Audio recorded at Tibetan Buddhist Institute, Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 94-minute session, Kyabje Rinpoche guides practitioners through foundational preparation for serious Mahāyāna practice: generating authentic motivation rooted in equanimity and deep reflection on death. He distinguishes coarse impermanence (eventual death) from subtle impermanence (moment-by-moment disintegration of body and mind), and explores how different philosophical schools understand consciousness across rebirth. From this foundation, he teaches the law of karma and causality—the four principles that govern how virtuous and non-virtuous actions shape future rebirths—then emphasizes restraint of body and speech as the practical starting point. The session introduces the Mind Training Like the Rays of the Sun text and closes with extended Q&A on unknowing non-virtue, purification methods, and offerings to the deceased.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 2012-03-04 – KR.mp3
UUID: 0e3843b0-653c-49b9-83d5-7038c0469514
Teacher: Kyabje Rinpoche
Collection: Emptiness
Date: 2012-03-04
Recorded at: Tibetan Buddhist Institute, Adelaide
Words: ~4,293
So regarding the motivation which must be generated as a preliminary to receiving teachings, it is not just a matter of thinking about what this motivation must be. This is not of real benefit. Initially, such a motivation can only be generated on the basis of equanimity, the feeling of equanimity. And what should this motivation be? It should be the motivation which thinks why should all sentient beings as vast in number as space not attain a state of full enlightenment?
Now with this as our goal, there are two broad ways to proceed. The first is through training in the three principles of the path, which are definite emergence, bodhicitta and the view realizing emptiness. The second is to train in the practices of the beings of the three scopes, the small, middling and greater scope. However, as a preliminary for generating the three principles of the path and specifically renunciation, the practice of the being of small scope is indispensable and this includes meditating on the precious human rebirth with its eight freedoms and 10 endowments, meditating on death and impermanence, meditating on karma and causality and on the faults of cyclic existence. With this as a foundation, one can then generate the three principles of the path.
Now at present, today, our goal is to give rise to a Mahāyāna motivation. So as is said in the Tibetan Collected Verses, Tibetan Dhammapada, the advice is to practice authentically ethics. In this context, the teachings of these scriptures is that the motivation for taking either novice or fully ordained vows is a wish to escape totally from cyclic existence. And this is the crux of the interpretation of the Vinaya Sutras according to the glorious Gunaprabha. Therefore, the main motivation for which one becomes ordained either as a monk or a nun is to study since once one is ordained one has created the leisure for being able to study.
Therefore, the foremost goal of ordination is study. Now from the standpoint of the Vinaya Sutras, the goal of ordination is to overcome desire in all its forms. And therefore, the two goals of ordination are study and overcoming desire. Generally speaking, one can say that in the Buddhist tradition, certainly the Tibetan tradition, the level of study of those who are ordained is very good. And therefore the main goal of ordination is to create the opportunity for study.
As said in his Song of Realization, therefore take everything which you study as an oral instruction for practice. And this quote of Je Tsongkhapa is developed by Kyabje Pabongka Rinpoche in his Liberation in the Palm of Your Hand in which he says, hence mix your mind with whatever you study. So it’s exceptionally good to blend, to mix one’s mind with whatever one studies in terms of Buddhist scriptures? So regarding the study, one can know quite clearly the level of practitioners. Geshe-la from his side has studied well and your translator has studied well.
Then in terms of practice, it is another issue altogether. We have no clear way of knowing who is practicing well and who is not practicing well. As is said in the texts, meditating on and here meditating means thinking on death and impermanence is the cause for eliminating all attraction to the desires of this life. If we reflect on this carefully, we can see that within this room most probably within ninety or one hundred maybe even fewer years not one of us will remain alive. Then we should reflect on this.
And this happened to both Buddha Śākyamūni, our teacher, and Nāgārjuna who died. It will be the same thing for us therefore. Then reflecting here on death and impermanence, what is to be understood by impermanence? There are two types of impermanence: coarse and subtle impermanence. Coarse impermanence refers to our actual death.
Most of us probably understand that we will die at some point. Subtle impermanence is more difficult to understand. Generally speaking, one can posit subtle impermanence regarding exterior phenomena or one’s own self. Exterior phenomena are phenomena such as tables, this temple and so forth, which change indeed instant by instant, which disintegrate instant by instant. While this is true, this is not what concerns us first and foremost.
