Lecture 17
THE PURPOSE OF THE EIGHT MAHAYANA PRECEPTS
Simply, what taking precepts is, is protecting ourselves from negative karma, from actions that harm ourselves or others, directly or indirectly. Certain precepts such as abstaining from singing or sitting on a high, expensive bed [are there because such actions are considered harmful] because they are done with attachment, without a Dharma reason, without a purpose to benefit. If they are done with a particular purpose to benefit others, with a Dharma reason such as making offerings to another object, because of that purpose then the action becomes Dharma and therefore the action does not become harmful.
Actions such as wearing ornaments, putting on perfume and so forth, even though they don’t cause direct harm to others, they do cause indirect harm because if these actions are done out of the black worldly dharmas, the black worldly concerns, the thought of the eight worldly dharmas, then these things become nonvirtue, and by becoming nonvirtue they become obstacles for developing the mind. If we don’t get to develop the mind then we can’t really benefit other sentient beings, we can’t really benefit their minds. We can’t give real benefit to other sentient beings without developing our own mind. So even if some of these things don’t seem to give direct harm they still harm indirectly, depending on the motivation.
There’s a tradition for the teacher to sit on a throne higher than the disciples. The purpose is to show respect for the Dharma, for the teachings. And there are other reasons. It’s for a Dharma reason and also when the person sits on the throne, he has to remember impermanence. When the person sits on the higher throne, in the beginning, by remembering impermanence it stops the mind becoming ego. For sitting on the throne to not become ego, to destroy the ego, you must remember impermanence and especially emptiness.
To do that, to remember impermanence, emptiness and how everything is by nature suffering, you snap your fingers when you sit down. That’s to remind you that there’s nothing to cling to with these things, because there’s nothing of this that lasts. As I mention every day nothing lasts, nothing is permanent, nothing lasts even a second. And then especially to remember emptiness. That way there’s nothing for the mind to cling to. This is the practice from the side of the person, even if you don’t sit on the throne. No matter how many rich things are around, in your mind you remember the impermanence of the enjoyments.
If you don’t have delusions at all, if you have completely removed all delusions, if when you look at objects no delusion arises at all, then you don’t need to take precepts, you don’t need to take vows. You don’t need to take precepts because there’s no danger. No matter what object you look at, the mind is free from delusion there’s no danger of a delusion arising. Then you don’t need the precepts. There’s no purpose, there’s no danger. Your mind is not dangerous any more. Your mind does not become an obstacle to you any more to achieving liberation and enlightenment.
You need to take precepts because you need to discipline your own mind. Until your mind is disciplined there is a purpose, until then there is a purpose. When you are beyond needing discipline, when you are beyond danger, then there is no need.
You have to know the very essential point why this is important, why this is done. It’s not just a custom, it’s not just tradition, not just because this is a Buddhist thing. You have to understand the real meaning behind it. That’s the same with every practice, with all the prayers. You have to understand there’s a whole purpose, a whole reason behind all the different practices.
When you don’t understand, it looks like ritual. When you don’t understand, it becomes disturbing to the mind, because it doesn’t seem to mean anything. It is just like a person who doesn’t know the purpose of practicing compassion, who doesn’t know the benefits of compassion, that person can’t see why practicing compassion is important and so has no interest in doing it. Or similarly, a person who doesn’t want to learn Buddhism, it’s simply because he hasn’t checked, hasn’t analyzed to see what it is. Before practicing, he didn’t check up so he doesn’t know. It’s mainly because of lack of knowing what it is and what it’s for. If the person really knew he would see that the Dharma is a universal thing. When you are sick you have to take medicine. It’s like that, medicine is universal. Medicine is not only Western or only Eastern, or only Tibetan, it’s universal. Somebody who is sick takes medicine, that’s universal. Similarly, in reality Buddhism is universal. For somebody who knows what it is, it becomes universal; for somebody who doesn’t know then it doesn’t become universal.
If you really understand the purpose, then there’s enjoyment in the practice. There’s great enjoyment, great satisfaction in life. There’s great happiness in doing the practice. Doing the practice doesn’t become a burden, it becomes enjoyment.
Of course, there’s a whole explanation about the practice. There’s a whole commentary on it. For example, all the prayers are meditation, and you can do meditation, you can do the whole practice without words. You can do the whole practice but without the words. The words are there to remind you. Also, if you’re making offerings, with the chanting, with the speech, you are creating good karma. If it’s done with nice chanting, then it becomes an offering. It’s also an offering of speech, creating good karma with speech. And the words are also an inspiration; they inspire the mind.
However, without a full explanation, without a clear explanation, when you can’t understand it, then it appears just like a custom. Therefore, for those who are not familiar, it’s good to read in English. Of course without the commentary you still may not be able understand it. Somebody who is intelligent, who has a lot of merit, can understand why this is done.
About taking precepts, as I mentioned before, as long as you have obstacles, as long as your mind becomes an obstacle, as long as there’s a delusion, there’s this danger in the mind, you need precepts, but when you’re free from this, there’s no need for precepts. Except then you have to act as living in the discipline, for the sake of other sentient beings, as an example for other sentient beings. You don’t need to live in precepts for your own sake, for your own protection, but even though you’re free you need to show an example to other sentient beings, like the Buddha or His Holiness the Dalai Lama. The Buddha didn’t become a monk and so forth for his own sake. He didn’t need to because he had become enlightened innumerable numbers of eons before.
Guru Shakyamuni Buddha was already enlightened but he took the action of becoming enlightened at Bodhgaya. These twelve deeds were simply to show other sentient beings how to practice Dharma. The deeds showed the examples: being born, playing as a child, having all the wealth of being born to the king’s family, getting married, having a child, and then afterwards seeing the suffering and looking for a guru, doing retreat, following the ascetic’s life, then achieving the realizations, becoming enlightened—all these were examples for our benefit. From his own side he didn’t need to do them. They are to show other sentient beings how to practice Dharma.
So even if you’re completely free, even if you’re enlightened, you act like this in order to give an example for other sentient beings how to practice Dharma. Besides teaching, from the mouth, besides the mouth giving teachings, you try to physically act that way for the inspiration of others. Then others have something, they have an example. The Buddha did this, leading an austere life and then getting enlightened.
