Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. Geshe Dhawa Gyaltsen grounds this 45-minute teaching in Mañjuśrī’s four decisive points on attachment: to this life undermines practice; to saṃsāra prevents renunciation; to self blocks bodhicitta; to true existence blocks wisdom realizing emptiness. He then guides practitioners through cultivating renunciation and bodhicitta via meditation on loving-kindness and compassion, with systematic emphasis on recognizing all sentient beings as mothers. The teaching’s center is a detailed merit field visualization: elaborate thrones supported by lions symbolizing the Buddha’s eight powers, with lotus, sun, and moon cushions representing renunciation, ultimate bodhicitta, and conventional bodhicitta respectively. He concludes with explanation of seed syllables at chakras and the five Buddha wisdoms. From his 1995 Lam Rim series; suited to practitioners familiar with the framework.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 09 LR 1995 04 09.mp3
UUID: 5a658e4b-2c22-41d5-b764-3d8f0dc4a202
Teacher: Geshe Dhawa Gyaltsen
Collection: Lam Rim 1995 Jan-Dec (Geshe Dhawa Gyaltsen)
Date: 1995-04-09
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 45.7 minutes
Words: ~2,540
So quoting from the teachings of Mañjuśrī, What Mañjuśrī explains in his teaching is that if one is attached to this life, then one is not a religious person. And secondly, he says in the next line is, if one is attached to the saṃsāra, if one is attached to the saṃsāra, then there is no chance for gaining the realization of renunciation. And then thirdly, if one is attached to self, like working for the benefit of self, then there’s no chance for oneself to generate the altruistic mind or bodhicitta. And then, fourthly, if one is grasping if one has this what do call the ego grasping or like if one if one holds something that exists truly, then then there’s no possibility to sorry, generate the wisdom of understanding the ultimate nature of all things. So first, what one should do is one should give up attachment give up the attachment towards this life and lead your mind towards the practice of Dharma.
So so then secondly, like, giving up the attachment to saṃsāra, whatever practice, whatever Dharma practice that you do, it becomes pure pure Dharma practice. So then thirdly, if by giving up the attachment towards the self, clears the mistaken mind of one’s. So because Because that like, the working solely for the self is known as a mistake in mind. So by giving up the attachment to ourselves, one what’s it? One train one’s mind to gain the wisdom or the mind realizing the emptiness.
So like grasping to things that true things which grasping towards objects that which truly exist. Like grasping towards that. You So so like grasping to a things that which exist truly, that is like falling into one side in it. Like falling into one extreme that things exist permanently. And then if you and then if you hold this view again saying that things doesn’t exist even nominally, like even nominally, then you fall into one extreme.
So shouldn’t fall into both side? So like falling into either side, like to the both extremes, sorry. One to the extreme of nonexistent, one to the extreme of existing which existing truly from its own side. So, and not falling into both extremes and not falling into like a what do say? Not falling into the both extremes which says both don’t exist, and also not falling into the both extreme which says both don’t exist.
So falling into one of these extremes, to these four sides, then that means one has a mistaken mind. One’s mind is falling into mistaken. And then when one comes out of these four extremes, then that is the unmistaken mind is which comes to come to realize the empty nature of all things. Oh, yeah. So You were saying something.
Don’t I have no idea what you mean by those two extremes. One is like one is doing both that doesn’t exist. Both extremes. Yeah. Yeah.
Nihilism and eternalism. Mhmm. Second is extreme of yeah. Then third is like saying both doesn’t exist. Both doesn’t exist.
Yeah. And then fourth is like both exist. So now we go to the third one which is working for benefit of others, or giving up the purpose of self and working for the benefit of others, there you practice the bodhicitta and for the bodhicitta practice they are like the aspiring bodhicitta, aspirational bodhicitta, and then and then the bodhicitta practice again, like exchanging self with others. And then the bodhicitta practice, another type of bodhicitta practice that is equalizing one with others. So so the for the first part, is the aspiration of bodhicitta, you have different meditation practice, then meditation practice of love and compassion and so on.
