2026.07.23

The Secret of the Śarīra and the Practice of the Heart Sūtra | A Teaching by Urgyen Topden Rinpoche (Medicine Buddha · Kṣitigarbha)

What is a śarīra? Why can the Heart Sūtra be practised — even to "pass through time and space"? This is a record of Urgyen Topden Rinpoche's deeper practice teaching of 17 June 2026 (compiled from his own words, unaltered), explaining in depth the true meaning of the śarīra, the practice method of the Heart Sūtra through "thus have I heard," and the connections and effects of the Medicine Buddha's twelve great vows and the Kṣitigarbha practice.

The Secret and the Misunderstanding of the Śarīra

Urgyen Topden Rinpoche explains:

No version anywhere writes clearly what a "śarīra" (shelizi) actually is; usually it is simply transliterated as shelizi. And the explanations? Most say it is the relic-bones remaining after an eminent monk passes away and is cremated — that is as far as they go. There are even more absurd renderings, saying it is like the eye of a bird called the "śarīra bird," round and bright; and more far-fetched still, that there was a mother named "Śārī" whose child was called "Śāriputra" (son of Śārī), clever and quick, of unobstructed eloquence.

How many years have such sayings misled Buddhists? Those who speak this way are not true practitioners. What I am giving you is a secret pith-instruction. Once you crack the mystery of "Śāriputra" in the Heart Sūtra, the whole Heart Sūtra becomes a "practice version" — the Heart Sūtra as actual practice.

"Thus Have I Heard" and the Practice-Realm of the Heart Sūtra

When you practise, put in the "thus have I heard" that I have taught you, and let your whole subtle body enter the realm of the Heart Sūtra — and you pass through time and space. It is that simple! Yet for over two thousand years, Buddhists, even many great masters, none have revealed this secret. Do you think we need only read the scriptures? Do you think it is enough for you merely to listen?

I too cannot bear it! For there are so many disciples of the Buddha who have wasted the whole of their lives. If they could hear my decoding of the Heart Sūtra and thereby awaken, that, I feel, is boundless merit — that is truly propagating the Dharma. The intention of the buddhas and bodhisattvas was never as the world misunderstands it; the intention of Avalokiteśvara is not that either, yet many speak carelessly and mislead everyone, making people think the Heart Sūtra is only for dispelling afflictions. In fact, that is the very method by which your dharmakāya and subtle body attain accomplishment!

The Connections and Choice of Practices

Some will ask: is not the Medicine Buddha also excellent? Since the Heart Sūtra can pass through time and space and enter true awakening, why not just practise the Heart Sūtra alone — why also practise the Medicine Buddha? As I just said, each person's karmic connection is different. Some attain accomplishment through the Medicine Buddha, some through the Kṣitigarbha practice. And each buddha and bodhisattva has a different vow-power; the "vow" they make is the merit, benefit and effect they can bring. The vows of the buddhas and bodhisattvas are the actual effect this teaching can produce. "May I be such-and-such" in fact represents "the effect that can be attained"; I am now unveiling this secret for you.

Among the seven Medicine Buddhas, for instance, there is one called "the Tathāgata of Supreme Auspiciousness Free of Sorrow." What is this one for? In modern terms, it is like the antidepressant "Prozac" in Western medicine. Many who are heavy with affliction and troubled by things practise this one and naturally become free of sorrow. Among the eight Medicine Buddhas (the seven plus the root teacher Śākyamuni), each has a corresponding range of treatment. Each one's great vow is its effect; practise it, and you gain the corresponding effect. Yet people usually know only that they made a great vow, not that the great vow is itself the effect.

That they made a great vow and accomplished buddhahood means the vow has real efficacy. "May I be such" means they can produce such an effect — only then can they become a buddha. If what they vowed were never accomplished, empty words — "I vow such but cannot do it" — how could they become a buddha? That would be mere delusion. The Medicine Buddha's twelve great vows are each accomplished, each endowed with blessing power, able to bring beings real benefit. "My great vow is fulfilled and can benefit beings" — only then did he become the Medicine Buddha. If everyone recited the Medicine Buddha yet gained no effect, the vow-power unfulfilled, he would not have become the Medicine Buddha. Do you see my meaning? So I especially tell you a principle: do not fear making great vows! Make a great vow and strive to fulfil it, and you can attain the very fruition you vowed.

Consider Kṣitigarbha, who vowed, "Until the hells are empty, I vow not to become a buddha." Are the hells empty now? Not yet! Kṣitigarbha is the only bodhisattva to vow, "I will not become a buddha first," yet his fruition has in fact long been equal to a buddha's. He has great vow-power and continues to strive to fulfil it; though the hells are not yet emptied, his vow-power is always at work. This is why those who copy the Kṣitigarbha Sūtra and recite Kṣitigarbha's name have very many responses — because his vow-power is still ongoing.

This is why I advise everyone, in this present period: first, the Medicine Buddha must be practised; second, the Kṣitigarbha teaching must be practised. For now is precisely the era when Kṣitigarbha presides over the teaching. If the earth's development is divided into the four seasons, we have now entered late autumn and early winter. Passing from the end of the third period into the fourth, it is Kṣitigarbha who takes up this era; and next, in winter, comes the future Buddha — the descent of Maitreya. So practising the Kṣitigarbha teaching now brings the best response, because it is now his time to preside.

