Archive Result

Soundfile 19980319GRBHLR

Speaker Gelek Rimpoche

Location Birmingham, MI

Topic Lam Rim

Transcriber Janet Bourgon

Date 7/26/2021

0:00:00.0.

Okay. Before we talk tonight’s thing, first of all I would like to thank you, Mick Rafters, for making it possible, arranging and doing everything of those series we did. [Clapping]. And of course Kathy and Debbie and Carla. Where is she? Oh, there you are. And making it also possible to bringing things and making it work. As well as Jeff and Danielle sitting there with very shy [? 0:00:58.5] look, make it possible to function. And then, to all of you who have been coming here for the week after week, and try to gain something out of it. It is also important, I was driving down with Kathy today, and driving down somewhere on the 275 S. and [? 0:01:42.9] over 696. And we started saying some sort of conversation picked it up and that Kathy said, I started with Jewel Heart in, what did you say? ‘87 or something? December, January ’87. And I said, you have been with Jewel Heart 12 years. And she said, well, maybe 11. Okay, fine. So 12 or 11. I said, 10 years is a long time to, out of one life. You’re devoting and putting 10 years. And so what did you gain out of that? I said. And she’s been a little puzzled. And she said, what are you thinking? I said, you have to take stock now. You’ve invested 10 years in there, and find out whether you gain anything out of that. And that’s what we talked, right? The point is, everybody, whatever you do, what we call it spiritual path, you put a lot of efforts in your life.

0:03:04.3.

The times that you don’t have, we put in. The energies that we have limited, we put in. We try to gain something. Try to do something. It is always important to look back. I mean saying, what did I gain? What did I gain? And now, and what I been doing and what did it helps me or doesn’t help me. What did it do? It is extremely important to do that. Not every week, every section, you know. It won’t work. But long time like this, you know, year or two. You always have to look back and, where did I reach? What had happened? Is there anything difference between me, who without these ideas and practice, or even working through? And who, and then you watch among your friends. You say, some people will be there simply there for information. Some people will be there simply for something that I like to do it, but not sort of seriously working. And there’s some people who does very seriously with all this. Say, what difference they are? What did they gain? What did you gain? It is important to review. You call ‘review’, right? Or ‘preview’? Review. That’s right. Review. Preview means before, right? So, review that. And by doing that review, and you know either you will know you are doing right or wrong. Because there’s countless ways of presentation, and countless ways of the spiritual path that comes in. Particularly these days it is very much unlike traditional way. It is everything is available. It’s almost like a, the spirituality is almost like in the Yellow Pages. I think it is in Yellow Page. Not almost like. It is in the Yellow Page. So, it’s a tremendous amount of choice that individual have. So any result or not, that is the main decision-making for the individual. We’re supposed to talk the wisdom, emptiness, tonight. But emptiness or no emptiness, and the wisdom on every single thing what you do, is important. Specially the spiritual path. Really truly, we’re picking up unknown thing.

0:06:05.9.

Unknown thing which we have no idea. We have some kind of interest. Interest to get beyond our comprehension, beyond our materialistic world, but we really don’t know. Most of you. Most of us, sorry. I’m not excluding myself. Most of us just really does not know. Most of us really does not know. Know what we’re looking for. Know what is it? What is that we try to gain? Are we simply try to gain some kind of love and light business? Are we simply try to gain a good concentration? Are we simply try to gain love and compassion? Or are you simply try to gain improvement with individual itself? [0:07:03.1] Or maybe all of above? Or what are we doing? And what I’m getting to it? I think that’s important. Ten years out of one life is extremely long and very valuable. I’m not saying Kathy should quit. [Laughs]. But it is a long time. So, if you review, and if it’s helped, contributed and helped the individual improving your dealing with your own negativities and your goodness, and then it has been worthwhile. And it should give you more as strong confirmation and inspiration. And if doesn’t help, maybe that’s not for me. Something else you should try. I mean really true. Because one shouldn’t go without any counter check. We call ‘counter check’. Checks and balance, normal American language. So, you should also have it in the spiritual path. If you don’t, then you know we have old saying in Tibet. Even you are swept away by the current, you been carried away by current, the water comes and takes you away. But if you still keep on thinking that you’re swimming, and then probably get you nowhere. The current will take you. We shouldn’t do that. Having said that, and thinking carefully once again, this is going to be the last evening for this period.

0:09:03.1.

What did we really talk here? What did we try to present, idea what? And once we try to clarify the spiritual path, that what Buddha had shared with us. I have no problem if people think the spiritual path is walking over fire and walking over a river. That’s fine. That’s really fine. Also, if you think eating brown rice and drinking a wheat grass juice is spiritual path, that’s also fine. I don’t want quarrel with Robert, particularly here. [Laughs]. And that also fine. But as I mentioned to you number of times, we have to look in very carefully what is the spiritual practice for? And how long it should go? And how it makes difference to me? These are the three main things. And what is for? It’s for freeing our self. Freeing from the negativities. Freeing our self from neurosis. Freeing our self from anger, hatred, jealousy, and all this. Ignorance will come much later. We won’t be free from the ignorance, so the stupid things we’ll do it again and again because it’s ignorance part of it. But that we can’t deal it first time. But anger, hatred, not so much anger. I also make big distinction here. It is the hatred is worse. Anger, people lose a lot of temper for a lot of reasons. And every losing temper not necessarily that bad. But then if you keep on losing the temper repeatedly, repeatedly, repeatedly, then you develop hatred. And once you developed hatred, then it becomes big problem. It’s really the hatred is the main point where we’re looking. Though a lot of translations from the Tibetan tradition, what Buddha talked about three root poisons. So people will put anger and attachment and jealousy. Is it jealousy? No, ignorance. Sorry. Anger, attachment, and ignorance. And they have this metaphor of a [pig? 0:12:05.0] and a bird and a, is it snake? Snake in the center.

