Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. A subtle doctrinal distinction drives this 82-minute session: not all self-cherishing is to be abandoned. Geshe Pema Tsering works through the closing verses of Togmé Zangpo’s Thirty-Seven Practices — the chapter on exchanging self for others — separating the harmful self-cherishing that forsakes others from the aspiration at the heart of bodhicitta, which holds oneself important only for the sake of all beings’ enlightenment. He traces that harmful mind to self-grasping and ignorance as the root of all afflictions, illustrates the equal kindness of all beings through a stinging mosquito as a former mother, and tells of a monk who reasoned that others would carry him to enlightenment — until he reconsidered. A Q&A closes with an explanation of self-grasping of persons versus phenomena.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 08 2007 3 18 Sunday Mediation 18-03-07 – Geshe Pema Tsering – Mind Training.mp3
UUID: d307bbff-e40a-4758-943a-377e215089be
Teacher: Geshe Pema Tsering
Collection: Sunday Geshela Teaching (Geshe Pema Tsering)
Date: 2007-03-18
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 82.1 minutes
Words: ~5,346
So is certainly is to give rise to a good motivation. And then thinking, understanding that all sentient beings, just like oneself, do not wish for any suffering, only wish for happiness. And that even though beings are striving to gather the causes of happiness, to gather happiness, they are actually accomplishing what they are actually accumulating are the causes of more suffering. So if this understanding mind then develops the wish, the aspiration to bring all sentient beings to the state of enlightenment and to attain enlightenment for the sake of benefiting all sentient beings in this way. And then in order to attain that enlightenment oneself, then one is going to listen to the teachings today on on mind training for the sake of accomplishing that purpose.
Explains that whatever whatever virtue virtuous activity we engage in, power, merit that is going to be generated comes in direct proportion to the motivation that we have. And then Geshe-la says, so if we have the motivation of attaining enlightenment for the sake of all sentient beings, then those activities will become the cause of just that, the enlightenment of all sentient beings. And if our motivation is then liberation, then our virtuous activities will be the cause of just that. And again, if we aspire to a happy rebirth as humans and gods, then again, we are going to accumulate the cause of just that so because we need very vast very how do you say powerful and great merit the Lam Rim also says so what we need is in the motivation of enlightenment itself. So then wishing then to to attain enlightenment then Geshe-la says we then read the prayers morning prayers page twenty four four if I got that right yes and we read the and then we go for take refuge and generate the mind of enlightenment we meditate on the four immeasurables and the seven-limb prayer we make the mandala offerings and all that with this motivation in mind so we start Then in English: May all sentient beings abide in equanimity free from desire for friends and hatred for enemies.
And teaching proceeds, page twenty. And then so then Geshe-la is taking taking from where where where where we stopped last Sunday. So it’s a teaching on the thirty-seven practices of the Bodhisattva, And it’s the chapter with respect to exchanging self for others. And so we are in the very end of this of this chapter where there is a quote from who is the the composer of this text. And so then the first line of of this little quote reads something like this.
Because others are the root of of because benefiting others is the root, then one should meditate on exchanging self for others. And I think I was explaining what what the text is telling us is that because the root of enlightenment, the root of the Mahāyāna teachings and Mahāyāna practice is are all the sentient beings. Because Because the the root of of all the qualities of the Mahāyāna vehicle and is is benefiting others, relies on benefiting others. So because that is the root, then we are instructed to meditate on exchange yourself for others. This one.
And then the second the second part of that sense is telling us that we should meditate on exchanging self for others. And Geshe-la briefly explains that exchanging self for others is not just exchanging the this this pronouns or this word self with others and call others self and so forth. It’s about exchanging, changing one’s self-cherishing mind for the mind that cherishes others. And Geshe-la explains right now we do not cherish others. We have a mind that on the other the opposite of that, which is a mind that has no concern for others, that forsakes others.
And so that’s why we have to change. We have to develop a mind that cherishes others instead instead of the mind that cherish ourselves alone. Was mentioning, so then we are told then to cherish others and to forsake ourselves. And Geshe-la explained: So then Geshe-la went to explain there are two different types of the self-cherishing mind. There’s one type which is the one that we have to abandon.