What concerns us is our own situation. Applying subtle impermanence to ourselves, we can see that we also change instant by instant. We actually disintegrate instant by instant. When we speak of we, the person I is imputed on the composite of the body and the mind. There is nothing else apart from the body and the mind which can be pointed to as a person.
This composite of body and mind disintegrates instant by instant. So it is quite obvious to us that our bodies and minds, the composite of our bodies and minds in which the person is imputed. In other words, our five coarse aggregates decay and will eventually disappear. If however we analyze carefully what is meant by the person, then we can see that from the standpoint of the Prāsaṇgika Madhyamaka School of Thought, the person is seen as a mere imputation on the basis of body and mind or on the basis of the five aggregates. Whereas from the standpoint of the four lower schools of tenets, from the Vaibhāṣika all the way up to the lower sub school of Mādhyamika, this Svatāntrika Madhyamaka, what is posited actually as the person, in other words, what reincarnates from life to life, is none other than the mental consciousness.
Therefore, it is important to understand carefully what is meant by the impermanence of the mental consciousness, the fact that the mental consciousness disintegrates instant by instant. And there are unfortunately many difficult points in this matter when one starts to investigate carefully death and impermanence. It is a difficult topic. For instance, while it is obvious that the person disintegrates instant by instant and therefore is an impermanent phenomenon, it is open to analysis and debate whether the actual total continuum of the person can be said to be impermanent or permanent. This is something you should analyze for yourselves.
Likewise as said, it is incorrect from the beginning of one’s practice to practice fixation meditation. Instead, at the very beginning, one must engage in analytical meditation on whatever topic one is choosing to investigate whether it be coarse impermanence, subtle impermanence, coarse selflessness or subtle selflessness and this one does through a constant interface between study and one’s own experience and then only after this does one engage in fixation or concentration meditation. And therefore, we must analyze very carefully what the differences are in the mode of disintegration or the mode of impermanence of material phenomena on the one hand and minds on the other hand. In the case of material phenomena, it is evident whether we take this table or this temple that the mode of disintegration is one whereby eventually they will be destroyed. They will cease to exist as temples or as tables.
However, in the case of mind, the issue is much more complicated. We cannot say that there is one instant at which the mental consciousness ceases to exist. So when we speak of the impermanence of the mental consciousness or the fact that the mental consciousness disintegrates instant by instant, what are we speaking about? We are not speaking of a disintegration in the sense of a disintegration of material phenomena since the continuum of the mental consciousness is never interrupted. Then it is up to us to analyze carefully what is understood and see whether it is possible to say that while the mental consciousness disintegrates instant by instant, the continuum of the mental consciousness can be said to be permanent or not.
This is a difficult topic and in this matter, it is helpful to review the positions of the various schools of tenets. Fundamentally, the two lower schools of tenets, the Vaibhāṣika and the Sautrantikas, as well as one sub school of the Cittamātra school of tenets, the so called True Aspectarians assert that when a practitioner who has entered the Hīnayāna from the beginning reaches a state of an Arhat, in other words of a Foe Destroyer, at that instant the mental continuum of that practitioner is, or to be more precise, when that practitioner dies, his mental continuum is severed, is interrupted. This is not a position which is accepted by the two higher schools of tenets. In other words, by the non-True Aspectarian Chittamatras and by the Madhyamikas. However, this position that there is a severance of the continuum of consciousness at liberation liberation is a position which is clearly explained by Je Tsongkhapa in his Golden Rosary regarding these two schools and which can be understood from the standpoint of these schools since they assert that cycling and cyclic existence occurs through the power of the afflictions and upon the attainment of the root of the afflictions is severed therefore there is no motive anymore for cyclic existence.
And therefore this is the root of the position that hold the mind contingently or occasionally, contingently is impermanent. Nonetheless, the mind qua mind, in other words, we are referring here to the mental consciousness is permanent. Now here there is no debate regarding the other aggregates, in other words, the aggregate of form, feeling, recognition and volition. However, there is a debate regarding the mental consciousness which is posited as the person by these lower schools of tenets and specifically by the Vaibhāṣika who do assert that instant by instant, the mental consciousness disintegrate and therefore is contingently impermanent, but also say that since its continuum is never destroyed, then such a mental consciousness can be said to be permanent. So this is what is called in Buddhist philosophy a doubt.
This is what the Buddhist monks in the great seats such as Sera Je train in when they engage in debate. They debate partly relying on scriptural quotes, but mainly relying on logic and analysis. In this context, the debate would run the subject of mental consciousness. It follows that it is impermanent because it is transitory and disintegrates instant by instant. Then if the opponent accepts this, one would say then.
