Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. How do you develop compassion for someone who looks perfectly happy? Khensur Rinpoche’s answer — reason that they carry the same karmic seeds as a visibly sick person and will eventually ripen suffering — is a concrete technique at the heart of this 101-minute Lamrim session. He is midway through the sevenfold cause-and-effect method for generating bodhicitta, covering immeasurable joy and its four aspects before turning to love, compassion, and special insight as the minds that fulfil others’ purposes. The sequence is anchored with an agricultural image: equanimity as fertile soil, love as rain, compassion as seed, bodhicitta as sprout. A Śāntideva quote closes the formal teaching — wisdom without enthusiasm is like a corpse — followed by Q&A including a question on whether Christ qualifies as an enlightened being.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 11 LR 2000 03 21.mp3
UUID: 7e185661-a2c5-4563-ac8e-550a85c59b70
Teacher: Khensur Rinpoche
Collection: Lam Rim (Khensur Rinpoche)
Date: 2000-03-21
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 101.0 minutes
Words: ~5,153
So, we’ll first set our motivation then follow it by doing short meditation for one or two minutes. So in the previous classes, we have Previous class classes, we have we did meditation on equanimity, love, and compassion. Now here, we’ll go briefly towards the limitless joy from the four immeasurables. So we we do meditation and the purpose of meditation is to attain any of those two attainments, which are the higher rebirths and the definite goodness. And higher rebirths refers towards the the rebirth of human and god among the six realms.
And, Then the definite goodness of attaining liberation free from cyclic existence and the enlightenment, the ultimate goal. So, among these, we first attain the higher rebirths and after that we attain the definite goodness. So, and if one attains the attain any of those two, those two, the definite goodness and the higher rebirths by attaining that they are huge happiness one attains by attaining those two. And by knowing this and understanding or knowing other peep the person, people who have attains $2ny of those two rebirths have have have a greater happiness than the lower rebirths. So by knowing this, rejoicing for their attainment is is called the the the cultivating or yeah, cultivating a joy or or or yeah.
Cultivating a joy. So, likewise, the each immeasurables, the equanimity, love, and compassion has four aspects. The immeasurable joy also has four aspects. When one does the meditation on the immeasurable joy, I should do of with with the four aspects. So first, thinking that by focusing on the person who has attained any of those two good results, the the definite goodness and the ultimate, So definite goodness and the higher rebirth, and now focusing on those persons by rejoicing and thinking the first one, which is wishing them not to separate from their attainment.
And the second one is making aspirational prayers that may they not be parted from their achievement. And the third one is the special one is with a special insight, thinking that I will take all the responsibility that they will not be separated from their attainment. And the last one is making praise towards the the enlightened beings that and requesting them to that the person being blessed so that they they so that they will not be separate from their attainments. Separate from their attainments? So doing the meditation, what one what one does is one one does the meditation by with along with this, you know, with in this way, thinking that may all sentient beings will not be separated from the achievements or or may they not be separated from wishing wishing wishing all sentient beings not be free not be separated from higher rebirth and the definite goodness and and and making aspirational prayer making prayers that prayers for them not to be separate from those results and taking all responsibility to that that you will not let them separated yeah.
Be free from all those results and and requesting enlightened beings to that to bless all sentient beings not to be free from the definite goodness and higher rebirth. So in order to accomplish all those wishes and prayers as well as special insight, I shall hear I shall hear I shall hear perform this meditation to to to to to purify all the negativities and attain the good qualities. The numbers of the periods are at the back So, in the last teachings, we have been given teaching on how to cultivate bodhicitta or altruistic intention through the sevenfold causes and effect instructions. So among those, we have finished the the the cultivating limitless equanimity, recognizing sentient beings as your mother, remembering their kindness, repaying their kindness, and cultivating affection affectionate love or appealing love. So, as for the to generate bodhicitta or altruistic intention, one needs to cultivate two types of mind, which are the mind to accomplish others’ purposes and the self purposes.
The teachings which we have given up from the cultivating limitless equanimity till the appealing love, doing meditation on those, or the method of of cultivating or cultivating that to develop a mind which accomplishes the other’s purposes? So, are the causes to develop a mind which accomplishes the other’s purposes. And the result of those are the mind which accomplishes others’ purposes, which are love, compassion, and special insight. So how does love, compassion, and special insight becomes a mind which fulfills the other’s purposes? It is through this way that, for example, it is through this way, instance, it’s the love.
The love is the mind which wishes those sentient beings who have no happiness, who lacks happiness. Here, the happiness is not the happiness of living. The happiness refers towards the happiness of liberation, which is free from cyclic existence, and the and unchangeable happiness, which is enlightenment or ultimate happiness. So wishing all those sentient beings who lacks this this this happiness to attain those happiness their causes. Through this way, it becomes the mind which fulfills the others’ purposes.
