#World conqueror 3 generals guide

[inaconstantstateofchange]

I come to you on my hands and knees (relevant to the topic right lol) begging for any and all info on Bane, Banites and how it all ties in with Gortash. I love you in advance. <3

Bane and His Cult

Alright, so after twelve and a half hours of research I still don’t fully feel like I have enough, but at a certain point I just need to get this out there, and if there is anything you – or anyone else – would like to see explored in more detail, please feel free to ask! 

Note: I love getting asks like this! There is such a vast quantity of Realmslore that having some sort of specific focus for my deep-dives is a huge help, and knowing the topic is of interest to others is a huge motivator. I also greatly enjoy getting to put my training as a historian to work, as there is so much to interpret and archive alike. 

As ever, these writeups will align with current 5e lore, and draw from 3.5e for additional supporting information. On rarer occasions – and always noted – I will reference 1e and 2e, but with the caveats that there is much more in those editions that is tonally dissonant with the modern conception of the Forgotten Realms, and thus generally less applicable.

We’ll begin with one of the most recent conclusive descriptions of Bane, from the 5e Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide, an overview of the current world-state of, well, the Sword Coast: 

Bane has a simple ethos: the strong have not just the right but the duty to to rule over the weak. A tyrant who is able to seize power must do so, for not only does the tyrant benefit, but so do those under the tyrant’s rule. When a ruler succumbs to decadence, corruption, or decrepitude, a stronger and more suitable ruler will rise.  Bane is vilified in many legends. Throughout history, those who favor him have committed dark deeds in his name, but most people don’t worship Bane out of malice. Bane represents ambition and control, and those who have the former but lack the latter pray to him to give them strength. It is said that Bane favors those who exhibit drive and courage, and that he aids those who seek to become conquerors, carving kingdoms from the wilderness, and bringing order to the lawless.¹

This gives us the briefest summation of what draws people to the Cult of Bane: the desire for power and control, often deriving from a sense that they lack exactly those two things. Bane is the quintessential deity of lawful evil, which – if you’ve read any of my previous posts on the sociology of the Nine Hells – bears a striking similarity to Baator itself, the realm of lawful evil, and the place where Enver Gortash spent at least a portion of his formative years. 

The majority of the following excerpts derive from 3e, which went into far more detail on the specificities of the Faerûnian gods, including their dogmas, holy days, et cetera. One important point to note, however: any discussions of Bane’s scope of power are no longer accurate, as the time period in reference is about one hundred and twenty years before Baldur’s Gate 3 is set, at a time when Bane had just returned to life – and godhood – as nothing less than a greater god. By comparison, during Baldur’s Gate 3, he is a quasi-deity, having abandoned most of his previous godly power in exchange for the ability to directly meddle with Faerûn – forbidden to the gods by the overgod Ao – and gambling that he would be able to regain his lost power and prestige in so doing.²

The dogma of Bane – that is, the core tenets and philosophies that his followers seek to emulate – is as follows: 

Serve no one but Bane. Fear him always and make others fear him even more than you do. The Black Hand always strikes down those that stand against it in the end. Defy Bane and die — or in death find loyalty to him, for he shall compel it. Submit to the word of Bane as uttered by his ranking clergy, since true power can only be gained through service to him. Spread the dark fear of Bane. It is the doom of those who do not follow him to let power slip through their hands. Those who cross the Black Hand meet their dooms earlier and more harshly than those who worship other deities.³

Even were there nothing else to go off of, this would tell us a great deal about the group dynamics of any followers of Bane, whether established church or fragmented cult. Just as in the Hells, hierarchy is everything to proponents of lawful evil. Any cult of Bane would have a strict order to its power structure, and there would be limited – practically nonexistent – tolerance for any questioning or insubordination of that order. To the minds of Banites, such is simply the natural and superior ordering of the world. These interactions are detailed below: 

Within the church, the church hierarchy resolves internal disputes through cold and decisive thoughts, not rash and uncontrolled behavior. Bane’s clerics and worshipers try to assume positions of power in every realm so that they can turn the world over to Bane. They work subtly and patiently to divide the forces of their enemies and elevate themselves and the church’s allies over all others, although they do not fear swift and decisive violent action to help achieve their aims.³ 

The manner of tyranny that Bane holds to is similarly calculated – he is not interested in mere shows of force, but rather in insidious plots that twist and make use of existing rule of law to legitimize tyranny wherever possible. A social tide operated ostensibly within the laws of the land is far more troublesome to fight back against than a simple army.⁴ 

As far as specific ritual and day-to-day workings of the cult, some can be evidenced here, in broad strokes: 

Bane’s clerics pray for spells at midnight. They have no calendar-based holidays, and rituals are held whenever a senior cleric declares it time. Rites of Bane consist of drumming, chanting, doomful singing, and the sacrifice of intelligent beings, who are humiliated, tortured, and made to show fear before their death by flogging, slashing, or crushing.³ 

In this sense, rituals seem most likely to be used as a display of power and a test of subservience, leaving lower-ranked members of the cult at the whims of their superiors, expected – as noted previously – to attend to their commands with the same alacrity they would use were Bane himself to speak. The rites themselves are designed to reinforce and glorify the primary aspects of their god’s domain: the tyranny of forcing submission and pain from the weak. 

Faiths & Pantheons, published a year after the Campaign Setting supplement, provides a similar description of the rituals of the cult of Bane, along with some intriguing and flavorful additions (noted in bold for ease of comparison): 

Their religion recognizes no official holidays, though servants give thanks to the Black Hand before and after major battles or before a particularly important act of subterfuge. Senior clerics often declare holy days at a moment's notice, usually claiming to act upon divine inspiration granted to them in dreams. Rites include drumming, chanting, and the sacrifice of intelligent beings, usually upon an altar of black basalt or obsidian.”⁴

As, in the “present day” of Baldur’s Gate 3, Bane has lost much of his foothold on power and his Faith’s old domains, the specifics of architecture of Banite keeps are no longer quite so relevant. However, in times past, when his Faith worked far more openly and held much greater power, the philosophy of Bane was expressed through the architecture of his churches and strongholds: 

Tall, sharp-cornered stone structures featuring towers adorned with large spikes and thin windows, most Banite churches suggest the architecture of fortified keeps or small castles. Thin interior passageways lead from an austere foyer to barrackslike common chambers for the lay clergy, each sparsely decorated with tapestries depicting the symbols of Bane or inscribed with embroidered passages from important religious texts.⁴

The social capital of a Faith – a broad term used to encapsulate all followers of a single deity – is often heavily intertwined with the power of its god, a mutualistic relationship that runs in both directions. More social weight behind the Faith means its god’s name and will is conveyed to more people, some or many of whom might apportion some worship or act in alignment with that god and empower them by so doing. More power for the god means more divine actions that can bolster their own image and the reach of their clergy. At its height in the late 1300s, the Faith of Bane was one of the most prominent and powerful, with comparable might to that of a small kingdom.⁵

Something that is important to bear in mind in a setting such as the Forgotten Realms, not only polytheistic, but an environment where the gods being worshiped are demonstrably existent, is that the followers of evil gods are not likely to be obtrusive with the less savory aspects of their dogma. Not only would that, in the majority of cases, do more harm than good to their deity’s long term goals, in the words of Elminster: 

A dead foe is just that: dead, and soon to be replaced by another. An influenced foe, on the other hand, is well on the way to becoming an ally, increasing the sway of the deity.⁶

All of this aligns with what we see of the Cult of Bane and its operation in Baldur’s Gate 3. While it does not have the same sway and might behind it as it did a hundred years before, through manipulation of law and carefully applied pressure – of whatever form most likely to yield the desired results, be it threats, bribery, blackmail, or use of hostages – Gortash has enacted a steel web of delicate, ensnaring tyranny across the entire city. 

We can even find present-day expressions of the interactions of the cult members, and find that they hold true to what their forebears experienced, further proof of the consistency of lawful evil. A personal note found on the body of a dead Banite guard at the Steel Watch Foundry calls the Black Gauntlet in charge of the Foundry Lab, Hahns Rives, a “disgrace to the Tyrant Lord”, and notes the writer’s intent to “compile a list of Rives’ shortcomings for the Overseers.”⁷ These shortcomings include: 

1. Rives failed to reprimand Polandulus for making jokes about Lord Gortash! 2. Rives missed the morning mass to Bane - twice! 3. Rives didn't punish Gondian Ofran when she missed her gyronetics quota merely because she'd lost a finger that day in the punch press.⁷

We can see evidenced here the constant scheming for position and recognition consistent with this manner of lawful evil hierarchy. Both devils and Banites orient their day-to-day lives around how to prove themselves to their superiors, while also undercutting them at any chance they have to prove their own superiority, with hopes of being raised above them. 

This is only reinforced further by another text found within the Steel Watch Foundry, Bane’s Book of Admonitions. Its text is not written out for us, but described as such:

A book of adages and precepts for Banites, providing the basic tenets of worship of the Lord of Tyranny, with suggested prayers for common situations. The heart of the book is Bane's Twelve Admonitions, a dozen rules for proper Banite conduct, with punishments specified for failure to comply. The book opens easily to a page with two of Bane's most popular admonitions, number six, the Reprimand for Leniency, and number seven, the Rebuke for False Compassion.⁸

The most likely scenario is that this book was used by the “Overseers” referenced by the anonymous Banite writing of Rives above. The exact position of the Overseers is not made clear, but from context and knowledge of Banite hierarchy, we can infer that they inhabit a place in the hierarchy above both the guard and Rives himself, and that their role is to ensure all those below them uphold the tenets of Bane at all times, never losing sight of his will. 

In that context, it makes sense that they would both have a book of specific punishments for specific infractions – rule of law, after all – and that, given the attempted report on Rives, punishments (“admonitions”) for the crimes of leniency and false compassion – and all compassion is false when your conception of the world does not allow for its existence – would be those most referenced. It would be incredibly important to the unity of the cult, as well as to Gortash’s plans, to harshly punish any observed leniency or break from Bane’s law among members of the cult.

Not only would failure to control the situation at the Foundry potentially spell failure for the schemes of Bane’s Chosen, any unpunished step out of line by members of the cult would be seen as tempting others to do the same, a trickle of dissent quickly becoming a flood. Better to ensure that all adherents live in merited fear of the consequence of failure. 

After all, it is said of Bane himself: “He has no tolerance of failure and seldom thinks twice about submitting even a loyal servant to rigorous tortures to ensure complete obedience to his demanding, regimented doctrine.”⁴

And, in an appropriately lawful hierarchy, the same rule must apply from the bottom, to the top.

¹ Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide. 2014. p. 26.

² Descent into Avernus. 2019. p. 231

³ Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting 3E. 2001. pp. 237-8

⁴ Faiths & Pantheons. 2002. pp. 15-16.

⁵ Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting 3E. 2001. p. 93

⁶ Ed Greenwood Presents: Elminster’s Guide to the Forgotten Realms. 2012. pp. 135-6.

⁷ Rives’ Failures as a Banite. Baldur’s Gate 3. In-Game Text.

⁸ Bane’s Book of Admonitions. Baldur’s Gate 3. In-Game Text.

[cepheusgalaxy]

How to make a plot 101

Compilation of little things I've learned to make a plot for stories

Fun fact:

You don't need to think on a confusing plot. At all.

All you need, for starters, is:

1. A problem

Once I read, can't remember where, that you don't need to make plots: make problems. Make a problem, and give it to a character

1. What is it?

2. How does it affect them?

and

3. Why does it affect them?

2. The castle structure

This is a method I kind of made up. The castle structure is based on the 3 acts.

It is basically like this:

A story has 3 layers, which I will be calling walls. The first, the outer wall, is the first things we see in your world. Aka the when you start doing your exposition. The story hasn't exactly gotten on track yet. Is when the character is just starting to enter the plot, the major events. Using an example, we could use a princess trapped in a tower, which is where this structure came from XD

So, we have a princess, and he (my oc my rules) is trapped in a tower. He only sees a little fraction of the world, much rapunzel-like. Then, we have what I call a Spark.

You could also call that the inciting incident.

It is what takes the princess out of the tower (in our example, that could be a charming prince)

The princess gets out of the tower, touches grass for the first time, and then while wandering around, maybe he already has a goal, maybe he just wants to travel around, he and we get to see more and the princess (your character) does as well.

We're entering the first wall.

Here we set more secondary characters, we set a world, and we have what I call a Guide. The Guide can be the same as the Spark, and their responsability is to introduce the princess to the outer world. Let's say, maybe a character, Cam, is an angsty boy, because his mother was killed by monsters, but he has a limited knowledge of them, and when the Spark appears (maybe Cam is attacked by a vampire and a vampire hunter saves him!), he gets to know more and more about it, becomes aware of this world that was hidden of him until now, get to know the characters who'll be with them for the rest of the story, etc. The Guide is the Something (maybe a character, maybe a book? You also don't necessarily need a Guide, they're just an element) that will introduce your character to the Things and guide them into the exposition. They are the character with more knowledge about Certain Topic than the protagonist, so they can teach us. The Guide's knowledge usually reaches the last wall.

Now the character needs to get into the next wall, and get into the castle which's protected by it.

We can also think of it as a game.

The plot moves around getting in this castle, the third act!

That's when the characters get The Last Piece of Knowledge They Needed. Maybe it's the fact that rapunzel-princess was the child of the Evil Lord and that's why he was trapped in that tower, maybe it is that Cam has a vampire ascendance and he wouldn't have found it out if he wasn't attacked by vampires that day. Maybe it is that the King Master Lord is evil and has been sending monsters to the party to defeat all the game, maybe is the fact that [omori spoilers that you'll know if you ended the game]! That information has to be essential for the characters to defeat whatever is the antagonist force.

The Castle analogy is, technically, a meter for knowledge. Ignorance is the first. Maybe not proper ignorance, but the ignorance over the things that will matter for the story. Let's say, a character is a conqueror and a strategist, they are leading one side of a war and they know everything. Like, all the future moves their enemy is going to make, everything they need to know. But this Everything doesn't include the pirate who captures them and starts the story of a former general who is trying to escape the pirate and get their way home. They may know a lot, but now enough to prevent the story.

Knowledge is the next part. They know now. Who's with them. Where they're going. What do they want. The next wall would be, reaching the castle, the last piece of knowledge they need. Maybe it is the answer to who's the villain, or just How To Defeat The Villain or maybe the answer to the last mistery.

It is the last piece of knowledge they need to finish the story. Or the arc. Or the season.

[odysseywritings]

Gold Saga

@flashfictionfridayofficial

A slave wanting to find freedom, not wanting to be another body buried under the burning sand of the desert without a tombstone, had three options.

1. Kill their master and risk the consequences for failure.

2. Escape into the wild and fight the madness of eternal vastness and relentless sun scorching.

3. Paying off debts in back breaking, degrading, or life threatening work.

For the ambitious and practical Ariz, the survival brain conflicted with the prideful brain. Her father and grandfather, a potter and trader, both died without ceremony and money. They had lived and farmed and migrated along the rich river basin for decades with the other Dahla people. All of it gone with the relentless onslaught of settlers acquiring arable land and using the natives for gold searching. Her male ancestors died slow deaths from exhaustion, a common enough fate, and her female relatives taught her how to live in this world.

In their memory, she never forgot a tempered rage against the slavers, with their robes and jewelry adorned with the gold found by others' calloused hands. Ariz remembered the Gold Game coming up; a tradition where the colonists would ride west in their cruisers for treasure veins and wager on human cockfights. Ariz had a different plan.

Using a mix of native and settler language to form a unique tongue, Ariz had gained the years-long trust of fellow members and sympathetic settlers to form an alliance. The conquerors were lulled by the natives in their feigning submission, falling asleep in their autopilot cruisers, and it gave the always alert resistance and opportunity.

They quietly hacked and reprogrammed the modules and set them on a course to the far reaches of the desert, alone and unprepared for the scourges ahead without guides, and the group retreaded back home to fend off the remaining invaders.

A bittersweet victory in lieu of the needless deaths in the past, yet Ariz could ensure a brighter future for the next generation that was denied to her, so that every loss was repaid in new life. Gold and wealth were nothing to the free, and life was everything among the endless desert.

[ongolecharles]

DAILY SCRIPTURE READINGS (DSR) 📚 Group, Fri July 26th, 2024 ... Friday of The Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time, Year B/Memorial of Saints Joachim and Anne, Parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Reading 1 

---------

JER 3:14-17

Return, rebellious children, says the LORD,

for I am your Master;

I will take you, one from a city, two from a clan,

and bring you to Zion.

I will appoint over you shepherds after my own heart,

who will shepherd you wisely and prudently.

When you multiply and become fruitful in the land,

says the LORD,

They will in those days no longer say,

“The ark of the covenant of the LORD!”

They will no longer think of it, or remember it, 

or miss it, or make another.

At that time they will call Jerusalem the LORD’s throne;

there all nations will be gathered together

to honor the name of the LORD at Jerusalem,

and they will walk no longer in their hardhearted wickedness.

Responsorial Psalm 

--------------

JER 31:10, 11-12ABCD, 13

R. (see 10d) The Lord will guard us as a shepherd guards his flock.

Hear the word of the LORD, O nations,

proclaim it on distant isles, and say:

He who scattered Israel, now gathers them together,

he guards them as a shepherd his flock. 

R. The Lord will guard us as a shepherd guards his flock.

The LORD shall ransom Jacob,

he shall redeem him from the hand of his conqueror.

Shouting, they shall mount the heights of Zion,

they shall come streaming to the LORD’s blessings:

The grain, the wine, and the oil,

the sheep and the oxen.

R. The Lord will guard us as a shepherd guards his flock.

Then the virgins shall make merry and dance,

and young men and old as well.

I will turn their mourning into joy,

I will console and gladden them after their sorrows.

R. The Lord will guard us as a shepherd guards his flock.

Alleluia 

-------

LK 8:15

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Blessed are they who have kept the word with a generous heart

and yield a harvest through perseverance.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel 

---------

MT 13:18-23

Jesus said to his disciples:

“Hear the parable of the sower.

