April 24, 2003
Good afternoon. So maybe just one question or half a question. [Inaudible question, something about labeling Z and how animals label when they don’t have language.]
If you are not aware of the names of these buddhas you can still see the pictures of the buddhas, but without knowing their names. You can still see them but without knowing their name. Right? You can still see the statues or the paintings of different buddhas, but without knowing their names.
We don’t have to think about animals, we can go back to childhood time, when parents haven’t introduced any [names], when the child hasn’t learned anything. Just think that, just visualize that. Just go back to the childhood time. Just think that you are a very cute baby, a very cute baby, and how you are seeing things. You haven’t learned any language at that time. You haven’t learned any language. You have to learn all the names, learning language means learning names, just learning names of things, whether it’s your own language or whether it’s another country’s language. Learning names of things, learning names which are used in different countries. So, do that meditation.
First you can think that you are a very cute child. [Laughter] It’s the same. I gave this example; there’s an example used in the text, but I don’t remember the context. It says not like a child watching the temple, not like the child watching; it means statues, paintings on the wall, not like the child watching the paintings of Buddha, watching the temple, not like that. That’s the example used, but I don’t know the context. I don’t remember the connection to that, so it’s used like that. It means seeing something but they have no idea of what it is. They are seeing, but it’s not seeing, they are seeing but have no idea of what it is, like that. They don’t have a name, they have no idea, it means they don’t know the name. Because they don’t have a name, it doesn’t mean they are not seeing [that object.] Do you understand?
[Rinpoche talks about a text with someone]
A child sees its parents, a child sees the bottle of milk, the little baby sees the father and mother, but I don’t think the little baby sees them as a father and mother. The little baby sees the father and mother but doesn’t see them as a father and mother. The little baby sees a bottle of milk but doesn’t see it as a bottle of milk. Of course the baby drinks the milk, but it doesn’t see that this is a bottle of milk, that this is milk. So when the child comes to know the language, “This is a bottle; this is milk,” then at that time they come to see that this is a bottle, this is milk, this is father, this is mother, like that.
The Great Pandit Khunu Lama Rinpoche
I thought maybe before we do Guru Shakyamuni Buddha prayer and mantra, and the Heart Sutra, before that I thought to mention something, the prayer that we recite:
LA MA TÖN PA CHOM DÄN DÄ DE ZHIN SHEG PA DRA CHOM PA YANG DAG PAR DZOG PÄI SANG GYÄ PÄL GYÄL WA SHA KYA THUB PA LA CHHAG TSHÄL LO
TADYATHA OM MUNE MUNE MAHA MUNEYE SVAHA1
Actually, how this chanting started in the FPMT organization is, actually I think it’s from Khunu Lama Rinpoche, this great bodhisattva who is a great pandit. He is exactly like those ancient pandits, like Nagarjuna or Chandrakirti, the eight, the Six Ornaments, the great pandits, those who wrote all the commentaries for the major sutras, the commentaries to the Buddha’s teachings, those texts which have been studied for so many hundreds of years in India and Tibet and other places. The major texts, they started to memorize and many great Tibetan lamas, pandits, wrote commentaries for those. Even physically they looked exactly the same and their holy minds were like a library, like a whole library of Buddhism. They were expert in poetry, expert in many things, in Sanskrit called da, Sanskrit, and they could remember teachings from anywhere, the Buddha’s teachings from any sutra or tantra, from any pandit. They could remember from any part of the teachings, they could remember, like a library. So his holy mind is vast and his understanding is so extensive, like a library.
Khunu Lama Rinpoche, from whom His Holiness the Dalai Lama received extensive commentary on the Bodhicaryavatara; in the beginning he was a great scholar2 and he studied in Tibet, but Khunu, not Tibetan, Khunu. He went to Tibet and studied in Kham, the lower place of Tibet. He studied there for many, many years under the guidance of great, extremely learned lamas, a few great lamas, very, very learned. The philosophy, those main scriptures, the different ones were passed to him from different lamas.
I think he lived in India, but I don’t know when he came to India, I’m not sure, but before His Holiness took teachings from Khunu Lama Rinpoche, he was living like a sadhu. Those who have been in India, in Varanasi, you are familiar with the sadhus, those of you who went there in India. And some people must have lived like sadhus in the early times. I think maybe here some old ones must have lived like sadhus, with some piece of cloth wrapped here and then naked.
Khunu Lama Rinpoche was exactly like a sadhu, like an Indian sadhu. He lived in Varanasi, the River Ganga, around that area, where there are many sadhus, they live there. So Rinpoche lived there and other sadhus offered food to Rinpoche, somehow they, I don’t know, maybe their good luck, I’m not sure. They offered food to Rinpoche.
Then Rinpoche came to the Tibetan monastery in Bodhgaya. At that time there was only one Tibetan monastery. In those early times there was only one Gelugpa monastery. That was built quite some time ago, I think when Tibet was independent. So one day he came to the monastery to ask for lodging, a place to stay. The monks didn’t know who Rinpoche was, so they didn’t let him in. They didn’t give him room, because they thought he was a sadhu, and so it seems Rinpoche slept outside. Those who have been to the Gelugpa monastery remember that cement floor, what do you call it, a balcony? Outside. [Student: Verandah.] There’s a garden when you enter the gate, then the garden, then before entering the monastery, there’s a cement floor, the verandah. So I think he slept on the verandah, on the cement floor, without a room. I don’t know how many days Rinpoche stayed there.
At that time I think His Holiness hadn’t taken teachings from Khunu Lama Rinpoche. So when His Holiness went there, of course he knew Khunu Lama Rinpoche, because I guess maybe Khunu Lama Rinpoche had met him. Then I think His Holiness took teachings from him, the Bodhicaryavatara from Khunu Lama Rinpoche. And also I think maybe His Holiness Ling Rinpoche and His Holiness Trijang Rinpoche, maybe _____, maybe, didn’t take teachings but I think maybe they studied something, I’m not sure, poetry or Sanskrit, da, how the different sounds are put together, learning Sanskrit, maybe that, I’m not sure.
So then after His Holiness took teachings then just very fast, [Rinpoche snaps fingers] like the light from the fountain, the electric fountain or the power station, the light goes on, like that, anyway, then Khunu Lama Rinpoche became extremely well-known. Before that time people were not coming to see him, to get blessings, because I think general people didn’t know who he was, but sooner or later, after they found out he had become His Holiness’s guru, then there were people lined up from the top, from Rinpoche’s room, all the way down, they all lined up to see Rinpoche like that.
So I received—of course, I practice like the stars in the daytime, you can’t see stars in the daytime—so I received Bodhicaryavatara, at the top of the Bodhgaya monastery, the Tibetan monastery, on top. This is where the incarnate lamas in early times, where the teachings were given, initiations were given by His Holiness Ling Rinpoche, like that. There’s a room available for some geshes or incarnate lamas, so one time we lived there, one or two times we lived there, together with many other incarnate lamas or geshes, some few who were the teachers of some incarnate lamas, like that.
So that time, Khunu Lama Rinpoche gave this commentary. Many geshes and incarnate lamas were requesting it, so he gave commentary on the Bodhicaryavatara. And then Rinpoche, when it came to explanation of emptiness, he explained emptiness according to Sakya, according to Kagyü, Nyingma, according to Gelug, even Lama Tsongkhapa tradition, so according to each tradition, he explained it like that. This was how Rinpoche did it. He himself was Nyingma, but he explained according to Lama Tsongkhapa tradition, according to every tradition, their way of explaining, so he explained correctly. This is the way he taught, so in the audience there were different people from different traditions. Mostly there were Gelug, geshes and incarnate lamas, like that. Rinpoche said this was how he explained it.
I also received the Praise to Bodhicitta that Rinpoche wrote, every day one stanza. I received that I think maybe one or two times. Once in Nepal, I think, and then also Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment in Nepal, like that.
