Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 46-minute session, Geshe Pema Tsering shows how Śāntideva’s opening homage quietly encodes a complete refuge in the Three Jewels — “Sugata” pointing to the Buddha jewel, “the Dharma they have mastered” to the Dharma jewel as true cessation in a Buddha’s mindstream, and “all their heirs” to bodhisattvas as the Sangha jewel. He ranks a Buddha’s realizations above those of arhats, stream-enterers, and non-Buddhist meditators by examining what each has and has not abandoned. He then introduces Śāntideva’s “promise to compose” and its four goals for the text. The Q&A covers whether meditation can directly affect others’ minds (it cannot — otherwise Buddhas would have freed us long ago), how prayers benefit the dying, and the counterintuitive point that the person you pray for becomes a cause of your own merit.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 08 WBS 2005 02 15.mp3
UUID: 207fa6cd-cbc4-4381-a212-9327d1cdec3f
Teacher: Geshe Pema Tsering
Collection: Bodhisattva Way of Life 2005 Feb-Mar (Geshe Pema Tsering)
Date: 2005-02-15
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 45.7 minutes
Words: ~3,218
Of a or a. Mhmm. So that’s in terms of the three things that they have abandoned, the three afflictive different afflictions and obscurations to knowledge that they have abandoned. Now, in terms of what they have developed, the realizations of a Buddha are said to be more excellent than the realizations of these other beings, in that they have realized directly the thusness or the lack of self. So, by realizing the lack of self of person and phenomena, they have realized vastness or Śūnyatā, and this makes their realization greater than that of non-Buddhist meditators who developed a mental tranquility.
And that understanding of theirs becomes incredibly stable, which makes their realization greater than the realization of those who are stream enterers or once returners on the Hīnayāna path. And not only that, but having abandoned the obscurations to knowledge, they also develop what’s called all knowing or omniscience. And in this way, their realizations or their knowing or their realizations or what they know is greater than what is known by arhats. So the two selflessnesses, the selflessness of persons and the selflessness of phenomena, are said to be realizations of emptiness. So, once a being realizes this emptiness, then their understanding is obviously greater than those who aren’t developing wisdom perceiving emptiness, that is the non-Buddhist meditators.
The stability of this meditation is said to be equal to that of the arhats or the foe destroyers and greater than that of those who are working towards becoming an arhat, that is the stream enterers and the once returners. But none of these beings, even the arhats, even though the arhats may have a stable understanding and may have a realization of emptiness, what they know and their ability to benefit beings because of what they know is not as vast as what the Buddhas know, as what the Sugatas know. So in this way, arhats may know a lot and those who have developed to the state of being a stream enterer or once returner may have realized a lot and we should be very respectful and look up to their realization. Still those realizations aren’t anywhere near or as as as vast as a Buddha’s. So this means so the given that this is what is taken is what the word Sugata, or the one that’s translated here, to those who go in bliss, this is what it is.
What its meaning is, it means that the first word or the phrase in this translation refers to the Buddha jewel. So out of the Three Jewels, the Buddha jewel, the Dharma jewel, and the Sangha jewel, it means that the first phrase or the first word refers to the Buddha jewel. So, the next two words where it says the Dharma. Now, what this is describing is actually the Dharma jewel. Specifically, what they translated here is the Dharma, the way that it is put forward in Tibetan is as the body of Dharma.
Now the body of the Dharma is another way to say, sometimes called the dharmakaya as well. Now this refers to the nature body or the essence of the Buddha’s mind, the nature of the Buddha’s mind. So it’s talking about what’s called the nature truth body or the emptiness of the Buddha s mind. Now, this stainless realization that is free from all conceptualization and the extremes of eternalism and nihilism is said to be the not only the, in this instance, dharmakaya, or the wisdom body of a Buddha, but also the Dharma jewel. It’s another way of saying the wisdom truth body of a Buddha is another way of saying true cessation.
So in this way you’re talking about the cessation of something, the lack of inherent existence, the lack of complete non existence, so I was talking about the emptiness of the mind of a Buddha is another way of talking about the Dharma jewel. Those two words, the Dharma, what they are referring to is the true cessation in the continuum of a Buddha. And so the next three words it says they have mastered. So this means that they have it. So the Dharma they have mastered also means that they have developed that understanding, the nature truth body of a Buddha in their continuum.
If we want to know where we find the Dharma jewel, then it is in the mental continuum of those gone to bliss. The Dharma jewel, what the Dharma jewel is, is the realizations of a Buddha. Then it says that based based on these two things, based on the abandonments and the realizations of a Buddha, and this nature truth body, the emptiness of the Buddha’s mind, the two other bodies of a Buddha, that is the Nirmānakāya, which is the emanation body, the gross physical being of a Buddha that manifests to ordinary beings, and the or the enjoyment body, which is the subtle form body of a Buddha that manifests to highly realized bodhisattvas, these two bodies come into being. So they’re based on the realizations in the mind stream of a Buddha and the emptiness emptiness of that mind. Okay.
