Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. The white-stone/black-stone story — a practitioner who tallied each day’s virtues and faults at bedtime, scolding himself when the black pile won and shaking his own hand when white prevailed — captures the practical spirit of this 99-minute session by Khensur Rinpoche. He presents the five powers of lojong as a daily framework: morning intention to block afflictive emotions; cultivating the white seed of bodhicitta through generosity and ethics; repudiating self-centeredness in favor of love and compassion; dedicating merit through prayer; and sustaining familiarity with taking-and-giving practice. The session then turns to applying the same five powers at the moment of death, with close guidance on the lion posture — lying on the right side, ring finger closing the right nostril — which Rinpoche recommends rehearsing as a nightly sleeping position. A Q&A addresses how to approach a friend’s unskillful conduct and what a genuine mind of regret entails.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 14 LMT 1997 08 19.mp3
UUID: 34ae7335-05a2-47e3-9d39-153febfc8a83
Teacher: Khensur Rinpoche
Collection: Lojong Mind Training (Khensur Rinpoche)
Date: 1997-08-19
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 99.1 minutes
Words: ~5,506
We’ll begin by adjusting our motivation, developing as our motivation, the precious awakening heart. This precious human life that we all possess affords us a wonderful opportunity. We have the wisdom necessary whereby to understand the Dharma and all the conducive conditions whereby to practice it. Having this complete all the complete conditions whereby to carry on a successful practice, we should ensure that we make our life meaningful. In what way can we make our life, human life, most meaningful?
It is by severing the the root of our suffering and finding constant happiness. So it is the dharma which is the means to eliminate our suffering, whereby to find happiness. And among dharmas there are a great variety. There are the dharmas of the individual vehicle and those of the universal vehicle. But amongst all of them, the universal vehicle, the Mahāyāna, is supreme.
And within that, it is the awakened heart, which is the preeminent method whereby to find make this life most meaningful, whereby to find greatest happiness, and to be a we can find most benefit for ourselves. How is it that the awakened heart is very precious? By means of cultivating the awakened heart, all of our previous negativities that we’ve accumulated can be purified and thereby we will not have to undergo its ripening result of suffering. And even those skillful actions that we have created in the past, they will increase. So we are purifying past negativities, accumulating skillful actions, and increasing higher and higher the past skillful actions that we have accumulated.
And that moreover, dedicated toward the ultimate attainment of awakening, they will ripen into fruits without end until the attainment of Buddhahood. So in cultivating the awakened heart, we first begin with compassion expressed in his thoughts, may myself and all others have happiness, be free from suffering and the causes of suffering. And the cultivation of love expressed in the thoughts, it would be wonderful if myself and all beings had happiness. May myself and all sentient beings have happiness and the causes of happiness. I will bring all sentient beings happiness and the causes of happiness.
And then we go on to develop an exceptional resolve. Having as the preliminary the the attitudes of love and compassion, we go on to develop the resolve whereby I myself alone will lead them to a state of complete freedom from suffering where they experience only happiness. Determination to, by oneself, free all sentient beings of their suffering to place them in complete happiness is extremely kind hearted attitude that in itself cannot accomplish the goal. In order to accomplish that goal, in fact, we must first individually remove all our various faults and bring to consummation all our excellent qualities. Therefore, developing the determination that in order to free all living beings from suffering, to lead them to complete happiness, I must achieve a state whereby I have removed all my various faults and brought the consummation of all my excellent qualities.
That is to say, I must attain Buddhahood for the sake of all sentient beings. When that becomes when that thought becomes extremely powerful within our mind, we have developed the awakened heart. And as the means to actually awaken my heart, I’m going to listen to this essence of the universal vehicle Dharma, the means of the practice of the awakened heart. Having listened to it, I shall reflect upon it. Having reflect upon it, I shall cultivate it and to put it into practice.