He was not a monk, he was living in the eight precepts, a lay person living in the eight precepts, but I think he was a great yogi, a great pandit and great yogi who was highly accomplished, I mean, an enlightened being. When he walked in the market he walked as explained in the Bodhicaryavatara, he didn’t look here and there, he looked straight and went straight, like the teaching says.
So I requested a commentary of Bodhicaryavatara by myself. Rinpoche didn’t give the commentary but he gave oral transmission in his room to myself alone. And then the postman came, banged on the door and Rinpoche normally doesn’t look around, he just keeps on the text, he doesn’t look around. So then he banged the door for a little while. Then when Rinpoche reached the wisdom chapter, I think I didn’t have karma to hear, so as soon as Rinpoche started the wisdom chapter I fell asleep. [Rinpoche and group laugh] Before that, no sleeping, but as soon as that started, from there Rinpoche gave commentary, which I requested, but as soon as that started then sleeping came, as soon as the wisdom chapter started. I think that shows how deep the ignorance is, how thick, like that.
Rinpoche advised, at that time there was very few Dharma books in English. There was The Opening of the Wisdom-Eye, maybe there were two or three books from His Holiness, very simple introductions to Buddhism, essays on Buddhism, something like that, one or two books. Then later The Opening of the Wisdom-Eye, that happened. That was a little bit thicker, more information, that happened later. There weren’t many Dharma books, so Khunu Lama Rinpoche advised that I should translate Bodhicaryavatara, that I should translate it into English, but then Rinpoche said you have to study, in order to do that you have to know well the English language and the subject. I still haven’t started to translate it into English. Maybe I should start to translate it into Russian language first, I think. Or maybe Iraqi, not Iraqi, Arabic, maybe slowly. [Laughter]
The last time I saw Rinpoche was in Boudha, Nepal, he was staying with one family in one house. At that time Boudha was very primitive, there were not many houses. Now it’s totally filled with so many monasteries, schools and family houses, now it’s become very crowded, but at that time there was a lot of empty space around, between the houses and the monasteries. Rinpoche gave me some fruit, that was the last time, from under the table, it might have come from Ladakh, I’m not sure. I don’t know what. It’s called kun pu [apricot]. Then Rinpoche advised that the monks at Kopan should subdue their minds, that’s what Rinpoche advised. They must tame their minds, that’s what Rinpoche advised.
So I think, maybe in November time when I go back, maybe one of those, maybe just a few advices like that. But recently, of course, they have very good teachers, besides Lama Lhundrup, who is a very qualified teacher, a disciple of Lama Yeshe, there are other teachers who give very good [teachings], they have done very good study, like at Sera, Gaden, Drepung, I mean, at Sera Je, the same study, the extensive study there, very extensive study, learning very extensive philosophy. Of course you need to hear lamrim, to subdue the mind, to tame the mind. You need to hear the special presentation of the teaching that mainly subdues the mind.
In recent years Denma Locho Rinpoche has been so kind, so Rinpoche came a few times, now it’s the third or fourth year, I think. He gave many lamrim teachings and also tantric initiations and commentaries as well, like that, so he benefited them very, very much. Even though they studied very well, learning philosophical language, philosophy, very well, when there’s no lamrim teaching, then it seems there was one time, it seems the people’s—not everybody, but generally—their mind got kind of dried out. Even though they know philosophy, they are learning every day, learning new things and expanding their knowledge, but their mind is getting dried out, so Rinpoche came and gave, I don’t know which one, maybe Liberation in the Palm of Your Hand or another lamrim teaching. Lama Lhundrup said that was so beneficial, because it was like pouring, at the right time, like pouring water on the seed which is getting dry. It becomes like pouring water and make it alive again, so like that.
Anyway, Rinpoche gave this mantra LA MA TÖN PA CHOM DÄN DÄ … to many people. When the people came to see Rinpoche, then Rinpoche told everybody to recite this. And then, when Rinpoche circumambulated the Bodhgaya stupa, then he got the seed from the bodhi tree. Of course, that’s where Buddha sat and become enlightened, that’s the origination, the generation of that tree, so of course it’s very blessed, extremely blessed. Rinpoche kept the seeds and then gave to each person, that was Rinpoche’s sort of blessing or gift. And then Rinpoche told some people, there was no other talk, just when the people came, he then gave advice. He didn’t ask what practice they did, but Rinpoche just told them, because that was to help them, I guess. So Rinpoche said to some people, “You should recite the King of Prayers every day,” or things like that. Then for general people, he told them to recite this:
LA MA TÖN PA CHOM DÄN DÄ DE ZHIN SHEG PA DRA CHOM PA YANG DAG PAR DZOG PÄI SANG GYÄ PÄL GYÄL WA SHA KYA THUB PA LA CHHAG TSHÄL LO
TADYATHA OM MUNE MUNE MAHAMUNEYE SVAHA
So this one, for general people.
Rinpoche recited this at the beginning of the teachings, like that, so that’s how it started at Kopan. We started like that, we continued from Rinpoche. So that’s how the chanting of this prayer happened in the FPMT. How it came about, how it became known through all the centers is from Khunu Lama Rinpoche. I mean, His Holiness also did that chanting as well.
So I thought to mention about that, even though I didn’t get to mention it during the sessions on the Buddha, but I thought that we should know how important this prayer is.
The Perfection of Wisdom
As it is mentioned in the Bodhicaryavatara, … [Tibetan]. All the teachings that Buddha taught are for wisdom, to actualize wisdom, to realize emptiness, to cease the defilements, and to develop the ultimate wisdom, the perfection of wisdom. The result of the perfection of wisdom is the dharmakaya. There are six scriptures, the perfection of wisdom, the wisdom gone beyond, the scripture, the teachings which explain emptiness, the path, the wisdom gone beyond, and the result, in short, wisdom gone beyond, then nature, rangzhin sherchin, the perfection of wisdom or the wisdom gone beyond.3
So there, rangzhin sherchin, so that one is the phenomena, which are beyond existing by their own nature, beyond inherent existence. So they are empty of existing from their own side, or by their nature, so that is the ultimate nature of phenomena that is rangzhin sherchin. The nature of the wisdom gone beyond,4 then the path, that is this wisdom directly perceiving emptiness, so realizing emptiness, directly perceiving emptiness, which directly ceases the defilements, so those. Then the ultimate result, the perfection of wisdom, or the wisdom gone beyond, is the dharmakaya.
Everything is taught to help to actualize wisdom, so the teaching of the perfection of wisdom is the main thing that Buddha taught. The only way the Buddha liberates us sentient beings is by revealing the truth, so that is this. By revealing the meaning of the perfection of wisdom and then by listening, reflecting, doing meditation, we actualize that, we cease the defilements by that, then we achieve liberation, then full enlightenment.
So this teaching has [three main texts.] The Buddha taught in 100,000 stanzas, bum, and then there’s nyitri, 25,000 stanzas, I think collected in three volumes; then 8,000 stanzas, in one volume. The middle one is 25,000 stanzas, which is in three volumes, then 8,000 stanzas, the shorter one. The shortest one, much shorter than that is the Heart Sutra, the Heart of Wisdom, wisdom, the ultimate nature, emptiness. What is directly revealed is that, but what is indirectly revealed is the method, the path of method and wisdom. So wisdom is revealed directly, but the method is revealed indirectly.
So now, then much shorter than that is this one, [Tibetan] the Perfection of Wisdom or wisdom gone beyond, the few syllables. It’s called the Perfection of Wisdom few syllables, so what is that? That is LA MA TÖN PA CHOM DÄN DÄ DE ZHIN SHEG PA DRA CHOM PA YANG DAG PAR DZOG PÄI SANG GYÄ PÄL GYÄL WA SHA KYA THUB PA LA CHHAG TSHÄL LO / TADYATHA OM MUNE MUNE MAHAMUNEYE SVAHA, so this one.
