Archive Result

Soundfile 19990528GRNY3P1

Speaker Gelek Rimpoche

Location New York

Topic Three Principle Aspects of the Path

Transcriber Sandra Kipper

Date October 6, 2020

I hope everybody is comfortable where you are sitting; whether you are sitting on the chair or whatever.  And um, I have been requested here to do the teaching on the basis of the Three Principles of the Path, the root text, I don't know whether it is distributed or what, is it distributed? Oh in this. Oh I see. They have the Tara page in the front, ok. So if you look at this book I think I can go through this way, much easier. When you look at first you find that Prayer to Noble Tara and Tara Practice which you will be doing in the morning and um, unless it comes as a question, I do not plan to do explaining this. Except in the morning, I don't know what time it is, but there was a schedule in the morning and Kathleen will give you a guided meditation and practice on this. So both tomorrow morning and day after tomorrow. So that is the Tara Practice Part of it. And um then, when you look at this page again, page number 1, 1 to 3 and goes 1 again, that's what usually you do in the teachings in New York. So we should be repeating that. The first Gate Gate Paragate Parasamgate Bodhi Soha. Is the, actually shortest part of the Prajnaparamita, or Wisdom Mantra you may call it. I did not intend to explain this because it takes long time, and then you have Namo Gurubyah, Namo Buddhayah, Namo Dharmayah, Namo Sanghayah, is Refuge. In the Vajrayana Refuge you take Guru too, that is why Namo Gurubyah, Namo Buddhayah, Namo Dharmayah, Namo Sanghayah, ah Sanghayah.  

[00:03:55] Then the invocation of the Supreme Field of Merit that is (?)[00:04:01] of all beings that verse. Then later you have 7 Limb or 7 Branches of Practice and I am not going to explain otherwise I will not be doing my job. Then Om Muni Muni Muni Mahamuniye Soha, that is the Buddha's. Migtsema that is Tsongkapa's, Om Mani Padma Hung Compassion mantra, Om Tare Tuttare Ture Soha again, and the 4 Immeasurables, then the Lineage Prayer and that we should be doing from tomorrow. Lineage Prayer the first one is root guru, then Buddha, then from Buddha to Tsongkhapa, then Tsongkhapa to Pabongka and then ah, then Kyabje Ling Rinpoche and then to all the great masters because I took this teaching from Kyabje Ling Rinpoche and that is why I put Kyabje Ling Rinpoche here. And Kyabje Ling might have taken from Pabongka Rimpoche, that why it said Pabongka. To the rest of the masters, not to the rest of the masters, but to other masters not mentioned there, and to dedication.

[00:06:00]  And then we have specifically saying the Buddha's mantra and the short dedication here. Then we reach to the root text of the Three Principle Aspects of the Path by Je TsongKhapa Chenpo. That's what will be focusing on doing the teachings on that. Basically, the basic buddhist practice or spiritual practice basically from the way Buddha introduced is actually divided into three categories:  Category 1 what I call it - Seeking Freedom, which really means, which really means do you feel spiritual practice necessary, if so, why? What do you expect? What do you want to achieve? That was the basic, main focus on the Principle One. Is it necessary? if so why? and what do you expect to gain? So that was the first part.

[00:08:23] Second Principle is the Principle of Love and Compassion. And again, why? how? and what makes it work? Then Third part is Wisdom.  So making today principle is actually Seeking Freedom, Love/Compassion, and Wisdom. These are the three things we will be looking at. When you say Three Principles, that what it is. Basically, I be talking to you, I will be sharing the informations that I have or I heard about it, or some of them I thought about it. Try to digest a little bit and then I share that with you. When I'm doing that, I want you to remember one thing, if you want to, that is, I am giving you material for you to mediate. When you look at it, it looks like you listening to talk, somebody talk, yabbing yabbing saying all the time, but the point is whatever I am putting in, I am giving you material for you meditate. If you just come over here and just sit, thinking nothing, and meditate, what we normally call it do meditation. Think or not think, whatever it may be what said, and you want to go home that is fine. But if you want to make whatever little time we spend together is worth for you to deal with your life and lives and you are believer of reincarnation, and if you're not, I don't think you will deny so I can still say to benefit your life and lives, so If you want to make that worthwhile, then you really have to think, and I am not even going to tell you to meditate, I am going to tell you think. Let the sort of terrible voice that what I have come from your right ear and out of the left ear, don't do it. That won't help you.

