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What I thought I would do today and probably doesn’t work well if I did not do it, is to tell you that the essence of the spiritual practice or dharma practice is to deal with your mind. If I did not tell you how, then I’d be doing a not good service for you. So perhaps I talk with you about that today. Anything else bothering you? Any questions? Yes, lady over there. (Inaudible)Do it earlier, great. Thank you. Anybody else have anything else? We all have it. It’s not unique, no matter whatever it might be.

It’s very easy for me to say, or for anybody, to say it is so important, the mind is important, because it is almost the creator. Of course, Catholics will not tell you that. No they won’t tell you mind is creator. Every action we take, everything we do and where it’s coming from? It’s coming from the mind. Your mind may not be creator, but it’s a very important factor, whatever we do.

I keep on thinking I did talk to you earlier. We get a lot of ideas and thoughts on our head, popped up, popped up all the time. If you really look into your mind. What should I call it mind or dream? Whatever we are perceiving. You begin to focus. I don’t know, somehow. In the West we like to shift our focal point. If you begin to focus, without visualizing the brain picture. If you visualize the brain picture in your head you get a funny picture. Without visualizing the brain picture, If you begin focus inside your head then you see all these ideas are popping up, like a popcorn machine. All these ideas are popping up all the time. Is that right or wrong? It is true. We all experience it. All these ideas pop up, so there is somebody who will entertain these ideas, who sees these thoughts. Who accepts certain those thoughts, rejects those thoughts. Who does that? There has got to be somebody. Otherwise, everything that pops up like popcorn if you try to follow all that, you will be doing a hundred thousand things, or even a million things simultaneously. If we try to do all these things at once and are not able to function ourselves, we go cuckoo.

Who is controlling? Who is screening? Who is accepting and who is rejecting?. Who is that? It is easy to say me, me, me. Who is that me? My mind you may say. There is truth in that. It all depends on the individual. So there is somebody, maybe not a person, maybe a thought, maybe a consciousness. Whatever it might be, there is somebody controlling. Mind controlling. There is somebody perceiving and somebody making decisions. I don’t call judgement, somebody who is using judgement. I didn’t use that word. Somebody decides to entertain that thought and somebody who decides not to entertain. Or may not even be able to notice. That in Buddhism is called a principal consciousness.

Whether that is mind or not I have no idea. It is up to you to find out, even if I tell you something, yes or no. It doesn’t give you any service at all. It is good enough to recognize it as a principal conscientiousness. It is the command position. It is the receiver of all information. Whether it is oneness with yourself is a difficult thing. It is something for you to think, analyze or read. Try to understand. If I say yes or no at this moment I do a disservice to you. That’s why I’m not saying. Number one I don’t know. I don’t have the information. If I had the information from reading, from learning, if I try to tell you it is yes or no, it is a disservice. Anyway there is a principal consciousness. There is the one who commands our body, who commands our speech, and shall I say our minds too? That is the consciousness. That has some good common sense, and good information, and then you call that person or individual wise, learned, an experienced one. If that doesn’t have good information or good experience, then you call them immature or even crazy.(10:00) Every action that we take-mental, physical, emotional-all of them, the control is here. This is the control point.

Now, if you want to do something good, create good positive karma, also all the orders are issued from here. Somebody on the command post. Captain on the bridge, Captain Kirk on the bridge (laughter). That’s what it is. All the orders are issued from here. All our activities no matter whatever, all variety of activities, are coming from this. When you want to work with yourself, I would like to work with myself, that is the focal point where it comes from. Whether it is oneness with you, or separate from you, you can exchange information. You can do all this. Anybody who can do spiritual work, without this I don’t think you can do that. Without that I don’t see anyone who can do good spiritual work, or any work, or function well. I remember quite clearly I mentioned to you this is where we judge if a person is wise or foolish.

There is a big long sutra by Buddha called making the difference between foolish and wise. Each and every one of the stories end up on this particular point. they come from all directions and ultimately land on this particular point, this is where it ends up. Once you start the machine and the machine starts rolling, that’s how it becomes difficult to stop the machine. You don’t like it, you don’t want to do it, but you cannot stop. It is like a clock. You see if you open the back of a watch, how one machine pushes another, and one pushes another. That’s why people are suffering, so much suffering, emotional, mental suffering -not physical- because you cannot stop the machine.

