Machig Labdron: Bless me to develop the ability to experience the single flavor
Machik Labdrön’s Prayer to All Lineages
I supplicate the father lineage of method.
I supplicate the mother lineage of wisdom.
I supplicate the non-dual lineage of meaning.
I supplicate the lineage of fortunate ones with experience.
I supplicate the Chöd lineage of siddhas.
I supplicate the symbolic lineage of the dakinis.
I supplicate the lineage of powerful dharma protectors.
Bless me so that I may develop disgust
For deluded appearances and worldly activities.
Bless me so that I may stop cherishing
This illusory body of the four elements.
Bless me to develop the ability to experience the single flavor
Of discordant conditions, sickness, demons and obstacles.
Bless me to know the inherent nature
Of all that appears, the miraculous display of my mind.
Bless me to gain independence
Within self-awareness, the spontaneously present three kayas.
Generally, may I and sentient beings of the six realms,
Having abandoned the cause, the stain of dualism,
Attain unsurpassable enlightenment.
Machik Labdrön (1055-1154) is recognized, along with her Indian guru PaDampa Sangye, as the founder of the lineage of Chöd in Tibet. Her name, which means “One Mother,” identifies her as the source of this Tibetan lineage and reflects her actual status as both a great teacher and a mother of several children. Her biography is recorded at length in the book Machig Labdrön and the Foundations of Chöd by Jerome Edou, published by Snow Lion.