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20010406GRNLDailyBuddhism2

And how many of you were not there at the first night? Not lot of people. So, what we have tried to cover on the first night, I turn to you. (inaudible) ok. Let me just tell you briefly. She said that I said cause of all our sufferings are negative emotions. Now when I say cause of all our suffering are negative emotions, we are referring to negative emotions which are anger, attachment, ignorance etc., not really that I’m feeling good or not feeling good or of that kind of emotions. I feel good, happy and I’m positive or maybe not feeling good as negative. We are not talking about that. The negative emotions give misery to us and is very often seen within our life, every day. We don’t have to proof that, or we don’t need, it has to be rocket science to figure that out. Because when you are angry you are disturbed. The anger affected me goes away, but you are still disturbed, you may be not any more angry but you are still disturbed. And if you cannot get rid of your anger it will rather intensify and create even physical difficulties, it also creates misunderstanding within your family, within your circle, between your children, between your spouses and particularly between you and your mother-in-law. (audience laughing) Then point n. 2. I try to make brief for those who have not been here last night in order that they can catch up. (inaudible voice from audience). Well, how many of you have enemies? Haha. Some kind of two, three hands, who are those? Not mother-in-law I hope, haha. Well normally all kind of things, ex-husband, probably, or ex-father-in-law, enemy number one, particularly if he is a lawyer. Hahah. That’s supposed to be a joke, but the reality is: What, who makes you unhappy? Who can really touch you? Not the external person. The external person may or may be not able to catch you. Are you with me? Miss? Are you with me, you, and yes, the lady behind you? Are you sure you are with me? I’m talking to you, right? I don’t want to get overhead of everybody. But who can really get you from inside? What from outside? Inside? Who can really make you uncomfortable? Internal ones or external ones? You may think what you mean internal one, I’ve got an ….(0:08:00) here, nothing else. But you have a mind inside. And there are some many parts and processes of those. Some are called mental faculties, some are called mind, some are called positive, some are called negative. So, this negative catches you. So internally there is nothing to hide, externally you can hide a lot, you can put other persons in between, you can put lawyers in between and you can do all sort of thing, you know. So, you don’t pick up the telephone, there are lots of tricks you can play, but internally there is nothing or you don’t give telephone number, hahaha. Maybe you can change your telephone number, you know? But internally there is nothing to hide. Because our mind is absolutely clear to ourselves, there is nothing secret, no hiding between my mind and me. Are you with me? You can’t hide anything inside you from your mind, can you? You pretend you forgot about, but even the pretending one is the one which wants to know, right? And the one who is hiding is the one who wants to know. So, this is why the internal is much more important than the external. If help, the internal can help, if harm, the internal can harm, much more than external. And then it’s very interesting about the things we were talking, what do you call that? transforming negativity and these are very much interlinked. Buddhism in daily life and transforming negativity is very much interlinked, it’s almost one thing looking from different angle, it’s very much interlinked. Particularly we were exploring what makes ourselves good and bad, and healthy and nice, and kind and miserable and horrible and we are exploring this, we are not looking at Buddhism as worship, you know as I used to say, you’ve got to pray to make it today. It’s not exploring from that angle, it’s very much the same thing. And we are not saying you have to go there and worship and you have to light your jaw stick, you don’t have to go to bow there, we are not saying that. We are really looking at the principles of Buddhism, rather than the.. what do you call it? Jewels? Yeah, The jewels or worship in part, yeah. So it is very much the thing, the real essence of Buddhism, we are really talking about Buddhism on the …………(0:13) level, rather than …... and flashes and so on. Did you say something to me? No, I did say something to myself, haha. That’s great. So that shows don’t look for the enemy outside. So this is basically what we talked about the first day in detail, we’ve just summarized, not only summarize just ….(0:14:51) of what we did the first day. Is that right? Those who have been here the first day, or is there something I left out? So those who have not been here may have some help out of that even though you are not there the first day. And then many of you who have not been there the first day and many of you have been there, before. But half of the people raised the hand, so many of you have been here for the first day. So, do you have any questions? Or clarifications or anything else? Don’t feel intimidated, just raise your hand, this is your opportunity. I saw your hand last night, too. Go ahead. (inaudible from audience in dutch) The question is that she says the first night we talked as well about that we suffer a lot because we cover up our suffering. She would like to know more about that. I’m going to talk about that this night. Anybody else?

