Tilopa was Mahasiddha (great perfect being) that lived at the end of the 10-th and beginning of the 11-th century. He was the priest in king's palace in India when he left his duty, led by insurmountable desire to achieve the highest possible illumination. It happened in the caves of Nepal where he became a great Master with lots of followers, whome became great Masters too, as well as traslators of holy books and initials of several traditions that later became known as tibetan buddhism.
Buddhism is, to a large degree, the skill of mastering the mind. Eastern spiritual tradition divide human mind on rational part called manas in Sanskrit, and intuition, or higher mind - buddhi. Our Soul (Atman) is expressed trought the Higher Mind and when it becames predominant in human consicousness our thoughts, aspirations, desires and actions become expressions or divine Will.
Unlike christianity that teaches us to achieve enlightment trough unconditial love and submission to the heart, buddhism try to come to the same goal trough developing bodhicita - a mind filled with empathy and compassion toward all living beings.
Saints from Orient discovered the methods which help them to ''eradicate'' the rational mind in the quickest possible way. Tilopa was one of them. He gave 6 words of advice to his desciple and later great teacher as well, Naropa, that will take everybody who has uncomprimising will and pure heart, to the self realization.
Those advices were known as 6 Tilopa's nails:
- ''DON'T REMEMBER: let go what has past
- DON'T IMMAGINE: let go what might come
- DON'T THINK: let go what is happening know
- DON'T EXAMINE: don't try to figure anything out
- DON'T CONTROL: don't try to make anything happen'
- JUST REST: relax, right now
By applying this six rules we protect ourselves of all negativity and puts us in the state of spontaneous and natural living/being. Ego rules over rational mind that wants to know all because of his desire to control the reality it fears. It is never in the present moment, instead always remembers, project and analyze; yet it is always wrong and out of frustration it then critize itself. It is never in peace.
On the other hand our Soul (Higher Self) is eternal. It does not have the need to plan anything, it is the instrument of gods divine play and is embedded with divine wisdom, spontaneity and joy.
Tilopa said:
''NO THOUGHT
NO REFLECTION
NO ANALYSIS
NO CULTIVATION
NO INTENTION
LET IT SETTLE BY ITSELF''
Can we live in this simple way? Are we able to believe that key to divine life is so simple?
