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JHNY

Gehlek Rimpoche

Three Poisons

1/19/06

Gehlek Rimpoche: I’d like to wish those I haven’t seen yet a happy new year. Most of them I have already wished it. But anyway. The other Thursday night we talked about the buddha-nature. buddha-nature the static buddha-nature and the buddha-nature that develops. So static points are not very concern to us and what is really concerned is the buddha-nature that develops. Philosophical point of view you can make a distinction between the consciousness, you can make a distinction between the person, the consciousness, buddha-nature, mind, and all of them, but in a sort of practical level what we can deal is our mind and our understanding of this moment, developing the buddha-nature is the individual person who is developing through the spiritual path. And when the individual, when we are talking about developing the individual through spiritual path, what are we talking about it, we are talking about this very individual self. Pointing finger to ourself. Each one of us, pointing finger to ourself, saying this very person, which we call it me, is the one who is developing. Developing in the sense, we are not talking about the physical, mental maturity that we are talking about it, but we are talking about the spiritual maturity and when we are talking about the spiritual maturity, then comes into the subject that tonight’s talk, which is the three monkeys – the monkey that doesn’t listen, the monkey that doesn’t talk, the monkey that doesn’t see. Oh, did I make a mistake.

Mark Magill: You got the three right.

GR: Huh?

Mark Magill: You got the three right.

GR: Three parts is all right. Not the monkey. All right. Three what? Three stooges? OK. So anyway, so the three, the subject what we are talking about it, we have a new program director, Kathy, so I give her a very hard time the other day because when I open up the program the other day it says the three roots, the three poisons, and the three resolutions. Oh no, three virtuous resolutions. Doesn’t matter. Anyway. So I keep on asking her, what is this about it? Is this the three monkey, or the three, you know, that’s what I’m bring back to you. So what happened is this is one of those first verse in the lojong, or training of mind. It says “usum tusum gesesum.” Three objects. Three poisons. And three virtues. The verse itself says “usum tusum gesesum.” Three objects, three poisons, and three virtues.

So when we talk about the Buddha-nature and the developing, so developing here means it sort of uplifting yourself, ourself, from the present situation. The present situation what we have is the, is almost like controlled by three poisons, that is being the attachment or obsession, and hatred, and ignorance. That’s traditionally it’s called ignorance, and I tried to call that as ego. It is the combination of fear and confusion that completely controls the individual. Individual with good thoughts, good ideas, intelligence, and even to certain extent of wisdom, whatever compassion, whatever we have. It is somehow completely overpowered by some unidentified thing within ourself. A thought or emotion, or idea, or whatever, some unidentified factor, mental factor within us, completely tied us, sort of put off the track of compassion or wisdom. That is traditionally it’s called ignorance because being stupid. Being stupid so letting the wonderful buddha-natured individual, beautiful individual, you’re letting yourself controlled by some unknown factor, mental factor within ourself which is combination of fear, confusion together, which is limiting our intelligence, limiting our wisdom, almost negating our wisdom, very limiting compassion. So that is the third factor, third poisons here. Traditionally they call this by the great masters, they call that poison because it gives bad effect to all our thoughts, ideas, and even the individual person made into a terrible person. That’s why it’s called poison.

How does this three poison function within ourself, and how does that relate with the three objects? Three objects that what we see or encounter will be the object of obsession, object of hatred, and indifference. Indifference. So these are the three objects that we encounter. Why do we encounter these three objects? This is the very funny thing. These three subjects, or the three poisons are something that we are always addicted, right from the Buddhist point of view, right from the limitless of the beginning. Limitless of the beginning, sure, however but if you’re looking within one lifetime, how do we get, how do we get, how it happens, and if you revisit the twelve links of interdependent system in which we’re functioning our life, you know that, most of you anyway know that, twelve links within that we’re sort of circling round and that’s what we call it continuation. We may even call it samsara but might not be real samsara but that’s continuation. And when you begin to look at the twelve link, the root of all which we leave the ignorance again. Particularly a slight difference between this very root ignorance and the ignorance within three poisons that may be slightly different although traditionally in Tibetan it uses the same name. Same name. We call it marigpa, not knowing, unknowing. So the people try to translate that as ignorance. So the Sanskrit is not-knowing?

