Dalai Lama on Generating the Awakening Mind

Generating the Awakening Mind

Thekchen Chöling, Dharamsala, India - Before His Holiness the Dalai Lama reached the Main Temple this morning, the ‘Heart Sutra’ was recited three times in the languages of the Buddhist Republics of the Russian Federation, Kalmykia, Buryatia and Tuva. Once he had arrived, greeted the eminent Lamas and the audience and taken his seat on the throne, the ‘Heart Sutra’ was chanted once more in Russian.

“So to conclude this series of teachings, today we’ll conduct a ceremony for generating the awakening mind of bodhichitta,” His Holiness announced. “As far as the awakening mind is concerned we need to understand that we are seeking to attain a state in which all defilements and faults have been eliminated and in which perfect realization—omniscience—has been achieved. Unsurpassed enlightenment is the goal you seek when you generate the awakening mind. You aspire to become a Buddha for the benefit of all sentient beings.

“In his ‘Entering into the Middle Way’ Chandrakirti wrote:

“Even those abiding in the first mind of complete enlightenment (bodhichitta)

Overcome those born from the speech of the Subduer Kings

And Solitary Realizers through their own merit's increase.

On the (ground called) Gone Afar he surpasses them with his intelligence.

“And at the end of the sixth chapter of the same work, he wrote:

“And like the king of swans, ahead of lesser birds they soar,

On broad white wings of conventional and ultimate (bodhichitta) full spread.

And on the strength of virtue's mighty wind they fly

To gain the far and supreme shore, the oceanic qualities of Victory.

“These powerful lines from ‘Entering into the Middle Way' echo the praise of compassion in the words of salutation.

“The mind of compassion, non-dual understanding,

And the altruistic mind of enlightenment (bodhichitta)

Are the causes of Children of the Conquerors (bodhisattvas).

“In terms of practice, compassion is important in the beginning, middle and end. The ‘Prayer of Maitreya’ states that bodhichitta is the factor that leads you away from the lower realms, to higher realms and finally to that deathless state where you are free from aging and death. Since the time of the Buddha, the great Indian masters who followed him cultivated bodhichitta. This is why we refer to the Buddha as the teacher, the Dharma as the actual refuge and the Sangha, like Nagarjuna and so forth, as companions on the path to enlightenment.

“To achieve Buddhahood we also need to realize emptiness. The Middle Way propounded by Nagarjuna is important, so much so that Bhavaviveka criticized what he called Asanga’s and Vasubandhu’s recklessness in neglecting to accept and follow it. However, if we only read Nagarjuna, we won’t reach a very deep understanding. Addressing the challenges posed by other points of view has the effect of broadening and enriching our sense of discernment. Studying a variety of treatises has a clarifying effect.”

His Holiness explained that to conduct the ceremony for generating the awakening mind you can follow the extensive rite described in Asanga’s work the ‘Bodhisattva Grounds’, or the shorter version in Shantideva’s ‘Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life’. He suggested that today he would use the verses that begin, ‘With a wish to free all beings ...’

He observed that the Buddha is someone who has travelled the path and teaches from his own experience how to overcome afflictive emotions, ignorance and their residual stains. By following his teaching we can eliminate all mental defilements, because of which he can be seen as the highest teacher.

His Holiness called on the audience to imagine the Buddha in the space before them as a living person surrounded by his Eight Close Disciples, Avalokiteshvara, Manjushri and so forth; the Seven Patriarchs like Kashyapa who came after him; the Seventeen Nalanda Masters, Nagarjuna and Asanga and their followers; the 84 Great Adepts (Mahasiddhas) such as Saraha and so forth.

His Holiness digressed to mention the distinction drawn by an 18th century Lama called Nyengön Sungrab between teachings that constitute the general structure of Buddhism and specialized teachings. Teachings belonging to the Sutras and works like Nagarjuna’s ‘Fundamental Wisdom of the Middle Way’ constitute the general structure that anyone can follow. Tantras, such as Kalachakra, that involve working with channels, winds and drops are specialized teachings intended for specific disciples.

