Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. Using a vivid analogy — all the Buddhas convening to declare bodhicitta the supreme practice, just as ministers from every country might conclude money is the world’s greatest prize — Khensur Rinpoche builds the case for why bodhicitta is the heart of Dharma. In this 106-minute Lamrim commentary, he outlines the sevenfold cause-and-effect method: recognizing all beings as one’s mother, recalling their kindness, repaying it, generating love, great compassion, and special wish, with bodhicitta as the result. The practical centerpiece is equanimity as a prerequisite — without it, compassion stays partial: we grieve for friends, feel satisfied at an enemy’s pain, ignore strangers entirely. He closes with encouragement to Buddha House students in the FPMT basic program, noting that study alone plants imprints that can ripen across future lives.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 03 LR 2000 02 15.mp3
UUID: 268a02e9-daeb-4c78-9151-830f6618ea27
Teacher: Khensur Rinpoche
Collection: Lam Rim (Khensur Rinpoche)
Date: 2000-02-15
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 106.0 minutes
Words: ~4,274
We’ll first set our motivation We should proceed our practice by developing a love and compassion, thinking that wishing that all both oneself and others sentient beings be free from all the sufferings and their causes and then develop a love to have happiness and happiness and causes of happiness for both oneself and others. It is also very necessary to develop a special insight upon love and compassion through taking all the responsibility on oneself to elevate all the sentient beings from the sufferings and bring them to the state of ultimate happiness. And taking that special insight as a basis should should work work work for work to attain enlightenment for the sake of all sentient beings or to free all the sentient beings from the sufferings and bring them to the state of ultimate happiness. For that purpose here, one should practice to eliminate all the negativities and faults of oneself, which offsets liberating enlightenment. So, should have the motivation here in order to fill in order to fulfill those wishes are still here, listen to this teaching, contemplate and meditate upon this teaching.
So we’ll do a short meditation on this motivation. So this teaching, the Lam Rim teaching has been a graduated path towards enlightenment. The name of the teaching, Lam Rim, derived or comes from the great Indian master called the great master Atisha. He, in order to cultivate the bodhicitta altruistic intention, he traveled to Indonesia to receive the teachings from the great master Serlingpa and by receiving by taking he took numbers of teachings from the great master Serlingpa and after his teachings, he meditated upon to meditate to cultivate bodhicitta for twelve years and after twelve years he’d been so after twelve years of meditation, he finally generated or developed a bodhicitta and then sent forth to India and Tibet and gave numbers of teachings on bodhicitta. So here, the teaching here is the Lam Rim teaching and within the Lam Rim teaching, we are giving the teaching on the great scope, the third chapter, recognizing the sufferings.
So firstly said that he has realized the sufferings by checking or taking, making investigation or examining upon himself and by taking in various, through various door, by checking how many sufferings he face physically or mentally and also the sufferings he face from like suffering of not completing or not accomplishing one wish even by even by even by hard works and also the suffering of not accomplishing one’s wishes just by itself. Through various points of checking himself in doors, he recognized where I see the self in. And by through this investigation, one will understand, one will come to know that how or what makes one happy and unhappy. So by knowing that one has a suffering, whenever one faces the problems or sufferings, one realizes that one is very unhappy and if one has no suffering, one is happy. And also by examining oneself, one will also one can understand like oneself, the other person is also same as oneself that’s not happy when he or she faces the problem or has a suffering and they’re all happy when there’s no suffering.
And then, Through this investigation, he realizes that he himself is a single person and other sentient beings or even other humans greater in numbers compared to himself. By applying this investigation towards others, he came to know that all these sentient beings are saying it’s oneself that they are happy when there is no suffering and they are unhappy when there is suffering. So not only the humans there. So the humans are boundless as well. They’re like like human beings.
Like human beings, the animals are also in are are also innumerable and they are same as us, wanting happiness. They are same as us, happy when there is no suffering and they are unhappy when suffering is there. And then through this investigation, then one came to realize that one is just a single and other sentient beings are innumerable and they are yeah, innumerable. So by knowing they are same as oneself wishing happiness that do not want suffering. And this teaching of Mahayano is like a like a democratic teaching or a democracy country that that because the other sentient beings are more in number than oneself.
They are majority. They want the the per per person consider the more number the greater number consider more important than the lesser of oneself. So even in this world, everyone considers the majority number is more important than the lesser one. For likewise, even Buddhist teachings, they consider the greater the number, the majority is more important than the lesser minority. So as sentient beings, the others are greater or innumerable and more than oneself in Mahayan attention, they consider the others more important than oneself and work for the benefits or happiness for others, for the majority.
