Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 42-minute teaching, Geshe Dhawa Gyaltsen breaks down the three moral disciplines of the Bodhisattva vows, showing how each applies to fully ordained monks, novices, lay people with precepts, and lay practitioners working with Bodhisattva vows alone. He guides students through the practice of each: abstaining from harmful actions, actively cultivating and protecting virtue (especially from destruction by anger), and benefiting sentient beings in eleven ways. Central to his teaching is merit dedication—mixing one’s accumulated virtue with that of all sentient beings and Buddhas so it grows stably until enlightenment, illustrated by pouring juice into a large bottle. For the final discipline, he covers helping those in ignorance, fear, grief, poverty, and those who won’t accept teachings. He closes by encouraging practitioners that all these practices are achievable, beginning with sincere intention and prayer.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 04 FoP.mp3
UUID: d5b160f0-5d2f-48cb-8481-9533adb31ce8
Teacher: Geshe Dhawa Gyaltsen
Collection: Foundation of Practice (Geshe Dhawa Gyaltsen)
Date: 1996 (exact day not recorded)
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 42.2 minutes
Words: ~2,410
So so then the third one, which is in order to ripen, sorry, the second one, to ripen others mental continuum, for that you need the third morality which is the morality of benefiting sentient beings. So because of that, these three moral disciplines are what is known as the Bodhisattva vows. So then next is that way of generation or the settings of these three, first one one need to practice or first one one need is that abstaining oneself from doing wrong actions. It is mainly abstaining from misbehavior. And then second, and the second which we need is to integrate all the virtue.
And then thirdly, one, I would say, to the third one which is benefiting other sentient beings. So this setting is the, what to say, right setting. So another reason that this setting is right is that the first one, like, abstaining from misbehavior, or abstaining from misbehavior is the acts or is the cause of the second two. So then the next two, like first is that the morality of integrating virtue. That is the first one.
And then the last one is the, what do say, the morality of benefiting other sentient beings. So in order to benefit other sentient beings, one first need to, one’s mental continuum, one person need to ripen one’s mental continuum and then go to the next step which benefit the other sentient beings. So in order to benefit or ripen others mental continuum, one first needs to ripen one’s own mental continuum. And in order to lead others into this state of peace, one first to achieve that state. So then that for example, if it’s if it’s if it’s a novice who have taken what do say?
Or then person who who who who have taken vows, then say like if it’s a fully ordained monks, then the vows of the fully ordained monks is what is known as the first type of morality, which is morality of abstaining from misbehavior. Beside that, there’s no other morality which is abstaining from misbehaviors which is explained itself that the vows of the fully ordained monks is I would say. For that being, for that person, of the fully warden mouth is the morality of abstaining from misbehavior. So then, similarly if it’s a novice, then for that person, his or her, I would say, monk’s vow is is the the first type of morality, which is morality of abstaining from misbehavior. So so then if it’s a a lay person who who have taken the Vitisatova vows, then with lay person one with those who have taken lay precepts and those who haven’t taken lay precepts.
So those who have taken the lay vows or lay precepts, then that itself, the lay precept itself is the first one, first type of morality which is abstaining from misbehavior. There’s no other vows that is there beside this. So, like, the layman and woman vows are what is known as the abstaining from misbehavior, the moral of abstaining from misbehavior. So so then if it’s a lay, we haven’t taken lay precept, but taking the VodyVajrasattva vows, then for him or her, the morality of abstaining from misbehavior is like abstaining from ten non virtuous actions. So like those tendered virtues such as three through body, that of killing, stealing, and sexual misconduct.
Then form of speech, lying, and so on. And similarly, those naturally wrong actions. Those are, I would say, are known as morality of abstaining from misbehaviors. So So so then the next one, the morality of integrating virtue, which is that as one is taught by the masters or the guru, following his or her advice and taking all the virtue or doing all the virtues practice which gives a good result. So so a of, like, integrating virtue, which if one have a guru or Lama then following her advice and integrating all the virtue.
Then if one don’t have a guru or Lama then one’s becoming one’s own teacher, analyzing or checking one’s body, speech and mind. What are your physical actions and how you speak or how you think analyzing these things. So, while checking one’s body, speech, mind, and not letting one’s body, speech, and mind into those actions, those negative actions. So then if it happens that one have done some negative action to one’s body, speech, mind, then one have a guru or Lama then going in and declaring what negative actions that you have done engaging in the purification practice such as prostrations and so on. Then making this determination which I’ll never repeat these actions again.
So which those are which yeah. That’s what if you have guru or and you declare in front of them, which seeing your guru or the Lama as being the Buddha, and declaring your negative action that what you have done, and purifying those. And if one don’t have guru, then then, like, going in front of the image of a Buddha or the enlightened beings and declaring one’s wrong actions, whatever one had done. Not not like hiding it, but completely declaring it then and purifying those negative actions and and making this determination that I will never repeat those actions again. So so then purify those purifying those negative actions that one has done through one’s body, speech and mind.
And then practicing the virtue and guarding them and multiplying or developing them is what is known as integrating virtue, the morality of integrating virtue. So practicing virtue, which means like practicing those virtues action which you haven’t been trained or practiced. You haven’t had practice on that. And those that which you have trained or practiced already, like you are developing them. So, through this practice, if one have, through our practice one should able to achieve these three types of wisdoms and if one have already achieved those three type of wisdom then through our practice developing them.
Yeah. This is what, like, practice practicing. So so then next, like, practicing and then second I would say guarding them, which is like whatever virtue that one have accumulated, guarding them, letting it getting worse. So so how how you don’t, what do say, waste those virtues, actions that you have accumulated such as like doing the practice of tolerance or patience is one way of not wasting those virtues. So So for example, if one happen to generate anger, then right in the second moment of generating the anger, the anger can weaken our virtue or destroy our virtue.
