Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 100-minute talk, Geshe Kyab explores the question why bad things happen to good people through Buddhist teachings on karma and saṃsāra. He begins by explaining the structure of cyclic existence and the human rebirth’s preciousness, then addresses the apparent contradiction: negative karmic results from past lifetimes ripen on good people in this life, not as punishment but as an opportunity. Since humans possess capacity, wisdom, and resources—teachers, community, purification practices—experiencing suffering now is actually beneficial compared to enduring it helplessly as an animal or hungry ghost. Drawing verses from The Wheel of Sharp Weapons, he illustrates specific karmic causes for common difficulties: false accusation of others returns as unwarranted blame; misleading others to non-virtue creates boredom with virtue; harbouring anger and deception spawns betrayal by loved ones. He emphasizes control of emotion, matching speech to action, and avoiding distraction. The final section addresses a practitioner’s doubt about whether political advocacy work harms others, with Geshe Kyab’s response: maintain correct motivation beforehand, act with confidence without anger, and purify mistakes through practice, accepting that as ordinary humans we will sometimes fail.
File metadata (for organising)
File: Why bad Things Happen to Good People.mp3
UUID: 201b1769-ed88-4ec8-926d-75162192b923
Teacher: Geshe Kyab
Collection: Geshe Kyab Jan (Geshe Kyab)
Date: 2017 (exact day not recorded)
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 100.0 minutes
Words: ~10,106
Good evening everyone. Page thirty four, I think. I go for refuge until I am enlightened. As somebody, by the practice of giving other perfections, may I become able to benefit all sentient beings. May all sentient beings have happiness and the causes of happiness.
May all sentient beings be free from suffering and causes of suffering. May all sentient beings be inseparable from happiness that is free from suffering. May all sentient beings abide in equanimity free from attachment for friends, hatred for enemies. Enemies. Reverently, I approach it with my body, speech, and mind.
I present clouds of every type of offering actually arrayed. I declare all of my negative actions accumulated since beginning-less time. I rejoice in the merit of all holy and ordinary beings. Please remain until the end of the cycle of existence. Please turn the wheel of dharma for living beings.
I dedicate all my merits and those of all who taught to great enlightenment. Short mandala offering. This crown, the remaining flowers, Mount Meru, the four continents, the sun and moon. Imagine this Buddha filled and offer it. May all sentient beings enjoy this pure land.
Idam guru ratna mandalakam niryatayami Thank you. Tonight’s class is Why Bad Things Happen to good people? So, very much Westerners, the title, label, or the name. This teaching, I will be going do two different ways. Let’s say why bad things happen to good people.
So it can be positive, it can be negative. Okay? So positive side, also why bad things happen to good people, and there would be also a negative side of this particular topic or the title. So the first thing is, I think, we can start from the negative one. It’s very, very important to understand particular or bad things are happening to good people, there are some tools that are very important.
First of all, you need to understand saṃsāra. Samsāra, or cyclic existence. English translation is cyclic existence. Tibetan we call it korva, cycling. Sometimes up, sometimes down, or rebirth.
Sometimes we can be animals, sometimes we can be a hungry ghost, which is a preta, sometimes we can be in the hell realm. Fortunately, we are human beings. Our rebirth is a human being now, which is very fortunate. So in this perspective, saṃsāra is very important to understand. Samsāra is the huge universe. English translation is cyclic existence.
Usually, we only concentrate and focus on this particular world, that earth that we call here. Because we are in this world, So we do know things. What are they in this world? What is in this world? These are the only ways to understand.
We talk about it. But in the Buddhist perspective, there are many other realms or planets. I hope it is a good translation because of the Western scientists. They talk about different planets in different parts of the world. That’s why Buddhism is very, very deep that Buddhism talks about saṃsāra, the huge universe.
Within this universe, we divide many different planets or realms. There are some gods and goddesses realms, and also the human realm. There would be animal realms, hungry ghosts, hell realms like that. Generally speaking, two different ways I can teach this one. It’s a little complicated, but it has some patience.
It’s called the three great realms desire, form and formless. Desire realm, form and formless realm. Desire realm means more desire for a human being is part of the desire realm. The desire realm also divided into six categories. Okay, two categories. Let’s say upper desire realm and lower. Lowers are the animal, hungry ghosts and hell realms. Upper desire realms are the human realm, and the demigod and god realm. So these are the desire realms. Above the desire realm, it’s is called the form realm.
First concentration is formed, second, third, fourth. Above the form realm, it is called formless. We don’t need to go there. All these are considered as part of the saṃsāra, which is not the when I say saṃsāra, it’s also the outer saṃsāra, which is external saṃsāra and internal saṃsāra. The main thing here is the external saṃsāra.
We are not talking about the saṃsāra here as just the universe or the world, but these are really the external saṃsāra, which are all worlds, all these different realms and then the six different desire realms are the outer ones, which are just the home, but the main thing here is the internal saṃsāra. People or beings who are in the saṃsāra possess called five aggregates. We all do have five aggregates or five heaps. Different translations. Aggregates of form, for let’s say, now a human like us.
We possess the human five aggregates. Aggregates of form, feeling, discrimination, compositional factors and consciousness. The same thing that animals do also possess the five aggregates. So it’s the hungry ghost, hell realm, demigod, god realm. All these all desire realms.
Of course, some of these formless realms don’t have a form, except that they have all other aggregates. Aggregates. But we don’t need to go here. We should concentrate on the desired realm, which is an easier one. The point I’m making here is that these five aggregates, like form, our body is the form aggregate.
The aggregates of form, then we have feelings. The second one is the pleasant, unpleasant and neutral feelings, which are called aggregates of feeling. Then discrimination, we can be able to discriminate this and that. Then compositional factor. Then consciousness.