And the of happiness are the cause for happiness are are in main are in numbers. So the the the ethical discipline of abandoning the ten non virtues the the causes are the ethical discipline of abandoning the ten non virtues, renunciation, and the bodhicitta. Those are the causes happiness. And then how the compassion becomes a mind which fulfills others’ purposes, it is because is because to in order to develop or generate a compassion, first, one needs to think about one’s own suffering and how one undergoes through the suffering by knowing one’s own or recognizing that oneself is going through huge sufferings and wanting oneself to be free from the suffering. And after that, knowing and the compassion is the one which knowing that likewise, like oneself, all other sentient beings are also undergoing through huge sufferings and wishing them to be to wishing them to be free from free from all those sufferings and their causes is is is is the compassion.
And, also, it’s also affection towards sentient beings that can’t bear can’t bear seeing those beings undergoing through suffering and wanted to the wanted wanted them to be free from suffering. And so through this way, it becomes having a the the a love or affection towards sentient beings to be free from. To do to this, the compassion becomes also also become becomes a mind which fulfills the other’s purpose. So, that compassion is the one which wishes all those sentient beings be free from all free from the sufferings and its causes. And about suffering, we have in in the in the last year, during during the teaching of the first chapter of this graduated part, the small scope, we have set forth the sufferings of birth, aging, sickness, as well as suffering of suffering, suffering of change, so forth.
And also, now here, that sentient beings be free from suffering refers to the suffering which comes in the Four Noble Truth, the First Noble Truth, which is the true suffering. And the suffering is is being that suffering is the suffering of pervasive conditioning. And so wishing them to be free from that suffering as and also free from those uncontaminated body. And its causes or their causes, which are the second truth, the origin of the suffering, which is the second truth. Here, the origin of the suffering, which are the causes of the sufferings like the bad actions and disturbing emotions, ignorance, and so forth.
If we go back towards the compassion love, the wishing that all sentient beings have happiness in its causes, If we convert or join this love towards the Four Noble Truths, then that becomes the happiness is third or third of the Four Noble Truths, which is the true cessation. And cessation is the one which sees the sees all the sufferings and attains the ultimate happiness, which are ultimate happiness or unchangeable happiness and happiness being liberation free from cyclic existence and its causes. The cause of that happiness, is the fourth truth, the true path. And and also training in also, like, trainings those three trainings are also the causes for happiness. The training three trainings are the training of ethical discipline, training of both, training of wisdom, and training of of meditative stabilization.
And just just just a mere mere wish of wish just the mere wish of wanting sentient beings to be free from free from all the sufferings and let them and have the happiness. So, that mere wish or the wish of wanting, wondering how wonderful mere wish, which wishes that seeing how wonderful if sentient beings are being free from these sufferings and have happiness, that mere wishes also exist also in the Hīnayāna practitioner or Hīnayāna or the lower vehicles. And for instance, like, take one or oneself as an example. So when when one encounter with a person who is undergoing through huge sufferings or in great difficulty, and at that moment, very instant, you can develop within yourself a wish that that person be free from that suffering and remain happy or have happiness. But those love and compassion are developed by based on recognizing sentient beings as one’s mother, remembering their kindness and repaying their kindness.
The love and compassion developed after developing all those are considered to be much more greater than the love and compassion developed by the practitioner of the solitary realizer in the Hearers schools. So, and the love and love and compassion which we are cultivating here here is is according to the Mahāyāna vehicle Mahāyāna vehicle or or the great vehicle, which is that not just having a mere wish, we also make a resolution at the end that I will take all the responsibility to bring them let them have all the let them have the happiness. And so by having that making that resolution, love you develop becomes more powerful. Likewise, when one develops a compassion, if the compassion has been developed by wishing them to be free from all the sufferings, and I will take the responsibility to bring them out of the suffering. By having those two thoughts, the compassion you develop becomes more powerful.
And then after that, one develops a special insight, and that special insight is being developed by through the power of through the power of making making resolution during the love and compassion that that that that one is making resolution at the time thinking that I will take all the responsibility to bring them out of the suffering and then have the happiness. Based on those two, one develops the special insight. So as for the So for for special insight, there are two types of special insight, special insight of love and compassion. And so during how one developed developed a special insight of love? It is that that by wishing one first wishes how wonderful the sentient beings to have all the happiness and its causes.
