Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. Geshe Pema Tsering draws a distinction that many students miss: no realization — not even of emptiness — qualifies as a true path until the practitioner has developed uncontrived renunciation. In this 98-minute commentary on Nāgārjuna’s Letter to a Friend, Geshe Pema works through verses two to four, using a moonlit white house to show that even learned students sharpen their understanding by revisiting simple teachings. He unpacks the six objects of daily recollection (the Three Jewels, enlightened activity, moral conduct, and gods), then distinguishes true paths (consciousnesses that grow stronger with practice) from true cessations (permanent absences of eradicated afflictions, incapable of further change). A closing account explains what renunciation means and why the tradition insists so heavily on teachings about suffering.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 02 2008 10 05 GPT – Letter – 5 Oct 2008.mp3
UUID: f1ec5374-0bbe-475f-8125-232416d4e7c8
Teacher: Geshe Pema Tsering
Collection: Letter to Friend – mulitple years (Geshe Pema Tsering)
Date: 2008-10-05
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 98.3 minutes
Words: ~6,009
So, Geshe instructed us to give rise to good motivation and with intention then of establishing all sentient beings in the state of enlightenment and we ourselves, excuse me, must attain enlightenment. And then in this in order to accomplish this enlightenment of ourselves, then we are going to to study, to listen, and to contemplate these teachings on on the Letter to a Friend and practice them accordingly so that we can accomplish this goal of attaining enlightenment for the sake of benefiting you. And then we start with the preliminary prayers with the Heart Sūtra. Thus, here one time, the Bhagavan was dwelling on Vulture Peak Mountain, Rajagriha, together with a great community of monks and a great community of bodhisattvas. At that time, the Bhagavan was absorbed in the concentration on the categories of phenomena called profound perception.
Also at that time, the bodhisattva mahasattva Ārya Avalokiteśvara looked upon the very practice of the profound perfection of wisdom and beheld those five aggregates as empty of inherent nature. Then through the power of Buddha, the venerable Śāriputra said this to the bodhisattva Maha, Avalokiteśvara. How should any son of the lineage train who Then we read the Then we recited the Seven-Limb prayer. I and all surroundings and human beings go for refuge with the Buddha, go for refuge with the Dharma. Go for refuge with the Sangha.
We prostrate to the great mother, 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, the deva king Indra dispelled the demons 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 the profound words in daily recitation. May all diseases, spiritual possessions, bad conditions, all the negative conditions, that which happens due to past karma and immediate conditions, may all these be dispelled, may become nonexistent, may be pacified.
I can’t remember where where we stopped last time. Sorry about that. We just found the right page. So then we we still on the very first we’re just approaching the the second verse, actually, of the text. We’ve been through the the title, the Indian the Sanskrit name.
We’ve been to the first line of praise. And then we’ve been through first verse of the text. And now we are going to approach the second verse. And this topic of the commentary is telling us that again, even though the words that are being used to write this text, are not very erudite, they’re not very sophisticated in any way. One shouldn’t ignore them.
Still there is a great value and meaning in studying such a text, even though the words that are used are simple. And then we read the next verse of the rule text, of the Nāgārjuna’s text itself. It says, The wise will always honor and bow down to Buddhist statues, though they’re made of wood. So to although these lines of mine are be poor, do not feel scorned. They because they teach the holy way.
No. The commentary then so the verse is telling us that whatever material, a representation of the Buddha, of the holy body of the Buddha may be made of, be be it wood, be it stone, or be it of a a material of a very good quality, very high quality, or very poor quality, whatever the material may be, that we should disregard that, and we should respect to that statue as if it was the Buddha himself, just like the old master of the past would do. And then Geshe-la is anticipating the idea of Nāgārjuna saying again that in the same vein, this composition of mine is is it has very poor words, very simple words, and it’s not very complicated or sophisticated or elaborated in any way. But still, studying and contemplating this text, one will be able to accumulate merit, generate merit, and then derive all the benefits of the Buddha’s teachings. And again, Geshe-la goes back for the for the commentary more and more specificity, again saying that the illustration is telling us that those representation of the Buddha, representation of the body of the Buddha being made of wood, being made of stone, being made of clay, being made of any good or bad material, even the shape and the form of the sculpture being of good quality or bad quality.
