Archive Result

Soundfile 19900602GRAALR1

Speaker Gelek Rimpoche

Location Ann Arbor

Topic LamRim 1990 files

Transcriber Robin Trimarchi

Date 02252023

(Note: student comments are edited, paraphrased and quoted, to give context to Rimpoche’s responses)

0:00:00.0 [opening words inaudible… emptiness ... student comment: the nature of emptiness makes it pure] Because it’s been grown out of emptiness. In reality, it is emptiness nature. What can be purer than empty? What can be cleaner than empty? [students speak inaudible] Okay? Good. So, so, what did you say there? [Student responds] Pure nature. Okay, that’s that. You don’t have to say, ‘nature of emptiness.’ Just say ‘pure nature,’ that’s fine. People who know, they know. Who don’t know, they don’t know, that’s too bad. So, then what else? Nature of emptiness. Then? [student speaks] I wanted to make people’s mind clear on that. So, so, what did you say it? [student responds] Pure nature, and multiplied, and offered, offered. [student talking also] Oh, I don’t know, whatever, what did you say? [student responds, can’t quite hear it]. Yeah, that, that’s true. But you like to be offer, and you offering. And? What? Why, what you have to say is doctor said it, already, long before, and accepted it. Okay? So, that’s what happens. So, make sure you stick to the point. And then, make sure you visualize them clear. And make sure it’s not too long. So, that people get something, gist, to really to think. In addition to the words it said. Don’t read the words, do as we train here, we know it. Okay? So, this things are, in reality it is nature of emptiness. In quantity, it is, ah, millions. Space been filled up. Billions. And we offer. Okay? [group recites together from the Ganden Lha Gyema]

“Pleasing water offerings, various flowers,

fragrant incense, light and scented water.

This ocean of such cloud-like offerings, both actually arranged and mentally created,

I present to you, O supreme field of merit.”

0:02:59.5 [student interprets the verse to 0:03:37.3] And also the, the Ganden Llan Gyema on what we’re saying, and our daily practice and meditation. This is our major action. [student speaks about the verse] Perfect. [group recites together]

“Whatever non-virtues of body, speech, and mind I have

accumulated since beginningless time,

and especially any transgressions of my three vows,

I confess over and again with fervent regret from my heart.”

Okay. [student interprets the verse]

“From the depths of our hearts we rejoice

O protectors, in the great waves of your deeds.

You who strove to learn and practice in this

degenerate age and who made your fully-endowed

life worthwhile by abandoning the eight worldly feelings.”

What is ‘eight worldly feelings?’ We had that already one day before. When did we do this here? Right? What are the eight worldly feelings? [students respond: passion, pain, loss, gain, fame, infamy, praise and blame] What do they mean? They counted that here, too. Chuckles. [student gives an explanation of eight worldly feelings]

0:06:07.2 Was that not push it away, or, not to be happy if it comes? Okay? You enjoy having those, and looking forward, and uh, try to work for it. And uh, and very, try to be unhappy when you have those. And, you know. When you have fame, when you don’t have fame, then you try to be unhappy about it. When you have fame, you be very happy about it, you looking forward. And uh, you work for it. And when you have an unpopular, what you call it, reputation or something, and then unhappy about it, and fight for it, and then you can’t to go to sleep, and all this type of, you know, worrying. All this type of thing. So, this is what eight worldly dharma is, really. Right? [calls on a student to say how she understands this] So, remember clearly, when you have those fames and things like that, you don’t have to push them out. You can enjoy it. That is not objection. But objection is what? [GR calls on a student to answer] That’s right. Try to work for it. Try to get yourself, ah, popular. I mean, to become popular of yourself becomes your object, you know. Um, try to get yourself, and try to put you in that, on that, sort of, position. Um, it may be against American principle, but erm, ahh, but I think everything doesn’t go very well with the dharma sometimes. Sometimes you have to compromise here and there. So, I think here you cannot compromise from dharma-wise. From your own benefit, if you get popular, fame, respect, great!