And then finally, one makes the resolution that I will take all the responsibility or take all the burdens to sentient beings to have the happiness. That has been done by not leaving it for other people or not seeking help or just doing it by oneself. By developing that, that I will take all the responsibility to take the burden of freeing, to let them have happiness. And through this one develops the special insight of love. So likewise, and during the or during one hour or when one cultivates the compassion and and wishing and making the resolution that I will take all the responsibility to take the burden of of sentient beings to free from all the sufferings Making this one through this, one cultivates the special insight of compassion so they’re not relying upon others.
It doesn’t mean that there are no other sentient beings who take the burden of freeing all the sentient beings out of the suffering. There are others, but one is making a resolution within oneself that not leaving it for others, I will take the burden to free them from sin. Yes, all the suffering. So there are other sentient beings who can take the burden but not leaving it for others, doing oneself. It’s called the special insight of the compassion.
For example, one who works in the office, there are other people who can take you on to it, who can do the work you do. If you wait for the person not relying upon them and not taking or doing your work, that a search and search will do this work for me. Not for me, actually. Certain such person can accomplish this work. If one leave it like that, then there is no special insight with it or not taking any burdens.
One will have special insight, like, for example, that office, you know the person can handle it but not leaving others handle it and you’re just accomplishing or doing it by your own with taking all the burdens, in that case, have special insight. So so yeah. So so so if you are in the office and there are certain works which are supposed to be done by yourself or by you. I’m supposed to do this, but I’ll have friends to help me and do this. Leaving it for your friends means you have no special insight.
And which is the sign that the person is not working properly? So it is through this one develops a special insight that they’re taking all the responsibility to free all those sentient beings from the sufferings and bring them or let them have the happiness or let them attain the ultimate happiness. Thinking that it is my duty to do this because all the sentient beings are my parents or my mothers, and they’ve been very kind to me. It is the time to repay their kindness. If one does this, cultivates a special insight, and special insight is very helpful to cultivate the bodhicitta.
So, It shows that we are not meditating the Lamrim properly, and it was clearly said by the great master, Dagpo Rinpoche, because if one meditates the Lamrim properly, one can easily cultivate bodhicitta or the special insight which is very helpful to attain the ultimate temporal and the ultimate goals. The great master, the chapter, Dagpo Rinpoche, has said forth that we don’t really meditate the Lamrim properly, and we are very hesitant to meditate. We feel the same hesitation feels about I don’t know. It’s difference in the usage of cultural things. We say one has a very strong hesitation to die, so one feels the same hesitation for meditation.
So, we have taught about cultivating a love, and now here it’s about cultivating a compassion. And as for the compassion, it is quite hard to cultivate a compassion. We sometimes or occasionally develop the compassion when one actually encounter with a person that you can that person who is really physically suffering or you know that he’s going through his sufferings or which I understand through your naked eye. But if that person, the suffering person, if you are not in front of that suffering person or the suffering person left somewhere, and at that moment during the absence of that suffering person, it is a bit hard to cultivate the compassion as well as also when you see a person like a happy person who is quite successful in his livings, by seeing that happy person, you can hardly develop any compassion. So, for example, like a person got a very chronic disease and undergoing huge suffering, say physically as well as mentally.
And when you see such person, there is the chances of developing the compassion because you can see it and you can see the person’s suffering through your eye. And also, at that time, you can develop a compassion in that thinking that the person is going through huge suffering and the person is actually experiencing his or her the results of the bad karma and disturbing emotions which are created in the past. So it is quite easy to develop the cultivated compassion by seeing the sick person and develop a compassion for him or her. Normally, it’s quite hard to cultivate compassion for the other beings who are not real, which you can’t really see that they are going through huge suffering. The method, a method, method for cultivating compassion for those persons, say the well-being person, you can For example, if a healthy person is standing next to that sick person, when you cultivate a compassion for that person, how you can use this method by thinking that at the right say, for instance, at the right, the sick person, he or she has cultivated along the bad karma and disturbing emotions and so forth in the past.
At this stage, actually experiencing the result, and the result has been ripened to the person. So when you develop compassion for the healthy person, what you can do, what one does is that at this stage, he or she is not undergoing through the sufferings, the person is more or less same as the suffering person because the person has cultivated the same bad action and the disturbing emotions in the past like the sick person, and the time will come for that person to write the of bad actions and will go through his sufferings. By knowing this, develop the compassion that that person will sooner or later go through sufferings. By developing compassion to that person, convert that meditation towards the entire sentient beings that they have cultivated the same bad action, same amount of bad actions and the disturbing emotions, and also they are in terms of under the influence of disturbing emotions and the action, and they will experience the bad result of the bad actions. And through this, one cultivates the compassion towards the entire sentient beings.
