Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 45-minute teaching, His Holiness Sakya Trizin presents a comprehensive exposition of suffering across all realms of existence. He begins with the eight hot hells and their neighboring hells, detailing the vastly extended lifespans and escalating torments beings endure. He then describes the hungry ghost realms—divided into outer, inner, and obscured types—where starvation and illusion prevent any relief, followed by the animal realm, where lack of agency and constant predation leave no moment of peace. Moving to higher realms, Sakya Trizin explains the suffering of change: celestial beings enjoy great luxury but face catastrophic mental anguish upon witnessing death signs and knowing rebirth in lower realms awaits. Finally, he identifies the pervasive suffering of conditioned existence—the fact that satisfaction never comes, all work remains endless, and every condition, high or low, contains inherent suffering. Armed with this understanding of saṃsāra, he then teaches the law of karma and the path forward: abandoning the ten non-virtuous deeds rooted in desire, hatred, and ignorance, while cultivating the ten virtuous deeds as the antidote. A foundational teaching for practitioners seeking conviction in suffering and motivation for genuine practice.
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File: 13 FfK.mp3
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Teacher: HH Sakya Trizin
Collection: Freedom from the Known (HH Sakya Trizin)
Date: 1988 (exact day not recorded)
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 45.5 minutes
Words: ~4,359
From fighting heavenly realms. And counting this way, they live two thousand year, and that’s counting that as as a one day in the Crushing hell realm. And then they live two thousand their own years. And so in like this, the four hundred human year is one day in the heaven of joy, and they live four thousand years. And that counting death as a one day, And they live the Crushing hell realm, they live their own four thousand years.
And eight hundred human year is a one day in Miraculous Joy heavenly realms. And they live their own eight thousand years, counting that as a one day in the Great Crying hell realm. They live their own eight thousand years. And one thousand six hundred human year is a one day in Empowered by Others’ Miracle. There’s a heavenly realm called Empowered by Others’ Miracle, And the current in that as they live their own here, one thousand six hundred sixteen thousand.
And, currently, that is the one day in the in the Burning hell realm. They live there on sixteen thousand years. And then the Great Burning, they live half an intermediate eon, and in nonstop, they live one intermediate eon. So the the lifespans are so long actually, the time is only time is not existing. Time is something that which we presume.
And then after the eight hot hells, then there are the neighboring hells and the semi-hells. The neighboring hells are the first is called the fire pit hell. That after suffering so long in the main hell, then when he tried to run away, that he in the east, he sees a ground and so try to run away, and there it becomes a fire pit. Mud which is all fire and all his body sinks into this mud and burns and burns even his bones. When he escapes from there, he tries to go to a swamp of water, the muddy water, and there he tries to escape.
And this muddy water is actually very rotten dead bodies of the hell beings. So it is a terrible smell. And in this mud, there are many terrible worms that eat all his body up to the his bones and marrow. And then he when he tries from there to escape. He sees a grass ground.
And when he tried there when he reaches there, that all this grass becomes like a small knives or the needles. And wherever he put his feet, it cuts into the pieces, and he falls down and cut all his body. And when he escapes from there, he sees a forest and try to to run there. The the big wind comes, and all the forest becomes the knives and terrible weapons that falls down all his body and cuts. And when he tries from there, he try to run.
He sees a mountain and try when he reaches end of the the root of the mountain, there are terrible hell dogs who bites him into pieces. And at that time that he hears one hears a sound of the one’s loved ones from the top of mountain shouting his name. So he tries very hard to climb the mountains, and the mountains the trees all become weapons and cut his pieces and even then tries very hard. When he reaches on top of the mountain, one could not see anyone that that he knows, but instead, there are many terrible hell birds that gouges out his eyes and bites from all his body. And then again, he goes down.
