Index
Enlightened Courage
We can think of relative Bodhichitta as having two aspects: that of emptiness and that of compassion.
the best thing would be to practise for the whole of our lives; but at least we should take refuge properly, for this is the essence of the Buddhadharma
The essence of the Buddha’s teaching is to understand clearly what behaviour is to be adopted and what is to be rejected. Abandon evil-doing, Practise virtue well, Subdue your mind: This is Buddha’s teaching.
if the wish and thought occur to us that we must bring all beings to the enlightened state of Buddhahood, we have generated what is known as Bodhichitta in intention.
We should recite the seven branch prayer from the Prayer of Perfect Action, and, sitting upright, count our breaths twenty-one times without getting mixed up or missing any, and without being distracted by anything.
You can find out whether the mind exists or not by just turning inwards and reflecting carefully. You will see that the mind does not begin, or end, or stay, anywhere; that it has no colour or form and is to be found neither inside nor outside the body. And when you see that it does not exist as any thing, you should stay in that experience without an attempt to label or define it.
thoughts are impermanent, and we should therefore bear in mind that any thought or antidote—even the thought of emptiness—is itself by nature empty without substantial existence.
We should therefore rest in the empty nature of the mind beyond all mental elaborations, in that state which is free from clinging, a clarity which is beyond all concepts.
We may indeed be generous to beggars and give food to those who need it, but it is a fact that we do not care for them as much as we care for ourselves.
just as we are now able to ignore others, we should be able to ignore ourselves.
Enlightenment will be ours when we are able to care for others as much as we now care for ourselves, and ignore ourselves to the same extent that we now ignore others.
Your mother, therefore, is someone to whom you should have an endless gratitude.
If we are to get real benefit from this practice, we should continue until signs like these arise.
‘May the obscurations of all beings, arising through these three poisons, come upon me as a load to bear. May all beings live virtuously, performing positive actions, and be free from the three poisons of attachment, anger and ignorance.’
All suffering comes through not recognising ego-clinging as our enemy. When we are hit by a stick or a stone, it hurts; when someone calls us a thief or a liar, we become angry. Why is this? It is because we feel great esteem and attachment for what we think of as our selves, and we think ‘I am being attacked.’
to be generous to others, to free them from suffering and set them on the path of liberation is as good as making offerings to the Buddhas.
The immediate causes for the attainment of Buddhahood are other beings; we should be truly grateful to them.
All the harm with which this world is rife, All the fear and suffering that there is: Clinging to the ‘I’ has caused it! What am I to do with this great demon?
We always want to compete. This is why we are not free from samsara: it is this that creates the sufferings and harm
As soon as he relinquished all concern for himself, all difficulties dissolved and the obstacle-makers paid him homage.
And so, when attachment for the ‘I’ appears—and it is after all only a thought within our minds—we should try to investigate. Is this ego a substance, a thing? Is it inside or outside? When we think that someone has done something to hurt us and anger arises, we should ask ourselves whether the anger is part of the enemy’s makeup or whether it is in ourselves.
all the experiences we undergo are the fruit of good or evil actions that we have done to others in the past.
If bitten by a dog or attacked by someone, instead of reacting angrily, we should try to help our aggressor as much as possible. And even if we cannot help, we must not give up the wish to do so.
When in the presence of sick people, whom we cannot cure, we can visualize the Medicine Buddha above their heads and pray that they will be freed from their disease.
We should decide that from now on, whatever virtuous actions we perform, the riches or longevity we gain, even Buddhahood itself—all these will be exclusively for the benefit of others.
Those come from afar, let them eat it raw! Those who are close by, let them eat it cooked! Grind my bones and eat your fill! Whatever you can carry, take away! Consume whatever you are able!
In short, all suffering comes from the enemy of our own ego-clinging; all benefit derives from other beings, who are therefore like friends and relatives. We should try to help them as much as possible.
‘Of all the profound teachings I have read, this only have I understood: that all harm and sorrow are my own doing and all benefit and qualities are thanks to others. Therefore all my gain I give to others; all loss I take upon myself.’
When gold is in the ground, for example, it is blemished and stained; but the nature of gold as such is not susceptible to change. When it is purified by chemicals or refined by a goldsmith, its real character increasingly shines forth.
Thus we should meditate constantly, always putting difficult situations to good use.
The best of methods is to have four practices. The practices referred to here are accumulation, purification, offerings to evil forces and offerings to the Dharma Protectors.
negative actions have but one good quality: they may be purified through confession.
‘By making me suffer, these evil beings are helping me to practise Bodhichitta; they are of great importance for my progress on the path, and rather than being expelled, they should be thanked.’
