Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 46-minute session, Geshe Dhawa Gyaltsen teaches three progressive levels of motivation in virtuous action: future rebirth happiness, personal liberation, and bodhicitta—the aspiration to achieve enlightenment for all beings. He explains why only the third, conjoined with the intention to free others from suffering, becomes lasting spiritual benefit, then walks through the logical analysis for generating genuine bodhicitta: only the Buddha can help others perfectly, enlightenment is possible for oneself, and the self-cherishing mind is the key obstruction. The session concludes with the Lamrim’s six causes of delusion: how incorrect teachings, familiarity with deluded states from past lives, and ongoing engagement with delusions perpetuate themselves. For practitioners already oriented to Mahāyāna teachings.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 45 GP 1996 08 25.mp3
UUID: a5a943ac-6e90-4816-a9f3-ad1f32f1584d
Teacher: Geshe Dhawa Gyaltsen
Collection: Graduated Path (Geshe Dhawa Gyaltsen)
Date: 1996-08-25
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 45.7 minutes
Words: ~2,455
According a lot that explains how karma works, how karma makes us experience the happiness and suffering. So most of you know how karma works and to explain this just to make sure and for some it might be beneficial. So, in the world that we experience many different kinds of karmas, some as pleasure, some as sufferings. So, these experiences that we have in saṃsāra, is it caused by one karma or different karmas? Then each experience is caused by individual karmas, such as happiness is caused by virtuous karma and suffering is caused by non virtuous karma.
So, a being experiencing is the result of karma, is happiness and sufferings, is not that a creator or someone who created that. But as Buddha has explained in his teachings saying that the karma individual ones may have experienced this, I would say, these different experiences. So, if all the experience that we have that have happiness and suffering are created by someone, someone then this doesn’t work or this doesn’t make sense which in saṃsāra as long as it’s sentient being, everyone, every sentient being wishes happiness and all don’t want to sufferings. So because of this case, it’s created by someone, then why created for someone to have happiness and for someone to have suffering? These results that we experience is because of karma.
karma, there are various karma. So because of these various many karmas, that there are various types of sentient beings. So so at present, with us we are born in the upper realms and among the upper realms we are born in the Jambudvipa continent. Plus we have achieved this precious human body where we also have met with the teachings of the Buddha. So as sorry.
Buddhism or the teachings of the Buddha, if one had the wisdom to analyze, then you can analyze to its very depth. And similarly, if you know how to explain, then you can give all the very detailed explanations on it. So, if one is to analyze the teachings of the Buddha, then one can analyze to its depth which is no point where we say it is created by Buddha, like created by refuge or it’s created by the god. So is not such a point. So so we at present, we have made that kind of teachings.
Like meeting with these teachings is like one’s being in the midst of a jewel land, a land of jewels. So, as we have this point, we are in this continent, sorry, in the island where there are a lot of jewels, jewel island. But then we are there now and if we to return back, go back carrying a bag of sand, then getting what we’ve been in this jewel island doesn’t want it. So, being in the jewel island, we should pick the jewels as much as possible. That is an example.
Meeting the teachings of the Buddha, we should collect virtues action as much as possible. So, our actions become virtuous or not. It depends on our motive. Yeah. Motivation.
So, if you do virtuous actions, aiming with the motive to this very life, to benefit to this very life, though it is a virtuous action, the result is very difficult to experience. We’re not sure whether one will experience the result of that virtuous action in this very life or not. So, because it is aimed that virtuous action is aimed for this life, If one doesn’t experience in this life, then no one can experience in the future life because it’s aimed for this life. So, when you do a virtuous action for this very life, it’s very difficult for one to experience the result of that virtuous action in this very life. And there’s no way one can experience it in the future life because it’s aimed for this life.