He hears that sound of one’s loved ones from the foot of the mountain, and he tries to come down. And, again, the the trees all become like weapons and suffers like this. So in this way, they have to suffer so many times. So for such a long period of times. Then again, for when he tries to reach the try to escape from that place, sees sees a water and there’s a lot of burning water.
And there he first, sees the water, so he tried to escape there. But when he reaches there, it is like a there’s a lot of burning water and burns all his body as well as the surrounding. There are many hell workers holding terrible weapons and then cutting him into pieces, etcetera. So in this way that he have to suffer so much. So there are actually four four neighboring hells.
On each each side of the main hot hells, each side each direction of the main hot health, they have the four neighboring hells. In counting where, there are actually six different types like fire pit, muddy, muddy water, and grass field, forest, and great mountain, and desert like burning water. But since counted as four because the mountains and forest and ground with weapons are all accounted as one. And then also there are semi-hells, semi-hells. Many different kind of sufferings where one have to drink, forced to drink burning iron liquid.
One have to one is wrapped in burning iron sheet, and one is tied with the burning iron ropes. One is fried with the burning iron powder, etcetera. There are many, many different types of hell realms where one have to suffer for very long period of times. So these are the hell realms. And then the the hungry ghost realm also has three parts, outer obscuration, inner obscuration, and obscuration due to stinginess and desire, lust, indulging in such actions that one will be born in the hungry ghost realm where one have to suffer for many, many for very long period of times without any even a grain of one grain of food or one drop of water to drink.
And from the distance, he sees as pile of food or the water and runs there to get with the great difficulties. And when he reaches there, it’s all first, there’s a great suffering in reaching there physically, not being able to go there. And when he reaches there, instead of food, it all it is like big rocks or mirage waters like mirage or the blue rocks, etcetera, and that could not get any food. So this is called the the outer obscuration. Inner obscuration is the the second is the inner obscuration, which means the hungry ghost, same kind of suffering.
But first of all, that they have such a tiny throat and a huge stomach and tiny, very thin hands and legs. And first, even when they find bad food such as, like, mucus or something dirty things, that first that they could not go through his throat and that it tears his throat and blood comes and so much suffering. And even when he goes down to the to the stomach, it has huge stomach that they could not instead of solving the hunger, that it makes more hunger and have to suffer again. And the obscuration of the obscuration, the third kind is called third kind is called the obscuration of obscuration, which means that first tries to go in every direction for food. And when he reaches there, the other there are many other more powerful ones, and they beat and tortures so many sufferings.
And So whatever bad food such as, like, mucus and pus, etcetera, when he found first that he has a great fear that somebody may take it away, and, also, there’s since they were so used to the stinginess that they could not eat, and even he tried to eat, had the same kind of problem, like, not going through the throat, etcetera. And when he reaches the the stomach, it becomes fire and burns his intestines and the internal organs. And the fire comes from his mouth and eyes, etcetera. And it’s like a kind of burning burning fire burning sensation, just like a fire fire coming through his mouth. Actually, fire fire coming.
And so in this way that until he exhaust his own karma that one have to suffer for a long period of time In the long for many years, for thousands of years have to suffer. And then The third lower realm is the animals realm, which has the two kind, the general animals and animals that are belonging to the human beings or the animal scattered animals, animals that are together. For example, in the ocean, there are many many animals together, pile of them that they have no definite place, that wherever the wind of the ocean comes, that they were all the time moving so that they do not have any place to live in and the place that is belongs to them. So which means that all the time they are going everywhere, they do not know who they will meet. There’s not a single moment to to stay quiet, like, like, to relaxing.
And besides, the many big animals eat the small ones. Big animals eat many small ones together, and many small ones together, they eat the one big ones. And there are certain part of the continent. There are places where in the ocean, there are places where they could not see anything. They could not see even their own hands.
