...then you don't need to worry about I am falling in extreme, I am falling in nihilism. You don't need to hang up in the words, you don't need to hang up in words "Oh, I exist by labeling."

Without need to worry, without even trying to think of that, I exist, without need to think about existence of I at all, without attempting to think about the way of existence of the "I" at all, just by realizing, right in that minute, in that second, just by realizing that this "I" which looks as if it exists from its own side is empty, completely empty of existing from its own side, whenever you realize this, at that moment of seeing it completely empty on these aggregates, automatically, automatically by the force of that, by the cause of realizing the "I" which exists from its own side is empty of existing from its own side, uncontrollably, without thinking, without need to think about I at all - "I definitely exist" or "merely labeled" or all these things, all these words, - uncontrollably, without freedom, uncontrollably the existence of the "I" comes so powerfully, so strongly on these aggregates. Uncontrollably, so powerfully, so strongly, by the force, by the cause of realizing that this "I" which exists from its own side is empty, that the "I" exists under the control of name, powerfully comes, without any attempt for. You meditated to realize it is empty, you put your effort to realize the "I" which looks as if it exists from its own side, to try to see that empty. In other words saying, you don't particularly attempt to see, to discover, to realize that the "I" exists under the control of name. You don't particularly attempt for that. Just what you attempt is to see the I which looks as if it exists from its own side, to see that as empty. Then just as a result, when you discover it is empty, as a result that the "I" exists under the control of name, that the "I" definitely exists under the control of name comes so powerfully.

Uncontrollably, on these aggregates. Merely labeled, under the control of name, it comes so powerfully that it exists under the control of name. So how you see it now, how it appears is an "I" which exists not being merely labeled, not under the control of name, as if it exists from its own side, that is how it appears from above these aggregates and that is how we cling. But that time, when you realize that the "I" is empty of existing from its own side, at that time then you see the "I" so powerfully existing under the control of name. So that time as you have discovered, as you have realized how the "I" exists on these aggregates, under the control of name, so powerfully, so then, similar way, instead of falling in nihilism that I doesn't exist, there is no such thing as I existing, instead of rising such heresy, instead of that much more faith in the existence of the "I".

And then similar as there is I existing, in the similar way it benefits so much to have more faith also in karma - from virtuous actions that one accumulates, from that one receives the result happiness, from non-virtuous actions that one accumulates, from that one receives the result suffering. It causes to have more faith, unchangeable faith in ordinary karma, instead of falling in nihilism, rising heresy that they don't exist.

So same, like the experience of the "I", how the "I" exists on these aggregates, like that, in the same way you can realize about karma, how the virtuous actions, how the non-virtuous actions exist, how the happiness, how the suffering exists. In the same way you can realize how they exist by being merely labeled and by being merely labeled how they do all the functions, doing the function of cause, bringing the result, all these things.

So my conclusion is this, according to the way how I started the talk in the beginning. Why we say "I am here" is because the aggregates are here at Kopan. So there is no other reason, only because the aggregates are here, the aggregates of the body and mind are here, so because of that "I", "I am here." It is in Nepal so that is why we call it "I am in Nepal". So, the same thing, in the morning, when the body, the aggregate of body stand up, on that we label "I am getting up". As the aggregate of body is doing the function of wearing clothes, dressing up, then, "I am wearing clothes". Then, similar way according to the activity of the aggregates we label "I am washing". Then like this, according to the action of the aggregate eating food, eating breakfast, then "I am having breakfast." On that it is labeled "I am taking breakfast". Then, as the aggregates are doing sitting meditation, as the body is sitting in meditation posture and the mind is thinking, then on that is labeled "I am meditating". When the aggregates go to bed, the body is laid down in the sleeping bag, trying the mind to not have any object, to not be aware, to stop the views, the visions, to stop the. however, "I am sleeping". Like this from morning until night according to the body and mind, aggregates, whatever action it does, then "I am doing this and that's, by that reason is labeled "I am doing this and that".

