Conflict in the Middle East

Conflict in the Middle East

Advice Regarding the Israel and Palestine Situation
Date of Advice:
August 2014
Date Posted:
September 2014

Rinpoche gave the following advice on beneficial practices to help bring peace to Israel and Palestine. Lightly edited by Claire Isitt. 

What comes out beneficial is:
 
1.  Golden Light Sutra—this is the best one to read at this time, this brings healing for the whole area. It helps to not be controlled or have the country taken over by another, it gives power to the leader.  I checked and it is more powerful to have the Sutra of Golden Light recited by the monks in the monastery, it is more effective. So sponsor Gaden Lachi (Gaden Shartse and Jangtse together) to read the Golden Light Sutra. Request the monks to deeply dedicate for Israel and Palestine to have peace. The monks really have to recite with this strongly in their mind and then to dedicate to generate bodhicitta in everyone’s heart, especially the Palestine and Israeli people and the governments and the whole population. So for the monks to pray very strongly and begin by generating bodhicitta and then dedicate for harmony and to bring peace, including for the whole world.
 
2.  Then there is one practice (in Tibetan) to stop war. If there is a lama, monk, nun or lay person who can read Tibetan and who has received highest tantra initiations. The success depends very much on individual person who does the practice and also their samaya. 
 
3.   To sponsor the extensive Medicine Buddha puja at Sera or Drepung Monastery. Again all the monks have to really make strong prayers and strong dedications. Making strong prayers to generate bodhicitta in the hearts of the sentient beings of the six realms and in particular everyone in Israel and Palestine, the whole population and the governments, to everyone. Dedicate very strongly and pray strongly for this.
 
The reason why to have these practices done in a monastery is because the monks are living in the 36 vows and also many older monks are living in 253 vows. Then they have compassion and can generate compassion to all living beings and especially those in Palestine and Israel. If they pray then there can be great success, and especially if they have realizations of bodhicitta and shunyata, especially realization of bodhicitta, then their prayers have unbelievable power to bring peace, even if just one person prays—there is so much power to stop the harm and fighting and to bring peace. I am not saying everybody has bodhicitta but of course they can generate it. Then also if there are great holy beings in the monasteries, who have bodhicitta and also especially realizations of tantra—generation and completion stage and clear light—then there is even more power if they make prayers.
 
I cannot predict that by them doing these pujas and practices that the fighting and war will stop immediately and everybody will have peace and become harmonious, I can’t predict that, but it’s worthwhile to try.
 
Regarding the pujas and practices, you have to make offerings for them. It will include offering tea and bread, maybe lunch and small money offering. Maybe if you can get many people to support, so maybe you need to discuss to see if people can sponsor the expenses or not. 
 
Generally the whole world needs these prayers and pujas, there is most unbelievable need. Even the individuals who sponsor the expenses create so much merit.
 
In the past there was one man who had nothing, but he offered medicine and food to two (or four) ordained monks, not arya monks who have direct perception of emptiness. After the man died he was born as the most powerful king in Kashigar, he was the most powerful, wealthiest king in his next life. This was due to the cause of having offered medicine and food to the two or four monks.
 
4.   The other thing is to recite White Umbrella praises in Israel: The Supreme Accomplishment of Sitatapatra and A Praise and Repelling Practice of Sitatapatra.

5.   Also please recite the Prayer for Peace by the great yogi Tang Tong Gyalpo.
 
What is happening is the result of karma. From negative karma the result is suffering. From virtuous karma the result is happiness. Then from the second outline of karma—karma is expandable—so for example, even though the cause may be very small but the result is unbelievable, unbelievable; we can’t figure it out, because the cause is very small, but the result is unbelievable, have to experience for so many lifetimes, like 700 lifetimes or 1,000 lifetimes you have to experience the result—happiness or suffering. For example, if you cheat one sentient being you will be cheated for 1,000 lifetimes, you will have to suffer the result. If you kill one tiny insect, because karma is expandable you will be killed for 700 life times. But it also depends how it is done. 
 
Therefore to be able to make offerings to the monks who are living in the higher vows, there will be unbelievable, unbelievable, unbelievable good results and happiness that you will experience and if the offering is made with bodhicitta, then it becomes the cause of enlightenment. Every single offering or service done then becomes the cause of enlightenment—to be able to free numberless sentient beings from the oceans of samsaric sufferings and achieve the state of omniscient mind.
 
Please tell everyone who contributes to generate bodhicitta motivation and then make the offering, that is if there are people who want to and can make the offering—I am not pushing it.
 
Then just to mention without negative karma there is no suffering, so it means without having created the cause—negative karma—in the past, there wouldn’t be war and disharmony with Israel and Palestine.
 
