There are four common preliminary practices (Tib: thun mong gi ngondro). The Great Four practitioners are the representative for each of the four common preliminaries.
The four common preliminaries are contemplating:
- one’s fortunate human rebirth
- one’s certain but unpredictable death
- the truth of cause, effect and conditions (Karma)
- the faults and limitations of Samsaric life
The great four practitioners are:
Geshe Potowa – #1
Geshe is a title for a PhD scholar of Buddhist studies. Geshe Potowa took the first common preliminary teaching into heart. He took it seriously that he never slept. 24 hours a day, he would recite a mantra, or do some practice.
This is because he realized how precious the human life is. We are not sure what freedoms we will have in the next life. We are also not sure if we will still have the conditions to be reborn as a human with advantages
So, Geshe Potowa took the opportunity, this present life of his, and used it well.
Geshe Kara Gomchung – # 2
His name is “Gom-chung”, or “small meditator”, because he could not stick to meditation for a long time. He was very naughty and restless as a monk. So, other monks called him that. But, as he grew older, he absorbed the Buddha’s teachings very well. He proved that name wrong.
His story is also mentioned in the Meditation on Death article.
As Geshe-la was doing retreat in a cave, he would come out of the cave every now and then to take a break. As he came out of the cave entrance, a small thorny bush would prick his robes and tear it. He said, “Later, when I come back. I will cut that bush”.
However, when he had come back to the cave, he would think, “If I die tonight, I would have wasted time cutting that bush. It is better for me to use that time for meditation. And I will cut that bush tomorrow.”
So this kind of back and forth thinking happened, for one month, one year. Until seven years have gone.
In the end, Geshe-la never cut the bush. The bush had grown into a tree. As for Geshe-la, he succeeded in his practice.
Geshe Kara Gomchung always thought about the unpredictability of death. He developed the ‘urgency to practice’.
Milarepa – # 3
Milarepa is the most famous amongst the four practitioners. Milarepa, in many ways, represent the whole of Tibetan Buddhism. He was a murderer turned saint in one lifetime, showing that even the most heinous criminal can have a change of heart.
So, his story is just like that. After killing thirty people using black magic for revenge, he repented. He began realizing that he had accumulated very grave sins. These seeds would surely ripen in the future and would cause him deep suffering. Due to this strong belief in Karmic cause and effect, he started looking for a teacher earnestly.
Milarepa soon found Marpa. He had a firm conviction that this teacher could really teach him how to purify his heavy negative Karma. Marpa gave Milarepa a lot of hardships.
One time, when Milarepa heard that he still could not attend the prayer offering, he broke down, feeling completely hopeless. He thought, “I have accumulated so much grave negative Karma in this life. Thus, I cannot even participate in some virtuous activity to purify my Karma.”
“It is better to die than to suffer such a hopeless situation. Maybe, I will have a small window of opportunity in my next life to practice virtue.”
After thinking this, in his room, Milarepa decided to end his unfortunate life.
Marpa, the teacher, heard this from his wife, Dagmema. Hearing this, he murmured to himself, “This is really a true Buddhist practitioner.” And he shed a tear knowing that Milarepa trusted Karma with all his heart.
Geshe Langri Thangpa – #4
So, Lang-thangpa is known as “the sad face, the long face”. He was always frowning that his face had so much wrinkles as a result. He was sad 24/7. This was because Langthangpa took to heart the sadness of Samsaric life. Happiness and pleasure in Samsara last only for a few moments, while endless suffering and pain are always waiting around.
It is said that Langthangpa only laughed once. He had a turquoise stone on his shrine. One day, a mouse crawled and tried to push this stone. The mouse could not push it, so it called another mouse to help. This made him smile. But, other than that, he was always sad-faced.
Once, when his students told him that he was becoming known as the ‘gloomy-faced’, he snapped, “How can I smile thinking about all the endless and different sufferings in all the realms of Samsara?!”
So, here are the four great practitioners of the Four Common Preliminaries.