Ear, consciousness, I mean eyes, ears, body and mental consciousness. So these are the now real saṃsāra. All five aggregates are contaminated. So that’s why we are Every time we take rebirth, we rebirth within the saṃsāra, inside the saṃsāra. See?
The problem is that all aggregates are contaminated. Now, the five aggregates are supposed to transform the five aggregates. Gradually, one day, you will achieve nirvana. That’s called saṃsāra and nirvana. Repeat again.
Samsāra we are not only talking about the outer saṃsāra, which is our world, but rather the inside one. Because of these contaminated aggregates, we continually take miserable rebirth. Fortunately, in this time, as a human being, at some point, we accumulated such great karma in past lifetimes. That’s why now we are being born as a human being, which is very, very fortunate. Otherwise, look at those animals, creatures ants, cockroaches, rats, crocodiles, or kangaroos, can just name it.
There are many, many animals who live within us, with humans. Some animals live under the water. There are some animals who cannot see it far away. The point is that we all possess contaminated five aggregates, so that’s why it doesn’t matter if animals or the hungry ghosts or the hell realm or human beings, demigod and the god realm. We all possess contaminated five aggregates.
That’s why we only take rebirth within this saṃsāra, this suffering here is considered as a suffering realm or world. Like that. But within these six realms, human is one of the best rebirth or realm than any other realm for humans, which we have already obtained. It is very, very important to understand that rebirth is very precious. I did say this before, but I will repeat it again.
It’s very important to understand that this human rebirth is not easy to become a human being. It takes merits and good karma, being born as a human being, which we obtain. We must appreciate such a beautiful life, instead of complaining about only doing nasty things, harming others. What is worth having such a beautiful life? Animals, unfortunately, they are animals.
So, very much, the lack of wisdom, lack of capacity or abilities. It’s understandable when an animal does some nasty things. It’s understandable. But we are, as a human being, in great capacity. We have very much great abilities.
We can do so many good things. Our wisdom is great. We can understand many good things. We can be able to improve and progress once you understand something. We can develop that particular subject or whatever you understand, the basic things, anything.
It could be some mundane activities or spiritual activities. We have this capacity. Unbelievable. Even though science I’ve read one scientific book that says, I think it’s a Buddhist book. Let’s say we have here a hundred percent brain cells.
We are not using more than this is also a science tool more than twenty five percent, or something like that. Some even don’t use twenty five percent. Still, seventy five percent can progress, can be developed. See? I think when you achieve enlightenment, my perspective, then you are using a hundred percent human cell, I think, when you achieve enlightenment.
Until then, we are only really using twenty five hope I’m not mistaken only twenty five percent or something. See? Still, seventy five percent are waiting for us. So that’s why the meditation, different meditations, different techniques and tools in Buddhist teachings. All these are if you continually do it, then there will be development.
Maybe you may gradually go thirty percent, maybe thirty five percent, maybe forty percent. This way, your path also improves, step by step. That’s why in Buddhism we talk about different paths, different stages. Finally, to achieve enlightenment, which is the no more learning. Now you become Buddha.
That means that the brain cells are functioning. Buddha is called Sangye, Buddha, enlightened being. Buddha’s mind is called omniscient mind. Our mind is not omniscient. Buddha’s mind is omniscient mind.
Buddha can see all the world just like this, looking at the palm of his hand like this. So because of the omniscient mind, it’s very, very powerful. Why? Because Buddha was using all his brain cells. His brain cells are totally one hundred percent of the function.
All we use is twenty five, minimum. Some people may be only twenty, some people may be fifteen. No more than twenty five. If I’m not mistaken, think twenty five is still it. Even though Einstein was only twenty five, I think.
So Geshe lah, maybe twenty, I think. You know, I don’t know. Maybe a little lower. Einstein was very smart, you know. He has such a great brain.
Even though nowadays we have many scientists, great people, scientists, I mean, unbelievable how they did all these scientific things. Those scientists, maybe twenty five or thirty, I think. Some great practitioners in Buddhism, I think maybe fifty percent, sixty percent or seventy percent. Anyway, this is one thing very important to understand before you understand this one. Now, see, all these realms, We are now human beings, but we were animal realm, hungry ghost, hell realm.
So it’s demigod realm, god realm, formless realm, form realm, something like that. So many different reincarnations rebirth like this. But it doesn’t matter where you rebirth. Since the beginning-less time until now, we only rebirth in the saṃsāra because of the contaminated five aggregates. Then we accumulated so many negative karma during those lifetimes.
Many negative karma we accumulated because of bad habits and bad tendencies. But now, in this lifetime, although we are very fortunate, which I mentioned, being born as a human being, many karmic results are ripening now. We are having many, many negative karmic results, as well as positive karmic results. Sometimes negative karmic results are more than positive karmic, results. That’s why we are having many, many problems and issues and sickness.
Sometimes our mind is up, sometimes our mind is down. So even though you could be good people, you still get many negative karmic results. Not that because you’re good people. In a previous lifetime, you accumulated karma, and that’s why now you are having many karmic results. Good karma and bad karma are not necessarily only the bad people and good people.
Good people also accumulate negative karma, as well as bad people also. At the same time, bad people also accumulate positive karma, so they are good people. This has nothing to do with good or bad people. It has to do with your monkey mind. Monkey mind is the main problem.
It doesn’t matter if you’re good people or bad people. But when you look at some good people, it seems they are having many bad results. But then, if you really check it carefully, let’s say we all are good people. If you check each of us, we have many things to talk about. Family problems and your own personal problems.
If you go to ask the outside, some bad people, of course, they have problems too. No one can escape from not having negative karmic results. Once you accumulate karma, eventually, time matters. Eventually, that karma will give you sudden results. Now, we are having many, many karmic results like good people.
