Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 33-minute session, Geshe Dhawa Gyaltsen unpacks the Heart Sūtra’s central paradox—form is empty and emptiness is form—through a detailed analysis of how practitioners at different levels should approach the profound practice of wisdom gone beyond. He works through the five aggregates and the relationship between conventional and ultimate truth, revealing what the tradition calls the four profoundities. The teaching presents two paths: how less advanced practitioners analyze emptiness through rigorous logical investigation, and how sharper practitioners engage through mantra and direct insight. Geshe Dhawa concludes with five foundational points for beginners learning to analyze emptiness. Pitched toward serious practitioners with grounding in Mahāyāna Buddhist philosophy.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 03 HS.mp3
UUID: 5729abd5-eab4-4485-a09d-86563ab722af
Teacher: Geshe Dhawa Gyaltsen
Collection: Heart Sūtra (Geshe Dhawa Gyaltsen)
Date: 1996 (exact day not recorded)
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 32.8 minutes
Words: ~1,511
So, the common background of the sūtra where Buddha himself engaged in this concentration that is known as the illumination. So so then the uncommon background of the sūtra will start that Avalokiteśvara was engaged in this profound practice of wisdom gone beyond. That is that of the four which we explained before and that of five aggregates and then the twelve. So then the third one, the next is that the question that is asked. So so this that again is explained under two parts which the actual question and and and then did the practice.
So so then here, if you look on the seventh line, that that then through the inspiration of Buddha or through the blessings of the Buddha, So so then continuing with that line, how should those of a good family learn who wish to follow follow the profound practice of wisdom? So here, how should those of the good family good family, the family here referring to that of Mahāyāna family? And the family of Mahāyāna, there should be someone who is not scared of the the ultimate view. And and one should have one should be, what do say, joyfully working for others through through their great compassion. So that’s the like the lineage or the sorry, the family which So whoever from that family, whether son or daughter, So so then how should those of the good family learn who wishes to follow the profound practice of wisdom gone beyond?
That is the main practice of what is up there. So, the the what do say? The deeds of the bodhisattvas, they are of ten. So we can if so we can also understood as a six perfections. So, are both it’s it’s it’s known in both that ten perfections or six perfections.
So the six perfection is the common one. So so then if one is to count ten, then it is the the perfection of method and the power and prayers and then the exalted wisdom. So these are known as the ten deeds of the bodhisattvas or the ten perfections. So, Śāriputra asked the question to Avalokiteśvara that how should the son of the lineage or the good family practice in the, I would say, follow the profound practice of the wisdom gone beyond. So so then continue on next paragraph.
Thus, you spoke that and the noble Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva mahasattva replied, So then now the second answer to the question. So, the answer which is given in two sets, which one to those the low intelligence one who to those who are known as the low intelligence one who engages in the practice of Bodhisattva path and and then to those who are known as the sharp intelligent one engaged in the Buddhism. So when you, from the, in this text actually in a direct sense, here from the text, the one who follows or one who practices this practice, the profound practice of wisdom is only that one family which is known as the Mahāyāna family. So here shows that the uncommon or what do call it? So the disciple the the right disciple or it shows from the sūtra that the the sūtra, this this is given to specific disciples here.
So so generally speaking, also that the specific disciples of the Heart Sūtra was giving these teachings, known as the one with the sharp intelligence. So so because the one who who engages in the final view is is known as that the sharp-intelligent one. But in the answer that’s given by Avalokiteśvara, like gives two which is to that answer to those who are known as the low intelligent one and then another answer which is known as to those of sharp intelligent one. So so this the low intelligence and the the sharp intelligent, these two, if you if you look among among those disciples, there are differences. Some are more intelligent than the other.
So here the answer is just given two parts. One part, the low intelligence ones, how they engage in this practice relying on the hard parts. And then the sharper intelligent one are those, how they engage in this practice through through the mantras. So so the five paths are that of the path of accumulation, preparation, and path of seeing, path of meditation, and So on first part, the path of accumulation, the training mainly analyzes the practice of emptiness through the wisdom, wisdom arising from hearing and contemplating? So then on the path of preparation then the training who practices emptiness through analyzing and then through the analysis and then plus through meditation like through yeah, through meditation.
So so then following the text, the third line on the from the from the second line of the second paragraph, whatever son or daughter of a good family wishes to follow the profound practice of wisdom gone beyond should look like this. So here on this line is where it explains the explanation to that of known as the the low intelligence ones. So and then continue analyzing the five aggregates by nature empty. So the five aggregates here, the aggregates are form, feeling, discrimination, and composition factor and consciousness. So, these five aggregates, by nature it’s empty.
It says here that which which which means that the five aggregates come into existing depending upon its cause and condition. So collections of many parts coming together, you term or you use that term as a form and you label that. So so from its one side, it doesn’t exist, which by nature is empty here. That’s the meaning. So so like that’s how like the empty of the parent existence, that’s how that’s the way how one should see.
So that the answer giving more in detail is that the form is empty and emptiness is form. So emptiness is no other than form. And form is no other than emptiness. And this part of the teaching is very profound. And this is known as one with four profoundities.
So the meaning of the first line that form is empty. So, it says the form is empty because from its own side, it doesn’t exist from its own side and it exists only because of its term, the name, and secondly, because of because of its imputation, like, because of its imputed in that in these two exist. So so the form is non inherently existent, and that doesn’t mean form doesn’t exist. So, like, like, some the schools not as school known as below Svatāntrika-Mādhyamika. Below that, they said if So the modern making, they say form doesn’t exist inherently, they believe that something exists on the object side.
So that is what we call the final view. So so that that’s the meaning of the emptiness is formed. So this two second line, like, the emptiness is no other than and form is no other than emptiness which means that emptiness and the form which have same nature and and so they are the same nature but have different names, different terms. So when you divide the object of knowledge, then it can be divided into two, that of the ultimate truth and the conventional truth. So these two are different, different?
So, they are, what do you call, they have same entity but different but they are different. So what is known as known as form is that things that we see through our eyes. So what we see through our eyes, those objects are known as the conventional truth. So so then the non truly existing of the object within that object is known as the ultimate truth. So So they are same entity but different.
So, the object that appears to our eye consciousness is empty of an existing. So so the object that appears to our eyes and and if if if that object itself being empty of inherent existence is to, let’s say, one nature. So so so then but they are not also known as different because the form that appears to our eye consciousness is known as the conventional truth and So it is known as the conventional truth of the object. It is not the ultimate truth of the object. Mr.
Seng, didn’t have today, we don’t have time for question and answer. So what has been explained here is now that how the beginner one who, how the beginner engages in the practice of emptiness. That is the explanation. So then, tomorrow, will will speak how similar to that how in every day how we should analyze or practice. So, sorry, that as as a beginner, how one analyzes or how one practice emptiness.
As a beginner, there are five ways or five points which I explained. So, tomorrow you will give the first, what is it, first reasons or first type of, first logical reasoning, one analyze the emptiness at the very beginning. Yeah. Thank you a lot. We do the dedication here.