Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 90-minute beginner’s Buddhism class, Geshe Kyab opens with hope and dreaming—recognizing their importance while stressing the need for balance and acceptance when outcomes don’t match expectations. He traces Buddha’s own journey of aspiration and effort to enlightenment, then pivots to the Four Noble Truths as Buddhism’s foundational teaching. Geshe Kyab walks through each truth in detail: suffering (with three types: suffering of suffering, suffering of change, and all-pervasive suffering), the origins of suffering in delusion and karma (the three poisons—desire, aversion, and ignorance), the possibility of cessation, and the path to achieve it. Throughout, he uses concrete examples: his own migraine triggers, the 2016 US election as an illustration of suffering of change, and the medical analogy of doctor, diagnosis, and medicine mirroring Buddha, karma, and practice. He emphasizes recognizing and managing anger and attachment rather than rejecting them entirely, stresses quality over quantity in practice, and ends with Q&A on emptiness and holy relics, clarifying that emptiness and dependent arising must be understood simultaneously. Pitched at newcomers and serious practitioners seeking foundational Buddhist understanding.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 2016 11 13 Buddhism for Beginners.mp3
UUID: 01506fdb-23cf-4f71-9e20-1fe16dd175bc
Teacher: Geshe Kyab
Collection: Geshe Kyab Beginners Buddhism Sundays (Geshe Kyab)
Date: 2016-11-13
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 89.6 minutes
Words: ~10,143
Good morning, everybody. Mantra, please. Only mantra. Thank you. Hope is very important, and dream is very important.
For instance, every result comes in the future because of today’s hope and dream. So that means hoping and dreaming is important. However, also the hope and dream must be balanced. You know? Also, you need to understand that sometimes you do hope, you dream, and sometimes your dreams may, you know, fail and, you know, maybe be hopeless.
You need to accept it because we are not Buddha. We are not God. Something that whatever you think and hope, everything going to be like this. We are just ordinary human beings, just normal human beings, but, you know, we do, you know, hope and dream. Absolutely.
It’s important. Hopelessness is not good. Not dreaming is not good. Then, you know, it’s some problems, psychological problems. But again, repeat again, when you hope something, when you dream something, doesn’t mean that everything will, you know, come true.
It depends on your own karma. Also Buddhism, we need to talk about karma. Karma is the most important. But if you dream, if you hope something, your dreams come true, that means you got good karma, you know, past lifetime. Maybe you may have accumulated this kind of karma, so then now you are having good results, which you already dreamed before, but not everybody is the same.
You know? Sometimes some people’s dreams, you know, do not come true. That’s also okay. Failing is the first moment to learn whatever you do. If you fail something, that’s okay.
It’s not a big problem. That’s, you know, the first step to learn. And you shouldn’t be discouraging yourself. And again, you need to, you know, learn that, you need to hope that, you need to dream that. This way you need to do. One day, I will definitely say your dreams will come true.
Absolutely. But in the first moment, you dream something, you hope something, then you fail, some people, they does it, then they just, you know, that is a little bit, then you downcast yourself. That is absolutely—you do not deserve it. You should not be downcasting yourself. As a precious human rebirth, we obtained.
Precious human life, we obtained. How can we be hopeless? How can we be dreamless? So these are the Buddhist teachings, especially from Śākyamūni Buddha, really give us all these teachings. Absolutely we can be able to accomplish.
Whatever you do, we can be able to accomplish, you know. But when you need encouragement is very important. You need effort. You need patience, tolerance, forgiveness. All these beautiful Buddhist ethics are very, very important. Buddha himself, Śākyamūni Buddha himself was thinking when he was very young.
At that moment, he wasn’t the Buddha, just a prince, thinking, thinking. So then, of course, it’s a long story, but, you know, I will make it short. Then someday when you grow, then he went to a forest area and became a monk. Because after becoming a monk, then he meditated, meditated, meditated. He was hoping, he was dreaming something he wanted to do to change the world, you know.
So then finally, he achieved enlightenment. Then he really changed the world, and he established Buddhism. I will call this Buddhism now. Totally the, you know, conduct is the non-harming conduct. Excuse me.
The conduct is totally non-harming, non-harming conduct, and the view is dependent arising and emptiness. So that means the—that’s why, you know, Buddha established Buddhism, something that way, you know, of course, in the teachings perspective, he taught us thirty-four thousand scriptures. All these are the hope. There is hope. Then we can learn the teachings, we can be able to improve ourself, to become a kind human being, a compassionate being.
So these are really hope. It’s very important. So that’s why hoping is very important. Even though not only just spiritual side, the mundane worldly perspective, also hope is very important. So you can apply this both sides.
After Buddha attained enlightenment, then of course, he taught us the first teaching because now he wants to lead the people who are interested in his teachings. So that’s why the Buddha taught us first teaching, the Four Noble Truths. And first thing is that he taught us out of the Four Noble Truths. First truth, he taught us the noble truth of suffering, which nobody likes. That’s what he wanted to teach.
So see, this is the way we are talking about the spiritual side. You know, usually people want to hear things what they want to hear. But then Buddha wasn’t teaching you what you want to hear. Buddha was teaching you what he wanted you to hear. That’s reality.
That’s—Buddha was teaching us the fact, actual fact, actual reality. So Buddha was telling us, hey, you must face the fact. You must face the fact, not only just faking around. That’s what Buddha was telling us. So that’s why the Buddha taught us first truth, the noble truth of suffering.
That’s very really relevant because we are suffering. And, you know, sometimes we get sick, sometimes we get, you know, family problems, children’s problems, husband’s problems, wife, and this society, all the politics, this and that, and I mean, you know, suffering. So Buddha was saying, I will teach you first suffering. I wanted you to understand the core of the suffering. What is suffering? How does suffering arise?
At this point, the Buddha taught us the second noble truth, the noble truth of the origin of suffering. Then third one is the Buddha, even though he taught us, yes, suffering is just temporary. Suffering is just temporary. It is conventional. But suffering can disappear.