[00:12:07] Um is this fine you take note, fine you buy tapes or listen to the tapes or whatever you do that also fine, but the information that what you get and if you turned pink and if you don't die just there all just left in the tape recorder or the notebook it's not that much useful. Not that much useful and you look like to look at it. You can look at it. Oh, yeah that guy said that, that's maybe is fine, but that doesn't help you. So, I do really hope you'll be able to think and I'll try to present such an easy way. And maybe making some jokes here and there. If I can, make you laugh, is not for entertainment, but hopefully you remember it. The idea of bringing jokes in and try to make it is not for entertainment. It is how you remember it. So, try to digest whatever I'm giving you. Take that in. And think about it.

Actually, thinking is meditation. When you use the word meditation, is look like little bit of holy and a little more romantic, but the reality is the thinking. And why you have to think? Because we want to do something and if you don't think, you can't do anything. Even normal usual material chores, daily chores that we have to do, we have to think.

[00:15:07] and um, and think and nicely and then you do, it works better and easier. Now, we're here. You try to deal and work with our mind. Somebody coming? come sit down. (pause) What are we talking? Sure? Actually, what we're trying to do is, we try to deal with our mind. The mind is the most important thing. Just look ourselves, just turn, normally we always look outside, just turn around, look to ourselves, look to yourself. So, when you say, when you look at me, meaning yourself not - don't look at me, but when you look at yourself and look at me. What you going to find in you right? You're going to find a body aspects of the person. And the mental aspects of the person. When you start to look into yourself. The mind part of your self and the body part of your self. And do you see anything else? may be sound? anything else? No. That's about it, that's me. My mind and my body- the combination of it's me. And so, when it is together I am alive, when is the separated, I'm dead.

[00:18:10] So when you try to work with yourself or what we call, it the spiritual path, really truly, what is that mean? I'm just simply, I'm just going to say what I feel. I'm sorry about it, but there are a number of senior long time Buddhist practitioners, a lot of them, a lot of you here, so don't take it as an insult. Okay? so I'm really trying to (throw. You need to key, it's on my table.  Carol, okay.? don't have the book? oh.)

[00:20:03] I'm sure a lot of people will have a lot of ways of thinking, this spiritual. Basically, for me -What does spiritual path mean? And what does that do to me? And how do I get benefit out of it? This sort of fundamental questions. Oh. You can look as spiritual path as some kind of blessing, praying, or try to become holy. You can look and work that way. That's the one thing. Or you can turn that all in completely wonderful love [00:21:10] light and do whatever, you know, and that's also people do that way to. But what I understand what the Buddha has done and the great many Buddhist teachers thereafter and practitioners and all those, those who have been, even those will to call Mahasiddhas, the great adept and all those sort of things, all of them, and you look at them, when you read their biography and even you look in their life, what they have done, is use the total, the total spiritual practice, they used totally, to deal with their mind, to deal with their mind. That's what they have done. Why you deal with your mind? because when you look at yourself as I told you earlier, you see the body aspects and the mind aspect. And your functioning of the body aspect is totally controlled by the mind as well. So, so the mind is the really the main sort of engine which is functioning. Is this the main function of me, is my mind. That's what it is and, and how my mind thinks and accepts and perceives is the director all my actions. And all my actions, the actions that I take, good or bad, makes my karma. Because of that karma, I have a joy and misery.

[00:27:31] And I look at that as a spiritual practice, or the little I understand of spiritual practice, and really try to see that is not how you sit, is not how much mantra you said. Great, it is all help no doubt. But the truly it makes a difference over mind, mind stream function - today if you look in our mind, we are very strong functioning of attachment, anger, hatred, and all those because we let our mind getting used to it with that, totally for millions of lives. Let mind used to it for that, now we call it addiction. Because of that, what do we are today? And when you wanted to make a change and make it better, here is the opportunity, here is the key, here is the point, this is it. This is it now.  So, this sort of enhance ourselves the total responsibility, total control [00:30:15] this is now ahead, and the point of dealing is this, nothing else. That's what I look as a spiritual practice, path, whatever you call it.

