Ah. Good morning America, American time. And Singapore good evening, I guess, or good night.

So sorry that Cyndi, Fred’s, my very precious student, Fred, officer of the, I don’t exactly know but army, his wife, Cyndi, has been well and suddenly a blood clot and went to hospital and then passed away. She has been well, and no chronic disease or nothing, and just through that, she became unwell and she suddenly gone.

So very, very, sorry for that. However, so many pujas were done for her, prayed and did in different monasteries and her life well together because Fred not only liberated one hundred million animals, liberated for long life of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and myself and others. Really, and all the second one, another 100 million, maybe finished also the second 100 million animals, maybe, plus maybe third, I’m not sure, however, so great, great, great great benefits to the sentient beings. I haven’t heard, there’s one Chinese monk, I forgot his name, he’s a benefactor of Sera Jey, monk. He did some millions, liberated animals, millions, million times, now, could be even much more. But compared to ABC is really very small.

There’s one person I know that is a monk from Taiwan, I don’t remember his name, otherwise I haven’t heard that many number of animals liberated. Wow, wow, wow. So the very key, very, very important, very key member of ABC, he was the vice president of the center, ABC center. So therefore, for sure, how life unbelievable good things, and then service for the center, can imagine. Then after she passed away, great pujas.

So those other people in all the higher rebirth, to be in the higher rebirths, then there are no regrets in that case. However, so then I just want, just some words to express some lamrim, Ngulchu Dharmabhadra, the great, great, great lama in Tibet, like sun shining, there’s only one sun, but when it rises it dispels all the darkness in the world generally. So like that, great lama, Ngulchu Dharmabhadra. So there’s a collection of his teachings. So I am going to read his lamrim notes, just short to the students, to Fred and now passing away, when Cyndi passing away and to the students of ABC. My just students of ABC, my little gift, my little gift.

But then since I do Skype, streaming, then we’re not, all the centers, whoever can do, so just an opportunity, just give you know. So by the way, to any other center who receive this stream, like this.

First I want to say hello and to everyone thank you very much. So at the very beginning, Kyabje Khunu Lama Rinpoche, great bodhisattva, from whom His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Fourteenth Dalai Lama received commentary of the Bodhicaryavatara, A Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life, a long time ago at Bodhgaya, where Buddha did the holy deeds and achieved enlightenment, from the twelve holy deeds, and then showing the holy deeds and achieved enlightenment in Bodhgaya, so this place is most holy, most precious place in the whole, Bodhgaya.

So Rinpoche, this great bodhisattva, Khunu Lama Tenzin Gyaltsen, wrote praise to bodhicitta, I think received the oral transmission of the teaching from Kyabje Khunu Lama Rinpoche, one of the praise to bodhicitta. [Tibetan] Mother sentient beings, equal the sky, that means they are numberless, the basis always, [Tibetan], basis always to rise happiness and eliminate every sentient beings’ suffering. There are numberless sentient beings, numberless hell beings, numberless hungry ghosts, numberless animals, numberless human beings, numberless sura beings, numberless asura beings, intermediate stage beings, each realm there are numberless sentient beings. So eliminating the suffering of every single sentient being, so that’s only bodhicitta working. That which can do this is only bodhicitta.

[Tibetan] So if you have bodhicitta, you the one person has bodhicitta, so this is what it does, what you can do, what your bodhicitta does for this benefit of the sentient beings, numberless hell beings, hungry ghosts, animals, human beings, suras, and asuras, intermediate stage beings, is achieve all the happiness up to enlightenment. Temporary happiness, the ultimate happiness, liberation from samsara and the ultimate happiness, the full enlightenment, the peerless happiness, the fully awakened mind to every single sentient beings, wow, wow, wow, can you imagine.

So means universe is not only this one, world is not only this one, universe is not only this one, there are numberless universes, scientific mentioned, not only Buddhism. So can you imagine the number of ants, even just on one mountain, one field, difficult to count, so can you imagine just in one world, so establish all this happiness to them up to enlightenment, temporary, ultimate, all, and eliminating all their sufferings, can you imagine? Just the ants who are in different numberless universe, can you imagine. Then fish in the ocean, can you imagine? Gigantic like mountains, and the small ones, even you have the machine to be able to see those tiny insects. However those numberless animals in the water, can imagine? Mmm, so bring all the happiness up to enlightenment to them, wow, wow, to pacify all their suffering, suffering of samsara, can you imagine? True suffering, true cause of suffering, delusions, karma, wow, wow, wow, these are just examples. That means just animals just this world, Pacific Ocean, but the numberless universe, can you imagine, there are numberless animals in other universes as well, can you imagine. So like that, hell beings, hungry ghosts, animals, human beings, asuras, suras wow, wow, wow. So this, if you have bodhicitta, this what you can benefit to numberless sentient beings, you can bring all this up to enlightenment, peerless happiness to others, temporary, ultimate, liberation from samsara, and then full enlightenment. Amazing, amazing, amazing. And then pacify each of their suffering. Can you imagine if you have bodhicitta what you can do towards others, so many.

So therefore, you can see the incredible, unbelievable, most unbelievable, no words, how most important to generate bodhicitta, can you imagine? Can’t imagine. So motivation to... (Aside: I’m losing my leg.) [Rinpoche gestures to leg falling off chair].

Then to free the numberless sentient beings from each realm, from all the ocean of samsaric sufferings and bring them to full enlightenment, I must do that by myself alone. Therefore I must achieve full enlightenment and therefore I’m going to listen to lamrim, the essence of the 84,000 teachings of Buddha, which comes in three sections: the lesser vehicle; and the Paramita Mahayana teaching, the great vehicle; and then Tantra teachings. So the very essence of those is lamrim, so brief, the lamrim teaching, the advice by Ngulchu Dharmabhadra. OK? Ya.

Because of this stroke, the right side, so mouth got stroke, and also maybe I dropped all the tooth, so then maybe I hope you hear clear.

I haven’t received the lineage of this oral transmission of this commentary, I haven’t received yet. But I’m thinking to check oral transmission of the teaching of Ngulchu Dharmabhadra. Recently, in recent years, these collections of this lama teachings has been given to some lamas by Ganden Tripa Rizong Rinpoche, who is Ganden Tripa now.

Namo guru manjugoshaya, pay homage or prostrate to Guru Manjushri. [Tibetan], so it just has some poetic words, [Tibetan]. So just easy to understand I just explain it loose way. Possessor of the holy speech of all the Buddhas. So that means, who’s that? [Tibetan], soft, gone savior. People usually translate "protector" but, then when you translate, [Tibetan], then what word you going to use? So I [Tibetan], savior. People don’t translate as "savior" because they think it’s Christian term, they think like that, but then [Tibetan], protector.

[Tibetan] So Manjushri was owner of the holy speech of all the Buddhas, so praising the Manjushri’s Holy body, [Tibetan] like saffron, [Tibetan], like great mountain, great mountain saffron, great mountain. [Tibetan] then embrace with the beams of thousand, thousand suns. Please be seated in my neck. [Tibetan], the root of all the collection of goodness of world and beyond the world, so that means all the happiness of this life, happiness what you receive in the world, and then beyond from the world, by actualizing path in one’s own heart, beyond from samsara, then the arya paths, incredible bliss happiness of the arya path. The arya bodhisattva up to Buddha, the happiness, everlasting bliss what Buddhas they experience. The root of all the collections of goodness of the world and beyond the world. [Tibetan] Who is that? That is the virtuous friend who reveal the path, the virtuous friend, one who is revealing the path, that is one. Devoting, relying with mind and action, [Tibetan]. Relying on the virtuous friend who revealed the path with thought and action, so that.