So, then today we try to deal with it again, but I have to mention first about the nature of those negative emotions, a little bit. As we already said anger along with hatred makes the individual dislike. Right? If you are angry with somebody you are not going to like him, right? That’s obvious, right? So, which is anger makes you dislike the others. And I also told you: attachment exaggerates; attachment makes you like a person but exaggerates. False exaggeration and let us say between person and person, you see more than what the person really is. Sort you project extraordinary qualities on that person which may not even have it. Am I right or wrong? Right? I’m glad that you agree with me now, hahaha, and since it’s not true, it’s exaggerated, one day it’s going to disappear. And when it began to disappear you begin to dislike that person. Thinking that person is changing. That person is not changing but your false projection is going. You know if you have a projected false perception of that person, he seems bigger that what he is. The……(0:20:32) of the percepted is falling off. (everybody laughing). So just like that, so that’s how it is exaggerate and then you realize it’s not true, you blame the person he is changing and what you projected on is not there and that is how we can get a lot of problem out of attachment. Then the ignorance is the biggest problem. It’s confused mind, it’s really confused, doesn’t know what it’s doing, does not only give a false perception but all kind of other things. So, we will be able to come back and talk to you, but I wanted you to know these three things, ah the three most dangerous negative emotions. I think that I did mention on the first day the will of life, and if you look in those center of the will of life, there is a …(0:22:36) one of them and a snake and a pig eating each other, is not that the pig eats the snake and get a medical disease, but the pig eats the snake and becomes strong. And unfortunately, they become one, so it is much more powerful. That’s why, they sort of put this as a source of all Samsara, if you know the meaning of this word. If you don’t know what this word Samsara means, basically it is the continuation of unmanaged life. Does that make sense? Sort of unmanaged. If it’s managed, then it’s sort of planned and controlled and unmanaged means you don’t know what is going to happen, if something happens, you plan to do something and then something else happens, that is what I mean unplanned, unmanaged. If you manage you put up a beautiful show, but if you are unmanaged you get all messed up. That’s why I have put that in unmanaged, because we plan to do something and then something other happens all the time, isn’t it like that? You may plan to have one child and then maybe you get two. That’s why I called this unmanaged. Right? So, all of those are coming out of those three. Now recognizing that is extremely important. Now I’m not going to talk to you transforming it, because, if I tell you transforming it, I have nothing else to say on the other side, hahaha. It’s a joke. So that’s my secret. Joined secret. You can have it. Now what has Buddhism in daily life will do with this? Buddhism in daily life has to do with this; number : have awareness of that. Number 2 going opposite what they wanted to. (0:27:25)? Anger makes you do get angry and try to hurt other person. So, Buddhism in daily life will tell you: hey, don’t let anger take over you, have some compassion, don’t hurt other person, they will feel as much as you get hurt. Do you like it when you get hurt? Certainly not, right? They will feel the same thing, so put yourself in the position of the others. So, then compare it and not only compare it, try to feel it, and are you going to be happy when somebody else is hurting you all the time? So when you are not happy do everything they will be happy too, so you know they will not be happy, so why bother? Because I have to bother because they overpowered me, they cursed me, they did this, they did that and all these anger reasons will come up again. Did you ever really, truly know they really want to hurt you? Or it is the just part of the way how they protect themselves? Maybe they try to protect themselves, maybe they do not try to hurt you. Maybe they try to do good to you? Yeah, very often, when people don’t want to talk about something and you keep on asking maybe they try to do some good to you but it hurts. The hurting is real. It’s not false. We have to be aware too. So sometimes it is like that, sometimes really someone wants to hurt you. So, if they really want to hurt you are you going to let them hurt you or are you going to protect yourself? And if you are going to protect yourself, if you are going to hit back what the person hit you, is that the way to protect you? Even our ….(0:32:11) level, this is the last thing when somebody hits you, is it the last thing to do. Do you have nothing else to do than hitting back? Hahaha. And well I do not mean when somebody hits you have to take it, I’m not saying that, ok? But if you behave in the same way as your enemy does, you become equal to your enemy, what makes you better? And do you want to be as low as your enemies? You don’t, you want to be better. And the betterness has to be shown by your action, not by your mouth. The action what you show is: you behave better. So, what he doesn’t know, what you know is compassion. Understanding, better informed, these are the steps that you can utilize. Right? Even in normal cases, just usual education, and educated persons normally do not engage in fighting that way. And that’s Cowboys job, cowboys do that; even in ….