April 24, 2003

Maybe doing another initiation. No, I’m just joking. So, this how I would like to arrange these prayers, this practice. I didn’t get to tell you in the initiation, so the idea is this, for example, in the case of Guru Shakyamuni Buddha, but of course, that’s already done, that’s already finished.

The Kindness of the Buddha

So to begin with, to start the actual practice, breathing can be done, the things to calm the mind can be done, however, the main practice starts with the visualization. You can recite La ma tön pa chom dän dä… that we normally recite. This praise can be done, and then before that, think of the kindness of Guru Shakyamuni Buddha. This you can also do, or if you are reciting Guru Shakyamuni Buddha’s name mantra this can also be done normally, remembering Guru Shakyamuni Buddha’s kindness.

Think, “For all the numberless sentient beings and myself, for the benefit of numberless sentient beings and myself, you, the Buddha sacrificed your life, your wealth, family, being born as king, then you gave everything [away], even to the families, you made charity to others, giving your wealth, and the limbs, eyes and whatever was needed.” Even the whole life was sacrificed, like the five tiger family who were dying of starvation, at a place in Nepal, one of the mountains called Namo Buddha; we can still visit that place. And that’s not the only thing, there are so many stories of the Buddha’s sacrifices, like that.

“You, the Buddha, did this for three countless great eons. You, the Buddha, sacrificed your life and family and wealth for numberless sentient beings and for me, to help me, to guide me, for three countless great eons.” Not only that, the Buddha also practiced morality for three countless great eons, by bearing all those hardships. So for us, how difficult it is even finally, at the beginning it is difficult to understand, and even if we understand, there’s the fear of taking the vows, taking the precepts, there’s fear, there’s rejection, there’s fear. So at last even though we took vows, that doesn’t mean we are able to keep them. It doesn’t mean we are able to continue and bear the hardships, it doesn’t mean that. Anyway, generally speaking, it’s not the same for everybody, but for some of us ordinary beings it’s like that.

But here the Buddha practiced morality, he sacrificed his life, he practiced morality for us, to save numberless sentient beings and oneself from the suffering of samsara and bring us to liberation, enlightenment. He practiced charity for three countless great eons, then he practiced perseverance for three countless great eons, and then he practiced concentration, as well as wisdom. He practiced all these six paramitas for three countless great eons, he collected merit—the merit of wisdom and the merit of fortune—then he completed the path. He achieved enlightenment, purely for our benefit, to liberate, to save the numberless sentient beings and oneself from the oceans of suffering of samsara and bring us to liberation and to enlightenment.

Think, “Therefore, the Buddha is kinder than all the other rest of the buddhas, the numberless buddhas. Guru Shakyamuni Buddha, who is the founder of the present Buddhadharma, where I was left out—many other buddhas happened in this world but I was left out, I didn’t get to be guided by other buddhas. So now, in Guru Shakyamuni Buddha’s time, Guru Shakyamuni Buddha made a vow, he promised and made five hundred prayers to guide me and the present sentient beings in this very quarreling time, in this very difficult time, in this very degenerated time. He made so many prayers that I, myself, and the sentient beings who were left out by other buddhas, who were found difficult to guide; Guru Shakyamuni Buddha especially made prayers, he chose the sentient beings and myself in this difficult time, those who are so difficult to be tamed. Buddha made all these prayers to guide us, therefore Guru Shakyamuni Buddha is kinder than numberless buddhas. One way Buddha sacrificed his life so much for me like this. He achieved enlightenment and like this, he worked so much, he worked so hard for three countless great eons for me, and then from my side, what did I do?”

Then examine your own practice. Buddha did that much for you; he sacrificed his own life for three countless great eons; he did all the charity and morality, all that, so now comparing that, what did you do? Examine your own practice, your own life, something that makes you feel that you must do better.

Think, “In the past, my life has been like this, but now I must do better, practice better, have courage, so now, from my side, I must do better.” So encourage oneself, like that, to overcome the delusions or to stop committing those habituated negative karmas. Not allowing the delusion and negative karmas, not giving them power, not that. Give power to yourself, make yourself strong, give power to yourself, rather than giving power to the delusions, which makes you weak, which destroys you and makes you weak. So give power to yourself instead of giving power to the delusions. That makes you strong.