0:09:00.0 You don’t have to throw them away. You enjoy it. Make best use of it. But don’t go for it. Don’t work for it. If it comes, fine. And if you don’t get it, and not to be unhappy about it. Did you get this now, clear? So, when you talk about eight worldly dharma, when you talk fame and blame, right? Fame and blame. Okay. If you get the fame, okay. If you, if you don’t get the fame, don’t get upset. If you get the blame, don’t get upset. Don’t let it bother you. Try to be above, that’s what I used to tell (name) upset. Try to be above. And I said, I used to live in Cleveland, [don’t know what he says here] And uh, I lived on a street called ‘Overlook.’ So, so, I used to tell (name), you know what street was that? Chuckles. She said ‘Overlook,’ okay, that’s what it is. When you get those things, try to overlook. Did you get it. Okay. Try to get overlook. That’s important. That’s really important. If you can’t overlook, then no matter how much you read, how much you practice, how much you meditate it’s not effecting you. If you can overlook, right. Overlooking is important. In other words, what does overlook mean? Can you clarify what I mean? [student responds: It means that you see whatever it is, what’s going on, you’re aware of it, but you don’t let it affect your peace of mind. And you don’t let it affect the way you experience the rest of your life, or even that situation itself. You’re capable of knowing it, recognizing it, seeing what it is, and remaining (?).] And if you can correct the situation, that doesn’t mean, if you try to correct the situation, that doesn’t mean, uh, you are involved with eight worldly dharmas, again. See? If you can correct the situation, you should correct it. No matter, whatever you have to do. You correct the situation. That doesn’t mean you’re involved in eight worldly dharmas. But you correct the situation to the point where you remain what you are.

0:11:59.2 You remain where you (chuckles), don’t laugh, don’t make me laugh, okay? Every thought (talk?) is directed towards the benefit of everybody. So, it might be on somebody on there. But maybe on somebody else another day. So, (chuckles) so, don’t try to make me laugh. [everyone laughs] That’s really what it is. So, when you have a struggle, spiritual struggle, the struggle is between the material and spiritual. That’s what you’re test for, it goes on that. So, when you fight with the thing, it is a struggle there. The material thing which you sort of enjoy it, and then the spiritual thing will struggle there. And when you fight, you can go on and fight without losing your principle. The spiritual principle of what, the principle here is to be what you are. To remain what you are. That is fundamental basis. To remain what you are. You change your habitual patterns, sure. You change your way of thinking, sure. But, to be what you are is very important. That is the principle where you hold. You can compromise everything except what you are. Don’t change what you are. Okay? Do what you think the best to you. And don’t change what you are. That is important. [student comments] We didn’t really count it today, so, somebody, somebody will have that. [student reads eight worldly dharmas] Do you get it now? Good. So, Chö gye pang pe dal jor dön yö che (?). What is it?

0:14:59.0 “Fully-endowed life worthwhile by abandoning the eight worldly dharma, feelings.” Eight worldly feelings. Abandoning eight worldly feelings. Okay. So, abandoning here, what you abandon is you don’t abandon the fame, you don’t abandon the, the, the respect. But what you abandon is something, sort of, working for it. Don’t they say, ‘let it go, let it go,’ all the time? Ram Dass said ‘let it go, let it go,’ and then the, Allen Ginsberg said, ‘let it go, let it go, let it go!’ all the time, don’t they say that? Right? What they’re trying to say, what you let it go, is those things. It does not mean you let go the fame, does not mean you let go, uh, what, pleasure, and all this. But what you really let it go is, eh, you don’t have it, be unhappy about it. And when you have it, it will fly in the air. So, in other words, again, when you have those, you fly in the air or very high up. And when you don’t have it, you go zoom down. So, that means this huge, eh, zigzag business. And I remember when, (name), His Holiness was talking from that in Dharamshala, so, what did he say? Do you remember? He talked on that. His hand goes like this, he said, ‘well, I like to be a stable, didn’t he say? [student speaks: “I often think of Buddhism as a stabilizer], stabilizer. He says stabilized a person. But Americans may not like it, didn’t he say that? You people like this, that, down. Something like that, he said. So, that Buddhism is stabilizer. So, makes you stabled. So, in other words, don’t be extreme. So, you have those pleasures of, this are worldly pleasures. You have them, why not? Why not you can’t take it? You can take it. Enjoy it. You don’t have to be [?]. You don’t have to abandoning them. Worldly pleasures. Remember the differences. If you choose to be abandoning them, you shave off your hair, change your robe, go into the forest. Then forget completely. And don’t try to be, again, in between. You know, shave up and wear robe, and carry all electrical goods round. [students laugh] So, that is again not right. They shave up and then really go.

