Archive Result

Soundfile 19970412GRNYC3P2

Speaker Gelek Rimpoche

Location New York City

Topic Three Principles

Transcriber Glenn Powers

Date 2020-11-17

interest in liberation, worked through and got liberated. So, that is principle one. So, without which, you can never get it. And, when I tell you, without three principles path, you will not liberated. I don’t mean without following Buddhist path, you don’t liberated. Anybody, who you name it, how can you have somebody liberated whose has no interest at all, never. If you don’t have desire, your not going to get anything, for sure. So, the problem with us, we don’t have interest. So, the principle one builds you the interest, interest of seeking liberation. 0:00:47.6

The principle two, builds you ways and means and how you do it. And then, once you have the interest, don’t sit there and say, “How do I do it? How do I do it?” That be simply beating yourself. Lot of people do that. Yes, I’m interested, but how can I do it? How can I do it? Should I be better to go around, circumambulation? Or, should I go around circumambulation? Or, should I go and do and build a mandala? Should I do the prostrations? Should I be generosity? Or, should I be morality be perfect, conservative, extremist, or whatever. All this sort of thing doesn’t get you anywhere. So here, then the Buddha says, “I did through that.” He says, “Hey, listen. My experience is once you are totally convinced you need to be liberated, once you see the fault in samsara, once you see the advantage in nirvana.”

For you to do next is see the persons that you care, what condition are they in? Rather than seeing yourself, what I can I do? What can I do? What can i do? This is very important key. A lot of people will do that. A lot of people, what can I do? What can I do? What can I do? I did this. I did this. I did this. I don’t know what to do. People get almost frustrated and become some kind of funny, twisted person. Even in spiritual path. Lot of people will think, workaholics great twisted personality. You know what I mean? [..] They do. A lot of workaholic people become twisted personality, you know. Completely twisted. You think nothing but that of work. You do nothing but that of work. You know, virtually, just getting there and totally, that’s it. That’s your tea, that’s you lunch, that’s your breakfast, that’s your dinner, that’s your social life, that’s your spiritual life, that’s your total life. But, some people who are on the spiritual path do the same thing. What can I do? What can I do? You don’t do anything, keep on saying, “What can I do? What can I do?” And, in your heart of heart, you simply saying, “What can I do? What can I do?” You may be saying some prayers, you may try to meditate, you may pretend we’re doing this. But, simply what you really saying is “What can I do? What can I do? What can I do?” That’s what you really going on. 0:04:07.4

So, the Buddha says, “Hey! Don’t do that.” He says, “Once you realize your in that condition, when you realize you need to be liberated.” Then, he says, “Change the focus.” What about the person I care? What about him? What about her? Is he or she in the same condition as me? Or, is she or he better than me? Or, worse than me? And, when yo begin to realize, you at least have the understanding of this and you at least have the path to follow. And, when you realize the other person doesn’t have it, then question comes, what can I help? How can I help? What can I do? The focus then must shift from me to him or her or to the others. Are you with me? This is extremely important. If you keep on sitting there still, what can I do? What can I do? It’s sort of dead beat you doing. You can do nothing for yourself by repeating that. Some people will tell you meditate. Some people will say mantras. Some people will say this and this and that and do all sorts of things. Some people will say do circumambulation. Some people will say make mandala offering. Some people will say be generous. Some people will say be kind, that’s a little better, but... All sorts of things they give you. But, in reality, you simply keep on dead beating. Nothing happens. So, the Buddha said, change the focus. Don’t say, “What can I do?” Begin to say, “What can I do for you?” What did President Kennedy say? (Audience: Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.) That’s it. Ask not what can I do for me, ask what can I do for you, for others. That is the key. Really. It’s key. If you don’t and keep on saying, “What can I do?” and sitting there, you get depression. Spiritual depression. How would you like that? A lot of people do that, they are not free. They do get into that. So, focus on the others. 0:07:27.5