So to experience the result of the virtuous action, it has to be aimed or done for the sake of our future lives. So contemplating on these that one should aim or one’s virtuous action, whatever is possible that one should do it for the sake of our future life. So, if that virtuous action, if it is done mainly to achieve personal liberation, mainly done for one second for the future, then it becomes a cause for the achievement of hearers and Pratyekabuddha state. So, if one is to perform these virtuous actions, for others sake, thinking that just doing for one alone is not sufficient. I should do for the sake of others.
The others are same as one where they also wish happiness and they don’t want sufferings. So, contemplating like this if one needs to do for the sake of others. If one wishes to enjoy the result of those virtuous actions, endlessly, like if one wishes to enjoy those results endlessly, then those virtuous actions should be conjoined with bodhicitta in mind. So, as Geshe-la explained, three types of motivations which Performing virtuous actions in order to achieve the higher reward in one’s future or performing virtuous actions in order to achieve personal liberation. That’s the second one.
Finally, third, again performing these virtuous actions for the liberation of oneself and others. So if one is to perform the virtuous action with these motivations. So, experience the result of virtuous action. We need either of these three motivations. Any of these three motivations.
So, as Lama Tsongkhapa said in his teaching, saying that if our virtuous action is not conjoined with enlightened mind or bodhicitta, then it doesn’t become a cause of excellent virtue. So, the excellent virtue or the excellent happiness. Here, referring to the mindless liberation or the mindless enlightenment Mahāyāna enlightened mind which for example in order to lead all sentient beings to the enlightened state seeking the path or following the path. Yeah. Following the path oneself.
So the bodhicitta doesn’t come out of without any cause and conditions. It should it needs to generate bodhicitta, we need to have its causes and conditions. So, there are many ways that one can meditate on bodhicitta. So, doing the meditation on bodhicitta, one should first analyze one should analyze I should work for the sake of others because Because we are a Mahāyānist practitioner. So analyzing more whether one can not being artificial health but whether one can do actual, what’s it, a practical health or not, like analyzing this.
So whether one can perform a perfect health to others or not. And if not, if one cannot perform a perfect help for others, then checking who can perform that. So, in order to become perfect in helping others, first oneself has to be perfect in those actions or those activities. Then one performs works for others in those activities. So the only one who can perform the health perfectly for the sake of others is the Buddha.
Only the enlightened beings or the Buddha is one who can perform the work for the sake of others. And now analyzing again whether that enlightenment state is possible for one or not. So that is possible for one or not, then it is possible for one to achieve that enlightened state. One of things that interrupts in between is those different observations such as the delusions and the obstruction to omniscient mind. These are the only two which obstructs one from achieving that So analyzing in this way, which these are the two obstructions that obstruct one from achieving that state, that fully not in state.
So if you analyze these obstructions or the interruptions, then it is the ignorance of grasping. That is obstructs one. And the ignorance of grasping all the self-cherishing mind is what obstructs one from achieving that state. So so all the obstructions or the interruptions are routed to this self-cherishing mind or the self-cherishing mind, the ignorant self-cherishing mind. Thinking that from beginningless time up to now I have cherished, I have this self grasping mind or the self-cherishing mind and this is what caused me to circle in saṃsāra up to now.
Up to now I have ignored others. I have never cherished others and because of that circled in saṃsāra and from now on changing these two thoughts of of the mind where instead of cherishing oneself, putting all the efforts that one can and try to cherish others instead of one. So if one is able to cherish others then gradually it is possible for one to achieve that state which Buddha himself had achieved. So, just explained all this. You have time to do meditations on bodhicitta, before doing meditation on bodhicitta, analyzing in the same manner as the patient just explained.
If one is to do like a meditation on bodhicitta and before that is to prepare oneself to do the meditation, if one is to meditate on śamatha and then later one wants to engage in bodhicitta. That meditation of bodhicitta doesn’t become so strong. But to make one’s meditation on bodhicitta strong, the one is to go through the explanation, speech like that which whether this fully enlightened state is possible or not for one. And if possible, what are these obstructions that obstructs one from achieving that state. Analyzing whether those obstructions are there within one or not, within others or not.
