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Session 15

So the second freedom is having the freedom to practice Dharma. Not being born as an animal.

Visualize like this. If I am like this now, if I am this chicken, who are crawling around the house and everyday, the whole day, picking up worms for eating—visualize yourself as a chicken like this and think whether there is the chance to practice Dharma or not.

Or visualize yourself as a dog, unable to speak. I cannot explain that I have a headache, my mind is not happy, or I want this…can’t explain. Today I like such food, I don’t like this food. Besides, there is no Dharma wisdom. The mind is incapable of understanding Dharma. How would you feel? Try to feel it and try to see clearly. There is no chance to practice Dharma at all. If somebody tells the horses or the dogs teachings, oh this meditation is so profound, extremely profound, very simple and very profound, if you practice this you will be free from all the sufferings, you will quickly achieve enlightenment. Or if you recite this mantra, it is very good, it is very beneficial to you. How powerful it is to purify. Even if you teach the mantra they can’t understand. The dogs, horses, can’t recite the mantra OM MANI PADME HUM. Then no matter how much you explain there is no way to understand the meaning. Even if you beat them, they can’t understand. By giving food, they can’t understand.

So first you feel, if one has taken such a body now, would there be the freedom to practice Dharma or not? There is no freedom to practice Dharma at all. Then you feel the great freedom that one has by having recognized this precious human body. Think, “How fortunate that I am not an animal.” And that I have found this precious human body, qualified with eight freedoms, ten richnesses, and the freedom to practice Dharma. Then you deeply feel from the heart like this. Then think, “This I have now, but it’s not sure how long it will last. This can be lost at any time, so without wasting this precious human life, every minute, hour, I must practice Dharma.”

The fourth one, barbarian. Having the freedom to practice dharma, not being born as a barbarian. If one was born in the outlying countries where are no teachings at all, there is no chance at all to hear Buddhadharma. And also if one is barbarian, there is no understanding no understanding at all of what is good action, what is the negative action, what is virtuous action, what is non-virtuous. What is the cause of happiness, what is the cause of suffering. No understanding at all. The mind is completely like a dark room, not having one single light. Like night time there is no sun, no stars, completely foggy—no understanding of Dharma at all, completely negative karma, like that.

If I were like this, a barbarian, I would have no chance to practice Dharma, no freedom to practice Dharma. So, having found the perfect human rebirth, having the freedom to practice Dharma, how fortunate I am. Think like this. Now I have the freedom. Now I have the freedom, any time, whenever I want to practice Dharma, I have the freedom, I have a little bit of wisdom about how to practice Dharma. I am able to recognize which actions of body, speech, and mind become the cause of suffering, which actions become the cause of happiness. I can distinguish. I have the wisdom to understand, to analyze, to understand these differences. If I want my actions to be the cause of happiness I have the freedom to transform them, to make them virtues, the cause of happiness. I have great freedom to practice Dharma. Feel them. Feel great happiness within, feel great happiness within your heart.

Then the freedom of not being born as the long life gods. Generally if one is born as those worldly gods, they are the gods of the desire realm and the gods of the form and formless realm. There are different worldly gods like this. If one is born as a god of desire who lives on the five sense pleasures, first remember the example like this.

If I am a very wealthy person I have great apartments, many cars outside, machines, televisions, music playing, records, billions of records in the house, piled up. Four or five televisions, then two or three hundred rooms. Then many beautiful parks around, many swimming pools around, many servants, many surrounding people, lots of friends around, the sense pleasures, enjoyments around. Then think, can I can relax my mind or not? Can I can keep the mind calm and peaceful or not when there is so much like this. So much of this is our own past experience, so you remember. You bring your memory this time. Then check. When there are so many things around, great enjoyment, can I relax my mind, control my mind, or not. Can I relax the mind and meditate? Difficult, anyway. Difficult to practice Dharma, difficult to relax the mind, difficult to meditate even for ten minutes, five minutes. Difficult to relax on the bed, on the chair, whatever it is. One after another you want to fix that or you want to listen to that—one after another the thought comes. The mind is so busy, taking care of them and developing them, seeking the sense pleasures. The main problem is attachment to seeking the sense pleasures. So it is difficult to get time for meditation.

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With this much material enjoyment I can’t practice Dharma, I can’t meditate, relax my mind. If now I’m a worldly god who has incredible and greater enjoyment, not having difficulties at all, with material enjoyment, whatever they wish, whatever they think they get, the life always passing in singing, outside things playing or dancing in the beautiful parks, always with lots of friends, always passing times in the distractions, always enjoying the sense pleasures, all the time. And not having life difficulties in terms of material needs, like human beings experience—all kinds of suffering life—they don’t have that experience during their life before the sign of death happens. Their foods are nectar, their clothes that they wear are much better quality than the clothes the rich, rich human beings wear. The material possessions, all the enjoyments that they have, are much greater than this.

The material possessions and ornaments of one worldly god when compared to all the material possessions that human beings have on this earth, can never compare to the ornament that the worldly god wears. What they wear is much more valuable. Much more expensive, much more valuable than all the possessions on this human earth.

The kind of the world, Indra, the god of desire, who lives in the realm of the thirty three—just even his earring is so incredible, so valuable that all the jewels on this earth do not compare in value.

Then think, if I were one of those worldly gods then it’s impossible—the conclusion is this. If I were a worldly person having all these things, material possessions, I couldn’t practice Dharma, so if I was born as a worldly god, having greater enjoyment, the sense pleasures, it would be extremely difficult to practice Dharma. So then think, “How fortunate I am that I wasn’t born as a worldly god and that I found this perfect human rebirth with the freedom to practice Dharma. This freedom won’t last for a long time. It can be lost at any time. So therefore without wasting even a minute, an hour, without wasting my precious human life, I must practice Dharma.”

There is a story of an arhat’s disciple on earth who passed away and was reborn into the realm of the gods. That arhat, Sharipu, decided to check where his disciple had been born with his psychic power. He went up there with his psychic power in that realm, to check up on his disciple, and the disciple saw his teacher but he was not listening, not paying attention, he just left with all his boyfriends and girlfriends to play in the beautiful park. He saw his teacher but didn’t listen, even his teacher said to wait, he did not listen, didn’t pay attention, the mind was too much seeking the sense pleasures. So things like that happen.

The cause of rebirth as a god of form and formless, is getting fed up with the sense pleasures. Then you have aversion and then you only seek the inner pleasure derived from concentration. You do not have the pure thought renouncing all samsara, not having this, not having meditated on samsara in the nature of suffering. Just doing some concentration like that, seeking only the inner pleasures derived from the concentration, without meditating on the renunciation of samsara. These beings get born in the realm of form as gods, then in the formless realm, meditating on blank, stopping all thoughts, stopping all the wisdoms, then meditating on space. Meditating on nothingness, believing that everything is nothingness.

When one is doing one-pointedness concentration, shamatha, trying to achieve one-pointedness concentration, one meditates on sluggishness. Not having recognized his mistakes in the meditation, he believes he is doing right meditation because his concentration is lasting. There is not much distraction, distracting thoughts or anything, and his concentration can last for many hours, but there is no energy. Not tightly holding the object of concentration and not having the clearness of the object, that is the gross ching wa or gross sluggishness.

And then the subtle sluggishness is when there is clearness of the object but you can’t hold the clearness, there is no energy to totally hold that object or focus on that object. That is subtle ching wa or sluggishness. Then not having recognized the mistake of the meditation. Then the person believes that I am doing the right meditation, he spends many years like that, meditating on nothingness, meditating on blank, thinking it is shunyata. I’m meditating on shunyata. Those things cause him to be born in the world of form and formless.

The lamas and pundits who have the understanding of the sutra and tantra teachings, who have the experience of the graduated path say such types of meditations are the foolish meditation. It is like meditating on only ignorance, on the fogginess, foggy mind, meditating on the faulty mind. Meditating on the ching wa, the sluggishness, the mind being drowsy, meditating on drowsiness, fogginess, sluggishness—the one who meditates on these things is also born as an animal. Either in the formless realm or as an animal.

If one is born as a god in the formless realm, however long they live their life in that realm it’s like sleeping the whole time. You recognize only two things—you recognize the birth, and recognize the death. Only those two things. In the middle, between that the whole life is completely like deep sleep. No cognition. No wisdom, no cognition, no discriminating the object, nothing like that. So there is no chance to practice Dharma. Like when we have deep sleep in the might time, while we are meditating if we fall asleep, if we have a deep sleep, it is difficult to wake up soon. While we are in deep sleep, it is difficult to meditate, difficult to practice Dharma. So from that you figure it out. If I am born in this realm, as this worldly god, then there is no chance to practice Dharma at all. So how fortunate I am that I was not born like that and that I have found the perfect human rebirth and the freedom to practice Dharma, how fortunate I am. And this freedom can be lost at any time. It’s very good to think like this.

When you meditate, think this freedom can be lost at any time. It can be lost within this hour, or this evening after sunset, or after several hours, this night time—maybe I will be born in the realm of form—as a worldly god in the realm of the formless in the night time. Now I am a human being, but at night time something can change. If that happens by tonight, if that happens what can I do? No chance to practice Dharma. This is very effective for the mind, if you can relate to each of these meditations. Narak, preta, animals, then the barbarians—all those others.

Now I have found the human body, perfect with eight freedom, ten richnesses, but by tomorrow around this time, by evening time, , if I was born in another realm, if I was born as a preta, if that happened then it’s finished. No chance to practice Dharma. You persuade your mind, you give advice to yourself. So therefore I must be careful. I mustn’t waste my precious human body. So then like that—I must practice Dharma.

If I was born as a being who has longevity, without one single understanding of karma or even a doubt whether reincarnation exist or not or whether there is a true path to be free from samsara and to reach nirvana, having completely wrong realizations or wrong understanding that by doing good action, you receive happiness and by doing non-virtuous actions you receive suffering. Completely believing in just one life, that the consciousness completely stops, it just becomes blank, after death. Like when the wax finishes, the flame stops. Completely believing in this, not having even a doubt whether it continues or not, whether they will be alive or not. If I were like that, not having Dharma wisdom, not having the wisdom to practice Dharma, there is no way for the thought of practicing Dharma to arise, no way. If I were like that, I would never make preparation for the happiness of future lives. Completely, totally then my whole life’s work is completely dedicated to myself or done only for the happiness of just this life. That’s all. Just keeping myself busy, working for the few years of happiness of my life.

The mind is completely ignorant, not having understanding correctly, not having understand karma, not even a doubt of reincarnation, like that. Completely having wrong realization.

The horses and cows are very ignorant, deeply ignorant, extremely foolish, but they don’t have extra wrong realizations like these beings have. Besides the intuitive wrong conceptions that they are born with, they have extra by having met the wrong doctrine, wrong philosophy, by having met the wrong founder of that wrong philosophy, they build extra hallucination, which only blocks the door of happiness. Meditate like this.

You put yourself in that situation, then feel it, whether there is freedom to practice Dharma or not. Then think, now fortunate I am that I was not born as a person having wrong view, but with the perfect human rebirth and the freedom to practice Dharma.

I have met the holy Dharma, the method to obtain happiness for this life and all the future lives. And I have the opportunity to do it, to achieve this method.

If I was born in this place where Buddha has not descended, there would be teaching. So there is no practice if Dharma, so think, visualize how this would be. Feel this, not having the chance to practice Dharma, then think, “How fortunate I am that I wasn’t born in such a world and that I have found a perfect human rebirth, having the freedom to practice Dharma. This freedom can finish at any time so I must, without wasting my precious human life, even for an hour, a minute, then I must practice Dharma, all the time.”

If was born as a foolish person, again there is no freedom to practice Dharma. You put yourself in that situation, like many of these children in the West, autistic. The body looks okay, looks very nice, very good but they cannot communicate.

Leave out understanding Dharma, or meditation—even the common talk they can’t understand. You put yourself in that situation; think, then try to feel how it is, if I was born like that. Try to feel the limitations in the freedom. Then you think back to yourself. Try to recognize this freedom that you wouldn’t have, such as the precious human body one has received. Then think how fortunate I am that I wasn’t born like that, as a foolish person, and that I have found the perfect human rebirth and have the freedom to practice Dharma. This freedom can be lost again in time, so without wasting even hour, minute, I must practice Dharma.

Actually it is really so fortunate—if we had to be like that kind of person for our whole life, what could we do? No benefit at all. No capability of mind. So if you think of those things, if you really think well, then you can really recognize how oneself is fortunate, how great the good work that one can do with this perfect human body. We are extremely fortunate that we are not born like that.