It doesn’t matter. One shouldn’t one shouldn’t look into those things. One should focus on the essence of the representation, which is that it is a representation of the Buddha itself. And that’s and in this way, one takes in dependence on that, then one pays respect, makes offerings, pays honor, and so on and so forth, and derives a lot of benefit from that. And Geshe-la is saying, we, on the other hand, we do not do like the masters of the past would do.
We think that those representations which are made of pure gold, with precious stones, and all that, those are the best, those are valuable. To those, we we we are very careful with those. And if it is if there is a simple representation made of made of stone or wood, then we pay no respect to it. We we give no regard to it. And Geshe-la wasn’t saying that’s not a suitable way to conduct one’s self in relation to those representations.
He saw it in Nepal. There are some big buildings in Kathmandu where they have many statues, many stone statues, representations of Buddhas and deities and so forth. And Geshe-la wasn’t saying that people, they went there and took away whatever valuable things they wore on the statues they chipped away, some jewels or whatever it was, and that’s when they wash their clothes, and then they hang the clothes and the statues to dry and all that. Probably, you know, in the past, those buildings, those those probably were temples or something like that, they were were built by by Buddhists, now we have a lot of non Buddhists. And then those representations still remain there, and then that’s what people do.
They they tie a little rope in the neck of one statue, and then the the other end at the neck of another statue, and the hand close in between. And that’s how it goes. And it’s very bad to do that. And Geshe-la is then going on for the second half of the commentary which is saying again, he’s speaking on the first person, deny myself with the little learning I have, I have not used any sophisticated or erudite words. And even though the quality of my writing may be poor, it goes on to say, listening to the teaching, by studying this teaching, again, can learn the holy Dharma, which is the method for accomplishing high rebirth or certain goodness, definite goodness in the future.
One can attain that. Just like the conquerors of the victors of the path have taught, and we will learn that holy Dharma, just like the victors of the past have taught. Again, studying this, the quality of the composition of the words may be, by studying it and by relying on using it just like these masters of the past have relied on those statues. Again, one will and not looking down upon it, one will benefit. So we are asked, do not scorn this text and and study it And again, Geshe-la is just explaining again.
The teachings of the or the victors of the conquerors of the Buddhas is the teaching that teaches us how to attain the benefit, the happiness of higher or future rebirths, the how to attain the happiness of certain goodness, and the most happiness of certain goodness, how to attain enlightenment itself. And again, so by practicing such teachings, one can attain great accumulations of merit, just like the great beings of the past who have accumulated great amounts of merit and attain those goals. If we study such texts which are based on these teachings, we derive the same benefits even though it is not very sophisticated or not very erudite. Then again, we move on to the next topic, which is saying that even though this text is simple, and is referring to the king. So even though this text may be simple, and you are a very learned and intelligent and wise person, still, even though you might know these topics already, you might know all these things already, if you study, your understanding will improve.
And Nāgārjuna is saying, I know that your understanding will improve if you study it, even though it might be simple. And then we read the next root verse, the third verse of the text, says, while you you have surely learned and understood the mighty Buddha’s many lovely words, is it not so that some something made of chalk by moonlight lit shines gleaming whiter still? Anticipating the commentary saying exactly the same thing that the commentary is saying. Saying again, even though we might have something like a house which is painted white, which looks very nice and bright in the daylight still, when the light shines upon that house, then again that white becomes even brighter still. And the same way with the king, even though the king is already a scholar, very learned, has studied the teachings and so forth, and he probably has a lot of understanding, still by studying, by listening to these teachings here, by studying these teachings here, his understanding will shine even brighter, stronger, even deeper.