Suffering can cease. So at this point, Buddha taught us the third noble truth, the noble truth of the cessation of suffering. Then now, suffering cannot just cease, just praying and saying some mantras or doing some volunteer work. No. That’s not enough.
How can, you know, suffering cease? So this point is the Buddha taught us the fourth noble truth, the noble truth of the path. P-A-T-H, noble truth of the path. The noble truth of the path leads to the cessation of suffering. So these are the Four Noble Truths Buddha taught us.
So the first truth is the suffering, which is very important to understand. Suffering should be understood. Suffering must be understood. If you do not understand the suffering, then how can you cure the suffering? You’ve got to understand first the suffering. You’ve got to understand how suffering and pain arises.
Sometimes the people who believe in God in India is the God’s will. I don’t think God really wanted us to feel suffering. I don’t think so. But sometimes people just talk like that, oh, God’s will. If God makes a few people suffer, not other, you know, not suffering thing. That’s very difficult to accept, isn’t it?
God is God. If you do believe in God, God must equally treat all beings. So is the Buddha. If Buddha was making us suffer, then how to accept the Buddha’s teachings? Same as like, you know, but Buddha wasn’t really giving us suffering and treating us.
Some people suffering and pain, some people not. Absolutely not. Actually, there’s no beings in this world, sentient beings, who do not feel pain and suffering. Absolutely not. We all do.
So that’s why understanding the suffering is very important. You know? Some people may feel suffering a little more than others, but we are in suffering. So that’s why today I would like to talk about all these teachings which are very important. Not that I am teaching you or I made these teachings.
No. These teachings—they come from two thousand five hundred and fifty-three years before. Buddha himself on my back here, Buddha himself taught these teachings happened to be his first teaching. So now suffering. First of all, example. My case, I will just put down an example as myself.
I get sometimes migraine attack. Just an example, simple example. I get headache. So what I need to do when I get headache, I don’t feel good because I want to sleep, I don’t want to talk, I don’t want to teach, I don’t want to meditate. I’m suffering now, isn’t it?
Simple example. Okay? But then now, what I need to do, I need to understand how this migraine is arising. What reason? In order to understand the migraine suffering, how this is arising, then I need to search the cause of the migraine.
So in order to do so, I need to go to the neurologist. I need to go to the doctor. The doctor will check me and he will do the blood check and maybe MRI and this and that. And finally he said, oh, you got a migraine. This migraine is coming from this and this and that.
These are the—the doctor will tell you the origin of the migraine, the cause of the migraine. So then the doctor will tell you, first of all, if you want to cure migraine, you need to cure the cause of the migraine. Then I can be able to cure the migraine, isn’t it? So then the doctor will give you some medications to cure that. Anyway, first of all, I don’t want to go medication one.
In order to cure my migraine suffering, I need to cure my cause of the migraine. How is migraine arising? There are many triggers. For instance, for me, I’m talking about for myself. Scent, perfume, incense perfume, candles, and then shampoos, and all these chemicals, those, you know, seem to be very sweet scent.
But for me, it’s my own karma. It attacks my migraine. These are the triggers for me. So then now I need to avoid those triggers. I think they’re called triggers.
Yeah. Sometimes some cheese also, avoid it. When I avoid it, then, you know, my migraine is much better because I’m avoiding and I’m curing the cause of the migraine. Then I’m not getting migraine. Of course, you know, this is just an example.
Sometimes weather like this, one day is very, very hot, next day is cold or windy, you know, then my body temperature changes. I’m not used to it, and I like weird—this weather, you know. So then I get migraine attack, you know, yesterday I had. But the point I’m making here is this is just the example. Now if you go inside the pain and suffering, there are different sufferings.
For instance, the suffering of suffering, the suffering of change, all-pervasive suffering, or pervasive suffering. There are three different sufferings. Of course, if I put more sufferings, suffering of birth, suffering of aging, suffering of death, suffering of sickness, like that. But mainly these three sufferings, the suffering of suffering, the suffering of change, all-pervasive suffering. These three sufferings are the main we need to understand.
Remember, suffering should be understood. So these are the three. So we need to understand first. First, what does mean the suffering of suffering out of the three? The suffering of suffering is—we are suffering.
Sometimes not so pleasant to hear, but I wanted you to hear this. Remember, Buddha taught us something that we didn’t want to hear, but the Buddha wanted us to hear these teachings. So that’s why you all came here. Same thing. I’m going to teach you something that you don’t want to hear.
That’s what I wanted to teach you. I wanted you to hear it. That’s the most important. So the suffering of suffering is—we are in suffering. The world is suffering and pain.
But on top of that, we are having migraine attack, headaches, stomach ache, you know, pain in the stomach, kidney problems, heart problems, and joint problems. And, I mean, just you just name it. There are a variety of pain and suffering. Already suffering, on top of that now, another comes, you know, conventional suffering and pain. The suffering of suffering.
That’s the meaning of the suffering of suffering. But the suffering of suffering is we, the human beings, very easily understand. Understand. But not only human beings, even though animals do understand the suffering of suffering because animals don’t want pain and suffering. See, when you touch, when you try to beat those cats and dogs, sometimes people do.
They cry. They’re saying, please don’t harm me. I’m feeling pain. Don’t harm me. See?
Even the smaller creatures, when you touch them, they just move on and, you know, they try to defend themselves because they are having some pain on their body because our hands are sometimes very rough for them. See, animals do understand the suffering of suffering, but we are the human beings, of course. But my second one is the suffering of change. That one is very, very important. All important, but the suffering of change is very important to understand.
So this is—now only human beings can be able to understand the suffering of change. How? How can human beings understand the suffering of change? First, you need to listen. Second, you need to contemplate.
Third, you need to meditate. Then you would understand the suffering of change. What does mean the suffering of change? Mean, first moment it was beautiful, wonderful, very much pleasurable. Then second moment, everything changed into pain and suffering, the suffering of change.