Of course, actually the people try to help so much. They try to help, making society, and try to take care. It’s very kind, very, very nice. Having great consideration for those people. They have a human body but the mind doesn’t make the difference from the animal, no capability. This is very difficult. If you give medicine, right away one can be recovered, feel better—but everybody is not like that, very difficult. I mean people they try so hard…

Session 16

Guru, one whose holy mind is enriched with bodhicitta, cherishing others instead of cherishing oneself, whose mind always trained in this and whose mind is enriched with this pure thought, bodhicitta, who always meditated on this pure thought of bodhicitta, whose holy name is Khunu Rinpoche, Tenzin Gyaltsen—this great bodhisattva, Tenzin Gyaltsen, this guru normally lived an ascetic life all the time. No matter how many people made offerings, he didn’t keep material possessions. However much food people offered or materials, money, or whatever the people offered, he didn’t keep and he made offerings to the monasteries and made charity and things like that. He always lived a kind of simple life, an ascetic life. He was not a monk, but he lived in the eight precepts. In previous times he lived with the sadhus in India, nearby the water Ganga. He lived there for a long time and became very friendly and liked him very much, but his practice is nothing to do with them. He lived with them in the caves and things like that, wearing just a piece of cloth, for a long time. Then afterwards then he came to the Tibetan monasteries in India, like Bodhgaya. At first the people, the monks, didn’t know his knowledge—that he is a great bodhisattva like this, that he has incredible knowledge, a fully distinguished pandit, extremely learned in Buddhadharma. They didn’t know, so they didn’t really pay attention so much, and he came to ask for place to sleep and things like that. Afterwards His Holiness Dalai Lama took teachings from him, so then because usually people judge from outside—if somebody has a very tall body, with a long beard, wearing long saris, outside looking very good, then people believe, people think, “He is a great guru,” or “He is a great yogi.” Normally, usually people judge so much, they discriminate from outside, without checking the knowledge and the practice. Then normally discriminate by the way he dressed or how he looked. After this His Holiness the Dalai Lama took teachings from him, and then everybody started to know about him, and then everybody started to take teaching from him, everybody started to respect him. Then later people had difficulty getting in to see him. He lived on one meal and he didn’t have to go peepee like us, very often. Maybe once in a day. He very rarely came outside.

Anyway, he wrote a teaching which contains the benefits of the bodhicitta. The Admiration to the Bodhicitta, the Precious Lamp. I don’t think it is translated yet in English. However it is similar to the Bodhicaryavatara, written by the great bodhisattva Shantideva. So, anyway, as he said in his teaching, “What is the best? What is the sublime method? To do the work for oneself for the sake of oneself and for the sake of other sentient beings? What is the sublime method? What is the best method? That is the bodhicitta. Then try to feel great joyfulness.” What Khunu Rinpoche is saying is that, even if you are concerned about yourself, or even if you are concerned about other sentient beings, what is the best? What is the best? If you are concerned to do some best work, to give them the greatest benefit. What is that? That is the bodhicitta. So try to understand this. By having the definite understanding that it is the bodhicitta, having recognized there is a best method, which is the bodhicitta, then you feel happiness in your mind. With great happiness one can practice bodhicitta. It is extremely worthwhile to train the mind in bodhicitta.

Similarly, the great bodhisattva Shantideva, whose story I mentioned before, said in his teachings, “Guru Shakyamuni Buddha and others who have been extremely concerned for many eons have realized only this is beneficial.” What he is saying is that Guru Shakyamuni Buddha and the 1000 buddhas of the eon have been so much concerned for sentient beings. They have been checking, what is the most beneficial for the sentient beings? The most skillful method to free them from all the sufferings of the samsara and to lead in the path of happiness. What is the most beneficial thing? After checking for many eons they have found that only bodhicitta is beneficial. Many other buddhas have also checked. They have checked and found it is beneficial—so it is like in the West when they find certain plants, certain Ayurvedic medicines, or certain plants. They find certain methods, certain material things that are beneficial for certain diseases, something like that; if somebody has experienced this, and it is announced in televisions and in the newspapers and they show pictures and all the articles, about how it has been beneficial for her or for him. Then many buy this, the television has given the phone numbers, “If you want, then contact with this,” and they call for this. Many people do this, because that person had the experience of this, the benefits of this. So many people buy, they come to buy. This bodhicitta is extremely worthwhile in which there is not one single doubt…

[end of tape]

Oh then, no matter how long it takes to generate, training the mind in bodhicitta, it is something that one doesn’t have to worry about at all, one doesn’t have to feel upset at all. All the time it is highly meaningful to oneself and all other sentient beings. To be able to generate this bodhicitta one must generate the mind fully renouncing samsara, and that depends on having the realizations of these fundamental meditations—the perfect human rebirth, its usefulness, its difficulty, and impermanence and death, then karma, then the sufferings of the realms of the lower transmigratory beings.

Yesterday was one strict way to think about not falling in the extreme actions when one is committing the non-virtuous action. Then after having devotion to the teachings, following the teaching. Then, if one does not follow the teaching, again one doesn’t have the opportunity to practice Dharma. So we have received this richness, this opportunity to practice Dharma. There, even in Tibet, the Buddhadharma, the whole, complete method that was shown by Buddha, and the teachings of sutra and the teachings of tantra, the profound and the quick path to enlightenment, the whole teaching purely existed in the holy mind of the great yogis, the high lamas, well flourished in Tibet. In regards to finding perfect gurus, there are so many well experienced, so much opportunity, but still there are so many people in Tibet who do not practice. Even though the teaching is existing, there are many people who don’t take refuge in the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha, and who do not follow the teaching, even though the teaching is existing there in the country, One doesn’t have to travel for many days, many months, one doesn’t have to go by airplane, crossing the Atlantic, making lots of expenses, one doesn’t have to this, nothing. It is just there, around the house. In some countries there are lots of monasteries, many learned, fully distinguished lamas, who are perfectly qualified, able to show the whole, complete teaching, but there are still those who don’t take refuge in the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha, who don’t practice, who don’t follow the teachings. In that case it didn’t make any difference whether he was born in Tibet or not born in Tibet.

Oh then, for instance, you can see very clearly in India—the original place where Guru Shakyamuni Buddha took birth and did his holy deeds. India is the first place where Guru Shakyamuni Buddha turned his first Dharma wheel. He gave so much teaching, the whole entire path was shown to incredible numbers of sentient beings, fortunate sentient beings—it was well flourishing, like the sun has risen, and there were incredible numbers of followers, pandits and many great yogis achieved enlightenment by experiencing the path that was shown by Guru Shakyamuni Buddha, and he path that was shown by the Guru’s guru.

So many of those disciples, disciples of disciples, achieved enlightenment, reached the goal as they followed the path that was shown by their gurus. Then even when it degenerated in India, the teachings of the Buddhadharma flourished in Tibet.

So then now, now it is back to India, as the lamas who have the complete understanding of the meanings of the whole teaching. It doesn’t mean the texts were brought from Tibet, it doesn’t mean that teachings came back to India, it doesn’t mean the texts were brought from Tibet to India, it doesn’t mean that. The lamas who have the infallible understanding of the whole meaning of the teachings, who have the experience of the path, a few of them were able to escape from Tibet to India. There is so much opportunity, if the Indians want to practice Buddhadharma, the Mahayana teaching, the tantra teachings—whatever they want, whatever they want to practice, they have well-experienced, perfectly qualified gurus, lamas in their country, but the Indians they don’t follow. They often see the lamas, they don’t practice Buddhadharma, they don’t try to practice Buddhadharma, even though they see it all the time.

It is a very funny thing is, but so many Western people come from very far. In order to come here first of all for one or two, three years they have to work so hard, and then, by collecting all that money, they come by ships or by airplanes, crossing the Atlantic like this, from very far countries to study Buddhadharma. So from that you can understand who is more fortunate.

Before going to the West I did have some idea of the West, because I was talking with friends, people coming here. Also seeing Time magazine. First when we were living in that old house there, where the Sangha are living now, there were not so many people except her friend—we had the first student, the Western student, the Russian woman, she became a nun afterwards. She is called Princess Rachavsky, her Russian name. She has lots of friends. She has all kinds of friends because in the West she lived all kinds of life., She did everything that other people do in the West, she had all the experiences. Sometimes kind of living with the animals, sometimes like those worldly gods, living incredibly rich, all the extreme lives, rich and poor. As she had many different types of life then she knows a lot of people, important people or the wealthy people, and also many young people, many simple people. Her friends come and so we kind of talk.

So like this, I have some idea of how it is not that difficult to understand the personalities, the conceptions how people live there. Talking is studying the other person’s mind. Anyway, after the first Western tour, I was surprised when I saw the students, their living, their house, their place there, I was surprised that the people are very wealthy, very rich, and wherever you go, you can get all kinds of these different kinds of fruit, different kinds of food, everywhere, it is not like Nepal or India where only in the big cities you can get these things.

And the conceptions, the way of thinking, is completely, completely different, the way of living life. It is not like India or Nepal where you can see great influence, you can always hear Dharma, sort of. Always there is something around, monasteries or people studying Dharma or talking about Dharma, somehow you get, even if you don’t try, you hear, you see, always there is something that persuades and brings the mind in Dharma or persuades your mind to practice Dharma or something. There is nothing like that. And the way the people live life is completely, completely different. And, in regards material life, it is so rich like this.

I mean, of course, on the other hand there are problems, of course, but from the side of the place, from the side of the country, the great material development, according to that, to remember Dharma or, and to think about practicing Dharma, to rise the thought of Dharma, to rise the thought to practice Dharma is almost kind of difficult, almost kind of impossible. To want come to the East, and live a simple life, as you are living now, in rags, in a broken house, in the cow-shed house. Living in a completely different style. You eat a poor quality of food, completely opposite from there. The mind enjoying Dharma and seeking Dharma, not having so much interest in the material life, and having so much wish to seek the inner happiness. I was very surprised, thinking how you live the life here, the people who practice Dharma. Young Western people who practice Dharma here in the East. Then, by looking by their change of life, seeing that how they live their lives there, that made me very surprised, very surprised. Something that is difficult to happen, impossible to happen, kind of happened. So that is kind of a very surprising thing. Many times I’ve told the Tibetan lamas, explained to them how it was very surprising the changes of their lives, how it is difficult.

We are following the teachings so it is extremely fortunate, having the chance to practice Dharma. If we were born in a place, in the dark ages, where Buddha had not descended on the earth, even if you are born as a human being, it is no use. There is no teaching, so there is no way to meet the teaching, so there is no way to use the human body for obtaining the temporal happiness and the ultimate happiness. There is no way to meet the teaching, you are just exactly like those other non-human beings who get born on this earth. Similar, nothing special. So we are born in the time that the Buddha descended, and because of that we have the opportunity to practice Dharma.

[BREAK]

And the teaching was not shown yet. Even if one was born during that time, then there is no way to meet the teaching. So we were born in the time that the teaching was shown. And even if the teaching was shown, but again, if we were born in the time after the teaching had degenerated already, then again there is no use to be born as a human being on this earth. Like if we were born after several 100 years, there is no use, because the teaching has already degenerated. So now, this time, this particular eon, the human beings on this earth were able to live for 80,000 years. Then their life started to decrease. When the life started to decrease gradually these three other buddhas descended on this earth to turn the Dharma wheel. So, there are four buddhas, and gradually, one after another, when the teaching of the previous one was degenerated, the next descended on this earth and he turned the Dharma wheel. The fourth one is Guru Shakyamuni Buddha. He descended and turned the Dharma wheel when the majority of people were able to live to 100 years old.

So now there is not so much time to degenerate the holy teaching of Guru Shakyamuni Buddha. Actually it is like just before the very last flame of the candle-light, which is about to stop—this is how the teaching of Buddha exists now. It is not as in those past times. It is kind of very small; before the flame was bigger, then before it finishes it becomes very small, close to stop. So the time that we met the teaching is like that time. Just before the holy Dharma gets degenerated. So we have the great opportunity that we were able to be born as a human being and meet the teachings.

The teachings exist, they have not degenerated yet. The Hinayana teachings, the teachings of the Theravada, the Paramitayana teaching, the tantra teaching—all these exist. They are existing. The infallible understanding of the extensive meanings of those teachings, of those paths, exist in the minds of the fully distinguished, learned geshes and the high lamas—the complete understanding of this whole teaching, all these different paths. Then also the experiences of the path exist in the holy minds of the great lamas. And there is a great possibility before they pass away. There is a great possibility. The lamas who have this are not so many. The teaching, the experience of this path, the realization of this path exists in the holy mind of those high lamas. And also the perfect understanding, the correct meanings of the teachings exist in their holy mind. After some time gradually they become less and less and less, they pass away one after another. Then it is very difficult—no matter how much one has the great wish to practice tantra and all those profound paths, there is no way to receive teachings—maybe there are scriptures existing, but there is no way to receive the explanations from an experienced lama. From a perfectly qualified guru. Then there is no way to really understand these teachings. The book exists, but no way to understand.

