Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. Geshe Pema Tsering opens with a vivid image: using tantric ritual practice merely for the sake of a good meal is like asking a king to sweep the floor — motivation, he argues, determines whether any act becomes a genuine Bodhisattva deed. This 41-minute commentary works through all three forms of generosity in the Lamrim: giving material objects without pride or later regret, always with dedication of merit; giving teachings, which extends to casual conversation that steers friends toward meditation without ever naming it Buddhist; and protecting from fear, illustrated with examples ranging from rescuing drowning insects to relocating head lice from one side of the scalp to the other, drawing laughter from the audience. A short Q&A closes the session with an explanation of the suffering of pervasive conditioning — how the contaminated self continues under disturbing emotions and karma from life to life until liberation. Suited to practitioners with some Lamrim background.
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File: 03 LR 2002 08 20.mp3
UUID: e87dab50-a3f6-4456-a909-e9cdaebfabf8
Teacher: Geshe Pema Tsering
Collection: Lam Rim 2002 Bodhisattva Deeds (Geshe Pema Tsering)
Date: 2002-08-20
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 41.4 minutes
Words: ~3,081
So and no matter how much you give, it always give in the way that the person where you give will be content or make happy which means, you know, give it in a polite way with a good gesture so that person will be happy to receive it. And So if What we have been doing is what we do, the practice of generosity, some you know, making offering to thousands of monks or the great offerings and that offering is done with pride and haughtiness. Pride and haughtiness of thinking and I think pumped up and I’m like I’ve done something great and and and and by doing so you make a huge offerings and so forth as a feeling of that haughtiness and the pride then that practice of giving will become so called the impure practice of giving which is done along with the pride and the result of those practice won’t be much. And then whenever one does the the practice of generosity or giving and should always feel content and rejoice for your your your action, or your practice at the end and and and instead of yeah. At the end and should not be regret thinking, you know, regret making huge offering and then later I feel, I shouldn’t have spent that much in that half or thinking, it was a mistake.
I shouldn’t have given to that person. I should have gifted that instead, know. And should not turn that way then your your generosity won’t be become a very pure general practice. When the practice has been done, it’s done, it’s done and don’t feel regret instead just be rejoiced for what you have done. So when they are one practice, they give a huge amount or small and should always do it with a good motivation that that that motivation is to attain enlightenment and also make prayers to become enlightenment or rich Buddha Buddhahood to in order to help sentient beings.
And then and at the end and it also and yeah. Yeah. Sorry. And then should not practice of give practice of giving or generosity should not be for the individual purpose or that is thinking of one’s own benefit of, you know, you know, at the end, you know, I will receive the result such and such and such and such. Should do it, you know, from the motivation for attainment of enlightenment and at the very end with the dedication and also dedicate that the merit you have gained will become a course to attain enlightenment.
Then by doing so, then whatever the amount amount you have given but that practice of giving will become even though the amount is small but the virtuous gain from doing that practice will be huge. And so that concludes the first one, the giving materials objects or gifts. And now the second one is giving teachings and generosity of giving teachings. So the giving of teaching is giving teaching to those who wish to listen, and giving teaching more than one verse. In Tibetan, one verse means four lines.
And and giving a one verse or above or more or the giving teachings to to, one’s like puja, general teaching or monastic in in the classes and teach it to debate text so forth. Those practice would become a practice of giving teachings. So and the one who gives teaching is is called the guru or a lama. And and when one think of lama, it the lama does not necessarily be one who is on a high throne or being elevated, you know. Should it doesn’t necessarily be like that.
Whoever who gives the teachings, you know, are are one’s guru or one’s lama. Yep, and should one should have the previous motivation that that that is for attaining enlightenment for the sake of entire sentient beings. And and so with such motivation, I shall hear, you know, whatever you do, memorize the text or recite the text and always think the memorizing text would be different in our in the monastic. When we recite them memorize the text, we actually yell a lot, shout. So and that, of course, when we recite the text, it’s the reciting.
So At that stage, know, I’m going to recite the text in order to get enlightenment for the sake of entire sentient beings and also with the motivation that there are lots of that yourself has been surrounded by the gods and the demigods as well as the numbers of sentient beings. And by reciting those texts that that and your your your your the prayers will be heard by those beings and and and which will leave the imprint, latent tendencies or predispositions in their mind stream. And by doing so and then your recitation of the text or memorizing the text become a practice of giving teachings. So whatever practices one should do, always do it with the motivation of attaining enlightenment for the sake of sentient beings and always dedicate all the virtuous become merits become a cause for enlightenment. Otherwise, so the practices we do and recite the text or he says that in in cultural, you know, the the monks and the the the lay practitioners as well been invited to the neighboring villages, the home families, and invited monks and the lay practitioners to read certain volumes of the text of the the teachings or the the and sometimes perform the ritual practices like a tantric rituals and great, you know, the tantric practices.
