Madonna delle Bozzole (Garlasco)- Oasi LIPU bosco del Vignolo - parco del Ticino

Camminata tra le campagne del parco del Ticino e della Lomellina partendo dal santuario della Madonna della Bozzola, nel comune di Garlasco





THE HUNDRED THOUSAND SONGS OF MILAREPA
After a hard journey I arrived there.
For six years and eight months7 [I stayed]
With him, my gracious Father Guru, Marpa.
For him I built many houses,
One with courtyards and nine stories;
Only after this did he accept me.
From him I received the Pointing-out Instruction.
Thus I truly understood Mahamudra,
The view of the profound Absolute.
'
He also taught me the Six Yogas of Naropa,
The final teaching of the Path of Means.8
I was ripened through the Four Initiations,
And obtained a true, decisive understanding
Of the great Guru Naropa's teaching.
Having received the Pith-Instructions from Marpa,
I renounced all the affairs of this life;
And, no longer lazy, devoted myself to Dharma.
Thus have I reached the State of Eternal Bliss.
Such is the story of my life.
I wish you five young ladies
All good fortune and great joy.
Leave us now and go home.
Hearing the Jetsun's life story, all the maidens' faith was strengthened
anew. They begged Milarepa to accept them as his servants. He said,
"You are spoiled girls from rich families, and if you come with me, you
will never be able to endure the hardships of my life. If you want to
practice the Dharma, you should live ascetically, as I do. But I doubt if you
can." Then he sang a song called "The Self-Examination":
I bow down at the feet of Marpa, the Translator.
If you, the five young sisters,
Really want to practice Dharma
And insist on coming with me,
Think this song over carefully
And obtain the answer for yourselves.
You should ask yourselves: "Have I
The persistence to endure the hardships
Of the ascetic life?
Have I a will strong and dominant enough
To renounce all Sa111saric desires,
And follow the instructions of my Guru?"
Though you leave your native land,
The prison of all evils,
Can you persevere alone in rugged places?
Though you renounce your kinsmen, the noose of devils,
And realize their detriments,
Can you depend upon a qualified Guru?
Though you realize that properties and goods
Are poisonous, the enticing bait of demons,
Can you live in destitution and endure hardship?
Though you forsake soft woolen clothes from W eu,
Can you produce the warm and blissful Dumo
[Inner-Heat]?
If you renounce a city life
And forsake your friends and lovers,
Can you live alone in no-man's land?
Though you disavow the Eight Desires,
Can you live in a humble and lowly way?
Though you understand the transiency of this life,
Do you realize the precariousness of [all] life?
This is the tradition of the Ghagya Lama,
The way of Practice in our Lineage.
You may come with me if you can answer "Yea."
I shall then give you the Tantric teaching
And the Pith-Instruction of the Skillful Path.
Then shall I bless you and grant you the Initiations.
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Having heard this song, the girls all became very happy. Their leader,
Rechungma, said, "Though we were born in a female form, which is
considered to be inferior, nevertheless, so far as the Alaya [Store)Con-
sciousness is concerned, there is no discrimination between ma