So, through this, we can cultivate a love and compassion towards entire sentient beings. So, those about love and compassion and the special insight of love and compassion are developed by focusing on the sentient beings without any discriminations in the sense instance one equally focuses on the enemies, neutral beings, and the dear ones. Through this, by focusing on the entire sentient beings, one develops a special love, compassion, special insight of those two. But those love, compassion, and special intentions can’t be developed just by focusing on a few people or few beings. Now, in the last weeks, have been dealing through the sevenfold cause and effect instructions.
The first one is cultivating a limitless equanimity. Limitless equanimity is like the basis of all to grow or to develop by cultivating a limitless equanimity. It is like a basis limitless equanimity is like a very, very plain very good plain and fertile soil or a field with a good soil in it from where one grows the good crops. So, not just a field, it’s with a very, very fertile soil. And so, as we said that the equanimity is like a field, that particular field.
To grow a crop, the soil has to be wet or requires rain. So, the appealing loaf is like rain or water for the field. And so in that field, what we need to grow, we need to sow a seed. So the great and very, not just a seed, very good not eaten by insects or so forth. So, the great compassion is like a seed.
And from the seed it comes the sprout or the tree or whatever. So from great compassion, what It grows or it produces a bodhicitta or altruistic intention. And through this, the result of all these is the enlightened wishes which has completed both completed two purposes, the purposes of self and others. So the equanimity is like a basis or it’s like that field, it means it’s not a field. It’s like that field in which is developed within oneself and that the equanimity is the one which sees all entire sentient beings without any discrimination or without seeing sentient beings of feeling closeness or distance.
Being free from feeling closeness and distance, entire sentient beings seeing same or equally seeing all sentient beings is called equanimity. That equanimity within oneself is the basis to grow all these seeds, the compassion, love, and the altruistic intentions. The way of cultivating that has been we have spent many classes on cultivating that equanimity in the previous weeks. The peeling love is like water and that water, the peeling love comes or is the result by meditating on those above three, the recognizing sentient beings as one’s mother, remembering their kindness, and repaying their kindness. So, and then, the great compassion is like a seed.
Cultivating appealing love, mind becomes so visible. Through this, one cultivates that compassion which is set forth as a seed to sow in that field. As a result of that seed, the compassion, we said then one achieves the actual or altruistic intention bodhicitta, and the final result is one attains the enlightenment ultimate goal which has completed both self and others’ purposes. So here comes that so Lumpur asked the question that do we have attained or cultivated that equanimity like that basis or like that field? Like water, have you cultivated the appealing love like that water?
Have you seen the soul of compassion? Have you sow a seed of compassion? Also, have you got that reveal of that seed, the altruistic intention? Do you think that you can complete, attain the ultimate goal, fulfilling the board’s proposals through all these above mentioned. So we do meditation all the time and so these are the proposes of doing meditation to cultivate this and by meditating on those one cultivate this and attains one, and at the end one becomes a one can complete, fulfill both two purposes, seven others, and by completing those two, one will have unchangeable or greatest happiness.
Cultivate all those three, all those qualities, to be to fulfill both purposes. And should also try to seek the methods of cultivating this by making prayers trying one’s best and making prayers to be very successful and also making this application or locus pray towards one’s guru, enlightened beings to bless you to achieve all these good qualities. So, if one tries very hard, then it is not that hard to achieve all those good qualities and one can actually achieve those good qualities. If one develops the intercession to work so hard to cultivate this, one can eventually attain those good qualities as here the great masters, Śāntideva Valumshi. The Śāntideva has said that The great master Śāntideva has set forth that if one tries, nothing is impossible, but if one does not, then the wisdom is like a corpse.
It’s like a dead boy, it’s no use. One needs to make use of it, try hard or strive. It is said that if one does not have enthusiasm, then the wisdom is like dead body or a corpse. It says that some people, they have very intelligent or have very sharp wisdom, very good wisdoms that one can understand or pick up things very easily. But if that person lacks the enthusiasm, then no matter how good wisdom he or she has, that wisdom is like a quote, no use.
So all those three, love, compassion, and special insight, a very are a good mind which accomplishes the others’ purposes. So, as we said, those three, especially intention, love, and compassion are the mind which fulfill others’ purposes. So, here, one needs to know what is or what are the other’s purposes. So, as those love and compassion focus on fulfilling others’ purposes, that the compassion focuses on freeing all the sentient beings from the sufferings and the love which bring towards happiness, or let them have happiness. So as a result, the final goal or the other’s purposes is what?
