Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 45-minute teaching from 1996, Geshe Dhawa Gyaltsen introduces Buddhist morality as the intention to abandon harm. He outlines three types of morality: abstaining from negative actions, integrating virtue through study and devotion, and actively benefiting others. The core teaching focuses on Bodhisattva morality in conflict — how to practice patience by not retaliating when harmed, not matching anger with anger, and speaking honestly with compassion. He walks through specific Bodhisattva vows around patience with concrete principles: if someone abuses you, don’t abuse back; if they’re angry, don’t respond with anger but wait until they’re calm; accept apologies genuinely rather than hold grudges. Each principle has exceptions based on the person and situation. The teaching ties all practice to bodhicitta, the compassionate motivation to benefit all beings.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 09 FoP.mp3
UUID: c70ee769-4de4-4ebf-8737-7d3fb9bfbc9f
Teacher: Geshe Dhawa Gyaltsen
Collection: Foundation of Practice (Geshe Dhawa Gyaltsen)
Date: 1996 (exact day not recorded)
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 45.6 minutes
Words: ~2,758
So quoting a line from the text “A Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life.” In that text, it explains the definition of morality. So the definition of morality is the intention to abandon harming others. The intention to abandon harming others.
So wish to abandon or the intention to abandon harming others, which the harm we bring towards others instead of the seven unvirtuous actions of the body and the speech. And these seven actions of our body and speech, those seven non-virtuous actions of body and speech, which is caused by the three mental negative actions. So the definition of morality is the wish to abandon these ten non-virtuous actions. So when one trains on this, like abandoning the ten non-virtuous actions, and when one becomes familiar with this practice of abandoning the ten non-virtuous actions, more and more one becomes familiar with this action of abandoning ten non-virtue, one comes into this state of perfecting or completely perfecting this action. So when one comes to perfect that through training or being more and more familiar with the action, then one comes to achieve the perfection of morality.
So first to perfect on this practice, one first has to train on morality. So morality, some may understand just as the rules which are prescribed for the ordained ones, but that’s not right. So as morality is concerned, as in the past teachings, I explained the three types of moralities, which is first one is morality of abstaining from negative actions, and morality of integrating virtue, and also the morality of benefiting other sentient beings. So all these three moralities apply for us. We should abandon the morality of abandoning misactions or wrong actions, abstaining from wrong actions, and integrate a knowledge of integrating virtue, and the third one. All of these we have. So if you have taken vows of individual liberation, then that’s one of the moralities. And if you haven’t taken the vows, then abandoning the action is also the first type of morality, which is morality of abstaining from wrong actions or misbehavior.
So then the next morality is that integrating virtue, morality of integrating virtue, which that is training on the bodhisattva paths and also making prostrations towards the enlightened beings or the holy fields and listening and contemplating all the teachings. And also making offering service to one’s parents and so on. And listening to Dharma teachings. So in order to train one’s mindstream, like engaging in these different practices are all known as the morality of integrating virtue.
So then the next morality which is the morality of benefiting other sentient beings, as it is explained in the past. It’s like explaining the past teachings which give twenty-one different ways of benefiting other sentient beings. And that includes the four means of gathering and so on. So the only one that is benefiting sentient beings with miracle powers, that’s one which we lack. Otherwise, others we can perform. So the four means of gathering is giving Dharma teaching, giving material goods, and speaking according to the needs of sentient beings. And then next one is, again, like teaching others, which is, again, according to the needs of beings, which are not just speaking anything that one can, but looking to the person’s need and according to that, speaking to the person.
So in short, that with the mind of benefiting, engaging in those virtuous actions is what is known as the morality of benefiting. So all these are possible for us to train. It’s not impossible. And if one trains in these, our practice becomes the practice of Bodhisattvas. So all practice of morality that we perform, for it to become the cause of bodhicitta or the cause of perfection of morality, it has to be conjoined with these minds such as compassion and so on.
So as it is explained in this teaching, in this text “Parting from the Four Attachments,” which explains one of the points is that if one is attached for one’s own sake, then for that person, bodhicitta is not possible. So because of that, as for us, it’s very important to train or to develop the bodhicitta. So because of that, whatever one performs, whether one is doing practice or listening to teachings or doing any work, all doing these things with the mind of benefiting others. And with the mind of benefiting others, if one needs to perform those actions, then it becomes the practice becomes worthwhile. So here to listening to the teachings, setting this mind, I listen to the teaching to achieve a fully enlightened state for the sake of others. So setting up this kind of mind, and we do short meditation here.
So the teaching that Geshe-la will explain now is of the forty-six secondary vows. We shall be explaining those faults associated with patience. And that’s page number fourteen and number seventeen. So the faults which are associated with the practice of patience, there are three. So the first one of that is not living with the cause of patience. So which the fault is that like retaliating if someone has given some harm or fight, someone fights with you, you’re fighting back. So which if someone abused one and retaliating, the person abusing back, which in this part here, going against principles like that of virtue, Bodhisattva’s principles.
So the four principles or the vows, which is if one is abused, not abusing back. That is one of the principles. So which is like if someone fights with you, not fighting back, but accepting the loss. So for that, if you retaliate back with the person, then you receive downfalls.