You should feel some kind of shame, or feel shy, shame toward Buddha. Buddha did all this for three countless great eons from his side, he practiced six paramitas and achieved enlightenment for us, for sentient beings, for me, and he revealed all this path. So from our side what we do, how we spend our life, all these mistakes, we should feel a kind of shame. So now, think, “I must do a bit better,” giving power to yourself, like that. So that’s useful.

After that, after doing the praise to Buddha and thinking about the Buddha’s qualities, then do the seven-limb practice, mandala offering, all those things. Then, what I was thinking is that after the mandala offering, by following the Essential Nectar or one of those lamrim texts, do a little bit of lamrim. The session is not only reciting mantra or visualizing the deity, but the session is combined with the lamrim, so it becomes integrated, the session is integrated. With lamrim meditation as well as deity meditation-recitation, it becomes very unique and very powerful. So, do a little bit of lamrim, going over that and just think, individually, whatever you can understand, think about the commentary. Then the leftover lamrim, do that in the next session, that same place, a little bit, a few lines or something, whatever.

After the lamrim meditation, you become the deity¹ and then recite the mantra. So in this way it becomes more powerful and very rich. So maybe, the part of the Buddha, that one time is gone, so maybe Chenrezig, maybe you could do like this, integrate the session like that.

The Purpose of Chanting

We can visualize the guru, so here, the essence, in the aspect of Chenrezig, like that, we can do that. Then we start with Calling the Guru from Afar as a motivation. This also becomes for the motivation, setting up, cutting those wrong concepts and to make the mind pure. So we can begin with the short Calling the Guru from Afar, that one. Those who are not familiar with the meaning, those who are not familiar, you can read it in English or French or whatever, or Japanese. Those familiar with this prayer or those who want to, can chant, then those who are not familiar can read it in French or whatever language that you are reading, or you can do both—while you are chanting you can have a look at the translation. You can do it also like that.

Chanting has a few reasons in Tibetan Mahayana Buddhism. One reason for chanting is that it gives us time to meditate, because we are reading slowly so it gives us time to meditate, that’s one advantage. Like, for example, the Heart Sutra, which is very short, but in Sera Je, for example, in Sera Je in Tibet, I think maybe in India they don’t do that chanting all night, but in Tibet I heard that they chant the Heart Sutra, very long chanting, and they say that during that chanting a person can go from Sera Je Monastery to Lhasa and come back. [Laughter] That’s what they say, during the chanting. I guess, in the middle of the night it looks like most people are asleep, it sounds like that, many monks are asleep. Anyway, it sounds like that.

Anyway, there is a special group who specialize in chanting, so they do that, they take the assembly. Probably the idea is that you are supposed to meditate on the meaning of the Heart Sutra, the Essence of Wisdom, I think it seems the idea is that.

The purpose of chanting, one thing is it gives us time to meditate, that’s the most important thing.

The other thing is, the chanting came from the great holy beings, bodhisattvas or great yogis, it came from them, with their realizations, their bodhicitta, and then on top of that, the tantric realizations, very high tantric realizations, so it carries blessings. The chanting carries a blessing, the chanting that came from that great [being], of course no question if it’s an enlightened being, but even it’s not an enlightened being it carries a very special blessing to affect the minds of the sentient beings who hear the chanting. Also, of course, it is motivated that way to benefit our mind, to subdue, to tame, to receive blessings.

That, and then if we are able to do the chanting well, by whoever chants, then it also becomes moving, it is a support, it becomes a support for the mind, it becomes one support for the mind to arise devotion, renunciation, compassion, to feel stronger the bodhicitta, devotion to the Triple Gem and to the gurus. It then supports or moves the mind, so there are these benefits. So basically, even if the chanting did not come from a great holy being, the chanting that we make, if it’s something very moving for the mind, then the purpose is fulfilled.

So we begin with that. My chanting is no good and it doesn’t stay the same from the beginning, it changes, somewhere it changes. [Rinpoche laughs] Maybe sometimes it irritates people’s minds. So we’ll do the short one this time. You can visualize [the deity] above the crown or in front of you, , you can do that. Or just the nature of the aspect, either way. Before you become the deity and purify sentient beings, all that, so preliminary, collecting merit, so here, first you visualize the merit field objects, making requests and refuge, bodhicitta, seven limbs, then mandala offering, then maybe a little bit of lamrim meditation. You can do that; this is to give you an idea.