The whole point is that by disciplining ourselves, by living in precepts, we’re not allowing our mind to become dangerous to ourselves. We’re not allowing our actions of body, speech and mind to become dangerous to ourselves, to create obstacles.
Actually, if you think about it, the only result of stopping negative karma is peace, happiness, success. For example, by keeping the precepts, by practicing morality, we become a deva or human in the next life, attaining the body of the happy migratory being, and then liberation from samsara, everlasting happiness, not experiencing suffering at all. That also depends on the precepts, on the practice of morality. Then enlightenment, the complete cessation of all the obscurations, also depends on morality. The whole of our development is dependent on morality, from controlling the mind, abstaining from negative karma, abstaining from negative actions of body, speech, and mind.
Even in this life, in this way we don’t create many problems, such as relationship problems. By living in the precepts, great confusion in this life doesn’t happen. Even in our day-to-day life we have so much peace. If we look at it this way, living in the practice of morality, putting ourselves into the practice of morality, gives us great freedom. By thinking of all the benefits of practicing morality, we can see how important it is, how we are giving ourselves freedom by doing it. It’s not putting ourselves into a prison, it’s giving ourselves freedom. We’re giving ourselves freedom, giving ourselves release; we’re giving ourselves liberation. This is what it actually is.
Like this, we stop much negative karma that harms other sentient beings, directly or indirectly. Of course, even if it harms us, we’re just one person, one being, so there’s not much to be upset about. But the main point, the main thing is that a negative action directly or indirectly harms other sentient beings, who are numberless. Therefore, one way to understand this is that living in the practice of morality stops those negative karmas. As we are not free from delusions, from obscurations now, living in the practice of morality stops the negative karma of the body and speech, and through this we are able to control the mind, to control the delusions, and especially to actualize shamatha, to obtain shamatha, calm abiding. On that basis, we are able to actualize great insight and realize emptiness, and then we are able to completely eliminate all delusions. So, it’s all based on the higher training of morality. Stopping our actions from becoming negative karma means we no longer harm others directly or indirectly. You can look at it in different ways like that.
There’s a Medicine Buddha meditation that I found that I recently translated which helps us not get disease and if we already have disease then it helps to heal. At the end I mentioned that I hoped many people would practice this short Medicine Buddha, the Healing Buddha, meditation and find it beneficial. I also mentioned at the end that even if you don’t have any faith in holy objects, at least you can think of sentient beings, of the promise you made to sentient beings and so make these commitments, determining that for today you are going to give up such-and-such negative karmas and live in this number of positive practices or precepts.
The main goal is to help us not create negative karma. Even if we do it like this, at least we are thinking about other sentient beings. Even if we can’t think of all sentient beings, at least we can think about some of them, such as the people in this world or in this country or in this city, or all the sick people, or all the people who have AIDS or cancer, all the people who have this or that problem. At least by thinking of these people when we take the precepts, we stop those negative karmas in order to benefit them. So, the main goal is that it helps us not create those negative karmas, at least some number of negative karmas, and so we don’t have to go through all the four suffering results that I explained yesterday relating to sexual misconduct. There are many other negative karmas and each complete negative karma has four suffering results. Then it goes on and on and on and on, life after life, endlessly, as long as the negative karma is repeated over, again and again, without end.
If we do this practice, even by just thinking of sentient beings, it protects us from all those negative karmas and from all those constant suffering results, from the lower realms or even all the problems of the human realm.
I’m not going to go over determining the different levels of motivation now because there’s no time. I’ll leave it there and go on to exchanging oneself for others, to bodhicitta.
So, at this time we have received a perfect human rebirth from our side and have met the virtuous friend. Even if we haven’t met one yet, our life is full of opportunities to meet a qualified virtuous friend, especially one who can reveal the complete path from beginning up to enlightenment, without missing anything. Life is full of opportunities to meet a virtuous friend. Having met the virtuous friend, having met the precious teaching, and then the unmistaken path, the Buddhadharma, these three are extremely rare. At this time we have found these three things that are extremely rare to find, and we have all the conditions, all the opportunities to practice, to achieve liberation and full enlightenment, to have everything that we want.
We have all the opportunities to obtain the long-term happiness of future lives or liberation, even the highest goal, enlightenment, so at this time it’s not sufficient to just be able to stop rebirth in the lower realm and receive a deva or human body. That alone is not sufficient because even if we receive a deva or human body, we are still not free from suffering. We can understand from this present life how we are born as human beings but we are not free from suffering. We can understand from this life’s experience.
THE THREE TYPES OF SUFFERING
No matter where we are in the six realms, whether we are born in the desire realm, the form realm or the formless realm, we are not free from suffering. There are also the three types of suffering in the desire realm. Living in the desire realm means we live our life depending on the external sense objects, having desire for external sense objects.
There’s the suffering of suffering: death, rebirth, old age, sickness, being separated from desirable objects, meeting undesirable objects, not finding satisfaction, all these things. There are so many problems that are suffering of suffering. The other one, the suffering of change, means that by meeting desirable sense objects, even though it seems pleasure, that too is in the nature of suffering. The feeling is suffering but we merely label it “pleasure” because it’s as yet unnoticeable. The feeling is less suffering and so we call it pleasure and it appears to us as pleasure. Then by clinging to this as real pleasure, it cheats us for many lifetimes. In this way it cheats us for many lifetimes; it harms us in the long run; it gives us long-term harm. These pleasures are the suffering of change.
Then the third suffering, pervasive compounding suffering, refers to these aggregates, which are not free from delusion, from the seed of delusions, from the imprint of delusions. From these aggregates there is the potential for the other two types of problems to arise, the suffering of suffering and suffering of change. Because these aggregates are caused by karma and disturbing thoughts and the contaminated seed of disturbing thoughts, this becomes the potential to experience those two other sufferings.
The nature of these aggregates themselves is pervasive compounding suffering. The cause is karma and delusion from impure causes and the contaminated seed of disturbing thoughts. This is pervasive compounding suffering; this is the fundamental suffering, these aggregates.