0:12:10.2.

And so how they [expense? 0:12:14.9] the whole events in circle with our life. And how it is dependently exist. There are a lot of those drawings are there. I don’t know whether they have any books in that, they have any drawings or not. So people tell you it is anger, but when you really look at it, it is the hatred. Hatred that really harms the individual mind much more than temper tantrums that you show. Temper tantrums, temper tantrums, some people have 0:16:34.4naturally temper tantrum. They just be, you know? Well, we normally used to say in Tibet ‘Mongolian attitude.’ So the Mongolians are supposed to be very, very temper tantrum person. So when they get angry, they grab everything and hit you, even 18th-century teacups, with no hesitation. Hit the person. Person go like this, and he hit the wall [back? 0:13:27.3]. [Laughs]. I have a friend, a Mongolian friend, it’s called Mongolian Lama Guru [Dera? 0:13:35.7]. He’s like that. And he has a lot of antique things in Delhi. And you know when he got upset one of his [guy day?? 0:13:43.4], he got upset, he pick up everything and throw. And he’s good at this! Everything goes on the wall! So that temper tantrum is not that bad. I mean I shouldn’t be saying that. Supposed to be I’m saying, supposed to talking Buddha’s message and all this. It’s very hard to avoid and we’re so used to it. Gradually it will reduce, no doubt. But the temper tantrum showing all the time, and then you know back and forth, right? Once you start it, somebody else will immediately attack you because you started attacking them. They will attack you in the forms of defense. But it’s not, whatever it is, [? 0:14:29.0] attack. And then goes back and forth and then hatred develop. Once the hatred developed, it’s become very hard to undo things. And it may take much deeper root, and it make the individual to be, not only to be cautious, but every single thing, whatever you do, become very suspicious. And always expecting some kind of, it’s all meant against you.

0:15:01.3.

It’s all against me. It’s just every single thing is meant to embarrass me, or embarrass, [reprimand? 0:15:13.5] me, or undermine me, or all this. And that goes on for a long time. And when you developed well with one person, then it will easily develop with other persons as well. And that puts you out for long time because spiritual practice, to me, it is mental, not physical. I was try to say that right from the beginning. Mental, not physical. I tell you why. The physical thing have very strong limitations. Okay, you do physical spiritual path, then you’re not going to take that with you. When you die, you’re leaving your body, and so you’re leaving everything in there. Everything focus on the physical thing, it’s been left there. So what is going is the only the consciousness. So anything that affected the consciousness is going with us, not anything that affected with the physical [point? 0:16:34.4]. I think we have to make that absolutely clear to our self first. That doesn’t mean the brown rice and wheat juice is not spiritual, but really, honestly speaking. But what we really, the Buddha’s message of looking that spiritual path is, something men…the consciousness. The development of the consciousness is a spiritual thing. Development of consciousness is also not sophisticated, not complicated. And how we react, how we function, how we perceive, how things we perceive, how things we function, and that is the way how we judge our self. And how we output our self. Do we output our self with kindness, compassion? Or do we output our self with suspicion and mind of protection for our self? Thinking that I’m protecting myself, you know?

0:18:01.9.

That doesn’t mean you don’t protect yourself, okay? Don’t misunderstand me. You do protect yourself. Whatever you do, you do protect. But that’s not your main goal. The main goal what you want output is helping, kindness and compassion [? 0:18:22.6]. How much you’re going, how much you’re not going on that, how much you used to go, how much you’re not used to go. Or maybe, you’re absolutely, what you call it, positive everything. Absolutely positive. No negative ever exist. So what we say, Madame Positive or something. And see how far you went and how much do we gain the wisdom of limiting our self, our limits. How far we can go. How far you shouldn’t go. [0:19:00.3]. All of those are important point in daily life. That’s what I feel. Daily life is important. Any act that we do, act, action, anything we do, and we have to check our motivation. And we have to check the wisdom. [Someone giving Rimpoche a glass of water.] What I’m talking about? [Audience: motivation]. Check motivation and have some wisdom. Let’s say generosity. The American people are very fond of generosity. It’s great. They’re very generous. It’s wonderful thing. But when you approach, you should have some wisdom of whether that particular point is helpful or useful or not. Simply not knowing, there are a number of people who try to tell me, well, I like to be very compassionate. I like to be bodhisattva. When somebody ask me something, I have to give it. Number of people do that. It’s great. You can give it. It’s wonderful. But you should also see whether that help the individual to whom you’re giving, or it’s going to harm the individual.

0:21:04.8.

