Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 45-minute commentary, Geshe Pema Tsering opens the effort chapter of the Six Perfections by defining perseverance as “taking delight in virtue” and citing the Bodhicaryāvatāra. The session’s core is a map of three obstacles: the laziness of sloth, of craving worldly pursuits, and of defeatism. For sloth, he walks through death meditation — no one, regardless of wealth, status, or youth, escapes death — then connects this to the Lamrim’s three motivational scopes, showing how daily work becomes dharmic depending on intent. The second laziness is illustrated with a vivid example: buying a new car leads to attachment, attachment to anger when the car is scratched, and anger to negative karma. The third laziness, defeatism about ever reaching Buddhahood, is introduced at the close. Suited to practitioners with some Lamrim familiarity.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 01 6P 2001 09 27.mp3
UUID: 0100db60-c47a-473e-b1eb-123c64a33403
Teacher: Geshe Pema Tsering
Collection: 6 Perfections – Effort (Geshe Pema Tsering)
Date: 2001-09-27
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 45.5 minutes
Words: ~3,594
So now we’re beginning with the fourth division, which is the division on effort, energy, also called perseverance, also called perseverance. So as it’s stated in the beginning there, that perseverance or effort is taking delight in any virtue. So in fact, here effort is what is required in order to culminate any virtuous activity, to bring any virtuous activity to its fruition and its completion. So here, effort is required. So here in the text it refers to the fact that without perseverance then our virtuous activities will not be undertaken or completed.
So that includes activities such as engaging in prostrations or mandala offerings any particular type of virtuous activity and so on. All of these activities require effort in order to bring them to fruition. So as it is stated in Engaging in the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life, the Bodhicaryāvatāra, every good quality follows from effort or perseverance. So in fact, type of virtue it is, whatever good quality it is, whether it’s a mundane quality or it’s a transcendent quality, all of these are established through perseverance. So here we need effort in order to complete our activities.
And in fact we shouldn’t behave like say, a donkey who stubbornly digs its heels in and doesn’t engage in activities. We should in fact take delight in engaging in positive actions. We shouldn’t be like someone who’s stubborn and is hard to activate, hard to inspire or raise the inspiration to engage in a virtuous activity. We should in fact take delight and generate effort in virtue. So here, effort is required, in order to engage in virtuous action.
So whatever action it is, for instance, whether it’s meditation, we’re engaging in meditation on something, then initially we develop effort and we engage in meditation for a short period. And then gradually we can increase this and engage for a longer longer period. And then for an extensive period is possible, but we build up over a period from a short duration of meditation to a longer duration to a very long duration. And that’s similar to all other actions. First, we start small, and then we gradually develop.
So then the hindrances or the obstacles to generating effort or perseverance are really three. And there are three types of laziness. And these types of laziness do prevent our awakening, our generation of effort. And if we don’t actually activate the antidotes to these types of laziness, then effort will not be established. So these three types of laziness, firstly, the laziness of sloth, and then we have the laziness of craving evil pursuits, and then the laziness of defeatism.
So there are these three types of laziness. So firstly we have this type of laziness called the laziness of sloth or in Tibetan. And this is a type of laziness whereby we keep putting things off. We think I should do this, but I’ll put it off until tomorrow, or otherwise I’ll do it the day after that, or do it next week, or do it next month, do it next year, and so on. This type of laziness tends to keep putting off what we should do today.
So it’s a slothful type of laziness. Now the antidote to this type of laziness is meditating on death and impermanence. So here, we need to meditate on death, the fact that our death does occur, and also that we’re impermanent. So in meditating on impermanence, then firstly, in general there’s a type of impermanence meditation called, all compounded entities are impermanent. But here we’re not contemplating all compounded entities, we’re contemplating ourselves, the impermanence of ourselves.
So in fact when we think about our own impermanence we can visualize that initially we were very small as an embryo, and that physical basis that we had as an embryo has developed in size and in maturity until our current physical basis, to a manifestation of our current physical basis. So we can see there is a change moment by moment as well as on a on a more basic level, on a more general level. In fact, generally we don’t see the change occurring on a day to day basis. But if we saw the change over a long period occur in a day, we would be astounded, we would be shocked. However, there is a change that does occur even on a day to day basis that doesn’t appear to us, but it actually does occur.