The time, the age, becomes darker and darker like this. Like the time after sunset, like that. Anyway, so we have the opportunity to practice Dharma because the teaching exists. We also have the opportunity to practice Dharma by having received this richness from a virtuous guide, the teacher, with compassion. If one has material difficulty, then again one is unable to receive teachings. Unable to practice Dharma—like many students they live with the help of friends even if they themselves don’t have any money to live on, they live on with the help of friends or maybe parents. So there are eight freedoms and ten richnesses like this. When I talk sometimes it becomes very long, but when you actually meditate it is good, after each richness that you have counted, you have recognized, think again, “Now I have this, but this can be lost at any time, this doesn’t last for a long time, so I must be very careful with this, I must be always mindful and I should not waste even an hour, or a minute, and then I must practice Dharma.” Give advice to yourself like that. In many of the past lives we have received from some of the freedoms and richnesses, but we haven’t received all of them—always there was some or another missing. All the eight freedoms and ten richnesses. Many times we were born as human beings, but missing the freedoms and missing the richnesses—like for instance, one was born as a human being, but born as a foolish person, or a person having wrong view, or a person having an imperfect body. There was always something missing. Nothing all together. Like that. This time, this body that we have found is perfect in all these eight freedoms and ten richnesses, so if we use the time for material things it is very expensive, in other words.

[end of tape]

You check yourself. You question whether there is really a more precious, more valuable thing than this body. (Rinpoche speaking in Tibetan) On this, if you check up, if you question yourself, “Is there anything?” You check, “Actually, is there something that is more precious, more valuable, than this?” You question yourself and check.

Before mentioning the usefulness, while you are feeling the great joyfulness thinking that I have all these eight freedoms and ten richnesses, keep your mind in that state for a little while. Do the fixed meditation. When you meditate on this, even if some freedom is missing, some richness is missing, there is less missing, more that you have received. There is more that you have received. So one can feel great joyfulness having received that much freedom and richness. One doesn’t have to become crazy. “Oh, I don’t have this! This freedom is missing, this richness is missing.” You don’t have to become crazy. There are less missing, more received. There is also the possibility to make this body perfect in all ten richnesses and all the eight freedoms. This precious human body qualified of eight freedoms, ten richnesses is highly meaningful. With this precious human body three great meanings can be obtained. [Rinpoche talks in Tibetan] The temporal meaning, ultimate meaning, this precious human is highly meaningful, even each minute, hour, minute, second. How is this highly meaningful to obtain the temporal meaning?

Whatever I wish to receive, to be born as, even if I wish for the body of the worldly gods, or the body of the human being, or a king, or a very wealthy person, a millionaire, I can obtain with this precious human body. With this precious human body I can create the cause.

The cause of the body of the happy transmigratory being is moral conduct. With this precious human body I can create the cause, keeping moral conduct. If I do, there is a possibility. With this precious human body the cause can be created. And if I wish to have great enjoyments, material enjoyments in the future life, I can obtain this. How? With this precious human body I can create the cause for that. That is practicing charity. Practicing charity.

And if I want to have perfect surroundings, people who always help me, always listen to me, perfect surrounding people in the future life, I can obtain this with this precious human body. How? With this perfect human body I can create the cause, practicing patience. Then, with this present perfect human body I can create the cause to find again the perfect human body. With this body I can keep pure moral conduct. With this perfect human body I can create the cause. The moral conduct is the support.

Then, the charity, and pure prayer. The moral conduct causes you to receive the perfect human body, and the charity is the support. And the pure prayer makes one join the perfect human body after this life. The pure prayer makes the connection from this life’s consciousness to the future life, the perfect human body. Moral conduct is the cause, and charity supports one to receive the perfect human body, and pure prayer makes the connection between them.

Even if I wish to be born in the pure realms, in the intermediate stage, without being born in those other realms, I can be born there. Even before death, there were many people, many lay people, not high, of course, no question high lamas, but even many lay people, mothers, fathers, who were led in the pure realm by Tara, the female aspect of Buddha, or Avalokiteshvara, or Amitabha Buddha. There are many different aspects of buddhas, Heruka. They left for the pure realm even without need to go through death.

If one is able to be born in the pure realm, such as in the pure realm of Amitabha Buddha, or the pure realm of Tara, or Heruka, one doesn’t have to be born, one doesn’t have to depend on parents to be born, one is born in the lotus. There is no suffering, like old age, sickness—these sufferings do not exist, one doesn’t have to experience them in the pure realm. One doesn’t have a body like this, formed of bones, blood, skin. The bodies in the pure realms are not like this. One has a spiritual body, with no pain, things like that.

If one is able to be born in the pure realm, then one can see the buddha of that pure realm, and one receives teachings from that buddha directly. Whatever of the path that one hasn’t accomplished in this life with this perfect human body, whatever one has not finished generating, one can complete in that pure realm, with that body, and then in that life then one becomes enlightened.

Then, in the pure realm, even the food and things like that are nectar, having great enjoyment, and there are beautiful trees, flowers, many flowers, many beautiful flowers having very big petals. Many beautiful flowers that we cannot see on this earth. The landscape, the views of the land are extremely beautiful, very attractive, and even the birds flying around speak the Dharma. Many of those who are in the form of animals are bodhisattvas. Constantly you hear the Dharma sound. And even the trees are wish-granting trees.

Whatever you think, the temporal needs, you get from praying to that tree. And as the wind blows, you hear the Dharma sound. Even though there are great enjoyments, it doesn’t cause one to develop the unsubdued mind, attachment—not like the sense-pleasures. If one is unable to receive enlightenment in this life, normally the meditators try to be born in the pure realm, and then in that life they can achieve enlightenment.

I think I stop here.

Session 17

…which is qualified with the eight freedoms and ten richnesses is highly meaningful to obtain the temporal work, highly meaningful to obtain the ultimate work. It is highly meaningful even in each second, the hour, minute, second, like that.

If one tries to follow the path in this life and that is not completed in this life, if one is unable to achieve enlightenment in this life, there is a possibility to achieve enlightenment by being born in the pure realm of the buddhas. So how that is possible? Because with this precious human body one can create the cause to be born in the pure realm. One should pay much attention to karma. Avoid the non-virtuous actions as much as possible, and practice the virtuous actions. Keep moral conduct, make charity, and make pure prayers, all these things.

Especially try to control attachment, all the time. Always practice the remedy, the meditations, the lam-rim meditations, which control attachment. If one does not meditate well on the lam-rim meditations, if one does not train one’s own mind well in these fundamental meditations, which are the remedy to attachment, and attachment rises very strong daily, as the mind has been trained and habituated in that, it arises very strongly at death time, and it is difficult to control. The attachment does not allow the consciousness to transfer into the pure realm. It ties the mind to samsara.

Then at death time the thought that is arising—if that is a negative thought, unsubdued mind, if the person dies with the attachment, it doesn’t let the person’s consciousness transfer into the pure ream, and it makes the person’s consciousness be tied to the body of one of the suffering transmigratory beings, according to his karma. It ties the mind to that body; it makes the consciousness get stuck on the body of the suffering transmigratory being.

Even if one practices, even if one knows the special tantric techniques to transfer the consciousness to the pure realm, if you do not practice lam-rim., if you have not trained your mind normally in lam-rim, in those basic meditations that are the remedy to the attachment, then even if you try to practice the special techniques, it doesn’t work. Your mind gets stuck, your consciousness doesn’t get free, it is bound by attachment. So you go through a lot of difficulties. One experiences much difficulties. You become unsuccessful in your meditations, even though you use those special techniques.

So on the basis of these, what I mentioned, moral conduct, and then charity, making pure prayers, and especially the lam-rim meditations, these fundamental meditations, which are the remedy to attachment, if one practices the special techniques, the tantra techniques to transfer the consciousness to the pure realm, then it is very good. With Amitabha, there are ways to transfer the consciousness, meditation techniques with Amitabha Buddha, with Tara, and there are many other female aspects of Buddhas, Vajrayogini, also Heruka.

First one takes initiation, then after having received the initiation one is qualified to receive these special meditation techniques.

One time in lower Tibet, there was one family in Kham. I don’t remember the particular area. And in that family there was one old mother and she had several daughters and she was taken care by them and afterwards she wanted to stay downstairs. She didn’t know much Dharma, or many teachings on the graduated path to enlightenment. But she had devotion to the objects of refuge, Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha, and she so much devotion to Tara. Everyday she recites the Tara prayers all day. And she had a good heart. She stayed downstairs. Her daughters brought her food downstairs and she didn’t eat much of it. The food was left there afterwards.

This went on for a long time, for months and months, and her hair was becoming dark, becoming kind of black, changing, her body was looking very healthy, not becoming skinny, with good color. Her health was becoming better and better, but she doesn’t eat food. So they were kind of surprised, and wondered what she was eating, who gave her food, and how she manages.

So they insisted that she eat the food. And the mother told them, “Oh I have other people taking care of me. When you people are not here around, there are many beautiful girls who come and they bring me food and they take care of me. They fix my hair, and they are around me and they have been taking care of me. So whenever you people come down they go away, they disappear.”

Actually these are transformations of Tara. After some time she said, “You people bringing food downstairs gives you a lot of trouble, coming through the steps like this, so I want to have a separate house outside somewhere.” So they built a house outside, and then after the house was built, she moved into that the small, new house and the next morning then when they went to check up she wasn’t there.

So she didn’t know much Dharma, or lam-rim teaching but she had very strong devotion to Tara and the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha. She took refuge and said the 21 Tara prayer. So even during her life she was taken care of by Tara. Other people, as they became older, got more wrinkles and their hair became more and more white, and they became more skinny, but she was completely different from others. Her body became healthier, her hair became darker, with a very nice looking color.

Those transformations of Taras took care of her even during her life. The reason she asked them to build a house outside was because it was about time, and she told her daughters, “These girls always ask me to come.” Her daughters didn’t know what she was talking about. But Tara was calling her, telling her to come to the pure land. So after she knew that it was about time to go, she told them to make a small house outside. The next morning she wasn’t there, and they couldn’t even see even her body; she was led by Tara into the pure realm.

This is just one example, it happened to so many other people, by making retreat, things like that.

[end of tape]

They have been guided by different aspects of Buddhas, guided and led to the pure realm. Besides that, many of those meditators, even many laypeople, without need to give up this body, without leaving this body, they were brought and taken by these different aspects of buddhas, whom they normally meditate upon.

This perfect human rebirth is highly meaningful to obtain the ultimate work. Even if one wishes to achieve nirvana, it is possible because with this perfect human rebirth one can accumulate the cause, one can follow the path. With this perfect human rebirth, one can keep the higher training of moral conduct, one can practice the higher training of concentration and with this perfect human rebirth one can practice the higher training of wisdom. And one can follow the five paths that lead to nirvana.

It is much easier with this perfect human body that we have received in this human southern continent to keep moral conduct. With human being’s body on the other continents, such as the northern continent, there is no chance to take ordinations, because it is extremely difficult to generate the thought of renunciation for samsara in that continent. With their body it is very difficult to generate this thought of renunciation of samsara. The length of their life is 1000 years, fixed, and they have incredible, great enjoyments, similar to the life of the worldly gods. There are no changes of life as human beings on this earth have. All of them having a similar life, having great enjoyment, so it is very difficult to generate the thought of renunciation of samsara there.

In this continent people have all kinds of different suffering lives. Oneself experiences, also one can see others experiencing different types of suffering life. So it is very easy to generate the thought of renunciation of samsara with this perfect human body. That’s how the practice of moral conduct is much easier with this perfect human body…

[break in tape]

And so it is easier to generate the realizations of the rest of the path, concentration and wisdom, and those five paths. It is much easier with the body of the southern continent human being, with this body. So that’s how this perfect human body is highly meaningful even to accomplish the ultimate work to achieve nirvana. Oh then, even if one wishes to achieve enlightenment, it is possible. With this perfect human rebirth one can follow the Mahayana path. The door of the Mahayana path is bodhicitta. With this our body of the southern continent human being, it is much easier to generate the thought of renunciation of samsara, so it is much easier to generate bodhicitta, and easier to follow the Mahayana path.

Even if one wishes to achieve enlightenment in one brief lifetime, there is the possibility, if one does the cooperative practice of sutra and tantra, together. First train one’s mind in the three principal aspects of the path to enlightenment, the mind renouncing samsara, bodhicitta, then wisdom realizing voidness. And then after having generated those realizations, one can take the initiations of Vajrayana.

