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Side A of tape 84 of 01/11/2000

We got up to verse seventy last time. This verse is talking about transforming the body into a wish-fulfilling body. Before that I went very fast through a number of verses. In these it was totally emphasized not to have attachment to the body. There is a danger of people misunderstanding that. People may think, ‘I don’t have to bother taking care of my body. If I get sick, let me be sick, if I die, let me die.’ In a way that is right. There is nothing wrong with that. The great Bodhisattvas’ thinking is really like that. They really think, ‘If it is better for me to be sick, may I be sick. If it is better for me to be poor, may I be poor. If it is better for me to die, may I die.’ However, we are not on that level yet. Our life is very precious and important. So we need to look after and take care of ourselves. Here we are told how dirty and useless the body is. We have read through these verses.

There is a sutra which tells the story of one of the Indian kings who went to see Buddha and asked him for advice. The whole sutra is called ‘Advice to a king.’ In that sutra Buddha tells the king

The body is just like the ground or the earth. But people are not satisfied with that. The earth provides you with a base on which to function. However, people are not satisfied and want something more out of that. The body has come from unhealthy things and is a collection of unhealthy things. It is also the foundation to get illnesses, old age and death. After death, the body is no longer useful. It is just like dirt. It could be food for the birds, dogs and jackals. Although we look after the body and try to do the best for it, it will be grabbed by the Lord of Death. Therefore very intelligent people don’t have attachment to the body, but stupid people do. If you as the king want to be an intelligent person, you will know what to do. Don’t work so hard to satisfy the body and fulfill its needs. Rather use it as a servant, pay it, give it food and clothes and make it work to build merit and benefit everybody.

Another sutra says,

We have found such a precious life as a human life. It is difficult to find. But we have found it. Since you have found it, do not create negativities for the sake of the body. This body is going to go to the cemetery, nowhere else. It will be eaten by insects and worms, dogs and jackals. Don’t let yourself suffer for the sake of this meaningless body.

There are lots of statements like that. Another sutra,

The body is very weak and insignificant. It is impermanent, not lasting very long. It is like a bubble in water. It is like a magician’s illusion. It is like a dream. Life is like a dream, it is so short. Like fleeting clouds and lightning, it does not last. There is no meaning and purpose in the body, but there is in life. Take that.

In other words, people do have very strong attachment to the body. More or less, most of our attachment serves to fulfill the desire of the body. Think about it carefully. Whatever you do, any sort of kinky business, is for that. It is the body who is demanding that. All these attachments are based on the body. It is one important point as source of attachment. That is why all these verses emphasize it so much.

Verse seventy-one

Now, while there is freedom to act,

I should always present a smiling face

And cease to frown and look angry;

I should be a friend and counsel of the world.

When you give up the attachment to the body, you will get freedom. This cuts down a tremendous source of suffering. This is very interesting. You as the individual person now have the freedom to use your body and to use your speech. All the activities of body and speech should only be engaged in after having total control over your mind. Your mind should have the total control over your body and speech.

Right now it is the other way round. We do everything to fulfill the body’s desire. Nothing is wrong with that, but as a human being our quality is to have a little more control than that. We should be in charge of what we want to do, how we would like to utilize the capability of our body and speech. That is freedom.

With that freedom, how should one act? At all times, and particularly when dealing with other people, try to make them happy through your physical and every other action. When you receive other people, you receive them with delight. You look at them with a smile. You talk to them nicely. This also tells you indirectly what not to do. You should not frown at people, saying, ‘What do you want?!!’ Sometimes you can’t help it, especially when you are in difficulties yourself, it automatically happens. However, you should not deal with other people by showing them the cold shoulder. Give them a nice smile. If you have any unhappiness within you, don’t give that to people, because it creates unnecessary difficulties for them. Talk to them nicely. You should be ‘friend and counsel of the world’. In the Tibetan original it says, ‘Talk straightforwardly.’ Many people have that habit to only say nice things. Even if somebody looks terrible, they will say, ‘Oh, you look wonderful.’ That is not what is meant here. You should say, ‘It is so nice to see you.’ That is a better choice. That person will know they look terrible. If you keep on telling them that they look wonderful, they will think you are not telling the truth. They will think that you are just buttering them up. That is not encouraged. But you could say to somebody who is bald, ‘Your head is so shiny’, or ‘You are radiating light.’ I am just joking. In Tibet they used to make a lot of jokes with bald - headed people. But I think this comes a lot from India. In India this is very common. Even a prime minister who is bald - headed, gets made fun of in newspapers. Once a group of people got together and announced that the bald - headed people are very sexy and the prime minister of the time was there and also said, ‘We are very sexy people’. This was not Nehru, but Gujral. So it must be in the Indian culture. Anyway, they idea is to be straight and be honest.

