Archive Result

Soundfile 20110429GRNL

Speaker Gelek Rimpoche

Location Netherlands

Topic nyur lam

Transcriber Pam Parrish

Date 9/21/2021

0:00:00.0

Announcements

Announcer: Thank you very much. For the people who didn’t get everything that was said, we’ve been here with Jewel Heart for 25 years. Jewel Heart Netherlands celebrated their 25th anniversary. We started just before Jewel Heart USA and this was all due to 0:01:05.9 [Hilland von Horen] who a long time ago met Rimpoche and received teachings from him and then she persuaded him to come to the Netherlands and to teach here every year. And in Tilburg last Wednesday Rimpoche talked about Buddhism in turbulent times. The coming week of teachings is also about Lam Rim. You could say it is all about the spiritual path—the steps you take to enlightenment— dealing with your emotions, growing spiritually. After that is three days on the subject of karma.

0:02:06.

Announcer: Well, welcome Rimpoche. I’m happy to introduce you tonight. I did already give a talk in Dutch to introduce you in Dutch but I and wanted to let you know we’re very happy to have you here tonight. And the subject for tonight is the power of Relation, Connection, Solidarity. Just inspire us, and we will find out how we can get some power to do something good for a lot of people in this world and for ourselves. And so anybody’s welcome to attend, obviously, if you didn’t intend to do so already. And at the moment, there’s also people wearing badges. If you have any questions about anything, go to them; they know everything.

Rimpoche: Thank you. Welcome everybody. Thank you. Very happy to be here, back again. It has to be over 25 years that I’ve been coming back here, so I’m very happy to see old friends with old faces and new friends with new faces. And everybody with a little difficulty here and there but doing well. I’m happy to be with you all.

0:04:15.9

So I’m here this time for about 10 days or so to do—to share a little of my experience in both material and spiritual life. And particularly, very important point in the tradition of Tibetan Buddhism and that of 0:05:46.1 [inaudible] Lama Tsongkhapa’s tradition yoga called—I don’t say guru yoga—I say yoga called 100 Deities of the Land of Joy. Now also 0:06:48.1 [pertaining] to that teaching there is blessing of

0:07:05.4

[inaudible] Lama Tsongkhapa in the uncommon three important activities of Buddha combined together, namely wisdom, compassion and power on the request of Jewel Heart Holland. And also part of that particular teaching within that a 0:08:15.5 [brilliant] stage of how one individual can be taking from our today’s ordinary level to extraordinary level of, say, Buddha. That will be my major activities during this visit. I’m looking forward to sharing that with you. Many of you have already gone through that path. Many of you are moving forward. Many of you may never even heard about it. So in preparation for that or to be able to have a good life—whatever you may call it—whether you call it a prerequisite or beginning—or whatever you may call it, it is very important to have a good, basic foundation. A solidness of individual human being.

0:10:35.2

That solidness of the human being—to become a good solid person is the core basic requirement of everything, honestly. To establish some kind of solid person, no longer flying in the air but grounded, solid person. So the subject tonight. I have a little difficulty here with the solidarity. It's sort of normally— isn't that some kind of solid union language? Oh it's Polish language— solidarity—labor movement. Anyway so understanding solidarity. here really means uniting, combination. In other words, people are not contradicting themselves. No split—becoming solidness of the individual.

0:13:08.3

Translator: [translates above section]

Rimpoche: You really don't have that problem in Dutch at all?

Translator speaking now in English: Well the title in Dutch is something more like connectivity or the power of relatedness.

Rimpoche: OK, maybe we don't have that problem in Dutch, but it becomes language meant in English.

So anyway, I’m going to talk about the solidarity anyway [laughter]. It’s not the Polish labor union solidarity. 0:14:27.3 [inaudible] I forgot the guy’s name.

Audience: 0:14:29.2 [Remark in Dutch]

Rimpoche: Lech Walesa. That’s right. I’m not talking about Lech Walesa’s solidarity, but let’s say from the Buddha’s point of view. So we as an individual—sometimes, very often we have a—you know, I don’t want to say we have a split personality, however, very close to that. Honestly. So we don’t agree what we did. Also we contradict ourselves very often—almost all the time.

0:16:05.3

That’s because we are influenced by our negative emotions—our anger, our obsession, our jealousy influences us and act differently. And the basis of all this are what Buddha calls ignorance. It’s not necessarily a 0:17:22.5 [inaudible] ignorance which have no knowledge, no understanding, but ignorance because we are [in a] confused state. Not only a confused state but that confused state have a tremendous fear. That fear drives the individual to do different so that it may be better to achieve whatever you think you are achieving.