[00:30:29] So that makes the goal of the spiritual practitioner a true making your mind better, gentler, smoother, kinder, and even to the extent of all knowledgeable knowing and everything enlightened level. Is all can be done. Only to a mind dealing with mind. So, the spiritual achievement to me, is not something somebody, somebody else is giving to us, not as sort of presented a gift or giving it away. It is we work and we earned it and we gain.  More the control we have over our mind. Where are we function, think, feel? I think it's called spiritual game. And our human mind is a such interesting and so much complex, and the so much, eh, I don't know what to say. It has so many [00:33:15] aspects of it. And when you're looking at the one individual who of my mind, when I'm looking at my mind, such a complex thing. And then when you add up with another person, two more, three more, four five more, 10 more, hundred more. 

[00:33:25] And you really see that huge complex and so differently function with the total different personality.  It's functions totally different. So, you begin to realize in the case of a Buddha, Buddhism, wow, how great -why Buddhas gives so much different things.  And because the human mind is so complex, and that's why. He sort of really shares his experience when you share is not become a very simple, it's very complex in that because it's a really sort of deals with complex of human mind. That's what it is. So, it is basically completely focus on how do we deal with our mind? Our thoughts, our desires, and you may notice sometimes even a shift in our goals too, dreams. It's very interesting just came up in my thought.

[00:36:18] There is an Australian guy who is, not going to mention the name because number of people know him, so who- who, who was expert thief. Thief, and a very, very good thief. He wanted to practice more of a learning all techniques how to steal things, you know? And he is on his way from Australia to England for Queen took the training. And on the way, he stopped in Nepal and he came across with the Lama Yeshe. And Lama Yeshe was talking, you know, giving teachings and he attended once, interesting and came back a couple of times. And at the end of the month or two months or whatever they do something, and he decided not to continue his education and instead become a monk. And even today, after like fifteen, twenty years and still very good monk. So that is just one example. I'm just giving you know, it's a shift the dream, and the dream who wants really wanted to be expert thief, is now shift the dream to wanted will like to become enlightened one. So, so I don't know whether it's a good result or bad result, whatever it is, that's what's happening. So so sometimes you get that too.  But you have to deal with the mind. And the dealing with mind is not so simple, not so easy at all. This is a very complex.

[00:39:28] Even in the meditations, you know, when you talk about the meditation, the first thing what they talk about, does that's to sit down and think nothing, or just think something. All just their first they teach you is how to focus. That's a simple reason because it's mind is so complex. And so you really need to know even how to focus. And that's why most of the meditation their teach you how to sit down and they tell you relax and this and that, and give you mind rest and this and that, but whatever you're relaxing or giving mind rest or whatever it may be, what they're really teaching you and training you is how to focus. Because the mind is so complex and I was unless you be able to hold it a little bit and focus on something, and not going to really achieve much, and that's why they teach to show you how to focus. And the training of the focusing, that meditation it's not necessarily helpful for the spiritual part, only it will help you how to think in your daily life even poli- it to be it can be very useful for the politicians and lawyers and everybody, you know? They really train you how to focus and if you even the business people, so that's what it is. Writers, artists. All this.

[00:40:59] So dealing with the mind. unless you try to think, meditate, digest, it's not going to have effect. Just simply listening alone will not have any effect. They may have some effect. Oh, yeah, maybe like that all okay. Let me think about it, sort of you can push it away. So, but that you may have not that much effect, but that doesn't help you. Really, we try to give you information that probably many of you never heard about it, but some of you heard a lot of times that is even more harder to convince. But, but it's gives you opportunity to think and meditate and that thinking and meditation will make impact [00:42:28] on your mind and so that when the mind has to function, it function differently. 

[00:42:16] Whole a like to quote this down, but by training you, by pointing out, the whole purpose of the spiritual part, I showed you earlier talk to you, mind part makes action, action makes karma, karma bring the result and that's how it works. Right? So, knowing that, so where we can make a difference, where we can make a difference?  at the mental level. How the mind can think, function, perceive everything. So, when you to try to do that, if you don't think it doesn't affect. Does simply reading who does read it? It occupies you awhile and give you a few more informations. If you listen to tape, it occupies you and give you a few more information. As matter of fact, every time you listen to tapes you're going to get different messages in it. Even you listening same tape you're going to get more different because your way of focusing. But if you keep on sort of think and meditate and analyze and convince yourself, then way how you function will change. And when you're getting that you really getting done. You're really getting done because that is the sort of the control room from there you are functioning. So it makes change all your karmic consequences coming result good or bad, whatever find them all change. You find them when you're dealing with people when you're thinking about other people, when you are talking to the other people. Your function you'll find them all change it without specifically putting efforts. I should change this way or that way. When you try to make one single action change, and every time you have to make efforts and sometimes it even become artificial- even though you try to honest that I had to change it becomes artificial, but when you do this way the mindful way is coming change. It’s a genuine change. It will come everywhere and that's how effortlessly every action, every function and becoming a perfect spiritual function. That's our number one goal and then getting little better than that, and then every action, everything effortlessly become helpful for the others. These are the steps. [00:46:05] 