Student: So there’s avidya, and midyaganna that’s false knowledge.

GR: Midyaganna that’s false knowledge, right? Yeah, that’s very interesting.

Student: […inaudible]

GR: It’s sort of opposite of knowledge. Opposite of knowledge, misknowledge, right? Misknowledge. So the knowing the wrong thing. That is what we really call it root of all this. And different Buddhist schools will give you what this misknowledge is all about it. But ultimately we will have see that as jigta itself, jigta itself is the misknowledge; jigta itself is the ignorance. So the word ignorance is really confusing because when we say it’s ignorance, probably you say nothing about it. So you’re stupid. It’s stupid, correct, but it’s not the stupid of not knowing, but the stupid of misinformation, misknowledge. So when you’re looking in this twelve link and the root is this. The, what we call it, marigpa, misknowledge. And because of that link, that link pushes the individual to do something, to do something. You do something because it is fear/confusion together. Sort of you are totally influenced by fear and confusion, so they push you, they push you to do something. Like we say pre-emptive situation, just like that.

That type of thing, that push us something to do, and whatever we’re doing is creating the karma that we do, any action that we take, it becomes the second link of the creation of the link. Link of creation, which is doing something, functioning. Supposed to be protecting ourself, because of the fear, because of the confusion. Maybe if you do a virtue. If you do a non-virtue instead of creating positive, safe, it will create sort of negative unsafe situation we will create. That is the creating. And the moment you do something it leaves the effect and imprint on the consciousness, and that becomes third link. Imprint on the consciousness. Imprint on the mind. Consciousness itself is the third link. That very consciousness is effected with desire and desire to grasp, and that is now seven, eight, nine links will effect the individual person and that pushes the individual person to have whatever life the mental and physical forms, you know, all of those. Because even before, because that’s what I’m trying to show you is even before mental physical basic thing, basic functioning, even before that we have the addiction of those attachment, no sorry, those obsession and even hatred and all of them we have. We have a very strong addiction, even at that level, even before, even basic little particle, little gene which will become the physical body of ours and way before that we have this very addictions are there. And that’s why, that’s why it’s very, very strong addiction. It’s not just we picked it up.

Sometimes when something happens with very innocent young kids and we say, why such a thing happened to innocent young kids who has done nothing wrong, which is in a way true, who has nothing done wrong, but if you look in the addiction of this points, addiction points, that really goes even before you even joined our consciousness in the womb of mother, even way before that. Not in the, I’m not talking about the previous life, I’m talking about even this very life. So the addictions are not just addiction because you’re spoiled, or you’re not controlled, or all this. It comes from even before that. Not going into the previous life. Even physically, even at this level, that goes way before the fourth link, which is the name and forms, name and forms are happening because of this seven, eight, nine; seven, eight, nine makes the name and form function, although name and form is the fourth, but seven, eight, nine makes it function, so when you are talking about this addiction it is that far. It is not just at the age of three, four, five and ten, twelve, it is not addicted there, it is way before.

That very addiction it sort of defines these three objects. The obsession, the hatred, and indifference. That is somehow looks like already taught way before our consciousness been matured. Way before. As a matter of fact, if you look into the link of the feeling and the link of the touch, when you look at it, when you look at it, the difference is just the object and the subject and the awareness, just bringing together and they begin to pick up the senses, and that was the way the division was drawn. And then you pick up the senses, and the senses become more stronger so you immediately have sort of doesn’t want to separate the feeling of the joy and comfort and disliking of uncomfortable and miserable things, immediately disliking is even at way before over there. So this addiction is not something we picked up in the childhood or even in the mother’s womb, even although we like to blame the mothers and everybody else, because you did this and then I got addicted, and blah, blah, blah, physical addictions may be right but mental addictions are way before. That’s why we have this three poisons are very strong within us, because of those three objects, so as long as the power of this three poisons, and three objects connected with the three poisons, and then whatever we do, whatever we try to do, even very positive things, it does not become really positive.

