Dalai Lama Teaches ‘Stages of Meditation’ & ‘37 Practices of a Bodhisattva’

Thekchen Chöling, Dharamsala, HP, India, 13 March 2017 - The Tsuglagkhang, the Main Tibetan Temple, and its surrounding verandas, as well as the courtyard below, were filled with people this morning waiting for His Holiness the Dalai Lama to arrive. When he did, he stood before the throne, hand raised in greeting, looking carefully to see who was there. Among the crowd were pilgrims from Tibet and they were who His Holiness addressed once he sat on the throne.

“Since many of you couldn’t attend the recent Kalachakra empowerment, this teaching today is principally for you. I have great admiration for the strength of spirit of you people in Tibet. Today, there are 400 million Buddhists in China who follow traditions similar to ours, but where we differ is in our use of logic and reason.  Buddhism was first introduced to Tibet in the 7th century when the Emperor Songtsen Gampo married a Chinese and a Nepalese princess and each of them brought a statue of the Buddha with them. But when Emperor Trisong Detsen wanted to strengthen Buddhism in the country he turned to India and invited Shantarakshita who was one of the top scholars from Nalanda.

“Shantarakshita may not have been widely renowned, but when we read what he wrote we can judge his calibre. His works include the ‘Ornament of the Middle Way’, which deals with what the Mind Only and Middle Way schools of thought have in common, and the ‘Tattvasamgraha’, an explanation of epistemology.

“It was also in Trisong Detsen’s reign that Samye Monastery was founded. It included a Monastic section and a Translation section, where translation of texts that would make up the Kangyur and Tengyur collections was done. There had been Chinese monks in Tibet since the time of Songtsen Gampo and many of them were part of the Unwavering Concentration section which focussed on single-pointed meditation. Some of these monks asserted that there was no need for study, what was required to attain enlightenment, they claimed, was to empty the mind of thought.

“Shantarakshita had anticipated that a conflict might arise between his logical, reasoned approach to the Dharma and this non-conceptual method. He’d advised the Emperor to invite his disciple Kamalashila to Tibet to deal with it. Kamalashila was also a scholar of epistemology. His view prevailed and Tibet became the only Buddhist country where the Nalanda tradition and the use of reason and logic were preserved. We have kept this alive for more than 1000 years.”

His Holiness remarked that the opportunities to preserve these traditions in Tibet has been difficult in recent years, particularly in the great monasteries of Central Tibet, but has not been so tough in Kham and Amdo.

He mentioned that the first text he was going to read, the middle volume of Kamalashila’s three part ‘Stages of Meditation’ had been written at the request of Trisong Detsen and had been composed in Tibet. He said he feels it has a special connection with Tibetans. At the time, Trisong Detsen was a man of great influence, exercising authority over the whole of Tibet. His Holiness contrasted this with the status of the Ngari chieftain who invited Atisha to Tibet and who requested him to compose the ‘Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment’. He clarified that of the three volumes of the ‘Stages of Meditation’, the first dealt with single-pointed concentration, the second and middle volume dealt with both concentration and special insight, while the third focussed on special insight.

Regarding the second text that he proposed to read, the ‘37 Practices of a Bodhisattva’, His Holiness mentioned that the author, Gyalsey Thogme Sangpo, a contemporary of the great scholar Buton Rinchen Drub, was widely regarded as a realized bodhisattva. There is a report that when the two masters met, Buton Rinpoche, who had some trouble with his legs, requested Thogme Sangpo’s blessing to gain some relief.

Brief prayers were recited and His Holiness advised that everyone, teacher and students should correct their motivation in relation to the teaching. In connection with the common verse for taking refuge and generating the awakening mind, he obsereved that often people seem to regard the Three Jewels as external to them, something like a creator god, rather than as something to aspire to attain in themselves.

“As I said yesterday, we need to gain insight into the nature of the mind, thoroughly eliminating the disturbing emotions and their imprints. Nagarjuna says the elimination of karma and disturbing emotions yields liberation. Our distorted way of looking at things can be overcome by understanding the teaching of the Buddha. And in Tibet we have a complete teaching of the three vehicles comprising the fundamental instructions, the Perfection of Wisdom teachings and Tantra.”

During his reading of the ‘Stages of Meditation’, His Holiness again alluded to the importance of tackling the disturbing emotions. He pointed out that it is their nature that the moment they arise in our minds, they disturb us. We can see this clearly if we examine our own experience. He added that today, scientists too recognise that peace of mind is good for our physical well-being.