Of previous lifetime, we accumulated so many negative karma, so that’s why now we are having results. Not that we accumulated some negative karma within this lifetime, and now we are having it now. It is possible, absolutely possible, because some karma says you accumulate karma in this lifetime. In the same lifetime, you will also get the results. Some karma is like that.
And some karma, you accumulate karma in this lifetime, and will result in the next lifetime. Some karma you will accumulate in this lifetime, you will result in the subsequent life, next or next life. So there are different karmas. Everything depends on what karma you are accumulating in this lifetime. Some karmas may be just accumulating in this lifetime, and having results in this lifetime.
Mostly, the karma results come from the previous lifetime karma. Whatever result you are getting now comes from your previous lifetime karma. Once you’ve accumulated karma, when you die, then these karmic results, once you’ve accumulated karma, karma is going to be stored in your mind, residing in that karma. Then, when you are dying, at that moment, you will carry karma to the next life, within your state of mind. Carry on to next life.
Then when you meet the condition, the karma will be released. Like this, ripening the karma. You need a condition to ripen the karma. Karma cannot just arise and give you the results if there are no conditions. Condition is very important.
That’s why now, if you look at that perspective, good people also have some bad results. If you look at your perspective of just, Oh, he’s such a good person, why he or she was having so many bad results, it’s kind of very negative, isn’t it? It’s negative when you look at that way. But in other angles, perspectives, if you look at the good people having these bad results, it’s very good. Now, if you are having many bad results now, as a human being, that’s a good one because we have so many resources.
You have so many friends and family. Have a Buddhist centre and teachings and teachers, and you can do many confessions and purifications. You can do meditations to cut out those negative karmas. There are many positives to have results now, if you think about it that way. But if you don’t get results now, if you get the results when you are born in an animal realm or a hungry ghost, you will suffer a lot.
No one else helps you. No one else. Now, here, you have so many resources and so many opportunities to purify the negative karma. That perspective, if you look at all these bad results, it’s positive. But if you’re just looking at one life, let’s say if you don’t believe reincarnation, then it is very bad, it’s very negative.
Only one life, then it’s a different case. Buddhism means that we do believe reincarnation. Also, we do believe past life and future life. We do believe that. That perspective, if you look at these results, I think it’s very good because we can deal with it as a human being.
As I mentioned before, we have abilities, capacity, understanding, and such great wisdom that we can be able to deal with it. But unfortunately, those animals, what can they do? hungry ghosts, hell realms, what can they do when they get all these results? What can they do? Let’s say an animal has a much better realm than a hungry ghost and hell realm.
Even if look at the animals, how difficult. Only they are totally dependent on human beings. They cannot do anything by themselves. Only humans need teach them certain things and they will follow that. That’s it.
Once they learn something, they cannot progress by themselves. That means they cannot deal with it when they get suffering, only cries. Sometimes, look at those cats and dogs, when they get sick, they only cry like that. By the way, near my flat, there’s one dog crying all the time. I don’t know.
Maybe owner is not there. I can hear this. Maybe the dog is sick. Don’t know. That’s the only thing they can do.
They cannot meditate. They cannot analyze and check around why all this happened, or this is my previous karmic result, they cannot do those things. At least we can do that, we can understand that. Isn’t it? That makes humans such a great realm and such a fortunate rebirth as a human being.
But I’m not talking about the perspective of prideful way or an ego way. It’s true. It very true. The book says that if you want to achieve enlightenment, you can only achieve enlightenment within the human rebirth. All other animals and gods and goddesses need to be reborn as human beings first through humans so that they can be able to achieve enlightenment.
That’s only. So this perspective, you think very carefully, we have. We have now. Not that are good people having bad results, or why these good people are having bad results. Now, see, all these results are not just good or bad people.
It’s almost like when you listen, when you look at this kind of title, Why Bad Things Happen to Good People, it’s opposite the saying that good people should have good results. That means only the bad people can have bad results. Almost like that, you know. But this is not like that. Absolutely not.
This is the karmic game, you know. But on the positive side, it’s good to have now bad results. Many Buddhist lamas, Buddhist practitioners, those meditators, they pray and ask for every unfortunate sickness, whatever it is, just have now. They pray. They want it now, then the future.
Who knows? The future is a mystery. Nobody says the future. Who knows what would be our next life? We know now we are human beings.
We know now we have obtained such a precious life, but we don’t know future life. It is a mystery. Us is history. Finished. Goodbye.
Present. Most important. We are active. Today is the most important. Who knows tomorrow?
Who saw tomorrow? That’s what the Indian language says. Who tomorrow? Nobody. Who knows what would be tomorrow morning?
Sometimes things happen like this. Nobody can give any prediction. Nobody can predict it. Things happen like this according to your own karma. That’s why every day is very, very important.
We must be blessed. Every day, when you wake up, you breathe, you are alive. It must be appreciated. How many people have already passed away this morning? My own of the teachers, was in Austria, the south of France, Europe.
One week before, we communicated. He was supposed to come to the United States and stay there a few months, or maybe just stayed with me there to help me around the center. One week after, he was just gone. A healthy monk, all senior monks, was seventy something, just gone. I was shocked almost one week.
I was totally, shocked. Though I was practicing, I was totally shocked. Just a week before, I talked to him almost forty five minutes. A week after, like this. So sad, such a wonderful teacher.
He wasn’t the teacher that I received the teachings, but he was the father figure for me. He took care of me for anything when I was sick, when I was going through some difficulties. He was there for me. Great support Monastery life was not easy in the 1970s. It was very, very difficult.
Nowadays, it’s very, very easy. When I was in the monastery, the monastery life was so difficult. The food and clothes were very poor. We cannot wear clothes like this. These are luxury at the time.
