Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. The year-end session of Geshe Pema Tsering’s commentary on Nāgārjuna’s Letter to a Friend opens with a precise inventory: thirteen mental factors — eight classic afflictions including miserliness, arrogance, and lust, plus five attachments to status, looks, learning, youth, and power — all described as forces that kill virtue. In this 86-minute talk, Geshe-la works through verses on conscientiousness as the antidote, using the stories of Angulimala and Udayana to show that even those guilty of grave crimes can attain liberation through carefulness. A substantial closing section addresses year-end dedication: how to dedicate virtue for all beings without self-concern, and how to ground that dedication in an awareness of emptiness. The session ends with a Q&A in which Geshe-la advises a student wrestling with attachment to address it in inner dialogue — “I have been your slave since time immemorial; I quit.”
File metadata (for organising)
File: 01 1998 11 16 GPT – Letter – 16 Nov 08.mp3
UUID: 5abf2de0-e141-4310-b112-bb20953a68cb
Teacher: Geshe Pema Tsering
Collection: Letter to Friend – mulitple years (Geshe Pema Tsering)
Date: 1998-11-16
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 85.8 minutes
Words: ~4,731
Can you do the the long mandala in the end? In the avenue. Yeah. You know how to do the long mandala? You do that for me?
So, again, this is just telling us to give for us a good motivation and then recite start by recite reciting the Heart Sūtra with the the intention of accomplishing of of obtaining a good house quickly obtaining a good house or Buddha house. Okay, guys. Here one time. It is like that. Once you practice a profound Prajñāpāramitā practice just as you have indicated, even the tirthikas rejoice.
Bhagavan having spoken the Venerable Śāriputra, the Bodhisattva, those surrounding the entirety along with the world of gods, humans, and will rejoice and highly praise that’s spoken by the Bhagavan. Then we move on to the special dedication. I and also around the ancient beings, we go for the future of the Buddha, we go for the future of the Dharma, we go for future of the Sangha. We prostrate to the great Maha Prajñāpāramitā, surrounded by all the children, by the assemblies of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas of the ten directions. By depending on my prostrations to all of you, may these words of truth be actualized.
In the past, like Indra, I dispel the maras by reflecting the profound meaning of the wisdom gone beyond and reciting the profound words in daily recitation. In that same way, I also reflect on the profound meaning of the great mother Prajñāpāramitā and recite profound words in daily recitation. May all these spiritual possessions, bad conditions, all the negative directions that which happens due to past karma and immediate conditions. May all these be dispelled, may become nonexistent, may be pacified. So we we approach the we we we started the last Sunday with the path of the beings of small scope, the path which is common to beings of small scope.
There were there was a huge set of divisions and subdivisions with sixteen subdivisions, And then we’re approaching the the third one of those topics, which is to see the afflictive emotions as the enemy. And we read the next verse, verse number twelve with regards to that. Stinginess and cunning, greed and sloth, and arrogance, attachment, hate, and pride. And then the translators put in parentheses and and and, you know, quote, unquote, saying, I have breeding. I have good looks.
I have learning. I have youth, and I have power. So straights are seen as enemies of good. And, again, if I was just going back through each one of those afflictive emotions and saying, again, these are the things that we have to abandon. These are the things that we have to give up.
And Geshe-la was going through the commentary to that verse, and the commentary starts explaining what are these these afflictive emotions. For example, miserliness, which is this this incapacity that we have to give away to another, you know, our our material possessions or material things. Then Kuhana which is our deception. How do you translate here? Cunning which is then to hide to say the faults that we have engaging ways to hide away the faults that we have in kuhana.
Gyuma which is deception. Gyuma which is then to pretend or make it seem like we have that we do not actually have to show off that we do not actually have. And then again, the attachment, which is this clinging that we have to our body and our material possessions and wealth and so forth. Then which is which is what’s translated as as sloth or laziness or, generally speaking, the opposite of, Geshe-la was saying, of which is joyous which is a non rejoicing or not taking joy in accomplishing virtue. And then again arrogance which is thinking that one has attained special high qualities while one has not actually attained any such high qualities or high positions and so forth or or thinking of himself as powerful and so forth.