So we have to abandon the self-cherishing mind and we have to abandon the mind that forsakes others and cherish others instead. And Geshe-la says there is one self-cherishing mind, which is then whilst forsaking cherishes oneself alone and wishes for one’s own happiness and benefit and so forth and strives for that alone. Now there’s another self-cherishing mind and something which I personally haven’t heard before is a mind that cherishes others and is aspiring to accomplish the benefit and the welfare, but also cherishes oneself. And Geshe-la was giving an illustration of such a mind. Geshe-la was saying: well we have to abandon that first one, which is the one that forsakes others and cherish ourselves alone, that.
We have to get rid of that. Now if we are to to cherish ourselves, then we have to cherish ourselves in this in the second way. Cherishing others, striving for their benefit and cherishing ourselves. And Geshe-la was then explaining that the mind of enlightenment is like this. Mind of enlightenment is a mind which has two two aspirations.
One is the aspiration to bring all sentient beings to the state of enlightenment. And the other one is the aspiration that one oneself attain that enlightenment for the sake of accomplishing that. That Geshe was explaining that is an illustration of such a self-cherishing mind that also cherishes all others. And yes. That was that’s the self-cherishing that we have to practice.
And Geshe-la was in teachings previously, Geshe-la has taught extensively about how all the faults and all shortcomings arise from the self-cherishing mind and how we have to perceive the self-cherishing mind as the enemy and so forth. He has taught extensively about that and the text has already taught a lot about that. And Geshe-la was then saying, then, when you’re talking about seeing the self-cherishing mind as the enemy, we’re talking about that particular self-cherishing, which forsakes others, completely ignores and and and and disregards others whilst striving only for one’s own benefit alone. That’s the one that’s that’s the one that is sure is the enemy. This one.
So Geshe-la is explaining that that mind which forsakes others the self-cherishing mind which forsakes others is indeed the root of all faults. Because it is an erroneous mind, is an erroneous consciousness. And it is erroneous because the self that it cherishes and holds in high esteem is not actually so. It is not as important as the self-cherishing mind thinks it is. Then that that self-cherishing mind, which then is forsaking others, ignoring the state of affair of others, and then cherishing oneself alone, which thinks that oneself is more important than others, then How do you say it?
That consciousness is exactly wrong. That consciousness itself that perceives, oh I lost it. That consciousness itself is is is completely wrong. So then that that self-cherishing mind forsakes others, we have to we have to stop that. We have to arrest that one.
And instead, we have to develop a wish that In English, was saying. Instead, we have to cultivate that mind which is cherishing others, holding others in very high esteem, wishes to accomplish their enlightenment, strive to accomplish their enlightenment. And then for the sake of accomplishing that, then one aspires to attain oneself enlightenment also. And then Geshe-la was explaining so then that mind which is aspiring to attain enlightenment for oneself that holds oneself as important in this way then that also there is a self-cherishing there also, in this way. And then so then Geshe-la was saying, so then we have to abandon that mind that forsakes others and cherish oneself alone because that that mind is is erroneous.
And on the other hand, we have to cultivate. And I forgot to mention one of the ingredients of the other self-cherishing mind that Geshe-la was telling us to cultivate. It’s a mind that is striving for the sake of the enlightenment of all sentient beings. Geshe-la was saying, it’s a mind that doesn’t forsake others and striving for the sake, for the benefit of all sentient beings without exception. And in order to accomplish the benefit of all sentient beings without exception, then then aspires to attain enlightenment oneself.
And that mind has a self-cherishing to it. And Geshe-la was saying, but that’s that’s self-cherishing mind. That sort of self-cherishing is the one that we have to cultivate. Then and, I guess, Geshe-la was explaining the relation between the self grasping mind and the self-cherishing mind. The self grasping mind, there are two self grasping two types of self grasping mind.