So to meditate love towards all sentient beings, one has to first recognize that all mother sentient beings, all all sentient beings of the three realms have became one’s mother. Then every time they became mothers, every time those sentient beings became our mothers, they have given us great kind kindness, which which like the present mother did. So so that those mothers, those sentient beings, like like meditating on those sentient being, how nice if they all receive happiness? And then second, that all those sentient beings, all those mother sentient beings, may they be, like, free from all types of sufferings. So so thinking wishing them be free from all type of suffering.
In this way, you meditate on compassion? So so may they be free from suffering, and may I myself free them from all types of suffering. So that type of, what is it, special special, I wanna say, thought, special insight that you generate. So thinking that to free all sentient beings from suffering and lead all them into the state of happiness, right now I’m unable to do that. Thinking also those of the worldly gods like Hindu and Brahmin, they also don’t have this ability to do that, like free all of those sentient beings.
And also thinking those who are like, gone beyond saṃsāra, beyond saṃsāra, like, those who are free from saṃsāra, those beings like hearers and solitary realizers, they also don’t have this power. So so who have who is able to do, like, able to free all sentient beings from the state of suffering and lead them to the state of happiness is only the the Buddha, the fully enlightened beings, who have perfected accumulating the true collections. The Buddha, the fully enlightened being, is the only one who can do that. So in order for one to achieve that fully that fully enlightened state, I listen I’m listening to the teaching today here in order to benefit all sentient beings. In order to in order to benefit all sentient beings to achieve this enlightened state.
So that type of motivation you generate and we do short meditation there. So this precious bodhicitta, if one get just one chance to think on that, one keeps a special imprint into one’s mind. So to generate a genuine bodhicitta within oneself is not easy. It takes a lot of practice. But just artificial or set up a motivation of bodhicitta, one can practice on that.
And then if one continually meditate or set of bodhicitta within one, like continuously doing again and again, then sooner or later one come to generate the genuine bodhicitta within one, like in the same way that how Buddha, the fully enlightened being, have generated this mind. So, by keeping imprint of this mind, this altruistic mind within one and if one is able to generate able to generate this genuine bodhicitta within one. Then from that from that time onwards, one becomes or one becomes a object of prostrations. One becomes becomes a object of homage. Like, one becomes an object of homage.
So, as last time, last Sunday, talked about the visualization of merit field. Visualizing just on the level of your eyebrows, a very big throne. And on top of that, you visualize these five thrones. And then this central one is a little higher than the four sided ones. The central figure that you visualize was Buddha, then the four sided.
So then on the two sides, right and left, you visualize the lineage masters of the extensive lineage and the lineage master of the profound lineage. And then on the backs So on the backside of the the central figure, the back throne, the bliss lineage, which is the central figure is vajradhara, and the front is the root guru. Which is like a central figure, is the center the front of the center is one’s own root guru, and which is surrounded by the rest of the masters, one’s own masters or gurus. So this has been explained in the past Sunday. So those thrones, they’re like the central the main throne, the big one, like, is supported by eight lions, or you can also think that it’s been supported by four lions.
And same thing with the with the five main like, the five main thrones on top of the main big throne. Like, they also is supported by eight or four lions. And then or you can change instead of lions. One can also visualize, I would say, a peacock supporting the thrones. So as the eight great lions, if it’s supported by eight great lions then those eight great lions are actually bodhisattvas who serving the Buddha like respecting in the sign of respecting the Buddha that came there, like showing the aspect of lions, supporting the thrones.
So the eight, having eight lions or having eight number eight is that also another another significance is that to to show the eight powers of the Buddha. So the the eight powers are known as the three that are of the body, speech, and mind. Mhmm. And then the power of miracles. Then the third power, another power is that the power of moving in the three times.
So then the power of granting the wishes. And then another one, another power is that power producing or power producing, like, or power producing that which fulfills the wishes. And then power of qualities. So these are known as the eight powers. If we could explain one by one, then maybe it takes a long time.
Then if the throne is supported by four lions, then it it it shows it signifies the four fearlessness. Before fearlessness, So fearlessness in knowing things. In other words, fearlessness in showing, fearlessness in accepting anything. And then second is like a fearlessness in don’t remember the word now. Fearlessness in abandoning, accept Fearlessness in accepting to avoid something.