These are not money. We buy clothes very cheap. Once it’s tears, we cannot buy a new one, and we need to patch a piece of it. That’s why I learned how to do these things. In a monastery.
You are your own tailor. That’s what we need to do. Sometimes here is one patch, sometimes here is one patch. Because the robe is getting old, more torn, more tears. Isn’t it?
When you sit down, many, many not only us, even the senior monks are like this. I saw a Buddha’s house resident teacher, Khen Rinpoche. Khen Rinpoche was wearing like that. I saw with my own eyes. That was a poor condition, but still we did not avoid teaching, prayers, classes.
Those Those are the main priorities. These are the second. And now, food. You have no idea what kind of food we eat. There are lot of worms in the rice.
We are young, so what we need to do is clean all these small, small animals. We’re not allowed to kill them, but I did kill them a few times. I was angry, you know? So many jobs because I wanted to play. But when you were young, these worms were not allowed to play, because they gave you this job.
We needed to take out all the black worms. We get angry, you know, because of these worms. Now we could not play. Young monks are the same as any kid. We have some desire to play around.
Around. The point is we those kinds of foods. Mostly rice and dal. Dal is lentil soup, which is good, we didn’t know. Then rice, no vegetables, no fruits, and sometimes meat and beef.
But we didn’t know how to eat beef. We couldn’t cook our own room. We have a group of people together, camp number two and camp number three. Would be thirty or twenty five monks, and they would cook, and they would cook you. Our duty is to clean, turn by turn, like that.
We didn’t know how to cook beef. Once you get some beef, we eat everything right away because there were no refrigerators. You had to eat quickly, otherwise, problem. India is very warm in South India. But we never avoided the teachings and all these things.
The point I’m making here is this monk or this teacher who passed away, he was there for not only me, but also my other classmates, students. We have some friends together in five or six. He was there for us all the time, even though he was going through some difficulties. But he tried to tell us, you guys go and study. I will support as much as I can.
Even though he did some business to get some money, went to sell some suitors, when he got some extra money, he buys clothes. He was so kind, so kind. Suddenly, one morning, I received a call, it was just gone. I asked him, I cannot believe how this happened. Nobody knows what happened.
In the morning, they knocked his door. He wasn’t opening the door. They broke the door, they went inside, and he was sleeping. Was already gone. See?
It’s difficult for those kinds of moments, isn’t it? Sometimes things like that happen. What can you do? You need to accept it. That’s the best thing to do.
The point is that things like that happen, so we must be appreciated. Must be appreciated daily when you wake up. We are alive, So all these thoughts and thinking, we have these kinds of abilities and understanding, it’s unbelievable. It’s very fortunate to be born as a human being, I think. Otherwise, it’s difficult.
This is one thing we all need to understand on a daily basis. If you get some bad results, don’t panic. Think about all these bad results that happened to be my negative karma. I’m thankful that I’m having bad results now, then it will stop. In the next lifetime, I wouldn’t get any bad results.
Think about it as a disadvantage as an advantage. That’s the training you need to bring. Even though this is a disadvantage, think about it as an advantage. Something like Tonglen, meaning take these disadvantages on the path, bring these all disadvantages as a positive path. Think about that.
Many lamas and practitioners, as I said, even pray, I want everything Here is Also the same thing, why bad things happen to good people, which is what we ask all the time. Now, bad. Bad things. There are many bad things that happen. Let’s say, I’m going to read some of these verses from The Wheel of Sharp Weapons, which I think you heard from a previous resident teacher, Thindrup.
Some of the bad things happen to good people unjustly. Here is the when unjustly we are blamed for the misdeeds of others and are falsely accused of flaws that we lack, and are always the object of verbal abuse. So let’s say, kind of unjustified things, and somebody’s misdeeds. Now, you know, it’s almost like what do you call scapegoat, isn’t it? A scapegoat or something.
Scapegoat. Yes. That’s what you call it. Scapegoat, I think. Yes.
Something like that. Somebody else falls. Sometimes things happen even though you didn’t do anything. But then sometimes you can be a scapegoat. Why did this happen?
This is the Wheel of Sharp Weapons returning full circle to open us from the wrongs we have done. Tell us what wrongs we have done. Now here is till now we have disparaged the ability of our gurus. Hereafter, let’s never accuse others falsely by giving them full credit for the virtue they have. False accusing and disrespect towards the teachers and gurus.
Then, previous lifetime, maybe we may falsely accuse other people. Now it’s coming back to us. So that’s what happens. It goes around. It around means something like that.
So once you understand that, in this lifetime, what you need to do, you give others credit, especially someone who does some virtuous activities, someone who does meditations, someone who does volunteer at the Buddha’s house, in churches, temples. You know, people do many good things. Instead, feeling jealousy gives them credit. And so is the don’t falsely accuse anyone. Is the respect of gurus and teachers.
Then you will not have all these unjustified problems. So I think it’s good to buy this book, The Wheel of Sharp Weapons. This is very, very important, and it’s very, very nice teaching that one can learn. Buy the book, read it, and if you do not understand, then ask the questions. This book gives you many, many, many karmic results, how all these results come from you, which karma, what karma, everything here gives you.
Of course, you cannot just write down and teach all the karmic results and karmas. You cannot do that. Once we talk about the karma and its results, it’s totally immeasurable. You cannot measure it. It’s totally immeasurable.
But here, in this book, they put down many pages of the results and causes. Now here is another one. Our minds are unclear and our hearts are unhappy, we are bored by doing virtue, but excited by worldly, mundane things. See? Which is very true, because of the laziness.
When you try to meditate, you’re bored. When you try to do some virtuous activities, some people feel bored. Some people feel it’s not important. But then, on other side, we are very excited watching television, walking around here and there, traveling here and there just for nothing, you know, and watching movies, going to clubs, those bars, and eating all these junky foods, and drinking alcohols, and things like that. People are very excited, especially on Friday.
