Bodhicitta in Practice

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+<h5>The Actual Taking of the Bodhisattva Vow</h5>
+There are two sets of liturgies for the actual taking of the bodhisattva vow passed down from the two main Mahāyāna traditions. Today, the Profound View tradition mainly uses the verses from chapter 2 and 3 of Śāntideva’s Way of the Bodhisattva, while the Vast Praxis tradition uses lines from Atiśa’s Ritual Procedures for the Generation of the Mind and Vows (Cittotpādasaṃvaravidhikrama).
+Although in some practices the ritual of taking refuge is added to the seven-limb prayer, making it an eight-limb prayer, as we find in the case of Śāntideva’s and Atiśa’s texts, most traditions have the verse for taking refuge chanted just before taking the bodhisattva vow. In this way, one takes the vow of refuge as well as the bodhisattva vow in one session.
+In the Profound View tradition, the vows for both aspiring and engaged bodhicitta are taken in one session, while in the Vast Praxis tradition the two types of bodhisattva vows are taken separately. In the former tradition, the presence of a physical teacher is not essential, although that is preferred and highly recommended.  In the latter tradition, as the second vow of engaged bodhicitta is taken mainly through a Q&A, there is a need for an officiant in person. The former also does not require a human birth as a precondition, and nonhuman beings such as gods and nāgas can get the bodhisattva vow. However, the Vast Praxis tradition argues that the bodhisattva vow must be based on general Buddhist pratimokṣa vows, which only a human can take.

Bodhicitta in Practice

Revision as of 14:08, 5 May 2025