There’s a the mind that that grasps the the self of phenomena and mind that grasps at the self of the person. And then the mind that grasps at the self of the person is the mind that conceives of the person as being truly established from its own side. And it is on the basis of that conception of of true establishment that the self-cherishing mind comes about, that that then cherishes oneself as more important than others. Geshe-la went back to that little line of of of verse of which is saying because it is the root of the benefit of of of of of of others. Because because benefiting others is the root, then we should meditate on exchanging self and others.
And was saying that is something which is very difficult to accomplish. Was saying something because it’s very difficult to give up the mind that cherishes oneself alone and that forsakes others and then cherishes others more than than we cherish ourselves. And Geshe-la was saying it is not without a lot of meditation that one will come to actually understand this and not by merely hearing, how to say, hearing it said to oneself. Is that correct? Hearing is said to oneself is will not suffice.
Not without a lot of meditation, one will understand it. Saying, if one how to say if one does not meditate and reflect properly on on these topics, then then one will will come to think that the person who is striving to cherish others more than oneself, forsake oneself and cherish others more than oneself is actually crazy. If one if one feels the need, if one sees the need to attain enlightenment, then this is the practice that one has to do. And even to attain bodhisattvahood, to become a bodhisattva, bodhisattvas, Geshe-la says, they all, in order to attain bodhisattvahood, they have practice like this. They have forsake forsaken Forsaken.
Forsaken themselves and then cherish others more than themselves. I was recollecting another verse that was mentioned before, which says that this teaching is a is a secret teaching. It’s a secret instruction. And Geshe-la was saying, well, why is it that they say they say it is a secret instruction? It’s because one does not teach this teaching to just anybody.
It is taught only to those who will be able to understand it and whom those who will not be able to understand it, then this teaching shouldn’t be taught. That’s what I was saying. And that’s that’s the only reason why it is a secret. So then it is it is something which is very difficult to realize, but we still we have to meditate about it. We have to reflect about it.
And we have to think how this self-cherishing mind that forsakes has no concern for others is actually the root of all faults and shortcomings, and this is actually the enemy. We have to go for these reasons again and again. And we have to think that the mind that forsakes oneself and cherishes cherishes others, this is actually the the root of all benefit. And by thinking, reflecting over going over these reasons again and again, then one’s understanding will become clearer and clearer. And and eventually, become one will come to understand it.
And, Geshe-la was reading another line of verse, which is, which is telling us that understanding that the the the self grasping mind is the enemy, then one should one should give up conquering other adversaries. And Geshe-la was saying, so then we must understand that the self grasping mind is the enemy and not other adversaries. Must understand that the self grasping mind is the enemy. And then that there is no there is actually no other enemy than the self grasping mind. This one.
Those. And then in English, was saying, so then this this self grasping, which we should know to be the enemy that we are instructed to to know as the enemy, Geshe-la said, so then this this self grasping is called is called the ignorance. The ignorance that does not how to say? The ignorance that does not that that understands. No.
No. No. This is the ignorance that is obscured about the about thusness or about, yes, about emptiness. And, Geshe-la was gonna say, so then all the the various afflictive emotions and most of of those mental factors that we study, that we have been studying Thursday classes. I was gonna say even though there are a few of those mental factors that we study, which are virtuous mind minds, I guess, I said most of of the other ones who are not virtuous minds, they are all, how do you say, overpowered by this by this ignorance, and and all these afflictive emotions that come out of this ignorance.
So then and by by abandoning, getting rid of this of this ignorance, of this self grasping, then Geshe-la says we get rid of all all the enemies. We get rid of all of everything else, of all the afflictive emotions and so forth. And Geshe-la was saying this is not enough to strive for abandoning only anger or only attachment, and we should we should strive to to abandon the root of all of them. And by abandoning the self grasping mind, we abandon all of them at once. And the second line of that verse of Togmé Zangpo is telling us that knowing that all good qualities come from sentient beings, then one should carry all migrators on top of one’s head.
And guess I was saying. So then knowing that understanding that good qualities do not come out of the self-cherishing mind, but come in in dependence on all other sentient beings, then one should, how to say, regard them highly. How to say, hold them as more important. As as very as very important. As very precious.
