If the effect of an action could be immediately discerned, we would not need a teacher to act as a substitute for the Buddha and tell us to be careful, do good, and avoid evil actions. What is right and wrong would be self-evident. But because we are in a world where the effects of actions are not self-evident, it is important to listen to a teacher repeating what the Buddha said. He repeats words that are not lies, such as “good actions give good results, negative actions give negative results.” But it’s not enough just to hear that. We need to believe it as well, because unless we trust what has been said, we won’t act in accordance with it. Some people think that when a Buddhist teacher says something like “good actions lead to good results,” he is lying or doesn’t know what he’s talking about. It’s important to trust because we ourselves cannot see clearly. Due to ignorance we don’t see the effect of our positive or negative actions. We don’t know what we did in the past or if we will die tomorrow.
The Buddhist teachings were given by the Buddha Shakyamuni, who could see the past, present, and future as clearly as something placed in his own hand. He gave teachings on how to act as a legacy to future generations. He said there are buddhafields, there are lower realms, there is karma, the cause and effect of actions. Normal people can’t see clearly, so to help them he told them things like “Avoid negative actions, they will bring negative results; do what is correct and positive, it will bring positive results.” He also told us that this life is not the only one; that there are future lives, there were past lives. The Buddha was extremely kind. In between the time the Buddha lived and now there have been people who followed his teachings, not only the teachings on how to behave, but also the more subtle teachings. They attained special results: some could fly through the sky and pass through solid rock; some died without leaving a physical body and became rainbow light. It is not only because I am Buddhist that I believe the Buddha. It is because there have been so many since him who showed very special signs of accomplishment. That is why I feel I can safely believe all his words.
Because the teacher was so great, Buddhism became widespread in many countries, including Tibet. Apart from Buddhism, Tibetans don’t know much. They don’t know how to make airplanes, cars, or other technical wonders. But mundane things bring only superficial benefit and lack ultimate value. Instead of making outer machinery, Tibetans focused on spiritual machinery. Many attained the rainbow body. There was the great master Karmapa who defeated the four demons, the first Karmapa called Düsum Khyenpa. There is one praise to him that says, “Victor over the four demons, knower of the three times,” Düsum Khyenpa. In short, it’s very important to have trust in the Buddha’s teachings if one wishes to apply them. If one tries to apply them without trust, they won’t help much.
So what is truly meaningful in this life? Only the pursuance of buddhahood, the state of complete enlightenment. The Three Jewels are truly meaningful: the Precious Buddha; his teachings, called the Precious Dharma; and those who explain the teachings and keep the tradition alive through practice, the Precious Sangha. From the core of our heart, we should place our trust and confidence in these three. When we genuinely feel from deep within there is nothing more precious and valuable than the Three Jewels, this is called “taking refuge.” These three Precious Ones will never deceive us or abuse our trust in this life, at the moment of death, in the bardo state, or in our following lives.
How is everything perceived in the state of complete enlightenment? Imagine a crystal ball in your hand: the ball does not obstruct anything but is completely transparent. Everything all around can be seen simultaneously in the crystal ball and is vividly clear. In the same way, the enlightened state perceives everything in all directions at the same moment and in a completely unobstructed fashion. The Dharma teachings are an expression arising from this state and are totally free from any falsehood or pretense.
There was not just one buddha. In the past there have been countless awakened ones. In the present world aeon, one thousand buddhas will appear. In future aeons, a countless number of buddhas will appear. When a fully enlightened one appears and teaches, the words he utters, which are totally free of any deception, are called the Precious Dharma. Those who uphold those teachings and pass them on to others are called the Precious Sangha. In this world, we can find nothing more valuable than the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha.
The Dharma teachings given by the Enlightened One would be nothing more than writing on paper without someone to uphold and propagate them. Those who uphold the teachings one after another, like the holders of a family line, are called the Precious Sangha. Without great bodhisattvas and masters to teach others, there would be no living tradition. Throughout the centuries these beings have given many commentaries clarifying the Buddha’s words, so that today many hundreds of volumes of these books can be found. The Precious Sangha is made up of the teachers and masters who can explain what the Dharma teachings mean and how we can implement them. We need living beings who can communicate the profundity of the Dharma.
The spiritual blessings of the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha are not far away. The sun in the sky is quite distant, but the moment we hold a mirror up to it, a reflection of the sun immediately appears. In the same way, the very moment we feel faith and devotion, the blessings of the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha are with us. These blessings are said to be like a hook, while the openness that occurs in the moment of faith is compared to a ring. The hook catches the ring, just as faith and devotion open us fully to the blessings.
