Now we come to the last paragraph, the conclusion, of this chapter. Here Tsongkhapa discusses the various signs one will experience when one achieves a yogic response. When one's Personal Deity is extremely fond of one, what kind of signs will one experience? Also, what are the signs when one's Personal Deity does not like one? In other words, what will one be like when one achieves a yogic response in cultivation, and, conversely, how can one tell that there is no yogic response? Tsongkhapa has made it very clear here. One only needs to refer to this passage to find out if one has achieved yogic response.

"A Lessening of Hunger and Thirst" --- One very rarely feels hunger and thirst. Right now I feel thirsty, but since this thirst is a result of talking too much, it should not be construed as a sign of a lack of yogic response. It refers to a state wherein one seldom feels hunger or thirst. In Tantric cultivation, it is possible for a highly accomplished adept to subsist without eating or drinking. Because when he opens his mouth, there will be the instilling of the celestial form of food and drink into his mouth. By consuming this Dharma Taste, one seldom feels hunger or thirst. One will not feel any hunger pangs or the urge to wolf down foods of the world.

"Recovery from Illnesses" --- When one attains a yogic response, one's illnesses will be healed. It seems that Mei-chin [a student present] here rarely gets hungry or thirsty, yet she gains weight easily. She doesn't eat much at all during normal meals, I don't know if she munches on snacks. In any case, the signs of yogic response are that one seldom feels the urge to eat or drink and is also healed of one's illnesses.

"Articulation of Words of Wisdom" --- Words uttered by someone who has achieved yogic response are full of wisdom. As soon as one opens one's mouth, words of great wisdom come forth. Suddenly one is able to understand many of the things one did not understand before. One becomes very intelligent and eloquent. When one speaks, words of Enlightenment issue forth. "Engendering of Light and Firm Faith" --- One's faith becomes very firm and strong. No matter what happens, one is unwavering in one's faith. There is light in one's body and a glow to one's face due to the engendering of power and light from within.

"Good Dreams" --- Every time one dreams, one has good and auspicious dreams. "Clairvoyant Dreams" --- One develops prescient dreams. Things one dreams will become true.

"Increasing Joy in Chanting" --- Every time one does the practice, one feels very joyful. If one feels weary of the practice, it indicates that something is wrong. A person who has attained a yogic response will experience increasing joy and dharma bliss with each practice. For example, each time that I do a group practice with everyone, I am able to invoke the light to shine on me, and light also shines forth from within myself. There is merging of the lights. This kind of luminous and buoyant Dharma Taste is very remarkable, which is why one enjoys it very much.

One won't say, "Ai-ya! It is group cultivation day again? I am so busy. I don't feel like going! My legs are getting so sore. Every time I do the practice and close my eyes, I feel like taking a nap, and my mind goes off into wild flights of fancy. Sitting there for almost an hour, I have no idea what I am doing! I am so tired and them is just no fun at all! We should abolish group practices. Why don't we replace it with a session of popular music, and Grand Master can sing the popular song, Love Forgetting Water, for us. Can't we have some fun together? Wouldn't an hour of group entertainment be more fun?"

No, a person with yogic response will not think this way. One feels instead an escalating joy in chanting and doing practice. When one meditates, one is clearing away one's karmic hindrances. When one practices a session of group cultivation, one should congratulate oneself because it is tantamount to making a giant step forward on the pathway towards Sukhavati and the Pure Land. This experience of increasing joy in doing practice is a sign of yogic response.

"One Seldom Feels Tired and there is Fragrance in One's Body." --- One feels an abundance of energy and rarely gets tired. Also, one's body exudes a fragrance. Let me tell you, this is indeed true. A cultivator's body often exudes a kind of natural fragrance. The quality of odor of a spiritual cultivator who has attained yogic response is unlike that of ordinary people. Sometimes when people come to consult me in my personal shrine, I have to hold my breath. Their body odor smells almost like that of a hippie who has not taken a bath for several months. The presence of offensive and terrible body odors indicates heavy karmic hindrances.

Let me tell you, many students have written to me, and I can tell what kind of illnesses they have as soon as I smell their letters. When I pick up a letter and give it a sniff, I know if it was written by someone, say with mental illness. Letters written by mentally ill persons are strongly suffused with the odor of mental illness. Almost every letter has its own specific kind of odor, which is not ballpoint ink odor, but rather an odor that is a result of the combination of his mental condition, written words, and chi attached to the letter. When I pick up a letter and give it a sniff, I can tell right away what kind of person has written the letter and what kind of illnesses he has. I am very sensitive!

An accomplished spiritual cultivator is very sensitive. When he comes into contact with an object, he can tell right away the history of the owner, the spiritual level, and even the kind of illnesses afflicting him. All kinds of things in a person's past, present, and future can be revealed through a piece of paper to an adept. Even more is revealed by having a person coming physically in front of him.

