Teachings from 100 Million Mani Retreat 2009 (Audio and Unedited Transcripts)

By Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche
Institut Vajra Yogini, France (Archive #1783)

Teachings from a Mani retreat held at the Institut Vajra Yogini, France, in May 2009.     

Preparation for Chenrezig Initiation (cont)

So, going back. So this, so as I gave the example that, turtle and golden ring. So this is something impossible thing normally, so this happened this time. Amazingly, amazingly, [pause] it happened. Something, usually something impossible thing, so happened this time.

So therefore, you see, if one doesn’t practice Dharma, say, that’s the most ignorant and the greatest loss, and the most foolish, there’s no more foolish than that. So, therefore, must, so even that, then, even that, then, you see, say, with the support, the purification, with the support, with the continual, intensive support, purification and collecting extensive merit, necessary conditions, and one-pointedly requesting the guru, with the devotional mind, by looking at Buddha seeing Buddha from one’s own side. So then, like pouring water, continuously pouring water, you see, the seed that’s planted, you know, it has all the right soil, and then you pour water, and then training the mind in the lam-rim, the main body of the practice, training the mind in the lam-rim, the stages of the path to enlightenment. So that.

So one must practice Dharma, must meditate on lam-rim, and must, as much as possible, get closer to lam-rim. Even one can’t achieve any realizations in this life, but bring the mind, bring the heart closer to lam-rim, oh that’s what, oh, that’s the essence.

Then, of course, say, the most beneficial thing, however, that liberates you from oceans of samsaric suffering, however, all your wishes for happiness, up to enlightenment, you’re able to actualize, then [pause] that is the compassion, the heart, then, with compassion, then, you the one person, then can fulfill the wishes of happiness of all the sentient beings, cause happiness of this life, cause them the happiness of all the future lives, and then liberation from samsara, and full enlightenment, that you cause to numberless hell beings, you cause to numberless hungry ghosts, you cause to numberless animals, you cause to numberless human beings, then cause to numberless sura beings, asura beings, intermediate state beings, so like that.

So, as I mentioned the other day, yesterday, so that’s the compassion. How you can do this, how you can succeed this, fulfill wishes of all the sentient beings’ happiness, how you can do is by developing compassion. So like that. So therefore, you see, then, that’s the reason why we’re doing the retreat here, this time. So the Chenrezig meditation-recitation, so it’s unbelievable important, can you see now the purpose, how most important, okay. So, like that.

So therefore, now, so as I mentioned, the pretas, could not find a spoon of food for hundreds of thousands of years, say, even a mark of water on the ground could not find, even a mark, drop of water, even a mark, could not find for unbelievable, you know, length of time. So, therefore, you see, so therefore that we have, whatever we like, those enjoyments, plenty, not only you find, but so many kinds. In the supermarket, even the cheese, even the cheese, there’s thirty, or sixty, I left out one number, fifty, sixty, anyway, different cheese you can find in the market, in the supermarket, even the cheese itself. So like that. So, can’t imagine, the drinks and food.

So therefore, so therefore, you see, sorry, my talk’s getting longer and longer, going on and on, on and on, on and on.

So, so therefore, you see, we can, you know, how much, most unbearable, how much they’re suffering, have to suffer, unable to find food. So therefore, you see, how dare, say, it’s so unbearable, say, so to, for us, I mean, you know, so much unbelievable, so much, so many different qualities, you know, so many different kinds of what you like, anyway, can get, can buy, can get.

Anyway, so, the conclusion of what I’m saying is that, so how dare can eat, just, how dare can use, can drink, eat, without [pause], how dare one can just eat so easily without, mindlessly, without, say, mindlessly. Mindless? What? How do you say? Mindlessly? You know? How can we eat, drink. What meaning what I mean is this, just with selfish mind, my happiness, just that. Only thinking that, my happiness, selfish mind, and with the attachment, just this life happiness. Attachment. And then, just with that. My happiness, the selfish mind, and then attachment. For just that. Everything how can we use, everything, all this, all these incredible sense enjoyments we use only for self, for your own happiness, the self-cherishing thought, and just attachment clinging to one’s own this life happiness. So, so you see, so it is very, so it is, living life that way, say, so, you see, very, very, very, very sad. Not [pause], not making Dharma. The sense enjoyments, you see, eating, drinking, not making Dharma. Not making Dharma.