“What is unique about the Buddha’s teaching is his explanation of selflessness. Just repeating the words to yourself is not enough, it’s necessary to understand what it means—things do not exist as they appear.”

Unable to complete his reading of ‘Stages of Meditation’, His Holiness told his audience that since they had copies of the text they could read it for themselves and try to understand it. He then read the ‘37 Practices of a Bodhisattva’, in the course of which he again noted that we have a distorted view how things exist. We exaggerate, see things as independently existent, create karma and because of that face problems.

At the end of his reading His Holiness mentioned that he had received the ‘Stages of Meditation’ from the Sakya Abbot Sangye Tenzin. He in turn had heard it when he went from Lhasa to Samye and found a Dzogchen Lama teaching it there. The ‘37 Practices’ His Holiness received from Khunu Lama Tenzin Gyaltsen. He added that the copy of the text he uses personally, and held it up for all to see, had been sent to him from Lhasa by the previous Lhatsun Rinpoche.

Announcing that he will give an Avalokiteshvara empowerment tomorrow, His Holiness declared that he will read Je Tsongkhapa’s ‘Three Principal Aspects of the Path’, which happens to be included in the book that was distributed to the audience, as the preliminary teaching prior to that.

original link with photos: http://dalailama.com/news/post/1545-teaching-stages-of-meditation-and-37-practices-of-a-bodhisattva

Dalai Lama on the Perfection of Wisdom & Consecrating a Statue of the Buddha

Likir Gompa, Ladakh, India, 30 June 2014 - The Summer Seminar on the Perfection of Wisdom opened for the first time at Likir Monastery with the assembly of monks reciting verses of homage to the Buddha and the first chapter of Maitreya’s ‘Ornament of Clear Realization’. Geshe Lobsang Samten, Ngari Rinpoche’s Manager, welcomed His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Ganden Tri Rinpoche among other dignitaries and guests. He spoke about the re-establishment of the Tibetan monasteries in India and the opportunity this has provided for Ladakhis to study. He also mentioned the value of the Tibetan Buddhist tradition and that it deserves to be preserved for the good of humanity.

“But,” he said, “such preservation will be achieved not by recitation of prayers and mantras, but through study. And this is one of our motivations for establishing this seminar.”

There followed a demonstration of Buddhist dialectical debate focussing on different modes of the awakening mind of Bodhichitta and questions such as whether the Buddha has any sense of self-interest.

President of the Ladakh Gompa Association, Geshe Konchok Namgyal spoke and expressed the general appreciation of the presence of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Ganden Tri Rinpoche and Ministers of the State Government. He mentioned the re-establishment of Tibetan centres of learning in such places as Dehra Dun and South India. This has enabled Ladakhis to study once more, much as they did in Tibet. He concluded with the wish that His Holiness lives very long and that the sun of the Dharma shines once more over Tibet.

Chapel Sopa, in his capacity as advisor to the Ngari Tsang Monastic Cultural & Educational Society, greeted His Holiness, Tri Rinpoche, and the Sangha, Abbots, Ministers and other guests. On behalf of the Likir Monastery Education Committee he thanked everyone who had made the event possible. Noting that previous speakers had praised the new Perfection of Wisdom Seminar, he also remarked that the re-establishment of Tibetan monasteries in exile, under the inspiration and encouragement of His Holiness, had, to some extent, countered the disaster that befell Tibet in 1959.

Degrees of Geshe, Kachen and Ngagrampa were awarded by Ganden Tri Rinpoche, Rizong Rinpoche, to successful candidates from the seven monasteries of the Ngari community: Phuktar, Lingshey, Garsha, Muni, Rangdom, Tongdey and Likir. Each graduate was given a certificate and a statue of the Buddha. Tri Rinpoche then offered counsel to the assembled monks including advice on how to approach the forthcoming Kalachakra Empowerment.

In his address, His Holiness the Dalai Lama joked that while Ladakh was sometimes too cold, today it was too hot. He remarked that when he first came to India more than 50 years ago not much was going on. Great development has taken place since then, including widespread study of the Nalanda tradition for which he congratulated everyone involved.

“All the classical Buddhist treatises studied in Tibet were primarily composed by scholars at Nalanda University. Being unaware of the roots of Tibetan Buddhism in Indian literature and tradition, some Western writers have erroneously described it as Lamaism. Nevertheless, the Perfection of Wisdom studied in Tibet is also studied in China, Korea, Japan and Vietnam and Nagarjuna principal proponent of the Madhyamaka or Middle Way is admired in them all too.”