In the desire realm we experience all three types of sufferings but the aggregates in the form and formless realms are also in the nature of suffering because they’re not free from the third suffering which has the potential to create the two other sufferings. The aggregates are caused by karma and delusion and the contaminated seed of disturbing thought, and because the seed is there, delusion arises, which motivates karma, and then it creates again future-life samsara. So, even though the beings of the form and formless realm don’t have the suffering of suffering or the suffering of change, they have the third suffering.
THE DISADVANTAGES OF SELF-CHERISHING
Wherever we are born in samsara, which comes within these three realms, it’s only in the nature of the suffering. Therefore, we must achieve liberation from the whole, entire samsara. But achieving this liberation for ourselves is not sufficient. That is not enough. We must achieve enlightenment. We must achieve full enlightenment, great liberation, for the sake of all sentient beings.
If I put it another way, as I mentioned yesterday, it’s not sufficient just to have some sympathy or compassion toward some sentient beings, not all sentient beings, just some beings, seeing some beings having problems that we are able to see and understand. But it’s not the whole entire problem. Just having some good heart or some generosity toward others is not sufficient. It’s good but not sufficient. We need bodhicitta, the altruistic thought to achieve full enlightenment in order to free every being from all the sufferings and to achieve full enlightenment. Just having some generosity, some sympathy and giving some help to others, that is not sufficient. We really have to develop the mind in a step-by-step way. That is the most beneficial life.
What is needed most by the sentient beings is to be free from all the suffering, from all the obscurations, and achieve the highest happiness, full enlightenment. This is what they need, the highest, peerless happiness, which is full enlightenment. This is what they need. Everyone is looking for the best comfort, the best pleasure. Everyone is looking for the best pleasure, the best comfort, the best happiness that will last the longest; everyone is looking for the best quality. Even when they buy material things, like food or furniture, whenever they shop they try to buy something that is the best quality and will last longer with whatever money they have. They try to buy the best they can afford with the amount of money that they have.
It’s the same thing here but because sentient beings, due to ignorance, due to not having met the Dharma, not having Dharma wisdom, don’t know there’s such an achievement, that there is such an experience in life, therefore they don’t talk about enlightenment, they don’t use this name. But from the heart this is what they need and this is what is missing. Therefore, it’s very clear the help we need to give sentient beings is to bring them to this peerless happiness, to full enlightenment.
To do that, first we ourselves need to achieve full enlightenment. For that we need to generate the realization of bodhicitta, this complete realization, not just a part, not just some good heart or some sympathy, just able to do some service for others, not just that. To be able to do perfect work for all sentient beings, without any mistake, we really need to completely develop the mind to be able to completely remove all the mistakes of the mind, all the obscurations. We need to study and understand the whole thing, to practice and train the mind on the whole path.
In order to generate bodhicitta, we need to realize the shortcomings of the self-cherishing thought. By realizing the shortcomings of the self-cherishing thought, that’s how we can eliminate the ego, the self-cherishing thought.
Even in one day, there’s not much time to explain even in a simple way, even something short like this. As I mentioned yesterday, what makes sexual misconduct nonvirtue is by the self-cherishing thought. Because of it we experience all the problems. Without the self-cherishing thought, there’s only bodhicitta. Such actions done with a pure mind don’t become nonvirtuous. All the problems of life come from the self-cherishing thought, come from the ego; they’re all caused by that.
This is what wastes life. Even in one day, what makes us waste our life, what makes our life empty, is following the self-cherishing thought, because if there is the self-cherishing thought there’s no place for bodhicitta. Then none of our actions from morning until night become the cause of enlightenment. They don’t become the cause of enlightenment for sentient beings. They don’t become actions to benefit all sentient beings, therefore, life is wasted. This precious human rebirth is wasted. Again, that is by the self-cherishing thought.
Secondly, because of the self-cherishing thought, there is attachment to samsara, attachment to samsaric perfections. Because of that, the actions done out of that each twenty-four hours don’t become the cause to achieve liberation. No action done during the day becomes the cause to achieve liberation, so again, you see, we’ve wasted our life. Again, the self-cherishing thought has wasted our life, has made our life empty.
Thirdly, because of the self-cherishing thought, there is attachment to this life, clinging to this life happens, worldly concern happens, so therefore, it doesn’t allow any action we do during one day to become Dharma, to become the cause of happiness of future lives. It doesn’t become Dharma. So again, the self-cherishing thought has made life empty. No action during the day becomes Dharma; it only becomes negative karma.
Therefore, the self-cherishing thought is what makes our day’s life completely empty, wasted, and on top of that it makes us use our life to only create negative karma, and experience problems and be born in the lower realms and so forth. Similarly, like this, our whole year, our whole life, is made empty by the self-cherishing thought. What makes it meaningless, empty, is the self-cherishing thought. The self-cherishing thought, the ego, is always harming us. By living in our heart it always harms us. The ego has been endangering us, harming to us, not allowing us to have any realization from beginningless rebirths until now. It has made the mind completely empty; it has made our life completely empty. Even though we were born many times as a human being like this, if we’re still following the self-cherishing thought, then it will continuously harm us, it will continuously make our life empty. We will continuously experience the problems.
All our problems come from this ego, the self-cherishing thought. And that comes from the I, that depends on the I, so therefore, who do all problems come from? They come from the I. Therefore, what is called “I” is the object to be renounced forever and what is called “others” is to be cherished forever.
As it’s mentioned in the thought transformation text, we must put the blame on the one, which means the ego. When there’s a problem we put all the blames on the one.18 That means the ego, the self-cherishing thought.
THE KINDNESS OF OTHERS
Then meditate on the kindness of all. Meditate on the kindness of all sentient beings. Any enjoyment we have in our day-to-day life, any comfort we have, all the conditions to practice Dharma and all the infinite merit we create every day by practicing bodhicitta, by meditating on emptiness, or by doing prostrations and making offerings—all those different practices where we purify so many lifetimes’ negative karma and accumulate so much merit—all these things, the cause of happiness, enlightenment, all these things come from the kindness of sentient beings.