It’s important. If you just wanted give money to addicted people, and it’s going to harm them rather than help them. It is interesting. I think a few years ago, maybe about five, six years ago, and at the Om Café Colleen decided to have a soup kitchen and served for, I don’t know, some one particular day. And we have the soup kitchen. And so she prepared that and only one person came to get the soup. Only one person showed up, and that guy also got upset. He is, why didn’t you tell me it is vegetarian? [Laughs]. Bang, and go! And bang and go! Why didn’t you tell me it’s vegetarian? I could have gone somewhere else. [Laughs]. But the point is, take that, that sort of action. So what happens to that action? What happens to that action it is great motivation of serving and giving and all this. No question. It’s been great motivation. And we did not have enough wisdom. The majority of the people who comes for that has to be fed other than vegetarian food. Whatever. And I’m try to point it out, lack of wisdom, whatever we do. Even it’s great. It’s wonderful thing. Of course should. I should give vegetarian and try to make them vegetarian. It’s better for them. It’s better for their health. It’s better for even the environment and better for the killing of animal and so forth. For sure. But that is too long step. And in step in-between there’s a directed link, and wisdom should be able to see that. And we did not. So that is the lack of wisdom in the generosity. Even in generosity. I’m giving you example. So accordingly you go. Accordingly you go. And accordingly you go, that’s great. So even the generosity, you have wisdom to counter check. Morality, you should have wisdom to counter check. The idea is the general morality what we understood as in the United States may not necessarily be the morality we’re talking about it.

0:24:03.8.

Here we are talking about morality is the keeping and honoring your own commitments. Commitments. And they should be wisdom mind. Wisdom mind should understand what is really morality we’re talking about it. The morality we’re not talking about it--sexual orientation whatever it might be. You know, all this. And they need wisdom. If you don’t have wisdom, then everything’s everything. So that’s lack of wisdom will give you that sort of thing. It is definitely true. I don’t want to touch very controversial subject, but at the same time it is true in the case of abortion versus... I’m sorry. Pro-choice versus pro-life. And they are also lack of wisdom. In case-by-case you have to see it. It’s not in blanket thing. You know what I’m talking about it? It is not blanket thing. It is definitely woman’s right to choose what they do with their body. At the same time, it is also true, absolutely, nobody doesn’t want save life. They do. But if there is a problem, they should have opportunity to do what they want to do. If both side people are started applying the wisdom, and thinking and… That’s what wisdom does. And so things may turn out to be better. If you don’t use wisdom, and so one blanket thinking one go, and then it go like this. I mean the society’s divided into two categories and then, then it’s be almost developing hatred, and everybody wants to go totally out of one side and try to make it. And that’s where the hatred even coming into picture. And so much so that they will even go to the extent of shooting a person to save a life.

And all these are the problems because of lack of wisdom. In my opinion, they should really have been case-by-case, individual and concerned people should have wisdom to be able to judge rather than make it blanket. And that’s the part of morality too. Morality too. That’s what it is. And then we give our principle of our life on the six important basis, right? So the first, have the generosity. Second, have good morality.

0:27:01.9.

And third, patience, which is extremely difficult for so many of us. Even simple patience that you have to wait for your boyfriend to pick you up for half an hour. And that will boil you up, right? So lack of patience. I’m just giving you that as an example. But in reality every effort that you put in, every result that you are waiting for, should have good patience. If you don’t have patience, what will happen? You get upset. You develop anger. You get angry. You develop hatred. So, to reverse that, you have to have patience. Patience comes out of understanding, not out of anything else. Understanding. When you understand things how it work, what it has been, what could that be, what could have gone wrong, all of those. If you understand, your patience is far better than usual. The usual lack of understanding, so then you get upset. Been half an hour. Oh, it’s been 45 minutes. Now it’s been an hour now. What’s happening? You know? So that’s exactly what happens. So patience. The patience also should have wisdom. Should have wisdom. If you have understanding and if there’s good reason, it is worth for waiting an hour. And if there is wrong reason, then it’s not worth for waiting even five minutes. So that is also needing the wisdom there to understand what’s going on.

And then, diligent. Diligent also needs wisdom because what efforts you’re putting for what? And if you don’t, then you be problem. That’s why I’m urging Kathy to review 10 years. So diligently she put the time in there. So what did I get? So should I continuously put the, redouble the diligent, or should I remain the same level, or should I reduce by fifty percent? It is wisdom that will go through. What do I get? What I have done? [? 0:29:49.1]. Even the diligent, you put all the effort, without putting efforts nothing can function. You know that. Spiritual path, material path, whatever it may be, if you don’t put efforts nothing happens.

0:30:02.9.

So you put the efforts, and efforts whatever you put, you have to make wise choice. Otherwise, you put the wrong efforts toward wrong thing and 20 years later you realize nothing has been done. Nothing gain. And same old mole, that groundhog mole that goes under the ground for six-month, came out same old mole. Maybe it’s slightly different. You may see your shadow or not. We can talk about it, but otherwise, nothing change will be is worthwhile [0:30:44.9]. So that’s why even diligent efforts you put in should have wisdom.

Same as concentration. Absolutely. You put lot of efforts to concentrate. Concentration brings result. If you cannot concentrate, you don’t hope to get too much result. Whatever we do, right? If you’re artist, you have to pay attention and you concentrate what you’re going to draw. If you’re teacher, you have to pay attention what you’re teaching. You have to have focus and concentration. If you’re meditator, you have to have focus and concentration. Whatever we do in our life, even you’re driver, you have to have concentration. Otherwise you’re going to bang your car with another car. No problem, right? It’s true. Easy. If you’re not awareness and concentration’s not there. Anything. Any single thing what we do in our life, even sexuality, you do need concentration. You all know. You all know that, right? So that’s true. And then the spiritual path definitely need concentration. And that concentration again need wisdom. Without wisdom you can spend a lot of time just sitting there and watching. With wisdom you can use, you can go deeper inside, what they call it vipassana. Going deeper inside within your mind, and focusing and mind attitude. And effect of the thoughts on the mind. And effects of the mind on the individual. And consequences of that, the actions that individual has been taking. How it come in? How can I reverse? All of those.

0:33:01.4.

