There are boundless virtues in cultivating and increasing one’s faith. It is the foundation for all virtuous practice.

It clears away all the sufferings of cyclic existence and is the first step on the path to liberation. As a result of your faith, the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas will constantly keep you in mind. You will have a sense of shame, a sense of decency, and wisdom. In all your lives, as soon as you are born, you will meet a sublime teacher, the sacred teachings, and spiritual companions, and you will thus be able to practice the Dharma. You will be protected by those gods who delight in virtue. Falling asleep peacefully, in your dreams too you will have pleasant visions of encountering your teacher and the Three Jewels and practicing the Dharma, and you will wake in a happy frame of mind.

You will accomplish all your wishes and die peacefully, guided by the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. You will have none of the terrifying experiences of the intermediate state. You will be reborn wherever your aspirations lead you, and uphold the lineage of the Three Jewels. Swiftly, you will attain Buddhahood. Such are the infinite benefits of having faith, as we read in the Sutra of the Precious Lamp:

Though for kalpas one might venerate beings
Numerous as the atoms of the universes in the ten directions,
Bringing them every kind of happiness, In comparison, nothing is more sublime Than the merit of faith in this Dharma.

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A Torch Lighting the Way to Freedom
Complete Instructions on the Preliminary Practice of the Profound and Secret Heart Essence of the Dakini
Dudjom Rinpoche, Jigdral Yeshe Dorje
Translated by the Padmakara Translation Group
Published by Shambhala Publication