In order to achieve that end, I’m going to listen to this present teaching. So with regard to the overall divisions of the text that where we have arrived at. The first division was that of the preliminary practices of the training of the mind. And the second was the training in the two bodhicittas, the conventional bodhicitta, the awakened heart, and the ultimate bodhicitta, the awakened mind. Then the training in the ultimate bodhicitta was to be taken up subsequently.
And in interval, we are looking at the section on looking at the section on transforming adverse conditions into the path to awakening. And then finally, the section that we’ll be taking up is the how to integrate all our daily practices. The the actual the root text itself. So the root text says that the brief essential instruction is to apply the five powers. The brief essential instruction is to apply the five powers. Awakened heart and in general the universal vehicle.
But if we were to categorize those various practices, they could be subsumed into five categories. So we can place all the categories into all the various practices into five categories, which are to be practiced in the whole of one’s life. The bodhisattva seeks to carry out the vast deeds as through his inspiration of the awakened heart. And all of these he has vowed to carry out these deeds until the attainment of Buddhahood. But we can we should not think of the deeds we can think of the deeds as being as we can think of these various various practices as not only being extended over that vast amount of time until the attainment of Buddhahood, but we can think of them as being condensed even down to even a single day, that I will practice these various categories of methods until Buddhahood, but not even until Buddhahood, until my death, but not even that.
I will practice them this year. I will practice them this month. I will practice them today. So trying to condense all the various categories of practices into a means integrated into a practice of this very day. First, we are seeking to attain Buddhahood.
And then there are various obstacles to that attainment. Amongst them, the principal obstacles are those of self grasping and self centeredness, the various afflictive emotions. So the first of these five powers that we are seeking to integrate into our everyday practice is the power power of intention. And what is meant here by intention is our motivation. And the way that we can practice this in the course of a single day is upon rising in the morning when we get up or perhaps when we have washed and we’re going to have a meditation session, that we should generate the motivation that I will not allow the afflictive emotions to arise over the course of this day.
I will not give occasion for the generation of an afflictive emotion over the course of this day, generating such an intention to to as to set your motivation for the day. So determining not to allow your mind to come under the influence of the afflictive emotions beginning beginning with your mind. That thinking thinking to oneself, I will I’m committing myself to to not allowing my mind to come under the power of self grasping and self centeredness. And thereby, I will not allow my my my verbal conduct nor my physical conduct to be negatively influenced by those emotions. So putting a block to acting out dysfunctional patterns.
But on the contrary, having blocked these patterns, I am I will institute the means whereby to cultivate the awakened heart. I am trying to attain Buddhahood. That’s that’s what I am dedicating this day to. So I will not only block that which is an obstacle to its attainment, but I will cultivate especially the awakened heart as the means of attaining So it’s tremendous it’s extremely beneficial to develop this determination, to have, commit yourself to the blocking of these various dysfunctional patterns and the generation of these excellent qualities, thinking I will do this. So as a consequence of such a motivation, our various negative conducts will decrease, our various positive conducts will increase.
So it is said that there is nothing that does not become easier upon familiarity. That simply by habituating our mind to such an attitude that eventually it will come automatically. Automatically, our minds will be turned toward what is positive and will begin to not enter into what was previously the negatively types of conduct which we’ve previously involved ourselves in. So and this applies both to our positive aspirations, but also in terms of our intention to avoid what is negative. By thinking again and again not to involve oneself in what is negative, then through familiarity, the mind will effortlessly begin to turn away, that will arrive at a state where it is no longer part of one’s conduct.
What was previously a type of a pattern of negativity is no longer part of one’s normal conduct. So that’s the power of intention. The second of these five powers is the power of white seed. What is meant by white seed here? That which is white is the awakened heart.
And this and the seed of that is sown and and cultivated. It’s increased higher and higher. So it is with the intention of cultivating the awakened heart that we involve ourselves in various types of conduct over the course of the day. Where we have not developed the awakened heart, we have the intention to develop it. Where we, in those instances where the awakened heart is present, we seek to cause it to remain.
Where it remains, we seek to increase it higher and higher. With this intention, we involve ourselves in various altruistic types of conduct. We practice generosity with that intention. We through all of our body, speech, and mind, our three doors. We practice the ethics of restraining our three doors not to harm others.