So that’s the root, root of all that collections of goodness, all that. [Tibetan], that this human body which has eight freedoms, ten richness so, so many of you have already received teachings, lamrim so many times so I won’t go into that. So this human body is [Tibetan] highly meaningful, and so difficult to find, if you found, it’s so incredible but so difficult to find. I am not going in too details into that line, just briefly because to create the cause is so difficult, and all these things are not just belief, no reason, you can’t any questions, you just believe. Oh that, oh no! This Buddha in the world, Buddhist, Buddhism, Buddha’s teaching is the only one you can ask, you can check, you can ask questions from beginning to the end. Buddha himself said, [Tibetan], bhikshus or learned ones, [Tibetan], not by blind faith, not practice just by blind faith, no.

Like the gold, whether it’s pure gold by burning, by cutting, rubbing, examine my teachings first, the monks and learned ones. Then not by blind faith, examine well, then check it, Buddha himself said that. Oh, Buddhism is like that, you can check the quality whether it’s harmful to yourself, to others, whether it’s beneficial or not you can check. You see, you can check, and there’s an answer. There’s an answer to whatever. I think, of course, there are thousand and thousand of religions that’s good, essence it has compassion, kindness to others, to do good things for others, yes, but that you can check , ask questions, check, oh that the Buddha said, Buddha himself, that’s incredible. You are allowed to check Buddhism.

[Tibetan], so difficult to, great meaningful and so difficult to find again. [Tibetan] now this, at present dependent arising, then this one gathered all the dependent arising, all the auspicious things, all the dependent arising to practice, to meet Buddhadharma, to practice Buddhadharma, have found the…. Buddha manifest ordinary being to reveal Dharma, to show the path to us, all the ____, so representative of Buddha. However all that we, all these dependent arising gathered at this time, gathered all this at this time. [Tibetan] Please make the life meaningful every day. [Tibetan], so it means not all the time, not every life, now, I mean, this life, even that day, NOW make meaningful every day, make the life meaningful every day. Don’t waste. That’s what it’s saying.

[Tibetan], end of the rebirth is death. Besides that, not sure when the death will happen, it’s uncertain. So therefore, cut the attachment ties you to all the relatives, body, possessions. So Fred’s wife, Cyndi, suddenly blood went into brain in hospital, then brain-dead, then just gone, suddenly gone, just like that. Oh, like that. I don’t have to say much example of that. Really can’t say. One student, Thubten Pende, many of the old students know Thubten Pende, he was a Nalanda monk long time, he was leader of the pujas, then he’s been lay for many years. Many old students know Thubten Pende, and so Thubten Pende’s his parents, father, mother, his parents, they were talking in the room by standing, and the husband turned like this, the husband just turned his head like that, they were just talking, and then she suddenly died. Everything was OK before that. They were just talking by standing in the room, the husband turned, then she died. Oh like that.

Then one girl, I heard she’s a student in California. She was walking, talk, talk, talk, talk, talk, talk, she’s walking, then suddenly collapsed and died. So therefore the concept that I will live for many years, even though I live forever, but the general people I don’t think, maybe it’s a wrong concept, I’ll live forever, I haven’t met a person who thinks that, but anyway wrong concept we have I will live for a long time. So that’s wrong concept. So that accompanies, I often say, for example car accidents or whatever, sudden death or, that goes up to three minutes of that happening, I mean like that. So I cannot recollect, so it cheats you, the wrong concept, permanent, cheats you. That means you’re not practicing Dharma to waste life. Not waste life, to create an example.

[Tibetan], says reflect on the endurable?, unbearable suffering; reflect on the unbearable suffering of the terrifying three lower realms. And take refuge to the three sublime ones, Buddha, Dharma, Sangha. Then [Tibetan] actions and result, [Tibetan] means practice and abandon, virtues, so do [Tibetan] karma, lä is action, and de result. So do the action result, practice and abandon, so it means practice virtue, abandon nonvirtue. That is protecting karma. By taking refuge to the Buddha, Dharma, Sangha, and then every day pay attention to your life, protect karma.

[Tibetan], so what it’s saying, in order to rise in the selflessness, to realize in your mental continuum the remedy, the antidote to the simultaneous born I-grasping, means the ignorance. [Tibetan], the believing truly existence. The I and the aggregates, believing truly existence the, the simultaneously born I-grasping, that which is the root of samsaric suffering. So selflessness, to generate the wisdom realizing selflessness, the ultimate nature of the, emptiness only of the I. So to generate that, [Tibetan] protect the morality without repentance, without regretfulness. Protect the morality without regretfulness.

Even though one hasn’t taken a vow, oh I don’t have opportunity to take the vow, then you do any and everything, not like that. So as much as possible abandon that which is negative karma and practice virtue, good karma, so like that. Even for lay, there are five lay vows, [Tibetan] complete upasaka vows. Even not, then you can take from those five, four, three, two, at least even one. For example, I often say not killing, but of course for somebody else maybe that’s very difficult but not telling lies or not stealing, or not engaging in sexual misconduct or not take alcohol, so there’s five if you take any of the five, like that, vow, even all five is difficult, if this is for the lay.

Then there’s also eight, not eight Mahayana precepts, but the pratimoksha vows, eight vows, those any lay can take, eight vows like that. There are eight vows what the, not having sexual conduct at all, there’s like that. For example, the Khandrola in Dharamsala, so she has taken this from His Holiness the Dalai Lama , eight lay, eight precepts but without sex, meaning without any sexual intercourse. Then there’s also [Tibetan], I think eight vows with robes on. That’s [Tibetan], I think that usually maybe people don’t know also, I think it happen very rare. So eight precepts I think maybe might include this with no sex at all, I think, they’re wearing robes. Then of course getsul, the 36 vows, 250 vows, gelong’s, and the gelongma’s, I think 300, 363 or some vows a gelongma has. Huh? 364 gelongma vows. I made one less.

But gelongma vows, we have some students who took gelongma vows, but really by thinking the vows, really to keep the vows, take and really keep, not sure, I think there may be different motivations, different motivations for taking the gelongma vows. It is said that the lineage in Taiwan or China or, I think not very clear but it is said that lineage, but it in Tibetan they didn’t have lineage, and they adopt a lineage, didn’t have that gelongma lineage. So His Holiness asked me to check the lineage, whether there’s lineage long time ago, many, many years ago. When His Holiness, when I consulted him going to Taiwan those early times, Tibetans should not go Taiwan because of their political problems.

So in Singapore, I went to a nunnery to check gelongma vows, and there, this nunnery, this elderly nun told me one monk from China came and he did retreat, Manjushri retreat, that was I don’t know how long, some, I don’t know, maybe less than a year, I’m not sure. After that he decided to give the gelongma vows. He decided to give gelongma vows, and that’s how it started. That nun in Singapore said that. So it’s not very clear. But Tibetan it’s in the text, for example His Holiness Zong Rinpoche, you know it’s all in the text, all the eight Mahayana precepts, all these lineage, it’s mentioned by His Holiness Zong Rinpoche in the text, the Tibetan lineage.

