4. Even the remedy is free to self-liberate

  • This is the Third Slogan/Instruction of Point Two.
  • Point Two is “The Actual Practice”. 
  • Point two consists of nine instructions in two divisions. The two divisions are
    • 1) Cultivating Absolute Bodhicitta, which consists of five instructions, and
      • “Even the remedy is free to self-liberate” belongs to the first division of “Cultivating Absolute Bodhicitta”.
    • 2) Cultivating Relative Bodhicitta, which consists of four instructions.

The “remedy” refers to the previous two points, “regard all phenomena as dreams” and “examine the nature of unborn awareness. These analyses are the remedy. These also must not be reified and must be let go.

Jamgön Kongtrül wrote:

When we look at the presence of the remedy itself, these thoughts about the absence of true existence, there is nothing for the mind to refer to and they subside naturally on their own.

Jamgön Kongtrül, The Great Path of Awakening, translated by Ken McLeod

Embroidery, silk; overall: 90.2 x 66 cm (35 1/2 x 26 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art

Embroidery: Yama and Consort, 18th-19th century. Tibet. Embroidery, silk; overall: 90.2 x 66 cm (35 1/2 x 26 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art