CTR: Fat chance, I would say. Fat chance.
APPENDIX 5:
FORTY-SIX WAYS IN WHICH A BODHISATTVA FAILS
THIRTY-FOUR CONTRADICTIONS TO EMBODYING VIRTUE
Contradictions to the Paramita of Generosity
Contradictions to Generosity with Regard to Material Things
1. Not offering to the three jewels
2. Giving in to possessiveness
Contradictions to the Generosity of Protection from Fear
3. Not respecting more experienced people
4. Not answering questions
Those That Prevent the Generosity of Others
5. Not accepting invitations as a guest
6. Angrily refusing gifts
Contradiction to Generosity with Regard to Dharma
7. Not teaching the dharma to those who want it
Contradictions to the Paramita of Discipline
Contradictions Mainly to Benefiting Others
1. Rejecting those who do not keep their discipline
2. Not developing learning, which inspires others’ faith
3. Making little effort for the benefit of sentient beings
4. Not performing evil actions even though it is permitted when one has compassion and there is a need
Contradictions Mainly to Benefiting Oneself
5. Willingly taking up any of the five kinds of wrong livelihood
6. Mindlessly indulging
7. Due to desire and attachment, remaining in samsara
Contradictions to Benefiting Both Oneself and Others
8. Not preventing getting a bad reputation
9. Not controlling the kleshas
Contradictions to the Paramita of Patience
1. Not practicing the four dharmas of a practitioner (not returning curses for curses, anger for anger, blow for blow, or insult for insult)
2. Not working peacefully with, but rejecting, people who are angry at you
3. Refusing to accept another’s apology
4. Giving in to anger
Contradictions to the Paramita of Exertion
1. Collecting followers for fame and fortune
2. Not overcoming laziness and so forth
3. Indulging in busyness and chatter
Contradictions to the Paramita of Meditation
1. Not seeking instruction in samadhi
2. Not abandoning obscurations to meditation
3. Viewing the experience of meditation as good and being attached to it
Contradictions to the Paramita of Prajna
Faults Related to Lesser Things
1. Not respecting the shravakayana, and therefore rejecting it
2. Having abandoned one’s own tradition, the mahayana, and instead exerting oneself in the shravakayana
3. In the same way, studying non-Buddhist literature
4. Although exerting oneself in the mahayana, preferring shravaka and non-Buddhist literature
Faults Related to Excellent Things
5. Not taking interest in the distinctive features of mahayana
6. Not seeking the holy dharma due to pride, laziness, and so forth
7. Praising oneself and disparaging others
8. Relying on the words rather than the meaning
TWELVE CONTRADICTIONS TO BENEFITING SENTIENT BEINGS
General Application
1. Not helping those in need
2. Not caring for the sick
3. Not removing the suffering of others
4. Not correcting those who are heedless
Specific Application
Faults of Not Being Helpful
1. Not repaying kindness
2. Not removing the pain of others
3. Not giving to those in need even though you can
4. Not benefiting those around you
5. Not acting in accord with the customs of others
6. Not praising those who have good qualities
Faults of Not Overpowering
1. Not overpowering those on a perverted path
2. Not taming with miracles and higher perceptions those who must be tamed in that way
Translated by the Nalanda Translation Committee from the compilation of Jamgön Kongtrül the Great in his Treasury of Knowledge.
APPENDIX 6:
THE ROOT TEXT OF THE SEVEN POINTS OF MIND TRAINING
POINT ONE
The Preliminaries, Which Are a Basis for Dharma Practice
1. First, train in the preliminaries.
POINT TWO
The Main Practice, Which Is Training in Bodhichitta
2. Regard all dharmas as dreams.
3. Examine the nature of unborn awareness.
4. Self-liberate even the antidote.
5. Rest in the nature of alaya, the essence.
6. In postmeditation, be a child of illusion.
7. Sending and taking should be practiced alternately. These two should ride the breath.
8. Three objects, three poisons, and three seeds of virtue.
9. In all activities, train with slogans.
10. Begin the sequence of sending and taking with yourself.
POINT THREE
Transformation of Bad Circumstances into the Path of Enlightenment
11. When the world is filled with evil, transform all mishaps into the path of bodhi.
12. Drive all blames into one.
13. Be grateful to everyone.
14. Seeing confusion as the four kayas is unsurpassable shunyata protection.
15. Four practices are the best of methods.
16. Whatever you meet unexpectedly, join with meditation.
POINT FOUR
Showing the Utilization of Practice in One’s Whole Life
17. Practice the five strengths, the condensed heart instructions.
18. The mahayana instruction for ejection of consciousness at death is the five strengths: how you conduct yourself is important.
