Now you can see that all these people who put you in prison are unbelievably precious. They have been unbelievably kind to you. It is their kindness that persuaded you to open your heart, to look for something meaningful in life.

If it were left up to you, you would never do retreat. Because of attachment, the clinging to this life, you make so many plans: “I want to do this, I want to do that.” Because of all the distractions in the mind—the delusions—and all the distractions outside, you would never have any interest in the Dharma, you would never seek it out, you would never be inspired to practice.

Because of delusions and karma, you have suffered in samsara since beginningless rebirths. From time without beginning you have died and been reborn, have been born and then died. Time and time again you have experienced the sufferings of the six realms, one after another like links in a chain.

Therefore you should realize that the situation you’re in is the best situation, and it’s given to you by all the people who’ve accused you, who’ve put you in prison. They are supporting you in the development of your mind in the path to enlightenment so that you can be free forever from the oceans of samsaric suffering and its causes—all those delusions that have been abiding in your heart from time without beginning.

Every day, think that your wife, your family, the judge, the child welfare services, even your children—who you believe were manipulated to speak against you—are all helping you, not harming you. These people have put you in retreat. This is something to thank them for. Think: “How fortunate I am! This is an unbelievable, priceless opportunity.” Rejoice that you are in retreat!

Just because someone doesn’t wish you happiness doesn’t mean they’re not kind

For somebody to be kind to you, to help you, doesn’t mean they have to have the thought of wishing you happiness. For example, the wisdom directly perceiving emptiness, that which ceases directly the gross and subtle defilements, that which is the real Dharma, is unbelievably precious because of the benefit that you get from it. But it doesn’t have the thought to benefit you, it is not concerned about your suffering and your happiness.

It is exactly the same here. The people who accused you didn’t have the thought to benefit you—maybe they even had the wish to harm you. But look at all the benefits, the skies of benefits, that you are receiving from them!

Also, the positive parts of your mind don’t feel hurt by being in prison. It is only the negative part of your mind that feels hurt: the wrong concept, the self-­cherishing thought and your attachment to this life. It is not hurting your compassion, your loving kindness or your bodhicitta, it is not hurting your wisdom of emptiness.

You’ve been distracted by samsaric things since beginningless time

Now you can see that if all these people hadn’t put you in prison, you wouldn’t have met the Dharma. Which would you prefer—having the Dharma in prison or being outside prison and never having met the Dharma? Would you prefer having a life filled with distractions, engaging in actions driven only by attachment, such as the countless experiences of pleasure since beginningless rebirths, nothing new? Would you prefer to spend your life racing around on a big motorcycle with a lot of noise in those black boots and all that black clothing that covers your head, hands and entire body? Would you prefer that? You can see—it is totally boring! Even if you’d had all these experiences only once, it would be totally boring to live your life in that way. But you’ve had these experiences numberless times since beginningless rebirths!

Because of desire for pleasure in this life and all the endless distractions, there is no interest in Dharma. Attachment doesn’t allow for it; desire doesn’t give time for it. Even if there were interest, desire doesn’t give time to practice meditation, to read the lamrim and other Dharma books, or to live in the vows.

They’ve helped you turn toward liberation

All these people have been an unbelievable support. They have turned your life toward liberation and enlightenment instead of toward the lower realms and samsara. These people have made you wake up. From what? From a life that has been wasted so far, that has been used to create only negative karma and the causes for lower-­realm suffering, a life in which you’ve been a slave to the delusions.

For you, it has all turned out to be for liberation! For you, their putting you in prison has turned out to be the opportunity to achieve ultimate liberation, freedom from the samsaric prison, forever. Isn’t that joyful? Their putting you in prison has persuaded your mind to think deeply about your life; it has made you think really seriously. It has made you do something meaningful, not just play with your life, not waste your life, not use your life like a duster, or like toilet paper to clean up poop. (This is my first time using this English-­language word, this new word for kaka: “poop”!)

Now, being in prison, you’ve met not only the Buddhadharma but the Mahayana Dharma: bodhicitta and the lamrim. This situation has made you turn your life toward enlightenment, the highest, perfect bliss, buddhahood—the cessation of all the mistakes of mind and the completion of all the qualities: this is the meaning of the word “buddha.” After this, there is nothing more to develop.

For all the points of the path to enlightenment, the lamrim, see chapter 13.

Even a sky full of diamonds can’t repay their kindness

Therefore, you can see that all these people who put you in prison are unbelievably precious. They have been unbelievably kind to you. It is their kindness that persuaded you to open your heart, to look for something meaningful in life, to accept Buddhadharma. Because of their kindness you are able to practice renunciation, the detachment of seeing that samsara is in the nature of suffering.

You are able to purify negative karmas collected from beginningless rebirths—see chapters 15 and 16.

You are able to create so many causes for happiness by living in the vows and thus collecting merit twenty-­four hours a day, even when you are sleeping—see chapter 14.

You are able to create the causes for the happiness of future lives: a good rebirth, such as in a pure land.

And you are able to learn about bodhicitta (see chapters 10 and 12), meditate on emptiness (see chapter 11) and achieve liberation and enlightenment.

Now you can see that your family and all these people who put you in prison gave you all of this. Their kindness is limitless: skies of limitless kindness. There are no words to express what they have done for you. Even if the whole world were filled with jewels, dollars, gold and diamonds, even wish-­fulfilling jewels (which, after having prayed to them, can bring you whatever you want), and you offered it all to them, you could not finish repaying their unbelievable gift.

You should meditate every day on their kindness.

remember

• Just because the people who accused you weren’t trying to help you doesn’t mean they’re not kind to you—
• Be so grateful to them for this precious opportunity.
• Because of their kindness, you can now create the causes for happiness and to be of benefit to others.