Archive Result

Soundfile 20130524GRGRTB02

Speaker Gelek Rimpoche

Location Garrison N.Y.

Topic Tibetan Buddhism

Section 02

Transcriber Helen Breault

Date June 7, 2013

[start at end of prayers: 24:51:6]

Good morning everybody. So today one of our Buddha Shanti days [inaud. 25:09] as was mentioned last night. Buddha's birth, obtaining enlightenment, and mahaparinirvana. Originally, you say Buddha didn't die, but we no longer see Buddha physically as usual. So that anniversary, all fall together. Many of you have taken precepts this morning. And congratulations. It is Mahayana precepts. And great. We talked about how do we function last night. We talked about sleeping. We talked about rising. And so I'm not going to repeat that. And then I, last night, if I remember correctly I thought I said then all our different thoughts will come out.

A tremendous amount of busyness in our mind because all variety of thoughts, all of them are going to come out. That is one thing. Let the thoughts take place. But also to manage is another thing. If, wherever you look, every meditation will tell let the thoughts go away. Or some people will say peel it off like you're peeling the orange skin or something. Some people will say don't think about it. But whatever they may say, the reality is it is important you manage your mind. I know many of us don't like to manage. Many of us like to do whatever we wanted to do. You know, and it is a really big deal for us to do whatever we wanted to do. Don't tell me what to do. And all of those. Persons become very sensitive and that is our reality. However, as a human being, as a good human being, I don't say "manage," just try to organize your mind a little bit.

Traditional teachings will tell you don't let your mind be controlled or managed or driven away by negative emotions. And that's very true. But we don't like to hear it. But whether you like to hear it or not, [laughs], I don't mean you have to do it. But unless we organize a little bit, then we have the same old thing what had happened before. And same old thing will repeat. What's happening now is if you look in our life, we see clearly what had happened. We have seen, we have been through with a number of different levels of life. Even in one lifetime, we have been a number of different categories or a number of different statuses of life. Many of us have been very wealthy before. Many of us have been poor. It changes. It changes, honestly. Many of you have been a beauty, handsome, all of them. And many of you are still. But many of us are not. [Laughs]. Honestly, it changes. And it changes all the time. And similarly, many of us enjoyed life tremendously before. Many of us suffered tremendously. And all this suffering, joy, good, bad, rich, poor, healthy, sick, all of them change. Even in one lifetime. Talking about other different lives, there was tremendous difference.

However, we remain the same. This is because we let the mind do whatever they want to do. And there's no direction. There's no organization. So it takes whatever. If you try to put a little efforts, little efforts, it will go far away. Look at yourself. Put a little efforts in your education, what does that make difference in your life? You will see it today. A little knowledge that's built, what does that make a difference in your life today? It's a little efforts. Not so much. That clearly shows we have this tremendous capability. All of us do. We all behave as though we are handicapped. But we are not. Mentally we're not. We're very capable. Each and every one of us. Those of us who are a little bit of crazy and those of us who are very serious, and those of us happy-go-lucky, all of us are capable. Tremendous capability is with us. There is no question. It is with us. It is a matter of whether you make use of it or not make use of it.

So little efforts of little bit of organization of mind, #1 the motivation we talked last night. Motivation. The Tibetan Buddhism, Mahayana Buddhism, recommends motivation should be boddhimind. Remember we talked refuge last night a little bit. I can't talk details because then we're not going to do anything else. But refuge, and then next to that it becomes generation of boddhimind. But this is technically we call it "generation of boddhimind." But straightforward language it is motivation. So it is motivation.

And those of you who are very familiar with Tibetan Buddhism, we also say this, "Sangye cho dang tsok kyi chog nam la jang chub bar du dakki jin so yi pe tog nam ki drola penchir sangye drub par shok." I take refuge in Buddha, dharma, and sangha until I obtain enlightenment. Right? So, in other words, we talked refuge last night. The question is, how long do I take refuge? Right? That we didn't talk last night. How long do I take refuge? I take refuge as long as I need it. How do I know when you don't need it? When I have total knowledge, when I become in that state, then I know I don't need it. So until then, I do. And then the next word is "dakki jin so yi pe tog nam ki drola penchir sangye drub par shok." So that "jin so" is generosity, etc. There are a lot of other things. So all these, doing that may I be able to obtain state of total enlightenment for the benefit of all living beings.

