WORDS OF TRUTH
A prayer composed
by
HIS HOLINESS TENZIN GYATSO
THE FOURTEENTH DALAI LAMA OF TIBET
Honoring and invoking the Great Compassion of the
Three Jewels: the Buddha, the Teachings, and
the Spiritual Community
WISDOM PUBLICATIONS
BOSTON
First published, 1993
Copyright 1993 His Holiness the Dalai Lama
All rights reserved.
Wisdom Publications would like to express its sincere thanks
for the generous donations made by the Barry J. Hershey Foundation,
the Nama Rupa Foundation, and the American Himalayan Foundation
in support of this beloved prayer and its publication.
Poetic translation into English by
Rabjampa Dupchok Gyaltsen and Peter Gold
* * *
DharmaNet Edition 1994
This electronic edition is offered for free distribution
via DharmaNet by arrangement with the publisher.
DharmaNet International
P.O. Box 4951, Berkeley CA 94704-4951
Transcribed for DharmaNet by Myra I. Fox
* * * * * * * *
INTRODUCTION
//Words of Truth// was composed by His Holiness Tenzin Gyatso, the
Fourteenth Dalai Lama of Tibet, during the autumn of 1960, a year
and a half after he was forced into exile in India. It is one of the
most important prayers for Tibetans today. It is recited each
morning with their daily prayers and sung to a medley of four lovely
melodies on occasions such as the March 10 Uprising Day observance.
For Tibetans there is no separation between the sacred and the
secular. Accordingly, this prayer finds a place in both arenas.
//Words of Truth// is dedicated to restoring peace, the Buddhist
teachings, and the culture and self-determination of the Tibetan
people in their homeland. It is also an invocation of compassion
towards all suffering sentient beings: oppressor and oppressed
alike.
Prayer serves most immediately to focus the thoughts toward a
specific end, in this case the preservation of Tibetan civilization
and the goal of universal compassion. Prayer is also a refined
expression of a state of mind, of an inner vision. Prayer is a crown
jewel of speech. Speech is intimately tied to the breath, the coarse
form of energy that empowers the mind's awareness. While all speech
has such subtle power its basis, prayer (recited or sung) is a
carefully crafted mode of speech -- a vital channel into the depths
of the mind.
Thus, one truly can appreciate the significance and beauty of His
Holiness's //Words of Truth//. May its multifold repetition in the
Tibetan, and now English, language contribute to the goal of
compassionate liberation for all sentient beings.
Peter Gold
Dharamsala, India
* * * * * * * *
WORDS OF TRUTH
A Prayer Composed by
HIS HOLINESS TENZIN GYATSO, THE FOURTEENTH DALAI LAMA OF TIBET,
Honoring and Invoking the Great Compassion
of the Three Jewels: the Buddha, the Teachings,
and the Spiritual Community
O Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and disciples
of the past, present, and future:
Having remarkable qualities
immeasurably vast as the ocean,
Who regard all helpless sentient beings
as your only child;
Please consider the truth of my anguished pleas.
Buddha's full teachings dispel the pain of worldly
existence and self-oriented peace;
May they flourish, spreading prosperity and happiness through-
out this spacious world.
O holders of the Dharma: scholars
and realized practitioners;
May your ten fold virtuous practice prevail.
Humble sentient beings, tormented
by sufferings without cease,
Completely suppressed by seemingly endless
and terribly intense, negative deeds,
May all their fears from unbearable war, famine,
and disease be pacified,
To freely breathe an ocean of happiness and well-being.
And particularly the pious people
of the Land of Snows who, through various means,
Are mercilessly destroyed by barbaric hordes
on the side of darkness,
Kindly let the power of your compassion arise,
To quickly stem the flow of blood and tears.
Those unrelentingly cruel ones, objects of compassion,
Maddened by delusion's evils,
wantonly destroy themselves and others;
May they achieve the eye of wisdom,
knowing what must be done and undone,
And abide in the glory of friendship and love.
May this heartfelt wish of total freedom for all Tibet,
Which has been awaited for a long time,
be spontaneously fulfilled;
Please grant soon the good fortune to enjoy
The happy celebration of spiritual with temporal rule.
O protector Chenrezig, compassionately care for
Those who have undergone myriad hardships,
Completely sacrificing their most cherished lives,
bodies, and wealth,
For the sake of the teachings, practitioners,
people, and nation.
Thus, the protector Chenrezig made vast prayers
Before the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas
To fully embrace the Land of Snows;
May the good results of these prayers now quickly appear.
By the profound interdependence of emptiness
and relative forms,
Together with the force of great compassion
in the Three Jewels and their Words of Truth,
And through the power
of the infallible law of actions and their fruits,
May this truthful prayer be unhindered
and quickly fulfilled.
* * *
This prayer, //Words of Truth//, was composed by His Holiness Tenzin
Gyatso, the Fourteenth Dalai Lama of Tibet, on 29 September 1960 at
his temporary headquarters in the Swarg Ashram at Dharamsala, Kangra
District, Himachal State, India. This prayer for restoring peace,
the Buddhist teachings, and the culture and self-determination of
the Tibetan people in their homeland was written after repeated
requests by Tibetan government officials along with the unanimous
consensus of the monastic and lay communities. Particular
acknowledgment was given to the requests by Barzhi Phuntsog Wangyal;
Lobsang Tendzin, treasurer of Lhatsun Labrang, and his wife, Tashi
Dolma; and Lobsang Dorje, treasurer of Shelkhar Monastery.