So then Geshe-la again was reading for the commentary, and again like I said Geshe-la has already told us what the commentary is saying. So the commentary goes on to tell us that even though you king is somebody who has studied and who has listened, has contemplated and has meditated upon the teachings of the great lord Buddha, Buddha Śākyamūni himself, the great Tathāgata himself. Even though you have done that, have you have have great understanding of the of the teachings by means of the three of listening, contemplation, and meditation. Still, if you if you study this text, if you listen to this text, if you study this text of mine, again, your understanding will even grow brighter still. Just like and Geshe-la was making reference to this text, providing conditions for his understanding to shine brighter still.
So it is it is reasonable for you still a king to to study this text. Just like again the example of some something which is painted white of a stone house or which is painted white. Again, even though it is bright as white, when the moon when it is lit by the moonlight, it it becomes even brighter still. And we should we should follow the same example here. We should follow the same advice.
It doesn’t matter however much we might have studied the teachings, we should take every chance and every opportunity to listen to any teaching or any Buddhist teaching, whatever it might be. Because even though, even we might know it already, by listening to it time and again, it will get even clearer and clearer. Our understanding will get even clearer and clearer. So then when we finish this verse and we have finished with the very first beginning of traditional beginning of every text which is the exhortation to listen the exhortation to know to listen with respect and reverence and so forth. We move on to the next main division of the text which is then the actual instructions themselves, the actual teachings themselves.
This has three main divisions again. First of all, a brief explanation of the path of the three types of beings. Secondly, an extensive explanation. And lastly, briefly, again, the way to practice. So we’re going through various divisions, subdivisions, but they are quite easy.
You’re probably very familiar with it. So the first one of those is a brief explanation, brief teaching on the three types of beings. Right? So the first and this has, again, has three divisions for one for each type of being. So first of all, is the an explanation of of the path, which is common to beings of small scope, the path, which is common to beings of middling scope, and then the path of beings of great scope.
So as for the first one of those, again, which is the path which is common to beings to the beings of a small scope, again, this has two two two main divisions, to main parts to it. So for in the beginning, again, mainly training, establishing oneself in refuge so that And then the six types, the six things that are the buddhas. And then relying on refuge, mainly relying on refuge in order to attain the happiness of future lives, of high rebirth in future. And mainly relying on the six instructions that have been and also on practicing the six instructions, not forgetting the six instructions, excellent instructions, which have been taught by the Buddhists. And I was asking, what are the six instructions?
And someone said, look. It will come later in the text. And Then the second topic, which is the way, the more special practice of relying, of engaging the teachings actions and the results. So so regards to the first one of those divisions, in the beginning, again, rely in refuge, mainly in refuge, on the refuge practice, to attain aiming at a high rebirth in the future, relying on these six instructions. And then the the next verse is gonna tell us what it is.
So then the the root verse number four is telling us, six things there are the buddhas have explained, and all their virtues you must keep in mind. The Buddha, the Dharma, the Sangha, bounteous acts or which is enlightened activities, and moral laws and the deities or the gods, each one recall. And Geshe-la was then saying, again, going for the verse. And the verse is is a bit more it’s it’s funny because the translation is the translation is quite erudite, and the verse is quite simple. And it’s the verse is telling us again just the Buddha, the chorus of the Buddha, the the Dharma and the Sangha, and the enlightened activities, the moral acts and gods, one has to recollect, keep in mind the the the the great collections of qualities of each one of these.
So again, meaning, when we go to commentary itself the the first sentence of the commentary is saying that the Buddha which is the lord of the four Mara kings, the four demon kings, conqueror of the four Mara kings, he has said that one should always recollect remember both day and night at all times one should recollect the vast qualities of the Buddha, the Dharma, the Sangha, the bounteous acts of morality of moral conduct and of gods So then again, the text goes on to explain how is it? What is it that we have to recollect? What is it that we have to remember? And how is it that we remember those qualities? So again, we we start with the Buddha then.