I’ve forgotten that name, [Tibetan]. So what Theravadin’s said, and what Tibetan’s lineage. So however, one must study whatever vow that you have taken, you must study that, so that you know how to protect without reacting from this. If one did not study, then you wouldn’t know how to protect. So there’s knowing the number of vows, then protecting the, whichever stronger delusion, then you practice the remedy to that, things like that. There are four, five mentioned methods to take care of the vows. Even the secondary ones, the vices, degenerated, then immediately purify. Then there’s body, getsul, gelong, there’s a [Tibetan], they receive [Tibetan]. Then by doing sojong, then the Sangha’s gathering in the monastery, then they do confession, then purify the downfall. Then [Tibetan], by doing the prostration, by reciting Thirty-five buddhas, those who are practicing tantra, you can recite Vajrasattva, that means there’s a means to purify. Like that. So of course then who have received the higher tantra great initiation, of course you can do [Tibetan] self-initiation that purifies all the broken, all the degenerated pratimoksha vows, bodhisattva and tantric vows. By taking self-initiation, all these get purified.

So protect it without regretfulness, protect the morality without regretfulness. [Tibetan] The pitiful six kind of transmigrator beings, they are kind parents, so generate sublime total enlightenment derived from loving kindness and compassion. [Tibetan], I didn’t think much. I quickly went over.

However, the everyday life, this perfect human rebirth, if you have a wish-granting jewel, these gold, silver, diamonds, sapphire, more precious than other jewels, other materials, yes. But now even more than gold, diamond, sapphire, is the wish-granting jewels, its unknown in Western science, not yet known. That’s more precious, wish-granting jewel. I saw in the teaching, the Buddha relics, then later when the ocean, then at the end, then that become wish-granting jewel, or something like that, I have seen in the teachings.

Anyway, however, if you have one wish-granting jewel, it’s more precious than diamond, than gold, and sapphire, much more. Whatever you pray, if you have one wish-granting jewel, then you put on the 15th day on the top of banner on the roof, and then whatever you pray, any material needs in this life, whatever you pray, you get. Like Sai Baba does like this, then he gives watch gold or different things, gold chain or something to people, all like that. You have created incredible good karma, unbelievable, so much good karma to have the wish granting jewel, like that trillions, billions, zillions trillions, everybody doesn’t have money, billions, trillions, zillions. Who has billion, trillion, zillion money dollar, they collected a lot of merit in the past, so much merit in the past. So not so many has that much merit collected, so these people, of course, most don’t have the billions and trillions, so those who had so much good karma collected, then those have the money. So similar, so everybody doesn’t have, ya?

So like that wish-granting jewel, like that one who has own wish granting jewel, so much good karma, unbelievable collected. So that was the main cause. So now whatever you pray, put on the banner, whatever you pray, material needs of this life, whatever, it materializes immediately. But you can’t from that, you can’t stop rebirth in the lower realm and get a higher rebirth, you can’t. From that, liberation from samsara, can’t. From that, you can’t cease the subtle obscurations and complete the understanding and realization, achieve the full enlightenment, sangye, sangye, the full enlightenment, cannot achieve from that. But from this human body, if you have this human body especially eight freedoms and ten richness, wow. If you have that, then from that you can stop rebirth in the lower realms; higher rebirth you can achieve and then achieve ultimate happiness, free from ocean of samsaric sufferings forever, from true suffering from true cause of suffering. Then achieve full enlightenment, cease the subtle obscurations and complete all the understanding, so full enlightenment you can achieve from that.

So therefore this perfect human rebirth which you have is most, most, most, most, most, most unbelievable, unbelievable, unbelievable precious. The wish-granting jewel can’t. Even if you have wish-granting jewel, can’t. Or numberless wish-granting jewels, nothing, numberless wish-granting jewels you own is nothing. So big huge difference.

So Milarepa, so many of you know Milarepa, ah nothing, had nothing, just some scarves to wrap round, but nothing, as you know from the life story. But he practiced Dharma, he achieved enlightenment in that life, even though he killed 30 people, many animals in the early life, then later life, he exactly followed Marpa’s teachings, Marpa’s advice, oh exactly without heresy, anger. Oh he achieved enlightenment in later life, begin to practice tantra in that life, oh like that. So therefore the body, this human body we have this just about only one time. Wow, so unbelievable precious. So numberless wishing-granting jewels you have, nothing. This human body we have, especially eight freedoms, ten richness, is unbelievable, most unbelievable, most unbelievable precious That’s something to rejoice all day and night! All this time, unbelievable happiness, reflect like that, you are supposed to, but we don’t know, so we don’t think, we don’t know, we don’t meditate, then it doesn’t happen, you don’t realize that, you don’t discover that. You think this human body is ordinary, you don’t think of all the special qualities. So in that way, you don’t waste. Then you always want to be meaningful, you want to practice Dharma all the time, so it comes by the way.

Then protecting karma, every day, every action you do, examine. Practice good karma and abandon negative karma. So like that, you have to be mindful of that. I’m not going to talk much. Then in everyday life, as I often say, one day you can meditate, practice mindfulness on this, think as dream, look at life dream, yourself, your action, object, for example you’re eating food, the object food, or driving car, or whatever you’re doing, there’s always three actions: doer, action, object. So always look at it like dream, so look at it like dream, so like continuation of last night’s dream, everything is not true, so dream. It means as it appears to you, truly existing, it’s not like that in reality, in reality, totally. Like you recognize the dream as dream. You are dreaming but you recognize this is dream. While you’re dreaming, you recognize this is dream. If you don’t believe, many things happen but you don’t believe, but you know this is dream. So there’s sharp thing, the things hurt body, thorns or something, wood or something. When you know dream is dream, then you go there, there’s no hurting because you go like this, but there’s no really hurting. You go there, or something pointy but there’s no hurting, so when you recognize dream’s dream. So here, I action, object, everything appears existing from its own side. So looking at that as dream. So looking at it, things as dream is very powerful, very, very powerful.

So practicing awareness, mindfulness in this, then you can overcome attachment, you can overcome the anger, you can overcome the delusions. Then cannot find the cause to the rise delusions. Of course, mindfulness in bed, mindfulness of walking, well during that time maybe anger doesn’t arise, but that’s a very, kind of, small thing. Its antidote is practicing mindfulness; looking day and night your life like dream is really great, that.

The other one is the ignorance is like magician person. The magician person show, made the illusion. So you are the audience, because hallucinating, so you have everything hallucination. Then everything exist from their side: sky’s from their side, trees from their side, floors, carpets, everything from its own side, but it you look for it, cannot find, cannot find even size of atom, cannot find. What there exists is in the mere name, merely imputed by the mind, merely imputed by the mind. So all these are illusion; you are having meeting with somebody, with many people having meeting in illusion, in the dream, you are working, carpenter or making food, mo mo, making mo mo or whatever, it’s all in the dream. In the dream. You’re driving car in the dream, in illusion, so everything truly existent.

So practicing mindfulness, also everything appears to you truly existence, it exists from its own side, exists by nature, so everything like that. So you recognize that. Everything appears like that, then you practice mindfulness in that. Rather than believing true, recognize these are the hallucination, oh this. Recognize that which is the hallucination is the hallucination, so practice mindfulness in that. We are very busy, we are very busy lives, very busy life doing so many things, very busy life but your mind is in meditation, keep in meditation as much as you can. So at least try to remember time to time, then more and more and more. Then one day you can do continual day and night with that mindfulness. Even if your daily life is so busy but at the same time your mind is in meditation, like retreat.