Verse seventy-two

I should desist from inconsiderately and noisily

Moving around chairs and so forth,

As well as from violently opening doors:

I should always delight in humility.

When you are moving around, whether in your own or in others’ houses, don’t move like a cow. If a cow gets through a door it will not know how to hold it open. So it will bang behind it. Human beings should be able to hold it nicely. If you are very noisy around the house and everywhere, it creates dislike in people. People will lose respect for you and then you will lose respect for them. In general, you should always act with humility. You should not behave as if you owned the whole world. Actually, in your house, even if you live alone, there are a lot of other living beings. Your cat and dog is there. You have to respect them too. Then there are your neighbors. You may have neighbors upstairs and downstairs. So don’t walk around making a lot of noise. When Aura and Sandy were living with me, I told them that they should not walk on their heels but on their toes. Perhaps that is Asian culture.

I have a friend, Tomo Geshe Rinpoche, who has a place in upstate Jew York. He does not keep many people around him. It is very restricted. In his house, if people were walking noisily upstairs and he was downstairs, he would hit with a stick under the ceiling to let them know to walk differently. When I went to see him one time I noticed that he had put signs at the entrance of his meditation room upstairs, saying

Walk slowly, slooooowly, slooooowwwly

with bigger and bigger letters. That is the Bodhisattva’s way. You don’t walk around heavily so that things fall over on the other side of the room.

Shantideva says to ‘delight in humility’. The whole idea is to please the people who are around and have respect for others. You should always think that there are other human beings there. Even if it is your own apartment, there are people upstairs and downstairs. These days, since I spend a lot of time in New York, I have an apartment there. Upstairs from me there lives a person, I don’t know who that is. But this person comes home at two in the morning and walks around in high heels tik tik tik tik, then there will be noises of water flushing and the bath water running. So we should always consider other people. But don’t copy me. I like to run around naked.

Verse seventy-three

The stork, the cat and the thief,

By moving silently and carefully,

Accomplish what they desire to do:

A Bodhisattva too should behave in that way.

The stork I have been told, is a bird, probably a bit like a pelican. Then the cat - that is how you should move around the house. People who have cats will know. Particularly, when you go down the stairs, you should walk like a cat. That could be quick and a little painful though (laughs). I am laughing because there is a Tibetan joke on that. The Tibetans always make fun of the nomads. So one nomad came to Lhasa, the capital. Somehow he managed to get upstairs in a house, but then did not know how to get back downstairs. So he waited for a long time. Then a cat came by and went downstairs. So this nomad copied the cat and went downstairs the same way! This is a joke on the nomads, of course, who live out in the flat plains where there are no buildings and no steps to climb.

The storks are birds who wade through the water quietly. Cats naturally move smoothly and thieves don’t want to wake you up. If they wake you up, they get into trouble. So they move silently and carefully. By doing that, they fulfill their purposes. They empty your cupboard. Bodhisattvas should behave like the thieves (laughs). But don’t pocket other people’s belongings, okay?!

In this verse the term tu pa is used. In Tibetan it means Buddha. So Buddha advised us to behave in this way. But tu pa has another meaning too. It means ‘controlled’. So you should control and make smooth your body, mind and speech. This is difficult, but if you think carefully, if you concentrate and if you function in that way, you can fulfill whatever your desire is. In other words, if you make noise and fight you are not going to get much done. But if you proceed very smoothly and easily, you can succeed.

The Tibetan culture is sometimes too smooth, though. I must share a story here. I was driving around Cleveland, following Chunden la’s car. In that car was also the old Lady, Mrs. Yutok, who wrote the book ‘Turquoise Roof’ and also a book about Gedun Chöpel’s ‘Tibetan Arts of Love’. I was following them and at one of these huge junctions, where three or four streets meet, she went through a yellow light. I was not watching the light and just followed. So naturally, I went through a red light and immediately the police came after me. The officer took my license. By that time Chunden la had stopped her car and came to us, explaining to the officer that I was new and was just trying to follow her. That officer did not let me go however. Then, Mrs. Yutok came out as well. It was snowing and she stood in the snow and then she saluted the officer in Tibetan style and said something very politely in her half English-half Tibetan and the officer got second thoughts and after a while said to me, ‘Well, I let you go today.’ So I got away because she was so polite.

end of side A of tape 84

side B of tape 84 of 01/11/2000

Maybe it is Asian culture. You remember what the Japanese did when they first came here to America? They were always very polite. I don’t know whether people nowadays buy that, but the first time everybody did. I remember that.

