Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 31-minute teaching, Geshe Dhawa Gyaltsen distinguishes aspirational bodhicitta — the wish to benefit all beings — from engaging bodhicitta, the actual practice through the six perfections and the four means of gathering: offering material aid or teachings, speaking pleasantly, acting consistently with followers’ needs, and guiding them toward awakening. He then explores when solitary realizers and hearers enter the Mahāyāna path: the moment they generate great compassion, they abandon the Hīnayāna approach. Once reaching the path of preparation, they cannot fall back into lower rebirths. Geshe Dhawa warns against the “peaceful state” — the arhat’s quiet nirvana — because remaining there interrupts the continuous work of benefiting others. He closes with the delicate art of teaching across traditions: how to present Mahāyāna teachings without stirring doubt in Hīnayāna practitioners or causing them alarm.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 18 P and G.mp3
UUID: b588bd84-a1f6-472c-9558-574d5849a313
Teacher: Geshe Dhawa Gyaltsen
Collection: Paths and Grounds (Geshe Dhawa Gyaltsen)
Date: 1995 (exact day not recorded)
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 31.3 minutes
Words: ~1,537
bodhicitta and engaging bodhicitta as an example. The wish to go and actually going. These are the two examples. And, like, the wish to go is like the aspirational bodhicitta, which is the wish to do the practice of bodhicitta. And then the actual going is the example of engaging bodhicitta.
So then, like, the engaging bodhicitta, which is the actual engagement, that which engages in the practice of six perfections, and also in the action of the four means of gathering. Engaging in these two practices in order to lead to the enlightened state. Like actually engaging in these practices is the engaging bodhicitta. Yes. So so the four means of gathering — what do you say?
There are four methods which are explained to gather a disciple. So the first means of the four is like giving material goods, material or Dharma teachings. And in order to gather them. And second, when you speak to them, speaking pleasantly. Speaking pleasantly?
And then third is, what do you call it, consistency? Consistency? Like, what, yeah. Consistency. So so consistency here is that one engages in the action, like, engages in the action according to the needs and acts of the followers.
And then next is engaging or helping others. So so then that is like if one is to give teachings to help, then like the Buddha, one should help the trainees or the followers by giving teachings, which, knowing what their needs, what their interests, and knowing these and giving teachings accordingly. So so, like, a student teaches whatever one knows because there is also a danger. So so as the deeds of the bodhisattvas, one engages in the deeds of bodhisattvas. First, generating these two minds, like the aspirational bodhicitta and the engaging bodhicitta.
And then like the engaging bodhicitta, which is engaging in the practice of six perfections and the four means of gatherings. So one of the terms that we use before for this is also the Mahāyāna achievement. And that is like achieving the fulfilment of two purposes through training on these paths. So in which level do the hearers and Pratyekabuddha enter the Mahāyāna path? So sorry, so these two — hearers and the Pratyekabuddha — when they enter, in which level or when do they enter the Mahāyāna path? As an example, with the solitary realizer arhat, whenever he or she generates great compassion, it is when he or she generates the great compassion that they are entering the Mahāyāna path. So so at that stage, at that time, when they are working with great compassion, they fall in the family of Mahayanists and they have given up the Hīnayāna path. So so there are then other types of hearers or solitary realizers. For example, like, they train on the path of accumulation of hearers or solitary realizers, and then they give up that and enter Mahāyāna path.
And similarly, they go all the way up to the path of seeing of the hearers or the solitary realizers, and then they enter into Mahāyāna path. So there are these different followers. So any of these followers, whenever they are awakened by the great compassion, they fall into Mahāyāna. They become Mahayanists.
Yeah. So with that great compassion, when they generate the bodhicitta, then they have generated the Mahāyāna path. And there are also followers who, like, enter the Mahāyāna path of accumulation. And then in between that they are unable to engage in the practice of bodhisattvas. And then they give up that path and like jump down into the lower paths, which are the lower, the hearers and the Pratyekabuddha path.