[Rinpoche leads chanting of short Calling the Lama from Afar]

“Due to all the past, present and future merits collected by me and the three-time merits collected by others, may I, myself, my own family members, all the students and benefactors in this organization as well as all the sentient beings, may we never arise heresy even for one second in the actions of the glorified guru, and with devotion seeing whatever action is done as pure, seeing it as pure, may the blessings of the guru enter my heart.”

Then we do refuge-bodhicitta, generating the four immeasurable thoughts, then recite the seven-limb prayer, the short one. Then maybe by that time, it’s time to go to bed. [Laughter]

The Causes of Refuge

So in the presence of the merit field, Guru Chenrezig, think that with the three causes of refuge then take refuge. Think that we are totally under the control of delusion and karma, ignorance, anger, attachment and so forth, and the root is the unknowing mind—not knowing the ultimate, not knowing what is I, what is self, total ignorance. Not knowing what is I and the nature of the mind, the aggregates, as well as the ignorance not knowing ultimate nature of other phenomena. So totally overwhelmed, living in those wrong views, so many, our mind is deluded with this, having so many wrong views, wrong concepts, all these superstitions, so many delusions, hallucinations, hallucinated thoughts, then karma. We are completely trapped or overwhelmed, totally overwhelmed, like in a quagmire, in the mud, in a quagmire, drowned in that.

On top of that, we are suffering. There is the suffering of pain and then the samsaric pleasure, which is only in the nature of suffering, but is hallucinated as pleasure, as happiness. We have these aggregates, which are pervasive, compounding suffering, totally in the nature of suffering, the contaminated seed of disturbing thoughts, produced by karma and delusion so totally in the nature of suffering like this, pervaded by suffering. And then we experience the human sufferings, the human realm sufferings, those eight types of suffering including the sufferings of the aggregates. We also experience the general suffering of samsara as mentioned this morning, the six types or the four types, whatever, those.

From time without beginning, this life is not the first time we have had to suffer, experiencing the sufferings of samsara; it’s not the first time. From time without beginning, from beginningless rebirths it has been like this, suffering, we have never been free. And it’s difficult to see the end of our own suffering of samsara, our own suffering of samsara. This is the situation, how we are now suffering in samsara. So now we generate the awakening fear, we come to know what samsara is, we get some idea, maybe it’s still not complete, but we get some idea of what samsara is and how it’s in the nature of suffering. We come to know about it, about samsara, and how it’s in the nature of suffering So this awakening, then we are starting to awaken and with that there’s fear, awakening fear, so this fear comes from understanding, this fear comes from intelligence—not from ignorance, but from intelligence, from the understanding, from awakening, understanding how samsara is in the nature of suffering.

Anyway, if the child doesn’t know that a fire can burn, if they go into a fire it can burn their body and they will suffer so much pain. If the child doesn’t know that a fire can burn, like the butterfly which goes into the flames, the child will go inside the fire. If the child is not afraid, they don’t know that it can burn and cause so much pain, death, like that. By seeing the effect, by discovering that, the child is afraid to go into the fire, and that fear helps the child to stay away from the fire, or poison, fire or poison, whatever. That fear comes from the understanding, from the intelligence, from the understanding. It’s similar here, the awakening fear, knowing that what we are experiencing is the suffering of our own samsara.

Then by looking at the others, the numberless beings, there are numberless sentient beings who are similar to us, with so much suffering, unbearable suffering in samsara. There are numberless others. That we are in the samsara is so unbearable, so unbearable, we can’t stand it, like a person who is caught in a prison, there’s no attraction to being in prison even for one second. There’s no interest in being in prison even for one second. There is interest in becoming free from prison, twenty-four hours, day and night, asking, “When I can be free?” Only that wish, there’s no wish to be in the prison even for one second, we are not interested in being in prison. Exactly like this, only wishing to be free from the samsara, thinking it’s so unbearable being caught in samsara, experiencing suffering, so much suffering, all these different types of suffering, non-stop.

