Drupon Rinpoche: “The result of purifying obscurations and gathering the accumulations is direct realization of the true nature of mind and attaining the state of Mahamudra. For this reason, after focusing on purifying obscurations through the practice of Vajrasattva, next comes the practice of mandala focused on gathering the accumulations.

Over the past months, our focus on Vajrasattva purification has allowed us to release layers of negativity, obscurations, and habitual patterns. This practice softens and opens the heart, connecting us to our innate buddha-nature (Vajrasattva) and creating the inner space needed for deeper transformation. By letting go of the weight of past actions and the confusion that clouds our awareness, we prepare the ground for the next essential step.

Garchen Rinpoche: When we offer the mandala, we make an offering to all enlightened beings, and this mental offering becomes an antidote to the thought, “this is mine, I own this.” Slowly, it begins to free our minds from the bondage of self-clinging.

Now, we turn toward Mandala Offering, a practice centered on gathering the accumulations of merit and wisdom. If Vajrasattva helps us relinquish what is harmful or unwholesome, mandala practice invites us to loosen our attachment even to what is positive, beautiful, and beneficial. Through the profound act of offering the entire universe—outer, inner, and secret—we cultivate generosity, faith, spaciousness, and the ability to let go at the deepest level. This offering of our everything is directed toward the same field of merit that we cultivated in the refuge practice, and this continuity becomes a powerful, steady thread that strengthens our connection to the lineage. Through it, we build upon and further deepen the sense of reliance and heartfelt faith and devotion we have been embracing. In doing so, we accumulate the conditions necessary for genuine realization.

Together, these preliminaries form the essential preparations for the journey toward recognizing the nature of mind—Mahamudra. Each step clears, enriches, and stabilizes the mind so that the profound instructions of the Fivefold Path can take root. Entering the mandala section marks a joyful and significant milestone in this shared exploration.

Garchen Rinpoche: For those of us who still have this attachment and grasping, we need to engage in the practice of offering. Whatever is pleasurable to us, whatever is enjoyable, we should make a habit of mentally offering to the enlightened beings. By doing this, the ties that are normally created by pleasurable circumstances are unbound, they are undone. These are skillful means taught by the Great Compassionate One.