0:17:59.6 And don’t bring around. Don’t involve in any political thing. Don’t involve, just get out it. Get out and completely abandon it. That’s their job. So, as us, we choose not to do that. We choose to remain to be as a, ah, ah, a family life. As a, ah, worldly life. So, whatever you get it, enjoy it. Don’t be afraid of it. It’s not going to burn you if you know how to use it. But don’t work for it. I’m mean, sort of, don’t get, don’t cry for it. Huh? So, let Buddhism work within you. As His Holiness says, Buddhism is stabilizer. So, try to make stabilize you. Okay? I think this is the best way to handle even your emotional problems. You can do that when you don’t have emotional problems. And when you do that, when you don’t have emotional problems, and then when you have emotional problems, and that will work. And when you’re having emotional problems, you try to do that, it doesn’t work. It’s very hard. So, the working period, the actual direct opponent, you know the Buddhism is very interesting. Direct opponent of the anger is patience. Direct opponent of this emotional problem is stabilizing yourself. And all this direct opponents will work when, when it’s, when you’re not in extreme. Remember? When you’re in extreme recognition, recognizing it. When it’s not extreme, those direct opponents apply so that they, they influence your mind so they be able to overpower those problems, and the problems may not, you may not even have to face it. Even you face it, you don’t lose the battle. Are you people with me? (Calls out names) Okay, good. (Name), what do you think? [student responds] Okay. So, just get that, okay? So, I think that exactly, um, when the problems are encounter, we may not be able to get it. When the problems are too extreme, at that time it’s not that, we recognize this is direct antidote, but you cannot take it.

0:21:08.0 So, which means we have to take when the problems not overwhelming. When the, so we do that. So, our mind get influenced by that. And the problems comes and you become unshakable person. So, then you really get overlook. That is the true, true, uh what is it? Definition of overlooking. So, then you really see those things are going. They’re taking place within you. You’re going through it. I mean, you’re not going through it, they’re going, passing by you, so you watch them. They’re going. And that’s really becoming the true definition of overlook. There is a street called Overlook in Cleveland at the Cleveland Heights? Right? Cleveland Heights, okay. So, remember that. A street in Cleveland, Overlook. [students chuckle] At Cleveland Heights. Okay, that’s that. So, here what we do, we rejoice them. This Supreme Field of Merit really been able to, to live on the street of Overlook. So, we rejoice that, and we seek that quality within us. Be able to live on the street of Overlook. Okay? Good. Who was doing this? You’re the one … who, who is doing this? (name) Yeah, I’m sorry, okay, okay. [students recite together]

“From the depths of our hearts we rejoice

O protectors, in the great waves of your deeds.

You who strove to learn and practice in this

degenerate age and who made your fully-

endowed life worthwhile by abandoning the eight worldly feelings.”

(Name) [student explains the verse]

0:24:00.3

“You, the great masters, may your sky of dharmakaya

develop the clouds of love and compassion

and shower the profound and deep teachings

as suitable, on the ground of your disciples.”

(Name) [student explains the verse] Yeah, I have a question for that. You can, you have a right to dedicate all your virtues. I do not know whether we have right to dedicate all our, other sentient beings’ virtues or not. I’m not sure. We do have right to dedicate our virtue of past, present, and particularly whatever we’re doing, right? Um, so, I’m not sure whether we have right to dedicate all other sentient beings. I mean, if you have the right, then it works. If you don’t have the right, it might not be working. We may simply say it and think it, but it may not be materializing it. So, let’s stick to ourself, okay?

