Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. A verse declaring that the wish to benefit others becomes laughable without moral discipline opens this 95-minute commentary with Geshe Pema Tsering. He examines what the text calls mundane ambitions — aspiring for samsaric happiness rather than liberation — and argues that practice mixed with such motivation cannot become a cause of liberation, however virtuous it may be. He walks through the three types of ethical discipline: resolves against unwholesome action, gathering virtuous qualities, and working for the welfare of sentient beings. He then distinguishes renunciation (seeing saṃsāra’s faults) from abandonment (actively guarding the mind against anger and attachment). The session closes with dedication prayers for Tibetans killed in recent violence and a candid Q&A in which Geshe-la recalls seeing Chinese troops arrive in Tibet during his youth and weighs street protest against the more certain benefit of cultivating bodhicitta.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 16 2008 03 16 Geshe Pema Tsering – Sunday_16_03_2008.mp3
UUID: 9bc2e7ed-ac61-40a7-94b8-de2597ba9e66
Teacher: Geshe Pema Tsering
Collection: Sunday Geshela Teaching (Geshe Pema Tsering)
Date: 2008-03-16
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 94.8 minutes
Words: ~6,414
Verse which says: Then also the wish to accomplish the benefit of others will become laughable. Geshe-la was saying: Without guarding discipline, lacking this moral conduct, then the wish to accomplish the benefit of others will be laughable, will be laughable. And Geshe-la was saying, because in order to accomplish the benefit of others, one must also accomplish one’s own benefit. In order to accomplish one’s own benefit, one must accomplish moral conduct. And then the last two lines state that guarding, protecting that moral conduct with a mind which is free of any mundane ambitions, that is the conduct of bodhisattva.
Is the practice of bodhisattvas. Now, I ask Geshe-la to then explain there’s one expression here which was translated as mundane ambitions. In Tibetan, it’s sipa’i dumpa. Sipa’i dumpa is usually translated as existence. Refers to samsaric existence.
In English, it refers to saṃsāra, khorwa, saṃsāra. And dhumpa is the word that is technically translated as aspiration, to aspire for saṃsāra, for saṃsāra, to aspire for a rebirth, to aspire for the happiness of cyclic existence, to aspire for the happiness of gods, the happiness of humans, the happiness of this life that what Geshe-la explains as as the meaning of this expression. Mundane ambitions that Katie translated as mundane ambitions. Okay? And Geshe-la says to that, this is a very important point because we are always striving for these so called mundane ambitions.
And this this is very important that we stop that. Stop that behavior. So, Geshe-la is then saying, so if we give up the so called mundane ambitions and then practice ethical discipline, then our practice of ethical discipline will become direct cause of liberation, of our liberation. If we, on the other hand, do not completely give up these mundane ambitions, then it won’t it it how’s it? Our practice will not become cause of liberation.
Geshe-la was going to say, now. This is a very, very difficult thing to accomplish, to give up these mundane ambitions. It’s something which is very difficult. And so then even though we might be practicing engage in spiritual practice and Dharma practice, even though we might be doing so without having given up this mundane ambitions, then our practice will not become the cause of liberation. It’s still good, it’s still beneficial, it’s still virtuous, but will not become the cause of liberation.
It is very important, Geshe says, that when we are going to engage in virtuous practice, when we are going to engage in spiritual practice, be it meditation or whatever it is that one is going to engage in, Geshe-la says, it’s very important that we watch over our minds and see what’s going on in there and do our best to arrest this striving with regards to the mundane ambitions and then give rise aspiration to be completely free from cyclic existence, aspiration to attain complete liberation from cyclic existence so that we can so then then our practice will become the cause of liberation. This mind again, so then the expression is mundane ambitions and literally aspiration for cyclic or the things of cyclic existence. This mind which aspires for the things of cyclic existence is something which is Geshe-la was saying, literally, he was saying, I should think that there is not a moment in our lives when we are not driven by such striving or such aspirations for existence, for cyclic existence and then Geshe-la said, so even when we are meditating on bodhicitta we’re doing a very good meditation but you know one moment the bodhicitta is there, and the very next moment, we are again overwhelmed by those aspirations for cyclic existence.