0:18:49.4

So that complex emotions made the individual into such a huge different complex. So really what we need to do is grounding ourselves [in the] beginning. The problems that we face to achieving our spiritual path or even better human being level of functioning is because we are not grounded. The different winds—you know, the air—the winds of attachment drive us in certain directions. Different winds of hatred drive us in certain directions. And different jealousy [winds] drive us in different directions. So that’s why I said right from the beginning we have not split personality, but we function almost like split personality.

0:20:53.4

Each one of them really drive us completely their own way as though functioning as a different person. Sometimes we see among people who have difficulties. They change the personality of that person. Sometimes people are so sad and depressed. Sometimes it goes just opposite way and that’s how we function. So much emotional 0:23:02.4 [driven. Driven] to the extent where the personality can pull—you know like the rubber straps. You pull as much as much as you can pull. You drive that far, and after that you no longer can pull. Then you collapse. And we all do that. We cry. And we hide. And we’ve been burned out. Burned out is the beginning, actually. And then [it] goes to that extreme. And all of them are because of—let’s call it lack of solidarity.

0:24:07.5

[Within the Dutch translation at this, there are a few inaudible words by Rimpoche]

Rimpoche: 0:24:52.6 [inaudible] of our goal. 0:24:52.6 [inaudible] of our method. We are unable to—sort of I myself is unable to agree with me for purpose. I myself is unable to agree with me—for my goal of what I would like to achieve. I myself is unable to agree with me for a compassion that I have for myself. I am unable to agree to develop love for myself, and these are the symptoms and the consequences what we pay, what we experience in our life. And these symptoms are the result of this not getting together. Sometimes we may think the drugs and alcohol may help, particularly prescription drugs.

0:27:14.4

At the beginning it may look like it’s helping when you begin to enjoy your drink, it looks like it’s helping. And when you begin to smoke dope, it looks like it’s helping. But you know that doesn’t help; it harms more. Now we’ll go to the prescription drugs. That may be better because the doctor give you. So at the end that doesn’t help. Temporarily, sure, but then at the end it doesn’t help either. That’s because we cannot keep our mind together by ourselves. In other words, we cannot manage our mind by ourselves. This is the true problem. So yes, there is a physical problem. Yes, there is external problem. But all are coming from internally. Internally. This is mind over matter, not matter over mind. Does that make sense?

0:30:03.4

Translator: In English, yes. In Dutch, I’m not sure. [Audience laughter] I don’t think we have this expression mind over matter. 0:30:06.7[some audience discussion and more translation]

Rimpoche: In other words, mind is more important than material. We as Buddhists, officially call that motivation. And you go and listen to any Buddhist teachers, whether it is Tibetan Buddhist lama or rinpoche or whatever—or Buddhist lecturer or whoever they may be—they will talk with you about motivation. Including this one. But why are we talking about the motivation? Because mind is the one that really guides us, not the matter that guides mind. We don’t do anything if we don’t have a mind of doing it. Whether you realize or not. You may not realize, because you want to go, you are going. So it looks like you are going is the more important. No? If you don’t have the desire to go, you will not go. And if your mind is not together, even if you want to go, you say you are going, but you are not going to go at all.

0:33:07.8

When the time comes, 2 minutes late, 5 minutes late, 10 minutes late, 20 minutes late, 2 hours late missed the plane, missed the train, missed the bus, whatever. So you never go. You want to go; you say you are going but you don’t. Because your mind of going is not together. It is divided. And then it is interrupted because of certain little pleasure, whatever it is. Whether it is a cup of tea or a glass of wine or a conversation or some little thing will stick you there. And so we say there say there is no motivation. In a good way. In a bad way if you committed a crime, they will look for motivation. Right? You watch those movies. Those Law and Order type of movies. All of them are looking for motivation. What is the motivation of this person to commit this murder, blah, blah, blah. You see it every day. So the mind together holding as basis of a functioning individual is the fundamental principle of human beings functioning as human beings.

0:36:08.1

Good and bad is a separate matter. More or less we all have that. Some are not strong enough, and some are pretty strong. Like Dutch people are a little more strong—too strong, too rigid. Sorry. [audience laughter] And to change something within the Dutch culture or whatever, it will be more difficult than anything else. [audience laughter] Maybe it’s the German influence. [audience laughter]

Whatever, you know, whatever. Anyway it shows that in our nature, we have that. We have that. Sort of mental solidarity of functioning [of the] individual. But when that is shaking—sometimes it shakes because of difficult circumstances. Sometimes it shakes because of certain spiritual matters. Sometimes it shakes because of a certain mental problem.