In the United States, was Friday. On Friday, one of my apartments, I asked my director, I must get out from here now when my lease is finished. On Friday, had a three floor building. I was in the middle. I chose the middle one because it was airtight.
I thought it was less noisy, so it’s good for air conditioning. Florida, without air conditioning, it’s very difficult. I tried to choose the right but on Friday, here, above there, some students from which one is that? The Atlantic University? FAU?
FAU. FAU. Florida Atlantic University. They lived there. On Friday, their friends came and said, My room is locked in.
Complained few times. One day, I went there and knocked the door very respectfully. Can you please stop? We don’t need to hear it. This young man was upset.
You are upset, but I am more than upset because you are interrupting me. I am a monk. I meditate, but I will call the police now if you don’t stop it. I was a little strong. If I don’t, it would make it easier.
Before, in the beginning, I was very patient, and a very nice way. As much as I tried to be patient, they thought I was weak, but they didn’t know who I am. I can talk strongly, but I was thinking not to talk. I was saying, I think they are young. Maybe they need it a little bit, you know.
I feel bad for it, but I didn’t have a choice. I was strong. I said, okay, are you sure? I Are you sure? I will call nine eleven now.
They stopped. It worked very well. Unfortunately, sometimes harder is better. When I came back, I did some purification practice. I didn’t want it, but I didn’t have choice.
I complained to my office, the apartment office, they already put down the notes for them. They were going to tell them to get out, but they didn’t listen. Still, every Friday, finally, after a few days, I didn’t hear. One day, they were leaving. I think the apartment told them to leave.
Usually, it says, If you make a noise Even though I recorded it, I thought maybe if I just said noise, they will not listen to me, my apartment people. I recorded it. Then I went and looked at it here. This noise is not there. I’m hearing it in my apartment.
They’re shocked. That much noise. But you can understand it’s young, you know? But they need to understand there are some old monks there also. The point is sometimes things like that happen, isn’t it?
What can we do? Why am saying this one? I don’t know. Anyway, the point here is that, yes, because they are very excited about doing all those mundane things, but not virtuous activities. When you try to do some virtuous activities, you’re bored, which is what many people are actually.
This happens. Why this happened? This is the Wheel of Sharp Weapons returning. This is the Wheel of Sharp Weapons returning, uncovering our wrongs we have done. Till now we have led others to acts of non-virtue.
So that’s a problem now. We may lead, we may mislead other people in past lifetimes to commit some sins, to act as non virtuous things. Maybe you may lead some people to kill animals, especially the military. It’s very, very dangerous, those military officers, isn’t it? They teach you how to kill enemies.
They have no choice. That’s their job, I would like to say this here too. Maybe it’s possible here. I saw the United States’ father teach his daughter and son how to go fishing. See?
It’s bad, actually, in the spiritual side. In the mundane side, it’s okay. Also, the father teaches how to shoot the gun, those guns. Remember hunting things? They teach.
I think here, same thing, isn’t it? You do these things, some of the people have no idea, but then now you’re already seeing what would be this young boy. He grows. What would he become? It’s very dangerous.
See? But then now you mislead. One side is that young boy is your own son. It is so bad to teach them. Second thing is that you are misleading this young boy to how to kill animals, how to hunt things.
Then eventually, his father will get all these bad results, which his mind is not unclear, and hearts are unhappy. That’s it, the result is there. Because of this, he causes many of these kinds of things. Hereafter, let’s never provide the conditions that rouse them to follow their negative traits. Now we need to help people, if you want to protect this one, we need to help people not to let them be allowed to kill animals, not let them allowed to do some bad things, if you can.
But we cannot force people. Nobody can force people to help you like this. Only if people listen to you, then you can just explain to them. The Buddhist center is very good. People come here and all these teachings they can hear.
Which is the I am leading you, I am teaching you, and all these teachings that they say not to kill animals, to speak of untruthfulness, and not to lie, not to cheat, so there’s no stealing. See? I’m supposed to lead you on positive path. If I do that, in the next life I will be happier. My mind would be much cleaner and than now.
This is supposed to be so easy. You can do that. You can go out there and teach people if someone listens to you, tell them stealing is not good. If you steal, this is the problem. If you kill animals, your life will be shorter.
So you don’t take non virtuous actions. You can teach people. That means you are leading the right path. You are helping them, which is good, but not forcefully. You cannot force people to listen to what you are going to say.
Here, people are interested, so that’s why they came here. I have the right to teach whatever I want here, isn’t it? Because you came here, I don’t think I forced you to come here. Did I? I don’t think so.
I don’t think the Buddha house forced you to come here. I don’t think so. Because you are interested, which is perfect here, because you have a good heart, you have good motivation, and your interest is very positive. That means you guys are good human beings. Otherwise, is going come here?
People may go outside to eat Norwood, or go to see some movies. By the way, I will be going to see a movie too one day. Yes, there will be one movie coming, Chinese. One monkey and one pig. What is the name?
Journey to the West. It happened, real, real. It’s a Buddhist movie you guys go to see. I’ve already read the book before, and it’s in Tibetan, so it’s very, very fascinating. It’s funny, but there are many, many things that you can learn.
I’ve already learned that. One monk in the west, came to India to get some teachings and one scripture. It’s a very, very century old story. Now they made this one movie. I think it was Chinese.
Sounds like I think your theatre is somewhere here coming. I don’t know where it’s coming. Which theatre I will go to see? These are the movies that Geshe-la are supposed to be seen. A good movie.
So Journey to the West. Like that. Not like a Hollywood movie, oh no. It’s crazy, isn’t it? So much killing, kissing, and sexual things, negative things.
Too much distraction. It’s poison. See? When you see something like this, the same thing resisted here. You think about that one.
