Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. Geshe Pema Tsering works through the lower realms section of the Lamrim in this just-over-two-hour session, moving from the neighboring hells — razor roads, sword-leaf forests, sharp-beaked worms boring to the marrow, and a boiling river whose guards force-feed occupants with molten iron — through the eight cold hells named for the sounds bodies make in extreme cold, then the animal and hungry ghost realms. Two teachings anchor the session: that our reluctance to contemplate suffering is itself a sign of heading toward lower rebirth; and a traditional saying Geshe-la applies directly — to know your future rebirth, watch the state of your present mind. He then teaches that even a single small virtue, dedicated wholeheartedly for the enlightenment of all beings, produces inexhaustible merit outweighing any worldly gain. A Q&A covers what causes cold versus hot hell rebirth, how motivation shapes karmic results, and the proper timing and scope of dedication practice.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 29 2008 08 21 BP.mp3
UUID: 1c09418e-c4ca-45a3-950a-de3a0a8371ab
Teacher: Geshe Pema Tsering
Collection: Lam Rim (Geshe Pema Tsering)
Date: 2008-08-21
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 125.3 minutes
Words: ~7,993
Los. Los. So Geshe-la is giving, telling us to give rise to a good motivation and intention of of benefiting all beings, then to attain enlightenment. We how do you say? We’re going to study, to listen to the teachings on on the on the lamrim and then contemplate and practice these in order to accomplish this goal of enlightenment for the sake of all beings.
And and then we start with the the preliminary prayers. So, Geshe lah, approaching the next topic, which is then the neighboring hells. We have seen the hot hells. Now we’re approaching the neighboring hells. I I guess I was going through the text.
Each one of of the eight hells has four side walls and four gates. Outside, are surrounded by an iron wall, and that fence also has four gates. By each gate, there are the four remaining hells of sentient beings. Goes on. So in the the those those four hells are: one, the pit of burning embers.
Secondly, the bog of excrement reeking of corpses. Thirdly, the the razor road, etcetera. And fourth, the river without a ford. In the first, there are hot embers up to the knees. And when sentient beings go to look for a place to stand, as they set their feet down, their skin, their flesh, and the blood are destroyed.
And as they lift them up, they regenerate. Then the next one nearby, there is a second one, the bog of excrement reeking of corpses. As they cross as they cross it in search of an abode, the sentient beings fall into it and sink up to their head to their heads. In this in this bog, there are worms called sharp beaks that pierce the skin, flesh, sinews, and bones and dig through them all all the way to the marrow. I have anticipated the text again.
I was reading the part which talks about the sharp beaks that pierce the skin, flesh, sinews, and bones and dig through them all the way to the marrow. Then the third one, near the bog, there is a third one, a path filled with razor blades. When sentient beings walk along it in search of an abode, as they put their foot down, their skin, flesh, and blood are cut. And as they lift it up, they grow back again. The next we have nearby there nearby there is a forest of sword leaves.
Sentient beings walk around in search of an abode. When they make use of its shade and settle down, swords emerge from the trees and chop up their limbs and other body parts. When they faint there when they faint there, reddish brown dogs come, grab them from behind, and eat them. Goes on. Nearby is the forest of iron spiked trees.
Sentient beings are walking around there in search of an abode set about climbing up the trees. As they climb up, the tips of the thorns point downward, and as they climb down they point upwards, chopping up the limbs and other body parts. The birds, then birds with iron beaks that exist in that place, alight on their shoulders or heads, peck out their eyeballs and eat them. These places are considered to be one due to the harm by weapons being similar. Goes on again the next paragraph.
The fourth, near the Shalmali forest is the so called river without a ford, filled with fast moving boiling water. sentient beings in search of an abode fall into it and are cooked as they as they bob up and down like peas thrown into a cauldron filled with water over a great fire. On either bank of the river stand guardians holding sticks, hooks, and nets in their hands who do not allow anyone to get out. Having pulled them them out with the hooks or nets, the guardians place them face face upward on the blazing on a blazing great foundation, on a blazing ground, and ask them what they want. hungry.
I’m thirsty. The guardians put fiercely blazing lumps of iron into their mouths and put boiling copper into their mouths. Geshe-la went on a little bit further. The actuality of the stages, as this text explains, that the lifespan in the neighboring and occasional hells is uncertain. However, suffering will be experienced as long as the potency of the karma of the karma for experiencing those sufferings has not been exhausted.