So in the Mahāyāna teaching or Mahāyāna practitioners, they they consider others more important in oneself, and and and they they are willingly to take a burden of all a burden to to to take this burden of to take this burden of freeing all these sentient beings from the suffering or separating them from suffering and bring them to the and let them have or attain the the attain the ultimate happiness or the the your happiness, the happiness is not a contaminated or simple enjoyment. Here, the happiness is the ultimate happiness or it’s the Buddhahood or unchangeable stability happiness. And so this is how the Mahāyāna teaching is set forth, and whenever one has developed such a mind within oneself, this is the beginning, that is the sign or it’s the beginning of generating the path of Mahāyāna or great scope within one’s mind stream. And so a person, a practitioner who has developed such a mind is called the person of great perspective. And whenever the person has this perspective or a mind within the person, then the person is considered to be the practitioner of great scope and he or she is being called the person of great scope.
Whoever has such a broad perspective or a mind within the mind stream, then all those advantages or the qualities of the bodhicitta which we have set forth in the last are generating or being and will be developed within that person. So the bodhicitta is, within the Dharma, there have been many kinds of teachings, the various teachings in the Dharma, and within the teachings of Dharma, the bodhicitta is like the gist of the Dharma and it has the most benefits and it’s the most powerful Dharma or practice and also it has the most powerful effect or result. So it is like in the olden days, the bodhicitta is like a king of the region or king of the place, because the king is the head and he’s the most powerful, and I don’t know, he says it could be a prime minister. If we demonstrate an example here or analogy, it’s like the ministers of all the countries together for a conference and making a discussion about what is or what is the most important things in this world, And they will probably conclude by saying that, Oh, the money is the most important.
And as they have met and they make the conclusion, and then you can see that all the people, all countries will work so hard day and night, morning and evening, whole twenty four hours to make a huge amount of money. So here, the great master, Śāntideva, has said It’s the equivalent of that analogy we have just demonstrated. Śāntideva is set forth. There have been numbers of Buddhas and this is not the only Buddha, this is the Buddha of our era and there have been numbers of Buddha and once all the Buddhas had got together and had a meeting and they talked to have discussion about the practice and within the practice, what is the most benefit and the most gist of the practice or the most important of the practice or within the practice. The conclusion was made that within the Dharma, the bodhicitta is the gist of the Dharma and it’s also the most powerful, most effective practice or Dharma.
As the medical conditions and this is the reason. Since then, the great Mahāyāna practitioners worked so hard to develop this bodhicitta. So, the bodhicitta is a very effective practice and it is the gist of the practice of Dharma and it itself has lots of qualities within the bodhicitta. Therefore, here we should try very hard to try and seeking the method and the path to develop this bodhicitta. In order to develop a bodhicitta, there have been two sets of path, the method and path to cultivate a bodhicitta, and those the method and path, as I said, the two sets: the one’s been set forth by the great master, Chowje Pandita Atisha, and then another one is from Śāntideva.
So as we said, there’s been two sets of patterned methods or skillful means to cultivate the bodhicitta and there is no differences in those parts and the skillful means and if one wants to practice, you can practice any of those and both are suitable to cultivate the bodhicitta. But there is a reason why the different teachers set forth the different path and skillful means to cultivate the bodhicitta. There is a difference in there is a difference because the path and the wisdoms or skillful path and skillful means set forth by the great master Atisha was set forth in the audience or within his teaching, in a very vast audience. Those are the two sets of paths and skillful means to cultivate the bodhicitta. There are no differences within those in order to cultivate the bodhicitta, but the difference is, as we said, the great master Atisha set forth his path in the form of a very vast audience whereas the path and the skillful means set forth by Śāntideva is a method and skillful means to secretly cultivate the bodhicitta and it was more profound for that reason.
So the path and skillful means set forth by the great master Śāntideva was not really set forth in a big audience. It has been considered more profound and more secret and only taught for the person with a very sharp faculty or very intelligent or to a very enthusiastic student. So, it is like a policy of the world or just for one country. So there are some information or some news of the country which are set forth in public or in public sight. And whereas some of the informations about the country are meant to be very confidential and kept secret.
So likewise, in the teachings, some teachings are set forth in a general audience, whereas some others are meant to be are a bit more profound and they are kept to be very secretly and been practiced by the person who has very sharp faculty or very intelligent students. So here, first we will we shall here deal with the imparting the wisdom to cultivate the bodhicitta set forth by the great master Atisha. And so, the method and the path set forth by great master Atisha was called the way of cultivating the bodhicitta done by training in the sevenfold cause and effects, which means there are six causes and the results which becomes sevenfold cause and effects. So we’ll go through the sevenfold cause and effects instructions and as we said, there are six causes and results, one result, so we’ll go through all the seventh and it would be good if you can take the notes. So the first of the six causes, the first one is the first cause is recognizing all sentient beings as your mother.
