Homage to the 21 Taras
Om, to Jetsun Arya Tara I bow down.
Homage to Tara, the Tare swift heroine,
Whose mantra Tuttare dispels all chaos,
And Ture, which fulfills all needs.
Svaha! To Tara I bow down.
Homage, Tara, swift, heroic,
Eyes like lightning instantaneous,
Sprung from opening stamens
Of the lord of the three worlds' lotus face.
Homage, she whose face combines
A hundred autumn moons at fullest!
Blazing with light rays resplendent
As a thousand constellations!
Homage, Golden One, blue lotus
Water-born, in hand adorned,
Giving, effort, calm, austerities,
Patience, Mediation her field.
Homage, Crown of Tathagatas,
She who goes in endless triumph,
Honored much by Bodhisattvas,
Having reached every perfection.
Homage, filling with Tuttara-Hung
The regions and space quarters,
Trampling with her feet the seven worlds,
Able to draw forth all beings.
Homage, worshipped by the all-lords,
Shakra, Agni, Brahma, Marut,
Honored by the hosts of spirits,
Corpse-raisers, gandharvas, yakshas.
Homage, with her Trat and Phet sounds,
Crusher of foes' magic diagrams,
Placing her feet left out, right back,
Eyes all full of blazing fire.
Homage, Ture, very dreadful,
Destroyer of Mara's champion,
She with frowning lotus visage
Is slayer of all enemies.
Homage, she adorned with fingers
At her heart, in Three-Jewel mudra,
Her glorious wheel fills all directions
With great masses of her own light.
Homage, she of swelling great joy,
Diadem emitting garlands,
Mirthful, laughing with Tuttare,
Subjugating maras, devas.
Homage, she able to summon
All earth-guardians and their trains,
Shaking, frowning with Her HUNG-sign,
Saving from every misfortune.
Homage, crowning locks adorned
With crescent diadem most shining,
From her hair-knot Amitabha
Shining with great light eternal.
Homage, she mid wreath of flames
Like aeon-ending fire abiding,
Right leg outstretched, joy-producing,
Destroying the troops of enemies.
Homage, she who smites the ground
With her palm, and with her foot beats it,
Frowning, with the letter HUNG
The seven underworlds she shatters.
Homage, happy, virtuous, peaceful,
She whose field is peace, nirvana,
She endowed with Om and Soha,
Destroyer of the greatest evils.
Homage, she bound round with joy,
Tearing foes' bodies asunder,
Luminous with the HUNG mantra,
Word-array of the ten-syllables.
Homage, Swift One, the foot-stomper,
With for seed the letter HUNG's shape,
She who shakes the triple world
And Meru, Mandara and Kailash.
Homage, She in whose hand rests
A deer-marked moon, of deva-lake form,
With twice-spoken Tara and Phet,
Totally dispelling poison.
Homage, She whom god-host rulers,
Gods and Kinnaras do honor,
Joy-producing one, Her splendor
Conflicts and bad dreams dispelling.
Homage, She whose eyes are bright
With radiance of sun and full moon,
With twice Hara and Tuttare
Driver-out of chronic fever.
Homage, full of liberating power
By set of three realities,
Crushing crowds of spirits, yakshas,
And corpse-raisers, Supreme, Ture!
This is the praise with basic Mantra,
The Twenty-one Great Homages.
Dedication
Through this virtue may I swiftly achieve
The glorious state of Arya Tara,
And may all sentient beings without exception
Be placed in that very state.