The seed sown on the path is the one who hears the word of the Kingdom

without understanding it,

and the Evil One comes and steals away

what was sown in his heart.

The seed sown on rocky ground

is the one who hears the word and receives it at once with joy.

But he has no root and lasts only for a time.

When some tribulation or persecution comes because of the word,

he immediately falls away.

The seed sown among thorns is the one who hears the word,

but then worldly anxiety and the lure of riches choke the word

and it bears no fruit.

But the seed sown on rich soil

is the one who hears the word and understands it,

who indeed bears fruit and yields a hundred or sixty or thirtyfold.”

***

FOCUS AND LITURGY OF THE WORD

In viewing our world today, I often marvel at the depth of our amazing God’s love.  His patience is so far beyond anything I could ever imagine.  I genuinely want to be obedient to my Lord and Savior.  Yet, as hard as I try , it just seems that sinful thoughts, words and actions continue to find a way back into my life.  I certainly do not deserve agape love and grace,  but that is what I continue to receive from my loving God.  I truly do not understand how the God of the universe could possibly care about a sinner like me, but I see His hand at work every single day in the little challenges that I am constantly facing.  These unmistakable “miracles from God” simply take my breath away.

So this little glimpse into my life seems to fit precisely into what God has for us all in today’s messages.  The prophet Jeremiah certainly was aware of his people’s propensity to sin, to rebel against the Lord.  In our first Reading, we find our loving Father bringing His people back to their promised land.  They obviously did not deserve it, but God showered them with His love right when, where and how they needed it.  Not only did He promise to appoint wise shepherd leaders to guide them, but He also promised to make them fruitful.  Jeremiah’s reference to the Lord’s throne in Jerusalem points to the promise of  a New Jerusalem described in the 21st  & 22nd chapters of Revelation – a world where hardhearted wickedness no longer exists.  An eternal promise of hope, something far better than anything I could possibly imagine.

The Responsorial Psalm further reinforces this promise of our loving God carefully shepherding the Jewish people back to their homeland.  God knows about their suffering and is fulfilling His promise of His loving presence in their lives.  He once again meets their specific needs, even though they do not deserve such amazing GRACE. 

The Alleluia from the Gospel of Luke adds to this picture the concept of a glorious harvest produced through perseverance.  That unwavering commitment enables us to maintain our focus upon our God and Savior - no matter the trials we will face as we seek to be a part of His harvest. 

In today’s Gospel found in the 13th chapter of Matthew, Jesus is addressing a large crowd.  He began with the parable of the Sower.   This profound story addresses the challenges we face in our struggle to maintain our focus upon our Savior.  Jesus knows how easy it is for us to allow the world’s ways to displace our commitment to God.  He understands that we likely will not even recognize the forces working against our faith. First off, we must ask ourselves if we have ears to hear and eyes to see.  Are we able to recognize those forces working against our faith?  We all desire a life filled with the “good soil” - a life that points to Jesus, but to achieve that goal we will need a deep seeded commitment to God.  It is only through an unwavering faith that we  are able to pursue and embrace God’s direction for our life.  Jesus knows all about our weaknesses.  His concern lies with the condition of our heart.  To be Sowers for Christ, we must first understand and guard against the challenges to our faith.  To become the good soil that Christ can use we must be able to recognize and effectively explain our own sanctification journey.  This parable points out that we will not always be successful; the seeds He sows through us will not always produce the results we can see.   We must continue sowing.  We are called not to just hear and understand, but also to bear fruit.  Jesus is asking us to not only be part of the planting, but also to be part of the joyous harvest.  It is only through His agape love that He can orchestrate such a harvest through us.

Let's pray ...

Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for your truly incredible love and seemingly endless patience.  You care about each of us and shower us with your GRACE.  Give us your eyes to see and ears to hear the cries of this world.  Use each of us as we reach out and touch the lives of those you have placed within our small personal world.  Help us to be more like you each and every moment of our lives.  In the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus the Christ. Amen

***

SAINT OF THE DAY

Saints Joachim and Anne

(c. 1st century)

Saints Joachim and Anne’s Story

In the Scriptures, Matthew and Luke furnish a legal family history of Jesus, tracing ancestry to show that Jesus is the culmination of great promises. Not only is his mother’s family neglected, we also know nothing factual about them except that they existed. Even the names “Joachim” and “Anne” come from a legendary source written more than a century after Jesus died.

The heroism and holiness of these people however, is inferred from the whole family atmosphere around Mary in the Scriptures. Whether we rely on the legends about Mary’s childhood or make guesses from the information in the Bible, we see in her a fulfillment of many generations of prayerful persons, herself steeped in the religious traditions of her people.

The strong character of Mary in making decisions, her continuous practice of prayer, her devotion to the laws of her faith, her steadiness at moments of crisis, and her devotion to her relatives—all indicate a close-knit, loving family that looked forward to the next generation even while retaining the best of the past.

Joachim and Anne—whether these are their real names or not—represent that entire quiet series of generations who faithfully perform their duties, practice their faith, and establish an atmosphere for the coming of the Messiah, but remain obscure.

Reflection

----------

This is the “feast of grandparents.” It reminds grandparents of their responsibility to establish a tone for generations to come: They must make the traditions live and offer them as a promise to little children. But the feast has a message for the younger generation as well. It reminds the young that older people’s greater perspective, depth of experience, and appreciation of life’s profound rhythms are all part of a wisdom not to be taken lightly or ignored.

Saints Joachim and Anne are the Patron Saints of:

Grandparents

Saint Anne is the Patron Saint of:

Mothers

Women in Labor

***

【Build your Faith in Christ Jesus on #dailyscripturereadingsgroup 📚: +256 751 540 524 .. Whatsapp】

[cadets123]

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[greysexcellent]

World conqueror 3 generals guide

#WORLD CONQUEROR 3 GENERALS GUIDE ANDROID#

You start out at year 1939 and a little clock in the corner of the menus screen tells you what year you are in. In the conquer world mode, there are 5 “eras” or years. There are two main modes, “conquer world” and “military career.” This makes it really fun because I can go in and try to win a certain era or I can replay famous historical battles, being either allies or axis. It is amazing in all aspects of the game. Welcome to follow and subscribe! We will continue to provide you with important information about Easytech games!Įasytech official email: game is by far the best WWII simulation game out there.

#WORLD CONQUEROR 3 GENERALS GUIDE ANDROID#

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[kyrievali]

I've been reading your posts and in one of them you mentioned that Iroh in fact is very shady and Azula has every right to hate him, may you explain why?

Sure, I’ll go into it. 

Let me start off by saying that I actually really like Iroh as a character. I think he’s great and well-written. I think the fandom tends to gloss over his flaws and label him as “perfect”, which is not true. One of his greatest failings (aside from making two teenage siblings fight each other for the throne...or really not intervening at all where Ozai is concerned) is his treatment of Azula, and him saying “No, she’s crazy and needs to go down” and essentially writing her off when, if you compare Azula’s personality with Season 1 Zuko, they’re really not all that different. Azula, people tend to forget, is a 14 year old girl who was as much a subject of abuse as her brother. Zuko and Azula were essentially pitted against one another to both gain Ozai’s affection and, more importantly, avoid punishment. The only difference is that she was rewarded and praised by Ozai for her power and cruelty, while Zuko was punished for his “shortcomings”. Zuko’s entire storyline proved how important it is to have a good, guiding parental figure in one’s life, and it’s tragic that Azula didn’t have that.

Now, let’s talk about why Azula probably hated her Uncle.

1. She thinks he’s a failure and, worse than that, weak

And I don’t mean weakness in terms of his firebending skills. Let me explain - Fire Nation citizens are ingrained with Nationalistic pride and complete loyalty to the Fire Lord from a very young age. Iroh, once upon a time, was the heir to the Fire Nation’s throne and the favored son of the notoriously cruel Azulon. He laid a 600 day siege against Ba Sing Se during which his son, Lu Ten, was killed. This tragic event caused him to withdraw his troops, despite having breached the outer wall.   

Upon his return home, his father dies under mysterious circumstances and decrees that Ozai will be the heir to the throne. Instead of contesting it, Iroh leaves the Fire Nation and ostensibly spends his time traveling the world, meeting with the Dragons, and getting in tune with the Spirit World. Doing so gives him the knowledge and wisdom to see the error of his ways, at which point he returns to the Fire Nation and serves as a General in the army. 

Let’s look at this from the perspective of Azula, or really any other citizen of the Fire Nation. Their country waged a nearly 2-year long siege against the Earth Kingdom - and right when they make progress by breaking through the first wall, the Crown Prince gives up because his son died. Countless Fire Nation lives and resources were spent on this 600 day campaign, and they end up with nothing to show for it. If you look at the philosophy of Sozin, Azulon, and Ozai, they likely would have used the death of Lu Ten to galvanize the troops and double their efforts, in an attempt to exact revenge against the Earth Kingdom for daring to spill royal blood - and so that their sacrifices thus far would not have been in vain.

And then, not only does Iroh withdraw from Ba Sing Se, he also abandons his duties and his country completely. Iroh had a reputation as a fearsome Firebender and cunning strategist - and he just leaves. So now not only is he a failure, but he’s also a deserter, one who abandons his nation while it’s reeling from a humiliating defeat and the loss of its Sovereign, Azulon (who, by the way, ruled for about 80 years).

In Azula’s eyes, all of this amounts to weakness, and as we all know from how she was raised by Ozai, weakness is unacceptable. 

2. She is parroting her father’s feelings of resentment

Given that Azula was the favored child of Ozai, it’s likely that she idolized her father and thought he was superior to her uncle, the Crown Prince (for the first few years of her life, at least, Iroh WAS the Crown Prince) and should have been the true heir to Azulon. We don’t see a whole lot of Ozai or his backstory/characterization, but it’s not unreasonable to assume that he, being many years younger than Iroh (it’s never officially stated, but Ozai is around 45 at the time of the show and Iroh appears to be in his late 60’s/early 70’s) had an inferiority complex growing up, and probably some form of sibling rivalry. After all, Iroh is already an adult by the time Ozai is born, and the Crown Prince, who has been groomed from birth to be Azulon’s heir. Ozai is an afterthought; an insurance policy, who at the very moment of Lu Ten’s birth, is outranked by an infant. 

Ozai probably resented Iroh his entire life, so it is not unlikely that Azula would probably feel the same way. 

3. He’s a traitor to the Fire Nation

Azula is a Nationalist and Ozai’s most loyal enforcer. Iroh’s a traitor, and as far as she knows, a corrupting influence to her brother, Zuko. She also probably thinks that he’s committing treason because (she doesn’t know any better) Iroh wants to be the rightful Fire Lord, and she is not going to stand for that. 

4. He reminds her of her mother

Azula is used to being the golden child - a prodigious Firebender, the favored daughter of her father, representative of everything the model Fire Nation child should be. And yet, her own mother does not appear to love her. Her Uncle has stated distaste for her. She thinks she’s doing everything right - because according to Sozin and Ozai’s philosophies and the emphasis of power and loyalty to the Fire Nation - she is; so why do two of her own family members prefer Zuko, the “screw-up” of the family - to her? 

It’s clear that Azula craves the love and adoration of others, but she doesn’t really understand it. I think as she grew older and saw more of the world and how people behaved toward her, she understood on some level that she was considered a “monster” and that people were afraid of her; but that’s how she was raised. Fear was power, and power was everything. And growing up, she was only ever positively reinforced for her ruthlessness and cunning by her father (of whom she is very much afraid, by the way...that is made perfectly clear in her attempts to bring Zuko home and also give him credit for allegedly killing the Avatar. Part of it is actually probably due to some level of affection she has for him, but part of it is definitely motivated by having someone else take the heat off of her in an abusive household) and she witnessed firsthand how perceived weakness was punished - so she did everything she could to achieve the ideal of perfection that Ozai, Azulon, and Sozin had proliferated. So she probably never really understood why her own mother and Iroh didn’t like her. And the fact that they both seemed to prefer Zuko, who she’s been taught to think she’s better than, would only further that resentment.

She thinks she can earn people’s affection by being a perfect Fire Nation soldier, because that’s what works with her father - and when it doesn’t work with Ursa or Iroh, two important adult family figures in her life - she doesn’t understand why and, even worse than that, it makes her feel inferior to Zuko. 

5. My final point is purely speculative, but...He didn’t do anything to directly stop Ozai’s rise to power

In the years after the war, after recovering from her mental break and maybe rehabilitating to become an advisor to Zuko (let’s be totally honest, a Nation whose entire economy for the past 100 years has been built on war and imperialization is not going to have an easy transition into peace, especially when they are expected to give up their colonies and play nice with an equally corrupt government that was controlled by the Secret Police force which has no qualms about brainwashing its own citizens...also the new Fire Lord is a banished Prince who is the apprentice of the Disgraced Prince and who returned to defeat the pride of the Nation, Princess Azula, Ozai’s Chosen Heir and the Conqueror of Ba Sing Se), Azula’s going to be pretty pissed that her supposedly wise and worldly uncle did not intervene in her megalomaniacal and abusive father’s rise to power. 

If my uncle, who never liked me, lost countless Fire Nation lives and resources in a battle that ended with him retreating, abandoned the Crown to go on a sightseeing tour of the world, returned and became a traitor to the nation by foiling the Admiral’s conquest of the Northern Water Tribe resulting in the loss of more Fire Nation lives, escaped from you multiple times and went on to become a tourist and small business owner in an enemy nation, turned your brother against you, did nothing to stop his own brother whom he knew was deeply abusive even after he came back after gaining all this supposed wisdom, and THEN also left you alone with your abusive father while taking your inferior brother under his wing and helping him become an extremely powerful bender who eventually defeats you with the help of a Water Tribe peasant...yeah, I’d be pretty pissed at him, too. 

To be fair, she probably never would have willingly gone with them because they were basically just sent on a wild goose chase at that point...but he never even tried to help her.

Anyway, that’s why I think Azula hates Iroh and honestly, she has every right to hate him. He abandoned her Nation and wrote her off completely, so there’s no reason she wouldn’t do the same.

[vajranam]

Phowa Commentary

Commentary on Transference of Consciousness

Practices › Transference | Tibetan Masters › Karma Chakme

Buddha Amitābha, 'Boundless Light'

Courtesy of Himalayan Art Resources

Extensive Instructions on the Transference of Consciousness to the Land of Great Bliss

From the Namchö Wisdom-Mind Treasure

by Karma Chakme, aka Rāga Asya

Guru Deva Ḍākinī Hūṃ!

What follows is a commentary on Transference to the Land of Great Bliss, which is part of the secondary literature connected with the Land of Great Bliss (bde chen zhing) sādhana from the cycle of the profound aural lineage of the Namchö wisdom-mind treasure.

To tell a little of the history of this teaching, “The Chronicle of the King”, which is one of The Five Chronicles, says that at the end of time, thirty-three vidyādharas, lords of secret mantra, will appear. In the prophecy of their supreme enlightenment, it is written:

In the buddhafield of Śākya[muni] known as Do Kham,[1] a yogi who practises the secret mantra of the Great Vehicle, a lord of mantra, Dorje Drakpo, will appear. Having transferred from there, he will perform vast activities. In the northern direction of this three thousand-fold world-system in the pristine buddhafield known as Forest of Sandalwood, he will become a tathāgata, a guide to beings, an unsurpassable teacher nurturing a gathering of three-thousand, the victorious one known as Jñāna Samantabhadra (Yeshe Kunzang).

Thus, the nirmāṇakāya known as Mingyur Dorje, who was foretold in many treasures, such as the prophecy just cited, is the essential embodiment in a single emanation of both the great lotsāwa Vairotsana and Shüpu Palseng. And in the future he will become the buddha Jñāna Samantabhadra.

While performing the deeds of a bodhisattva, at the age of thirteen, on the seventh day of Saga Dawa[2] in the year of the Golden Pendant (hemalamba, i.e., 1657)[3] he actually saw the face of Buddha Amitābha and his two attendants, their bodies as vast as mountains and immeasurable in their splendour. At that time, he received directly the sādhana of the Land of Great Bliss, the method for seeing the Land of Great Bliss in dreams, the longevity sādhana of Amitāyus, the transference of consciousness to the Land of Great Bliss, the prayer for the Land of Great Bliss, the aspiration for the Land of Great Bliss, and the empowerment for the Land of Great Bliss. Then, that evening, having once again seen the face of Buddha Amitābha and his retinue, he was given both the prayer for dream yoga and the oral instructions.

All of this is reminiscent of the following statement from the Bodhisattva Piṭaka:

Bodhisattvas, who remain devoted in this way, are recognized by all the buddhas, the transcendent conquerors, as fit vessels for the Dharma. Appearing before them, the Buddhas perfectly reveal to them the bodhisattva path.

Even though there are many traditions for the transference of consciousness in the school of Early Translations and the New Schools, this is a very recent lineage, one still warm with the speech of Amitāyus, and is therefore especially blessed. Moreover, the Precious Master of Oḍḍiyāna said:

I, the Lotus-born, and those like me

Have, for the sake of lazy yogis,

Revealed the instruction on transference.

Distracted practitioners may have received profound teachings on the Great Perfection and the like, but still not find any time to train. Then there are those who, because of the afflictive emotion of laziness have not yet gained the indwelling confidence of liberation. For such practitioners, this oral instruction is for attaining Buddhahood at the time of death without the need for further training. As a powerful method, applicable even to great wrongdoers, it is a vitally important instruction on attaining buddhahood.

It is best if, by training from now on, you are able to practise the transference by yourself when you are certain that you are about to die. Yet, should you be unable to do that, even to receive the oral transmission for the transference of consciousness now will make it easier for a guru to perform the transference of consciousness for you when you die.

As for the benefits of the skilful means of the transference of consciousness, it is said in The Four Vajra Seats:[4]

Completely untainted by evil deeds,

You will cross to saṃsāra’s supreme and distant shore.