To strengthen their connection to the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha, a great number of people have relied on three unmistaken qualities: the unmistaken quality of the Buddha’s words, the unmistaken quality of the statements of noble beings and the enlightened masters, and the unmistaken quality of their own root guru’s oral instructions that they put into practice. By combining these unmistaken qualities with their own experience, innumerable people have been able to reach a state totally free from doubt. Moreover, they attained great accomplishments so they could fly through the sky, pass freely through solid rock, and, without leaving a physical body behind, go to the celestial realms at the time of death. Some could travel to distant places without leaving their bodies. For example, at the time of the first Karmapa, several Indian panditas came to Tibet. After meeting the Karmapa, they told others, “We know this old guy with the monkey face very well. He came to India many times and participated in the feast offerings with our guru. We have met him many times before in India.” In fact, the Karmapa had never been known to leave Tibet, but a great master like him had the ability to fly off to visit a faraway feast offering and return at his leisure.
By combining the unmistaken qualities with our own experience, we can reach a state totally free from doubt. It’s not like we are told, “Don’t doubt! Just believe!” It’s not like that. It is possible to be completely free from doubt through these three unmistaken qualities. Countless practitioners have achieved that. I myself have no doubt whatsoever in the words of the Buddha.
There are past lives and future lives; there are definite effects from good and evil actions; there are higher realms above and lower realms below. The reason I feel certain of these things is the unmistaken qualities mentioned above. If I were only to rely on myself, I would be unable to reach this certainty because I have never visited the higher realms or been to the hells, nor can I perceive past or future lives. Therefore I do not rely solely on my own judgment. The reason I am able to appear so confident is because I use these unmistaken qualities as confirmation.
What is really valuable? Our precious human rebirth, this body, given to us by our father and mother. We have all our senses intact, we are intelligent and capable of understanding—it is an incredible advantage, like a wish-fulfilling jewel. Another analogy compares being endowed with a precious human rebirth to arriving on an island where jewels abound. As this is the case, it’s extremely important not to stand around with our hands in our pockets or folded across our ch
est. This life should be put to use and be taken full advantage of, so that we don’t return empty-handed.
Right now, because we possess a human rebirth, we are clever, practical-minded, and able to carry out most of our intentions. But what if we were animals living in a forest or on a mountaintop? What would be our ability to determine our own future? We would be unable to receive teachings and put them into practice. Right now, we do possess the precious human body and have the power and opportunity to practice the Dharma. Definitely we should do so.
Right now we are at a crossroads where we can go either up or down. Going down requires no effort on our part; it is easily accomplished because it is our natural tendency to continue old patterns of negative emotions. Dharma practice, on the other hand, requires effort; it needs to be cultivated. It is like trying to roll a great boulder uphill. It won’t arrive there on its own; it must be pushed up. If we let it go, it will roll all the way downhill under its own power. We don’t need to help it. In the same way, we don’t have to put much effort into accomplishing negative actions; they come about automatically because it is our natural tendency. Practicing virtue and avoiding negativity is what requires effort.
The Buddha spoke of the ultimate view that cuts through the root of the three poisons. If we want to bring an end to samsaric existence and cross the ocean of samsaric pain and suffering, we need to practice the Precious Dharma that the Buddha taught. If, on the other hand, we are happy and content to continue in the three realms of samsara and we are not tired of undergoing endless suffering, of course we don’t need to practice the Dharma. If we think, “I’ve been circling around taking birth, growing old, getting sick, and dying, taking birth, growing old, getting sick, and dying again and again endlessly, and I’ll just go on like that,” we can certainly continue doing so, and we don’t need to practice the Dharma. When we end up as an ox or cow, we just have to eat grass, fall asleep, wake up, and abide in stupidity until we are slaughtered and eaten. Samsaric existence does not require our efforts in order to perpetuate itself. It will continue automatically. In the chant called the Rudra’s Lamenting Apology, a line says, “In the past, I have cried enough tears to fill an ocean. The bones of my past skeletons, if heaped together, would be higher than the world’s tallest mountain.”
To put it bluntly, if we want happiness we need to engage in Dharma practice, but if we are satisfied with pain and suffering we needn’t bother practicing. While driving, when we reach a fork in the road where we can go either right or left, it is our own hands that will steer right or left; the choice is ours. In the same way, whether we want to steer a course that will bring happiness in the future or continue on a course that brings us endless pain is entirely up to ourselves. No one else can steer for us. But if we can turn toward enlightenment and attain buddhahood, at that point we will be able to benefit not just ourselves but countless other sentient beings.
Another word for buddha is sugata, meaning “having gone to bliss,” to a place where not even the word suffering is heard. Happy in this life, happy at the time of death, happy in the bardo state, and happy in the future lives is one way to travel. On the other hand, samsaric existence is painful now with the suffering of illness, and later with the experience of death and the confusion of the bardo state that leads us into the lower realms where we experience even more suffering. Samsara only goes from bad to worse.
An advanced practitioner will be happy even when facing illness or at the moment of death. He will be joyful at the prospect of dying because he knows that what comes after will only be better and better. A good practitioner is confident enough to be joyful during sickness and joyful at the moment of death, whereas an ordinary person is depressed by illness and desperate at the moment of death. When he must leave behind his relatives, children, and possessions, he suffers tremendously. All the nice things he worked so hard to acquire will now be carried off and enjoyed by others—truly, how sad.
