Archive Result

20051210GRMLLLR21

And I don’t think Pure Land is a geographically separate land. Chinese translation Although they tell you Shambala is so many layers from here towards North and Western Paradise is towards West and this and that but real Pure Land is actually some kind of- you know this word 0:00:41.8 Dharmadatu in Sanskrit? In English I can’t find a proper word except within the sphere of emptiness, we say that. Sort of within the sphere of your mind of Guru Buddha, within the sphere of guru yidam, whatever. Within that, you find Pure Land also. 0:01:17.7 Chinese translation And then if you know some of the earlier Tibetan lamas particularly 0:02:01.4 Non-Gelugpa sect, lamas used to talk ‘Every male is Avalokiteshvara, every female is Tara and every word is mantra, every wind blowing is mantra’ and all of those I think based on those. 0:02:27.4 Chinese translation

You know I met Tengu Cheng Rimpoche not as a student but I was the director of a Tibetan radio in Delhi and Rimpoche was visiting in New Delhi. I interviewed him and in his interview he kept on saying ‘Every male is Avalokiteshvara, every female is Tara’ and you know, all of those. This is a traditional- great lamas used to say that. Particularly, the Gelugpa have some restrictions saying that because that is the tradition but in 0:03:36.8 Nyumagaju they say that. And I think the whole idea is based on this. 0:03:45.0 Chinese translation Gelugpas have restriction, not allowed to say that, you’re supposed to behave absolutely just like the other person. Chinese translation Whatever 0:04:38.3 [inaudible-decision/this may be?] but the tradition don’t say that. Chinese translation So that’s about it- the guru yoga. Chinese translation

And then it becomes 0:05:02.7 Lama Sangha… it’s really the word becomes the word. Chinese translation And when you’re struggling with this, Kyabje Ling Rimpoche told me ‘When you’re struggling that, then one of the most important reasons you use is what will make a difference to me’. If my lama is Buddha, what will make difference to me if my lama is not Buddha and what will make difference to the lama himself or herself if he or she is a buddha or if he or she is not a buddha. What will make difference? 0:06:06.8 Chinese translation And make no difference to that lama whether he or she is buddha or not, make not a single difference. Chinese translation

If you think the lama is buddha, it doesn’t become buddha, that person. If you think it’s not buddha is does not become not buddha. Make no difference whatsoever. 0:07:02.4 Chinese translation But makes a hell of difference to the individual. Why? Because if I’m presuming it’s buddha and dealing with it, I get benefit of dealing with buddha, everything. Chinese translation And if I don’t think it’s a buddha, if I keep on thinking it’s not a buddha, then I get benefit of dealing with not a buddha, non-buddha, you know. 0:07:48.5 Chinese translation This is what we’ll call power of motivation. Chinese translation And then we always want advantage and never want disadvantages. The best and biggest advantage, whatever we can get, we want it. Kyabje Ling rimpoche told me this is a powerful reason to deal with your own mind on that level and it is. 0:08:26.8 Chinese translation

Anyway, that’s good enough, let’s move to the next verse. Chinese translation Next verse is the- now you know, although you’re supposed to develop the- oh, I forgot one important thing. That is how do I know develop this first step, that guru devotional practice. How do I know? 0:09:14.1 Chinese translation The sign is this: after doing meditation and all of those, after a little while when you sit and looking at it, thinking, you begin to see your gurus with plural or particularly one, and sort of merging into it, merging into Buddha and separating and merging, yidams and all of them, sort of keep on merging it. You may think it’s a hallucination but you begin to see this merge. Not with the eye, but in the mental image level. These are the signs of developing 0:10:14.2 guru [inaudible- yoga?] practice. 0:10:18.0 Chinese translation Although you’re supposed to develop guru first and then move to the next but developing guru yoga may take a whole life. Chinese translation So it is recommended to move together to the second point. Chinese translation

Second point is easy one now, this is easy one. 0:11:27.5 Ta ra den… and this is quality of life what we have. Chinese translation Our life is extremely precious and important. Chinese translation We all know this. Chinese translation But we do not realise unless and until it’s been threatened. 0:12:22.7 Chinese translation Particularly the younger generations, the young ones, don’t want to think about it. Chinese translation When we get older, we think about it Chinese translation because you’re getting a little more closer. Chinese translation Although it’s not true- young ones go first, old ones remain behind. Chinese translation Vice versa. Chinese translation But the older ones think and the young ones don’t think much about it unless it was threatened. ​​0:13:16.2 Chinese translation When it’s threatened you say ‘Oh my god, now I’m going to die’ and blah blah blah, all these will come but otherwise we don’t think about it but it is most important.