So whatever food, good or bad or whatever comes in front of them, that they have just eat that. And they all are crowded and eating each other, killing each other, etcetera. So many not finding proper food, not finding proper place, etcetera, that they do not have any freedom, any moment of relaxing and have to suffer. The human beings, the animals that are belonging to the human beings, also, that they have to work so hard, tortured, beaten in many ways. Many were killed for the flesh, killed for the skins, killed for bones, killed for horns, etcetera.
Even the animals that are roaming around in the mountains, they have no place all the time, have to run everywhere, all the time in a fearful because humans may attack, other animals may attack. The hunters may attack, etcetera. That’s all the time in a great fear. Have to run-in every direction. And sometimes even with their injured, when they’re in they’re injured and their blood and completely injured.
But even then, due to the fear, they’d have to run so so much. And, generally, the all animals are great ignorant. Just like putting a big rock on top of their head, etcetera, that they have so much sufferings. So the mainly, the suffering of suffering is in the lower realms that also in the the hell realm, hungry ghost realm, and in animals realm. Then the second type of suffering, which is called the suffering of change, is in the higher realms.
Due to their previous karma, that though they are born in the higher realms where they have a beautiful place, beautiful house, beautiful good food, and good cloth, and so much enjoyment with so many goddesses and gods and goddesses, flowers, and etcetera. But while they are living, since they have so much physical enjoyment, they they do not bother to practice any Dharma. And then also, though they have a very long life, very long lifespan, but since it is all spent with the enjoyment, etcetera, that they could not It passed very quickly, and suddenly that they knew that they are going to die. When they are going to die, they have a certain signs such as, like, their bodies become ugly. They do not like to sit.
The flower garlands become bad. The sweat or the dirt, normally, they do not have a dirt. They are very clean body, but then the dirt comes, etcetera, that there are many signs. There’s actual signs and near signs near death signs that that now they are approaching to death. There are many different signs.
And when they have this sign, then their all is life is actually spent in enjoyment in such a great luxury. When suddenly these signs of death falls on them, they have a great mental suffering more than the the physical suffering of the hell realms That they have so much after spending in such a luxury life that suddenly when they knew that they are going to die, they have such a mental burden, such a mental suffering. And many of them, they knew that they’re going to fall down in the lower realm, so they have a so so much suffering. And even after the death also, like, even born as lord Indra, who is actually the lord of all the lord of many gods, again, born as a human being fall down and as ordinary human beings. The sun the sun and moon, the god of the sun and the god of the moon who have much light, so much light that can give light to all the realms.
After being born in such place, one will fall down and be born in complete dark places where could not see one’s own hands. And after being born in as a universal emperor, the one who rules the all the continents. And then after that, again, one will be born. After the death, one will be born as a very ordinary and servants and servants. And very powerful man, very powerful man becomes very weak, Very rich man becomes very poor man.
The families that have many members are completely extinct and completely finishes and, also, always fear of meeting the animals, fear of separating from one’s loved ones, and one could not fulfill the one’s wishes, one could not get one’s hopes, etcetera, that everything since everything is changing, that there is no real happiness. Because even at this moment, one moment where there’s no real physical suffering, but since it is not permanent, it is going to change in the next morning what may appear, what may come that nobody knows. So there’s nobody certain that what we what is going to happen in the next moment. So, therefore, it is called the suffering of change, that everything is changing. And the third kind is called the suffering of conditional nature of all things, which means that actual actually, we have so many other sufferings, visible sufferings that we do not see even our existing itself as a suffering.
But, actually, the fact is that our existing itself is suffering because there’s nothing that we finish this no matter how much we work. There’s no end to any works, no matter how much we enjoy food, cloth, place, etcetera, that there is no satisfaction. The more you eat, the more you need to eat, the more you have the wealth, the more you need the need rises even more. The more you have, the more need rises. And the more you work, the more works that it will increase, etcetera, that that there is no end.
