Blessing

Blessing (Skt. adhiṣṭhāna; Tib. chinlap; Wyl. byin brlabs or byin gyis brlabs) — in The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying, the true meaning of blessing is defined as “a transformation in which your mind transcends into the state of the absolute.”

His Holiness the Dalai Lama defines ‘blessing’ in his commentary on the second part of Kamalashila’s Stages of Meditation:

The Tibetan word for blessing, chin lap, can be broken into two parts—chin means ’magnificent potential’ and lap means ‘to transform’. So chin lap means ‘transforming into magnificent potential.’ Therefore, blessing refers to the development of virtuous qualities that you did not previously have and the improvement of those good qualities that you have already developed. It also means decreasing the defilements of the mind that obstruct the generation of wholesome qualities. So actual blessing is received when the mind’s virtuous attributes gain strength and its defective characteristics weaken or deteriorate.

Oral Teachings Given by Sogyal Rinpoche on the Meaning of Blessings

• Sydney, 10 March 2010
• Dzogchen Beara, 13 July 2014

Alternative Translations

• inspiration (Berzin)

Internal Links

• four kinds of blessing

External Links

• An essay on 'Inspiration (“Blessings”) and Its Relation to Mantras and Oral Transmission', Alexander Berzin, December 2008