Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 45-minute talk from 1987, Lama Lhundup opens with a foundational premise: despite material abundance, Western practitioners experience inner dissatisfaction and turn to Dharma seeking peace. He emphasizes that happiness and suffering arise entirely from mind and karma, not external circumstance, and urges daily practice rather than restricting Dharma to formal sessions. The core teaching explores how we project fixed qualities onto people and situations through delusion, anger, and jealousy, when nothing truly exists as inherently bad or good. He walks through practical antidotes: checking the mind moment by moment during work and family time; recognizing anger as useless and destructive; cultivating patience as a foundation; and maintaining bodhicitta motivation—working and practicing for all beings’ enlightenment rather than selfish gain. He concludes that purifying negative karma through virtuous action, charity, and sustained Dharma study allows the mind to clear like a dirty window, revealing its true nature. Pitched at busy lay practitioners new to Buddhist practice.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 01 C o P.mp3
UUID: 8fe28eaf-b081-4745-a2a6-a45c7fca11d7
Teacher: Lama Lhundup
Collection: Changing our perspectives (Lama Lhundup)
Date: 1987 (exact day not recorded)
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 45.2 minutes
Words: ~2,654
Today I can little bit use and talk English, but my English is terrible, no good. So maybe somehow Jampa can, after some time, translate. Okay? So good morning. Thank you so much for coming.
I’m very happy. We we are together in discussion. So First I say, all this Buddha House, who’s really taking care director and all this many some groups they’re taking care. So this Thank you very much. So now he just suggestion, he suggest you go to house.
It’s beneficial, then I can go. So something is it looks like beneficial, so I come here. So I don’t know much, but whatever I can. What can I teach? What can I try, you know, just I can stay here for three months something?
So also you people are very, very busy here, busy place, no time to practice, but really, you’re really working hard, you know, busy, also you’re really hard to make time to practice Dharma. That’s why I’m very, very happy. If I have like that, busy, then I difficult I make time to practice Dharma. Anyway, now what what do we talk about? So you realize what is very important, Dharma.
You know here the spirit. So much developed material things outside. So many, you know, you know, so many things outside special. Still, you’re not satisfied. You need something to do different what you have.
Therefore, you want Buddha’s Dharma. You want very much practice Dharma. That’s true. We need very important need to practice Dharma. In no practice, no happy.
So therefore, we need to practice that. If you don’t know Dharma, then how how to make peace yourself others? You don’t know. You so many things. You are rich, good food, good house.
But still inside, in mind, still you see. Not satisfied, not success. You realize. So what is very important? We need daily life practice Dharma.
You see, all things same, want happy, peace. Therefore, we need to practice Dharma. Also, we need to practice Dharma this lifetime because we will get like this human being and life will get difficult. Because how we get not easy will get human life. Because we practice, we’re keeping pure morality difficult.
Non-morality — to get human life is difficult. Therefore, we need very important practice this life. Also, we need to practice Dharma just right from now. Because we may just our lives very short. The minute going by, when they die, we don’t know.
So therefore, we need to practice Dharma from now. So how we need to practice Dharma? What means Dharma? Know, Dharma means we liberation from suffering. How to make liberate liberate from suffering?
How we stop? How we abandon suffering? This kind of method is Dharma. Mhmm. So, anyway, just we see.
We have two things, suffering and happiness and suffering. These two comes from our own mind, our own karma, own own action. So we really try practice our own side, really try purely practice Dharma, then we will have happiness and peace. And we will not strongly practice Dharma, and we cannot stopping suffering. You see, all this true comes our own mind.
Your our own subdued mind, Dharma mind, will have peace and happiness. Our own unsubdued mind, non-Dharma mind. Then this kind of action will bring suffering, not peace. So therefore, very important, we need daily life practice time. So we need analyzing, check our own mind, look on mind.
What our own vision, our own view, our own mind comes from our own mind. Our own mind made. So, therefore, we’re very important. Our own mind become peace and. Without mind, anything no exist.
So everything comes from mind. So, therefore, our own view our own view, we view that view. This comes from our own mind. Our own mind, you know, mind made. You know?
We just look person. You know? We sometimes we sometimes we fight. We just we our own, you know, concept, our own mind made some person, some kind of bad. You are bad.
You know? You are bad. But really check really bad or not. We look objective. Not true.
That is not there. Just our own mind made, but not there. If there, then always bad Then truly bad exists. Then that person is always bad. No.
Just moments changing. Just moments, anger, just thinking each other say bad. But just action changing, then, oh, yeah, oh, I love you. So there’s view changing. So beautiful.
So only our own mind made bad good. So never always think bad. Better always think good. Always make friendly. Never never make bad.
Never think bad. You are bad. You are horrible person. You you don’t think. Always you’re beautiful.
You’re good person. Think. Then each other always happy. No problems. Problem comes from our unsubdued, deluded mind, delusion, anger mind, jealous mind.
All those mind your mind, it become deluded, delusion. Then just the, you know, mind becomes drunk, ugly. So then unhappy, then anger. So fight. So very important, we need to check analyzing our own mind.
Your working time, you talking with other person, you spending your family, your parents, whatever. And check analyzing your own mind. So when there comes anger, just you want something. You want, you doesn’t get. You still desire or something, then you not get, then you’re unhappy, then anger.
Just unhappy, just then you can check yourself. Oh, why am I unhappy? This my mind made my own unhappy. So I don’t to I don’t need I don’t need to destroy my own happy. I’m stupid.