“I dedicate whatever virtues I have ever collected

for the sake of the teachings and of all

sentient beings, and in particular for the essential

teachings of venerable Lozang Drakpa to shine forever.”

“Oh, glorious and precious root guru, come take

your lotus and moon seat placed here on my head

and keep me safe in your great kindness.

Bestow on me please the powerful attainments

of your body, speech and mind.”

“MIK ME TSE WAI TER CHEN CHEN REI ZIK

TRI ME KYEN PAI WANG PO JAM PÄL YANG

DÜ PUNG MA LÜ JOM DZE SANG WAI DAK

GANG CHEN KE PAI TSUK GYÄN TSONG KHAPA

LOSANG DRAK PAI ZHAB LA SÖL WA DEB”

(repeated)

0:28:12.9

“May the wisdom which follows learning, thinking and

meditating increase, and may the wisdom of teaching,

debating, and composing increase. May I achieve

ordinary and extraordinary accomplishments.

Bless me to quickly become like you.”

“May the simultaneously born great bliss shine

immediately, and the delusion shadow of inherent

existence be cleared. Cut the net of doubts of the

true nature of mind. Bless me to quickly become like you.”

“MIK ME TSE WAI TER CHEN CHEN REI ZIK

TRI ME KYEN PAI WANG PO JAM PÄL YANG

DÜ PUNG MA LÜ JOM DZE SANG WAI DAK

GANG CHEN KE PAI TSUK GYÄN TSONG KHAPA

LOSANG DRAK PAI ZHAB LA SÖL WA DEB”

“KE PA LUNG GI YÖN TEN KÜN DE PA

KYE RANG THA BUR DAK KYANG JIN GYI LOB”

“MIK ME TSE WAI TER CHEN CHEN REI ZIK

TRI ME KYEN PAI WANG PO JAM PÄL YANG

DÜ PUNG MA LÜ JOM DZE SANG WAI DAK

GANG CHEN KE PAI …” [cuts off here]

_______

0:29:10.1 … whether you have to do healing or any other activity, bringing rain, or stopping rain, or if you’re afraid of something, ah, then you get protection. If you’re scared of ghosts, you get protection. If somebody’s waking you up the middle of the night, you get protection. And all of them, you do here. Through this Migtsema. Uh, I have nothing to do. I only say Migtsema and prayer. And that’s what you do. And also, you do the, the Supreme Field of Merit at what you dissolve to your heart. And from that level, if you want heal somebody in addition to whatever you’re doing usual, and forces from there, uh, will do. And um, you want to make rain, you can make rain. Making rain and stopping rain is nothing to be surprise. It is very, very simple. I can tell you a little easy joke here. Not joke, but true story here. It looks like [?] joke. So, 13th Dalai Lama in Tibet in 1920s and 30s, before he died, um, late, like late 17, 18, 20s, he is so powerful. He’s the ruler of Tibet and so powerful, everybody’s scared of him. Everybody. And no matter whoever it is, he will not hesitate to punish. And um, so, and he, he’s, eh, whatever the reason might be, it’s beyond our understanding, but 13th Dalai Lama punishes everybody. He never let anybody go. Specially the higher incarnate lamas, including Panchen Rinpoche, Panchen Lama. And well-known incarnate lamas, might not be very high in the rank, but very well-respected. And noble families. The powerful, noble families, he would cut them down completely. (chuckles) That is his style, how he functions. So, at that time most [?], well-known in central Tibet at that time was Pabongkha, the great Pabongkha-la. Pabongkha was not high by rank or anything. He is just simply have, and just name of Rinpoche, and that’s all.