So basically these are the main point. Sort of main point of application of wisdom. Any actions that we take. Even we say our prayers here. Say Om Mani Padme Hung, or whatever. Even that, you need concentration, and you need focus. And all of those. You need wisdom-- knowing what you’re talking about it, what you’re thinking. What are you wishing? What are you try to develop? And how you think it can develop that action. All of those are the wisdom part of it.

Then if you ask me, the Buddhism, it was sad, wisdom within the Buddhist teaching is emptiness. What does this got to do with emptiness? People may have that in mind, too. Actually, this got to do, everything got to do with emptiness. If it’s not in emptiness in natural, you cannot change anything. [0:34:14.3]. Right? If it’s not in empty, then it’s filled. And if it filled, there’s no room to do anything because filled up. When it’s empty there’s room for you to do everything. [Tibetan quote—kala punga nero??? 0:34:31.6]. So, one who can understand and accept emptiness by it’s natural, that person can fit anything, everything. It is adaptable and accommodate-able. You can do everything. If there is no emptiness in nature, then it has its own nature and you cannot adapt anything because it is static. Right? Well, you can, let’s say if you want to build another lady liberty, and if you want to put lady liberty next to the present lady liberty, you can do it. But if you want to put on top of that and try to fit in that particular lady liberty, the new one you make it’s not going to work because it’s [static? 0:35:31.8] filled up. Right? Empty, you can put it there. So, in absolute level, anything, whatever’s happening, whatever we’re perceiving, whatever we’re feeling, whatever we’re doing, it’s not static. It is subject to change. It is changeable. It is replaceable. Are you with me?

0:36:03.0.

So, in the principle of the Buddha’s teaching, in really principle, when you try to look that emptiness, you don’t look what is empty. You don’t look in zero. You look in the, you look how did reach to zero level. You know what I’m talking about it? You have eight, nine, ten, then you put a zero. You don’t get at zero at the beginning. You get one, two, three, four, five, six, right? If you put a zero at the beginning, then nothing happens. It’s gone. Zero. So people have the idea of seeing emptiness means some kind of big hollow. Big vacuum, or something people think and that’s not the way. It gets zero at number ten level, and you reach to the zero level by going through one to nine. So what does that tell you? There’s ten of them in there. That’s the zero represents, right? So one zero, two zero, three zero, four zero, five zero, six zero, represents lot of them. Right or wrong? People will say six digit, four digit, three digit, whatever, you know? So that’s what it is. Though it’s zero, it represents the number. So how did we get to the zero level is how did we exist? Looking from there, when you look at how do I exist? And I’m existing right now. And each one of us are existing. How did we exist? How do we exist? You may probably think, yeah, we exist because are born. Well, nice short way, very [abrupt? 0:38:07.3] way of thinking. Yes, true, we’re born. But what does that mean? What does that mean? Oh yeah, say that means you’re born. Yeah, but what is it? For me? How did I born? Really. You say, well yeah, I been born hospital or whatever. But again, we’re going to the wrong direction. How did we born? Because we have combination of a body, and a mind which occupies that body. Right? When the mind occupies the body and it’s combined together, there is something which makes them grow physically as well as mentally.

0:39:03.9.

So the combination of the body and mind made me possible to be able to born. Is there any problem for that? If you don’t have one, if you don’t have body, forget about it. Birth or born, right? And if you don’t have a mind, and then another problem comes. Right? Person doesn’t born, but they’ll take out certain things. Comes out, right? So whatever the physical left, is has to be taking out from the mother. That because there is no mind. So the combination of a body and mind together make it possible to born, to be born. So what made us exist today is the body and the occupying person inside, whoever it is inside, and the senses that we have. Five senses that we have. The eye can see. Ear can hear. Nose can smell. Tongue can taste. The touch can feel. Those are the combined together made us. A perfect human being. Right? If you cannot see it, and there is a problem. You’re not perfect human being because you have a vision problem. Right or wrong? It’s true. If you don’t hear, if you have to use a medical earring, not earring, medical ear, right? If you have to use medical ear, then it’s not perfect. You have a problem here. That doesn’t mean… Carla saying no. [Laughs]. That doesn’t mean we’re not human being. We’re still human being. But we’re not perfect. We have a problem. Right? And ultimately no message can be received by anybody, whatever happening on your physical level. Then we have big problem. So then it is the time for this consciousness inside, and out of body separates. When it separates, we cease to be human being. So how we exist? We exist on the combination and conditions.

0:42:04.3.

Conditions and combinations. We depend on the condition and combinations. We do not exist independently without depending on these conditions and the parts that you combine together. Are you with me? So that’s what Buddha’s talking about emptiness. So when you look at it, emptiness, truly you look from how do we exist? How do we have room to adjust? How can I adopt [adapt? 0:42:40.6] this and that? All of them because there is room, the conditions right, so you can adopt [adapt? 0:42:47.5]. Adaptability is also very important in our life. Me, this particular person here, has very funny, interesting experience in my own life. I went out of Tibet in 1959. It is almost like you been picked up in the middle of 17th century by helicopter or something, and brought you over in the 20th century and dropped it. The condition, that was exactly what happened. That’s how it was. But adaptability, the wisdom, whatever may be, it helps to adapt the person. If you don’t have the wisdom to be able to adapt then you become, what you call that? Stubborn. Stubborn people. Stubbornness is coming out of lack of… [blank section 0:44:09.1 through 0:44:18.3]. …what is right and wrong. And if you don’t have wisdom you just be simply be stubborn. And most of the people, pro-choice and pro-life, are stubborn people anyway. I’m sorry to say that. They’re so stubborn. They don’t want adjust anything, many of them, and lack of wisdom. Adaptability. Especially when you change the culture completely, and you change the language completely. You change the system of the people way and how they think, even way and how they eat.

