A STAR, A DEFECTIVE VIEW, A BUTTER LAMP FLAME

I thought to do the oral transmission of the Lama Tsongkhapa Guru Yoga. Along with that, there is the oral transmission of the short meditation prayer containing the stages of the path to enlightenment composed by Lama Tsongkhapa, The Foundation of All Good Qualities. Maybe before the teaching, I will do that oral transmission.

Before that, we’ll do the preliminary meditation prayer going for refuge to Buddha, Dharma and Sangha, paying homage to the Guru Shakyamuni Buddha, and then the Heart of Wisdom sutra.

[Rinpoche chants]

I think maybe you have the English translation, so you can read that. You don’t have to become Tibetan; you can read the English translation so it gives meaning to you. Everybody can read these verses together in English, meditating on the meaning of the Buddha’s heart advice. [See Praise to Shakyamuni Buddha.]

[Students read in English:

Do not commit any unwholesome actions.
Engage in perfect, wholesome actions.
Subdue your mind thoroughly.
This is the teaching of the Buddha.

A star, a defective view, a butter lamp flame,
An illusion, a dew drop, a water bubble,
A dream, lightning, a cloud:
See all causative phenomena like this.

By these merits, may transmigratory beings
Attain the state of all-seeing, subdue the enemy of faults,
And be freed from the ocean of samara
Disturbed by the waves of aging, sickness, and death.]

One of my gurus, the great yogi and great scholar, Kirti Tsenshab Rinpoche explained that the first line reveals true suffering; the second line, the true cause of suffering; the third line, the true cessation of suffering; and the last line, the true path. So, these four lines reveal the four noble truths, the fundamental Buddhism teaching, the path to liberation.

Read each point slowly, that gives time to meditate. This is a very important fundamental teaching of Buddhist philosophy to destroy the one enemy that we all have. That is the inner enemy, the delusions that have been harming us constantly. This inner enemy creates samsara and tortures us with all the sufferings of samsara since time without beginning, from beginningless past samsaric rebirths. Not only that, it also harms other sentient beings. It has been harming other sentient beings directly or indirectly since time without beginning, directly or indirectly, from life to life.

Meditating on the first line, kar ma rab rib … [A star, a defective view, a butter lamp flame] is an extremely powerful psychology. It is a powerful meditation to immediately cut the delusions, the ego, the root of samsara, which is the creator of all our negative emotions, all our delusions, all our wrong concepts, and it’s also the creator of our karma, the actions and all the results that bring the inexhaustible, terrifying oceans of sufferings of the hell beings, of the hungry ghosts, of the animals, of the human beings, of the suras and asuras. So, it is the cause of all the oceans of problems that bother human beings, suras and asuras.

THE ROOT OF SAMSARA ACCORDING TO THE DIFFERENT SCHOOLS

The creator of all this is ignorance. This ignorance is not just believing that this I, this self, is permanent—while it is impermanent it looks as if it is permanent—or that it exists independently while it exists dependent on parts, by depending on the continuity of the aggregates. It exists depending on this, but we hold onto the I as an independent entity. It is not even that wrong concept we are looking at here. It is not even that while the I is empty of self-sufficiency, we are holding onto it as being self-sufficient. The ignorance here is not that wrong concept. It is not the self-grasping of the person according to the Vaibhashika school, the Sautrantika school, the Mind Only [Cittamatra] school or the Madhyamika Svatantrika school—not even the first of the Madhyamaka schools, the Svatantrika school.

I don’t know how to put it very clearly in English, exactly according to the Tibetan term. Each word has meaning in Tibetan, so to give an idea the translation has to be exact without missing a single word. If one word is missing, it is like a machine with some parts missing, it is not a complete explanation, so it doesn’t give the complete image.

The ignorance we are looking at here, which is the root of samsara, is not even the ignorance proposed by the Cittamatra school. [Besides the six principal consciousnesses] this school asserts a seventh consciousness, “the mind base of all.” From an imprint, both the substance—the object—and the mind knowing the object manifest at the same time. Here, it is called the “knowing phenomenon.” I wouldn’t say the “knower” because if we say knower it refers to a person, not the knowing of an object.

From the imprint that is on the seventh consciousness, the mind basis of all, the substance manifests out in two ways: one as the knowing phenomenon, the mind, and one as the object. So, it manifests into two: one object, one subject. For the Cittamatra school, ignorance is the object existing without depending on that substance, the imprint on the mind basis of all experiencing out as subject and object, that the I, the subjective phenomenon, exists totally from its own side. That’s not a perfect translation, the last part needs to be better. The I seems to totally exist from its own side and is then believed to be true.

This is the wrong concept of what is empty according to the Cittamatra school. For them, this ignorance is the root of samsara, the cause of all the delusions, of karma, of all the sufferings. That is ignorance but it is still a very gross form of ignorance. It is not even that one we are looking at.

According to the Svatantrika school, the first of the Madhyamaka or Middle Way schools, which also has the self-grasping of phenomena, even though this is a wrong concept, it is not the ignorance that is the root of samsara. So now, what is it?

This Svatantrika school accepts that the I is labeled by the mind. (In English, once we use the term “depend,” we have to use the word “on”—we depend on—we don’t say “depend to,” so I normally use “relating to.” I guess that is correct English.) They accept that the I is labeled on the aggregates. They accept that, but they believe that the I, the self, is findable on the aggregates. If we look for it we can find it; it is findable. Therefore, the philosophers of the Svatantrika school think it exists from its own side, which in Tibetan is rang zhin gyi drup pa, meaning it exists by its nature. They accept that. Because of that, they cannot accept that the I is merely labeled by the mind on the base, the aggregates.

For them, there is no I merely labeled by mind. That doesn’t exist. For them, to accept that is like nihilism; it is as if the I doesn’t exist. When they accept that the I exists, for them it becomes existing from its own side, existing by nature.

