Pure Conduct

"From this moment onwards

Until i attain enlightenment,

I shall not harbor harmful thoughts,

Anger, avarice or envy"

"I shall cultivate pure conduct,

Give up wrong-doing and desire

And with joy in the vow of discipline

Train myself to follow the Buddhas"

 

A bodhisattva vows to benefit all beings and lead them to enlightenment. Harming others in thought, word, or deed would contradict this vow, so a bodhisattva forswears them. Virtuous conduct is the root of all attainment on the bodhisattva's path, so an aspiring bodhisattva  cultivates positive qualities and abandons  negative ones.

Vow to Full Enlightenment

"In the presence of the protectors,

I arouse the intention to gain full enlightenment.

I invite all beings as my guests

And shall free them from cyclic existence"

The "protectors" are the buddhas of the ten directions, who, through their omniscience, are aware of those who take the bodhisattva vow, and in that sense present. Full enlightenment is the enlightenment of a buddha, which is greater than that of a pratyekabuddha or arhat, because their accumulation of merit and wisdom is greater. And because they are greater, they have greater resources for helping others. A buddha aims to free all beings from ignorance, so in that sense they are guests of the buddha.

Manjushri's Vow

I shall write here very clearly, as explained

In the Ornament of Manjushri's Buddha Land Sutra,

How, long ago, when Manjushri was Ambaraja,

He aroused the intention to become enlightened 

Manjushri is the bodhisattva of wisdom. If you want to know more about him, you can read A Garland of Jewels by Ju Mipham, which is a collection of excerpts from the Mahayana sutras about the great bodhisattvas. The next several verses are verses of aspiration that Manjushri made about his enlightenment.  Verses of aspiration are common in Tibetan Buddhism, and some compositions are well known.

 Manjushri's aspirations are meant to serve as a model for us.

Taking the Vow Alone

However, in case you try but cannot

Find such a spiritual teacher,

I shall explain another

Correct procedure for taking the vow.

Although it is best to take the bodhisattva vow from a spiritual preceptor, if you cannot find one, you can take the bodhisattva vow by imagining that you are in the presence of the buddhas  and reciting one of the forms of the vow. The best known version is from the Bodhicharyavatara, but the Lamp for the Path gives another version in the next few verses.

Taking the Bodhisattva Precepts

According to the ritual described in

The chapter on discipline in the Bodhisattva Stages,

Take the vow from a good

And well-qualified spiritual teacher.

 

Understand that a good spiritual teacher

Is one skilled in the vow ceremony,

Who lives by the vow and has

The confidence and compassion to bestow it. 

Normally the bodhisattva vow is taken in front of a teacher, although if no teacher can be found, it can be taken alone. The teacher must also have taken the vow and understand how to perform the ceremony. Ideally they should have a wise and loving nature.

Pratimoksha Vows

Those who maintain any of the seven kinds

Of individual liberation vow

Have the ideal [prerequisite] for

The Bodhisattva vow, not others

 

The Tathagatha spoke of seven kinds

Of individual liberation vow.

The best of these is glorious pure conduct,

Said to be the vow of a fully ordained person.

Before one can take the bodhisattva vow, one must first take refuge, which is the ceremony where one formally declares oneself a Buddhist. And one must also take the pratinmoksha vows along with refuge.  Pratimoksha is Sanskrit for individual liberation. In the Pratimoksha vow one commits to a code of conduct. There are three levels of vows: lay, novice ordained, and fully ordained. Three times the two sexes makes six. And the seventh? Nuns have an extra level of vows between novice and fully ordained. (i think. I don't have my copy of Jewel Ornament.) There are five lay pratimkosha vows (no killing, stealing, lying, sexual misconduct, or intoxicants), ten novice vows, and approximately 250 vows for the fully ordained. Fully ordained nuns have the most vows, they are the pratimoksha champs! The point of taking vows is to lead a harmless and restrained life.  In this way the pratimoksha vows serve as the basis of bodhisatta vows, as they have the same intent. And the vows of the fully ordained serve as the best basis for the bodhisattva vow, although any will do.

Bodhisattva Precepts

Having developed the aspiration for enlightenment

Constantly enhance it through concerted effort.

To remember it in this and also in other lives,

Keep the precepts properly as explained.

 

 Without the vow of the engaged intention,

Perfect aspiration will not grow.

Make effort definitely to take it,

Since you want the wish for enlightenment to grow.

The bodhisattva vow should be repeated daily. This is usually done by reciting the verses from Shantideva's Engaging in the Bodhisattva Deeds (Bodhicharya avatara). Along with reciting the vow every day, one should also keep the bodhisattva precepts. There are two different traditions on what these traditions are: the  tradition of vast activity, which comes through Asanga, and the tradition of profound meaining, which comes through Shantideva.  The two sets of vows are explained on the linked pages. It's beyond me to give a detailed explanation of them.