Receiving initiation ripens the mind.. It opens the mind. Then, by ripening the mind one can practice the graduated path of the Vajrayana, such as the graduated path of becoming and the graduated path of completion. Then one trains one’s mind in the graduated path of becoming—the gross graduated path of becoming and the subtle graduated path of becoming. There are two levels like this. After completing the practice of the gross graduated path of becoming, after one has received the stability of the gross graduated path of becoming, then one starts to practice the subtle graduated path of becoming. Then after this practice is complete, one practices the graduated path of completion, the Vajrayana path.

The skillful meditators, the geshes who studied well these basic scriptures, the lam-rim teachings, the subject of shunyata for many years, the subject of samsara, and tranquil abiding—those who have the infallible, perfect understanding of the meanings of these teachings on the meditation subjects, before they actually train their mind in the Vajrayana path, the path of secret mantra, before they actually try to experience the Vajrayana path, they try to develop bodhicitta. They try to generate bodhicitta. The, starting from perfect human rebirth, guru yoga, then gradually, perfect human rebirth—gradually they generate the realizations and they generate bodhicitta. And also they meditate on shunyata, try to generate the wisdom realizing voidness.

From the very beginning, they don’t meditate on shamatha, tranquil abiding. The skillful meditators, those geshes, those learned monks, when they really try to experience the path of the Vajrayana, then they meditate on shamatha, tranquil abiding. When they achieve the graduated path of becoming, the Vajrayana path, they achieve shamatha together with it.

This is a very skillful way of practicing Dharma. In this way it doesn’t take much time. One doesn’t have to train the mind in shamatha, tranquil abiding, first.

The graduated path of the completion stage has five steps. Body seclusion, mind seclusion, speech seclusion. Then illusory body, then clear light. There are five steps like this in that graduated path of the completion stage, in the Vajrayana. When one’s mind approaches the third one, mind seclusion, the person is on the way to achieving enlightenment. For that person it is possible to achieve enlightenment in one lifetime. Oh then, like that. Then illusory body, then clear light.

First, the meditators, having trained well in the general path, the three paths that I mentioned before, enter the path of the Vajrayana, when they reach this level the unsubdued mind all gets purified. When these five levels are completed then the subtle obscurations are completely purified. Then that person in that life achieves the unified Vajradhara state; enlightenment in that life.

This is just like mentioning the name of the person, just like counting the name of the person, without talking about the personality of the person, just mentioning the name “George” and whatever it is, “Ann” and whatever it is.

Then, anyway, if even the path is not completed in this life, by training the mind in the general path, taking initiation, things like that, trying to practice the path of the secret mantra, Vajrayana, if that is not completed, it is possible that one will again try to find another perfect human rebirth in that country, where the Vajrayana teaching exists. Many high lamas, many highly realized meditators do that. Where there is the opportunity to receive teachings from the qualified Vajrayana Gurus, and then take teachings and complete the rest of the path that was not completed in the past life. One can achieve enlightenment in the second lifetime, in the third lifetime, in the fourth lifetime—within seven life times. Then it is possible to achieve the unified state of Vajradhara within seven lifetimes. It can be done with this perfect human body.

So, you see, my emphasis is this—the most important thing, if one wishes to achieve enlightenment soon, to work for sentient beings, the most skillful thing is to try to train the mind as much as possible in bodhicitta and try to generate bodhicitta within one’s mind as quickly as possible. So that’s the most important thing. This is necessary in order for all the practice of tantra to be successful. In order for it to become the shortcut path to enlightenment. It is extremely important to have the bodhicitta before. That is the most skillful way of following the path.

[BREAK]

The, by training mind in the lam-rim, the three principal aspects of the path, if one take initiation and practices the Vajrayana path, how the mind approaches, just tell a little, a tiny bit of an idea. Actually the details cannot be explained without having received initiation. There are different types of initiations—it is not sufficient to receive the lower tantra initiation; has to receive the highest tantra initiation in order to receive the detailed explanations of this Vajrayana path.

There are differences. Vajrayana path and tantra path. “Tantra” is just general. “Secret mantra” is a general title and “Vajrayana” is a specific name of the path. The highest path of tantra is called “Vajrayana.” There are four divisions of tantra—all those are secret mantra, all those are tantra, but all those divisions of tantra are not called “Vajrayana.” Vajrayana is kriya tantra, charya tantra, anuttarayoga tantra, mahaanuttara yoga tantra—the Sanskrit titles. Mahaanuttarayoga tantra is what is called the Vajrayana path, the highest tantra path. That is the path that makes it possible to achieve enlightenment in one brief lifetime. Within twelve years, within thirty years, forty years, seventy years, eighty years, like that. Without need to postpone the life, without need to make longer life, like 200 years, 300 years, or 400 years. In the lower tantra first you try to have a longer life, then you practice, like that.

According to the Vajrayana path, without need to postpone the life, in this brief lifetime one can achieve enlightenment.

The body of the southern continent human being has the possibility to achieve enlightenment in one brief lifetime, or in this second lifetime, third lifetime, by following the Vajrayana path. Only this has the opportunity. In other human beings’ continents, eastern, western, northern, they don’t have the opportunity, there are no Vajrayana teachings, there is no tantra, no teachings of secret mantra. It doesn’t exist in those other continents. And it doesn’t exist in the realm of the gods.

The Vajrayana teachings exist only in this southern continent. And, in order to practice the Vajrayana path, the body should be constituted of six things. It should be born from the mother’s womb. Formed of six elements—three things from the mother, three things from the father. The three are the skin, blood, and flesh—from the mother’s blood. And then bone and the sperm and the mirror?-Mirror. Eh? (student; marrow) Marrow. Marrow. - Always I get mixed with “mirage” marrow from the father’s seed.

So the body that practices the tantra, the Vajrayana path, should be that body, formed of those six things, six elements. Otherwise one cannot practice the Vajrayana path. So we have received this perfect body, which is formed of the six elements. So there is a great opportunity to achieve enlightenment swiftly, by practicing the Vajrayana path.

In the former time, there were those such as the great yogi Milarepa and the great yogi Ensapa who held the lineage of the tantra teachings and received enlightenment in a brief lifetime. Ensapa, this great yogi, achieved enlightenment within twelve years, I think. I can’t remember exactly, three years or twelve years, but a very short period.

[end of tape]

…not having electricity in the caves, not having separate rooms, dining room, kitchen, garden, what else then? Anyway, it doesn’t matter. Then those who just lived on only the nettle, the vegetable nettle. Didn’t have 100 shoes there nearby the door to change into or to wear in the room when you go to see a movie, when you go to the beach. They didn’t have 100’s of clothing in the cupboard, hanging. Just one simple cloth to wrap around, nothing to cover here, and his sister was screaming a lot. His sister was always complaining, “You don’t feel shy, you care careless, you are this and that.” She was so embarrassed.

And many times she scolded Milarepa, “Oh you, elder brother, please don’t do like this, I feel shy if you do like this. If you go like this with a naked body, showing everything, then I feel shy.” Then after some time when Milarepa was living in a cave, I don’t remember the name, the name of the specific place, one of the mountains, she would make clothes for Milarepa. She was working for other families, making woolen cloth. The money that she earned she used to buy wool, and then she made a big roll of woolen cloth, a white one. She offered it to her older brother Milarepa to make clothes She insisted very much. “You must do this.” And then, “How can you complete the life like this with a naked body.” This sister cared so much for Milarepa. Then she went away and after some time she came back and she checked up. Milarepa he cut the woolen cloth in pieces. He made gloves here, here, I don’t think he made a jacket or pants or anything, just pieces, like this. And then also for the sex, he put also a small piece, he made a cover of small pieces. Then I think, sister was again very embarrassed. So finally she insisted so much, I guess she cried or she complained a lot that it was wasted. Then Milarepa told her why should he feel shy with this. “Everybody has this sex. Everybody knows that I have this. Everybody knows and I was born with it. There is nothing to feel shy of this. You should feel shy with your breasts.” Because her breasts were king of big. Milarepa told her, “This is natural, nothing special. After that then I don’t know what she answered.

When he was in the cave he had one pot in which to cook the nettles. He doesn’t clean it after each meal, so the inside, the green stuff, became thicker and thicker and thicker, because it was not cleaned. It was not cleaned after each meal as we do. One time this clay pot in which he cooked, slipped and fell on the rock, and even though it was broken outside, the actual pot, the clay was broken, inside there was a whole pot made of the green stuff, the residue of food, that was not broken.

He also had some—in Tibetan they are called ghur. Not called “song.” It has a different name.

So even though he lived a very simple life like this, he achieved enlightenment in one brief lifetime. we have better living conditions than the great yogis Milarepa or Ensapa. We have very rich food. Also then clothing, very expensive clothes, even the living—the house is well-arranged, well-fixed. So if even those great yogis who had a very simple life were able to achieve enlightenment, why not us? Why can’t we generate the path? What reason is there that we can’t do like them?

In regards the living conditions, we have much more than those great yogis. It is just a matter of, from our side, whether we try or not. If we try, from one, if from one’s own side one studies, takes teachings, meditates, practices correctly as it was explained by the perfectly qualified gurus, if one puts effort from one’s own side, there is no reason at all that one cannot become like those great yogis who did great things for sentient beings. There is no reason.

This precious human body is highly meaningful even in an hour, minute, second. For instance, when we do breathing meditation, the purifying breathing meditation, or tong-len practice, for those who have read lam-rim. Taking other sentient beings’ suffering, drawing it upon oneself with the breathing, with breath. As you breathe in taking other sentient beings’ suffering and dedicating one’s body, material possessions, merits, and good karmas to all sentient beings. How much good karma one accumulated during these few seconds is infinite. Thus, then same thing, similar as you breathe out, as you dedicate your, one’s own body, material possessions, surrounding—all this good karma is dedicated to all the sentient beings, and again in such a few seconds one has accumulated infinite merits. Also with the practice of bodhicitta there are infinite benefits that one accumulates, one receives. When you breathe out, when you breathe in, each time.

I complete this like this. You see; you plant a seed under the ground. In order to grow, in order to produce stems and flower, all these things, to become successful, the seed needs water and minerals. To bring the flower, all these things, the main thing is the seed. Seed. That is the meditation subject. The actual meditation subject. The practice of purification and accumulating merit is like water and soil, so without water and soil, the seed alone cannot make it possible to produce stems, all the flowers or fruit—it is impossible. So it should meet the conditions, soil and water.

So like that, just having the intellectual understanding of the path and the meditation is not enough, that alone will never make one generate the realization, generate the path. So there is need to practice purification and accumulating merits. When all the obscurations get purified, the work of accumulating merits and making purification finishes. When all the obscurations get finished, then that time the work accumulating merits, making purification is finished, because there is nothing left to purify. So then at that time the whole path is completed within one’s mind. So at that time one receives enlightenment. So whenever one finishes the work accumulating merits, making purification, that at time one achieves enlightenment. Whenever one has finished the work accumulating merits, making purification, at that time one has achieved enlightenment.

So therefore, without finishing these two works, the obscuration does not get finished, the path is not completed, so enlightenment is not received. This point is important to understand, otherwise, if you don’t understand this point, you won’t feel so much the importance of making purification and accumulating merits. These practices are important to do. Oh then. I think I stop here.

Session 18

…my kind mother sentient beings. Therefore I’m going to listen to the profound Mahayana thought training teaching.

So yesterday on the meditations on usefulness, when I was talking I talked for a long time in each part, at each point. So usually, when the Tibetan lamas give the lam-rim teaching, whatever meditation subject is finished in that day they repeat three times. Normally they repeat it three times. First the elaborate way, and secondly, more abbreviated, then third time, the shortest one, condensed one. So among the people there are different disciples who have different levels of intelligence. So if somebody hasn’t got the conclusion of the first explanation, they understand the middle one. If they didn’t understand the middle explanation of the meditation, then they find they get the conclusion of the shortest one. So they get some idea total idea of that meditation. So therefore the lamas or gurus who present the lam-rim teaching use their skill and repeat three times.

Anyway, when you meditate on the eight freedoms and ten richnesses, you do as I explained before, and after the introductions of each point, that it’s okay, no need to remember each time. So you go through each one, then you make the conclusion, “Oh, I have received this richness, and so I have opportunity to practice Dharma, so I should not waste this. And it can be lost at anytime, so I must practice Dharma right away.” You make the conclusion.

Then in regards to the meditations on the usefulness—how if this perfect human rebirth highly useful to obtain the three great meanings or the three great works. The temporal meaning is the body of the happy transmigratory being, the body of the worldly god or king or the body of a wealthy person, or, even if one wishes to receive a perfect human rebirth, there is the possibility, then think of the cause. “Because with this precious human body, I can accumulate the cause.” You think of the cause, moral conduct, then the result, to have great enjoyments. With this precious human body I can accumulate the cause, charity, and the perfect surroundings; I can practice the cause, patience. You make it kind of clear like this, make the conclusion.