We involve ourselves in the practices of tolerance, etcetera, all with this intention. So we we go on to accumulate we make effort in accumulating skillful actions all for the sake of cultivating this white seed of the awakened heart. Then the the third power is the power of repudiation. Repudiate means not have anything to do with. And we’ve, what are we to repudiate?
What are we to not to have anything to do with? We’ve discussed this in the past when we we talked about the various faults of self centeredness and the various advantages of other centeredness. We explained this in great detail. That so looking at all the various faults of self centeredness, we are going to try over the course of our day to repudiate it, not to have anything to do with it, not to allow our body, speech, mind to come under the influence of self centeredness. And we where where we seek to apply antidotes at all possible occasions where where so that it does not arise.
If it does arise, we have the intention to immediately cut off its continuity and not to allow continue. So understanding all of the various faults of self self centeredness, we simply we do not allow it to arise. If it does, we we cut off its continuity immediately. Understanding the advantages of of other centeredness, we seek to put it into practice in the place of self centeredness. So we repudiate.
We simply want nothing to do with self centeredness. We make that commitment. And the way that we can reverse our habitual self centeredness and take up other centeredness is through cultivation of love and compassion. Without cultivating love and compassion, there’s no there’s no way that we can turn away from our own self centeredness and become other centered. And then the fourth power is the power the power of prayer.
Through all of our various practices, our skillful actions, we have accumulated a vast amount of creative potential, of merit. And we are going to We make prayers of dedication towards the development of the awakened heart, that we take all of the skillful action of all of the beings within cyclic existence and those beyond. By beyond, we mean beings such as the foe destroyers. That we all of the creative potential accumulated in the past, that we are accumulating at present, that we will accumulate in the future. That all of the creative potential, the skillful actions of ourselves and all others held in common, that we dedicated all of this toward the development of the awakened heart.
May I quickly generate the awakened heart, That awakened heart which I have actually developed, may it remain. And not only remain, but it may increase higher and higher. By the power of such a prayer, having as our object of observation, the root of all our our own skillful actions and the skillful actions of all others, and dedicating that toward the quick development of the awakened heart, the results will never will be unending. Then the fifth power is the power of familiarity. So the practices that we are to familiarize ourselves with through their cultivation has been explained.
The practices of taking and giving, that we take upon the suffering of all sentient beings, not holding any far or any near with any partiality, and we give away our happiness to all sentient beings. We look upon the faults, we appreciate the faults of self centeredness and the excellence of other centeredness. And by the power of that understanding of the faults of one and the excellent quality of the other, we go on to exchange ourselves. We go on to exchange self for other. So it said that we should compassionately give it take on we should compassionately take upon the sufferings of others.
We should lovingly give away our own happiness. That this is the practice of taking and giving. Go on to develop an exceptional resolve, and finally, the awakened heart, that this is what we are to familiarize ourselves with. This is what we are to cultivate. Quoting from a verse by Śāntideva where he says, the immature work for their own welfare.
The Buddhas work for the welfare of others. Just look at the difference between the two. So, you know, we should appreciate the vast difference between these two beings, the immature and the Buddhas, that the Buddhas, through through their caring for others, have brought about their complete own welfare and are able to bring about the welfare of others. On the other hand, we, in caring only for ourselves, have brought about neither the welfare of ourselves nor others. On the contrary, we continue to suffer within cyclic existence and try to appreciate the difference between these two attitudes and where it gets us.
Initially, through familiarity, it becomes easier and easier. We develop facility with, it becomes quite comes to us more and more readily without with less and less effort, less and less difficulty. There is nothing which does not become easy easier upon familiarity. So try try to make a firm decision in one’s mind that this is the way I’m going to carry out my day. I’m going to apply these five powers over the course of the day.