According to the second Madhyamaka school, the Prasangika School, when the Madhyamika Svatantrika school accept that the I exists—which for them means existing from its own side—they fall into the other extreme, eternalism. Having accepted “merely labeled,” because the Svatantrika school don’t accept that, they think the Prasangika have fallen into nihilism.

So, the philosophers of the Svatantrika school cannot accept that the I is merely labeled by the mind, that it exists in mere name, merely imputed by the mind, and they cannot unify that with the extremely subtle dependent arising of the Prasangika School. They cannot unify the emptiness—that the I is empty of existing from its own side and while it is empty it exists in mere name, merely imputed by mind—with the extremely subtle dependent arising. They cannot unify these two on one phenomenon, such as the I.

According to the Svatantrika school of Buddhist philosophers, the right view, the one that is correct, is that the I is not merely labeled by mind; it exists from its own side or by its nature. They think this is correct. Their view of emptiness is that the I exists from its own side, particularly from its own nature it is totally existing. Without appearing to the valid mind, to valid cognition labeling it—without depending on that [valid cognition]—it is totally existing by its own nature. That is the ignorance according to the Svatantrika school of Buddhist philosophers.

However, even that is not the root of samsara according to the Prasangika school view. For them, what the previous school, the Svatantrika school believes as correct—that the I exists labeled by mind but is findable on the aggregates and exists by its nature—is totally wrong.

For the Svatantrika school, it must be findable on the aggregates; it must exist from its own side or by its nature, not merely labeled by mind. In some ways, this is a very strong argument. When we think about it, we might accept that the I is labeled by the mind but we cannot figure out how it exists being merely labeled by the mind. We accept it must be labeled by the mind but we cannot see how it just exists in mere name, merely labeled by the mind. There must be something from its own side. We think that there should be something existing from its own side. How can it possibly only exist in mere name, merely labeled by the mind? Sometimes, we think like that.

However, even though the view believed to be correct by the Svatantrika school, that the I is findable on the aggregates, suggests that there should be something from its own side, not just merely labeled by the mind, the Prasangika school cannot accept anything even slightly beyond being merely labeled by the mind. The belief that the I is existing even slightly beyond being merely labeled by the mind—that there should be something from its own side—is the root of samsara.

By not accepting being merely labeled but somehow believing there must be something slightly beyond that, something extremely subtle slightly beyond that, we are creating the root of samsara, which, according to the Prasangika school, is the self-grasping of person.

There are two roots of samsara. Just as there is the self-grasping of the I, we similarly create the concept about the aggregates, the basis to be labeled “I.” We are also not satisfied by the way they exist, how they too are merely labeled by the mind. We cannot figure it out; we cannot understand that there is nothing even slightly beyond that. That self-grasping of phenomena is again ignorance, the ignorance of how the aggregates exist. That is also the root of samsara.

There is this experience that happens on the collection of the five aggregates. There is an I. There is no I, no self, [apart] from that, but there is an I on that. Our understanding of the real I is that there is no I from above the base, the aggregates, but there is a strong thought of the I on the aggregates, something very strong, indestructible. The thought of the I, the name, exists very strongly on the base. I think there is some experience of that.

According to His Holiness, that is correct in the Prasangika view, but according to Kirti Tsenshab Rinpoche, this is the Svatantrika school’s understanding of emptiness, not the Prasangika school’s view.

We have this unbelievably strong understanding that the name, the I, the self, exists on the base but not from the base, not from the side of the base. I think there is a subtle point here and through analysis we can see the subtle difference between those two—the realizations of the Svatantrika school and the Prasangika school.

HOW WE CREATE IGNORANCE

I want to try to clarify a little bit how we create ignorance according to the Prasangika Madhyamaka school. That ignorance is the creator of all our suffering, it is the creator of our death, which we don’t like even to hear about. We don’t want to talk about or think about it. It’s where death, rebirth and old age come from, as well as all 424 sicknesses, all the curable and incurable diseases including cancer. That ignorance is where all the global problems come from, and the problems of every individual person in the six realms, including all the relationship problems. Now that you have gone through the sufferings of the six realms, with the sufferings of each realm and the general sufferings of samsara, it’s easy to get the idea.

Where all this comes from is our mind, from this ignorance, this unknowing mind. Including diabetes. I have diabetes so I must remember that this is where it comes from! It is the very root where all the problems of tsunamis and earthquakes come from. Those huge waves that wash away hotels and whole towns or cities, killing so many people. It is very interesting that the animals, the elephants or those cows, ran away to the mountains before the earthquake happened, whereas many people died. Just before this happened, they ran away to the mountains and the people didn’t understand, otherwise they would have run away too. The other day, this happened in Indonesia or Thailand or somewhere; a little bit before it happened, the animals ran away to the mountains.

What is the very root where all these problems come from? They all come from this root, from the ignorance holding the I and aggregates as truly existent. In other words, because we trust them, we hold onto them as truly existent. It is this ignorance that has that apprehension.

How do we create this ignorance, this root of samsara? First, there is the mind seeing the base, the aggregates—the body walking or sitting, the mind meditating or thinking of food! You have taken the eight Mahayana precepts, so you might be hungry! So, you are thinking of food or whatever. Depending on what the aggregates are doing, the mind focuses on the aggregates, which is the base to be labeled “I.” The mind that is focused on the aggregates, that same thought then makes up the label “I,” thinking up the name, just making up the label “I” and believing in that.

So first, the mind focuses on the aggregates, the base, and whatever activity it is doing. Then, it makes up the label “I” and believes in that. It makes up the name “I” and believes in that. The next second, as soon as that is done, the I that has received the label appears back. Now, here is the problem! When it appears back, it doesn’t appear back as merely labeled by mind, which is the reality, which is true. When it appears back, it appears back as totally false, as not merely labeled by the mind. That means it appears back as existing from its own side, it appears back as something additional, something beyond what is merely labeled by mind, as existing from its own side. When it appears back to the mind, it appears as existing from its own side.