Then the shortest one, as I mentioned that night during the initiation, the AH, so this one, the one syllable AH. That is the one syllable of the Perfection of Wisdom, one syllable, it’s called. So just AH.
Also I think Manjushri, this very profound teaching of tantra, the Manjushri Namasamgiti prayer, at the bottom of the shortest version of this prayer,5 this very profound tantric teaching that I don’t recite but, many people, lay and ordained, commonly recite this daily. It’s very common they recite this, in all four traditions the same. All of the other traditions, Kagyü, Nyingma, Sakya, it’s very common to recite this. Everybody recites it by heart. It’s very, very common to recite this prayer every day. The present Sera Je abbot, Geshe Tengyur, who’s a disciple of Geshe Sopa Rinpoche, and also the ex-abbot of the tantric college, who came here a few times every year and who is Yangsi Rinpoche’s teacher. (Yangsi Rinpoche is Tsen-la’s brother, the incarnate lama.) Anyway, they can, with their intelligence [memorize] the long Tibetan text, for example this ex-abbot read it three or four times then he could remember it. It’s a long Tibetan text and he just read three or four times then he could remember it, so that much intelligence. There are geshes or some others, not common, but some. Anyway, it seems that abbot is also like that.
Tsen-la asked him, “How did this happen to you, that you remember so easily?” So he mentioned that it was by reciting this prayer. So if you want to do that you need to recite, the Manjushri Namasamgiti prayer, in Tibetan called Jampel Tshänjö. I think he recited it every day. I think many people recite it every day just very easily. Somehow, I think when you get used to it, it’s like you’re drinking coffee or French wine. [Laughter] Anyway, or Swiss chocolate. No, I’m joking.
Anyway, so what I’m saying, there is an abbreviation of that prayer in one stanza or something, so there the meaning, as we just mentioned is AH. So AH is a negating word, “no.” It has the same meaning as no. AH negates the inherently existing I, action, object, hell, enlightenment, liberation, samsara, happiness, problems, virtue, nonvirtue, true path or true cessation of suffering, true suffering, true cause of suffering, so all these phenomena. Even though the way they exist is in mere name, merely labeled by mind, they appear as inherently existent and we believe that.
AH negates all this. AH negates all this part which doesn’t exist. All this part, all this additional, not negating what is merely labeled by mind that functions in mere name, not that. Not negating enlightenment, not negating hell, karma, reincarnation, but negating the additional thing that is projected on that, on the merely labeled, on the mere name, on the merely labeled phenomena. This additional thing which blocks, by believing that, which blocks us from seeing the nature that is existing in mere name. So AH negates all that, all this part which is a hallucination, not true, doesn’t exist. By negating all that, then you see emptiness, the ultimate nature of all the phenomena, you see everything is empty. That’s why Lama Atisha, when he recites the Heart Sutra—we say “no eye, no nose, no tongue, no body, no mind,” we say no—but Lama Atisha when he recites Sanskrit, he recites AH, AH sound, AH smell, like this. That’s how Lama Atisha recites, but of course, not in English, in Sanskrit.
I think that might be the reason why in some initiations, the meditation comes, in some initiations of the deity, you have to visualize AH in space and then dissolved like that. I think especially in other traditions this becomes, it seems a very essential meditation, you know, visualizing AH in space. It seems very important, a very essential meditation. Things like that. But the important thing is the meaning of it, meditating on the meaning of it. So that’s the whole thing, what it is, then that makes gone beyond from the ignorance, from the defilements, by actualizing, by developing that wisdom, that wisdom that does that function.
So anyway, this about LA MA TÖN PA CHOM DÄN DÄ DE ZHIN SHEG PA DRA CHOM PA YANG DAG PAR DZOG PÄI SANG GYÄ PÄL GYÄL WA SHA KYA THUB PA LA CHHAG TSHÄL LO / TADYATHA OM MUNE MUNE MAHAMUNEYE SVAHA, so this [Tibetan] the few syllables of the Prajnaparamita. So this is the story of how this happened. Chenrezig, the bodhisattva Chenrezig, stood up. It doesn’t say at which place this happened. Usually it says the teachings at such-and-such a place, when Buddha was at such-and-such a place, then some disciple, some sentient being had a problem, then asked Buddha what to do or some disciple got inspired and asked the Buddha. Many times it looks like that, but actually I think the Buddha, in order to come about, in order to come into existence for these teachings, there has to be a condition for that, so I think many times Buddha inspired somebody, Buddha created the situation and then somebody asked for the teaching, somebody asked what can be done. It’s just the Buddha’s skill, his compassion for the sentient beings. Then once the teaching happened then it helps all, then it helps the sentient beings forever, to bring them to liberation, enlightenment, or to solve their different problems. So as long as the teaching exists in this world, it helps continuously all the sentient beings.
So anyway, the bodhisattva, the Compassionate-Eyed Looking One, arose, he stood up from the seat and put his chögu on his shoulder and then he knelt down, he put the right knee down. This is normally when you request a teaching, something the way of, the conduct, respect, conduct with the body, describing that. Then put two palms together and wherever the Buddha is, put palms together, then respect.
The Buddha smiled, and then Buddha said this. “No, sorry.” I think Chenrezig smiled and then told Buddha, he requested Buddha, “Please explain, the destroyer, qualified gone beyond one, chom dän dä, please explain the gone beyond wisdom of few syllables that collects great merit, that just by merely hearing, all the negative karma gets purified and we definitely become enlightened. That means the sentient being who recites it will definitely become enlightened, and those who are practicing tantra, anyone who practices tantra, the secret mantra, they will be without obstacles to achieve that. They can achieve the secret mantra, so this one please explain.”
Then to the bodhisattva, Great Sattva, Arya Chenrezig, Buddha acknowledged, “Yes, I will give.” You, rig kyi bu, so this translation has some difficulties. I don’t know how the different translators translate this. Normally it’s translated as lineage of good family, something like that, in the past, “lineage of noble family,” something like that. That was the translation for a long time, I think it must be from Dharamsala, probably Jon Landaw or I’m not sure, Alex Berzin, maybe one of them. Jon Landaw maybe. So rig kyi bu, I think this, probably this might be, rig is type, race, maybe Mahayana type, like that, not physical race. Here it’s not talking about the physical race, but the mind, bodhicitta, the Mahayana race, type. “You, the Mahayana type, race, son, in order to benefit for a long time, in order to benefit all the sentient beings, that you attempt this is good.” This means that Chenrezig attempts to make this request to benefit all sentient beings for a long time, so Buddha is responding that it’s good.
So therefore, then Buddha said, “The race of the, rig kyi bu, the race of the son or the Mahayana race, the Mahayana type of child, listen extremely well, and keep this in the mind, in the heart. I will explain to you the wisdom gone beyond, the few syllables that collects great merit. Just by merely hearing this all the sentient beings’ negative karma gets purified and it definitely makes to achieve enlightenment. And those who are attempting to practice secret mantra, without obstacle to definitely achieve the secret mantra, I will explain to you.”
Then the bodhisattva, Great Sattva, Arya Compassionate-Eyed Looking One, enriched in power, lord, or enriched in power, requested like this to Guru Shakyamuni Buddha, the destroyer, qualified, gone beyond one, “For the benefit of all sentient beings please explain this.”