This is the way that we can practice, integrate our everyday life into our practice. But going beyond that, I’m going to practice it today, but I’m also going to practice in the same way tomorrow. And I’m going to practice in the same way the day after tomorrow. And I’m going to practice the same way for the next month, for the next year, for the entirety of this life until I achieve good So these are the five powers which are the practices of a bodhisattva. And being the the practice of the bodhisattva, if we could emulate them, even over the course of one day, this would be something truly wonderful.
So I think, you know, if the vast deeds of the bodhisattva would be extremely difficult for us to emulate in the in the fullest form. But I think we can we I think it would be quite useful to aspire to try as best we can to apply these five powers each day of our But though we may not be able to emulate exactly the Bodhisattvas in their application of these five powers in their everyday life, I think we can approach it. I think we can at least, for example, you know, when we wake up in the morning, think, today, I’m not going to allow attachment. I’m going to try my best not to allow attachment and anger to arise. I’m going to, as much as I’m able.
And if they arise, I’m not going to I’m going to put a I’m going to stop them. I’m not going to allow them to my physical and verbal conduct to come under their under their influence. I’m not for example, under the power of anger, I’m not going to use abusive speech. I won’t allow my mind to I won’t allow my body and my and speech to come under their influence. So it would be, you know, we it would be excellent if if we could just think as much as I am able for the benefit of this life and my future lives, I’m going to practice in this way.
And also it would be excellent in terms of the practice of the power of the white seed seed to to simply commit oneself to accumulating as many skillful actions as we can as a basis for our happiness. As as much as I’m I’m able, I’m going to practice Chenrezig and I’m going to practice ethics. All of these various skillful actions as and as a foundation for happiness. And then with the with regard to the the third of these five powers, that the power of repudiation, as best again, as best as we are able, we’re determining to refrain from repeating past negative ways of acting. And with regard to past negativities accumulated, to develop a sense of regret around them.
So developing a sense of regret and to seek as best as you’re able to restrain from repeating those past negative actions again. And first, moving to the power of familiarity. With that regards, whatever continuity of practice that we have developed up to now, We seek to continue it, to cultivate this continuity and continually familiarize our mind with, for example, having gone for refuge with regards to karma, actions and the results, with regards to love and compassion, that whatever we have meditated on, whatever we have cultivated, whatever we are familiarizing in this positive fashion to extend the continuity in terms of the power of familiarity. So we should try to have a continuity to our practice, not one day and set it aside the next. There’s a loss of potency in our practice when we carry on a practice in this manner.
But there should be a continuity of effort in our practice. And then reviewing the course of your day, how how your day went. How it did did it go well or did it not in terms of your practice? Did you accumulate a great deal of negativity? If so, then implementing some method of disclosing that negativity as a means of purification.
If you’ve accumulated a great deal of positive actions over the course of the day, then rejoicing in all the skillful actions that you’ve accumulated. It would it would be beneficial if in reviewing the course of our conduct over the over the day, if we’ve done if we’ve acted in a skill ful fashion, then rejoicing in that and thinking that was excellent to have done it. I did well. I did well. You’re thinking favorably in terms about yourself.
Or on the other hand, having, of course, reviewing your actions, seeing that you acted in negative fashions, determining disclosing it in some method as a means of purification, but additionally thinking, though I did that today, I’m not going to do that tomorrow and determining to refrain from that, committing that action again in the future. So there was a there is a who was very skilled in this manner of reviewing his actions. So in case you’ve been at the end of end of his day, he used to calculate up all of the various negativities, all the various negative actions and positive actions that he accumulated over the course of the day. And for each positive action, he would put a white stone in a pile, and for every negative action, a black stone. And after his calculation, the black pile was bigger than the white pile, he would scold himself and say, wait, wait, wait.
If you don’t you don’t change your ways, I’m not gonna give you any food tomorrow. And if the the white pile were larger, then he would shake his own hand and say, Bin is a very good person, very good person. So then, then finally the fifth of these five powers that which was the power of prayer and this is our dedication. And at the end of our day, before we go to sleep, we should think back at all the skillful actions that we’ve accumulated over the course of the day and dedicate that skillful action, combining it with all the skillful actions of the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas and shared with all sentient beings that and dedicated it to the attainment of Buddhahood for the sake of all sentient beings. Until we have generated a path, it’s necessary that we can make use of of these five powers not only over the course of our life and in the whole of our life, but most especially at the time of our death.
