Audio recorded at Tibetan Buddhist Institute, Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 26-minute teaching, Geshe Jampa Gyaltsen concludes the presentation on the universal vehicle perfection tradition path by explaining the essential Buddhist view of the middle way. He clarifies how appearance and emptiness work together without contradiction: dependent arising (effects arising from causes) protects against the nihilist extreme, while understanding the emptiness of inherent existence guards against eternalism. He then announces the transition to secret mantra instruction and addresses student questions about whether the term graduated path applies to tantric practice, explaining why secret mantra must be included for a complete spiritual path. The teaching concludes with practical advice about guru-student relationships and auspicious conduct when meeting and parting with teachers, grounded in the principle of dependent relatedness.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 1992-11-13 – 19c – KR.mp3
UUID: ce5fd7de-8683-4a53-be11-ac38daa11fca
Teacher: Geshe Jampa Gyaltsen
Collection: Guru Puja – Lama Chopa
Date: 1992-11-13
Recorded at: Tibetan Buddhist Institute, Adelaide
Words: ~869
Hello. Appearance is explained in terms of dependent arising, that all results arise in dependence upon causes. Whereas the emptiness is that emptiness is presented in terms of the absence of inherent existence, phenomena lacking inherent existence. So there are these two, appearance and emptiness. The view which we are seeking, the view which is set up by Śākyamūni Buddha is that these two are not contradictory, that in fact they are to be seen as complementary to one another and that it is by means of view of dependent arising, that is to say that effects arising in dependence upon causes that we are able to avoid falling to the extreme of nihilism.
On the other hand, it is by understanding that what in fact does appear is empty of true existence, are free from falling to the extreme of eternalism. So it is by two, it is by means of practicing the view of the middle way that we are free from falling to these two extremes of nihilism or eternalism and thereby are able to come to the correct view and the complete view of Śākyamūni Buddha. So up to this point we have explained the practices of the universal vehicle perfection tradition and now next week in the teaching we’ll begin the explanation associated with the secret mantra. Then having explained those, we’ll be finished with Lama Chöpa. So everything that we’ve explained thus far has been an explanation of the graduated path.
And then the and then subsequent. And subsequently, begin with the line, therefore we seek your blessings that we may cross the labyrinth of ocean of tantra. This begins an explanation of the secret mantra, attainment of the empowerment, the honoring our words of honor, an explanation of the generating and completion stage of secret mantra. Do you have a question? Generally we wouldn’t apply the term Lam Rim, the graduated path, to secret mantra.
The secret mantra Lam Rim is describing the path of the beings of three levels of capacity as set out in, for example, Je Tsongkhapa’s Great Exposition of the Stages of the Path. He went on to write another text called The Great Exposition of the Stages of Mantra. So there is this distinguishment between the Lamrim and the stages stages of mantra. We don’t use we don’t apply that term.
In in Atisha’s Light on the Path, the Lamp for the Path, the archetype of teachings, he does mention practice of secret mantra. So it is part of the stages of the path. The secret mantra is part of the stages of the path but the general term graduated path is not applied to secret mantra. It’s the general term even though becomes part of the stages of the path and it is mentioned in Light on the Path. The general term is not applied to secret So the complete path of the universal vehicle must include the path of the secret mantra.
If one doesn’t include the mantra, then one doesn’t have a complete path. Secret mantra is included in a complete path of universal vehicle. And because the prayers of Namdrol said that may I be able to complete the path, therefore, they also include in his longing prayers the secret mantra because he may not be able to complete the entire path, which wouldn’t necessarily have to include secret mantra. Just any lama or just in general? Sometimes at the end of text it says, And now the text has been completed, and it’s like bringing something to a finish.
With respect to, you don’t want to bring your relationship with the Lama to a finish, so it is a means by which you will ensure that you will be able to continue your relationship with the Lama in the future and that you don’t bring it to a completion by making a final prostration. By not offering that final prostration, things are incomplete and therefore you’ll have to meet again to carry on to finish it out. So actually, the word which is usually translated as auspicious is dependently related. All phenomena are dependently related, both good and bad. Tibetans are very concerned with creating an auspiciousness or dependent relatedness such that we avoid the bad and create the good, creating the relationship in which we’ll bring about good.
So there’s all these various auspiciousness and auspiciousness of the karmic relatednesses which are observed. Have it right. When a lama is coming from a long distance, and you should go a long distance to bring them to the place, to meet them and long distance. But when they’re going away for long distance, you shouldn’t go a long distance and seeing them off.. It’s like if you had something, a bad article, you’re throwing it very far away.
Having them come a long distance, it’s very auspicious if you yourself go a long distance in order to bring them to the place. They’re in a long distance, you don’t you don’t don’t go a long distance, but you go you only see them up in a very near place. And. Therefore, it would be better if the students went to the airport to meet him rather than waiting here.