..."When did you see me stealing", that time you don't point out your fingers to the toes. "When did I come to your house, when did I steal your ice-cream", usually we point out at the chest, specially when you are angry you hit the palm at the chest, like this. It is to do with the conception, the outside physical action is related to inside the mind, the conception.
However, this "I" which appears as if it is real or solidity, as if it exists from its own side, completely clinging on that, believing that this is completely true. This ignorance, even now we are clinging on that, this appearance of this "I", this truly existent I, we are clinging that this is completely true. This ignorance which clings that simultaneously born ignorance. Not intellectual belief caused by the wrong philosophy or doctrine which says I and existence are truly existent, exist from their own side.
Without the mind being caused to believe by the philosophy, the wrong philosophy causing you to have the acceptance, the mind believes, verbally you accept that this "I" exists from its own side, without depending on the intellectual belief which is caused by wrong philosophy doctrine, even now we are clinging that this "I", this present appearance of I is completely true. That is the simultaneously born ignorance.
When oneself was born in the mother's womb, when the consciousness took place on the fertilized egg, even from that very first second, even that time the previous continuation of this simultaneously born ignorance this life begins from that. Even in the mother's womb one was born with it. Another way of saying, making it simple, one was born with this simultaneously born ignorance, clinging the "I" which appears as truly existent, clinging that is true. One was born with it even in the mother's womb. The reason why we have this now, why we have this ignorance clinging the "I" as truly existent, that is because we are born with it.
Similar, why we have anger. Similar answer, why we have anger, attachment now, why we have these unsubdued minds is because when we were born in the mother's womb even that time we were born with the impression, the seed of those. We were born with it. Why we were born with this ignorance, simultaneously born ignorance clinging to the "I" as truly existent, even as a child, even in the mother's womb, even at birth-time, why we were born with it that is because in the past life we were not free, we were not liberated from these unsubdued minds, the true cause of suffering, we were not liberated from those by generating the remedy, in our mind. Why we were born with this unsubdued mind, this ignorance clinging to the truly existent I, cherishing the "I" so much, that is because there was continuation of that just before the consciousness took place on the fertilized egg, there was the continuation of this unsubdued mind from the past life.
So that past life's unsubdued mind, the root of suffering, the ignorance of truly existent I, continued from other past lives. So that life, the unsubdued mind continued from other past lives. So like this, as the continuity of the consciousness has no beginning, similar the ignorance, the root, the very root of all the sufferings, the ignorance clinging the truly existent I, the continuation of that didn't have beginning. Because that didn't have beginning, so the continuation of our suffering didn't have beginning. So the confusion of our life what we experience, this what we experience in this life with a human body, it is not the first time. A lot of up and down, depression, aggression, all these things, this is not the first time. Even we live in the West, wherever we live, whatever problem that we experience, with the relationship problems, all these things, it is not the first time. We experienced like this numberless times in the past.
However, even though our suffering, the cause of suffering, the result suffering, true suffering, even though the continuation of that didn't have a beginning, but this time, this period, this short time while we have this precious human body and not only that but having met the virtuous teacher, perfect virtuous teacher who can reveal the complete path to enlightenment, nothing missing, the complete path, who has complete understanding without missing anything, perfect complete path to enlightenment, having the opportunity to hear, to receive the teachings, having the opportunity to practice such profound, infallible path, the method which ends the suffering. So without wasting the opportunity, while we have all these three having met with such qualified virtuous teacher and from one's own side having a precious human body which can practice and having met the teaching, having the opportunity to practice the methods which ends the suffering, the infallible method which definitely ends the suffering if one practice it. From one's own side if one practices, from the side of the method, from the side of the teaching there is no misleading at all, except if from the side of the practitioner one doesn't practice this, such infallible method which definitely ends the suffering. So anyway if one practices such infallible perfect method, the teaching of Buddha, so then even though the suffering, the continuation of suffering has no beginning, but you, yourself can make it end.
I think I stop here.