And then it moves on to the cold hells. The third, the cold hells are directly opposite the eight great hot hells of sentient beings each at a distance of ten thousand. Then thirty two thousand yojanas below that, there is the hell of blisters. And from there, separated by two thousand yojanas each, the other seven hells. Among these those eight, in one of blisses, you are hit by strong icy wind and your body shrivels while blisters appear on it everywhere.
In the hell of bursting blisters, you shrivel as the blisters burst open. Chattering teeth, lamentation, and and are named after the sounds that that are uttered. And then So the the the blue stands for the Tibetan, which is which is an expression, you know, literary expression for this feeling of cold for this for So Geshe-la went on again in the in the in splitting apart like an Utpala flower, which is another hell due to being hit by strong icy wind, you turn blue in color and split apart into five or six pieces. And splitting apart like a lotus, you pass beyond the blue and become red, splitting apart into ten or more pieces. In the great splitting apart like a lotus, your skin becomes deep red and you split apart into hundred or even more pieces.
All this is explained in the text, is the actuality of the stages. Yeah. The actual stages. So goes on. As for the lifespan, the lifespan, it is stated that if you were to fill a storage container up to the brim with eighty kharis of sesame seeds sesame seeds from Agada and take out one sesame seed every hundred years, the lifespan in the hell of blisses will last longer than for the sesame to be completely exhausted.
And lifespan in each hell below is twenty times that of the previous one. And, actually, I was just commenting that that doesn’t really, how to say, incomprehensible numbers. They’re really huge numbers. The lifespan cannot be really counted. It’s just a very long time.
The the occasional hells. These exist in the vicinity of the hot and cold hells in in the text, is the actual stages. It says that they also exist in in in human places. And in the basis of Vinaya scriptures, is stated that they exist near the shores of great lakes as is as it occurs in in this in this other text, this account, the Expression of Realizations of Then Geshe goes on for the text. Again, the need to feel fear, the thought that you have already accumulated numerous causes for being born in these places.
And again, Geshe-la was just explaining the literary into colloquial. Then again, need to fear because we have already performed many actions that can lead to those places. Since it is very easy for the causes of birth there, as will be explained below, to come about whereby each day you also accumulate many of them. And since also those that you accumulated before are immeasurable, it is inappropriate to see to sit around happily. Therefore, thinking about them, you should be afraid for nothing other than this unsteady respiration separates you from them, from engaging in other behavior, we have the next following quotes.
So, again, that that that quote from the the Bodhisattva’s deeds, again, how can you sit there happily having created a karma for hell? Again, how can you sit there at ease? And Geshe-la was then saying, is no there is no time to waste. There is no time to spare. We should always, having accumulated the causes, have accomplished the causes that propel us to hell.
Again, we should always at all times be striving to practice Dharma, to practice to engage in our spiritual practice. Goes on to read the next quote from the letter to a friend. If although we’re separated only by the time it takes for the breathing to stop. Hearing about the boundless torments of hell and not scared in a thousand different ways, are like vajras. If seeing, hearing, remembering, and reading descriptions of hell, as well as their depictions generates fear, one is there to speak of experiencing the unbearable, fully ripened effects.
So again, I just explained this verse, standing, yesterday. We we have already performed so many negativities, and we have no reason to remain, you know, how to say, to sit at ease, immovable, unmovable like vajras, without acting. We should have this sense of fear of of of being born in those places and then and then practice the Dharma. If one has this fear, we will not waste time not practicing the Dharma. So, Geshe-la was saying that right now, at this moment we we hear and we contemplate those descriptions and those teachings on on the house and so forth.
But and when we when we finally when we are finally born there, when we experience the rapid results of our actions, when we’re finally born there, what what is there for us to do? There’s nothing we can do when we are there. So it’s it’s important that we act now, that we contemplate enough and that this contemplation leads us to action. And Geshe-la goes on to read the next quote from the letter to a friend. Again, he says the bliss of the extinguishment of craving is supreme among all kinds of bliss.
Likewise, among all kinds of suffering of sufferings, those of avici, of the avici hell are the most unbearable. Here, if in one day three hundred spears were to hit you brutally, the suffering would be small compared to the sufferings of hell. It would not even be a fraction of them. And going back to the beginning of that verse, and again, almost all the the blisses, all the happinesses that are, the greatest one is that is that of the exhaustion of craving, the end of craving. And if I wasn’t saying the exhaustion of craving, the end of craving is is the abandonment of craving, the letting go of craving.