Again, we we recollect all the the vast qualities of the Buddha, which is that he is someone who has completely rid himself of the two obscurations and of even the imprints and even the imprints of the two obscurations. He’s completely free of the stains of the two obscurations and their imprints. He has developed developed the knowledge of everything there is to be known and he has he’s free of attachment he’s free of bias and he’s how to say how can I explain that his activities are unobstructed? His activities are completely unobstructed, completely free of any obstruction. And in this way he has fulfilled every good quality.
He has developed every good quality. And in this way, we recollect the qualities of the Buddha. So, again, with regards to the Buddha’s activities being completely free of any obstruction. Buddha’s mind, the Buddha’s activities being completely free of any obstruction. Geshe-la was saying so.
It is like that. Whenever we make petitional prayers, whenever we make prayers to the Buddha’s, they they immediately doesn’t matter where we are or what time it it may be, they come. They they answer our prayers instantly. They come to in our presence or they provide us with what we want with the blessings and so forth. There completely free of any limitation, any obstruction.
And Geshe-la was gonna say again, we we think that we need an appropriate time, an appropriate place, and then we make our prayers or or or petition of prayers and offerings and so forth. But in actuality, this is just from from the perspective of our, how to say, limited understanding of it. But from the side of the Buddha, there is there are no such restrictions, no such limitations. And when wherever we may be, if we have a wish and we we are making prayers, they will be immediately answered. The the the Buddhas, again, have experienced no limitations whatsoever.
If it wasn’t the case, then again, would be very strange for us to make our petition prayers, confessions and so forth. When we we make our confession confessional practices, for example, and we ask the Buddhas and the Buddhists to be present, and we make our confessions in front of them and so forth. And now if if it wasn’t the case that their activities and their minds were completely unobstructed, then again, it wouldn’t make any sense for us to make such confessional practice. But that is not the case. They do answer, and they they do come instantly when we make genuine prayers.
Again, Geshe-la says in the end, it would be very strange if if the Buddha would not have this this this lack of limitations of this this freedom from obstructions because then our prayers again wouldn’t be very meaningful in the end. And then again with regards to so then this all this is was was with regards to recollecting the qualities of the Buddha, the good qualities of the Buddha, now recollecting the qualities of the Dharma, which is this excellent speech of both the scripture and the realization of Dharma, which is the truth of the path of cessation. And this is how we have to think of the Dharma, the Dharma jewel and recollect the Dharma jewel. Is that okay? True, and let me rectify my English, true path and true cessation.
I guess that was gonna say, so again this is how we have to recollect the Dharma, we have to think of the true paths and the true cessation, which there is a sort of a causal relationship here, so the true paths are basically that mind realizes emptiness. Every path which is contained in the continuum of a person, has that that understanding or realization of emptiness. Every such path is a true path and that leads eventually to the eradication of every afflictive emotion and conception and that leads to the which is then the true cessations. So then these are the true paths, and then we have the true cessation which is the result of having accomplished, realized the true path, which leads then to the, we call, cessation, because they are the cessation, the end of the afflictive emotions and conceptions, the end of faults, shortcomings, of bad qualities, so to speak. So again, by realizing, by the continual habituation and progressive realization of the true path, then again, one progressively and continually eradicates every fault, every shortcoming, every afflictive emotion and conception.
And one attains state of cessation, which is again, which I was gonna say, another way to explain the state of cessation. This is a state which is where one is not only free of faults and shortcomings, but one is experiencing continuous uninterrupted happiness or happiness and bliss, you could say. And I was just asking Geshe-la to explain to me, in person, what do we mean when we’re talking about paths? And I just wanted to hear the Geshe explain it, because I never heard Geshe explain that in much detail. So Geshe-la saying, what are those paths that we are talking about?
