Bodhisattva’s way of life C5 Patience — 08 BWL

Bodhisattva's way of life C5 Patience (Geshe Doga)

Bodhisattva's way of life C5 Patience — 08 BWL

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Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.

About this talk. In this 27-minute teaching from his commentary on the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life chapter on patience, Geshe Doga uses the image of a stick to reframe how practitioners should respond to harm. A stick causes pain not through its own volition but only through the force applied to it; likewise, when someone harms you with harsh words or actions, they act not from their own power but under the control of delusion, anger, and ignorance. Instead of directing anger toward the person, redirect it toward their mental afflictions. Geshe Doga then explores deeper motivation: others may recognize your forbearance and reform themselves, and you can examine your own role through the lens of karma—recognizing that present harm echoes past actions. He concludes with broad benefits of patience practice: respect and good reputation in this life, happiness, good health and companions, and ultimately, the cultivation of compassion that extends from loved ones to all beings. Essential for those beginning sustained relationship-based dharma practice.

Stick is directly harming you. Yeah? But why you are not responding to that stick? Because that stick is harming you. But you may make the justifications of your not, I mean, responding to this stick that it is I mean, the the stick has and hasn’t got its own force or power to harm you.

If that is your reasons, then there’s no reason to to to respond to that persons, to show anger to that person. It’s because like that that stick, the person hasn’t got his own power. He’s not harming you by his own power. He’s harming you by the power of his inner ignorance, his inner desire and anger. So instead of if you like to respond, then instead of responding to that person, you must respond to that that I mean, inner ignorance and anger.

So, therefore, when someone someone else harms you, then you should think that the that that he is that he is harming you by not his own volition, but by some by but by due to some other forces, some other such forces, he’s showing that harmful action to you. So that you can and then think that the he shows such harsh words and shows such angry face to that person. Because he does that action with some other forces, not by himself. So, by this way, it will be easy for you to do that patience? As you know, the when the such anger or such deluded mind arises, even the normal, I mean, good persons will become very rough people.

So, at that time, in actual sense, that person is not, I mean, bad. Because he is under the influence of a deluded mind, completely uncontrollable of his actions. He may probably I mean, harm even to his dearest friend and such his good friend. I mean, to all such relatives and all I mean, that all those people that he consider, I mean, normally good. So the all these are due to his the influence of that anger.

I’m asking. So if you do this this type of patience, one time, two times, and all the time, this will benefit not only for you, but it will help the other people to do the same practice. They may know you are that good behavior after some time and realize their fault. And then we do the patience. So it is very helpful.

And sometimes you may also do the same practice by thinking on the law, the cause and effect. When someone harms you, You may think that main cause of his actions is myself. It is due to my previous harmful action to that person. He is now doing the same to me. So by thinking on this law of karma, you can also practice this patience more easily.

So you can do this this practice by thinking on many such aspects. If you do the patient, it has many benefits to you also. Even to attain the ultimate goal, Buddhahood, One must practice on patience. Without doubt, there is no way to achieve that ultimate goal. And also, that practice is also the source of happiness to other people also.

It satisfies and frees other people. If you think on the benefit of that patience, then it is also good in this lifetime too. By doing that practice, the other people will respect you, would consider you a very well conduct and well behaved. So you gain you gain the the fame and reputation too in this life. In fact, through this practice, you would lead a very So by this practice on patience, Even while you are cycling in this samsaric world, You may have a good physical looks, very healthy and endowed with many good I mean, surrounding things, endowed with good friend and relations.

So all these, I mean, such qualifications are the the result of that patience in the previous life. So in our daily life, always be aware that the that whenever that anger arises, that will cause you suffering and pain and do the patience which would benefit you. So to summarize, one must know the good and bad, which benefit you, which harms you. And since everyone doesn’t like a tiny unhappiness, and like a tiny happiness, they try to avoid from the that cause of unhappiness and try to put the practice the cause of happiness. Only then one can experience a happy life.

So, you must do this practice of patience, especially to those persons whom you have to make some relations in this life. Yeah. So because we are always depending on those persons. In the world, only we have some special connection with those persons. So it is important to do this practice, especially to those persons when they happen to harm you or say some harsh words or any such negative actions.

Only then one can have a happy life. Because the people had I mean, experienced many such a lot of unhappiness due to disagreement with those persons. It seems there is no way to get happiness if our relationship with those persons is not good. Also in terms of Dharma, generating compassion, love, doing such patience to those nearest persons who are near to you is very important. The practice of patience can be expanded to other sentient beings only by doing and such compassion to one’s own personal relationship to those relationships.

Only then one could expand this to others’ strangers and enemies and in fact to all sentient beings. It should be beginning from one’s own. The So you all should show love to each others and show happiness to each other and have a good mutual understanding. And then, if you know the meditation or such prostration, sometimes you can do such practice. And try to not produce the anger before that arises because that would be easier for you.

Right? And always try to hold that kind and good heart.

Translation / བསྒྱུར།

This translation was generated using Gemini Pro 2.5 with a curated Buddhist terminology glossary and verified for register, glossary use, and absence of English leakage. The English transcript above remains the authoritative source.