POINT FIVE
Evaluation of Mind Training
19. All dharma agrees at one point.
20. Of the two witnesses, hold the principal one.
21. Always maintain only a joyful mind.
22. If you can practice even when distracted, you are well trained.
POINT SIX
Disciplines of Mind Training
23. Always abide by the three basic principles.
24. Change your attitude, but remain natural.
25. Don’t talk about injured limbs.
26. Don’t ponder others.
27. Work through the greatest defilements first.
28. Abandon any hope of fruition.
29. Abandon poisonous food.
30. Don’t be so predictable.
31. Don’t malign others.
32. Don’t wait in ambush.
33. Don’t bring things to a painful point.
34. Don’t transfer the ox’s load to the cow.
35. Don’t try to be the fastest.
36. Don’t act with a twist.
37. Don’t make gods into demons.
38. Don’t seek others’ pain as the limbs of your own happiness.
POINT SEVEN
Guidelines of Mind Training
39. All activities should be done with one intention.
40. Correct all wrongs with one intention.
41. Two activities: one at the beginning, one at the end.
42. Whichever of the two occurs, be patient.
43. Observe these two, even at the risk of your life.
44. Train in the three difficulties.
45. Take on the three principal causes.
46. Pay heed that the three never wane.
47. Keep the three inseparable.
48. Train without bias in all areas. It is crucial always to do this pervasively and wholeheartedly.
49. Always meditate on whatever provokes resentment.
50. Don’t be swayed by external circumstances.
51. This time, practice the main po
ints.
52. Don’t misinterpret.
53. Don’t vacillate.
54. Train wholeheartedly.
55. Liberate yourself by examining and analyzing.
56. Don’t wallow in self-pity.
57. Don’t be jealous.
58. Don’t be frivolous.
59. Don’t expect applause.
From a text by Chekawa Yeshe Dorje, translated by the Nalanda Translation Committee.
APPENDIX 7:
OUTLINE OF TEACHINGS
The numbered lists of teachings in this book have been organized into outline-style here as a study aid. The lists are in order of appearance in the text.
PART ONE. AWAKENING THE HEART
Chapter 1. A Glimpse of Wakefulness
Two Types of Bodhichitta / Awakened Heart or Mind
1. Relative bodhichitta
2. Absolute or ultimate bodhichitta
Chapter 2. Love, Vision, and Warriorship
Two Aspects of Love
1. Maitri (champa)/ being kind and gentle to oneself
2. Karuna (nying-je) / nobility of heart, being compassionate to others
Chapter 3. Doubt and Delight
PART TWO. BUDDHA NATURE
Chapter 4. Enlightened Genes
Two Types of Buddha Nature
1. Stained or conditional / covered by veils and yearning toward wakefulness
2. Unstained or unconditional / spontaneous, beyond concept or limitation without reference to the past or future
Five Veils / Five Types of Students
1. Immediate / those who aspire to the mahayana
2. Pratyekabuddha / those who strive for personal salvation
3. Distant / shravakas / striving for personal salvation but with thicker veils
4. Dubious / uncertain, easily pulled off course
5. Very distant / preoccupied, never having heard the dharma
Chapter 5. Basic Goodness
Five Categories of Mind
1. Sem / that which minds the other, the process of minding
2. Lo / being smart
3. Shepa / capability of knowing
4. Rikpa / insight
5. Tokpa / realization
PART THREE. PREPARING THE GROUND
Chapter 6. Cultivating Wholesomeness
Two Complementary Aspects of Meditation Practice
1. Mindfulness (shamatha) / freedom from aggression
2. Awareness (vipashyana) / freedom from ignorance
Chapter 7. Expanding Your Practice
Chapter 8. Cutting Ego Fixation
One-and-a-Half-Fold Egolessness