That’s the meaning. The world is like that or living style is like that. It doesn’t matter you are lay or you are monks and nuns. We all, you know, need to go through the suffering of change. But is it pessimism?
It is like that way. No. It is optimistic. Absolutely. There is hope.
It is optimistic, not pessimism. Not pessimistic. It’s optimistic. You know? But we need to learn.
The suffering of change, we all, you know, experience the suffering of change in our life. How many times we thought so beautiful, wonderful, oh, this is my pleasure. You know? But then second moment, after sometimes, everything is disaster. Family problem, children’s problem, society’s problem, or this problem, that problem.
I mean, unbelievable, isn’t it? Change. That’s a general reaction. It is like impermanent, subject to change, just like this. Sometimes, some cases, it’s not going to take that much long, even within five, ten minutes like this.
Then now, when things change, what happens? Now, oh my gosh. Oh my god. Oh my heaven. Why me?
Why? See? That’s what people talk about. This is not something that you or me. This is—that’s why suffering—this is the world is suffering. I mean, you know, it’s not me or you. Everybody, you know, needs to go through sometimes like that. There is no really permanent happiness. There is no permanent happiness in this world.
Whatever happiness we, you know, obtain eventually changes. But it doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t feel this temporary happiness. Of course, why not? You know? But you need to understand, the main thing here is Buddhism is not saying they deny the temporary happiness.
You should not have temporary happiness. We are not denying temporary happiness, but we are saying here try to understand this temporary happiness. Many times we only focus one side. So Buddhism is saying don’t do that. Round it.
Don’t focus only one side. You have to look at all the different directions. So that’s now the main thing here. Okay? Not that they’re just denying or should not have all this temporary pleasure or you shouldn’t get married or you shouldn’t have a wife or a husband or you shouldn’t have society.
Absolutely not. Of course, we live in this world. We need all these, you know, different people, different, you know, things in our life. This is our livelihood. But we need to learn.
We need to understand. That’s understand. That’s the main thing here. Something should be understood, something like that. Sometimes the Western general mind is black and white.
Oh, this, now they’re pessimistic. Buddhism is not like that. I have been repeating this many times. Buddhism is not only black and white, there is a middle one. I used to give an example like Geshe-la’s hair, gray hair there.
Not only black or white hair, there’s gray hair. Just the example, you know. What mean is there is a middle path. But many times Western mind is black or white. That’s it.
Only these two. But Buddhism is all the time middle path, middle, not only black and white. So you can have friends and family. You can have society. You can have wives and husbands or children.
You can live in this world, but you need to understand all this pleasure that you, you know, you were thinking eventually changes into pain and suffering. You need to learn that. So if you do learn that, you are understanding the suffering of change. For instance, recently, I think the Democratic Party, they had great expectations. Here is Clinton going to be the president.
I did too. And they literally took very, very lightly because of what Mr. Trump was saying—things are very negative things. And this side of the group thought, oh, he can very easily defeat Mr. Trump. They had this great hope and expectations, but then that November eighth, like shocked. Even though I’m receiving many emails, people are shocked.
See? Now change. See? That pleasure, great hope, they had these great good feelings. Just within one second moment of the election, when the, you know, these people announced Donald Trump is the next president, that moment, if you look at the pictures, people are crying.
Their face is, like, unbelievable. See? Even though kind of, you know, it’s understandable. You know, it’s understandable because the gain and the loss is part of our life. I mean, you know, sometimes we gain, sometimes we lose.
But the lack of understanding the suffering of change, then now what is happening in the United States. You know, people are demonstrating, and people are getting hurt. This is going to be enough for the day, still continuing all across. But if you look at the students’ perspective, it makes sense. But then now, what is the worth of it?
We have to get together, united to accept it. So then now, see, I already, you know, put up my mind, hope. See, dreaming. Who knows? He may do good, you know.
See, that’s what we need to do. But some people, lack of understanding the suffering of change, but then now see, they are really creating more these issues and hurting now. Many people are getting hurt. That is the worst thing now happening in the United States. Losing, for me, losing is not a big deal.
People lose sometimes. Gaining and losing is part of our life. One of the eight worldly concerns, gaining and losing. But now what’s happening now, this one I’m very much sad. Mostly these people are the college students.
College students. And they are so young. I don’t want them to get hurt. These are the people, you know, the next generation. I think they are going to be the next president or the congress or the senator, but now they are so confused saying she won the majority of the vote, but only the—they call it electoral vote—is Donald.
I have no idea what does mean that. They are saying she got more people’s support in the United States than him, but he won this one. They call it electoral vote or something, poll or something. I don’t know how this, you know, but I’m not—anyway, whatever it is, but this has been that way. Obama won also the electoral vote or poll or whatever they call. Then now he was elected the president, you know, of last eight years. But we need to accept it now.
But instead of all this, the demonstration and people are hurting. Already many, many young students already got hurt now. That’s how worst things are happening. But we have to get over it, which is—I feel sad too, but I already finished. Yeah.
Why not? Because I thought first female president, first mother president, I thought in the United States. Although, you know, Hillary Clinton did have many, many issues, you know, but still, you know, I’m as a Buddhist, mother sentient beings. I support that, but I couldn’t vote. Why?
I was too late. I sent email to Sydney, but I was too late. Supposed to be I registered first, you know, but I was too late, it’s deadline over. But in any way, whatever it is, even I vote, she already, she already, you know, going to lose. One of my vote is not that much make a difference for her.
Anyway, after four years, I’m going to vote. My point is the suffering of change is something like this. So see, now you can look at our daily life. One moment, we are so happy. The second moment changes.
So these are you need to understand, the suffering of change. Now the last one is the all-pervasive suffering. Conditional suffering is the principle suffering. Principle suffering is—as long as we obtain the contaminated five aggregates, which I mentioned to you before, we will continually feel pain and suffering. But then now, why we feel all the suffering of change or condition.
