Three noble principles

Three noble principles (Wyl. dam pa gsum) — there are three things that make all the difference between your practice being merely a way of bringing temporary relaxation, peace, and bliss, or of becoming a powerful cause for your enlightenment and the enlightenment of others. They are:

• good in the beginning: arousing bodhichitta as a skilful means to ensure that your practice becomes a source of merit for the future
• good in the middle: maintaining the view of the nature of mind, the attitude of non-grasping free from conceptualization, that secures the practice so that the merit cannot be destroyed by circumstances, and
• good in the end: sealing the practice properly by dedicating the merit, which will ensure that it continually grows ever greater.

The three are referred to in a popular quotation from Longchenpa:

"Begin with bodhichitta, do the main practice without concepts,

Conclude by dedicating the merit. These, together and complete,

Are the three vital supports for progressing on the path to liberation."

Further Reading

• Sogyal Rinpoche, The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying, revised and updated edition, Harper San Francisco, 2002, pages 60-62.
• Khenpo Ngawang Palzang, A Guide to the Words of my Perfect Teacher, 'The Three Supreme Methods', pages 27-31.

External links

• Three Noble Principles by Khenpo Shenga