And then third is fearlessness in in showing teachings. So so then fourth is like fearlessness in showing definite path. So these four are known as the four fearlessness and the four lions symbolizes this. So that in the as a cushion, there are three cushions, which is the first lotus and then the sun and then the moon cushion. No.
So on the moon cushions, you visualize the Sorry, on the lotus cushion, you visualize the moon cushion. So on the Sorry. So on the lotus cushion, you visualize the sun cushions, which is made out of crystal. And then on top of that, on top of the sun cushion, you visualize moon cushion that’s also made out of crystal. So the lotus symbolizes renunciation and how a lotus, usually it’s born in a dirty, muddy place.
But once it blooms, when it comes to flower, it’s not stained by any dirt of that place. Because of that, he uses lotus symbolizing the renunciation. So like the flower, the lotus is not stained by any, what to say, stain. Same thing with the renunciation. The thought of renunciation is not faulted or stained by saṃsāra.
So, also then, the second is So, then second is the sun, cushion which symbolizes the ultimate bodhicitta. That is like the mind directly realizing the emptiness. Mhmm. And and the sun in the way like, as the sun ripens the fruit, but the sun and the heat of the sun ripens the fruit, So like the sun, the heat of the sun ripens the fruit, the ultimate bodhicitta ripens the beings. So with the moon, then the moon cushion, which brings the coolness or which removes the suffering of heat, brings the coolness.
Same thing like moon symbolizes there now, the conventional bodhicitta, helps remove the hatred. So same thing those Buddha and the the five five the main figures of the of the of the merit field, they all have these three different cushions. The lotus, sun, and moon, and they symbol what they symbolize is that they are they like, symbolizing, they’re perfected in these three that of conventional bodhicitta, ultimate bodhicitta, and the renunciation. So according to tantric explanation, then these have different significance. So then the central figure like Buddha Śākyamūni, at its head, at the crown, you visualize a OM syllable that is the Buddha Vairochana, symbolizing the Buddha Vairochana.
The white, that is like white And then at throat, visualize red AH. That is another Buddha that is And then at the heart, visualize hum syllable, which is another Buddha that is Akṣobhya. And then at the navel, visualize SO syllable. That is another Buddha which is Ratnasambhava. Oh, yeah.
And then at the at the secret place, you you visualize syllable, and that is a Buddha another Buddha that is the Amoghasiddhi. Oh, That heart is green. So as that So then from the heart from the heart, that is the hum syllable of the figure. You ray you emanate light rays, and then it light rays towards on on the right side, which is the lineage masters of the extensive lineage masters on the right. And then, like, strike the light rays strikes all the cushions of those lineage masters.
In the same manner, light rays strikes to the front gurus, to the right, to the left and the back. So all those light rays in the form of five colors, that’s just what we just explained. So the light rays that emanates from the heart, the hum syllable, It’s like you can One can emanate the light rays like one one and then like one light rays in the form of five color and then goes out and spread into like expands into big at the end, like as you see the vast field on the right and left side. Or you can emanate a light rays like each one to each numbers of the gurus of the Lineage Master, you emanate each light and it builds a cushion. Like, the light rays sort of strikes to the cushions of those Lineage Masters.
Oh, yeah. So, the light rays has five color. The hum syllable at the heart, like in tantric explanations, it is symbolizes the wisdom of great bliss. So then if you divide the wisdom there, the wisdom is explained as a five different kinds of wisdom. So the five wisdoms, the first one is like a wisdom known as So that wisdom known as dharmadhatu, appearing in the form of deity, is known as the Akṣobhya.
And what you call the Akṣobhya is a blue colored body. And then the second type of wisdom is mirror mirror like wisdom. And then that wisdom appearing in the form of deity. No. No.
Like, Vairochana. Buddha Vairochana. That having the form white colored body. And then the third type of wisdom is known as wisdom of equanimity. Like, wisdom of equalness, equanimity, wisdom of equanimity.
And then that wisdom, like arising in the form of deity, is in the form of we’re having the color and yellow color body. And then Then the fourth one is like a wisdom of discrimination. Discriminating wisdom. So that light, what do say, appearing in the form of deity is the deity Amitābha, and red color. And then the fifth one known as wisdom of accomplishment.
And then that wisdom appearing in the form of deity is the deity known as the Buddha Amoghasiddhi. And that has the