Bringing all the sentient beings towards the state of happiness without suffering or let them have happiness being the happiness free from the sufferings. So that bringing all those sentient beings free bringing all those sentient beings to happiness, Yeah, happiness which is free from suffering is the other’s purpose. So how do we recognize or consider something which is happiness without suffering or free from all the sufferings? The happiness without the happiness which is free from all the suffering is the one that attaining is the one which abandons all the negativities and and had been free from all the yeah. Being free from all the negativities and attained good qualities and and is the is the happiness.
Happiness. Happiness. Happiness is being free from being being free from the cyclic existence as well as from from Yeah, has completed all the good qualities which is the enlightened state. So, as all the sentient beings need to need to be placed or being towards the happen state of happiness, which is free from all the sufferings. In order to bring all those sentient beings to that stage or that yeah.
To that place, first, without that state by oneself, one will not able to bring the sentient beings towards that enlightened state. Without attaining enlightenment by one excuse me. Without attaining enlightenment by oneself, one will not able to bring all these sentient beings towards the enlightened state or the state of happiness which is free from the sufferings. So as by knowing this, trying very hard to attain enlightenment for oneself, oneself, oneself in order to bring all the sentient beings into that state. The mind which works to attain the enlightenment for oneself to for the sake of all those sentient beings is the is is is called the the is the mind, you know, which fulfill which fulfill which fulfill fulfill the self proposed or say which fulfills the mind which starts for the enlightenment.
These are the choices. It is like this, for example, both oneself and a friend are being stuck in the mud So one develops a mind to save one’s mind or free one, get one’s friend out from that muddy area. In order to do this, first one needs to get oneself out of the mud. Without getting out of that, one will not be able to help the friend to get let out from that mud. So it is like this.
So likewise, in order to bring all the sentient beings to the state of happiness, being free from all the sufferings, first one needs to attend that place for oneself in order to bring those sentient beings to to to to that state. So by by strong starving or working to attend that state for the sake of all sentient beings is the called mind fulfilling one’s self proposed or mind striving for the enlightenment. Okay. So we’ll stop here and few questions are being accepted. Yes, So, it is like by meditating in the paths and grounds, and whenever one abandons all the negativities and attains entire good qualities, Whenever that happens, one has reached the enlightened state or attained the happiness, reprieve from all the suffering.
Yeah, can hear you. You’re still driving a car. Okay. About cultivating a kikunimity, we have set forth many different types of approach in the last teachings. For example, placing three beings in front of you, like the neutral person in the center and right and left, the dear one or a friend and the enemy.
First, by focusing on the middle neutral person at the center, you have sense like equal feeling, which is feeling being free from attachment and the hatred or anger, and converting that same approach to the person at the left and right, which are the enemy and the relatives. Through this, develops an equanimity. Driving a car and killing that insect doesn’t necessarily need to hurt you to attain that equanimity. Have a neutral mind when you’re driving a car because you knew even in our ordinary life we can still see that we are killing some insects in accidents, but not really intentionally. When driving a car, you really have the attachment or hatred towards the sentiments or the insects being killed by your car.
So I don’t think it harms in cultivating that equanimity. For that, the killing of insects accidentally in the car, what you can do for that is just to feel regret of being accidentally killed the sentient beings and feeling regret and making a confession of purifying the negativity but through regression is the best thing you can do. Yes, please. I just would like to ask a question and make an observation. First of all, I would like to know what venerable gentleman thinks of this question.
Is So it depends on whether the Christ is an enlightened being or not. If the Christ has attained enlightenment, then the Christ is the equal of that enlightened state. Equal. It’s equal. Not a state.
Yeah. So that depends on We need to know whether the Christ himself is the enlightened being or not. If he is, then he Right, so the two two are the same thing. Yes, saying if he has attained the enlightenment. Continuing on that through our lives, it doesn’t matter how much meditation you’re going to do, you’re going to do it under a measure of motive and agenda Valerie, how do you describe that condition?
That’s the main thing, you know. Okay. I hope it’s caught your answer. Say, for instance, like this body of ourself which comes through the conditions, or comes from the causes and conditions which we say this. As it’s the results, it depends.
So what we need to check, that there are different ways of forming or attaining this particular body. If there are some bodies which comes or derive from the collections of good conditions and causes. So if it were there or if it were a result of those good conditions, then we don’t really need to get rid of from that conditions or whatever. The thing is there are lots of bodies which we have attained come out of the bad conditions. By knowing this, we need to go through the meditation or whatever to cut off that conditions and will not let it happen again.
Yeah. Okay. So, the one and the last. Yeah. The one and the last.
Yeah. I’m a little bit confused because you speak of having an intention to breathe sentient beings to make them happy. Yeah. But it seems like that