I have to read a little bit out of a sutra here. Buddha was asked how people should behave on a daily basis. Buddha’s reply was,

You show your face just like the full moon

That means you don’t give a half look, you don’t give slight looks. Look straight, show your total face. Also have a smile, no matter what.

Likewise, give respect to seniors, as well as even to new ones and young ones. Talk to everybody straightforwardly. honestly and nicely. Likewise you should think that you don’t want to be proud.

Another sutra said,

When you see other people, show them a nice face, talk nicely, don’t show your temper, don’t collect your brows together. Always keep smiling.

Whatever you do, your purpose is to help other beings. In order to do that, they have to be happy to see you. When you want to make them happy to see you, you have to give them a good smile and behave nicely. To make others happy is the activity of the Bodhisattvas.

So the idea is to make others happy. That will make you happy too. When you are in a bad mood, that will make it automatically difficult for the other people. They will counter-react. That will make it miserable for everybody. So from the beginning, don’t project misery out to others, although there is nobody who does not have suffering. We all have tremendous amounts of suffering. But if we kept on thinking of our suffering and showed that to others too, we should have to keep on behaving like Yamantaka all the time. We should not do that.

Verse seventy-four

With respect I should gratefully accept

Unsought afterwards that are of benefit

And that wisely advise and admonish me:

At all times I should be the pupil of everyone.

Don’t think of scolding here. It is admonishing. That is gently criticizing. It can also mean gently expressing dissatisfaction and dislike.

Aud: Webster’s dictionary says: it is mildly, but seriously warning, rebuking or reprimanding.

R: These are all very strong.

Aud: It can also mean ‘unsolicited aid’.

R: That is the closest to the Tibetan. That is very good. It is better than admonishing. That could be a bit too strong. The dictionary said ‘Gentle disapproval’. But ‘unsolicited advice or aid’ is the best. If you receive advice, even if unsolicited, and if that is helpful, you should welcome that. The last line about beings everyone’s pupil does not mean that you should be the disciple of everybody. Rather, even if you receive unsolicited advice, but if it is helpful to you, if it has meaning and purpose, accept it with respect just like pupils do accept the words of their master. In other words, do not despise people for giving you advice, don’t have pride, thinking that ‘I know better than you’, or ‘I know that already, don’t tell me’. If it is useful for you, keep on accepting the advice. If it is not helpful, just forget it, but you don’t have to fight with the person advising you at all. Accept the advice as though you are the disciple and they are the master. With that sort of respect accept it. After all, it benefits you, not them. If you keep on rejecting and fighting, you waste a lot of energy and the others will get upset. You will not get any benefit at all.

Verse seventy-five

I should say, ‘Well said,’ to all those

Who speak (Dharma) well,

And if I see someone doing good

I should praise him and be well pleased.

If you don’t want to say it, that is fine. But that is what you should think. If anybody gives you some advice which goes against your negative emotions you should accept that nicely, no matter what that person’s motivation might be. According to the traditional Indian culture, any message you receive which goes against your negative emotions, it is always a blessing of the Buddha.

(call coming through for Rinpoche from New York asking about borrowing a tangka)

R: I am borrowing a Heruka and Vajrayogini tangka from a museum in New York for the Heruka initiation. That is better than carrying it all the way from here. It is from the Donald Rubin collection. He told me that I can take anything I want to. So I am borrowing two tangkas from there. )

There is always a blessing of the Buddha involved, no matter what the messenger’s desire may be, whatever his or her motives. Whatever help you can get at that level, say ‘Well said, thank you’ and take it .

Furthermore, when seeing ‘someone doing good, I should praise him and be well pleased.’ Normally, if we see somebody doing something good, we are in the habit of not being very happy, particularly if you have a personal competitiveness with that person. Lets say that person, your friend, brother or sister, is a writer and you are also a writer. Lets say that other writer has some advantage that you don’t have. Then you get jealous of that person. That happens very often. It is the same for artists and others.