Even physical.Take my own case, I like food, I enjoy all kinds of food. Doesn’t matter whether it is Chinese, or Indian, or Middle Eastern, American; even a hamburger I enjoy. True. It sort of melts in your mouth. Its great, I enjoy that. We also know the more I eat, the more I put on weight. Then I have more weight, I eat more. They call it the sugar level, right? Then I couldn’t stop. I enjoyed that. It goes on and that’s the difficult suffering I have is because the machine started running and I couldn’t stop. Automatically it runs. That’s what’s happening. That’s why my physical suffering, attachment and anger. I’m looking at myself, how I get my physical suffering. Attraction is so great you cannot stop. Almost every suffering that we have comes from anger and attachment. Attraction is so great you cannot stop. Two people who were on television from last week. Look at them, what they talk about, really suffered great and could not stop. Some people are so outrageous they are absolutely angry and talking about morality. The talker himself is so angry. You don’t even see yourself. I’m not saying what Clinton did was great. It’s not, it’s wrong of course. Some people were so outraged about that and are so angry and they keep on talking. You can’t see yourself, your image, because the machine is running automatically.

The principal consciousness either does not have an opportunity to observe, or it makes a decision to avoid, or it is dysfunctional. We lose all our body because that. When you listen to any traditions of teachings or the experience of the Buddha everywhere, they tell you mindfulness, mindfulness, mindfulness, awareness, awareness, awareness. (20:00)And then we added, I added in the last few months or so conscientiousness, conscientiousness, because we were talking in Ann Arbor about Bodhicaryavatara and Shantideva talked about conscientiousness, so then that’s why we added conscientiousness. Lack of conscientiousness created a difficulty for me.

That’s why it’s very easy for us to see the faults of other people. We don’t see the faults in ourselves. Why conscientiousness? Automatic running of the machine. Even when you look at the word conscientiousness, what does that tell you? Forgive me if I’m wrong. If you really look at this, conscientiousness will tell you it is something very subtle. Am I right? It’s awareness. Even we have good or great conscientiousness, it’s something very subtle. All of those those the mind levels awareness, conscientiousness are very subtle. Conscientiousness, it is so subtle, something. It’s something between body and mind. Awareness on that is the most important because that is the commanding position on our action. When you don’t have that, whatever you do. You sit straight and say mantras for a million years, you are not going to get anything. You become an expert at sitting. (20:00) Even you make slightly, even pretend to work with this, the commanding position, it will make so much difference to us, to ourselves and to others.

After all, why do we measure good and bad consciousness? How do we say he has good consciousness, she has good consciousness, she’s a good person, she’s a bad person? On what do we make judgement? How do we judge that? We look at the person’s kindness, compassion, and the person’s meanness and anger. What do you call it? I have to get it back. Forgive me not so much getting back this year. These kind of things, whichever is becoming more powerful on the person we judge easily, don’t we? Basically that is what we judge on whether the person is good or bad, don’t we? That’s the basis on which we judged Clinton. Sure. Kenneth Star wanted to look for a pattern, was looking for a pattern. Habit or no habit makes us no excuse. As a matter of fact, habit makes it worse. Habit contributes tremendously. That’s what it is. Where does that symptom of the individual come from? Where do you get that from, that thought, mind, commanding machine? However you start, when that idea pops up in your head like popcorn you fasten on it immediately. When we try to make ourselves a good person, we pay attention at that level. That makes a hell of a difference.

Habit. Now I can talk about the habit. Habit will pull us in one direction. Normally our desire will pull together with habit when you want to help yourself. Then you have that pull and push which we call it suffering, right? Our mental and emotional suffering is all because of the pull and push. Then you have that big pull and push within you, which we call suffering, right? All of our mental and emotional faculties is because of that pull and push. The pull and push between our habit which would like to run in one direction and your desire, and your knowledge. It says that’s not right, I shouldn’t do that. The pull and push will increase your suffering. Right or wrong? That is the point. It’s is really true. That’s really true. The spiritual practice relies on this very point, not anywhere else. Not on your mantra, not on your sadana, not on anywhere else. It is on this. And if you want to correct, you have to correct there. This is the key point.

