Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 48-minute commentary, Khensur Rinpoche pivots the Lamrim series from concern with this life to concern with future lives, opening with Tsongkhapa’s verse that reflecting on karma and cyclic suffering will reverse attachment even toward future rebirths. He draws on Atisha’s blunt reply to a Tibetan lama — that acting solely for this life’s happiness leads to rebirth as a hell being, hungry ghost, or animal — to drive home the urgency of expanding one’s vision. The session traces the three levels of practitioners (narrow, middling, and vast perspective), explaining why even a fortunate human rebirth is saturated with suffering and how that recognition builds a genuine drive for liberation rather than merely a better next life. Practical guidance on setting a skillful morning motivation is woven in. The talk closes by introducing karma as cause and result, using the seed-and-sprout image as an entry point.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 23 3PA 1993 08 31.mp3
UUID: d2f3cc27-c24b-4d79-a466-553cf687ba65
Teacher: Khensur Rinpoche
Collection: 3 Principal Aspects of the Path (Khensur Rinpoche)
Date: 1993-08-31
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 48.5 minutes
Words: ~3,162
So according to the text by Tsongkhapa, The Three Principal Aspects of the Path, where he says, If you think again and again about the deeds and their inevitable effects and the sufferings of cyclic existence, the emphasis on the appearance of future lives will be reversed. So we are discussing the three fundamentals of the path, and the first of which is the determination to awaken. And as a means to develop this determination to awaken, there is the previous discussions which were designed in discussing leisure and fortune and the impermanence in terms of death to reprioritize in terms of this life. Next, the verse we’re going to begin to discuss will help us to reprioritize in terms of future lives. So we explained explained we discussed extensively the way to to reverse our priorities in terms of this life.
So in the the extensive discussion previously in terms of the way in which we reverse our priorities in terms of our present life. If we were to say, well, is the essence of that discussion? And to simply briefly set out its meaning. It is firstly that this human life that we possess in terms of its leisures and fortunes, it has great meaning and is extremely difficult to find. What is it that we want to be happy?
What is it we don’t want? We don’t want to suffer. And it is specifically human life, the type of embodiment which we all possess, which is the basis for bringing, for implementing the methods whereby to achieve the end that we want. There is no more qualified basis than the basis we possess in terms of a human embodiment which is able to bring about this end. Therefore we must make use of it.
Great meaning of a human life and its difficulty in finding, we may think that there is no immediate necessity to accomplish our purposes which depend upon such a unusual basis, unusual basis, a human embodiment. But this is why it is next presented that this human life is impermanent. That is to say that we are going to die. And we simply do not know when. So we have accomplish the meaning of a human embodiment.
It must be accomplished now. Because we don’t know when we’re going to die. And if upon having died, having once died, died, and not having accomplished our purpose, then we will not only there is a great possibility of not only finding not finding happiness, but in fact finding a major suffering in the future. So therefore it is it is said that it’s extremely important to not to have attachments solely for this happiness of this life and begin to practice skillful actions and abandon unskillful ones. What would be the result if we were able to practice in this fashion as described?
Upon our death we we would take rebirth in fortunate realm as opposed to an unfortunate realm. So we we then, having reprioritized in terms of our present life and considering the welfare of future existences, we then go on to reverse priorities toward future lives. And this is done, as it mentions in the text, thinking again and again about actions and their infallible results. So this involves the explanation of karma as actions and their results. And then considering the sufferings of cyclic existence, in that we’re continually born in cyclic existence again and again and again.
And that within this cyclic process we undergo continual suffering. We are continually undergoing the the cyclic process of birth, aging, disease, and death birth, aging, disease, and death. And and we begin we should reflect upon the suffering nature of this process. So what in terms of the graduated path, what has been explained up to the present is the graduated path of the being of narrow perspective. Now what is going to be explained is the graduated path in terms of the being of middling perspective.
So as was mentioned up to now we have been discussing the graduated path in terms of the being of narrow perspective. And out of this narrow perspective, that is to say, having a limited vision, there there one involves oneself in limited types of practices, bringing about limited types of results. The being of middling perspective expands in terms of their vision. They they have a middling vision of the nature of their situation, and therefore they engage in a moderate type of practice, bringing about moderate results, middling types of results. On the other hand, those of vast vision, those of great perspective having a vast vision, this involves them in vast practices bringing about extremely vast results.