Why do you have to focus on the others? Because love and compassion is your path. That is the path which deliver you. So, you must focus on others. Is that silly reason? Okay, I give you another reason. Because, I care. Is that silly reason? I don’t think anybody would like to say, “I don’t care.” Maybe one or two people. Very honest, straightforward person will say, “I don’t care.” But, most of them will pretend I do care, even if you don’t. Because I care. I care... you don’t have to focus to all sentient beings, that Buddha recommended to have all sentient beings, which will be your goal, true. But, you do not develop budhimind or compassion by focusing for all. Just by mentioning for all sentient beings, it’s great word, no doubt and great value, no doubt, but simply by saying “all” it reduces the value and power within your mind, do you realize that? It does. So, if you focus on the person you really do care, your children, your companion, your lover, whoever that closest to you, you care. Focus on that. The meaning of what you care will be different than that of somebody called “all sentient beings” over there. 0:10:08.1

Let’s read a little bit here. I was told where we stopped last time was the fourth from the bottom up. Fourth line. [..] Fourth stanza.

Swept along by the currents of the four raging rivers

tightly bound by karmic shackles, hard to unlock

caught in the iron whip of ego grasping

and lost in the thick fog of ignorance.

So, when you care that person, focus on the person. See the condition of the person, really see. Not the physical condition, not financial condition, not that. But, the real condition, the reality of the person you care. Look very carefully at the person. Really look deep. You see the face of the person. You see the person with the best face they put up, whether it is makeup or whatever. Best face, they put up. And, you look through the cracks of the makeup, you see the sufferings there. Don’t you? Think. Think and imagine the person right in front of you. The person you care the most. Project it and look at it carefully. And, you know the person. You know their mental worries. You know their physical problems. You know their fears. You look at them, look them and from the crack of the makeup, you see the sufferings. Between the lines. Between the eyelashes. Through their eye, you look in, you see the suffering. I do. I’m not joking to you. I’m not blowing my horns. I do that. I try to do that. If you don’t do that, you’re not working. And, if you look very carefully, each and every, look at the right, look at the left, look at the front, look at the back and look at each and every face that comes across to you. Who has no suffering? Who has no suffering?

The young ones have their own worries and you know they’re going to have a bigger problem later. And, your same age people, you look at them, you know their problems, you know their worries, you know their sufferings. We all know we are going to grow old. You know we’re all going to die. So, that’s the four current. Current of aging, illnesses, dying and rebirth. These are called outer four currents. There’s inner four current, the current of attachment, the current of anger, the current of fear, the current of ignorance. These are the four inner current. Their mind has been pushed and occupied and driven by those internal four inner currents. Their body is subject for this four outer currents, sickness, aging, dying, rebirth. 0:15:10.0

Well, if you’re in caught only in the four rivers, but there’s still possibility you may be able to swim cross, it is only river. And, if your hands and legs are free. But, unfortunately, you’re tightly bound by the karmic shackles. So, it’s hard to unlock. This is very important meaning, karmic shackles, tightly. Normally, when you look at the karma, you say, well, I have created one karma, so I have to pay for that. Then, I’ll be done with it. That principle is in the mind of lot of people. So, they tell me, “I’m working with my karma.” I say, “Bullshit!” Excuse my language. Why? Why? Because the karmic shackle is very hard to unlock. It is true, you killed somebody, you pay your life with that. And, that settles that karma. But, unfortunately, that’s not the end of that karma. The negative karmas, or positive karmas, build us a habituation. [..] Built, sort of gives you, addiction. If you kill one, you want kill more. Some child, you have to be protected from even the child, because they just want to kill and kill and kill, even insects or whatever it might be. They just want to kill and kill and kill. Why? Just simply, their previous life has been indulging for killing so much so that it becomes habitual to that person. The person has addiction. Their addicted to repeating the same thing. You drink. You have one drink, you want more and more and more, more. A little for medicine, a little for this, a little for that... You know, whatever the excuses come. And, very soon you know you’re totally drunk. And then, all the time, you notice your drunk all the time, right? That’s how you build your addiction. 0:18:04.5