In this case, what is meant by the fact that the mental consciousness disintegrates instant by instant? Can we reduce thereby that the continuum of the mental consciousness is interrupted? If he accepts this, this leads to an extremely strange position. Irrespective of one’s final position on this topic, this is how one would analyze and debate the impermanence of the mind. The mind therefore is understood as being impelled by the flow of the afflictions in ordinary beings in migrators in cyclic existence such as ourselves.
And as Candrakīrti says, it is actually through meditation on death and impermanence that one counters attachment to this life and can give rise to a mind striving for higher status in future lives. Therefore as Ārya Nāgārjuna says in the Ratnāvali, the Garland of Jewels, In as much as all suffering arises from non virtue in all lives and happiness arises from virtue alone, abandon non virtue and practice virtue. In addition, Je Tsongkhapa says in the the basis of all qualities, since non virtuous and virtuous deeds follow our body from life to life like shadow follows the body on the path, abstain from non virtue and train in virtue. So understanding clearly therefore that all contingent or short term momentary happiness in this life is the result of virtue in past lives and that all suffering is the result of non virtue and through understanding clearly that should we be reborn in our next life in the lower realms, the suffering would be in supportable. One must make the focus of one’s practice that training in virtue and abandonment of non virtue.
Specifically, one must gain direct experience in this. Therefore, for all it would be very helpful for us to practice, we can see that it is quite difficult to do so. If we read Lamrim Chenmo, for instance, then we will have many doubts, how should one practice, is this actual meaning of the text and so forth, and time will disappear. Likewise, if we try to engage in Tantric practice, let us say Yamāntaka, then the preliminary is instantaneous self generation as Yamāntaka. We do not fully understand how to do this and then it is not clear what this practice can lead to.
Therefore, it is much more helpful for us to focus on something which we can train in and that is the restraint of body and speech. This restraint of body and speech enables us eventually to eliminate the causes for the lower rebirth and attain causes for the higher rebirth. Once we understand clearly that the causes for the lower rebirth are the afflictions and that an affliction or a non virtuous state of mind is understood as that which gives rise to a maturing, an effect of maturation which is of the nature of suffering. Whereas a virtuous state of mind or virtue is that which gives rise to an effect of maturation which is of the nature of happiness. Then it will become very easy for us to avoid and abstain from non virtue and to practice virtue.
For instance, at Sera Je, there are many small insects one can see which have a lifespan of maybe fifteen days or less. Then when one looks at these insects such as ants and so forth, and one thinks their effect of maturation, in other words, the body of an ant or of an insect in which they are born, is the result of past non virtue, from one’s own side it becomes much easier to give up non virtue in this life so as not to experience this in future lives. Paul, there are therefore profound practices connected with sūtra and tantra. It is critical for us to be realistic for ourselves and to start by training in that practice which can prevent our being reborn in the lower realms. In other words, to start by controlling our body and our speech.
Geshe-la will share some of his doubts or questions with you. Specifically, if we look at the twin pairs, the two pairs, on the one hand of virtue and non virtue and on the other hand of dharma and worldly activities. The question then arises what is the relationship between these two pairs? Generally speaking, Atisha explains that virtue is that which is focused on future lives at least and leads to results in future lives. Yet we can see that there are virtues which can lead to results in this very life.
Then if this is the case, what exactly is the relationship between the pair virtue and non virtue and worldly and dharma activities? Geshe-la’s opinion is that virtue and non virtue are a generality of which dharma and worldly activities are the particular. If this is the case, then we can clearly see how some virtues might be mundane and other virtues might be super mundane. But it is up to you to investigate this for yourselves. And we will now pass on to our text, Mind Training Like the Rays of the Sun.
As is said in the root text of this text, in other words, Geshe Chekhawa’s root text initially trained in the preliminaries. Since the topic of our text, Mind Training Like the Rays of the Sun is the Mahāyāna, the preliminaries are actually the practice of the being of middling scope. In the preliminary of the practice of the being of middling scope is the practice of the being of small scope. This has four subdivisions, which is meditating or reflecting on the precious human rebirth, its freedom and endowments, meditating on death and impermanence, meditating on the faults of cyclic existence and on karma and causality. At present, we’ll broach the sub topic of karma and causality.
And here most of this topic has already been covered indirectly. When one speaks of karma and causality in this context, one is referring to the following reflections. At the time of death, there are only two paths. One can be reborn in the higher or the lower realms. There is no alternative and it is definite that one of these two will happen.