Second cause is recalling their kindness. Third is repaying their kindness. And the fourth one is appealing love. And the fifth is great compassion. And sixth is special wish or special insight.
And these six causes, these are the six causes which are the causes to cultivate the bodhicitta. And the seventh, which is the result, the result is the actual altruistic intention of bodhicitta. Yes, the seventh is the bodhicitta which is the result of those all six causes and then the Buddha, and if you go to the reverse order or vice versa, say the Buddha is the result and where does the Buddha come from? The Buddha comes from bodhisattva, so that shows that bodhisattva is also a cause. So therefore and also the the without bodhicitta or in order to in order to overcome all the negativities of oneself and perfected the both purposes of self and others or one has to have a bodhicitta.
Without bodhicitta, one cannot complete or perfect both the purposes which are self and purposes of serving others. So here we are going through the reverse order. So in order to so the so in order to develop a bodhicitta, one one one needs to have a special insight or a special wish. Without special insight, one cannot have one will not develop a bodhicitta. So the special insight becomes a cause for bodhicitta.
So, In order to develop a special insight, the generation of the great compassion should be preceded before developing a special insight. Without having a great compassion, one will not have or develop a special insight. And then the appealing love, which is number four, is the cause for the great compassion. Without it, the great compassion will not be developed or generated. Without developing a third which is repaying their kindness, one will not generate an appealing love.
In order to repay their kindness, one should understand or develop or one should recall their kindness. Without knowing or without recalling their kindness, one won’t repay their kindness. In order to develop or recall their kindness, one should recognize them or see them as one’s mother. Without recognizing them as one’s mother, one will not recall their kindness. Once you see them or recognize them as one’s mother, it is because within the dear ones, among the dear ones, mother is the only one who has shown the great benefits and great help to you. So by knowing, this is how one should see them as one’s mother because she has shown the greatest kindness towards you and seeing and by recognizing or seeing them as one’s mother, then one will know the kindness or recall the kindness of the mother or their kindness, how they have shown a lot.
Yeah, kindness which they have shown to you. So when we say to see them as one’s mother or recognize, recognize as a mother, it doesn’t mean that once you recognize them as one’s mother, it is pretty sure no one has a doubt to recognize their present life present mother. So recognize here, recognize as a mother or recognize a mother, which means that it doesn’t mean to recognize one’s present mother. It means that one should recognize all entire sentient beings as one’s mother.
So so you should see all the sentient entire sentient beings as as one’s mother. And why the reason why it has that sentient beings seeing sentient beings as one’s mother because, as we said, that within the day ones, I mean, we are the the the the present mother has been considered to be to be the most great or the great has given you the the greatest benefits and the greatest help in this life. Likewise, because of that, this present life, one is considered it’s accounted as the person who has shown the great help greatest help in your life or this present life. And due to that, within so within the day, once once one is one consider that mother is the best or the best relative or or or best among the friends or best among the relatives or best among the family. So so likewise, for that reason, we have set forth that the sentient beings should see sentient beings, all sentient beings as one’s mother.
And in in the in in Tibetan and the Indian culture and some of the some of the ancient cultures, they consider the mother as a very holy and a very important person in one’s life. But in the west or in Australia, I’m not quite sure. Very much sure there are some people who really consider one’s mother as the most important and very special person in one’s life, but I have a doubt about the majority of how they feel about the present for their mom or their mother. So for that reason, sometimes I feel a bit, say, a bit difficult explaining about this explaining this topic about the mom the mom one’s mother being so kind and so forth. So I have given this teaching many times in the past, and some people, they don’t like the situation.
My mom is not good. To me. So and yeah. Yeah. Excuse But for for for for some people, it is possible that that they don’t like their their mother. It is it could be it could be the reason that they they don’t know how to how that they they don’t understand how one’s mother has shown a kindness to oneself.
Or or it could be it could be it could be it could be that they or it could be that they’ve been not well looked after by them their mother when they were young. So so that that the reason is that they don’t recall or they don’t understand how one’s mother has how their mother has shown a great help and kindness to them and what can recall is only the harms or slight harms which are caused by their mother and that harm becomes stronger help or kindness and due to that, or no, excuse me, due to that they start disliking their mother. So in order to see them or recognize those sentient beings as one’s mother, it is very important to cultivate equanimity before recognizing them as one’s mother. So here today, I shall go briefly on how to cultivate equanimity.
And not only that, even in the west, the people really love to meditate or cultivate a compassion towards the sentient beings. So in order to develop a proper compassion, it’s also very important or necessary to cultivate equanimity. Without developing cultivating equanimity, one will not be able to cultivate a compassion. Without cultivating equanimity, one will not cultivate a great compassion or a proper compassion because if one cultivates compassion without cultivating equanimity, then the compassion which one developed will become a very discriminative compassion or very partial ones.