And in fact, the fact that over a long period the change is noticeable but not necessarily noticeable on a day to day basis does establish the change does occur on a day to day basis. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be one on a long term basis. So in fact, we have to think of this and contemplate our impermanence on a day to day basis because one day our death will arrive. And then also, we can contemplate that there is no one in the past that from the past great beings such as the Buddha and then all the great scholars and Panditas who lived in India. All of those have passed away.
None of them are alive today. And in fact, if those beings die, then we need to reflect that we ourselves certainly will die. So for instance, even a child born today, and Geshe-la himself, as Geshe-la says, he’s in his sixties now, both of those, a child born today and Geshe-la, in a hundred years will have passed away. So if we think in this way, then a degree of apprehension of fear concerning the definite arrival of one’s death will occur. So this then is mindfulness of death.
This is taking being aware of death. So in fact, also at the time of death, then nothing will be a benefit to us but dharma itself. And in fact, we carry with us at the time of death just those imprints that we have from this life and so forth. And it’s those types of imprints and that continuity of mind that continue eventually even to the state of enlightenment. So also we recollect that in terms of death, there are many conditions that give rise to death such as like the imprints or the latencies that one has in one’s continuum or various other conditions, external conditions and so forth that can give rise to death, and various causes and conditions that are set out.
But in fact everyone is subject to these conditions, even those that practice medicine and so forth, no matter who a being is, death is inevitable. So also, it doesn’t really matter what status one has. For instance, even the president of the United States is subject to death. It doesn’t matter how much wealth one has, how many riches or how much influence. Also, one is subject to death.
So really, also it doesn’t really matter if one is very brave and so forth. One is a great hero or one is very brave. One is still subject to death. It doesn’t matter if one is very intelligent, very smart, very clever and so on, or it doesn’t matter if one’s young, a child and so forth. All of these reasons do not forestall the fact death.
In fact, death is inevitable for every being. So here we need to think about this as often as possible. Think about the definite arising of death in future. It doesn’t really matter who we are, what different work we have, or what we do in society and so forth. We need to reflect on the inevitability of death and then also we need to practice Dharma no matter what we’re doing.
We need also to practice Dharma because that’s the only thing that’s of benefit at the time of death. So then in practicing Dharma, it doesn’t matter what particular type of Dharma we’re practicing, whether it’s meditation on impermanence or selflessness or emptiness and so on, whether we’re mainly engaged in, developing bodhicitta and so forth. All of these practices really depend on one’s motivation. And in fact, it doesn’t matter what one’s action or what actions one is engaged in, they become dharmic actions or not really in dependence on one’s motivation. So in fact, in fact, if one is motivated by the mind of bodhicitta, then it really doesn’t matter what action it is.
Even if it’s a non virtuous action, it can become a dharmic action because of the motivation that one has. So in fact, no matter what type of work one is engaged in, in fact, if it’s one who is working in an office or works outside or works in any particular profession, one engages in these particular actions for the purpose of gaining money or gaining one’s livelihood in this life and so forth, which is necessary. One needs a certain amount of resources to survive. But all of these actions become dharmic or not, in dependence upon one’s motivation. So in fact, as we’re engaged in, activities in this life, then we apply a certain motivation to those actions.
By applying a positive motivation, then they become virtuous. For instance, if we are engaged in our ordinary work for the purpose of others, then that’s a positive motivation. If in fact we’re engaged for the purpose of our future life in order to gain a positive or a life in future that’s within the higher realms or within the divine realms and so forth, then that also becomes virtuous motivation. If in fact we are motivated in order to attain liberation, then that also is a positive motivation for engaging in our ordinary actions of this life. Similarly, if we engage in these actions for the purpose of becoming a complete, fully enlightened Buddha, then also that’s the supreme motivation that we can base all the actions of this life upon.