Now there are numberless other sentient beings like this, experiencing the unimaginable sufferings of samsara from time without beginning. They have been experiencing this from time without beginning, and numberless times experiencing unimaginable suffering. Therefore, it’s so unbearable, so now we can’t stand it even for one second, so now we have a strong feeling, strong compassion, thinking that the numberless other sentient beings’ suffering is unbearable, and we think, “Therefore I must free them from all this unimaginable suffering of samsara and bring them to enlightenment. Therefore, I must achieve full enlightenment, for all my mother sentient beings, all the sentient beings, transmigratory beings, from whom I receive all my past, present and future happiness, all my happiness, all the collections of goodness. Therefore, I and all sentient beings go for refuge.”

The second cause of refuge is compassion and third is devotion to Buddha, Dharma, Sangha, “They’re the only ones, the guru, Buddha, Dharma, Sangha, who are abiding in front of me are the only ones who have the power and the qualities to save me and sentient beings from the ocean of samsaric sufferings and to bring them in full enlightenment.” So devotion, faith, is the third cause of refuge.

Then with all these three, with our whole heart relying upon them—the guru, Buddha, Dharma, Sangha—with that mental factor, that is the refuge.

So that is Sang gyä chhö dang…. “To Buddha, Dharma, Sangha,” jang chhub bar du… “until enlightenment is achieved, I go for refuge.” The proper way to do it after you generate the three causes, then with your whole heart rely upon Buddha, Dharma, Sangha. So along with that then do the prayer; along with that then recite the words.

Normally when we do sadhanas in our daily life, every prayer always begins with Sang gyä chhö dang…, so at that time, as much as we can, first reflect on our own suffering in samsara, then the numberless other sentient beings, generate compassion, then devotion, and then go for refuge. With that, recite the prayer, expressing into words, like this.

Causal Refuge and Resultant Refuge

Next, here it shows that there are two types of refuge practice—causal refuge and resultant refuge. That is explained in the Prajnaparamita, in those teachings, in the commentaries of the Abhisamayalamkara, in the section on refuge. That until enlightenment is achieved, that is the result refuge, so we actualize true path and true cessation of suffering, absolute Dharma, we actualize these within ourselves. Whether following the Lesser Vehicle path or the Mahayana path, with these—true path and true cessation—with bodhicitta, true path and true cessation of the suffering, the cessation of the subtle mistakes of the mind, the subtle defilements, then that will be enlightenment. Svabhavakaya, the ultimate nature of the omniscient mind, and then also the wisdom itself, the dharmakaya, the transcendental wisdom, that which is totally free from the defilements, even the subtle defilements.

By achieving the true path and true cessation of suffering, whether on the Lesser Vehicle path or the higher path, the Mahayana path, then we become the Sangha, here the absolute Sangha. Then by ceasing even the subtle defilements, by the true path, wisdom directly perceiving emptiness, supported by bodhicitta, our mind becomes fully awakened or enlightened, and we become Buddha. So we become Buddha, Dharma, Sangha. At this time we become Buddha, Dharma, Sangha. We actualize Dharma, we become Sangha and we become Buddha, so that is the result refuge, “Until enlightenment is achieved.”

Then to do that, in order to actualize that it depends on the causal refuge. We have to rely upon causal refuge, the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha possessed by others, we have to rely upon that. Like [training] to be a qualified doctor, an expert doctor, then we have to learn from an expert, then we become an expert doctor. Same thing, by depending on a learned Dharma teacher then we become learned, so it’s the same, so we also become learned. So here, to achieve the resultant refuge, that depends on relying upon Buddha, Dharma, Sangha possessed by others’ mind, which is the causal refuge. So “to Buddha, Dharma, Sangha,” [in the refuge prayer] is the causal refuge. When we do this we practice two types of refuge, causal refuge and resultant refuge, like that.

The Merit of Fortune and the Merit of Wisdom

The next two lines of the verse are generating bodhicitta, “Due to the merits of having done charity and so forth,” which means any positive actions we have done. Usually the prayer says, Dag gi jin sog gyi päi so nam kyi, “By the merit of having done charity and so forth,” but His Holiness recently corrected that, or preferred to recite Dag gi jin sog gyi päi tshog nam kyi, “Due to the collections of having done charity and so forth,” I think. Here, I think, the tshog, the merit, it’s the same, but the merit, here’s it’s merit. I think here why His Holiness chooses the word tshog, which means merit, there’s ye she kyi tshog, so nam kyi tshog. Tshog, two things. Tshog means merit; tshog is sometimes translated as “collection,” but generally tshog means “gathered.” So depending on the context, the sentence, the context, it means gathering or assembly, collection or gathered.

