Q: Why is conferring empowerment taken so seriously in the Jonang school?
A: In general, conferring empowerment is indispensable to the Vajrayana path, because it is the only cause that directly gives rise to the two stages, the Generation Stage and the Completion Stage in one’s continuum. In particular, the seven empowerments and the four higher empowerments of Kalachakra are the principal means, or causes, for the paths of the two stages to mature and arise in the continuum of a practitioner who practices the two stages of Kalachakra. Therefore, in the Jonang tradition, empowerment is considered extremely important for a practitioner.