Any comfort and enjoyment we have because of the house we live in, having the protection of a house, all these came from the numberless, numberless insects and creatures that were killed. They had to suffer and die for the house to be built. Many other human beings had to create negative karma by killing them and so forth in order to build the house or the apartment so we can have comfort. Every single comfort we have from the house all comes from other sentient beings, from many sentient beings having to suffer and die and from creating negative karma by harming others.
Then, every single comfort and enjoyment that we have from eating and drinking comes from sentient beings. Even one glass of water has many tiny insects we can’t see. They all had to suffer or die even for one cup of tea, even one cup of water. So many of them had to die, had to suffer. This one grain of rice came from another grain of rice and then another grain of rice which came from another grain of rice. Each time, when the continuation of this grain of rice grows, so many insects get killed. They had to suffer and they had to die, and many other beings had to kill them by working in the fields with machines or whatever. They had to create negative karma by killing them. Even for this one grain of rice, numberless sentient beings have died; they suffered and they died for this one grain of rice. They created so much negative karma. For one plate of rice, numberless sentient beings have suffered and created so much negative karma.
It’s the same thing with clothes. Silk comes from an animal’s body. The animal suffered by being boiled in the hot water and so forth. The silkworm is put in boiling water for us to have the silk. Even for this cloth so many sentient beings have suffered and died and many others have created negative karma. Every single comfort that we have comes from numberless sentient beings who have suffered and died, and others who have created negative karma.
Therefore, in day-to-day life, all our enjoyment and comfort, all that makes us alive and have a long life, in each year, each month, each day, each hour, each minute, it completely comes from other sentient beings. Each time that we have the opportunity to breathe, it’s completely by the kindness of other sentient beings. Each time that we’re able to breathe and able to practice, and during the time we’re able to recite mantras, to meditate, to practice bodhicitta and so forth, all this completely comes from the kindness of other sentient beings. Every single enjoyment, everything, including this body, everything. Sentient beings are unbelievably kind, so precious and so kind like this.
Even by thinking of this, this is still not talking about the whole kindness. This is not talking about the extensive kindness but only a part of the kindness of sentient beings. Even by this reason, by thinking of this kindness, there’s no space in the mind, there is no time, to live our life with ego, with self-cherishing thought. There’s no time for that. There’s no time for that. It becomes incredibly cruel that all these things come from numberless sentient beings’ suffering, from them harming others and creating negative karma, and yet we use these things only thinking of ourselves, only thinking of our own happiness, how we can eliminate my problem and have my happiness. It becomes unbelievably cruel, so selfish, so cruel toward sentient beings using all these things for our own happiness. It’s so ungenerous, so ungenerous.
However, by thinking of all this kindness, there’s no time for that. There’s no time to work for ego or to think of ego. There’s no space for that. By thinking of even this kindness of others, there’s no space for the ego in the mind, there’s no time to work for that. There’s only time to work for other sentient beings. There’s only space for the thought of others to arise, cherishing others.
Therefore, we must live our life and use all these things at least to benefit those sentient beings who suffered for these things and created so much negative karma for their livelihood. At least we should take responsibility for that.
The I is one; others are numberless. There are numberless sentient beings and every one of them is so important and so precious, so kind. Our happiness comes from them, therefore every one of them is so precious. Every one of them is so precious. Just as we think of ourselves as so precious, everyone is so precious like this, more precious than even ourselves. The I is one. We ourselves are just one, so compared to the numberless, precious, kind sentient beings, this I itself, which is one, is completely lost. Even by number, without thinking of the kindness, this one I is completely lost. This I is completely lost. It’s nothing. It’s just like one atom in the whole of this earth, in that many number of atoms, this one atom is completely lost. It’s nothing. When we compare the numberless sentient beings, this I is nothing. Compared to how important, how precious they are, it is nothing.
Therefore, anything other than working for sentient beings is meaningless. It’s empty. Anything other than working for sentient beings is empty, meaningless. Therefore think, “In my life, there’s nothing to work for other than sentient beings. In my life, there’s nobody to work for other than sentient beings. There’s nobody to cherish in my life other than sentient beings. What sentient beings want is happiness and they don’t want suffering. The happiness they need is the highest happiness, enlightenment. Therefore, I must lead them to full enlightenment. For that I need to achieve full enlightenment myself first. That depends on actualizing the path and that depends on protecting my karma, on practicing morality, not creating obstacles to the path, generating the path. Therefore, for the sake of all sentient beings, in order to benefit them, in order not to harm them, in order to achieve enlightenment for them, I’m going to take the eight Mahayana precepts.”
THE EIGHT MAHAYANA PRECEPTS CEREMONY
Visualize the lama who gives precepts in the buddha aspect, the Shakyamuni Buddha aspect. This is related with tantra; this comes from tantra. Then, with this meditation, you do three prostrations, and then you kneel down—those who can kneel down—and put your palms together at the heart in the mudra of prostration. Then please repeat the ceremony prayer.
There’s need for this meditation, to do it like this for the development of your mind. Therefore, you take the precepts with this visualization, with this meditation.
Then think that you’re repeating what Guru Shakyamuni Buddha is saying. The meditation is that.
[Rinpoche gives the precepts, with the group repeating after him.]
“…in order to benefit them.” This means temporary benefits, temporary happiness, that you’re going to give them temporary benefit, but taking the precepts is not only to cause temporary happiness. “In order to liberate them…” This means ultimate benefit, taking the precepts in order to give ultimate benefit to the sentient beings. Now remember all those places where there are famines and a lot of difficulties when you recite this. Think you are taking the precepts in order to stop those things. “In order to eliminate famine…” For Ethiopia and all those places, remember that you’re taking the precepts in order to stop all these problems that are happening to sentient beings now and in the future.
I and a few of us translated, put together, a commentary on the benefits of taking precepts. As mentioned there, in the past, the king, when the country had a Dharma king, made a rule that on the special days of the month everybody was to keep, to practice the eight Mahayana precept. The king made the law. After people had taken and kept the eight Mahayana precepts on those special days, the country, the environment slowly, completely changed. The environment of the country completely changed. The rains came at the right time, when they were needed, and the crops and forests and all these things grew well. There was much economic development and famine was stopped. There are stories of what happened there, of how living in the precepts benefited the development of the country.