You know, it is is something which is very difficult. And then so and, also, we might be we might be sitting down for meditation. And one moment or in one moment, our mind might be in the meditation object with with the meditation object. Meditation object. The next moment, mind is making plans about what we have to do tomorrow or the next week or even what we have to do later in the same day.
All these thoughts come about because of these so called mundane ambitions or aspiration for cyclic existence. That’s what drives our mind to to to go on thinking about these things, about these things while while we are sitting, attempting to meditate. And Geshe-la says, and this this is, again, this is a very important subject. It is very important that when we are going to engage in our spiritual practice, be it meditation placement meditation or calm abiding meditation or be it analytical meditation or be it studying a text or whatever it is that we are going to do, that when we engage in this practice, we have clarify our motivation and that we be mindful through our practice of our motivation, that our motivation be the attainment of liberation liberation and enlightenment and the accomplishment of the benefit of all beings. And this is a very important point.
So whatever whatever our practice may be, it’s very important that we remain mindful of our motivation. Give rise to our motivation and remain mindful of it. Keep it in mind. Geshe-la says, even in placement meditation, for example, in the case of meditating on bodhicitta, give rise to that bodhicitta, give rise to that mind of enlightenment, thoughts of enlightenment, and then stick with Keep it keep it in mind. Be mindful of it.
Guard it with alertness, and and stick to it. And then, Geshe-la was going to the commentary to that verse. And it’s saying: If person who has taken onto oneself the practice of moral conduct if such a person is unable to guard it, to keep it purely, then one not only will not accomplish one’s own welfare nor a high rebirth as a human or god, one will end up in a miserable migration. Geshe-la is then saying, with regards to that commentary, is stating that if we do not keep purely our ethical conduct, our ethical discipline, we will end up in the lower realms of existence. To that, Geshe-la picked up the word which is translated as ethical discipline: That is because Geshe-la was illustrating, for example, take the word trim, which can be translated as law.
Take a place like one’s country’s laws. If one contradicts those laws, if one breaks those laws, then one ends up in jail, end up in a bad place. And Geshe-la was saying, that’s what is meant. We break the rules, break the ethical code of conduct, and then you end up in a bad migration, in a bad realm of existence. And Geshe-la was saying, trim refers to the appropriate conduct, the appropriate mode of abiding within existence, within the moral conduct.
So then one’s one’s conduct is not appropriate, then one will end up in in a bad migration. And that’s and that’s the whole meaning of the expression, to to. This is the illustration. If one how to say takes on oneself if one keeps in harmony with the laws of one’s country, then one will have peace and happiness. And if one does not keep in harmony, if one keeps on breaking the laws of one’s country, one will be with a lot of trouble, a lot of suffering, a lot of you know, pain and suffering, And this this is the illustration that has been used in.
With regards to another expression, which says to to to to guard, to purely guard one’s ethical conduct. Was listening to that word which is translated as to guard, srung. Srung refers also to the guardian deities. But Geshe-la was explaining to the guard. What is it that we are guarding against?
We are guarding against those inappropriate states of mind. Inappropriate states of mind are the states of mind which will, in the analogy, will contradict, will break the laws, will break the ethical code of conduct. So then in such minds are the afflictive emotions and conceptions, attachment, aversion, jealousy, so forth. And that’s what we are guarding against. This one.
And then saying, so then so then those minds, anger, attachment, jealousy, so forth, they are discordant with our ethical conduct. What we have to give rise to is such minds as faith, mindfulness, alertness, concentration, bodhicitta, so forth. Those minds are concordant with compatible with this guarding one’s moral conduct. And these are the minds that we have to cultivate because they will help us accomplish our ethical conduct. And then Geshe-la was so then because of that, it is very important that we that we guard that we, first of all, arrest those minds which are discordant with our ethical conduct and then cultivate those minds which are compatible with it.
In this way, our ethical discipline will turn out well. Then So then and and if we act in this way, we’ll be able to accomplish our own welfare. We’ll be able to accomplish our own liberation. If we can accomplish our own benefit, own welfare, when engage in accomplishing the welfare of others, we will succeed. On the other hand, if we do not guard our moral conduct, we are not able to accomplish our own benefit, then when we try to accomplish the welfare of others, then our efforts will be a joke, will be a laughing matter.