And that and that equates, Geshe-la explained, to liberation. So the greatest happiness, the greatest bliss is that bliss of liberation. And Geshe-la is making reference to one literal expression, which is a correct as it is or the the correct view making reference to the realization of emptiness in the second line of the Tibetan verse, at the end of the second line of the Tibetan verse. Again, if if one has then realized emptiness, in dependence on having realized emptiness, then we we attain that great happiness, a great bliss of liberation. And, also, sticking to that same literal expression in Tibetan, Geshe-la was saying so, ultimately, then that that should be posited as as the the realization of emptiness, which leads to to liberation, to to lasting happiness.
And then in in a temporal way, again, one could posit that as being proper virtue, the proper appropriate virtues, virtuous deeds that also lead to happiness. And, again, Geshe-la goes on to the next two lines. And amongst all kinds of of sufferings, the greatest of all is the suffering of of avichi hell. And, again, Geshe was just explaining in the literary version of those. In English, again, unfortunately, there’s not much difference.
So, again, if here in the human realm of existence, again, we were to be hit by three hundred spears, the suffering will still will not equate will be will be very small, will be just a fraction of that of the hell realm. So is that there’s nothing there’s no amount of suffering that we can experience here that can be compared to the the sufferings that we we experience that we would experience in the hell realms, Geshe-la was saying in the end. Then again, it’s like a lesson from the text. You should come to understand that the cause giving rise to such suffering is only your own faulty behavior and strive with all your might not to be tainted even by minor faulty behavior. And again, Geshe-la is explaining it in a more colloquial way again, what propels us, what causes us to be born in such places and such hells is one’s own conduct, one’s own karma, one’s own actions.
And there’s no one else who can cause us to be born in such places. So it is really up to us to our own actions. And Geshe-la was saying that and then with regards to what you just said that it is up to us that that’s this is what we do. This is these actions is what actions that we perform, and we perform whilst we are striving to accomplish happiness. Whilst we’re striving to accomplish the happiness of this life, and even though we might accomplish those so called happiness as a percentage of this life, it’s still the end result of all that is this great amount of suffering.
It is in the process of accomplishing this happiness that we perform so many negativities. So again, whilst whilst wishing to accomplish happiness for oneself alone, then we engage in all sorts of of misconduct, holding holding on to what is not real happiness, not actual happiness. As being happiness, go on when we perform all sorts of of misconduct or of bad conduct, bad behavior, or or even negativities. And then and then even though we do not we do we do not wish to experience the sufferings of hell, this is what we accomplish in the end. And Geshe lah is then giving us an illustration explaining again how how it is that we end up performing those actions that cause us to be born in such places.
And Geshe lah is giving a rough illustration, for example, take the act of killing. We we might kill someone, and and we we see that act of killing as as profitable for us because we might get to own their possessions and we get the money, the car or whatever. But in the process of obtaining those those those things, the money, the car and so forth, again we have performed the act of killing which is a great negativity and and as a result of that we experience immense suffering in the future. And in the end, all that money, that car, whatever it is that we were looking for, again, it’s all in the nature of suffering. It’s all a samsaric phenomenon, which is all in the nature of suffering.
There’s nothing to eat really. And then again, Geshe-la goes on for the the next quote from the same text. The seed the seed of these non virtuous effects consists in faulty behavior of body, speech, and mind. Strive with such resourcefulness that nothing, not even a speck of them, is done by you, So again, is what I was saying. The very seeds that cause us to be born in those places are are these non virtuous non virtuous actions.
And the the very seeds are performed of these non virtuous actions are performed by body, speech, and mind. The non virtues of body, the non virtues of speech, and the non virtues of of of mind, of thought. And Geshe-la was saying, again, according to the verse, we shouldn’t allow even a speck of those non virtues to contaminate us. Geshe-la was saying not even a small physical action such as a as a an angry look, an unpleasant look to some to someone or a slightly unpleasant word or or even an angry thought, we shouldn’t allow that to contaminate our actions. And Geshe is explaining before he went he continued to the next topic, which is the suffering of animals.
Again, Geshe-la was saying, with as for the sufferings of the hell realms, Geshe-la was explaining, this is only one oneself who have to experience those sufferings. It is due only to the actions. For example, the the the happiness and the suffering that we experience as humans, Geshe-la was saying. Whatever happiness we experience, only we ourselves experience it. And the sufferings that we experience, only we ourselves experience this suffering.