And one should always perform all these practices in the families when you were in the family with the motivation of helping others and attain enlightenment. And and by doing so, then we’ll become a a very advanced practice, become a practice of giving teachings. Otherwise, if you perform, just go down there and then do the ritual practices in the family as you are asked and invited and with the thinking of well, I’ll have a nice delicious meal for that day and give receive certain certain a certain small bit of offerings and so forth and you perform the teaching then and then then that won’t become a practice of giving teachings as as well as and doing such a practice would be very pitiful and a shame because the Buddhist teachings of the tantra are set tantric teachings are set forth to be set very performed and when one can one can if one manage, one can attain enlightenment within one life by practicing Tantra and if one use it with such a motivation, those ritual, tantric ritual practices with motivation of I’ll get a nice dish and a meal on that day and a bit of offering, then it becomes very shameful.
It becomes like asking a king to get up from his throne and just sweep the floor. Don’t know whether it’s but what it meant is the king here represents the tantric practice is very profound and using it for small purpose. The king is important object and the you know. So it becomes very pitiful. So the motivation is the very important part and always should have a very good motivation, proper motivation from the very beginning of the practice and then of course not to mention that the actual giving of teachings is the the practice of giving generosity of giving teachings.
But even in a general conversation, you know, casually, every now and then with a friend or family in a conversation, trying to encourage them to practice indirectly and leading them towards the Dharma practice — that conversation will also become the practice of giving teachings but should have a proper motivation from the very beginning. And so even for the ordained monks and the nuns, they should practice the three types of generosity but should focus mainly on the most important practice of giving for the ordained ones, which is mainly the giving of teachings. But on top of that if you get a certain amount of possessions or certain materials, then should practice the giving of general material gifts, and of course then also should practice the giving of protection from fear. And as the great Yeah. The Geshe Kadampa Sharawa has set forth that, yeah.
He set forth to the ordained monk that I’m not telling you the benefits of giving but I’m telling you the faults of possessing things for the ordained ones. And here, so Sharawa said that I’m not teaching you the benefits of giving, instead explaining the disadvantage or faults of possessing or keeping because here the faults refers towards the faults of not practicing giving and because by holding, you know, possessing, keep protecting one’s possessions, keeping it, you know, restoring it and then it will lead you to cause numbers of karma, the actions. And as a result, you know, you will not but, you will not, yep, result yep, numbers of negative or different yep, karma and as result would be a negative result. And and and the the faults of not giving or the practicing giving that that person Yeah. You not have a proper rebirth even if you have a human rebirth and you will be very poor.
Yep. And then to the now to the third one, which is giving protection from fear. So giving protection from fears, fear is like like the giving in a releasing a prisoner from the prison and in a a legal way. Yeah. And and then, you know, if, you know, protecting somebody from the death or nearly be killed, know, like for murder, protecting them or, you know, scooping the insects from the water and which is nearly insects drowned in the water and scooping them out of the water.
It could be a human who has been drowned drowning in the river or, blown away or taken away by the floods or the storms or hail. And then in summer and the winter time, and they’re protecting the the the insects or or the sentient beings from, yeah, in the summer and the winter, which means summer during it’s so heat, you know, sunny and insects were out in the sun and get danger of getting burnt, you know, so putting them in a nice, in a cool breeze area and then in winter in a warm area. And then yeah. And to practice the generosity of giving protection from fear, one does not need to travel far away, you know, you can do even with just a single move of your hand.
And and but in time, there should be a motivation there all the time. Then even the the what’s this called? Yeah. You can do the practice of giving protection from the fear for even within one’s body that what’s that little creature means? Louse or louse?
Louse. Lice in your head somewhere, you know. And, you know, you can just practice that that if it’s in the right side of the head, you know, when it’s get get you, you know, don’t get angry or, you know, disturbed, you know, get angry instead, you know, when it’s a bit itchy and eating here, take it down and put it on the left side and then give it back and should have motivation then yep. And then that become a practice of giving protection from the fear. I think people here just clean the entire room, you know.
This or whatever. [Laughter] Just give me the word. Louse, lice. Lice.
Probably lice is the plural. Probably not much in Australia, but many in Tibet. You know? The lice. Yeah.