And, Geshe-la, was going through then. So then for that reason, we are told so then for that reason, what is the reason, Geshe-la repeats again, if one does not guard one’s own moral conduct, one’s ethical discipline, one will not be able to accomplish one’s own benefit. And then one’s efforts to accomplish the benefit of others will be a laughing matter for that reason this mundane ambitions so called mundane ambitions and and this attachment for cyclic existence and the aspiration and the striving and the striving for a high rebirth as either a human or god and so forth, we we shouldn’t allow our minds to be mixed with it, not even a little bit with with such thoughts. Not even a little. And we should keep in keeping in mind purpose or goal of accomplishing the perfect complete enlightenment of all other sentient beings.
We should then engage in practicing guarding the three types of ethical conduct of ethical discipline and this then is the practice of the perfection of of ethical discipline that is the practice of a Bodhisattvas. It’s the practice that the Bodhisattvas engage in. So and when we’re talking about the welfare of others, the purpose of others, and we’re not talking about just any happiness or any benefit. We’re talking in this context specifically about bringing them to the state of enlightenment, the state which is free of every suffering and endowed with every happiness, every good quality. This is what is meant.
By keeping this in mind and by having this as one’s goal, then we engage in the practice of the three types of ethical discipline. Geshe-la was then saying: in this context here, up to this part of the text, so the three types of ethical discipline Geshe-la was then saying: this here makes reference to the three types of of of of vows, the vows of individual liberation, the Bodhisattva vows, and the Tantric and the Tantric commitments. And then we have a quote from the precious garland says says ethical discipline is the act of benefiting others. And Geshe-la was expanding on this and saying ethical discipline is that we engage in with for the purpose of accomplishing the benefit of others. So we’re giving rise to that motivation, that goal, in order to accomplish the happiness of others, I’m going to guard my ethical discipline.
Another quote from the way of the bodhisattva, which says, The achievement of the mind of renunciation is explained as the paramita of discipline, of ethical discipline. In English, it’s going through some of the expressions. What was translated by Geshe-la as the mind of renunciation is pong ba’i sems. Pong ba’i sems, if you could translate it literally, quite literally, it would mean the mind mind of abandonment and then the second line of that verse is talking about that is that is said to be the paramita, the perfection of of ethical discipline. Now, the perfection of this abandonment having the bringing to perfection of that abandonment, the perfect abandonment is the mind that has realized emptiness, is the enlightened mind, that is the mind that has perfected the abandonment of the afflictive emotions and conceptions and has then accomplished the ngo wo nyid sku which is what is that in Sanskrit?
Is the is the nature, the the body of is one word for emptiness so it’s the body of emptiness. There’s another. So then so then I can’t I can’t remember right now what is the English or really the Sanskrit translation of this. But it’s one of the bodies of a Buddha, which is the perfect abandonment of afflictive emotions. It refers to the perfect abandonment.
So then I think that’s it. The wisdom truth body. I think that’s exactly it. The wisdom truth body of a Buddha. So then this this in this, Geshe-la is explaining, this expression here makes reference.
These these two lines of verse make reference to the attainment of this wisdom truth body having completely ultimately abandoned all the afflictive emotion conceptions and then attaining having attained this wisdom truth body this is the perfection of ethical discipline. This is the yeah. Okay? So then, we read the next part of the commentary, says that having this mind of abandonment which directly opposes which is the foundation, is the basis for harming others okay this is a pretty literal translation but having this mind of abandonment in this way which opposes directly opposes this mind which is a basis for harming others this is this is the very essence or the very nature of tsultrim of ethical conduct And then And then, to that, we are told that this mind which then abandons, vows to abandon, resolves to abandon all and every unwholesome behavior, be they the conventional ones or the inherent ones. Geshe-la was then explaining as far as unwholesome behaviors, there are those unwholesome behaviors which are conventional is not the best word it’s all I can think right now so the conventional ones which are breaking vows that we have undertaken breaking rules that we have decided upon and so forth and then there are those unwholesome behaviors which are inherently evil and harmful so killing stealing and so forth we can clearly see that so regarding resolving to abandon such behaviors such actions this is what is called dompa’i tsultrim which is the ethical discipline of resolve or the ethical discipline of taking vows dompa is either a noun or a verb.