So then, no matter what actions we engage in, for instance in this life if we engage in meditating on impermanence or meditating on other states or in fact we engage in giving and so forth, any other virtues, if we do this for the purpose of this life, then the results will tend to be exhausted in this type of life that we now exist in. And those types of actions, because they’re motivated in that way, not really dharmic actions. On the other hand, if we are motivated to engage in actions for our next life, and so on, then they actually become dharmic actions. So in fact, we’re motivated, in this life, in our ordinary actions to, establish a result in our future lives, say in the divine realms or as a human, to establish resources and various other amenities and so forth that we would need in a future life, in our next life, for instance, then those actions are the actions of a being of the small scope. On the other hand, if we motivated engaging in the actions here and now for the purpose of attaining liberation, and in fact, we’re motivated not to attain any of the excellence or the magnificence and so forth of this type of life that we’re now engaged in, or any life in saṃsāra, and in fact we abandon all hope or all possibility or all interest in gaining a samsaric result and thereby are inspired to attain liberation, then that is the motivation of being of intermediate scope.
Then again, we’re beyond that, if we’re able to leave behind our interest in our own situation to the exclusion of others, and begin to think of others’ purpose and that in fact others are just like ourselves, they aspire to happiness in just the way that we aspire to happiness and so on, then this is a greater motivation. Again. So in fact, here we need to reflect on suffering, that in fact we engage, we experience suffering and others experience suffering. On the other hand, beings who attain the state of an arhat or an enemy destroyer, in fact have overcome all types of suffering. They have no further suffering at all.
When we look around the world and we see beings of great influence, like even the President of the United States, a being with great influence and a lot of wealth and so forth, it appears at times that they have achieved a high status and so forth. But actually, of course, they’re susceptible to suffering and dissatisfaction and so on. But an arhat is one who completely overcomes all suffering from the root. So as we view other beings, we take note that all beings are suffering. All beings experience a similar type suffering to what we experience.
And in contemplating this and in developing and realizing ourselves that we aspire to get beyond that suffering, other beings also aspire to, we develop the aspiration that others be freed and the determination ourselves to help free other beings of their suffering. So then in contemplating this, the suffering of all other beings and how they’re similar to ourselves and their desire to overcome suffering, similar to our desire to overcome suffering and so forth, by meditating over a long period gradually and so forth, the aspiration to overcome the sufferings of all sentient beings gradually arises within our continuum. So then understanding the pervasiveness of suffering and then developing through our meditation the aspiration, to free all beings from suffering, and then with that motivation of compassion and so forth to others, even if we were to offer a coin to another being, then that action becomes a great vehicle type action, an action of a great scope, and becomes a cause for the attainment of the state of the Buddha. So in fact, if we think in this way, then it’s possible that we overcome this laziness of sloth, this first type of laziness. So then further we can meditate on the fact that we have this precious human rebirth with leisure and endowment, the eight leisures and ten endowments and so forth, which is extremely difficult to find.
So meditating in that way also can help overcome this laziness of sloth. Also it is mentioned in Lamrim in this context that this precious human rebirth is very difficult to find both in terms of its cause, in terms of example, identity, and so forth. And so these also should be contemplated in this context. So in terms of being difficult to find in terms of cause, the cause for this precious human rebirth is really engaging in ethics. Ethics is not easy to establish, and then as assistant to ethics then also we have the other perfections. So these need to be assembled in order to create the causes of the precious human rebirth.
So in fact, here ethics refers also to the various vows or the various pledges that one takes in practicing ethics. For an ordained being, there are many, a great deal of ethical vows that one takes. For householders or for laity, then there are less. But it’s fundamentally the same principle, which is the practice of protecting the mind or guarding the mind against non virtue. So in fact here we need to practice ethics and here ethics is protecting the mind from the ten non virtuous actions.