Other thing is also merely labeled, also you can do. Whatever you are doing, then practicing mindfulness, merely labeled I, doing merely labeled action eating, merely labeled action walking, merely labeled action driving, so like that, merely labeled road, merely labeled car, merely labeled, like that. So one day can do that. So there is different .., you can try to do.

So even you can’t do all day long, but try to remember again and again, then to continue longer and longer, so this way you can control the negative mind, rising negative mind and attachment, anger, so forth, then you can control. Then this way to realize emptiness, it helps with that. Then also to keep the mind controlled and pacified, peace, keep the mind in great peace. So delusion rises, not peace. Then it causes to achieve the ultimate liberation from samsara, liberation from the continual oceans of sufferings of samsara. No beginning and which has no end, so you can act. Then, not only that, but full enlightenment by ceasing even subtle defilements, you can achieve full enlightenment.

Just rough ideas what you can do, the shunyata, Madhyamika, this big text and the commentaries, many, many study, ya, but then need to do some practice. Just study, study, just like computer, feeding the computer, like feeding the brain, that’s not enough, that’s not my point. The point is even if you know one word, even if you know the I has no truly, [Tibetan], the I has no, best I not truly existent because it’s dependent arising. Even if you know that, that is incredible meditation, that’s huge meditation. [Tibetan] the king of the logic—the dependent arising. No truly existence. We believe truly existent; so no truly existence because dependent arising. It exists in mere name, merely labeled by mind [Tibetan].

So if you have some meditation, some practice to control the mind. That’s really, really, really important. Even don’t much recite, even somebody practice in daily life like feed the computer, feed the brain with all the information, [Tibetan], then when you die, same as person who didn’t know Buddhism, who didn’t learn Madhyamaka, die with the attachment, with the anger, so no difference, shouldn’t be like that. OK.

So about bodhicitta, so generate bodhicitta. So in the morning, like Pabongka’s, Dechen Pabongka’s the longer Calling the Guru from Afar, that’s incredible, incredible, fantastic, there’s also tantra there. So there’s generating bodhicitta there. All the one, Wish-fulfilling Golden Sun has the four levels of motivation, but tantric motivation’s not explained. I think, I don’t know, maybe when I translated I didn’t, I’m not sure whether I translated or not, I think later the Kopan maybe changed. I checked one time but it seems didn’t have that complete one. That’s very, very, very good to for common people first thing in the morning to set the motivation for the life, up to enlightenment or this life, today, it’s very, very good that one. But I think later part of motivation maybe Kopan changed. I checked some time ago but it was not there. That’s very good one. The great, great lama, lineage holder of lamrim wrote that.

So do as much morning motivation, whole lamrim, then dedicate everything, your body, speech and mind, yourself, your body, your possession, everything, your merits, everything dedicate for sentient being, especially if you’re taking bodhisattva vows, wishing vow that’s what has been done. So dedicate for sentient beings, six realms sentient beings. Also when you do six session yoga, you made offering to guru, you make offering to guru all that. Then also Six-Session Yoga dedicated for sentient beings. That’s very, very good for the mind to let go of attachment, dedicate for sentient beings. Even if you’re poor, even if you are billionaire, zillionaire, how much trillion or quadrillion, ten times trillion or whatever, dedicate for sentient beings. If you dedicate for sentient beings, you collect unbelievable best business, most unbelievable, unbelievable, unbelievable, wow, wow, wow, wow merit, can’t imagine, can’t imagine, can’t imagine, can’t imagine, wow, wow, wow, to collect. There’s no like gold or dollar, going down or going up, doesn’t happen, karma doesn’t have, it’s always, merit is always same. It’s incredible, incredible. So anyway, just give for sentient beings.

Suddenly if you die, then mind is, suddenly if death comes, oh, where is it? It’s already dedicated for sentient beings, six realms sentient beings. So there’s no reason to cling like that. Then you live your life to benefit others, as much as possible for sentient beings, for even one sentient being, however to others, benefit. Remember this again and again, benefit for sentient beings, start to lead the life for sentient beings, so try to remember again and again to benefit for sentient beings as much as possible. So everyday life, even one person, even one insect fell in the water, Kyabje Serkong Rinpoche said, even one insect fall into the water, you try to save, then the other insect attacking, try to harm, however big or small, then try to help.

[Tibetan], all the phenomena are empty from beginning, for us, for our ordinary mind, everything is something real, truly existent, existing from its own side, existing by its nature. All these are projections; there’s nothing, there is nothing existing from its own side, all these are mind projections, projection ignorance. All these are projections of ignorance, whatever we are looking at, whatever sound we’re listening, whatever smell we do, whatever eye looking, whatever we feel, rough, soft, whatever contact with the body, whatever salt and chili and sweet, whatever. All these appearance is not something from which exist from there, it’s our mind projection of ignorance. All these are projections of ignorance. The ignorance left negative imprint on the mind, then negative imprint projects all this, the six sense objects. So like that, exists from its own, it means something real, so like that, they’re projections of ignorance, coming from the negative imprints left, ignorance, negative imprints left by ignorance.

So before I said, that’s why I was saying you are audience, and then your senses are hallucinated by the ignorance like the magician person. So everything’s illusion, like that. So practice mindfulness. It’s incredible.

While somebody is angry to you, talking bad about you, talking your mistakes but your mind in meditation, you don’t get angry, so peaceful. This is very, very interesting. So for you is extremely peaceful. So here, [Tibetan] all the phenomena’s empty from the very beginning. They never, from the very beginning never existed from its own side from very beginning, never became real from very beginning, never became truly existent from beginning, never exist from its own side, never exist by nature from very beginning, they’re empty from very beginning. Not “They are not empty but you have to meditate, you have to look at them and make them empty,” not that! That’s totally wrong, that’s not that, that doesn’t work. We’re trying to realize empty that which is empty from the beginning, never exist from its own side right from the beginning. [Tibetan] empty from beginning, then [Tibetan] all the phenomena’s empty from the very beginning, from the very beginning, everything: I is empty from very beginning, action is empty from very beginning, object is empty from very beginning, samsara is empty from very beginning, nirvana is empty from very beginning, happiness is empty from very beginning , suffering is empty from very beginning, enlightenment is empty from very beginning, hell is empty from very beginning, so everything is empty from very beginning.

But that doesn’t mean they don’t exist, nihilism, doesn’t mean they don’t exist. Then the [Tibetan] dependent arising’s [Tibetan] uncheating, unbetraying, unbetrayable? Dependent arising’s unbetraying, so not, all these things not that they don’t exist. Dependent arising is unbetraying. For example, form is empty, emptiness is form. So form is empty, form do not exist from its own side at all, totally empty. While the form is empty, form appears; while the form is empty, form exists, form exists, exists in mere name. Form exists in mere name, merely imputed by the mind. ‘Form is empty’ means form. So form is empty, but while the form is empty, form manifesting, form appearing. Form exists in mere name, merely imputed by the mind.

For ordinary worldly beings who have not realized emptiness, of course, then form appears as real, hallucination, projection of the negative imprint left by ignorance. That which is substantial, then label form. As soon as you label, then appeared hallucination, exists from its own side. So that is projection of the negative imprint left by the ignorance, that is hallucination, the way the form appears, then you believe that it’s really true, then the ignorance starts.