So “to eliminate famine for the sentient beings.” Not just this world—there are numberless worlds; there are numberless universes, so for everyone.
Then, “…in order to eliminate sicknesses.” Remember all those sicknesses; remember all those sick people in the hospital. Think, “I’m taking these precepts in order to benefit all of those who are in hospital, who are not sure whether they are going to live or die today.” Think extensively about all sentient beings and how you are taking the eight Mahayana precepts to eliminate sicknesses.
“In order to perfect the thirty-seven practices on the path to enlightenment…”
[Rinpoche continues to give the precepts, with the group repeating after him.]
At this time you must, without a wandering mind, you must generate the thought, “I have received the Mahayana ordination, the reviving and purifying Mahayana ordination in front of the numberless buddhas and bodhisattvas,” as you have done the meditation, visualizing the Buddha, and also the numberless buddhas and bodhisattvas around and in front of him. Think like that. If you don’t think this, you haven’t receive the ordination.
[Rinpoche continues the precepts ceremony.]
“…at improper times,” that means after twelve o’clock. The strict way is only taking one meal. I was advised by my root guru, His Holiness Trijang Rinpoche, that when somebody takes precepts quite often, it’s okay to have breakfast, but when it’s done in public or only occasionally, then it’s better to be more strict. For so many years since we began taking the eight Mahayana precepts here, we have been doing it this way, the strict way, in all these courses. Therefore, we should think of one meal here, in other words, and dedicate for sentient beings.
As far as taking only one meal, first you eat well, then when you stop eating you completely stop. If you stopped then change your mind and eat again, that doesn’t become one meal but two meals. So, first eat well, until real discomfort starts. No, I’m joking. Until the body says no. The mind says yes. Anyway, eat well, then when you stop, completely stop.
[Rinpoche continues the precepts ceremony.]
So please repeat this mantra, the mantra that makes the morality pure. In case of something, in case of being unconscious or if something has degenerated, you recite this mantra a few times to purify.
[Rinpoche continues the precepts ceremony.]
So, please dedicate the merits. “Due to the merits of having taken the eight Mahayana precepts, may the paramita of morality be accomplished by keeping it purely, without pride, without mistakes.”
When I say “Tab yin no” you say “Leg so.” Which means, “This is the method,” then you have to respond to that, “Yes.”
[Rinpoche continues the precepts ceremony.]
Think this way, please think this first. “Due to all the past, present and future merits, and buddhas’ and bodhisattvas’ merits, and by having taken the eight Mahayana precepts, due to all these merits that are empty from their own side, may the I, who is empty from its own side, achieve Guru Shakyamuni Buddha’s enlightenment, that is empty from its own side, and lead all sentient beings, who are empty from their own side, to enlightenment, that is empty from its own side.”
By dedicating the merits to achieve enlightenment, the merit becomes unceasing. No matter how much you enjoy the result of merit, how much you use it, it becomes unceasing. So it has that benefit.
By dedicating the merits, by sealing it with emptiness, only emptiness, the ultimate nature, this way the merit can’t be destroyed. Afterwards, if heresy and anger, if these obstacles to merit arise, they can’t destroy the merit. Otherwise, if you don’t dedicate the merit by sealing it with the emptiness, then if heresy and anger arise later, they can destroy the merit. In this way it is protected. It’s very, very important when you dedicate the merits, not only firstly to dedicate for enlightenment, which is extremely important because it makes unceasing and secondly to seal it with emptiness.
So please dedicate the merit to generate bodhicitta.
Jang chhub sem chhog rin po chhe….
“Due to all these merits, may the bodhicitta that has not been generated within my mind and within the minds of others be generated. And that which has been generated, may it be developed.”
So please dedicate well for this. Dedicate strongly for bodhicitta.
Then, please dedicate for the long life of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and all other holy beings who live their lives for sentient beings, to benefit sentient beings, that all their holy wishes succeed immediately, that all their holy wishes, doing the work for the sentient beings, succeed immediately.
Gang ri ra wai….
“Due to all these three-times’ merits accumulated by me, and by the buddhas and bodhisattvas, may any sentient being who hears me, who touches me, who remembers me, who talks about me, who thinks about me, just by that, from that time may they never be reborn in the lower realms, and may they be liberated immediately from all disease, spirit harm, negative karma, obscurations, just by that, and quickly achieve enlightenment.
“Due to all the three-times’ merits accumulated by me, and by the buddhas and bodhisattvas, may all the father, mother sentient beings have happiness; may the three lower realms be empty forever; and may all the prayers of the bodhisattvas succeed immediately, and may I cause this by myself alone.
“Due to all these three-times’ merits and the three-times’ merits accumulated by the buddhas and bodhisattvas, may I myself and all sentient beings, in all our lifetimes, be able to meet a perfectly qualified Mahayana virtuous friend, and from our own side see him only as an enlightened being, and to do only actions pleasing the holy mind of the virtuous friend and to fulfill his holy wishes immediately by myself alone.
“As the three-times’ buddhas have dedicated their merits, I will dedicate all my merits to quickly enlighten all sentient beings.”
Jam pal pa wo….
Du sum sheg pai….
“Due to all the three-time merits accumulated by myself, and by the buddhas and bodhisattvas, may the complete, pure teachings of Lama Tsongkhapa, the unification of sutra and tantra, be actualized within my mind, in the minds of my family, in the minds of all the students, in this very lifetime, especially bodhicitta and clear light, and may we achieve enlightenment and then lead all sentient beings to enlightenment. In particular, may the general organization, the projects, to benefit other sentient beings, and for the teachings, and in particular, the meditation centers, all the students, the benefactors and the individual students, for their work to benefit others. May their wishes succeed immediately according to Dharma.”
So please, with the same meditation, do three prostrations.