It could be vows as a noun. It could be resolves and determinations as as a as a verb. So I highly prefer to translate as as resolve, the ethical conduct of resolve, to resolve against certain actions, not engage in certain actions. And then ethical discipline, which then by practicing, engaging the six perfections and so forth, then produces within one’s being those virtuous dharmas which have not arisen yet. Those which have arisen, it does not allow them to degenerate but makes them increase even more.
That ethical discipline is called the ethical discipline that gathers virtuous dharma. And then and then that activity, which is then accomplishing, properly accomplishing the welfare of others without any unwholesomeness at all, free of any unwholesomeness whatsoever, then that is the ethical discipline of accomplishing the welfare of others, welfare of sentient beings. So then we have we have been explaining these three types of ethical discipline right and Geshe-la was then saying previously so we have this in the root verse we have this statement the three the three types of ethical discipline the bodhisattvas is a person of bodhisattvas to engage in the three types of ethical discipline without any mundane ambitions. So in the three types of ethical discipline, we shall explain previously as referring to the three types of vows: the vows of individual liberation, the bodhisattva vows, and the tantric commitments.
Geshe-la was saying: look, becomes clear that the intention of the author here is that the three types of vows are concomitant with the first type of ethical discipline that has been explained here: the ethical discipline of resolve or the ethical discipline which is taking vows and so forth. So these are concomitant with the three types of vows. And then on top of that you have the other two types of discipline that gathers virtuous dharmas and the ethical discipline which is working for the welfare of sentient beings for the benefit of sentient beings and then you have really the whole of it, the whole package of ethical discipline here. And then there is an another sentence of the commentary Geshe-la will stop halfway with it. As for this ethical discipline being posited as a mind of abandonment, generally speaking, yes, it is a mind of abandonment because this is how we generally understand ethical discipline.
It has to do with giving up unwholesome conduct, modes of behavior, and so forth. It has to do do with the ethical discipline more of resolve, the so called ethical discipline of resolve, ethical discipline of taking up vows, and so forth. So that’s how we generally understand it. That’s generally speaking, this is what it refers to. But it’s not actually always the case that it is a cultivation of a mind of abandonment.
Even though, Geshe-la says, it all has to do with mental work, mind work. Ethical discipline is what we do with our minds essentially. But as we can see in the second type of discipline, the discipline that gathers virtuous virtuous minds which have not been produced yet and those which have been produced does not allow to degenerate but makes them increase. This is not a mind of abandonment but general understanding and more public understanding we would refer to actual discipline as being essentially a mind of abandonment And then Geshe says, as for the two Tibetan expressions, pong ba and srung ba here in this context, Geshe-la says. So, the pong ba refers to abandonment and srung ba refers to protecting, to guarding.
And Geshe-la was saying here in this context, they mean basically the same thing. Then, one is that which is discordant with ethical discipline, abandoning the afflictive emotion conceptions. Then anger, hatred, so forth. One abandons them, gives them up. And the other one is guarding the mind against those those afflictive emotion conceptions.
So then not allowing stopping those afflictive emotion conceptions from from taking over one’s mind. And then so then so then we we had that explanation. Okay? So the ethical discipline is essentially this mind of abandonment. It’s posited as this mind of abandonment.
It is posited as this mind of abandonment because what is generally understood as ethical discipline is that first type of ethical discipline of taking vows or resolves, not to undertake unwholesome actions and so forth. Of the two types of unwholesome actions, there are in that regard, one which was the conventional one, which is then breaking vows that have been taken up and so forth, and the other type which is engaging in natural unwholesome activities, unwholesome activities which are inherently harmful, such as the ten non virtues and so forth, then it is mainly referring to abandoning those unwholesome actions which are inherently so, naturally so, which are, in this case, the ten non virtues. Is that making sense? So that expression, it was stated previously in the text that the essence of ethical conduct is that mind of abandonment. And then this has been explained that this is posited as such by the force of the general understanding of what ethical discipline is, which is generally mostly understood as the ethical discipline of taking vows or making resolves against unethical and unwholesome actions.
And again, so that’s why it is mainly posited in mind of abandonment, though it’s not always the case, necessarily the case. But it is generally understood as such. And in this case, those actions which are naturally unwholesome. And those actions which are naturally unwholesome, such actions as the ten non virtues. And then, again, going through to the text.
