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DOING A HUNDRED THINGS BUT THE ONE IMPORTANT ONE: RENOUNCING THE SELF

[Beginning of talk missing]

This subject is very unbelievably important, unbelievably important. I thought if this is chanted, it gives more time to meditate. Reading instead, yes, you pay attention of course, but I think if it is chanted, it gives more time to meditate.

[In meditation] we bring mind back from distraction with the self-cherishing thought or attachment, ignorance, the concept of truly-existence, from that distraction. Under the control of those negative thoughts, we can’t bring our awareness back to the reality, we can’t keep our thoughts on the nature of life, impermanence, the most important meditation realization, the beginning, foundation for all the rest of the realizations, most important foundation.

It’s explained by Lama Tsongkhapa, that if we have the realization the perfect human rebirth, which is highly meaningful but it is just one time, and then the realization of impermanence and death, then all the rest of the realizations from the general graduated path of the lower capable being, the general graduated path of the middle capable being and the general graduated path of the higher capable being all come easily, including bodhicitta and the realization of emptiness.

Then, of course, on that foundation, then we can have the realization of tantra, the realization of the generation stage and the realization of the completion stage of the highest tantra.

Kadampa geshes mention that we may understand many hundred things and do many practices, but we can miss out one thing, and because of that we are unable to have a realization of the path to enlightenment. We understand so many hundreds of things and practices, but we miss out one. Because of that our mind’s blocked; we are unable to have realizations.

This is through not having thought about the nature of the life, its impermanence; we have missed out on that. Because of that, the mind is always under the control of attachment to this life, then the heart doesn’t become Dharma. This is the very first Dharma, the very beginning, the very first Dharma. That doesn’t happen. Then there’s no way for the second Dharma to happen, detachment, the renunciation to the future lives’ samsara. That doesn’t happen. Without that basis, there is no renunciation; without that basis, there is no bodhicitta. Then we are totally blocked; we can’t enter the Mahayana path to enlightenment.

So we miss out. The Kadampa geshes’ advice warns us against doing many hundred things or doing many practices but missing out one thing. That’s this. Not reflecting on impermanence and death blocks us from having realizations. That’s left out of our thinking.

Without that, whatever we do—listening, doing meditation practice, reflecting—whatever we do, it becomes under the control of the attachment seeking the happiness of this life. Everything becomes service to that, working for the happiness of this life. There’s nothing that becomes Dharma. Everything becomes worldly activities, the eight worldly dharmas, activities for that; nothing becomes holy Dharma.

By reflecting on impermanence and death, the nature of the life, the so mind becomes pure; it cuts the attachment clinging to this life. The mind become pure; this is first Dharma. Then whatever we do—listening, reflecting, meditating, and not only that, even eating, walking, even normal activities, eating, walking, sitting, sleeping, doing our job and so forth—it all becomes Dharma.

So, I will just chant in Tibetan. Then you can use the same. I don’t know because English becomes different. Other languages like Chinese or other languages, you can do exactly the same we’re chanting in Tibetan, you can do, it fits exactly. But in English it’s longer. It’s always longer than Tibetan.

This chanting can be done easily; it is longer. You can do a meditation on that. So, I will say in Tibetan, but you can follow the English.

BUDDHAS DO NOT HAVE A DUALISTIC VIEW
Look at the causative phenomena, which means our life: the I and aggregates, our material possessions and surrounding people, family, friends, strangers, enemies, all these things, all these are the main focus where delusions, attachment, ignorance and the anger arise; they are those main objects of delusion.

It starts to look at our hallucination of the world, how the I appears not merely labeled by mind, the real I appearing from there, and then look at everything as like a hallucination, as false: action, object, the aggregates, form, sound, smell, taste, tangible objects—whatever—and then mind, the perceiver, the mind itself, the whole thing, all the causative phenomena, everything, hell, enlightenment, samsara, nirvana, happiness, problems, our daily life—everything appears real, not merely labeled by mind, including ourselves, including everything.

Now we look at reality, emptiness, the right view. This is how arya beings see it, those bodhisattvas, and especially buddhas. They see the self, the I what appears to us, existing completely, totally, completely non-existent, empty, totally non-existent, empty, not even one atom exists. And the same with everything else: the aggregates, the I, the actions, all the forms, the sky, the trees, whatever, houses, people, here, the gompa, all these things, as well as sound, as well as smell, taste, tangible objects—all these that appear real [to us, they see as] totally non-existent, empty, nothing there.