And according to the actions that we have performed. And, again, the sufferings of the hells, the great sufferings of the hells and so forth. It’s only we ourselves are going to have to experience those. There’s nobody else going to have to experience or or cause it or cause them to us. Okay?
So that means so we have to it is up to us to avoid non virtuous non virtuous actions. If we if we were to engage engage in in great or strong non virtuous actions, then we are born we we will be born in the hell realms. So it’s up to us to avoid that. Goes on, so then for the next topic, which is thinking about the sufferings of animals. The weaker animals are killed by more powerful ones.
They become the the chattels of gods and humans, and lacking freedom and being under the control of others, they are killed, beaten, and harmed. Beaten, and harmed. It is explained in the actual stages that owing to accompanying humans and gods, they do not have another abode. And Geshe-la goes on through most of of the the topic here. It is explained in the actual stages that owing to accompanying humans and gods, they do not have another abode.
The commentary on the Treasury of Knowledge explains that their main abode is the great ocean and that the others spread out from there. Furthermore, they are born in darkness and in water. They age there and die. They are worn out by heavy burdens, put to the plow, shorn, driven, and killed miserably by means of many different killing methods. They are tormented by thirst, the sun, and the wind.
They are persecuted by hunters and the like in many ways, whereby they are always terrified. They are always afraid. Therefore, you should feel saddened and disquieted, thinking of the many ways in which they suffer. Then again, with respect to their lifespan and the Treasury of Knowledge, it says that the longest animal lifespan is one eon. And it is explained that the long lived ones attain a mere eon, while the short lived are unspecified.
In English, I was just saying that while the other other animals have an uncertain lifespan. And Geshe-la was saying this, and this sufferings of animals, we can all see for ourselves. We can see on the television and so forth. We see we see the fisher, the fishermen’s, and the fish being fished, and and they are being peeled and and also skinned. Is that how you say?
Their skin is being they’re being skinned and and gutted and all that. And they they they they we can see there’s a great amount of suffering that these animals can experience, but it never occurs to us that we might experience this suffering, that we might come to experience this suffering. That’s why Geshe-la was laughing. Never we see that, but it never occurs to us we might experience it ourselves. We we act as if we had already attained liberation, you know, without any worry or concern.
And and the truth is, you know, we we think that we really believe that we are not going to experience any any such sufferings, but we should we should develop this this healthy sense of of fear of being reborn as such. It’s very important that we develop that. This one. And then we move on to the next topic, which is thinking about the sufferings of hungry ghosts of the. Those who predominantly predominantly attend to miserliness will be born as hungry ghosts.
They too have hunger and thirst. Since their skin, flesh, and blood are dried up, they are like burnt logs. Their faces are covered with hair. Their mouths are exceedingly dry, and they lick them with their tongues. Then we have a division of of three different types of of of hungry ghosts.
So first, those with external obstructions to food and drink, those with internal obstructions to food and drink, and those with obstructions to food and drink itself. As for the first one, those with external obstructions to food and drink, we read, as for the first ones, if they wander towards the springs, lakes, and ponds, they are hindered externally by sentient beings holding swords, spears, and lances, and seeing the water as pus and blood, they do not want to drink it. And the second ones have mouths like the mere eye of a needle. Their mouths blaze with fire and they have goiters and big bellies. Even if they end up finding food and drink without others creating obstructions, they are not able to eat and drink them.
Then Geshe-la goes on for the next one. I think as for the third ones, the so called fire guarded ones get burned due due to everything they eat and drink catching fire. The so called filth eaters eat excrement and drink urine. They only eat and drink that which is unclean, smelly, harmful, and despicable. And also some cut their own flesh and eat it.
They cannot make use of clean and good food or drink. Then as for as for their abode, as explained, the commentary on the Treasury of Knowledge is below the city of Rajagriha in Jambudvipa, separated by a distance of five hundred yojanas. And from there, the other hungry ghosts have spread out. As for their lifespan, it says in the actual stages that one human month is a day and that they live five hundred of their years. And again from the another quote from the letter to a friend, attending to suffering uninterruptedly, fettered by the thick rope of karma or of faulty behavior.
Some embodied beings do not die for five or even ten thousand years. And, again, Geshe-la was just going through the verse briefly again explaining that they have to experience, again, uninterrupted suffering and that what causes them to experience all the suffering is the negativities, the the negative actions, non virtuous actions. And, again, that they have to they are bound in such in such suffering by by those by those actions, and they have to experience that for many thousands of years, five or even ten thousand years. Goes on for the rest of the commentary. The commentary explains that the lifespan of some hungry ghost is five thousand years and of some some others is ten thousand years.