So there is a special practice of applying these five powers at the time of our death. So the the rutic says that the five powers are the most important practice of the instructions on the universal vehicle transference. Here, the practice of transference of consciousness within the universal vehicle and the most effective method is just this application of the five powers. So these are the five powers which are to be applied at the time of death. Then the five powers, firstly, in this order, is the power of white seed.
So the the application of the power of white seed seeks to cut the continuity of various negativities and faults which have we are involved in in this life so they will not continue over into a future life, that we will not have to undergo their suffering in the future. Will not have, on the contrary, we can try to empower the kindhearted and skillful attitudes of mind to be dominant in our future lives, and thereby to promote our happiness in the future life. So how are we to actually implement the power of white seed? For example, at the time of our death, we should try to ensure that we don’t come under the influence of an afflictive emotion. For example, we may come under the influence of attachment at the time of our death.
Perhaps we’re attached to some of our possessions or some of those who are close to us, our friends and family, etc. This can have negative consequence. This can lead us to an unfortunate rebirth. So what can we do? What’s the method that we can make use of?
With regard to our possessions, we should begin to give what we have away, that we can make offerings, generosity, we can give away our possessions to our friends. We should try to make it, to clean out all the, that we have to ensure that there’s nothing we will be attached to at the time of our death. So this very act of giving away, of this cleaning out is we accumulate creative potential as a skillful action of generosity. And this will have a beneficial effect in a positive reverse in the future. And having given it away, having let go of it, we will not generate attachment toward it at the time of death.
Manifest. And it’s therefore necessary to be able to apply an antidote to anger, and therefore necessary to cultivate love and compassion. So that’s the the power of white seed. So the second of the five powers is the power of intention. And this has been explained, that developing a determination that to not allow yourself to come under the influence of the afflictive emotions and various faults of our minds, and try to extend this intention up to all the way up to Buddhahood.
But even if we can’t do that over the course until one actually has died in the course of this life, and if we can’t do that this year, this month, this today, if only today. And that you will that you have developed the intention to carry on your practice in the future and making requests to that to be able to do this, having to be able to practice the Dharma until you have actually achieved awakening and developing that determination intention of mind. And the power of repudiation, as the time of our death approaches, to develop a firm determination to not allow your mind to come under the influence of the afflictive emotions and these various faults of mind. That from the very root, I’m not going to allow my mind to become overpowered by them. And I’m not going to allow them to influence my speech or my physical actions.
And the power of familiarity is that familiarizing ourselves with the position, the bodily position with which the Buddha passed into parinirvana beyond sorrow. That to familiarize ourselves in the death position whereby we are lying on our right side with our head facing to the north. Our head is pointed toward the north. We are facing west, and our hand, right hand is cradled, is cradling our the right side of our face. And our our left hand is is is lies along this side of our body.
So familiarizing yourself with that posture. So your right hand, which is cradling your face, your right cheek, You place the on the right hand, the ring finger is placed in the right nostril, blocking the right nostril. The left hand is placed along the side of the body, the left leg on top of the right leg. And then with blocking the right nostril through the left nostril, we should carry on our practice of taking and giving, inhaling the sufferings of sentient beings, exhaling our own happiness and all of our skillful actions. So it’s said in order to implement this power of familiarity, we can practice, we should familiarize ourselves with this bodily posture when we go to sleep.
So assuming this posture each night when we go to sleep, then we will become familiar with it to the extent that it will become quite it will come readily to ourselves at the time of our death. So this this posture is as if we take that if we take that as our sleeping posture, this is this posture is is referred to in the Tibetan tradition as the lion posture. You know, a a A lion is said to be the king of all wild animals. It is fearless. It is tremendously brave.