So so on this path of accumulation, as soon as the person on the path of accumulation achieves the union of calm abiding and special insight into emptiness, they reach the second path, that is the path of preparation. So when they come to reach the path of preparation, then there is no danger for that follower to fall into the lower paths, as well as there is no danger for that person to fall into the lower realms. Oh, yeah. So so there’s no danger — once you reach that state, the path of preparation in the Mahāyāna path, there’s no danger for that being to fall down into the lower realms. So we say that we live here as something auspicious.
And do you have any questions? So it’s like if possible, then one should practice — one should read the text and then practice, which means gaining experience out of practice. So even if one is unable to do that, whatever the person explains, the person who gives the explanations — and whatever explanation is given, one should analyse one’s knowledge or one’s knowledge of analysis into it. So with one’s analysis or with one’s examinations, if it goes very deep to its very depth, then it shows it is a hallmark of pure teachings.
So so if it is a false or impure teaching, then when you analyse or when you examine it, then there is no depth that you can go into. You can see it being false. And Geshe-la was giving one example — which example? — that as if it’s a false teaching, then it doesn’t have that depth. Yeah. Don’t know the English.
Is it okay like that? Yeah. Yeah. Mhmm. Mhmm.
Mhmm. The fear of the peaceful state. So the fear of the peaceful state is like when one achieves the state of the hearers, when one achieves the arhat state of the hearers. So that state is the state which is a peaceful state, which is the cessation of all delusions. And the one who achieves that state enjoys the peacefulness of that state and remains on that state for a very long time.
So so then the great compassion is that which makes one not to remain on that stage for a long, long time, for long duration. So the reason why one needs to fear this peaceful state is that, as a Mahāyānist, one should work for the sake of others. So so if one is to stay in this peaceful state for a very long time, then the continuity of one’s helping other sentient beings breaks in between. So so to stop this gap or the breaking of working for others, you need adequate compassion. So, like, generally, when we speak of refuge, seeking refuge, it is explained that it needs two causes for it.
And then especially with Mahāyāna refuge, you need three, and that is the compassion, the great compassion. Mhmm. Mhmm. Mhmm. Mhmm.
So so as if one is to teach whatever one knows, then it might be a danger for those who are listening. I mean, in the sense that that might cause them to lose their faith. One reason it might cause a person to lose faith — those who have faith in the teachings. And as an example, if one is to explain in very great detail how one should practise guru devotion. So, like, explain in detail how one should serve the guru, how one should make the offerings to the guru, and so on.
The person — from the listener’s side, some might generate, let us say, a doubt or disbelief in the teacher, saying that he is teaching this because he is asking for himself what to do. And similarly, if in the group, say, there are some Hīnayāna practitioners — there are some Hīnayāna followers who say that there are no Mahāyāna teachings, they don’t believe in Mahāyāna teachings. Plus, they also believe there are no Tantric teachings or secret teachings. So for them, if that person is in the group and if the explanation given covers the meaning and the great benefit of Mahāyāna teachings, then that might cause — let us say — that might disturb that person’s mind. So so whatever one explains, one should be very skilful in explaining. And even those who have no interest in the Mahāyāna teachings, like explaining something in between which they might like, or saying, explaining something that might lead them to become a Mahāyānist. So one should be very meaningful or skilful in giving the explanations.
Yep. Are you there? Any more questions? Like, seven, like — yeah. They said groups.
Like, seven groups, which in total comes to thirty-seven. So, like, generally, it’s explained as the thirty-seven limbs, and that is summarised into seven groups. Yeah. Like, what do you call it? The four foundations of mindfulness.
The four perfect abandonments. And then what is that? The four — what do you call them? Legs of Miracles. Yeah.
And then the five powers. And similarly, like, the five forces. And then another, which is the seven limbs of enlightenment. So there are in all thirty-seven. Plus the eight-fold noble path.
So it’s like a practice that is practised from the path of accumulation to the path of meditation, like in a serial way. And that will be explained — the teacher will explain in the next teachings which practices are done on which path. Okay. No. Yeah.
Oh, and you want it.