So, having said that enough, and the what I'm trying to do is, what try to do is read this and read it and try to explain very briefly what is message behind that. And I don't know anything about the schedules yet. So, I'll tell what time is do you have some? Now, okay. Thank you. Thank you very much. So, it became opening remarks, So there's no end to it.

[00:47:07] I trust, I think we should start a little bit because I'm afraid we may not be able to complete, and that's why I just introduce some type? [00:47:53] of some type and he wrote this as a letter, and normally when we write a letter we write, "I hope you're well. I'm a well, and I'm doing this and that" and and [00:48:31] they didn't write that way. They wrote in those interesting way. So in essence, this really gives you a completed path here, complete path. It is also Manjushri's message to Tsongkhapa. You know, Tsongkhapa wrote the Lam Rim, you know, Tsongkhapa had vision of Manjushri and there are a lot of stories and when Tsongkhapa wrote that big thing called Lamrim, it huge volume dealing with about this. Oh, Manjushri made joke and saying. "Oh my teaching is not good enough for you. So, you have to make a big volume. Right? " So Tsongkhapa said, "No excuse me, no, so you're teaching to me of the Three Principles, the principles, you're teaching of the Three principals is my backbone of total Lamrim teachings." So so all the all this in the lam rim, if you looking in the traditional Lamrim teachings they tell you the quality of the teacher, quality of the Dharma itself, and how to listen, how to teach, and how to meditate and all this sort of a lot of big sort of different system and they have and if you do according to that system you can also do the Three Principal aspect of it, but we're not going to do that away that's going to be very complicated ways. So the simply just read through and time to explain it to you. So that's the one we're going to do.

[00:50:22] So when you look at this first, it says "Homage to the Venerable Guru." So in the Tibetan portion of that it says, [00:50:35] (Tibetan) ...chag sal lo,” Ah, now here why, ‘Homage to the Guru's?’ Why not to Buddha? Why not to compassion? Why not to all sentient beings? And the why guru here? There's a lot of reasons. Because this one, how Tsongkhapa wrote, is the way he received from Manjushri.  So Manjushri when he taught Tsongkhapa, the first thing he taught about the guru devotion practices, which is very important and which is the fundamental basis of spiritual development. Is a guru devotional practices, which is very controversial. And interesting. But it can you, the question here really rises.  You know in this country, we had a quite a number of difficulties rised by this guru business in the 60s and even thereafter. And then all of those are there. Is this the true? Everything whatever there's a tremendous amount of guru abuses. What do you call it? And all of them are there, it is true. It's a lot of difficulties true. And also a lot of the benefits.

[00:52:49] Which is somehow is in our usual habit, we like to point it out, the inconvenience and difficulties-we don't want to talk about the benefits. This is basically our usual habit. Having said that, can we avoid without the guru devotional practice? The answers that I know is no, you cannot. Even you look in the lam rim, the outlines, even there's the basic outlines, the sort of steps pointed out, in that, it says root of all development - guru devotional practices.  Root of all development, guru devotional practice.  So that's gives you big strong message, number one. Number two, the number of people thinks, I'm not sure whether this is the right place to mention or not but since [00:54:31] I'm mentioning I might as well say it, of the lot of people thinks: "Yeah. I'm making my direct deal with the Buddha and let-I don't have to worry about that guru business, forgot about it. I make my deals with the Buddha." And I think that in normal American thinking is very clever and good way of doing it. But that's not really deliver any result. My experience, not only working with myself, but working with number of Western friends, it doesn't deliver. Unfortunately, it doesn't work. And if you want like to experience, and of course by all means you can, no one there to stop you, but doesn't work.