Buddha tells us it is so important to have a very strong recognition of how important our life really is. 0:13:49.4 Chinese translation Buddha introduced this as Buddhism 101. Chinese translation Because you know we have a habit of ignoring ourself and because we talk a lot about love-compassion later so people may have a habit of ignoring yourself and jumping on the tails of compassion and so forth and that’s why this is 101 to recognise how important your life is. 0:14:40.5 Chinese translation They’ll talk to you about the preciousness by introducing qualities such as leisure, opportunity, all of those and I’m not going to count here- ten of this, five of that and eighteen of this but there are opportunities and leisure. Chinese translation

We may think ‘Leisure? No, I’m so busy. I couldn’t get one day off’. So you may think that but there is leisure there too. Chinese translation Nothing wrong but most of our lives are organised in such a way that they don’t give you any time anyway. 0:16:07.2 Chinese translation You have your office work, Chinese translation if you don’t do it, you can't pay your bills. Chinese translation Then you have your family- taking care of children and all of those. Chinese translation Even though in the midst of all this, you still have time to gossip, 0:16:41.9 Chinese translation you still have time for movies, Chinese translation you still have time for politics, I mean the Malaysia the politics not so much anyway so. Chinese translation So anyway there is a tremendous- I mean it also totally depends on how you organise your life. Chinese translation

Many people will think ‘Yes, this is time for me to work and I’ll work and then I’ll retire and become millionaire, retire, then I’ll relax and practice another time, thing comes up’. 0:17:33.0 Chinese translation Maybe unexpected child so you keeping busy or all different things happen you know and because if you’re really looking for some kind of precious time when I have do nothing, it never comes up. Chinese translation And without coming that time you’re waiting for, another thing comes up. Chinese translation So whether it’s leisure or not leisure, never miss the opportunity. That is the point over here. Chinese translation A tremendous opportunity. 0:18:43.5 Chinese translation Spiritual, material, whatever. Chinese translation

Our ancestors never had this opportunity, honestly speaking although they say ‘Good, old days’ and blah blah blah Buddha came and Jesus came and all of those but our ancestors never had this opportunity what we have today. 0:19:16.3 Chinese translation From every angle, Chinese translation from the angle of the spiritual path, from the angle of the material, even from the angle of food. Chinese translation In olden days, that much food is not available, you know, I know, we all know. Chinese translation The food and all this, food, clothes and all this, what’s available for us today is even olden days, even the kings and emperors may not even have it, you know, really. Chinese translation So it is the fortune of this generation. 0:20:29.3 Chinese translation And that’s both in material and spiritual. Chinese translation

Look at the spiritual path- in ancient times, the Tibetans find some brilliant kids of like 21 or something, send to India and they do learning, come back, only 2 or 3 come back, all others are dead. Things like that. 0:21:00.8 Chinese translation To find one great master in India, the Tibetans have to lose the life of king as I told you yesterday. Chinese translation Today, everything is available. Chinese translation Really, everything. What you want 0:21:38.8 nyingma… good one, bad one, false one, real one, everybody is available, every street. Chinese translation Also does the Christian tradition, Chinese translation so does the Muslim tradition, Chinese translation so does the Hindus Chinese translation and everything available. When was there time like this? When? Never ever. Chinese translation And it’s so much so that you sort of confused and have to look and doesn’t know what to do and you know, that type of thing. 0:22:31.2 Chinese translation

I saw once a very funny commercial of the Australian telephone company, very funny commercial. Chinese translation Australian guy goes to America Chinese translation and looking for breakfast Chinese translation and runs to the Manhattan Chinese translation and each one of them hanging what they have for choice of breakfast, so much choice. 0:23:08.8 Chinese translation So the guy couldn’t choose anything so he goes to the next shop, even more choice, goes to the next shop, there are more choice. Chinese translation So at the end he didn’t get breakfast. Chinese translation And then it says in Australia you can choose that Australian national telephone or something. Chinese translation It is the most funny commercial I have ever seen. Chinese translation

So we are almost in that situation today. Chinese translation And that’s why I said it is opportunity. 0:24:03.0 Chinese translation Opportunity is really right in front of you. You don’t have to go out to search, they’re coming to you. Chinese translation So anyway, it’s just like that, you look at the variety of choice, you can’t take anything and you don’t get breakfast and something else happens. 0:24:40.8 Chinese translation So point here what we try to gain out of this, this is made a separate section, separate point, separate step.

Why? Chinese translation Because we do not appreciate our life. Chinese translation We look down on us. Chinese translation And particularly Chinese culture, Chinese translation the humility, Chinese translation humbleness, Chinese translation is mixed with losing self esteem. Chinese translation The humility should become quality of self esteem Chinese translation rather than disadvantage. 0:26:06.5 Chinese translation This is a problem. Chinese translation And when we don’t have self esteem, you underestimate yourself. Chinese translation It opens door for all problems. Chinese translation All depressions, Chinese translation everything. Chinese translation

Especially among the women, Chinese translation among the women practitioners, they have more problems than male, I’m sorry to say it but it is reality, in my opinion. You may disagree with me, you have a right to do but it is. 0:27:09.7 Chinese translation That is our culture, our traditional culture, we look down on women. Chinese translation I don’t know in the Chinese culture but in Tibetan, the word woman is called 0:27:45.1 kime. Kime means low birth. Truly, lower birth, it is d-a-m-n [?] it’s lower. 0:27:55.2 Chinese translation I don’t think the Chinese have better name either, I don’t know. Chinese translation So itself tells us the cultural background that we look down on a woman. Chinese translation Women also have learnt how to cope with this. Chinese translation And taking that...