[Dedications]
LECTURE 3
[prayers, including praise to Manjushri]
Just briefly mentioning at this point, clear understanding, more details on this point about the object of ignorance of truly existence might come gradually in the future, more details on this subject, but at the moment it is just to start, to have a brief idea. [pause]
This way it is clear, why we believe I am here in this tent at Kopan, I am here at Kopan, I am in Nepal, each person, each of us we believe I am in Nepal now. Where is it? At Kopan, at Kopan on this on this hill, in the meditation hut or whatever it is called. Then, I am sitting on this cushion, on this meditation cushion or I am sitting on this mattress or this cold ground. However, the reason why we say I am here, I am in Nepal or I am at Kopan, there is no other reason to say that I am here, no other reason, nothing else besides, except for the reason the labeling base, aggregates, the group of body and mind, what is called the five aggregates, the group of the five aggregates, however, the labeling base, the group of body and mind, just to make it simple.
This physical body, the labeling base, physical body is sometimes there, sometimes it is not there. It changes. At the moment we have this shape called human being, two legs and two hands, standing up, without tails, then somebody might have tails. I think it should be checked up. Maybe short tails. I am joking, anyway. Not crawling, not it doesn't matter. However, sentient beings called human beings, the consciousness abiding at the moment, like renting a house, living in the rented house. Soon we have to leave from that house to another house, we get kicked out soon we get kicked out from that house to another house. It changes. At the moment we have this, at the moment we have this shape, you know, called human being. So consciousness abiding in this body, at the moment inside this body, inside this form. Then, after some time, soon after some time, then this consciousness migrates, the continuity of this consciousness migrates to another body according to how we lived the life every day, according to those actions, actions of body, speech and mind, done with good motive, bad motive.
However, like this, the physical body sometimes it is there, sometimes it is not there. Sometimes there is a physical body, sometimes there is no physical body, sometimes there is only consciousness, then there other aggregates which are not physical body, there are five aggregates, so even though there is no physical body but then there are the other aggregates. However, there is always continuity of consciousness, the aggregates, the labeling base.
So, the continuity of consciousness, this present life's consciousness continued from past life, like the continuity of today's consciousness continued form yesterday, like that the continuity of consciousness has no beginning. As the labeling base, consciousness, the continuity of that has no beginning, so the "I," self, which is labeled on that, the continuity of that also has no beginning. So like this, continuity of the consciousness has no end. As it has no beginning it doesn't have end, the continuity of consciousness. If we do not change our mind, if we don't practice Dharma, if we don't change our mind, if we don't do something with this mind, if we don't eliminate the ignorance of truly existence, the root of suffering, the creator of all the suffering that each of us experience, if you don't do something with it, you don't eliminate this, if you always keep this, if we always keep this in our heart, if we do not change this, then endlessly, endlessly, consciousness always continues, then, if we do not do something, if we don't change the mind, if we don't make ourselves able to eliminate completely the ignorance of truly existence, the root of suffering, then continuously, endlessly we experience suffering in the samsara. As the consciousness, the continuity of consciousness has no end, there is no time that it gets ceased, it always continues, so there is always self, so there is always continuity of the self which is labeled on that, which exists by labeling on that, there is always continuity of the "I".
So you see if we don't practice Dharma, if we don't do something with this mind, if we keep always same mind, controlled, hallucinated, always being under the control of delusion and karma, always being hallucinated with this ignorance of truly existence, always we are hallucinated, if we live always in this world, then, endlessly we experience suffering in samsara. But if you practice Dharma, if you change this, if you eliminate the ignorance of truly existence then this consciousness instead of continuously suffering, transmigrating in the different bodies, in the different samsaric bodies, instead of that, that continuity of consciousness goes to the state of omniscient mind, the continuity of this present consciousness goes to omniscient mind, is able to approach, able to reach the omniscient mind, able to become omniscient mind. The continuity of this present consciousness is able to become omniscient mind, the holy mind of Buddha which is devoid of all the mistakes, obscurations and perfected in all the realizations, in all the understandings. So in that way once the continuity of this consciousness becomes that then the self which is labeled on that, the self which exists on that becomes Buddha. The mind become omniscient mind, the self which exists on that, on those aggregates, which is labeled on that, that I, as it is living in the meaning of the Buddha also is receives the name Buddha.