So the second principle is that if someone is angry towards you, not getting angry back to the person. So instead, like, if someone fights with you and if you retaliate back with fighting back, if you fight back, then that is what brings unhappiness among the two. And that is also same thing what brings unhappiness among four and eight, among eight and four, like sixteen and so on. As said in the past too, that if someone is angry towards you, then not right away getting angry back to the person. Even if you are angry inside, not physically showing anger and just staying calm, which later on when you see the other person when the other person is calmed down, then you can speak to the person, and once the other person is calm, then if you speak, then you can get along.
So at the point when the other one is angry, just retaliating to that person, right away getting angry to him or her, and once the other person is calmed, then we can talk with the person and then both can get together and discuss the matter. So but instead, if one reacts right away with anger to the other person, then that is what causes more problem, which then in the house, you throw things around and you don’t get along and more problems arise. So not only that, but other people who are living in the home too become unhappy and causing everyone unhappy and living there, everyone being unhappy.
So the next one, the third principle, which is even if someone hits you, not hitting back. So then the next one, the fourth principle, which is that even if someone tells your fault, not telling their fault right away. So as in the eight verses of mind training, it explains that what it says in the text that taking the loss upon oneself and giving the victory to others here. So say, if one is in a fight and if one takes the loss, if one takes the side of loss, but in ultimately, one is gaining.
So now we go to the next vows. That is the number eighteen, which is not stopping the continuation of anger. So that one, not stopping the continuation of the anger which has two, that of the eighteen and the nineteen, which is oneself not stopping the anger and another next one which is not disturbing others’ anger. So which is not stopping one’s anger, which is the number eighteen. That is neglecting those who are angry with one. So which is in that, if one had done something wrong or even if one didn’t do any wrong thing, if someone reacts towards you out of anger, then if you do neglect that person, then you commit this fault.
So if you neglect or ignore the others, those who, if you neglect those people who are angry towards you, like out of this different state of delusions such as anger or jealous and so on, then it is said to be afflicted or it is known as deluded one. And then if that action is done out of indifferent mind or out of laziness, then that is not deluded. So for this, if, say, whether one has done something wrong or even if one hasn’t done anything wrong, but someone is angry at you, then one shouldn’t just neglect, but one should speak to that person like, what is it? One should speak to the person in a clever way, not in a peaceful manner.
So even though one hasn’t done any wrong actions, or the person is angry towards one because the other person has this doubt that one has done those wrong actions, so to clear that doubt to that person, one should speak clearly, straightforward, with honesty. Not just living there without taking any notice, but speaking to the person honestly, straightforward.
So but then there are few exceptions where even if you don’t speak straightforward to the person, there are few exceptions where you don’t receive downfalls. So with some reasons, for example, if that person whoever is angry towards you, if you have this reason that even if you don’t tell, that person will suddenly change and become subdued, if you see that and if you have that reason, even if you don’t tell, even if you are not, if you don’t tell to the person, then you don’t have that fault.
So again, the next one is that if someone, if the person is known as someone who even if you do tell, if you do honestly tell what you feel, if that person is still like continuing doing these wrong actions, those negative actions, then again, you don’t receive downfalls of not telling. So and also those whom if you do speak or be straightforward and be honest and tell them, if that again causes the other person to repeat that negative action again, then there are some beings who repeatedly does those, like, knowingly does those things because if you tell, they want to do again. So if you know if it’s that type of being, then even if you don’t tell, you don’t receive that fault.
So then, again, another exception is that even if you do be honest and tell how you feel to the person, if that person reacts with anger and fights with you, then again, for that not telling or not being straight, you don’t receive the downfalls. And then another exception again is that there are some people who whether you speak, whether you be honest or not, they don’t change. They are very stable, but they don’t change whatever you say. So if, again, if it’s that type of person, then even if you don’t tell them, you don’t receive the downfalls.
So there are these five exceptions. So beside these, if whether someone has caused you anger or even if they don’t cause you angry, but if they are doing something, some negative actions, then you should be honest with the person and be straightforward and tell them the truth or tell them. So if one is not to tell, then one breaks one secondary fault, and also one breaks one of these those moralities, one of those three types of moralities.
So this part, up to this part which is the not stopping the anger by oneself. And then after that is the next one, which is not stopping others’ anger. So this the second one is like the opposite of the first one, which where others have done something wrong towards you, towards one, or out of doubt if others have done something towards you and comes up with apology. If they ask forgiveness, then if one doesn’t accept that, then if one doesn’t accept others’ apology, then one breaks this, one receives this fault.
So if he doesn’t accept the apology or forgiveness out of ill mind or out of competing others, then it is said that it is deluded one. And then again, if you don’t accept others’ apology because out of laziness or out of indifferent mind, then it is not deluded, but we still receive the downfall.
And again, the few exceptions in which situation where you don’t receive the downfall is that by not accepting the apology, if there is a reason that you see that by not accepting apology, the other will subdue. If the other one will subdue if you don’t accept the apology, then again, that is exception. You don’t receive the downfall.
So and then next, another situation where if the person is person who is apologizing, he or she is not doing according to dharma, according to the dharma, then again, not accepting the apology, you don’t receive the downfall. And again, if the person whoever is apologizing, if it’s just a word not really coming from their heart, then