But here, tshog, here I don’t think it’s the meaning of that. Many times it’s translated as collection, but I don’t think here it is the case. Here it means the merit. So there are two types of merit: the merit of wisdom, like the practice of the six paramitas, so by meditating on the wisdom, practicing wisdom, then we collect the merit of wisdom. Without wisdom, charity, morality, patience, perseverance and concentration, we collect merit of sonam, the merit of fortune [or virtue]. Sonam, I translate this as “merit of fortune.” In the common language if the person has much merit, mi kyi sonam chenpo it means this person is very lucky, a very fortunate person, so nam chenpo re. Sonam is merit, fortune; chenpo is great, mi sonam chenpo re. So it’s similar like that, so here sonam, I use the same in the common language, this person is very fortunate, mi sonam chenpo re, this person is a very fortunate person, so it’s similar. So nam kyi tshog, merit of fortune; and ye she kyi tshog, the merit of transcendental wisdom. That has been the common translation but I don’t know how it’s translated ye she. Anyway, the merit of wisdom, ye she kyi tshog, and so nam kyi tshog, the merit of fortune. Maybe there’s a better translation, a more good-sounding, soothing translation, I’m not sure. Anyway, merit of fortune, so two things.

I think the reason why His Holiness prefers tshog in Dag gi jin sog gyi päi tshog nam kyi is because it includes both the merit of fortune, which is collected by practicing charity, morality, patience, perseverance and concentration, without wisdom. Then the merit of wisdom, by meditating on emptiness, practicing wisdom, then we collect the merit of wisdom. Here tshog includes both. But if you say, Dag gi jin sog gyi päi so nam kyi, then so nam, which sounds like only one part of your dedication is not including the merit of wisdom, you leave that out, and it’s only the merit of fortune. I think that might be the reason why His Holiness prefers tshog. He said it’s better to recite Dag gi jin sog gyi päi tshog nam kyi. I haven’t really thought of the meaning, but as I am talking now, I think it might be like that.

The meaning of dro la, transmigratory beings

“Due to this, may I achieve, dro la phän chhir sang gyä, full enlightenment, in order to benefit.…” Dro la phän chhir, in order to benefit; dro la is to the transmigratory beings, dro la.

When you say dro la, it shows, it expresses that the sentient beings are very pitiful, having a suffering nature, no freedom at all, they have no freedom at all, no freedom at all, and they are totally overwhelmed by karma and delusion, under the control of karma and delusion. And then, because of that they continuously suffer, with no choice; they continuously suffer, however much they do not want to suffer, with no choice.

Dro la, by transmigrating, being heavily under the control of karma and delusion, like the fly, the butterfly or the moth that jumped into the candle wax, that jumped inside, then became completely wrapped up in the wax of the candle. So like that, completely overwhelmed, heavily overwhelmed by delusion and karma, and then because of that, constantly suffering, no matter how much they don’t like it, by transmigrating in the six realms, one after another. So dro la has this meaning, transmigratory being.

Like the Wheel of Life, if you think that in the center there are three animals, which signify the three poisonous minds, the delusions. One side [of the second layer] is white, but the other side is black, which signifies negative karma. There is virtuous, good karma and negative karma, delusion and karma. So due to that delusion and karma, sentient beings migrate to the lower realms where they experience, their major suffering is the suffering of pain. Then they migrate to the human realm, the sura and asura realm, but there’s always the suffering of pain and the suffering of change, the samsaric pleasure, which is the suffering of change, and then the pervasive compounding suffering. That is same as for the lower realm beings; their aggregates are pervasive compounding suffering. So that is the basis of this life’s suffering and the basis of the future life’s suffering. The devas, human beings, suras and asuras, the same, they constantly experience pervasive compounding suffering, which is again the aggregates in that nature. Then on the basis of that, there is the suffering of change, which is samsaric pleasure, and the suffering of pain. So like that.

Being under the control of delusion and karma, they transmigrate one after another, in these six realms, one after another and experience suffering, from time without beginning. How is it circling in samsara, how is it transmigrating in samsara? It is described by the twelve dependent related limbs, the twelve dependent related limbs that describe how the sentient beings transmigrate continuously through the six realms, in one of these realms.