The Buddha was absorbed in the concentration, was abiding in the concentration called liberating all sentient beings. As soon as the Buddha was absorbed in the concentration, beams were emitted from the center of his two eyebrows, from the dzö pu, the curled hair, from there, and also from the Buddha’s hands, beams were emitted, hundreds of thousands of beams, so many hundreds of thousands of beams were emitted, then all those beams completely covered all the pure lands of the Buddha. All those sentient beings who received the beams from the Buddha, from above the hell—I think it might be from above the hell realm—all the sentient beings who received the beams, they all become definite to achieve enlightenment. Then all those fields’ buddhas, all those fields shake six times. Also in the presence of the tathagatas, in each pure land, I think, in the presence of those buddhas, there happen devas, rainfalls of sandalwood powder, like rainfall, in the presence of those buddhas, I think it must be in each pure land. Then that time the destroyer, qualified gone beyond, Guru Shakyamuni Buddha gave this teaching, the wisdom gone beyond, so like this.
So the Buddha was telling Chenrezig, I think, “A bodhisattva’s mind should be equilibrium mind and loving thoughts, with the thought to free the sentient beings from all the negative karmas.” The Buddha was saying the attitude should be like that. Then, “Recite also this heart of the gone beyond wisdom.” That means this name mantra. Then says, de zhin sheg pa dra chom pa, so that, , here it just says de zhin sheg pa dra chom pa pal gyal wa sha kya thub pa la. Anyway, it’s the same, LA MA TÖN PA CHOM DÄN DÄ DE ZHIN SHEG PA DRA CHOM PA YANG DAG PAR DZOG PÄI SANG GYÄ PÄL GYÄL WA SHA KYA THUB PA LA CHHAG TSHÄL LO, that one. Then TADYATHA, then OM MUNE MUNE MAHAMUNEYE SVAHA.
The Meaning of Shakyamuni Buddha’s Mantra
So relating to lamrim, there’s control over the attachment to this life, control over the attachment to samsara, the samsaric perfections, and control over the self-cherishing thought.
MUNE, the graduated path of the lower capable being in general; the second MUNE, the graduated path of the middle capable being in general; MAHAMUNEYE, the graduated path of the higher capable being, so the whole lamrim goes into that. MUNE MUNE includes the Lesser Vehicle, all the Lesser Vehicle path, the Lesser Vehicle teachings and Lesser Vehicle path, to achieve liberation for oneself. MAHAMUNEYE contains the Paramitayana path, Mahayana teaching, the Paramitayana path and the tantric path, including the teachings. MAHAMUNEYE SVAHA, SVAHA is establishing the base, so that will be in the heart, the base in the heart, so establishing the root, establishing the base in the heart. So the root of the path, in the heart, that can be devotion to Buddha, Dharma, Sangha, like that, establishing the base. What makes you to follow all these paths, to proceed on all these paths, to actualize all these paths, what causes you to do that, is the inspiration, the devotion, the faith. So it might be that. You actualize the meaning of the path, the graduated path—MUNE MUNE, lower and middle, and then MAHAMUNEYE, great, the graduated path of the higher capable being. So the whole lamrim, or the whole path to enlightenment.
Also, the three principal aspects of the path. MUNE can be the renunciation of samsara, then the other MUNE can be wisdom, right view, which cuts the root of samsara, all the delusion and karma, liberating oneself from sufferings. Then, MAHAMUNEYE, bodhicitta. So OM MUNE MUNE MAHAMUNEYE, the three principal aspects of the path, to achieve enlightenment.
OM, ah-oh-ma, three sounds, ah-oh-ma. By putting together the three sounds it becomes OM, three sounds ah-oh-ma, which signifies the Buddha’s holy body, holy speech and holy mind. By actualizing the path, signified by MUNE MUNE MAHAMUNEYE, then your impure body, speech and mind are purified and become vajra. Your body becomes a buddha’s vajra holy body, your speech becomes a buddha’s vajra holy speech and your mind becomes a buddha’s vajra holy mind. This is signified by the OM. That’s the goal to be achieved so that you can do perfect work for the sentient beings.
That means after you have achieved all the meaning of this, OM MUNE MUNE MAHAMUNEYE, after you have achieved MUNE MUNE MAHAMUNEYE, so establishing the base, then you actualize the path MUNE MUNE MAHAMUNEYE, then you achieve the meaning of OM, then you liberate the sentient beings, numberless sentient beings, by revealing the path, by MUNE MUNE MAHAMUNEYE, and SVAHA, you cause them to have faith in reincarnation and karma, so forth, the Triple Gem and the four noble truths. You cause them to actualize MUNE, the path MUNE, and then the [middle] path signified by the second MUNE, then MAHAMUNEYE, the Mahayana path. So you cause them to actualize the meaning of the path which is signified by MUNE MUNE MAHAMUNEYE. By achieving or completing this path it purifies the ordinary body, speech and mind, and their body, speech and mind become the vajra, like yours, vajra holy body, vajra holy speech and vajra holy mind of the Buddha, so in this case Shakyamuni Buddha, so it could be like that.
Here the Buddha said, “By finding this gone beyond wisdom, you will achieve peerless, fully completed buddhahood, you will achieve this.” And the Buddha said, “All the buddhas also came from this.” [Tibetan] “All the buddhas also came from this.” That means from this mantra, the path signified by this mantra.
So TADYATHA, that is "like this," how to go about enlightenment, then OM MUNE MUNE MAHAMUNEYE SVAHA.
[Tibetan] Ah lay. So what happened, the Buddha said he received this mantra from one of the past buddhas called Shakya Thubchen, de zhin sheg pa sha kya thub chen,6 one of the past buddhas. Buddha said he received this from the tathagata Shakya Thubchen. So the Buddha is telling Chenrezig, “You have received this, because you have received this you will become the supreme bodhisattva. Among the bodhisattvas that you’ll be supreme one.” [Tibetan] So Guru Shakyamuni Buddha told Chenrezig that, “You will be supreme; by receiving this you will be the supreme bodhisattva. Among the bodhisattvas you will be supreme and then you will become a buddha.” Then he gave the name of the buddha.
Shakyamuni Buddha predicted Chenrezig, the bodhisattva Chenrezig, that by receiving this he would become a buddha and then saying the name of the buddha, which buddha, tathagata, arhat, fully completed buddhahood, [anyway, maybe better mention the Tibetan name … [Tibetan], tathagata, arhat, fully completed Buddha, beaming one who is exalted from all. [Tibetan] “You will become a buddha, a tathagata, arhat, fully completed buddhahood or enlightened one, beaming one that is exalted from all.” The king, tsek, piled glorification, I’m not sure, the king piled glorification, however, the Tibetan is pal tsek gyal po. So you will become this buddha.
It is said that the Fifth Dalai lama, in the story that the Fifth Dalai Lama is this Buddha. Anyway, all the incarnations of His Holiness are Chenrezig, so it’s this buddha that is mentioned in the text. The Buddha had already predicted that the bodhisattva Chenrezig would become this buddha. So Chenrezig was predicted by the Buddha, he said, “You’ll become a buddha called this name.”
Then the Buddha explained, “Anyone who recites your name,”—maybe this refers to Chenrezig mantra, I think, Chenrezig name and mantra—“Anyone who listens your name, memorizes or reads, and who extensively explains to others, shows others and who writes it down in the scripture and who makes offering to this, all those sentient beings will become enlightened in the future, all those sentient beings will become tathagatas in the future.” [Tibetan] So the last one may be, I think it seems that the Buddha is talking about the benefits of Chenrezig, I think, the last one.
So this is the mantra TADYATHA OM MUNE MUNE MAHAMUNEYE SVAHA that Lama often recited when Lama gave teachings at the beginning or at meetings, even meetings, or at the beginning of teachings. Every time, Lama recited LA MA TÖN PA CHOM DÄN DÄ … SHA KYA THUB PA LA CHHAG TSHÄL LO. Originally Khunu Lama Rinpoche, then over time also TADYATHA OM MUNE MUNE MAHAMUNEYE SVAHA.