Why all this suffering? What makes this suffering, you know, exist and how does suffering arise? What is the cause of suffering? This point is the Buddha taught us the second noble truth, the noble truth of the origination of suffering. So how does suffering arise? In Buddhism, without causes and conditions, there wouldn’t be any results.
Must be some causes and conditions involved in order to give the results. So then what would be the origination of suffering? Noble truth of the origination of suffering. What are the origination of suffering? Delusions and karma.
That makes a lot of sense. Delusions and karma, these are the two main origins of suffering or causes of suffering. First, delusions. What are the delusions? Desire, attachment, aversion, and ignorance.
These are the delusions. Desire, attachment, aversion, and ignorance. Of the three, these are also called three poisons. Because of the three poisons, we would accumulate negative karma. So that’s why karma and delusions are the cause of suffering.
So now there are a lot of things we need to talk about attachment. Desire, attachment can be good, can be good, can be bad. Not all desire and attachments are bad. Some of them are living, attachment. This is living, surviving.
We need this attachment. We have this affection or attachment towards our own friends and family. These are—we need it. We have some desire to eat, to drink, to buy, you know, items, things, of course. Why not?
They don’t hurt. So now here, the main thing is the cause of this, you know, suffering, which is here we are talking about desire, attachment, aversion and ignorance. This desire, attachment, we’re talking about very strong desire, attachment. Very, you know, out of ignorance. Ignorance is the fundamental confusion, so then strong desire and attachment arises.
So that desire and attachment is now here we are talking about it, cause of suffering. Not every desire and attachment, you know. So again, desire, attachment must be balanced. You have to check it out how much is too much. If your desire, attachment is bringing you pain and suffering, then that desire, attachment must be—detachment.
That’s what you need to do. Smart. If your desire, attachment does not bring you any pain and suffering, keep it and go. Keep it going. You have to determine as a precious human being.
You’ve got to determine which desire, attachment is bringing you pain and suffering and how much degree of desire, attachment is bringing you pain and suffering or not. You’ve got to determine that. I cannot determine for you. I can do only for myself. If your desire, attachment is bringing you pain and suffering, then you must now be focused. You must concentrate.
You must now detach that part of the desire, attachment. If your desire, attachment is helping you and it’s really, you know, your life is moving well, you got it then. Keep on going. So that’s a smart way to, you know, to concentrate and focus this way. I’ve been doing that.
I do feel sometimes bad desire, attachment. Why not? I have feelings. I’m not a vegetable, you know. I’m a monk, yes.
I’m a monk, yes. Absolutely. But I have feelings. Some things I like. You know? Some things I dislike.
Why not? I’m a normal human being. You think that, oh, Geshe-la is wearing a robe. Now he is already a Buddha. Oh, please, come on.
You know? I’m not yet there. Yes. I have more knowledge than you about Buddhism, but we all are, you know, we all in this world, in saṃsāra. We need to go through pain and suffering.
Maybe I may do more practice than you, but you do practice also. Other than that, that’s not different. Not different. Okay? So see, that’s—you need to focus on desire, attachment.
Same as like anger. Sometimes anger, okay, you know, human nature. But again, you need to balance. When you get angry, no big deal. But then just right away try to understand, oh, I’m getting angry.
So if you try to put it down right away, that’s it, it goes away. But then if you get angry, if you don’t recognize something is happening here, then what happens next, that anger will grow. And, you know, your anger becomes big, you know, anger. Then hostility. So then, you know, got to hurt other people, or then, of course, hurting yourself.
So this happens. When say upsetness, when you’re upset, actually you’re getting angry, actually. Different, you know, English words are very different. You know, there are so many terms. When you get upset, usually, we don’t consider upsetness as anger.
Actually, for me, when you’re upset, you are getting angry, a little emotion here. Right moment, okay, cut it out. If you don’t, that upsetness grows, becomes anger, then hostility, then rage, then now you can—I don’t need to talk about sometimes people harm so many people. Then of course, harming themselves. So now see, this way you have to be looking at how much anger is too much.
Just getting angry, we all do, one way or another. When we lost the election, I was upset. I was—see? Even the Buddhist monk. Why not?
But here in my mind say, uh-oh. That’s no good. Hey. You are a practitioner. You know?
See? Put it down. And I was laughing inside myself, wow. Sometimes this, you know, this mind is really the monkey mind. Not only just me, many of my students in Florida, similar things happened, you know.
And actually it’s not here. Around the world, people are—around the world, even in Australia, you know, except my last class, one of the new students, she said the true freedom was that day, was true freedom. I don’t know what does mean that. Maybe she was misunderstanding. Anyway, you know, people do have different—it is freedom of speech.
You know, you can speak whatever you feel is right. But you’ve got to understand actually what’s happening. Anyway, the point is that all these things happen, really. But recognizing anger is very important. Recognizing anger is bad, patience is good, that’s very important. We must recognize anger has no positive support.
Patience does. Must be recognized. That’s very important. Many times, you know, people do not recognize anger is negative. So that’s why they keep getting angry, eventually the anger grows, then becomes hostility.
That’s a problem. First moment is that you’ve got to recognize which I can do good things for me. Which is I did it. So it’s desire, attachment. If it is a strong one.
You must recognize it. Little here, there desire, attachment, no problem. Why not? Do we have a desire to eat different kinds of foods, different kinds of restaurants? I do too.
I like to go to a Thai restaurant. That’s my desire for food. Why not? I used to like pizza, but I cut it out. Now, you know, it’s too much cheese because cheese makes me, this migraine attack, some of the cheese.
And this white flour is not good. I have some students. They are very good for eating healthy food like a dietitian. Oh, Geshe-la, you shouldn’t eat this one, you shouldn’t eat that one, or you should be eating this one. They taught me, they put all these things in my brain.
But now I’m very much like, you know, eating food—my mind is all the time okay. But in India, I have no choice. Whatever the cooking you need to eat, nothing like here to choose to eat different foods, you know. Because we have enough to eat food, how can you choose the food? Especially in the monastery.