And:

This opening of brahma above

Is directly[5] explained as “transference.”

Emao! It is the path of the supreme teaching.

Emao! It cuts through saṃsāra.

Emao! It remains in the state of freedom.

Emao! Primordial wisdom is amazing!

Also:

One stained by every fault

Is freed through the practice of transference.

The Precious Master of Oḍḍiyāna also said:

Through transference at the proper time,

Even perpetrators of the five deeds of immediate fruition[6]

Will gain rebirth in the higher realms or liberation.

Therefore, the benefits are extremely great. It is also said:

If you perform the transference of consciousness in this way, then no matter how severe your evil deeds may be, through the blessings of the visualisation you will take the extraordinary form of a god, or a human being and so on for as long as the teachings of even a single buddha remain. Then, having quickly exhausted your remaining karma, you will attain Buddhahood. And some individuals will attain the state of a vidyādhara in the extraordinary buddhafield of Manifest Perfection.

Moreover, there are several types of transference, including:

dharmakāya transference,

sambhogakāya transference,

nirmāṇakāya transference,

ordinary transference,

forceful transference, and

the transference of entering another body.[7]

Dharmakāya Transference

Through excellent practice of Mahāmudrā, or the Great Perfection’s practice of Trekchö in this lifetime, the mother and son luminosities will meet at the time of death. You will then remain in that state [of luminosity] for seven days or some other length of time. As this is the ultimate form of transference, free from the concepts of something to be transferred or one who transfers, there are said to be no good or bad openings.

If you perform the dharmakāya transference in this way, the outer sign will be a pure, immaculate sky; as the inner sign, the body’s radiance will not fade for a long time; and as the secret sign, syllables, such as a white ĀḤ, or a blue HŪṂ, will appear.

Sambhogakāya Transference

This is the form of transference to be explained here on this occasion.

As a sign of having performed it the sky will be filled with rainbows and lights. As an inner sign, blood or serum will emerge from the brahma-aperture at the crown of the head, and a dew-like moisture will appear there. The same part of the head will swell up, and steam or vapour will rise from it. Just below the brahma-aperture, hair will fall out and the body’s heat will be concentrated there. As a secret sign, as many as five types of relics, or the deities’ bodies and hand implements will manifest.

Nirmāṇakāya Transference

For this you lie down on your right side, and breathe through your left nostril. You place an image of Śākyamuni, or the Lotus-born, or a similar figure, in view, visualize the deity’s presence, and then transfer your consciousness through the left nostril. You then generate the intention to appear as a nirmāṇakāya for the benefit of beings, and make prayers of aspiration. As an outer sign of performing this kind of transference, there will be clouds or rainbows in the form of wish-fulfilling trees, and rains of flowers will fall. As an inner sign, blood, serum or bodhicitta will emerge from the left nostril, or shimmering dewdrops will appear. As a secret sign, the whole skull will remain [even after cremation], or the hand implements of the deities or many tiny ringsel will appear.

Forceful Transference

It is wrong to practise forceful transference. Even if all the signs of impending death are present, you must perform the ritual for deceiving death three times. To enact the transference without having performed such a ritual would be to incur the fault of murdering the deities. Even in the case of punishment by the state,[8] chronic illness or severe pain—no matter what might occur—it is still wrong to perform the transference before the actual time for death arrives, as it would bring about the transgression of killing deities.

Therefore, even when life is at an end, the transference should not be performed until it is certain that the vital channel in the neck has actually been cut. If the lifespan has not been exhausted and there is still a chance of revival, the transgression of killing deities can and will occur. ‘Deities’ here means the assembled deities of the hundred sublime buddha families, who reside within the body. This is the equivalent of killing them all. Thus, to perform the transference at any time other than when the lifespan has definitively run its course will not only be of no benefit, it will actually lead to the lower realms. And this holds the key as to why the forceful method of transference is unacceptable. As The Four Vajra Seats Tantra says:

When the time is right, perform the transference,

But to do so at other times would be deity murder.

It is also said in the verses of an authentic scripture in the chapter on transference:

To transfer at the wrong time is to kill the deities.

As long as you are alive, practise Dharma,

And for that long the flow of virtue will increase.

Similarly, the Precious Master of Oḍḍiyāna said:

Then, earnestly practise the ritual for deceiving death in accordance with the signs of impending death. Even though the signs and marks of death may be complete, if you were to practise transference without having first performed the ritual for deceiving death, you would incur the transgression of killing the deities and the transgression of suicide. As this is even than worse than the five deeds of immediate fruition, perform whichever general or particular rituals for deceiving death are most appropriate.

Transference of Entering Another Body

It is well known that the right interdependent circumstances did not come together for this teaching to be passed on in Tibet. And that is why, although the textual transmission exists, there is no lineage of actual practice.

Ordinary Transference

Even though this is not a forceful transference it is still referred to as ‘instantaneous transference’. As the circumstances of death—which include ravines, water, arrows, piercing weapons, strokes and more—can arise unexpectedly, whenever fear or panic strike train in focusing your awareness on Amitāyus or the Precious Master of Oḍḍiyāna at the crown of your head. Doing this continually will ensure that if serious life-threatening circumstances should occur all of a sudden, you will direct your consciousness to the crown of your head through the force of habit, and your consciousness will exit there. The Precious Master of Oḍḍiyāna said, “Directing your intentions toward the guru at your crown is of inconceivable value.”

For the ordinary transference, you should lie on your right side with your head pointing north. Visualize a deity such as Buddha Śikhin, or the Buddha of Medicine (Bhaiṣajyaguru-vaiḍūryaprabharāja) above the crown of your head. Then recite any names of the Three Jewels with which you are familiar, as well as blessed dhāraṇ�� mantras, and make aspirations. By doing so, it said, you will avoid rebirth in the lower realms.

Furthermore, the vajra song that encapsulates the six dharmas says:

Eight doorways open on to saṃsāra,

One door is the path to Mahāmudrā.

The Profound Inner Meaning, which draws upon several classes of unsurpassable tantras, also teaches:

Then, if the all-ground consciousness departs

From the brahma-aperture this means the formless realm;

From the bindu, the great goddess;

From the navel, a god of the desire realm;

From the eyes, a powerful person in the desire realm;

From the nose, the realms of the yakṣa;

From the ear, a god of accomplishment;

From the door of existence, a hungry ghost, it is said;

From the urethra, we will become an animal;

From the lower door, the eight hells.

This means that if you have not trained in the instructions for the transference of consciousness, and still, under the power of karma, your consciousness leaves the body through the brahma-aperture, you will be reborn in the formless realm. Through the oral instructions on transference, however, departure through the brahma-aperture will lead to rebirth in pure celestial lands. This is one tradition of explanation. The Vajra Verses of the Hearing Lineage says:

When the signs of death arise, be joyful,[9] and cast away attachment.

Block the nine doors, apply substances and adorn with aspiration.

Thus, in this case [i.e., when nine doorways are blocked], another 'brahma-aperture' is being referred to: a cranial opening, which is four finger-widths back from the hairline, and if consciousness departs from there you will be reborn in the formless realm. The actual brahma-aperture, however, is located in the centre of the coil of hair eight finger-widths back from the hairline. And if consciousness leaves from there you will be reborn in the celestial lands.

Although there exist these two traditions of explanation, the Precious Master of Oḍḍiyāna also said:

There are great differences in the various paths of transference: three each for superior, middling, and inferior, making nine in all. As the brahma-aperture on the crown of the head is the path for travelling to pure celestial lands, if consciousness emerges there you will obtain liberation. Therefore, since this is the supreme path it is crucially important that this is where you direct your intentions. If consciousness departs through the eyes, you will be reborn as a cakravartin king. If consciousness exits from the left nostril you will be reborn in a clean human body. These are the three superior doors. If consciousness exits through the right nostril you will be reborn as a yakṣa; from the two ears, as a god in the form realm; from the navel, a god in the desire realm. These are the three middling doors. If consciousness exits from the urethra, you will be reborn as an animal; from the so-called ‘door of existence’, the path journeyed by the cause and seed, the white and red essences, you will be born as a hungry ghost; from the anus, you will be reborn in the hells. These are the three inferior doors.

Now, as for the actual instruction for the transference of consciousness, The Four Vajra Seats Tantra says:

That to be purified, the one and a half syllables.

Drawn up with the third to the last of eight.

This seed, a fierce fire,

Rests on a maṇḍala of wind.

Focus on this with the mind.

Above, the brahma-aperture

Is supreme on account of the nine.

Without a body, the entity that is mind’s essence

Meditates on entities.

The Vajra Verses of the Hearing Lineage says:

The alchemy of transference, which brings Buddhahood without meditation…

…Draw HŪṂ and prāṇa-mind indivisible up into the central channel (avadhūti).

Visualise the syllable KṢA and propel it through the path of brahma.

Transferring it to the dharmakāya-guru and buddha-realm.

The Precious Master of Oḍḍiyāna said:

Should you fail to accomplish nirvāṇa without remainder in this life,

Since you wish to find the celestial lands at the time of transference

Apply yourself to the necessary trainings and actions!

And:

This instruction is a powerful means for bringing buddhahood even to great evildoers. This instruction, a transformative golden dharma, through which a yogi can leave the seal of the body and simultaneously awaken, is revealed herein.

What follows is in two parts: 1) training in transference, and 2) the actual application.

1. Training in Transference

In order to request the teaching on the visualisations for training in transference, it is necessary to offer the maṇḍala. For this, repeat the following:

Having transformed this maṇḍala of bronze into precious substances,

And these grains of barley too into gold and turquoise,

I offer them with devotion to the one nirmāṇakāya, the compassionate guru:

Look on me with your compassion!

Then, for taking refuge and generating bodhicitta, repeat the following three times:

Namo! In the three jewels and the three roots,

In all the sources of refuge, I take refuge.

In order to lead all beings to buddhahood

I set my mind upon supreme awakening.

Now, consider that in an instant you appear as the Great Compassionate Lord (i.e., Mahākārunika, a form of Avalokiteśvara), with a body that is white in colour, and with one face, peaceful and smiling. You have four hands: the palms of the first two joined at your heart, and the lower two holding a white crystal rosary and a white lotus flower. With your legs in the vajra posture, you sit on a lotus and moon-disc seat. Your topknot of hair is adorned with the five small crests of jewels. You are wearing silken garments and jewel ornaments, and you are radiant and resplendent with all the marks and signs. Meditate on this vividly.

From the outside, the Great Compassionate One’s body is like a white silk tent, while on the inside it is empty like an inflated balloon.[10] Inside this clear, empty space is the central channel with its four characteristics: as a sign of bliss, it is white on the outside; to symbolize clarity, it is red on the inside; to signify the bodhisattva path, it stands perfectly upright; and to signify that the doors to the lower realms have been closed, its lower tip, which is below the navel, is sealed. To allow for travel along the path to higher realms, the upper tip opens straight onto the brahma-aperture at the crown. Visualize this.

Above the crown of your head,

On top of a lion-throne, lotus, and moon-disc seat,

Is the protector Amitābha, his body red in colour.

With one face, and two hands in the gesture of equanimity,

On top of which he holds an alms-bowl; he wears the dharma robes;

He is seated with his two legs in the posture of Maitreya,

And his two big toes

At the upper tip of the central channel.

To his right is Lokeśvara, Lord of the World, white in colour,

With one face and four hands: two joined at the palms,

And the remaining two, to the right and left, holding a rosary and lotus.

He is in the standing posture, upon a lotus and moon.

To his left is Vajrapāṇi, the one of great power and might (i.e., Mahāsthāmaprāpta).

He has one face, two hands and is blue in colour.

He holds a vajra in his right hand and a bell in his left.

He is in the standing posture, upon a lotus and moon.

They are surrounded by countless buddhas, bodhisattvas,

Śrāvakas, pratyekabuddhas, and arhats.

Light shines out from the three seed-syllables

At the three centres of each of the three main figures,

Inviting the deities from Sukhāvatī to merge indivisibly.

Then, there is the prayer for transference:

Emaho!

Exceedingly wondrous protector, Amitābha,

Great Compassionate One, and Vajrapāṇi, the one of great power and might,

With a one-pointed mind, I pray to you:

Grant your blessings so that I may master the profound path of the transference.

When the time of death eventually arrives,

Grant your blessings so that my consciousnesses may be transferred to Sukhāvatī.

Pray like this as much as possible, and then consider the following.

At your heart-centre, inside the central channel, is, like a knot in a length of bamboo, an eight-petalled red lotus. On top of it is a moon-disc, about the size of half a grain. On top of that is the essence into which prāṇa-mind and consciousness are gathered, a white bindu, and red syllable HRĪḤ (ཧྲཱིཿ), complete with the long-vowel sign and the visarga, and radiant and bright. Consider that it is on the point of ascending, just about to rise.

From that HRĪḤ there emanates a single ray of light in the form of another HRĪḤ syllable, which seals off the lower gateway, the doorway to the hells. Then, another HRĪḤ emerges to seal the doorway to rebirth as an animal, the urethra. Then two further HRĪḤ syllables shoot out, sealing the doors of the secret place and the mouth, gateways to rebirth as a hungry ghost. Then, another HRĪḤ appears, sealing the navel, which is the gateway to rebirth as a god in the desire realm. Then, two more HRĪḤ syllables shine out, blocking the two ears, which are gateways for rebirth as a demi-god, in the form realm, or as a kumbhāṇḍa. Next, two further HRĪḤs emerge, block the two nostrils, gateways to rebirth as a yakṣa or a human being who must experience birth, ageing, sickness and death. Then, three HRĪḤ syllables shine out to block the spot between the eyebrows, which is the gateway to rebirth in the form realm; the right eye, which is the gateway for rebirth as a human king; and the left eye. Then, another HRĪḤ shoots out and blocks the cranial opening, which is the gateway to rebirth in the formless realm. You can also verbally recite HRĪḤ during this process.

Then, consider that as you utter HIK, your mind, which is represented by the bindu and the white syllable HRĪḤ, shoots upwards through the path of the central channel. It just about touches the big toe of Amitābha, who is on the crown of your head. Then, consider that as you utter KA, it descends again and remains on the moon seat at your heart centre.

You can combine this with expelling the stale breath three times, and holding the prāṇa. While holding the prāṇa, keep it sealed for a long time. Consider that as you mentally utter HIK, the prāṇa from the right and left channels emerges from the central channel at the crown of the head as blue smoke just as the bindu touches Amitābha’s big toe. As you mentally utter KA it falls back down and remains in the heart centre. Then send it up again. As you send it up you can hold vajra-fists at the top of the thighs and gather together the prāṇa, mind, and all appearances in the upper part of the body.

If you do not know how to control the prāṇa like this, you should consider that as you utter HIK the bindu shoots up through the central channel and touches the big toe of Buddha Amitābha’s foot. And as you say KA it descends and remains in the heart centre. Visualise this clearly, sending the bindu up and bringing it back down again, about twenty-one times in all.

Then recite the following prayer of aspiration:

Emaho!

Amitābha, magnificent Buddha of Boundless Light,

With the great compassionate lord Avalokiteśvara to his right,

And Vajrapāṇi, the one of great power and might, on his left,

Surrounded by an assembly of countless buddhas and bodhisattvas

In the place of wonder and boundless joy and happiness

That is the heavenly realm of Sukhāvatī, the Blissful Paradise.

When the time comes for me to leave this present life,

May I go there directly, without any other birth upon the way,

And being reborn there, may I see Amitābha face to face!

May this, my fervent prayer of aspiration,

Be blessed by all the buddhas and bodhisattvas of the ten directions

So that it is accomplished, without the slightest hindrance!

Tadyathā pañcendriya avabodhanāya svāhā.

Consider that making these aspirations causes a stream of deathless amṛta nectar to flow from the alms-bowl in Amitābha’s hands, dissolving into and filling your body.

Then, as a prayer for longevity, recite the following:

Emaho!

To the perfect Buddha Amitāyus,

The Great Compassionate One, Vajrapāṇi, and

All the countless buddhas and bodhisattvas,

With a devoted mind I prostrate and praise you all.

I pray to you: please bestow the siddhi of longevity!

Oṃ amideva āyusiddhi hūṃ

Recite this for a single rosary or as many times as you can.

Consider that the main deity, Amitābha, and his retinue melt into light and then dissolve into you, and your brahma-aperture is blocked by HAṂ and various vajras.

By practising like this in six, four or however many sessions, the signs of having perfected the transference will arise: warmth and heat at the brahma-aperture, or itchiness, stinging, numbness, and swelling; the crown of the head may feel soft and pulpy; and blood or serum may emerge at the brahma-aperture. When such signs appear, carefully examine the spot eight finger-widths behind the hairline. If you insert a stalk of kuśa grass there, it should stay firmly planted.

When this happens, to persist any further could create obstacles for your life-force, so put the visualisation aside. Don’t send the bindu up and down in the central channel, and don’t recite HIK or KA.

There are also some people who do not have a brahma-aperture or cannot locate it, and who may find that they get headaches or become dizzy. In this case, you should visualize Amitābha a forearm’s length above their head, and consider that the bindu, which is combined with the syllable HRĪḤ, ascends into the sky until it touches his lotus seat. Then, having returned, it remains in their heart centre inside the central channel. By meditating like this for a few sessions the brahma-aperture will open, and blood or serum will emerge from it.

This concludes the explanation of how to train in the transference of consciousness.

2. The Actual Application

i. Transference for Oneself

When performing transference for yourself, if all the signs of death are fully present, perform the ritual for deceiving death[10] three times. If even this should prove ineffective however, then it is said [in The Root Verses on the Six Bardos]:

Kyema! Now when the bardo of dying is dawning upon me,

I will abandon all grasping, yearning, and attachment,

Enter, undistracted, a state in which the instructions are clear,

And transfer my own awareness into the sphere of unborn space;

As I am about to leave this compound body of flesh and blood,

I will know it to be a transitory illusion.