Like this, the same thing, this month, one day's biography of self is merely labeled on the aggregates, on the activities of the aggregates. The same thing, the biography of oneself this week is merely labeled on the aggregates. Same thing this month's, this year's biography of oneself, whatever one did labeled according to the activities of the aggregates. The same thing from birth until the death, all the biography, "I did this and that", "I suffered", "I was very happy", "such and such", "I enjoyed so much", all these things "I am happy", "I am suffering", all these things, upset and depressed, all these things, excited, all these things, whatever action of I, the work of I, all this merely labeled according to the activities of the aggregates done from birth-time until death-time.

So same thing like this from the beginningless past lives until now, "I did this and that", "I suffered", "I was born in such and such a realm, experienced such and such sufferings". "I was born in the human realms, experience such and such", had such perfections, pleasures in deva's realms", all this, whatever experience I had, whatever action I did from the beginningless past lives until now, all this is merely labeled according to the, on the activities of the aggregates, according to that. So like this up to enlightenment, merely labeled according to the activities of the aggregates. So this is it, how the "I" is like a dream, how the "I" is like illusory. This is the main thing to understand, this is what I am emphasizing, how the "I" is merely labeled on these aggregates, how the "I" is dependent on these aggregates, merely labeled on these aggregates, that is the main emphasis of how I started the talk.

So you should question to yourself, but you can call [pause], this morning these aggregates were doing the function of eating breakfast. Last night of sleeping. But you could call it "I am sleeping", "I am sleeping" all the time. As you call last night "I am sleeping", this morning you call "I am eating breakfast", you could call all the time "I am eating breakfast". Why don't you call? As you are calling that time "I am eating breakfast" why do you change the letter when you meditate? Why don't you still call it "I am eating breakfast"? When you go to bed, why do you call "I am sleeping"? Why don't you call, "I am eating breakfast"? Why don't you call it? From this you can understand. You can say "I am still in mother's womb". Even when you are dying you can say "I am still in mother's womb". Why don't you call? Why do you change, why do you change all the time? "I am doing this and that different actions", why you change all the time? Like this, from this you can understand, when you question like this. From this you can understand how the whole biography, "I do this, I do that", "I have this suffering", all these things merely labeled on these aggregates.

Yes, I think I stop here.

[Dedications]

[End of Third Discourse 15/11/81]

Fourth Discourse [17/11/81 am]

[Prayers]

So, as I mentioned before, it is usual to think in this way. It is clear, you know, if we relate to ourselves, to our own daily life activities, your own aggregates and the activities of that. So if you meditate like that, on the "I", the existing I, how the "I", the self, is dependent on that and the activities of that, it makes very clear and it is more effective. [pause]

Now we are sitting, oneself is sitting; if somebody ask a question, "Oh, I am sitting." No other reason except that the aggregates, the body, is sitting. "I am meditating", no other reason, not any secret or hidden or any other reason besides that the mind is meditating on the path, trying to make the mind familiar or try to transform it into the path. So by the reason of the mind meditating, on that it is called "I", "I" is labeled on the aggregates, the body and mind, so the mind is doing the activity, so: "I am meditating." The action of the "I" exists in that way, as the labeling base, the mind is meditating, so like this.

As there is a labeling base, the aggregates, existing, so therefore, because of that reason the self, the "I" exists. How? By being merely labeled on that. I am not going to mention the details about why it is called "merely." There is a very clear definition of that. In order to understand that one should explain the four schools, the different wrong views and the refuting objects of the four schools. First of all very gross, then a little more subtle than that, then more subtle, then the last school is very subtle wrong view. The refuting object of the fourth school, the Middle Way school, has two, one is Prasangika. The actual refuting object, as the Prasangika school explains, this is it, in order to realize shunyata, the infallible right view, this is it what we should recognize. As long as we don't recognize this according to Prasangika school, this refuting object, the truly existent I, as long as we do not recognize this, then no way, realizing shunyata is blocked, there is no way to realize the meaning of selflessness. So however, by going through these explanations then you will understand clearly why, the reason, the meaning of ...