Now I'm talking about Buddhist point of view. The [inaud 37:59] ?thought is a funny thing, even you're Buddhist or not, but this idea of the ultimate achievement, idea of getting to the end wherever you're going, it is everybody's goal. Nobody wants to go half-way through. Everybody would like to be perfect, the best. And whatever there's to gain, to gain. And that's whether you're Buddhist or not Buddhist or atheist or nothing. Whether you're believing or not believing or whatever. The reality becomes that. So the Buddhists have a way of saying "for the benefit of all beings, I would like to become Buddha." And then the moment you use that word, and then it sort of colors yourself as some kind of quoted language which is actually meant only for the Buddhists and nobody else. It's almost that we treat, without saying it, like it's some Buddhist cult or something. And that's what we do. Which is not really correct.

I will, from the angle what I'm looking, I will say even those non-Buddhists, like who really have certain non-Buddhist, like a person who is strictly following, really very sort of conservative Judeo-Christian or Muslims, even those, sorry to say that, very conservative like a terrorist and all these are to me, they want to become Buddha. Honestly. They don't want to become buddha as Buddha, but they want to become perfection of whatever they believe in. Perfection of whatever they believe in. And I think that is what we call "Buddhahood." It is not caste, culture, religion. The word, a lot of terminologies used to describe Buddha or buddha-state or total knowledge, gone beyond, Buddha, and all kinds of terminologies you use. So when you begin to think a little bit more, not that deep, but a little more, what does "total knowledge" mean? If you just say, "okay, it is total knowledge, it is Buddha." So the word comes, let it go. It doesn't really work that well. I mean, it's sort of, we thought we understand or it's sort of Buddhist quoted language. Or even the Hindus will say, like Ram, "aya Ram, gia Ram, Ram has come, Ram has gone." So all this things, you know. So when you think about it, that's what happens, right?

[43:43]

But when you begin to say, "What does that mean, 'total knowledge?'" Look in our life. And we knew we can learn. We knew there's something we learn. We knew we have improvements. And we knew we get better by experience, by learning, by understanding, we get better. Day by day, we know that. I mean, it's very clear in our life. So total knowledge means there's no more to go. So totally whatever there is to pick up, we've fully picked it up. And that is total knowledge. Whether it is coming through Buddhist practice, whether it's coming through pure learning, whether it's coming through whatever it comes, when you reach to that level, so that's what it is.

So when you being to think that way, that's Buddhahood, what we call it. What we call "total knowledge." Which is everybody's goal, honestly. You be yourself unbiased and think about it. Think about it. I find it is something very different than traditional quoted language or quoted way of thinking. So simple way, in the Buddhist tradition, call it "seeking Buddhahood." But it is not seeking Buddhahood, it is seeking perfection. Perfection of knowledge, perfection of capability, and perfect capable of doing something you need to do. So, don't make that Buddhahood something holy, unreachable, up there in the air somewhere. But sort of think of it as do-able, practical for individual, you're just going to get it. So, when you think that way, then you become very open-minded. I know you are all very, very open-mind and openness and all that. But you really become very open and you think that way. And if you make it some kind of little more deeper, unreachable, beyond, and then gives you that quality, this quality, somehow it becomes something else. So perhaps Tibetan Buddhism tells you when you take refuge, they tell you there's two types. One is causal refuge and one is result refuge. So result is what we recommend, right? So maybe that's what result refuge is all about.

So anyway, seeking that state, seeking that level of perfection, seeking that level of nothing hidden to you, everything is clear and absolutely clear. And that is really what we're talking about, rather than Buddhahood has something mystical, mysterious, not to be too much clarified. Something, you know, that many of us look that way. Maybe that was wrong. So if you change that view and try to make it really clear and see, and then don't think the Buddhahood is something a million miles away, somewhere down the road away, in the future, a million lives away or something, thinking that way. Think that it's something very close. Because every dharma that you have, text, teachings, everything will say it is possible to become Buddha in this lifetime. And that's what Vajrayana says is its quality and all that. So when it's going to be that close, you have to be close, reachable and do-able. Our mind, if you push it away, very far away, it will go even beyond. Sometimes you even call it "gone beyond." We even label it that way. Sort of terminology and language makes a huge difference for us. But you know what we have to do is get swim out of this little thing here, sort of religious category one thing. And then there's a language, all of them makes you very difficult. So if you can swim through and try to get really close to it. Sometimes it becomes so much, so close, and almost becoming like, "Is it really true?" You get to that level sometimes. I think we face a lot of problems on that.