The way the I appears back is false. The definition of false is that which is contradictory to how it exists in reality. The reality is the I has been merely imputed by the mind just now, just the moment before, therefore it exists in mere name, therefore it is totally empty of existing from its own side. The moment before it appeared back as not merely imputed by the mind, it was just that, merely imputed, merely named by the mind.

What I, the self, is, is nothing except what is merely imputed by the mind. Without needing to explain it separately, being merely imputed by the mind means it is empty of existing from its own side. The I exists. It exists depending on the base. It exists in relation to the aggregates—the base—and the thought that labels the “I.” Depending on those two, it exists, therefore it exists in mere name. That means it exists, but it is empty. It is empty but it is not totally nonexistent. It exists in mere name, merely imputed by mind; it is empty of existing from its own side; it is empty of being not merely labeled by mind.

THE CHILD BEFORE IT IS NAMED

Another very brief meditation on emptiness that I normally mention is to consider a child before it is conceived. Say, the parents discuss what name they are going to give their child, going through a whole big book with lists of names!  They decide on “John,” but the child is not conceived yet. There are no aggregates actualized yet, so at that time John doesn’t exist.

In another way, perhaps the child has been conceived—there are aggregates, the baby is there—but the parents haven’t yet labeled it “John.” At that time, John doesn’t exist.

When there were no aggregates, when the baby’s aggregates were not actualized, but the parents have already decided on the name “John,” at that time, John doesn’t exist. And when the baby is born but parents haven’t yet labeled it “John,” also at that time, John doesn’t exist.

So, when does John come into existence? There is a base, a collection of the five aggregates, and then the parents label that collection “John.” The mind has simply made up the label “John.” They agreed; they didn’t fight over the name “John.” Their minds simply made up the label, “John” and believed in that. Only at that time, when the base is there, the mind has labeled “John” and then believed that, only at that time did John come into existence.

Now here you can see, what is John? What is it? Nothing except what is merely imputed by the mind. John is nothing except what is merely imputed by the mind.

What comes after that? What comes right after that moment where there is a concept believing this is truly existent, holding onto that as existing from its own side? We need to check. Sometimes, we might give the label but might not immediately hold onto that as truly existent. We give the name but—right at that second—we don’t have that appearance that holds onto it as truly existent. Sometimes, if we analyze, according to our own experience, this can happen. But eventually it happens, after we believe, then John appears as truly existent.

Here I am talking of something very subtle, of a question of seconds. Eventually, until we become enlightened, that wrong false view happens for us sentient beings, except for arya beings who have direct perception of emptiness in equipoise meditation. During that time, the arya beings do not have this false view, this hallucination. Otherwise, until we achieve enlightenment, until we remove this subtle negative imprint, we project the concept of true existence onto everything, from hell up to enlightenment, everything: I, action, object, all phenomena, all the objects of the six senses. Generally speaking, after the mere imputation, we believe in that, then everything appears back as truly existent, as not merely labeled by mind, as existing from its own side. That is the hallucination all of us sentient beings have, except when we directly perceive emptiness in equipoise meditation. At that time that doesn’t happen, but when we arise from that meditation, because it is latent, the hallucination happens again. This includes compassion, bodhicitta, even these thoughts have this hallucination of things appearing as truly existent. That doesn’t mean, however, it pervades the entire mind. It doesn’t mean that.

Anyway, [we then believe that] the real John exists from its own side, that it never came from our mind, it was never labeled by our mind, that it is truly existent from its own side.

As I mentioned, there are so many levels of wrong views, the object to be refuted, from the Vaibhashika school, where the object to be refuted is that which is permanent and existing alone or existing independently, up to the very subtle object to be refuted, of the Prasangika school view. All the piles of hallucinations are there, all the false Is, from the very gross level then subtler and subtler, and so on.

Now the question is, there are all these piles of hallucinations, so what is that view, which one? That can be checked, analyzed.

In our view and in the view of the parents the real John exists, not merely labeled by the mind. It exists from its own side; it is there. It appears, we believe it is true, and then we entrust.

I used the word “entrust” when I was translating the Three Principal Aspects of the Path with Jon Landaw, who has great knowledge of English. His [knowledge] is the best for revising the Dharma, when I was translating this with him. I had been using “entrust” because it is a bit like a friend we trust so much who then completely cheats us. It’s exactly the same here with ignorance—not somebody else’s ignorance but our ignorance, how we wholly entrust this false I. So, from the dictionary I had been using that word “entrust” as in entrust to a good friend, but actually it has a different meaning. He said it should just be “trust.” I think there’s a section on emptiness, just a few stanzas, and I think that was wrong, that it had a different meaning. So, it is “trust.”

So, we totally trust the I, action, the object, the senses and their objects and everything, and we create our entire false world, including the false I, the false action, the false form, sound, smell, taste, tangible object, whatever—everything is totally contradictory to the reality, to the way it exists. This world is totally the opposite; we think everything is existing from its own side, by its nature, not merely labeled by the mind. Everything is like that twenty-four hours a day, from morning until nighttime, from birth until death, from beginningless rebirths until we achieve enlightenment, except when we are an arya being directly perceiving emptiness in equipoise meditation. Besides that, everything else is a false view, a hallucination.

Of course, that doesn’t mean that until we achieve enlightenment we hold on to that as true. I’m not saying that, but [until then] there is the hallucination.

Letting our mind totally trust that as true, that is the root mistake in our mind. That is why we are not liberated from suffering, why we are born with suffering, why we still have a negative emotional mind, why we still have a suffering body and mind. The whole thing is because of that root mistake, we allow our mind to trust everything as true, from beginningless rebirths. Because of that we did not completely eliminate the root of samsara, ignorance. When we let our mind trust all this as true, hold onto all this as truly existent as it appears, that is creating ignorance, the basis of delusion.

That’s why we still have not yet achieved ultimate happiness, liberation from samsara, leaving aside enlightenment, great liberation, and, because of that, we are unable to liberate the others from the oceans of samsaric suffering.