It could also be a situation where you just don’t like somebody. Lets say that person conceives a baby and you get jealous instead of rejoicing. Somebody may get promoted. Instead of rejoicing you get angry and upset. We do that. The last two lines of verse seventy-five are about that. When you see somebody creating positive karma by making big offerings to Buddha, Dharma and Sangha, you should acknowledge that and tell them, ‘Well done.’ You should praise them directly and openly. You should make that person happy about whatever it is that they have achieved. You also have to do it honestly, from the bottom of your heart. You can train yourself in that. Otherwise, such a person may tell you what they have done and you may also smile and say ‘How wonderful, I am happy for you’, but they will read between the lines, they immediately acknowledge. They can read between the cracks in your face that in reality you are jealous and upset. Sometimes people will even try to use that and give you even more suffering. So you can protect yourself against that by openly and honestly rejoicing, by appreciating that person.

In terms of the spiritual path, if you rejoice in a person doing a good thing, you lose nothing. You gain some appreciation. You may gain some good karma, if you rejoice. But if you are jealous, you gain nothing. On the contrary, you lose tremendously. You lose the good karma that you already have and you make yourself unhappy too. You will think, ‘Oh, I have this problem and that problem. This did not go right for me, that did not go right for me. She is not a good person and why did she get this and this....’. You will start screaming and hitting the walls or the doors which will just cause additional pain to your foot on top of the mental agony. Think about that. Many of us do that. If you really watch how you behave, that sort of thing happens. Now you do have a choice: you can suffer or you can make the best use of the situation. Imagine, if your enemy gets some advantage, there is something to gain for you too, rather than suffer.

Make that other person happy too. If you honestly praise somebody, that person will be happy. That again is good karma for you. So you gain, you don’t lose. However, if you make the other person unhappy, you not only disturb that person’s peace of mind, but that person will dislike you. Then, no matter how nice the words you may be saying to them, they will dislike you, because they can read between the lines. We all are no fools. We know. So just as we know, they know too. As much as we are not fools, they are not fools either. They also know how to read between the lines. So you create additional enemies. By doing that, you create additional suffering. Every enemy will try to give you a little piece of their mind at one time or another and you are the one who has to take it. So why are you doing it? What benefit is that for you? There is none. Besides that, the jealousy itself is not good. It will never ever give you any pleasure. It will always give you trouble.

The same goes for anger and attachment. They will never ever give you any pleasure. When you are so angry that your words are not enough to express your frustration, you have to take action and physically hit somebody. The person whom you are hitting, is not a rock. So they will hit you back and you get additional suffering. Then you hit them back and they hit you back again and each time you suffer more. In the end you pick up guns. That is what happens. Just like that, attachment will give you tremendous suffering. If you have love, there is no problem. But attachment wants control, there is a sense of belonging and ownership. You want to drag the other person in and bring them under your control. But that other person is also a human being. They have the same thing going on - they want to control you! So you both want to control each other and that is why you fight. There is no value in that. There is just suffering.

Jealousy is the same. What can jealousy do for you? Nothing. It only gives you suffering, never any pleasure at all. Maybe you are even right with what you are thinking about the other person. But being right and being jealous is not enough to stop the suffering. As long as you keep the jealousy, your suffering will continue, no matter if you are right or wrong, no matter whatever happens, because you are unhappy. You feel miserable, you feel left out and looked down on. You feel ignored. All that will continue, as long as the jealousy is there. As soon as the jealousy is gone your feelings will change. The idea of being looked down on, being made a door mat or being pushed aside, etc, will disappear from your mind. So you will no longer suffer. Whoever keeps jealousy, that person suffers. That is how negative emotions work. Each of these verses gives you the methods and tells you how to get over it.

In short, if somebody does good, give them praise, be happy with it .Even if that person is not there, talk about their qualities. Say the same things. It will be beneficial.

Verse seventy-six

I should discreetly talk about the good qualities (of others)

And repeat those (that others) recount.

If my own good qualities are spoken about

I should just know and be aware that I have them.

Why does it say ‘discreetly’? Because otherwise, the other person thinks you want to butter them, gain some benefit for yourself. So if there is the danger that they think that way about you, then don’t talk about their qualities openly, but ‘discreetly’. And say the same thing when you repeat these qualities to others. Don’t say something different. If you don’t mean what you say, you will get into trouble.