But then now, kindness of Lama Zopa Rinpoche and monastery foods are much better than it used to be. Usually rice and dal, which is lentil soup. Of course lentil soup is good. That’s it. There’s no any vegetables, no any fruits like that.
But kindness of Lama Zopa Rinpoche, now they get fruits and also vegetables. Rice, dal is still there. It’s okay. But now on top of that, additional, sometimes vegetables, sometimes fruits. I think they do eggs also, sometimes also.
You know, it’s good. Get some protein. So nowadays monks are much healthier than when I was in the monastery. Totally different. Our senior monks in my time, foods were so bad.
So that’s why we got so many health issues. Because Buddhism is so deep, you know. We need to learn Buddhism since morning four a.m., five a.m. until mid of the night, like a machine. You are memorizing many things, you need to go to classes and these debate sessions, you need to go there. But food quality is not good, and so then people get so many sickness and problems, health issues. But nowadays, I think these young monks are so lucky, actually. They are so fortunate because of the kindness of Lama Zopa Rinpoche and other sponsors.
Unbelievable. Of course, still not the same as here, but what I’m saying is the most decent food they get nowadays. Okay? So see now, desire is something like this and aversion and anger is something like this. See, it depends on how much angry you are into it.
Depends on that. You have to check it out. You must determine. The ignorance is ignorance. That’s a fundamental confusion.
We ignore things. We’re denying things even though sometimes practitioners don’t know killing ants and small insects are the same and negative, but we ignore because of this ignorance. We, you know, inside our thoughts, we ignore it. So then after, people regret it. Oh, I did this. I shouldn’t be doing this and that.
But you already damaged something because of ignorance. Ignorance is, you know, like an illusion. Okay. Maybe I will put this way, like an illusion. Makes you believe—makes you believe, you know, things are beautiful and things are wonderful, and that person is a wonderful person.
Ignorance makes us believe. So that means ignorance actually is deluding our mind. I’m saying deluding. Ignorance is deluding our mind actually. For instance, a magician, you know, people show magic. A magician shows magic because he deludes us first.
He tricks us. Then he will show you something that you will see exactly as what he wants to show you. Then we believe into it in that period of time, one or two hours, isn’t it? We believe into it. Why?
Because of ignorance. The whole mind is deluded by the magician’s power and trick that we can see whatever he or she was showing us. During that time, one or two hours, we believe into it. Everything is what he was showing us. After all, that’s not real.
After all, it’s a trick. Everything is just a magic trick. Same thing like that, this world that we see, we touch, we think this is the pleasure or this and that. We are now in a big, big magic stadium. The world is, think of it like that.
Then who is the leader? Ignorance is the magician, actually. Consider it as showing you magic. Showing all this good or bad, everything like that. Ignorance is showing magic.
We believe into it. But until you hear the Buddhist teachings, Buddhist teachings are like the Dharma mirror. Then now you can understand how much ignorance is damaging our life. But it’s hard. It’s very hard.
I know. It’s not easy. It’s very hard. Ignoring all these conception thoughts, you cannot see it, you cannot touch it. Only you can understand through the teachings.
That’s very difficult. So this is the point sometimes science and, you know, religion or spiritual are against each other. Because science is everything is the proof because they are so good at analyzing things, you know, checking inside the microscope and they will tell you exactly. Because they need some kind of a, you know, they need to touch and they need to see and they’re going to analyze it. But here we are talking about something that you cannot see, something that you cannot touch.
It’s totally invisible. That’s what we need to understand. That’s very, very difficult. But still, many scientists do believe that Buddhism does have a very scientific mind, not in terms of the matters, but the inside one, like a consciousness perspective. Buddhism does explain there are so many different thoughts and consciousness, like something the invisible existence things.
How they do? Not just like blind believing, but after analyzing, you know. Two different things. One is analyze the form things. Second one is analyze something that you cannot see, something that you cannot touch, inside one.
So this point is science and Buddhism, Buddhist philosophy become very friendly nowadays. So that’s what Dalai Lama does, you know, goes to, you know, those conferences where people meet together, talk about science and Buddhist, you know, cognitive, you know, about the Buddhist cognitive things like inside one is. So I think that’s great. Absolutely. But the point here is ignorance is the fundamental confusion, really.
But, you know, it’s difficult to cut out ignorance. There are many different ignorances too. I think this point is that we need to meditate on emptiness to cut out this real ignorance, which is the, you know, the opposite of the wisdom understanding emptiness. Then this will, you know, cover all the other, you know, things that are going to be, you know, cut out. Absolutely, I think.
Ignorance, do we have different ignorance? Actually, yes. But the main thing is the opposite of wisdom understanding emptiness. But that’s not my class today. So now, noble truth of suffering, noble truth of the origin of suffering.
So because of the three poisons, we are continually—consistently actually, I shouldn’t say—continually actually accumulating negative karma. Once you accumulate negative karma, then negative karma ripens the results which is pain and suffering. Results are happening. So now look at the relationship between suffering and its causes. It’s very tight.
But then now, okay, what can I do? What can I do to not, you know, get suffering and pain in the future? Is there anything I can do to avoid, you know, pain and suffering? Yes, absolutely. Absolutely yes.
Whatever suffering and pain you’ve got in the past, you already got it. It’s finished. It’s history. But in the present time, you can be able to really build something to not get pain and suffering in the future. So this point is the Buddha taught us, my fellow students, suffering can cease.
Suffering and pain, these are just temporary. It can cease. It can disappear. It can be avoided. How?
And what is that actually? First, cessation of suffering. Noble truth of the cessation of suffering. Suffering can cease. So you can obtain, you can have this realization, cessation of suffering.
Okay? Now cessation of suffering is also very, very deep. So I cannot explain to you everything today. This is the beginner Buddhism class, but I’m just going through mostly the more lighter perspective of the Four Noble Truths. I didn’t want you to really feel too much to understand Four Noble Truths.