0:32:01.5 Nothing else. Very poor [?], very, very poor. And so, but then Pabongkha become so well-known throughout Tibet, some people respect him, great respect and all this. Like just, they see him nothing but Buddha. Completely living Heruka. Some people will hate Pabongkha like anything, see him not, not by the devil, you know. That’s what Pabongkha is at that time. Very powerful. And 13th Dalai Lama is looking for excuse for Pabongkha to be punished. All the time, excuse. He couldn’t find any excuse at all. So, this was a time, there was a tremendous, we call [mispronounced ‘drought,’ students correct him] drought in Tibet that time, that time. And Pabongkha was giving a teaching in a place called, eh, Pronka, Pabongkha. Yeah, it’s a little retreat area called Pabongkha, and he was giving teaching there. So, he’s become Pabongkha Rinpoche because he lives in Pabongkha, it’s called Pabongkha. So, so, he’s giving teaching, and Kyabje Trijang Rinpoche, my late ma, my father, all of them are attending teaching at that time, About 1,000 people. Maybe a little over 1,000, giving Lam Rim teaching. He says, suddenly the message came from Dalai Lama. When the message from Dalai Lama comes in Tibet, there’s a special messenger with a special horse with special veil so people can understand who is that person. But they come in riding horse up to your door, as far as the horse can go. If the horse can go in the bedroom, they will ride in the bedroom, that’s what they do. [students chuckle] Yeah, really, that’s what system is. So, he comes there, and then he has this message comes in, in the message is a little, normally the old Tibetan system is like Chinese. Write on black, sleet, on that. You know, the old Chinese system, the messages always come on the black [students correct him, slate] slate, and they put some kind of powder on that, dust powder, so they write on that. So, nothing is returned (?), black and white will remain after. Nothing. So, that’s why, that’s how it comes. So, this, that is wrapped in the little yellow booklet, and they bring it and tied with a scarf. So, no matter, whoever receive, you supposed to get up wherever you are, make three prostrations and pick it up, put on your head and supposed to open. That is political power they use, you know. Well, Pabongkha was giving the teaching, and that message came. So, Pabongkha gets up from the throne, so everybody has to get up. So, he did three prostrations, so, everybody has to do prostrations. And Pabongkha is, if you see the picture, he is such a huge, you know, huge. He’s not an easy, you know, when he does prostrations two people have to hold him, go down and pull him up, you know.

0:35:04.6 I believe, you know. So, anyway, he’s huge. So, he did all this, and then he read it. And the message said, “You are well known. You said you think you’re great. And if you’re great, prove it. Bring rain today. If not, you’ll be punished.” Prosecuted, nothing else. (chuckles) So, Pabongkha received that, and he won’t laugh. Nobody would laugh, right? I mean, he just read it in the thousand people. Which also, you’re not supposed to do, I was told later, not supposed to do. You know, [??]. He just read it, he doesn’t know it. Anyway, he was punished for that later. Not so much, a little one. So, just read it. And then sort of fold it, and then he, he keep on continuing teaching. That’s what I heard. Everybody said that. Even my father told me. I vaguely remember but, I remember clearly when Kyabje Trijang Rinpoche shared that. You know, I remember very clear. But my father told me, it was when I was young, I think very young. Pabongkha kept on doing the usual thing, nothing. And then suddenly, just before the break he said, ‘Well, suddenly today we received this, uh, order from His Holiness, and so, we have to do something.” He said, “Well, we’ll say a few more Migtsemas,” and he said, “everybody will visualize from the heart of the refuge tree,” he said, “and create cloud, and uh, produce rain, and uh, rain in the particularly in where His Holiness’ summer place is. And that area, and then everywhere.” And uh, so he said, and we do, and he does, he said Migtsema twenty-one times more gathered together with everybody. And that, and it rained that day. So, so, that’s, so, that’s what happens. And um, so, everything, if you rely on buddha, dharma and sangha, and Supreme Field of Merit, and do whatever activity you have to do - healing, protection, anything. And if the person doesn’t have a good karma of getting better, so, what happens is, uh, uh, the healings like this either sometimes helps to go. If [it’s all?] not going to get better, it helps them to go faster. You know what I mean? Don’t let me say this words, okay? So, that’s what it works rather extreme sometimes, but. Anyway, so, that’s what they do. And so, anyway, it helps that individual tremendously. Even you heal this way or that way. So, so, doesn’t matter. It helps tremendously. So, that’s what you can do. Everything can do.