Continuing to describe those imagined gathered around the Buddha His Holiness mentioned Tibetan masters as well as their Indian mentors: Nyingma masters like the 25 disciples of Guru Padmasambhava; Sakya masters of the LamDre tradition; masters belonging to the three Kadampa lineages; masters from the four major and eight minor Kagyu traditions and masters of the Renewed Kadampa tradition, the Gandenpas, Jé Tsongkhapa and his disciples.

“These figures are role models for us in terms of practice of the profound and extensive paths. Taking them as witness to your generating the awakening mind of bodhichitta you generate much merit and wholesome energy. Shantideva summarizes the benefits of generating the awakening mind,

“Whatever joy there is in this world

All comes from desiring others to be happy,

And whatever suffering there is in this world,

All comes from desiring myself to be happy.

If I do not actually exchange my happiness

For the sufferings of others,

Not only shall I not attain the state of a Buddha

Even in cyclic existence I shall have no joy.

“We have to make bodhichitta our main practice. When I was about 13 years old, with Ngodup Tsognyi’s active encouragement, I took great interest in emptiness, but bodhichitta seemed remote to me. However, after I came into exile and especially after I received an explanation of ‘Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life’ from Khunu Lama Rinpoché, I began to integrate bodhichitta into my practice. Over time, as a result of effort, it has become close to me. You should do the same. Generate bodhichitta, pursue the practice and what happened to me can happen to you.”

His Holiness asked the congregation to kneel on their right knees and, keeping the visualization he had described vividly before them, to recite the Seven Limb Prayer—prostration, offering, confession—taking the Buddha and so forth as witness, rejoicing in their manifest qualities, requesting them to teach, beseeching them not to pass into the state of peace, and dedication. Following that, he led them in reciting these verses three times.

With a wish to free all beings

I shall always go for refuge

to the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha

until I reach full enlightenment.

Enthused by wisdom and compassion,

today in the Buddha’s presence

I generate the mind for full awakening

for the benefit of all sentient beings.

As long as space endures,

as long as sentient being remain,

until then, may I too remain

and dispel the miseries of the world.

At the end His Holiness encouraged those gathered before him to recite these verses three times every day after they wake in the morning and three times again in the evening. He explained how cultivating bodhichitta and setting an aspiration for enlightenment at the beginning can set the tone for the whole day, enabling you to spend your time meaningfully in the service of others. Then, at the end of the day, you’ll be happy to dedicate the virtue for the benefit of all.

In conclusion His Holiness recited verses of dedication from the Samantabhadra Prayer followed by lines from the end of the Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment.

Likewise may I dedicate

Just as the skilful Samantabhadra,

With pure body, speech, and mind,

Pure actions and pure buddha-fields.

I shall give rise to the aspirations of Manjushri

For this bodhisattva practice of all-embracing good,

To perfect these practices

Without discouragement or pause in all future eons.

In regions where the supreme, precious teaching has not spread

Or where it has spread but then declined,

May I illumine that treasure of happiness and benefit

With a mind deeply moved by great compassion.

original link with photos: https://www.dalailama.com/news/2019/generating-the-awakening-mind

Dalai Lama at the Inauguration of the First Scholarly Conference on Kalachakra

Inauguration of the First Scholarly Conference on Kalachakra

Thekchen Chöling, Dharamsala - In the cool, clear morning air, as the sun rose over the mountains into a cloudless blue sky, His Holiness the Dalai Lama walked from his residence to the Kalachakra Temple early today. Smiling faces, many of them from Russia, greeted him as walked through the garden. He saluted the statue of the Buddha in the main temple before entering the Kalachakra Temple and taking his seat.

The Secretary of Namgyal Monastery welcomed everyone to the start of the First Conference on Kalachakra for Scholars of all Tibetan Traditions. Monks of the Monastery sitting in orderly rows chanted verses in praise of the Buddha followed by the Praise to the 17 Masters of Nalanda. Tea and sweet rice were served.
               