The text is saying just what Geshe-la has just said. So then from all those naturally unwholesome actions, it’s important that we develop a motivation and determination to give up the ten non virtues and that we stick to it. We do not change our minds. We stick to that determination or abandon the ten non virtues. In this way, we correctly and purely undertake, let’s say, that we correctly take on these vows, these resolves against these actions, these non-virtuous actions.
That’s what we that’s what we ought to do. And saying this is difficult enough. This is already very difficult to accomplish. The term mind of abandonment, is that interchangeable with the concept of renunciation? Not really.
I will I will ask. I will ask. So there is there is I guess, I’ll explain it and explain it very very simple way and very good way. So then, generally speaking, the mind, which is translated. Is a definite emergence, literally.
It’s really renunciation. This is mind of renunciation. It’s a mind which is seeing the faults and the shortcomings of something. Okay? And then there is another aspect of the mind which is then having seen those faults, then which just to avoid that, which is to give that up, which is to which is to abandon it.
And that is literally the mind of abandonment. So there is a a basic difference there, fundamental difference. And then so that, again, for the sake of illustration, says, take, for example, hatred. So then first, having understood how harmful hatred can be, how how bad and how how much trouble and pain and suffering hatred can cause us. Seeing all the faults and the shortcomings of hatred, we develop then this mind of renunciation in relation to hatred.
And having this mind, we will then avoid hatred at all costs. We will guard our minds against hatred. We will give it up. We will arrest it. We will stop it.
We will abandon it. And that, again, this is this is the morality, the ethical conduct that we are talking about, Geshe-la says. This is this is srung ba. This is guarding against hatred. Yeah.
Guarding one’s mind against hatred. Is that proper English? And then and then I guess that I was reading another one section of the text, which says that here in this text, the author decided that he will not elaborate on all the various trainings of the engaging bodhicitta, of the engaging and the aspiring bodhicitta, and of the roots and branch downfalls and identifying all the root and branch downfalls and so forth. So Geshe-la says is is remembering us reminding us that this has already been discussed elsewhere in this text in with regards to the aspiring bodhicitta, the trainings of the aspiring bodhicitta, and the trainings of the engaging bodhicitta. And the root and branch downfalls have been already discussed elsewhere in this text.
In case I was gonna say, for example, something like the root downfalls, which are killing, sexual misconduct and so forth in in the branch ones. All these have already been discussed. So the author decided that here, again, he will not elaborate on these topics. And then as for as for the faults of allowing one’s ethical discipline to deteriorate, we have a quote from the Prajñāpāramitā Sutras, which starts saying something like this. A bad ethical conduct, then even one’s own welfare, one one one won’t be able to accomplish even one’s own welfare.
And so there’s no need to mention accomplishing the welfare of others. And and Geshe-la was in saying, so then with regards to what’s being said here, Geshe-la was giving us an illustration. Take, for example, the the Chinese and the the wage wars against the Tibetan people, and then and then they they accomplish their their own welfare. The Chinese do accomplish their own welfare now, don’t they? So when we’re talking about, okay, own welfare, own benefit, own happiness, one’s own happiness and so forth.
Geshe-la was saying, yes, the Chinese do accomplish their own welfare. But in this context here, that is not the sort of welfare and benefit that we are talking about. When we’re talking about one’s own welfare and benefit and the other benefit of others, we’re talking about liberation and enlightenment. That’s what we’re talking about. So this is the sort of which is purpose, meaning welfare, benefit, happiness that is being talked about, liberation and enlightenment.
Nothing else and nothing less than that. So again, all this talk about one’s own welfare, the welfare of others, all of this talk, every time these expressions are mentioned, we’re not talking about accomplishing the things of this life, of cyclic existence and forth, we’re always making reference. This is the expressions are always making reference to the to the happiness of liberation and enlightenment, to the to the benefits and and the happiness which is which are liberation and enlightenment. And then so then that line of verse goes on to say that also the ripening effects, the ripening results of this bad ethical conduct will be the one will be reborn in the hell realms, one will be reborn in the realms of animals, or one will be reborn in the in the world of of of the lord of death and so forth. So then and, again, from the the the compendium of of perfections, we have another quote which says that if our ethical conduct, our ethical discipline degenerates, by the degeneration of our ethical conduct, of our ethical discipline, we are unable to accomplish our own welfare. Such. And Geshe-la wants to stop here, and then we start again next Sunday in the benefits of guarding, of of engaging in the proper ethical conduct.