So if you do with bodhicitta, compassion to other sentient beings, that’s the best Dharma. With non-ignorance, anger, attachment, this life, with non-attachment to this life happiness, then, it becomes pure Dharma. Not the, say, not the best one, like done with bodhicitta or compassion to the sentient beings, not like that, most wish-fulfilling, not that, but become pure Dharma, cause of happiness. It didn’t become cause of suffering; it become cause of happiness. So if it’s, doing these things done with non-ignorance, non-anger, non-attachment, like that, non-attachment to this life.

So, then same. Renunciation to next life, so, you see, with the renunciation of samsara, then, you see, then becomes cause to achieve liberation. When you eat or drink, every time when you do that, becomes cause to achieve liberation, ultimate happiness, so like that.

So, otherwise, otherwise, then self-cherishing thought, then, not only that, but attachment clinging to this life, then everything becomes cause of reincarnating in the lower realms, cause to experience suffering in the lower realms, so like that. All that. So nothing becomes meaningful. So nothing, so all those eating, drinking, where the numberless pretas could not find even a spoon of food for hundreds of years, thousands of years, even a drop of water, but we use so much, as much as we want, and then everything became negative karma. All the drinking, eating, become negative karma, cause of the lower realms. So like that.

So since I’m talking, since I brought up suffering of pretas, if we compare our life, how we live our life, so, you see, then can understand your life better. So, not living life with Dharma, so, you see, so, say, kind of, then it becomes very sad. [pause]

So therefore, so therefore now we need to change our mind, need to develop our heart, more pure, more compassionate. So then, you see, then our life, our activities become the best Dharma, most beneficial to every sentient being who are in the hell realm, who are in the hungry ghost, who are in the animal realm, human being, suras, asuras. So whatever we do, with compassion, especially, then most beneficial. Whatever we do becomes most beneficial. Even each breathing in and out, besides other activities, even each breathing, in our daily life, even each breathing in and out becomes, you see, most beneficial towards all sentient beings.

Like Khedrub Rinpoche, Lama Tsongkhapa’s heart disciple, the one on Lama Tsongkhapa’s left side, the one who looks little bit big eye opened, Khedrub Rinpoche. So he praised Lama Tsongkhapa, like this. Khedrub Rinpoche praised Lama Tsongkhapa’s qualities, benefits of his bodhicitta. Even each time breathing in and out become the cause of benefiting to each and every single sentient being, so in each realm. So like that.

So then, so by developing compassion, then even our breathing, not only our activities, but even the normal, each breathing, each time breathing out, and even breathing in becomes most beneficial to each and every single sentient being, so like that. [pause]

So now requesting, “Guru-buddha, please grant me blessing to be able to do this.” To generate the thought of equanimity. [pause]

So you can think that, say, as we begin with refuge, as we begin the practice with refuge, bodhicitta, then Guru Shakyamuni Buddha, you have to visualize in front of oneself, either one aspect, Guru Shakyamuni Buddha. Then, Guru, Shakyamuni Buddha, the aspect of Shakyamuni Buddha, so it’s one, not two separate beings, one, the meditation, you see, Guru Shakyamuni Buddha. So, that’s everything: ?all the gurus, then numberless buddhas, can think Buddha, Dharma, Sangha, can think that, okay.

Or then think, elaborate refuge merit field as explained in Jorchö, lam-rim. The other thing is what His Holiness says, that, in all the ten directions there’s Buddha, Dharma, Sangha, okay, in all the ten directions. You think that, not particularly here visualized, but all...

So, anyway, then pray, “Please bless me to be able to do this,” generate. Then one can think, nectar beams emitted, enter in one’s own body and mind, as well as all sentient beings. Then purify the discriminating thought, anger, attachment, okay. And all the wrong concepts, particularly this one, and then generated all the realizations, particularly this thought of equanimity within oneself. Think that. [pause] Same thing happened towards all the sentient beings, okay?

Then the, [pause] this is a very good meditation also if there’s war, there’s problems happening due to anger, attachment, then it’s very good to also include all those countries, generated equanimity, the thought of equanimity, in all their hearts, so it’s so good. So then that stops the war, I mean, the fighting, killing each other, all that. Bombing each other, all that.