0:45:01.3.

Even way and how they wash their body. All of them totally change. And if you’re not adaptable, be big problem. That’s not the way I do it. I do it in this way. You know? [laughs]. So I cannot go on say, look, how do we Tibetans do. And we take bath once a year in old Tibet. So I cannot go on saying look, I take bath once a year. You can’t do that, right? You have to take bath every day. You have to otherwise you’ll smell. So anyway, I just simply share these are my thoughts. And so the wisdom really what [us? 0:45:47.6] do. And then, most important thing the efforts that you put in, time that you put in to do something. And if that doesn’t have wisdom, you can waste lot of time for that. For nothing. You don’t want to do that. You really should have a wisdom on that. How can you [comfom? 0:46:09.4] the wisdom that you applied? It is the only the result what you get. Don’t listen to people. Everybody will tell you different things. If they, if you ask hundred people, they give you hundred different opinions and you get completely confused. If you ask people and you make your own mind, that’s fine. But if you have to listen to everybody, the hundred different ways, we cannot manage. So the real way is to check with yourself. If the time, the energy that you had spent, whether it’s cut down my hatred. Did it cut down my attachment? Did it make difference how I deal with people? Did it made difference how I perceive the people. You know, all this. And if you see it’s worthwhile, then you, it’s been helping you. If you don’t see it’s worthwhile, it’s not helping you. And you have to be the judge, and nobody else does. You are your own judge. Nobody else can judge you. Anybody else try to judge you, it’s wrong. Nobody can judge you. Even Buddha himself said, [Tibetan quote: nam daman… 0:47:27.9]. If you’re Buddha, you’re all-knowing and then you may be able to make judgment. But if you’re not all-knowing, one should never make judgment for another person because you never know. But that individual, whatever you have within your mind, within your consciousness, it’s not secret to you. Whatever you have that.

0:48:01.6.

Not secret to you. You know it and so you can judge accordingly. By yourself, for you. By you, for you. If you don’t know, then you don’t have it, truly speaking. Lot of people think, oh, well, someday maybe came out will be alright. Well, I did not have much sort of negativities. I didn’t kill anybody. I didn’t steal anything. Well, I’m sort of okay, but I don’t really know, but sort of hopefully I’ll be okay. So that’s only hope. You don’t have anything else. Well, yes. You didn’t kill anybody else. That’s a good thing. You didn’t steal anybody else’s anything, so that’s also another good thing. But the goodness what you have is limited. And the goodness what you have is not limited, then you’re doing well. When it’s only limited, you’re doing poorly. The essence of Buddhist practice, or spiritual path, for that matter doesn’t have to be Buddhist. Really truly. Essence of good human being is collecting the goodness, and avoiding the badness. And if you have enough of goodness that you build up, then you’re sure you’re okay. You don’t even have to hope that you’ll be okay. You’re sure you’re okay because it is the karma. Every time you collect goodness, you’re making good karma. Every time you’re collecting bad, you’re getting bad karma. And the result of the karma, that is the basis in which we have experience. We experience joy and suffering is only on that basis. Nobody else made you suffer. Nobody else make you enjoy. It is only our self. That’s why it’s principal we are responsible to our own deeds. Absolutely that’s how it works. By collecting goodness, you’re sure you be okay. And if there’s a lot of bad things in there, then you need to take care of. And if there’s not so much bad thing in there, and there’s some good thing in there you may hope to let [credit up? 0:50:35.4], That’s wrong. One shouldn’t do it. What you have to do is try to take care of the bad things you have done. It’s not too late. It’s never too late for anything. As long as we’re in life, we can do. The quality of bad action or negative karma is also to be able to clear, to be able to purify. It is [your? 0:51:02.6] own good quality.

0:51:03.6.

So you have to take care of the negative. Whatever you see within you, just don’t leave it there. You have to take care of. How--I told you right at the beginning. By four power, applying four powers. Power of regret. And, now I forgot. Recognition. And then? [audience response—I can’t hear]. That’s a very strong word, [I do regret? 0:51:38.1]. Non-repeatable. I’m not going to repeat. And antidote action. So the Buddha goes on, said, if you apply these four powers, sincerely, honestly, from bottom of your heart, there will be no negativity which cannot be purified. Gives a lot of examples of. One of his disciple, king, who not only had, not only had a negativity, but two limitless negativities. Killing his own father and killing an arhat. Double, not only a double murder, but a double unlimited, unlimited, immeasurable negativity Buddha calls that. So two of them with one person, even then he can purify. And he made it through to enlightenment. So these are the examples. So no matter how strong a negativity may be, you’re not dirty. You’re not filthy. You’re not become unworthy. And you are wonderful, pure nature human being. You simply have these problems. And these problems are temporary. You can wipe them off. You understand what I’m talking about it? It’s totally by you again, within your mind, and you can do all of those. You don’t have to go and tell somebody, I did this and that and I like to purify. If it’s somebody good one, is fine. Some bad one is you get an invitation from Kenneth Starr [0:53:36.4] to appear in the grand jury. [Laughs]. So that’s what’s going to happen. So you don’t need that. So it is only your responsibility. Basically that’s how you maintain your spiritual life. Anything negativity, if you think, try to purify that.

0:54:00.2.

