[The Key that Unlocks the Door to the Noble Path (Lam bzang sgo ...

KYANG MED, MA MTHAR BZHUGS GNAS DANG ZHABS PHYI DU TZAM
'KHRID TSUN CHAD KYANG RJE BTZUN LA ZHU GNANG GIS BKA' LTAR
MDZAD PA RED,
We do see some people who think otherwise: that our Lord Lama was able to
write his various treatises merely out of some scholastic skill and moral depth.
The truth though is that there is not a single example in all the writings of Lord
Tsongkapa—no single treatise, great or small—that was not spoken by Gentle
Voice himself. Lord Tsongkapa consulted Gentle Voice in every single thing he
did, and followed the instructions he was given—even down to where he should
stay, and how many attendants he should take with him when he went
somewhere.
MDO SNGAGS KYI ZAB GNAD KHYAD PAR CAN SNGAR GYI MKHAS PA
KUN GYIS MA RTOGS PA THAMS CAD KYANG RJE BLA MAS GTAN LA
PHAB NAS GSUNGS, DE YANG RJE BTZUN GYI GSUNG LAS RJE BLA MA
RANG NYID KYIS 'OL TSOD DU GSUNGS PA GTAN NAS MED,
This Lord of Lamas was able to make definitive explanations of every deep and
vital point in both the open and secret teachings—of things that all the sages
gone before had never been able to fathom. These explanations are in no way
something that Lord Tsongkapa came up with on his own; they came, rather,
from the lips of Gentle Voice himself.
SPYIR BSTAN BCOS RNAMS SU MCHOD BRJOD MDZAD YUL SNYING RJE
DANG , MKHYEN GSUM SOGS MANG YANG , 'DIR BLA MA LA BSTOD
PHYAG MDZAD PA NI SPYIR LAM RIM, KHYAD PAR LAM GTZO RNAM
GSUM RGYUD LA SKYE BA BSHES GNYEN BSTEN TSUL LA RAG LAS PAR
GO BA'I CHED DU BLA MA LA BSTOD PHYAG MDZAD PA YIN,
In general it is the custom, when one writes the offering of praise at the
beginning of a Buddhist treatise, to express obeisance to compassion, the three
types of knowledge,[41] or any other of a great many holy objects. Here though
the prostration is made to "the lamas," for a very good reason. The reader wants
in general to gain the steps of the path to Buddhahood—and more specifically,
the three principal paths—within his own mind. The point of the prostration is to
make him realize that this is all going to depend on how well he can follow the
practice of proper behavior towards his spiritual teacher.