[00:55:18] And as it becomes necessary, and doesn't work, for variety, not only doesn't work, but there's a lot of why it doesn't work, a lot of reasons. Number one reason I like to inform you, is when you're looking at the enlightenment, the first and foremost enlightened, when you become your mind it will become an enlightened mind, you become in the nature of guru's mind you become- are you are you yourself enlightened? So, when you try to sort of a disregard that and you try to linger you can't linger because the other part is missing. That's what's happening. So, I really try to give you a very deep essence reasons why it doesn't work. It may make sense to many of you. It may, it may not, make sense to many of you at all. So, but I just pointed out so at least you can think about it.

So that's why 'Homage to the Gurus', here they try to tell you the all the guru devotional practice part of it. Traditional Tibetan trainings they will give you years together for meditate on the guru devotional practice. And today we don't have that time to do, because we're so busy. We are extremely busy, we can hardly get even a weekend, it is not easy to come up here for weekend. We have to make a tremendous amount of regiment and sacrifice Memorial weekend [00:57:31] holiday this and that, family obligations, obligations and all kind of things we have and we did all of those, and this how hard it is and to meditate on guru devotional practice for years is forget about it. So I don't have that time or opportunity at all. But can we really ignore that? I don't think we can.

[00:57:38] Basically, when you are looking at the guru devotional practice, it is also very important to point out another point here. That is that another point is, our normal western way of understanding the relationship between the guru and the disciple and then then disciple has to listen everything whatever the guru told you, every direction he pointed out it is east, and that is a wrong. That is the wrong way of doing it. That's definitely the wrong way of doing it, and guru maybe representing a Buddha to you. Your guru is Buddha's representative, you know, because I've been to Italy just before I came like that before yesterday from Italy. So, when you go to Rome and they tell you the Pope is the living representative of Jesus. And just like that. So when I was going through those things, Vatican thing and they tell you that right?  So that the really truly, what's happening is guru is a representative of a Buddha to you. Your guru is a Buddhist representative to you. Buddha's ambassador - abounded with the credential to represent it to you. That's what it is. Yet. Yet.

It isn't normal human being [01:00:31] it is. I'm sorry he or she is normal human being. It is article, you know some.  A normal human being, so with normal human being, with a normal human qualities of both good and bad combinedly together that a person carries.

What happens is the qualities of guru and qualification of a guru and all of them has to be thoroughly examined, thoroughly examined. What did I say? Examined, very thoroughly, not superficially, thorough about it, detail you have to look in. It is important.

[01:01:33] And if you completely don't care about quality of the guru, just how nice publicity it is, or the profile or would you call that? No, not only images. You know, they give, they give you a letter. What what did you say? Who said what? Resume there you go. There you go- sort of more than a resume nowadays, you know, they have much more than that. And so and and if you just look at it and have not examined and then it is a problem, and then later it becomes a bigger problem and then you blame the gurus. So I think that is the one of our biggest problems what we face today. So it is a very important to examine the person before you accept that person as your guru, extremely important.

[01:03:33] Because it is, the once you accept it is a guru, it is they really just your spiritual mantle, its your spiritual guide, its your spiritual, it's almost its your Buddha. So it's almost its your Buddha, so therefore, therefore it is very important to do that. Here I'm not giving you any meditation at all. But just simply informing you because and that will come as a first, a block sort of blocking that you have to deal with it when you are working through the spiritual steps. That is the, that is there, and we can avoid that which I did for like 10-15 years and teaching in United States not talk about the guru and go and take to the second step and go. Yes, you can do that. But after a little while is comes back there and it's sort of catch you and its catch you and it's blocked with block, block you there. So might as well say it at right from the beginning and because it's there, just said gurus. So so so it is there, is this the, the difficulties we have to point it out here the difficulties you're going to face.

You know everything that's why I told you, you can make a love and light and beautiful, earlier. So then everything make love and light. I don't have to say this problem you face. So oh yeah guru is great it's wonderful. It is representative of the Buddha ho ho. Yeah, and then you can send them all Namo Gurubyah, you can say, love and light we can go away with that and that's not going to help us at all. It may feel nice, a little bit here. Wonderful. And that's about it, that's end of it actually and then that doesn't help you. That doesn't help you. So this is my job. I really take this my job is very seriously to point it out, the problems you've to face. So whether there's a solution or not, I don't know. If there is we talk about it. If there is none then there's none.  Might as well say it, and the number of people who did have difficulties with the gurus. So what are you going to do with that now?

