Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. The session opens with a striking story: a past life of Buddha Śākyamūni in which a compassionate merchant kills a would-be murderer to save five hundred lives on a boat — an act that accumulated one hundred kalpas of merit precisely because it arose from great compassion, not self-interest. In this 45-minute commentary, Geshe Pema Tsering moves through Nāgārjuna’s teaching on eating food as medicine rather than for pleasure, the limits of physical generosity (giving up one’s body or limbs is only permitted after reaching the first Bodhisattva ground, not before), and the rules governing who may receive teachings. He closes with a Tibetan sweet analogy to argue against denigrating sūtra in favor of tantra: just as butter makes the sweet rich, sūtra is what makes tantra profound.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 48 BD 2002 07 31.mp3
UUID: 6790cc1c-f072-4b34-b04d-74e84a85297d
Teacher: Geshe Pema Tsering
Collection: Bodhisattva Deeds (Geshe Pema Tsering)
Date: 2002-07-31
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 44.8 minutes
Words: ~2,970
The merchant being very greedy and very only thinks for self or oneself and and and wanted to have all the gems. And therefore had developed an idea of killing the rest of the boat people, and one of the very compassionate merchants, who was born as Buddha Śākyamūni’s previous life, and come to know that the person is going to kill rest of the people on the So in order to and by knowing this, that if he kills, that out of as a result of killing five hundred people on the boat, in future the person will be born in the lower rebirths or in hell realms and go through huge sufferings. So in order to save the person, himself, a person from taking rebirth in the lower suffering in the lower rebirth hell realm for a long time and also to save the five hundred excuse me, to save the five hundred lives and the person killed that person. What Buddha Śākyamūni has killed that person so that he saved the five hundred lives. Even though that is a very act of killing, but as a result of doing so, that person, the merchant who killed the merchant, has collected the virtuous merit equivalent of a hundred eons — a kalpa — one hundred kalpas.
So what happens is yeah. Hundred eons. So you have cultivated a huge, huge amount of virtues or merit that in order to become enlightened, one, we have to cultivate the the virtuous equivalent of three limitless eons. There’s a big debate in monastery. Some says, I have to cultivate virtues in the three countless eons, or some say it’s not in three countless eons, it’s equivalent of three countless eons.
So anyway, the person, by killing that, has completed the virtuous merit of a hundred eons. So the person when killed the other person to save the the this five hundred lives on the boat and have before commit the act of killing and has cultivated a great compassion, developed a great compassion for the person who was nearly to take the five hundred lives. So out of that good compassion and then the rest of the action, the act of killing has been performed. So due to this, because of the great compassion, and even in terms of the non virtuous, the killing of the human, the person or human is the greatest non virtuous action. Because it was done out of great compassion, has received a huge benefit that is had completed the hundred eons worth of merits.
So now to the second subdivision, which is And for the second one, as said, the collecting the disciples or subduing the others through has two parts, which is collecting through giving the enjoyment or through me through materials. And this other one is second one is yeah. The Dharma or giving teachings. No. I know where it is.
In the next three verse, it’s yeah. Explains. So so what it means is that that, for example, like, the when when when one has a food or yep. The the dish the food, and should always aware of others and the animals who have no protection, no refuge, as well as fellow spiritual friends or people around. So whenever one is eating, should always think of others and the beings around oneself, if they are, should share it and give it to them first and always eat eat the final bit, leftovers or remaining ones.
So therefore, as stated by the great master Nāgārjuna in his letter to a friend, that when one eats should always have a motivation, that one is eating the food as a medicine to sustain one’s body so that one can practice to attain enlightenment or benefit others and attain enlightenment for the sake of others. And with such motivation, if one could eat the food, then becomes a good proper way to eat the meals. Otherwise, one should not eat the food because of the delicious taste, then it becomes craving to the food as well as to fill up one’s tummy and so forth. So these are not should not have those motivation to fill up one’s tummy or have craving or attachment or likeness towards the taste and so forth. Should have the motivation to eat food, to sustain one’s body so that one can benefit others.
And if the person has the practice of deity yoga, then imagine that one is offering for deities. So so yeah. For the the the the the practices of the bodhisattvas if the the bodhisattvas always possess three things, which are the three robes, the yeah, the upper and the lower robes and then the the the yellow one, you know, big one. So it should possess only three robes except then they don’t ex they don’t possess anything, always practice or give it to others. So should practice if if one were to practice or engage in the activities of bodhisattvas, should practice the way they have done.