And a lion can sleep sleeps with great without any great without any restlessness. If we assume this since it has nothing to fear, so if we assume this posture, we will get a good night’s sleep. Then we should make strong prayers that in all of my future rebirths, may I never be parted from the awakened heart. May I be able to carry on a powerful practice of Dharma and thereby quickly achieve Buddhahood. May I not come under the influence of the afflictive emotions of self grasping, nor that of self centeredness.
So we are beings within cyclic existence. Our future is uncertain. We can Geshe Chekawa exhorts us to make use of this method to ensure that all will go well for our future rebirth. If we don’t have any plan of action at the time of our death, it’s uncertain what might happen to ourselves in the future. There’s a great danger of an unfortunate rebirth.
But if we implement these five powers, then this is a skillful means whereby to ensure that it can only be of good fortune. So we’re going to stop there. And if you have some questions, we’ll take time for those. So it’s just a lack of familiarity with the posture. You know, once you become familiar with it, become accustomed to it, then you you will you will be able to assume it in very readily, and you will get a good night’s sleep.
And if you can’t sleep, then practice taking and giving. And then you’ll go to sleep. But even though even up to the time you go to sleep, there’s a great benefit to be gotten. There’s great profit during that time and not being able to sleep. Is is this person’s is this other person’s conduct, is it is it nonvirtuous?
Is it unskillful? So whatever you do, I mean, you definitely need talents and patience. So but over and above that, since this person is involved in unskillful actions, he should, little by little, begin to explain first in terms of their grosser, in terms of the more minor types of unskillful ways of acting to to try to explain the faults the fault of acting this way. In a in a very in a gradual and little by little manner, try to explain first with regard to their minor unskillful actions, the faults of what they’re doing. And when they when when they begin to appreciate the the the faults, the what’s wrong in terms of even just their minor unskillful action, then you can begin to pick out the greater the bigger and bigger unskillful actions.
And if you if you point out their greatest faults first, they won’t pay any attention to you, they say. So you have to take an indirect approach. You have to kind of circle around the main problem and kind of hone in on it, beginning with the more minor faults of this person, and then gradually getting to the point of it all. Yes. I asked Rinpoche a question about similar thing, and he he Rinpoche said that they weren’t going to see one’s kindness in pointing it out to them, and so it was maybe better to remain silent.
So how does that differ? That if a person is involved like that, then they’re not going to be able to see your motivation for saying it. And so understood that he was saying that perhaps better to just be silent about it. So in in in the present question was the case was that of of a friend. That’s right, wasn’t it?
Yeah. It was the case was the case of a friend who was acting in in a non virtuous, unskillful manner. In the case of the question which you put put, it wasn’t it wasn’t that of a friend. And therefore, Nabuchet thought it would be best if you left it. Yeah.
Yes. So is this a fourth leg, right, is this a friend or is this a? No. I I treat this person as a pharmacist. So, in speaking with this person, first, you should cultivate compassion well.
So, sitting as your attitude in which you’re going to speak with them, that of compassion. And then speak with them with very sweet words in very benefiting fashion. If you say, if you speak with harsh words, then it it it’s not going to not nothing good will come of it. So first, cultivating as your attitude, compassion, and then speaking with very in a very benefiting way with sweet words. And give him a little gift.
So, yeah, it you need to speak in a in a very very sweet fashion. If you speak otherwise, it won’t work. You’re saying it’s not appropriate? In what way it’s not appropriate? Why isn’t why is the mind of regret not why is it why is it negative?
So you’re thinking like I’m a bad person or something like that? If, for example, you got angry at your girlfriend or boyfriend and to the extent that you actually hit them, and later on, you think, oh, I, you know, I caused them a lot of pain. I caused them a lot of trouble. You know, that really wasn’t that wasn’t a good thing to do. Wouldn’t you would you wouldn’t you think of that in that way, that way of acting?
So they thought that wasn’t a good thing to do is what we mean by mind of regret. I is you want to elaborate? So but also you you were quite right with regard to you need to have compassion for yourself. Very good. Yeah.
That is good.