Then again, we have dod chags, which is or or in this context would be better to say it as lust lust, which is then this this grasping for for for sex for sex. And then we have hatred, which is this harmful intent towards our every enemy. So these these eight dharmas these eight dharmas and and on top of that, these thoughts that we were given here, note of being of good breed, having good looks, how to pronounce it, having good learning, being being intelligent being young, being powerful. Again, also by being attached to this these five dharmas, these other five dharmas, we also get strongly attached to them. Thirteen dharmas, total of thirteen dharmas, these afflictive emotions and these thoughts, these attitudes, kill and they rob us of of every virtue.
And so and and because of that, we should see them as being the enemy. And and we must at all times exercise giving giving them up, abandoning them. Okay? And Geshe-la is again pointing out, this is these are the instructions of of what we should practice and how we should practice. And Geshe-la is pointing out again this this line of verse which talks about one having breeding those thoughts that we have.
I have breeding. I have good looks. I have learned and so forth. Again, this advice that has been given to the king. And then the king is a person with a high caste of a high caste who has good looks and all the learning, all the skills that he has as a leader and so forth.
So this advice was also, I guess, that’s pointing out, being given to the king. And again, this is sort of of thinking that if develop if we develop attached to attachment to it, then again, we become proud and arrogant. And again, and this hinders obstructs our accomplishment of virtues. Okay? And Geshe-la was is pointing out that even though we are not, you know, we are not kings, we do have a measure of these feelings or of these thoughts that come with these feelings.
We think of ourselves of being of good breed to some measure. We think of ourselves of being of good breed or we think that we have we think of ourselves of being of having good looks and of being learned and more intelligent than others, of being young, of being powerful and so forth. So we do have a measure of these sort of thoughts, and we do have a measure of arrogance and pride that comes because of our attachment to that, to these notions. So that applies to us, to Los There is no one who does not have good qualities or a measure of good qualities. Everybody has some good qualities at least.
Geshe-la was saying, but if we become attached to this notion that we have good qualities, we become very proud, very arrogant, and then, again, that kills our virtues. And Geshe-la was saying, and we should in order to avert this situation, this crisis, arrogance, we should we should put ourselves we should keep ourselves to a to a humble position, and then pretty literally to a lower position. And we should think there’s nobody lower than myself. Just just keeping a lower position. Geshe-la was then saying, again, if we are able to exercise that and and keep ourselves to a lower position and keep to the lowest position again later on we will attain the highest ranks okay and if we keep ourselves to the higher position to the areas that later on we will reach the lowest ends, to the lowest ranks.
Then we approach the next topic, which is habituating habituating oneself with carefulness conscientiousness. Conscientiousness is what we need to exercise in order to avert all these dharmas that we have been taught in in this in this last verse. And Geshe-la was reading the first verse, we read the next two verse, number thirteen and fourteen. Geshe-la was reading the number thirteen saying, carefulness is the way to deathlessness, while carelessness is death, the Buddha taught. And thus, so that your virtuous deeds may grow, be careful constantly and with respect.
In in English, I read the next verse. Those who formerly were careless, but then took took heed are beautiful and fair as is the moon emerging from the clouds like Nanda, Agulimala, Angulimala, Darshaka, and Udayana. English, I started reading the first sentence of the commentary, which is And Geshe-la wasn’t saying this this this how can I explain that? Translate that making sense in English. So ambrosia sorry.
Conscientiousness, which is is which are how to say? Having given rise to having given rise to mindfulness and alertness and shame and embarrassment. Then again, this this mind which guards us from non virtues. This is conscientiousness ness or or or how do you say it here? Carefulness.
And this conscientiousness is the ambrosia of immortality, we are told. It is the path to liberation. Liberation. And then we shall move on to the next sentence. It’s saying, again, the opposite of that is is is non-conscientiousness or carelessness.
And and that is and that gives rise to cyclic existence, to saṃsāra. And as such, it accomplishes the abode of death. And Geshe-la wasn’t saying, so if it is a cause of cyclic existence, it’s not only death is going to ensue from it. Again, we’re going to have to experience old age, sickness, and death, and everything that comes with it. Because having been born in cyclic existence, we were we are at the mercy of actions, contaminated actions and afflictive emotion conceptions.
And this and and and the result of that is all sorts of unpleasant or undesirable things coming our way. And this is what was taught by the Buddha, and then again, Geshe-la goes on for for the text saying again, Mhmm. So therefore, in order to you So then, therefore, you and and, again, the the text is referring to to the king. So you, powerful one. Give rise to the virtues that you have not produced give rise to the virtues that you have not given rise to yet.
