Second, developing the enlightened mind is as follows.

From now until samsara becomes empty, I will strive for the benefit and happiness of sentient beings, who have all been my mothers.

The categories of bodhichitta according to the strength of capacities are as follows.

To have the wish first to achieve liberation for oneself and then to benefit all parent sentient beings is the bodhichitta that is like a king. To strive diligently to bring oneself and all parent sentient beings to the state of liberation together, like bringing all the passengers on a ship along with oneself together across the sea, is the bodhichitta that is like a sea captain. To cherish others more than oneself, wishing first to liberate all beings from the suffering of cyclic existence, and then to attain the state of liberation oneself, like a shepherd who protects animals such as cattle and sheep from the fear of wild predators by taking care of the needs of the herd before considering himself, is the unsurpassed bodhichitta that is like a shepherd. In this way, embracing any of these three attitudes according to the strength of one’s mind is as said:

Skillful in giving the vow-bestowing ceremony, And personally upholding whatever vow is being conferred, The preceptor who gives the vows must have compassion and patience. The supreme noble Lama who has these qualities should be recognized.

A Cascading Waterfall of Nectar
by Thinley Norbu
Shambhala Publishing

 

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First, there is refuge.
Then, the lower objects of refuge are as follows. As said in the sutras:

All people who are overcome by fear will mostly seek refuge in mountains, forests, and groves of trees. Those objects of refuge are not ultimate, for in depending on them, there is no freedom from all forms of fear.

As said, mountains, trees, forests, kings, ministers, the wealthy, worldly gods, powerful lords of the earth, and so on, are the lower objects of refuge. Why is this so? This is because each one of them is still not free from their own form of fear. The supremely sublime objects of refuge are the Three Jewels. As Loppon Chenpo Padmasambhava said:

No matter how excellent a worldly leader may seem, he will deceive you.
The holy objects of refuge, the Three Jewels, are deceitless.

Thus it is said.

The main object of refuge is the pure aspect of the essential nature, which is from the beginning the stainless Dharmakaya; the pure aspect of freedom from temporary obscuration, the immeasurable appearances of the qualities of Dharmakaya, as the Sambhogakaya; and the manifestation of these Sambhogakaya appearances in the realms of sentient beings to guide them, the Nirmanakaya. These are the Three Kayas. Although these Three Kayas appear separately from the aspects of their qualities, they are actually indivisible as Svabhavikakaya, or Vajrakaya, which is the fourth Kaya.

The unobstructed appearance of all qualities of existence and enlightenment is mirrorlike wisdom.  No matter how diverse the wisdom manifestation of existence and enlightenment may appear to be, whatever arises, there is actually not even a subtle particle of goodness or negativity. Because the qualities of the nature of the basis and the way of appearing are the great nature of purity and evenness, it is the wisdom of equanimity. The appearances of the oceanlike realms of the phenomena of existence and enlightenment are nonconceptual yet simultaneously and undistortedly known. This is the wisdom of discernment.  Buddha’s simultaneous wish-fulfilling activity occurs effortlessly as whatever is needed to benefit sentient beings, pervading everywhere according to time and place without anything missing, and it is always self-accomplished. This is the wisdom of all- accomplishing activity. These are the Four Kayas and the five wisdoms.

 

A Cascading Waterfall of Nectar
by Thinley Norbu
Shambhala Publishing