So, the parents and people believe there is a real John, real in the sense of existing from its own side, not merely labeled by mind. They totally trust in that.

Now, what I am saying here, we go back to the original, when the name “John” is merely imputed, relating to the parents. The very first time it is merely imputed. The reality is that because “John” is merely imputed by mind, there is no such thing as John existing not merely labeled by mind, existing from its own side or by its nature, or truly existent. There is no real John in the sense of not merely labeled by mind, existing from its own side. That John is totally nonexistent, right there. That is totally empty right there.

That doesn’t mean John is nonexistent. John exists, but John exists in mere name, merely imputed by mind. The way John exists is so subtle. He exists but it is unbelievably subtle; what John is, is unbelievably subtle. The border line between John existing and not existing is extremely fine, extremely subtle. It is not completely nonexistent; it exists but it is so extremely subtle.

Because of the unbelievably subtle way that John exists, many great meditators have made many mistakes. It is very easy to slip into either eternalism or nihilism. It is extremely difficult to see the middle way, to realize the middle way of how John exists, devoid of two extremes: eternalism, existing from its own side, and nihilism, being nonexistent. While it exists, it is totally empty of existing from its own side; while it is totally empty, it exists in mere name, merely imputed by mind.

What I am saying is that this is the reality. But sooner or later we have this real John appearing to exist from its own side and we hold onto that as true, trusting in that. Now you can compare what comes later, all these hallucinations and beliefs, these are all totally wrong. What we believe in is a hallucination, a wrong concept.

That is one example. It is a very simple meditation on emptiness, without going through so many logical reasonings. I am using that as an example to understand the I, the self.

Maybe we’ll stop here and have some chai.

[Rinpoche and chant prayers]

THE TWENTY-ONE TARAS PRAISES FOR SUCCESS

Yesterday we recited the protector prayers, but at the end we didn’t succeed, it got lost. The Hayagriva prayer became endless. So today, we will pray for the success of each of your own practices, to develop the mind in the path, and for the success of all His Holiness’s holy wishes and all the projects of the organization. Such as building holy objects in different parts of the world, which is the quickest way to purify human beings’ defilements and negative karma and the quickest way to cause them to collect extensive merit and to cause them to actualize the path and bring them to enlightenment. This is the easiest way to cause sentient beings to create the cause of happiness and then after some time meet the Dharma, and then actualize the path, ceasing defilements and achieving liberation and enlightenment.

And [we pray to] offer service to the Sangha, the major monasteries, particularly those in Lama Tsongkhapa’s tradition, and to preserve the Dharma and spread the Dharma in this world—the Dharma that is the source of happiness of all sentient beings—to preserve and spread it, as well as to build monasteries and nunneries in different parts of the world to preserve and spread the Dharma amongst sentient beings, giving sentient beings opportunities to live in the Dharma, to take vows and so forth.

There are so many various social services, including many hospices helping the dying, and hospitals and schools, and especially Universal Education, those projects to help the young. And projects like giving food and shelter and so forth, especially in Mongolia and different places. Then, publishing Dharma books to spread the Dharma all over the world. Things like that.

Since everybody cannot become Buddhist, everybody cannot become Muslim, everybody cannot become Hindu or Christian, there has to be some other way to help mankind, to help people in this word generate all the good qualities, developing wisdom and compassion, transforming their mind into a good heart, going from the selfish mind to one cherishing others, and transforming their mind from attachment into having satisfaction, contentment and those many positive thoughts for a healthy mind. That is the way to bring peace in the world.

In a global way of thinking, that also becomes an antidote to war and disease, to torture, poverty, sicknesses and the dangers of fire, water, earthquakes and all the problems caused by nonliving things, those dangers sentient beings experience that come from negative karma, through actions done with the self-cherishing thought, with ignorance, anger and attachment.

Therefore, we have universal education to help people transform and have positive minds, for people to live in virtue, to abandon following the negative mind as much as possible. When the motivation doesn’t become negative karma, they engage in positive, pure actions that are the cause of happiness and success. That brings peace and happiness in the individual’s life, in the family, in society, in the country and in the world.

There are other ways to help people, not only through lamrim teachings, through straight Buddhism. There are one hundred and forty to fifty FPMT centers, mostly meditation centers, but also various projects such as social services, helping people in various ways. Each of them has their own many projects, social services and Dharma courses and so many ways to help others, such as building holy objects and giving teachings. Each center in the world has many ways to help others.

So, for all these to succeed and for their wishes to be fulfilled, with all the funding and people to help and whatever is needed, today we are going to recite the Praises to the Twenty-one Taras, for their success.

[Rinpoche and the students recite the Praises to the Twenty-one Taras]

THE MIND DECORATES TRUE EXISTENCE

What I was saying before, coming back to how we create the root of samsara, I started this way, with the thought that focuses on the aggregates, which are the base to be labeled “I.”  That thought makes up the label “I” and then believes in it. Then, for us sentient beings, right after that second, the I which is labeled appears back not merely labeled by the mind. That which was merely labeled just before now appears back as not merely labeled by the mind—totally the opposite to reality.

The same continuity of mind which the moment before labeled the I, in the very next second holds onto it as true, trusting it. It appears as truly existent, as not merely labeled by the mind, as existing from its own side, as something real, as true, and we let our mind hold onto that as true.

At that time, we create the root of samsara, the self-grasping of the person. We created that concept, the ignorance thinking that it is independent, that it exists from its own side. We created the ignorance; we created the root of samsara, the root of all the sufferings. Not having realized that the labeled I appears as a real one, as existing from its own side, not having realized that it is empty, we hold onto it as true. We have not realized that the I is a dependent arising, dependent on aggregates and name, on the thought labeling and the label. Not having realized that the I is a dependent arising, not having meditated on that, not having looked into its nature, we let our mind hold onto it as true, and we trust in it as true. That becomes ignorance, the root of samsara.

Right after the mind merely imputes the I, why does it appear back as not merely labeled by the mind? Why does it appear back totally contradictory to reality, to the reality that it is empty of existing from its own side, of existing in mere name?