Without creating good karma there is no result, happiness. Once the karma is created, the result never gets lost, even zillion, trillion, billion, million eons the result never gets lost, definitely will have to experience it once the cause—whether from virtue or non-virtue—has not been destroyed. As long as it’s there, then we have to definitely experience the result.

Finally it is important to dedicate for all wars happening in the world.

With much love and prayers...

War
Date Posted:
October 2009

Rinpoche gave the following advice to a student who wrote saying he could no longer go to the Dharma center because he felt the other students did not support President Bush going to war in Afghanistan and Iraq while he felt that Bush was protecting the US. Rinpoche wrote the following.

My very dear William,
Thank you very much for your kind letters and also the email I received. Sorry it took a long time to reply.

What we work for is other sentient beings’ happiness—to help them purify negative karma and collect merit, to stop them creating negative karma and to prevent the harm of many sentient beings, which it seems is the aim of the Taliban and al-Qaeda.

Therefore, as you know, bodhisattva yogis can use wrathful actions when there are no other means to stop evil beings from harming many sentient beings. They use wrathful actions, with discerning wisdom, when it is the only method left. Their actions are done with compassion, the thought to benefit sentient beings, and with no stain of self-cherishing thought.

I cannot say if President Bush is an enlightened being or not, I can’t tell. A leader who is a bodhisattva would, of course, do what is best, what is most beneficial, even if it means using force, but it would be done with a compassionate motivation and with wisdom. In this way, it does not have suffering consequences and one only collects extensive merit, also one becomes closer to enlightenment and closer to enlightening all sentient beings. But, using force doesn’t mean war, that is not the only method, in fact that is only a very mundane use of force. There are other methods through spiritual practice and meditation, Buddhist methods, deity practice, etc. to surprise attackers and protect the ones who are being harmed. There are meditations that can take others’ lives away, etc. With these methods you don’t need an army or billions of dollars, and so many less people are killed, because as you know, in war, so many civilians are killed. That is unless the enemy has clairvoyance or omniscient mind.

Perhaps you may have read the letter I sent President Bush after the September 11th tragedy. In case you haven’t, I can send it to you. I find it very strange that in the West, when there are difficulties, others attack you, etc, it seems people never use religion in these situations. It seems they go to church like a custom, but when there are problems they don’t go to church, they don’t pray or rely on the church at that time. It seems that there is no connection with God at that time. However, Buddhists, especially Mahayana Buddhists, the minute there are difficulties, use Buddhism to solve life problems, whether it is an individual person’s problem or problems in the country and world. At that time they rely on Buddha, on the teachings, particularly tantra, especially people who have realizations, bodhisattvas, and yogis, who have very high tantric realizations and who have so much power. This is what they rely on.

One time the British army came to Tibet to take it over. This was before mainland China invaded Tibet. One high lama who lived near Lhasa practiced Yamantaka (a wrathful deity) and did a very powerful practice that can kill evil doers. This is a very special powerful practice of Yamantaka called Wheel of the Yamas. The lama used this powerful method and then many of the British army got sick, had diarrhea, and had to leave.

In Tibet the main goal is to be able to practice Dharma; to live a renounced life; become ordained, go to a monastery or nunnery to study, learn Dharma, and practice; to become a qualified teacher to be able to spread the Dharma; and to liberate and enlighten sentient beings. All the emphasis in Tibet is on practicing Dharma, building holy objects, becoming ordained, studying in the monasteries, and achieving realizations. In the West all the emphasis is on attachment, particularly sex. This is the main advertisement, the main thing to achieve in the West, what people want.

In Tibet they did not even really have an army, they just had some old guns, very primitive guns. The British army had very powerful weapons, but still they had to turn back, many got sick and died, and they left. Also, when the mainland Chinese first invaded Tibet they were defeated by the Tibetans, by many monks who went to fight even though they had no experience. Only during Mao Tse-tung’s time was Tibet taken over. During that time, many people started cheating each other, both poor people and high-ranking officials. This is how Tibet got taken over: by bribery, cheating, stealing, and lies. Of course, the 13th Dalai Lama gave people so much advice, but both common people and high officials ignored it. Maybe this is why Tibet was lost. I guess it was also karma to lose Tibet. It is like a waterfall—it starts small and then gets bigger, and then it loses control, becoming so forceful, like a big wave. Because Tibet did not defeat the mainland Chinese in the beginning, they came back much stronger. When I was in Amdo in Tibet, I saw all these ditches on the roadside where the Chinese army had lain in wait. This was from the first invasion that had been defeated by the Tibetans.

The conclusion is that Tibet had the karma to be controlled by the mainland Chinese government and once the karma has already ripened then one can’t do much. But I am sure that before the karma ripened it could have been changed and purified. So, the conclusion is that when the Tibetan people’s karma was more powerful, they were able to defeat the mainland Chinese army, even though it was a much bigger army than theirs and much more powerful. They were able to keep Tibet, and the army had to turn back. In order to get Tibet back, the Tibetans need to purify negative karma. Only then can they change the mainland Chinese government’s actions. Otherwise, it is quite difficult to do this through ordinary force and war.