Then, even if I wish to be born in the pure realm there is the possibility to achieve this with this perfect human rebirth, because with this perfect human rebirth I can create the cause—pure moral conduct, charity, and pure prayer. Same thing, and those special Vajrayana techniques that I can practice. Like that.

Then, this is highly meaningful to obtain the ultimate works, to achieve nirvana. That is because with this perfect human rebirth I can follow the path of the three higher training of moral conduct, concentration, and wisdom. And the base of moral conduct is the thought of renunciation of samsara, so it is very easy to generate the thought of renunciation of samsara with this perfect human body. To keep moral conduct it is very easy, with this perfect human body, in this continent.

I’m sure you have heard a lot about flying saucers. The airplane that kind of look like a dish, kind of like a plate. Like kind of two plates upside down, sort of. And when I was in Switzerland I found pictures from a magazine somebody took. He took pictures before it landed on the ground and after it landed on the ground he took pictures of it. It was in the German language so I couldn’t read it, so I asked one Tibetan boy who lived in Switzerland for a long time, who was sponsored by one, I think, one German or Swiss family, how he got ready the cameras as the person was coming. The person coming from the other plant kind of he checked up with his powers, so somehow he communicated with this person. Somehow he found this person was the right person to communicate with, so this person while he was in the house with his family, he felt to go outside. Some kind of force made him go outside with the cameras and while he was holding the camera outside it came, the flying saucer, and I think it was a lady. The face was very tall and kind of very white and kind of narrow and very wide here, with long ears, something like that. He explained in the paper that this lady said that their continent was much developed, thirty to forty times more than your country, or something like that. Much more developed their countries, and all the people in their countries live for 1000 years, it’s all kind of fixed. And they have great enjoyments.

The way she spoke is according to what Buddha has explained in the teaching about the evolutions, the Abhidharmakosha, the second chapter of which explains about the evolution of the whole world, the evolution of the living beings, then the inhabitants of the planets.

What she described was exactly the same as what is described in the teaching by Buddha about the northern human continent. All the people there in that continent live 1000 years exactly, and they have long bodies, much, much longer than the bodies in this southern continent. Their bodies are twice as tall as the length of the body of the human beings in this southern continent. They have incredible great enjoyments.

[end of tape]

Also following the five paths to nirvana is much easier. Oh then, like that.

And one can achieve the great meaning, also the ultimate meaning, enlightenment, because with this perfect human rebirth one can generate bodhicitta. Bodhicitta is much easier to generate with this perfect human body. Because the renunciation is stronger, so bodhicitta is stronger.

Then, even if one wishes to achieve enlightenment within this life or within three lifetimes, or seven lifetimes, through the practice of secret mantra, the Vajrayana, there is the possibility. The body which is able to practice the secret mantra is the body that is formed of six elements, as I explained yesterday. Oh then, think, “I have received it.”: Without having the body that is formed of the six elements, with the red seed, white seed, there is no base to practice the secret mantra, the Vajrayana path. There is no way to practice it. The way to meditate is like this, think like this.

And also, the Vajrayana teachings exists, and there are qualified gurus, there are also Vajrayana gurus existing. Also remember this, the possibilities. In even an hour, minute, second, this perfect human rebirth is highly meaningful. With this perfect human body one can achieve the great meaning. So this is the way to meditate on the three great meanings.

In such a short time how this perfect human rebirth can be used to achieve the great meaning. One can accumulate infinite merit and make purification, just in such a short time breathing in and breathing out. If one does this visualization, the breathing practice, the breathing exercise with the practice of bodhicitta, taking all other sentient beings’ suffering upon oneself and dedicating all our body, material possessions, merits to other sentient beings. As you breathe in, take suffering, and as you breathe out you dedicate everything, all your, all one’s own happiness, everything, to other, to each sentient being.

I hope you have understood my emphasis at the last discourse at the end. The importance of accumulating merits and making purification. If you did not understand this point, if there is not any feeling in it, it will be just a subject, just a variety of existence of such a subject, but it won’t become a practice, you won’t feel it as a practice.

So yesterday I gave the example just to easily understand. I related the intellectual understanding of the subject of meditation as being like the seed. The seed of the fruit, like that. Then accumulating merit, making purification are like the soil, and making purification is like water. Soil and water like that. So even while it is growing, if there is no water, if there is no soil, nothing, then it can be direct. While the plant is growing, if there is no soil at all, if you take out all the soil, no water at all, it becomes dried, it doesn’t bring fruit.

So anyway, like this, by accumulating merits, making purification, with these two practices then one follows the path. This purifies the obscurations. When the obscurations are completely purified, the work of purifying, accumulating merits is finished that time. Because there is nothing to purify, it is finished. When the obscurations are completely finished, the whole path to enlightenment is completed. When the obscurations are completely finished, then enlightenment is received, the path is completed. The work following the path is finished and enlightenment is received.

So therefore, you see, without finishing the work accumulating merits, making purification, without finishing this, there is no way to achieve enlightenment, because there is no way to finish the obscurations completely. So therefore, the greater merits, and the greater practice of purification one can do, one becomes closer to the path, and closer to enlightenment.

What is the best method? If it is so important to accumulate extensive merits and purify the karmic obscurations, what is the best method? To practice bodhicitta. The best method to quickly finish the work of accumulating merits and making purification is the bodhicitta.

So now, just breathing in, just breathing in, with this practice of bodhicitta, taking other sentient beings’ suffering, you accumulate infinite merits, and as you breathe out if you dedicate all your happiness, the body, material possessions, all these things to each of the sentient beings, you are able to accumulate infinite merits. How? The sentient beings from whom you have taken the suffering are not just ten, or hundreds; they are countless. Countless.

So by aiming to each of the sentient beings who exist, you have taken all their suffering, and also dedicated your own happiness—the body, material possessions, merits, to all sentient beings. So therefore, each time you receive, as the number of sentient beings is infinite or numberless, so you receive numberless benefits and merit.

Oh then, when you offer, you light one stick of incense and you offer it. You offer whether there is an altar or not. You visualize Buddha. You remember Buddha, the omniscient mind in that aspect, then you offer. So when you offer, dedicate the merits. When you offer one stick of incense, “Oh, I am going to make this one stick of incense an offering to Guru Shakyamuni Buddha in order to achieve enlightenment for the benefit of all my mother sentient beings.” So by just remembering for whom you are doing this work, offering one stick of incense to a fully enlightened being, you aim for all sentient beings, so just by that, in that few seconds, you have accumulated infinite merits, by generating the motivation of bodhicitta, like this.

Again you dedicate the merits. After you offered then, “May this merit that I have accumulated be received to each of the sentient beings.” You completely dedicate to each of the sentient beings.

If you think like that it is excellent, extremely good, so beneficial for the mind. Especially for self-cherishing thought. However, even if you can’t think like that, think, “May this merit be received by each of the sentient beings.” You dedicate from the heart, and the cause of happiness is infinite. Like infinite space one has gained infinite merit, like that.

Same thing, even you have small a flower like this, not a nice flower, even it is just something like this, when you offer if you are skillful and if you are wise in creating good karma, what you offer is kind of nothing, but the merit that you gain from that is infinite.

Even if you can’t accumulate infinite merits, even just that one merit, just offering to Buddha, without any motivation, particular good motivation, if you dedicate that merit to other sentient beings, even if you are able to dedicate that one merit to one sentient being, how great is that pleasure, that to become the cause of happiness for that sentient being. It is great pleasure. It is something that make the mind so happy. Then it is no question that if one is able to accumulate infinite merits from that, by making this small offering if you dedicate that merit to not one sentient being, but to all sentient beings, this is the cause of great, incredible rejoicefulness.

So like this, from that one small stick of incense, flower, or something like that, or even just a few grains, if you offer with the motivation of bodhicitta you accumulate infinite merits. When you dedicate the merits to each sentient being, infinite merits are accumulated. Then after dedicating to all, to each of the sentient beings, then, “Due to these merits, may I achieve enlightenment, may I receive and quickly enlighten sentient beings.” If you can do that it is extremely good.

Like that then, even when you are washing you mouth, you can think that it becomes great purification.

Besides your negative karmas, obscurations, think of the negative karmas, unsubdued minds, and suffering of all sentient beings in the form garbage.

Again the short time that you have spent washing is not wasted. Do the visualization like this, sincerely like this, then it become Dharma, and the cause to achieve enlightenment.

Also when you wash your body, when you see a lot of dirt coming out, after having made trekking on the mountains, instead of washing the body with the motivation of firstly attachment, secondly selfish attitude, to have comfort of body, think like this before the washing, “ I must practice Dharma for the benefit of all the sentient beings, therefore I should have a long life. If I have an unhealthy life I cannot practice Dharma, therefore to do the works for other sentient beings I am going to wash.” If one thinks sincerely like this it becomes Dharma, becomes work for other sentient beings.

While you are washing if you can meditate like this it is extremely good, really worthwhile. Especially if the shower is coming from the hole, it is very easy to visualize Avalokiteshvara or Guru Shakyamuni Buddha, and those who meditate on Vajrasattva can visualize Vajrasattva. From the heart nectar rays flow, think the water itself is nectar rays, flowing, white nectar rays, then think, “I am purifying.” It is good if you can visualize all the sentient beings around you who are also purified with this nectar flowing. Think that all the dirty things, the obscurations, the unsubdued mind, the negative karma are purified. Feel great happiness while receiving the nectar rays.

If you can’t visualize the sentient beings around also getting purified, think, “The essence of this dirty water is all the obscurations of me and all sentient beings’ unsubdued mind and negative karma, and I am purifying it.” These are just possibilities of meditation practices that we can do relating to everyday life activities, to transform them, to not let the daily activities become negative karma, to not become non-virtue, but to become virtue. To become causes to achieve enlightenment.

For those who have received Vajrayana initiation, who practice Vajrayana, there are profound practices to do relating to daily life activities, whether sleeping, eating—for each thing, washing—all these things have very profound practices. Similarly when you clean your mouth every morning, and when you clean your room, you can think of the garbage. Visualize all your own and others’ obscurations, unsubdued minds, and negative karma and all the resultant sufferings of all the sentient beings of the six realms all absorbed in the form of black fog into the garbage. Think the broom is the path, the two bodhicittas. Normally, the meditators who try to experience the graduated path, as they clean the meditation room or cave or whatever it is, every morning, they relate the cleaning to whatever meditation on the path they are trying to realize. If they are meditating on shunyata, specifically, then the broom is the wisdom of shunyata. If the person particularly trying to generate the realization thought of renunciation of samsara, he thinks the essence of the broom is the mind renouncing samsara. Then you clean all the garbage.

Again, before cleaning you can motivate: “I’m going to clean the assembly hall of the buddhas.” Because you meditate in that room, all the time visualizing Buddha, whether there is altar and statue or not, you always visualize Buddha and you meditate by requesting, making purification, accumulating merits, trying to receive realization. Not only do you visualize Buddha in that room, there are definitely buddhas wherever you are. Buddha’s always there, all the time, day and night, whatever one is doing…

[end of tape]

…even you are falling asleep, even you are not doing the sessions, in the morning sleeping. Anyway this is just joking. However, whatever you do you, whatever you think, whatever action you do, both sides, there is not one single time that the Buddha’s mind, omniscient mind do does not see, there is no one single time. There is not one split second Buddha’s holy mind, omniscient mind does not see. Wherever one goes, wherever one stays, Buddha is always in the meditation room. It is not like this: there is no Buddha in kitchen, there is no Buddha in the dining room. There is no Buddha in the toilet. There is no Buddha outside. There is no Buddha in the shop. Where there is traffic there is no Buddha at all. Where there is a bar there is no Buddha at all. Not like that.. I am not going to speak so much in this point. Again this is a very long subject.

There is nothing that Buddha’s omniscient mind does not see. But from one’s own side due to karmic obscuration we do not see the Buddha. We don’t meet Buddha, we do not see Buddha. We do not recognize Buddha, do not see Buddha, due to our karmic obscuration. Due to ignorance, due to karmic obscuration, from our side we do not see, do not recognize. Even if Buddha is benefiting us, even if Buddha is doing work for oneself, talking to oneself, with body, with speech, we don’t recognize this, due to karmic obscuration.

There are numberless buddhas in that room that you are cleaning. So think, I am cleaning the assembly hall of all the buddhas, the bodhisattvas, the holy beings. Instead of letting work become an action of attachment, oh, I want to comfortable, I want my room very clean, comfortable so my friends or other people will offer me good reputation. Or think if I decorate well in my room they will tell me nice things, sort of like this. Think, in order to receive enlightenment, for the benefits of all my kind mother sentient beings, you generate the motivation of bodhicitta, and in this way you don’t think the room is my room, you think the room is all the buddhas, bodhisattvas, holy beings. So this becomes the bodhisattva’s actions, you don’t cling to it.