But the main thing is suffering can cease. Now you understand that. Suffering can cease. Suffering can cease means cessation of suffering you need to realize. The noble truth of suffering, the truth of the origin of suffering must be understood.
Suffering must be understood. Origin of suffering must be avoided. Cessation of suffering must be obtained, realized. But now in order to, you know, obtain the cessation of suffering, what do you need? You need the noble truth of the path.
Fourth one. So the noble truth of the path is now all these Dharma teachings and practices. Different meditations, different teachings, and practices. Then of course eventually there are not one specific path. There are various sorts of paths you need to learn, which is you are in now.
You’re learning it. Learning is not only just important, understanding is the most important. Once you understand the noble truth of the path, then now you need to practice it. When you practice, when things fall apart, then you need to apply all these different paths.
So at this point, you can be able to cease the suffering and pain. So you are in the right track. Absolutely. You are in the highway to enlightenment. You are.
So just stay there. Don’t exit from the highway. Stay there. You are in the track actually because of the noble truth of the path. Doesn’t matter how much you are learning.
Little bit, little bit more or very high, doesn’t matter. Everything is your own abilities, your own capacity, your own timetables. But just continually studying is most important than just, you know, hours and hours of practicing, which is I used to tell—quality is most important, not quantity means that. Quality is important. If you meditate just five, ten minutes properly, your quality of meditation is wonderful.
Someone meditates maybe hours, but if his quality is not good, then it’s just quantity. But your meditation, just five, ten minutes, becomes more precious than his hours of meditation. Why? Because you have quality of meditation, not him. It is just quantity, only many hours.
Sinking, you know, all this distraction. These are the things you need to understand. Okay? Just do it. Just do the practice.
Just do the meditations. And most important thing is to try to understand. Not only just feeling good. Don’t only expect only feeling good, feeling good. Feeling good is okay.
But the main thing is to try to understand the core of the teachings. When you do that, sometimes you may need to go through some pain, which is the good one. In order to get something good results, you are going through some pain and suffering. Good, because meditation, when you meditate, we need to go through some pain and suffering. You need to sit down there. You need to really concentrate, focus.
Sometimes you couldn’t do it, sometimes you are confused. See? In order to get good results. These are the good kind of pain and suffering because results are great. So no pain, no gain.
That’s exactly the Western norm. No pain, no gain. Something you want to gain, you need to go through some pain. Look at the people who go to work every day. Why?
They want to sleep. They want to enjoy the, you know, if there’s some good weather, they want to enjoy it. Not like today’s weather, you know. Today is not good. They want to enjoy it, but they have to go to work even though they didn’t want it.
Why? Because they need money. They need money to pay bills. They need money to raise their children, family. They have to go and work.
So there are some pain needed even though you want to sleep. But you know, same thing. Now here is the spiritual side. We’re talking about gaining something insightful. Great realization.
You need to go through some pain and suffering. Absolutely. That’s a good one. Okay? So now, noble truth of suffering, noble truth of the origination of suffering, noble truth of the cessation of suffering, noble truth of the path that leads to the cessation of suffering.
How beautiful to practice. Suffering should be understood, cause of suffering should be avoided, cessation of suffering must be obtained, noble truth of the path must be learned, must be practiced. These are the order of the Four Noble Truths like this. Now, if you look at the example that I gave you, consider yourself as a, you know, sick human being. Now you’ve got a stomach problem, the noble truth of suffering.
You go to the doctor. Doctor is considered as Buddha. At this point. Okay? Then now the doctor checks your stomach problem, and that comes from the past, you know, maybe you may have eaten some poisonous food or whatever it is, cause of suffering. So Buddha will tell you karma and delusions are the cause of suffering.
Then now, the doctor will give you the medicines to cure your stomach problem, which is the same as like cessation of suffering. You can cease your suffering and pain. Same thing, you can be able to avoid your stomach pain and suffering after the medicine from the doctor. Same thing, medicine is the noble truth of the path. Buddha taught us the noble truth of the path that’s going to lead to the cessation of suffering.
It’s the same sort of idea. Suffering should be understood. Origin of suffering must be avoided, eliminated. Cessation of suffering must be realized or obtained. Noble truth of the path must be practiced.
That’s medicine. We can do it. Step by step, little by little, you know, try to understand. When you do practice the Four Noble Truths, this point is that you can be able to see impermanence. You can be able to see things change.
And also you can be able to detach some desire, you can be able to have detachment, which is a good one. When you detach some attachment, some objects you are really strongly attached to, you can be able to do detachment. This point is that you can be able to reduce the aversion or the anger. Then your ignorance is also really little opened up, not so like this. Before, it was only totally controlled by ignorance.
But now, ignorance’s power is a little, you know, weaker than before. Why? Because you understood. You understood ignorance is the fundamental confusion. Now you are fighting against ignorance.
So now ignorance’s power gets a little weaker. As much as you practice, that much ignorance’s power gets weaker and weaker and weaker and weaker this way. But before you just let, you know, you allowed it to control your life by ignorance. You allowed it. Why?
Because you didn’t have this Dharma mirror. You didn’t have any education. You didn’t have any teachings. You didn’t have this Dharma mirror. Main thing is Dharma mirror here.
But now you’ve got the Dharma mirror. You saw the faults of ignorance. Now you, only faults of ignorance. Then now you try to rebel against ignorance. So that’s why little detachment, reducing anger, jealousy, these mental afflictions are meant to be against ignorance.
Ignorance gets weaker and weaker and weaker, disappears. That’s what it means to be. That’s what you need to do. If you don’t do it, then only ignorance will control you, which since beginningless time until now, yes, we let ourselves be controlled by ignorance. We are allowing ignorance to control.
You are almost like not yourself. You have no self-confidence. You are letting somebody control you. Same as like people control you. Usually we say, oh, you cannot control me, but you are letting them control.
See? You are not understanding. Some people do that. So now here is the main thing. Ignorance is controlling us.