Right after the mere imputation, the mind merely imputing I, there is a negative imprint left on the mental continuum by past ignorance, by the concept of true existence, which immediately decorates true existence onto the object, making us see it as something real, as not merely labeled by the mind. This hallucination is projected on the mere imputation, on the merely labeled I. Right after that, it projects the hallucination of truly existent appearance.

Just to make it clear: the body is sitting there, and the mind seeing the aggregates makes up the label “I.”  Somebody asks, “What you are doing?” The mind, seeing the aggregate, the body, doing the action of sitting, makes up the label “I” and the label of the action of that I, “sitting,” and it believes in that. When the body, the aggregates, stand, at that time the mind sees the aggregates, the body, standing and merely imputes “I” and merely imputes the action, making up the labels “I” and “standing.’ When the aggregates, the body, is walking, the mind merely labels the “I” and merely labels the action of “walking,” making up the labels “I” and “walking.” When the body lies down on the bed, the mind sees that aggregate, the body, doing the action of lying down on the bed and merely imputes the label “I” and merely imputes the action, “lying down.” And then the mind believes in that. It merely imputes all this and then believes in that.

So, in every twenty-four hours, what the mind does, what the body does, what the speech does—the mind sees the aggregates doing those different activities and is constantly labeling the I and constantly labeling the action of the I and it believes in that label. Every twenty-four hours it is like that. That is the reality. If the mind is happy, then the mind sees the aggregate of mind is happy and merely labels the “I” and merely labels the experience “happy” and it believes in that. If the mind is angry, the mind that sees the mind aggregate angry merely labels the “I,” and merely labels the experience of anger as “I am angry.” It’s like that for twenty-four hours a day. The mind is like that, continuously making up the label “I” and the label of the action or experience, and believing in that, what activity it does, what experience it has.

ONE THING, DIFFERENT FUNCTIONS, DIFFERENT LABELS

I am not sure, but I hope this might help. There is a room. We set up an altar, putting a statue there and so forth. So, it’s a shrine room, and we label it “shrine room.” Now we take this out and put all the kitchen things inside, the stove and cupboards and so forth. Now, the mind, seeing this, makes up the label “kitchen” and believes in that. Now, we take all that out and put in a desk, a table, books, computers—all the office stuff— and then by seeing all these things, the mind makes up the label “office” and believes in that.

Like that one room, the same one person [can be seen as different things.] They can be a son or daughter relating to the parents. Relating to their parents, they are the daughter or son. The parents merely impute “daughter” or “son” on the child and they believe in that. Then, they have grandchildren. To their children, they are father and mother but to their parents, they are daughter or son. In the same way, their children will have children. When that happens, when they have children, again the mind will merely impute “grandchildren” and believe in that.

Depending on what activities a person does, the mind sees that and makes up the label “soldier” or “secretary,” “president,” “director.” All this could be one person but with many different activities. Seeing what this person does in their life, the mind makes up all the different labels and believes in that. The mind just thinks of the label and believes in that, depending on what activities the person does.

With flour, we put flour through a machine with a long handle, and when it comes out long and thin, we make up the label “noodle” and believe in that. We now mix together the flour (that was noodles before), shaping it in a round shape and baking it, and when it is ready we label it “bread” and believe in that. Or we mix it with other wonderful stuff and bake it and then we label it “cake” and believe in that.

That is just to give an idea. You can create many more examples of one thing that changes shape, and every time we make up a different label and believe in that.

So here, what I am saying is that it exists. Whatever we label, it exists, it is there. Where is it? It is there, it is there where there is a base. But it is merely labeled, and as merely labeled we believe in it.

If we look for it on the base, where is it? We can’t find it. We call it “noodle” but actually where is the noodle? When we look for it, we can’t find it. When we don’t analyze it, it looks like it’s there, but if we analyze it, we won’t find it on the base. What exists is what is merely labeled by the mind. That exists, but even that, when we look, where is it?

Does the merely labeled “noodle” cover everything? From the bottom to the top? Then, there would be so many noodles, however many parts there are, however many atoms it has. If the merely labeled noodle covers everything, there will be numberless noodles of that. If we think the merely labeled noodle is there on the base, does it cover everything? Does the merely labeled noodle cover everywhere, on every atom. Then there would be numberless noodles there. And the same, if we have one rupee, there would be so many atoms there, there would be numberless merely labeled rupees.

That should be meditated on and analyzed. Even the merely labeled noodles, even that, we must analyze, we must check. You see, the noodle that appears to us as not merely labeled by the mind and that we believe is true, of course we can’t find it existing either on the base or anywhere else in the world. We believe we have been eating real noodles our whole life, but in reality we have never eaten real noodles, real noodles existing from their own side. They don’t exist, they have never existed. Since the world began, a not merely labeled noodle has never existed. Not only in this life but forever we have never had real noodles!

We should meditate, analyze and discuss this. We should especially discuss the merely labeled noodle, whether we can find the merely labeled noodle on the base, even on that valid base. Like the table. The merely labeled table is on the base, but we cannot find it. If it is on the base, does it cover every atom of the table? Then, there will be numberless tables, you see. I am just saying, we should analyze.

Is there one merely labeled table or are there many merely labeled tables? If the merely labeled table covers the legs, the top and every part, there would be many, there would be numberless. Anyway, just analyze.

When the parts of the pieces of the table are put together, it can function. We can put things on top. Whether it’s square or round, the mind that sees that thing doing that function makes up the label “table.” Now, we can change the table, using the pieces of wood to make a chair, like how with dough we can made different things. Now, we change the table, cutting the wood to make a chair to sit on. It’s the same wood but a different shape, a different function. Now the mind seeing that makes up the merely labeled “chair.” Then, we can use the same wood again but to make different things doing different functions. Then mind seeing that makes up different labels.

What I am saying, when we don’t analyze, if we watch our view, it is there. Noodles are there, real noodles on that base, a real table on this base, a real I on the aggregates.