Then with this motivation you do that visualization, form garbage in essence your obscurations, the unsubdued mind and negative karma of all other sentient beings. Think, the broom, the two bodhicittas—while you are cleaning then you meditate on this. Even if you forget, you try to remember. Think constantly, “I am cleaning the unsubdued mind, the negative karmas of all sentient beings.” Then in that way, for you, for you there is feeling or thought, “I am working for sentient beings, I am working for sentient beings,” like that. The thought working for other sentient beings comes. The mind is very happy. Not working for the comfort of oneself.

With this visualization of cleaning garbage, each time you move, each time with the broom, as you move a little bit like that, one accumulates infinite merit. You work by aiming for all the sentient beings. Then after you finish, after you collect all the garbage, you bless it, bless it with nectar. You recite the mantra OM AH HUNG, OM AH HUNG, three times, then you bless that garbage, visualize that it’s transformed into nectar, then when you throw the garbage in this garbage tin, if you can practice, if you can do this, very good. Where you throw garbage then you visualize again the Yama, the face of the lord of the death, like you see in the wheel of life painting, opening the big mouth, like this, kind of waiting for your life.

And then you put it in the mouth of the lord of the death. Then you think the lord of the death is completely satisfied. Then his mouth is closed and filled with double vajras as you see here, then he goes away. He goes thousand, millions of miles down, and it’s impossible for him to come back, to cause death to oneself. If one can practice this it is extremely good because it helps for long life.

However at the end, after you finished cleaning, then you feel great happiness in your mind, oh, how good that I could purify all the sentient beings’ obscurations. And think, they all become enlightened. If one can practice like this, when one cleans one’s room everyday, it’s extremely good. This meditation practice—I don’t mean to practice this only when you clean at your house, even if you have the job to clean at schools or in the street or the office or anything, any place, airports, anywhere, anywhere.

There was one student who was here for the sixth course, one young boy, one American boy, whose name was John, he was living with one of our teachers Geshe Sopa Rinpoche who is the one of the highly learned, most perfectly qualified teacher geshe, who escaped from Tibet, from our college, Sera College. He has been living with him for a long time and he was also studying in the university and so I think after some time he ran out of money, I think, and he went to work in California. He found a job cleaning schools or somewhere. So I met him and told him that’s an extremely good job because you don’t harm anybody. It’s not like job that you have to go to fishing, catch hundreds of fish everyday and, not like the butcher, who have to take many different lives in each day. So your job is a very fantastic, very good job, and very easy to become Dharma. And he said he’s going to try or something like that. Then especially if one has a job like that, if one’s mind is capable and if one knows Dharma, if one knows how to transform this action into Dharma, the thought of happiness, then the profit that you get from that is not only that. I don’t know how much you get per month—sixty dollar or seventy dollars, a hundred dollars, how much, whatever you get, a million dollars, by cleaning—probably if the person gets one million dollar that might be finished in this life. That alone doesn’t offer any temporal happiness, and doesn’t offer ultimate happiness. It doesn’t benefit one to find the perfect human rebirth, the body of a happy transmigratory being in the future.

It might become a condition to have some comfort this life. But the person who performs the job of cleaning, cultivating the motivation of bodhicitta, this becomes the cause of temporal happiness, the happiness of the future lives, the cause to find the good rebirth, it becomes the cause of ultimate happiness and enlightenment. So like that, each movement, with this meditation, each movement of the hand becomes great purification. So that person everyday he accumulates good karma. Everyday he accumulates infinite merit.

Also when one does the disposal, after we ate food, after we drank, urination, making excrement. If you transform even this daily action that you have to do many times everyday, if the breathing is normal, visualize all the obscurations, the unsubdued mind, all the sufferings of all the sentient beings, coming through the nose. With the breath it came, entered into nose then went inside, absorbed into the urine, the kaka, sinking into it, like that. Then also your own unsubdued mind, obscuration, and negative karma, and disease. When you purify disease it should be as pus and blood and also excrement, urine, like that. So it’s very good to take all the sentient beings’ obscurations, the unsubdued mind, and sufferings through the nose and absorb into the urine, the excrement, and into the toilet itself. The toilet you can visualize as the mouth of the Yama. It’s very easy to think like that, and you can also think of it in the form of nectar. When you receive that you don’t have to think it’s dirty, you can think nectar, nectar, you are receiving nectar, the mind is being satisfied. So then like that. This becomes a method of great purification, accumulating merit, because you take other sentient beings’ obscuration, sufferings, then you purify.

I think I stop here. Just example relating to the daily life activities, meditations one can do relating to daily activities and how to transform the daily activities without need to stop those things, and how to make them virtue, Dharma.

If one is able to practice these things, then it has great meaning. I am doing purification, accumulating merit, you go to one kind of secret place, make big arrangement there and then you say, oh, I am making prostration, or I am doing mandala offering, I am doing this, that. Even if one doesn’t do that, if one is able to transform daily actions that you are doing in the city, at home, in the office, whatever you are doing, into Dharma, the cause to enlightenment, it’s incredible. And one day so many times you practice Dharma, and create the cause for enlightenment. You have created many causes of enlightenment in one day.

[Chanting]

Session 19

My guru Khunu Tenzin Gyaltsen said in his teaching, The Precious Lamp Admiring the Bodhicitta, “By depending on the bodhicitta medicine, all the disease of the all-rising unsubdued mind is recovered. Therefore there is no better medicine than this in samsara.” What he’s saying is that by depending on the medicine of bodhicitta, the unsubdued mind disease—the reason it’s called “all-rising” unsubdued mind is because all the unsubdued minds arise from the “I” grasping ignorance, and from that arise all the sufferings of the six realms. They are produced from the unsubdued mind. So therefore the unsubdued mind is call “all-rising.” By depending on the bodhicitta medicine the all- rising unsubdued mind disease is recovered. So in this samsara there no greater medicine.

Also great bodhisattva Shantideva says in his teachings, “One wishes to pacify the hundreds of sufferings of the samsara and pacify the unhappiness of the sentient beings, and wishes to enjoy hundreds of happinesses; even for him, bodhicitta should not be renounced all the time.” It didn’t become very perfect. But when I explain the meaning it’s easy to understand.

What the great bodhisattva Shantideva is saying is that one wishes to cease the continual experience of all the sufferings of the human beings, all the sufferings of the human realm that exist. And all the various sufferings of the sura and asura realms that exist, and all the sufferings of the three lower realms that exist. Then you should never renounce bodhicitta. Don’t renounce bodhicitta forever. That’s what it is saying. Because bodhicitta is the best method to pacify all the sufferings of samsara.

Then the second verse—not only yourself but even if you’re concerned to stop the unhappiness of other sentient beings, the best method is bodhicitta. So bodhicitta should not be renounced forever.

Then even if you wish to enjoy the hundreds of happinesses, the bardo of the happy transmigratory being. Then the definite perfection. The ultimate, which means ultimate happiness. If one wishes to enjoy all these samsaric pleasures and ultimate happiness, the great peace of being liberated from the unsubdued mind and karma, the blissful state of enlightenment, what is the best method? That’s the bodhicitta, which gives us the possibility to receive, or to gain all these happinesses. So bodhicitta should not be renounced forever. For one who has generated bodhicitta already, do not renounce it, do not lose it. Then if one has not generated bodhicitta, practice, train the mind, generate bodhicitta.

Not only talking for oneself, but indirectly even if one wishes other sentient beings to receive temporal happiness…

[end of tape]

You should try to generate bodhicitta in the mind of other sentient beings.

So however, as there are reasons and benefits in order to generate bodhicitta we must generate the realizations of the fundamental meditations, therefore we should listen to the teachings. We should listen and then understand and practice, meditate. Therefore cultivate the pure motivation. I must achieve enlightenment for the benefits of all my kind mother sentient beings, therefore I am going to listen profound teachings of the Mahayana thought training.

The other day when I was talking about the five stages of the completion, the Vajrayana path, there are two graduated paths and the second is the graduated path of completion. So I mentioned the five but I did not mention the very last one. I think I mentioned just four, remembering only afterwards, at nigh time. So the last one is the unification, unification. The body seclusion, the mind seclusion, the speech seclusion, illusory body, clear light, and unification.

The meanings of these you will understand in the future, after you receive the Vajrayana initiations.

So as I mentioned yesterday, in the afternoon, do this meditation practice relating to daily life activity that normally that we do. This is something that we do everyday. Until we get free from samsara that’s something that we do all the time. As we get born as human beings, if one practices like this, doing this meditation relating to daily activities this perfect human body doesn’t get wasted. Even if even one doesn’t get special time to be off from the job, to have a holiday, or a vacation to do some ritual, to do some Dharma practice or to make purification or something, if one is able to practice lam-rim, able to do this small practice relating to the daily life’s activity then while you are working in the city, while you are doing your job, all the time, continuously, one practices Dharma. All the time in daily life, life becomes meaningful. Because we spend so much time sleeping, eating, drinking, and also we keep the house clean, and also dispose of the urination, and also sleeping, washing, those things. Even in one day we spend so much time in those things. So even if we can’t make the perfect human rebirth meaningful in other times, while we doing these activities if we make it meaningful by doing this meditation with the good motivation it’s extremely good.

When you eat, when you drink, if you can transform the action into virtue, it is extremely good. Again your life doesn’t get wasted. The perfect human rebirth is not to be used for creating negative karma, if one transforms eating, these actions, in virtue. If one can transform them into a cause to achieve enlightenment, it is extremely good.

Those who came in previous courses might have been practicing them, they might not. So this is good, as you have the food in front of you, on the plate, then at the beginning, you check the mind first, check the motivation first—whether this mind possesses ignorance or anger or attachment, check—how my mind is. Then think if it is anger, if the mind is possessed with think, oh, if I eat food with anger, this creates the karma to be born in the narak realms. If I eat this food with negative mind, attachment, this negative karma creates the rebirth of a preta. It causes me to be born in the preta realm. So then if I eat this food with ignorance, this is the negative karma to be born as an animal. Think like that.

So therefore I mustn’t eat food with this poisonous mind, unsubdued mind. Think like this. Whenever you remember the result of this negative karma is suffering, whenever you think of that it is like pouring cold water on the fire, pouring cold water on the flame. It puts out the flame of anger, the unsubdued mind. Suddenly, as you remember, as one has that much faith in the karma, that much quietness, realizations, or peace comes in the mind. The reason that remembering the result of the negative karma is like this is because those unsubdued minds that disturb your mind go away.

Then after this, then think, that is okay. That is okay. Then again the actions of eating food becomes work for the self-cherishing thought. So in order for the action of eating food, not to become a cause, to not become work for self-cherishing thought, the remedy is to remember the kindness of the mother sentient beings. Think, “This one rice that that I am going to eat, so many sentient beings, human beings, many animals, creatures, so many incredible numbers, they suffered, they died for this.”

Then if you can’t feel very strongly this kindness of the mother sentient beings, remember how they suffered. This came from the field, first of all the field it was fertilized by people, by animals, and very hot sun, with much hardships, and there were so many creatures in the ground, so many ants, so many worms got killed. Once I asked the Nepalese how they plant rice, and they explained so much, one after another, so much work, incredible work but I’ve forgotten the details that they have explained. Anyway, after they plant, when it produces the stems, then they have to split it and move it around like that, and then put water. Before the rice brought to the home, there is so much work to be done. While it’s growing there is so much work, then after it’s ready also many things. So this is just one time, we are talking just one time. Just this rice, we are talking about just this rice. And also the people who work, they themselves don’t eat—in the West it might be different but here in the East, they don’t eat the rice, they don’t eat expensive food. They work very hard for that but they don’t eat it, they eat the cheap ones. They sell the expensive ones.

Anyway, we’re talking about one rice, how we got it to the plate, by going through many sentient beings, going through much difficulties. This rice came from another rice. This rice continued from another rice. So you see, so many suffered, worked for that. It is unimaginable, incredible, thinking back and back like this. If you really think well like this, how much sentient beings suffered for one rice, it’s not something that you can easily eat with doing beneficial work for other sentient beings who suffered for this one plate that one has in front of oneself. Without doing some beneficial work for them, you dare not eat the rice. You dare not enjoy the rice, this one plate of food. And for vegetables it is the same. It’s not something that you can just ignorantly eat with attachment, selfish motivation, only seeking happiness for oneself, having not one single thought of benefiting the other sentient beings, especially those sentient beings who suffered. If you dare to think like that, how much sentient beings suffered, how this is received by the kindness of mother sentient beings, this enjoyment, this object of the sense pleasure, just enjoying for one’s own comfort, especially with attachment—it’s a very poor mind.

The rice is just an example. Then you see similarity with other things. Remember, in order to stop the selfish attitude that disturbs the action of eating food, the remedy is to remember the kindness and suffering of other sentient beings.