Continually, all these beautiful figures, all these things are continually wandering in your mind. That’s a problem. Then when you meditate, all these pop up. Forget it, go there and watch those things. See?
This happens. That’s why if you really want to gain some right path, you must be away from those things as much as you can. This is what I call contentment. Those are the distractions. Of course, you can escape from every distraction.
It’s difficult. Some of those gross distractions must be left there. Don’t go there. I’m not talking about only movies. Any other gross distractions, you know, that’s something that really distracts you.
You have to check it out. Which one is the more distracting you. Every problem is because of our attachment, desire. So desire must be limited. That’s the meaning of attachment.
We call detachment means that. But it’s difficult to be in detachment everything. Very difficult because we live in this world. At least some of those obvious kinds of things may be away from there. Come here in the Buddha’s house.
Do some volunteer. If you feel something like that, learn how to do a water offering, join in on the volunteer activities. Clean the Buddha’s house. Clean. Yeah, it’s very nice.
You are cleaning the centre, and people can come here. It’s beautiful. Because you did it to clean the center, I think I’m going to say thank you very much to so many volunteers in the Buddha’s house. Because of that, now we have such a wonderful temple, this church. Look at how beautiful, isn’t it?
We are having such a wonderful time here because of those volunteers. Unbelievable. Their effort, their motivation, such great motivation, now we have such a wonderful center here. That’s what you need to do. When you feel to do something, some kind of bad distraction, you can just change it.
Come here, meditate. There are many, many meditations. Buddha House opens almost every day, isn’t it? Almost every day. Morning.
See? You can do many things here. There are morning meditations. Then in the evening, how to meditate. Unbelievable.
Every day, something here is going on there. Just come here. Think open meditation is the no teacher. People come here and sit down and meditate. That’s it, when you have time.
So what do need more than that? The Buddha House is offering you this beautiful temple. You can just come here, you may need to write down your name there. Maybe you may need to register. Just sit down here and meditate.
No one will teach you. You are your own teacher. Sometimes it’s good. Sometimes it’s better not to have anyone tell you how to meditate. Just learn yourself, just do yourself with the sixteen arhats here, and the Buddha is here.
These are your company. Why do you need more than that? Sixteen arhats and a Buddha here. Instead of thinking about all those junky things, and just walking here, there, eating all these bad food, you are wasting time. Avoid all these things.
Then, know, help people. Helping people is very, very important. Even though it could be a little simple, just talking about some good things is Okay. Helping is very important. I’m not asking you to have great help.
I’m asking you to even the simple, small ones, it’s okay. Not only human beings, you’re helping human beings, but also animals. Poor animals. There are so many animals. As I said, Bogotá, Colombia, I just received some animal pictures to bless my student Marpa Siro.
She is a doctor, actually. Now she takes care of animals. Has such a good heart. All these unwanted animals. Her project has a big house.
So many unwanted animals and wounded animals. Her job is to invite doctors to vet them. They come and clean the wounds. I saw with my own two eyes, and they put in bandages. She pays for the doctors.
Some doctors don’t take money. Poor dogs and cats. Sometimes people are so bad. People are the ones who did all these beating dogs, breaking their legs. And some of the cats I saw, they put inside a fire.
All their skins are gone, just like this. I almost cried, Why? Why do you do that? That? It’s crazy.
Mean, why harming these poor animals? What did it do for you? What did it? Nothing. Just you are harming them, you know.
In Florida, happened. Remember in Fort Lauderdale, one boy I don’t think he was a boy, but he was a young man, maybe in his early twenties. He was killing cats. Not only just killing, but peeling cats’ skin. Skin is still moving, that cat’s ear.
Not only one cat, many, many cats. At some point, he didn’t like cats. Peeling the skin. Unbelievable. When I saw that news, my body was because I have a cat, a female cat.
I was looking at my cat. If somebody did something like that for my cat, I was not going to stop there. I was going to fight. Maybe kung I’m just kidding. I don’t know kung fu.
But I was going to do something. I was going to be mad because she was like my child, you know. I was thinking that, what would that man do for my cat? I was almost feeling those cats’ suffering. But I did pray many, many prayers, not only with those cats, also with this young man.
Something is very wrong. He may have some psychological problem, maybe with his parents or whatever it is. I feel so bad for this young man. I think the police arrested him, I think. He was just walking around the street in Fort Lauderdale, which is not so far from my apartment.
First, he caught the cats from the dead cat, and then he peels, and he throws the dead body in that area. That. Many, many fourteen or fifteen cats Sometimes people like that exist, but our duty is to teach the people, especially the children. Very, very important. That’s why parents are very, very important for the children.
Parents and teachers are very, very important because parents are there for them. And the teacher is in school. They go to school, not only just teaching them the regular teachings, but also a little bit spiritual. You don’t need to talk about Buddhism, Christianism, this and that. Just something for their mind, you need to teach them also.
Then parents are the most important, because children are going to learn from their parents. If parents are good, good behaving, good talking, then children will learn everything from their parents. That’s why parents need to teach children in the beginning love and compassion, and helping others. How important we live in this world together. We are on everything.
We all are dependent on each other. All these animals need our help. Not killing animals, helping animals, etc. You need to teach your children, or grandchildren. This is our responsibility.
Parents don’t mean that only they give birth, they now finish or give them money or toys. No. That’s not only parents. If you think about the child’s future, that’s called a good future. Not only just becoming rich, but a good human being a child’s future.
Then I think you are a good parent. Otherwise, parents fight in front of their children. I saw something, you know. Sometimes their dress, their customs are not good. Then, smoking and drinking, they learn everything from parents.
Oh, not a big deal because my mother does, my father does those things. Then now speaking, harsh things. When you speak badly, they will do that. When you ask, you cannot speak like that. Why not?