Lecture 18
THE EIGHT MAHAYANA PRECEPTS MOTIVATION: THE FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS
As Lama Tsongkhapa explained in The Hymns of Experience of the Graduated Path,19
If we do not strive in contemplating the defects of the truth of suffering,
The genuine aspiration for liberation does not arise in us;
If we do not contemplate the causal process of the origin of suffering,
We will fail to understand how to cut the root of cyclic existence.So it’s vital to seek true renunciation of disenchantment with existence
And to recognize which factors chain us in the cycle of existence.
I, a yogi, have practiced in this manner;
You, who aspire for liberation, too should do likewise.
In other words, it’s important to practice with the determination to be free from the circling aggregates, to practice determination to be free from the upsetness of these circling aggregates, from what binds us or ties us to the samsara.
Lama Tsongkhapa himself said, “I, a yogi, have practiced in this manner; you, who aspire for liberation, too should do likewise.” If we seek liberation we should also do the practice like that.
As Lama Tsongkhapa mentioned in The Hymns of Experience of the Graduated Path it’s very important to practice the determination to be free from the circling aggregates, and to know what binds us to samsara, to this suffering realm, these circling, defiled aggregates. What ties us to this suffering realm, these circling aggregates, is action and the disturbing thoughts, karma and delusion.
Maitreya Buddha explained in the The Ornament of Mahayana Sutras,20
The disease is to be known,
The cause is to be abandoned,
The medicine is to be relied upon,
And the cure is to be achieved.
The disease is to be known and the cause is to be abandoned. To be healthy, to be cured, to abide in that happiness, that achievement, the medicine is to be taken, to be relied upon and the cure is to be achieved. Like that, true suffering is to be known, true cause of suffering is to be abandoned, cessation is to be achieved and true path, which is the method to achieve cessation, is to be practiced.
The kind, compassionate Shakyamuni Buddha has revealed the four noble truths, which is the foundation of the whole entire Buddhadharma. To cure the disease by taking the right medicine depends entirely on finding a wise, skillful doctor, and correctly following him or her. Similarly, the first teaching the Buddha revealed was the truth of suffering. By explaining suffering first the questions arise, “What has caused these sufferings?” “Does suffering arise without a cause and conditions, or by depending on cause and conditions?” As these questions arise, then Buddha explained the cause of suffering.
Then, after explaining the cause of suffering, he explained the cessation of suffering. This is ultimate liberation. This is the real happiness. Then we come to know what real happiness, ultimate liberation, is. After the Buddha explained the true cause of suffering and the cessation of suffering, the question arises whether there’s any method to achieve this, the cessation of suffering.
Then, the Buddha revealed the true path as the answer to that question. Achieving ultimate liberation, all these successes, depends on finding, meeting a skillful virtuous teacher, a qualified virtuous teacher who reveals the unmistaken right path and then, from our own side, following that skillful, qualified virtuous teacher. From our own side, by exactly correctly following the virtuous teacher we actualize the true path and the cessation of suffering. From that, all these things happen.
THE EIGHT MAHAYANA PRECEPTS MOTIVATION: HOW THE TWELVE LINKS WORK
In the Rice Seedling Sutra, the Buddha explained the evolution of samsara to a group of bhikshus, fully ordained monks, by using the external example of a rice plant. He said,
Bhikshus, by holding a rice plant, you see a dependent arising.
Whoever sees dependent arising will see the ultimate truth;
Whoever sees the ultimate truth will see the Buddha.21
That might mean by realizing the ultimate truth, by developing that wisdom, we are able to see the Buddha, we are able to achieve full enlightenment.
The Buddha explained that ignorance is not knowing the ultimate nature of the I. That is like the farmer, the cultivator. Ignorance is the first one. The second one is karma or the action motivated by that ignorance. This one is like the field where the various crops grow. From karma, the various rebirths arise. Various rebirths, various experiences of life, arise from the action, from karma.
The action, the karma, leaves an imprint on the mental continuum, the consciousness. There are six consciousnesses, so karma, action, leaves an imprint on the sixth consciousness, the mental consciousness. The consciousness on which the action leaves the imprint is like the seed. One small seed contains the potential to grow into a huge trunk with thousands, billions of branches and leaves, flowers and fruit. One tiny seed contains all that potential. Similarly, the consciousness carries, contains all the potential, all the imprints from one life to another. From one life to another it carries all the imprints, all the seeds, and then the consciousness joins from one life to another life. So, the consciousness on which the karma leaves the imprint is like the seed. It’s related to the example.
Then, craving and grasping, craving happiness, to have comfort, and craving to be free from sufferings, to be free from the suffering feeling. When craving is strongly developed it becomes grasping. First of all there’s craving, attachment, the want to have things. For example, when we are in a shop, we want to have things, we want to have that particular object. Then by craving arising strongly, we actually decide to get it. Making the determination to get it is grasping.
Craving and grasping from the twelve links of a human being, for example, relate to this present human life. Out of ignorance not knowing the ultimate nature of the I, doing a virtuous action, practicing morality and so forth, that intention leaves an imprint on the consciousness. That makes an imprint that is left on the consciousness by the action, by the karma, ready to produce its own result. For this present human rebirth, the craving and grasping, these two types of attachment, make the imprint left by the karma stronger, ready to bring the result, this present human rebirth. These two, craving and grasping, make this imprint powerful, throwing the consciousness into its future samsaric rebirth, which is this human rebirth.
The Buddha explained this, relating it all to the excellent example of a rice seed that is ready to bring its own result, the sprout.
Then, after that death happens. The consciousness migrates into the intermediate state, and then from that, from the intermediate state, the continuation of the consciousness joins with the fertilized egg in this present life’s mother’s womb.
If the consciousness that is cause-time consciousness, on which the imprint is left by the karma, if that is counted, then here the result, the consciousness that joins with the fertilized egg is not counted. But if the consciousness that joins with the fertilized egg is counted, then the previous one is not counted. Some lamas count the cause, the consciousness on which the imprint is left, the cause-time consciousness and some lamas, some systems, count the result-time consciousness, the consciousness that joins with the egg, without counting the previous one.