So when you think or when you remember the kindness of other sentient beings, think how dare I use this for myself, for my own comfort. Think like this. Then make the decision, I must make this action of eating food beneficial for all the sentient beings from whom I have received this food. Then think I am going to make offering to Guru Shakyamuni Buddha, or whatever … Avalokiteshvara, Compassionate Buddha. Whatever one wishes to visualize, then think that, visualize that in one’s own heart, sitting on the lotus, the sun-moon and the disc, radiating compassionate light. Then think I am going to make this offering to Guru Shakyamuni Buddha in order to achieve enlightenment for the benefit of all mother sentient beings.

Then keep this motivation if possible then until you finish the food. Then even if your mind is disturbed, I think you will bring it back, try to be mindful until you finish that food. Like they’re mindful in Thailand—there is one practice that the Theravada monks practice in the morning, in—one young monk came and he stayed with us here a few days and in the morning—some monks they meditated well, but some of them don’t do sitting meditation so much, maybe they are meditating while they are walking, while they’re talking, you can’t really discriminate. However there are many monks who live in the forest, who live on begging and live under the tree in the forest and in the hermitage. In the morning, after he washed, he walked back and forth, back and forth in the corner of the room, back and forth, like this, for the practice of mindfulness. But I think, instead of spending another separate time for that, I think put the mind into practice, from morning until night time, I mean, always we are doing something, eating, drinking, sleeping, talking, shopping, so instead spending another separate time, oh I am practicing mindfulness, for fifteen minutes you walk back and forth, back and forth, back and forth then the rest of the day not being mindful…

When one is eating, as much as one can continuously remember the merit field and to whom you are making offerings; Avalokiteshvara or Guru Shakyamuni Buddha, whichever Buddha that you visualize at the heart. Each time you eat the food, then think, “I am making offering, I am making offering to Guru Shakyamuni Buddha,” like that. And don’t think, “I am giving garbage, after I’ve chewed, the residue of food I am offering to Guru Shakyamuni Buddha,” not like that. You think I am offering nectar to Guru Shakyamuni Buddha. And actually just before you make the offering, when you start to eat, it’s very good to stop the thought of ordinary food. Transform the thought, jewel thought. There is a golden pot, a very large golden pot, like earth, like earth, decorated with many jewels. And inside the food is like nectar, like the liquid of the silver.

Even if you get a bad taste, think the taste of the food is in nature sweet. It gives great pleasure, great blissfulness. As you’re eating think, “I am offering nectar to Guru Shakyamuni Buddha,” like that, while you are visualizing the Buddha in your heart.

If that is possible to practice, even if you spend two hours, three hours, eight hours eating, eight hours eating, in all that time, life is not wasted. It becomes highly meaningful, possessed with the motivation of bodhicitta at the beginning, so therefore each action becomes the cause to achieve enlightenment. Not only that, each action becomes Dharma.

So we have breakfast, and lunch, and dinner, three times and then maybe four, five times drinking tea or coffee. We spend so much time in that, and even if we do this practice once, life becomes meaningful.

Some people think mindfulness is some kind separate from daily life, nothing to do with daily life activities, some kind of special occasion, something in the morning for ten minutes, fifteen minutes, then the rest of day you completely ignore. Sort of like a duty. It is not like that. That does not help. Actually, really, the real time that you have to be mindful is normally, whatever work we do normally.

So if we are mindful while we are doing actions in day and night, if we are constantly mindful then it’s very easy to practice Dharma. How? By being mindful. You recognize the action of body, speech, and mind, whatever you are doing. You recognize whether the action is virtue or non-virtue. When you recognize the action as virtue, then you transform it into non-virtue, the opposite way. There is no single benefit. So that is unnecessary. It’s wasting, it is useless.

[end of tape]

What I am hoping to gain by doing this is happiness, this is what I am expecting, what I am hoping. But what I am doing is a complete opposite action, something that only causes the result of suffering, all these mistakes. This does not benefit other sentient beings. So there is no point. If it’s completely an action of anger, of pride, jealous mind, there is not really a need for oneself to do this action.

Like for instance, like you feel jealous of some other friend, some other person, you don’t like him—he is going to get some job in that office or something, or they are going to become very close friends or something, and you don’t want that person to get that, to be friends with that person or you don’t want him to get that job or something. You want to harm that person so then you go that person, you talk a lot of criticism, blah, blah blah, like this, did you see or did you hear or something. Oh that person I know very well. He was like this, a very bad personality, blah, blah, blah, he did this, he did this … blah, blah. You give a whole black picture of that person. Not white and blank but completely black picture of that person, in the mind of the other person. This doesn’t benefit you to eat, doesn’t benefit you to wear, to keep warm, not to get cold, or to have long life. Really you don’t have to do that kind of thing.

Things that are not really necessary to do, which are completely the action of the jealous mind, stop, think, like this. Think, think, [noise from airplane flying] what I explained before, just remember that. Think whether it is benefit or not, benefit for temporal happiness and ultimate happiness. And remember the shortcomings. The harm to all other sentient beings. It’s not worth it to do, then you stop it.

Then talking to other people, or helping other people, making charity to people, things like that. Working in the office, things like that, if the motivation is non-virtue then one can transform the motivation into virtue and the action becomes virtue. While you are doing the action, then you can transform it. Previous actions became non-virtue but then as you change your motivation you transform them into virtuous actions. But the things for which there is no benefit at all, those are good to stop.

So the conclusion is this—to make the life meaningful in the daily life is being mindful in all the actions, and when this unsubdued mind rises, and there is danger of accumulating negative karma, harming others, then at those times remember the different meditation techniques that were explained in the course, that you have read from the Dharma books. You remember the remedy, the meditation, and try to control the unsubdued mind, try to pacify the problem by remembering the result of negative karma. This is very practical. One of the best ways of living the life. The best way of practicing Dharma in daily life is this. It is the best way to want to keep the mind always in a calm state, always peaceful, to not become confused, in happiness. This is the way to practice.

This is the best life, or this is the best way to practice Dharma. And this is real practicing Dharma, when the mind is in a state of confusion like this, when you are in the danger of creating problems to other people, causing disharmony, making all the surrounding people unhappy, all the friends, like that. Then this is the best method. By remembering the remedy, the meditation on the graduated path, keep your mind calm, in patience, and if someone bothers you, try to practice patience, remembering the shortcomings of anger, the result of negative karmas, and also remembering the benefits of practicing patience. In this way you don’t create any problems for others, you don’t make other people’s mind confused, or crazy, so this keeps all of them happy. It benefits them so much.

When you don’t try to control the anger, you do the violent action of speech and body. That causes others’ anger to arise. First of all you make your own mind unhappy, then you accumulate negative karma, creating the cause of the lower rebirth, and you make other sentient beings’ minds unhappy. You cause those unsubdued mind in their mind, then you let them create negative karma, to be caught longer in the samsara. So it’s very harmful, you see.

In daily life if one remembers the graduated meditations, if one try to take care of oneself, one’s own mind, and one’s own life, , without need to talk about all the benefits, the great peace that you receive, it also gives great happiness and peace to other sentient beings. Surrounding sentient beings, friends, parents, whoever they are, don’t have to experience suffering in samsara for a long time, accumulating these negative karmas, by your condition.

So the purpose, the purpose of doing the course is to benefit daily life. To stop the confused mind and the unsubdued mind of oneself and others and to always create happiness within one’s mind and the mind of other sentient beings. As there are different diseases in our mind, we need to know more than one meditation. One meditation is not enough, just like one medicine is not enough. One medicine cannot cure all the 424 diseases.

If one makes prostration, the mind visualizing Buddha—the benefits of prostration are explained by Buddha in the Sutra teachings. When you make prostrations, when you lay down your body on the ground, if there is only one atom under your body, then you accumulate good karma, to be born as a universal king, who has incredible power, material possessions, great enjoyment, who possesses one continent, not just one small country. Like the king of the pure realm called Shambhala. A wheel turning king. It doesn’t mean that one should be born as king. It doesn’t mean that. To be born as this king, one has to accumulate infinite merit, so much good karma. By making one prostration, one accumulates the good karma to be born as a wheel turning king, one thousand times.

So there is that much benefit, you see, if there is one atom. But the atoms our bodies cover are uncountable. So one accumulates the good karma to be born as the wheel turning king equal to the number of atoms that are covered by that person. By making one prostration there is incredible, unbelievable benefit. If one does the prostration to the holy objects, Buddha, Dharma, Sangha, because of the power of the holy object, the power of the omniscient mind of Buddha, the action of body becomes purification, which means cleaning the unsubdued mind, obscurations and the negative karma. Cleaning. The Tibetans call prostrations chag. Same as cleaning the garbage. So relating to this, cleaning obscuration, unsubdued mind, the negative karma, each prostration to the holy object, the object of refuge.

But if one is just doing imitation or just custom, if one is doing the physical action similarly but without having doing it to the object of refuge, simply, talking, it does not become a prostration that has this meaning, cleaning. It just becomes physical exercise. Just makes the body flexible.

So the purpose for which I mention the benefits of prostration—in such a short time, within a few seconds, within few second, how incredible, unbelievable the merit that one can accumulate with this perfect human rebirth, to achieve enlightenment soon. To be able to fully generate the path in one’s mind. To just understand the possibilities, how great an opportunity there is with perfect human rebirth.

Even if one contemplates or even meditates on the meaning of this short prayer that we say at the beginning, taking refuge and generating bodhicitta, while we are reciting this prayer, if one is meditating on the meaning of this, thinking, “I go for refuge to Buddha, Dharma, Sangha, due to all these merits, from making charity and so on may I, may I achieve enlightenment for the benefit of all the mother sentient beings.” Just a few seconds of saying this prayer, generating the bodhicitta, one has accumulated infinite merit because one has generated the thought to achieve enlightenment for the benefit of all the mother sentient beings. And to generate bodhicitta for the sake of all the mother sentient beings. So as I mentioned before the number of sentient beings is countless, so the benefit of generating the bodhicitta, just by thinking this, one has gained infinite merit that equals infinite space.

What the great bodhisattva Shantideva said in the teaching on the Bodhicaryavatara, even the mere thought to benefit is much greater than making offerings to Buddha. If it is said like this, if the rising the mere thought to benefit is greater than making offerings to Buddha, then there is nothing to talk about in terms of actually attempting to do this, actually working for the happiness of other sentient beings.

What the bodhisattva Shantideva is saying, the commentary, is in the sutra teachings explained by Guru Shakyamuni Buddha—if one makes offerings to the number of buddhas that equal the number of the sand grains of the River Ganga, if you fill up the world with all the seven different types of precious jewels, diamond, gold, and offer that many worlds, equaling the number of sand grains of the River Ganga, for eons equal to the number of sand grains of the River Ganga, to incredible numbers of buddhas,, this merit, this good karma, and the merit created by one person simply thinking, “I am going to generate bodhicitta for the benefit of all the mother sentient beings,” from the heart, simply thinking like this, and putting the palms together like this, and prostrating, if you compare, which one is greater, the second one, putting the palms together and thinking, “I am going to generate bodhicitta for the benefit of all the mother sentient beings,” is greater. This merit can never compare to the merits of unimaginable numbers of offering. The English might be backwards, I am not sure.

So this benefit is much greater. That’s the meaning of bodhisattva Shantideva teaching.

So remembering the meaning of this prayer and saying it one time and thinking this it is so easy to gain infinite merit. As we do this a second, third repetition, we gain even greater merit. Even if the person doesn’t know so much, how to meditate, various meditation techniques, if he finishes his life only meditating on this, repeating this prayer, taking refuge, generating bodhicitta, repeating this over and over again, morning and evening doing only this, his life has been extremely worthwhile. His life has been greatly meaningful. Each time he meditates he has accumulated infinite merit. So that much purification is done.

This person has collected much more merit than the person who has achieved one-pointedness meditation. Or even the person who has the achievement of shamatha, but who never meditated on bodhicitta. The person who has achieved shamatha, the realization of tranquil abiding, has the extraordinary physical and mental, ecstasy, but because he does not meditate on bodhicitta, he doesn’t accumulate infinite merit.

In Tibet, the root guru of our guru, whose name is Pabongka Dechen Nyingpo, had thousands of followers. Among the thousand of followers there were many high lamas, nowadays those who are living in Dharamsala, also His Holiness Zong Rinpoche, whom we invited to give teachings in the West.

So one day, Pabongka Dechen Nyingpo had one disciple, one high lama, called Togden Rinpoche. This lama came from a very far place, from the lower place of Tibet to see his guru, Pabongka Dechen Nyingpo, to offer his realization that he has gained. I think he came at lunch time while Pabongka Dechen Nyingpo was having Tibetan food, in a bowl—the flour made from barley and ground and mixed with butter tea. This food is very simple, easy to make, you don’t have to spend much time to make it. So Togden Rinpoche came and tried to explain all his realizations, that he had achieved one-pointed concentration that can last for weeks and months without distraction.