So the being of narrow perspective has, through reversing their priorities in terms of this life, freed themselves from attachment to the happiness solely of this life. And engages in various methods whereby upon their death, they will take a human rebirth in the future, will, and a human rebirth which will possess the necessities of livelihood, they will have companions and material necessities. For those who have not not listened to the Dharma previously, those who have not trained their mind and spiritual practices, their entire thinking is involved in solely in the happiness of this life. And therefore, they implement the means to achieve that happiness and there and they as a result they achieve only the happiness in this life. On the other hand, those who have listened to the Dharma have meditated on it again and again thinking about what has thus far been explained begin to practice in the ways that we’ve been talking about.
So there occurs in this process of listening a change in the way that we think. Thus far, if those who have not involved themselves in the process of listening and practice, they think only in terms of happiness of this life, and therefore they enact various activities to accomplish only the happiness of this life. But in fact the duration of this life is extremely short and having only implemented those methods which will bring happiness to this life, then upon their death they have achieved nothing for in terms of their future life. So one of the greatest of Indian masters, Atisha, he was a great practitioner and he was also one of the first composers of the genre of texts called the Lamrim or the Graduated Path to Awakening. He was invited to Tibet and upon journeying to Tibet he was asked by a lama the following question: If one engages in activities solely for the purpose of happiness of this life, what will be the result?
And having been asked that question, Atisha answered, one will, as a result of engaging in this So the lama asked that question as I just mentioned, that if one engages in activities solely for the happiness of this life, what will be the result? And Atisha answered saying that one will accomplish the happiness despite having engaged in those activities. And then but what will be and the further question was asked, but what will be the happen having done that upon this individual’s death? What will be the results for future lives? And Atisha answered that such a person will be reborn either as a hell being, as a hungry ghost, or as an animal.
Therefore, there’s great danger. So there’s great danger involved and as this is the same thought that Mañjuśrī put forth when he said if one is attached to this life one is not a spiritual practitioner. So these are the teachings of Śākyamūni Buddha. Though, you know, it was Atisha who first made use of these labels in terms of the being of narrow perspective, the being of middling perspective, the being of vast perspective. The Buddha didn’t particularly use these nomenclatures, these names, these labels, but he still spoke in the same manner toward these different levels of students.
He said when he first taught the Dharma, when he addressed himself to those who were of narrow perspective, he said, Don’t be attached only to this life. Consider your future lives. And in having said that, he went on to give them various practices so that they could implement that thought that he was trying to get across to them. To those who had a vaster vision in terms of their practice, who had a middling perspective, he said, Well, don’t just consider the happiness of future lives, but consider it to be, consider liberation. And he went on to give them teachings in accordance with that particular attitude of mind.
And, but he, for those who had a vaster vision of spiritual practice, he said, Don’t just think of liberation yourself alone, but think about being liberated as a means to bring about the welfare of all others. And therefore he went on to present the methods whereby that particular level of practitioner could implement that teaching in terms of the graduated path of being a vast perspective, a means whereby we generate compassion and then go on to achieve liberation as a way of helping others to do the same. So in general, ordinary people are are very much the same. But we can begin to distinguish them in one way we can begin to differentiate them is in terms of those who have listened to the Dharma and those who have not. Those who have not listened to the Dharma teachings are completely wrapped up in their thinking of the happiness of this life.
They give no thought to future happiness beyond this life. And but someone who has listened to Dharma considers this as as being disadvantageous in that by completely being completely devoting ourselves to only the happiness of this life, then this will this is not going to bring about a desirable type of result. Why? Because though we may experience happiness in this life, in the future we will experience rebirth as a hell being or a a hungry ghost or as an animal. Therefore, this doesn’t bring about the type of result that such a person would want.
On the contrary, this person begins to think, Well, I’m not going to completely overlook the happiness of this life, but have to I’m not going to completely devote myself to the happiness of this life. I’m going to begin to measure out both the means that I implement to find happiness in this life and in future lives. So one begins to think in terms, well, half of my activities devoted to the happiness of this life and half of my activities devoted to finding happiness in my future life. So between these two, those who have listened to the teachings of the Dharma and those who have not, there’s a difference that though they are in general similar, their ways of thinking become different. There’s a difference in the degree and power of their thought.
So, you know, when we when we wake up in the morning, we should try to set some sort of skillful motivation for ourselves. Try to develop a vast vision of why you’re going to do what you’re going to do over the course of your day. Develop a motivation to benefit yourself and all living beings, not only now but in the future. Out of that motivation, then you can practice your meditation and then having done that, then go on to earn your livelihood to do whatever work it is that you do over the course of the day. Then coming home in the evening, can wash and then reestablish some motivation in order to benefit oneself and others in the the future, again engage in meditation.
And in this way one brings about the purposes of not only this life but also a future life. So if we if we act in this way, then we will have few difficulties over the course of this life. We will be happy, but also through our meditational practice, we will eliminate future difficulties for ourselves in the future. And therefore we by adopting such a lifestyle, we gain both types of wealth happiness for ourselves present and future lives. So those who have experienced the Dharma and listened to the Dharma there arises this different way of looking at the world and thinking.