So, the karma is not only you created karma and your settling, that’s not the problem. The real problem is addictions that we build, according to that. That’s why they said, karmic shackles, [..] hard to unlock. That is our major problem. Major problem is not one negativity. If it’s one negativity, yeah, you can finish. There be time to finish. But, the problem is negativities build addiction. So does the positivity. It’s not only the negative side have power of addiction, you also have the power of addiction to the positive side. You may not call it addiction. You may call it good behavior or whatever you been call it. [..] Good habits. You may call that. But, it good addiction. That’s what it is. So, the difficult of the karma not in the tit-for-tat, or eye-for-eye, but the addiction. Do you see the major problem is that? That’s why your hands are tied by the karmic shackle which is hard to unlock. So, you can’t swim, hands and legs are tied. Right? Even your hands and legs are tied, but you simply throw in the current and the water, you make some move, you may not sink or you may do something, there’s possibility. But, know you are putting cage. There’s a cage there. 0:20:25.5

According... iron whip, they call it whip here. Iron whip of ego grasping. So, it’s not only your hands are tied, but you are also locked in cage. Like animals. You see the dogs, when you’re flying they put them in cages. That’s what it is. You see these tigers and all this in zoos. They put in cage. Even your in cage, if there’s a bright day light, you can probably hope that somebody will see you and pull you out. But, unfortunately, it’s at night. [..] Translators do all sorts of things. [Tibetan] Well, you can make the darkness of fog. But, the Tibetan tells you [Tibetan] 0:21:54.2 [..] It is interesting we have two Chinese boy, coming from China, speaking fluent Tibetan. One of them said it’s been only three months or six months or something. [Tibetan] In the Tibetan, it’s written mumba, which is darkness, like night. 0:22:45.9

Not only is in darkness, there’s no end to it. It is continuously going life after life. Constantly, continuously going life after life. If you find the person you love and you care most in that condition, what would you do? What would you do, sir? What would you do? [..] You have to do something. Right? If you care, you will leave no stone unturned. Right? That’s what it is. You do that. So, because of that reason, you do need love and compassion. Because of that reason, you do need dedication. Because of that reason, you do need unconditioned love and unlimited compassion. Right? That’s it. Unlimited love and compassion is true bodhimind.

They called it bodhimind. It is a technicality. Technically, I’m supposed to say you have bodhimind, bodhimind meaning [Tibetan] 0:24:32.2 Mind that seeks enlightenment for benefit of all sentient beings. That is the technicality. I can tell you that. I have to say that. But, you have to understand what do that mean. For me, it’s easy to say that. I’ve been trained to say that. I can say it, “For the benefit of all sentient beings, one should seek total enlightenment.” That mind is called bodhimind, which has two prongs. The prong of total dedication and seeking of enlightenment. Then, to prove that, you say Maitreya said in [..] 0:25:07.7 Bodhimind is for the benefit of all others, seeking buddhahood. That’s bodhimind. So, to our understanding, unconditioned, unlimited love and compassion. Conditioned, we condition all our love. Do we or we don’t? Do we condition on our love? Hey, don’t forget the American, normal slang, “What’s in there for me?” That is conditioning everything. “What’s in there for me?” That’s conditions. And then, limits. For you, I will do anything. For you and you only. That is limiting. So, bodhimind, ultimate love and ultimate compassion, will not have condition nor limit. Neither they have a limit for the object on which you meditate love-compassion. So, that’s why Buddha tells you all sentient beings, that’s the reason why a-l-l, all sentient beings is because of that because it’s not limited to one or two or couple or relations or lovers or family or fellow citizens or all this. It’s going beyond that bound. So, even going beyond all human beings, that goes to all sentient beings, subject on which you generate love and compassion. 0:27:10.9

The dedication is also unlimited. Because, you’re absolutely going out of your way. No question. Absolutely out of your way, as far as you can get it. Even you can’t get it, you would like to commit to go. Hey, the bodhisattvas are so strange. They take responsibility of liberating everyone of us. Each and every one of us. They worry about each and everyone of us.