So this is how it came about, from Buddha to Chenrezig, and the benefits of that. It is incredible, so precious, unbelievably precious. It purifies all the negative karma, and in the teachings it is said that. There are different texts that talk about the benefits, how 80,000 eons of negative karma is purified by reciting the Buddha’s name one time, LA MA TÖN PA CHOM DÄN DÄ DE ZHIN SHEG PA DRA CHOM PA YANG DAG PAR DZOG PÄI SANG GYÄ PÄL GYÄL WA SHA KYA THUB PA LA CHHAG TSHÄL LO, by reciting this one time it purifies the negative karma, 80,000 eons of negative karma is purified, like that it is mentioned. But in some other texts it also talks about even more than that.
So this is part of the Heart of Wisdom, few syllables [Tibetan] “The gone beyond wisdom, the few syllables,” so it’s very important, very precious, more precious than any jewels, however many jewels there are in the universe or in the deva realms, nagas and devas, how much wealth they have, jewels, it’s more precious than all the wealth, so like that.
Did you find anything contradictory in what I said? How things appear to us now and how we see things as negative or positive, however, all these things are related and our feelings—happy, pleasant feeling, unpleasant feeling, moment to moment, how they affect our mind comes from what kind of label we put and believing that, which is a concept, which is creating a concept. So pleasant, unpleasant, all that, happy, unhappy, all this is coming from our own concept.
That, and then the other one that I mentioned, related to the twelve related dependent limbs, consciousness and karma and ignorance, like that. Did anybody do meditation on that? Actually, this is something very good to do, not just for a few minutes but actually to do weeks of retreat on this. And this becomes scientific analysis, that meditation, we can do it like vipassana meditation, we can do this for a week, a few weeks just on this.
Intensive Mindfulness
I think it becomes very, very interesting when we practice very intensively, when we practice mindfulness intensively—not only sitting but even while we are having tea, eating, talking to people, walking around, continuously, like that, shopping, when we go shopping or driving, so with the intensive awareness on this, then it becomes very, very interesting. With this awareness, if we go to the supermarket where there are so many different foods, or the department store where there are billions of different objects and appearances—we like some, we don’t like others, so many things are there that we like and we don’t like. There are so many things, so many things to be attached to; we find so many things to get attached to. So it’s very interesting.
We go for sightseeing but we do meditation. We go out in the town, it can be to pleasant places, beautiful places, or it can be to very ugly or very unpleasant places, however, we go with the mind to meditate, and to use the scenery for meditation on the appearances. We analyze our mind, our concepts, watching how the mind is doing, how it views the object, how it appears, how it views the object. So we are traveling or we are touring, but not in sitting meditation; the only difference is that we are walking. We are seeing many different things and meeting many different people, like that. We are not just sitting but it’s the same meditation. It’s all meditation, whatever we see, whatever we experience, it’s all meditation, everything is meditation, but it’s just here we are not sitting. Just that. That’s the only difference.
How Things Appear Depends on the Label
Everything to do with the present, how things appear to us, is dependent on how our mind labels, what kind of label we put, how we label or what kind of label we put, positive or negative. It appears that way and then we have a different feeling—we have a pleasant feeling, an unpleasant feeling, a sad or happy mind, all that. It is the same object but with the previous label, with the previous interpretation, the minute before, with our previous interpretation or the negative label, we are upset. But then the next minute, if we change the label on that object—the object is same, the person’s attitude and behavior is still the same, no change, but we change our label on that and now it appears very positive and now we have a positive, happy feeling. We are happy to meet that person, whereas a minute before, we were unhappy with that person.
So like that, everything becomes meditation—while we are driving, whatever we are doing, working in the office, sightseeing at the beach or going into the jungle, into the dark caves or the dark forest, or climbing the snow mountains or whatever—it’s all meditation.
And then especially things related to the long-run evolution, things coming from the consciousness and karma, ignorance, like that. I think this is a very, very important meditation, real, very deep, this is very deep psychology. That’s what I think. So while we are mindful in this, anger never rises. While we are mindful in this, if we see the person with whom normally we get angry, the anger won’t come because we know everything comes from our mind, there’s nothing to blame on that person. There’s nothing to blame outside. There’s nobody that’s to blame, so there’s no way for anger to arise, only loving kindness, only patience, tolerance, the peaceful, happy mind, tolerance, a peaceful mind.
Also it gives us the opportunity for patience, it gives the opportunity for the positive thoughts, to generate positive thoughts. And it also helps us to develop wisdom, the wisdom of Dharma, the wisdom of the nature of the phenomena, and to realize loving kindness and compassion, those positive thoughts.
Here I think, I always wanted a course on this, to do weeks on this, just to do sitting, going outside to different places but continuously doing meditation, continuously like this. To be mindful, more and more mindful in this. We have been using our mind, we have been habituated, even though this is the reality that is coming from our own mind, every moment our feelings, every moment whatever, things that we see, how things appear, how things came from our own mind, depending on what kind of label, and also from the long-run evolution, from the consciousness, karma and then ignorance. Even though that’s the reality, our mind is habituated, always thinking the cause is coming from outside. Our mind is so habituated, addicted or habituated, we think everything is coming from outside, the cause is outside. Not only in this life but from beginningless rebirth our mind has been habituated, therefore it’s not easy to change, therefore it’s not easy to change the concept.
Therefore, for example, if a person did something wrong or didn’t do exactly what we said, what we ordered, what we asked that person to do, and they did something different from what we wanted, what we asked them to do. Or the way they did it, the way they wanted it done, they did it that way, then, of course we see that and we immediately get upset, angry. So for example like that, that time, suddenly, [Rinpoche snaps fingers] if we remember all this, because of the mistake, we’re upset, angry and we put a negative label, “bad,” because the person didn’t listen to us, or did the opposite of what we like, or many times it could be what our own self-cherishing thought would like. The person didn’t do what our own self-cherishing thought or what our attachment wanted them to do, and then we give them a negative label, then they appear bad and we get upset.
If we think the other way, how it came from our own mind, looking at it, remembering the actual evolution, where the upsetness, the anger came from, by putting a negative label, then there’s nothing to blame on the outside. And then especially if we think of the long evolution, the karma and the ignorance, how it came from consciousness, then the karma, then the ignorance, that which motivated the karma. Then, of course, [remembering] that immediately cools down the mind. The mind becomes like hot water boiling up, making so much noise, like a fire blazing. When we put oil on the fire, matches and petrol, then it blazes. It becomes like this. Our speech is scolding, criticizing, creating so much heavy negative karma by insulting that person. Then the body, also sometimes there is danger to beat or to kill. When the mind is angry like this, it’s like a flame, like a fire burning.
So when we remember this technique, this awareness, suddenly it’s like putting cold water on the blazing fire. It completely stops, extinguishes the anger, which is like a fire blazing, then there is peace. When hot water is being boiled and we put cold water, it becomes so peaceful. Immediately we have peace in the heart, peace in our life, peace for our body, peace for our mind, and peace for the other person as well.
Normally, I want to bring up this issue also. It’s very interesting that even though someone may have been teaching Dharma for a long time, for many years and teaching lamrim for many years, but even though we don’t remember one hundred percent whether in our childhood, somebody abused us. We are not one hundred percent sure, we don’t remember clearly, it’s talking about childhood time, but we don’t remember clearly, we just have doubt that our father or somebody did that. So then we get very disturbed, even though we don’t remember it clearly, we just have doubt. One day it’s just the thought came, like doubt, then we become so unhappy. Now here, we’ve been teaching for so many years, teaching meditation, lamrim, to other people, and doing retreat, like that. But now when we have a problem, then we want to go to see a psychologist, here now. Then we forgot Buddha, we forgot karma, we forgot Buddha, we forgot teaching, we forgot karma, it’s no relation, no connection, everything goodbye, then, in the West we go to see a psychotherapist, or I don’t know what it’s called, different names, a psychologist, so like that.