Especially buddhas. Buddhas do not have the dualistic view, seeing true existence. This may have a different meaning but buddhas don’t have the hallucination, the truly-existent appearance. Buddhas don’t have that. Arya beings, when their mind is not in equipoise meditation, have the hallucination, even though they have continual realization that things are empty but the appearance is there, the appearance of truly-existent; they have the hallucination.

But because buddhas have removed the subtle negative imprints, the subtle defilements, there’s no projection of truly-existent appearance at all. It’s completely non-existent. Truly existent objects completely don’t appear to the buddhas at all, to who directly see the two truths simultaneously: the truth for the all-obscuring mind and the truth for the ultimate wisdom. They see the merely imputed I that exists directly as the same time as seeing the ultimate nature of that, seeing that as empty.

It’s the same with all the rest of phenomena. So, meditate on how they see us and everything, meditate on that emptiness. Then you go like that.

[Rinpoche chants]

So chant and meditate, this is nyum nyum; this is nyum nyum, nyum nyum? Huh? [Rinpoche laughs] When you eat ice cream, or when you eat something very delicious, huh?

Student: Yum, yum.

Rinpoche: Oh, yum yum. [Rinpoche laughs] So this is yum yum. So something for the mind, otherwise, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, and that’s it. So you don’t get to think much and a very important subject is left out. You need to get something to your mind, to your heart to change it, to become the path to liberation, the path to enlightenment. You need it to transform your mind from harming yourself, harming the world, harming sentient beings, transforming that delusion into path, the renunciation and the wisdom.

Just before going through the prayer, I want to mention this. The prayer Lama tön pa chom dän dä de… chhag tshäl lo, when you recite this, it purifies many eons of negative karma, not just hours, not just days, not just this lifetime but eons. It purifies not just eons of negative karma, but even a hundred million eons’ of negative karma; a hundred million eons’ of negative karma gets purified. It’s something most unimaginable. Not only a hundred million of eons’ negative karma get purified, but on top of that, a hundred thousand times, it says. Normally some texts say forty-thousand eons, but I have seen in the Kangyur, the Buddha’s teaching, it says reciting this Buddha’s name, it purifies a hundred million eons’ of negative karma, even that, a hundreds of thousand times. A hundred million eons’ of negative karma get purified, but not just that, hundreds of times, then thousands of times. It’s just unbelievable, the most precious thing to recite.

Even if somebody says, “Sang gye la chak tsel lo,” “I prostrate to Buddha,” with a happy mind, When you see a statue of a buddha or something, if you say, “Sang gye la chak tsel lo,” with a happy mind, even just by that, for so many eons you don’t get reborn in the lower realms, you don’t get reborn as a hell being, a hungry ghost or an animals, just by that. This is mentioned in the teaching, in the Kangyur.

There’s a more specific reference mentioned there but I don’t remember clearly. But it’s an unbelievable number your negative karma gets purified, you don’t get reborn in the lower realms, even just simply by that, with a happy mind when you see a statue of Buddha, saying “Sang gye la chak tsel lo.” Even just simply by that.

This is what the Buddha said about this Buddha’s name, but it can be done with the guru or on behalf of the guru, expressed in the aspect of Shakyamuni Buddha.

ORAL TRANSMISSION OF “CHENREZIG’S REQUEST TO THE BUDDHA”
I think I received this oral transmission from Kyabje Drongla Rinpoche.

[Rinpoche recites in Tibetan]

“The Bodhisattva, the Compassionate Eye-Looking One, stood up from the seat and placing the robes on the shoulder, put right knee put on the ground where Guru Shakyamuni Buddha was, then prostrated like this, and smiled. Then he requested Shakyamuni Buddha like this.”

[Rinpoche recites in Tibetan]

“The Destroyer, the Qualified One, Guru Shakyamuni Buddha.”

[Rinpoche recites in Tibetan]

Then there are a few syllables of the Prajnaparamita texts, the wisdom gone beyond, which has great merits. That means if you recite it, you collect great merit.