When we’re talking about true paths, when we’re talking about the paths containing the continuum of a person who is realizing emptiness. What are we talking about? There’s so many paths. What is that, true paths? Of course, are not ordinary roads and pathways, as we see them outside, but they are similar to that.
Ways, they are illustrations, they are paths that lead to liberation and enlightenment. And Geshe-la was then saying, so when we’re talking about the paths contained in mental continuum of the person who is realizing emptiness. And I said: What are those paths then? Okay, understand the analogy, but what are they? Can you enumerate?
And he says: yes. Compassion, the mind of compassion, the mind of loving kindness, the mind of bodhicitta, the mind that realizes impermanence. All those, they are paths. The paths that lead to liberation and enlightenment. Okay?
Is that okay? Does that help? Path means a mental activity or an outlook or a mode of behavior? It it it’s he said it’s the mind of compassion. It’s the mind of bodhicitta.
bodhicitta. It’s the mind that realizes impermanence. So there are all those realizations. They are paths. The realizations are the paths.
Not the practice. That’s we want to know the distinction between meditating those things and then realizing those things. That’s a fair question. A very good question. And this is very interesting because I’ve never heard such detailed explanation of this.
English love, was asking, so when we are meditating on impermanence, studying impermanence, when we ourselves are doing that, is that mind that we’re generating there, the meditation activity, is that a path? I said no, it’s not a path. And he was given the definition of path, which I have never heard before myself. But it is those minds, which exist, or which are present, in the continuum of a person who has developed an uncontrived mind of renunciation. Look at that.
So, all those minds, all those realizations, which are steeped on that uncontrived realization of renunciation, they are called paths. So even if we realize impermanence, but if we realize before we have developed an uncontrived realization of renunciation, that realization of impermanence is not a path yet. Only afterwards. Even if we realize emptiness, I asked him, he said, even emptiness. If we realize emptiness before we have developed an uncontrived renunciation, then again, still not called a path yet.
Isn’t that interesting? When it a cessation? When when does it become a cessation? When when does a path becomes a cessation? Cessation?
Should I ask that? And this is this is very logical here. We’re very and maybe maybe my English english will not be very logical, but this is in Tibetan this is very logical. So the path cannot become a cessation. The path serves The path is the antidote that makes the shortcomings or the afflictive emotions stop to arise, that cease with the afflictive emotion or conception, whatever it may be.
And The path then eradicates that one particular emotion or conception that we might be talking about, then that is a cessation, the cessation of the particular afflictive emotion or conception. But the path itself does not become a cessation, there’s no such thing. Is that making sense? Yes, what I meant in the question was, where point on the path When the affliction is Hopefully, we would know that. This is very interesting because I never heard this before.
So it’s like this. Someone giving the illustration first of anger first, we get angry. We all get angry, we’re all familiar with that. In order to, the antidote to anger is, generally speaking, is loving kindness. So we meditate on loving kindness and eventually when we develop a very strong and consolidate our loving kindness, then that loving kindness stops, arrests our anger.
And our anger then stops to arise. So the anger has ceased to arise. Now, just be careful here, this is an illustration. So the loving kindness is an example of a true path. It is not a true path.
It’s just an illustration of what a true path is. So you can see how the true path does not become the cessation because loving kindness is something is an affirmative itself. And then the cessation of that anger in that context is an example of a true cessation. It a cessation, generally generally speaking, as we would cease the fire, the light or anything like that, but it’s not a true cessation. And then so when would it become a true cessation?
I asked. And Geshe-la was saying, so a true cessation will be when having developed that uncontrived realization of renunciation. Right? Have developed uncontrived renunciation. Then we realize, we directly realize emptiness.
Having directly realized emptiness in relation to an object of abandonment and we have then rid ourselves of that object of abandonment, the second moment after that, when that object of abandonment ceases to arise, it does not arise ever again anymore. That is then the moment of the true cessation from then on. And Geshe-la then says, so a true cessation is not the mere arresting of the anger temporarily, but is the complete eradication of it. So true cessation means that it ceases to arise and it won’t arise again in the future. Is that that cool?