But in practicing that, in avoiding the ten non virtuous actions, they are to be practiced along with the perfections, so those ten along with each of the perfections such as generosity, ethics, patience, effort, concentration, wisdom, and so on. And in fact, when we look around, we see that there’s many human beings, many, many. And in contemplating this, we can also then understand that it’s difficult also to attain a precious human rebirth, that it’s not not necessarily easy to attain a precious human rebirth. And in fact, previously in Tibet there was one lama that was talking about the difficulty of attaining a precious human rebirth. Initially he talked about China itself.
China mentioned, was full of beings, full of people. Like, there was numerous ants there. And in saying that, he he said that even though it’s said that there’s many people in China, it doesn’t mean to say that gaining a precious human rebirth is easy. Even though there’s count you know, there’s many, many sentient things, many human beings in China still, gaining a precious human rebirth is not easy. Yep.
Even though there are many human beings, such as many humans like ants in China, still to actually gain a precious human rebirth with the eight leisures and ten endowments is extremely rare. As for ourselves, we can probably say that at present the leisures and endowments are probably complete for us. So in fact, if one is going to engage in dharmic practice, the basic ingredients needed are present. So then in thinking about this, in thinking about having this rare possession of a precious human rebirth, this also helps to overcome this laziness of sloth, this first type of laziness. And then we have another type of laziness called the laziness of craving evil pursuits.
So what is this laziness of craving evil pursuits? This is engaged in ordinary activities and being quite attracted attached to them, such as it gives a list in the text such as, engaged in such activities as, idle gossip or in business and farming and various other other activities that we can be engaged in, longing to engage in those activities and so on, craving to engage in those activities. So this also is a type of laziness. And in fact, if we put a lot of effort into these types of activities, simply because we long to do them for one reason or another, then even though it may appear as if we’re putting effort into those activities, It’s another term in Tibetan called düri, which is just being strong headed or even pig headed in a particular activity, just wanting to do it and putting energy into it. It’s not really effort in the way that effort is defined.
But here we really need to abandon the pith or the essence of samsaric activities. So these samsaric activities are the essence of suffering and these are things that we need actually to abandon. And these activities, just being throwing ourselves headlong into these types of activities, simply a samsaric process. They’re not a cause of wealth and so forth, thinking that these activities would be a cause of positive outcomes such as having resources and so forth is a mistake. And in fact, engaging in these types of activities really becomes just a a cause or a source of suffering.
So for instance, we can think of an example here like a car, an ordinary worldly object like a new car, and we see it and we develop a liking for the car and so forth. We purchase it and so on. And then if anyone happens to harm the car or scratch it in any way, we get very angry. That anger, of course, is what is going to generate a lot of negative karma for us. And in fact, it will generate the cause for us to be reborn in hell.
So in fact, it’s not hard to see that these worldly objects and taking great interest in them are just are a cause of suffering. So even though we like to look at some new object, like a car and so forth, and we become attracted to it, it gives us some degree of worldly pleasure, still in the end we need to be aware that it will be a cause of our suffering and give rise to negative causes of suffering. So thinking in this way, then we can see that this type of worldly action is a samsaric action and actually the cause of saṃsāra. So also we can think of the life of the Buddha himself. The Buddha was actually born into a very wealthy family in India, and his father was a king with great influence and wealth.
But the Buddha himself was not really attached to that type of wealth or influence and power. Eventually he renounced the kingdom and left to live as a mendicant. However, for ourselves, it would not be easy to do that. We wouldn’t have the probably wouldn’t be brave enough to do that, in fact renounce such a position and leave and live in a forest where there are wild animals and so on. So, in thinking in this way about samsaric activities and so forth and how they are the cause of suffering, then we can begin to give up and apply the antidotes to the laziness of craving evil pursuits.
So next we have the third type of laziness, and this is called Tibetan snyems pa, which means the laziness of defeatism or being disheartened and so on. So this has different names also in Tibetan, but this occurs here as the third of the three types of laziness. So laziness here of defeatism or losing heart and so forth is to develop the type of thought which which says, How could someone like myself attain a state of a Buddha? Or How could I work for the sake of sentient beings? So forth.
So in fact, it’s a type of defeatist attitude which tends to think that I cannot achieve these great goals.