His Holiness said that it is important to distinguish between teachings that were originally intended for particular individuals, citng the visions received by the Indian adept Virwapa that are essential to the Sakya lineage and the many teachings that follow the model of those Milarepa received from Marpa that make up the Kagyu tradition. On the other hand, teachings belonging to the Nalanda tradition are not only observed among the four major traditions of Tibetan Buddhism, but also in all the Buddhist countries of the Northern transmission. He said:

“If you don’t want to be like a white crow, you should study the commonly accepted texts of the Buddhist tradition and become part of the mainstream. If you don’t understand these commonly accepted treatises, you won’t be much good when it comes to teachings intended for particular individuals.”

His Holiness mentioned that during the conversations he has had with scientists and other thinkers over more than 30 years he has not discussed topics like the next life, but practical issues like how to achieve inner peace here and now. These can be discussed on the basis of reasoning and logic. He said that of the five Buddhist Sciences the most important are the Perfection of Wisdom and the view of the Middle Way, supported by logic and epistemology. He added that while there has been great development in India since he first visited in 1956, there should also be corresponding spiritual development.

“Although I don’t personally know much about the Buddha Dharma,” His Holiness remarked, “I’ve already forgotten many of the details I learned when I was young. But since I’ve kept up my studies since then I remain familiar with the key points. And I am quite prepared to employ these in other contexts such as science, which I view through the Nalanda tradition.

“Some scholars have described Buddhism not so much as a religion but as a science of the mind, which is true. In my discussions with scientists and philosophers we have agreed that the destroyer of inner peace is our destructive emotions. Some medical experts have shown that constant anger and fear undermine our health by eating into our immune system. Meanwhile, they find that the compassionate mind is good for our physical well-being. More and more scientists are showing an interest in learning from ancient Indian and particularly Buddhist psychology. You monks here are investigating the mind by using human intelligence to transform our human emotions.

“We can think of the Buddha as a thinker and philosopher. He cautioned his monks and followers not to accept what he had taught at face value on the basis of faith alone, but to examine and investigate it for consistency and only then accept it.”

His Holiness expressed appreciation of the foreign guests for their interest and support. He told the Indian guests that he often points out that Tibetans regard ancient Indian scholars and practitioners as their gurus. Adding that Tibetans are not merely disciples but reliable disciples because they have scrupulously preserved traditions that have faded away from the land of their birth. As a result growing numbers of Indians are showing interest in Buddhist knowledge of the mind and dependent origination.

A short musical performance took place in which a local man sang sweetly to the accompaniment of pipe and drum. Following this, Geshe Lobsang Gyaltsen offered words of thanks and the assembly dispersed for lunch.

In the afternoon, His Holiness drove down the road to Leh some way and back up into the hills to the village of Ney, where he had been invited by the Buddha Shakyamuni Statue Construction Committee. The colossal statue of the Buddha, whose foundation stone he laid in 2002 was now complete. Walking round the base he visited the temple within and admired the paintings of several meditation deities. Taking his seat and gazing up at the tall image he recited consecration prayers.

Addressing the crowd he said:

“This magnificent statue of the Buddha, the fourth Buddha of this fortunate aeon, stands before us complete. Well done; congratulations to everyone involved. You should pray that the merit you have created will benefit all sentient beings and bring them to enlightenment.

“However, of the Buddha’s three spheres of miraculous activity, the main one was his teaching. Of the activities of body, speech and mind the most important is speech. He said:

Buddhas do not wash unwholesome deeds away with water,

Nor do they remove the sufferings of beings with their hands,

Neither do they transplant their own realization into others.

Teaching the truth of suchness they liberate (beings).

“The Buddha taught a path that puts an end to the process of dependent arising. Although we earn merit by gazing at such a body, as I told devotees in TsoPema who asked for the consecration of a huge statue of Guru Padmasambhava, these great images may last 1000 years but they will never speak. What we also need is the speech of the Buddha as contained in the more than 100 volumes of the Kangyur. The verse expressing the essence of dependent arising includes the essence of the Four Noble Truths that are the root of all the Buddha’s teaching.

Of those things that arise from causes,
The Tathagata has taught those causes,
And also what their cessation is:
This is the doctrine of the Great Sage.”