So for for the sake of attaining enlightenment, that is to benefit sentient beings. One should one should practice the generosity as much as one can, but without having the motivation to benefit others, should not give up everything then should keep it. So should not practice generosity, which means that that if it is for the for sake of others or to benefit sentient beings, should practice generosity as much as one can. And if one is doing, come to know that practicing of generosity, that is to gain fame and one’s reputation and so forth in this life, if one come to know about such motivation, then should not practice that, rather keep it. And so by knowing all these practices of the bodhisattvas, then with the very skillful means, one should, through very skillful means, should be involved in the activities of of bodhisattvas.
So through skillful means involve or practice in the practice the deeds of the Bodhisattvas. And one of the deeds of the Bodhisattvas is giving up one’s own body as well to practice in order to help others or to practice of generosity. So speaking of this, that because that is the activity of bodhisattvas and one should not give up one’s body, more like cutting hands and so forth because unless one has the That is saying the practice of generosity like cutting limbs of the one’s body, a part of the body or entire body, so forth. One should not practice such generosity unless one attained a very ultimate or affirmed the altruistic intention bodhicitta or great compassion that sometimes people have sort of like hair-trigger great compassion or hair-trigger compassion and it suddenly changes later on and then regret towards what one’s actions, one has done. So even for those Bodhisattvas who are in the path of the Mahāyāna path of accumulation and the preparation, even for those Bodhisattvas are not permitted to practice the generosity of giving up one’s body and so forth.
So that means that to not practice such generosity unless one has attained the path of seeing, bodhisattva will arrive at the path of seeing. So if does such actions without attaining the Bodhisattva, the path of seeing, then in Sūtra stated that such actions are the very evil, evil deeds or evil actions, which means they are being possessed or had received some hindrance obstacles from the evil forces. And that encourages encourages within one to do such actions even though one is not qualified to do so. So, yeah, it says again here that should not practice such unless one has attained the so called the pure special insight of altruistic intention or bodhicitta, which means until one reaches the path of seeing or so called the first ground. There are ten grounds for the enlightenment.
So it’s the first ground or a path of seeing. Because in order to attain to enlightenment we have to accumulate the huge amount of virtuous or merit. So except for the practices of giving up or generosity of giving one’s little part of body or one’s body, like the other practices like giving teachings, the generosity of giving teachings, the enjoyments or needs, so forth, practice as much as one can because we need to cultivate numbers of virtues. Geshe-la said, you are on the track or is this What? Lost somewhere?
And now to the second subdivision, which is of giving teachings or through subduing through teachings, which are which is explained in the next three. So So eighty eight to ninety, isn’t it? [Finding the page.] I shouldn’t be focusing here.
This one. So so So in terms of giving teachings, they’ve been stating numbers of it’s been explained that one should not teach for those who has no respect in the teachings and the teacher and who are holding weapons and holding sticks and not like naked people or disrespect of saying the greater and the lesser vehicles, you know, differentiating or yeah, and discriminating between those two and then and and should not give teaching a woman without a company of a man and this vice versa, the man without a company of a woman. So in briefly speaking, then should not give any teachings without having any company. So there are numbers of yep, the types of which you can read. I think I’ve just went through the book, and it’s been clearly written down there.
So when in terms of giving teachings then, when some people it’s very closer to attain become a bodhisattva, like, very close to generate fully generate the bodhicitta or altruistic intention, great compassion. For those people, one should not give the teachings of the lesser vehicles. So there’s a danger of dragging him down instead of sending up. So therefore, for those people who are very nearly to become bodhisattvas, for those should only give the Mahāyāna’s teachings. And in terms of tantra, there are secret mantras or secret mantra or a tantra that the practice they are the in terms of benefits, there are numbers of benefits through training or through practicing tantra.
And certain things like one has certain mantra reciting a certain such amount, one will have numbers of purified huge amount of nonvirtuous negativities and so forth. So greatly speaking then, without any respect or devotion in the teachings, one should not teach the mantra or tantra to that person. And especially, and also for those who do differentiate or discriminate the sūtra and the tantra as one as the inferior and others as the superior like, mantra is the superior and the tantra is. And the sūtra is the inferior, the person who differentiates such the greatness in the teaching, for those people, one should not give teachings. So so in for those situation, one needs one needs to be very careful that Sūtra and Tantra and the upper and the lesser vehicles or the difference in the school, ultimate, middle way school and the mind only school, Cittamātra and so forth, you know.
Because of those names, you know, people sometimes wanted to touch the bigger ones and ignore the other ones. So there’s huge danger of doing so. So one should be very careful by saying the sūtra is a long way to go. I have to cultivate eons and eons of the merit and so forth. Whereas tantra, it’s a great intense practice, perform practice through tantra one can achieve enlightenment within one’s life and saying in the name of all this there is a danger of neglecting the sutras and just We all have this such danger.