In all three bad migrations, the body size is indefinite. It’s indeterminate. So I was just saying there’s no way to tell. In the actual stages, it says that through the power of the non virtuous, there are all kinds of sizes. Then again, for the next topic, how it is necessary to meditate on on these until the experience is produced.
Again, reflecting on this all these sufferings of the hell, animals, and how we go through all of this until experience is produced. In case I was gonna say the experience here is experience of fear, fear of being born in such places. Yes. I went on went in through the text in accordance with that. When you think about the sufferings of bad migrations, reflect.
If it would be difficult for me to sit for one day with my hands stuck in embers or to just stay in a freezing cave during a winter storm without clothes or to be without food and drink for a few days or for my body to be bitten by some something like a bee? How could I bear the sufferings of the hot hells, the cold hells, the hungry ghosts, and the animals who devour one another alive? You should meditate with with respect to such experiences until change of mind of intense fear and terror occurs. Again, through thinking about this now with a good base, a good foundation, what has been accumulated previously is purified, and what you will engage in later on lessens. So, again, through intense aspiration, dedicate the virtue that has been accumulated previously, direct the virtue that has been accumulated previously and thereby increase it manifold.
Since this opens up many avenues for engaging in them newly, every day one will make the leisures and opportunities of this precious human rebirth meaningful. And again, Geshe-la went on since sorry. If you do not think about this now, once you have fallen into the bad migrations, even if you look for it, you will you will not find a refuge that protects you from those fears and those sufferings. At that time, you will lack the power of mind to take on what should be done and reject what should not be done. This is mentioned in the in the way of the bodhisattva.
And Geshe lah is saying, no. We should we should contemplate this, all these sufferings and all that. But we the way we act, the way we think is that we do not want to think about all these sufferings. We think that’s not nice. That’s not pleasant.
That’s very sad. That’s very depressing. It’s it’s it’s not good to to contemplate the sufferings. And and and Geshe-la wasn’t saying, and correct me if I’m wrong, Jamba, but Geshe-la wasn’t saying that this this is the the sign that one is that one is going to be born in the lower realms. Is that what it is?
This it was using the word for sign. This is a natural sign that one is going to be born in in such a place. That was that’s what it said. Our our not wanting to reflect on these sufferings. You know?
And and our we want only want to get involved and we our only concern is to accomplish the the so called contaminated happiness that pertain to this present life. And acting in this way, thinking this way, Geshe-la was saying, is said to be a sign that one is actually going to be born in such lower in in lower realms of existence. Say the second is is that okay? And Geshe-la is is quoting a quite well known saying, Buddhist saying, from the mind training text and the text that if you want to know where where you have been born before, look at your present body. And if you want to know where you are going to be born in the future, look at the present state of your mind.
And Geshe-la was saying, it is like this. And we if we look at this present human body that we have with the freedom and opportunities, we can know that we have in previous lives, we have been born in the happy realms of existence and the happy migrations. Because it is only dependent on the happy migration that one can accomplish the causes that leads to to to this human rebirth that we have. So one one need to to have practice deeds and make pure aspirational prayers and practice, you know, the the six perfections of giving and so forth. And and those are the causes that lead to such a human rebirth as the one we have accomplished presently accomplished.
And and again, if you want to know where you have been born in the future, you have to look at your own mind. And Geshe-la was saying it’s up to each one of us to look to watch our own minds and see what’s going on there. And Geshe-la was saying if you see all of attachment, anger, pride, ignorance, and so forth, and if you see so concerned with attaining the happiness for yourself pertaining to this present life, again, there’s nothing there’s no the only place where we are going to be born, if that is the case, is is the lower realms of existence. So bad migrations and suffering realms of existence. Astrology.
Oh, astrology. Sorry. Los Los Los Los Los Los. If if if presently we are performing virtuous deeds and we have virtuous minds of renunciation and we are practicing this perfections of generosity and so forth. And we have a mind of renunciation and all these virtuous, you know, compassion, loving kindness and so forth.
We have all these virtuous minds. Then in the future we will attain a happy rebirth. We we will attain another good human rebirth, precious human rebirth, and we do not need to rely on astrologists to know that. That’s what I was saying. And Geshe-la was saying, oh, this is a tough call, isn’t it?
