This chapter briefly outlines how a Tara practitioner might structure his or her daily meditation. Upon awakening, one rejoices in the advent of another day. Many people die unexpectedly in the night, but now there is at least one more day, filled with limitless spiritual opportunities. One then reflects on samsaric conditions and generates compassion and love for all beings, holding them all equal to one’s own mother in loving kindness, rejoicing in any virtue they have created and in the happiness it brings them.

Knowing that without the support of practice, one has little power in the face of samsaric delusion, one then takes refuge in Tara and prays that her blessings will flow as a pervasive current during this day and that benefit will be created through every activity of body, speech and mind. The vows of refuge and bodhichitta may be stated in the words of the Tara text or in one’s own words, but it is useful to allow time to contemplate and pray in this way rather than to jump out of bed and rush heedlessly into ordinary activity.

Sunrise and sunset, when the sky is red, are particularly powerful times to perform Red Tara practice. One may wish to do one’s first formal meditation session early in the morning. For many Tara practitioners, a personal shrine becomes a focal point of meditation. This is not difficult to create. A traditional shrine would include an image of the deity (a photograph, statue or painting), seven water offering bowls set out in a straight line and an arrangement of special offerings of incense, flowers, food, tea and candles or butterlamps. Other items such as photographs of one’s lamas and dharma gifts one has received could also find a place on the shrine. Texts should occupy a shelf above the shrine if possible, or at least in a high place and never on the floor.

In the morning one opens the shrine by filling the water bowls left to right, lighting incense and a candle, as well as offering tea (or alcohol) and food in a small glass and dish. (It is best to make fresh tea and to keep a special bag of cookies or other food used only for this purpose.) One recites Om Ah Hung as these offerings of substance are multiplied without limit through mantra and visualization. The water is visualized as billowing clouds of pure offerings and qualities that are presented to all the buddhas and bodhisattvas, particularly to Red Tara and her retinue of twenty Taras. They receive these offerings with great rejoicing, and their blessings shower on the practitioner and all sentient beings.

Similarly, incense is imagined to pervade the universe with a delightful scent that purifies sickness and obscuration and expresses the perfect discipline of the dharma. Light becomes complete illumination, and when one offers flowers, they fill all of samsara and nirvana with loveliness and with pleasure in their beauty. Food and drink are transformed into nectar, absolutely satisfying.

During the day one adds to the offering a bit of one’s own food and drink as nectar to all wisdom beings before one partakes of them, then imagines that they are returned as wisdom blessings andnourishment to all.

There are many profound teachings on the nature of offerings, especially as related to Tara practice. However, the essential point is to make offerings with the supreme generosity characteristic of Tara. Such generosity creates a foundation of nonattachment and open awareness that increases the accumulations of both merit and pristine awareness.

At night one empties the water bowls, right to left, dries them and turns them upside down. At bedtime one reflects on the day, honestly assessing one’s conduct of body, speech and mind. Visualizing Tara in front, one expresses remorse for any downfalls, vows not to repeat them and then receives the radiance of Tara’s blessing. Whatever virtue one has created is dedicated to the welfare of all beings with the wish that all will find enlightenment equal to Tara’s own.

Then one reflects on impermanence and prays that if death should occur in the night, Tara will be one’s guide in the bardo so that the path to liberation will not be lost either in that transition or in future lifetimes. The two-line Jetzun Prayer is then recited at least seven times.

If one has had Tara dream yoga instructions, dream meditation should be undertaken just before sleep.

These daily practices—outlined here very briefly and simply—have a profound effect because they are the means by which the practitioner continually invokes Tara’s blessings. Like the sun’s display of rainbow light in a crystal, Tara’s blessings activate the radiant reality of one’s innate buddha nature.\

May it be so for all beings.