[Rinpoche recites in Tibetan]

The minute you hear, by just merely having heard this Lama tön pa chom dän dä de… chhag tshäl lo, just merely hearing this, all the negative karmas get purified.

[Rinpoche recites in Tibetan]

Then definitely, definitely you’re engaged to achieve enlightenment, definitely.

[Rinpoche recites in Tibetan]

You’re engaged to achieve enlightenment. That it means you’re on the right track towards enlightenment.

[Rinpoche recites in Tibetan]

Not only that, those who are practicing tantra, those who are practicing ngya mantra, so mantra doesn’t mean just only the reciting, not just that. Ngya means the whole tantric path to enlightenment.

So there’s four classes of tantra: Kriya Tantra, Charya Tantra, Anuttara Tantra, Maha-anuttara Tantra. There’s a path not mentioned there. The lower path has the yoga with sign and the yoga without sign. The yoga without sign is to do with yoga, emptiness. Then in Highest Yoga Tantra, there are the generation stage and completion stage. So the mind is totally transformed by the pure path. We see ourselves as the deity, totally pure, a totally transcended appearance. Seeing ourselves as the deity stops the ordinary thought we’re an ordinary being.

Then the place is the mandala of the deity and all the enjoyments are the purest enjoyments of a buddha. When we become a buddha, our mind is the purest mind, free from gross disturbing thought obscurations and subtle obscurations which interfere with achieving the state of omniscience.

Then, for the enlightened being who has the purest mind, all the enjoyments are also purest, the purest enjoyments, like the skies. So unbelievable, like that, the purest; not impure, the purest, the purest enjoyments to their senses. So then the actions are the same.

During the path, even before enlightenment, when the very high tantric path of the completion stage is achieved, even before the unification of clear light and illusory body, for those great meditators, yogis, even the poison for them is like poison for a peacock; it becomes very helpful. It’s not poison for them. For the peacock, poison becomes very powerful, makes it develop its colors, making them so bright. Instead of becoming poison, it creates the colors. What is poison to others helps them when they digest it, like the peacock.

Those great yogis, even if they eat kaka, it becomes nectar to their senses, pure like that, nectar. Great bliss is induced by everything that that touches their senses. This is even before it happened, when they achieve those realizations. What appears ugly or dirty or something for us, for them appears pure view. That’s due to the development of the mind, the mind becoming much more pure.

Everything pure because the mind is pure. Both are pure. That’s the mantra. The meaning of mantra is “protecting the mind.” The meaning of mantra is “protecting the mind,” relating to the tantra is like that.

Then, by blessing the wind, channels and drops, by blessing them, we are able to bring the wind that is blocked in the right channel and the left channel, which is in those channels, then we bring into central channel and then we are able to experience, to generate the four blisses. Then we are able to dissolve the gross mind and actualize the subtle mind, the extremely subtle mind. There are different levels of mind: the gross, subtle and extremely subtle mind. So the extremely subtle mind becomes visible.

Then the great bliss non-dual with emptiness is experienced and this becomes the direct cause of the dharmakaya. If we’re able to actualize this, then we are the practitioner who will achieve enlightenment in this life. This is what is called “clear light, simultaneously-born great bliss.” Actually the term itself is secret, the name itself is secret, but hopefully there’s some faith, so it might be okay to say it.

So anyway, that’s the secret mantra. Each word has some meaning but anyway that’s the mantra protecting the mind, saving the mind.

There are different levels [in Highest Yoga Tantra.] We achieve the isolation of body, the isolation of speech and then the isolation of mind during the completion stage. Then after the isolation of mind, there is the clear light, then the illusory body and then unification of these two. So the mantra that is our mind goes to a higher and higher level on the path, but it’s all mantra.

When the mind becomes the omniscient mind with unification of no more learning, that’s also mantra. That’s the ultimate one, the unification dharmakaya and rupakaya.

ORAL TRANSMISSION: THE MEANING OF THE BUDDHA MANTRA
[Rinpoche recites in Tibetan]

“May the one who’s attempting to practice the mantra without obstacle be able to accomplish the secret mantra. Please explain this. This is Chenrezig’s request to the Buddha.”