So now, next one, “How wonderful it is if all the sentient beings have happiness,” please, don’t think, when you hear happiness, don’t think only temporary happiness, because our mind is very much used to that. But think especially ultimate happiness, liberation from samsara, but not only that but especially think enlightenment, when you generate immeasurable loving kindness. Think that. “And the cause of happiness, cause of all this happiness.”

“May they have happiness.”

Visualize Buddha in front, pray that, “May they have happiness,” so that means same, may they have happiness, may it become the cause.

Then, taking responsibility on yourself now. Not only wishing, not only leave up to prayer, but you do something for that, okay.

Then, “I will cause to have happiness for them.” So that means including the cause. So here it’s very clear, that when you think of the cause, it’s very clear how you should do, how you should cause the happiness to others, very clear. [pause]

Then request, “Please grant me blessings to be able to do this.”

Nectar beams emitted, enter in your body and mind, as well as all sentient beings. Then this purified anger, all the wrong concepts, particularly anger, and generate all the realizations, particular the immeasurable loving kindness, in your heart.

Then there’s so many benefits explained in lam-rim about loving kindness, when you generate loving kindness towards sentient beings.

Then, taking responsibility, okay. [pause] “I will cause them to have happiness,” everything including cause. [pause] “Please guru-buddhas, grant me blessings to be able to do this.”

Then beams emitted, and then purified all the wrong concepts, but particularly anger, particularly anger, okay. Then, generate all the realizations, particularly the immeasurable loving kindness, within your heart. Same thing happened towards all those sentient beings. [pause]

“How wonderful it is if all the sentient beings, if they’re free from all the suffering and cause of the suffering.” [long pause]

“May they be free from all the suffering and the cause.” [pause]

“I will cause them to be free from all the suffering and the cause.”

So here, again, not just leaving it up to wishing and praying, but you do something, [pause] taking the responsibility on yourself.

How you liberate others from suffering? By liberating the cause: the karma and delusion. So that makes clear. [pause] If one doesn’t think of the cause, karma and delusion, then even though you want to free them from suffering, but it’s very confused, you don’t know how to do. [pause]

Then, your method to free them from suffering will be only external, using only external means, nothing to do with their mind, nothing to do with their mind, you never touch their mind, the cause of suffering, which is within them, you never touch that. You never come to know that, you never touch that. Then you never put in effort to free the cause. So only look for external, only you research external cause. So then, only try to stop only the external one. That which, now here you can see, only external thing, that doesn’t really solve, that doesn’t really solve their suffering completely, forever. Because the root or the main cause of the suffering, the karma and delusion, is there, never touched, never discovered, never touched, never discovered, not known, never studied, never research, never made research on that. So, what you do, what you’re trying to help, others, only become external. So then, then they suffer again and again. Their suffering comes back again and again. Also they constantly suffer, so like that. The delusion arises continuously, and then motivate karma continuously, and that’s how they experience suffering continuously, so like that. [pause]

So therefore, then “Please guru-buddhas, grant me blessings to be able to do this.”

Nectar beams emitted from buddha, enter in your body and mind, and then completely purified all the wrong concepts and the self-cherishing thought, purified the self-cherishing thought. Then, received all the realizations, and particularly the immeasurable compassion within you.

And then same thing happened towards all the sentient beings: numberless hell beings, numberless hungry ghosts, animals, human beings, suras, auras, intermediate state beings, to all the sentient beings, that happened. [long pause]

So immeasurable loving, compassion. Then now, immeasurable joyfulness. Immeasurable thought of joyfulness.

“How wonderful it is if all the sentient beings were not separated away from the [pause] pure happiness, the liberation, and the higher realm.” [long pause]

So that means not only liberation from samsara, but also enlightenment, great liberation. So that should contain both liberations: liberation, and great liberation, enlightenment. [long pause]

“May they not be separated away from these.”

Then pray to Buddha, who’s everything, the guru, Buddha, Dharma, Sangha, everything.

“I will cause them to not be separated away from this.”

So means, it means you are making a vow, promising, taking responsibility towards numberless hell beings, towards numberless hungry ghosts, towards numberless animals, towards numberless human beings, towards numberless sura beings, asura beings, intermediate state beings, towards every sentient being you’re taking responsibility.

“Please, guru-buddhas, grant me blessings to be able to do this.”

Nectar beams emitted, from the buddha, who is nature of all the objects of refuge. Nectar beams emitted, enter one’s own body and mind, as well as in the body and mind of all the sentient beings, okay.