Is that I mean is that making sense? That’s cool, isn’t it? And then Geshe-la was saying, when we talk about the five aggregates, Geshe-la was saying, so that cessation, the true cessation, it is not consciousness. It is not form. So, what it is?
What is it? It falls under the category of compositional factors because it is what we call it, it falls under the category of being something permanent. It is permanent because it is a cessation. As a cessation is something which is permanent. It doesn’t change moment to moment and stuff like that.
And so what are the paths then? The paths are consciousness, they fall in the category of consciousness. Alright? And Geshe-la was saying, again, with regards to these true cessation, is not something that can increase, that can be improved. It is an absence, right?
An absence of an affliction. So now the true paths, they can be improved. The true path is something that you being consciousness. It is something that through familiarization and habituation becomes stronger and and clearer and clearer and clearer, and you can then rid more and more afflictions, attaining then more and more cessations. So we talk about, for example, the true cessations of the being in the continuum of a being on the path of seeing, and also of the various cessations in the continuum of a being on the path of meditation.
There seems to be a progression in terms of cessation. It seems to be that the cessation is getting better and better, but the fact is that the paths are getting stronger and stronger, deeper and deeper, and eradicating more and more afflictions, and more and more shortcomings. And in this way we are attaining more and more cessations. So we have an increase in the number of cessations that we attain, but the cessations are not changing, they are permanent, they are unchanging in this sense. Until we eventually eradicate every fault and every shortcoming, then we attain liberation.
And then we develop every good quality, every path, and then have free of every fault, endowed with every good quality, when we have enlightenment. Is that okay? Is that making sense? So Geshe-la is explaining again that true cessations, they do not, because they are permanent, do not change, they do not get better or strong or anything like that. There is just, we can measure them, so to speak, in terms of the number of cessations there are, because we as sentient beings have so many obscurations.
So when we arrest, when we cease each obscuration, then we attain a cessation. Finally, by the force of a path, we we rid ourselves of one obscuration, then at that moment we have attained one cessation. And because there are many, we keep on attaining more and more cessation. So our paths can be increased, they can be improved, they can be better, we make them better and stronger and then in this way we can rid ourselves of more subtle obscurations, more difficult obscurations to rid, until eventually, again, we attain to a state which is free of every fault, of every obscuration, and endowed with every good quality in every path, which is enlightenment itself. So then at liberation, there are no more paths?
At liberation, there are no more paths? Yeah. After you’ve so you got rid of all the obscuration. So so so that means there’s nothing more to liberate. So so is there no path then?
That’s a good question. That’s a good question. But that’s it. That’s it. So it’s like this, and this is all those technicalities.
So again, if you have attained liberation, right? Individual liberation, which means you have attained the true cessation of afflictive obscurations. But, we have So, that doesn’t mean that there are other cessations to be attained, or there are other paths, because we still have obscurations to know to omniscience. So, we still have to develop, to attain those cessations, which abandon obscurations to knowledge. So we still have to develop the paths of the Mahāyāna, are geared to attain this cessation.
So that when you get to Buddhahood, it’s then when the paths finish? Sure hope so. Then we have attained every path, have developed every good quality. We have exhausted every fault, every shortcoming. Today is the fifth.
Page seven. Thank you. Everything is no. He didn’t say everything is impermanent. Uh-huh.
Uh-huh. He didn’t say that. So, if if and this is this is all very logical and philosophical and all that, but this is this is if you if you listen to what Geshe-la has just taught us about cessation and how they are impermanent, then you you you know how they are permanent. Sorry. How they are permanent.