In reality, the continuity of the consciousness comes from the intermediate state and joins with the fertilized egg. The general explanation is that for the third drop, a very thick drop, for the sperm and the egg to meet together at that time and take the rebirth it has to be devoid of three obstacles. It has to be free from these three obstacles in order to be able to take rebirth. From the parent’s side, first of all it’s having the karma to receive the child. That’s one thing. Then, not having any defects. I don’t remember the third one. Maybe from the child’s side, from the side of the being who takes rebirth, that being who’s going to take rebirth having the karma. I don’t remember the third one exactly.
Without the three mistakes, without the three obstacles, the consciousness takes place on the fertilized egg and rebirth happens. At that time the physical part is called “form” and the mental part is called “name.” The feelings, compounding aggregates, recognition, compounding aggregates, all these mental parts are called “name” and so this link is called “name and form.” This is related to the external example, the stem growing from the seed. With name and form, then the sense bases happen and then contact and feeling. All those gradually happen during that time.
The last link is old age and death. Old age starts right after the consciousness takes place on the fertilized egg. Right after that second, old age starts. What is left to be experienced is death.
So, there are seven results, three delusions and two actions. Ignorance, craving and grasping are the three delusions. The two actions are karma motivated by ignorance and becoming. These three delusions and two actions are the causes that were already created, experienced in a past life. The seven results are experienced in this life. We’ve already experienced them all, except what is left, the death that will have to come.
This is the evolution. This is how we ourselves enter this present samsara, how this present life’s samsara, these circling defiled aggregates, happened, evolved. By following ignorance, by being under the control of ignorance, then motivating the karma that leaves an imprint on the mind, on the consciousness of this present life—that’s how it started; that’s how we entered this present life’s samsara. In other words, in that way, the continuation of our past life’s samsara joined to this present life, the continuity joined to this life. This is the way, by being under the control of ignorance and karma, that we tie ourselves to the samsara, to this suffering realm.
By realizing the ultimate nature of the I, by developing this, we are able to cease death and rebirth. We are able to cease death and rebirth by ceasing the three delusions and two actions, by ceasing the very root, ignorance, the concept of true existence, the concept of a truly existent I.
According to the evolution of samsara, it started with ignorance. There’s evolution and there’s the reverse. Death and rebirth and these seven results depend on karma and disturbing thoughts. Then, in the same way, by ceasing ignorance and the three delusions we cease the karma, those actions, and through this we are able to cease rebirth and death; we are able to cease those seven results. So the cessation of suffering has its own evolution, which is the reverse of the evolution of samsara.
THE EIGHT MAHAYANA PRECEPTS MOTIVATION: EVERYTHING COMES FROM THE MIND
With this we practice awareness, meditating on where all these aggregates come from. Where did these aggregates come from? They came from our own consciousness, that which carries the imprint. Not just these aggregates, but the whole of appearance, the five sense objects.
For example, starting from this morning, whatever we see in our view, desirable objects, undesirable objects, indifferent objects, the beautiful, the ugly—anything that we see today—whatever appears to us, whatever we see today in our view, all these appearances come from the consciousness. Not only these aggregates but all that appeared to our consciousness today from this morning until tonight, in these twenty-four hours—the appearance of the place, the appearance of the people, how we see the people, how we see the beings, living beings, how we see, and how we see the place, all the sense consciousness objects, how things appear to us—all these things come from the consciousness, because they come from the imprints. All these are manifestations of the imprints. All these come from the imprints.
Just like on the negative roll of a movie film there are various people enjoying themselves or fighting, happy or unhappy, and there are various places, there are many people and places printed on the negative. Then, by putting the film in the machine with electricity, we are able to project it on the screen. Like that, including these aggregates, whatever appearances we have today, whatever appearances, whatever quality, pure or impure, all completely came from imprints. It’s exactly like the projection we see on the screen. What we see on the screen comes from the negative roll on which all those figures are printed. Like this, there are so many imprints left on the consciousness by our past actions. In the same way that all the images we see on the screen come from the negative roll, all the appearances we see today come from our own consciousness. It’s not only that they come from causes, they come from our own mind. These appearances also come from action, the action that is our own mind, the intention. Therefore again, all these appearances come from our own mind.
Now the third thing is that all these appearances are the creation of ignorance. They all, including these aggregates, come from ignorance. They were originally created by ignorance, the concept of true existence. So including the aggregates, all the appearances come from our own mind, from ignorance.
When we go sightseeing by car, all the mountains, all the houses, whatever we see comes from the mind. As we go by car, each minute, each hour we see different mountains, different things. All these appearances come from our own mind. It’s the same thing when we go to the market. All these billions and billions of different objects we see in the shops, all these appearances we’re able to see and we’re able to enjoy—whether they’re desirable or undesirable—all these appearances come from our own mind.
We ourselves, our own mind, are the creator of everything. Suffering, samsara, happiness, liberation—we ourselves are the creator of everything. As the Buddha explained, we ourselves are our own guide, we ourselves are our own enemy. Therefore, there’s nobody outside to blame. Whatever problems we have in life, relationships and so forth, there’s nobody else to blame, there’s nobody outside to blame except ourselves, because we make the mistake of following delusion, of following the disturbing thoughts.
It’s not sufficient that we ourselves become completely free from the lower realms and even free from the whole entire samsara. That’s not sufficient. We must achieve full enlightenment for the sake of all sentient beings, because where all the sufferings come from is the I, the self-cherishing thought, by cherishing the I. All the sufferings come from the I, all the problems come from the I, therefore what is called the I is the object to be forever abandoned. All happiness, all successes, all good things come from other sentient beings, therefore other sentient beings are forever to be cherished. As I mentioned on the first morning when discussing the kindness of sentient beings, all happiness, all success comes from depending on the kindness of other sentient beings. Therefore, other sentient beings are the objects to be forever cherished. They are extremely kind and precious. Therefore, in our life there’s nothing, there’s nobody to cherish other than sentient beings. In our life there’s nobody to work for other than sentient beings. Those we should live our life and work for are only sentient beings, only other sentient beings.
Think, “What sentient beings want is happiness; what they do not want is suffering. Therefore, I must free them from all the suffering and causes and lead them to full enlightenment, that which is the peerless happiness. To be able to do this, I must achieve full enlightenment myself. That depends on actualizing the graduated path to enlightenment, and that depends on protecting karma and accumulating merit. Therefore, I’m going to take the eight Mahayana precepts.”