My does. My father does. See? So now, what kind of parent do you think? It’s sad, isn’t it?
That’s why maybe you shouldn’t be giving any birth if you cannot raise your children nicely. Better not have children. You have freedom then. Once you have children, give them nice teaching, good advice. And first, need to learn yourself.
Learn yourself to become a kind human being. Then you can teach your children and your friends and family, wow, then you are really leading them nicely. You know, good way. Right way. Right path.
Then they go to school, they learn something from their school, they learn something from their parents, some spiritual things. Two things. How beautiful. When they get old, they become such a kind human being. Absolutely.
I learned many things from my mother, not from my father. My father passed away, as I said before, when I was very young. I learned many things from my mother, how to do a water bowl offering when I was young, how to do prostrations. And if somebody said bad don’t reply back, just let them say whatever they want. You can be patient.
If you reply back to them, you will accumulate negative karma. And my mother was saying, when somebody did some bad talking things, you can just pray for them because they are suffering. So these are everything that my mother put in my brain. Course, sometimes you forget, but it’s still there. When she was telling me all these things, even though I was speaking badly, one day my mother, a few times she said, Don’t speak like that.
Don’t this and that. Another day, when I was with my friends, and we were outside our village, my friends know how to smoke. I was just nine years old. Not a real secret. It was just a and the children played around.
I don’t know what’s inside. There was no tobacco. And they put one foot on top of another foot. What are you doing? I’m smoking.
Where do you saw? My uncle was doing that. Can you do that? I said, No, no, no. If my mother knows, she will kill me.
That’s not your mother. No, she may smell. No, we can wash your mouth. I do it every day. Every day I do, I wash my mouth.
My mother didn’t know. He told me, try it. It’s fun. And first she said, just put one leg on top of another leg. I put it there.
He was teaching me the same age. Now go ahead. I just did it like unbelievable. I did it very strongly, it went into my lungs. I was coughing, the first time, you know.
I was so scared, I cleaned my mouth, I went home. And my mother came, just went there, and she came back. Come here, and I said, Go. I said, It just slapped me, you know? You smoked.
I said, No, I did not. I did not, but I need to lie now. You smoked. She just pulled my hand like this. You smoked.
Many times people are talking harsh things. I said many times, don’t speak, don’t harsh for others. You did it, now today you smoke, now I am going to put this red fire in your mouth. She tried to scare me. I was so scared.
Please, please don’t do that. I promise I will not do that. I was so scared. Of course she will not do that, but at the moment I was scared. She I will put this fire in your mouth.
Now you are growing. Now you’re becoming a bad boy. I pee, literally. I pee. Yeah, I pee, actually, in my pen.
So scared. Just nine years old, I was very scared. Since then, that’s exactly in my mind here. Although it’s not a good way that my mother did it, but sometimes our mother does that. They slap you.
That’s what they do. Anyway, there are rough teachings, there are smooth teachings. Sometimes we need rough teachings. What do you do? If you don’t listen, this is what they do, or the mother does something like that.
Anyway, break now. Okay. One more verse from this book. When all who are closed turn against us as enemies. This is the will of sharp weapons returning the full circle to open us from wrongs we have done.
Until now, we have held grudges inside us with anger, thoughts of sly methods to cause others pain. Hereafter, let’s try to have less deception, not pretend to be kind while we harbor base aims. So this one is when all who are close turn against us as enemies. This happens sometimes. Why does this happen?
Because of their past lifetime, because of the anger. Out of anger, we thought of sly methods to cause others’ pain. Because of the anger, may harm other sentient beings. So then, now, it’s coming back to us. Hereafter, let’s try to have less deception, not pretend to be kind while we harbor base aims.
Okay, likewise, this is what we are saying. The first thing is that we should not be harming others out of anger. The first thing is we need to control our emotions, which is the main thing here, which is very important. Otherwise, you could harm others.
Second thing is that whatever you say, your actions must be matched. Saying things and actions must be matched. Sometimes we do say many good things, but our actions are totally the opposite. That’s not good. Actions and deeds must be the same things.
What you speak must be the same deeds and the same action. So if you do that, then in the next lifetime, your close one would not be turned away from you. You will become more friendly with your close ones. Not only just your close ones, but also you will be more friendly with other people. More peace, more harmony.
You will become more in harmony with others. As I said, go to buy this book. Just maybe a few dollars nowadays, I think. This book gives you, down there, some commentaries also from Geshe Ngawang Dhargyey, who passed away. The same monastery as a mine.
The same monastery, the senior Geshe, who passed away. He wrote very nicely. There are some very, very nice commentary down there. Anyway, now, questions. Go.
Yes, Go, please. In the past, I have done some small service in the Buddhist centres, but now the main work I do is sort of in the ordinary world and like the focus of my sort of work is to improve the conditions and the understanding about people who are poor and vulnerable in our society and you know when I work at that level you know the sort of bigger picture thing I feel no conflict because I feel that’s quite strongly in accordance with the teachings that I can understand but a lot of my work involves in sort of getting to that big objective a lot of interaction with a lot of different people every day and sometimes they’re very senior people like senior politicians and senior government people and sometimes they’re people experiencing poverty. So very lots of different interactions and in the past what I found is that know it was you know even though I would try to follow the teaching of being kind and helpful to everybody that I encountered sometimes I would feel a lot of self doubt because I wasn’t sure whether in a particular interaction you know whether I was not harming first and also whether I was helping and because the interactions are so different with everybody you know it’s hard so by the end of the day you think oh did I do the right thing and with all these different people so now you know I have been practicing for some time and reading and attending teachings and I try not to over analyse every situation and do purification as much as I can but still it’s hard because I know I must be making lots of mistakes because I’m not a Buddha and I’m not a Bodhisattva you know.