Geshe-la was insisting that every good quality, everything that is good comes out of of comes in dependence on other sentient beings. All the grounds and all the paths, all the good qualities of the path of enlightenment, all the way up until enlightenment itself, up until the time when we attain enlightenment itself. Everything comes in dependence on other sentient beings. And not even that, but even if we’re thinking only in terms of this life alone, we can see that we think carefully, if we think carefully that everything that we have experienced that is good, every happiness that we have experienced in this life, again came in dependence and comes in dependence on other sentient beings. Everything, you know, the food that we eat, the clothes that we wear, the house that we live, everything comes in dependence on of on all sentient beings.
There’s nothing that does not come. There’s nothing good that does not come in dependence on other sentient beings. And Geshe-la says, but we remain not seeing, not believing in the great kindness of other sentient beings. And we do not understand how important they are. So then again, we do not understand that how all sentient beings are very kind to us, how how very important they are.
And but still so when when we when we hear these teachings about the kindness of all sentient beings, great kindness of all sentient beings, this teaching really means all sentient beings without exception, not just our father or mother or close relatives and our loved ones. Every single sentient being without exception is equally very kind, extremely kind to us. And Geshe-la was giving the illustration of an insect, mosquito, who then just stings us and it just hurts us and causes us pain. We look at it and we think that this being is not kind and we only hold high those beings or those people who do good to us. Geshe-la was saying as a matter of fact that sentient being, that mosquito is just as I would say, as kind as our mother in this life is kind to us.
Because this this this being, this mosquito right now, is has been our mother in in the past life. And so this mosquito is just as kind as as as our present mother. And Geshe-la was saying there is no difference whatsoever in in the kindness that in the amount of kindness that sentient beings have shown to us. So then there is a diff the only difference is a difference in in time that in terms of of past and in future lives. That’s the only difference with respect to all sentient beings’ great kindness to us.
Now if I guess I was gonna say, if if one accepts past and future lives, then one can see this difference. Now if one does not accept past and future lives, then this this reason doesn’t apply. And so then the the the the there’s Buddhism and there are other traditions and many many other traditions, they accept past and future lives and there are many other traditions many other religions who do not accept past and future lives. Now all those that accept past and future lives can apply this reason and can understand the equal kindness of all and but those who do not accept they not be able to to come to this understanding. And Geshe-la was saying, so if when we come to to to question, to to investigate about these statements of, how do we have to hold others highly and how others benefit us.
Who is it that gives us suffering? Who is it that gives us happiness? And if we come to think about it carefully, Geshe-la was saying that we will come to understand that all faults, all shortcomings come from from oneself. So then how is it that the self gives suffering gives sufferings gives give us suffering? It’s because this of holding oneself as as very high and important that one then that all the afflictive emotions then come about and and then one engages was overwhelmed by all these afflictive emotions.
One engages in all sorts of activities. And while while doing that, one then generates all generates suffering. So then one can understand how this I this I, the self, is, how do say, is the cause of suffering, amassing suffering, loss. And Geshe-la was then saying, so then that that mind that holds oneself is very important and completely forsakes others, does not care what happens to others, whatever whatever if if others are experiencing suffering or not, one just doesn’t care. Their mind then holding oneself is very important.
Then if when how do you say in relation with someone who is inferior then looks down on that person. And when someone is accomplishing just the same things that one is accomplishing, then one thinks, oh, I can do that too. Think of myself as just how to say, as good as. And if one is relating to someone who is superior or or superior to oneself, then one, how to say, is is then jealous and begrudging of that person. So then all the afflictive emotions, come out of this self-cherishing mind of the of this mind that holds oneself as more important than others.
And Geshe-la was saying, on the other hand, the mind that cherishes others, the holds others is more important than oneself, then that mind is truly the source of all benefit, of all the good qualities. Because it is by cherishing others as more important than oneself. By cherishing them, one has respect for them. And then one has, how to say, aspiration to benefit them. One has then the wish to free them from suffering and and develops compassion in this way.