So now our mind is under the control of unsubdued mind, this ignorance, karma. It is not free from that. So the self, the "I" which exists by labeling on that is a samsaric being, suffering being. And also a sentient being, having obscurations. So when this mind becomes omniscient mind, when the continuity of this consciousness becomes that, when it approaches to the state of omniscient mind, then the base is that. The omniscient mind, the transcendental wisdom of dharmakaya, and absolute nature of that omniscient mind is called svabhavakaya, that completely pure, that which is omniscient mind is the continuity of this present consciousness, we could say it is just a way of talking about the future, about the future omniscient mind, what you are going to achieve, just talking about that. The omniscient mind is the continuity of this present consciousness that is completely pure of all the obscurations and perfected in all the understanding. Also the absolute nature of that omniscient mind is also completely pure, at the same time that is completely pure. So the omniscient mind itself is the transcendental wisdom of dharmakaya, the absolute nature of that is svabhavakaya, ngo bo nyid ku, or the svabhavakaya, the state of self-nature. They translate holy body of the self-nature, but it is not a body like this, it is a state, the state of self-nature, svabhavakaya.
So now, our mind or consciousness it is not oneness with the obscurations. It is not oneness with this ignorance, it is not oneness with the anger, it is not oneness with the attachment. It is not oneness with the unsubdued mind, it is not oneness. Like the mirror, is not oneness with the dirt, it is temporarily obscured by the dirt. Like that, the mind is obscured, it is not oneness with the obscurations but it is temporarily obscured by these veils. It is temporarily obscured by these veils such as the unsubdued mind and the obscurations. The obscurations such as the obscurations to the omniscient mind, which is the more subtle one. The unsubdued mind obscuration is more gross one, the obscuration to the omniscient mind is the obscuration which mainly disturbs to achieve the omniscient mind, not so much the liberation from samsara.
So our present mind is temporarily obscured by these two veils. So it is not pure. Like the mirror which is covered by dust is not clean, like the white cloth which is covered by dirt, by dirt of the body is not clean, like that the mind is not clean, mind is not pure. So similar, the absolute nature of the mind, the absolute nature of our present mind is pure. One can say the absolute nature of the mind is pure because it is not oneness with the obscurations, in that sense. However it is not pure, it is not stainless, it is stained by obscurations, the absolute nature of the present mind is stained by obscurations.
So by practicing the remedy, by generating the remedy-path in the mind, then, you see, one removes the two obscurations, then the mind becomes omniscient mind, the transcendental wisdom of dharmakaya, and the absolute nature of that becomes the svabhavakaya, the state of the self-nature, which is called enlightenment.
So, I think you heard a lot about these two terms. It is just my talk somehow went this way, so I think as you have heard, I think you have heard many times these two types, [pause] the RANG SHIN NEY RIG and the GYE GYUR GYI RIG, I think you might have heard many times. One is the Buddha-nature, Buddha-nature or clear light nature of mind. The absolute nature of the mind, called Buddha-nature, RANG SHIN NEY RIG, the type of absolute nature. Then GYE GYUR GYI RIG, the type which causes enlightenment, that is the present mind, the continuity of this present mind which goes to enlightenment by practicing Dharma, by following the path, that is what it is, this is it. Mind, this mind, which nature is clear and knowing. [pause]
The causative phenomena, which benefits to bring the result, which brings the result, which benefits, which is useful to bring the result. However, the causative phenomena has three divisions: the matter, then the knowing, then the phenomena which is neither matter nor knowing. So three things. So the knowing, that which is knowing. The matter, relating to the aggregates, the body is matter, substantial, which can be seen by eye. But there are aggregates which cannot be seen by eye, which are not tangible, which cannot be seen by eye, but you can, like object of clairvoyance, like if somebody who has clairvoyance can read, can see the level of mind or what the person is thinking. Cannot touch with the hands, is not object of the five senses. It is mind becoming object of mind, of consciousness.
So the knowing. In regards to the aggregates on which the self is labeled, on which the self exists, there is body, and there is knowing, the knowing phenomena. So the body is something which has shape and color, which can be seen by the sense of eye and the knowing is formless, colorless, which contains, which includes all the positive ones, all the negative ones. Like ignorance, anger, attachment, all those negative ones. All the positive ones, loving compassion, wisdom, all these positive parts. However...