So, if one haven’t dedicated the virtue then the anger destroys or weaken our virtue. So because of that, the practice of tolerance is what, or what is said that the practice of tolerance is what it is said to be guarding it from, guarding our virtue from getting, I would say, wasted. So, then next, developing or increasing that virtue which one have collected. And, making whatever virtue that one have accumulated more like making it stable. How one, let’s say, stabilize the virtue that one has collected or increase them is that one of the method is doing dedications.
Dedicating our virtue. Yeah. And making prayers, good wishing prayers. Yeah. So so you you, like, you do the dedication.
So how like dedicating right in the second moment that you have whatever virtue that you have accumulated. And at the same time, you can also dedicate the virtuous action that one will accumulate in the future and also the virtue that one one have have accumulated in the past. And not only that, but like dedicating all the virtue that of the that Buddhas have accumulated and also all the sentient beings that they have the merit that sentient beings have accumulated, all the merit like dedicating towards towards like bringing happiness to sentient beings. So if one if one to get do in this type of dedication, then one one, I would say, one receives the result accordingly. So so whatever virtue that one have collected, if one is to dedicate it towards like to have long lasting Buddhist teaching or to have a long life in one’s one guru or to bring happiness in the sentient beings.
If in this way if one is to dedicate one’s merit or the virtue, that’s how we stabilize our virtue or increase the nature of the virtue that we have accumulated. So when we do this dedication, which is that we mix our virtue together with the virtue of other sentient beings plus the virtue of the Buddhas. So so so because it’s mixed with the virtue of those other sentient beings and plus Buddhists, that sentient beings are there always. And and similarly similar, it’s same with the Buddhas. So the virtue will stay there, the virtue will remain there until the sentient beings are there, and similarly until, like, the Buddhists are there.
So so so that’s that’s how it’s it’s you know what say? By doing dedication, it is stabilized. So so as an example, for example, if you have a glass of of a good juice, then if you drink it all at once, then it will finish there. But then if you add some other juice on the other side, in a big bottle, then it will be there until the whole thing in the bottle finishes. Similarly, if we want to mix one’s poju with others, then it will remain there until others are completely finished.
So so Geshe-la is saying he’s giving all this explanation and making clear as possible on this point is because you are doing the practice. So if you understand, then it will be beneficial for you. So then second is, like, making the good wishing prayers, which as we do prayers at the end of every teaching, like whatever virtue that I accumulated accumulated through listening to the teachings, like one hour or two, like dedicating virtue and through the virtue of that that may I achieve the full enlightened state. So making these prayers. So, similarly we do the other prayers which to generate bodhicitta and whatever I have made increase.
And similarly to have the right understanding of emptiness and whatever understanding that I have made increase. In that way we make these different prayers. So, we know that, then when we are chanting these prayers, then we know what to do or what kind of prayers we should make here. So so then now the third one, the third type of morality, which is morality of benefiting other sentient beings. So that is how bodhisattva benefits other sentient beings or helps other sentient beings.
So so so how Bodhisattva benefits or help sentient beings as in the in the teaching here, like eleven way in which bodhisattva benefits other sentient beings. And so you will, like, explain briefly on that. So those are the eleven ways is that with good with good intention benefiting others is one. This one? And so second one is benefiting those sentient beings who are who are ignorant in their methods.
What means? So so then, again, there’s the third one, benefiting others. Pretty much this comes out to be very much same. I think Gishna will explain later. And then So then next one is benefiting or helping those who in fear.
And then next one, helping those who in great sadness or mourning. And, the next one, which are benefiting to those with, let’s say, lack of belonging or lack of resources. Yeah. So so then So so then next one is benefiting benefiting the homeless, like as example like those with no shelter. Then next one is that benefiting to those who want to live in harmony.
So, which if it happens if something was wrong in the past, but then later trying to live in harmony. To them, help them. So then next one is that benefiting to those who are engaged engaging in good actions. Then and then next one is benefiting those who are entered into a wrong, let’s say, who entered into wrong actions or wrong views. Helping them there.
And then next one is benefiting with, let’s say, with miracle, miracle powers. So how how the last one, for example, like, if someone is giving teachings, never accepts any points whatever is being taught. All the time it says no to it. Like As Geshe-la saying, giving an example like whatever you put in donkey’s ear, the donkey will just, what do you say, shake its head.
So as an example, like in donkey’s ear, whatever you put, whether you put a handful of dust or it just practically of that, it just shakes its head. And same thing with the if you put a gold in his ear, same it does the same thing. So so so like the example of donkey, those who don’t accept any spiritual teachings, or those teachings which have right meanings. To them, how you help is by by performing miracles. So as we all have miracle powers, we should perform those.
So, these are ways how, how one benefits other beings. And that’s third one which is like the third moral discipline which benefiting other sentient beings. So these are the three, I wanna say, moral disciplines devours of bodhisattvas, which has just been explained, like how you benefit other sentient beings, like eleven ways of benefiting other sentient beings. And when you hear all this in detail, you might feel that I won’t be able to do that. I won’t be able to do all this.
I shouldn’t have that, what do say, lower state of mind. So, as one I explained before that if possible then should always be aware of one’s physical and verbal actions, negative actions, that of the three of physical and the four of the verbal one. And if possible, stopping those negative actions and then if one is even unable to stop those, then making good wishing prayers that we are able to stop those negative actions. If you make these good wishing prayers, then that too is good enough. So so what what Buddha all the Buddha what do say?
What Buddha taught is all all which which is possible. He didn’t taught taught something that is impossible. So the only thing that that that is missing is