“How many scholars have come from elsewhere?” His Holiness wanted to know. The answer was twenty.

“I’ve been quite unwell,” he said. “I came back from Delhi on 8th April feeling fit, but on 9th I was out of sorts, so I returned to Delhi for treatment. It turned out that my illness was not so bad, but I found the treatment tiresome. Now I’m well again, but I need to rest and relax. My staff keep telling me I need to reduce my schedule, so generally I’ll only meet people every other day.”

The Abbot of Namgyal Monastery, Thomtog Rinpoché, who is also Chairman of the Namgyal Monastery Education Society, introduced the occasion. He welcomed His Holiness and Samdhong Rinpoché to this First Conference on Kalachakra. He clarified that the name Shri Kalachakra refers to the union of bliss and emptiness arisen in the form of a deity. Shakyamuni Buddha first taught about this in the form of Kalachakra. The teaching was then taken to Shambhala.

“Scholars from all Tibetan Buddhist traditions, Nyingma, Sakya, Kagyu, Geluk, Jonang and Butön have written extensively about Kalachakra,” he explained. “The tradition is alive. Jé Tsongkhapa regarded the Kalachakra as an authentic tradition and practised the Six Yogas. Jamyang Chöjé, founder of Drepung Monastery, records that Jé Rinpoché had a vision of Kalachakra. Later, the 7th Dalai Lama, Gyalwa Kalsang Gyatso, composed an extensive sadhana and instigated its practice in Namgyal Monastery. His Holiness the Dalai Lama has given the Kalachakra Empowerment to hundreds of thousands of people around the world. Consequently the complete practice remains intact.

“As followers of Jé Rinpoché it is our responsibility to practise the teachings of the Buddha as he and his followers have done. We regard this conference as an offering of practice.

“In a Prayer he composed for His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s long life called ‘The Melody of the Nectar of Immortality’, Jamyang Khyentsé Chökyi Lodrö referred to him as a human manifestation of Kalachakra:

Kulika Pundarika, skilled and perfect exponent of the Kalachakra,

With its inseparable outer, inner and alternative cycles,

Has appeared in the land of Tibet in the form of a spiritual friend:

You who are in essence the original Buddha, Kalachakra—I pray for your long life!

“I too pray that His Holiness may live long, that his propitious wishes may be fulfilled and that the Tibetan people may once again be reunited. May all attain the state of Kalachakra.”

The Principal of the Namgyal Monastery School then outlined the procedure whereby representatives of various traditions, Nyingma, Sakya and Geluk, the Bokar Kagyus, Jonangpas, and a Geshé from Zhalu Monastery, as well as a representative of the Astro Department of the MenTseeKhang will make their presentations over three days.

His Holiness was invited to speak:

“I regularly say how important it is for us to be 21st century Buddhists. In the past in Tibet, people of all three provinces were Buddhist. Even the Bönpos studied Buddhist texts. Buddhism spread right across the land and people placed great faith in rituals and prayers. But what are the true characteristics of the Buddha’s teachings? In India there were the practices of concentration and insight or analysis (shamatha and vipashyana), in addition to which the Buddha taught about causality and dependent arising. He taught how to transform the mind on the basis that a disciplined or calm mind is happy whereas an unruly mind is not.

“Explanation of the Four Noble Truths with their 16 characteristics and the 37 factors of enlightenment is common to the Foundational and Great Vehicles. They were laid out in the first round of teachings and explained more elaborately in the second.

“Yesterday, I met with some Indian scholars who asked in the course of our conversation why it is that although the harmful effects of smoking are well-established, some people persist in doing it. I suggested that it is because we have different levels of understanding. To start with you may hear or read about something, but you’ll only really begin to understand it if you think about it. Reflection generates a deeper understanding, but only by focussing on what you’ve understood will you reach conviction. At that point you’ll be able to explain to others what you’ve understood on the basis of your own experience. This is why in terms of Buddhist practice we stress the importance of study, critical reflection, and meditative practice.