So in order to develop a compassion, one should develop a proper or a good compassion that pervades entire sentient beings without any discrimination. In order to have that or develop that, one needs to cultivate equanimity. So without equanimity, one will not develop a great compassion or proper compassion. It is because we always cultivate or develop compassion all the time. But when we checked about our compassion, where we develop compassion, we almost develop compassion for our dear ones or we are able to develop a compassion for the dear ones because one’s relatives or dear ones are very appealing and always see them as very appealing.
Due to that, can develop compassion. Whereas the enemies and for neutral person, For example, for the enemy, one sees them as unappealing due to this. One cannot develop compassion as well as we can’t as well as one cannot develop a proper or one cannot develop compassion for the neutral person. It is reason, it is because we haven’t cultivated the equanimity yet. You understand this through your own personal experiences.
For example, when you see one of your dear ones is suffering or in a huge It’s suffering or going through a very traumatic time. During that time, you always get worried and feel on saying, I’m so sorry for you, and so and so. You’ve been distracted and feeling very sad, that shows your compassion. Whereas for one’s enemy, you would rather say, Oh, that’s great. You deserve this.
Also, one’s wishing he or him or her to have even more I mean, gradual suffering than they are undergoing. For a neutral person, you won’t care or you don’t care about other people. Whether the person is happy or is undergoing true suffering or how bad the person is, you don’t just take notice. I don’t really care So, the fault of making discriminations between or within the dear ones, enemies, and the neutral person, comes due to not having developed a great equanimity. So any compassion you develop without equanimity will become a very discriminative compassion, which won’t pervade all the entire sentient beings.
That compassion won’t become a proper great compassion and it won’t become a cause to cultivate the bodhicitta. If you demonstrate an example here, it’s like an artist or someone who wants to draw something on a ground on a particular surface. In order to draw a very good drawing or proper drawing on the ground, first the person, the ground has to be very, very clean and very smooth and flat. In order to draw a very good drawing without having a proper ground or a very flat and smooth ground, one cannot draw very nicely on that particular ground. Or take example of the fields.
In order to in the field, in order to cultivate a very good crops, well, one has to it’s good to it’s very important to have a very fertile and and and a very good soil. And if if if that field is consist of consist consists of lots of rocks and bad grass and other very good bad substances and not very fertile soil, then be sure that one will not a very good one cannot cultivate very good crops from that field. So we’ll stop our class here today, and I would like to express something other than the text teaching now. And and yes. So FPMT central office has set up basic programs in entire centers.
Now the Buddha House has implemented or has already begun the basic study program at the center, and I was very pleased and happy to know that the basic program has been attended by many students. And I thank for those who has who attain enlightenment the basic programs, and and I would advise here too, so you have already joined you have joined the basic programs, and please continue with your effort. And you shall fully understand what you study, and the the teachings or studies you do will be very will be very helpful and and also will be very helpful in the future to have a clear and proper understanding of the teachings as well as to avoid the doubts about teachings. So by studying and to yet to by doing practice studying, it’s very helpful. If not only just by study, if you implement all those teachings you have or the text you have studied into practice.
If you put all this into practice, then one can be able to lead a very meaningful life. But still there is a benefit, even if by studying this, even if one fails to put them into practices. But through going through investigation or studying the text, one will eventually leave a very good predisposition or good imprint within one’s mind stream. So one will leave very good imprints within oneself. And for the best, those imprints can ripen within this life, and one will attain great qualities, very vast profound qualities within this lifetime.
Even even if one fails to to generally cultivate a good or cultivate a good knowledge within this life, one has so a seed of the great knowledge within one’s mind. In the future lives, Whenever one meets with the teaching, and that meeting of your teaching will become like meeting of water and the seed, and one can easily and then and one can one cultivate a great knowledge very instantly or without any difficulty. And just by leaving an imprint or sowing a seed of great knowledge within one’s mind, one can also hope to attain arhathood, bodhisattvahood, or become a bodhisattva or a Buddha in the next life.
So this is the way all the Buddhist arhats have attained arhathood, Buddhahood, bodhisattvahood in the past. It’s not like they jumped on a certain level and reached that level. They became arhat or Buddha or bodhisattva by leaving a very good imprints of Dharma in one’s mind in previous lives. And in a certain life, they ripen their imprints and they attained arhathood or Buddhahood. So and yeah. This time, it’s very, very hot summer in Australia, and and and we have it is quite hard to be or attain enlightenment class in this kind of weather.
It’s very hot and a bit of a struggle, but we still, you still come here to receive the teachings. So you still come for the teachings and disregarding all those difficulties. By doing such effort, it’s been very helpful to be sure that through attending the class with such hard work, one purifies or one cultivates the numbers of virtues or positive actions and abandons the negativities or non-virtues.