[Rinpoche recites in Tibetan]

“Then Guru Shakyamuni Buddha said ‘Yes’ to the great bodhisattva,” the great bodhisattva means arya being, “the arya bodhisattva, the exalted, compassionate arya being, enriched of qualities, enriched of power. Spiritual son of the type please listen.”

There are different types, the Hinayana type, the Mahayana type and with the Mahayana there are the Paramitayana and the Secret Mantra type, so here the spiritual son is of the Mahayana type, like the king’s son who will become the king in future and do the king’s activities, guiding the population. The bodhisattva here is going to become a buddha and do the activities for sentient beings. That’s the type; that’s that process to become a buddha, then to benefit sentient beings.

To Chenrezig’s request of what a bodhisattva is the Buddha replies that it’s this, it is good to attempt to benefit all the sentient beings. This is what Buddha was telling Chenrezig.

[Rinpoche recites in Tibetan]

“Therefore, spiritual son or type, please listen extremely listen well and keep in mind, these few syllables of the Prajnaparamita, the wisdom gone beyond, which, just merely, merely listening, merely hearing, has great merit, purifying all the sentient beings’ karmic obscurations.”

[Rinpoche recites in Tibetan]

“Then life is definitely engaged towards enlightenment. Anyone is are attempting to practice secret mantra, tantra, without any obstacles can complete tantra, as I’ll explain to you.”

[Rinpoche recites in Tibetan]

Thus, the great bodhisattva, the great sattva, the compassionate arya being enriched in the qualities, requested to the Buddha like this, “Please explain the benefits, in order to benefit all sentient beings,” as Guru Shakyamuni Buddha was abiding his holy mind in the equipoise meditation of concentration, the concentration is called “Liberating All Sentient Beings.” The moment the Buddha’s holy mind went into the equipoise meditation, from the center of the two eyebrows, the white hair [appeared.]”

This length of white hair stays curled clockwise. If it’s pulled out it goes back and stays like this. My guru, His Holiness Zong Rinpoche, explained about this hair, that it has to be white, not blue, not the other color. Many years ago I was painting the eyes of a buddha statue and I think I made this curl between the eyebrows a deep blue, like the hair. I was in the United States, at Geshe Sopa Rinpoche’s center. Geshe Sopa Rinpoche is my guru and was also Lama Yeshe’s guru from Tibet.
Of the many ex-abbots and the present abbots, many gurus, many outstanding, very qualified teachers who fled Tibet, he was known also in Tibet among those many thousands of learned ones in each monastery, he was so known. Geshe Sopa Rinpoche taught in Madison University for many years, for maybe more than twenty years. He retired quite a number of years ago but he has been given teaching courses, two-month courses or one-month courses each year. I have attended most of his courses on Lama Tsongkhapa’s teaching, the philosophy of Lama Tsongkhapa, those very important texts.

So what am I saying? I was painting. Then I think I made this curl deep blue. But His Holiness Zong Rinpoche explained it was wrong [and should be white.] I don’t remember whether it was related to that or not, but anyway it was explained during the teachings.

This is how it is explained. You can pull the curl straight out but when you let go of the end, it goes back and stays curled. This is part of the holy signs of the Buddha’s holy body. There are thirty-two holy signs and eighty holy exemplifications. To achieve that quality you need to collect, I don’t know, I don’t remember, merits, most unbelievable, most unbelievable, unbelievable merits to achieve that sign of the holy body. So the thirty-two holy signs and eighty holy exemplifications. That may be part of that thirty-two holy signs.

“From this, beams, hundreds and thousands of white beams are emitted, covering all the buddhas’ pure lands. Then any sentient being that the beams touch, including the hell beings, it makes them definitely achieve enlightenment. All the buddhas’ worlds, it shatters (?) six times. Then sandalwood powder rainfalls our down in the presence of the buddhas, the presence of the Buddha’s holy feet.”

[Rinpoche recites in Tibetan]

What it’s saying then is, “At that time Buddha taught the wisdom gone beyond, saying that bodhisattvas’ minds should remain in equilibrium, with loving kindness, wishing to repay the kindness, that the mind should be free from defilements, the mind should be free from negative karmas.” The Buddha said that. And also recite this Heart of the Wisdom Gone Beyond, Prajnaparamita, and the Buddha’s name, TADYA THA OM MUNÉ MUNÉ MAHAMUNA-YE .