1. Egolessness of self
2. First half of the egolessness of dharmas or phenomena
Twofold Egolessness
1. Egolessness of self
2. Egolessness of dharmas
Chapter 9. Awakening Your Enlightened Genes
Signs of Enlightened Genes Being Awakened
1. Maitri
2. Lack of deception
Signs of Enlightened Genes Not Being Awakened
1. Being unable to react to suffering
2. Not having bigger vision
Obstacles to Awakening Enlightened Genes
1. Intrinsic slavery
2. Being without awareness
3. Taking part in evil activities
4. Sleepiness
Situations Conducive to Awakening Enlightened Genes
1. Waking up at the right time (outer situation)
2. Taking an interest in dharma practice (inner situation)
Methods for Awakening Enlightened Genes
The Four Brahmaviharas
1. Love
2. Compassion
3. Joy
4. Equanimity
The Four Limitless Ones / Beyond Ego Intention
1. Love/Loving-Kindness
2. Compassion
3. Joy
4. Equanimity
Aims of the Four Limitless Ones
1. Loving-kindness: to experience peace and cause others to be peaceful
2. Compassion: to separate the cause of pain from the pain itself
3. Joy: to help people experience pleasure without causing themselves pain
4. Equanimity: to free people from passion and aggression so they can see beyond the bias of close and distant
Causes of the Four Limitless Ones
1. Root cause / buddha nature (from within)
2. Spiritual friend (from without)
3. Confidence
4. Discriminating awareness / prajna
Natural Progression of the Four Limitless Ones
1. Liking oneself
2. Beginning to like others
3. Celebration
4. Settling down and working with others
Three Levels of Accomplishment
1. The four brahmaviharas
2. The four limitless ones
3. Twofold egolessness
Chapter 10. The Spiritual Friend
Three Attitudes toward the Spiritual Friend
1. Guide / goes before
2. Escort / accompanies
3. Ferryman / follows behind
Analogies for Four Types of Student
1. Upright container / open to the teachings
2. Upside-down container / nothing penetrates
3. Leaky container / nothing sticks
4. Poisonous container / dharma is polluted
PART FOUR: MAKING A COMMITMENT
Chapter 11. Indestructible Wakefulness
Threefold Purity
1. No actor
2. No action
3. No one acted upon
Chapter 12. Planting the Moon of Bodhi in Your Heart
Chapter 13. Cultivating a Mahayana Mentality
Four Factors of Mahayana Mentality
1. Affection for the world
2. Faith in the right situations
3. Compassion for sentient beings
4. Bravery
Chapter 14. The Seven Mahayana Exercises
1. Prostrations
2. Offering
3. Confession / acknowledging what you have done
4. Adoration / rejoicing in the virtues of others
5. Asking your teachers to turn the wheel of dharma
6. Requesting your teachers to remain and not pass into nirvana
7. Dedicating the merit for the benefit of all beings
Chapter 15. Taking the Bodhisattva Vow
Signs That You Are Ready to Take the Vow
1. The mark of learnedness / tamed and peaceful
2. The mark of meditation / less distracted and temperamental
Two Aspects of Bodhisattva Vow
1. Aspiring (mön-pe sem-kye) / the desire to enter the bodhisattva path
2. Application (juk-pe sem-kye) / actually practicing the bodhisattva path
Chapter 16. Becoming a Bodhisattva
Five Powers Developed by the Bodhisattva Vow
1. Having a spiritual friend
2. Being inspired to work with others
3. Expanding virtue
4. Intellectual study
5. Identifying what you have learned with your own practice
Chapter 17. Joining Profundity and Vastness
Twofold Attitude of a Bodhisattva
1. Profundity / twofold egolessness
2. Vastness / compassionate action
The Bodhisattva Path of Wisdom and Compassion Page 50