As this indicates, you must offer your own body, possessions and relatives as a maṇḍala to Buddha Amitābha. Then, having offered them, let go of all attachment.

As when training in the visualisation for transference, block the nine doors by means of the syllable HRĪḤ, and meditate on the main deity, Amitābha, together with his retinue, in the sky about a forearm’s length above you. Propel your consciousness—represented by the bindu and HRĪḤ—so that it shoots upwards and dissolves into the heart centre of Amitābha. Repeat this visualization again and again until your breathing stops. Recite the prayer and the aspiration for transference as many times as you can. Dharma friends and others too should also recite these on your behalf. Through this, your consciousness will depart at the crown of the head, and it is certain that you will be reborn in Sukhāvatī in your next life.

ii. Transference for Others

When it is certain that a person who was very ill has died and their outer breath has ceased, arrange the corpse so that the head is upright. Then begin by reciting aloud the verses of taking refuge and generating bodhicitta, as well as any buddhas’ names that are familiar. Then, when it is certain that the vital channel has been cut, go through the visualization for the transference in your mind, while reciting the following verses in a gentle and melodious voice:

Kyema! Noble child, whose life has ended,

Your body is that of the yidam, the white sattva,

Inside your body is the central channel, like an arrow of bamboo,

At your heart, imagine a red syllable HRĪḤ,

Complete with long vowel and visarga.

Repeat this, together with the necessary visualizations, seven or twenty-one times. Recite KA and HIK as many times as you can. Then, utter a loud PHAṬ, and pull a single tuft of hair from the crown of the deceased, eight finger-widths back from the hairline. The hair should come out as easily as if it had moulted. There might also be a “Kak!” sound, and the appearance of steam, or swelling, or serum or dew-like moisture. There could also be some gentle warmth or more intense heat. When practising for someone without hair, you should continue to press your finger until you notice some swelling or serum, or the other signs occur.

Consider that rays of light shine out from Amitābha’s heart, so that the whole retinue and the aggregates of the deceased all melt completely into light, which then dissolves into Amitābha’s heart. Then recite the following prayer three, five or seven times:

Emaho! Amitābha, magnificent Buddha of Boundless Light,

Then, in a melodious voice, recite the following verses of showing the way:

Emaho!

With this, consider that Amitābha travels to the realm of Sukhāvatī as swiftly as an arrow in flight. Then recite the verses beginning, “Not experiencing the sufferings of the lower realms…”[11] and “Like a lotus, unsullied by the mire…”

If you can practise the transference for the deceased in this way, without being corrupted by pursuit of personal wealth, and with love and compassion, it will be of unimaginable benefit.

If there are no signs of the transference having been effected, it might mean that the consciousness had already transferred—for it may remain no longer than an instant or the time taken to eat a meal.

If you arrive to perform the transference before the outer breath has ceased, you should perform the mental visualization of sealing the nine gateways and so on, and spend a long time simply reciting the names of the buddhas and prayers of aspiration, without causing consciousness to ascend and so forth. By proceeding in this way, it is certain that the transference will be effected properly.

It is well known that consciousness remains in the body for up to three nights and a day, and it is therefore crucial that transference is performed during this time. Still, as The Book of Kadam[12] explains that it might remain for three to seven days, it is also acceptable to practise the transference up until the seventh day. Those who conduct village rituals also say that it is appropriate to send consciousness from an effigy or name-card, and they have a tradition of summoning consciousness into a corpse after many days have passed, so that it can then be re-transferred from there. Although this is not taught in the tantric scriptures, I do not think there is any real contradiction.

All this has been by way of commentary. Now, as it is extremely beneficial to cite the root text of the Namchö wisdom-mind treasure itself, I shall do so.

Root Text

The stages of the transference:

At my heart I visualize a red syllable HRĪḤ,

Then, the prayer for transference:

Emaho!

The prayer of aspiration was already cited above.

I, Rāgāsya composed this elaborate explanation of the transference of consciousness to Sukhāvatī, having been urged to do so by the words of the nirmāṇakāya [Mingyur Dorje] himself. Whatever contradictions, mistakes, and faults I may have made I hereby confess. Through this virtue may all sentient beings who see or hear this text be reborn in Sukhāvatī!

| Translated by Lhasey Lotsawa Translations and Adam Pearcey, 2016.

Bibliography

Tibetan sources

Padma chos rgyal. "gNam chos thugs kyi gter kha las bde chen zhing du 'pho ba'i gdams pa rgyas par bsgrigs pa" In dKar rnying gi skyes chen du ma'i phyag rdzogs kyi gdams ngag gnad bsdus nyer mkho rin po che'i gter mdzod. TBRC W20749. 21: 171 - 202. Darjeeling: Kargyu Sungrab Nyamso Khang, 1978-1985.

Secondary sources

Halkias, Georgios, T. "Pure-lands and Other Visions in Seventeenth-Century Tibet: A gNam chos sādhana for the Pure-land Sukhāvatī Revealed in 1658 by gNam chos Mi 'gyur rdo rje (1645–1667)" in Power, Politics, and the Reinvention of Tradition: Tibet in the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Century, Bryan J. Cuevas and Kurtis R. Schaeffer (eds) Leiden: Brill, 2006, pp. 103–128.

Kapstein, Matthew, T. "Pure Land Buddhism in Tibet? From Sukhāvatī to the Field of Great Bliss" in Richard K. Payne and Kenneth K. Tanaka (eds) Approaching the Land of Bliss: Religious Praxis in the Cult of Amitābha. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 2004, pp. 16–51. (includes a partial translation of this text)

Patrul Rinpoche. The Words of My Perfect Teacher. Translated by Padmakara Translation Group. Boston: Shambhala. 1998.

Skorupski, Tadeusz. "Funeral Rites for Rebirth in the Sukhāvatī Abode" in The Buddhist Forum: Volume VI. Tring: The Institute of Buddhist Studies, 2001, pp. 137–156 (includes a partial translation of this text)

Notes

i.e., Eastern Tibet  ↩

The fourth month in the Tibetan calendar.  ↩

The thirty-first year in the Tibetan cycle of sixty years.  ↩

Catuṣpīṭha. Although the Tibetan translators took the Sanskrit title of this tantra to be a reference to four seats (gdan bzhi), Péter-Dániel Szántó, has noted that the original meaning of pītha(m) in this context is more likely ‘heap’, and by extension ‘collection’, and by extension of that, ‘chapter’, so that a better translation might be The Four Vajra Chapters. See Péter-Dániel Szántó, Selected Chapters from the Catuṣpīṭhatantra: Introductory study with the annotated translation of selected chapters (D.Phil. Thesis), Balliol College, Oxford University, 2012, Part 1, p. 26.  ↩

Although some versions of the Tibetan have “mdo las” meaning “from the sūtras”, the texts of the Catuṣpīṭha preserved in the Tibetan canon have the similarly written “mod las” and it is the latter reading which has been followed here.  ↩

1) killing one’s father; 2) killing one’s mother; 3) killing an arhat; 4) creating a schism in the sangha; and 5) with a harmful intention, drawing blood from the body of the Tathāgata.  ↩

grong du 'jug pa'i 'pho ba (Skt. purapraveśa) literally means 'the transference of entering the city', but 'city' here signifies another's body.  ↩

Literally 'by the king'.  ↩

Although the Tibetan of Karma Chakme's text has skol, the original text of Nāropa’s Vajra Verses reads dga’ in all available versions and the translation has been made accordingly.  ↩

phru ma phus btab pa. Literally ‘like an inflated bladder’.  ↩

i.e., Bodhicaryāvatāra, X, 47.  ↩

bka' gdams glegs bam. See The Book of Kadam: The Core Texts, translated by Thupten Jinpa, Boston: Wisdom Publications, 2008, p. 248.  ↩

[flamesofthebodhisattva]

Phowa Commentary

Commentary on Transference of Consciousness

Practices › Transference | Tibetan Masters › Karma Chakme

Buddha Amitābha, 'Boundless Light'

Courtesy of Himalayan Art Resources

Extensive Instructions on the Transference of Consciousness to the Land of Great Bliss

From the Namchö Wisdom-Mind Treasure

by Karma Chakme, aka Rāga Asya

Guru Deva Ḍākinī Hūṃ!

What follows is a commentary on Transference to the Land of Great Bliss, which is part of the secondary literature connected with the Land of Great Bliss (bde chen zhing) sādhana from the cycle of the profound aural lineage of the Namchö wisdom-mind treasure.

To tell a little of the history of this teaching, “The Chronicle of the King”, which is one of The Five Chronicles, says that at the end of time, thirty-three vidyādharas, lords of secret mantra, will appear. In the prophecy of their supreme enlightenment, it is written:

In the buddhafield of Śākya[muni] known as Do Kham,[1] a yogi who practises the secret mantra of the Great Vehicle, a lord of mantra, Dorje Drakpo, will appear. Having transferred from there, he will perform vast activities. In the northern direction of this three thousand-fold world-system in the pristine buddhafield known as Forest of Sandalwood, he will become a tathāgata, a guide to beings, an unsurpassable teacher nurturing a gathering of three-thousand, the victorious one known as Jñāna Samantabhadra (Yeshe Kunzang).

Thus, the nirmāṇakāya known as Mingyur Dorje, who was foretold in many treasures, such as the prophecy just cited, is the essential embodiment in a single emanation of both the great lotsāwa Vairotsana and Shüpu Palseng. And in the future he will become the buddha Jñāna Samantabhadra.

While performing the deeds of a bodhisattva, at the age of thirteen, on the seventh day of Saga Dawa[2] in the year of the Golden Pendant (hemalamba, i.e., 1657)[3] he actually saw the face of Buddha Amitābha and his two attendants, their bodies as vast as mountains and immeasurable in their splendour. At that time, he received directly the sādhana of the Land of Great Bliss, the method for seeing the Land of Great Bliss in dreams, the longevity sādhana of Amitāyus, the transference of consciousness to the Land of Great Bliss, the prayer for the Land of Great Bliss, the aspiration for the Land of Great Bliss, and the empowerment for the Land of Great Bliss. Then, that evening, having once again seen the face of Buddha Amitābha and his retinue, he was given both the prayer for dream yoga and the oral instructions.

All of this is reminiscent of the following statement from the Bodhisattva Piṭaka:

Bodhisattvas, who remain devoted in this way, are recognized by all the buddhas, the transcendent conquerors, as fit vessels for the Dharma. Appearing before them, the Buddhas perfectly reveal to them the bodhisattva path.

Even though there are many traditions for the transference of consciousness in the school of Early Translations and the New Schools, this is a very recent lineage, one still warm with the speech of Amitāyus, and is therefore especially blessed. Moreover, the Precious Master of Oḍḍiyāna said:

I, the Lotus-born, and those like me Have, for the sake of lazy yogis, Revealed the instruction on transference.

Distracted practitioners may have received profound teachings on the Great Perfection and the like, but still not find any time to train. Then there are those who, because of the afflictive emotion of laziness have not yet gained the indwelling confidence of liberation. For such practitioners, this oral instruction is for attaining Buddhahood at the time of death without the need for further training. As a powerful method, applicable even to great wrongdoers, it is a vitally important instruction on attaining buddhahood.

It is best if, by training from now on, you are able to practise the transference by yourself when you are certain that you are about to die. Yet, should you be unable to do that, even to receive the oral transmission for the transference of consciousness now will make it easier for a guru to perform the transference of consciousness for you when you die.

As for the benefits of the skilful means of the transference of consciousness, it is said in The Four Vajra Seats:[4]

Completely untainted by evil deeds, You will cross to saṃsāra’s supreme and distant shore.

And:

This opening of brahma above Is directly[5] explained as “transference.” Emao! It is the path of the supreme teaching. Emao! It cuts through saṃsāra. Emao! It remains in the state of freedom. Emao! Primordial wisdom is amazing!

Also:

One stained by every fault Is freed through the practice of transference.

The Precious Master of Oḍḍiyāna also said:

Through transference at the proper time, Even perpetrators of the five deeds of immediate fruition[6] Will gain rebirth in the higher realms or liberation.

Therefore, the benefits are extremely great. It is also said:

If you perform the transference of consciousness in this way, then no matter how severe your evil deeds may be, through the blessings of the visualisation you will take the extraordinary form of a god, or a human being and so on for as long as the teachings of even a single buddha remain. Then, having quickly exhausted your remaining karma, you will attain Buddhahood. And some individuals will attain the state of a vidyādhara in the extraordinary buddhafield of Manifest Perfection.

Moreover, there are several types of transference, including:

dharmakāya transference,

sambhogakāya transference,

nirmāṇakāya transference,

ordinary transference,

forceful transference, and

the transference of entering another body.[7]

Dharmakāya Transference

Through excellent practice of Mahāmudrā, or the Great Perfection’s practice of Trekchö in this lifetime, the mother and son luminosities will meet at the time of death. You will then remain in that state [of luminosity] for seven days or some other length of time. As this is the ultimate form of transference, free from the concepts of something to be transferred or one who transfers, there are said to be no good or bad openings.

If you perform the dharmakāya transference in this way, the outer sign will be a pure, immaculate sky; as the inner sign, the body’s radiance will not fade for a long time; and as the secret sign, syllables, such as a white ĀḤ, or a blue HŪṂ, will appear.

Sambhogakāya Transference

This is the form of transference to be explained here on this occasion.

As a sign of having performed it the sky will be filled with rainbows and lights. As an inner sign, blood or serum will emerge from the brahma-aperture at the crown of the head, and a dew-like moisture will appear there. The same part of the head will swell up, and steam or vapour will rise from it. Just below the brahma-aperture, hair will fall out and the body’s heat will be concentrated there. As a secret sign, as many as five types of relics, or the deities’ bodies and hand implements will manifest.

Nirmāṇakāya Transference

For this you lie down on your right side, and breathe through your left nostril. You place an image of Śākyamuni, or the Lotus-born, or a similar figure, in view, visualize the deity’s presence, and then transfer your consciousness through the left nostril. You then generate the intention to appear as a nirmāṇakāya for the benefit of beings, and make prayers of aspiration. As an outer sign of performing this kind of transference, there will be clouds or rainbows in the form of wish-fulfilling trees, and rains of flowers will fall. As an inner sign, blood, serum or bodhicitta will emerge from the left nostril, or shimmering dewdrops will appear. As a secret sign, the whole skull will remain [even after cremation], or the hand implements of the deities or many tiny ringsel will appear.

Forceful Transference

It is wrong to practise forceful transference. Even if all the signs of impending death are present, you must perform the ritual for deceiving death three times. To enact the transference without having performed such a ritual would be to incur the fault of murdering the deities. Even in the case of punishment by the state,[8] chronic illness or severe pain—no matter what might occur—it is still wrong to perform the transference before the actual time for death arrives, as it would bring about the transgression of killing deities.

Therefore, even when life is at an end, the transference should not be performed until it is certain that the vital channel in the neck has actually been cut. If the lifespan has not been exhausted and there is still a chance of revival, the transgression of killing deities can and will occur. ‘Deities’ here means the assembled deities of the hundred sublime buddha families, who reside within the body. This is the equivalent of killing them all. Thus, to perform the transference at any time other than when the lifespan has definitively run its course will not only be of no benefit, it will actually lead to the lower realms. And this holds the key as to why the forceful method of transference is unacceptable. As The Four Vajra Seats Tantra says:

When the time is right, perform the transference, But to do so at other times would be deity murder.

It is also said in the verses of an authentic scripture in the chapter on transference:

To transfer at the wrong time is to kill the deities. As long as you are alive, practise Dharma, And for that long the flow of virtue will increase.

Similarly, the Precious Master of Oḍḍiyāna said:

Then, earnestly practise the ritual for deceiving death in accordance with the signs of impending death. Even though the signs and marks of death may be complete, if you were to practise transference without having first performed the ritual for deceiving death, you would incur the transgression of killing the deities and the transgression of suicide. As this is even than worse than the five deeds of immediate fruition, perform whichever general or particular rituals for deceiving death are most appropriate.

Transference of Entering Another Body

It is well known that the right interdependent circumstances did not come together for this teaching to be passed on in Tibet. And that is why, although the textual transmission exists, there is no lineage of actual practice.

Ordinary Transference

Even though this is not a forceful transference it is still referred to as ‘instantaneous transference’. As the circumstances of death—which include ravines, water, arrows, piercing weapons, strokes and more—can arise unexpectedly, whenever fear or panic strike train in focusing your awareness on Amitāyus or the Precious Master of Oḍḍiyāna at the crown of your head. Doing this continually will ensure that if serious life-threatening circumstances should occur all of a sudden, you will direct your consciousness to the crown of your head through the force of habit, and your consciousness will exit there. The Precious Master of Oḍḍiyāna said, “Directing your intentions toward the guru at your crown is of inconceivable value.”

For the ordinary transference, you should lie on your right side with your head pointing north. Visualize a deity such as Buddha Śikhin, or the Buddha of Medicine (Bhaiṣajyaguru-vaiḍūryaprabharāja) above the crown of your head. Then recite any names of the Three Jewels with which you are familiar, as well as blessed dhāraṇī mantras, and make aspirations. By doing so, it said, you will avoid rebirth in the lower realms.

Furthermore, the vajra song that encapsulates the six dharmas says:

Eight doorways open on to saṃsāra, One door is the path to Mahāmudrā.

The Profound Inner Meaning, which draws upon several classes of unsurpassable tantras, also teaches:

Then, if the all-ground consciousness departs From the brahma-aperture this means the formless realm; From the bindu, the great goddess; From the navel, a god of the desire realm; From the eyes, a powerful person in the desire realm; From the nose, the realms of the yakṣa; From the ear, a god of accomplishment; From the door of existence, a hungry ghost, it is said; From the urethra, we will become an animal; From the lower door, the eight hells.