“We take refuge in the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha without really knowing what the Buddha is. We need to think about how enlightenment is gained on the basis of the Two Truths, on overcoming the misconception of true existence. All religious traditions teach about love and compassion from different point of view, but the Buddha taught us to use reason and to think about dependent arising. This is how to uproot the causes of suffering. He taught that the more you exercise reason, the more you’ll understand and the deeper your conviction will be. This is what Nagarjuna did and consequently what he wrote attracts the admiration of scientists today.”

His Holiness noted that there is a practice of maintaining a pure vision of the Lama, but Jé Rinpoché stated that if the Lama teaches something that is at variance with the classical texts, you should challenge it. According to the Nalanda Tradition even the words of the Buddha are subject to analysis. For example, when we come across the Buddha’s advice that the five psycho-physical aggregates are like a load borne by the self, we have to ask why he taught that. The Buddha himself counselled, "As the wise test gold by burning, cutting and rubbing it, so, Bhikshus, should you accept my words—only after testing them and not merely out of respect."

“When I give someone a statue of the Buddha I describe him as a thinker and scientist of ancient India, someone whose teaching can be understood through reason, investigation and experiment—and by setting it against our own experience.

“Here in exile I encouraged nuns to study and to seek the highest qualification, which prompted some surprise among older monks in the monasteries in the South. However, I reminded them that the Buddha offered full ordination equally to monks and nuns, so why should they not also study to the same level? Consequently we now have Geshé-mas and even lay people are showing an interest in study.

“As far as the Kalachakra is concerned, one question that has to be asked,” and His Holiness laughed, “is where is Shambhala? It seems it may not be in this world, but we have to read the texts carefully. I have to admit I sometimes find what is written in the Jataka Tales hard to believe. Maybe some of them exaggerate. However, I don’t have such doubts about what we find in the Heart Sutra—‘Form is empty, but emptiness is form. Emptiness is not other than forms and forms are not other than emptiness.’

“Quantum physicists talk about the observer effect—that the mere observation of a phenomenon inevitably changes that phenomenon. The Mind Only School states that phenomena are the creation of consciousness. The Middle Way School declare that just because something is not found under analysis that doesn’t mean it does not exist; it can still exist in conventional terms.

“Disturbing emotions arise from our exaggerated outlook, our distorted view of reality that conceives of true existence.

“If we can explain the Buddha’s teachings in terms of the ground reality and the path that culminates in the resultant state they will survive for centuries.”
As far as the Kalachakra tradition is concerned, His Holiness stated that the monks of Jonang Monastery and the followers of Butön Rinpoché were the main upholders of the tradition. In Tibet, Panchen Palden Yeshé was said to have visited Shambhala and brought a huge grain back to Tashi Lhunpo. There were Indian masters who did not accept the Kalachakra tradition and it seems Rendawa did not either. His Holiness emphasised that it’s necessary to study and put what you understand into practice and see whether you have a genuine experience.

With regard to the Six Branch Practice of Kalachakra, the Jonangpas still maintain the practices for day and night and gain the signs in relation to them. His Holiness mentioned a special practice for fixing the gaze on the mid-brow that Kalu Rinpoché showed him. He alluded to the practice of bliss and empty-form in relation to Kalachakra, as well as the four empty states of which the fourth is the empty state of clear light. He recalled that where the Buddha’s second round of teachings explains in detail about cessation, in the third round he spoke of the mind of clear light.

Finally, His Holiness remarked that whereas some people claim that building temples and monasteries amounts to building the Dharma, Vasubandhu was straightforward in stating that the survival of the Buddha’s teaching depends on study and practice.

“It’s one thing to study the scriptural teaching, but it has to be augmented by realization within yourself. That’s the only way to ensure the teaching will survive—keep up what you’re doing and explain this to others.”

His Holiness was escorted from the temple by the Abbot and Disciplinarian of Namgyal Monastery. At the bottom of the temple steps he climbed into a car and drove back to his residence.

original link & photos:  https://www.dalailama.com/news/2019/inauguration-of-the-first-scholarly-conference-on-kalachakra