KHUNU LAMA RINPOCHE’S STORY
Many texts have OM MUNI MUNI MAHA MUNI but that is totally wrong, according to Kyabje Khunu Lama Rinpoche, the great bodhisattva, great pandit, the great scholar, the unbelievable scholar. He’s a great bodhisattva. He was Indian from Kundun, Ladakh, which means Kundun. At a very young time he went to Tibet to learn Dharma and to receive the lineage of the teachings and commentaries and oral transmissions, and also to learn poetry, grammar and a way of putting the Sanskrit letters together .

I’m not sure how to translate it but there is a particular way of putting Sanskrit letters together that can just be learned from very learned teachers. At one time there was a teacher training school started in Mussoorie in India, not so far from Dharamsala. All the abbots of the six monasteries were there: from Sera, Ganden and Drepung, the great monastery universities of Tibet that were later established in India by His Holiness with the monks who fled from Tibet. All the abbots and many other learned teachers, they were there. Kyabje Khunu Lama Rinpoche went there and His Holiness organized then for him to explain teachings to them. There was also His Holiness Zong Rinpoche who was ex-abbot of Ganden Monastery, the great monastery university in Tibet, Ganden Shartse, and many learned ones there. So Kyabje Khunu Lama Rinpoche gave explanations from the Buddha’s teaching, the Kangyur.

He lived in India with the sadhus, in Varanasi, on the river Ganga. This is where he lived and the sadhus helped him, offering him food and taking care of him, so he dressed like a sadhu. Then he came to the one Tibetan monastery in Bodhgaya at that time. There were maybe Buddhist monasteries from Japan other countries but not Tibetan, just one, a Gelug, in Lama Tsongkhapa’s tradition. Now there are many, but at that time there was only that one Tibetan monastery. When His Holiness went to Bodhgaya, Kyabje Khunu Lama came, looking just like a sadhu. So the monks of the monastery didn’t recognize he was a great bodhisattva, a great scholar, an unbelievable scholar of the Buddha’s teachings. They didn’t recognize him; they thought he was just a sadhu or something. He asked for a room but monks didn’t give him one, and he slept outside on the cement floor of the monastery.

His Holiness was inside the monastery. Then, the next day His Holiness the Dalai Lama took the extensive commentary of the Bodhicaryavatara, The Guide to a Bodhisattva’s Way of Life, composed by great bodhisattva, Shantideva, the great Indian holy being, the pandit from great monastic university, Nalanda. After His Holiness took teachings from Kyabje Khunu Lama, he very soon became known. Before, nobody knew him. [Rinpoche laughs] Then he very quickly became very famous.

Outside the monastery there was a two-storied building, a guest house where all monks of the monastery were living. Because His Holiness Dalai Lama was coming, they lived there. There was a temple and outside the garden gate, there was the two-story guest house. Khunu Lama Rinpoche stayed upstairs in the middle room, I think. Anyway, sooner or later all the people, everybody, lined to Rinpoche’s room, the steps down from his room lined with people waiting to see Rinpoche to get a blessing or to get advice.

I had a little fortune to meet Rinpoche several times there and to receive teachings on the Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment, Lama Atisha’s teaching. He also gave commentary on Bodhicaryavatara to many other geshes and lamas in the room which is very high in the building, the takpa.³

When he presented the Dharma, he taught all four Tibetan Buddhist traditions: Nyingma, Kagyü, Sakya and Gelug. For example, because in the audience were many geshes from the Lama Tsongkhapa tradition and also from Nyingma and the other traditions, when he talked about emptiness, he taught using Lama Tsongkhapa’s teaching, but also the Nyingma, Kagyü and Sakya traditions’ teachings. He presented them individually like that.

I requested a commentary on Bodhicaryavatara, but Rinpoche did not accept, but he gave the oral transmission of the Bodhicaryavatara instead. I was requesting it just to do it myself. So Rinpoche gave the oral transmission in his room for maybe two days, I’m not sure, in the afternoon. I stayed awake through the transmission until he reached the ninth chapter on wisdom and then I immediately fell asleep. This chapter is supposed to be the most difficult one to understand, and the minute Rinpoche started to explain the commentary on the wisdom chapter about emptiness, I fell asleep! [Rinpoche laughs]

I think I had created very heavy negative karma to understand emptiness and for that reason during the teaching I fell asleep. I created heavy negative karma blocking the realization of emptiness, so I have a lot to purify.

