Kopan Course No. 33 (2000): Audio and Unedited Transcripts, Continued

By Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche
Kopan Monastery, Nepal. (Archive #1257)

The following are excerpts of the teachings given by Lama Thubten Zopa Rinpoche at the Thirty-third Kopan Meditation Course, held at Kopan Monastery, Nepal, in 2000. Included is an oral transmission of the Medicine Buddha mantra and portions of the Diamond Cutter Sutra.

Lectures 6-10 are below; the first five lectures can be found here. You can also read the entire lightly edited transcript here.

Day 6: The Emptiness of the I: Not One-ness With Aggregates, Not Separate From the Aggregates

Then second one is kyappa …. Tibetan]… the important point of pervasion; important point of the definite pervasion. So first one means recognising the object of ignorance, grasping or apprehending inherently, apprehending the object as inherently existent. Important point, recognising this object of ignorance, that which is hallucination, doesn’t exist. Second one is important point of the definite pervasion, kyappa …. Then [pause] important point, the understanding that it’s not one-ness with the, for example, anyway, just go through outline. Not one-ness, not one, and then next one is understanding the important point that it doesn’t exist separately from that.

The ‘I’, what we call real ‘I’, seems appearing from there, existing from its own side, not merely labelled by mind. So you recognise that, which is object of ignorance – you recognise that. Like you recognise the enemy who always harms you, or thief who always steals your things, you recognise that. Then after you recognise that, whether you throw bombs on that, or hit with big hammer on the head – whichever way you’re going to, whichever way, whichever most effective way you destroy the enemy. Like that. Similar idea.

You try to eradicate the ignorance by realising object of ignorance, object what ignorance apprehends: that which is the inherently existent ‘I’. To realise that is empty, as it is empty. After you recognise that then, like weapon as I mentioned before, then the important point the definite pervasion. If this is real ‘I’, if this exists, then it has to be one-ness with the aggregates or it should exist separately.

If it exists, if there’s real ‘I’, if there’s one-ness with the aggregates then here comes one or many. Then comes here. Only then, here comes. Not the first one. First one is one, the second one important point of definite pervasion. So what is definite pervasion; it is either this inherently existent ‘I’, if this exists, either it should be one with the aggregates or exist separately. What is definite, the important point of definite pervasion is this. It has to be either, if this real ‘I’ that appears to me really exists then it should be either with the aggregates or it should exist separately from that.

Then next one, then… if one thinks it is one-ness with the aggregates then analysing what is not, one-ness with aggregates, then analysing what is not, oneness with the aggregates not.

If one thinks is one-ness with the aggregates then analysis comes. Then, that way, in that case, then ‘I’, because ‘I’ is one, as far as aggregates there are five aggregates. Aggregates of form, and feeling, cognition, compounding aggregates [pause] mind [Tibetan] mind of cognition. There is the principal consciousness. Generally, we’re talking about six consciousnesses. And then there are fifty-one mental factors. The feelings and cognitions, they are from the fifty-one factors. So the feeling and cognition they are counted there. Their name is precisely mentioned.

So the rest, from the fifty-one mental factors, all of the rest without counting feeling and cognition, all the rest are labelled [Tibetan] – feeling, cognition or the discriminating thoughts, discriminating the objects: this is table, this is mug, this is mandala, this is pot.

From fifty-one mental factors you take out the feeling and cognition. All the rest labelled ‘compounding aggregates’, duje kyi pungpo, compounding aggregates.

Then the last one, fifth one, is consciousness. So there are five aggregates like this. So then, if this real ‘I’ appearing from there, if it is one-ness with the aggregates then the mistake what can rise – because ‘I’ is one, so all the aggregates then they become one, becomes one. Or there are five aggregates so then there would be many ‘I’s’, many selves. There would be five selves. The body has many parts [pause] anyway, the body has many parts: the limbs, head, main body. Then, also, even the arms there are all these pieces.