(0:34) level. And we are supposed to be better than that. Not only educated, which all of you are, anyway, plus that you have a compassion, and you have a spiritual part, and you are superior and if you can’t show that what is it worth of having that information, would you? Only a Tibetan Lama said: this life is fantastic, it’s a wonderful life, but we have to show something. And what you have to show is that you make sure that you are better than a cow. You know? The sufferings even the cows don’t like it. Happiness the cows do want it. When the sun is too strong the cows look for shade. When it is too cold, they try to seek a shelter. And if somebody hits a cow they do not know how to hit back. So, we have to make better than that. In one way we have all this wonderful life, understanding, able to communicate, you know we say life is precious and wonderful. I’m not sure whether many of you, I don’t know how many of you people here have taken courses here, but those of you who had taken the courses here, you know we’ve emphasized so much how the life is precious and how important it is and how much difference it makes for you, so we do that in the courses, so you know it. And if you cannot make a difference with a cow, hahaha, then is life really valid? Valuable? So, what makes the difference is compassion, right in this moment cows need compassion, tremendously, that’s really true. I mean it is unimaginable, this terrible disease that we get round. What is it called? Food and mouth?(0:38:51) terrible! It’s a really terrible thing, you know it, and for me it’s very uneasy, you know, for me as Europe and particularly Netherlands is a sort of perfection picture; people are open, wonderful, it’s not over industrialized, it’s not under developed, and it’s clean and beautiful, it is a picture perfect. And it’s sort of really, I don’t know how to express, it’s something very, not only a shaking but it pains my heart, that’s what it is. So, it pains my heart when I see this. But again, no matter how picture perfect may be, may be part of Samsara, that’s how it is. So that’s that, so the compassion right now, the animals, really asking us: hey, think about it, we all have to die here, think about it. And they are reminding us of compassion, right and left, every cheese that we eat, bit of cheese we are eating reminds us of compassion. Every milk, every double milk that we drink reminds us of compassion today. And particularly today we have a very good reminder for this compassion. Perhaps we can make those animals dying something worthwhile for them and for us as well. And that probably if you commit yourself to think about compassion, at least once a day or if not once a week, and maybe we can make those animals dying some good thing, at least some contribution. Think about it. If you are kind enough, think about taking a pledge. Pledging does us remember compassion, don’t forget the scenes of those cows filed up and that catching fire, spraying gas or whatever it is and don’t forget these pictures. Perhaps that can be Buddhism in everyday life. So, the compassion makes the individual think better, it means if you want to hurt somebody, you think twice. Even if you want to cheat somebody, you think twice, right? Yes maybe compassion in action. Of course helping those who needed, protecting the environment, you know helping shelter for the homeless, and you know helping ………….(0:45) even if you can’t go that much, every day you can to that much. There are maybe about what: 100, 80 people here tonight, whatever. If there are a hundred here, each one of you can make other 3 or 4 more friends convincing them to remember those dying animals and think about compassion. So you know, one hundred will make 300-400 and each of them another one and so we can develop that national thinking. It’s not that difficult. How wonderful it will be, if everybody thinks of compassion in the Netherlands? Instead of ….thinking I’m not ………(0:47)Hahaha. It’s a story that I told yesterday, so forget it anyway. So that will be something in your daily life to do. That’s not impossible. You mean you cannot convince 2 or 3 other friends, let’s convince one. I mean if you cannot convince don’t give up by yourself and I think that how it works. So, thinking compassion alone is not enough. That motivation should attach some action. Something to help, something, whatever, something good. Actually, Buddhism in every day life, I thought talking about this on the third day but it’s coming up anyway. So Buddhism in everyday life people should be inspired to be generous. Miseresness (0:49:13) is a negative emotion. Generosity is a positive emotion. The misereres will not help anybody, including yourself, no matter how much you save, not matter how much you have, the day when you die you leave everything, we are all going to die, for sure. Some