This means that if you have not trained in the instructions for the transference of consciousness, and still, under the power of karma, your consciousness leaves the body through the brahma-aperture, you will be reborn in the formless realm. Through the oral instructions on transference, however, departure through the brahma-aperture will lead to rebirth in pure celestial lands. This is one tradition of explanation. The Vajra Verses of the Hearing Lineage says:

When the signs of death arise, be joyful,[9] and cast away attachment. Block the nine doors, apply substances and adorn with aspiration.

Thus, in this case [i.e., when nine doorways are blocked], another 'brahma-aperture' is being referred to: a cranial opening, which is four finger-widths back from the hairline, and if consciousness departs from there you will be reborn in the formless realm. The actual brahma-aperture, however, is located in the centre of the coil of hair eight finger-widths back from the hairline. And if consciousness leaves from there you will be reborn in the celestial lands.

Although there exist these two traditions of explanation, the Precious Master of Oḍḍiyāna also said:

There are great differences in the various paths of transference: three each for superior, middling, and inferior, making nine in all. As the brahma-aperture on the crown of the head is the path for travelling to pure celestial lands, if consciousness emerges there you will obtain liberation. Therefore, since this is the supreme path it is crucially important that this is where you direct your intentions. If consciousness departs through the eyes, you will be reborn as a cakravartin king. If consciousness exits from the left nostril you will be reborn in a clean human body. These are the three superior doors. If consciousness exits through the right nostril you will be reborn as a yakṣa; from the two ears, as a god in the form realm; from the navel, a god in the desire realm. These are the three middling doors. If consciousness exits from the urethra, you will be reborn as an animal; from the so-called ‘door of existence’, the path journeyed by the cause and seed, the white and red essences, you will be born as a hungry ghost; from the anus, you will be reborn in the hells. These are the three inferior doors.

Now, as for the actual instruction for the transference of consciousness, The Four Vajra Seats Tantra says:

That to be purified, the one and a half syllables. Drawn up with the third to the last of eight. This seed, a fierce fire, Rests on a maṇḍala of wind. Focus on this with the mind. Above, the brahma-aperture Is supreme on account of the nine. Without a body, the entity that is mind’s essence Meditates on entities.

The Vajra Verses of the Hearing Lineage says:

The alchemy of transference, which brings Buddhahood without meditation… …Draw HŪṂ and prāṇa-mind indivisible up into the central channel (avadhūti). Visualise the syllable KṢA and propel it through the path of brahma. Transferring it to the dharmakāya-guru and buddha-realm.

The Precious Master of Oḍḍiyāna said:

Should you fail to accomplish nirvāṇa without remainder in this life, Since you wish to find the celestial lands at the time of transference Apply yourself to the necessary trainings and actions!

And:

This instruction is a powerful means for bringing buddhahood even to great evildoers. This instruction, a transformative golden dharma, through which a yogi can leave the seal of the body and simultaneously awaken, is revealed herein.

What follows is in two parts: 1) training in transference, and 2) the actual application.

1. Training in Transference

In order to request the teaching on the visualisations for training in transference, it is necessary to offer the maṇḍala. For this, repeat the following:

Having transformed this maṇḍala of bronze into precious substances, And these grains of barley too into gold and turquoise, I offer them with devotion to the one nirmāṇakāya, the compassionate guru: Look on me with your compassion!

Then, for taking refuge and generating bodhicitta, repeat the following three times:

Namo! In the three jewels and the three roots, In all the sources of refuge, I take refuge. In order to lead all beings to buddhahood I set my mind upon supreme awakening.

Now, consider that in an instant you appear as the Great Compassionate Lord (i.e., Mahākārunika, a form of Avalokiteśvara), with a body that is white in colour, and with one face, peaceful and smiling. You have four hands: the palms of the first two joined at your heart, and the lower two holding a white crystal rosary and a white lotus flower. With your legs in the vajra posture, you sit on a lotus and moon-disc seat. Your topknot of hair is adorned with the five small crests of jewels. You are wearing silken garments and jewel ornaments, and you are radiant and resplendent with all the marks and signs. Meditate on this vividly.

From the outside, the Great Compassionate One’s body is like a white silk tent, while on the inside it is empty like an inflated balloon.[10] Inside this clear, empty space is the central channel with its four characteristics: as a sign of bliss, it is white on the outside; to symbolize clarity, it is red on the inside; to signify the bodhisattva path, it stands perfectly upright; and to signify that the doors to the lower realms have been closed, its lower tip, which is below the navel, is sealed. To allow for travel along the path to higher realms, the upper tip opens straight onto the brahma-aperture at the crown. Visualize this.

Above the crown of your head, On top of a lion-throne, lotus, and moon-disc seat, Is the protector Amitābha, his body red in colour. With one face, and two hands in the gesture of equanimity, On top of which he holds an alms-bowl; he wears the dharma robes; He is seated with his two legs in the posture of Maitreya, And his two big toes At the upper tip of the central channel. To his right is Lokeśvara, Lord of the World, white in colour, With one face and four hands: two joined at the palms, And the remaining two, to the right and left, holding a rosary and lotus. He is in the standing posture, upon a lotus and moon. To his left is Vajrapāṇi, the one of great power and might (i.e., Mahāsthāmaprāpta). He has one face, two hands and is blue in colour. He holds a vajra in his right hand and a bell in his left. He is in the standing posture, upon a lotus and moon. They are surrounded by countless buddhas, bodhisattvas, Śrāvakas, pratyekabuddhas, and arhats. Light shines out from the three seed-syllables At the three centres of each of the three main figures, Inviting the deities from Sukhāvatī to merge indivisibly.

Then, there is the prayer for transference:

Emaho! Exceedingly wondrous protector, Amitābha, Great Compassionate One, and Vajrapāṇi, the one of great power and might, With a one-pointed mind, I pray to you: Grant your blessings so that I may master the profound path of the transference. When the time of death eventually arrives, Grant your blessings so that my consciousnesses may be transferred to Sukhāvatī.

Pray like this as much as possible, and then consider the following.

At your heart-centre, inside the central channel, is, like a knot in a length of bamboo, an eight-petalled red lotus. On top of it is a moon-disc, about the size of half a grain. On top of that is the essence into which prāṇa-mind and consciousness are gathered, a white bindu, and red syllable HRĪḤ (ཧྲཱིཿ), complete with the long-vowel sign and the visarga, and radiant and bright. Consider that it is on the point of ascending, just about to rise.

From that HRĪḤ there emanates a single ray of light in the form of another HRĪḤ syllable, which seals off the lower gateway, the doorway to the hells. Then, another HRĪḤ emerges to seal the doorway to rebirth as an animal, the urethra. Then two further HRĪḤ syllables shoot out, sealing the doors of the secret place and the mouth, gateways to rebirth as a hungry ghost. Then, another HRĪḤ appears, sealing the navel, which is the gateway to rebirth as a god in the desire realm. Then, two more HRĪḤ syllables shine out, blocking the two ears, which are gateways for rebirth as a demi-god, in the form realm, or as a kumbhāṇḍa. Next, two further HRĪḤs emerge, block the two nostrils, gateways to rebirth as a yakṣa or a human being who must experience birth, ageing, sickness and death. Then, three HRĪḤ syllables shine out to block the spot between the eyebrows, which is the gateway to rebirth in the form realm; the right eye, which is the gateway for rebirth as a human king; and the left eye. Then, another HRĪḤ shoots out and blocks the cranial opening, which is the gateway to rebirth in the formless realm. You can also verbally recite HRĪḤ during this process.

Then, consider that as you utter HIK, your mind, which is represented by the bindu and the white syllable HRĪḤ, shoots upwards through the path of the central channel. It just about touches the big toe of Amitābha, who is on the crown of your head. Then, consider that as you utter KA, it descends again and remains on the moon seat at your heart centre.

You can combine this with expelling the stale breath three times, and holding the prāṇa. While holding the prāṇa, keep it sealed for a long time. Consider that as you mentally utter HIK, the prāṇa from the right and left channels emerges from the central channel at the crown of the head as blue smoke just as the bindu touches Amitābha’s big toe. As you mentally utter KA it falls back down and remains in the heart centre. Then send it up again. As you send it up you can hold vajra-fists at the top of the thighs and gather together the prāṇa, mind, and all appearances in the upper part of the body.

If you do not know how to control the prāṇa like this, you should consider that as you utter HIK the bindu shoots up through the central channel and touches the big toe of Buddha Amitābha’s foot. And as you say KA it descends and remains in the heart centre. Visualise this clearly, sending the bindu up and bringing it back down again, about twenty-one times in all.

Then recite the following prayer of aspiration:

Emaho! Amitābha, magnificent Buddha of Boundless Light, With the great compassionate lord Avalokiteśvara to his right, And Vajrapāṇi, the one of great power and might, on his left, Surrounded by an assembly of countless buddhas and bodhisattvas In the place of wonder and boundless joy and happiness That is the heavenly realm of Sukhāvatī, the Blissful Paradise. When the time comes for me to leave this present life, May I go there directly, without any other birth upon the way, And being reborn there, may I see Amitābha face to face! May this, my fervent prayer of aspiration, Be blessed by all the buddhas and bodhisattvas of the ten directions So that it is accomplished, without the slightest hindrance! Tadyathā pañcendriya avabodhanāya svāhā.

Consider that making these aspirations causes a stream of deathless amṛta nectar to flow from the alms-bowl in Amitābha’s hands, dissolving into and filling your body.

Then, as a prayer for longevity, recite the following:

Emaho! To the perfect Buddha Amitāyus, The Great Compassionate One, Vajrapāṇi, and All the countless buddhas and bodhisattvas, With a devoted mind I prostrate and praise you all. I pray to you: please bestow the siddhi of longevity! Oṃ amideva āyusiddhi hūṃ

Recite this for a single rosary or as many times as you can.

Consider that the main deity, Amitābha, and his retinue melt into light and then dissolve into you, and your brahma-aperture is blocked by HAṂ and various vajras.

By practising like this in six, four or however many sessions, the signs of having perfected the transference will arise: warmth and heat at the brahma-aperture, or itchiness, stinging, numbness, and swelling; the crown of the head may feel soft and pulpy; and blood or serum may emerge at the brahma-aperture. When such signs appear, carefully examine the spot eight finger-widths behind the hairline. If you insert a stalk of kuśa grass there, it should stay firmly planted.

When this happens, to persist any further could create obstacles for your life-force, so put the visualisation aside. Don’t send the bindu up and down in the central channel, and don’t recite HIK or KA.

There are also some people who do not have a brahma-aperture or cannot locate it, and who may find that they get headaches or become dizzy. In this case, you should visualize Amitābha a forearm’s length above their head, and consider that the bindu, which is combined with the syllable HRĪḤ, ascends into the sky until it touches his lotus seat. Then, having returned, it remains in their heart centre inside the central channel. By meditating like this for a few sessions the brahma-aperture will open, and blood or serum will emerge from it.

This concludes the explanation of how to train in the transference of consciousness.

2. The Actual Application

i. Transference for Oneself

When performing transference for yourself, if all the signs of death are fully present, perform the ritual for deceiving death[10] three times. If even this should prove ineffective however, then it is said [in The Root Verses on the Six Bardos]:

Kyema! Now when the bardo of dying is dawning upon me, I will abandon all grasping, yearning, and attachment, Enter, undistracted, a state in which the instructions are clear, And transfer my own awareness into the sphere of unborn space; As I am about to leave this compound body of flesh and blood, I will know it to be a transitory illusion.

As this indicates, you must offer your own body, possessions and relatives as a maṇḍala to Buddha Amitābha. Then, having offered them, let go of all attachment.

As when training in the visualisation for transference, block the nine doors by means of the syllable HRĪḤ, and meditate on the main deity, Amitābha, together with his retinue, in the sky about a forearm’s length above you. Propel your consciousness—represented by the bindu and HRĪḤ—so that it shoots upwards and dissolves into the heart centre of Amitābha. Repeat this visualization again and again until your breathing stops. Recite the prayer and the aspiration for transference as many times as you can. Dharma friends and others too should also recite these on your behalf. Through this, your consciousness will depart at the crown of the head, and it is certain that you will be reborn in Sukhāvatī in your next life.

ii. Transference for Others

When it is certain that a person who was very ill has died and their outer breath has ceased, arrange the corpse so that the head is upright. Then begin by reciting aloud the verses of taking refuge and generating bodhicitta, as well as any buddhas’ names that are familiar. Then, when it is certain that the vital channel has been cut, go through the visualization for the transference in your mind, while reciting the following verses in a gentle and melodious voice:

Kyema! Noble child, whose life has ended, Your body is that of the yidam, the white sattva, Inside your body is the central channel, like an arrow of bamboo, At your heart, imagine a red syllable HRĪḤ, Complete with long vowel and visarga. Then, as six further HRĪḤ syllables emerge, They seal the gateways to rebirth in the six classes, While the brahma-aperture at your crown is open. Above your crown, on a lotus and moon-disc seat, Is the protector Amitābha, his body red in colour, With one face, and two hands in the gesture of equanimity, On top of which he holds an alms-bowl; he wears the dharma robes, And is seated in a cross-legged posture. To his right is Lokeśvara, Lord of the World, white in colour, With one face and four arms: two joined at the palms, And the remaining two, to the left and right, holding a rosary and lotus. He is in the standing posture, upon a lotus and moon disc. To his left is Vajrapāṇi, the one of great power and might. He has one face, two hands and is blue in colour. He holds a vajra in his right hand and a bell in his left. He is in the standing posture upon a lotus and moon. They are surrounded by countless buddhas, bodhisattvas, Śrāvakas, pratyekabuddhas, and arhats. Light radiates out from the three seed-syllables At the three centres of each of the three main figures, Inviting the deities from Sukhāvatī to merge indivisibly. Then visualize that this consciousness of yours, In the form of a white bindu marked with the syllable HRĪḤ, Is transferred into the heart of Amitābha. Emaho! Exceedingly wondrous protector Amitābha, Great Compassionate One, and Vajrapāṇi, the one of great power and might, This departed one prays to you with one-pointed mind: Grant your blessings so that their consciousness may be transferred to the land of great bliss!

Repeat this, together with the necessary visualizations, seven or twenty-one times. Recite KA and HIK as many times as you can. Then, utter a loud PHAṬ, and pull a single tuft of hair from the crown of the deceased, eight finger-widths back from the hairline. The hair should come out as easily as if it had moulted. There might also be a “Kak!” sound, and the appearance of steam, or swelling, or serum or dew-like moisture. There could also be some gentle warmth or more intense heat. When practising for someone without hair, you should continue to press your finger until you notice some swelling or serum, or the other signs occur.

Consider that rays of light shine out from Amitābha’s heart, so that the whole retinue and the aggregates of the deceased all melt completely into light, which then dissolves into Amitābha’s heart. Then recite the following prayer three, five or seven times:

Emaho! Amitābha, magnificent Buddha of Boundless Light, With the great compassionate lord Avalokiteśvara to his right, And Vajrapāṇi, the one of great power and might, on his left, Surrounded by an assembly of countless buddhas and bodhisattvas In the place of wonder and boundless joy and happiness That is the heavenly realm of Sukhāvatī, the Blissful Paradise. As soon as the deceased transfers from the present life, May they go there directly, without any other birth upon the way, And being reborn there, may they see Amitābha face to face! May this, my fervent prayer of aspiration, Be blessed by all the buddhas and bodhisattvas of the ten directions So that it is accomplished, without the slightest hindrance! Tadyathā pañcendriya avabodhanāya svāhā

Then, in a melodious voice, recite the following verses of showing the way:

Emaho! Exceedingly wondrous protector Amitābha, Great Compassionate One, and Vajrapāṇi, the one of great power and might, This departed one prays to you with one-pointed mind: Grant your blessings so that their consciousness may be transferred to the land of great bliss! Kyema! Noble child, whose life has ended, Without becoming attached to saṃsāra, And without even the slightest doubt or hesitation, Go directly to the land of great bliss! Phaṭ! Phaṭ! Phaṭ!

With this, consider that Amitābha travels to the realm of Sukhāvatī as swiftly as an arrow in flight. Then recite the verses beginning, “Not experiencing the sufferings of the lower realms…”[11] and “Like a lotus, unsullied by the mire…”

If you can practise the transference for the deceased in this way, without being corrupted by pursuit of personal wealth, and with love and compassion, it will be of unimaginable benefit.

If there are no signs of the transference having been effected, it might mean that the consciousness had already transferred—for it may remain no longer than an instant or the time taken to eat a meal.

If you arrive to perform the transference before the outer breath has ceased, you should perform the mental visualization of sealing the nine gateways and so on, and spend a long time simply reciting the names of the buddhas and prayers of aspiration, without causing consciousness to ascend and so forth. By proceeding in this way, it is certain that the transference will be effected properly.

It is well known that consciousness remains in the body for up to three nights and a day, and it is therefore crucial that transference is performed during this time. Still, as The Book of Kadam[12] explains that it might remain for three to seven days, it is also acceptable to practise the transference up until the seventh day. Those who conduct village rituals also say that it is appropriate to send consciousness from an effigy or name-card, and they have a tradition of summoning consciousness into a corpse after many days have passed, so that it can then be re-transferred from there. Although this is not taught in the tantric scriptures, I do not think there is any real contradiction.

All this has been by way of commentary. Now, as it is extremely beneficial to cite the root text of the Namchö wisdom-mind treasure itself, I shall do so.

Root Text

The stages of the transference:

At my heart I visualize a red syllable HRĪḤ, Complete with the long vowel sign and visarga. From this there emerge six further HRĪḤs, To seal the gateways to rebirth in the six classes, Leaving the brahma-aperture open at my crown. Then, at my crown is Amitābha, ‘Boundless Light’, I visualize him and the two attendants as described above. Then my own consciousness appears As a white bindu marked with a syllable HRĪḤ, Which, I consider, transfers into Amitābha’s heart. Without even the slightest doubt or hesitation, I pray that I may be reborn in the land of great bliss. Samaya. Gya. Gya. Gya.