Here this is one example, so here it becomes a very interesting issue. So, we completely forgot karma, it’s completely like our life has no connection with karma. Buddha has become very far away, very distant, somewhere in Tibet. [Laughter] Buddha is living in Tibet in some caves, and we are living in this modern world with all these machines and all the modern techniques and all these computers and all that. Anyway, I’m just adding this up, just creating, anyway.
In Buddhist Philosophy There’s No Outside Creator
So that becomes a very interesting issue. Now here, in Buddhist philosophy there’s no creator, no outside creator. There’s no outside creator. That’s the basic Buddhist philosophy. In the past in many of His Holiness’s public talks, His Holiness talks straight, His Holiness doesn’t go round, he talks straight, “We Buddhists don’t believe in God,” he talks straight in public. Even I was a little bit, I mean, Mickey Mouse, thinking maybe some people might feel hurt, I was thinking like that during the public talk. I was watching the TV or video, thinking maybe some people get upset that Buddhists don’t accept God. Some people strongly believe in God, so maybe they get upset with His Holiness.
Anyway, there’s no such thing as an outside God creating our life, all our suffering, creating our suffering, our problems.
Now here, what we are believing, what it becomes, here what it becomes is not practicing the basic Buddhist philosophy, not practicing. This time we are not practicing that there’s no outside creator, that we are—what Buddha said—a guide to oneself and we are the enemy to oneself, because we are the creator.
Why? Because the cause of the suffering is not outside, karma and delusions. Our own mind, it’s our own mind. We create the karma and delusion, the cause of suffering, so we are the enemy to oneself. Suffering came from us, we created it. And then if we achieve happiness, if we achieve liberation, enlightenment, it came from our mind, which is the path, our mind, the path, our mind, virtue, the virtuous thought, the virtuous karma which is our own mind, but we made it, that we created. So we are our own guide.
Here this basic philosophy of Buddhism is no [outside creator], so now here, when we get into trouble, with that problem in the mind, we leave the Buddhist philosophy and we practice the creator outside. Even though intellectually we don’t say God created that, in practice, intellectually we don’t accept it. In practice it becomes “There’s a creator who created our problems,” so it’s like that.
EVerything CAme from Our Own Mind
Even if it did happen, when we were in childhood, we never thought that it came from the consciousness, we never related it to the twelve dependent related limbs that we have been studying or meditating on, the sitting meditation in retreat. When we have a problem, all this is nothing, it has no relation to what we meditated on in retreat or at other times what we think or what we teach, no relation to that. When we have a problem like this, if we practice the Buddhist philosophy, that everything came from our own mind, that oneself is the creator, there’s peace.
Even if we remember that childhood time when the person did that, even if we remember that clearly, there’s no anger, no upsetness, because of karma, our own karma, thinking “I treated others like this, I did the same thing to others in the past, sexual misconduct, I did that to others. It’s the result of karma, because I did the same thing to others in the past, and which came from the ignorance.” So there’s peace, no anger toward that person, peace. The mind is in patience, so this meditation also becomes patience, the things coming from the mind. Every moment of appearance, what we see from moment to moment, came from our mind.
Then the other one, long-term, the twelve dependent related limbs. That gives us so much peace, no anger, and the heart is opened, it’s not closed, the heart is opened. And also, as I mentioned before, then it’s very easy to generate loving kindness, compassion, to that person, otherwise we feel closed. Otherwise then, in reality, we practice like the other traditions, that there’s a creator outside. When we encounter such problems, believing in a creator outside, nothing to do with oneself, thinking our problems are created by somebody outside, nothing to do with oneself. It’s the same whether we call, even if we don’t use the word “God,” it’s the same. In reality it’s the same. So like that.
So what it’s saying. Then, without, so if we didn’t get to use, if we didn’t remember and didn’t get to use, didn’t remember the basic philosophy of Buddhism and didn’t get to use that, then we hold a grudge there for many years in the heart, so much pain, we create so much pain by our mind, by our concept, so much pain, that concept itself is pain, that concept itself is suffering, for so many years and we cry all the time. So then for years we went to psychologist but I’m not sure whether it helps or doesn’t help. Anyway, I don’t know. I did meet some people like that, then I talked about karma, that there is a reason why somebody is abused, there’s a reason for that. The reason exists before this happening. And who created the reason? We created the reason for this situation to happen, so we created the karma which harmed, we did the same thing, we treated others the same way.
The minute we talk about karma, the minute we console that person, talking about karma, immediately they change in the heart. Immediately they change, their mind becomes comfortable immediately, and then their face changes at that time. Before that the face is very, how to say, how to express, I don’t know. The face is very sad, a very strange kind of face, crying, “I did this and that. I’m the worst person in this world.” So when the person talks, they talk like that. When the person talks, we get the feeling that the person thinks “I’m the worst one in this world. I’m the only one who has this, I’m the only one who has this, I’m the only one who was abused, I’m the only one in the world.” There are numberless. There are numberless, East and West, everywhere, but “I’m the only one in this world.” So they only focus on the I, nobody else, they don’t see anybody, they don’t see all the numberless beings who had the same experience, karma. There are many others who have created the karma, who will be experiencing that in the future, who did the same thing to others, who will be experiencing that in the future. So, like this.
Anyway, the minute we are talking about karma then immediately, because the person somehow hasn’t thought of karma—it’s very strange, they didn’t get to think about karma—suddenly they change, their mind becomes happier, softer, and their face suddenly becomes happier, so like that.
One time in New York, this [happened when] I was talking to somebody in New York. It doesn’t make sense, we make ourselves crazy. Also, I think, it’s to do with the society concept; it’s also to do with the society belief, society culture, also with that, whatever society thinks, what’s worse, what’s this, what’s this, society’s recognition, society, in the culture, also society, to do with that.
So here what I was talking about before, the first thing that I was talking about, that we have been teaching meditation or teaching Dharma for many, many years, and doing retreat, we have done many retreats and things like that, but then, even it’s not sure, whether it really happened in childhood time. It kind of makes us crazy, our concept makes us crazy.
So here now, what am I saying? I’ve forgotten now. Anyway, it doesn’t matter.
The Karma of Harming Others
One person I met in New Zealand, when I was at Mahamudra Centre, one student had this pain in the heart for a few years, in the heart. So I talked for a few minutes, by bringing in the Bodhicaryavatara quotation. There are two things, two quotations, which are very, very powerful. One quotation is, “In the past I gave such a harm to sentient beings; therefore sentient beings are giving harm,” which means giving harm to oneself.
Previously, I must have caused similar harm
To other sentient beings.
Therefore, it is right for this harm to be returned
To me, who caused injury to others.
(Bodhicaryavatara, 6:42)
"I deserved to receive this harm because I gave harm in the past to that sentient being." “In the past,” so that means either the past time in this life or in the life before this. Therefore this sentient being is giving this harm, then I receive this harm, so I deserve it.
In other words, what it’s saying is, we can give harm, we can treat others like this and when others do that to us, we cannot accept it. We cannot accept it. So that is totally dictator, the self-cherishing thought is dictator. Here, it becomes unreasonable or very strange: we can harm others, but others cannot retaliate, harm us. So here one practice is in the Bodhicaryavatara, accepting that “I’m deserving,” when we receive harm from others, one of the thought transformation [methods] is, “I deserve it.” Then immediately, [snaps fingers] it cuts the anger, upsetness, all that. There’s peace, happiness.
And the other quotation, “My karma persuaded him, therefore I received this harm.” In the past we treated that other person that way, our karma persuaded them. We treated them that way, then that caused that person to abuse us this time or whatever that harm is, whatever thing that person did to us that we don’t like. Anyway, here it seems by analyzing the borderline whether it’s harm to us or whether it’s not harm to us, whether it’s abuse or whether it’s not abuse, borderline it seems it depends on our concept. If we like it, it’s not abuse; if we don’t like it, it’s abuse. It’s up to our concept, it’s up to what we label, it’s up to our mind, it’s up to which label we put on it, good or bad. If we put the label “bad”, then we label abuse, but if we put the label “good” then we don’t put the label abuse, also that. So basically if we analyze it, it’s just that.