AN A DOES NOT APPEAR UNTIL WE ARE TAUGHT IT

After we write down A, B, C, D, E, F, G, we draw this line like this, then that line, then this one. When we don’t know, when we are not taught by somebody that this is A, at that time we see these lines, which is the base to be labeled “A.” We see the base, these lines, but at that time, because we haven’t been taught by somebody that this is A, our mind hasn’t labeled this is an A. That’s clear? Our mind hasn’t labeled this is an A and, because of that, there is no appearance that this is A. Because we don’t have the appearance that this is an A, we don’t see that this is an A. Not at that time, before somebody has shown us that this is an A. When somebody educates us, introducing us to this as an A, then our mind follows that and we believe that. We then label relating to that, that this is an A. Following the other person’s label introduced to us, our mind labels “A” and we believe in that. After that, we have the appearance that this is an A, we see that this is an A. Within those seconds, there is a whole evolution we are not aware of that takes place up to us seeing that this is an A.

Basically, we are educated, we are introduced by somebody, that this is an A, then the mind sees this base and merely imputes the label “A” and believes in that.

Now, the next thing, on that design, we see a real A. What is the meaning of “real”?  When we talk in daily life about “real,” we normally don’t use any philosophical terms from the scriptures, such as existing from its own side or by nature or truly existent. We don’t use that. But in ordinary language, this is what describes the object to be refuted, gag cha. In ordinary terms it is real, so a real A is that which is not merely labeled by the mind, which exists from its own side, appearing from there. That is because of the negative imprint left on the mental continuum by the past ignorance, the concept of true existence, that comes right after the mere imputation of “A.” Right after that, the imprint projects, decorates, the hallucination of true existence.

So, now we have the appearance of the real A from there, the hallucination, falsely projected there by our ignorance. Then, not having realized that the A is empty, not meditating that the A is dependent arising, merely imputed by mind, we allow our mind to hold onto that as true. With that we create the concept of true existence, that ignorance. Like that, from A down to Z, we can write down every letter, as we are instructed by someone, showing us that drawing like this means this, drawing like that means that. In that way, we are educated in the names, the labels.

OUR REAL LIFE IS NOT THERE

In some ways, when we are in university, in college or at school, when we are learning, we are learning labels. The whole of education is learning the labels. Somebody introduces us to a label, and we learn all those labels and we believe in this. The whole of university or college is like that. Somebody introduces us to a label, we learn the labels and we do the examination! The examination is on how much we can remember the labels. Then, we get the degree, the merely labeled degree that appears as the real degree!

What I am saying is, in reality it is not there. The real degree is not there. If we look for it, we can’t find it. It’s not there; it’s totally empty, it’s totally empty there. From A to Z, the real A to the real Z, all this appears from there, but it is all totally empty there. That is the reality.

After the mere imputation, what makes us believe there is a real one appearing from there? What makes us have that appearance? Our ignorance.

As I mentioned, that example is similar to the I. In daily life, there is the I, action, object. Again, the real I is projected, then the real action of eating real food, not merely labeled by mind, from there. The real I is empty, the real action appearing from there is empty, the real food appearing from there is empty, the real action of walking is empty, the real road appearing from there is empty. We walk on the real road—not railroad—which appears truly existent, but the real road is not there; it is empty.

The real I appearing from there is not there. The real car appearing from there is not there. The real driving appearing from there is not there. The real office appearing from there is not there. The real job appearing from there is not there. We earn real money but real money appearing from there is totally nonexistent; it is not there. Then we do real shopping, which is not there; it is empty. The real shop that appears from there is not there. The real shopkeeper who appears from there is not there. Real goods, whatever we are buying, appear as real ones but they are not there.

If we analyze it, it is like that. That is the reality of life. But what appears to us and what we believe, that is totally something else.

The whole story, the real life, is a total hallucination. We get married and the real marriage is not there! The real husband is not there, the real wife is not there, the real children are not there. They’ve all disappeared! They are projected by our ignorance. All this is made up as real by our ignorance, everything. Nothing is there. Then, divorce! The real divorce is not there. That person left us! This separation is something real. But it’s not there. There is no such real separation, existing from its own side. It is just a projection of our ignorance, projected or made up by the mind.

There are all these worries, fear and anger because that person left us. There has been that real separation, but in reality there is no such thing. We get angry, we are hurt, we hold a grudge—not the garage! Not where we keep the car! A grudge. We hold the grudge in our heart for years. The pain in our heart doesn’t go away for years. Because our ignorance has projected a real separation, because the whole situation has been made real by our ignorance and we believe in the projection as true, we are angry and depressed and hurt for years and years.

We go to see billions of psychologists, but it’s for something that our mind made up. The anger and the pain have come from our own mind because our ignorance has projected all this as real and we have held onto it as true, this real separation, this real problem, bringing us depression and anger.

So, you can see. Who is the creator? It’s our mind. Who is the creator of our anger and our pain? All the pain! You can see now very clearly. It all comes from us; it all comes from our ignorance. That is the root; it comes from that. The whole thing has been created by us, by our mind. But once we realize it is empty, even just meditating on emptiness, it helps cut the attachment, it helps cut all the years of pain, all the grudges.

There is a Tibetan saying: “You are your own guide and you are also your own enemy.”

THE FOUR VITAL POINTS

Sorry, my talk went on and on and on. We were supposed to recite one stanza and then meditate on it, but it became a whole commentary on the first line, kar ma rab rib … [A star, a defective view, a butter lamp flame].

A star, a defective view, a butter lamp flame,
An illusion, a dew drop, a water bubble,
A dream, lightning, a cloud:
See all causative phenomena like this.

Everything I said was a commentary of the first line. Then …mar me dang / gyu ma zil pa chhu bur dang / mi lam log dang trin ta bur …

…a butter lamp flame,
An illusion, a dew drop, a water bubble,
A dream, lightning, a cloud …

A dream … So many of these are talking about emptiness and introducing the object to be refuted, according to the subtlest view, Prasangika. Many of these terms refer to that. Some are about impermanence. This is a very important subject to really destroy the delusions, the wrong concepts. We destroy that by thinking about the reality, which is opposite to the delusions.