Then, [pause] so you can think, say, purified the root of samsara, the ignorance, okay, purified that. All the wrong conceptions, and that is purified. Then, you can think also this, say, self-cherishing thought, can think that, also purified.

Then generated all the right realizations, the right concept, all the right realizations, and then the, say, then generated the immeasurable thought of joyfulness. [pause] Same thing happened to all sentient beings. [pause]

Then the, so, purpose of my life is, real meaning of my life is to benefit other sentient beings. So the highest benefit is to free the, think, say, [long pause] highest benefit that is, to free the numberless sentient beings, free my kind mother, numberless sentient beings, from whom I receive all my past happiness from beginningless rebirth, all the present happiness, all the future happiness, including enlightenment, free them from all the suffering and causes, and bring them in full enlightenment, quickly. Okay? [pause]

Therefore, then, say, therefore, I need to achieve full enlightenment quickly. Therefore, I need to actualize the root of the path to enlightenment, the great compassion. So therefore, I’m going to do the, okay, yeah, so you think, I mean, this can be also motivation for the initiation, so, now quite a bit of time already went, so I think, so can think this is for the initiation as well, okay. So the preliminary for the nearing retreat, okay, so can do that as well, okay.

So, it means, you see, so, in other words, Kadampa geshes explained, I don’t remember the, there is exact term, but I don’t remember. Anyway, give up the I, say, give up the I, source of all the sufferings, then take it, means cherish the others, cherish the others, take the other sentient beings, say, from where all the happiness comes. So that. So, I didn’t remember exactly the word by word, the expression, so that.

So anyway, so this, what we’re going to do practice here is for, basically in short, for every, for every hell beings, this is for every hell beings, every hell being, they’re numberless, every hell being. Not just get samsaric pleasure, no. Not like that. Achieve enlightenment, to achieve enlightenment. Not just get samsaric pleasure, born a human being and then have a very big house or swimming pools, many cars, going to movies, parties, dance, or then, go in the airplane and jump out of the airplane with the ?rucksack back side, the ?rucksack what it is, then wearing jacket, then holding hands together like this [Rinpoche demonstrates.] Then somebody get dropped, or somebody get fall down. Anyway, houses everywhere, countryside, different beach, not like that. Enlightenment! Don’t forget enlightenment! So anyway, there’s danger to forget enlightenment, thinking of all sorts of those happiness.

Anyway, say, numberless hell beings, then numberless hungry ghosts, every one of them, every one of them, okay, those suffering most unbearable. Then, for every numberless animals, insects, everyone, who are not only in this world, numberless universes, everyone, then, for their happiness. Then numberless, then human beings, not only human beings in this world, numberless universes there are human beings, for their happiness, okay. Then numberless suras, asuras, for every one of their happiness. And then intermediate state beings. All sentient beings’ happiness. Think enlightenment. Oh, then, going to do this, okay, so like that.

Then you generate yourself Compassion Buddha, okay. So last night during preparation you generated already. So those who are going to do retreat, okay, so attended last night, who took the preparation, okay, generate yourself as Chenrezig, okay. [pause] You can do the same as like yesterday, like White Tara, but without the eyes on the hands and under the feet.

You purify in emptiness, then the I, the real I, independent I, that which is not there, you are seeing that as totally empty, as it is empty. [long pause]

Seeing totally empty, that I. [pause] Never came in the existence from beginningless rebirth. So this can be helpful: never came in the existence from beginningless rebirth. [pause] I’m talking about this real I. I’m not talking the merely labeled I. I’m talking the real I, whom you’re believing now taking initiation or doing the retreat, that one. [pause] Never came in existence. It’s totally empty from its own side. Never came in existence from beginningless rebirth. [pause] Wisdom seeing that, [pause] manifests Chenrezig.

Then the vase, so the vase was already blessed, so that’s it. So the ?sang bum, to dispel the interferers, the spirit possessions, abiding the offerings or, so forth, so like that, to dispel.

So this is called victorious vase, namgyel bumpa. And this one the action vase, which does the action of dispelling, dispelling vase.

So it will take time, so I’m not going to, that was done, so then, would take time so, [inaudible], that’s simple ______.

So then we, there’s some container? [Rinpoche has a conversation in Tibetan with the attendant.] So need torma offering to the landlord, okay.

[End of tape]