One has the wish to endow them with happiness and then develops love and kindness in this way. So then one also, Geshe-la was saying, added in the end, also one develops devotion toward them. So then this is this is truly beneficial mind, saying. Yes? And and because of because of these reasons, then we are told to meditate on exchanging self for others.
And then Geshe-la was reading through the next verse, which is, is telling us that with this by the by the by the power of this great affectionate love, which then Geshe-la says is referring here to compassion, by the power of this great compassion, develops the wish that the suffering of all sentient beings all every suffering of all sentient beings then ripens upon oneself and that every everything that every happiness and every virtue of oneself ripens upon other sentient beings. And Geshe-la was saying? So then it is by it is by cherishing others is more important than as as higher than more important than oneself. And eventually, one will come to that will lead to the to the development of great compassion and to the development of these wishes. Part of the text that I forgot to mention.
I was gonna say, so then when one comes to develop this mind that that wishes to take onto oneself every suffering of all sentient beings and place them in every happiness, in the highest happiness of enlightenment. And when when one develops this such an uncontrived and one point in mind on this on this aspirations, on this wish, then we are told one then one then attains one has been developed by the mind of enlightenment, one then has developed the mind of enlightenment. And this is the, how to say, the the great mind of enlightenment. We are told this is then the great mind of enlightenment where that of exchanging self for others. So then we can see how very difficult it is to accomplish this, isn’t it?
Was then saying, because we remain holding ourselves as more important than others and forsaking others, not cherishing others. By the force of this ignorance we think that when we think about accomplishing this, accomplishing the qualities of all sentient beings and bringing them to enlightenment, we think that we will die, we will cease to exist if we try to accomplish that. Impossible. And Geshe-la was saying, but we only think that because we are overpowered by ignorance. This is something which is very difficult now, isn’t it?
Even though it is it is difficult, but even though it is difficult, we shouldn’t we shouldn’t, how to say, put it aside. We should still work hard in practicing and meditating on these teachings. Because in this way we plant the imprints to meet again and develop again in the future. Now if we just forsake these teachings now and do not practice, then we won’t achieve anything different in the future than what we have right now. So then Geshe-la says we must work hard at developing this this mind.
And Geshe-la says Geshe-la says that we have we have already practiced. We have already forsaken these practices in the past. And so then right now we haven’t accomplished anything. And if we were instead to have practiced this and put effort practicing this in the past, by now, we would have already already a reciter of the scriptures or a particular text.’ But this monk was just sitting there and listening.
He wasn’t looking and studying the the text. He was doing he wasn’t doing his study. And then they turned to him and said, so why why why aren’t you studying? Why why aren’t you reciting, reading the the text with the with us? And Geshe-la says, oh, because, you know, if if all sentient beings are going to attain enlightenment $2, then then, you know, then they they are going to take me there.
I don’t have to I don’t have to do it. And then and then another day, Geshe lah met this monk again, and he was studying very hard. He was reciting wholeheartedly the text. And then Geshe-la came to him again and said, why why are you studying now? Why are you reading?
I mean, you you said that all sentient beings are going to attain enlightenment, and you won’t need to study. They will do the job for you. And he says and then he answers back to to to to Geshe and says, look. I mean, even though I might not arrive there first or before everybody, I won’t stay behind as the last one. Geshe-la was saying, this this is how we we have to practice.
I mean, even though we’re not we’re not first, we should not be the last ones. This this is how we have to do. We have, you know, we have to as as much as we can, we have to to study, to to to look into these teachings. And, Geshe-la was reading again the verse, which is telling us that may all the sufferings of all sentient beings ripen upon myself and may every happiness and bliss and virtue that I have ripen upon all sentient beings. And the text is telling us that when we develop this uncontrived mind, then we have attained bodhicitta.
And Geshe-la was saying when we develop this mind in this fashion, in this uncontrived one pointed way, anything we do, any activity that we do, all it is going to is going to be is going to become the cause of enlightenment. Okay? And Geshe-la says, so then again, so then that’s why we have to meditate on exchanging self for others. And then Geshe-la was also saying that when this when one attain this uncontrived mind of enlightenment, enlightenment then again everything whatever we do is going to be virtue, going to become the cause of enlightenment. And it doesn’t matter what it is, experience any effort or hardship whilst engaging whatever activities that we are engaging.
