Mandala Offering Practice Q&A I

【True Buddha Foundation】
TBF-D Vajrayana #0007 Notice
《Mandala Offering Practice》Q&A I


On Apr. 25, 2020, Root Lineage Guru Living Buddha Lian-sheng answered the following questions at the Seattle True Buddha Foundation office:
Q1: May one use a mandala plate to make offerings of rice, five grains, jewels, and so forth?
A: Yes.

Q1-1: After jewels have been offered once,may they be offered again after they have been purified?
A: Yes.

Q2: When practicing the Mandala Offering, may family members share the same mandala plate by taking turns?
A: Yes.

Q3: When a mandala plate is not available, may one visualize a mandala plate or use another kind of offering plate as a substitute?
A: One should use a mandala plate, because only a mandala plate symbolizes the Four Holy Realms, Six Realms of sentient beings, and the Ten Dharma Realms. One should not use any kind of plate other than a mandala plate.

Q4: If a mandala plate is too large, may one place it on a
table?
A: Yes.

Q5: Grandmaster discoursed that when one has completed the mandala offering visualization, one may discard the rice, and replace it with new rice. In this way, the Mandala Offering can be performed over and over many times in an hour, and one can quickly reach the goal of 100,000 offerings. One’s accumulation of merit will then be complete.
Would it count for 10 or more offerings if one performs the visualization 10 or more times, or recites the mantra 10 or more times within one offering session using the same offering of rice? Or, must one replace the rice after each offering visualization to count as one offering?
A: When rice is offered, the offering is transformed through visualization and must be replaced prior to performing the next visualization. If the rice is not replaced and offered again after performing the visualization, one is offering leftovers.

Best Regards,
True Buddha Foundation
April 27, 2020





Translated by TBTTs
Translator: DJ Chang
Editor: Henry Wolf


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