That’s why I said the mind is the most important. I didn’t say that; Buddha said that, right? I can’t take credit for that. Mind is most important. That is the main point where we correct. All the others are secondary. This is the most important point. That goes for every religion I hope (30:00). And this is the way and how one individual improves yourself. Make yourself happy. Reduce your mental, physical, emotional suffering. This is the key. Some people may tell you, oh he’s talking about psychology. Believe me, I know nothing about psychology. I don’t know whether the ABA of psychology goes this way or that way. I have no idea. I do know that’s how one makes themselves a kind person, a good person, and a person that people appreciate, a person that you yourself would appreciate.

Why do we hate ourselves? Many people do. Se hate ourselves. A lot of people hate themselves. We dislike ourselves, we hate ourselves. A lot of people do. It’s because of our own way of thinking, our own way of functioning. If we do something wrong, which we don’t like it, and we get angry at ourselves. We get angry with the other person. Then people dislike you. Then you dislike yourself more and more. We hate ourselves more and more. A lot of people do that. Change the way you look, change your hair style. Change your name, a lot of people do that too. Change you look. Look at Michael Jackson. He looks like a girl now. I’m sorry to say that, but really all of those because you dislike yourself. Why? You couldn’t control it. You are challenging the symptom. You are fighting the symptom. How much you can fight? I’m sure Clinton feels I wish I had nothing to do with Monica Lewinsky. But it’s too late, it’s no use fighting with that. You can’t. That is because as a person you can’t fight your personal habits.

You can fight and make a difference in your future. Change your command position over there. How you shape your future is over there. How change your command position? Better late that never. Give yourself time, opportunity to think, and analyze and reflect. . Pull all your spiritual information in. That will help you to design. It gives you a map on which you are going to sail your ship. Otherwise, you don’t know where you are going. Take charge, take the command position and then function on the basis of the spiritual information that you got. That is how you make your life worthwhile. That is how you make your life meaningful. That’s how you function on the mission of your life.

If you don’t know, then it’s a little problem. If you have a good example, good role model, you are lucky. If not, it’s a problem. When you don’t know anything yourself, you don’t have good information, what are you going to do? You rely on someone’s personal opinion, mine or somebody else. When you rely on someone else it’s not great, not good. So you can rely on somebody, however, you must make sure you use your mind, use your common sense. In the West we normally call it common sense, right? Traditionally in Tibet they call this natural born education. It is sort of natural born education. In the West you may even call it god gifted, or something. When you have good common sense that helps a lot. How did you people here get it? Excluding myself, you are educated people. True. Each one of you went to school, college, many of you have a PhD under your name. Many off you BA, MA a call of this. All of those are education. Education is something great. Even you don’t have, there are so many gifted people. Common sense, that’s what it is. Use that. Don’t behave like uneducated immature people. Don’t do that. Use that, use you common sense, use your education. Think, analyze. If you do it you are not going to follow Jim Jones. Jim Jones, right?

If you don’t use your education, if you don’t use your common sense, then you rely on somebody else. You know what it takes? Nothing. Somebody who can talk nicely and good appearance. and that’s it because we are all suffering ourselves, and that’s how we pull ourselves in. Don’t do it. No matter whoever is telling you, whether that person is the Dalai Lama or Pope or whoever it may be. Even if Mahatma Gandhi comes back and talks to you, or Buddha comes back and talks with you, use your common sense. Never give that up. Never, ever. Picking up information, analyzing by yourself, and learning from others we admit.

State of enlightenment is the state of enlightenment, it is not state of ignorance. Buddha is called enlightened. What does that mean? All knowing, knowledgeable, right? It is not called ignorant state. It is not a non-state. It is a state of lucid mind. It is a state of knowledge. Right? (40:00) If the state of Buddha is a non-state, we should all get a heroin shot and remain there. No, really! The state of a Buddha is not a non-state, it is lucid one, an enlightened state. So every piece of information is important, pick up. I’m talking about enlightened state. Can you get the picture how it works? Spend some time, try to think, try to project your own mind and try to see how it functions. You will see all sorts of ideas popping up. It is like popcorn, pop, pop, pop, pop. You go to see the movies and see these popcorn machines.