Then, the prayer for transference:

Emaho! Exceedingly wondrous protector Amitābha, Great Compassionate One, and Vajrapāṇi, the one of great power and might, With one-pointed mind, I pray to you: Grant your blessings so that my consciousness may be transferred to the land of great bliss! Samaya. Gya. Gya. Gya.

The prayer of aspiration was already cited above.

I, Rāgāsya composed this elaborate explanation of the transference of consciousness to Sukhāvatī, having been urged to do so by the words of the nirmāṇakāya [Mingyur Dorje] himself. Whatever contradictions, mistakes, and faults I may have made I hereby confess. Through this virtue may all sentient beings who see or hear this text be reborn in Sukhāvatī!

| Translated by Lhasey Lotsawa Translations and Adam Pearcey, 2016.

Bibliography

Tibetan sources

Padma chos rgyal. "gNam chos thugs kyi gter kha las bde chen zhing du 'pho ba'i gdams pa rgyas par bsgrigs pa" In dKar rnying gi skyes chen du ma'i phyag rdzogs kyi gdams ngag gnad bsdus nyer mkho rin po che'i gter mdzod. TBRC W20749. 21: 171 - 202. Darjeeling: Kargyu Sungrab Nyamso Khang, 1978-1985.

Secondary sources

Halkias, Georgios, T. "Pure-lands and Other Visions in Seventeenth-Century Tibet: A gNam chos sādhana for the Pure-land Sukhāvatī Revealed in 1658 by gNam chos Mi 'gyur rdo rje (1645–1667)" in Power, Politics, and the Reinvention of Tradition: Tibet in the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Century, Bryan J. Cuevas and Kurtis R. Schaeffer (eds) Leiden: Brill, 2006, pp. 103–128.

Kapstein, Matthew, T. "Pure Land Buddhism in Tibet? From Sukhāvatī to the Field of Great Bliss" in Richard K. Payne and Kenneth K. Tanaka (eds) Approaching the Land of Bliss: Religious Praxis in the Cult of Amitābha. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 2004, pp. 16–51. (includes a partial translation of this text)

Patrul Rinpoche. The Words of My Perfect Teacher. Translated by Padmakara Translation Group. Boston: Shambhala. 1998.

Skorupski, Tadeusz. "Funeral Rites for Rebirth in the Sukhāvatī Abode" in The Buddhist Forum: Volume VI. Tring: The Institute of Buddhist Studies, 2001, pp. 137–156 (includes a partial translation of this text)

Notes

i.e., Eastern Tibet  ↩

The fourth month in the Tibetan calendar.  ↩

The thirty-first year in the Tibetan cycle of sixty years.  ↩

Catuṣpīṭha. Although the Tibetan translators took the Sanskrit title of this tantra to be a reference to four seats (gdan bzhi), Péter-Dániel Szántó, has noted that the original meaning of pītha(m) in this context is more likely ‘heap’, and by extension ‘collection’, and by extension of that, ‘chapter’, so that a better translation might be The Four Vajra Chapters. See Péter-Dániel Szántó, Selected Chapters from the Catuṣpīṭhatantra: Introductory study with the annotated translation of selected chapters (D.Phil. Thesis), Balliol College, Oxford University, 2012, Part 1, p. 26.  ↩

Although some versions of the Tibetan have “mdo las” meaning “from the sūtras”, the texts of the Catuṣpīṭha preserved in the Tibetan canon have the similarly written “mod las” and it is the latter reading which has been followed here.  ↩

1) killing one’s father; 2) killing one’s mother; 3) killing an arhat; 4) creating a schism in the sangha; and 5) with a harmful intention, drawing blood from the body of the Tathāgata.  ↩

grong du 'jug pa'i 'pho ba (Skt. purapraveśa) literally means 'the transference of entering the city', but 'city' here signifies another's body.  ↩

Literally 'by the king'.  ↩

Although the Tibetan of Karma Chakme's text has skol, the original text of Nāropa’s Vajra Verses reads dga’ in all available versions and the translation has been made accordingly.  ↩

phru ma phus btab pa. Literally ‘like an inflated bladder’.  ↩

i.e., Bodhicaryāvatāra, X, 47.  ↩

bka' gdams glegs bam. See The Book of Kadam: The Core Texts, translated by Thupten Jinpa, Boston: Wisdom Publications, 2008, p. 248.  ↩

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Best Nation In War Thunder

War Thunder Best Country

Best Naval Nation War Thunder

Best Nation In War Thunder Planes

Part of The Complete Beginner’s Guide

Service dogs are trained to provide assistance and therapy to various people with disabilities. They can aid in navigation for people who are visually impaired, assist a child who is having a seizure, calm a veteran who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and can even dial 911 in the event of an emergency.

Welcome to the Critical Condition web site. For those of you unfamiliar with Critical Condition, let me give a little background. Critical Condition (CritCon for short) was started as a small bi-monthly newsletter in 1982 to alert my friends about the new horror films that were released to theaters.

Germany: Now Germany is one of the better nations in the air, if you know how to play them right. Germany is primarily an energy fighter and boom and zoom nation. Fw 190s are NOT meant to turn fight, they suck at it. Use their great roll rate in case someone gets on your tail.

There are no terrible choices when it comes to picking a country to play in War Thunder, each one has strengths and weaknesses. If you’re feeling patriotic you can go for your own nation (if it’s in the game) or if you have a particular favourite aircraft then go for the appropriate country and work up to it (or enjoy it right away, if you happen to be especially keen on the P-26 Peashooter). It’s not as if you have to religiously stick to playing one country either, playing two or three (or all five) countries is good for mixing up play styles to keep things fresh, learning about the strengths and weaknesses of a variety of planes, and allowing aircraft of one nation to repair over time while playing another. The following only covers aircraft, I’m afraid I haven’t really been keeping up with the relative strengths of tanks.

The USSR

If you have no strong preference then starting off with the Soviet Union isn’t a bad idea; you get a bonus premium aircraft for the first country you fly with, and the I-153 that the USSR get is a great plane, very handy to be able to put straight into service without having to research and unlock it. The Soviet tech tree is extensive, with a couple of decent lines of fighters and good jet options in the end game with the MiG-17 fighter and Il-28 bomber. They have a wide range of light bombers/ground attackers, including the iconic Il-2 Sturmovik, and both medium and heavy bomber options. About the only area they’re really lacking are heavy fighters, the Pe-3 series are pretty lacklustre, but the Yak-9T/K with 37mm and 45mm cannon respectively are brutally effective against bombers.

The UK

War Thunder Best Country

Britain is another good option for starting players, with some excellent fighters once you get past the biplanes. The Hurricanes are an early workhorse, Spitfires are highly manoeuvrable and well suited to turning dogfights (except against the Japanese) and the Typhoons and Tempests have good speed and firepower. Their jets struggled a little at the top end when only the Meteor was available, but the Venom and Hunter are more powerful post-war options. For bombing the Blenheim and Beaufort are fine in Rank I, but things tail off a bit with the Wellingtons in Ranks II and III, which are rather vulnerable to the cannon-packing fighters they almost invariably come up against, then pick up again with the two Lancasters that, thanks to Update 1.43, can now carry some of the heaviest bomb loads in the game as they did historically, and the Canberra jet bomber. You also have plenty of torpedo bombing options, starting very early with the venerable Swordfish, but without being able to specifically choose maps featuring shipping targets it’s a roll of the dice as to whether you can actually use them – at least until naval battles might be an option!

The USA

The USA takes a little while to get going. In Arcade mode particularly the favoured US armament of .50 calibre machine guns are at a bit of a disadvantage once everyone else is tooling up with 20mm cannons; though .50s certainly can be effective, especially with later incendiary rounds, you’ll generally need to get more hits in to bring something down, increasing the likelihood of someone else “helpfully” swooping in on your target. The 37mm cannon of the P-39/63s perhaps overcompensates, though, it’s devastating when it hits, but the slow rate of fire and high recoil makes it a little trickier to use, better suited to bomber hunting than fast moving dogfights. The USA have some strong later fighters, and a good selection of jets including several F-86 Sabre variants at the top of the tree. They’re a sound choice for heavy bombers with three B-17 variants and the B-24, sacrificing bomb load compared to the British Lancasters for more defensive turrets, then the B-29 with the largest bombloads in the game, though it’ll take a while to get up to mid-Rank III to start researching them; along the way the A-20 and B-25 are decent medium bomber/attackers with plenty of machine guns for strafing. The F6F and P-47 fighters are also notable for the quantity of ordnance they can carry for ground attack if you like a fighter/bomber role.

Germany

Germany also has strong fighters in the mid-to-late game, but their Rank I options tend to be sluggish, lightly armed or Italian (in some cases, all three); I’d suggest getting the hang of the game with other countries first. Things pick up markedly in Rank II with the introduction of the Bf 109 and Fw 190 series, and they also have the widest range of rocket and jet fighters. Initially there’s a selection from World War II (the Me 163, Me 262, He 162 and Ho 229 “flying wing”) which are in a slightly awkward place for matchmaking, where they outperform Allied propeller-driven contemporaries but are inferior to post-war Soviet and US jets, so to give Germany a viable end-game option Update 1.39 added both a Canadian-built Sabre and a MiG-15, as operated by the West and East German air forces respectively in the late 1950s. Germany also has a good range of heavy fighters from the Bf 110 to the Me 410s, and plenty of early bombing options with numerous variants of the Ju 87 Stuka for dive bombing, and the He 111, Ju 88 and Italian S.79 series of medium bombers. There aren’t any heavy bombers later on, though the Do 217 series of medium bombers can carry pretty heavy loads once upgraded and deliver them with precision in a dive; at the top of the tree the Ar 234, the first operational jet bomber, has its historical advantage of speed somewhat negated, as it usually faces jet opposition.

Japan

Japan has the most agile fighters in the game with the nimble Ki-43 and the A6M Zero line, though they are a bit fragile. The later Ki-84 and N1K are good all-rounders, and there are also heavier options with the big-cannon packing Ki-45 and -102 heavy fighters, handy for taking down enemy bombers. Bombing-wise the H6K is quite a fun early bomber to start with, it carries a large payload for a Rank 1 aircraft, can absorb a lot of incoming fire (especially from small calibre machine guns) and has plenty of turrets including a 20mm cannon to ward off attackers; the downside is that handles like a boat with wings, probably because it *is* a boat with wings. Going up the tree the later bomber line is a little lacking in terms of payload, but turrets with 20mm cannon at least give them a bit of a defensive option. The Japanese tree is a little sparse, the smallest in the game, and Rank V has to be padded out somewhat with prototypes and experimental designs due to the lack of competitive late-war historical aircraft, though at least Update 1.39 gave them a viable end-game option in the form of another Sabre that saw post-war service.

Welcome, guideoui.com visitors. In this guide, We try to focus on All Best Britain Vehicles in War Thunder game. These vehicles are also ranked from I to V. While writing this guide, We pick up many pieces of information from several sites for you. We hope that this guide will help you.

You can see all the best vehicles by nations page, by click here.

Tier I Crusader Mk.III aka “tier 1 MBT” or “smoke machine”, its one of best tanks in game, can fight against any vehicle except E-100 and Maus.

PROS +very good gun (120mm penetration at 2.7, fast reload speed and fast projectile speed) +very fast turret rotation +no armor best armor (no hullbreak) +50 smoke grenades (record) +stabiliser (weak tho) CONS -cant penetrate maus or e-100

Tier II 100mm frontal armor at 3.0 with 75mm gun? 3inch gun carrier! can’t get penetrated by t-34 and kv-1 but avoid Pz. IV or japanese tanks.

PROS +very good armor +good gun CONS -very slow speed (reversed too)

Best Naval Nation War Thunder

Tier III Comet I is not overpowered, but very good tank if you skilled player, however even you can play well you can’t damage enemies well…

Best Nation In War Thunder Planes

PROS +fast speed +good gun (penetration, ballistics) +20 smoke nades CONS -very bad reverse speed -weak damage

Tier IV Caernarvon is tank with hull of Conqueror and turret from Centurion, but BR still 6.7.

PROS +very good hull armor and good turret armor +good gun (penetration, ballistics) +good reverse speed (compared to previous british tanks) +Stabilised turret CONS -meh mobility -repair cost

Tier V Even with no armor and no fast speed “Vickers MBT” is best tier 5 tank, compared to leopard 1 this tank have 7.0 BR, stabiliser, faster reload.

PROS +very good gun(penetration, ballistics, reloading speed) +stabilised turret CONS -bad armor -repair cost

This is the ending of War Thunder – All Best Britain Vehicles guide. I hope it will help you. If there is wrong or you have suggestions, please let’s know and comment us. Have fun.

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[thetamrieliclibrary]

Pocket Guide to the Empire, First Edition: Skyrim

Skyrim, also known as the Old Kingdom or the Fatherland[1], was the first region of Tamriel settled by humans: the hardy, brave, warlike Nords, whose descendants still occupy this rugged land, and, although perhaps somewhat reduced from the legendary renown of their forebears of old, the Nords of the pure blood still unquestionably surpass the mixed races in all the manly virtues.

Exactly when the Nords first crossed the ice-choked Sea of Ghosts from Atmora, their original homeland, is uncertain. As recorded in the Song of Return, Ysgramor and his family first landed in Tamriel at Hsaarik Head, at the extreme northern tip of Skyrim's Broken Cape, fleeing civil war in Atmora (then rather warmer than at present, as it seems to have supported a substantial population). These first settlers named the land "Mereth", after the Elves that roamed the untamed wilderness which then covered the whole of Tamriel. For a time, relations between Men and Elves were harmonious, and the Nords throve in the new land, summoning more of their kin from the North to build the city of Saarthal, the site of which has recently been located by Imperial archaeologists in the vicinity of modern Winterhold. But the Elves saw that the vital young race would soon surpass their stagnant culture[2] if left unchecked, and fell upon the unsuspecting Nords in the infamous Night of Tears; Saarthal was burned, and only Ysgramor and two of his sons[3] fought free of the carnage and escaped to Atmora. The Elves, however, had reckoned without the indomitable spirit of the Nords. Gathering his legendary Five Hundred Companions (whose names are still recited every Thirteenth of Sun's Dawn at the Feast of the Dead in Windhelm), Ysgramor returned to Tamriel with a vengeance, driving the Elves out of Skyrim and laying the foundations of the first human Empire.

It may be that the exploits of the near-mythical Ysgramor conflate the reigns of several early Nord Kings, as the Elves were not finally driven from the present boundaries of Skyrim until the reign of King Harald, the thirteenth of Ysgramor's line, at the dawn of recorded history. King Harald is also remembered for being the first King to relinquish all holdings in Atmora; the Nords of Skyrim were now a separate people, whose faces were turned firmly toward their destiny, the conquest of the vast new land of Tamriel. Indeed, the history of the Nords is the history of humans in Tamriel; all the human races, with the exception of the Redguards, are descended from Nordic stock, although in some the ancient blood admittedly runs thin.

King Vrage the Gifted began the expansion that led to the First Empire of the Nords. Within a span of fifty years, Skyrim ruled all of northern Tamriel, including most of present-day High Rock, a deep stretch of the Nibenay Valley, and the whole of Morrowind. The Conquest of Morrowind was one of the epic clashes of the First Era, when ensued many a desperate contest between Nord and Dunmer in the hills and glades of that dire kingdom, still recalled by the songs of the minstrels in the alehouses of Skyrim. The system of succession in the First Empire is worthy of note, as it proved in the end to be the Empire's undoing. By the early years of the First Empire, Skyrim was already divided into Holds, then ruled by a patchwork of clan-heads, kings, and councils (or moots), all of which paid fealty to the King of Skyrim. During the exceptionally long reign of King Harald, who died at 108 years of age and outlived all but three of his sons, a Moot was created, made up of representatives from each Hold, to choose the next King from qualified members of the royal family. Over the years, the Moot became permanent and acquired an increasing amount of power; by the reign King Borgas, the last of the Ysgramor dynasty, the Moot had become partisan and ineffective. Upon the murder[4] of King Borgas by the Wild Hunt (See Aldmeri--Valenwood), the Moot's failure to appoint the obvious and capable Jarl Hanse of Winterhold sparked the disastrous Skyrim War of Succession, during which Skyrim lost control of its territories in High Rock, Morrowind, and Cyrodiil, never to regain them. The war was finally concluded in 1E420 with the Pact of Chieftains; henceforth, the Moot was convened only when a King died without direct heirs, and it has fulfilled this more limited role admirably. It has only been called upon three times in the intervening millennia, and the Skyrim succession has never again been disputed on the field of battle.

The lands of Skyrim is the most rugged on the continent, containing four of the five highest peaks in Tamriel (see Places of Note: Throat of the World). Only in the west do the mountains abate to the canyons and mesas of the Reach, by far the most cosmopolitan of the Holds of Skyrim, Nords of the pure blood holding only the barest majority according to the recent Imperial Census. The rest of Skyrim is a vertical world: the high ridges of the northwest-to-southeast slanting mountain ranges, cleft by deep, narrow valleys where most of the population resides. Along the sides of the river valleys, sturdy Nord farmers raise a wide variety of crops; wheat flourishes in the relatively temperate river bottoms, while only the snowberry bushes can survive in the high orchards near the treeline. The original Nord settlements were generally established on rocky crags overlooking a river valley; many of these villages still survive in the more isolated Holds, especially along the Morrowind frontier. In most of Skyrim, however, this defensive posture was deemed unnecessary by the mid-first era, and most cities and towns today lie on the valley floors, in some cases still overlooked by the picturesque ruins of the earlier settlement.

Nords are masters of wood and timber construction; many structures survive in use today that were built by the first settlers over 3,000 years ago. A fine example of Nord military engineering can be seen at Old Fort, one of the royal bastions constructed by the First Empire to guard its southern frontier. Towering walls of huge, irregular porphyry blocks fit together without seam or mortar, as if constructed by mythical Elhnofey rather than men.