We are reborn with no control over the process of rebirth. It is not a matter of choice. And if we engage in virtuous deeds, we will be reborn in the higher realms and if we engage in non virtuous deeds in the lower realms. Now the actual topic of karma and causality is subdivided into four of which the first is that karma is definite. And therefore, as was said in Nāgārjuna’s Ratnāvali, the Garland of Jewels, from non virtue arises all suffering and in our rebirth and from virtue arises all happiness contingent and long lasting happiness.
The first two verses refer to the fact as Geshe-la has explained that engaging in non virtue leads inevitably to lower rebirth and the suffering associated with it or if one is reborn in a higher realm as a human being, it leads to be reborn as mentally defective or as lacking some of the physical senses. On the other hand, if one engages in virtue, then one can hope for a higher rebirth in future lives or even ultimate happiness, definite excellence which refers both to liberation and to full enlightenment. The second sub outline is the increasing nature of karma. What is meant here is that even if one accumulates a small non virtuous seed over a long process of maturation, it can lead to an extremely powerful result of suffering. And this has to be qualified by saying that this occurs in so far as this has not been purified.
So we can see that in the same way as one seed in this life can eventually lead to down the line many plants. In the same way one non virtuous deed can lead to a tremendous amount of So to give an example, when we want to travel on a long trip to go abroad, for instance, we need money. If we don’t have money or we don’t have enough money, then our trip will be beset with suffering. In the same way, if we do not have enough virtue, enough merit, then in future lives we will experience suffering upon suffering. However, if we have accumulated enough merit, then in future lives we will have wealth, prosperity and happiness.
And therefore we should think as follows regarding the second outline. In the same way as a seed of barley planted in the earth will sprout when it encounters favorable conditions, in other words rain. In the same way, even the smallest non virtuous deed will give rise to suffering in the future when the conditions arise. Likewise, we should never think this virtuous deed is too small to be bothered with in the same way as a vase is filled by drops of water in the same way we can be filled by virtuous deeds. The third sub outline of the section on karma and causality is the manner in which one does not encounter karma which has not been accrued, which has not been accumulated.
The meaning here is that if one has not accumulated the karma for a certain event, be it happiness or suffering, one will not experience its result. There is no suffering or happiness whose karma we have not accumulated in the past. Now there is a doubt regarding this. In the case of Buddha Śākyamūni, one might say, what karma did the five disciples who received the teachings from Buddha Śākyamūni upon his attaining enlightenment accrue to receive such teachings, since after all Buddha Śākyamūni had not been enlightened previously? Now clearly in this case, they must have accrued the karma to receive these teachings.
And the fourth sub outline is that karma which is not purified never disappears. Now in this context, there is a substantial doubt. It is a position of all Buddhist schools that one cannot give one’s karma to another person nor can one take the karma of another person upon oneself. It is impossible. Each person must experience the results of their own karma, positive or negative happiness or suffering.
However, it is indeed said in the biography of Milarepa that after being poisoned, he actually passed on part of the suffering from the poison to Geshe who had tried to poison him and asked him whether he could withstand this or not. And therefore the meaning of this fourth outline that karma is inexhaustible is as our teacher Buddha Śākyamūni taught that even if non virtuous deeds were accumulated one hundred eons ago and the seed, karmic imprint has been dwelling in our minds ever since, When the conditions arise, at that point it will mature. Therefore, these four sub outlines of the presentation of karma and causality: the certainty of karma, the increasing nature of karma, the fact that one will not encounter or experience karma which has not been accumulated and the fact that karma is inexhaustible should, in terms of the supreme level of practice, which is the goal of this treatise, lead us to enter in practice of the Mahāyāna Mind Training So we have finished the presentation of Karma and Causality And Geshe-la at present will take questions during the remaining twelve minutes. So the question is how to practice the abandonment of the 10 non virtues in the context of practice of Vasubandhu which Geshe-la mentioned.
So the question is not clear about which quote Vasubandhu is concerned. Geshe-la gave at least two. Then Geshe-la says generally speaking if one is referring to the first quote of Vasubandhu which is that the goal of Dharma is the abandonment of the afflictions then it is evident that one practices through applying the antidotes to the afflictions. If one is referring to the second quote of Vasubandhu in which he lists the 10 non virtuous deeds, then there is no difference between practicing and keeping with that quote and any of the other means of abandoning the ten non virtuous deeds. Are there other questions?