people are called, they have a chronic disease, they are supposed to die. Some people are supposed to be leaving, hahaha, not for chronic disease, they are all false, those who are earmarked ? (0:50:29) to die they live and those who are supposed to live they die, every time we see this. So truly, each and everybody of us is …earmarked?to die, for sure. That is guaranteed, the only question is when, tonight? Tomorrow? In 10 years or 5 years in between? That’s the question. So, by the time we die we leave every thing, really. So, the miseresness make you the fight for, even 25 cents. And makes your life miserable and the other person’s life miserable and makes everybody else miserable and what do you get out of it, not even 25 cents. That also you have to leave it. so that’s why the miseresness is a negative emotion, generosity is a positive emotion. Truly speaking. This is maybe against economic principles, forgive me, I’m not an economist, perhaps if you needed the worst economist, I could be candidate, hahaha. That’s probably me. So be generous is a pleasure, how wonderful I can contribute. Right now, I’m contributing and that’s my biggest saving that I can have for the future. Generosity is an act of Kharma and the result of that is wealth. So maybe I’m a good economist, from that angle. So, generosity does not mean the money alone, information, and time. All of them make difference for the other person’s life and particularly information in this age. I keep on saying there is going to be a huge gap between those who have and those who don’t. I’m not talking about money. Perhaps that was a past century thing, now I’m talking about information. There is a tremendous amount of information that is held back, by a small group of people. Perhaps they make a total difference of our future life, I do not mean future reincarnation, I mean future of this life. You know I mean next in 20-25 years. What’s going to happen to our future life is actually shaped by a small group of people who hold all the information. Not necessarily governments, in the 60-70 we can fight against the governments and saying they are holding money. Today a group of people, group of people. I attended a conference in N.Y. called “artificial intelligence”. Did I mention here, yes? Ok. Then I don’t repeat. You know I was watching a television, then President of the United States, President Clinton, was talking, he was talking and talking about information and suddenly he wanted to say something, you can observe it and you know, if you watch you can see from his body gesture but he was not sure whether he could say it or not, he was hesitating, so I thought oh well this man is not telling something and I was watching TV right? Suddenly he turned around I’m not sure whether I should tell you this, maybe I’m breaking national security or not but he says: the (0:58:10)…….computer can change all pentagon computers, we have to ……technology. After that I’m not sure whether to tell you this or not, whether it affects national security. So that shows you how much so one should really be generous to share with people the information. Yeah people will say: well if you share all the information on the internet and all the tasks con go so and forth, that’s another blabla. And that also brings another ethical question, next point is an ethic issue. Tremendous ethical question. You know whether you be a homosexual or heterosexual or something that problem is another centuries’ issue. Do you think I’m crazy? For me it’s another issue. Today there is a tremendous ethical issue, technological, biochemical. Cloning, artificial intelligence and all of those are really very, very ethical issues. So, Buddhism in everyday life, ethical issues are so important. We have to be very ethical, you cannot ……..(1:01:25)in negativities. You should be always possible to build up positivity as much as possible. Yet, the sexual orientation and all of those is a different question. There is much more, honestly speaking, these little scientists who are wearing white dresses sitting in their laboratories and every day they are making decisions about your and my life what’s going to happen in 20-25 years from now. And I will tell you they all wanted to do the right thing and the best thing, most of them and it's our duty, what we call spiritualist, and let them know what we feel about it. We have to feel what we feel about cloning, and who owns the clone. I may give my gene and if I created clone, do I owe that clone’s life? Can I harvest the organs of that clone, is this another human being or a retarded person or not even a person? And what is it? This is a very ethical question, and we have to pay attention. Then, think about genome. It is a time they produce a human being in laboratory, in a bottle. But is this the right thing to do? Think about it. Yeah, they will make a decision. They will say well, the white occasion we call in America, it’s too white, let us put a couple of drops of some percentage of African, oh yeah well about 6 foots it’s too tall, then below 6 foot is too short so let it be between 5-7-8 or 6 foot. And look at this tiger wood?, it looks good. He looks good, let us put a couple ancient blood drops, genes here. If they produce one person