 From Snow Lion:
Dalai Lama
Quote of the Week
...an understanding of the
doctrine of emptiness is fundamental to tantric practice. Every
sadhana begins with, is structured around, and ends with meditation
upon emptiness.(* --from The Path to Enlightenment by H.H.
the Dalai Lama, edited and translated by Glenn H. Mullin, published
by Snow Lion Publications ____________ Supplementary
Quote of the Week [ by bb the (**) To achieve, a proper
understanding understanding of EMPTINESS -
the Third Principle Aspect of the Path, in addition to the first
2 aspects: RENUNCIATION and BODHICITTA, "It
will not do to ignore Lam Rim Online." Remember: Lam
Rim Online offers you a sure and happy journey to
Buddhahood !! ____________ aCKNOWLEDGEMENT: THE ABOVE THREE PRINCIPLES AND STATEMENTS ARE
MILKED FROM THE OCEAN-NECTAR- ____________ Most
Venerable Denma
Locho Rinpoche is one of the most esteemed Teachers of
Drepung Loseling Monastery. He has served as the Abbot
of the Dalai Lama's personal monastery and is universally respected
within Tibetan Buddhism as one of Tibet's greatest scholars
and realized masters. 5th October 2001 The
Cycle of Existence So
that concludes the promise to compose the text. The next stanza
is a request to listen well to the teaching which is to follow.
So in English it reads: 'Listen
with clear minds you fortunate ones 'Not
attached to the joys of samsara' here refers to having turned
away from the pleasures in which one may indulge in the wheel
of existence, that is to say, samsara. So having gained precious
human existence which is adorned with leisure and opportunity,
then engaging with effort in the practice of the path, then
to make use of this human opportunity which we now have in our
hands by directing our minds to the path which is pleasing to
the Buddha. Here 'pleasing to the Buddha' means the path of
the greater vehicle, that is to say, having engaged with effort
in the practice of generating the mind aspiring to highest enlightenment
for the benefit of all sentient beings, and then engaging single-pointedly
in that practice, thus the path which is pleasing to the Buddha.
Then for the disciples listening to the discourse then - 'listen
with clear minds you fortunate ones' - 'fortunate' in the sense
of having come into contact with this particular teaching and
then engaging in the practice thereafter. So
then the next stanza of the text reads: Those
with bodies are bound by the craving for existence; So
this stanza then teaches us that initially one should strive
to generate a mind which is turned away from the world, that
is to say, a mind which is free from seeking the pleasures of
the cycle of existence, so one's attraction to those fetters
have been reversed and thus one is striving in the opposite
direction, that is to say, striving to achieve release from
the cycle of existence. If one initially doesn't seek release
from the cycle of existence, one isn't going to be able to get
out of the cycle of existence, one isn't going to find any release
from the cycle of existence within that. So initially one should
seek renunciation from that cycle of existence. So as the text
tells us, 'without pure renunciation, there is no way to still
attraction to the pleasures of samsara', thus one will not be
able to turn away from the pleasures of samsara, therefore one
will still be trapped within that. So the first line reads 'those
with bodies are bound by the craving for existence' - 'those
whose bodies' then refers in particular to human beings who
are bound by this craving for existence. So this craving is
one which has to be reversed before one can really start out
on the path of liberation. Contemplation
on the Preciousness of Human Existence So
then the next stanza reads: Leisure
and opportunity are difficult to find; So
here then we are taught about renunciation, renunciation away
from initially this life and then subsequently from future lives,
so two kinds of renunciation are thus taught. So with regard
to the first practice of turning one's mind from this life,
one can bring about this change in one's attitude through reflecting
on the preciousness of human existence, precious human rebirth,
and then through the impermanence of human life. So through
these kind of contemplations and the contemplation of action
(cause and effect), one can turn one's mind away from the pleasures
of this life and bring to mind the future lives which are yet
to come. So the basis on which we can do this kind of contemplation
is our human existence, that is to say our precious human rebirth
which we now possess, a life of leisure and opportunity, which
the text then tells us are difficult to find. So
if we want to quote, for example, from Lama Tsong Khapa's works,
then we read that this human existence is more precious than
a wish-fulfilling gem. So how is it more precious than that
gem? In the worldly sense, if we have a wish-fulfilling gem,
if we polish it, and put it atop a pole then whatever prayers
we make to this wish-fulfilling gem are instantly fulfilled,
through which we can have all the riches and enjoyments in one
lifetime. But with regard to future lifetimes, there is nothing
we can take with us. It is only in dependence upon this kind
of human existence which we have now that we can put ourselves
in a position where we will achieve the status of human being
or god in the future, or if we so wish, the various kinds of
liberation, that is to say, the greater and the lesser vehicle
liberations from the cycle of existence. This can all be brought
about only through dependence upon the support of precious human
existence which is more precious than the wish-fulfilling gem
in that we can fulfil our future aims through and in dependence
upon this precious human existence. Then
it says that this human existence is something which is difficult
to find. So here then we should understand why it is difficult
of find, and this we can understand through two key points,
that is to say, difficult to find because its cause is difficult,
and through an example. So initially then through an example:
In the sutras we read that the Buddha was once asked 'What is
the difference between beings in the higher realms and those
in the lower realms?' So to answer this the Buddha put his finger
in the earth and said 'the amount of dust which I have on my
fingertip symbolises those beings in the pleasurable states,
or the states of bliss, whereas all the other grains of sand
and dust which are on the face of the earth resemble those who
are in the unfortunate states, or the states of suffering and
misery'. So through that example we can see that having an existence
which is within this fingertip of dust, that is to say, in the
realms of bliss, or the higher realms, is something extremely
difficult to achieve, whereas if we look all around us it's
impossible even to count the amount of dust one might come into
contact with in the street, something which is completely uncountable.
Then
with regard to the cause, the cause is principally to guard
ethical behaviour. So this is the root cause and this needs
to be supplemented with the practice of the six perfections
and complemented by stainless prayers. So we might think that
if we don't keep virtuous or ethical behaviour but rather engage
in the practice of the six perfections we may achieve some higher
existence as a human, but as Nagarjuna mentions in his book,
what we find is that wealth comes about through the practice
of the perfection of giving, while the states of bliss (that
is to say, the higher realms of existence humans, gods and so
forth) come about through engaging in the practice of ethical
conduct. This
is commented upon by Chandrakirti in his book 'Entrance to the
Middle Way' when he says that through engaging in the practice
of generosity, it doesn't necessarily follow that one will be
reborn in the states of bliss (that is to say, in the higher
states of existence), because even if one engages in the practice
of giving, if one doesn?ˇĄt protect one's ethical behaviour
one may be reborn as a spirit which is quite wealthy or, for
example, a snake spirit, a naga spirit, which is well-renowned
for having plentiful jewels. Having
wealth or jewels in that instance comes about through engaging
in the practice of generosity; however, that individual hasn't
engaged correctly in the practice of the protection of morality,
therefore hasn't achieved the status of humans or gods (that
is to say the realms of bliss) through the very fact of not
protecting the cause, that is, ethical behaviour. So through
contemplating these things we can come to see how the precious
human existence which we now have in our hands is something
which is not only more useful than a wish-fulfilling gem, but
is also something which is incredibly difficult to come by.
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