpful' suggestions,
And the ocean of bliss-pleasure truly bursts forth!

It has been a few years since I abandoned my rank:
Now, free from bias, desire and anger,
I don’t have the perception of close or distant,
And the ocean of bliss-pleasure truly bursts forth!

It has been a few years since I abandoned pretense:
Now, cutting straight through appearances,
I don’t have the suffering of maintaining impressions,
And the ocean of bliss-pleasure truly bursts forth!

It has been a few years since I abandoned deliberate action:
Now, in the relaxed state in which there is nothing to do,
I have no anxiety about what remains incomplete,
And the ocean of bliss-pleasure truly bursts forth!

It has been a few years since I abandoned hoarding:
Now, in the state without desire or clinging,
I am free from strategies for my future security,
And the ocean of bliss-pleasure truly bursts forth!

It has been a few years since I abandoned obsessive desire:
Now, whatever happens becomes an ally;
I am free from rigid notions about identity,
And the ocean of bliss-pleasure truly bursts forth!

It has been a few years since I abandoned the desire for grandeur:
Now, with the freedom of a beggar,
I don’t have a name or good looks, I am not handsome,
But the ocean of bliss-pleasure truly bursts forth!

It has been a few years since I abandoned the ordinary world:
Now, letting go of the fixations of this life,
I am free from the burden of the eight worldly dharmas,
And the ocean of bliss-pleasure truly bursts forth!

It has been a few years since I let go of wants and needs,
Now, treating as a feast whatever comes my way,
I don’t have the suffering of miserliness,
And the ocean of bliss-pleasure truly bursts forth!

It has been a few years since I entered the teachings:
Now, with the sacred commitment of the three trainings,
I don’t face the devastation of impaired or broken commitment,
And the ocean of bliss-pleasure truly bursts forth!

It has been a few years since I began hearing and contemplating the teachings:
Now, competent in the words and in their meaning,
I am free from doubt and hesitation,
And the ocean of bliss-pleasure truly bursts forth!

It has been a few years since I began training in the sūtras and tantras:
Now, knowing the outer and inner tenets,
I don’t have the arrogance that comes with conventional designation,
And the ocean of bliss-pleasure truly bursts forth!

It has been a few years since I began relying on the holy teachings:
Now, having received the supreme blessing,
My devotion is unwavering,
And the ocean of bliss-pleasure truly bursts forth!

It has been a few years since I perfected the four empowerments:
Now, in the unity of the generation and completion stages,
I am free from any confused thinking,
And the ocean of bliss-pleasure truly bursts forth!

It has been a few years since I began training in impartiality:
Now, competent in all the spiritual instructions,
I am free from bias and dogmatic argument,
And the ocean of bliss-pleasure truly bursts forth!

It has been a few years since I first understood the natural condition:
Now, in the exhaustion of all phenomena, beyond the ordinary mind,
I am free from holding to extreme views,
And the ocean of bliss-pleasure truly bursts forth!

It has been a few years since I began meditating on actuality:
Now, in the clear light of natural cognizance,
I am not stumbling in the darkness of emptiness meditation,[2]
And the ocean of bliss-pleasure truly bursts forth!

It has been a few years since I abandoned reified perception:
Now, with the sacred mind of the Victorious One, equal to the sky,
My view and realization have reached the point of resolution,
And the ocean of bliss-pleasure truly bursts forth!

It has been a few years since I abandoned contrived focus:
Now, in the primordial space of actuality,
Meditation is truly beyond the ordinary mind,
And the ocean of bliss-pleasure truly bursts forth!

It has been a few years since I abandoned blocking and cultivating:
Now, in the space of self-releasing actuality,
Action is truly free from fixed reference points,
And the ocean of bliss-pleasure truly bursts forth!

It has been a few years since I abandoned hope and fear:
Now, in the space of unobstructed actuality,
In the fruition of naturally occurring primordial wisdom,
The ocean of bliss-pleasure truly bursts forth!

Thanks to the grace of the holy Lama,
Whatever I do, it arises as pleasure,
However I act, it arises as bliss,
And the ocean of bliss-pleasure truly bursts forth!

On counting one, two, three,
With the laughter of the bliss of spacious perception,
With the laughter of unrestrained and carefree perception,
To clear away the darkness of the ignorance of my own perception;

This song with good words and excellent meaning
Is sung by a yogin of the supreme vehicle,
An open, unrestrained and carefree person
In the hermitage of the realm of spontaneous presence.

May all beings without exception, by the virtue of this song,
Abide in the supreme primordial wisdom of the three kāyas,
And having thoroughly completed the two great accumulations,
Come to the limitless ocean of enlightenment!

This song called ‘The Ocean of Bliss-Pleasure’ was composed in response to a request from Gyalse Zöpa.

| Translated by Benedek Bartha, 2023.

Bibliography

Tibetan Edition

klong chen rab 'byams. “bde skyid mtsho mo ma.” In gsung thor bu dri med ʼod zer (sde dge par ma). Paro, Bhutan: Lama Ngodrup and Sherab Drimey, 1982. Vol.2: 318–320

dri med 'od zer. gsung 'bum/_dri med 'od zer/ dpal brtsegs/ mes po'i shul bzhag. 26 vols. Beijing: krung go'i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang, 2009. (BDRC W1KG4884). Vol. 24: 252–255

Secondary Sources

Bartha, Benedek. Metaphor in Dzogchen and Cognitive Science: Synchronicity of Source and Target. MPhil thesis. University of Oxford, 2022

Version: 1.0-20230206