Sorry for chatting; if you enjoy it then it’s OK.

With much love and prayers,

Lama Zopa

PS. In Buddhism, especially Mahayana Buddhism, one is able to perform wrathful activities toward others, such as taking away others’ lives. Of course, in the Theravada tradition, there is no permission to do the three negative actions of the body at all (killing, stealing, sexual misconduct) or the four negative actions of speech (lying, slander, harsh speech, and gossiping). But in Mahayana Buddhism, for bodhisattvas who have the motivation of a brave heart, compassion for others, and whose actions are only motivated by those qualities, as well as discerning wisdom, then whatever actions they engage in are of great benefit to others, even if they engage in wrathful actions. You mentioned the story of the captain of the ship carrying 500 business people. This is similar to other actions that are not permitted in the lesser vehicle teachings.

Regarding the captain of the ship, he was completely prepared to be reborn in the hell realm for his action of killing that one man who was about to kill the 500 business people. But that action of killing was done with a very brave heart and compassion and because of that it enabled him to stay in samsara 100,000 eons less than previously, and he collected merit.

Also, in the past, a bodhisattva met a girl who was going to commit suicide. To protect her from harming herself, the bodhisattva lived with her for some time. He sacrificed his life for her with a brave heart and compassion. That act meant he spent 10,000 eons less in samsara and he collected merit. There are so many wrathful actions that one can do to take away the lives of evil-doers, but it depends on your karma being more powerful than others’.

The conclusion is that Mahayana sutra and tantra is based on renunciation and bodhicitta; they are the motivation for one’s actions. The best thing is if one’s actions are also based in emptiness, then one’s actions are much more powerful. They are also more powerful if one has a very stable, firm appearance of oneself as the deity, and especially if one has realizations of the clear light and illusory body. Then, one is a real yogi, even more professional, more powerful. Then one can use one’s actions to achieve enlightenment quicker. If those yogis have alcohol it has no effect on them, because they have control over their winds, channels, and drops. Besides being no danger to them, they can use it to develop strong clear light realizations. Similarly, one can rely upon a wisdom mother if one is a male tantric practitioner and a male consort if one is a female tantric practitioner. On that basis, they are able to quickly eliminate the dualistic view and even the subtle defilements. That is why there is no risk at that time when they are engaging in what are called the three actions of the body and four actions of the speech. These actions become negative if the motivation is negative, non-virtuous. But there is no danger to the mind if one has already achieved the three principles of the path. If one has actualized the three principles of that path, then this becomes the ground, like the foundation for a house, for realizations.

Sorry, now it has become a very long chat.

With much love and prayers...

 

Afghanistan
Date Posted:
November 2005

Rinpoche sent the following message to the FPMT Dharma centers after the US began attacking Afghanistan in the wake of September 11.

What I wanted to mention to the centers was to make sure you don’t rejoice. It’s very heavy negative karma. When we hear the name of the Taliban, or whoever, if there is dislike or hatred toward them, then of course when you hear that they have been killed or destroyed, naturally you will rejoice or feel happy. Then when you rejoice, for example, when you hear that one thousand people were killed or hurt, you feel happy—and then you receive the same heavy karma of having killed 1,000 people. You are sitting on a meditation cushion, you hear the information, and then simply by rejoicing or just feeling happy, it’s the same heavy karma as having killed 1,000 human beings yourself, even though you are not in the war. You didn’t actually bomb or shoot them, you didn’t do anything, but you get the same heavy negative karma as that person who actually killed 1,000 people.

I thought I would mention that, as Pabongka Dechen Nyingpo explained in Liberation in the Palm of your Hand, there is great danger when you hear news and immediately feel happy and rejoice. If you have dislike or hatred toward the people involved, then this brings a very heavy outcome. If you didn’t feel hatred toward them, I don’t think you would rejoice.

People who remember the lam-rim in their daily life, who remember about karma and what is said in Liberation in the Palm of your Hand and the other lam-rim teachings and who practice this don’t need to be told these things. But for others, who heard the lam-rim but maybe don’t remember it in daily life, it might be useful to just remind those students.

When I heard the first time about the destruction in Afghanistan, when a few places were destroyed, I was not careful. The news didn’t say “people” or “killing,” it said some places were destroyed. I was not careful with my mind and not watching it, so I felt something kind of good, then immediately I remembered what I felt. After that I was more careful. So, be careful not to rejoice when you hear the news.

Of course, if one meditates like this, your view changes. But when you don’t meditate and when your mind is not in this state, holding those sentient beings as precious, with compassion, then you see them as undesirable.