Absolutely. We need to fight. We need to fight. Okay? So now I will take some questions.
Go ahead. This is your opportunity. Go. Anyone? Any questions?
Today maybe one question from Sophia. I’m expecting one question from Sophia. Go ahead, Sophia. I have not seen you for a few classes. Maybe you must be reading books now.
You must have some questions. Go ahead. That’s it. She only wrote down a note. Got it.
Don’t be shy. What is emptiness? What is—oh. That’s it. No?
She wants to learn emptiness. Okay. Why do you want to know emptiness? First of all, why do you want to know emptiness? Your mother wrote down or you did?
You did? Why are you interested to know emptiness? What do you think emptiness is, your perspective, before I give you my answer? Emptiness seems like loneliness. What is that?
Emptiness seems like loneliness. Okay. That’s a good one. Yes. Seems to be that way, isn’t it?
But we are talking about the inside meditation. No loneliness. We are talking about the inside meditation. Once you meditate on emptiness, loneliness is going to disappear. There are so many lights you can see.
But now, sometimes we feel loneliness. Yes? Because of the lack of meditation on emptiness, actually. Totally the opposite. But I cannot explain to you emptiness as a regular one because you are too young to put all these things in your brain.
But emptiness is the most important saying—all these beautiful things that you see now. Yes? These are mainly illusion. It’s illusion. Like when you sleep, you dream.
Yes? When you wake up, do all these dreams exist? No, isn’t it? Only during the dream you can see some horse, some elephant, some animal, this and that. When you wake up in the morning, everything is not there.
It wasn’t really true, isn’t it? Why? Why did this happen? Because it’s just a dream. Same as like all of these things are here like a dream.
But then all this—nature is emptiness. Eventually, no nature. Everything is going to be emptiness. Empty being. Now you need to understand.
Empty of being naturally existent. Empty of being truly existent. Empty of being independent. That’s why the meaning of emptiness. These are just like a dream, like an illusion, not truthful, not true.
We think it is true. Why? Because of ignorance. After all, these are not real, not true. Okay?
What is real? Real is emptiness. That is real. Good. You understand?
That is very good. Wonderful. Anyone? Go. I understood from a teacher some long time ago that it’s a simple way to understand emptiness—please tell me I’ve been incorrect in my understanding.
A simple way to understand emptiness is that it exists, but it doesn’t exist the way we see it. It’s—due to our ignorance, we have a deluded idea what there is, what this item or that, whatever the external thing is. So it is empty of the way we see it. What do you think of that? The way I’ve had it.
Emptiness is that, you know, everything’s nature is emptiness. All of this existence that exists, its nature is emptiness. Mean, emptiness and empty is very different. Empty, no. We are not talking about emptiness here.
Just the—a mug is empty. Emptiness is the—from the philosophical perspective we need to talk about. Emptiness is like things’ nature is emptiness. Why? Because when things appear, things appear as truly existent.
Naturally existent, inherently existent. Why we had this idea? Because it appears that way, and we do grasp as truly existent all these things. Why we do that? Because of ignorance. That’s right.
That’s what I’m trying to explain. Yeah. That’s ignorance. But after all, all this existence, empty of being truly existent. Empty of being naturally existent or inherently existent.
The meaning of emptiness. But we do grasp, we do cling to it still. Why? Because of lack of meditation on emptiness. That was my understanding.
Okay. That’s right. Okay. That’s good then. Yes.
That’s then you really do have understanding of the meaning of emptiness. That’s it. Yeah? Okay. Anyone?
I have a question regarding emptiness coming from my thinking. I don’t really—my interest in Buddhist psychology. Uh-huh. Maybe more so than the philosophical perspective. I’ve struggled to understand when it comes to holy relics or Buddhist holy places, how the concept of emptiness doesn’t appear to—doesn’t seem to my mind to apply to those things and that they are putting attachment to those places or items.
Yes. To me, psychologically, doesn’t seem consistent. Yes. I know. If you look at it from that perspective, it seems you are right. However, remember, as I said, Buddhism is not only black and white.
Now this is we need to talk about it. See? I can understand. Are you a psychologist? Yes?
No. You are not. Okay. I’m not, but that’s my interest. Okay.
I think you may—you should become a psychologist, really. Psychologist. But I wanted you to come here as much as you can, learn some Buddhist psychology. Who knows? One day you could become your own psychologist so you can help others also, your friends and your families.
That’s good, actually. Whatever you are thinking, absolutely very thoughtful. Okay, we have a holy place. We have holy relics, and these do exist. Absolutely.
Same thing even though holy place, holy relics, that’s a religious perspective. Buddhism is divided. Buddhism is religion, yes. But Buddhism is more than just religion. It is philosophy and psychology.
That’s how I used to describe it to people. We have some Buddhist people do believe all these places that people go, which I do. Bodh Gaya is the holy place because Buddha attained enlightenment in that place. People go there to get some blessings. Absolutely, that’s reasonable.
It’s legitimate to go there. And then we do go to Sarnath, which is another Buddha’s holy place, where Buddha taught his first teaching, the Four Noble Truths. And there’s a Buddha’s place, parinirvana, and holy relics that Buddha’s, you know, teeth and Buddha’s bones, and so on. These are the religious perspective we are talking about, not the philosophical perspective. Religious perspective, we do believe those are holy because Buddha himself is a holy being, an enlightened being.
But even though those holy places and holy relics, its nature is emptiness. Same thing like this glass. Same thing. There’s no difference from that. But this glass is not a holy glass, but that place is a holy place and holy relics.
Why? Because of the person that Buddha himself is a holy being. That’s why those places and the relics become holy. But it doesn’t mean against the emptiness. No.
Those holy places and holy relics, their nature is emptiness. It’s the same as like this glass’s nature is emptiness. But both exist. Glasses exist. Holy places exist.