So the next when it says and to all their heirs, to all who have merit, sorry, to all who merit veneration, I bow down. Now this last bit where it says to all their heirs, what that is actually referring to is to Bodhisattvas. A Bodhisattva in this instance is defined as one who has true cessation and true paths in their mental continuum, so that is someone who has abandoned self-grasping and other levels of true paths, or other levels of true paths and true cessation. In this way, the first to those who go into bliss refers to their Buddha jewel. The second, where it says the Dharma they have mastered, refers to what’s called the final Dharma jewel of the Mahāyāna, and the last section where it says and to all their heirs this refers to Sangha jewel.
So in this way, the first line encompasses a homage to and refuge in the Three Jewels. So then the next line says, to all who and to all who merit veneration I bow down. Now, to all who merit veneration refers to Śāntideva’s abbots, preceptors, teachers, and all those who have shown virtuous action of body, speech and mind. When it says I bow down, that refers to a process of showing respect with one s body, speech and mind to all those things. Bowing down is said to be an act that represents humility of body, speech, and mind towards objects which we have veneration for.
Okay. So all that was about a grammatical particle, and I was like, you know, it’s not there in English. So, the only way that I can think of to describe it is that, where it says, to all who merit veneration I bow down, yeah? Now, if you could imagine for a moment that that was, say, a comma or a semicolon instead of a dot, instead of a full stop, then that kind of implies that there’s something to come. It implies that this homage has been a precursor to something else, all right.
So this is what this grammatical particle indicates, right. And the example that is given to say why you would use this grammatical particle, so it would be like a semicolon, is that homage is a bit like washing your hands before you eat. So it’s saying, okay, now your hands are washed, now we get on with it. Now you get on to the actual text. So paying homage to the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha is said to be a bit like washing your hands before you eat.
It’s the way that you purify and set your focus before one gets on with writing the text. So perhaps they should have put a semicolon there instead of a full stop. What’s it say in yours? comma. Uh-huh.
Yes. Better. No. And I hate to criticize the people that wrote this translation I’m working towards because they’re my heroes. Right?
Okay. So the next section then in the text after the homage is the promise to compose the text. Now, there are four different sections to this promise to compose the text. The first of which is what’s called an introduction to what’s going to be said. The second one is abandoning any urge to make up stuff himself.
The third one is getting rid of pride or getting rid of making oneself grandiose — that’s what I meant, I can’t say it, anyway. The last one is introduction to the four reasons for composing the text. That is the four goals that hopefully this text will help one achieve help beings achieve. So that is attaining a good rebirth, practicing that doing the practice of Bodhisattva, developing Bodhisattva, is I’ll start again. A good rebirth, developing bodhicitta, doing the practices of a Bodhisattva, and the final result is the attainment of Buddhahood.
So this is the part that starts where it says, according to tradition, I will now in brief describe the entrance to the bodhisattva’s discipline. This is awesome. Yeah. Yeah. He’s like, you sure you wanna stop?
And was like, time’s up. And guess I said Yeah. Are you sure? And I said, yeah. Look.
And he looks at his watch, and he goes, oh, okay. Juicy bit according to tradition. Now it’s all juicy. Okay. If you have any questions.
Yes. Yes. You said there was I think there was two abandoning, two becoming a bodhisattva. One was abandoning self grasping. Is that right?
I don’t know. Maybe. I don’t remember. I don’t know if I got something wrong. I might have said something that sounded weird.
But yes, sir, there’s usually talk about abandoning one thing and taking on another. So you abandon self-cherishing and take on the cherishing of others. Anything that’s very hard. Even if you can start getting there in meditation, when it actually comes to doing something in action, it can be hard. Geshe said it’s easy to meditate on others benefit when they’re not there.
So he said it’s a good thing to meditate in that way because you’re putting imprints on your mind and you’re developing the tendency to think of others, but it’s a lot easier to do it when in a meditative situation when you’re sitting there thinking about it, concentrating on it, than it is to do it on the spot when someone is in your face. Yeah. Is is in your presence. Yeah. So to actually get the real meaning of meditating and working for others benefit is more difficult.
So for example, if there’s one chair and there’s five people, right? So everyone’s to think, oh, no. Everybody else should have the chair. I’m not gonna have it. That can be hard.
It’s like, I want the chair. No? Yeah. Yeah. But that’s what meditation means.
So it’s actually I know. Yeah. So that is it wasn’t that it was me translating one thing in two different ways to try and get the idea across. I’ve heard other teachers say it, but it’s like becoming the mind becomes in one case with the meditation object. So so it blends with meditation object.
That’s different. As soon as you get one case in there, we’re getting weird. However, however Right. Right. Mhmm.
How does that happen? How does that happen? What what is it about the mind such that can become it can become Okay. From the perspective of sūtra, the object and the subject never become the same thing, ever. Right?
And in most instances in Tantra, don’t become the same thing. Buddhahood to which we are working towards and the being that is working towards that or the mind working towards that is different. An object and a subject cannot become the same thing in any of the sūtra texts. There is this thing at the end of the path of Tantra, which is called the union of bliss and emptiness. Now, this means that the subject, which is the bliss, becomes inseparable from the object, which is emptiness.