The nine Holds present a varied aspect in people, government, and trade. The Reach could be mistaken for one of the petty kingdoms of High Rock; it is full of Bretons, Redguards, Cyrodiils, Elves of all stripes, and even a few misplaced khajiit. The northern and eastern Holds--Winterhold Hold, Eastmarch, The Rift, and the Pale, known collectively as the Old Holds--remain more isolated, by geography and choice, and the Nords there still hold true to the old ways. Outsiders are a rarity, usually a once-yearly visit from an itinerant peddler. The young men go out for weeks into the high peaks in the dead of winter, hunting the ice wraiths that give them claim to full status as citizens (a laughable practice that could serve as a model for the more "civilized" regions of the Empire). Here, too, the people still revere their hereditary leaders, while the other Holds have long been governed (after a fashion) by elected moots. It is fortunate for Skyrim and the Septim Empire that the people of the Old Holds have preserved the traditions of their forefathers. Skyrim has long been dormant, slumbering through the millennia while upstart conquerors bestrode the Arena of Tamriel. But now, a son of Skyrim[5] once again holds the world's destiny in his hands. If Skyrim is to wake, its rebirth will be led by these true Nords who remain its best hope for the future.

[TRAVELER: I found many of these mountain villages almost empty of young men, who have been seduced into joining Septim's army by promises of wealth and glory; the village elders see little hope of their sons ever returning.]

Snow Elves[6]

Nords attribute almost any misfortune or disaster to the machinations of the Falmer, or Snow Elves, be it crop failure, missing sheep, or a traveller lost crossing a high pass. These mythical beings are popularly believed to be the descendants of the original Elven population, and are said to reside in the remote mountain fastnesses that cover most of Skyrim. However, there is no tangible evidence that this Elven community survives outside the imaginations of superstitious villagers.

The Tongues

The Nords have long practiced a spiritual form of magic known as "The Way of the Voice", based largely on their veneration of the Wind as the personification of Kynareth. Nords consider themselves to be the children of the sky, and the breath and the voice of a Nord is his vital essence. Through the use of the Voice, the vital power of a Nord can be articulated into a Thu'um, or shout. Shouts can be used to sharpen blades or to strike enemies at a distance. Masters of the Voice are known as Tongues, and their power is legendary. They can call to specific people over hundreds of miles, and can move by casting a shout, appearing where it lands. The most powerful Tongues cannot speak without causing destruction. They must go gagged, and communicate through a sign language and through scribing runes.

In the days of the Conquest of Morrowind and the founding of the First Empire, the great Nord war chiefs--Derek the Tall, Jorg Helmbolg, Hoag Merkiller--were all Tongues. When they attacked a city, they needed no siege engines; the Tongues would form up in a wedge in front of the gatehouse, and draw a breath. When the leader let it out in a thu'um, the doors were blown in, and the axemen rushed into the city. Such were the men that forged the First Empire. But, alas for the Nords, one of the mightiest of all the Tongues, Jurgen Windcaller (or the Calm, as he is better known today), became converted to a pacifist creed that denounced use of the Voice for martial exploits. His philosophy prevailed, largely due to his unshakable mastery of the Voice--his victory was sealed in a legendary confrontation, where The Calm is said to have "swallowed the Shouts" of seventeen Tongues of the militant school for three days until his opponents all lay exhausted (and then became his disciples). Today, the most ancient and powerful of the Tongues live secluded on the highest peaks in contemplation, and have spoken once only in living memory, to announce the destiny of the young Tiber Septim (as recounted in Cyrodiil). In gratitude, the Emperor has recently endowed a new Imperial College of the Voice in Markarth[7], dedicated to returning the Way of the Voice to the ancient and honourable art of war. So it may be that the mighty deeds of the Nord heroes of old will soon be equalled or surpassed on the battlefields of the present day.

Places of Note

Haafingar (Solitude)

The home of the famous Bards' College, Haafingar is also one of Skyrim's chief ports, and ships from up and down the coast can be found at her crowded quays, loading umber and salted cod for the markets of Wayrest, West Anvil, and Senchal. Founded during Skyrim's long Alessian flirtation, the Bards' College continues to flaunt a heretical streak, and its students are famous carousers, fittingly enough for their chosen trade. Students yearly invade the marketplace for a week of revelry, the climax of which is the burning of "King Olaf" in effigy, possibly a now-forgotten contender in the War of Succession. Graduates have no trouble finding employment in noble households across Tamriel, including the restored Imperial Court in Cyrodiil, but many still choose to follow in the wandering footsteps of illustrious alumni such as Callisos and Morachellis.

Windhelm

Once the capital of the First Empire, the palace of the Ysgramor dynasty still dominates the centre of the Old City. Windhelm was sacked during the War of Succession, and again by the Akaviri army of Ada'Soon Dir-Kamal; the Palace of the Kings is one of the few First Empire buildings that remains. Today, Windhelm remains the only sizable city in the otherwise determinedly rural Hold of Eastmarch, and serves as a base for Imperial troops guarding the Dunmeth Pass into Morrowind.

Throat of the World

This is the highest mountain in Skyrim, and the highest in Tamriel aside from Vvardenfell in Morrowind. The Nords believe men were formed on this mountain when the sky breathed onto the land. Hence the Song of Return refers not only to Ysgramor's return to Tamriel after the destruction of Saarthal, but to the Nords' return to what they believe was their original homeland. Pilgrims travel from across Skyrim to climb the Seven Thousand Steps to High Hrothgar, where the most ancient and honoured Greybeards[8] dwell in absolute silence in their quest to become ever more attuned to the voice of the sky.

Annotations

Annotations by YR:

"Most of the Nords I met seemed amused by this 'Fatherland' nonsense ~ the war with the 'Aldmeri Dominion' was the furthest thing in their minds."

"!"

"Ysgramor's provocations and blasphemies have, of course, been long forgotten."

"Righteous slaying."

"A disputed claim."

"Uncle, I saw signs that might be Falmer boundary-runes, but nothing sure. If any survive, they are wary and withdrawn."

"Septim's new college is staffed by hacks and charlatans ~ the so-called Grand Master is said to have formerly earned his living as a street performer in Windhelm ~ the students are scions of the most obsequious Nord families, hoping to curry favour with Tiber Septim's New Order ~"

"~ At last, a few Men worthy of respect. I met with an ancient Greybeard who could actually converse with me almost as an equal ~ my only such experience among the humans so far ~"

~ Follow for more books, journals, and notes from the Elder Scrolls series ~ Updates daily ~

[ac-liveblogs]

Let me restate my original statement, Edelgard was more extreme on her goals and Dimitri and Claude aren't as extreme. That doesn't make Edelgard any less of a likeable character. I also think she was justified but I do believe she did do a lot of harm I admit I'm biased towards CF its the first route I played so killing thr BL and GD characters didn't matter much to me. I saw them as casualties no different than Bandit A or Thief X

My main point i guess is there is a lot of Gray for the characters. Each character has their main ambition (except Claude he just kinda floats through life which i admire.) and none of them are entirely justified but depending on your own views/morals you may align with one. Honestly non biased Dimitri, Rhea, and Edelgard are neither right nor wrong. I dont like the idea of a false Religion guiding humanity with an immortal dragon at the head who implements a class system. So I side with Edelgard

I will admit non biased that Edelgard was super extreme and had a short term path of destruction but her endings show that society was better off. Though i know that's true for all the rulers. Like I said I'm biased lol and you are too with Dimitri but there's nothing wrong with that. Your morals lign up more with him. Thats why there are 3 houses and I think its cool they set it up that way. Even if the writing became a bit lackluster near the end

I can like Edelgard - as a well-intentioned extremist villain. When played straight as a heroic character, she gets messy and I honestly can’t stand her. The thing is, I don’t really attach much emotion to any one character’s Ideals in this game, because that’s not what I’m here for. I care about good character writing and satisfying story arcs - that’s why I prefer Dimitri and Azure Moon, not because I support monarchies. 

(I actually initially thought VW was the best end for Fodlan until I replayed AM. I still think neither are ideal.)

I’m generally against dictatorships, which is absolutely what Edelgard made, but if Edelgard were a good character I’d still probably absolutely adore her, because I like villains! I like well-written morally grey characters! I agree with absolutely nothing that Rhea did, but she’s an interesting, complex character that had completely understandable reasons for her actions and I find that fascinating!

Edelgard’s big problems stem from questionable culpability in everything she does, inconsistent writing and a game that seems absolutely determined to excuse her of all wrongdoings by providing a patsy for all the REAL evil in the game. Edelgard is consistently proven wrong in her beliefs, and it’s easy to point out lies and inconsistencies in her story, and it is exceptionally frustrating to me to not know whether that’s intentional or accidental on the parts of the developers. 

It was actually kind of a relief to me for the devs to come out and say their world-building doesn’t support Edelgard and outright call her a conqueror. 

That’s why peoeple don’t like Edelgard. Crimson Flower is heavily preoccupied with trying way too hard to make me like her, giving her excuses and not addressing anything she’s done, which is so completely the exact opposite of what I want from her that if CF had been my first route I can almost guarantee you I would’ve dropped 3H and never picked it up again. Focusing on how cute a character is and how much they like you is an instant 0/10 for me when it’s at the cost of a far more interesting narrative. 

It’s not that she did bad things, but because the narrative tends to refuse to acknowledge it. The other routes, which portray Edelgard as mostly villainous, always tend to take time to wax poetic about how sad it is we couldn’t work with her while barely explaining why we’d even want to in the first place. Crimson Flower had the potential to be a heart-wrenching, difficult, dark story, and we were given an Edelgard dating simulator and told not to think about anything.

Even if you accept that Edelgard is a tortured waif and Rhea is the devil and Edelgard is 1000% Right Actually, Crimson Flower still gives her no consequences for her actions. Nor does it give us any resolution to her personal story with TWSITD, nor does it give her a personal character arc that’s gripping or engaging. But damn if it doesn’t give you a cute girl that loves you. And that sucks. 

And this is the same game that gave us Dimitri and Rhea, which is what’s especially annoying about it. 

TL;DR - people generally don’t dislike Edelgard for her morals, they generally dislike her for being a poorly written character in an extremely unsatisfying route.

also rhea did not implement a class system. crests already existed. the humans did that to themselves and she didn’t like it. that’s why she wrote scripture disavowing the class system the humans made. 

also edelgard... kept the false religion? she just put it under government control after conquering the continent under false pretenses and is later shown holding a sceptre denoting the divine right of kings. not too different from rhea pretending to be a saint, honestly. it’s almost like they’re exceptionally similar characters or something. 

[wearepaladin]

Oath of Penance: A much needed reskin for the Oath of Conquest

I was never a fan of Oath of Conquest for obviously sympathetic reasons to this blog's own but this morning had a thought for a character and the mechanics of said oath worked too well with the concept so after I failed to find an existing reskin I spent my Sunday making this! Hope this provides a more palatable alternative to those who want to play with those mechanics with out being inherently evil about it. As far as gods go, it just screams Ilmater for forgotten realms. (if you're like me and use the Greek pantheon might I suggest Arete? Or just for paladins in general really. Arete is an amazing goddess for paladins and as far as greek gods go she's probably like top 3)

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Oath of Penance

The Oath of Penance is sworn by paladins whose pasts were anything but honourable. Conquerors, murderers, and tyrants alike who learned the errors of their ways. Who seek not redemption or a return to glory and power but to atone for as much as possible while they still live with the hopes they can face death's call with heads held high. Sometimes called scarred sentinels or penitents, these paladins wear armour damaged from countless battles, making sure to preserve every mark as a reminder of the strike they've endured. These marks serve not only as reminders but also as a warning to those who would oppose the light and seek to do harm to those within the penitents reach.

  Tenets of Penance

Paladins who takes this oath are known to carry the tenets of penance upon their backs; be it in ink, scar, or brand.

       Impede The Cycle of Cruelty. Fight, but not for the sake of fighting. Make your enemies fearful, not to be feared but to teach your foe fear of their own sin and cruelty. And once they know this fear, allow them the chance to repent. For a blade can end a sinner's life but only so long as the sinner lives and remembers can they repay the favour in turn.

       Forgiveness. Forgive both others and yourself for what you have right to forgive. Forgive others so they can learn how to let go of their resentments and forgive yourself so that others can know that it can be done.

       Do Not Forget. No matter how you may be tempted to forget the darkness of your past and the worlds around you, you must remember all the same. To forget the wrongs of other is to foster cowardice and enable others to perpetuate the same wrongs without worry. And to forget your own wrongs is to undo any forgiveness you've earned thus far; as to forget is not only to shirk responsibility for your actions, but also to deprive yourself of the means to learn from those mistakes.

       Root Out The Weakness In Strength. The greatest of your foes shall respond only to the might of others. Have the power to open their ears and the wisdom to pick apart their sophistries of strength and tyranny. And should they prove beyond hope or desire of positive change, bring about their end swiftly in a way that not only prevents them from causing harm again but a way that dissuades those who would follow in their footsteps and brings whatever closure possible to their victims.

  Oath of Penance Spells

Same as the Oath of Conquest but bestow curse at 9th level is replaced with life transference (from Xanathar's Guide to Everything)

  Dread of the Guilty

You can use your Channel Divinity to evoke and amplify dread-fear in others by calling forth every wrong they've ever committed to the forefront of their minds. As an action, you force each creature of your choice that you can see within 30 feet of you to make a Wisdom saving throw. On a failed save, a creature becomes frightened of you for 1 minute. The frightened creature can repeat this saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success.

  Guided Strike

       (No fluff changes required)

You can use your Channel Divinity to strike with supernatural accuracy. When you make an attack roll, you can use your Channel Divinity to gain a +10 bonus to the roll. You make this choice after you see the roll, but before the DM says whether the attack hits or misses.

  Aura of Penitence

Starting at 7th level, while you’re not incapacitated you constantly emanate an oppressive aura like that of the sky upon the shoulders of Atlas. The aura extends 10 feet from you in every direction, but not through total cover.

       Your aura is overpowering to the unrepentant and cowardly. If a creature is frightened of you, its speed is reduced to 0 while in the aura, and that creature takes psychic damage equal to half your paladin level if it starts its turn there.

       At 18th level, the range of this aura increases to 30 feet.

  Karma of the Violent

Starting at 15th level, those who wish to harm you must be resolved to receive it in turn. Whenever a creature hits you with an attack, that creature takes psychic damage equal to your Charisma modifier (minimum of 1) if you’re not incapacitated.

  Warrior Saint

At 20th level, you gain the ability to manifest all the suffering you've endured in penance as martial ability. As an action, you can magically become an avatar of punishment, gaining the following benefits for 1 minute:

You have resistance to all damage.

When you take the Attack action on your turn, you can make one additional attack as part of that action.

Your melee weapon attacks score a critical hit on a roll of 19 or 20 on the d20.

Once you use this feature, you can’t use it again until you finish a long rest.

  ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

[kingdomofthelogos]

Waking in a New Era: Babylon Study 1

The Babylon Exile Home Study Guide Week 1

Before you read the message, spend a few moments saying the Lord’s Prayer. This week’s assigned readings are Psalm 16 and John 10:19-31. This message will be streamed on Facebook at facebook.com/jcotn and facebook.com/kingdomofthelogos along with being posted to Youtube. Feel free to use this study guide to lead worship at home.

Message: Waking in a New Era Read Daniel 1:1-13

Biblical wisdom reminds us that life-changing events happen, that calamities can emerge that take down entire cultures and redefine what it means to be alive on this earth. However, these events are not the end and God instructs us to continue living. God has constantly been telling His people to rise up, keep living, and to make vows with Him who made the heavens and the earth so that you will have the means to endure. We are going to begin studying the Babylonian Exile and how the people of God learned to persevere and do the work of God after the terrible events that destroyed Jerusalem and made all of the people of God captives and outcasts.

Our reading in Daniel 1 has two images. The first two verses give us the image of Jerusalem’s fall, where the king of God’s people fell to one of history’s most savage conquerors. The vessels of the house of God, which include the Ark of the Covenant with the Ten Commandments, were placed in a treasury of fake gods. It was a moment that was degrading and insulting for all of the people of God.

The second image is much more personal, where we find Daniel waking up in a new era. It is a moment where he must decide what man he will be now that he has been placed in a terrible situation beyond his control. We must decide who we will be in the moment that we are living in.

Wicked people will take advantage of already bad situations. Moreover, if we are not spiritually healthy, good people can be led down a dark pathway. Nebuchadnezzar was not the villain that actually started the conquest of Jerusalem that led to the dark times of the book of Daniel. It was Pharaoh Necho II who rose from Egypt and killed King Josiah and started the plummet into darkness; and this was made possible because the people of God had been unfaithful and spiritually unhealthy for generations. Nebuchadnezzar was the villain that took advantage of an already terrible situation.

This fall is the big picture of how the People of God were conquered, but the personal story of Daniel was unfolding and he had to decide if he was going to let the story of wickedness taking advantage of bad circumstances become true in his life just as it had for his nation. Daniel, being a faithful young man of God, said no to this future. Daniel was committed to God and God’s law, and he was not going to diminish his faithfulness because an official of Babylon wanted him to do otherwise.  

Ashpenaz desired for Daniel, along with the other youths, be pleasing to the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar. It is unlikely that Ashpenaz would have considered this to be defiling to Daniel, because his priorities and understanding of the world was fundamentally different from Daniel’s. However, Daniel realized that Ashpenaz’s dietary requests were more than what they appeared to be, because they were spiritually defiling.

Often in life Christian people are tempted to structure our lives by people who do not have Godly priorities and understandings of the world. These people will try to convince us to go along with whatever is suggested under the premise that such things are not a spiritual matter. However, everything we do needs to be considered with a Christian conscious if we are to be faithful believers.

Daniel is told that he will be unhealthy if he does not defile himself by surrendering to the king’s command. Furthermore, it is suggested to him that others might die if Daniel does not keep up his health by following the king’s orders. This is the argument that is sold to him in an attempt to get convince him to fully surrender to Nebuchadnezzar’s command.

