Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 45-minute session, Geshe Dhawa Gyaltsen establishes the philosophical framework before diving into the Heart Sūtra proper. He opens with the Prāsaṇgika Mādhyamika understanding of emptiness—described as the ultimate realization necessary for liberation from saṃsāra—then explains how Mahāmudrā (Great Seal) manifests in both Sutric meditation and Tantric practice. The Heart Sūtra is presented as the distilled essence of Buddha’s 84,000 teachings, with strong emphasis on generating the correct motivation (renunciation and bodhicitta) before beginning the text. He covers how Buddha taught this sūtra through his enlightened mind’s blessing, the transformative benefits of realizing emptiness, why this view transcends all philosophical extremes, and begins the actual verse-by-verse commentary. For practitioners with prior grounding in Buddhist philosophy.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 01 HS.mp3
UUID: 9a34f00b-9b3f-4e0b-8cfa-dfbc9d47ba41
Teacher: Geshe Dhawa Gyaltsen
Collection: Heart Sūtra (Geshe Dhawa Gyaltsen)
Date: 1996 (exact day not recorded)
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 44.9 minutes
Words: ~2,201
Mahāmudrā where it says that the best path or the practice that you can do for the achievement of full enlightened state is the emptiness, meditations on emptiness. So generally speaking that in order to achieve liberation or become free from, you know, saṃsāra, one had to overcome of the So in order to overcome this ignorant self grasping, that ignorance, one in order to get rid of this ignorance, one have to understand the view, the final view, which is the Prāsaṇgika Mādhyamika view that is which which we should understand in order to get rid of or in order to remove this ignorant self-grasping. So Within the Mādhyamika, there are many, many, I wanna say, different masters have explained the view of Madhya Mika or the theory of Madhya Mika practice. And most of all, the view or theory that is explained by Nāgārjuna which is that we need to understand what is known as the view which destroys or gets rid of this ignorant self-grasping. So that final view, the Prāsaṇgika Mādhyamika view is what is also known as the Great Seal Mahāmudrā.
So, Great Seal or Mahāmudrā, this can be known in two ways that which one which is explained from the Suthric point of view and the other one which is explained from the Tantric point of view. So sutric point of view, the great Sūtra Mahāmudrā is meditations on emptiness, which is, what is it, the teachings of Prajñāpāramitā. So so then generally speaking of what Mahāmudrā is, it can be understood as two parts, which is the subjective Mahāmudrā and the objective Mahāmudrā. So from the objective Mahāmudrā, that which is explained both in sūtra and tantra have same level of, I would say, has no differences. They both same in both Sūtra and Tantra.
So from the subjective point of view point then there is a big difference or great difference. So that’s how it is differentiated. One as a tantric viewpoint and one So Mahāmudrā or the great seal, let’s explain in sūtra point of view is meditating on emptiness or meditation on emptiness. So so then the Mahāmudrā that is explained from the viewpoint of Tantra, first, one had to first, the mind whatever that which engaged in this practice of Mahāmudrā has to be conjoined with with bodhicitta. And secondly, that person whoever might be have to have should have received the tantric initiation and also have should kept all the commitments.
So then on the basis of keeping a pure commitment that you engage in practice which is the generation stage and perfecting the generation stage with that of the subtle generation stage and the gross level of generation stage. And then where through that practice you generate this great bliss which using that great bliss to understand the emptiness and that emptiness, p. So that emptiness also is known as the example clear light or example So so then continuing on the practice that through the practice like entering of the wind energy in the channel Abiding and dissolving in these three practices where you come to gain the final clear light which is known as the the meaning clear light or the meaning meaning clear light or the the the actual which is explained So in both both teachings that have sūtra sūtra or tantra point viewpoint, in order to gain this realization, one one need to have first one need to collect all the necessary causes for that realization. So, the necessary causes for this realization is one of that should receive the instructions or the consent to instructions from those masters who those qualified masters who have like, we have we have had these realizations here.
And together with that one meter, the practice of accumulating merit and purifying And then then like on the basis of that visualizing your your guru in separate from the meditation of deity and and making request to them. And through these different collections of the causes or necessary collection necessary causes that if one to practice then no doubt that one will understand or realize emptiness. So just before we said that, like, assuming or the quintessential instructions of of of the teachings which or the essence of the teachings which in here we will be discussing on the Heart Sūtra. That is essence of wisdom. So that is what I say, that is the, how do you say, instructions for that, like, is the instruction for realizing that.
So to listen and understand the essence of wisdom or the Heart Sūtra, one person needs to set up good motivation and that is as usual generating denunciation or generating bodhicitta which is both of these which becomes one becomes cause for liberation and another for the chita which becomes the cause of full enlightenment. So generating a motivations where I going to listen to this teaching in order to achieve full enlighten state for the sake of sentient beings. So setting up this motivation and we do short meditation. So Heart Sūtra which is the essence of all Buddhist teachings Buddha taught eighty four thousand sets of teachings and of all those the essence of that is the Heart Sūtra and it is very condensed condensed and it’s very condensed like a very not not so deep. So the teachings of the Buddha which are are one has a different different there there are few different way Buddha taught the teachings.