As one one begins to expand one’s vision, the proportion of time spent in for directed at the accomplishing happiness of this life becomes less and the amount of effort toward future happiness increases. And as one’s efforts become predominantly directed towards future lives, one’s future happiness grows that much greater. So it is in this way that we begin to place less emphasis on this life that we reverse our priorities, that we begin to reduce our attachment and this is the way our spiritual practice proceeds. So through implementing such a practice, we can assure that in our future of birth will be that of a human. But moreover, that we will meet with a lama who will teach the unerring unmistaken Dharma.
And by implementing the practice of Dharma, that we can we will be able to achieve liberation. But even over and above that, if we were to cultivate the awakening heart and realization of emptiness, we could enter into the universal vehicle and become a bodhisattva. But over and above that, if we were to, in that very life, engage in the practice of the secret mantra, we could achieve Buddhahood. So this is the possible benefits which are possible within future life. So if we think of it in terms of this, that through our activities of this life that we can provide all of the necessary conditions in the future such that we can bring about this tremendous result, then we can begin to appreciate how greatly useful our present life is.
So there is an increase in the perspective from that of the being of narrow perspective to that of the being of middling perspective. That this being not only is not attached to the happiness of this life but in fact is not attached even to the happiness of future lives, seeing it as dissatisfactory because it is bound by cyclic existence. Wishes, develops the motivation to be liberated completely from cyclic existence altogether and therefore engages in appropriate practices to that aim. Those practices of the higher training in ethics, higher training in meditative stabilizations, and the higher training in wisdom bringing about our results, a result of the abandonment of cyclic existence and the happiness of liberation. So, the being of middling perspective is not attached to the happiness of future lives what to say of this life.
That such an individual sees that any type of happiness within cyclic existence is not stable and therefore that such a type of happiness is not satisfactory. Wanting to be completely liberated from such a situation develops the striving for liberation. So we should reflect on the on the fact that though we might not be attached to the happiness of this life, when we begin to involve ourselves in skillful actions whereby in a future life we again attain a human life. But that human life is going to be very much the same type of human life as we presently have in this life. And all of the sufferings that we have to undergo in our present human embodiment, we are going to have to undergo in that future human embodiment.
Embodiment. All the sufferings such as aging birth aging, diseases and death, I mean, are all sufferings, aren’t they? And all the various other types of sufferings that humans have to undergo, the various fears, the anxieties and the sicknesses that we experience. These again are going to have to be experienced even in a future human embodiment. So there there is an increase in our understanding of the nature of our situation from, you know, considering the fact that even if in through not being attached to the happiness of this life, involving ourselves in skillful action to ensure a fortunate migration in the future.
But even in such a situation, the possible unfortunate migration or a fortunate migration, you know, we don’t need to even mention the sufferings of unfortunate migration. Even if were to look at a fortunate migration such as that of a human being, there is still a great deal of suffering even in a fortunate migration of rebirth as that of a human being. It is in fact in the nature of suffering. So one begins to see that one develops an attachment one begins to cut through attachment even to future happinesses in such a situation that one there’s an increase in one’s perspective and the development of a greater wisdom with respect to our situation. And one develops a disinclination even to take a happy rebirth within cyclic existence in the future.
So, Tsongkhapa sets out the means whereby we can cut through our attachment even for the for the happiness of future lives which is done up to now in terms of present lives. And these he sets out in the verse, if if you think think again and again about the deeds and the inevitable effects and the sufferings of cyclic existence, then the priorities will be reversed even toward future lives. So we begin to think that even the marvelous happinesses of possible future lives, in fact, have no no essence. They’re not stable. That there’s some kind of defect.
In fact, they’re not real happiness. And and in this way, we begin to abandon attachment even for the marvels of the possible marvels of future happinesses and we develop a mind which strives for liberation. So how are we to cultivate the means whereby to abandon attachment even toward future lives? And this is as initially set out. We begin to consider deeds and their inevitable effects.
This is or as I translate it, actions as results as actions as causes and the results. So there is the actions as causes and the results. This is a case of a larger consideration, the law of cause and effect. So there is the vast area of thought called the law of cause and effect and a specific instance of that is actions as cause and their results. The generality, the general law of cause and effect is simply played out in terms of a a there is a an agent which acts as a cause, bringing about a specific effect.
For example, if we plant a seed, then a sprout arises or a plant arises. Maybe it’s wheat, barley, it could be fruit, or whatever. This is the way functional phenomena operate in terms arising of an effect from a cause. This is the general law of cause.