So Pabongka Dechen Nyingpo was not surprised to hear that. After the high lama explained his realization, then Pabongka Dechen Nyingpo said, “My eating one bowl of this food cannot compare, cannot compare to your realization.” Maybe it’s backwards, I am not sure. What he was saying, Pabongka Dechen Nyingpo, was that his holy mind was qualified with the richness of bodhicitta, so even the simple action of eating food becomes work for sentient beings, and not for the self.

So he said your realization cannot compare to my one small bowl of food. There is no way to compare. This shows the signs that he has achievement of bodhicitta and so each single action has infinite merit, and becomes work for others, for all sentient beings. Those high lamas, in their daily activities, whatever they do, it’s all tantra, it’s all practical secret mantra for them, whatever they do. From morning when they get up, until night time, even sleeping, the whole thing, the whole daily activities—it’s all practice of secret mantra, the Vajrayana path. Not only bodhisattvas’ actions, not only that.

So actually their holy actions, their works for other sentient beings, are much more skilful. Much more profound, much more skilful.

However like this, in sleeping time, if one can practice like this, it is extremely good. If one can transform the action of sleeping into virtue.

[end of tape]

There are four things. I don’t remember exactly those other two—one is sleeping, one is upsetness or repentance. Those two I don’t remember. Anyway, these are translated in a book, there are many books, so you can find them from there. Specifically now what I am talking about is sleeping.

Before going to bed, before you fall in sleep, visualize Guru Shakyamuni Buddha where your pillow is. If you can make three prostrations, that is extremely good, part of the practice of refuge. So then if one doesn’t do that, the correct position of sleeping is similar to the position of Guru Shakyamuni Buddha when he was passing away, which was called the lying down position. This showed impermanence and death, keeping the right side of the body on the bed, keeping the right palm under the right cheek. Then the two legs straight, then the left hand stretched on the left leg. Keeping the arm like this. If you can, put this closing the breath that comes through the right nostril, blocking it like this. One is the hatred wind, one is attachment wind. They run through the arteries—there is a middle artery, then there is a left artery, and a right artery. So these two winds, the anger wind and the attachment wind, run through this charka or the arteries, the nadis.

When you lay down in this position think that you are doing so in order to show these holy actions to the sentient beings of the future, like Guru Shakyamuni Buddha did. Guru Shakyamuni Buddha did the twelve actions in order to lead the sentient beings gradually to enlightenment. So in the future may I be able to work for other sentient beings like Guru Shakyamuni Buddha did, showing impermanence and death, like this. Therefore I am going to sleep in this position, thinking like this. Again, you have generated bodhicitta. It’s very good.

As you lay down in this position, visualize Guru Shakyamuni Buddha in the front of you, your head in front of Guru Shakyamuni Buddha. From his heart many nectar rays flow, and all obscurations and negative karmas are purified.

Then while you are doing this, remember Guru Shakyamuni Buddha and try and fall asleep. If the mind is disturbed, with this thought of remembering Guru Shakyamuni Buddha try to fall asleep. In this way the whole sleep, however many hours you sleep, twenty hours even, that whole night and the next whole morning, the next whole afternoon, the whole action of sleeping become virtue. As you have generated the motivation of bodhicitta, to do this practice for the benefit of sentient beings, it becomes the cause to generate the Mahayana path, to receive enlightenment.

If you sleep in this position, in the same position that Guru Shakyamuni Buddha slept in when he was passing away, there is much benefit. If you have bad dreams or interferences at night time, if you sleep in this position you won’t get afflicted by the spirits, at night. It becomes protection, and the spirits are unable to give harm because of the power of that position.

I think why it’s called the lion position is because it also shows the power of fearlessness. Especially if one is able to fall asleep by remembering Guru Shakyamuni Buddha, with this thought, one doesn’t get bad dreams and the spirits are unable to give harm. So many times it happened. Around dawn you get some fearful dreams, bad dreams, then in the early morning, you become unhealthy, you start to cough or something changes in the body, becomes unhealthy. This is spirit harm. I am not sure whether you people have these experiences where there is some spirit pressing down the body at night, and you can’t breathe, you can’t move, or you have very fearful dreams, you can’t move at all, you escape, unable to escape anywhere, you got stuck. These offences do not happen if one sleeps with this practice.

So, if one practices like this, if one tries to sleep like this, with the remembrance of Guru Shakyamuni Buddha, the mind gets trained in that. So whenever you are in the danger of death, when a great change happens, like a heart attack, suddenly you have the method, suddenly you remember. Your mind is able to remember Guru Shakyamuni Buddha. Then you are able to die with this thought of Guru Shakyamuni Buddha. So the very last thing of this life becomes virtue if one is able to remember Guru Shakyamuni Buddha. So in that way, one never gets reborn in the realm of the suffering transmigratory being. Either one gets born in the pure realm or one finds a perfect human rebirth.

So it helps very much, if during your life you try to remember Buddha frequently, like during eating, sleeping time. Then the mind gets well trained. So at the death time, when there is real danger, when one is at a very dangerous point, even if there is great hindrance like this, great difficulty in the body and mind, the mind is able to remember Guru Shakyamuni Buddha. So one has a very easy life, one has a very easy death.

There is a way also to meditate on shunyata, to fall asleep, while you are mediating on shunyata. If you fall asleep meditating on shunyata probably you might not get the chance to get up tomorrow morning, you are completely lost, and you have to find yourself to get up—anyway, I am joking.

However, if you want to meditate on shunyata during sleeping time, after you do the visualization of the purification, Guru Shakyamuni Buddha absorbs into you, you become light, and you absorb into your own mind, and your whole body becomes light. The formation of light becomes smaller, smaller, and it comes to reach the empty state, when the “I” in which I believe, what appears to me, the truly existent “I,” is completely empty. Think like this, it’s completely empty. This is completely empty. With concentration on this thought, one tries to fall asleep. If one is mind is distracted again come back, again try to meditate like this.

I just mention this here now so that if somebody wants to practice, wants to train the mind in this, during the course, it might be beneficial.

It’s also good if one can visualize Guru Shakyamuni Buddha and pray, and remember impermanence. Thinking, “Now I am going to sleep and I’m not sure if I’ll have the chance to get up tomorrow morning, to be alive tomorrow morning.” Remember impermanence like this. Make requests to Guru Shakyamuni Buddha, to never be separate from the practice of bodhicitta, forever and again to find the perfect human body and to meet the perfect guru and to be able to follow the Mahayana path and achieve enlightenment. One can make this request to Guru Shakyamuni Buddha.

If possible, you went to sleep with the thought of Guru Shakyamuni Buddha, either doing shunyata or remembering Guru Shakyamuni Buddha, so that’s the last thought. When you wake up, if you can remember also Guru Shakyamuni Buddha it’s extremely good. As you wake up, the very first thought, without rising the thought of work, the job, oh, today I have to something like this, drinking coffee, if possible make the very first morning thought remembering Guru Shakyamuni Buddha, then you make the determination how you are going to spend the life.

Like each time when you get the money, each month as you get the salary, you make the motivation—after you brought the money from the bank, wherever you bring it, you think how you are going to spend the money. For the telephone and for the house, and this and that—you kind of make the motivation, how you can spend it. Then what’s leftover, how you are going to spend it. I am going to spend like this and like that. Give it to this friend or buy this or buy this and that. If in the morning as you remember Guru Shakyamuni Buddha, the very first thing you make the motivation, how you are going to spend the life.

Think, “I am extremely fortunate that by the grace of the guru, the Triple Gem, the Buddha, Dharma, Sangha, I didn’t die last night. I did not die last night. I could have died last night. Now my body could be left in this sleeping bag, like this, with the consciousness somewhere else. While I was sleeping, while I was dreaming, the breath could stop, the consciousness could be now in the intermediate stage or in the lower realm; it could happen. If it happened, if it did happen what can I do by now?”

Think, “I am extremely fortunate that I am able to be alive, not having had the experience of death, by the grace of the guru, Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha.” Then you think this one time that I have this perfect rebirth, I am not going to waste it by letting it under the control of the evil thought of worldly Dharma or the attachment seeking the pleasure of this life or the selfish attitude and “I” grasping ignorance.” Think, firstly, this year, and especially this month, especially this week, especially, “I am going to make the perfect human rebirth highly meaningful, without wasting it.”

“I am not going to let the evil thought of worldly Dharma or attachment seeking the pleasures this life use this perfect human body. I won’t let it under their control. I won’t let them to use, I won’t let under their control. Even in each second, I am going to try to not separate away from Dharma practice and the practice of bodhicitta.” Make a very strong determination how one is going to spend the life until the death, especially this month, this week, today, like this.

Then the rest of the day, try to remember again and again, while you are doing activities, the decision that you made this morning. Especially when you are in problems, when your mind is confused, when you are in danger of creating negative karma. Remember, when you made the decision as you have visualized Guru Shakyamuni Buddha, it’s good also to pray to Guru Shakyamuni Buddha, to make it happen like this. As I made the decision for it to happen like this, you make the request to Guru Shakyamuni Buddha. It’s very good.

So while we are doing the course, at that time it is easy to practice these things, the mind is more in Dharma. After this then meditate on the three great meanings, then on what can be achieved with this perfect human body, then check on wasting this perfect human body, without using it to obtain the temporal works. That is a greater loss than having lost many universes full of jewels.

Why is this is a greater loss? Because even if I possess that many universes full of jewels, that alone doesn’t have the power to cause me not to be reborn in the lower realms. That alone cannot save oneself from samsara. That alone cannot cause oneself to achieve enlightenment.

This perfect human rebirth can do these things. Meditate like this. Then try to feel that wasting this perfect human rebirth is a greater loss, much more greater loss than having lost many universes full of jewels. Even one hour, one minute, one second of having wasted this perfect human rebirth is a greater loss than having lost many universes full of jewels. Meditate like this, by relating to time, hour, minute, second, wasting this, how it is great loss, think like that.

Then also remember the path. I have been wasting the perfect human rebirth without using it to obtain temporal meaning. I have been wasting so much, in the past time. You question yourself, how much I have been wasting the perfect human rebirth. Question yourself and check. Then again think, while this perfect human body has the chance to obtain all this ultimate meaning I have not been using it for that. Check on yesterday, the day before yesterday, this year, last year, year before, like that you check.

Also think, one hour, one minute, one second of this perfect human rebirth can be highly meaningful. Each time one can be closer to enlightenment by accumulating infinite merit, the unimaginable purification, and doing great work for the sentient beings. But I have not been using it this way. How much I have been wasting the perfect human body. Check like this.

Try to feel how much one has been wasting it relating to example of the jewels. The value of the material things is easy for us to feel. But the value of the perfect human body is very difficult for us to feel, to recognize, so therefore by making comparisons to the material we can see the differences.

And not necessarily only jewels—if one has more feeling for money, then first of all, think the money that one has. If one has one hundred dollar in the pocket, think of that. Then if one has a trillion dollar in the bank, remember that. When you remember that you get a very good feeling, you really feel the value of those trillion dollars. You really feel it, from the heart. No one can doubt the value of dollars. So then you visualize that the whole of this earth is filled up dollars. Think, “I possess that much, I have that much.” Maybe it’s a great feeling when you visualize that much, seeing the value of all this money, filling all of space. Then with, with money alone what can you do.

At the moment because our minds have not been well trained, we have not meditated well on it, so we get more feeling for one rupee’s value. If you have one rupee or five rupees, you can get chocolate, you can get a cup of tea. So many things—candy and biscuits. So you see the value very clearly, nobody has to tell you. But we don’t feel this with the perfect human body. We don’t recognize it, we don’t see. And we have wasted this perfect human body without using it.

[end of tape]

We don’t get a feeling of loss. Even the feeling you have when you have lost a hundred dollars we don’t feel. Even if we waste this precious human body even for twenty, thirty years, like that. So then like this, meditate, after taking the three great meanings, as I explained, by remembering the cause, then you check—are you wasting this perfect human body without using to obtain temporal meaning, for one hour, second, like that, and how it’s a great loss, more than losing a universe full of jewels or money. This meditation becomes very effective, very clear and very effective.

If you don’t know how it is wasted, if you don’t know then check, like this, how many times have I been using this perfect human body for the evil thought of worldly dharma or attachment. Seeking the pleasures of this life. Then this way you can see very clear, very clear. All this time that we have been spending for the evil thought of worldly dharma or attachment seeking the pleasure this life, all those works did not become the cause to achieve the temporal meaning. So the perfect human body has been wasted.

[Chanting]

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