Besides that, your background will not help you much. Because it is like, God is unreachable, beyond. And you can simply pray and worship and it is up to the God's grace. And all of those doesn't help on top of that. And there's an idea we have there and there's something unreachable beyond. We think that way. So it makes sort of a little more distance. So when you're saying, "I'm going to put my efforts here and get this done, get this done with this time. Going to make it this time, that is what obtaining Buddhahood is all about.

[53:16]

It is very, very interesting. And simple. So if you think that way, that's what happens.

So what we do normally "drola penchir san gee drub par shok", so we simply in the prayer form we say, "I may become that Buddha." Think the word "Buddha" in Tibetan is really, we call it "san gye", two words. "San" means all obstacles are gone, cleared. "Gye" means total knowledge. Anything to be learned, anything to obtained is all there. That's very simple in Tibetan. But again that simple "san gye" is not made simple and it's made into some kind of quoted language that you worship, and pray, and hopefully granted somewhere. Sort of, you know, what I understand is in the Judeo-Christian tradition you simply pray. And hopefully you'll be granted. Buddhists will say yes, you can obtain, but what they really do is the same old thing. Some praying and worshipping business. One twists out [?55:20]. That's what happens. Maybe it is a human habit and that is driving us. Or whatever it is. So I think it is our job is to clear that, cut through. In reality it is something there, something there is you try to get it. We're not trying to get something which is not there. Then you'll be chasing, what you call it, goose chase. Because there's nothing there, which you're chasing it. But there's something there we try to get it is not goose chasing, it is really try to get it. So that's whenever you say, when you're making the motivation, "for the benefit of all beings," I'm not talking about the benefit, I'm talking about what you wanted to get. And in that way, when you look at it, then it's a different view. Maybe it's easier. Maybe not. So I thought, sort of suggesting that. Whatever you do it is very important that the Buddhahood you don't leave it something mysterious, somewhere in the cloud. Somewhere. And hopefully you hope to get it. And some time, sooner or later, or later, later, later, or something. I think that's the important point.

Now the motivation here, the Mahayana recommends, not only recommends, we're guided through, we're taught through the boddhimind. And they said there's nothing better. Whatever they said doesn't matter, but boddhimind seems to be the most important. But in Thervaden tradition, even in Buddhists, they don't talk about boddhimind at all. And everybody talks about the compassion, love. But they don't talk about this boddhimind. So that's why that, what we call it "boddhimind," a type of mind, a type of mind is called gateway. Gateway to the Buddhahood. Gateway, it is sort of a boundary between the Mahayana and non-Mahayana. It is the boddhimind, that's the one who's making. It is really, really the essence of Buddhism.

Essence of your practice is two things: that boddhimind and the wisdom. Normally, there's compassion and wisdom. We talk about easier language-wise "compassion and wisdom." But really, what we're talking about is boddhimind and the wisdom. I don't know why we call it "boddhimind" because it is Buddha's type of mind or it is the mind that is seeking that level of Buddha, the Buddha level. Whatever, why it's called "boddhimind." But first and foremost here, before we even talk about boddhimind, we talked about this Buddha thing, right? Enlightenment or total knowledge. Then mind which is seeking that, which desires to obtain that, and how you get that mind, how you get the desire even, one needs to see the quality. One has to be admired. And then one would like to have it. Everything, whatever we take it, we need to see first, we look at it, we admire the quality and then we want it or we don't want it. Or is it for me or not for me? That's how we decide, right?

[1:01:51]

So similarly here, the same thing. When I say I would like to become Buddha, what for? Why? And what is that anyway? All these questions are important. Sometimes you know what we do, we say a lot of prayers. Under the prayer we lose all our basic important points. If we don't have prayers, then we sometimes

we become, I don't know, I don't want to say, anyway... Somehow we needed both. The prayer covers a lot. And I think if you look at it, it looks to me almost mind thinks it is impossible to get it. So then the traditional teachers and writers have taking refuge under the prayer. All right, you think it's not doing well, okay, that's prayer, you'll get it. So many of them become prayer. But in the prayer form, it is structured for the individual what to do. What is this all about? So to some people, it is simply praying. To some people, it is total message. So that's why this praying is also important because it is something that our mind rejects and there is something to fall back. We don't completely go off. Fall back.

