Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. Geshe Pema Tsering opens this 44-minute session with Atisha’s ocean image: the merit of proper refuge is so vast that three thousand worlds could not contain it in physical form. He unpacks what makes refuge truly “proper” — the two required causes being genuine fear of samsaric suffering and unshakeable trust in the Triple Gem — then traces how refuge intention shifts across the three Lamrim scopes, from seeking higher rebirth, to liberation from cyclic existence, to the full Mahāyāna bodhicitta that vows to free all beings. The commentary then works through three human sufferings: sickness (which strips strength, dulls senses, and even ruins the taste of a once-favourite food), death (at which even a beloved job or car must be left behind), and the suffering of encountering the unwanted — enemies, theft, court cases, disease.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 03 LR 2002 06 11.mp3
UUID: b34f70f7-744c-4cf8-8397-d6fcaafc6a49
Teacher: Geshe Pema Tsering
Collection: Lam Rim 2002 Bodhisattva Deeds (Geshe Pema Tsering)
Date: 2002-06-11
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 44.5 minutes
Words: ~2,968
So the the benefits of taking refuge and of of of pure refuge, the great master Atisha in his text so called the Twenty Stanzas on the Taking of Refuge, which means there are twenty verses or stanzas which show the taking of refuge. In his text set forth that the if the if the virtues or the merits of taking refuge were in form, then even the the space of even this so called the three thousand realms or three thousand worlds are even small for that, you know, form of the virtuous. It it is like for example here given is it’s the water or the ocean. It’s this main source of water that it can’t be measured by the hand or a handful or cup like scoop with your hand, it can’t be measured. So the virtues of taking refuge or virtues of taking proper refuge is immeasurable.
So it is definite that one will receive such merit or virtues by taking refuge, but that has to be a very pure or proper refuge. And here, the proper refuge means in order to take proper refuge, one has to have the the cause for the refuge, which is that one that one should develop a fear towards the suffering of saṃsāra and the lower rebirths. And but yeah. And with the fear, knowing that the triple gem, the Buddha, Dharma, and the Sangha, and having a faith and devotion in Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha, and that they have a capability of protecting you from those sufferings. So and by you know, with such a very stable or a firm then one takes the one goes in the refuge.
In one takes refuge, then it becomes a it becomes a pure or a proper proper refuge, which which is produced from the two causes, which is that one has to fear towards the cyclic existence and the sufferings of the cyclic existence and lower rebirth. So just by reciting a mere refuge prayer or words doesn’t mean that one is taking a proper refuge. One should take refuge by reciting the refuge prayers with fear towards the suffering of cyclic existence and the lower rebirth, and then go in refuge in the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha, you know, without any doubt, and have trust in them that they have a capability or their their potential to protect you from suffering. And and and and through this way, one should take refuge, not just by mere word, as well as should not have any yep.
Take refuge with a doubt, by thinking, yep, whether does the refuge really exist or not? You know, Buddhadharma is there or not, or or can they protect, or will they protect or not? This can be possible, but should not, yeah, should not raise any doubt towards the existence of the refuge as well as whether the about the potential or power, what can they or can can they or cannot should not have any doubt and take firm refuge that by by by by by having trust that they have a capability to help you. At this stage, since we have not experienced it as well as we have not directly see yet realized or directly, yep, realize the the benefits of the refuge and so forth. We we will have doubts to refuge.
For example, if if it’s the follower of Jesus Christ will have doubt about Jesus, as well as who worships Shiva has a doubt about Shiva’s, Lord Shiva. But it is because we have not experienced it. But, yeah, but even though we have doubt, but one should not let or one should not let oneself go after the doubt or so called should not be influenced by the doubt of doing practice. So therefore, you know so even though every now and then the doubt comes, but should try to challenge the doubt and should abandon and make develop a pure try to go pure refuge or or proper refuge by single pointedly trusting that they have the the the potentiality to help you or protect you from the sufferings. And and if one does so, then that will become a pure pure refuge.
For example, by by developing a faith towards the suffering of the lower rebirths and and and and and going refuge in excuse me, going refuge in the the Triple Gem or Buddha, Dharma and Sangha by making wanting you to protect from the the the lower sufferings of the lower rebirth and bring help to you to get a higher rebirth. And by doing so, one takes the proper refuge as well. But that becomes the pure or proper refuge of the lower small scope level. Got it. Got it.