THE EIGHT MAHAYANA PRECEPTS CEREMONY
Then, those who can kneel down, please kneel down and put two palms together at the heart.
Please think that you are repeating after me. As there’s a need, as there’s a purpose, for the development of the mind, in this meditative practice first visualize the lama who grants the eight Mahayana precepts as a buddha, in the aspect of a buddha, surrounded by numberless buddhas and bodhisattvas. Then in the front of them you take the eight Mahayana precepts.
[Rinpoche gives the ordination, with the students repeating.]
So at end of the third repetition without a wandering mind, it’s very important to make the strong determination that you have received the reviving and purifying Mahayana ordination in the presence of all the buddhas and bodhisattvas and Shakyamuni Buddha.
[Rinpoche continues the ordination, with the students repeating.]
“…in order to liberate them.” So reflect on the constant suffering of sentient beings, which continuation has no beginning. Then you can get the idea to completely liberate them, which depends on freeing them completely, eliminating completely their karma and disturbing thoughts. Thinking in that way then the wish to completely liberate them will come. External things alone can’t liberate them. Liberating them means completely ending their suffering, making them never experience suffering at all. Think, “For that reason, I’m taking the eight Mahayana precepts. To stop suffering, to stop famine happening to all sentient beings, for that reason, I’m taking the precepts.”
“…in order to eliminate sicknesses.” For all sentient beings to never experience sicknesses. Remember all those who are sick, all those who are dying of AIDS, cancer and other diseases. There are so many other diseases, not just those two. Remember those people who are in a coma for years, not completely dead but not functioning in life. You should think about this and recognize that taking the eight Mahayana precepts is for all of them, for them to never experience sickness again.
“…in order to perfect the thirty-seven practices on the path to enlightenment…”
[Rinpoche continues the ordination, with the students repeating.]
So when I say “Tab yin no” then you say “Leg so.”
[Rinpoche continues the ordination, with the students repeating.]
Then please repeat three times the mantra that makes the morality pure.
[Rinpoche and group recite the Mantra of Pure Morality twenty-one times.]
“Due to the past, present and future merits accumulated by me, by the buddhas and bodhisattvas, may my paramita of morality be completed by keeping it without mistakes, pure, without pride.
“Due to these three-times’ merits accumulated by me, may bodhicitta, the altruistic intention to achieve enlightenment for all sentient beings, be generated within my mind and in the mind of all sentient beings. And for those who have it, may it be developed.
“Due to all the past, present and future merits accumulated by me, by the buddhas and bodhisattvas, due to all this merit, that which is merely imputed by the mind, may the I, who is merely imputed, achieve Guru Shakyamuni Buddha’s enlightenment, that which is also merely imputed, and lead all sentient beings, who are merely imputed, to enlightenment, that which is merely imputed.”
So you can see, you can get some idea in this way, everything is empty. All the billions and billions of things, what are called this and that, everything is empty in reality. Conventionally things are called “I,” “sentient beings,” “enlightenment,” “merits,” “this” and “that”—billions and billions, numberless names, labels, all imputed.
“Due to the past, present and future merits accumulated by me, by the buddhas and bodhisattvas, may any sentient being who hears me, who touches me, who remembers me, who talks about me, who thinks about me, just by that, from that time, may they never be reborn in the lower realms, in the hell, preta or animal realms, and just by this may they be immediately liberated from all the disease, spirit harm, negative karma and obscurations, and may they quickly achieve enlightenment.
“Due to all these three-times’ merits accumulated by me, by the buddhas and bodhisattvas, may I myself and all sentient beings, in all our lifetimes, be able to find a perfectly qualified Mahayana virtuous friend, like Maitreya Buddha, Manjushri or Guru Shakyamuni Buddha, and then from our own side, may we all the time be able to see him only as an enlightened being and do actions only pleasing the holy mind of the virtuous friend and be able to fulfill service for the holy mind of the virtuous friend immediately and in all the lifetimes. May this happen for myself and for all sentient beings.
“Due to all these three-time merits, may all the father and mother sentient beings have happiness and its causes and may I cause it by myself alone. And may the three lower realms be empty forever and may I cause that by myself alone. And may all the bodhisattvas’ prayers succeed immediately, and may I cause that by oneself alone.”
Gang ri ra wai….
Dedicate for the long life of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and all other holy beings, who live their life working for sentient beings.
“As the three-time buddhas have dedicated their merits, I will dedicate all my merits to quickly enlighten all sentient beings, just as the bodhisattvas Samantabhadra and Manjugosha have done.
“Due to all the merits accumulated by me, and by the buddhas and bodhisattvas, may the pure teaching of Lama Tsongkhapa, the unification of sutra and tantra, especially bodhicitta and clear light, may it be actualized within my mind, in the minds of my family, in all the students, in this very lifetime, and may I be able to spread the Dharma in the minds of sentient beings and lead them to enlightenment as quickly as possible. And may the general organization as well as the individual Dharma centers and individual students, may their work to benefit others and all their wishes succeed according to Dharma.”
So, please do three prostrations with the same visualization.
Notes
18 This comes from Seven-point Mind Training, an essential mind training or thought transformation (Tib: lojong) text by Geshe Chekawa. See Geshe Lama Kongchog’s commentary. [Return to text]
19 Vv. 19 and 20. This teaching is also known as Songs of Spiritual Experience: Condensed Points of the Stages of the Path (Tib: lam rim nyam gur.) [Return to text]
20 The Ornament of Mahayana Sutras (Skt: Mahayanasutralankara; Tib: tek pa chen pö do de gyen) is one of the Five Treatises of Maitreya. Maitreya (Tib: Jam pa) is the next buddha of the fortunate eon after Shakyamuni, having been a bodhisattva at the time of the Buddha. [Return to text]
21 In another translation, Rinpoche uses “Dharma” rather than “ultimate truth” or “emptiness.” Considered a key link between the Hinayana and Mahayana sutras, the Rice Seedling Sutra can be found at 84,000.co. [Return to text]