Now there are many translations of Bodhicaryavatara but at that time there was only one, by somebody from Sikkim, Gadze Dawa or somebody, somebody from Sikkim who studied English in school or university, I’m not sure. So Rinpoche told me, even though there’s already a translation, I should learn English well and learn the text, and translate Bodhicaryavatara into English. Even though there was already a translation, Rinpoche thought I should do this although so far it hasn’t really happened. Hopefully in the future sooner or later. So Rinpoche was very, very kind to me.

When Rinpoche came to Nepal I received teachings on The Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment in a monastery down there, then here with our Western students and Sangha. That time we had many Sanghas, first explosion of Sangha, the first time explosion of Western Sangha. We went to Boudhanath. I brought them to see Rinpoche and [we took teachings on] The Foundation of All Good Qualities and A Hundred Verses of Advice, a text by Phadampa Sangye, an Indian great yogi who lived during Milarepa’s time, who went to Tibet and visited Tingri, giving a hundred pieces of advice to the people of Tingri. It’s a very good text. We took the oral transmission of that from Rinpoche.

I think that might have been the last visit. Then Rinpoche gave some fruit. On the table there was fruit, la-dak, kung-pu. What’s it called?

Student: Apricot.

Rinpoche: Apricot, yeah. He filled the bottles[?] under the table and gave some to me. Rinpoche gave advice to the monks here at Kopan. We didn’t get to eat but anyway Rinpoche gave the advice that the monks should subdue their mind. Anyway, I cannot subdue my own mind so how can I subdue theirs? I think that might have been the last visit.

ORAL TRANSMISSION: THE PRONUNCIATION OF THE BUDDHA MANTRA
So anyway, the mantra’s not MUNI MUNI [with a long e /i:/sound at the end], not that one, as many texts are written. But MUNÉ MUNÉ , [like /eI/nay sound] MUNÉ MUNÉ MUNA-YE [aI/] SVAHA. I think Rinpoche corrected this during the teachings in Bodhgaya.

I’m not very sure because I don’t know Sanskrit, so I asked a monk who’s supposed to be very expert in Sanskrit at Sarnath, but he seems to recite MUNI MUNI so then I explained Kyabje Khunu Lama Rinpoche’s and he explained this was wrong. But he didn’t have much rejection of that.

There are other mantras, like Namgyalma or other mantras, that have MUNI MUNI [/i:/] so I don’t know if there is a difference in the meaning between MUNI and MUNÉ. I haven’t got an idea.

[Rinpoche recites in Tibetan]

“I have found the wisdom gone beyond and achieved the peerless, completely purified enlightenment, full enlightenment.”

ORAL TRANSMISSION: THE PRAJNAPARAMITA SUTRAS
So this is mantra is part of the teaching of the Prajnaparamita, the wisdom gone beyond.

This is the heart of the Buddhadharma. For example, the Buddha gave 84,000 basic teachings. He gave every single teaching to the numberless sentient beings but the heart of all those teachings are the Prajnaparamita teachings, the teachings on emptiness. The very heart of the 84,000 teachings are the Prajnaparamita teachings. The Prajnaparamita teachings, or büm in Tibetan, come in the twelve volumes. I think maybe there is one text of a hundred thousand stanzas, in Tibetan tön trak gya pa (Skt: Satasahasrika). Then the next one of three volumes is more abbreviated, twenty-five thousand stanzas, in Tibetan nyi tri len tön pa (Skt: pancavimsatisahasrika). And then there is an even more abbreviated one of eighteen thousand stanzas, tri gyä tön pa (Skt: Astadasasahasrika). Then there is the much more abbreviated one, the Heart of Wisdom Sutra, in Tibetan, Sherab Nyingpo, (Skt: Prajnaparamita Hrdaya).