I guess I was quoting a verse from Śāntideva from the Bodhisattva Way of Life which is saying that riding on the mind of enlightenment and one goes from bliss to bliss. And then that is to say, Geshe-la was explaining that when one develops, when one has this genuine non-contrived mind of enlightenment, then one doesn’t experience any any more suffering. One experiences only happiness and bliss and more and more as one one goes along in the path of enlightenment. And then as a concluding line of of this chapter, of this commentary on this verse of, we are told that Togmé Zangpo himself, he he he he taught that to others. He taught that to others, and he he also he made that his heart practice, and he practiced just that.
Okay. So, yeah, I guess I’m gonna stop here today. Yeah. We we take questions. So then Geshe-la says, so then even though that many beings have have attained enlightenment in the past, all the suffering all the suffering that we are experiencing right now is the suffering that we ourselves have have accumulated and accomplished.
It’s it is our responsibility. And all the those beings who have attained enlightenment, they don’t experience any suffering themselves. So are there more of them? Are there more of them that already have attained enlightenment, or are there more of us? As as many enlightened beings as there are non enlightened beings.
So, Geshe-la said there is no, there is an innumerable of of there is an there is an innumerable innumerable amount of enlightened beings, and there an innumerable amount of non enlightened beings. Yes? Earlier on, Geshe-la said that there were two parts of grasping of self. The one was self-cherishing. Yeah.
self-cherishing. Well, one was the phenomenon, and the other was Oh, self grasping. Self grasping. Self grasping. Yes.
One was us as a as phenomena, and the other was us as Not us. No. Grasping at the self of phenomena and grasping at the self of the person. Of the person. Yes.
I didn’t understand you know, I missed the difference between the two. Okay. So then when we’re talking about self grasping of persons or grasping the self of persons, we’re talking about of course we’re talking about persons, we’re talking about conceiving the person as being inherently existent or existing from its own side. And when we’re talking about the self grasping of phenomena or grasping at the self of phenomena, we’re talking about conceiving of everything that is not a person. And then you’re talking about the body aggregate all the forms, objects, animate and inanimate objects which are not person, conceiving them to be holding them as as being also truly established from their own side.
So then and then and then I would suggest again, you could note the difference between persons and the bodies that we have, the aggregates because we usually think that when we’re talking about persons, we’re talking about the body. And in Buddhism, there are two different things. The person when we’re talking about is the merely imputed self. It’s that I that we think is truly established. And Geshe was saying so these five aggregates that we have, body, consciousness and so forth, then they are just they are just the basis of imputation of the self.
And then Geshe-la was explaining so then Gabe, Anthony, Helen, and everybody here, they’re just merely imputed on that basis. They do not exist beyond imputation. So then when when we’re talking about existing phenomena or functioning things, it’s a more technical. Okay? It’s a bit more logical terminology.
And there are three major divisions of existing phenomena or functioning things, which is then matter, consciousness and how to say that which is neither matter nor consciousness. So then the self the person falls in the third one which is neither matter nor nor consciousness. And then and then when we talk about this this phenomena which are neither consciousness nor matter then again there are two divisions of this sort of phenomena. There are the the phenomena which are neither consciousness nor matter which which have life, which are animate, so to speak. And then and Geshe-la says, so these are the persons themselves and then there are those which are inanimate do not have life so then do not have life inanimate and then this refers to time, years, months, days, and and and other other sort of phenomena.
It’s good, isn’t it? Not this one. Okay. Yeah. Sure.
This one. Nice tea. And this one. Okay? Okay.
Yeah. Morning prayers, page twenty six. Can you read the page eleven of the little yellow book? Om Swasti, I pray to the divine assembly that bestows an auspicious By the strength of my pure intention, the truth of the infallible dependent arising of karma and effect, and the pure precious blessings of my guru, may the meaning of this prayer be quickly and easily fulfilled. Yeah.
Yeah.