Anyway, sort of the motivation of seeking total knowledge, not for me personally. For me personally, be myself happy, be myself free of suffering, I do not need total knowledge. It's no use. It's overkill. Honestly. But, when you wanted to help and guide everybody, then you do need it. Otherwise, you don't know what to do. You do not know what to do. So that's why total knowledge. And many of us, we all struggle for not knowing what to do. In everything we do, don't we. In our profession, whether you're technical or policy maker or whatever, we struggle for the one question: not knowing what to do. Even you're a spiritual practitioner you face that problem: not knowing what to do. These are the reasons why you need knowledge. These are the reasons why you need total knowledge. And we say, and we knew information is power. And that tells us the knowledge, the total knowledge, we need it. So that's why when the traditional Buddhist teachings will tell you "for the benefit of all beings, I would like to become perfect, enlightened… and the benefit of all." Not one, not two, but all. And there's another reason is: this very motivation, this very thought, also accompanied by a tremendous benefits. Some kind of technique what the Buddha's have discovered is that the more people you can think, and that much capability, that much power, that much value it adds up. So that's the goal: all living beings. All living beings. You can't have more than all, right? Unless you want to get zero. [Laughs].

So when you say, "all living beings" so try to maximize. And two things. In one way, if you look what you're talking about is impossible, you're crazy. True, impossible, may be true. You're crazy, I don't think so. Honestly. So, because you're maximizing, you're maximizing your deeds. You try to maximize your deeds. Why? It makes a difference to us. Deed itself makes a difference, we know. When it's maximized, it makes better. It makes much better. You can do nothing better. So that's how the idea of "for the benefit of all beings" really carries that value. Although you may be doing one little thing, but with the idea and the motivation of benefitting all, you're doing tremendous. Although simply you may be just giving one little piece of food to a hungry animal, a hungry creature, you may be doing one thing, but with that motivation it becomes worth for millions. Don't ask me why. That's why I'm telling you why. [Laughs]. Honestly. So it is maximizing our efforts towards our goal. And that's why this motivation. Is it easy? Certainly not. Certainly not.

You know you can do two things. You can go in detail and understand and function properly, or you can just follow it and presume and go and gradually pick up why. Both choices are available for us. So we should utilize both. When we are unable to make very clear to us, let's presume and then go through. But that can never be all the time. It won't work. You can't leave them there forever. It doesn't work when you need to get through. So when you're looking at this boddhimind, this is very, very interesting. It says "[1:14 Tib] Dakpay shenjay….Rimpoche" it says "others are more important than me." Cherishing the others, other persons, such a mind, precious mind we call it, and it is almost impossible for us to be others are more important than me. No way our mind will get it. We can say the word. We can say that's what Tibetan Buddhism tells us, and maybe that's what it is. Or something like that. A distance mind. Distant mind. That is Tibetan Buddhism, leave it there. And I recognize, I follow, I admire, I follow, but subject over there, far away. Or, that's what I'm going to do, taking in. It's very different. So what we need is to take it in. Such a mind cannot grow with us unless you really have tremendous compassion. In other words, you really care tremendously for that person. You're not going to take such a difficult hardship unless you care. And you're not going to care very much unless you love or like the person. It's really true. If you don't love the person, you don't care that much. You may have a general care. Care is good, has to be. Very generalized mind. If you love the person, you have a specific care. "Because I love you, so I care." Different feeling. Expression of your happiness is mine, your sorrow is mine, and all of them are result of love. Honestly, if it's a genuine statement it's the result of love. Without love it doesn't happen. It is interesting.

Love is something that we have, honestly. We all have it. But we misuse that all the time. We make the love into desire. [Laughs]. Attachment. Obsession. That's how we do. That is our addiction, making that. And if you make it love love, and then it's appreciation, admiring. Appreciation, admiring. You want to have it. You like to be that. All of these will follow. It's really mental door, how you're going to look at it. It's almost true spiritual and non-spiritual is very thin difference. I think difference is very thin, very subtle.

Maybe I should stop talking too much in that, because then we won't get anything done.

So anyway it is love that what we have. And build that up and make it better and vast, more intense. Because basis of compassion, basis of boddhimind and all of them are this. And love needs closeness. It doesn't mean you have to be hugging all time. Even you hug all the time, you may not have love at all, some people. [Laughs]. But really closeness. Closeness. And if you have distance and you don't get this. You do need closeness. No one should have distance. Our mind will say, "No that's not true. Why should I not have distance with my enemy because it bothers me all the time? Whenever I come into contact, it bothers me all the time." That's what we do. It is true to some people. It is true, it bothers.