So is there like a is there a quick way I can do a purification every day to acknowledge all the problems I’ve caused, you know, the harm I’ve caused or the ways I’ve not been kind because sometimes I find I even have to be firm or you know, know, be you know, like you were saying when you knocked on the door of those young boys you have to be quite firm and quite strong. So is there a simple way to avoid the self doubt that might No simple way. Some people it’s not a simple way to cure those problems. But what whatever you have been doing with those people, I think it is terrific. It’s wonderful.
You try to do the right things. When you try to do the right things, there would be some interruptions. There would be some interference which just happens. But you shouldn’t be practising according to how they react towards you. Your practice is within you.
If you do practise, even though they interact badly, but if you do practice, if your mind is clean, it’s your own benefit. It doesn’t matter how they react. If they react nicely, wonderful, or not, this is their problem, not your problem. You did what you’re supposed to do as a practitioner, which is good. Every day, it sounds like your job is very important, almost like you’re a social worker.
More like a political advocate or an adviser. When you say political, it’s a very, very You may need to become a politician. You need some brain, you need a political mind, otherwise you can be there. But still, can make this political mind a little positive. Then the rest of the politician’s political mind can do that.
Sounds like you are trying, which is good. But before you go to your job, I think try to raise motivation. Whatever I’m going to do today, I will do the right things. I am going to help people. Even though this can be a little politics, but the right way, a good one.
I am going to try. Sometimes you may fail. Not a big problem. Remember, you said you are not bodhisattva, you are not buddha. We all fail sometimes.
I fail too. But when you talk to them as smoothly as say, if it doesn’t work, then you need to go a little bit more than rough. But don’t lose your mind. Without getting angry or upset, you must be confident. If you get angry, try to be more forceful, you lose your mind.
You wouldn’t have confidence. You couldn’t talk what you’re supposed to be talking to them. Check your mind. You can act as one of them, which is I did it. I did it.
I just acted like a Hollywood actor, you know. Like that. I just went to that young man’s position where they talk. Much better. But when you’re polite, when you’re very patient, and they come to you.
Sometimes some people do that. Then I learned all these things. I read a book, a psychological book in the US. I did many crazy things because I needed to survive in the US. Buddhist monks surrounded by so many westerns.
It’s not easy. Sometimes, order to both sides, the positive side and the negative side, in order to help people, sometimes I need to become that person to help them. Otherwise, I cannot be just, Oh, I’m a Buddhist monk. If you do it this way, it’s very difficult to reach people. In order to reach people, that’s why I needed to become one of them.
But I didn’t know how to do that, so that’s why I read a book to how to do these things. The most important thing is that their language is very important. How they speak sometimes. Then you can reach people, then slowly you can bring into the path. I did this one within my center also.
When you have a center, many, many different people come. Same as like for me, I’m facing sometimes very difficult sometimes. Many people were facing emails, you still receive emails, sometimes I cannot help. But we need to help people as much as we can. Otherwise, we cannot just help people as much as we wish.
We cannot do one hundred percent that. But we just help people as much as we can. I think that’s enough. As long as your mind is in the right place, I think you’re good to go. That’s what I’m thinking.
Otherwise, there are many, many people out there who don’t practise Buddhadharma, and I don’t think they practiced any religion. I don’t think they know any spiritual teachings. They know only what they learned, those things. That perspective, if you look at them, is very understandable. But on the other side, we are not like that.
We must be different than those people. We must practice patience, tolerance, forgiveness. Try to be more vigilant in our own mind to control the anger. If you really want to help them, then help those people as much as we can. That’s the only thing we can do.
Remember, the Buddha came in this world. The Buddha couldn’t help many, many people. Buddha helped many, many people. Jesus came in this world, even though he couldn’t help many people, still many people criticized Jesus Christ, but he did help millions and billions of people. Same thing.
But then we are just ordinary human beings, at least we are trying to do something good, which I think is terrific. It’s very good. But don’t lose your encouragement. Don’t discourage yourself. Sometimes this happens.
This has happened to me many times. I almost got out from the door and said, this is difficult. This is not the place for me. Some people think that Geshe la is a problem solver. I’m not a problem solver.
I have my own problems. Who is going to solve my problems? On top of that, all these people come and look at the Buddhist monks, Oh, maybe Geshe-la can do something for me to cure myself. Of course, I can give them a piece of advice. I tell them, you can just think about me as a psychologist than just a bodhisattva or a buddha.
I’m not a buddha or bodhisattva. But just think about me as a a good mentor, or psychologist. So then I will use all Buddhist philosophy teachings as a psychology perspective. So that perspective, I wanted you to look at me. Sometimes this must help.
Sometimes in some cases, do some religion rituals. People can get some help, some kind of rituals, things like that I do, in order to cure some people. You know, many different techniques I use. But my answer to you is, don’t look at how people react towards you. It doesn’t matter if it’s a good reaction or a bad reaction.
Your side is as a practitioner. You must be different than those people. Otherwise, what is it worth coming here and learning all these Buddhist teachings? What is for? Learning Buddhist teachings, times like that, we need to use it as a weapon now.
We must be ready for that, you know. I think you are doing a good job. Wonderful. What is your name? John.
Okay. Wonderful. Next question. Anyone? I think Kathy is thinking.
Kathy may have one question. Go ahead. No? Okay. Thank you for your eggs now.
The chickens are giving eggs good now. I’ve been praying. Anyone? Okay, no questions, then now dedication. Buddha House book.
Page thirteen, please. Lord of Dharma, who in accordance with the various dispositions of those to be subdued, makes clear in the light of your advice the sacred Ganden tradition, essence of the Buddha’s teachings, to foremost holy lamas to you I bow supremely. Oh lama, please, please.
Thank you very much.