I mean I’m not supposed to talk to you, I mean I can talk to anybody, but I’m not supposed to talk to you the twelve links and combine with three poisons and three objects, but it works well, but I have the same subject now on Tuesday in Ann Arbor and Thursday in New York. In Ann Arbor what I had to do was do the conclusion of the twelve link because when I’m away during those periods different teachers, instructors have given teaching on each link so those Tuesdays when I come back I have to draw a conclusion. And so then I did the first three on the first Tuesday night when we were talking about the first Buddha-nature, and rest of them I did last Tuesday, that is two days ago, that is day before yesterday, and it works perfectly well, between the twelve links and the three objects and the three poisons, so I was trying to kill two birds with one stone so Tuesday I brought even on Thursday. So because it works very well. It works very well, except what I don’t have here is the powerpoints. Tuesday night I have the powerpoints but here I don’t have powerpoints so, powerpoints help you to see a little bit better but that I don’t have here tonight.

But most of you are familiar because you have read this, you have studied that, you have learned the twelve interdependent links. The twelve interdependent links really means how does one depend on the other, the dependent nature of how we function is really mentioned in the twelve links, and that perfectly works well with the three poisons, and three objects and three monkeys, and the stooges, or whatever they are. So it works well. Because that’s exactly how we function within our mind and within our life. It also gives us the difference between what is true spiritual and what’s not. Because many of us just think anything we do, non-mechanical, or non-electronic, it is almost treated as spiritual. I mean it’s true. It’s not a mystery. Drinking a wheatgrass juice and eating brown rice is spiritual, right? So it is really, so everything non-electronic, non-mechanical is become spiritual but perhaps it’s not. But the spiritual where I come from, what Buddha talks about it, what Buddha presents to us, I think the line is drawn here to us, three poisons, and three objects, and three objects. Yeah, three objects. And three objects linking with the three poison, no matter whatever we do, whatever we do, we do, whatever we do it not necessarily becomes virtue, even though it may be a generosity act, even though it may be something very, looks like very virtuous type of thing.

And I just remembered and I was talking last Tuesday and I remember when I was in India, those Indians, not necessarily I’m talking about Indian politicians, I’m talking about those people who are followers of Mahamatma Gandhi and whose really picking up after Gandhi’s nonviolence activities and they, all of them keep on telling, they like, they prefer trade over US AID. In India those days there’s huge US AIDs going on. But they always like trade over aid. And I asked a number of those people why and they keep on saying the AID is not pure. What do you mean about not being pure? And they said there are always strings attached. They will give you this but they want you to do this, this, this, this and that. And always strings attached. So that’s why they’re not pure. That’s what these Gandhians say. So it is generosity, and it is very nice, but always you want to have control over, so I want to give you something but I want to have control over. And always it doesn’t become virtue because it is connected with this idea of three poisons. But sometimes they would like to have control because they want you to do well and good, and no personal interest whatsoever, that is different. But many times people would like to do this, and give you that, and have this, and control, and have that control, we all do. We all do. I want to give you this, but I’d like you to do this, this, this. We do that. And that is one of those poisons been influencing. Even though it looks like virtue, it is act of generosity.

And act of morality, sometimes, even you know, even the morality, the sacrifices, people have very strong, some people, have very strong obsession towards what they think is morality, but it is sacrificing. Sacrificing of life, sacrificing joy, sacrificing anything, even within the Buddhist, they think, my negativity is so strong, and therefore I have to have a very strong repentance and very strong sort of punishment, so I have to accept, so therefore I’d like to burn myself. Burn to death. Or burn my fingers as light offering, so all that, people do. It’s not only the Buddhists. All great big religious traditions have so many of that type, violence nature so that you beat yourself until the blood comes out, not only just blood coming out, not only just blood coming out is enough, but you have to sweat and bleed and all of them you have to beat them. It is very commonly known. And also a lot of those sacrifices, these are the sometimes the obsession to violence points. In order to protect yourself from negativities.