Therefore now, our own karma did the same thing to that other sentient being, so that caused the sentient being this time to do the same back to us, something that we do not desire, and because this is not what we desire therefore we label “harm.” Because this is not what we like, this is what we do not desire, therefore we label “harm.”
Having been instigated by my own actions,
Those who cause me harm come into being.
If by these (actions) they should fall into hell,
Surely isn’t it I who am destroying them?
(Bodhicaryavatara, 6:47)
“I received this harm, my karma persuaded, therefore I received this harm. Then didn’t I make that person get lost in the hole of the hell fire?” So what it’s saying is, “It’s my karma, by treating that person in that way before, then that caused the person to harm me now.” And then because of that negative karma, that became [their] negative karma; because the person gave harm to us, that became [their] negative karma, so that made the person—now they are a human being, but then they become lost from the human realm, the human world, lost from that—that caused them to be born in the hell realm, in the hot hell. They are lost from the human realm due to that karma, instead of getting a higher rebirth as a deva or a human in the next life, then the karma of harming us causes that person to born in the lower realm, in the hot hell realm. So they are lost from that, in the hole of the fire of the hell, the hell fire.
So the previous one, if we accept the situation then that’s a very effective way to practice patience and an easy way to achieve peace and happiness, to bring peace and happiness within ourselves and the other person. Now here, this second quotation is using that situation to develop compassion for the other person. Why this person is doing harm to us is because our karma persuaded them to do this. Then that made them to be born in the hell realm, to get lost, to leave the human realm, the world, and then to be born in the hot hell realm. Now here, there’s no way to get angry with this person, no way, impossible; they’re never the object of our anger, only compassion.
Now here we’ve got to do something to help that person, we’ve got to do something, at least even a prayer, or we remember that person in our meditation and we visualize, we do purification, purifying that person’s negative karma when we do the practice of refuge or tonglen. Especially when we do tonglen, we take all that person’s negative karma and their resultant suffering; we take it in our heart and destroy the self-cherishing thought. Even a visualization like this at least, or a prayer at least, when we do a purification practice like Vajrasattva, remember that person in our heart, put them in our heart and purify the negative karma of that person.
His Holiness’s Response to Dorje Shugden Demonstrations
Like, for example His Holiness, when the FPMT in Australia requested Kalachakra initiation. During the Kalachakra time, one day His Holiness saw all our geshes, the resident teachers, somehow it happened for them to meet together. Maybe I think I had to meet His Holiness or something, then all the geshes somehow happened to be there, and also geshes from other countries, the resident teachers also not only from Australia, but from outside, from the FPMT centers. At that time there were a lot of problems due to the protector issue and all that. That big thing was happening, that big issue, all the demonstrations against His Holiness. At that time there were these things happening.7
So His Holiness mentioned to one monk, one of the geshes from Australia, he was one new geshe, and he apologized to His Holiness for all these things happening. Then His Holiness said, “Oh, that’s no problem at all.” His Holiness mentioned to us that every day His Holiness does self-initiation; every day His Holiness does the self-initiation practice. Of course, His Holiness, Chenrezig, doesn’t need to do self-initiation. That is to inspire us, even he does it, so of course, no question, we have to do self-initiation every hour. We should do self-initiation every minute, every hour, so anyway, every day, I think, maybe Yamantaka self-initiation, I don’t know, could be possible, two or three self-initiations, possible.
Anyway, His Holiness said at that time he takes the bodhisattva vow, “I will practice the wonderful deeds of the bodhisattva.” Because, I guess, the bodhisattva deeds, all the sentient beings will like the bodhisattva’s deeds. It’s something, letting go of I, cherishing others and serving other sentient beings. We let go of I, let go of self, and our happiness, our needs, and we only put effort, we only live our life to obtain the needs for others’ happiness and to cherish them. Of course, these wonderful bodhisattva deeds, the needs of others, thinking of others’ happiness and cherishing them. Of course these wonderful bodhisattva deeds, all the sentient beings will like it. It is something which they like so much, they don’t find it contradictory, they like it; it makes all sentient beings happy.
Anyway, “I will practice the wonderful deeds of the bodhisattva, the sublime deeds of the bodhisattva.” So His Holiness mentioned that time when he recites that, His Holiness said that he puts Geshe Kelsang in the heart. At that time, when he came to these words, taking the bodhisattva vow, when he recites those words, when it comes to that point, he puts Geshe Kelsang in the heart, in His Holiness’s heart.
After His Holiness made that comment, Geshe Dawa, who is another great teacher, a very wonderful teacher, a great teacher from Sera Je, who has now resigned, quite some time ago, from Sydney Vajrayana Institute. That is the center which was started by Roger, the famous Roger, king Roger. Anyway, when we left His Holiness’s room, then Geshe Dawa thought, “Oh, Geshe Kelsang is lucky because he can be in His Holiness’s heart.” [Laughter] His Holiness is cherishing him, feeling in the heart, so Geshe Dawa thought that meant he was not in the same situation. His Holiness put him in the heart, so he thought Geshe Kelsang was very fortunate. Geshe Dawa expressed that, so it means he is less fortunate because he’s not, during those words he doesn’t come with Geshe Kelsang in the heart [of His Holiness.]
So anyway, what am I saying? What was I talking about before? Huh? I’ve lost the root. Huh?
I was saying there’s no choice, so strong compassion, no choice, compassion has to arise. We have got to help this person and after thinking that, how dare we send that person to be born in the hell realm by this negative karma? There’s no way, so we have got to do something. Even if we cannot talk, to change the person’s attitude and the action, [or get them] to do the practice, to engage in the practice of purification, at least we can do meditation for that person. So then I was using different ways, what we can do, as an example, I was thinking, even if we can’t talk to that person, if there’s no other way to do something directly, what we can do with our daily practices, so that’s what I was saying, there are different ways to help, so at least even praying to Medicine Buddha or Tara or the Compassion Buddha, to help that person.
Anyway, after talking to this girl for a few minutes, the problem which wasn’t solved for a few years, the grudge, it was resolved, it got better.
So Buddhist philosophy is, here what I would like to say is that Buddhist philosophy is not just giving a lecture; it’s a practice, it’s real practice. We can see, if we don’t practice that, what happens to our life. Life becomes berserky. Berserky? Our life becomes potato mash or banana. Lama used a lot of bananas. Our life becomes not the fresh banana, not the healthy one, but the black banana that maybe nobody wants to eat or something anyway. Potato mash, many people like, so many people like. Anyway, if we really become potato mash, many people like to eat that. [Laughter]
Anyway, I think maybe time to stop. My hope was to talk on the karma but always something happened. Some other things took place. [Rinpoche laughs]
Maybe we’ll do a short meditation on Chenrezig. Everybody has Purifying the Six Realms or not? They don’t have? Do you have a copy? If you have a copy, then you can read in English. [Ven. Rene: Does somebody have the text Purifying the Six Realms here?] You didn’t get the English translation? You have? [Inaudible comments from students] Yes, this one, but I went over this with Sarah Thresher, these changes, but I didn’t look at this translation. This is done by Jampa Chokyi. The famous Jampa Chokyi. So there are some translations. I think I gave you. [Inaudible comment from someone.] Oh, I see. OK. OK, so maybe what you do is, you read the English then I’ll chant the Tibetan, so like that. We can do like that, stanza by stanza.
Just a minute, just a minute.
[Rinpoche chants Refuge and Bodhicitta three times.]