In this instance, of these the inseparability of these two is attained. From the perspective of defining things as an object, they’re still separate. The object and the subject are still the same. Now, the realization of a Buddha, the object is all phenomena, and the subject is the wisdom that knows all phenomena, so they’re still separate in terms of that as well. In terms of the experience of one who’s about to become a Buddha on the Tantric path, there is said to be the experience of the inseparability of these two things.
But from all other perspectives, including how you would relate to those, they’re still separate. Yeah. Forget it. Yes. It doesn’t work in terms of translating it, does it?
Yeah. It is. Never mind. Suffuse your mind. What does that mean?
If by suffuse your mind, you mean to concentrate on an object single pointedly without being distracted from it, then I can ask that question. That’s not exactly what I mean. Because every mind has an object and every mind is, yeah, so suffusing your mind doesn’t work. Anybody else? Joe, you have no questions?
Guess, so you kinda look like that. He’s like, yeah. Know it like that. Looks he said looks like. Yeah.
Okay. Oh, yeah. Okay. So the thing is that we meditate on a different object. So if you’re meditating, for example, on taking loving kindness as the object or emptiness as the object or an image of the Buddha or a teacher as the object, then our perception of that object changes.
But the object itself doesn’t change. Yeah. From another being. Can yoga affect them? Our guest has said he doesn’t think that it has an effect because if that was true, then the Buddhas would have gotten rid of our negative states a long time ago.
So we have to work on our own each individual has to work on their own negative states, and we have to try and get rid of them and create the causes for them not to come about in the future, come back in the future. Oh, last question. Yep. Yeah. Okay.
So in general, the only way that you benefit others by praying for them is in a roundabout way. So, in general, the only way that you benefit others by praying or meditating for them is in a roundabout way, not a straight way. In that you benefit them because if you’re working towards attaining enlightenment for the benefit of all sentient beings, it benefits everybody, right? So it benefits anyone that you’re praying for and meditating for in that way. It doesn’t directly affect their mental continuum, but it benefits them in that if you attain Buddhahood, you’re able to benefit them.
By working towards Buddhahood, you’re benefiting all beings. Now, there’s also this thing of praying for people when they have died or when they are sick. Now, if you do something with a dedication that you’re doing it in order to benefit that being, it can affect their mental continuum in a number of different ways. It can affect their mental continuum more strongly if they know about it and have faith in what you’re doing. In that way, they’re rejoicing in what you’re doing, and that can have a positive effect on their mental continuum.
It can affect them in if they have died. If they see you praying for them, that s going to make them happy and then in the same way they re rejoicing in what you re doing that affects their mental state. It can also affect them indirectly if you are dedicating your merit towards their well-being, because this means that you are practicing generosity towards them and trying to give your merit towards them. This is why we dedicate our merit towards all sentient beings. So in this way, that can give them that is a way it’s an act of generosity and it’s an act of transferring merit or giving merit away.
Now, it doesn’t affect their mind stream as strongly as it affects the person doing the prayers, though. So still, in this way, can’t be like a direct transferral of merit. You can’t give your merits to other beings, otherwise Buddhas would have given their merit to us. So it affects them in that they are positively affected by the prayers that we make. If we are doing things for the benefit of another person, and we’re dedicating what we do to their well-being, this affects their, this can be a cause as opposed no.
Sorry. A condition as opposed to a cause for them recovering or having a good rebirth. Okay. Because in fact, right? This is weird.
No, it’s not weird. It’s just interesting. You’re praying for someone because they’ve died or they’re sick, then they become a cause for your prayers. So they’re the reason that you pray. So if someone is a reason for you praying, then that’s the source of creating merit.
Does that make sense? So if you act as a reason for someone else to pray, then that’s a way for you to create merit. If you are by you being somewhere or doing something, you encourage others to pray, that’s a way of creating merit. Alright. So for example, this person, Geshe was asked to pray for someone who died yesterday, and he says he’s very much going to pray for them as much as possible and as strongly as possible because not only does that help him, and he said if other people pray for people who die as well, not only does that act as a strong cause for oneself, but it also means that they’ve they’ve been the the reason and that people are behaving this positively.
And by by acting as a cause for people to behave positively, then they create merit that way as well. So what? Our positive action. Yes. It’s dependent on someone else.
Or you just like positive action? Yeah. What? Our positive So there’s a bit of a difference there between a prayer and a dedication, because a prayer is or an aspiration and a dedication. Because a prayer is like thinking, I want this person to have a good rebirth, alright, for example.
And then if we do, say, Mani recitations or something after that, and this is where creating positive as a positive action, yes? And then we say afterwards, we dedicate that merit. We say, may that be a cause this positive action I’ve done, may that be a cause for such and such to achieve a good rebirth. Alright? So this means that they’ve acted as a cause for us to perform positive merit.
And in return, we’re dedicating that positive merit to their their good rebirth. Yeah? Is that okay? And Is that okay? Yeah.
Yeah. I think time’s up, man.