And keep on collecting goodness. And that’s how you go. Try to cut down your neurosis. Change them. Try to change them. This is called practice. And that’s what one has to do. People put lot of efforts, a lot of people, and they have very good result. When people don’t put efforts, they don’t have result. I like to share a little bit of something with you. Because if I keep on saying that, people put efforts, people get result, doesn’t make much sense. I have to give you little examples. People like Allen Ginsberg, I’m sure many of you remember he even being on this, in this particular stage one time with me. So, put lot of efforts, lot. I mean he really puts like an hour to two hours every day for practice. Saying his commitments. Saying his six-session yoga. Saying his sadanas. Chanting and meditating. And they get result. Like Philip Glass puts two hours a day minimum. Two hours every day no matter wherever he is. Up in the plane or wherever it is, puts two hours every day to meditate that. And people round, there’s a lot of people in that circle, and each and every one of them they do. There’s important lawyers, well known, important lawyers. And they put 45 minutes to one hour. And if someday they forget, after midnight, after two in the morning, and they still put that time. So, people do that. And then as a result of that, you see the different. I’m not mean, I don’t say that each one of you have to put two hours, but whatever the efforts you can put in, even five minutes, ten minutes, twenty minutes, thirty minutes, whatever it is. It will make a difference at this moment in short time. It make a hell of difference in long time. Long time. After all, we are all travelers. We’re not permanent here.

0:57:04.8.

We’re going to go. Sooner or later, one by one we all go. That is the changing of our identity. We take a different identity, and that time it makes hell of a difference. It make difference not in the miracle form, not in the blessing form, because of the constant efforts you’re building a constant positive nature and that will give you the result. So, if you cannot put any time, that’s also fine. But bring awareness in your life. Every action that you do, have awareness. Awareness of what? Not necessarily what you’re doing. That is there as human nature. Human being will know what they’re doing. Maybe not, but mostly they do. [Laughs]. But here, the awareness will be, is this hurting anybody, including myself. Is this action of mine helping anybody, including myself? It is action of my hurting anybody? Right? [0:58:24.6]. It is very hard for us to judge negative and positive or goodness or bad. It is based on if you are hurting somebody, no matter whatever it may be, mentally, physically, emotionally. If you are hurting somebody, it is negative no matter who does it. It is negative whether it is great spiritual master who does that, or President Clinton who does that or pope who does that. It is negative if it’s hurting. If it’s not hurting, if helping, then it’s positive. Who does doesn’t matter. President Clinton, Dalai Lama or some crazy guy in the street. That is positive. It doesn’t, the negative and positive actions doesn’t depend on the individual. It depends on the action. So awareness of that, each and every person, judging your own mind, judging your own action, is that harming somebody? Hurting or helping? Accordingly, you categorize positive and negative. And awareness of that every day is great. If possible, every minute, but don’t overdo it. And recently I have to share that in New York somebody asked me, does awareness meditation, mindfulness meditation, be mindful that I’m taking right step and left step and opening the door and shutting the door and walking?

1:00:16.7.

So the Mahayana… Do you have to go? Okay. Mahayana tradition will ask on top of that, for the benefit of all, for the benefit of all, I open the door. For the benefit of all, I shut the door. They add up the benefit on that because it’s dedication and motivation combined together. Gain a benefit to the individual. So then he said, he went to the psychologies and told to the psychology that’s what he’s doing. So the psychology said, what’s wrong simply just walking and opening door and shutting door? [Laughs]. So it’s true! I mean every action you do you can’t keep on thinking that all the time, right? Especially if you are running down the 2nd Ave. in Manhattan. You know, terrible to keep on thinking that way. So the motivation in the morning, if you sort of say I’m going to spend all my time on this day is to benefit me and all countless people, and particularly my near, dear and family member and circle, and so on and forth. If you make that mind up and you try to keep it that, it doesn’t mean you have to remember that all the time. Keep it meaning, that mind let it influence all your action. And that way you see if you are doing something. Some people have a habit of doing some kind of little mischievous here and there. If you don’t, you can leave. [1:01:57.0] People have that, so you should be able to recognize when that comes up. That’s not bad, but people do it. But sometime you wanted to be act a little mean. Or sometime you want to get equals to that person. He hit me so I have to get him back. So I got you now. You know all these are not necessarily bad, but it is connected with the hatred. Somehow it’s connected with the hatred. Don’t try to get back to the people all the time. So if he said that, I must say this. And if [?? 1:02:30.8] do that. At the end it gets nowhere. It’s empty, anyway. So, that is the emptiness. [Laughs]. Empty anyway at the end. Oh, ‘empty anyway’ does not mean, again, whatever I do doesn’t matter, at the end it will come zero level. Some people say that. That’s not true. Whatever you do, it make big difference because you’re responsible to yourself.

1:03:02.2.

It make big difference. I want you to remember that. Lot of people say, oh, doesn’t matter. At the end, empty anyway. Then why should we work for? At the end, empty anyway. Why should we put any efforts? Why should we try to be good person? At the end, empty anyway. Right? That’s not right. That’s wrong. That’s wrong. We have to be good person because we cannot be bad person. Why we cannot be bad person? Because we get bad result. Not because I just don’t want my name to be associated with bad. That’s doesn’t matter. But what does matter is I get suffering later because I hurt other people. The result of that--I’m going to get hurt. So I’m try to avoid that. So that’s why it make big deal. It make difference. It’s not that empty anyway at the end. That doesn’t mean it’s wisdom. That’s ignorance. Direct opponent of wisdom, that’s called ignorance.