Who makes that decision? It is worth spending time on that. That person who makes the decision that may be yourself. We call that the principal consciousness. That is your key. All your information, Lamrim information, Foundation of All Perfections, Vajrana Buddhism, Ganden Lha Gema, pull it together. Everything is the information that you have. That becomes true for you, for making your decisions. After all we are responsible for our own deeds, karmic principle. If you do good, you get good results; you do the bad, you get bad results. Nobody else does, right? I said the state of Buddhahood is lucid, knowledgeable and we call it the state of enlightenment. What I now need to say is it is pure, perfection. Where does the pure perfection come from? It is free of negativity, free of negativity. Negativity and positivity are nothing other than the consequences of our own actions, mental, physical actions. Body, mind and speech actions, and each one of them has been created by ourselves, under that control of that commanding position, which we are talking about. The principal conscientiousness, which makes you to do whatever, and makes yourself responsible.

So creating a positive karma, purifying and pure status, true level, all of them are also dependent. If you look at the enlightenment level, number one the enlightened state, number two the pure level, number three the free of negativity level, number four, it’s absolutely the ultimate state of pureness and goodness. All of them have been produced or reduced by this command position, so that’s why it is important. That’s why, how you should work with your mind, not with your lips, not with your malas. I have one, doesn’t do that good to me. It helps me to count my numbers. It is dharma that makes it good. So that’s how we work.

I think that’s good enough. I shouldn’t talk too much. If I talk too much then you get confused, and myself gets confused. The confused person talks to you and then you get confused, no? Then saying the mantras, meditations all of them become powerful suggestions to the principal mind, not to pick up, and our habitual thoughts of attachment and anger are also very powerful suggestions coming to the principal consciousness. And then the habit you pick up. To change that habitual pattern is your spiritual information, your meditation, your practice, saying sadanas, your mantras. These are the powerful suggestions. The more it is strong and the more it is less interrupted, equipoint. When it comes to that level, it becomes much more powerful and suggestive. When it is more powerful, suggestive, your principal consciousness will accept.

That’s how you work with yourself, how you work with your own mind. If you are in the spiritual path that’s what we do. I thought this level is important for us. We have a lot of information, it’s been almost like ten years in Jewel Heart. You have a lot of information in Cleveland, Chicago, New Your, Ann Arbor. It’s been ten years. You have all the information, Lamrim teaching, Foundation of All Perfections meditation, initiations, development stages, completion stages, instinct stages, all of those we have done so much. (50:00)

We have summer retreat coming up. I am sure a number of you are coming up and a many of you are not coming. That’s okay you don’t have the information. We try to get quote unquote the best Buddhist psychologists. So we do have Jack Kornfield, and Dan Goldman and Jack Kornfield. What did he write? A Path With a Heart, Then there is Daniel Goldman. There is Daniel Goldman’s famous book called Emotional Intelligence, right? Now we have a Tibetan Rimpoche who is a very, very great scholar, one of the best available. He is working very hard in Europe, not so much in the United States. So I am hoping to get him some exposure along with well known to Buddhist psychologists. Of course, our usual Thurman. I’m talking Sunday to Sunday. Whatever happens I think the tapes going to be available.

You can watch them or listen to them. We are completely overbooked. Debbie told me she had to reject seventy people. Unfortunately many of the Asian people, they come at the last minute to the retreat. Things happen like that. (Inaudible)Thank you. I don’t know whether I deserve it or not. Thank you. I’m using principal consciousness. You want me to spell it? In Tibetan or English? Dps. Phonetic is tsowoyimnshi, Gtsovoyidtyirnanshes. (Sp?)It’s called (inaudible). You find it in short form, tosens, tosens. I don’t want to use main mind. I don’t want to use main mind because you shouldn’t be quick to call it. Then it may be a disservice. I’m talking about experience in dealing with the western mind. So I would like to excuse myself and close shop because I have a cold. I will be here next month, the nineteenth.