I mean, those who are poor, who do not have a food and cloth, etcetera, they have so much suffering. Those who have wealth also have a much mental suffering. So whoever no matter whoever place which place you are, which condition, good or bad, which condition you are, which place you are, which surrounding you are, that it is all suffering. So in a after realizing that saṃsāra as from top to bottom, all nothing but suffering. So, therefore, now we must be able to cross this suffering and must do a practice practice that will be able to be crossed from this suffering of Samsāra.
So that explains directly directly explains the suffering of Samsāra. And then indirectly, the second part is explains the the cause, the law of karma. Then why we are in this realm of existence, why we are born here is because due to our own karma, due to our own actions that we have taken, due to actions the non virtuous actions that we taking by indulging in the non virtuous actions that we are upon in Samsāra and continues to experience suffering. So, therefore, now in order to to be free from suffering, one must discard the cause of suffering. And the cause is the non virtuous deeds, and one must try to discard even a tiny non virtuous deeds, and one should try to perform even a tiny virtuous deeds.
To explain this now little detail that there are non virtuous deeds and the virtuous deeds and indifferent deeds. The first to think about the nature of the nonvirtuous deeds, to think about the result of the nonvirtuous deeds, and then to think about to to discard these nonvirtuous deeds. So the first, the nature of the nonvirtuous deeds means any action that arising from desire, hate desire of the attachment, hatred, and ignorance are called nonvirtuous deeds. And that if we divide, there are ten nonvirtuous deeds. And the first one is the killing tiny from insects to a human beings up to the deva, that if you out of desire, out of hatred, out of ignorance, that if you take life, if you kill any living being, then it’s a killing, which is the number one nonvirtuous deeds.
And the second is stealing the things that are belonging to other people, that do not belong to oneself, belonging to the other people, tiny from, like, even the one cent to after the most precious jewels or any precious thing. After any any amount any amount that is not given to you, any amount that that is not belonging to you, that if you steal it, that is the second nonvirtuous deeds. So the stealing is the second nonvirtuous deeds. And the third is called the sexual misconduct, which means to indulge with anyone apart from one’s own life partner. Either to be to to live with men or women apart from one’s own life partner, and particularly to indulge that men or women who who already married or who already has taking a celibacy vows or who are keeping the eight precepts for twenty four hours or who and we even with the one’s own life partner at with at the wrong place, at the wrong time, and the wrong passage, etcetera, to indulge in such acts, then it is a sexual misconduct.
The third, nonvirtuous deeds. And then the fourth one is lying. The intention is due to the desire or etcetera that you tell lie so that other people you can see either one can cheat or some other reasons many other reasons with in any case, not telling the truth out of defilements that tells the lie so that one can do something else. So not telling the truth and telling lie is the the fourth nonvirtuous deeds. And fifth one is the words by talking to groups or in the individuals so that creates a disharmony between groups or individuals, making schism.
Fifth one is that and the sixth one is that out of hatred, etcetera, that whether it is a true or not true, that to say very harsh words, the words that create a pain in the other people’s mind, to say something very nasty things, very bad things that hurt people, harsh words. And the seventh one is to talk idle talks, which are actually a disturbance for practicing the Dharma. The useless talks, the talks particularly that creates defilements. Talk about war and about lust, etcetera, that creates more anger, more desire, etcetera. And the seventh one is this, and eighth one is coveting.
So in any case, in other words, which means that out of desire that if one wishes for oneself, other people’s wealth, other people’s prosperity, other people’s things, etcetera. That when other when something nice when you see the something nice on other people that you wish to have such things for yourself, for your own personal gains. And ninth one is the out of hatred to get to to get the anger and to wishing other people to suffer. That when you get angry that may he die or may he have a disaster, may he hurt or something, that’s to to think wishing to to other people to something bad thing to happen. And then the tenth one is due to the ignorance that one who is not believing the law of karma or the Four Noble Truths or the triple gem or to from the virtuous deeds to write, produces happiness and from the non virtuous deeds producing the unhappiness who do not believing in this, who do not believe who have a wrong views.