And those that you have already produced continually increase and strengthen them. And in this way, with with respect respect for the Three Jewels and at all times familiarize ourselves with the virtuous dharmas endow yourselves. You endow yourself with conscientiousness. Sorry familiar yourself with the virtuous Dharma, which is how can I say that? The acting endowed with conscientiousness.
Is that okay? And then some from the collected sayings some some lady So then from the collective sayings of the Buddha, again we have this verse of four lines about conscientiousness. Conscientiousness is the ambrosia, is the abode of ambrosia, is this is the abode of immortality. Non conscientiousness is the abode of death. Conscientiousness.
If you have conscientiousness, then will not you will not death will not come about. And if you have lack of conscientiousness, then you will always die. And Geshe-la was explaining again. So conscientiousness is this ambrosia of immortality. They won’t be subject to death anymore.
Lack of conscientiousness again is going to by lacking conscientiousness one will keep on coming under the power of actions, contaminated actions afflictive emotion conceptions. The one will have to experience then birth, old age, sickness and death and so forth continually. So with conscientiousness one does not have to die anymore by the force of contaminated actions in afflictive emotion conceptions. Geshe-la was making reference and one then attains the stage of one is a foe destroyers then one is an a foe destroyers and by lacking consciousness, one will always be subject to the currents of contaminated actions and afflictive emotion conceptions, we will always have to experience birth, old age, sickness, and death. Okay? This one.
And Geshe-la was then saying what’s going on for the the next line of commentary that again, the con continues. There are some some beings who have previously been under the power of the afflictive emotion conceptions whilst lacking conscientiousness then have later on they followed the advice of virtuous friend on what deeds are to be taken forth and what deeds are to be abandoned, what is to be taken and what is to be abandoned. And they have endowed themselves with conscientiousness, with carefulness, and in this way they they become just as fair or fair, beautiful and fair, like the moon coming, emerging from from from behind the clouds. And then so and then we’re giving some some examples, some illustrations. So we we we thought we we’re told about Nanda, who was this relative of the Buddha, who had this great lust.
And by the force of the lust that he had for his wife, for his partner, he couldn’t he couldn’t become a renunciate. And then after a lot of effort, you know, Śāriputra and Maudgalyayāna. I forgot how to pronounce it properly, but Śāriputra and Maudgalyayāna, They they for many means, they were after a long time and a lot of effort, they were able to convince, to persuade him, to become renunciate. And and eventually, he became renunciate. And even though he had this great lust, again, was able to become a renunciate.
He was able to listen to the teachings of of the Buddha, and he was able to attain the state of of foe destroyers. And, again, we we are given we are given we are given the the, again, the illustration of Angulimala who had who had this collected nine hundred and ninety nine fingers from nine hundred and ninety nine people that he had killed. He had this this this necklace made of these fingers. And even him also, he again, he also attained and accomplished the causes for becoming a foe destroyer, and he attained liberation also. And then also there was the story of Darshaka who, in order to obtain the kingdom of his father, to rule the kingdom of his father, he actually killed his father.
And then there on, whilst he was ruling his kingdom, he met the Buddha, and he developed regret for his deeds. And eventually, he also attained the result of a foe destroyers. He also attained the state of a foe destroyer. And and lastly, we are given the illustration of Udayana who has having killed his mother. Later on, he he he attended the teachings.
He listened to the teachings of the Buddha, and by the force of of his faith, having given rise to faith or faith having been born in his heart, again, he accomplished he practiced according to the to the to speech of the Buddha, to the words of the Buddha. And in this way, he he obtained freedom. He was liberated from the results of his negativities. And he also attained liberation. So he also attain liberation himself.
So, Geshe-la is, saying again, today is the the last teaching of the year, and it is important that we dedicate the virtues that we have accumulated from having listened to the teachings of of the whole year, from our listening this year of of the teachings, from our our study of the teachings. It’s important that we dedicated we dedicate the virtues that we have accomplished this year, the virtues that we have accomplished in the past. Even though we dedicated that we dedicate all these virtues and that we we keep on. So we should familiar ourselves dedicating it in this way and having dedicated this virtues also aspiring that all the way until we die, till the day we die we are going to be not be separated from the dharma, that we’re going to be studying and and and accomplishing benefit. Geshe-la was then quoting the first Dalai Lama.