0:38:03.2 And people ask, when I see somebody who’s dying what shall we do, among ourselves? That’s what you do. You say mantra. We simply say, ‘say mantra.’ Okay? What does that mean? You do all this. And that’s what you do. And it’s helpful. Did you find the verse? Say it loud. [student reads]

“May all who are sick and ill quickly be freed from their illness,

and may every disease in the world never occur again.”

That’s that. If you’re healing, at the end of that, you say that words. And there a lot of different words suitable for that. [students ask question where to find the verse. Discussion follows] Chapter 10, Verse 21 of Bodhisattvacharyavatara. Okay, that’s what you do, every day. So, now, do you, I hope you realize you have a good background of Lamrim. You also have a, sort of, practice. And you also do things through this. I’m try to put you on your own feet, okay? So, I hope you realize that. Okay. What else now? Probably we should take a five minutes, ten minutes break here, because you’ve been sitting long. Why don’t you around the block.

0:40:18.1 [Student gives an explanation. Purification and accumulation. Karma. Good discussion ensues. Sounds like she might giving a short teaching. Long pause. Questions are asked and student continues. It’s a good exchange] Tape cuts off and resumes.

0:54:02.4 And um, okay. And uh, then, to continue all with this great path, which is, um, um, shown by Buddha. Shown by the Buddha on the basis of his own experience, to lead fortunate people into the level of the Buddha, of Mahayana system. Which is farther clarified, farther clarified, by the great, uh, teacher like Nagarjuna and Asanga. It is the essence practice of great Je Tsongkhapa and Atisha. And essence of all the teachings of the Buddha, which was, uh, sort of, laid by the step-by-step development known as [TIBETAN]. Then there’s, um, and then on, for the outlines there are, how many outlines there, actually? Huh? To make it, ah, to make, to, to introduce is authentic-ness of it. Uh, to talk about this, eh, quality, not quality, yeah, it’s qualities of the great teachers, including Buddha himself. In order to develop respect, uh, the great qualities of the dharma itself, and how to teach, how to listen, and actual practice which leads the individual to, to proper path. Out of first three are covered. And on the fourth. Actual practice which lead individual to the ultimate enlightenment level has basically three: Common with Medium Level, Lower Level, Medium Level, and Mahayana path. Common with the Lower Level have basically covered. The proper understanding of life, and it’s relation to the material benefits.

0:57:05.8 And it is relation towards the spiritual development. Seeking refuge, and securing oneself not fall into the lower realms. After that much is the Common with the Lower Level. And Common with the Medium Level to develop a proper determination to be free from the samsara. And that also by understanding the samsaric nature properly, in which, as Buddha had introduced on the basis of the Four Noble Truth. And Twelve Links of the Dependent Originations. And uh, and actually developing the proper mind. I mean, so one strong, solid mind which, sort of, resolution which seeks the determination to be free from the samsara by seeing the fault of samsara, and by seeing the qualities of the nirvana. And making on individual’s mind properly, and seek the benefit of nirvana rather than having the delusion thoughts of, eh, samsaric pleasures. It is very easy for us to say about that. [student speaks. Gives an announcement] Anyway, now what. For the Common with the Medium Level, um, uh, we would sort of, expect, um, to, yeah, that’s where I am stopped. I was, I think. Um, it is very simple for us to say the material benefits are not really the good thing, what we want it. And I think we all say that. [side comment to group, conversation]

1:00:58.2 [taped stopped during conversation, then started mid-sentence] … hold it. And when you, when you face a condition where you think you lose it, then you really find whether you yourself be able to develop determination to be free, which is formally known as renunciation. And uh, so, that’s where we see ourself. But as much as we have, it is great. And what we don’t have we look forward to develop it. [GR: Thank you] But when you have to say [side talk. Tape stops, squeals, resumes with inaudible student talk] Okay, now. Common with the Medium Level as we’re saying, um, it is the level where you actually expect to develop a determination to be free. However, it is very difficult to develop, uh, determination to be free. But we do expect some kind of understanding, a true understanding of samsaric fault. So, whether you have true understanding of samsaric faults or not, can test to yourself when there are position comes, the things what you have will lose. Won’t have it. So, then you be afraid of losing it, you can’t imagine how you going adjust it, all this are actually shows us, uh, whether we have proper understanding of faults of samsara or not.