0:38:59.1

[Audience member whispering to Rimpoche]

Rimpoche: OK, sorry. Oh, the phone rang. Put it on the microphone. [Audience laughter] We’d like to hear. You know, one time I was in a panel discussion somewhere. My phone rang. No, no, I was giving a talk. I pretend I don’t know, so I managed to control. One time I was in a panel. The phone rang. There’s a lady, a nun. What is her name, the Zen nun?

Audience member Amy: Joan Halifax.

Rimpoche: Amy has a dictionary over there. [Audience laughter] Joan Halifax told me “Rimpoche, Rimpoche, your phone is ringing.” And it’s also true, because it’s going through the microphone and ringing throughout the hall everywhere. [Audience laughter] And I can’t pretend to be… So when this mind has been shaking, then it’s started spreading it.

0:41:39.6

The solidarity started going. It is separation starting. As I said earlier it can be split. Not split personality but mind thoughts can go different way. If you are too tired and if you are too sleepy you can’t concentrate. That we know clearly. And also if you have so many thoughts, so many things, and are unable to manage it time wise and you get that trouble too. And you get a variety of informations such different spiritual paths and different this and different that. Then you get that too. Sometimes physical matters influence over mind because of the physical structure of certain things. Traditionally in the Buddhist tradition, particularly in the Vajrayana tradition, we talk about channels and energy. Energy functions within certain channels—goes, doesn’t go, moves, doesn’t move. It makes the difference to the attitude—to the mind functioning of the people, so you get that. Not only you get a mind divided function. Sometimes even you can go to the extent of getting confusion, hallucinations, and all of them can come out of this.

0:43:48.3

And that is also known as obstacles of channels, obstacles of energy. And all of them-- the solution to solve that problem is not external. It is not. It is all internal. It is important to collect all different thoughts [and] ideas together. In other words, don’t let your mind split, but put them together. And meditation is one of the solutions. Meditation will bring minds together. Meditation means focus and focusing all your thoughts and all your energy and all your air together. And when you know to do this all energy and all thoughts together, you make it physically too, so that physically you push together.

0:47:20.2

Then that physical and mind and air or the energy cannot be together if your mind is strongly influenced by either too positive or too negative. Both sides. So it is necessary to bring your mind 0:48:18.5 [in its own nature of itself]. The nature is clean, clear and illuminous. So it is not anger. It is not hatred. It is not obsession. It is not self-defamation. Neither is it humiliation. It’s very neutral level, very calm, very quiet, very smooth. When you be able to establish that little bit 0:49:57.6 [with you][with the view], you’ll be taking yourself away from those hatred, anger, fear, much more.

0:50:27.6

Will mind ever remain in that level? It will not. It will not remain, because mind is mind. It is like a monkey. It is easy to collect 0:50:58.4 [to a thoughts] on a thought—positive or negative thought. To remain a longer period. And if you collect—sometimes negative thoughts—sometimes look like helpful. If a person’s going to crack up here, and then if you are angry or upset or something, naturally we do. And that brings them together a little bit—don’t make you fall apart because of the power of the anger of the anger holds you together. Or the power of obsession holds you together. That happens with everybody we can see. We know it, right? So since we know that, and if you let yourself be organized by your anger, the consequences will be terrible.

0:52:51.9

So Buddha recommends you not to organize by anger. Instead organize yourself with love. And when I say love, I don’t mean the attachment. Attachment does organize you too, just like anger does. We all know that. We know that some people will say ‘I live for you.’ So it’s true, it’s true. So those powerful emotions, whether it is positive or negative, can influence the mind and get the mind together. So it can bring solidarity within the mind. And when you look at that carefully, carefully, the love can do, if not better, but equally good as anger or obsession can do. I’m talking about pure love. Pure love and attachment. The difference is one is sticky. The other is pure. Stickiness makes you stick. Pure will not 0:55:24.4 [sticky stuck] you. And the pure love can bring compassion. So both compassion and love are capable of organizing the individual if you know how to. So that is sort of, you know, a good glimpse of [how] I’m saying how you can bring solidarity together. Once you begin with that, and then you can move more.

0:56:40.6

Audience: [inaudible]

Rimpoche: 10 minutes. [To get coffee.] That may organize you better. [Audience laughter].