Dro la phän chhir, in order to benefit, dro la, to all the transmigratory beings, so the meaning of dro la, transmigratory being, that describes the whole thing here. The whole Wheel of Life is contained in the meaning of dro la. They have no freedom at all themselves; they are totally overwhelmed, forced or overwhelmed by karma and the delusions, the three poisonous minds.

And then, as I mentioned before, no matter how much they do not want to experience problems, they continuously experience problems. No matter how much they do not want that life, but without a choice, they continuously experience suffering, problems. This is in the meaning of dro la. So dro la contains that whole thing. How they are suffering, that they are suffering, and why? Because overwhelmed by delusion and karma. How? Explained by twelve dependent related limbs.

Dro la, this word is something very pitiful; what it expresses is something very pitiful. When we say dro la, there’s no choice, compassion has to arise. Compassion has to arise, no choice, if we think about the meaning of dro la, the transmigratory beings. It is very pitiful, very sad, very upsetting or very sad, very pitiful, it has a description like that.

So you do that, taking refuge and generating bodhicitta. Reflect on the merit field. ] The merit field that yourself and others, the numberless sentient beings. The merit field has all the power, the qualities, the understanding—perfect understanding, perfect power, perfect compassion—all the skills to save oneself and the numberless other sentient beings, the transmigratory beings, from the oceans of samsaric suffering and bring them not only to liberation but to full enlightenment. So with your whole heart, with yourself as the leader, think all sentient beings together are taking refuge. Think there’s nothing more serious, there’s nothing more urgent than taking refuge in your life.

Sang gyä chhö dang…. [3x]

“In order to benefit for all the transmigratory beings….” “In order to benefit” means freeing them from all the oceans of samsaric sufferings—the oceans of hell beings’ sufferings, the oceans of hungry ghosts, animals, human beings, suras, asuras, and all these human beings’ problems that we hear about all the time on TV or in the newspaper. We hear people around us, people around in the same place, the people that we know, how much they’re suffering, and we have the example of our own experiences as well as all the problems, all the global problems, all that, and also the intermediate stage beings, the unbelievable suffering there—to free them from all those sufferings and the cause, delusion and karma, and bring them to enlightenment. So that’s included in the words about benefiting, “In order to benefit the transmigratory beings.” So “in order to benefit” includes that meaning.

I think one year ago, there was a need to do a puja for the Maitreya Project. I think I requested the centers to do it, I don’t know, some practice to do for the Maitreya Project, maybe to get funding or to pacify some particular problem, obstacles. There might be some specific practices for the centers that I requested but at the Florida center, which I described before at the beginning of the talk here, at the Florida center, Thubten Kunga Ling, the geshe there, so what puja they did, he asked everybody to recite, so they gathered and they did Sang gyä chhö dang…, taking refuge and bodhicitta. They did it over and over again, I don’t know how many thousands of times, just that.

This geshe, his name is difficult to remember. I know Gyäb came in my mind, Gyäb that’s his special name, Gyäb, that one comes in my mind but the Konchog, that one somehow doesn’t come together. Anyway, Konchog Gyäb, a very particular name, it’s similar to Geshe Lama Konchog.

Anyway, it was very interesting. He told me that, I think maybe by telephone or something, he said that he did puja for the Maitreya Project, that they did lot of prayers for the Maitreya Project. He asked them to recite. Probably, I think I must have asked them to do some specific prayer, but because the people cannot recite that prayer, I think, so what he did is, everybody can recite Sang gyä chhö dang…, everybody can recite, “I go for refuge to the Buddha, Dharma, Sangha until enlightenment is achieved, and due to the merits may I achieve enlightenment in order to benefit all the transmigratory beings.” Of course, everybody can recite that. He said they did that, I don’t know, a hundred thousand or something, repeated many times, so I thought that was very interesting. Even if you cannot do those various pujas, actually, normally I think the refuge practice has condensed all the pujas within the refuge practice.

For example, we do puja because there’s some obstacle, so we do puja for success. Within the refuge prayer there’s purification, so we purify the obstacles there. And by taking refuge in the Sangha, then the blessing, the qualities that we receive, what we should meditate on that we have received, that is all the bodhisattvas’ qualities, the six paramitas and bodhicitta. You and sentient beings receive that. The arhats, their qualities, the three higher trainings—the higher trainings of morality, concentration and wisdom—all the qualities that they have. Then the dakas and dakinis, the transcendental wisdom of non-dual bliss voidness. So their qualities, you think you have received that.