So here merely labeled form, the thought of merely labeled form. Right after that, then when the form appears, right after merely labeled, form appears, form is established. That is projection from the negative imprints left by ignorance, projection of truly existence, the truly existence is real, so then believe real for ordinary beings. Then arya beings, they have realized emptiness, so for example, like the magician person, he has hallucination but he knows it’s not true, it’s transformed by his mantra or by his certain substances, hallucinate, so he has hallucination but he has no belief. So like that, arya beings, form appears truly existence but there’s no belief it’s real. Only Buddha then there is no truly existence. Form doesn’t appear real to the Buddha, existing by its nature. To Buddha existing by nature, truly existence doesn’t appear to Buddha. Because the dualistic view completely pacified; the negative imprints totally pacified. Then Buddha see merely labeled, see Buddhas merely labeled, appearance merely labeled.

So while form is empty, form exists in mere name, merely labeled by the mind. Everything, the karma, by creating good karma experiences all happiness, by creating negative karma, result suffering. All this, nothing exists from its own side, there’s no real or something truly existent, but all this is empty of that, totally empty of existing from its own side. But while it is totally empty, it is happening, exist negative karma, good karma, and exist result happiness, and exists in mere name, and merely labeled by the mind. So samsara, nirvana, happiness, suffering, hell, enlightenment, everything exists, like the form, exists, even the form is empty, exists in mere name, merely labeled by the mind.

So you can see unified, the self, dependent arising, the emptiness, tong pa nyi, the dependent arising unified, middle way. So the Middle Way view, devoid of other extreme – truly existent, then the other extreme – nihilism, non-existence, devoid of that, [Tibetan?] the Middle Way, existing Middle Way. [Tibetan], even all the dharmas empty from beginning but it’s dependent arising, the subtle Prasangika’s view – dependent arising. Things exist in mere name, merely imputed by the mind. Like true cause of suffering, true suffering, true path, true cessation, all this unbetrayable, [Tibetan], no cheating, unbetrayable, in mere name, merely imputed by the mind. So all this happening.

So here view is not, in some views, empty but there’s no existing, so that’s not that middle view. [Tibetan], follow the, [Tibetan] because of that, all the phenomena’s empty from its own side, and [Tibetan] dependent arising, but dependent arising’s unbetrayable, [Tibetan] follow the bodhisattva conduct, the unification of method and wisdom. By realizing that the phenomena are empty from its own side from beginning, and yet dependent arising unbetrayable, then you can practice the bodhisattva conduct, unification of method and wisdom.

[Tibetan], generate intensive compassion, and then if it’s taking a long time to accomplish the works for others, then [Tibetan] take the initiation by living in the samaya, samaya vows. [Tibetan], then meditate on graduate generation and completion stage, the highest tantra. If you practice only Paramitayana you can achieve enlightenment but in order to complete the merits of fortune, merits of wisdom to achieve the dharmakaya and rupakaya, Buddha’s holy body and holy mind, it takes three countless great eons. So then, by taking the lower tantra initiation and practicing lower tantra, then you can achieve enlightenment in one life. But of course by practicing long-life meditation and things like that, then you live for one thousand years, then you achieve enlightenment like that.

But by taking the highest tantra initiation, then living the samaya vows, then you can achieve, accomplish the graduate generation and completion stage of highest tantra, then you can achieve enlightenment in a brief lifetime. You can achieve full enlightenment in a brief lifetime. So of course, that’s what you’ve done the gradual, like that. Then doing sadhana, then also break times visualizing deity, then by eating food to visualize deity, yourself guru deity, making if we eating, if we drinking, earing, become tsog offering or the fire offering, burning fire puja. Then you collect merit, unbelievable, unbelievable most unbelievable merit, much, much more than offering to numberless Buddhas, numberless Dharma, numberless Sangha, numberless statues, numberless stupas, numberless scriptures. Those, all those merits become very small; and now this yourself guru deity, then each drink, each eating is offering tsog to them, wow, wow, wow, that’s unbelievable merits and then that’s a quick way to achieve enlightenment. Then incredible purification also, for example like that.

Whatever you do, then you mind in this, trying to visualize. Then when you obtain the generation stage, then it comes naturally. Whenever you want, just comes naturally; that’s what Kirti Tsenshab Rinpoche mentioned. [Snaps fingers] So clear, unbelievable clear. _____ Rinpoche, from whom His Holiness took the teachings of Prajnaparamita, also Abhisamayalamkara, the fourth chapter, [Tibetan], fourth chapter commentary from ___(?)Rinpoche, one of the top experts in Tibet, in Drepung monastery, passed away in Dharamsala. His Holiness took teachings, [Tibetan].So he said even sadhana, Ghuyasamaja or those Heruka sadhana, many pages, but when you have realizations, everything comes, the whole mandala, everything, so many, but if you recite, so many but when you have realization, everything just comes like that. So the sadhana, duration of time, it really becomes very short. So like that mentioned, I think it’s their experience. Also it becomes blessings to other sentient beings.

So next one: so one can study both - the generation stage and completion stage you can study. So main effort in this life, we should to aim to actualize bodhicitta; then before that, renunciation; and of course, guru devotion’s the root, that’s always meditating, these always you have to until you have stable realization, so guru devotion. Then renunciation, but aim bodhicitta in this life to have realization. Then bodhicitta, when one has the realization bodhicitta, then spend most time in generation, then can also do completion, just a little bit of that; the more generation. Then can spend most time in, there’s generation gross and subtle, generation stage. After finishing realizing gross, then you can have completion stage more time, more time to spend to have realization of that.

[Tibetan]. So what it’s saying, [Tibetan], so I, Dharmabhadra’s saying, I who has sincere mind, of course it means eating pollutions, food offered by people with devotion, so of course it means eating …, who is the eater of pollution. I who is the eater of the pollution; pollution means it obscures the mind, that’s what it does. [Tibetan]. If it not become ____, then doesn’t obscure the mind. If it becomes ____then obscures the mind. Then that becomes difficult to have realization. [Tibetan] means ‘No, I don’t have such experience’. [Tibetan] But many valid gurus, [Tibetan] from the holy mouth taught like that, teach like this. [Tibetan] Even you also accept this, [Tibetan] please practice; if you accept this, if it fits with you, then please practice this. [Tibetan] I request you practice this. [Tibetan] If you doesn’t fit you, you don’t accept, [Tibetan] then you become, then you follow like before, become like before. What if you are not practicing the Dharma, not practicing the path, then become like that. [Tibetan] The bad water, make the bad water to run in the path, to let it, instead of stopping, let it run the bad water. Like that save drinking water, dam, yes save, but then let it run. Then it harms, destroys the fields, it harms, [Tibetan] danger, then let the bad water run in the road.

[Tibetan] by attempting heaps of good actions, by achieving the ten powers, Buddha quality, ten powers, [Tibetan] to all the sentient beings equaling the sky, [Tibetan] may the benefits be achieved. [Tibetan] This advice to me, Dharmabhara, small lamas requested through letter. [Tibetan] Wood year, pig, [Tibetan] this was asked for maybe on first month, [Tibetan] on the date, the number of the date.[Tibetan] It was written on the mountain of Muchu(?), some mountain. Essence of lamrim, just advice.

I don’t mean to keep long. Just to Fred, the officer of the Singapore army, his wife suddenly died. So it’s very important to think of death. Kadampa geshes mentioned. [Tibetan], Kadampa geshes, they say you have hundreds of qualities, but one mistake cheats you. So it means the person can be so learned in Dharma philosophy, oh sutra, tantra, can explain Tengyur, Kangyur by heart, but not think of death, then doesn’t get to practice Dharma.