And this way, if you analyze and if you do the meditation on bodhicitta, then it becomes, I would say, the meditation becomes more strong. So, So Geshe-la is saying that we do short meditation here, that I listen to this teaching to lead all, let’s say, infinite sentient beings to the enlightened state. So, this mind and we do short meditation. What? So, I’m saying it’s better we do short meditations.
So, it’s like saying that we don’t have time to explain the teachings in Namib in very detail. So, as last time, we shall explain the six causes of delusions, how delusion is caused. Of those six causes, three of them, and the first three has been explained. And today, we will start from the fourth. Fourth cause of delusions is reading sutras or incorrect teachings which causes delusions.
So, when you say incorrect teachings, reading incorrect teachings, Which means that, it doesn’t mean that if we are to read, for example, teachings of different religions, the books which explain different religious teachings, doesn’t mean like a what do you say? That doesn’t mean it doesn’t mean that. So, like in Tibet, for example, there are many books which tells stories. For example, the stories of King. So, in the Lamrim teaching, it explains that like reading those stories of Lin Kesa also causes one to generate delusions such as attachment or anger.
And also those teachings or the text which explains which causes us to generate attachment. So, such as teachings or the books that explains sexual embarrassment, sexual embracing or sexual intercourse. So, such as those books on sex and the stories of linked case and those books which causes one to generate attachment and anger. These are which books are not to read. And if one is to read those books, then it causes one for some attachment, some hatred, and so on.
So avoiding reading these books and instead of that reading biography of different masters and their explanation of the teachings. If one is to read these then it is also very pleasant and one also accumulates merits and leaves good imprints in one’s mind. So, also, if one is following a Buddhist sincerely, then instead of reading Buddhist books, if one puts those Buddhist teaching on the side and reads the teachings of different religions, and if you generate faith and belief into it, then again, that’s what is it? That’s the explain as well. But then reading those different religious books, if it is aimed to see the qualities of those religious head or religious leaders, then for that purpose, if one is to read, then there’s again no false or mistakes.
So, and also, like when there’s a big gatherings, like public gatherings, where people talk many different things such as like discussing about war and so on. These also causes one to generate delusions. So these are also explained as the cause of delusions. So, going to the fifth cause, which is known as the similarity with delusions. More one become familiar with delusions, it again causes other delusions.
So, as the Katanga Master says that if one is is very familiar with such different delusions, then even if one is in a different state of mind, these delusions or influence one because of one’s familiarity with the with the delusions. Whichever delusion that one is more familiar with in our past life makes easier for one to generate that type of delusion in this life. So, we can see this among us, among sentient beings which for some just seeing even for small things, they easily get attached to those things. For some, even some for few little words get angry, and these shows that one is one has this familiarity in the past lives to these different state of delusions. And also for such like, sometimes our anger can be caused by different state of sickness, but sometimes like for some people very easily getting angry, short-tempered person, just saying one word or two gets very angry.
And these two, I would say, shows that one have great familiarity with anger in one’s past life. So, again, like, one come to have angers because of different sicknesses. I mean, what do you say? This anger arises because of sickness. So, this different state of delusion arises of one’s familiarity with this state of delusions.
So, to stop these delusions what one can do is applying, what is it, antidotes against these solutions. So such as attachment, for example, if you don’t stop right there, but instead if you think other reasons why you are attached to the object then it increases the degree of attachment towards it and becomes bigger, the attachment becomes bigger, and as it grows bigger, it causes one or it leads one towards those objects. So, the attachment it is honestly incorrect mind or incorrect mind which we exaggerate the, we exaggerate its quality. When we see an object, not we want to see the quality of that particular object but we exaggerate the quality of the object and get attached to it. So it said that this attachment is incorrect state of mind.
So next course, sixth one. So now the sixth cause is engaging with with each with such each delusions, whatever delusion.