I made one mistake before. When I was describing the object “without depending on the parts, existing alone.” For example, the I exists depending on causes and conditions. It exists, but it is empty of independence, existing by its own power. Because the I exists depending on causes and conditions, the I is empty of independence, existing under its own power, with its own freedom.

Then the next one is self-sufficiency. The I exists by depending on the aggregates and on the continuation of the aggregates, therefore the I is empty of self-sufficiency. For example, when we think of a king or a president, that wrong view is to think the king exists without depending on the population. The king exists by depending on the population. But there is a wrong view or wrong concept of existing with its own freedom, of having self-sufficiency. That is an example we can relate to the I.

I think I’d better do the lung and then finish. The lung [oral transmission] or the rlung [wind disease].

When the I appeared, after the mere imputation, there is a projection on that from the ignorance leaving a negative imprint on the mind, the projection of truly existent, existing from its side, or by its nature or not merely labeled by mind. Then, we let the mind hold onto that as true and we trust in that. At that time, we create the ignorance and that wrong concept, because there is no such thing; such an object doesn’t exist. The object we apprehend—that I—doesn’t exist in the way that ignorance apprehends it. Therefore, it is a wrong concept.

By looking at that object as empty, by recognizing that [wrong concept] as the object to be refuted, the object of ignorance, we then meditate with reasonings, analyzing whether that exists or not, using the king of logic, dependent arising, or the four analyses, the analysis of the four vital points, which is usually explained in the lamrim. There are so many other ways to meditate on emptiness but in the lamrim the normal one is meditating on the analysis of the four vital points.

First is recognizing the object to be refuted, which is the object of ignorance. Then generally, for any phenomenon to exist, it has to be either one with the aggregates or it exists separately from the aggregates. We discover this real I as the object of ignorance, then, with the second vital point, we analyze whether it is one with them or separate. In Tibetan, the term sometimes sounds like “one or many.” Anything that exists has to be one with the aggregates or to exist separately. That is the second vital point of analysis.

Then, with the third point, after discovering the real I is not one with the aggregates, we analyze whether it exists separately. Whenever we talk about the I, it is always in relation to the aggregates—what the body does, what the speech does, what the mind does, relating it to the aggregates, what function it does. We always relate what the I is doing like this. That is the reality. There is no I that exists and functions without depending on the aggregates.

Even in the formless realm, where there is no body, there is still the aggregate of consciousness. Even though there is no body, there is consciousness. So, the I exists because there is the aggregate of consciousness. The I is labeled because there are aggregates. There is always the continuity of mind; the continuity of mind has no beginning and no end. Therefore, there are always aggregates; the aggregates never cease. Even though those other schools like Vaibhashika and Sautrantika believe in the cessation of the aggregates, in reality there is no cessation of the aggregates. The consciousness, the continuity of the mind, never ceases; it is always there. Even when we achieve enlightenment, there is always continuity of the mind, forever. Therefore, the I, that which is merely labeled related to that, always exists.

So, there is no danger of the I becoming nonexistent; there is no danger of that. We don’t have to worry about the I becoming nonexistent. We can relax. That is impossible. Even if when we meditate on emptiness, we might feel like that, in reality the I ceasing, becoming nonexistent, is impossible because there are always aggregates. Even if there is no body, there is consciousness all the time, so we don’t have to worry about that.

We should know that when we meditate on emptiness and get the experience, that I becomes totally lost. That I that we have been cherishing so much, holding on to as something real—not only from birth, but from beginningless rebirths—we now see it as totally empty. Only now, we discover it doesn’t exist! There is nothing to hold on to, it doesn’t exist, it’s not there! It didn’t go to Tibet or to the United States or to Africa or Iraq or somewhere, not through the door or the window. What we have been trusting, holding onto a hundred percent, we realize is totally nonexistent. The I is totally lost. This experience can happen.

THE SUBTLETY OF HOW THINGS EXIST

We must go through this experience; we must complete it. We mustn’t stop because of the fear of losing the I. If we are not introduced beforehand to what is going to happen when we realize emptiness, we can be confused, not knowing what is happening when we actually experience it. We are having great success, we are just about to realize emptiness and we become unbelievably scared, so confused. We don’t know what is happening and we think we are falling into nihilism. We are so worried about that it makes us stop the meditation and lose this one chance we had for liberation. You see, from there, by realizing emptiness, we go to liberation after we have the experience that the I is totally empty, nonexistent. That is the cause and the result is we realize conventional truth. We realize absolute truth and after that, as a result, we realize conventional truth. There is an I. The I is not nonexistent; it exists, but it exists in mere name, merely imputed by the mind.

As I mentioned when we talked about John, there is something unbelievably fine, subtle. John doesn’t not exist, but how John exists is unbelievably fine, extremely subtle. What I mentioned before was this. There is no I from the aggregates but there is an I on the aggregates, but this is something very strong. Now here, we can have an experience that is much finer, our understanding of the way the I exists is much finer, subtler. That was still gross, so now we can have an extremely subtle experience, but it is still not nonexistent.

Compared with holding the real I, it is like it is nonexistent but it is not nonexistent. It is so extremely fine, so subtle, that it is like it is nonexistent.

We must know that because the continuity of the consciousness is always there, the merely labeled I is always there, the self is always there. We must go through the fear; we must complete the experience. We must cross the river and go through that complete experience. Otherwise, we block this incredible opportunity, and we won’t have this experience for years. We will be unable to come back. After we have had this realization, we will have definite faith that we can achieve liberation.