The Limitless Merit of Offering with Bodhicitta
Here, maybe it’s good to, I thought it’s inspiring that after this, if possible, to remember some of the quotations of the benefits of bodhicitta. Not all the time, but during six-session guru yoga, the refuge and bodhicitta, so there, sometimes try to remember some quotations on bodhicitta, the benefits of bodhicitta, for inspiration, after reciting the, here, before taking the bodhisattva vow, after the refuge and bodhicitta, remember some quotations about bodhicitta. From Lama Atisha’s Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment, I mentioned yesterday or the day before, I mentioned but I didn’t remember completely.
Whatever merit with bodhicitta that we collect, if it has a form then it fills up the whole sky, it fills up the whole limitless sky, there wouldn’t be any empty space left. The benefits of the bodhicitta will be even greater than the sky, than the limitless sky. The sky is limitless, so the benefits of bodhicitta will be greater than the sky.
Here the next stanza, “A person, any other person, the buddha’s field equaling the number of the sand grains of the Pacific Ocean, the Atlantic Ocean, filled up with precious jewels, completely filled up with precious jewels and offering that to the savior of the world, to the Buddha….” It’s talking about the object of refuge, the Buddha is the object, the savior of the samsaric suffering sentient beings, us samsaric suffering sentient beings. So, by offering that, by offering that to the savior of the world.
Then if somebody puts their palms together, generates bodhicitta, and then makes offering; if they put their palms together, generate bodhicitta and make offering, this merit is far more, much more exalted, much greater. This merit has no limit, it’s limitless. This merit, however much we enjoy it or use it, it has no end. It has no limit, we enjoy it forever. As I mentioned a few times before, until we achieve enlightenment, we enjoy it, then even after that we liberate numberless sentient beings and bring them to enlightenment. So comparing to this, we simply generate bodhicitta and whatever offering we make, even one small flower or one stick of incense, whatever it is, even like that, just one flower or one stick of incense, one light or whatever it is, offering that to the Buddha, this is superior, special, exalted, far greater and it has no limit, how much we enjoy, it’s inexhaustible.
So as far as the offering, the previous one is the Buddha’s field, how many buddhas’ field? Equaling the number of the sand grains of the Atlantic Ocean, completely filled up with the precious jewels, then we offer that to the buddhas. So if we think of the offering, it’s amazing! That whole field, the whole world filled with jewels, precious jewels, and we offer that. The merit we collect from that, offering one jewel to Buddha, there is so much merit, it’s inexpressible, inexhaustible. So now here it’s talking about one field, the Buddha’s one pure field completely filled with jewels. When we offer that, how much merit we collect is beyond our concept, I mean, even offering one jewel to the Buddha, the benefit is beyond our concept anyway, it’s inexhaustible. Now here the Buddha’s pure field filled with precious jewels, if we offer that to the Buddha, that is mind-blowing. Now here, not just one, but buddha fields equaling the number of sand grains of the Pacific Ocean, the Atlantic Ocean, that many! The Pacific Ocean, equaling the number of sand grains of the Pacific Ocean. No question, it is mind blowing! That’s just unbelievable, unbelievable, gorgeous. Some people use the term “gorgeous” or some people use “too much,” maybe some Italians. Anyway, so here, but if we compare the merit to this one, putting our palms together and generating bodhicitta, then whatever offering, just making one offering to Buddha, so this one, it’s far greater merit we’ll collect. And this has no limit, the benefit has no limit.
When you make offering, when you do the seven-limb practice, you do it with the bodhicitta motivation. When you make offerings, then do it with bodhicitta. If you make prostrations, the same. Just prostrating to Buddha has again inexhaustible merits, the benefits are limitless, so now if it’s done with bodhicitta, then the same as mentioned here for the offerings, like that.
The Four Immeasurables
So generating the four immeasurables. I’m not going to elaborate more, just do the prayers, then maybe tomorrow more. OK, that’s all.
How wonderful it is if all the sentient beings abide in equanimity, devoid of the discriminating thought discriminating some sentient beings are far, some are closer.
May they abide in equanimity.
I will cause them to abide in equanimity …
We already have Guru Chenrezig, the idea is when we take refuge the visualization is already there, and we think: “May they abide in equanimity. I will cause them to abide in equanimity.” Not just doing the prayer, not just doing the words, but the heart should follow with that.
Please, Guru-Buddhas, grant me blessings to be able to do this.
How wonderful it is if all the sentient beings have happiness and cause of happiness.
Here don’t think, when you hear “happiness” don’t think it’s just only worldly pleasure. You must remember ultimate happiness, especially enlightenment. This is what you should remember in our heart. Don’t think it’s always just worldly pleasure. When you think about happiness, you shouldn’t think it’s only sense pleasure, worldly pleasure. Here, when you practice loving kindness you must remember enlightenment, to cause that for sentient beings.
How wonderful it is if all the sentient beings have happiness and the cause of happiness.
May they have happiness.
I will cause them to have happiness.
Please, Guru-Buddhas, grant me blessings to be able to do this.How wonderful it is if all the sentient beings are free from all the suffering and causes.
May they be free from all the suffering and causes.
I will cause them to be free from all the suffering and causes.
Please, Guru-Buddhas, grant me blessings to be able to do this.How wonderful it is if all the sentient beings are not separated away from the happiness of the upper realms and ultimate happiness.
May they not be separated away this happiness.
I will cause them to not be separated away from this happiness.
Please, Guru-Buddhas, grant me blessings to be able to do this.
Then with the bodhicitta motivation you make prostrations, physically putting the palms together and with the visualization, do prostrations then make offerings, as I mentioned the other day. Now do this practice.
[Rinpoche slowly chants seven-limb prayer and mandala offering in Tibetan]
By offering this mandala to Guru Chenrezig, may the bodhicitta, which is the source of all the success and happiness for oneself, for all sentient beings, may it be generated within my own heart and in the heart of my own family members, all the benefactors of this organization, the FPMT organization, and then particularly those who give up their life for the organization, doing service for sentient beings, the teachings of the Buddha, and as well in the hearts of all the sentient beings, without delay of even a second. And may the bodhicitta which is generated may it be increased.
Jang chhub sem chhog rin po chhe….
IDAM GURU RATNA….
[Rinpoche continues with commentary on Chenrezig practice]
Notes
1 Find links to Shakyamuni Buddha Holy Name Mantra in the FPMT Catalogue. [Return to text]
2 Read more about Khunu Lama Rinpoche in Mandala magazine, July 2015 edn. [Return to text]
3 Wyl: rang bzhin sher phyin. The term rangzhin (Wyl: rang bzhin) means nature, or inherent state of being, or "like itself." Sherchin is short for sherab kyi pharol tu chinpa (Wyl: shes rab kyi pha rol tu phyin pa), the perfection of wisdom, the paramita of wisdom, or prajnaparamita, literally "wisdom that has gone beyond." The perfection of wisdom is the wisdom realizing emptiness. [Return to text]
4 Phenomena are empty of being established through their own nature, hence "nature wisdom gone beyond" (Tib: rangzhin gyi drubpe tongpa; Wyl: rang bzhin gyis sgrub pas stong pa.) [Return to text]
5 Rinpoche is referring to the short prayer The Essence of the Manjushri Namasamgiti (Tib: Jampel Tshänjö kyi yang nying; Wyl: 'jam dpal mtshan brjod kyi yang snying.) This is the short version of Chanting the Names of Manjushri (Skt: Manjushri Namasamgiti; Tib: Jampel Tshänjö; Wyl: 'jam dpal mtshan brjod.) [Return to text]
6 The translation is “tathagata, the great shakyamuni,” which is one way of referring to Shakyamuni Buddha, the fourth buddha of this age, however, this seems to be a reference to one of many hundreds of past buddhas. [Return to text]
3 Rinpoche is referring to protests by practitioners of Dorje Shugden. The practice is strongly discouraged by His Holiness but is propitiated by Geshe Kelsang Gyatso and his devotees. Read more here. [Return to text]