Then you understand that what you said is not exactly what the Buddha said. So the Buddha said that functioning things are impermanent. The compounded phenomena is impermanent, and they change. And it is thanks to the fact that compounded phenomena is impermanent, and does change, that we can continually change and better ourselves until we attain enlightenment. Now, as for the cessation, the cessation are permanent.
Cessation is a lack of something. A lack of something which was which which might have been impermanent. But there’s a lack there. And as a lack, there’s no change. It is permanent.
Okay? So, we’re talking about when we’re talking about philosophical divisions of of everything, one way of dividing everything, categorizing everything, is into impermanent things, or impermanent phenomena, and permanent. Which is permanent. So we and then we conclude everything in these two categories. It’s one way of dividing.
Functioning things, functioning impermanent things, and permanent. That which is impermanent, that which is permanent. Mhmm. So there is permanent. Not every everything is impermanent.
That’s an incorrect statement statement. Okay? Yes? I have a question that I may not get the I’m not sure. It’s something I didn’t understand.
Let’s try. Let’s try. About renunciation. Renunciation? Yes.
To me, I interpreted something about the my limited understanding that this the starting point and that you can have realizations, but unless it’s you have the mind of renunciation or the A noncontrived mind of renunciation. Yes. Do you explain that? What is renunciation? Shall we go by that?
So, yes, Renunciation is extremely important. Geshe-la started saying it is it is very difficult to attain. It’s very difficult to realize. Once you have developed realization of renunciation, then you every other path that you might have developed, other realization might have developed then becomes a path. You know, something that leads to liberation and enlightenment.
Yes, it has to do very much with motivation, and it’s extremely important that we engage in every minute we can to realize renunciation. Now, Geshe-la wasn’t saying renunciation is what is exactly that mind? What is that mind of renunciation? So, wasn’t saying, first, in order to develop renunciation, one has to see that everything in our existence, in our lives here, especially those those so called happinesses that we have, the pleasurable and happy experiences that we have, that they are all suffering. It’s very important that we fully understand that, that they are all suffering.
That they are all in the nature of the suffering of change, or the all pervasive compounded suffering, a very subtle type of suffering. So we have to see that all those pleasures that we enjoy, all those little happiness that we have, they’re all suffering. Sunrise, sunset, summer breeze, you name it. They are all suffering. And then we have to develop having developed this understanding very strongly, we have to develop the wish to be free from all this suffering, and to then attain real happiness, unchanging happiness, lasting happiness.
And that mind which has this understanding, it has this wish, has this motivation. And and when you develop this uncontrived wish, when you have thought about it so much that it becomes second nature, it arises spontaneously within you without any effort. That’s the uncontrived, you know. That is the mind of renunciation that we’re talking about. The teachings.
We see all the time so much talk about suffering. The suffering of the hells, the pretas, the animals, the humans, the gods, suffering everywhere. So many teachings about suffering. We do not like it. We do not enjoy all these teachings about suffering.
But the reason we are giving so teachings about suffering is that it will help us develop renunciation. Because renunciation is so crucial, it’s so important. And without developing an understanding of how our experience is suffering, then we won’t be able to develop renunciation. That’s why we have these teachings so much so often. It’s very difficult to develop renunciation.
And it’s very difficult. We we because and I was saying because we we think I’m speaking for myself, you know, because we think here in Australia, you know, we are so comfortable. Life is so easy, and I think myself, wow, this is so much better than Brazil. I’m so happy here. And and you stop and say, but this is not, you know, this is how we think.
But all those things, they are not really happiness. You know? Quoting a verse, which I do not know the exact translation, but the verse is talking about cyclic existence, being any better than standing on the tip of a needle. There’s no pleasure to it. There’s only pain and suffering to it.
Once you’re born, it’s with things like this, and there’s only suffering. You know, the way you hear these words, you do not like it. But still we think, we believe it is happiness. We experience real happiness. Yeah.
Yeah. Oh, yeah. Okay. Yeah. Yeah.
Thank you. Thank you. Okay. Yeah. Okay.
Thank