His Holiness concluded by giving a short transmission related to Buddha Shakyamuni that included a verse and the mantra. He drove back to Likir Gompa. Tomorrow, starting early in the morning, he will give an explanation of the Heart Sutra.

See photos at the original link: http://dalailama.com/news/post/1144-summer-seminar-on-the-perfection-of-wisdom-and-consecrating-a-statue-of-the-buddha

Dalai Lama Discusses Love & Compassion

New Delhi, India, 21 March 2014 - On behalf of the Foundation for Universal Responsibility, Rajiv Mehrotra welcomed His Holiness the Dalai Lama to a gathering of about 320 people in New Delhi today. He said they were blessed and honoured that he was with them again and dedicated any merit or insight that might arise as a result to the benefit of all sentient beings. In his response, His Holiness greeted everybody, saying it was good to see so many old friends. Asking how many were there for the first time, the raised hands indicated about two-thirds. He began:

“I usually describe myself as just a Buddhist monk and as a human being, one of the 7 billion alive today. There are no differences between us; emotionally, physically and mentally we are all the same. We all want to lead a happy life. In order to do that we need to develop peace of mind, this in turn requires knowledge of the mind and emotions. This is what we are here today to discuss.”

He spoke of his commitment to promoting inner peace by integrating secular ethics into our lives without necessarily depending on faith. He added, however, that faith, be it in God or like Jains and Buddhists in the law of causality, can be useful in developing peace of mind. He clarified that within Buddhism, the Pali tradition represents the foundation, on which the Sanskrit tradition with its emphasis on infinite altruism and deeper understanding of reality is based.

Before inviting everyone to join in reciting the ‘Praise to the 17 Masters of Nalanda’, he explained that he had composed it to honour not only the original eight Indian masters included among the Six Ornaments and the Two Supreme Ones - Nagarjuna, Aryadeva, Asanga, Vasubandhu, Dignaga, Dharmakirti, Gunaprabha, and Shakyaprabha, but also Buddhapalita, Bhavaviveka, Chandrakirti, Shantideva, Shantarakshita, Kamalashila, Vimuktisena, Haribadra and Atisha. He said he regards these masters as professors of Nalanda University, whose works have had great influence on the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. Their rigorous approach is exemplified by Nagarjuna and Chandrakirti who examined the Buddha’s words and noted that where they contradicted reason they should not be taken literally. He feels this is a scientific approach.

Dialogue with modern scientists over the last thirty years has taught Tibetan Buddhists a great deal about the material world, which has been of immense benefit. However, it has also revealed that modern psychology still has only a very basic understanding of the mind. He noted:

“As human beings we need to make an effort to promote awareness that the ultimate source of a happy life is within ourselves. Meanwhile, scientists have observed that a happy mind is essential if we are to enjoy physical health. The affection we receive as infants from our mothers equips us to develop the warm-heartedness that is the basis of this.”

Pointing out that the climate change, environmental problems and the global economy all indicate our need to work together, His Holiness stressed the importance of focussing on the whole of humanity. This is why our education systems must include a sense of ethics. In order to retain a universal appeal, such ethics need to have a secular basis. He cited the example of India’s secular constitution, which far from dismissing religion expresses respect for all religions and the right of those who choose to have none. This secular approach reflects the religious harmony that has flourished in India for thousands of years.

“All religious traditions foster a sense of love and compassion and because greed and desire can obstruct it, they also advise contentment. The idea of being created by God means that individuals possess a spark of God within them. This is a powerful concept that resembles the Buddhist explanation of Buddha nature. If you ask the purpose of such different philosophical ideas, it is to foster a sense of love and compassion.”

His Holiness repeated that if we choose to engage in religious practice, it is important to do so sincerely.

Following a short break for tea, he announced his intention to explain a verse that is sometimes referred to as the ‘essence of dependent origination.’ It comes from the Vinaya, is found in both the Pali and Sanskrit traditions and is often written on the walls of temples:

Ye dharma hetuprabhava hetum tesham tathagata hyavadat tesham cha yo nirodha evam vadi mahashramana

Of those things that arise from causes,
The Tathagata has taught those causes,
And also what their cessation is:
This is the doctrine of the Great Recluse.

The cessation of causes here refers to the cessation of the causes of suffering.