One, like, type which where he actually spoke and then second one which he blessed someone and and made the other person to speak the teachings. And then thirdly, where he had given permission to speak on the teachings. So that is different, I would say, teachings, way way he taught. So so teachings which he bless other and and perform the teachings is there are like a yeah. Again, tree which are some where someone where through blessings of his body, through the blessings of his speech, and through the blessings of his mind that he he taught these different teachings.
So then there are these different sutras through the blessings that have been taught. And that’s one through the blessing of his body known as sūtra known as the known ten the Sūtra of Ten Bhumis. Or in Tibetan, it’s known as So so then second, which through his speech again, through the blessings of his speech, he put the torture in another sūtra which is known as the sūtra which is spoken to the king. So so then then the third one, it is through the blessings of his mind, which has been taught the sūtra that is this this Heart Sūtra with the essence of the wisdom. So so this one, the Heart Sūtra that Buddha himself was meditating on this concentration.
Buddha himself was concentrating on emptiness and through his blessings of mind that the bodhisattvas, what to say, the bodhisattvas around major, what to say, or asked questions about emptiness and that is what is known as So so in the title, like the Heart Sūtra, in Sanskrit, it’s That’s the Sanskrit type. So will explain the the meaning So Schizler is saying that person like him explaining or giving the explanation and has to do it somewhat like a joke or like a joke but what he’s explaining here, the teachings and Heart Sūtra is that he is using the text which is what’s it? What is taught by? That’s the master who gave this commentary to the Heart Sūtra. So that is what according to that, he will explain.
So before Pänchen Lobsang Palden gave the commentary to the Heart Sūtra. He made homage. So the homage part, I would explain. So, in the praise or the promise that the master made is that so who whom Buddha the one who have seen or understood the meaning of emptiness? So who who whose whose mind or or which mind or its field of nature?
So so so that that nature, like the teachings, which he realized is is shown or given to the to the to the followers, to the sentient beings. So that natural teaching that Buddha himself has realized is given to sentient beings and that teachings which has been taught or explained by Nāgārjuna through the blessing of Mañjuśrī. So So, through the explanations of Nāgārjuna on this profound view that many have achieved that final state and one of that is and his close disciples or his sons. And to them, I I pay homage. So, then the master continues explaining saying that as that nectar like teachings which is the emptiness which if one to have the realization of that then that is what which moves or overcomes all the negativities and that is what is the root of all the virtue and so I will give a shorter explanation on that as a promise that you give some explanation on the on the subject.
So the Heart Sūtra is the essence of all Buddhist teachings and the master himself is saying that I will explain the essence of the teaching. So first that the master explains the benefits of benefits of doing Dharma practice and secondly, master will explain the explanations of So so the great benefit of realizing emptiness is that one will become free from saṃsāra. And if not to have this realization, then one will one will continue to stay in saṃsāra. So, Buddha have found this natural light teaching which is profound, which is very profound and which is free of the eight extremes. So, nectar here, generally speaking, nectar here in Tibetan that word means d is the demon and t is the essence, the essence that which get rid of the demon.
So that is what is the meaning of nectar. So like the medicine that which get rid of the illness or the sickness, similar to that natural light teaching which the natural light teaching that is emptiness is which overcomes or get rid of all the internal and external obscurations or negative So so that natural light teaching, whoever is to find that natural light teaching will overcome all the delusions, all delusions and all types of sickness. So, like overcoming all internal and external obscurations or delusions which are the externals that of all types of sickness, all the ills, and then the internal one are that of the three poisons and the other delusions. So, both internal and external delusions from its root or from its seed that will be removed. So so in order to understand this final view that that Buddha have, let’s you say, taught the four tenets and, like, given four yeah.
Explained four different tenets in order to realize this this this final view of the emptiness So then the one that is explained in the Mādhyamika, Prāsaṇgika Mādhyamika view, that is known as the ultimate view and where where that view is free of known as the only view that is free of eight extremes. So so so that final view which is three of the eight extremes are known as the the profound one or the the profound the profound view. So, which is the eight extremes which is explained in the root of wisdom, a text known as Muller Punching. In that text where it explains that there’s, I want to say, the free of eight extremes which is known as there’s no inherently existing growth, no inherently existing cessation, no inherently existing heterozygous and no inherently existent nihilism and no inherently existent coming and no inherently existent going. So these are like the eight extremes which is that view which is free from these eight extremes.
So, again, the profound, it is known as the profound. Profound as a meaning again which that the teaching which is that Nāgārjuna gave is very profound which is free of four extremes. Which is free of free of eternalism. So so then, again, free free of nihilism, which is if it is yeah. Free of nihilism.
So the extreme of existence which is free of extreme of existence that is free of truly existent and free from free of existence. So then the fourth one is extreme of nonexistent or, yeah, the extreme of nonexistent. So free free of nonexistent is that because So so because free of non existent is because it is existent because but and it is non existent. So, this emptiness which is free of the eight extremes or free of the four extremes, if one is to realize that emptiness, then there’s great benefits. So So, gain this realization of emptiness it’s very difficult and it’s like a star the daytime, to find a star in the daytime.
That difficult to gain this realization of outcomes. So so in the very beginning of the text that it explains how profound the the teachings on antennas is. So even if one like it’s not to gain dysphralization, just having a slight doubt in the teachings of emptiness that what do say? That can remove any causes that to be reborn in the in saṃsāra. Oh, man.