An accomplished spiritual cultivator does not get tired and his entire body exudes light and fragrance. There is something about his face that ultimately distinguishes him from worldly people who are only concerned with material and economic gain. Indeed, there are telltale signs on one's face which give one away if one is a drinker or gambler, or if one is greedy, hot-tempered, stubborn, or ignorant. In any case, a spiritual cultivator who has attained yogic response rarely becomes fatigued and his body exudes light and fragrance.

"Enjoys Doing Meritorious Deeds" --- As soon as a spiritual cultivator hears about merit-producing deeds, he or she will happily go and do them. "Respect and Devotion to one's Personal Deity" --- Such a spiritual cultivator is constantly mindful of one's Personal Deity and Root Guru. For example, I am very respectful and devoted to the Golden Mother of the Jade Pond, Amitabha, and Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva. I am constantly mindful of them. I also am very respectful and mindful of Yamantaka, my Root Dharma Protector. This is a sign of having yogic response with them. If one does not have yogic response, would one care to center one's thoughts around them? Instead of constantly being mindful of one's Personal Deity, one will go to seek pleasure elsewhere and forget about the Personal Deity. One is only reminded of the Personal Deity when one comes home and sees the personal shrine still standing there.

Therefore, respect and cherish the Personal Deities and stay with them constantly. The Yamantaka is constantly with me and I am constantly mindful of him. He is my shadow, and there is no separation between me and my shadow. I am together with and not separated from the Golden Mother, Amitabha, and Ksitigarbha. When abiding in such a state of devotion to the Personal Deities, one enters into a yogic response with them. This is also a sign of achieving yogic response through mantra chanting.

What, therefore, are the signs of non-yogic response? According to the text, these include not having faith in one's Personal Deity and not focusing one's mind on one's Personal Deity. When one keeps such a great distance from the Personal Deity, how can one enter into yogic response with him?

One is very "lazy." As I have said earlier, one would try to find excuses so to avoid having to go to group cultivation. "They are doing a Repentance Ceremony this Saturday, I am going to skip it." All of a sudden, it is stomach ache, leg pain, headache or a cold. Anyway, one always has something to do every day of the year, and one can therefore excuse oneself every time. "Afflicted with Hunger and Thirst" --- All of a sudden, one is hungry and thirsty. For example, at the work place, there are people who go to the bathroom every ten minutes. There is this Chinese folk saying: people who slack off often frequent the bathroom." One either has to urinate or relieve the bowel. There is not much time left to do real work after all these bathroom visits. We almost had to close down our "mail center" due to these "afflictions with hunger and thirst." All of a sudden, one wants a cup of coffee or a snack.

While writing the talisman, one also picks at the raisins one by one. Many people are behaving this way, getting distracted while writing replies to letters, and it takes them a long time to finish one. When the snacks are almost gone, they go to the refrigerator to find another box to munch on. This is being "afflicted with hunger and thirst." "Sluggishness" --- One goes through one's day in a daze, not knowing what one is doing exactly. This is a sign that one has not attained any yogic response."Escalating Worries" --- One has increasing worries. The original goal of cultivation is to eradicate worries; if one is having more and more worries, what kind of cultivation has one been doing? If one has been doing it correctly, the more one practices, the less worried one becomes. The feeling that one has more worries simply means that one has not achieved any yogic response!

"Indecisive" --- One hesitates about everything and cannot handle affairs in a decisive manner.

When faced with a problem, one asks for guidance, not once, but every single day, three hundred sixty five times, and still cannot make up one's mind. This is a sign that one has not achieved yogic response. "Does Not Enjoy Chanting and Meditating" --- One does not like chanting or meditation. One is not able to derive pleasure from these practices. "Enjoys Idle Talk" --- That's right! Just as I said earlier, one actually gets more joy out of listening to and singing popular songs such as "Holding Your Hand" and "Train Station." And one enjoys talking idly, dragging in all sorts of irrelevant matters.

"Doing Things that One is Not Supposed to Be Doing" --- Engaging in actions that sow discord.

"Demons like to attach to one." --- Demons like to visit because they find a good friend in one.

"Having nightmares" --- Every night, one talks and yells in dreams because they are inauspicious and disturbing. All of a sudden, one murders or is being murdered; one falls down a cliff or one's boat capsizes. All one's dreams are nightmares.

The above are signs that the Personal Deity has abandoned one. As a Tantric cultivator, one is supposed to be praying to one's Personal Deity and to visualize the Personal Deity during each practice. Now the Personal Deity does not like one and has departed. Why? Because one has not been doing things right. Therefore, the Personal Deity does not like one and has abandoned the cultivator. He feels that one is not cultivating correctly. As a matter of fact, one has basically not been doing any spiritual cultivation at all. That is why the Personal Deity has abandoned one --- a sign that there is no yogic response.

When these phenomena happen, according to our Tantric rules, one has to quickly do "repentance practices." Repent for the transgressions one has committed through body, mind, and speech. Continue doing the repentance practices until the Personal Deity manifests to forgive one and touch one's head. Then one may resume the original practice and continue working on it until the auspicious phenomena and signs of yogic response appear.

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