So by doing so, it has a huge non virtuous, like saying and that such non virtuous, like, you know, the tantra is a great within one life attain enlightenment, so forth. And they’re not touching the sūtra. So that becomes like the act of non virtues of abandoning the teachings by abandoning the sūtra, sutrayana, because of the tantra, but doing so, committing such nonvirtuous actions of abandoning the teaching sutrayana, as a result of that, one will not meet a teaching of sūtra for thousands of eons. So, yeah, so we should not do such things. And and and and it’s without without sūtra, one can one one cannot attain enlightenment.
And there is a saying in Tibetan or the great masters. So I hope you will understand me here now. Is a tso is kind of like a sweet in Tibet, you know? It’s meant to supposed to be a very, very nice sweet, like a Turkish delight. It’s kind of like a dry cheese, but not really dry.
It’s soft, but like a grain of little tiny pieces. And it’s mixed with sugar and the butter and cheese. It’s not fat free cheese. It’s lots of cheese inside, but plus they put butter on it, like become very greasy. So and the more greasy the people like it better, more.
So this is meant to be very delicious. So there is a saying that it is the kindness of the butter that that sweet too. Looks very oily or oily, greasy, sorry greasy. So and it is by the grace of sūtra that tantra becomes profound or yeah, it becomes profound. It is because it’s grace of the sūtra.
Get it? Thank you. So should not differentiate or discriminate the teachings of the superior and the inferior. They are all good. They are all set forth for every individual, for one to attain enlightenment.
This is from the very beginning of the teaching. They said the great master Tsongkhapa stated that one should have the practice of hearing and listening to the entire teachings, the teachings of the greater and lesser sūtra and tantra so forth, so one should. Because entire teachings are set forth for I can say for entire sentient being or for every individual to attain enlightenment. So therefore should not differentiate and practice all. And speaking of that, you know, that all the entire teaching has been set forth or taught for every individual.
Speaking of this, some some people may not may may not agree with this saying the Buddha has taught like hundred and eight volumes and so forth. If you ask, has he taught this for you? And they might say, I don’t think so because I was not there at that time. So it is not that case, you know. Buddha has taught the teaching for entire sentient beings, you know, for every sentient beings.
And it’s up to us now because we can’t see. Buddha has been watching us in all the time, you know. Even now, it’s because of our obscurations, we can’t see them, but they’re always watching us. So be careful when you go to the loo, you know. Yeah, yeah.
That is easier. Just kidding. Okay. It’s okay. We’ll take a couple of questions.
Yep. Oh, yeah. Okay. Yeah. I might not have understood.
I have Got it. Got it. Well, such a situation then, you don’t have to be a butcher. You know? You can talk to them.
You know? Buddha said such and such, or I’m a Buddhist, so I don’t do this. And and not only yourself, even encourage them not to be a butcher. Right? So saying that excuse for that, you know, except that butcher, then I will do anything while you say.
Geshe-la said, I’m not saying. Yeah. Yeah. So you can you can say, make them happy. You know?
Excuse for the butcher thing. Otherwise, I would do anything. Jump from the cliff. You know? Right.
Right. So the main the main thing is, you know, should not be nasty to one’s parent and always be nice and and try to help them as much as one can. That’s the most important. Same with the parents. All this comes because of the law of action and the karma causing effects.
So generally speaking, entire sentient beings is one’s parent or one’s mother. And especially the parents of the current lifetime has even closer connection. So therefore, and because they have been kind and so forth, and if one should, one should help and nice to those parents as much as one can. And if one do not, one does not do so, then it contradicts the law. It’s not following the law of cause and effect.
So because yeah. Because practices of law of cause and effect, one the the good comes out of good and bad comes out of bad. So by doing so, one who receives huge negative So the the the actions and their result or cause and effects, interdependence, nobody can change it. They’re always there. So which means good comes out of good and bad comes out of bad.
So should be helpful and nice and kind to one’s parents and so forth. Entire sentiment, but especially for those, those are the object of merit, field of merit. If one harm them, one will have huge non virtues, and by helping them have huge virtues. So it very should take very serious actions on those. Right?
So the the karma is infallible, never mistakes. You know? Always marks there, you unless you do something. And for example, like in one day, you know, how many non virtues or a positive one cultivates because of the mind thinking you can’t really count it, But karma doesn’t need this and always there. You know?
Never mess up. You know? Written in calculation. As for karma, it doesn’t need, Geshe-la said, you know, a calculator, pen, or the Chinese wooden abacus, and so forth. Yes, please.
In past, Geshe-la Everything agrees into one?