There is an element of manipulation that is at play here. Do the Babylonian officials really believe the Jewish youths will starve if they eat the Jewish diet? The Jewish people have lived for hundreds of years on their diet. The fact that the Daniel is threatened with the guilt of the official’s death reveals to us how seriously the Babylonians want Daniel to fully surrender to Nebuchadnezzar. Why is this such a big deal? Because this is an issue of who is truly supreme in one’s life.

Despite all of this, Daniel resolves to act on his faith, to actually live out his faith in a manner that will have real world consequences. There will be real consequences for Daniel and those around him. Daniel’s choice will take time and patience, for the results of his faith will not be seen overnight.

We, as individuals, must decide who we will be and by whose law we will live. Daniel was willing to serve Nebuchadnezzar, and even be a blessing to Babylon while he lived there. However, he was not willing to surrender to Babylon to the extent that it caused him to defile himself. The world is perpetually asking us to defile ourselves while assuring us that it is a good thing for us to do. The only way we can wisely persevere through this moment is if we have clarity about what is Godly and what is not. Daniel can only keep himself from being defiled if he has a strong understanding of what is required of a Godly man. As we look towards the future of a new era, we must start with a firm understanding of what Godliness looks like. We may not see the results of our faith immediately, but God’s providence will be with us if we are living by His wisdom and commandments.

Discussion Questions:

1.       Where have we seen great tragedies in the past that changed how people lived?

2.       Why was it a big deal for Daniel to eat, or not eat, the king’s diet.

3.       Was Daniel’s resolve to not eat the king’s diet a leap of faith, or do you think he was certain that the traditional Jewish diet was sufficient?

4.       When in life do we make decisions of faith where we do not no see immediate results from our faith?

[casbooks]

Title: Sea Harrier Over the Falklands: The Black Death

Authors: Nigel MacCartan-Ward

ISBN: 9781937860400

Tags: A-4 Skyhawk, Aircraft Carrier, ARG ARA Argentine Navy (Armada de la República Argentina), ARG ARA General Belgrano, ARG ARA Narwal, ARG ARA Santa Fe (S-21), ARG FAA Argentine Air Force (Fuerza Aérea Argentina), Aviation, Avro Vulcan, Battle of Mount Tumbledown (Falklands), Boeing 707, Britannia Royal Naval College Dartmouth, Canberra B.2, F-15 Eagle, F-4 Phantom, F-5 Freedom Fighter, Falklands War (1982), Fishing Trawler, FLK Choiseul Sound, FLK Falklands, FLK Goose Green, FLK Port Stanley, FLK Port Stanley Airport, FLK San Carlos Bay, FLK South Georgia, Harrier GR.3, IA 58 Pucara, LearJet, LSL Sir Tristram, Mirage III, Mirage V Dagger, Operation Black Buck (Falklands War), Operation Corporate, Operation Corporate (Falklands War), Operation Paraquet/Paraquat (Falklands War), Operation Sutton (Falklands War), RAF HCU Harrier Conversion Unit, Raid on Pebble Island (Falklands War), SA 330 Puma, Sea Harrier FRS1, Submarine, Super Etendard, UK BA British Army, UK BA Scots Guards, UK BA Welsh Guards, UK RAF Alconbury, UK RAF No 1(F) Sqd, UK RAF Royal Air Force, UK RAF Wittering, UK RFA Resource (A480), UK RFA Royal Fleet Auxiliary, UK RFA Sir Galahad (L3005}, UK RFA Sir Tristram (L3505), UK RM 3 Commando Brigade, UK RM Royal Marines, UK RN Audacious-class aircraft Carrier, UK RN Centaur-class Aircraft Carrier, UK RN Churchill-Class Nuclear Submarine, UK RN County-Class Destroyer, UK RN FAA 700A Naval Air Sqd (Trials Unit), UK RN FAA 764 Naval Air Sqd (Air Warfare Instructor School)Argentine Air Force, UK RN FAA 800 Naval Air Sqd, UK RN FAA 801 Naval Air Sqd, UK RN FAA 820 Naval Air Sqd (ASW), UK RN FAA 892 Naval Air Sqd, UK RN FAA 899 Naval Air Headquarters Training Squadron, UK RN FAA Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm, UK RN HMS Alacrity (F174), UK RN HMS Antelope (F170), UK RN HMS Antrim (D18), UK RN HMS Ardent (F184), UK RN HMS Argonaut (F56), UK RN HMS Ark Royal (R09), UK RN HMS Arrow (F173), UK RN HMS Avenger (F185), UK RN HMS Brilliant (F90), UK RN HMS Broadsword (F88), UK RN HMS Cardiff (D108), UK RN HMS Conqueror (S48), UK RN HMS Coventry (D118), UK RN HMS Exeter (D89), UK RN HMS Glamorgan(D19), UK RN HMS Glasgow (D88), UK RN HMS Hermes (R12), UK RN HMS Invincible (R05), UK RN HMS Minerva (F45), UK RN HMS Plymouth (F126), UK RN HMS Sheffield (D80), UK RN HMS Yarmouth (F101), UK RN Invincible-class Aircraft Carrier, UK RN Leander-Class Frigate, UK RN Rothesay-Class Frigate, UK RN Royal Navy, UK RN Type 21 Frigate, UK RN Type 22 Frigate, UK RN Type 42 Guided Missile Destroyer, UK RNAS Brawdy, UK RNAS Yeovilton, UK SS Atlantic Conveyor, UK SS SS Canberra, USAF 527th Tactical Fighter Training and Aggressor Sqd, USAF Aggressor Sqd, USN Balao-class submarine, USN Brooklyn-Class Cruiser, USS Catfish (SS-339), USS Phoenix (CL-46)

Subject: Books.Military.20th-21st Century.Americas.Falklands War

Description: This intriguing book takes you to war in the cockpit of a fighter aircraft. It is more than an authoritative, first-hand and detailed account of the air war in the Falklands, 1982. Indeed, it is a real life and very exciting adventure story in which the author ‘calls a spade a spade’; revealing both the successes and the failures of the British air campaign.

The reader will gain an intimate insight into the persona of the Royal Navy fighter pilot which differs vastly from that of his RAF peers. That persona is aggressive, completely dedicated, thoroughly professional and pays no regard to “Crew duty times”. As a fully integrated part of the Naval Service, it achieves continued success in combat and has done so on behalf of the British public for the last 100 years of British carrier operations overseas.

Sharkey Ward commanded 801 Naval Air Squadron, HMS Invincible, during the Falklands War of April to June 1982 and was senior Sea Harrier adviser to the Command on the tactics, direction and progress of the air war. He flew over sixty war missions, achieved three air-to-air kills and took part in or witnessed a total of ten kills; he was also the leading night pilot and was decorated with the Distinguished Service Cross for gallantry.

Those are the bare facts, though they do no sort of justice to this remarkable and outspoken book, nor to its author. For what, after all, could twenty Sea Harriers, operating from a flight-deck bucketing about in the South Atlantic, do against more than 200 Argentine military aircraft flown by pilots who, as the raids against British shipping proved, displayed enormous skill and gallantry? The world knows the answer now; as it knows the debt owed to the author and his fellow flyers. What is puzzling, therefore, is this book's truthful depiction of the attitudes of some of the senior non-flying naval officers and of the RAF towards the men (and indeed the machine) that made possible the victory in the Falklands.

This extraordinary first-hand account charts the naval pilots' journey to the South Atlantic in clear and forthright detail and how they took on and triumphantly conquered the challenges they faced. It is a dramatic story, leavened with brilliant accounts of air-to-air fighting and of life in a squadron at sea and on a war footing. But it is also a tale of inter-Service rivalry, bureaucratic interference and the less-than-generous attitudes of a number of senior commanders who should certainly have known better; indeed, some of them might even have lost the campaign through a lack of understanding of air warfare— particularly if all their instructions had been followed to the letter and without question. The author puts the record straight.

For those who would like to know more about the iconic history of the Harrier jump jet and the appalling decisions that led to the misguided withdrawal of this aircraft from British service, this book provides the answers: especially within the Epilogue.

Admiral Sir ‘Sandy’ Woodward GBE KCB records his impressions of the book as follows:

'Maverick' he may have been, I know he enjoys the description, but if I were able to change anything in Sharkey's book, it would be to say that the short but complimentary quote of his captain, JJ Black, saying "he made a significant personal contribution to the defeat of the enemy" greatly understated Sharkey's contribution. And if I were to add anything in the way of general comment on Sea Harrier performance in 1982, it would be to say "Land forces usually claim that they are the only people who can win wars but without the Sea Harriers the land forces wouldn't have even have been given a chance to win the land battle in 1982".

Book Cover Illustration: A pair of Sea Harriers over the Falklands, 1982. They were christened “The Black Death” (La Muerte Negra) by the Argentine media during the war. **

[dustydahlin]

Beloved - Your New Identity in Christ!

Subject: A look at our new identity as Beloved. How a closer look at this biblical identity statement can draw us into a deeper relationship with God.

This is going to be exciting! Today, we will be discussing our identity as the Beloved of God. I am excited about this because an appropriate teaching on our identity as Beloved requires a discussion on what I believe is one of the Bible’s deepest topics. A topic that gives life, changes lives, and sustains the soul through life’s most difficult times.

But before we dive in, I want to disclose the purpose of this study. I believe that God has a word for us. I believe God has given this study as a Word that is intended to be more than positive affirmations and personal declarations. I believe that God desires to lead us into deeper experiences. I pray that this is more than just another identity lesson. Something more than just information that creates positive feelings. This teaching, I believe, can truly baptize the heart into the rich joy of God’s goodness.

That being said, let us begin with a recap of what we have already learned about a biblical understanding of our identity in Christ. In the Bible, the believer’s new identity is presented to reveal much more than something about us. It is divinely inspired to communicate more than just personal professions of WHO WE ARE. It highlights a deeper truth. The Bible presents our new identity in such a way as to demonstrate something specific about God – the Giver of identity. Also, each identity statement reveals a specific expectation of God for his people. This is what Douglas Buckwalter says:

“These names are rich in theological detail. The giving of personal names in biblical times often signified a religious conviction about their recipients or something that would be done through these people. The giving of Christian names, likewise, expresses something about the religious status and character of the person and group named and something about what God has done, is doing, and will do in and through them. These names, in effect, provide us with a first-century compendium of Christian belief."​

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It should become more and more evident to us that the Bible, first and foremost, points us to God. It reveals His actions, His desires, and His covenant faithfulness to His people. The same thing is revealed through the Believer’s identity. We must first ask, "what does this say about God?”

Secondly, we must ask the question, “What does this require of us?” These biblical designations also highlight Heaven’s expectation for God’s people. Each name, statement, and designation shows something different. Each one is unique. There are around 175 different identity statements in the New Testament alone (Douglas Buckwalter). Each one of these communicates a specific revelation about God and about what is expected of God’s people. Of Beloved, we must ask the same thing. What expectation does this communicate of us?

This being said, let us address the answer to our first question…

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Theological Implications - What does this say about God?

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It should be obvious that our identity as Beloved emphasizes the love of God. The rich, infinite, and lavish love of God. I believe this, as alluded to earlier, is the deepest topic in the entire Bible. God’s love. This is nothing short of breathtaking. It is not indifferent. It is not cold. It is not distant. It is not without emotion. The fact of God’s love is one of the most life-changing and sustaining pools in which we can dunk our thirsty hearts.

And yet, sadly, it seems this has become a platitude. We have heard it said so many times. We have said it so many times. We have read it so many times. It can be very easy to forget how precious and profound it is. God is restlessly concerned about us. He is attentive and active in His care for us. Our God pursues us.

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​1 John 4:8 tells us that “God is love.” Love is an integral part of God’s character. It motivates His actions, and it guides His decisions. So loving is God, the Psalmists, the Prophets, and the Apostles seem incapable of separating love from all that God is. God’s love was seen through creation. He created a beautiful and perfect universe for mankind. As a Master Craftsman, He fashioned the world as the perfect place in which to have a relationship with His Beloved – those created in His image. God’s love was seen when His Beloved fell in Eden. They, not He, brought death into the world. They scratched the surface of a perfect canvas. They tore the fabric within the frame of God’s plan. And yet, God’s love was seen in His actions to restore mankind. His love was seen in the gracious historical movement of redemption. As He moved His Beloved back to a right relationship with Himself, God’s love was seen. With the work of Christ, God’s love is seen in the eventual crescendo of recreating the heavens and the earth. God is love.

Rom. 8: 35-39, “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? … No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God.”

Our Identity as Beloved further illustrates this. We are Beloved of God. God loves us! This tells us that God is love. It communicates the loving commitment of God to us. It reveals a God that is active in His care and concern for people. He chose it; He dispenses it. It informs us that love comes from a personal God. He offers His affections to all that would receive it.

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​Rom. 5:1-5, “… Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God… and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.”

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Finally, our identity as Beloved emphasizes two primary concepts. First, it conveys God as being the loving Groom. This is absolutely a picture of closeness, intimacy, and tender affection. In the Old Testament, the Hebrew for “beloved” is ‏דּוֹד (dowd). It can be seen about 32 times in Song of Solomon. The symbolism of this Old Testament Scripture grants us a glimpse into the Heart of God for His Beloved. God’s love for His Beloved (the Bride of Christ) is greater than any earthly love possibly imagined. Even the sweetest and most romantic of earthly loves pale in comparison.

Secondly, this reveals the love of a Father for His children. In the New Testament, the title of Beloved (ἀγαπητός - agapētos) is associated with the eternal love of the Father for the Son. It is also used of God’s love for His children. In Ephesians 5:1-2, Believers are affectionately described as “beloved children” having received the most lavish gift of love imaginable – the substitutionary sacrifice of Messiah. God is truly a loving Father to His children. He is protective. He is generous. He is nurturing. He is unconditionally caring.

1 John 3: 1-2, “See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are… Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.”

Identifying Christians as Beloved reveals the extravagant love of God. Now that we have answered the question of what it says about God, let us attempt to answer the question of what it requires of us!

Practical Expectations - How does our new identity as beloved instruct us?

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Now that you know you are Beloved of God. Now that you have had a brief glimpse into the depths of God’s love. Now let us look at heaven’s expectation for us! This particular designation infers that we “be loved.” Being the Beloved of the Lord, we are to celebrate and rest in that love. Having drunk deep of the waters of God’s love, we now get to treasure it. We are to allow that constant stream to regularly flow over us.

This is one of my favorite passages:

Eph. 3:17-19 says, “so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith— that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God." 

Wow! Speaking to a people that already have the Spirit of Christ dwelling richly in their hearts, this Sacred Text tells us to root ourselves in love. We are to rest upon the foundation of God’s love. This is a place where we can send out our roots into the nutrient-rich soil of God’s boundless loving-kindness. I submit that our first response to the love of God is that of rest and celebration. Being Beloved, we are to treasure, cherish, and rest in that precious reality.

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When God delivered His people from their bondage in Egypt, it revealed God’s love. He had not forgotten about His people. It was nothing less than a demonstration of God’s love and faithfulness. But it did not stop there. Not long after delivering the Hebrews from slavery, God commanded the most peculiar thing. In Leviticus 23, God gave a directive. God spoke and commanded His people. With great authority, God instructed His people to regularly rest and celebrate. God instituted seven festivals and celebrations that were to be regularly engaged. They were intended to train His people to rest in, and celebrate, what God had done, is doing, and will do. Israel was His Beloved! He desired His people to rest in His love and celebrate His covenant faithfulness. From God’s perspective, these festivals were to train His people to trust him and to remember His goodness. It was to provoke their hearts to worship. But from the Israelites’ perspective, it became "just another command.” It was just another thing. It was something they had to do. In this passage, we can conclude that rest and celebration are God’s design.

Often, I wonder if we do the same. I wonder if the ocean-silencing love of God has become a platitude. I wonder if it has become just another teaching. Just another sermon. Just another passing phrase. I wonder if we, also, forget to rest in (and celebrate) our God. Like Israel, we are God’s Beloved! He loves us intensely!

The Ephesians 3 passage is one of my favorite passages. It is so profound, and it is so simple. It also shows us that establishing ourselves in God’s love leads us deeper. As we root and establish our hearts and minds in the love of God, we position ourselves “to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.” This is something that we can train ourselves to do. With the Help of the Spirit, we can train ourselves to rest in and celebrate God’s love. As we go. As we work our 9-to-5’s. As we struggle to pay our bills. As we work through broken relationships. As we sludge through the waters of loneliness. As we stare at the towering wall of discouragement. We can train ourselves to rest and celebrate. On the fly, wherever we are, we can make intentional and conscious efforts to pray, meditate, worship, fast, and thank God! We can utilize the spiritual disciplines to train ourselves to rest in God’s love. We are, after all, His beloved. We are vessels of His affection. There is ALWAYS something for which to be thankful!

Lastly, as Beloved children, we are to imitate the Love of God. Ephesians 5:1-2 says this, “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” As we train our hearts to meditate upon this great love, we allow the loving example of our Heavenly Father to seep into the very fabric of our being. As we train to establish ourselves in Christ’s love, we learn to walk after the pattern of our God. As God’s beloved children, we are to look up to the example of our father. Being Beloved of God implies that we will live lives of outrageous love, as we have seen from our Father. As we have been loved, so shall we love others.

1 John 4: 7-11, “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.”

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“To love someone means to see him as God intended him” (Fyodor Dostoevsky).

“I am persuaded that love and humility are the highest attainments in the school of Christ and the brightest evidences that He is indeed our Master” (John Newton).

“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (Jesus of Nazareth).

Additional Recommendations:

Militant Thankfulness: An Essential Practice to Experiencing a Full Spiritual Life (my book)

Bibles

Crazy Love!

How Happiness Happens

Grace: More Than We Deserve, Greater Than We Imagine