Twenty-five branch samayas

Twenty-five branch samayas

Chökyi Drakpa says:

"There are twenty-five branch samayas . Firstly, there are the five to be recognized: the five aggregates, the five elements, the five faculties, the five consciousnesses, and the five objects. These should be recognized as the mandala of deities of the three seats. Once these have been understood, there are the five to be accomplished: the vajra family, ratna family, padma family, karma family and tathagata family. There are five substances to be accepted at the time of accomplishment: faeces, urine, blood, semen and marrow. There are five signs of warmth in the practice not to be rejected: the transformation of the five poisons, which are matured into the five wisdoms. There are five to be practised when the signs on the path have become manifest: the three [negative] actions of the body and lying and idle gossip. You should practise these in order to accomplish the benefit of others."