[01:06:33] The question is, what are you going to do with that? Is this an obstacle for the individual development? Certainly it is, it is a big block, without getting through that you're not going to get any development at all, whether you like it or not. It is not- unfortunately. I don't know why. But have they said because of the root of all development. Maybe that's the reason whatever it is. You get a little bit here and a little bit there and here and that's about it, and it's not going to help. And the so particularly people who had difficulties with the guru, what are you going to do? If the guru is living guru, you can you can say I am sorry. And the guru's have its own rules when somebody says deeply seriously, when they say i am sorry they should accept. There should not be any, any personal agenda at all. If there is a personal agenda for the guru's, is not good guru. It is a fall in their quality, the criteria there is trouble in the criteria.  The simply say sorry, and if the guru is no longer living, what do you do? Make a tsok offering, and a purify and that's what you do. So so so these are the solutions. When they have trouble, difficulties and when you have a little disagreement here and there that's not a problem. That's not a problem in me personally, my personal my case. I had 39 now become 40 different gurus, and it's not necessarily every guru I had a great smooth relation. No, it's not. And especially when I was a kid and number of my teachers I used to sometimes I hope they will die soon, so that I can be free.

[01:09:37] So things like that, you know. So I don't know whether I can be excused as the kid's mind or not, but. Sort of, you know, so especially when you get beat up, you know, so so sort of you hope that they will not get up tomorrow morning and they were up there and get big surprise. And then, you know certain individual gurus of absolutely silly and they make you, just just make you do absolutely silly things, you know. Which doesn't mean anything, that's really irritating things. You know, they have that. And in very particular case, you know one of my teachers from whom I received a lot of teachings, he is a Rinpoche from ?Surrey? [01:10:35] 

He's actually the author who wrote that book and Children's of Bodhisattva. The Child's of the Bodhisattvas that so I received number of teachings from him and he's a very interesting person. A great being no doubt.  And one day he went with Nepal and I was in Delhi and he is coming back from Nepal and he told me, he called me from Nepal, and those days not easy to telephone call from Nepal to Delhi those days, and he called me. He said I'm coming there after tomorrow from Nepal to Delhi. He said I'm bringing, I'm bringing turquoise. So I want you to find some big Indian boss who can help me to get through the customs. All right? So when are you coming? Day after tomorrow?10 o'clock in the morning. Okay, I thought maybe, I'll maybe we'll try to find something I know a number of people in Delhi, so I thought I'd try to find something, and I'm not even sure whether the turquoise bringing cross is it legal or illegal or

 [01:12:37] whether there's a heavy custom duty or what? you have no idea. But I talked to a couple of friends and then they introduced me to somebody, and finally got through with some custom people and, and I have to bribe the custom officer with the two bottles of Johnnie Walker whiskey.  And so then, this is all irritating unnecessary stuff, you know, and so finally he came and then he got it through no problem, they didn't even open his bags or then, just let him go. So then there is a turquoise, you know, there is a turquoise and he got bag, about this much bag full of turquoise. Wow, that's a lot, I thought well at least it will benefit for him you know, for his family or whatever I thought. Then he open the bag, and then small bags inside. This is giving, has to be delivered to someone, this is has to be delivered to someone, this is has to be belong to somebody, they all names you know, and so at the end and maybe I just thirty forty piece maybe less, twenty maybe less, this much, so what's happening is people told him that if you take some turquoise, it will very beneficial for Nepal. So they've been telling everybody that well I talk to Gelek Rinpoche and he's going to help me, and I'm going to say everybody said would you take little my turquoise and give it to him? So that's why he got bag full of it and I was more irritating than you know, not because the custom, the deal with the custom officer, but at the end it belong to everybody, you know, and doesn't really have for himself hardly anything. So so my two Johnnie Walker bottles gone for that, and that sort of thing is very irritating thing, but it's not that smooth. So anyway, that's the one thing. Then sometimes certain gurus doesn't get along with other gurus though they are supposed to all enlightened and very great people [01:15:37] but they don't get along well.