This translation was made in Dharamsala, India, during April 1992
by Rabjampa Dupchok Gyaltsen and Peter Gold, under the editorial
guidance of the Ven. Lotsawa Lhakdor and Ven. Lotsawa Tendzin Dorje,
with certain clarifications by the Ven. Lobsang Gyatso, Principal of
the Institute of Buddhist Dialectics. It was made with the sincere
intention of stimulating a broad understanding of the current
condition of Tibet and its people, as well as of humanity as a
whole, whose sufferings cry out for a compassionate solution. In
today's interconnected world, no person or society stands alone. As
such, the fate of Tibet is indeed the fate of the world. His
Holiness's //Words of Truth// bears an essential message to us all
in this regard. May this translation aid in establishing peace and
altruism among all members of the global family.
Tashi Shok
May Auspiciousness Prevail
* * *
ENGLISH LYRICS
This versification into English lyrics was made expressly for
singing the prayer, //Words of Truth//, to its customary tunes. It
was written by Peter Gold in Dharamsala, India during April 1992 and
is intended to convey the basic meaning of the prayer in a manner
appropriate to the medium of song.
Part I
Buddhas and saints...and disciples throughout time,
Having qualities, infinite as the ocean is wide,
Seeing each being as your only child,
Please heed my truthful and anguished cries.
Buddha's teachings:...selfish peace, suffering's cease,
Spreading joy and prosperity through the world;
O scholars and great practitioners,
May the Dharma's ten virtuous ways prevail.
Humble beings...suffering torments without cease,
Pressed completely by bad thoughts and deeds,
Pacify their fears: war, famine, disease,
To breathe an ocean of joy and peace.
Part II
Pious people in the Land of Snows,
Destroyed...mercilessly...through various means,
By barbarian hordes out of darkness;
Through compassion...may the blood and tears...quickly cease.
Cruel people needing compassion, made mad by delusions,
Destroying...themselves...and others too;
Give them the eye of wisdom to know what to do;
In a glorious...state of friendship...and of selfless love.
Part III
So this wish for freedom in Tibet,
It's been awaited for a long time;
May the good fortune arise soon,
Of spiritual with temporal rule.
O protector, please look after them,
Those who've undergone great suffering;
Sacrificing lives and all their wealth
For the nation, people, and religion.
The Protector Avalokita
Prayed before Buddhas and Bodhisattvas,
To fully embrace the Land of Snows;
May good things appear not through your prayers.
Part IV
By the profound interdependence...
of emptiness and relative forms,
With compassion in the Three Jewels and
Words of Truth,
And through the infallible...
law of one's actions and their fruits,
Be this prayer unhindered and quickly fulfilled.
* * *
TIBETAN TEXT IN PHONETICS
This rendering of the Tibetan text into phonetics is designed to aid
in its proper pronunciation when sung or spoken by a native English
speaker.
[Note added for this DharmaNet edition: The umlaut is represented
here by a colon preceding the vowel it affects.]
Part I
Tse mei y:on ten...gya ts:o pel nga zhing
Nyam chung dro la bu chik tar gong pe
D:u sum de sheg se dang lo mar che
Dag gi den pe mei ngag di gong shig
Si shi dung sel...yong dzog toob pe ten
Dzam ling yang pe pen de pel du gye
De dzin ke dang drup pe kye bu nam
Ch:o j:o nam chu ja wa pel war dz:o
Mi se le ngen...drak p:o yong n:on pe
Bar me du ke nar wei nyam tak dro
S:o ka ne ts:on mu ge jig pa k:un
Shi ne de ga gya ts:o uk yung dz:o
Part II
Kye par gang jong ch:o den kye dro nam
Nak chok... la l:o pung gi...tse me du
Ngen g:u jom pe trag dang chi mei gy:un
Nyur du...ch:o pe tug je...tu pung kye
Nyon mong d:on gyi ny:o pe lang ch:o kyi
Rang zhen...nyi pung gyi pe...nying je y:ul
Mi s:un kye w:o tsog nam lang dor mig
Yong tob...jam tse dza wei...pel la jor
Part III
Ring ne nying du nag pe d:o pe d:on
Yong dzog p:o jong rang wang tsang mei pel
Lh:un drub ch:o si sung drel ga t:on la
Ch:o pe kel sang nyur wa nyi du ts:ol
Ten dang de dzin chab si rang rig le
Che pe l:u sog long j:o yong tang te
Ka wa gya trag drub pe kye we nam
Dur dzin g:on de tug je kyong war dz:o
Dor na gon po Chen re sig wang gi
Se che gyel wei chen ngar gang chen zhing
Yong sung gya chen m:on lam gang dze pe
Dre sang deng dir nyur du char war sol
Part IV
Nang tong ch:o nyid sab m:o...ten drel dang
Chog sum tug je tu dang den tsig tob
Le de lu mei den t:u...dag chag gi
Den pe m:on lam geg mei nyur drup shok
* * *
[The printed book contains the Tibetan text of this prayer and the
musical score, the "Words of Truth Hymn"]
* * * * * * * *
Wisdom Publications
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* * *
DISTRIBUTION AGREEMENT
TITLE OF WORK: Words of Truth: A Prayer for Peace in Tibet and Compassion
in the World
FILENAME: TRUEWORD.ZIP
AUTHOR: His Holiness Tenzin Gyatso, the Fourteenth Dalai Lama of Tibet
AUTHOR'S ADDRESS: N/A
PUBLISHER'S ADDRESS: Wisdom Publications
361 Newbury Street
Boston, MA 02115 USA
DATE OF PUBLICATION: 1993
DHARMANET RELEASE DATE: April, 1994
ORIGIN SITE: Access to Insight BBS * Barre MA * (508) 433-0421
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