Then, through this development, the wisdom realizing emptiness, we achieve shamatha, calm abiding, unified with that. We achieve great insight. That is the preparation. Then we achieve the direct perception of emptiness, the arya path, and then we directly cease the gross defilements, the disturbing-thought obscurations. Then, if we have the realization of bodhicitta, which collects unbelievable merit, skies of merit, with the wisdom directly perceiving emptiness we are able to cease even the subtle defilements. So, we need a lot of merit, which we achieve with bodhicitta. We need bodhicitta.

That is how we are able to achieve full enlightenment. Then, we achieve our ultimate goal, to liberate numberless sentient beings from the oceans of samsaric suffering and bring them to enlightenment.

THE ORAL TRANSMISSION OF THE LAMA TSONGKHAPA GURU YOGA

Think, “I am going to take the oral transmission of the Lama Tsongkhapa Guru Yoga, to achieve enlightenment for the benefit of all my kind mother sentient beings.” OK?

[Rinpoche and students recite the refuge prayer]

Refuge and bodhicitta, now before the oral transmission, the four immeasurables.

[Rinpoche and students recite the prayers]

If you concentrate on these words, with the bodhicitta attitude to benefit all sentient beings, you collect limitless skies of merit. Listening with bodhicitta, each word that you hear leaves a positive imprint on your mental continuum; each word that you listen to definitely brings you to enlightenment. You get skies of benefit from each word of a Dharma teaching, even an oral transmission. First, you understand and then you actualize the meaning, the path, within you. And that ceases all the oceans of samsaric suffering. Each word you listen to has that power, even an oral transmission, so it is extremely precious.

[Rinpoche give the oral transmission]

Some lamas recite Päl dän tsa wäi la ma rin po chhe [Request to Abide at the Heart], the guru descending from the crown to the throat and the heart, but His Holiness Zong Rinpoche used to scold, saying “Oh, please don’t come immediately into my heart. First stay on my head!” Rinpoche used to scold like that. According to Rinpoche, you do everything in the heart.

[Rinpoche give the oral transmission]

DEDICATIONS

Now we do the dedications together.

“Due to all the three-time merits collected by me and others, may I and all my family members, all the students here and all the rest of the students and the supporters of this organization, those who give up their lives to the organization doing service for sentient beings, and all those whose names I promised to pray for, and all sentient beings, may Lama Tsongkhapa be the direct guru in all their lifetimes. May we never be separated from the pure path highly admired by all the victorious ones, the buddhas, for even a second.”

We not only pray that for ourselves, but we include all sentient beings. Whenever we do dedications we should include all sentient beings, then that becomes the bodhisattvas’ deeds and practice. Whatever practice we do, we dedicate to all sentient beings, making it much more meaningful. It becomes useful for the happiness of all sentient beings.

[Rinpoche chants]

According to His Holiness Zong Rinpoche, after this dedication is done, we are able to live in pure morality and to extensively listen to the Buddhadharma and train the mind in bodhicitta, learning how to live in pure view and conduct and to spread and preserve Lama Tsongkhapa’s teachings without corruption.

[Rinpoche chants]

So, we dedicate all our merits and the merits collected by others. We put them altogether and dedicate: “May I able to offer limitless skies of benefit to sentient beings and the teachings of Buddha in all the lifetimes. In every second may I be like Lama Tsongkhapa by having the same qualities within myself as Lama Tsongkhapa has. From now on, in every second in all the lifetimes, may I be like Lama Tsongkhapa.”

Then, particularly dedicate again for bodhicitta. “May bodhicitta arise in my heart, in the hearts of my family members, in the hearts of all sentient beings, in the hearts of all the leaders of the world and in the hearts of all those who are called terrorists. Whether they are called terrorist or not, all those who have thoughts to harm the world, may bodhicitta especially be generated in all their hearts without delay of a second.” That one is the most urgent prayer.

[Rinpoche chants]

As I mentioned yesterday, every single word of the Buddhadharma that we learn every day is most precious; it is wish-fulfilling. Every purification we are able to do every day here, during this course, every single merit we collect today, is the cause of enlightenment, the cause of liberation from samsara and the cause of happiness in all future lives, including the happiness of this life. All this is by the kindness of His Holiness Dalai Lama, the Compassion Buddha, the one object of refuge for all of us sentient beings and the source, the originator of all sentient beings’ happiness. So, we dedicate for His Holiness’ long life and that all his holy wishes succeed immediately.

[Rinpoche chants]

Please dedicate all the merits for the quickest possible success for the building of the five-hundred-foot Maitreya statue and for all the Maitreya statues and all the holy objects, for the Sangha serving in the monasteries, for all those who wish to become monks and nuns, for all the various social services in the different parts of the world and for every center to be most beneficial for all sentient beings, to generate faith in refuge and karma, to actualize bodhicitta in all their hearts, and to spread Lama Tsongkhapa’s teachings in the hearts of all the sentient beings. And may whatever project each center has be actualized by receiving all the needs, people’s help or whatever.

Now a very important dedication, my hobby. “Due to all the past, present and future merits collected by me and three-time merits collected by others, which exist but which are empty, may the I, who exists but who is empty, achieve Guru Shakyamuni Buddha’s enlightenment, which exists but which is empty, and lead all the sentient beings, who exist but who are empty, to Guru Shakyamuni Buddha’s enlightenment, which exists but which is empty, by myself alone, who exists but who is totally empty—or who is the only phenomenon that is truly existent!

“I dedicate all the merits to be able to follow holy extensive deeds, just as Buddha Samantabhadra and Manjugosha realized. I dedicate all the merits in the same way as the three-time buddhas dedicate their merits. And due to the three-time merits collected by me and others, may Lama Tsongkhapa’s teachings spread in all the directions. May they flourish forever in this world by completely actualizing them within my own heart, in the hearts of all my family members and of every one of us here, and in the hearts of all the rest of the students and the supporters, those who give up their life for this organization doing service to other sentient beings, and then in the hearts of everyone in this world in this very lifetime.

[Rinpoche chants]

So, sorry! My bad habit is talking on and on and on and never finishing. Thank you. Once I am here it’s like this. I destroy your entire program, especially with no sleep! So, thanks so much. Good night.