Because we we have to see what’s going on in our minds. It’s up to us to for to each one of us to see what’s going on in our minds. And and then again, if if we if we look and then what we see is all this, you know, attachment and anger and pride and ignorance and all motivated by for the sake of of the happiness of this life. You know? And we see that all these good minds, virtuous minds, so forth are so very rare.
They occur so rarely in in within our within ourselves. We see how hard it is. How how how big the task is at hand. So we have to be very careful ourselves with what we do, what we think. I was saying this is important.
Then this is why it’s important and that we contemplate these these things. Because if we contemplate these things and we generate this fear for these conditions, for these bad migrations and so forth, then that will be beneficial to us. It will be beneficial in that it will benefit our spiritual practice, our Dharma practice. It will make us practice, engage in the Dharma practice. It will make us study and listen to the teachings.
And if we don’t, if we don’t care about these things, if we do not think about these things, and if we keep on living our lives as they are without caring about these things, then again, that will not benefit, that will damage our Dharma practice. We’ll not have any interest in practicing and studying and listening to the teachings. And, Geshe-la was saying, that’s why it is so so important that even though we might not be able to perform any more than one anything more than one small virtue. And, again, we have to make sure that we dedicate that virtue for the sake of the enlightenment of all sentient beings. May may this virtue become the cause of the enlightenment of all sentient beings.
And when we do that, then that even though it was one single small virtue, by dedicating it wholeheartedly and appropriately in this way, then that virtue will will be the power of the virtue will will be, how to say, will be immeasurable, will be very great indeed because the virtue will be multiplied by by by all sentient beings, by the by by every sentient beings that exist and by innumerable sentient beings. And then, again, by dedicating it in this way for for the enlightenment of by this excuse me. By dedicating those virtues as a cause for the enlightenment of all sentient beings. Excuse me. Those virtues are the cause for the enlightenment of all sentient beings.
Then again, because we are dedicating to the enlightenment of all beings, then that means that we are also implicitly dedicating it for them not to be born in the lower realms of existence, in the hells, pretas, and animal realms of existence. And in this way, and this is why Geshe-la was saying reflecting, contemplating all these sufferings of the lower realms. And again, we should we should make sure that we dedicate whatever virtue we practice in this way, wholeheartedly in this way. And that’s the way to to go about it. If we act in this way, if we dedicate in this way, if dedicating act in this way, then again, these these actions that we are performing here of listening to the teachings on on on and studying the teachings on on the lamrim, then, again, they will they will become they will they will turn turn out to be beneficial.
They will bring good results, then they they won’t be, let’s say, wasted. They won’t go to waste. They will be made meaningful, greatly meaningful. And Geshe-la was saying we are able to do something like that within just a few minutes, by using just a few minutes, you know, maybe ten, five, ten, fifteen minutes. Again, we are able to then dedicating appropriately in this way.
Again, we’re able to accomplish a measurable benefit, inexhaustible benefit. The results of such a small effort dedicated in in in this particular way, Geshe-la was saying, you know, will last all the way until we attain enlightenment. You know, we will not the the results of the of these virtuous actions that we dedicate in this way, they will not be exhausted at the end of this life. With the ending of this life, they will keep on we will keep on experience these results until we attain enlightenment, the full enlightenment. So then that there are there are some people, some powerful people, you know, ministers, governors, and so forth.
And they they work for one day and they make, you know, one thousand, two thousand, six thousand dollars and make a lot of money. And we think of it, people think of it that that’s a lot of money and that’s very great. But I know that the the virtue that they in terms of virtue, there is absolutely nothing compared to the virtue we have created dedicating appropriately in that way. It’s nothing. It’s nothing.
And Geshe-la was saying that because this is the case, that being the case again, it’s very important that we do contemplate these topics, these sufferings. We shouldn’t think, oh, this is not nice. This is not pleasant. This is not happy and and and give up on on these topics. Very important.
They can they can be turned into something extremely meaningful. They can propel us to accomplish very meaningful things. And Geshe-la then wants to stop here. And it’s it’s ten to nine. Shall shall we skip the questions?
Because otherwise, I’m gonna be so late for you people. And I’ve been asked to to make sure that we we finish on time. Is that alright for for all of you? Do you have any desperate questions that you want to ask? Is that okay?
Pardon me? It’s up to you. I’m just to anyone as as as I was asked. Pardon me? Normally, I I a review from Geshe’s studies at mine.
It’s it’s up to you guys. It’s really it’s it’s just that’s yeah. Let’s see what I can do. Just a simple question. What exactly causes the cold cold?