So, however, there are many atoms, so the ‘I’ would be so many. So the same logic follows. If the real ‘I’ is appearing from, appearing to me not merely labelled by mind, if it’s one-ness with the aggregates, then all these aggregates become one because ‘I’ is one. That’s not true. There are five aggregates. Or there would be many ‘I’s’, five ‘I’s’ as there are five aggregates. There would be many of those ‘I’s”.

Then, same: the four aggregates of form - same reason there. Then eliminate different parts of the body, then you go down to the atoms. There are so many atoms. There would be that many number of atoms in the case that this ‘I’ is one-ness with the aggregates. That many number of atoms, there would be that many number of ‘I’s’, selves. The feeling has different feelings, three types of different feelings, there will be three different ‘I’. So like that. Then compounded aggregates. If this ‘I’ is one with that, then there’ll be forty-nine ‘I’. From fifty-one mental factors, we take out two. The rest is forty-nine. So there’ll be forty-nine ‘I’. So there are all these mistakes.

Consciousness, there are six consciousnesses. If this ‘I’ is one-ness with the aggregates of consciousness then there’s the five ‘I’. So there’s mistake. All these mistakes will rise like that. Anyway, that is not according to your experience. Then that means there are so many beings, so many selves. Sense consciousnesses and then the sixth one, mental consciousness, all those ‘I’. There are so many selves there and then all these atoms of the selves. [pause]

Then when you buy air ticket, when you travel, how many ‘I’ is there? So many ‘I’ there. So then you have to buy air ticket for each ‘I’. So many ‘I’s’! Just even starting with the five aggregates, there are five ‘I’s’. You have to buy five air tickets. There are five person, five ‘I’s’, five ‘I’ or five persons. If you can think all the atoms are ‘I’, all the [unclear] become I, then so many. In the aeroplane the numbers will be incorrect, number of passengers is not correct There will be many billions of billions of passengers travelling. So, anyway, many mistakes could arise. Then many problems can happen. If you buy air ticket for only one person

Then, how many hairs you have, then all these are ‘I’. How many hairs you have, each one will be, each one, each hair if it is one-ness with ‘I’, each hair will be one-ness with yourself. When you, then when you shed the hair, if you burn the hair, what happens with the ‘I’? All those ‘I’, all those one who is ‘I’, selves? All those hairs are people. All those hairs, one-ness with ‘I’ so all those hairs are people, sentient beings. So you’re killing all these sentient beings. Burning all these sentient beings. So then the question, when the body ceased, the body when is ‘I’, the ‘I’ would be ceased, the self would be ceased. [pause] Then these ‘I’s” they experiencing happiness, suffering, does it depend on karma or not? Do they experience happiness and suffering or not, these ‘I’s. All these hair ‘I’s, all these aggregates of form ‘I’, all these atoms ‘I’ – do they experience happiness and suffering? So that means this ‘I’ is experiencing karma. All these ‘I’ are experiencing karma. Then [pause] the karma when the conception, when the mind, when the consciousness took place on the fertilised egg, that is the result of karma.

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That is a good result and the cause of that is virtue. So consciousness took place on the fertilised egg, that’s the result, that good rebirth was the result. The cause was created before, which was the reason why the consciousness took place on the fertilised egg. The reason exists before the birth. That’s why it’s happening. That’s why the consciousness is taking place on the fertilised egg, taking human body. So karma exists before the birth. The cause of the birth, the karma, existed before the birth. So that means there’s a continuation of the mind. There’s a previous continuation of the mind, which just took place on the fertilised egg. There is a previous continuation of that before it took place on the fertilised egg. So that mind is the one who created, that pervious mind is the one that created the karma, the cause to receive human body. The future, the continuation of the same consciousness, but which is the future, which takes place, to take place on the fertilised egg. So like that.