There was a master, Kadhampa master, called Geshe Wonackpa 0:27:58.7, who’s always long face and so he got the name of long face. He’s nickname is long face. Because, he’s worrying about everybody. So, Geshe Wonackpa came in the little village called Pembo from the north of Lhasa, when you cross that coral, other side of that village or valley, actually. It’s called Pembo area. There’s a couple of villages. So, Genshe Wonackpa went into the mountains of the Pembo and started meditating there. There’s wild ghosts in Pembo had meeting. They say, “Hey! A strange fellow came here. We’d better do something otherwise he may control us later. He may give us trouble. We better do something.” So, somebody volunteered among them, say “I will destroy him.” Alright, it is a powerful guy, among them. He volunteered in the meeting. So, the next ghost meeting, he should be reporting that, “I have completed that work.” He was supposed to do that. And, the next meeting, there’s no report. Nobody reminded him. Everybody remembered. They repeated meeting three times. At the third time, somebody say, “Hey, that strange fellow is still there. Why didn’t you do? You volunteered.” He said, “I went a number of times.” “Then, what happened?” “He’s worrying about us and crying all the time. So, how can I do something because he’s worrying about us?” He said, “He’s crying for us. So, how can I harm him?” That’s what he said. So then, somebody else volunteered. And, same thing repeated. Came back, say “He was right, he’s crying for us. I couldn’t do anything.” That’s right.

So, what does that tell you? Two things. One, your compassion must be genuine. Two, if you have compassion and love, this is your best protection. People seek protection from somewhere else. You’re best protection is love and compassion. 0:30:39.4

When Buddha obtained enlightenment, I’m sure many of you have seen “Little Buddha,” out of that, the best one is the Buddha’s life in India. Buddha’s life in India, you know there is under the tree where Buddha is sitting an meditating, all these devils coming in and started throwing weapons. Did you see it? What happens to that weapons? [..] Turn into flowers within certain areas, within certain environmental areas, they change them into flowers. Right? Where do you think Buddha got that from? Meditating love and compassion. Right? Meditating love and compassion gives you that result. Best protection. 0:31:47.3

I’m sure number of you went and got lot of initiations. During the initiation, big initiations, they give you protection thread, tied here or here. Right? And what does that give you, protection thread? Through the mantra of the buddha of love, Buddha Maitreya, the mantra what we say during that period, OM BUDDHA MAITREYA... Buddha Maitreya will protect ‘till Maitreya comes or ‘till next whatever. So, whatever it might be. The key to this is Buddha Maitreya, because buddha of love. The love and compassion is the most important protection also. From both internal evil and external evil. The external evil is your non-virtuous friend, is your external evil. Internal evil is your delusions, anger, attachment, fear, jealousy, these are your internal evils. External evil is your non-virtuous friend, friend who tried to draw you away from a perfect path, friend who will tell you, “You’re too tired. You need a rest. You don’t have to meditate.” The friend who tells you, “I care for you, please don’t spend your time to meditating. Because, that makes you tired. You don’t have time. You have to work hard.” Friend that tells you, “Hey! You are responsible, you have to make money. You can’t do that way.” That’s our non-virtuous friend. True, you have to make money. You have to pay, you have to be responsible. Beyond that, money making is money making. If you let the money making go, no limit. If you make ten, you want to make one hundred. If you make hundred, you want to make thousand. If you make thousand, you want to make hundred thousand. If you make hundred thousand, you want to make million. If you want to make million, you want to make billion. If you make billion, you want to make trillion. If you make trillion, you want to make three trillion, ten trillion. No limit. Why? Greedy has no satisfaction. That is the internal evil for you. That’s what it is. It is your job, it is your wisdom, that has to say enough is enough. I did not say you do not need money. You do need money. Some people need more, some people need less. Sure, why not. As long as you can make it, if you are capable of doing it. As long as you don’t suffer yourself. As long as you have no attachment to that, make it. It is your darn right. Sorry. Yeah, really. Make it. And, enjoy it. If you don’t enjoy, somebody else will enjoy. 0:35:25.5