And I can’t help it without thinking. At this moment we do the same thing. We sacrifice our individual right and freedom in order to protect ourself from Al Queda. You know, we do that. It is impossible for an American society to have second thought about the controlling of individual right. And listening your conversations, American people will definitely straight away flatly reject such a things. I’m talking about American society in general. Particularly libertarians. There’s no question. It has to be completely straight away reject. However fear of the Al Queda attack makes you even willing to sacrifice your own right. Because that is how fear influence us. On top of that, if we hear Bin Laden threatening we get more worried, and so naturally, you know, it’s a huge country, and so many different people with different mind and something can happen there. But that doesn’t mean that we have to be worried about, compromise our principles. And all of those, I can’t help it but thinking today when I hear in the news that I’m ready to attack again and you have within you United States, and people brought up some awareness of cutting down on their self freedom and all this, individual liberty, right and freedom. And we become a little bit of noise coming up and a little bit awareness comes, and Bin Laden very conveniently comes in to give a nice message which will probably shut everybody out [laughs]. So sometimes wondering where is Bin Laden hiding, anyway? Inside the White House or out in Afghanistan? Who knows? Maybe under the bunker, somewhere, who knows.

But this is exactly how fear threatens us. This addiction of this, fear dominating, and three poisons rising, and applying that on the three objects, this addiction was way before we connected with our physical gene. Not in previous life, even within this life, in the circle, when you look in the twelve links, circle, so it was connected since then, it’s so extremely strong addiction, and that becomes, that becomes our, what we call it, soft spot, or sore point, and whoever, whenever touches that, that puts the individual completely crazy, so the misknowledge, the number one of the basis of the samsara can very well function within that link to creation, so that made ourself into the like, porcupine ready to shoot and hit, and that’s exactly fear, confusion both of them does. And this is the weapon of the negative side. To control ourself. So this is the three objects, this is the three poisons. So when you move from the control of that into a spiritual path, then three virtues, which are free of these three poisons, not just virtue, that virtue free of obsession, free of hatred, free of misknowledge. And then that becomes the resolution of a spiritual practice.

In other words, unless, until we have that, even though our virtuous works are not necessarily right virtue. Why I say that? Why I say that, because you know remember because the karma, if you look into the karma, there are three different karmas. Positive karma, negative karma, and neutral karma. And neutral karma is karma that creates life within the samsara, although it may be virtue, but it will never take you out of the samsara, because of these three. Objects and three subjects. As long as they influence that, no matter whatever we do, meditation, circumambulation, prostrations, or fasting, anything you do, saying mantras, anything you do, your virtue becomes questionable virtue. It is virtue, but it is not virtue that delivers the ultimate goal, but it is will sort of take you around. Because it is not been free of this three, subject and three objects. And that’s why the topic that choosing three monkeys followed by the Buddha-nature, is that’s the reason.

Actually three monkeys work, don’t say anything so have no attachment. Or, no, no, no, don’t say anything, so have no hatred. Don’t see anything, so have no attachment. Don’t hear anything, so have no misinformation, no misknowledge. That works well, three monkeys. So that is how spiritual path, the true spiritual, and I’m not saying they’re not virtue, it is virtue, I am not saying it is not positive karma, it is positive karma, and however positive karma that is incapable of giving the result of ultimate goal, ultimate spritual goal. Having said that, ultimate spiritual goal, I’m sure many of you are aware, but a few of you might not be aware of it, I always emphasize when you are in the spiritual path, when go on the spiritual path, you have to be really good, grounded spiritual practitioner. Not just love and light. Really has to be grounded. What does grounding mean? Grounding means you have spiritual base. And you have spiritual way. So once you have those three, which means you are solid, I mean getting towards solid, getting the right way. As long as you have no goal, as long as you have no way, not even a base, just try to be holy, then it really doesn’t become a good spiritual path, it just becomes showbiz or whatever, it’s bad show. So I think that is the basically.

