Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. A student’s question — why must practitioners keep re-generating renunciation, bodhimind, and the view of emptiness before every session if they already understand them? — drives this 24-minute Q&A with Geshe Pema Tsering. His answer: without constant reinforcement, even partial realizations can deteriorate. The conversation moves to the phrase “attaining enlightenment oneself alone,” which he traces to the seven points of cause and effect, describing it as a training in single-pointed courage to free all beings. He also covers accumulating merit through practices like mandala offering, notes that a conceptual understanding of emptiness is sufficient to receive empowerment, and corrects a common confusion about tantric self-generation: the practitioner imagines becoming the Buddha — the Buddha does not descend into the practitioner.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 11 2005 12 01 G and P (2).mp3
UUID: bb4468a6-38ad-4fe3-9bf8-528426662e0b
Teacher: Geshe Pema Tsering
Collection: Grounds & Paths (Geshe Pema Tsering)
Date: 2005-12-01
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 24.2 minutes
Words: ~1,032
So then all those all those practices of for example, the practice of the action tantra, like the yoga with signs and yoga without signs and so forth, not not being well established in those three principal paths, which is renunciation, bodhimind and view realizing emptiness, then one will not be able to attain good results out of the practice of tantra. So then the most important thing, again, is are those three, again, Renunciation, Bodhimind and View realizing emptiness. Again, he says, yeah, there’s so many teachings, so many things, but those three are the most important thing. Okay. Okay.
It’s difficult. This is giving rise to the renunciation is difficult. Didn’t I’m confused about something. Yes. Then you really obtain empowerment.
Yeah. To, yeah, gain empowerment. And then before you practice, you give rise to them again. I thought if you had your realization, they will would always be present. Yes, give rise a motivation before the practice is making motivation pure, You understand?
Yeah. You have have still you have to give rise to them to making them stronger and stronger and better and better. Because if you don’t, it might deteriorate, he says. Losa.
I’ve heard this a few times, but why do they say we have to be determined to find enlightenment from oneself? Oneself alone. So he says, this is this is what is called the is what is called the I should know that. I cannot remember. I was from the seven points of cause and effect, and the equalizing/special insight.
Thank you so much. Is that the special insight, which is a mind that gives rise to that — may one be able to do that oneself without the help of anyone else. It’s a it’s a strong mind, a powerful mind. It’s okay? It’s a mind training.
Sorry? It’s a mind training. This is again, because it’s going to generate this very strong, powerful mind that intends on attaining enlightenment for the sake of all sentient beings. It’s a very powerful, one pointed One pointed mind. Yes, it’s Again, he says, yes, it’s to generate this very strong intention, this very single point intention, is very great courage.
Yeah. That’s that’s the the purpose of this mind, of this thinking like this, generate this courage, strong courage, a great courage, I’m sorry. Yeah, Gena also said that. Gena also said that one must in order to be able to achieve, to bring all sentient beings to enlightenment, one must be enlightened oneself. So, yeah.
I’m sorry? In this lifetime. Yeah. One Oh, you know, come on. It’s beneficial to have this mind that wish us to to attain enlightenment as as quickly as possible in this life in order to relieve all all sentient beings.
I mean, not really in order to bring all all sentient beings to enlightenment. It’s a very beneficial mind to have. So then can I say something? Is it it is difficult. It is very difficult to bring all sentient beings enlightenment.
It is very difficult to attain enlightenment in this life. All those things, they are very difficult, but it’s still giving rise to this to this powerful mind, to this mind of enlightenment that we shall free all beings from suffering and so forth and wish to attain enlightenment in one lifetime. Giving rise to this mind will bring great benefit. Now I’m going to say, now we are all accumulating the collections, the collections of merit and wisdom, we are accumulating. So we need to accumulate these collections of merit and wisdom.
So then we need to give rise to all these beneficial minds. We need to engage in virtue and so forth. We need to give rise to all these virtuous minds. Okay? So then, again, as given an example, we offer the mandala to the Buddhas.
And in fact, there is no there is no mandala. Right? We just imagine it. But then all this we generate this very good beneficial mind, all of this. So then he says, even even if you do not have a a realization of emptiness, but if you have a good understanding of it, then having a good understanding of it, you are still able to attain the empowerment.
Yeah. Having a good understanding, yes. Again, renunciation, bodhimind and so forth. We have a good understanding. You might be able to attain.
Attain. We we have to keep on giving rise to it, is it? Yes. Until we’ve actually actually stabilized. Losa.
Yes. You have to always meditate on it until Until until you attain enlightenment, you have to keep on meditating on it. Last one. It was explained before, wasn’t it? Is it the same thing?
So yes, we we give rise as our we ourselves give rise to our body as as the Buddha. The Buddha does not give rise. He does not appear as us. We become Buddhas. Buddha If if if the Buddha becomes us, then he’s becoming a sentient being like us, then there’s a lot of suffering out of it.
That’s that’s wrong explanation. Maybe we I said Buddha became us, but that’s not that’s not the correct way. It’s like this. We imagine that we have the body of a Buddha. That makes sense to you?
Yes, that’s what it is. We imagine that we are Buddha. Okay? You take the idea of what a Buddha is. That’s what I would That was that explained before.
I don’t know. Suppose it’s going to be asked to teach to review or to teach something on top of it. But Geshe-la doesn’t know because Ankara had not talked to him yet. I’m not sure. Anyway, Ankara is supposed to arrive today from Melbourne.
And then she’s going to she said she after she came back, she was going to talk to Losang about it. And then we will all know, I guess. I guess so. Yeah. The to start.
The He doesn’t he doesn’t he doesn’t doesn’t So It’s something will happen next Thursday. Is it? Yes. Yes. Inevitably, yes.
Yeah. No worries.