So anyway, I like to close the shop now. And I don’t know whether, I’m sure you have a lot of questions. But, again, we’re taking a big gap now, a break. A whole, this is March or April? March, right? So we don’t have whole of April and whole of May we are not meeting. So what do you do? If you want practice yourself that little piece of paper that we have you can use that in your own home and meditate. And if you can’t do that, that’s also fine. Just bring awareness. Collect the goodness as much as you can. Motivate every morning that you want to be helpful. Every evening, if you have been good, rejoice. Whatever you have been bad, purifiy. Don’t leave overnight for purification. And then go to bed and started again with the same motivation. That itself will make you far better than what we are today. I think I’ve run out of blah, blah, blah now. Okay, so I don’t know, maybe we be able to meet sometime in July. Right?

1:06:04.3.

Because I’m going, I won’t be in the country in April and May. End of April, end of May, or half April and May, June. That’s why you have that big, long gap. But still, if you go to Ann Arbor, they’ll be still meeting every Tuesday. Either the different teachers will come and give teaching, sometimes videotapes specially made for that day or for that session. Some other things will be there, so the Jewel Heart will continue. It’s not [? 1:06:48.5] they’ll shut the door. And also, I’m not sure whether you people knew it or not. Last weekend suddenly those monks popped up. It’s not popped up, but I think Anthony King made the arrangement with the students for Free Tibet. So, they had a lama dance. What they call it, sacred music and sacred dance. Now it’s over, but one of the program what they did is they made a very beautiful sand mandala, sand mandala in Jewel Heart store. And those lamas gone, but sand mandala’s still there. I believe it’s going to be there one more week and if you want to go and watch it, it’s there for another week. So, go and view it. The sand mandala, it’s there. And what else? Do you have anything to say? Kathy? So what happens in July or all this, if you keep on calling the Jewel Heart number, so you will know. And probably, I don’t know, whether everybody is on the mailing list or not. I don’t know. Most probably not. Anyway, so but if you call that Jewel Heart number, but there will be message, right Kathy? What number is it? [Kathy responding].

Okay then, I like to thank you for all of you and wish you very good luck for your spiritual journey. Thank you. Can we say three Migsemas today? Maybe the long one.

1:09:09.8. Blank tape after this. 1:09:43.7.

Picking up conversation/question about tantra. Comes from the sky and dissolves in the ground.

1:11:29.0.

Rimpoche: if I remember correctly, well I’m using that combination of that. We all [? 1:11:35.4] say the same thing yesterday with the incarnate. And I said they may have the limitations and all this. By the time when they die, it zooms back. So that’s what it is. The explanation of coming from the sky and dissolving in the ground. It is saying in Tibetan, saying in Tibetan, we say [chung lang?? 1:11:56.3]. So where is it coming from? It is the sky. Where it’s going to go is the ground. So totally meaning it is manifestate and function for the benefit of the earth and finally dissolve into the earth. That’s the expression. So I’m using that as an expression. There’s nothing more to talk today anyway on that.

Linda. Oh, I’m sorry. Jeff! He’s been raising hand for a long time. Sorry. Sorry.

Jeff: 1:12:31.5. Something about different cultures and Chenrezig and Kwan Yin. Are said to be the same but look very different. Essence the same.

Rimpoche: Very true. But also there’s a question on this, very strong you know. Whether it is really Chenrezig they are referring when they use the Kwan Yin, or they’re referring to Tara. And that was not very clear. You know, people have been quick to make a decision. There’s a big question in this. I think in the West it’s more or less very, very similar, like you know. These are coming from Indiana. Is [Bloominton? 1:13:47.3] Indiana. One of them is the Kwan Yin and the [Canon? 1:13:54.2] both been translated as Avalokitesvara. Is also coming out of Bloomington. And also Chotan [1:14:03.9 spelled out with umlaut over ‘o’] has also become Chortan [1:14:12.0 spelled out]. They’re all coming from Bloomington. So it is sometimes they might have made a quick, the decision’s made so quick without looking very carefully. But on the other hand, from the Chinese tradition if you look at the Kwan Yin is more female than male. Right? It is [Audience: something about having been drawn with a mustache]. See! It changes even after [Tang? 1:14:43.7] dynasty. Male with mustache. And then they lost mustache and take the female hormones and make [laughter]. Took the female hormone… Did they have operation?

1:15:04.9.

So it really shows you culturally even it changes, you know. It changes and doesn’t really bother much. It look different. I didn’t know they had male mustache before. Tang Dynasty. [Audience comments]. Maybe they are hermaphrodous. Are they hermaphrodous? Hermaphrodite. You don’t know? You haven’t seen it? [Laughing]. Sorry! Sorry! I mean this is exactly where we are. This is exactly where we are and we have to be careful two things. We have to be very aware of the psychological effect to the individual because that’s the one which we work on. However, we cannot totally rely on the psychological level. There’s reality. So then, without losing both sides we go on and see what happens. Who knows, you know? Is bound to change a little bit for sure. And because, you know, the Chinese Kwan Yin lost beard and mustache [laughing] and become, took the female hormone and changed into hermaphrodite. [Laughs] I’m sorry, I shouldn’t say that! Might be creating non-virtuous even, you know? Really. But that’s what the time, idea, people’s expression, and the changes and that take place. I think Buddhism, whatever the change may take place, I think Buddhism adopts that. And that is the beauty part of the Buddhism. It really adopts everything. Why is it adaptable? Because it is openness. Why, and principal, the real bottom line principal of the Buddhism is collect the goodness and avoid negativities. So any one of those cultural change, whatever it is change, they accommodating. They’re accommodating. Buddhism, I’m sure, when it come from India to Tibet, or China, or Japan, they don’t have those Tibetan culture, and Chinese culture, and Japanese cultures are not in there. The simple message can. Then it’s message is adopted in the society. Make it holy and dignified by [aiding? 1:17:59.7] up your own cultural decorations and made into that. I mean it is clearly we know.