‘May all their emotions be concentrated in me.’ With fervent conviction, we should persist in thinking like this until we have some sign or feeling that we have been able to take upon ourselves the suffering and emotions of others. This might take the form of an increase in our own emotions or of the actual experience of the suffering and pain of others. This is how to bring hardships onto the path in order to free ourselves from hopes and fears—hopes, for instance, that we will not get ill, or fears that we might do so. They will thus be pacified in the equal taste of happiness and suffering.
IF we possess these five strengths, Bodhichitta will arise in us. They are as follows: the power of resolution, the power of familiarization, the power of the positive seed, the power of revulsion and the power of aspiration.
all the suffering and afflictive emotional states experienced in life are the results of the devastating flood of ego-clinging. Ego-clinging is the cause of every ill. Therefore when it arises, even if only for an instant, we should apply the antidote,
The extent to which we have been able to overcome our self-attachment will show the degree to which we have used the Dharma properly.
Milarepa said: ‘My religion is to have nothing to be ashamed of when I die.’
we should decide that, by virtue of the Mind Training, we will be able to take onto the path whatever difficult situations arise.
Calmness and serenity Will show your wisdom; Freedom from defiled emotions Will display your progress on the path; Your perfection will be manifest Through virtue done in dreams. A Bodhisattva is revealed by what he does.
Love and compassion should be universal toward all beings.
We should bring our minds to ripeness without anybody knowing.
the defects of others are nothing but our impure way of seeing them. By thinking in this way, we should try to rid ourselves of this perception of the faults of others, and cultivate the attitude whereby the whole of existence, all appearances, are experienced as pure.
Therefore let us not utter a word that will harm or make others unhappy. When things are not going well, we should not blame anyone else.
All of it is just a pleasant dream, but may all beings experience such happiness as mine, and even more.’
that we have strong emotions and feelings of irritation, fighting and quarrelling with everyone, we should reflect: ‘I know that everything is illusory; I will therefore not allow myself to be carried away by my feelings. I will not be a coward! I will shoulder the weakness, poverty, illness and death of other beings.’
practice of mindfulness, it is necessary to recognize afflictive emotions as soon as they arise and it is hard, at first, to remain sufficiently aware to be able to do this. However, when negative emotions arise, we should identify them as anger, desire or stupidity. Even when emotions have been recognized, it is not easy to drive them out with the antidote.
emotions are just insubstantial thoughts, by nature empty: they come from nowhere, they go nowhere, they remain nowhere. When we are able to repel our defiled emotions, there comes the difficult practice of ‘interrupting the flow.’ This means that, on the basis of the antidote described, defiled emotions are eliminated just like a bird flying through the air: no trace is left behind. These are practices in which we should really strive.
The three essential factors on which the accomplishment of the Dharma depends are: to meet with a qualified teacher; by receiving his instructions, to cultivate the correct attitude; and, finally, to have the necessary material conditions.
Meditate on three things that must not deteriorate. These are devotion, enthusiasm and Bodhichitta.
while performing virtuous actions, our body, speech and mind should act inseparably and in unison.
we should try to generate the Bodhichitta even more intensely, especially when it is difficult. We should serve and reverence our elders, parents and teachers.
As far as the Dharma is concerned, practice is more important than teaching and talking about it; the Dharma is something that we really have to do. Furthermore, we may recite millions of mantras, and do any number of good works, but if our minds are distracted, nothing beneficial will come of it; the teachings will not have benefited us and Bodhichitta will have had no chance to grow. Let us adopt Bodhichitta, therefore, above all other practices.
It is most important therefore to practise with a steady concentration. Of all our activities, the most important is to sit and practise. We should not move around too much, we should just remain on our seat.
Then we should practise it with an undivided heart.
the ones we should really feel sorry for are those who commit evil actions,
‘Well fed and warm in the sun: that’s when we look like practitioners. But when things go wrong, we are very ordinary people. The Dharma and our minds never seem to mingle. Bless us with the proper attitude!’
completely saturating ourselves with the Mind Training: sometimes meditating on emptiness, sometimes on detachment from this life and sometimes on compassion towards beings.
We should observe whether it arises or not, recognize it and, with the help of the antidote, rid ourselves of it, persevering until it no longer arises.
do not count on others for help with food, clothing, etc. Rather have a confident faith in the Three Jewels.
If we practise the two Bodhichittas all our lives, perform our meditation and post-meditation properly, and if we mingle our minds with the view of meditation, our experience in day to day life will not be ordinary. Furthermore, if we are not distracted in our daily lives, this will help our meditation to progress. If, however, we meditate single-mindedly during the sessions, but afterwards are completely distracted, we will not gain confidence in the view of meditation. Conversely, if we develop virtuous habits in post-meditation but during the meditation session engage in useless activities, again our practice will be meaningless.
May I condense my lifetime’s practice into a single essence By applying throughout my life the five powers of pure determination, pure practice, Accumulation of merit, purification of obscurations, and prayers of aspiration.