So, much of the experience of this life, the cause of much of the experience of this life was created in the past. So, then all these ‘I’, then same, should be same. All these ‘I’s that is one-ness with all the atoms in the body, one-ness with every single hair, one-ness with every atom of this body, then also would have, from very beginning whenever they experience happiness, suffering, whatever, the cause is created before; has to be created before that. So that means every ‘I’ would have past lives. So these mistakes would arise.

All the physical body, this did not come from past life. This does not continue to next life. The physical body did not come from past life, does not go to next life. So then, in that case, mistakes arises on the basis of all these ‘I’. Mistake arises that there’s no karma. There’s no past, no future lives, then there’s no karma. These mistakes will arise. However, there are many analyses, goes on and on. The other thing is, this ‘I’ that is appearing to oneself, real I appearing to oneself as existing from its own side, because of all these mistakes that arises, so it’s not one-ness with aggregates.

Now, the next one is whether it exists separately from these aggregates.

If the ‘I’ exists separately from the aggregates then many mistakes arise. Then we don’t need job. Why we need job? If ‘I’ exists separately from aggregates why you need a job because you don’t have body. The ‘I’ exists separately from the aggregates then you don’t have body so why you need a job? Why you need to go to school? Why you need to go to university? All those many years of study - what for? On the basis of, normally is to get, after all this so you can get job, earn more money. Because you have body one has to earn living, one has to earn money. One needs money to take care of this body – food, clothing, shelter for this body. You have to give food to this body, and shelter and clothing, 100 shoes, 100 hats, 100 jackets, 100 trousers, underskirts, however. Many hundreds each year, many hundreds of even shoes – winter shoes, summer shoes, however, anyway, outside shoes, inside shoes mountain shoes, so many. That’s because you have the body.

That shows the ‘I’ doesn’t exist separately from the body. If the ‘I’ exists separately from the body you don’t need to go to school. You don’t need to go to college, university. You don’t need degree. What for? You don’t need all these things if the ‘I’ is separate from the aggregates. Doesn’t need shelter. Doesn’t need food. Doesn’t need anything. Doesn’t need dress. Doesn’t need motorcycles which makes huge noise. Anyway, all that. Doesn’t need passport. Doesn’t need to go to immigration. Doesn’t need to pay money. If the ‘I’ exists separately from the aggregates you don’t need all these things. You don’t need aeroplane. It doesn’t need to go by aeroplane. Why it needs all these things is because ‘I’ doesn’t exist separately from the aggregates.

In our daily life the experience is that. The twenty-four hours, depending what aggregates, whether the body or mind, speech doors, always imputed ‘I’. In the morning when one is waking up then one labels ‘I’m waking up’. When the aggregates of the body are dressed up then one’s own mind make up the label ‘I am dressing up’. When you wash the body, then think, ‘I am washing’. Your mind imputes the ‘I’m washing’. When you have breakfast, when the body’s aggregates is doing the action of eating, then your mind label ‘I am eating’. When your body is going for meditation session in the morning, maybe, with a sleepy mind, when the body is going for a meditation session then one’s own mind merely imputes ‘I’m going for meditation session’. Then when the body is doing the action of sitting then mind merely makes up the label ‘I am sitting’. When the mind is transforming into Path, into lam Rim, meditating on lam Rim, then one’s own mind merely imputes ‘I am meditating’.

So same: when the body’s hungry, when the stomach’s hungry, when the food is gone out and then hungry, the mind merely imputes ‘I am hungry’. Long time sitting in my talk and then when the body aches, when the knees ache, when the body aches, when the knees are complaining, then the mind merely imputes ‘I am tired’, ‘I am having pain’. All these are merely imputed one after another, continues twenty-four hours. ‘I am this,’ ‘I am this,’ mind is merely imputing. So like that. Twenty-four hours like that.

So ‘I’ [pause] ‘I’ exists relating… ‘I’ doesn’t exist separately from the aggregates. ‘I’ exists in relation to, connection to, the aggregates. ‘I’ exists in connection to aggregates. It doesn’t exist separately from the aggregates. So, therefore, this ‘I’ that is appearing to you that you believe, that’s appearing to you a real one in the sense of existing from its own side, and that one believes, which one has been believing from beginning-less rebirth up to now, that this is true.