1:04:04.0 Even you try to lose things that what you have, and if you see this, if you have a proper understanding of true nature of samsara, you see that as a fault of samsara rather than, than fault of me or my, or she or he or hers or his. Rather than see as true samsaric nature. When that’s happening, again, it’s the message telling me that my determination to be free, my understanding of fault of samsara, my understanding of suffering, truth of suffering, is on shaky ground. But at the same time, everybody’s understanding of truth of suffering is a shaky ground when they started with it. Nobody had started with the solid foundation of knowing the truth of suffering very well. No. Every one of us had, had or having or have, having a shaky ground. But even then, the shaky ground, although it is shaky ground, it’s better than not having at all. So, what does that tell us. It tells us a way for ourself to check what level we are. Where we are. That also tells us to judge other persons what level they are. We cannot judge people by their look, by their act, but we can sometimes judge people by seeing how they handle their problems.

1:07:25.1 Proper understanding of first two Noble Truths will give solid foundation of Common with the Medium Level. So, that portion is over. Now the Mahayana path will also have two outlines. Actual practice of the bodhimind and taking bodhimind through a ritual. So, developing bodhimind will also have Seven Stage of Development of Bodhimind and Exchange Stage of Development of Bodhimind. So, didn’t we talk very brief about it and that. Didn’t we talk earlier, or no? Okay. Actually, what happened was, um, that introduction of the, the Mahayana level, there are three. And showing the bodhimind is the only way to entering the Mahayana path with its benefit, I think that was the first, right? And then, actual development of the bodhimind. And after developing the, after developed bodhimind, the practice is what you have to do. So, out of that, the first, the benefit, and all this are over. At the second, actual development of the bodhimind has two way.

1:10:24.2 Two way. That bodhimind through Seven Stage and uh, no, actual and ritual. And actual also has two – Seven Stage and Exchange Stage. That’s what it was. So, we did mention to you it comes through the Chandrakirti, Chandragomin, and Shantideva, etc., is the Exchange Stage way. So, one of them come from Maitreya, and the other is comes through Manjushri. But both Maitreya and Manjushri lineage has been combined to Atisha. So, Atisha. We mentioned that way last time, didn’t we? Did we mention or we did not mention? Mmhmm. So, what else did you, where did we go up to? Where did we go up to, (name)? [student answers] Okay. So, the equanimity we talked last time, right? So, whether people have any meditation done on the equanimity or not. Whether anybody did it, anything? [side comment … conversation with student. Asked about this student’s meditation on equanimity. Asks another student about their experience. Asks if anyone else meditated on this. Conversation continues. Anger. Wandering. Hatred/dislikes. More students share their experience as they learn this meditation]

1:18:42.2 It’s not, it’s not absolutely true, either. It’s not, don’t go extreme, it’s important. Lot of people intend to go extreme and saying that, ‘well, it’s only my delusion, which makes me feel, ah, that this way. But in reality, it’s not that they’re doing it. Lot of people do that. I have a problem with that. I (will) look into true reality, whether they, it is they’re behavior or not their behavior, or whether they to hide us, hit us, or hurt us, or whatever they’re doing, they’re doing it. I think we have to acknowledge that. And yet, we still have to build tolerance, not on the false pretense of, they’re not really against me, or poor thing, they’ve been influenced, that’s they’re ignorance. That’s one step better. Another step is, well it’s my mind, my imaginative mind, I’m seeing that. But in reality they’re not doing this, they’re not doing that, but eh, that’s sort of becoming a little bit of self, um, I don’t know, I don’t like to say self-hypnotizing but, uh, a little bit of self, uh, I don’t know. Comforting, uh, yet, uh, taking our, pushing ourself a little bit down. I used to be full, what you thinking, telling ourself, well this fellow has lot of great purpose, or he has, he is doing this because of, uh, he’s not really doing it because I am stupid, but I’m seeing it. Sort of, you know, people do that. And I’m not very happy with that. Number one, why I’m not happy is not true. And because it’s about to burst out one day, it’s going to burst out. So, if it’s not true, no matter whatever you do, do open, it burst out one day. So, so, that is eh, one discomfort. And beside that, every, all of our spiritual practice we must base on the truth. We cannot base on the false, um, pretext. It’s not really a false pretext, either. But it’s not really a solid truth because there are other people who try to harm you. There are other people who are really getting angry with you. There are other people who, who are pointing their finger in the air against you and saying all sorts of things. It’s true, so we have to accept that, and yet we have to develop and that will not bother us. That won’t bother us. So, that’s what we should do. [student question: How do we distinguish between the ones who are really harming you, and where it’s just your delusions that are projecting it out there?]