Then, if somebody is praising you, first you find out if you actually have these qualities within you. If you do, be happy about it. Also, acknowledge that the other person who is praising you, has his or her own quality of being able to see your qualities. That person must have the capability to perceive your qualities. So rejoice in that. If however you don’t have the qualities that are attributed to you, then you know yourself that it is not true. That is important. If you don’t have the qualities that are attributed to you, but you keep on thinking that you do, that is a sign of pride. If you say something nice about somebody like ‘You are great and you have this and that quality’ and you watch that person and that person says ‘Thank you very much,’ and is happy, you know what kind of person that is. That is the way I learnt how to judge people. For example if you know that person does not have these qualities but you tell them that they do, if that person is acknowledging that they have the qualities, then they are stupid. They are deeply stupid because they are claiming to have certain qualities which they don’t have just because somebody is saying that. So if you don’t have the qualities but somebody is saying that you do, you know they are setting you up. If you claim to be something that you are not, sooner or later it is bound to burst out. The truth will reveal itself. All frauds will come out sooner or later. In case of the big ones, history will be the judge.

Verse seventy-seven

All deeds (of others) are the source of a joy

That would be rare even if it could be bought with money.

Therefore I should be happy in finding this joy

In the good things that are done by others.

All efforts that people make are made to find more happiness. Especially the efforts of the Bodhisattvas are only there to make other people happy. Such happiness cannot be bought with money. It is rare to be bought by money. We may buy things because we think they will make us happy. But we find they don’t. We buy all these gadgets, thinking it will make things easier for us. But instead they make it more difficult. We have seen it again and again. Unfortunately, we have to have these things now, otherwise we think we will be left behind. And perhaps we are. In this age of technology, if you don’t have certain things, you are left behind. However, these gadgets are not going to make you happier. They will give you more suffering. You need not only one telephone, but several. You have to catch all the messages on them. Then you can have a beeper on top of that and you have to catch the messages on that one too. You have a home telephone, an office telephone, and now you also have e-mail. Instead of making it easier, it makes you work more. This cuts more into your free time.

Anyway, any efforts we put in are supposed to make us more happy. The translation says, ‘All deeds are the source of joy’. I don’t know if that it true. But all deeds are for the purpose of bringing joy and happiness. Why would we put efforts in otherwise? We all work for what? For making us a little more comfortable, make it easier for ourselves. We go to the office and work because we have to pay our bills. You people have come here because you want some satisfaction, some spiritual help, you want to get rid of negativities. So whatever we do is in order to better our situation. People start a business because they want more profit. Timer Warner joins with AOL because they want more profit. They are after more benefit, happiness, joy. Everybody does that. Why do we go to the bathroom? To relieve ourselves. We look for joy and happiness, but it really cannot be bought with money. So when you see someone else doing good, you should not be jealous. If you become jealous, it will defeat your purpose of gaining happiness. However, if you rejoice, the other person will be happy, and you will be happy too. Such a happiness cannot be bought by money. That is what this verse is all about:

Therefore I should be happy in finding this joy

In the good things that are done by others.

How do you find that joy? You tell the other person, ‘Don’t be jealous, be happy, express that happiness to other persons.’ Every Bodhisattva is happy when other people are happy. That joy cannot be bought by money. Money can destroy that, but it cannot help or build it.

Verse seventy-eight

(Through doing this) I shall suffer no losses in this life

And in future lives shall find great happiness,

But the fault (of disliking their good qualities) will make me

unhappy and miserable

And in future lives I shall find great suffering.

By rejoicing, I am not going to lose anything in this life. I will also have great benefits for my future life. However, if I am jealous, I will have unhappiness and suffering not only in this, but also in future lives. There are many people, including our own family members, who, when the others are getting better, get very jealous. We see that every day in people’s lives. They are suffering so much just because ‘my brother got a better position than me’, or ‘My sister has become my husband’s boss.’ We see that sort of suffering in everybody’s life every day. This is completely unnecessary suffering, but people go through this and can’t help it. All you can do is sit there and listen to them and see them crying. You can’t do anything. And that suffering is totally unnecessary - it is just because of jealousy. You see people doing that not just for a short time, but year after year, continuously. This suffering is not only in this life, but will be there in future lives as well.