And when we say, since I said it, and this is important, I’d like to say it again, what is our spiritual goal? Where I come from, it gives us three different goals, very good one, medium, and at least the lowest. The ultimate goal is to become a Buddha. That’s where Buddha comes out. That’s what Buddha says, “I become Buddha, why can’t you become Buddha?” Exactly, that’s exactly what Buddha says. I was just like you. I worked, by chance I learned of a way, and I worked, and I become Buddha, why can’t you become Buddha. So it is the ultimate goal. Buddhahood is the ultimate goal. What is so great about Buddha? It’s because it’s total knowledge, total joy. We always sing, joy that has never known suffering. Joy that never known suffering is available when you become Buddha. When it’s never known suffering means there’s no suffering, then whatever it is it is always joy. And pleasure. And beauty. That joy is way beyond our usual joys, sexual joys. Sorry for using that word. Way beyond. By various reasons, from the time-wise, from the feeling-wise, anyways, forget it. Sort of that is the, and then total knowledge, beside that, not only the joy, but total knowledge. Knowledge of everything, whenever, whatever had happened, and is happening, and will happen, all of them knowing together. Simultaneously, without any obstacles, it is an almost unimaginable state, that is why it is called total knowledge. Awakened state, Buddhahood, which we are all eligible, totally eligible, not only eligible but it’s sort of probably we can get it. Not only for a possibility but really probable. So that is the number one goal.

Number two goal will be at least free of all pains, mental, physical, emotional pains and sufferings, that freedom. At least right future life. The life what we’re going to, future begins now. Future life does not depend when you die. Future begins now. So good future life means the life left over whatever we have plus the future lives. And particularly one life, next immediate life, it is not suffering nature. And so that is the lowest goal, so we have a goal. And then the way is application of compassion and wisdom to ourself and to others. Without exception, to all others, to all. Is the way. And the base is left. The base is our physical, mental, emotional status what we have, maybe a little bit loose, two screws loose, but not completely crazy. That is important. If you are completely crazy you can do nothing. You know the mental status is important for everybody, every one of us. If a lot of screws are loose it becomes extremely difficult. Not only to the individual whose screw is loose, but also people round. So, this is what we are talking about the base, and that is what we are talking about the way. And that is what we are talking about the goal. When you have a goal, then you have a way, on the base what you have. If you focus with free of three poisons, and then beginning of spiritual path, beginning of spiritual action, beginning of spiritual function, and that’s what it is. And that’s the reason why buddha-nature followed by three monkeys. That reason. What you have to do is make that buddha-nature into the nature of those three monkeys. See no poison, hear no poison, and say no poison. I guess that’s what I have to say tonight. You have any questions, happy to discuss. Otherwise we call it day. And I will be here next Thursday too.

Q: You mentioned the three poisons and the three objects. I’m just wondering what are the three virtues?

GR: Free of three poisons. That’s it. Yes. Thank you.

Q: You mentioned that you see a lot of people who are, say, willing to give up their liberties because they’re afraid. How do you react to them? I mean, if you see someone who is not behaving that way, how do you interact with them?

GR: I call them heroes.

Q: I’m not sure I understand.

GR: Who doesn’t give up freedom, they’re the heroes.

Q: No, no, no, I was talking about the one’s who do.

GR: The ones who do. I call them coward. Coward. We all are coward. We all become coward, led by our White House, as well as Capitol Hill, New York become coward. I mean, to me personally when you try to lose the fundamental principles on which this society is built, when you become cutting off that, that is really losing of our rights. That is the effect of Al Queda, if at all. That is really effect. When I say it is coward, I am included, OK? Yes sir.

Q: Would you understand the twelve links as functioning moment to moment to moment, or is it something that functions over the course of a human existence leading to the next existence?

GR: The question is twelve links are considered moment-to-moment or over the human existence. What I understand is it is the individual thing, very much individual, not as a human society as such, but an individual. But twelve links are always complete within the two life, or I forgot, is it three life? Three or two, not more than that. It can never be complete in one lifetime. It can never be complete in one lifetime and it’s two or three it’s complete. But it’s very individual.

Q; Because ignorance and karmic formations would need to have some consciousness to produce another consciousness.