As I mentioned in Kopan when I was giving teaching when I was in Nepal, to monks, nuns I was giving lung of Ksitigarbha text, because two nuns come from China or Hong Kong, Ksitigarbha monastery. But I did not finish, so I was telling them, of course in monastery, you debate, you learn so much the Buddhist philosophy, wow, wow, wow, so vast, debate so much, learn so much but yes that is studying Dharma but whether you are practicing Dharma or not, that’s another question. Studying Dharma yes, but practicing Dharma? Practicing Dharma means letting go of attachment at least this life. That’s the definition of practicing Dharma.

In the Kadampa geshes’ collection of teachings, there is mentioned lojong, [Tibetan] At the very beginning transform your mind, train the mind, open the door of Dharma. They mentioned Kadampa geshe, Dromtönpa, was walking in the forest, saw one man sitting. “Hi there. What are you doing?” “I am meditating.” “It’s good that you meditate but isn’t it better to practice Dharma?”, Kadampa geshe, Dromtönpa mentioned. Dromtönpa is actually Chenrezig, Chenrezig mentioned. Then old man tried to read text. Then one day Dromtönpa met him, “What are you doing?” “ I am reading text.” “It’s good that you are reading text, but isn’t better to practice Dharma?” “Oh,” he thought, “Circumambulating temple”. Again Dromtönpa saw another day the old man was circumambulating the temple. So, “What are you doing?” “I am circumambulating the temple.” “It’s good that you are circumambulating the temple, but isn’t it better to practice Dharma?” Oh, only then he asks. “What do you mean by practicing Dharma?” [Rinpoche laughs] Then Dromtönpa said, “Renounce this life”. So that means the world problem and the individual, society, individual problems, this attachment, coming from the attachment, clinging to this life, power, power, reputation and so forth, attachment, so that brings all the problems. All this, when the world killing so many people, Syria, all these, all these countries, so forth, then World War Two, second war, first war, millions and millions and millions of people killing, burning in the fire children. All this came from that attachment to the, one powerful person’s attachment, clinging to this. So millions and millions of people in the world killed.

So means renouncing where the problem comes from—the attachment, renounce. So you can see immediately there’s inner peace, immediate there’s inner peace. So why the texts talking so much about Milarepa own nothing, but so much peace, it’s because of that.

So Dromtönpa said, "That is Dharma."

Anyway, I was saying to them, the monks, nuns, they’re learning incredible subjects, fantastic studying. So I saying in the monastery, even Sera, unbelievable knowledge, wow, wow, wow, wow, deep, deep, very deep, but are you practicing Dharma? That’s a different question. So mention ____ meditate.

What else, so what to say. Why I’m talking this. I lost.

[Nick suggests “Thinking of death?”]

Yeah, that’s right. You got it. I think it’s my problem, not thinking of death, so I didn’t remember.

Ya, Kadampa geshes say you have hundreds of qualities but one mistake cheats you. Oh then do not think of death, oh then life, no action becomes Dharma, then didn’t get chance to practice Dharma. Then same thing what science, what other, besides Buddhism, science whatever, so many, so much, so much nowadays, but no thought of death. So no thought of death, nothing, no practice is done to benefit the death, to benefit at the time of death. So Dharma, practice which become Dharma, it helps at death, it helps beyond from this life, protects from lower realms, brings happiness beyond from this life, it benefits at death. Not eradicates death but benefits death. Science or whatever, unbelievable, unbelievable knowledge but when the death happens, the day when the death comes, no, nothing to do with it, no prepar…, no benefit, not one single benefit at the time of death to not have suffering at death. So no connection, so it’s totally….. then how much sufferings there is, finished. No one single benefit to that.

For example the rich people, trillion, zillion, quadrillion or whatever wealth, achieved wealth, but suddenly death comes, all these materials that you gained, reputation what’s gained, nothing. There’s no one single benefit at the time of death. Then only sadness. If there’s happy mind, OK but nothing, no connection. The life earlier you lived, no connection at the time of death. So very sad, how terrible. That time, no matter how wealthy the person is, that time, they don’t know about death, what it means to birth, what it means death, no idea at all, completely confused what to do when the death happens in the family, completely like.. Last year I saw in India as I was standing near the cemetery for two hours, in Delhi, one rich people came, I think wife died, rich people, then many people came by taxi or by..., they pay respect to the lady who died. But father was very confused, doesn’t know what to do, so he was walking around. He asked me, “Are you doing research?” I don’t know what I said. So that was right time to talk Dharma, right time to talk reincarnation and karma; his mind listen. Otherwise not; when death didn’t happen, I think the mind changed because they don’t see their sufferings. So anyway like this, it’s very, very important, incredibly important to remember death. OK. Just I’m going to talk short on the benefit of the death, the benefit of death. So just very short.

First one: [Tibetan] These five power integrating. whole life practice into five powers, but this one is five powers at near death time. [Tibetan] So what I am explain this is we have to prepare, you have to prepare, as I mentioned in Vajrasattva initiation at California, I said to the people you must write down when I die, what I’m going to do. When you die, suddenly death, there can be sudden death, car accident but there also can be slow death. Write down at the death time what practice I’m going to do, write down in your notebooks, I told them. Prepare. This is a great danger. Anytime it can happen so must write down in the notebook, I said. There is powa, transferring consciousness in pure land, Amitabha and the Vajrayogini, so on and so forth. But the foundation is the five power near the death time, the practicing the five power. [Tibetan] That must know, if your main practice is that, then that’s the foundation; that is very, very, very good meditation benefiting sentient beings, the bodhicitta motivation, that’s very, very good. Then even if you don’t know powa it’s OK, if you are able to practice the five power, really [Tibetan] self-supporting, whether there’s some lama or somebody doing powa or not, but, you see, you guide yourself at the time of death like that. The five power, that is the basic thing.

Then on top of that, after this foundation practice, then you can do powa, those other advanced methods to go to, to be reborn pure land, all these things - Amitabha pure land and so forth, Vajrayogini. Then those definitely you can do, you can do retreat, you can train, then sometimes you do to not forget, you can do that. Then also Vajrayogini, if you have received the [Tibetan], the inconceivable general and particular, and those who received particular the inconceivable Vajrayogini, that you can do that, so that’s better than powa. So must, you receive the teachings then you do one million retreat or something like that. Then each month you can do to not forget. Ah, that’s very good, so you are ready to do the practice, become pure land. So something you have prepared.

So first these five power.

[Tibetan] The power of the white seed. Yourself, your body surround all the bones, everything you make offering to guru. As comes in Six-Session Guru Yoga , mandala you make offering to guru or you make offering of charity to sentient beings, giving to the sentient beings, the numberless sentient beings, numberless hell beings, hungry ghosts, animals, human beings, asuras, suras, so that comes in the long version. This way, then the point is if you do like that it helps your mind is totally completely peaceful, free from attachment, clinging, grasping clinging, so free like that.