1:18:05.8.

The Tibetan monks, if you look at them, they meditate. They do meditate, but they meditate very sort of meditation is very casual that they’re taking. So, they’re major focus is everyday life, how we handle it. So, that is very important. And if you look at the Zen, they meditate, they meditate we have to sit it properly. And sit down and behave like a mountain, and so can’t be shaking. So that’s what they do. And look at the Tibetan monks and they will smile and every way they go down and jump around and make jokes and all this sort of thing. They do everything it can be done, you know? Except breaking their vows, which is wrong. And otherwise they do everything down there. And look at the Thai and Zen monks and all this. They will sit like this and behave all that way as long as they have to perform. But when you get back to the home and when you close the door, after that it’s totally different. However, when you’re out there it goes that way. That’s the culture. And it’s the culture’s the one making the difference. I mean even though the Thai monks they’re not supposed to eat in the afternoon. They don’t. But they go in the morning and collect all the foods and bring them up and they will have a symbolic lunch at about noon. And after that they close the door. The monks door shut and after that all the food was put on the big table and they had a big party including smoking cigarette and do all sorts of things. They do. And that doesn’t look like, you know, going like this. [Laughs]. So that’s what happens. It’s culture. And America’s one good thing. That’s not going to happen here because America people ourselves very open and you don’t do this holy, holy business. [Loud laughter and background talking]. I’m sorry. Yeah that’s, I mean, this is what it is. And I don’t think we can really make decision. I think it’s going to take its own place. [Laughs]. So that’s what it is.

Linda? I think we should change the subject. You have some last? You really want to say something? You can’t help it? You want to change the subject? All right.

Linda: I was just going to say that, in the spirit of egalitarianism, in looking at, you know, all choices of religion as being an individual thing, sometimes, almost all the time, when I’m meditating Yamantaka, I feel very bad trampling on anybody’s pride.

1:21:08.9.

Rimpoche: Are you actually trampling on? No, you’re not. It is a symbolic gesture.

Linda: But what am I saying?

Rimpoche: Well what you’re saying is the… Let’s say biggest example of pride and power. You say [om oh ganesh vishnu?? 1:21:30.3]. All those. So you’re not really stabbing over this. What you call that? Stamping over. Trampling over [Ganesh or Vishnu? 1:21:44.7]. And Ganesh, Vishnu type of pride that represents almost like that of Ganesh and Vishnu. Actually, you’re really trampling over your own personal ego which manifestate is even so powerful like this and that. That is the total reality. You’re not literally bringing the Ganesh over here and, here you go. It’s not. It’s not. It’s not, really truly, it’s not. Because it is exaggerated, your own slightly exaggerated pride and egotistic that you use the word, in the form of that big. And that culturally accepted that big has been used as a symbolic thing. You are not literally sitting on the head of Ganesh or [stumbling? 1:22:46.4]. So I think we are intelligent enough to know that. And yeah, really true. And it is a symbolic, you know. I mean there is no Ganesh under your feet. And forget about it, there may be some ants under your feet. Otherwise, nothing over there. So in reality. But it is symbolically we meditate. We concentrate. And not necessarily that.

Okay. Carolyn?

[Audience. I can’t understand her.]

1:24:14.2.

Rimpoche: Yeah, it’s true. When Dalai Lama talks about the peace and compassion and all this, it’s very easy. But at the same time Dalai Lama also gives Kalachakra initiations and so they are all there. So that is one thing. And another thing is, it’s also true, when the Iraqis burn the American flag, it is the symbolic but it has powerful message. At the same time, when the Americans burn American flag on the point of freedom, on the freedom is it symbolic and it’s on different message. Though the action of this flag burning may be the same, but when you do this and when the artist’s drawn the flag soak in the toilet hole and it is also different meaning and different message on this. And that’s because it’s nature of emptiness or [expiration? 1:25:09.9] can be done, and messages can be perceived. And the message is sent and can be perceived. This is the true nature of the emptiness nature you can be able to function. One act, two different, or ten different, or twenty different, or million different messages can be accepted because of the nature of emptiness. There is no static thing called flag burning bad. There is no such thing. People fight for flag burning as expression of freedom. And yet, if [Saddam Hussein? 1:25:46.2] wants burn the American flag, he’s not burning it for the expression of freedom but he’s doing something else and it gets different message. Still, I think that is the really point. And, you know, when he drawn this George Bush on that [hotel? 1:26:06.6] [laughs] and where everybody has to go over, walk over on George Bush’s picture, and nobody bothers. Everybody goes and comes out, and I’m quite sure if the Governor Bush goes there and I’m sure he has two walk over that big [? 1:26:26.3] as well. I don’t think he’s going to, maybe he sort of slightly goes side over there.

Audience: comparing flag burning to some Hindu practice. Urinals?? Clarifying Carolyn’s point.

Rimpoche: Yeah, I did understand that. Right now we have the same issue on the [? 1:27:36.2] business. It is the same thing.

Audience: more comments I don’t quite get.

Rimpoche: I did understood that way. For sure. But I don’t think it is Buddhist deity, so therefore we stand over the Hindu deities. It’s not. That’s not the point. Point what I been raising clearly to Linda is the thing….

1:28:25.3. Sound cuts off.