1:21:47.1 Wait until they hit you. [laughter. Comment] Wait there until they hit you. (chuckles) If they hit you, you know they’re really trying to harm you. (chuckles) [calls on student. Question/comment. If I can catch myself the moment before I react and just stay there. The anger and frustration sort of sweeps by you. Focus on the person, and when they’re done doing what they’re doing, and just talk to them. Not overly cheerful, be serious, but don’t feed into their anger. No matter whose delusions they are.] Be there. They see us, we’re looking there, right? [More comments] Yeah, it will help. But, uh, the point is, when you try to develop equanimity … the equanimity should be based on the truth, again. So, I mean we really should see a true equanimity rather than projected one. So, my point, again, what I’m pointing to (name), my point is, uh, when you try to say, ‘well, that’s my doing,’ (name) does that very often, too, I think. Don’t you? [student responds] Okay, yeah, that’s good. To be able to watch it. We say, ‘well, it’s only my imagination I’m seeing.’ Even you really, truly see the person is try to harm you, even then you try to tell yourself, ‘well, it’s only my imagination, but he might not be really doing it,’ you know. So, that’s the, I think it become false pretense. We should see what he’s trying to do. He or she is trying to do. We should see that. And, not only that, to see it, but then, and not get it …

1:24:45.3 To see it is true, that person’s trying to harm me. Yet, it doesn’t disturb. You know, what I mean. And that’s what we should look for, rather than [?] it. Now, the (name) question comes, what is really truth and what is our false illusions, hallucination, whatever. I think it’s like somebody try to kid you, and [can’t understand him here]. Sometimes it’s hard to figure out if the person’s joking. [student comments. Side conversation] So, I do not know how to answer (name’s) question. I think when somebody’s making joke, or joking at you, or somebody telling you truth. And there’s ways and means we find, we find ourself. Ways and means when we know it is joke, joking. Or we also know it’s truth-telling. Sometimes we’re confused. But we know that. Right? So, I think if you keep on watching it, whether it is our false delusion, or whether it’s that person really trying to do something. If you keep on watching it, when you started paying attention to it, I think we can find it. Whether it’s truth, really happening, or it’s my delusion telling me. I think you’ll, you’ll find that’s something we should learn through experience. Does that make sense to you? [student question/comment]

1:28:18.4 Well, this is, this is, whatever you, I don’t, I don’t think it’s (name’s) question, but what you’re saying is very true. Lot of people will get irritated because your faults have been projected by somebody else. Which somehow you know it is your fault, but you don’t want acknowledge, ah, that you have that problem. But when you see somebody else having the same problem, you really get irritated. You really get irritated. You know why? You know why? It’s becoming touching, it’s, you’re seeing your own reflection in the mirror. Your own reflection. And why that bothers you, again, seeing your own reflection, it is touching your own ego. It’s poking there. Little bit of poking, that’s why you’re really irritate, and not only you irritated, you put a lot of tense. That’s a true fact. People will always do. I do, you do, everyone of us will do. Any reaction, if you watch the person very carefully, very carefully, you’ll see it. The ears will turn red, the face will flush, all sorts of things. And so, your ego don’t want to see your problem. So, when you see that on the mirror, it is dislike it. You want to protect yourself immediately [?]. So, the way to protect is show your temper, cut out the conversation, uh, change, uh, escape it, put a shield on it, pretend not hear it, bring something else, look for excuse, all of them. Actually, your ego has been pushing a button.

TAPE ENDS