“What we seek is happiness and yet what we encounter is suffering because we are under the sway of ignorance. Consequently, what we need is insight into the true nature of things. The Buddha revealed the possibility of attaining a state free from suffering. This is consistent with the teaching of the Four Noble Truths and the basic Buddhist concept of the law of causality or cause and effect. Whether our actions are positive or negative depends entirely on our motivation. Suffering results from our being motivated by disturbing emotions such as anger, hatred and attachment that are very much related to ignorance.”

His Holiness talked of his meeting with the experienced American psychologist Aaron Beck who told him that when we are angry, the object of our anger seems entirely negative and yet that negativity is 90% mental projection. This accords with what Nagarjuna taught long ago.

His Holiness remarked that disturbing emotions are so called because they disturb our peace of mind and lead to harmful action. The Tibetan term has the sense of something that makes us unhappy, that brings trouble to ourselves and others. The ultimate cause of suffering is ignorance that is a misconception of reality. However, any misconception can be countered by knowledge no matter how strong it may seem, because knowledge is based on reality, while ignorance has no basis at all. As we become more familiar with reality, ignorance becomes thinner until it is eliminated altogether. The mind is clear and neutral so when combined with compassion it becomes positive, but when combined with anger or attachment it becomes negative.

When it comes to training the mind, His Holiness explained, once you reach a certain level there is no need for renewed effort, because of its continuity. The possibility of the cessation of suffering accords with the Third Noble Truth, the path to which involves wisdom derived from a threefold awareness involving hearing, reflection and meditation. To deepen understanding we need single-pointed concentration, for which mindfulness is important, and that in turn depends on morality. So, morality, concentration and wisdom are the three important factors here.

According to the Sanskrit tradition, the Second Turning of the Wheel of Dharma concerns the teaching of the Perfection of Wisdom. This consists of 20 volumes including the Perfection of Wisdom in 100,000 lines, 25,000 lines, 18,000 lines, 8,000 lines, 2,500 lines, 700 lines, 500 lines, 300 lines and 25 lines. The last two, the texts in 300 and 25 lines, the ‘Diamond Cutter Sutra’ and the ‘Heart Sutra’ are the most widely known. The ‘Heart Sutra’ contains a dharani, ‘Gate, Gate, Paragate, Parasamgate, Bodhi svaha’ or ‘Go, Go, Go beyond, Go completely beyond, lay the foundation of enlightenment.’

His Holiness explained how this represents the path of spiritual development. The first two words ‘Go, Go - Gate, Gate’ refer to the paths of accumulation and preparation respectively. ‘Go beyond - paragate’ refers to the path of seeing on which emptiness is seen directly without duality. ‘Go completely beyond - parasamgate’ refers to the path of meditation, while ‘lay the foundation of enlightenment - bodhi svaha’ refers to the path of no more learning. Enlightenment here could refer to the attainment of the paths of Hearers or Solitary Realizers or, motivated by altruism, to the enlightenment of a Buddha.

Common to the basic and greater vehicles are the 37 factors of enlightenment which include the Four Foundations of Mindfulness, the Four Right Efforts and the Four Bases of Power that relate to the path of accumulation; the Five Faculties and Five Strengths that relate to the path of preparation; the Seven Factors of Enlightenment that relate to the path of seeing; and the Eightfold Noble Path that relates to the path of meditation. Again, His Holiness explained that within the Eightfold Noble Path, right livelihood, right action and right speech concern morality; right mindfulness and right concentration concern concentration, while right view and right thought concern wisdom. He said that to attain the path of a noble being, you prepare from the beginning to integrate these practices in order to reach the path of seeing. This involves practising with honesty and contentment.

He reiterated that enlightenment can mean mere liberation from disturbing emotions or the great enlightenment of Buddhahood in which disturbing emotions are eliminated along with their imprints.

The basis of the Four Noble Truths is dependent origination. This can be interpreted as causality in common with all Buddhist paths or as referring to existence as mere designation, which is found only in the Madhyamaka explanation. Existence in dependence on other factors and the implied lack of independent existence resembles the account of Quantum Physics today, but was first described 2000 years ago by Nagarjuna.

His Holiness concluded the day’s talk, saying:

“Now it’s time for tea, a shower and sleep, then up again at 3am for analytical meditation, reflecting on the nature of the mind. Although everything appears to have independent existence, remembering that nothing exists that way produces an experience of things being like an illusion, which shakes up the basis of the disturbing emotions.”

Original link: http://www.dalailama.com/news/post/1096-his-holiness-the-dalai-lama-gives-teachings-in-the-indian-capital