Kṣitigarbha is the most compassionate, like Avalokiteśvara, so many combine the Kṣitigarbha and Avalokiteśvara practices. Compassion is hearing the cries of the world and coming to aid; you call, and he comes at once. At present we have not yet fully begun our true Kṣitigarbha practice; I have only had everyone first recite the "Ten-Wheel Mantra of Kṣitigarbha." The true Kṣitigarbha teaching also has its related tantras and protectors. The "Ten-Wheel Mantra" is but one mantra within the Kṣitigarbha system. Kṣitigarbha has the "three Kṣitigarbha sūtras" (the Sūtra of the Past Vows, the Sūtra of Divining the Requital of Good and Evil, and the Great Vehicle Great Collection Kṣitigarbha Ten-Wheel Sūtra), of many scrolls, whose scriptures chiefly relate merit and benefit, while the final essence uses a mantra to produce the actual effect. The Medicine Buddha teaching is the same — one must practise the Sūtra of the Original Vows and Merit of the Medicine Master of Lapis-Lazuli Light.

Entering the Scriptural Treasury and the Mind-Method of Recitation

In the past I did not much like reciting sūtras; I preferred reciting mantras. But later I found that first reciting the sūtra, understanding its meaning, and then reciting the mantra, that sense of "solid grounding" suddenly appears. When one recites a mantra alone, without knowing the background and process of the mantra's arising, it is merely rote recitation.

It is like eating: if you do not know where the rice comes from, or how the farmer grew it, you cannot cherish your food. "Who knows that each grain in the bowl is hard-won toil?" Is it not so? Leaving food uneaten and thrown away, or a child not eating properly and wasting grain. Once you have personally experienced how hard it is to grow that bowl of rice, your cherishing of the rice, even the taste of it, becomes wholly different.

Likewise, before reciting a mantra, if you trace the source of the mantra and its scriptural background, then when you recite it again, your whole body's response is utterly different. One day, when you accomplish what I call "entering the scriptural treasury, thus have I heard," your subtle body is as if present at the very site where the Buddha taught. You will find that whether it is Kṣitigarbha, Śākyamuni, or Avalokiteśvara, when they proclaim that mantra, the great earth truly quakes and vast light shines forth! Such is its power! Then you truly take in the whole teaching, not merely recite a mantra. This is called "the practice of being present in person."

No one in the world teaches this way! Even Tibetan Buddhism rarely guides you to enter the scriptural scene as practice. Because the mind-method of "thus have I heard" that I just described has almost never been decoded before. From the founding of Buddhism until now, among so many masters, I have yet to hear of anyone using "thus have I heard" to guide disciples into the scene. Most who recite sūtras merely recite "outside the door"; no one has truly walked "inside" the realm of the scripture to recite. Everyone recites the sūtra with their mouths, but the world of the scripture and their own world are two entirely separate things.

The Buddha and the Karmic Connections of the Great Adepts' Disciples

The master explains:

Why could Maitreya rise directly to Tuṣita Heaven in a single night? Because his practice was to go, in meditation at night, directly to the world of the gods to teach. Almost every day he was among the gods, rather than teaching the beings of the human world. Śākyamuni, by contrast, taught the ordinary being amid the dusty world. To teach in the human realm, how long does it take to bring an ordinary being to awakening? One must teach without ceasing! The Buddha taught the Dharma for forty-nine years — teaching without ceasing.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a śarīra?

It is commonly said to be the relic-bones of an eminent monk after cremation, but the master points out this is only a misunderstanding. The master teaches that "Śāriputra" in the Heart Sūtra is in fact a secret pith-instruction; once decoded, the whole Heart Sūtra becomes a practicable "practice version."

What does "thus have I heard" mean in the practice of the Heart Sūtra?

The master teaches that in practice one puts in "thus have I heard," letting the subtle body enter the realm of the Heart Sūtra, thereby passing through time and space and entering the scriptural treasury, as if present at the very site where the Buddha taught, rather than reciting "outside the door."

What is the relation between the Medicine Buddha's great vows and their effect?

The master points out that each buddha's and bodhisattva's "great vow" is itself its effect; the Medicine Buddha's twelve great vows are all accomplished and endowed with blessing power, so that practice brings the corresponding real benefit — therefore do not fear making great vows.

What is "the Tathāgata of Supreme Auspiciousness Free of Sorrow" among the seven Medicine Buddhas for?

The master explains with a modern image that this one corresponds to treating depression and affliction, like the Western medicine "Prozac"; those heavy with affliction who practise this one naturally become free of sorrow.

Why does the master advise especially practising the Medicine Buddha and Kṣitigarbha now?

The master teaches that now is precisely the era when Kṣitigarbha presides (late autumn and early winter of the earth's four seasons), so the Kṣitigarbha practice brings the best response; the Medicine Buddha averts misfortune and lengthens life, and Kṣitigarbha is compassionate and relieves suffering — the two complement each other and best suit the present connection.

Why does Kṣitigarbha have especially many responses?

Kṣitigarbha vowed, "Until the hells are empty, I vow not to become a buddha"; his vow-power is continually at work, compassionate, hearing the cries of the world; copying the Kṣitigarbha Sūtra and reciting his name bring deep responses precisely because his great vow is still being fulfilled.