Other questions? To me? Yes, Jasmine. Most definitely. It is said the gateways to the accumulation of non virtue are ignorance and heedlessness.
Then someone who doesn’t have a clue about karma and causality and just does whatever he or she wants in this life, acting as he or she wants, obviously will accumulate a tremendous amount of non virtue. Otherwise it would be very odd, wouldn’t it? Otherwise it would be very strange. It would be really extraordinary. Are there other questions?
Yes. So to answer your two questions, the first which is basically the same as Jasmin’s, is it possible to accumulate these non virtuous deeds who behaving without knowing about them? The answer is definitely yes. And the second, how to purify it? Generally speaking, the four main gateways for the accumulation of non virtuous deeds are ignorance, heedlessness in other words not giving a hoot, the powerful afflictions and And the fourth is disrespect or lack of respect.
Now in our cases, if we attend the teachings and practice Dharma, we will have eliminated the two first causes. We have eliminated ignorance because karmic processes are explained and we will have eliminated heedlessness because we will try to be careful about our non virtuous deeds. So we will mainly be subject to the third cause which is being overwhelmed by the afflictions. Now the way we handle this is whenever we have accumulated a non virtuous deed, we purify it by the means appropriate to the type of deed accumulated. For instance, if one has vows, if one is a novice monk or a fully ordained monk or nun.
In this case, the foremost means of purifying breaches regarding ordination is monastic confession, Posha or Sojong, every fifteen days. If one has received Bodhisattva vows, the 18 root and 46 branch vows, and one has broken them, the foremost means of purifying them is reciting the confession sutras and also offering prostrations. Finally, if one has received tantric vows, then the foremost means of purifying them if they are broken is reciting 100,000 mantras of Vajrasattva. Every single one of us should recite every day 21 mantras of Vajrasattva to prevent the non virtue from increasing in power. Yes, Crystal.
So yours is an important doubt. Basically it is not possible to give merits to another person. Therefore, when our parents die, the situation or relative die, the situation is very difficult. Now we do perform rituals and so forth at their death and this is because Vasubandhu says in the third chapter of Abhidharmakośa that they will stay for one week, seven twenty four hour cycles in the Bardo and during this state if one offers pujas and makes offerings, it is possible to reduce the suffer ings they experience in the Bardo. Geshe-la has considerable doubts about this and His Holiness the Dalai Lama has said that he himself finds it difficult to believe.
He does not see how the offerings which are performed by others can benefit someone once they have died. It is only in function of the virtue oneself has accumulated and the non virtue oneself has accumulated that one can experience happiness or unhappiness in the Bardo and in future lives. We’re overtime by one minute, so Geshe-la thinks we will stop here.
Key terms in this teaching
- cyclic existence samsara (Skt); khor wa (Tib)
- The six realms of conditioned existence, three lower - hell, hungry ghost and animal - and three upper - human, demigod and god. LYWA
- lower realms ngen dro (Tib)
- The three realms of cyclic existence with the most suffering: the hell, hungry ghost and animal realms. LYWA
- Madhyamaka u ma (Tib)
- The Middle Way school, one of the two Mahayana (Great Vehicle) philosophical schools. The Middle Way school does not assert true establishment even conventionally. There are two divisions of the Middle Way school: 1) Autonomists and 2) Consequentialists. LYWA
- Prasangika Madhyamaka u ma thäl gyur pa (Tib)
- The Middle Way Consequence school, a sub-school of the Middle Way school of Buddhist philosophy. The Consequence school accepts mere consequences known to others and does not assert true establishment even conventionally. LYWA
- self generation dagkye (Tib)
- The practice in Vajrayana where the meditator visualizes him- or herself as the deity. LYWA
- Sojong possadha (Skt)
- The bi-monthly practice by ordained Sangha of purifying broken vows by confession in front of other Sangha members. LYWA
- Svatantrika Madhyamaka u ma rang gyü pa (Tib)
- The Middle Way Autonomy school, a sub-school of the Middle Way school of Buddhist philosophy. The Autonomy school accepts autonomous reasons and does not assert true establishment even conventionally. LYWA
- thought transformation lojong (Tib)
- Also known as “mind training” or “mind transformation”. A powerful approach to the development of bodhicitta, in which the mind is trained to use all situations, both happy and unhappy, as a means to destroy self-cherishing and self-grasping. LYWA
Definitions adapted from the Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive glossary, as taught in the Gelug tradition.