If you have enough confidence and insights, visualizing offerings to Buddha and Bodhisattvas has the exactly same effects and merits as a real offering. Exoteric, especially Mind Only Chittamatra, believes that everything that we see, whatever it is Pure Land or hell, is all mind-made, the appearance is only built by one’s heart. Tantra is explaining to the very bottom of this view by its behavior and practice.

[Excerpt from Luminous Wisdom Book Series: The Blessing of Speech]

What are the “Two Truths”? To first give an example, we get two different results when looking at a pebble with our eyes and through a microscope. When looking at the pebble with our naked eye, we see a static object no matter how carefully we concentrate. Observing the pebble with a microscope, however, it is gradually shown to be composed of molecules, atoms, nuclei, electrons, protons, neutrons, quarks and other tiny particles, according to the magnification of the microscope. Each of the particles rotates continuously—the speed of an electron circling within a nucleus is six hundred miles per second. With such high-velocity motion, the atom looks more like a ball. This example indicates that nothing is absolutely static. The pebble seems to be motionless to our naked eye, but the microscope tells us it is continuously moving. The pebble could not be both motionless and moving; this is contradictory. Therefore, we can conclude that its true existence is either “motionless” or “moving”. Which is the truth? Relatively speaking, what we can see with the microscope is more accurate and closer to the truth. What we see with our naked eyes is not real and may be called illusion or relative truth.

[Excerpt from Luminous Wisdom Book Series ~ The Illusory World]

The ultimate goal of practicing the Dharma is to eliminate afflictions. To eliminate afflictions, you must attain enlightenment. To attain enlightenment, guru yoga is one such simple and direct way.

[Excerpt from Luminous Wisdom Book Series ~ The Guru Yoga Practice of the Seven-Line Prayer to Padmasambhava]

1. Who Can Practice the Guru Yoga of Padmasambhava? Beginning practitioners: As a new practitioner, you will encounter adverse conditions during practice. To dispel such unfavorable situations or adverse conditions even before you develop renunciation and bodhicitta, you may first practice the Guru Yoga of Padmasambhava and accumulate his heart mantra 100,000 times. This will facilitate smooth progress when you go on to engage in other practices.

【Excerpt from Luminous Wisdom Book Series ~ The Guru Yoga Practice of the Seven-Line Prayer to Padmasambhava】

Not only does Tibetan Buddhism require the students to take refuge in the guru, the Mahayana and Theravada traditions also have the same requirement. It is clearly stated in the precepts of the Theravada tradition that after receiving precepts, a student must follow a guru for at least ten years before he or she is qualified to live independently. Prior to that, the student is not allowed to act freely. The Mahayana tradition also states that it is impossible to learn anything without a spiritual teacher or guru.

[Excerpt from Luminous Wisdom Book Series ~ The Guru Yoga Practice of the Seven-Line Prayer to Padmasambhava]

Why do we need to talk about the Buddhist view of the world? First of all, we can’t regard Buddhism as an ordinary religion, nor can we regard Buddhism as superstition, and in fact, Buddhism is a culture. To describe in modern language, many of the Buddhist concepts are compatible with modern science. In our actual life, cannot lack these ideas, once without these ideas, we cannot understand the truth of the world. Without these concepts, we will make various mistakes and act incorrectly. Because of a lack of understanding of the truth of the universe, our lives will unfold with all kinds of afflictions and suffering. It is therefore essential to introduce the Buddhist view of the world.

[Excerpt from Luminous Wisdom Book Series ~ The Illusory World]

Why do Dharma practice often visualize lights? Lights symbolize Buddha’s career. In both exoteric and esoteric sutra, you can often see this description: when Sakyamuni Buddha is preaching sentient beings, his body glows, the lights shine into hell and so the three lower realms beings, release them from their sin, reduce their pain so they can escape from samsara.

[Excerpt from Luminous Wisdom Book Series: The Blessing of Speech]

How do we control and eliminate these emotional afflictions? Buddhism provides many ways to do so, one of which is the Buddhist view. There are Buddhist views which go beyond the understanding of ordinary beings, but the general view can be divided into three categories: the value of our world, life and morality. Without an understanding of the essential relationship between individuals, money or marriage, we will suffer from pain and negative emotions. If an objective, just and scientific view toward this world and life can be established, our worries will be reduced and our life will be more meaningful.

[Excerpt from Luminous Wisdom Book Series ~ The Illusory World]

The majority of human beings living in the mundane world are ordinary and are deluded with three main afflictions: greed, hatred and ignorance. In Buddhist terminology, these are the three poisonsur Once our mind is caught up in the three poisons, we feel uneasy and lose our freedom. If our negative emotions develop to a certain level where they cannot be subdued, our family and friends become the victims, and these afflictions can even harm the whole society.

[Excerpt from Luminous Wisdom Book Series ~ The Illusory World]