Pänchen Lama. Pänchen Lama. The first Pänchen Lama. It’s a a little verse. Again, we should dedicate.
Dagi is a is a I. This is how we should make the the the dedication prayers. Dedicate all the virtues that have a compassion of past, present, future of the three times to the how do you say? To the enlightenment of all sentient beings. Is that it?
Is that that’s basically it. Isn’t it? To the enlightenment of all sentient beings. Yep. So if if we dedicate all our virtues of the three times without any concern for for our own benefit, but solely for the benefit of all beings in cyclic existence, all beings Samsāra, and this is the best way to to perform a dedication.
Is the most powerful way to to perform a dedication. If we do not dedicate like that, then our dedication will not be very powerful. And Geshe-la was saying that the second line of the verse of that verse is is talking about not being stained by by the impurities of of concern for one’s own welfare. That’s very difficult to accomplish. So then to develop that that recognition that all beings are greatly kind to us that we have is dependent on the kindness of all beings and so forth, and then to repay the kindness and and wish their enlightenment without having that concern for oneself.
Who thinks of oneself as extremely precious, extremely important. That’s very difficult Yes. Geshe-la was saying so. We we need to attain enlightenment. We need to accomplish the cause of enlightenment.
We need to attain enlightenment and and and we need to to engage in all these means to attain enlightenment we do that but if we do that but we should do all that without thinking oh if I attain enlightenment it’s going to be very good for me it’s going to be very nice for me so we should not pursue this goals this cause of enlightenment and so forth with this this sort of thinking if we do that then we’ll our activities will be stained in this way will be stained by the impurities of concern for one’s own welfare and benefit And this is how we we actually think, isn’t it? Usually we think like that. The Buddha has is free of all sorts of suffering. He’s free of every suffering. He’s free of every negativity.
He has endowed he’s endowed with good quality and every happiness. So, you know, I must I really must attain enlightenment. It’s really it will be really good for me. So we need to attain enlightenment. The reasons we need to contemplate for our intention of enlightenment, was saying, is the fact that all sentient beings, are constantly tormented by by by suffering, by this great sufferings.
So at all times, uninterruptedly, our enemies our friends know hell beings the animals and so forth they are constantly tormented by great suffering and in order to relieve them in order to be able to free them from this great suffering one must attain enlightenment this is how one has one has to contemplate this intention of enlightenment of attaining enlightenment and you know so and after attaining enlightenment, then I’ll be able to free all of them from this continuous suffering. This one. So again, we have to think solely of of the welfare of others. So we give up, we let go of any concerns for our own welfare and think only of accomplishing the welfare of others. And in this way, our motivations, our dedications will be just like the first Pänchen Lama was saying, without any stain by the impurities of self concern.
So we need to make our dedications. Again, we need to dedicate our virtues for the sake of accomplishing, in order to liberate all sentient beings from every suffering, endowing them with every happiness. And we think of our of our virtues that maybe they may they be the cause. May they become the cause of just that, of of liberation of of from of the liberation of every being from every suffering and of the accomplishment of of every happiness for every being. May they become the cause of that.
And again, think of not only our virtues of of this month or this year or this whole lifetime, we think of our virtues of the previous lifetimes, all the virtues that we have accomplished since since time immemorial, since beginningless time. And not only that, we think also the virtues of all the five types of Ārya beings, the the Bodhisattvas, and the foe destroyers, and all the other Ārya beings. We think of all the all the virtues that they have accomplished in the three times, and all the virtues of every other sentient being, and we put all that together, and we dedicate all that together that these all these virtues may become the cause of the freedom of every sentient being from every suffering and of the accomplishment for every sentient being of every happiness of the enlightenment of every sentient being being. And this without thinking of ourselves, this is how we have to dedicate our virtues. And so then this is side of of of our dedication.
So then we make our dedications unstained by any concern for our own welfare. Now there’s another side also we have to contemplate when we’re making the dedications. We have to contemplate the lack of inherent existence of phenomena during our dedications so we have to contemplate it for example the one who is dedicating lacks inherent existence and this is exists only as merely labeled by by by mind, by the conceptual mind. Again, the virtues that we are dedicating also, they only exist as merely labeled by the conceptual mind. The the state of enlightenment and all sentient beings and everything else, they only exist as labeled by the conceptual mind.