Many. So if one has the motivation of altruistic intention bodhicitta then once practiced, during the practice of mind training, Tonglen practice, the practice of giving and taking during the mind training, that practice will become a practice of the first perfection of giving. Perfection of giving because in mind training the giving and taking practices, the giving, you know, one is giving one’s wealth and yep. One’s possessions, one’s happiness, one’s merits and everything to others. And “taking” is one is taking the entire sufferings of all sentient beings.
So if that practice during the mind training and if that practice performed with the motivation of altruistic intention then that practice also become the practice of generosity, the first perfection. So, yep. So when one practices the practice of giving, one should always do it with good motivation, that is doing it for the sake of the entire sentient beings and doing that have good motivation and then during the actual practice should give it very with respect and happily and given with the pleasure and and not not along with the miserliness miserliness with yeah. And and then at the end should dedicate all the virtues or merit you gained from the giving and and merit to become a cause for attaining enlightenment for the sake of others — then your practice of giving would become a very great practice of giving. And we’ll stop here and have questions.
Yep. Become a it will become a great generosity or great giving. And and if it’s performed with you that you’re giving an object you’re so attached and you give with the concept of all these motivations and actual and conclusion practice then that your practice will become a great practice. Not only that, that practice will become an antidote towards the miserliness or stinginess, isn’t it? To be also contested, now you’re giving it up to become an antidote as well.
Yeah. And you can indirectly or in bringing people into the practice. You don’t have to say, you know, I should become a Buddhist or so forth. You you can have a conversation. Everybody has the times, you know, they they have a moment, you know, sometimes you got so what’s it called?
Yeah. You you know, there have been a moment, you know, you’re just staying home and got nothing to do. You know? Some people are just so restless they just walk down. Guess what I’m saying.
I’m not saying, you know, you just walk down the yard or a garden, you they can’t have don’t know how to spend the time now, you know, just walk in the garden and look for something to cut, you know, like flowers and so forth. And so there have been moments you can talk to like, well, I’ve been doing this and this, you know, you don’t have to say to the person to become a Buddhist, you know. You know, I’m I have been doing this and this and which really helps me and, you know like just sitting down and doing some kind of meditation and it gives me pleasure and also helps me to time pass and time go as well and by doing so the person might curiosity curiosity, you know, they just might do something and then gradually, you know, that’s the first move and gradually become, you know, interested in doing certain practices. And in terms of the kids, you know, And then, yep, people in general and particularly the kids, you know, when they’re little and the parents need to talk to them, guide them, you know, do what? Do this and not do that, you know.
And and you can say, you know, talk about love and compassion and so forth. They become a practice of giving and and but and because they heard the word and so forth they I mean love and compassion is the general and people will love it and they will do it. Know those practice will become become a conversation becomes practice of giving teachings. Right? Right.
And you don’t have to say these are the Buddhist teaching or these are teaching such and such. You know, in just general conversation like, you know, the ten non-virtues, you know, shouldn’t be, you know, doing act of killing or so which is very the bad karma or on a bad crime or bad action for some and then, you know, to you know, intoxicants, you know, get get drunk and and so forth. And I’m just coming up lots of word here. And, yeah, a lot of stealing and so forth. These are the ten non virtuous actions, you know.
And you don’t have to say it it can be in a normal conversation, but along with your motivation that become a practice of giving, you your teaching. So, yeah, it is very good question, and and it is not easy to acknowledge or understand. It’s very hard to difficult very hard to understand. So Yes. And, yeah, suffering of pervasive conditioning.
And the the different the theories are different inter interpretations and the there are certain theory that the suffering of they yep. Assert that the suffering of pervasive conditioning and the saṃsāra, so called saṃsāra or the cyclic existence are synonyms or are same. And some says, no, they have huge difference there. So whatever it is, that suffering of pervasive condition pervasive conditioning is the it’s called that person and so called yeah, person or yeah, it’s been projected by the influence of disturbing emotions and the karma and that is from very beginning, the moment, momentarily and the reason why it is called pervasive conditioning because that is the body changes in each every rebirth but the body changes every rebirth but that I which we always perceive I I that doesn’t change. It’s always continues from one moment to the second moment and that has been continuing from the very beginning of the Samsāra, the rebirth and continues and will be under the influence of disturbing emotions and the karma and have no freedom by its own until that I or the person which attains liberation or enlightenment and and that is called, that is that is the one, that is called, that I or the contaminated body is called the suffering of pervasive conditioning and the reason why it is called pervasive, sorry, pervasive is because it’s always there under the influence of disturbing emotions and that pervades from the very beginning of the life till the nirvana.
This is why it’s called pervasive and that is the suffering of pervasive condition. This one. Is that right? It’s a very good question. Mikey.