In Tibet there’s a saying, “When seen from afar, yaks look healthy and handsome; close up, they look like sickly sheep; but under the fleece, they are infested with lice and scabies.” In other words, when we look at others from afar they may appear to have happiness, prestige, friends, and wealth. But when we get closer we see that they are not really very happy and their situation is not so ideal. There is always something to complain about, and when we get very close and examine their inner feelings, each person has his own set of worries and carries his own burden around with him. No one is in perfect happiness. That’s why the Buddha called samsara an ocean of suffering, not an ocean of bliss. But I don’t need to convince you of this; you can understand it from your own experience.
Don’t just take my word for it, but decide for yourselves what is really meaningful to pursue in this life. I am only trying to refresh your memory and clarify what you already know very well. Nonetheless, appearances, what we smell, hear, see, taste, and touch, are seductive. If we allow ourselves to be carried away by our fickle mind, even though we may really want to practice the Dharma, it is somehow postponed. We think, “Well, if not today, I can practice tomorrow or maybe next month, or next year.” Or never. Things don’t occur exactly in accordance with our plans. It is said, “When I was young, I was controlled by others and couldn’t practice the Dharma. When I grew up, I played around and couldn’t practice the Dharma. Now, I’m old and too weak to practice the Dharma. Alas, alas! What shall I do?” Decide for yourselves: are you able to practice the Dharma?
If we apply the teachings, the first beneficiary will be ourselves. Later, after we have taken care of ourselves, we will be capable of helping countless other beings. On the other hand, if we don’t succeed in benefiting ourselves and others through Dharma practice, we are not really adding more beings to the ocean of samsara, but only adding ourselves to the multitudes already roaming through the lower realms. That is not of such great benefit. Wouldn’t it be better to attain enlightenment and leave samsara behind, rather than just adding ourselves to the countless beings suffering in the lower realms?
Adapted from Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, Repeating the Words of the Buddha (Boudhanath: Rangjung Yeshe Publications, 1996), “Impermanence.”
15
THE SECOND OF THE FOUR DHARMAS OF GAMPOPA
Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche
Grant your blessings that my Dharma practice may become the path.
—GAMPOPA
We continue in samsaric existence as long as we are covered by the obscuration of disturbing emotions and the cognitive obscuration. These two obscurations are precisely what hinder us from attaining the state of omniscient buddhahood. In order to remove them we engage in the practices known as the preliminaries. These practices are included under the second Dharma of Gampopa, “Make your Dharma practice become the path!”
Through the four mind-changings we develop the wish to be liberated from samsaric existence and attain the precious state of enlightenment, not merely for ourselves, but for all beings. We have become ready to take refuge in the Three Precious Ones. The Buddha is the completely and perfectly awakened state of omniscience. The Dharma is the path that leads to that, the teachings. The Sangha are all the masters who have upheld, propagated, and made the teachings flourish from the time of the Buddha up until our kind personal master with whom we have managed to connect. To take refuge in these with full trust and confidence ensures that we have the possibility to also become awakened ones ourselves. Taking refuge and seeking guidance under the Three Jewels is what opens the way to becoming enlightened.
Connected with this, as a branch, is the development of bodhichitta. Without bodhichitta, we cannot proceed on the Mahayana path. The understanding that all other sentient beings are in fact our own mothers and fathers from past lives provides a very important basis for our progress. Every little insect that we meet, without a single exception, has been our own mother and father—not just once, but many times. And all of them are on the wrong track. They want to be happy, but do not know how to a
ccomplish this. To develop bodhichitta means to form this most courageous resolve: “I will personally take responsibility to lead all sentient beings to the state of enlightenment!” This bodhisattva vow is what makes the difference between a Hinayana and a Mahayana follower. To take this vow is called generating bodhichitta. Taking refuge and developing bodhichitta are therefore the very essence of the path.
When we truly apply ourselves to the preliminary practices, we can remove obstacles on the spiritual path and create all the conducive conditions for quickly realizing the ultimate fruition. That is exactly what is meant by the second of the Four Dharmas of Gampopa: how to ensure that one’s Dharma practice becomes the path.
Some people regard themselves as exclusively Mahayana or Vajrayana practitioners. Others say they only follow Theravada, that they don’t know anything beyond that. But talking in this way only exposes one’s lack of understanding. The three vehicles are not meant to be separated at all. We can practice all of them simultaneously—in fact, we need to in order to have a solid foundation. Without really applying ourselves to the four mind-changings and taking refuge, we have no real foundation from which to connect to the Buddhist teachings. Similarly, if you want to drink tea, you need a place to put the cup. You need a table, which is the same as the foundation of the shravaka or Hinayana teachings. You also need the cup to contain the tea, which is the Mahayana attitude. And you need the tea as well—otherwise there is nothing to drink, and you do need a drink. Vajrayana teachings are like the liquid poured into the cup.
The Dzogchen Primer Page 15