[Tibetan] Chandrakitti says in the middle path root text, [Tibetan] 0:35:43.4 One creates and other will eat that up. One works hard and builds up and the other will eat up. That’s what it is. You have every right to make it. Make it. And, don’t forget enjoying it. Use it. That doesn’t mean you should get bankrupt yourself. You know how to manage, right? And, that’s how you do. 0:36:23.7

That is love, that is compassion. I mean, you have to meditate. You have to meditate the seven stage of development of love-compassion, according to the teaching of the [..] Asanga. According to the Asanga and Maitreya tradition, there’s a seven stage of development. According to Nagajuna and Shantideva, all this, exchange stage of development. The seven stage of development, you can clearly see in Liberation in Palm of Your Hand has very clearly seven stage. Geshe Rabten’s Essential Nectar should have exchange [..] or, if not... The commentary by Geshe Kelsang Gaytso on Meaningful to Behold, that should have because bodhisattvacharya is actually the main point to exchange stage of development. So, the commentary should have that. Or, His Holiness’s Flash of Lighting in the Darkness, they should have that. But, I don’t read English. [..] Also, I have little commentary on lamrim, it is very thick. Xerox copy right now, the Dutch people made. That should have both. And now, combination, combination of seven stage development and exchange stage development, combine them together called eleven steps, which is also in Liberation in the Palm of Your Hand should have that. That is in my notes, also should have that. Should have that. This Tsongkhapa’s special, combining both. Either you follow the seven steps or if you follow the exchange, both are capable of delivering the goods. But, combine them together, makes much easy. 7/11 open 24 hours. (laughter) 7/11 open 24 hours. 0:40:36.3

So, what you do? a) try to understand the bodhimind. What is love? What is compassion? And, collect all the information that you needed it, the correct ones. Don’t collect the wrong information. Because, love-compassion is such a thing everybody would like to touch. You know, once Allen told me, something he asked in public, in one of these, he’s doing performance. He asked me in public, something something somebody, he invited question from audience and saying something and my answer was love and compassion. Allen told me it was buzz word, meaningless, overused and doesn’t have any more meaning left. So, love and compassion is so much overused to the right extreme from the Pat Robertson to the Ramdas, to the left extreme, everybody uses love and compassion. Really true. Pat Robertson talks love and compassion. If you watch his television, that’s what he says. Really. I was a little shocked. But, it is. Christian Coalition guy, that young guy [..] 0:42:22.0 he talks with love and compassion. There’s nothing wrong. But, it really become buzz word. And, there was a compassion construction company in Australia. It’s funny. All of them. Real become buzz word. But, collect the correct information. The information that really hit you hard. Information that makes you feel. Feel the pain the people experiencing. Feel the pain. Understand that. Feel that pain. And then, meditate, analyze, meditate. And then, your life will become in the principle of the compassion function. Though, Allen told me, compassion is buzz word. But, his life was totally guided by the compassion. Openness and compassion. That’s what it is. Each one of us should have that. We must soak our mind in the compassion. We must make our mind itself is compassion. We must become the compassion. We will live with compassion and we die with compassion. That’s what we must do. You know what I mean? That is the principle of Mahayana Buddhism. You live with compassion, die with compassion. That’s what it is. 0:44:40.6

It’s not difficult. Looks difficult. Sounds difficult. But, not difficult. If you make attempt, you have big surprise how easy it is. Really, how easy it is. But, if you have the pull and push and doubt and letting go, pulling, letting go, pull, push, doubt, you never go. As I told you earlier, you remain rest of your life in that way. Pull, push, have doubts and you die with that and that’s called waste of precious human life. That’s wasted. It is total waste. Are you with me? I’m going to say goodbye and good night. [..] 0:45:59.9

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