Then after that, there are a few syllables of the Prajnaparamita, so that’s this one. Even though it’s much more abbreviated, the teaching Prajnaparamita, wisdom gone beyond, the Buddha said this is the way he liberates us sentient beings. Not by washing our negative karma away in the water. Not like the Hindus believe when they baths in the river Ganga. When the people die or during their life, they go there and wash, believing the river washes and purifies karma, or when people die, their bodies are brought there, the feet are washed or something to purify negative karma. So, it’s not like that. Also the Buddha does not liberate us by pulling the negative karma from us with his hands, like taking out a thorn from the body, not that way. And also not by transplantation. The Buddha does not transplant his own realizations into the heart of the sentient beings like transplanting some organ like a heart, a brain or a kidney. It’s also not that way.

How the Buddha, the Mighty One, liberates us sentient beings is by revealing the truth, by explaining the truth. That’s the way. That is the teaching on emptiness, the truth, the very nature of the I, the aggregates, all phenomena, the very nature of phenomena which is emptiness.

In Tibetan, emptiness is called tong pa nyi; tong pa is “emptiness” and nyi is “only.” So far in English the term “emptiness” has been used. People who have studied can understand it has a very profound meaning, but the people who haven’t studied might think just ordinary empty, so like your stomach’s empty of food. [Rinpoche laughs], Or you have purse with no money in it. Just ordinary empty. In Tibetan, tong pa nyi is not just tong pa. This syllable nyi is added and that makes it very special, not just ordinary empty but very special. By adding the syllable nyi it cuts, it cuts the ordinary emptiness, like I mentioned, instead of just like the stomach empty of food, tong pa, not filled. The nyi cuts the ordinary emptiness, making it very clear.

From beginning, I don’t know who translated the term. It very much depends who translates, from very beginning who put it into English, so much depends on that. Things has been developed, they’ve become better in the English translation. But of course, it very much depends on who translates.

So tong pa nyi, tong pa, “emptiness,” then nyi, emptiness “only.” Tibetan makes it very clear, there’s nothing to get mixed. The nyi is left out in the English translation. In Sanskrit, it’s shunyata, but I haven’t studied Sanskrit, so I don’t know whether the nyi is there or not, I’m not sure in the Sanskrit. So maybe it’s there? Shun-ya-ta, I’m not sure.

Therefore, it’s very useful to understand even the Tibetan word, then we can understand exactly what it means. The nyi cuts the ordinary emptiness. It is not an absence of conventional truth, not an absence of the truth for the all-obscuring mind but absence of the object to be refuted.

The I is empty of being truly existent. That real I doesn’t exist at all. It’s the emptiness of that. Tong pa nyi cuts the false I; nyi, tong pa nyi. So “emptiness only,” tong pa nyi. It’s only empty of the false I, empty of the object to be refuted.

The very shortest Prajnaparamita is one syllable, AH, in Tibetan yi ge chik ma (Skt: ekaksari). Everything in the prajnaparamita texts, the hundred thousand stanzas, the eighteen thousand stanzas and so forth is contained in that one syllable, AH. The Buddha said he liberates us sentient beings by revealing the truth, what is contained in the Prajnaparamita texts. By that we are able to cut the root of samsara, ignorance, which is the only way we can become liberated from the oceans of samsaric suffering and it causes, karma and delusions, and achieve liberation and ultimate happiness.

AH has meaning; AH means no phenomenon—I, action, object—no phenomenon has true existence. It negates the true existence that is projected by the ignorance all over the I, the action, the object, the merely-labeled I, the merely-labeled action, the merely-labeled object, the merely-labeled all phenomena. This hallucination of true existent is projected all over, making everything appear real. This AH negates all this, making it totally non-existent.

I just read the finish.

[Rinpoche recites in Tibetan]

Chenrezig received this from Guru Shakyamuni Buddha. Then Guru Shakyamuni Buddha said, “You will become the supreme bodhisattva and then you will become the buddha predicted. Anybody who listens your name, to Chenrezig’s name, anybody who listens to the Compassionate Buddha’s name, who memorizes your name, who reads your name, who reveals it to other, extensively to other sentient beings, who writes into texts and making offering to the text, all those people then in the future will become enlightened.”

So I’ll stop here.

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Notes

³  This may refer to the room at the top of the Mahabodhi stupa in Bodhgaya. Rinpoche has alluded to this in other teachings where he has given Khunu Lama Rinpoche’s story. [Return to text]