GR: Right. What happened is what we normally do is what we normally do is the link of consciousness been divided into two categories, the division was done by time, the causal level of consciousness and the result level of the consciousness. The causal level of the consciousness is the one who picks up the karmic imprints. Somehow the causal level of that consciousness it’s somewhere disappeared, not available there, not able to trace it, because something else functioning. It goes down, it will only pop up at the result level of link eleven. It will pop up there. I don’t want to say it’s like a continuity, it sort of really disappears these four or five or six, not four or five or six; five, six, no, six seven, eight nine, and then picks up, pops up at the tenth, eleventh, which will rebrings the fourth and fifth up. So that’s why two lives is absolutely necessary in order to complete that. Basically why do we do this, because also these are divided by the causal karma, and creating karma and completing karma, [Tibetan] so sort of there are four different divisions, they are divided by four different divisions, so that’s why this link circles around. So it’s very individual. Absolutely individual. But it sort of links over at least two lifetimes, maybe three, but two lifetimes. But then one of those twelve link and one of these twelve link, it circles like this logo of this motor vehicle called Audi. It sort of links round that way.

Q: Rimpoche what is the Tibetan word or the Sanskrit word that you would use for imprint on your consciousness? Would you say samskara?

GR: Sanskrit you have to ask this professor. He will tell you because I know nothing about it. And Tibetan is namshi. Means consciousness.

Q: And what is the antidote?

GR: Antidote for?

Q: Antidote for the namshi.

GR: There is no, namshi doesn’t need antidote, and namshi doesn’t work, the antidote of this whole thing is the wisdom that goes against misinformation. And that is why we say wisdom is the path that liberates the individual from samsara, because that works against misinformation, even love/compassion doesn’t work against misinformation because Dharmakirti [speaks in Tibetan], love/compassion not a direct opponent of ignorance or misinformation, so that doesn’t cut that. So it is only the wisdom that cuts things.

Q: You were mentioning earlier about virtue sometimes not being virtuous because of obsession and attachment, and I’m wondering though that when you’re on the path to enlightenment, if you have one of these goals that you had spoken about, Buddhahood, or even the next life, how does that effect the virtuous acts, because it seems like there’s an inherent –

GR: Because the virtuous act is the actually credit that we get in order to buy enlightenment, the credit or the money we get is the virtue. So then whether that is going to be a good money like a dollar or euro, or is it money like rupees or something that you can’t use it everywhere, so the difference what you make is although it is virtue but it can never be like Indian rupee is good enough in India to buy whatever you want to buy but you can’t buy anything outside because that at least used to be not exchangeable, neither with the dollar or euro or pound. So, just like that.

Q: Thank you.

Q; Rimpoche, you talk about the ideal of Buddhism is enlightenment and I can understand that ending suffering, you talk about go to that level of the joy that has not known suffering, that seems to be logical from the Buddhist point of view because the four noble truths about suffering, but I cannot really understand this notion of omniscience, that you have to know everything, past, present and future. I don’t always understand why is that, sometimes I think it’s something the Buddha made up, or that people have to know everything, because he was so great, but it kind of makes you non-human in a sense, whereas compassion not necessarily makes you non-human. So if you could just say a little more about that.

GR: To me, Buddha is human as well as superhuman. I personally take this omniscience as a literal sense. That’s my, I don’t want to say that’s my belief, that’s my understanding. I think it goes a little beyond the philosophy or beyond, you know if you look into the buddha’s life, I don’t know if it really makes sense to you or not,

Buddha declared that his, what do you call it, omniscience, he knows everything, right? The Buddha’s critics, this is what I’m talking about, supposed to be historical fact, his critics said, all right, you have to prove it. He said, OK, each one of you go home, bring a handful of grain, and pack them in a little, I don’t know whatever, little piece, whatever it is, and put them all together, then I will say, this grain belongs to you, this grain belongs to you. So five hundred whatever it is, each one of them he has given to the concerned person saying this is yours and that’s yours. That’s sort of a thing, Jataka tales tells you this sort of things. But my understanding of the omniscient is something rare. I don’t look that as philosophy, or philosophical points only, I really think it is really, and it something which we cannot comprehend, because us, forget about total knowledge, if we know ten different people’s thoughts simultaneously we go crazy. No doubt about it. But then the capacity of the individual develops at that time. Both can be understood. Not only be understandable, not only understanding, but be able to digest. I think that develops together. I don’t know, I cannot say total enlightenment is not enlightenment. At least I should say I believe in it. But it’s a very good question, because it’s how you think and that’s really what it is. I used to think that way exactly, something like that I could never ask by fear of I’ll be rejected or beat up, honestly. Can you call a day? OK, let’s call day, and um,