Twenty one. Yep. What is the cause of being born in the cold? How and the So this is one general way of explaining it, Geshe-la was then saying, is that having having then performed a an action, Because I wasn’t saying that what what causes to be born in such places is non virtue. Non virtuous actions.
So having then performed a strong non virtuous actions that is that is a cause of of birth in such places as the hells, then again at the time of death, during the whole process if one then experiences a lot of cold within one’s body, one’s being and then becomes attached to the experience of heat and again so it’s too cold I wish I had some heat or something like that then again but then one is born in the hot hell. And if the other way around happens, again, one has already performed a a strong negativity. And again, the time of death, then one is experiencing some form of of heat and one wishes becomes attached, develops this attachment for for cold, and, again, one is born in the cold hell. Okay? Do you want us to ask a quick one?
Let’s give her a quick one. Yeah. You. You, Adam. And dad.
And You do later after after. As quick as we can. Okay? If someone out of compassion or no other motivation and dedication of the merit hopes or does a great deed or another quality result Can you repeat compassion. Just Just just see see just help somebody because they need to be helped.
To alleviate suffering. Compassion. Okay. So Geshe-la is explaining again, if if one has acted in such a way, then the result of that is happiness. Happiness can and Happiness be experienced in this life and it can be experienced in future lives.
And it will intensity or the duration of that result is is is it depends. It varies according to the intention terms of the motivation, the action, and so forth. And because one has not dedicated also in the way that Geshe-la was instructing us, again, there is no way to tell how long it’s going to last. One can experience the result in this life. One can experience the result in in future lives.
There is no way to to tell for sure. But if if that was the case of compassion and good action, then the result is happiness. Is that okay? So then, again, if you can if you are able to dedicate it after every immediately after every virtue virtuous action that you have performed, then that is that is that is very good. Because, I mean, if if you can if you can dedicate it before any other afflictive emotion or conception arises within your mind, that that is best.
Now still, if you if you dedicate at the end of the day, that is also good. That is also very good. You should still do that. And if you dedicate it before you, you know, fall asleep in bed, again, dedicate all the virtue that you have performed during the day. Again, it’s very good to do that.
And not only the the virtue that you have performed today, though, the virtue you have performed yesterday and the day before and all the way from childhood, whole the virtues that you have performed in this life, again, dedicated as often as you can. The more the merrier. And one can dedicate all the virtues of all beings, you know, of of all the virtuous deeds of of all humans, of all Buddhists, Buddhists, so forth, dedicated altogether for the enlightenment of all beings. And and when in terms of dedicating virtues, has to, you know, be extravagant, exaggerate exaggerating here. It’s all the all the better to be that and and take all the virtues and dedicate all of it for the enlightenment of all beings.
Again, the more the merrier. Anthony, you want to say something? There is there is not there is no way where where you can find said or written that if my virtue cannot that you cannot dedicate my virtues. There’s no way written or said such things, you know, that the virtues of Buddhas and bodhisattvas. Again, you can take all of it and dedicate it.
You have to be you know, take take off and dedicate all. Copyrighted. It’s not copyrighted. Yes. Oh, yeah.
You wanted to ask something? The most important thing is the motivation. If one’s motivation is very strong, very powerful, very wholehearted, then whatever action you do, the results are going to be great. If motivation is not strong, if the motivation is weak, then it doesn’t whatever action you do, however great it may be, the results are going to be small. Is that okay?
Shall shall we it’s nine o’clock. Is that right? Okay. I don’t know. Can’t answer.
Anybody have any comment on that? Actuality of the stages? Maybe it’s a Sangha. Maybe. I’m discussing them.
I can find out. So did anybody have any comment on Adam’s first question there that, are these to be, did the Buddha say that these were literally? Karma, Hiro, do you have a question? Do you have a comment on the question? And the the best it’s his commentary on the best.
There’s a it’s one of the one of the what’s that? It’s it wasn’t written by I don’t think it’s written by Dalai Lama. But the head is the name of the book. Yeah. Maybe it’s his commentary on that text.
There’s a text called Path to Bliss. Yeah. Maybe I could yeah. It’d be interesting to find some kind of something from Discourses of the Buddha on this subject to see what I tried to see if I can find something. Yeah.
Yeah. Did you have an I’ve got four or five questions. So I don’t know if you just want to Yeah. Could let’s bring him up. Sorry?
Yeah. Sure. Yeah. Oh, I see. That?
Yeah. Yeah. No. I don’t I don’t think they would they would be with you in the Merrifields before you. Yeah.