Verse seventy-nine

When talking I should speak from my heart and on what is relevant.

Making the meaning clear and the speech pleasing.

I should not speak out of desire or hatred

But in gentle tones and in moderation.

When you speak with other people, how should you talk? You should talk honestly, straight forwardly. That is most important. It is not such a good idea trying to be too diplomatic, especially if you don’t know how diplomacy works. If you are a politician - and you know what we think about politicians - or if you are a used-car dealer, then you are excused (laughs). So you have to talk honestly, so that people can trust and believe you. It is also important to talk about what is relevant. Whatever you want to say, make that clear to the other person and make it sweet. That doesn’t mean you should whisper, but to talk in a way that the other person will accept. You have to talk whatever is relevant to that person. Also, whatever you say to that person, don’t let your mind be controlled by attachment or hatred. It is important not to have that influence. Because of attachment and hatred the honesty of whatever you are saying is going to change.

A particular Indian version of this verse - not a Tibetan - further says,

Whenever you speak it should always be suitable for the other person’s ear.

It also says in the Gaden Lha gya ma ‘Your speech is the ear ornament of the Fortunate’ The root of your speech should be compassion, nothing else. This makes it straight forward and honest. The way you speak should also be smooth, not rough. Also, don’t talk too much. Be clear and short. Minimum syllables and maximum message. That is the quality of the Bodhisattva’s speech. I am not adding that up because of Allen [Ginsberg] saying that. It is simply that when you talk too much, the message will get lost. Then you have to repeat at the end what it was supposed to be about and do that ten times more! However, if you keep it simple, little and nice, then it is there.

The verses which we did today are showing you how the Bodhisattvas function through their bodies. ‘Well behaved’, what does that mean? ‘Well-spoken’, what does that mean? It is the way they behave and function and speak. That is all I have to say. It is also getting a little late by now. Does anybody have any questions? I presume not. [General laughter]

Aud1: (inaudible question about Chinese practices during Chinese/Tibetan New Year)

R: This is the spiritual Chinese, not the Communist Chinese. These are good old Taoist and Confucians people who have the style of doing this.

Aud2: Last time you were talking about [the Chinese way of] looking into a mirror [with your clothes off in order to appreciate your human life]. What comes from doing that? I tried it.

R: Really? And did you like it?

Aud1. Yes.

R: Great.

Aud1: But am I missing something?

R: You are not missing anything. You know there are people who like to be self-deprecating.

Aud2: Make sure you don’t say ‘self-defecating’. That means shitting yourself.

R: And self-defamation?

Aud2: That is similar to self-deprecation. Self-defecation is different, but you could see it as similar too.

R: Self-deprecation, can that be a form of humility?

Aud3: No, not really.

R: Okay, what is the difference between self-abasing and putting yourself down and self-deprecation? I did look that up in the dictionary yesterday. I think there is a different usage by the British and by the Americans. Self-abasing is pushing yourself down a lot. You have to uplift yourself from that. One method to uplift yourself is that Chinese custom of ‘Making yourself feel better by looking at your body naked’. You will see the qualities and that will help you. To answer the previous question: That does not mean to build up attachment to your body.

So don’t abase yourself. You can have humility, but at the same time there are qualities. Acknowledge these without building attachment. There is no contradiction.

Again, it is important to see that I am not my body, my body is not me. I am my body’s boss and my speech’s boss. Even my mind is not me. I don’t want to go too deeply into that and confuse people, but it is true. My body is not me. Remember, the other day I mentioned the two types of identity we have, the physical and the mental identity. They both merge together and function. We call that life. When they separate, they will each go their own way differently. Most of the self-abasement which we do to ourselves is done on the basis of the body. A lot is also based on the mind, because many people will try to make you believe that you are stupid. You will then think that you are indeed stupid and eventually become stupid. Basically however, you are not. People will do the same with the body. When they want to make you feel bad they will say, ‘How ugly-looking you are! You are too fat’, etc. Then you feel bad. People can misuse that and hit you with this. That is why it is said that the body is the base of many sufferings. But this body of yours is not ugly, it is beautiful. However, that is not you, it is only your body.

Next Tuesday I won’t be here because I have to go to some Jewish group discussing the film ‘Jew in the Lotus’. I have committed to do that in New York. The Tuesday after that I have to go to the same group again, discussing ‘Jews and Buddhism’.

end of side A of tape 85 - side B empty