[01:15:29] They all behave like a normal absolute human being with a full of jealousy and, and hatred and attachment and all that, and they function in that way. quote unquote. Simple to look that as some kind of "skillful way" or whatever it is. But the true reality dealing with the life, it gives you enough trouble, tremendous amount of trouble particularly when they don't get along well. One or two of them don't get along well, you know and then it becomes a big problem. So the most important thing and what I did, is I was never against anyone, never against anyone. I'm trying to avoid talking about against that, along with that guru other side who purposely talk to you the moment you get in the room, the first thing they talk to you is about that, even then you just sit there and sit alone and try not to indulge. And then sometimes when they know, you have a teaching relationship with that other ?[01:17:05] l shut up and sometime they purposely won't shut up. So whatever you do, whatever you do, I don't want said, this is test. I don't want say that but whatever I do whatever it is, but the best thing is not you cannot and should not go against any, so it does have to keep your mouth shut and sit.  And from your, from the bottom of your heart you have equal respect to both, and that's how I handled. And a lot of those type of problems. I shared that because it's not that easy to deal with that and this problems we have faced in Tibet for centuries, and and it may become a new in this country. It's like a only two or three decades, so the bound to happen, so just wanted to share that. At the same time you have to see the benefits of a guru, benefits tremendous amount of benefit. It is really a special representative appointed by the enlightened society to represent to me and me alone.

[01:18:39] and the so so that is a tremendous amount of a benefit too. So then if you want detail to know, you can read all the lamrim books and they will tell you and, and a particularly this is a very tricky difficulty thing. Tricky and difficult thing in life, in spiritual life. In short, in short when you really pick up the guru devotional and guru disciple relationship, there's the three three ways of looking in that according to the Theravada tradition, the guru's looked as as representing a Buddha. And if you look in the Mahayana point of view, Is this a real Buddha? And if you look in the Vajrayana point of view, it is inseparable that of all enlightened beings. So it's just a very, it is a difficult, it is heavy stuff, and it is important, and it is a tremendously beneficial and that's what it is. So I'm here to just to say that, and if really wanted to know more, read about the Lamrim  books and ask questions. And there's a individually, individual way of handling is there. So now goes down to, (Tibetan)

[01:20:57]  The Quintessence of the Teachings of All the Buddhas,  I'm not going to explain to you like a traditionally.  The traditionally is each one of those verses with explain Three Principal each times, repeated three times, six times actually. So, so the Quintessence of All the Teachings of the Buddha, which really is actually how to liberate ourselves. That's the seeking freedom path presented by the [01:21:39] supreme bodhisattvas' love and compassion, and a gateway for the fortunate circles of liberation wisdom. Why?

[01:21:53] The first two doesn't need any explanation, you understand. The third one, you do need explanation. Without wisdom one doesn't get liberated at all. Okay? So wisdom is the important point too. "These I shall explain as well as I can", so you don't need any explanation for that. That was Tsongkhapa writing to one of his disciples. You not addicted to, samsaric indulgence, delight, samsaric delight, right? meaning a little bit of a joy happy here and there which creates attachment, which creates jealousy, which creates hatred. That's what the quality they want, wanted for you are not- instead who tried to make precious life meaningful, another quality and have focus your mind on the path pleasing to the Buddhas. O fortunate one, listen with a clear mind. Try to actually tell you quality of a spiritual practitioners-if you spiritual practitioners, when you're interested in spiritual, if you sort of curiosity you don't count that as interested -just simply curiosity, so what? It's not a big deal for us, don't let them let them worry about let them bother, if we can help, help. You can't help but and kind waste all the time time try to get everybody really interested in anyway, [01:24:26] so those who are really interested is then the quality, what you really should have

 [01:24:39] is that you should not have those strong, you should not be influenced by those samsaric delight here and there. So basically, when we begin to observe with ourselves, what do we call it? Our dreams- you look at those dreams as is all samsara delight. Right? so when you begin to see that, see your faults, to be true spiritual practitioner, for the true spiritual practitioners are looking beyond samsara's delight. Are you with me? Yeah, that's what it is. That's the quality they're talking about. So simply there are number of people who think ha spiritual path is good that I should have it so that I'll be happy, or spiritual path is should happen so that I can get good job. Spiritual path I should have it so I'll be well, be healthy. Well, I don't know what to say. I can only suggest it. You may say Om Namo (Tibetan).[01:26:30] Okay, so I don't want to go beyond that. so so who tried to make a precious life meaningful? This is additional quality. life what we have is a tremendous value. It'll come down to downlines. I'm not going to talk to you too much here. Precious and we have to make it meaningful because rare, you don't get very often this type of life. Get plenty of other life to be cockroach or any other bugs around, got plenty of them. But a such a life, what we have, what you 