The monk who attached to the begging bowl, and then he was born as snake, his body was burned in fire, but already his consciousness was born as snake in the begging bowl, something, there’s a story like this. And one lady at the beach, a lady who died attached to her body, and then born as snake, and inside body, came out of the mouth and going through the nose, inside the body, so there is a karmic story like that, died with the attachment. You know the story in the lamrim that the enemy of the son died but attached to the son’s wife so born as son to the family - son’s son. The son’s enemy was born as little boy to the son because of being attached, died with attachment to the previous son’s wife. The mother of the son died with attachment, and born as dog of the family. Then father used to catch fish from back side lake, and then born as fish in the back side of the house lake. So Sharipu saw from the door as he was going for alms, [Tibetan] so he said that the son is eating fish, the family’s son is eating fish, which in his past life was his father, died and born as fish in the lake because he used to catch fish and eat it,, so the father used to do that, so therefore he was born as as fish in the back side lake. So son was eating the fish who was his father. [Tibetan] Then dog, the mother who was attached to the home died, then dog who was waiting for the meat. Then he beat the dog. [Tibetan] Then the born to him came on the lap, on son’s lap. I laugh at samsaric existence. Completely make, I mean so like that.

That big problem if you don’t, the purpose of white seed, practicing that, is to make offering, to give to others, so let go of the attachment, make your mind free, bring peace in the mind. So there’s nothing to be attached to, so you live making like that.

Then you revive, if samaya vow degenerated, then you revive. If you have taken highest tantra initiation, of course the best one, before you die if you get done self-initiation is the best one, that purifies broken pratimoksha, bodhisattva, tantric vows, everything, so that’s what makes pure the samaya vows. So you do this by sojong with somebody, inviting the monks, then sojong with the, means, however, taking the vows again, the pratimoksha vows, bodhisattva vows, then make pure. That’s very, very important. At time of death to not have any regretfulness, so taking the vows again, make fresh, no worry, no regretfulness.

After that, [Tibetan] the power of blaming to one. For example, Lama Atisha mentioned in the Wheel of Sharp Weapons. Wheel of Sharp Weapons or? No, no, Seven Points of Thought Transformation by Geshe Chekawa, that put all the blame to one. "Put all the blame to one" means self-cherishing thought. Then to others, then show loving kindness. This is incredible deepest psychology or meditation, or however. Normally whenever any problem, black magic or anything happened, we always blame outside, looking outside, blame outside and praise oneself, blame everything outside. Blame outside and that create karma to receive harm to you again, by putting blame outside, then praise oneself. So completely opposite. [Tibetan], put all the blame to one’s self-cherishing thought, and to others who we normally blame, only kindness, because all the past, present, future happiness, liberation from samsara, enlightenment, everything comes from other, received from numberless hell beings, hungry ghosts, animals, human beings, suras, asuras, intermediate stage beings, from every insects, all your past, present, future, your numberless past happiness, present, future up to enlightenment, everything you receive by kindness of every single sentient beings. So meditate on kindness to others. I’m keeping it short.

So without delay, if you delayed, when the problem comes, delayed to blame the self-cherishing, then you blame outside, there’s a danger to blame outside. So put blame to I, the self-cherishing thought without delay, as quick as possible, put the blame on the I, the self-cherishing thought, so then the blame doesn’t go outside. So this way brings incredible, unbelievable peace, happiness to you and to others, and world peace, you bring peace in the world, you bring peace to the sentient beings, all that. Otherwise you create so much negative karma, getting anger and then all the other self-cherishing. All the problems came from the I, self-cherishing thought. Why? Because from past lives, the self-cherishing thought we had, and the delusions and the self-cherishing thought, so that then became negative karma, those harms. So as a result, then the other sentient beings, you receive harm from others. So it comes from, originally came from your self-cherishing thought.

Whatever harm others give in this life, it comes from your self-cherishing thought in the past. ‘Past’ means this life and past lives. So it comes from you. Who make others to harm you, black magic or whatever, angry or whatever cheat you, who makes them do that is by you, by your self-cherishing thought, this is the evolution. So the others are only object of compassion, to help them. With that self-cherishing thought, one harmed others, so because of that, the others they harmed you, so they create negative karma and they go to lower realm, so you made them go to the lower realm, so they’re unbelievable object of compassion, your compassion, it become like that.. Whatever you can help to not reborn in lower realms, so become like that, at least praying. The Bodhisattvacaryavatara, there are words, [Tibetan] in the past, my karma persuaded others, then I received this harm from them now. Harming sentient beings, so that became negative karma, so that caused them to be born, precipices or in the hole of the hell, so didn’t I loose them. So generate compassion to the enemy.

Another one’s, I forget now, don’t remember. My karma persuaded, and… In the past I gave harm to the sentient beings, then now the sentient beings give harm, so worth to receive harm from the sentient beings because you gave harm. Doesn’t want like that, whereas you gave harm. And you gave harm others, now you can’t receive harm from others. Doesn’t make sense. I don’t know remember the words. Anyway to make short, without delay as quick as possible when the obstacles happen put the blame to one. Then blaming others doesn’t happen. So that’s [Tibetan].

Then the other is [Tibetan] power of plan. I translate. I don’t know how others translate. Power of plan or motivation. Power of plan. Death and intermediate stage, and rebirth, those times, the complete reliance on Buddha, Dharma, Sangha, complete, with devotion. Complete reliance to Buddha, Dharma, Sangha during those times, and to never separate from the loving kindness, compassion, bodhicitta, never separate from that, the loving kindness, compassion towards the sentient beings. When you die, intermediate stage, rebirth, all the time. There’s like this; you can do like this. In the integrating whole life time practice into five power, that one has, I think, planning to never separate from bodhicitta until I achieve enlightenment, and in particular in this life, until die, in particular especially today. You can also do that. It’s very good.

Power of prayer. [Tibetan] ... is planning, then another one is power of prayer, to, all the time to practice bodhicitta, and to rely on Buddha, Dharma, Sangha. By practicing bodhicitta become prayer.

Power of familiarity. [Tibetan] Power of familiarity. Then that is completely abandon other expectations. Then familiarize the mind to the devotion to the Buddha, Dharma, Sangha, and bodhicitta. Only bodhicitta, devotion to Buddha, Dharma, Sangha, only bodhicitta. Then when you think you are dying, then that time they conduct, remember Buddha, you lay down, Buddha passing away, the story said, the sinking down, those snow lions laying down position, the right limb bent like this, then if possible like that. However, the little [finger] if possible like this. So here breath, [right side breath] this is the attachment, breath. If possible cotton stop, not finger; then cotton stop here, the breath, [the right nostril] that helps. Then this hand stretch down, the two legs like this. Then remember Buddha, Buddha passing away as it’s said, like the Buddha doesn’t have suffering of death or rebirth but the Buddha’s showing to us to practice Dharma. Show the Buddha’s teachings so precious, that’s what Buddha showed us by passing away. Even after ceased the delusion and karma, so there’s no death, so of course impossible Buddha has death. So in this [Buddha’s nirvana] position, that helps, this position, when you die if you stay in that position, that can help the mind to go in virtue, and then do not get reborn in lower realms and also remembering Buddha will help to not reborn in lower realms. In order to do like that at death time, then every night when we, even now when you go to bed, try to sleep in this way, so it stops the nightmares and spirit harms if you can sleep in this way, remembering Buddha, so it has a lot of benefit.

[Tibetan] Forcefully achieve enlightenment, it’s powa, remembering the guru, that’s one of the best things, remembering guru. Your head in front of guru, like that you can think. Or you think in the aspect of the deity, thinking like that with devotion, and that total reliance to guru. So that’s said, forcefully achieving enlightenment. As mentioned in Lama Chöpa, Guru Puja, (LC112), [Tibetan] the forcefully, [Tibetan] is forcefully, achieving enlightenment. What is that? So the remembering the guru, powa, the remembering guru. By applying the five powers, with that advice, [Tibetan] may I be born in pure land. So if you don’t get to catch actualizing the path in this life, then if the death comes, this is what you do, what you practice. I thought to mention this at the beginning but I forgot.