Then the protectors, their qualities, their blessing, what is that? That is the four actions, the pacifying action, so this is what you need, if there’s an obstacle you need pacifying action. Or increasing action—of life, fortune, realization, wisdom, like that—so success includes that, increasing action. The controlling action, control over our own mind, control over the sentient beings so that they will listen to our advice, teachings, then we can bring them to liberation, to enlightenment. Otherwise we can’t, so we need controlling action. Then wrathful action, for those evil beings who harm so many sentient beings and the teachings of Buddha, for whom the pacifying, increasing or controlling actions don’t benefit, cannot benefit. Only wrathful actions benefit that evil being and stop them from creating the heavy negative karma, harming so many beings, holy beings. If we want to help that evil being, only wrathful action can help, nothing else can benefit, so there’s a need for wrathful actions, wrathful attainment, protectors, to split that evil being’s consciousness from the body and transcend, if we have power, then transcend to the pure land of the Buddha where the sentient beings can become enlightened. It’s not to split the consciousness from the body and then make them be reborn in the lower realms; it’s not like that. By taking refuge in the Sangha and particularly in the protectors, we receive all these qualities, these four actions.

So here it becomes a very important puja. You can use refuge for anything, such as healing. You can use refuge for healing yourself. If you have cancer, I think the refuge practice is a most powerful thing. If you have problems, maybe depression, whatever, do refuge practice. For purification, for development, the same, for realizations, for success, so everything is there. Also, to help other people, to do healing or to solve other people’s problems, refuge can be used for anything. It’s like water. It’s like butter or it’s like water, which is used for tea and many things. Or like flour that is used for pizza, used for noodles, used for ice creams, no, for cakes or bread, yeah, that’s right, so many things. Refuge you can use for everything, so refuge is not a small practice.

Of course, until you become enlightened I don’t think you will know the refuge subject. I don’t think you will know the refuge subject until then, because to know the Buddha’s qualities, all the qualities of Buddha, you have to become enlightened, you have to become a buddha in order to fully understand every single quality of the Buddha. Otherwise, even a tenth bhumi bodhisattva, an arhat or even a tenth bhumi bodhisattva cannot see the secret qualities or secret actions of the Buddha, even though they have skies of other realizations, qualities, like that.

The Inconceivable Merit of Generating Bodhicitta

It is said in the Sutra of the Tenth Bhumi, in the benefits of generating bodhicitta, that, “I must achieve enlightenment for the sake of all the sentient beings, for the benefit of all sentient beings, therefore I’m going to generate bodhicitta.” Thinking that, put your palms together at the heart. Just simply by doing that, you collect far greater merit than universes equaling the number of sand grains of the Pacific Ocean, that many universes filled up with the seven precious jewels. Then make offering to the buddhas equaling the number of, how many eons, for how many eons are you making offerings? That many offerings, how long you make offerings, I think eons equaling the number of sand grains of the Pacific Ocean, for that many eons. That many extensive offerings for eons equaling the number of sand grains of the Pacific Ocean.

So making offering to the buddhas, that much merit becomes small compared to putting two palms together and reciting, “I must achieve enlightenment for the benefit of all the sentient beings, therefore I’m going to generate bodhicitta.” This is far greater merit. The other one becomes very small, even though the other one is unimaginable offerings, the length of time is for eons, and even for one eon making offerings, that much is unbelievable, but here now it is for eons equaling the number of the sand grains of the Atlantic Ocean.

It is also mentioned in Lama Atisha’s Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment, I don’t remember word by word now, the section on bodhicitta, how incredible merit is collected by generating bodhicitta, the motivation generating bodhicitta, just that. If it’s materialized, it’s like the limitless sky, it doesn’t fit, something like that is mentioned. I don’t remember word by word, but something like that, it means inconceivable, like that.

What’s the time now? [Ven. Renee: 20 to 6.] OK, so what we’ll do, I think we’ll stop the explanation there, and we’ll just do the practice.

[Rinpoche continues with a commentary on Chenrezig practice]

Notes

¹ This instruction is for those who have received the appropriate tantric empowerment. If not received, visualize the deity on your crown or in front of you. [Return to text]