So this neither is one-ness with the aggregates, nor it exists separately from this body, so that means that this ‘I’ is totally non-existent there. Totally non-existent there, that you’ve been grasping, that you’ve been believing, that you’ve been holding onto from beginning-less rebirths up to now. It’s totally non-existent there, after all these analyses.

So then that, seeing totally non-existent that ‘I’, totally non-existent, totally empty, right there. That is entering the middle way. That time you are seeing the middle way, devoid of the two extremes, nihilism and eternalism.

So since I brought this topic I want to mention these two things and then I’ll stop there. So this is another good meditation, this way of meditating – dependent arising, subtle, the extremely subtle. There’s gross dependent arising and there’s subtle - meditation on subtle dependent arising.

So like this. There is twelve months. First, we think year. First we think year, normal how we think year, how you think of that year. You think year. You think this year I came to Kopan and think like that. You think this year I’m going to become enlightened. The main thing to focus is year. While you’re thinking this you analyse how the year appears to you, how you see the year. Year not ear! Year. How the year appears to you. How you see the year. While you’re thinking I’m going to be enlightened this year, okay. Think about how year appears to you.

Okay now, so now there’s twelve months. Now we analyse what is year? We question what is the year. It’s nothing other except what is merely imputed by the mind, by one’s own mind, okay. Nothing other except what is merely imputed by the mind, by my mind. Why it exists, why the year exists is the next question. Why it exists? That is because there is twelve months. Now, here, the year, what is called year [pause] twelve months is the base to be labelled ‘year’. Same as what I mentioned before. That’s not year. That’s the base to, twelve months is the base to be labelled ‘year’. So, the base twelve months and the label ‘year’, they are two different phenomena. They’re two different phenomena. And that year, the year what exists, is what is merely labelled by mind [pause] because there’s twelve months.

So what is year is extremely subtle. What is year is not that. What is year is extremely subtle phenomena. Totally empty, that which is totally empty from it’s own side. [pause] It exists but it is totally empty from its own side. So the [unclear] of emptiness is dependent arising. Merely imputed by mind, totally empty from its own side. The year is totally empty of existing from it’s own side; empty of inherently existing. So, unbelievably subtle how it is, that phenomena which exists in mere name, merely labelled by mind.

So fine, so subtle; so subtle that – cannot say that it’s totally non-existent, just enough cannot say that it’s totally non-existent. It is not non-existent but is like non-existent. It’s so subtle. That phenomena, is so subtle that it’s not totally non-existent, but it’s like non-existent; so fine, so subtle. The borderline: existing / not existing; the year existing, the borderline existing / not existing, so subtle. The existing is so subtle. So subtle, so unbelievably subtle that so easy to fall into nihilism, that is totally non-existent. This phenomena ‘year’ is totally non-existent. It’s so easy. So subtle it’s easy to slip out in the nihilism that it doesn’t exist. Unbelievably fine, the way of existing of ‘year’; the way of existing so subtle.

Like that, same, all the phenomena. Not just the year. Some may think I’m only talking year but it’s not only to the year. Like that with all, how the ‘I’ exists, same. Like that. And the body and mind, all the phenomena including hell, enlightenment, everything - the way the phenomena is existing is like that, like this example here. Extremely fine, so subtle – so subtle that is so easy to slip out into nihilism. So, therefore, many famous meditators in Tibet made mistakes. They think they realised emptiness but, actually, totally wrong.

By meditating on emptiness they fall into nihilism, unable to see the middle way and fall into nihilism. That is like this. That is so difficult. To see the middle way is so difficult. It’s so subtle how things exist, extremely subtle. This is how we should see all phenomena. This is how we should realise, how we should see the ‘I’, everything, all the phenomena like that.