So is then requesting all of us to to make good aspirational prayers because in the past few days Oh, they have killed many Tibetans. So we should we should We should make aspirational prayers that our our spiritual actions, our spiritual activities become the causes for these beings, for these people who have performed such actions not to be born in the lower realms of existence, that they may attain a good human rebirth and, ultimately, they may attain liberation and enlightenment. And if and if one wants to make really, really good dedications and aspirational prayers, one ought to ought to realize that these things are happening not only in Tibet, they’re happening all over the planet every day, all the time, and not only with humans. They’re happening with all beings, animals, humans, and nonhumans alike, and in many other places all around the universe. And we should bring to mind that all all all of these beings also only want happiness and nothing else.
And we should then dedicate our virtuous actions for their for their happiness also. Saying we shouldn’t we shouldn’t give in to to to to thoughts that think that this virtue that I have accomplished, the wishes that the virtue that one has accomplished become the cause of one’s own happiness alone, to a mind that thinks have made this virtue become the cause of my own happiness, and I don’t care what happens to others. And and I don’t want to share that with others. And guess what I was saying that this this mind is is a very distorted mind. It’s a very wrong mind.
It’s a mind that is afraid of of sharing one’s one’s virtues with with other beings. The thinking that if one shares one’s virtues with other beings, then one will miss out and and one will lose. And that’s not the case. That’s that’s very that’s a very distorted perception. And if one dedicates one’s virtues, the virtues that one has created to others, not only one’s own virtues will not diminish or deteriorate in way, they will actually increase immensely.
So then we should stop such thinking because by dedicating our virtues for ourselves alone, we create very little give very little power to our virtuous actions, very little power. It’s a very insignificant and less. Yeah. That’s why I don’t know if you have any questions. Yeah.
My question is, I was going to ask you, Geshe-la, what what what we should be doing in the west to help them to get some people. We should we should wage war. Geshe-la, look, the best thing that we one of the best things that we can do besides what he has already said is is to give rise to compassion, produce compassion in in in relation to all those people. And also and also make aspirational prayers that those Chinese people who are doing all those those, you know, harmful actions, that they may also realize great compassion, that they may realize bodhicitta, that they may be free of all that distorted, deluded thinking, wrong consciousness that they have. We should make aspirational prayers in this way.
Okay? Yeah. Well, just just following up further, Just just guess what I think is worthwhile us protesting politicians. But protest is worthwhile. No.
No. So the no. No. So The I always have trouble with this word. The Australian So then, look, maybe it will be beneficial.
Maybe it won’t be beneficial. It’s it’s hard to tell, And now on the other hand, protesting is something that Geshe-la says that I cannot say. It’s hard to tell. Is it going to be beneficial or not? We cannot tell.
On the other hand, if you meditate on bodhicitta and compassion, we will benefit greatly, and others will also benefit from that. And that is certain. And that is certain. I gonna say, I will go into the streets to to protest. You know, maybe maybe it will be it will it will accomplish some benefit, but maybe it will actually accomplish the opposite.
It will accomplish more harm. There’s no way to know. There’s no way to tell. So Geshe-la was saying, yes, it it it will benefit that many people are seeing seeing it. It is beneficial.
Many people would meditate on That is beneficial. Many people would meditate on bodhicitta. That is beneficial. On the other hand, if if one is while saying those things, one one gets angry, then you will be harmful. I just want one.
I guess I’m saying that the the point is it depends on oneself. It’s up to oneself. What about the Chinese claim that’s been has been part of China for a long part of history? So so says that for himself, he think he doesn’t agree with that. He doesn’t think that Tibet has been Chinese territory, always been Chinese territory because he remembers a time when there were no Chinese around.
Only later in his life he started seeing Chinese coming more and more So he he personally doesn’t agree with that. Geshe-la’s recollection, when they first started to arrive in Tibet, Geshe-la was was quite young, Geshe-la says, and and he recollects that because everybody was quite afraid because they were they they look so different. They had different clothing and so forth. So everybody thought they were really strange, and and all the children were quite afraid of them. And then and points out to to that.