Yeah. I think generally they would suggest that you just you could just whisper Om Mani Padme Hum near you. Yeah. Anyway, that’s, I mean, that, that’s, that would, I’m just passing on what I’ve been taught. That would be something that you could easily do.
I know. Does anybody else have any suggestions? There’s a list of mantras which can be recited at the time of death. There’s eight mantras, eight great mantras. So maybe that would be useful but anyway yeah that’s for these eight great mantras Sounds like you’re looking for the fine print.
I would think it would be, but that’s just I mean, precept is according to the Lama’s interpretation. For example, when the Dalai Lama gave the precept in Sydney, he said a little bit is okay. And then others might say just one drop is is I don’t think so. Might you say, well, I won’t swallow. I don’t know.
That’s pretty hard to imagine. You can’t you’re not gonna swallow that drop over the course of a day. Well, for example, I was driving up. Could could be That can be quite a lot, can’t it? One percent, what is it?
One per That’s point five I think, isn’t it? No, no, that’s for your full license. Is it? You can’t have any. Some people interpret it as fermented liquor, fermented alcohol.
Therefore, it might apply to certain other types. Some people apply it to all intoxicants, you know, not even just alcohol but also, know, marijuana marijuana and so forth. So it’s very much dependent upon the person from whom you take it. But I would think that a wine tasting trip, be stretching it pretty far. I don’t think I, but that, that, my understanding, breathalyzer measures the alcohol content of your blood, not, not just because you have, not, not just because you have alcohol in your mouth.
A minty, a minty. Anyway, I think have non alcoholic wines. Don’t know why. Go on a wine tasting trip and bring your own non alcoholic wine. Oh, this is a good watch everybody around you get drunk.
Is it? Yeah? I’ve never I’ve never been on one. Sorry, Adam. But you could ask, Geshe.
It can’t hurt to ask. Okay. Keep going. So that you’re creating the physical merit by forming the prostration. So it’s a form of physical prostration.
Okay. As opposed to So it’s a mental, like, you actually prostrate physically. It’s just a physical, you’re creating physical action and this is a physical action and it’s a type of prostration. That’s a mandala offering. So you you you take the shape of the Mount Meru and the four continents with the hand gesture.
So Mandala is a offering of idyllic universe as it’s So a Mandala Mount Meru is in the center, and then you form four continents, which around the sides. So in the, in according to the Abhidharma, there’s, there’s, there’s Mount Meru in the center of the universe, and then there’s four main continents. We’re on the southern continent. And so this symbolizes that Mount Meru and the four continents. So you have your index fingers are the Mount Meru coming up.
And then there are four points that you’re creating. Okay. Yeah. So that just symbolizes the offering. So you can actually form form a physical one with sand and rings, not sand, but rice, whatever That’s for the Mandala offering.
Mandala is universal representation of the universe. Representation of the universe. That you make an offering. It’s an offering. So this represents that.
You should meditate with respect to such experiences until a change of mind of intense fear occurs. So thinking about with a good base, what has been accumulated previously is purified with a good base with a good base. So we’re thinking about this with a good base. I don’t know. But a good base.
Anybody wanna give it a go? I don’t I don’t I bet you speak as in. I don’t know. Okay. That sounds fair enough.
Nothing that’s been used before, so that phrase that A good base? Or a good base is this achieving my conclusion. Okay. If we know a good understanding, then So it’d be good to, you know, to maybe carry these over to Geshe-la next week. If you can keep a list of them.
Be interesting to hear what he has said to say. Yeah. No. I yeah. I think it I think perhaps the yeah.
I mean, generally, it’s said that you have to purify requires that you apply the four opponent powers, for example, but so thinking about this with a good base what has been accumulated previously is purified, and what you will engage in later on lessens. So that base could, could cover a lot. It could, you know, it could be the four, you know, applying the four opponent powers, and, but also generating fear about creating future negative actions would, would think, would cause you not to engage, would cause you that to lessen engaging negative actions in the future. So, it could, could cover a lot. I don’t think just meditate on that.
I mean, would cause you to lessen your, we’re engaging you, wouldn’t engage in the negativities in the future as, as much, but I don’t think that in itself would purify negativity. Yeah. It an easy way to It purifies. It doesn’t? No.
Yeah. I I would agree. So, I mean, this base might be all these various understandings. I mean, for example, four point, four opponent powers and and having some One one of the four opponent powers is yeah. So that might be Should we call it a night?
For saying I don’t know. Anytime.