And then yeah. So by taking such refuge and one receives the higher rebirth — by doing so one is free from the suffering of lower rebirth, but one is still not free from the sufferings because one has taken a higher rebirth, but that means one is still in the cyclic existence. So therefore, by having being born in cyclic existence, one still goes through the sufferings of the cyclic existence. So because because because yeah. It is a nature when it is a nature that one goes through the suffering yeah, suffering when one is in cyclic existence.
That that’s the nature of the cyclic existence. So therefore, in order to free so by knowing this, one also take fear develop a fear towards suffering of cyclic existence and taking refuge in Buddhadharma and Sangha that protects you from the suffering of the cyclic existence and to take rebirth and have have and to be able to attain the happiness of the liberation or mere liberation, which is just free from cyclic existence. And by doing such refuge, one be one one takes the pure practice of the middling And so, yeah, by freeing oneself from cyclic existence or attaining arhathood, and by reaching that, one will never go through suffering again because one has freed oneself from suffering. But doing so, one has not helped sentient beings. The sentient beings are still not free from cyclic existence — from the sufferings.
In order to in order to help sentient beings from this so in order to help sentient beings being from the beings being from suffering of the suffering, one needs to attain the the the enlightenment or become Buddha. And only Buddha has has ability to help sentient beings, yeah, beings from the suffering. So so and yeah. From the suffering, therefore, therefore, therefore, it is not it is not appropriate or not okay for one just to work for oneself that free will only oneself from suffering and leave this entire sentient beings and neglect them because because they are same as oneself wishing happiness and do not want suffering. And also, not only that, they have been very kind to you in many, many times, and and and and it is one’s duty or appropriate for one to repay their kindness and help them from the sufferings. So therefore yeah. Therefore, in order to help them, once you want in order to help them, one needs to take attain enlightenment. So by taking such a burden — to free sentient beings from the suffering of cyclic existence — then one should go through a refuge in the Triple Gem by developing fear towards the suffering of cyclic existence, but also seeing the kind sentient beings going through the suffering as well. So in order to protect them, wishing oneself to attain enlightenment and to attain enlightenment and seeking help from the rest of the Triple Gem to help guide you to attain enlightenment.
And by taking such a refuge, then one will one one one takes the pure refuge of the great scope. And the Triple Gem has the ability to help and protect you from all the sufferings. And and and and it and one can receive one can receive the help by taking proper refuge. And whether it becomes the pure or proper refuge or not, it’s entirely dependent on person’s person’s devotions and and trust Mhmm. Or the way of taking refuge.
And so we here practicing the Mahāyāna practice teachings. Therefore, we we need to take the the the refuge of the great scope. And therefore, to taking refuge in Buddha, Dharma and Sangha and wishing to to attain enlightenment for the sake of the motherly sentient beings or in order to help them from the freedom from the sufferings and bring them to the state of ultimate happiness. And such such such a wish or thought is so called the bodhicitta or altruistic intention. And that wish or thought of the bodhicitta has two aspiration.
First aspiration is wanting to free them from free sentient beings from from the sufferings and bring them to the state of ultimate happiness. That’s the first aspiration. And the second one is then, in order to do so, wanting oneself to attain enlightenment. So that is so called the bodhicitta, and we need to cultivate that. So we shall do a short meditation on that bodhicitta.
Oh, yeah. Didn’t do nothing, but I don’t want to use the I hope you’re enjoying the suffering bit. Yeah. Well So, yep, we’re still under that thinking about the sufferings of the human beings and which has seven parts. And, unfortunately, we only finished two.
The suffering of burden, suffering of aging. Now we are on third suffering, So yep, the suffering of sickness. The Buddha in the sūtra said that like winter, the beautiful place becomes unpleasant because of the cold breeze, windy snowfalls, and the trees tend to droop and the leaves shrink — the greenery, the forests and so forth, the greenery and shrubs, dry up and so forth. And even the pleasant the place looks unpleasant. So likewise, the illness or sickness destroys for people all the powers — it weakens the sense organs, the strength of the body, even people’s grace or looks — it destroys everything. So all these comes yep.
Happens because of the disease or illness that not on the top of losing all one’s strength and so forth, then it destroys one’s mental status as well as produce sufferings. And then one started to lose and because of the huge because of the suffering of that disease or sickness or ill, the person, you know, is not interested or will will have what’s the word? Yeah. Not in mood of, like, any food, clothing, and interested in any sorts of thing. And sometimes even worse, there’s something, a food which you normally like, a person like because of the sickness later on trying that food that doesn’t taste same at all like before.
Did you get that? Thank you very much. Right. Yeah. So yep.
So without yeah. That one has no choice that when the sickness or the the yeah. Yeah. When one feels sick or receive yeah. Sick.