Recently, about two days or three days ago, I saw one of those T.V. shows called Dr. Haws . Dr. Haws T.V. show. Not Dr. Who, there's a crazy doctor who's limping. Dr. House. I have such a bad habit, I look in and in the middle of nowhere, in the middle of the show, I'll enjoy the show. It doesn't matter what it is. So in that show the hospital had a patient who was professionally a service person, waitress or something. And she had some kind of a problem and brought her in. She had tremendous memory, photographic memory. And she had some of dislike to her own sister. So, she's doing okay. The sister comes and sees her and she recalls what she had done as kids. And then she gets so mad and she gets sort of hysterical. Crazy. Completely. Because of something, somewhere that sister had done to her. Because she can't forget. That's what our normal language says. Can't forget. The idea is, the true for me is she had lack of equanimity. She had lack of equanimity because she has that one little thing that she did as a kid, cannot forget it. So it becomes worse, and many more things they remember. But there's no need for me to go into that detail. But the idea is: she can't forgive. And she has become symbol of love and hate. Love because sister. Hate because you don't like it. So that's why her mind had this pull and push. Strong. And then it swings and then becomes a physical problem for her.

So, the Buddha's experience tells us, yes, you have to have love. Yes, you need to have compassion. Yes, you need boddhimind. You don't get boddhimind without compassion. You don't get compassion without love. You don't get love without closeness. You don't get closeness if you are distant. If you think some are enemy, some are friend. When you have pull and push you don't have that. So you need equality. That equanimity or equality or something. The traditional teachings give us example. If you wanted to have a mural painting against big walls. If you want to paint on the wall, the wall must be very smooth. Otherwise, you can't paint. Some are popping up. In modern art it may work. But traditional way of painting it doesn't work. So they need smoothness. So that's what they need, equanimity. And to me the equanimity is, I don't know whatever the language means I have no idea, but equal right, equality, is something that we always admire. This is basis of our democracy, honestly.

[1:28:29]

How much we can and say, "It is our right. It is my right." How much we will fight for it. How much we take for granted. How much it meant for us. And whatever the right you have, whatever the right I will have too. You may be fighting for your own right. I may be fighting on my own right. But the truth is we have the same right. Equal right. And there's no reason why you have to have more right or I have to have lesser right. Or why should I have more right and you have lesser? So it is equal. It is our principle of a democracy. This is language is not foreign for us. This idea is not foreign for us. It is real. And it is with us. And that is what equanimity is all about. And many of us do not know how to handle ourself in a society. Many of you do know how to handle. Because some people behave differently we respond differently. We forget they all have equal rights.

So equality, equanimity, is the base of actually developing ultimate love, which is not far away, which is not foreign. Everybody is the same. They have the same right. The same thing. Even you can't think of all living beings, but think of human beings. Even you think of all human beings, think of American citizens. [Laughs]. Whether you're a born citizen or naturalized citizen, whatever it is. And even then you'll see the difference there a little bit for many of our minds. Theoretically we accept all. Practically sometimes there's a difference. But we have to go beyond that. Then take other citizens. Canadians, Europeans, and Asians and Middle Eastern, it becomes all human beings will become equal. Which is not un-do-able, it is do-able. We can manage. Our mind can manage that within ourself. If you have that, you have at least basis of developing love, compassion to all.

Buddha tells us look at everybody as ultimately your friend. The ultimate friend Buddha cannot find any better example than mother. So that's why the Buddhism tells you "all mother sentient beings," such a terminology came out of it. So because we need to look closeness. Sometimes the mother is the subject of both love and hate. [Laughs] But, one good thing, when you look at the people that at least I know among you, whatever may there's hate or love or both to the mother, but ultimately love takes over. Everybody. Sort of where there's a difficulty we forget, forgive and forget everything and go out and help. Even though Mother behaved a little more miserably, but even then people are willing to go. So that has love has more strong. And because the truth is at the side of the love. It gives you birth. Basically it gives you life. I'm not trying to protect mothers here, but they are capable of protecting themselves. But actually that's what it is. You people are leaning towards choosing the love rather than fear or something.

So the closeness, admiration, and desire to be like or to become like. Then if you see that person suffering, then you really have pain. That person may be suffering, but you have the pain. You have the pain. So you don't like it. And you don't want to engage in that. You want to get rid of it. Not only you want to see yourself free of pain, but you want to see your loved ones enjoy. And that becomes our challenge. And boddhimind says, "I'd like to do that." That's all. No such mystery. I'd like to get the best way, best know-how to be able to do that. And that is setting of our all-time motivation. Throughout our life, throughout the year, throughout the month, throughout the week, throughout the day. So that is how we're setting our motivation. So, when you do that…

[1:39:52 Announcements & Prayers]