So you do tonglen, excellent bodhicitta practice, taking all sentient beings’ suffering and causes to the I, one’s self-cherishing thought and destroy. If one do that, then the self-cherishing thought eliminate, then the truly existent I completely gone. It’s like atomic bomb on that, gone. Meditate on that, that means ignorance is eliminated, then meditate on that emptiness a little bit. If possible, then with that mindfulness, your past, present and future merits, and result, temporary happiness, all the temporary happiness, then ultimate happiness, liberation from samsara, then full enlightenment, everything you give to other sentient beings, numberless hell beings, numberless human beings, asuras, suras, all the sentient beings, then they all become enlightened.

Then your body, [Tibetan] my root guru, to visualize wish-granting jewel, numberless wish granting-jewels or one wish-granting jewel, then you give numberless hell beings, human beings, asuras, suras, whatever happiness they wish to achieve: ultimate enlightenment. Then all your belongings, your body, speech and mind and so on, all the belongings, and some people also who helped you, complete charity to numberless sentient being. Then also they got everything they want, they achieve enlightenment. So tonglen. There’s also meditation on emptiness there within tonglen. Or just meditation on emptiness, depending what you like.

As I mentioned before, doing prostration by reciting Thirty-five Buddhas. [Tibetan] Confessing downfall by reciting Thirty-five Buddha names, then the practice. You do full-length prostration. If not, put your palms together then recite. You can visualize doing full length prostration, it is same, benefit is same. With the actual body doing prostration or visualize body doing prostration, it’s same benefit is same, mentioned, so unbelievable. Whether we have taken initiation or not, that’s everybody who wants can do. Then bodhicitta practice, tonglen. Then one who has taken, then also there’s the self-initiation, so forth. There’s many practices, so many other practices of purification, so can do, can practice, purify negative karma. So the purification is very, very important. In the Lama Tsongkhapa life story, there’s no Vajrasattva, I never heard many hundreds of Vajrasattva, but [Tibetan] the Confessing Downfall, I think many hundreds thousands. The ____I didn’t see ___ yet, but he did several hundred thousand, or so many hundred thousand prostrations by reciting Thirty-five Buddhas’ names. So things like that. Also Lama Tsongkhapa, every night before he go to bed, he does thirty-five times, Thirty-five Buddhas thirty-five times with prostration and confess, and very comfortable mind, you know monk, very comfortable mind when purified, then go to bed, so this is Lama Tsongkhapa.

Basically every day think that others, so many others, your friends and relatives, many suddenly dead and dying with cancer, so forth, or suddenly dying, and so many left already. So like that can happen to me any time, any day, can happen. Like others happened, same thing can happen to me any day, that I’m going to die. So if you think that, can happen this year, this month, this week, even today. As Bodhicaryavatara mentioned, [Tibetan], tomorrow and today, which will come first, which will come first? Without attempting for tomorrow’s happiness, [Tibetan] it’s more worthwhile to attempt for the next life. Lama Tsongkhapa mentioned in lamrim that if you think you are going to die today, so the preparation for death get done, practicing Dharma get done. If you didn’t think of death, then preparation doesn’t get done, practicing Dharma doesn’t happen, get delayed, then worldly activity, then negative karma. So by thinking of death, then preparation for death happens, practicing Dharma happiness. So in case even you didn’t die today, then you have more opportunity to create positive karma, that’s what Lama Tsongkhapa mentioned.

[Tibetan], also mentioned by Shantideva, [Tibetan] I won’t die today, it is not remind. Thinking I’m not going to die today then staying comfortably, not remind, not worthwhile, comfortable, not worthwhile. [Tibetan], I, without purifying, [Tibetan], and death will definitely happen. So that time, without finish purifying, without purifying, doing the practice, then death happened already, death happened before, so this definite would happen to me. [Tibetan] Without purifying the I, without purify the obscurations, then definitely would happen death, death happen before the purify, so this can happen. And then also, while I have the control, one freedom, while I have the freedom, [Tibetan], while I have the freedom, [Tibetan] must achieve happiness beyond from this life up to enlightenment. [Tibetan]. When the breath coming and going, [Tibetan] when the coming and going stops, then that time, [Tibetan] then will be difficult the mind to become, the mind to be happy that time. When the breath coming and going stops, then that time, it will be difficult for the mind to be happy at that time. But there it says while one has freedom or, but I switched, because it talks about breath after, while I have this breath, breathing in and out, if I don’t establish preparation for happiness beyond from this life up to enlightenment, then when breath coming and going stops, then it will be difficult for my mind to be happy.

So OK, I’m not sure. I just give it, you know. Of course, it doesn’t mean I am free from death, it’s not saying that. But these are the practices to attempt. It is good have plan, your life what you’re going to do, and then need the practice to train the mind now. Otherwise, “Oh, this is what I’m going to practice at the death time”, then when death comes you can’t.

Also there is mantra, sorry, sorry, sorry, there’s a mantra to not have awful death, to not have problems at death time, heavy sickness and things at the death time, to have happy death, to be able to do the practice. There’s two mantras, the Bodhisattva [Tibetan] Eliminating Obscurations.¹ I recite this, you can write down. There are two mantras but I forgot the other one.

During the sur practice, in the evening, during the sur, the tsampa burning and giving the spirits, smell eaters, at the end I recite this mantra. One mantra is:

OṂ ŚVETAVARA VIJALINE SVĀHĀ
OṂ ŚVETAVARA VIJALINE SVĀHĀ

There’s another mantra, but now I don’t remember. So [Tibetan], Bodhisattva Eliminating the Obscurations.

OṂ ŚVETAVARA VIJALINE SVĀHĀ
OṂ ŚVETAVARA VIJALINE SVĀHĀ
OṂ ŚVETAVARA VIJALINE SVĀHĀ
OṂ ŚVETAVARA VIJALINE SVĀHĀ

Sorry it took some time, so this is my gift to whoever listens to this, other students and all who listen this, to pay attention to this and so prepare your death. So that’s very, very good, it is better than a Lamborghini. Lamborghini is nothing, a Lamborghini or anything is nothing, even if you earn billion dollars, trillion dollars from that, it’s nothing. So this is very good to make preparation while you are going to die.

So what was I going to say? And in particular I give to the students at ABC, who are really studying hard philosophy and all that, taking teachings from Geshe Chonyi, the perfect pure monk and then the abbot of Kopan Monastery, very good and who understands philosophy, the Buddhist extensive philosophy, teaching, who spent whole life to study, practice. Then very good. Then Hup Cheng and everybody, namaste, namaste, thank you very much. And then especially Fred, very important member of the center, really benefiting, always life dedicated to benefit sentient beings. Thank you very, very much. Thank you so much.

Notes

¹ Bodhisattva Eliminating Obscurations, Skt: Nivaranaviskambhin; Tibetan: byang chub sems dpa' sdrib pa rnam sel. If you recite this mantra seven times during the day and seven times at night, it purifies all the negative karma collected through continuous actions; at the time of death, an intense suffering at the end of life won’t occur and you will die with only happiness. [Return to text]