འཕགས་པ་འཇམ་དཔལ་གྱ་རྩ་བའ་རྒྱད 76

76

Even those people who have committed the five deeds of immediate retribution are immediately liberated.

“The maṇḍala master then should cover the faces of the initiands⁴⁷² who wish to enter the maṇḍala⁴⁷³ with a veil fashioned from a newly made, unbleached cloth from which the loose⁴⁷⁴ threads have been pulled out and hairs removed,⁴⁷⁵ that has been incanted with the root mantra seven times,⁴⁷⁶ and that has been anointed with fragrant ointments, sandalwood, and saffron. First, boys should be brought into the maṇḍala starting from the sixteen- and finishing with the three-year-olds.⁴⁷⁷ They may be embellished with either five decorative locks of hair or just one,⁴⁷⁸ and they may wear a topknot of hair or not.⁴⁷⁹ They should be princes whose crowns have been anointed, sons of kṣatriyas, or others of great endeavor who desire sovereignty.

“When the initiand stands in the second maṇḍala with a veiled face, the master should form the utpala ⁴⁸⁰ mudrā and have him recite the root mantra of Mañjuśrī, the divine youth, once. Guiding his actions, he should give him a flower of nice fragrance and have him throw it onto the maṇḍala with both hands that have been purified with the mixture of sandalwood and saffron. The master should give him the mantra corresponding to the spot where the flower falls.

“That is said to be his personal mantra and will stay with him through the succession of his future births. This mantra is like his spiritual guide; it will bring about his ascension to the seat of awakening and the complete unfolding of the omniscient knowledge of great bodhisattvas. He should master this mantra, which will bring great enjoyments, the status of a king, and the company of eminent people. That which is to be accomplished will be accomplished in this very life without doubt, including all the activities.

“Thus, in due course, those who desire magical accomplishments will obtain each one of them until all eight are obtained, but no other accomplishments. If one desires other accomplishments, such as the removal of sins, only the samaya may be given. For this purpose, the maṇḍala master who bestows the empowerment