Holy relics exist. Buddha exists even though he was holy. Once you understand the nature of this glass is emptiness, if you understand that conception which I just mentioned, that beautiful lady, same thing you need to apply for the holy places and relics or whatever it is. Even the Buddha himself. His nature is emptiness.
Not only Buddha. Emptiness is emptiness also. Now it goes more subtle. Emptiness is also emptiness. That’s a good one.
Yes, it is not the same thing but you cannot differentiate. You can’t separate it—dependent arising and emptiness. Dependent arising and emptiness like simultaneous together. This glass is dependently arisen because its nature is emptiness. This glass is emptiness because it is dependently arisen.
But you cannot just separate—this is dependent arising. This is emptiness. One object, two different perspectives. But both must be in one place together. Not like a cow and an owl.
I don’t know if it’s true or not. A cow and owl cannot be in one place. It’s against each other. Same so—same is like cold and hot cannot be together, against each other. But dependent arising and emptiness do not—are not against each other.
Must be together simultaneous like that. I think that’s a good one. What is your name? Carol? Okay.
You are an old student? How old student? I mean, I’m talking old student. You know? How long have you been?
Oh, quite a few years. Only a few years? Are you sure? Not many years. She said quite several years.
Okay. Here it is. She was asking, yeah. Actually, all questions are beautiful. Thank you, Sophia.
You started it. Okay. Laughed. Sophia means wisdom. Yeah?
You know, Sophia, before—first, I’ll finish this one. I have something to joke to tell you. Here is—if the appearing appearance of dependent relation, which is non-deceiving, is accepted separately from emptiness, and as long as they are seen as separate, dependent arising and emptiness, talking about, then one has still not realized the Buddha’s intent. If you separate it, dependent arising and emptiness, it’s now saying then one has still not realized the Buddha’s intent. Now next one is these two realizations, dependent arising and emptiness.
These two realizations are happening simultaneously without alternation and from merely seeing a dependent relation as completely non-deceiving, the definite ascertainment comes that completely destroys the way all objects are apprehended as truly existent. At that time, the analyzing of the ultimate view is complete. Do you got it now? That’s for you. Now you’re watching here, dear.
I’m giving you here dependent arising and emptiness. You understand now? See? That means dependent arising and emptiness must be like this. You cannot separate it.
Okay? Now, Sophia’s joke. When I was in the United States, two thousand, you know, I was a little homesick. And one day, I just turned on a television show. There’s a show called Golden Girls.
You must have seen that one. You know, then I watched it. You know, my English is different. I watched that show. They speak—you know, only one woman was very sexy.
She only talks sex, things like that. Other than that, that show is so beautiful for me. And a little, I think, older woman, four women together live in Florida. It’s so beautiful. A mother of one of the women, Dorothy, I think.
Name was Sophia. She is the oldest one. She’s very, very smart. You have not seen this show? Yeah.
Golden Girls. Been finished for so many years. Yeah. I mean, it’s a very popular—seems to be a very popular show in the nineteen eighties and earlier nineties, you know. So even though nowadays, they are showing here in Australia at some of the Australian channels. Because I was totally, you know, watched that show.
Also, a little like, you know, I feel like my mother also, you know, a little homesick in America. One of the mothers of one of the women is Sophia, I remember. She is very, very sharp. Same name, isn’t it, Sophia? I think from a certain point of view it is the same thing.
Very sharp one. So that’s why you’re asking me about emptiness, question of emptiness. Yeah. That show helped me a lot to improve my English, actually. Yes.
Even the FPMT wanted when I was new in the center, they wanted my, you know, biography and how I was doing to put down on a Mandala magazine. And I told them, I am watching television, and I started this show, Golden Girls. Some people misunderstood—I’m watching Golden Girls. You know? You know, people judge you like that.
And after all, somebody explained, no. No. No. This is one show, like, women. They told me this Golden Girl is some kind of a young, foreign girl, you know.
This is also watching kind of a show. But this is totally four mothers actually. Really, four mothers, and they try to make things better in their life and they eat a lot of cheesecake. So that’s why I was very attached to cheesecake. I had cheesecake, migraine is like this every day.
Then I cut it. Still I like cheesecake. Since then, I asked Lois, my assistant Lois, this show, they eat all the time cheesecake, cheesecake. What does it mean? Oh, Geshe-la, there’s a cake.
You can buy cheese. Can I have one? Oh, yeah. Sure. She brought me, oh, delicious. You know?
Just kidding. I ate it. I ate it every day almost after my lunch. And she brings, she brings, she brings, you know? Then sometimes I gained a lot of weight, and that’s no problem.
Migraine, I couldn’t realize the cheese was making a problem and hurting my migraine until I went to a neurologist. He said, oh, you cut out cheese. Or even you eat cheese, eat a little bit. I like—but I cannot eat it. But I eat it sometimes here.
I was okay. I try it, you know, because Buddha House lunch is delicious. You know? There’s—people are bringing this. Do you call here same as in—in the States—potluck lunch?
Do you call that? People are bringing. Do you call that? Yeah. It’s beautiful.
We do. No. Greg says no. Shared. Oh.
The potluck is used occasionally. Yeah. American—like this kind of—they call it potluck lunch. People bring different, different, you know, lunches and they share together. Older women would say potluck.
Yeah. Potluck. You do? Okay. Yeah.
Whatever it is, lunch is delicious. Anyway. Any questions? Last one. Anyone?
No? Okay. Thank you. Then look at this dedication of prayer on the gold book. Page one twenty, please.
Lord Buddha, make me an instrument of your peace. Where there’s hatred, let me sow love. Where there’s injury, pardon. Where there’s discord, unity. Where there’s doubt, faith.
Where there’s error, truth. Where there’s despair, hope. Where there’s sadness, joy. Where there’s darkness, light. O divine master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console, to be understood as to understand, to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive, it is in pardoning that we are pardoned, it is in dying that we are born to eternal life, from happiness to happiness up to full enlightenment. May all beings effortlessly attain their transcendent, precious, all-seeing, omniscient buddhahood.
Thank you very much.