By seeing like the, for example year, by seeing the year empty of existing from its own side, then you realise ultimate truth of year, then you realise conventional truth of the year, how the year is existing and in mere name, being merely imputed by the mind. So then, when you realise like this, including the I, aggregates, sense objects, then that’s how we see, that’s the way you see, as illusion, like dream. Illusion. There’s nothing to cling. There’s no base to cling to. Don’t find any reason to get angry. Don’t find any reason to grasp, to cling. This is what we realise.

So even though the year, such as year, so forth, the phenomena, appear existing from it’s own side, still having the appearance. What your mind realise like that, as I explained before, but still have the hallucination of inherently existing appearance. When ‘year’ appears to you, appears to you inherently existing even though you realise the year is totally empty of inherent existence. And you realise what is year is what is merely imputed by mind but when it appears to you still seems inherently existent.

Until you become enlightened you have this hallucination projected by the negative imprint left on the mental continuum by the concept of inherent existence, the ignorance. Except, when you become Aryan being, that time, when your mind is doing meditation in the equipoise meditation in emptiness, during that time, during that meditation state you don’t have that hallucination.

That hallucination is absorbed, not cut, but absorbed for the time being. So you don’t have that hallucination to that, meditate that wisdom, seeing emptiness in equipoise meditation like ‘having put water into water’; the wisdom meditating on emptiness like ‘having put water into the water’, like that, without having dual view - having absorbed the dual view. So through that wisdom there is not that hallucination during that time, when you have wisdom directly perceiving emptiness, when you achieve the Aryan Path. Otherwise when you are not in equipoise meditation then you have this hallucination. So like that.

While you have the subtle negative imprints left by the concept of inherent existence, these objects, she.dip, the obscuration to directly see all the phenomena, while one has that then there’s hallucination except when you become Aryan being and when you are in equipoise meditation on emptiness.

So, anyway, you still have that hallucination but since you have the understanding that it is empty, that it is not true, so there is no grasping, clinging on that.

Like, you know that there’s no water on the sand. You came through that, or you are told by other people. You know that there is no water but still you have the mirage, as if there’s water. So like that. There’s appearance but there’s no conception that there’s water, believe that’s real water, that it’s water. So like that. Appears inherently existent but you realise that it’s not true. So, therefore, you don’t see any point in anger or attached to that. No base for that.

However, in the dream you see beautiful man or woman, but you recognise, you know this is dream. You know this is not true. You recognise this dream is dream. You’re aware that this is dream. So even though you have appearance there’s no belief that this is real so there is no discriminating thought – anger and attachment. There’s no point because it’s not true.

So, now, here, ‘year’ exists… [pause] so now, what is easy, what is merely imputed by the mind. So now, after this analysis, what is ‘year’ is totally something else than ‘year’ what you’ve been believing so far. What has been appearing to you and what you have been believing as ‘year’, that is totally false. That real ‘year’ appearing from there is totally false. There is no such thing. So there’s object that’s real, when you think of ‘year’ before, something real appearing from there, and apprehending that as true. That is the object to be refuted. That’s the gakja, object to be refuted.

So ‘year’ what exists is this one, what I’ve just explained: that which is just merely imputed by mind.

So now, same: the twelve months. Now months: exactly the same. Four weeks, right? The four weeks – three weeks or four weeks?

Huh?

Okay, four weeks. So now we analyse month, meditate on month. So exactly the same Four weeks is the base to be labelled ‘month’. So there is the base, ‘month’ is the label. There’s no other month except what is merely imputed by the mind. Because there’s four weeks, because there’s base, four weeks, so month is merely imputed by the mind - because there’s four weeks. Again, the month is totally empty of the real month existing from it’s own side, totally empty. It exists but it’s totally empty. It exists but it’s totally empty. It exists merely imputed by the mind. Again that is so subtle when you analyse what is month.

Now, week - so seven days. Because there is seven days...

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