So these are the ten non virtuous deeds. And then to think about their result, they have a temporary result and ultimate result. And the temporary result is that by indulging in the nonvirtuous deeds such as like killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, that one will have a short life, very unhealthy life, and very poverty, very poor life. And even one’s own life partners or the friends become enemies, the ones who one has to be wary of all the time. And by indulging in stealing and by indulging in lying and creating disharmony between groups or individuals and harsh by saying harsh words and by indulging in idle talks that one will have other people criticizing you, that you one will be one will be parted from many friends, one will hear bad news, bad undesirable things, and one will nobody believes what you say, etcetera.
Such things will fall. And by indulging the last three non virtuous deeds through the mind that one will never fulfill one’s wishes. One will always by indulging, coveting, that one will never fulfill one’s wishes, and one will meet with a great fear, and one will hold always hold the wrong views. So these are the temporal results. And the ultimate result is that by indulging in the ten non virtuous deeds, depending on the amount of non virtuous deeds that one indulge, that one will be if it is a small amount, one will born in the animal’s realms.
If it is mid middle amount, hungry ghost realms. And if it is a large amount, then in the hell realms. And so now to third is to think about discarding this. So the nonvirtuous deeds, which means actions created by the three poisons, the desire, hatred, and ignorance. By indulging this, the ultimately, one will be fall in the lower realms and temporarily also that one will have all the undesirable things, all the bad things.
So, therefore, even it if it meant costing one’s life, that one should never indulge in these non-virtuous things, and make a very strong will not to indulge in the non virtuous deeds. And then the third thing, then to think about the virtuous deeds also has the three parts, to think about its nature, its result, and then to think about performing it. The first nature of the the ten virtuous deeds means the opposite of the ten non virtuous deeds without desire, without hatred, without ignorance that to abstain from killing, to abstain from killing, to abstain from sexual misconduct, etcetera, that if one abstains from these ten nonvirtuous deeds and remains in the practice of the virtuous deeds is the the ten virtuous deeds. And their result then to second thing is to think about their result is that there are also temporary results and ultimate result. Temporary result is by performing the ten virtuous deeds that one will have all the opposite of the the ten non virtuous deeds results, such as like a long life, healthy life, prosperity, harmony, peace, happiness within your family, with you within your life partners, to hear, to become famous, to to have many friends, the clear the sound organs, and that people believes you and fulfills your wishes, becomes fearless and becomes fearless and hold the right views.
Will have a chance to hold the right views. And the ultimate result is that depending on the amount that you perform, that one will have a Shravakahood and Pratyekabuddhahood and ultimate enlightenment. If it is a small amount, Shravakahood, medium amount, Pratyekabuddhahood, and if it is a large, then to attain the ultimate enlightenment. And then to think about this that by indulging, by performing the ten virtuous deeds that not only one will get all the wishes, all the good things, all the things that people wish to have in temporarily and then ultimately that one will be able to free from the lower realms, the fear of the lower realms and the fear of the saṃsāra. And so therefore, one should try to practice perform the ten virtuous deeds even if it is a small amount as accumulation of drops can create a lake source in this way that one should try to perform the virtuous deeds.
And then the third kind is called the indifferent actions. That also has to think about its nature. And to think about its nature and to think about that it’s a result resultless, and to transform these indifferent actions into the virtuous state. So the first indifferent action the nature of the indifferent action means the actions that are not created the indifferent actions, not created by the defilements, not created by the defilements, such as like eating, walking, working, etcetera. And the second is to think about their result.
Although their since they do not create any sufferings, they are far better than the nonvirtuous deeds. But since they do not produce any positive result that all your time is sort of wasting and useless, so one must transform these into the virtuous deeds. And the third thing is to transform this perform to transform this in different actions to virtuous deeds by changing the motivation. For example, when one is eating, if one thinks that there are many germs, many worms in