 [01:27:39] and I have today is extremely difficult to get at the very rare that's billions of logical reasons there but, the truth really is is it's extremely hard to get it. So we have to make best use of it, make you most meaningful out of it. If we cannot make that meaningful we're big loser. Big loser because it is a big opportunity. You can't make it in the traditional teachers give you an example saying that you went to a place where you can collect all the jewels as much as you want to, you know, sort of bagful as much as you can carry, but if you get to that land, but then you sort of look around and you don't know what to pick up and then have good nap and then get up and come back empty-handed. That was the tradition example they give you, so the meaningful isn't so important because this life is important, and that should be the quality of the spiritual practitioners, the spiritual path that Buddha shared with us is not necessarily to make to get a better job or to make me happy alone, but it is to making me happy forever to make me perfect being forever, to make me good person to be able to not only help myself but also help others and these are the qualities that that's what we were looking for. It's not simply for wealth or health or all just to be happy or have a better relationship. Or have a better job better prosperity. I don't think you need to spiritual path to do that, to make it to get a better job to make more money and even Donald Trump knows, so you don't have to have a Mahatma Gandhi to show you that. So that's what it is. Okay? And as I told you about this have focus your mind on the path pleasing to the Buddhas.  Buddha's are not so easy to please. Also does we are not easy to please? 

So [01:30:39] that's what it is. What makes the Buddha's happy is if we try to improve ourselves, if we try to free ourselves from negative emotions, if we try to develop our love compassion and try to share that with others, and help them to free from their negative emotions, and if we can get enlightened and help others to bring to the level of enlighten, that pleases the Buddhas, that's what they're talking about. So the quality of the practitioners are this. Not caught in the addiction of samsara's delight. Try to make a life of meaningful and focus your mind on the path. Huh? On the path that delights the Buddhas. These are the quality of the individual practitioners. So what you do is, think about yourself and then said do I have them? use this information as mirror, looking glass, you know, when you have looking glass you look at them and say what do I have here? or what do I have here, I have to remove it

[01:32:30]  or put more powders or whatever you do? So you do that same away use that information put it there. Do I have that? do I have that? do I have that? if you have it, try to change it, if you don't have it, be happy about it and no big deal. Even you have it. no big deal, because we all have a lot of problems if there is no problem, why should we be here? We should be Buddha's over there, you know, if you are not we are sitting here and looking up or down whatever you but we're still here and that's, that's because we have a problem. And this is good to notice our problem, rather than ignore and deny. By denying problems are not go away, they catch you one day anyway. So that's what it is. So I'm going to stop here tonight and tonight is supposed to be only a basic introduction, so but we went this introduction part of it already. So that tomorrow we can 

[01:33:39] start right away and go in the actual part of this practice. Tonight, I don't have any very specific meditation for you- tomorrow I'll give you, but in the morning you have this Tara practice, and this is very helpful for you. And so it is starting at 7:15 to 8:30. And Kathleen will be here and will be leading you to this practice and so. And I would like to wish you all the best tonight and have a good night's sleep and yeah, make it simple tonight. Okay, but if you want to meditate yourself you can, and even you want to sort of make this shorter version of what I talked tonight, you really can. What are the Three Principals? Actually seeking freedom from what? from our my negative emotion and principal two which is the bodhi mind, which is ultimate unconditioned unlimited love and compassion. Three is wisdom. So I will simply say yeah seeking freedom is a principal one. Freedom from my neurosis, negative emotions. You know negative emotions is the biggest problem because that makes, that influences your mind, and your mind is being controlled almost influenced by the negative emotions. So all your actions will become, ah, it doesn't become smooth with the other person. It becomes hard, harsh and difficult.  Instead of giving a nice wonderful human natural feeling with other people, you giving the cold shoulder because of the negative emotions. Not only that, every action we take it, physical, verbal or mental whatever it is influenced by the negative emotions,

[01:36:39] so it becomes negative, and it's creates bad karma. So when the culprit really is the negative emotion, when you get rid of that when you get freedom from that, then every action, when you get the bad thing out, you left with good thing.