So then he he saw that happening in this life of his. He remember when they first started to arrive, so he knows that from that that they would Tibet has not always been Chinese territory. And not only that, but if you look at the history of Tibet and with all the previous Dalai Lama, Tibet has not always has had many independent governments. And also even before that, what’s Yeah. It was.
Oh, And then which was with the first king. That was the very first king, and many kings followed after that, and Tibet has been independent all this time. And then Geshe-la points points out to the fact that they these two nations have waged many wars in the past. At that time, there were no weapons, you know, as we know, guns and so forth. But they wage wars with arrows and swords and stuff like that.
And and back and forth, you know, the Chinese, the Indian, the Tibetans, and all the nations, they they would they were fighting with each other. They they fought with each other many times. And then not only that, were Songtsen Gampo. Oh, really? There was the king.
This is in the kingdom of Songtsen Gampo. Was very, very powerful. Read in the Tibetan accounts that during that time, he conquered actually half of China. He even had one of his wives was was a a Chinese princess. So there are there were many exchanges between them before.
And then then says that the the Chinese have have actually made this TV show which tells the story of this king, Many, many chapters. And then Geshe-la says, so then they had this this TV series. Right? And right there and then, you can see, the the story, how it was, the history the history of how it was. And and Tibet had had its own independence, and there was the Lhasa government and other governments elsewhere and all that.
But the Chinese have changed that. They have changed that that those TV series for their own interests. But has still the a version that tells is more close to the truth. And is saying that even though even though all the things that are being said in that in this TV series, you know, originally, it was all in Chinese Chinese language and all that. There’s many aspects of Chinese culture and so forth there.
But everything points out, all the action and the unfolding unfolding of the the story of this TV series points out to the fact that Tibet was independent. And because that was that was going on in the TV series, the the Chinese government actually stopped censored censored censored this this series and actually changed made made many changes within it, Louis. Six thousand. Six thousand. Six Six thousand years.
Oh. So I’m I’m confused because he’s saying that was in Tibet in in the year six thousand, and that is confusing because we are in the year two thousand. Six thousand years ago. That’s all I can say. Want want contact.
I will not contact six thousand years ago. Was was there many many thousands of years ago and Tibet has been independent for many many thousands of years and only in this life the Chinese arrived there and so forth. And guess what I was saying and and and what happens nowadays, now Tibetan does not have that independence anymore. And that happens because in nineteen by the time in nineteen fifty nine, during those those decades, you know, every other country was developing. Then and then Tibet remained away from all that, apart from all that, close to all that.
And it then wasn’t wasn’t able to stop the Chinese from from coming in, from invading. And Geshe-la was saying after the second World War, then many many nations wage war with each other. And then after that, many many of them got together, and and Tibet wasn’t a part of that. Tibet Tibet was away from all that. And then and because because of that, Geshe explains, Tibet didn’t have any relations with any other nation.
It was closed. Its borders were closed. It didn’t have, you know, any material development, cars and so forth. They were not coming into Tibet or anything like that. And then when the Chinese government discussed with the Indian government, they were they were relating to each other.
And during this process, the Chinese decided to take over Tibet. And Geshe-la says, you know, this is this is this is how it seems to have been. But the Chinese, they say they say it differently. They say say that Tibet has been Chinese territory from since a long time ago. And they change and they make up documents and and and and and so forth to try to to win the argument, but and lies and so forth.
But that’s not really the case. And Geshe says, even even the the scriptures, Geshe-la says, the the Chinese have changed all of them as as they are and say that they are Chinese. They have changed their their contents and so forth. If it if it is not not for the the older ones, the the more recent ones, they all changed. And then and then when the Chinese then invaded Tibet, even though the Tibetan government has sought the help of other nations, Indian and the English government and so forth.
At at that time, already as it is now, these nations were already fearful of the power of the Chinese government. So they they didn’t dare to contest it. Mhmm. If I was just saying, every everyone knows every Chinese the Chinese know that Tibet has not always been Chinese territory. And because because in their hearts, they know that they keep on repeating out loud.
Tibet is Chinese territory. Tibet is Chinese territory. If Tibet was really Chinese territory, there wouldn’t be any need to keep on repeating that time and again. And that’s and that’s the situation. Yeah.
Has a very good time watching this TV series, telling this the the story of the time of king Songtsen Gampo. And he said he said it would be good if we if you watch also, but it’s all in Tibetan. Yeah. Yeah.