who cares? Doesn’t matter, but as a result of this they can be producing a completely new bread of human beings. Actually what I bet it, allowed? Hahaha, no this thing allowed, this is free, and then what is going to happen to us, there are the superior human beings and all of us, like or white, green or yellow, or red or blue, whatever and we are going to be ………(1:07:16). And that’s the reasons why I say it’s an ethically issue. Honestly speaking: these are true ethical questions. When Buddha was alive, if this question arises, Buddha would have definitively included in the ethical thing. If this issues had raised when Jesus was in life will definitively all these, what do you call those? comandments? No, I’m not talking about the comandments, I’m talking about those right wing, conservative Christians will be …(1:08:30)….on their ….. all the day, today. But fortunately, Jesus is not here, so they don’t bother, hahahah, So, I think we have to pay a little attention, these are the ethical …. (I’m going too long? Ok, it’s almost 21.30, people has to catch train and all sort of thing. Not the train, hahaha. So how did you get here? By bike, Dutch, double Dutch, joking sorry. I should cut that here and talk about patience. So, if you don’t have patience then nothing works. Basically when we are talking about the patience here we are not talking about every patience. You know I always give a funny example. If you have been dumped by one of your girlfriends, one of your girlfriends if you have many, if you have only one, if you have been dumped by your girlfriend and then she is willing to meet you and you are waiting for two hours nowhere and you are waiting with patience. That’s not patience. I’m talking about patience that can protect yourself from negative emotions. I’m talking about patience that can accept certain difficulties for better purposes. Did I speak Greek here? Did you get what I’m talking about? Ok. I’m talking about the patience that you do not lose the temper with a person you don’t like. These are the positive patience. There is equally negative patience, like the general who is willing to work hard and bombard as much as possible and kill as many animals as possible, is patience that would not be rewarded. The terrible relentless businessman who would give tremendous misery to lot of people for his own monetary profit is not patience I’m talking about. So, I told you the dumped girlfriend too. So, the patience is very very important in our life, but patience also must have wisdom, to be patient of what and what not. Ok? The patience along with it will also bring you to the level of enthusiasm, and especially when you’re working ……(1:14:57) and we do need a great deal of enthusiasm, and if you don’t have the enthusiasm you lose esteem. You’ll hear that people are burned out, cannot manage any more. And I give up and all of them lack of enthusiasm and lack of life…..(1:15:40). You also need concentration, if you don’t have a concentration you don’t know what you are doing. Haha, so the focusing is so important. Whatever you are doing you have to be focused on what you are doing. Think about it, involved, and do it nicely, just don’t do it for the sake of doing, whatever you are doing, doesn’t matter. Ok? So, the next day is wisdom and at least you should know what you are doing, hahaha. If you don’t know what you are doing, don’t do it. You’ll be making fool of yourself. What, that’s supposed to be a joke, but I don’t know. Actually, half joke. When you try to engage in some kind of spiritual thing here, you must know what you are doing. If you don’t know, because, well saying so and so, doing this, I made this, I’m great or I don’t see it’s a valid reason. I don’t want to put anybody on the spot but I’m dying to ask you why are you involved? I’m really dying to ask you why you are involved. The motivation of what you are doing is the most important one. If your motivation is to have fun, just to have a fun, you are in the wrong place, lots of coffee shops are open. And if you wanted also to become high, coffee shop. If you want to remove your suffering, if you want to help yourself to make a difference in your life, in the lives, then I hope you are in the right place. Yeah, just to be here is not enough. Just to hear one lecture is not enough. You know I’m acting like a doctor here, I’m sorry. I’m telling you: your problem is attachment. I’m telling you: your problem is hatred, and I said all your problems are caused by ignorance. So, I’ve been able to give you a correct diagnose thanks to Buddha. So, I give you a prescription. Right? For ignorance, wisdom. For attachment what is it? I forgot the name of the medicine. Haha, For hatred? Compassion. For anger, patience. For attachment, appreciation, or pure love. So, you got the prescription, but you have to go and fill up these prescriptions. And you have to check those medicines because if you leave the prescription up in the order and …..pray or whatever you do, nothing is going to happen. Did you hear me? That’s all I have to say. Let your prescription fled up? Eat it up, don’t throw it up. I have nothing more to say. I mean you don’t have a train, you’ve got to go home. (everybody laughing). Thank you.

Singing a prayer (1:23)