And again, in this way, we make our dedication also with this understanding in mind. And if we look if we look for them, we do not we do not find. So again, every phenomena, all beings are lacking inherent existence. Lacking inherent existence and in this way we all this understanding of all that Geshe-la has said we make our dedication today of all the verses that we have accomplished this year and everything before that that we have accomplished we dedicate so that for the benefit of all beings, and so that we keep on practicing in this way. And Geshe-la wasn’t saying, so now he’s he’s going to leave to India, and he’s going to be away for two months.
And during this time, there’s going to be no teachings from from the Geshe. So Geshe-la is asking you to please, in in the meantime, practice as you have been taught practicing this way that Geshe-la has just been teaching us right now and the way he has taught in the other teachings also. Now if you have any questions with regards to the teaching today or maybe any other questions regarding to the teaching of the Holy Year. Silence. You’re sorry.
You don’t have any questions? Says he wants to stop here today because he says he has many things to do still. Oh, you have a question? Oh, Chris Dumbriani is Chris. I mean, I’ve got to keep persevering.
But is is there any benefit when the battle’s going on, or do I have to do you have to get to the point where you renounce freely? That makes sense? So you’re talking about giving up attachment for things? Lots of things. So the way I translated it, the way it was a bit funny for the Geshe.
Because I was saying, so you have you have this attachment to all these things. And then in in trying in trying to give up attachment for all this, whatever it is that you are attached to, then a part of you wants to give up attachment to those things, and another part of you does not want to give up attachment to those things, and then there is this argument happening within you of these two parts. Geshe-la was saying, so you have to you have to to to pacify that argument. You stop stop that argument. There’s no you have to say there’s no need for us to argue.
And you have to talk to talk to them talk to them and say you know there’s no need for us to argue I mean attachment has all these shortcomings to it there’s all these faults are going to ensue from being attached in this way and there’s all these benefits that we can derive There’s all these profits that we can gain from giving up attachment. And and in this way, you can subdue that argument. But then it comes again. And then you do it again. It comes again.
And then do it again. Just keep doing it again. Geshe-la was saying, and also, next time you you feel attachment, you have to you also contemplate, and you and and you talk to attachment. And Geshe-la was it’s very interesting. He’s contemplate.
So since time immemorial, I have been attached there has been attachment and and what what good have we what lasting good have we accomplished and what and and it’s still it’s never enough still there is attachment it doesn’t cease and you talk to attachment in this way you know what good have you done and you know out of attachment and then by giving up attachment we can accomplish all sorts of real real good real goods real good things. So, and you have to say you have you have to say again, in this inner dialogue, I mean, you you you say, you know, I I have I’m not gonna be your slave anymore. I’m not gonna be your servant anymore. Attachment. You were talking to attachment.
You know, I have been I have been your servant. I have been your slave since time immemorial, and, you know, I we have you have accomplished no good to us. You I have experienced we have experienced no satisfaction. We have experienced no real happiness. Only suffering has has followed from from serving you, from being your slave.
So, you know, I quit. I don’t want to be your slave anymore. I don’t want to be under your power anymore. And and by by letting you go or by quitting from you, I can accomplish I can accomplish liberation. I can accomplish enlightenment.
I can accomplish great happiness, real happiness. So I quit. Geshe-la was making reference to attachment. The Buddha said attachment called attachment. He called it poison.
Attachment, hatred, and ignorance. They are the three poisons. Attachment is like a poison and a tasty one for that. Even though it’s like eating a tasty food, a poisoned tasty food. Even though the we we can derive some immediate gratification from that, like McDonald’s.
We derive some immediate gratification from that. Ultimately, what we what we what we get is is huge amount of suffering. So it’s like poison in this way. And and you can think that you are like poison. Then you say, you know, I I will not eat any more of this poison food.
It’s tasty, poisonous food. It’s And in this way in this way, you you you you you can apply the antidote in this way for that. Oh, yeah. Is that okay? Okay.
So we we do the dedications. Shall we start with the? How do we do that? Start with the the the short mandala then into the long mandala. Is that in on page page you know, I have a book?
Page teaching prayers on page So, yeah, we can we can use this this mandala offering here from the little prayer book that we had in the beginning. The first one of those mandala offerings, on top of page six. Those who are going to Michael is going to lead the chanting. Those who are going to offer body speech and mind, please, you can make the prostrations and set yourself in position right now. Because the prayer is very quick.
Mhmm. Very short. Yeah. Three prostrations.