And all these sufferings you one one undergoes through, for eventually, one might lose one’s life as well. And and and no matter how strong the person is in normal life, strong strongly built and so forth, but how strong the person is, there is not stronger than anything. There’s no nothing there which can’t be talking about, yeah, beings that can’t be defeated by so called sickness or illness. And when one illness or suffering illness comes, then whether one like it or not, it will put one into the bed, and then one has to lie down and reluctantly, and then go go through the suffering of that sickness. So yep.
And later on, the the the battle in the battle of the person and the the sickness or sick, ill disease, the the the the sickness wins all the time that and it comes gradually one by one and it leads you and puts you into bed later on, just lie down reluctantly, have no choice. It is like no matter how strong that person is, Geshe-la says here that even those persons who are very active these days on the soccer match, they run fast and so forth, when it comes they will just put them down on the bed and what they have they have no choice. They just have to lie on the bed and one after next and later on it will for worse, will bring them in the end of the life. Then you have the words. The end.
And so that concludes the suffering of sickness and now suffering of death that set forth in the sutras that by Lord Buddha Śākyamūni is saying, at the time one passes or one dies, you know, one has to leave everything, even one’s possessions, one’s surroundings like family members, relatives, friends, and servants, mates, and so forth, even one has to leave one’s own body. And at the time of death, you know, there is no choice. One one separates from yeah. One one separates from everyone and goes single. And and and not only yep.
So and there there is no choice. And on and at the time one dies, you know, then after that one’s been separated, which means one will not meet with those people again. Even if one do or one does, someone still can’t recognize those person. So all these dear ones, you know, either it’s one’s disciples, one’s students, or one’s family, so forth that in normal normally that one can’t be separated even for the duration of having a cup of tea. But at the time of death, there is no choice.
The one has to go apart. Right. And yep. So no matter how strong the person is, no matter how rich person is, the millionaire and so forth, multimillionaires. But at the time of death, one one has to leave everything and just go single for even the job we have always kept very precious saying that I can’t quit or I can’t leave or lose lose this job because that’s where that’s the job.
I’m surviving right now. I’m living. And and and when that when when such time comes, a time of death, then even that precious job will be left left behind. So it is saying for us that when when the death approaches, we have no choice that we that choice to leave all the possessions, not only one’s body but one’s possessions, the house, and close ones, even if one has strong attachment or or towards a fantastic car, at that time, you know, you have to leave behind leave the car behind. I don’t know who.
So, yeah, so by speaking of that, you know, one should not try to put additional suffering on oneself by thinking, well, when I die, I have to I will lose everything that I can’t take my things, my possessions, dear ones, and so forth. So should not give oneself additional or extra suffering by thinking on those that that you will lose at the time of death. Because there is no point of thinking that way or by suffering in that way because it is the nature of cyclic existence or the the nature of saṃsāra. So and one will undergo through all the yep. The suffering of death or, yeah, one will go through suffering of death until one attains the liberation or arhathood.
So yeah. So so likewise, you know, we take likewise, likewise, you know, the people, you know, they they they die, you know, and and we go through huge suffering. In reality, we don’t have to go it is not it is it is there is no point for us being grieved or or feel very sad because of the person died because because because the person died, it’s a nature of cyclic existence, and and that is the suffering. It can’t be we escape as far as one is in cyclic existence. If one wants to free from the suffering of death, then the best the the the the one one has to free oneself from the cyclic existence, that is to attain arhathood or liberation.
So that concludes the suffering of being separated from what is attractive. Now on to the sixth one, which is the suffering of encountering what is unpleasant. Here, unpleasant means meeting with something which is unwanted. For example, we go through huge suffering meeting with one’s enemy, experiencing theft, goes through the suffering, meeting have receiving the disease or illness, as well as from so called, you know, the the the evil spirits or black magic, as well as as well as, you know, one goes, sometimes one has difficulty going under through the suffering because of being in the court case all the time, and as which Geshe-la said that happens to be in a court case because of not doing the right thing. And then then as well as like robbery and so forth, being robbed.
All these are the unwanted sufferings, but and and unpleasant thing where one encounter as far as one is in the cyclic existence. And these are the nature of cyclic existence. So one should not feel grief on all these sufferings because these are the nature of cyclic existence, and these are the one wants to flee. By knowing this, one should see the disadvantages of the cyclic existence or being born in saṃsāra. For example, like in animal in terms of animal, like donkey who are you know, we we in Samsāra exist or Samsāra.
We we reluctantly, you know, have to do need well, have to do