What I’m doing? What I’m thinking? Just think like that. Then you’re not coming anger. If you become angry, why am I angry?
Just yourself think. Why I’m anger? This anger benefit from me or to others. If you show anger at the person, they get anger. Then you big fight, big problem.
No useful. Useless. So so for me, you know, extremely bad. You know? I’m only making suffering for me.
So anger is useless. Useless. Only destroying my peace. Only destroying my merit. All these good things, all they destroy.
So horrible this anger is. Just think like this. Then go anger is going less, less. Because any time anger comes, you just think, fight yourself. Think.
Think. Think. Then anger is going less, less, less. You tell me anger. Anger, of course, I’m anger.
He does like this. She does like this. I will, I need anger. This stupid reason. No reason.
Anger, no reason. No reason anyone become anger. No reason. So I never I never show anyone anger. I never use anger.
So think every day like this. Then even though you’re with other person, big trouble. Stop you keep him quiet. Then after, you’re really happy. He does big trouble, but I did practice my patience.
So after that, you’re so happy. Something you are just things loose, but doesn’t matter. Your own mind is really happy. Your rejoice. You’re happy.
So we need our own mind make. Make subdued mind, virtuous mind, Dharma mind. This mind, we need to follow. How to make to follow? Every day need.
Remembering what is Dharma. What is Dharma? What is negative? What is positive? That you realize.
Then you checking mind. Dharma mind, positive mind comes. You can keep. Make develop, Rejoice. Negative mind.
Negative mind comes. Yeah. Ultimately, just need to fight.
Stop. Stop. Make try to destroy and subdue the mind. How to practice Dharma means like this. Just believe, whatever they do, you know, realize, then whatever they have done, then after you are big and happy.
Oh, you know? So how to practice means like this? When meditate, you know, just your room and temple and we meditate, it’s okay. Good. But what is very important, your work time.
You spend your parents’ friend, you know, your child, your baby, and, you know, work time. This time we need to check. Just work, just physical body. But some mind, remain in check mind. What I’m doing?
What I’m thinking? Especially, morning, you make correct motivation. Whatever you’re working, doing, by this purpose, I’m working for beneficial to the others. So you have clear motivation, hoping for other being, other sentient beings. So then you really practical, work so something, then you have problem, oh, I need patience.
If I don’t do these things, then really I’m not purely working for others. So you just keep, you know, how to keep our own peace. We have peace, you know, not completely purely. Sometime, just open doubt. So then you can, you know, If you respect him, so then you can pray to holy beings.
We need because we are just ordinary being, beginning. Just trying with Dharma. So difficult. Not enough merit. So we can try to do, so also we can try holy things.
Because we need holy protector. Need holy protector, holy guide. Because we are very beginning child. Child need protector, some special person. So like this, we are we need special holy being.
Power powerful. Know, fully powerful god. A holy being. So you can try also, you can try In this life, completely stopping my delusion. I realized clearly the true nature.
True nature. Clear mind. We have true nature. What do we now concepting? What we see, we conceive as truly existing?
You know, once we’re concepting bad, truly bad concept. So nothing truly exist because all everything is dependent. You know? Interdependent. I mentioned good, bad.
Our mind made good, You see? Check it. When you you just anger, you think one person, this he’s so bad. He was so bad. So that bad is, you know, truly exist or not.
Only my mind made. Therefore, not truly exist. If truly exist, you know, then always he is truly. Not always truly. He is some person, some other people, his friend people, he’s like very much.
So then he’s good person or bad person? There’s two views. Looking two person to him, one person, one object. So this one object, bad. One object, good.
So good. Beautiful person. So this only two things. You know? Just only mind.
You know? So therefore, we need very importantly to check our own mind. Need to practice steadily. What is very important, we need to practice. Because especially we, you know, we are so busy.
Busy, all the time need work. All the time work. So you must need patience. When I come from Nepal, India, here, without patience I cannot. So many troubles.
Patience is very good. Patience makes you relax, know. Otherwise, always unhappy. Patience is very suitable. Like candy, you dry your mouth, then you have candies.
Very good. So I like that. Patience is really sweet. So we need you to stay with your family, you stay with your parent. Your patient is very important.
Your patient, then you’re really always relaxed, comfortable. You two people comfortable. Child, comfortable. Know? Just you just minutes just a little bit changing, view changing, then just you know you know you don’t have patience.
So then so much unhappy you. Then all the time anger. So then all family uncomfortable. Then, know, people just, why stay these two people and their family is this poor? You know?
They’re not comfortable. I’m still alone. I’m alone, so I’m not happy. I need some my friends, so stay together. So this is not make happy and more just fighting than useless.
So for comfortable, like comfortable, then you need each other taking care. That is very important. You, one person, not taking care, then how all sentient being taken care? So we need patient one person, or if patience or other cherishing. You see?
All, you know, very important. We need to check mind. Also, this life’s condition some condition good, some condition bad. You know? Oh, this comes from karma.
You know? Our own most what we use, all this comes from our karma. So therefore, we need very important. We practice Dharma. No practice, then no way.
No no solution. Then you’re sick, what do you do? You’re dying, what do you do? Nothing. Nothing you have Dharma?
You want to die, at that time, your plants, plant, your so many people you have, they cannot only cry. There’s nothing happening. You have so much money that you cannot carry with you. And you have practiced Dharma, passion, those things. You do practice charity to the other beings.
You practice passion to other beings. You help in other sentient beings. Make happy other sentient beings. Those virtuous mind you have, those you can carry next life. Those action, karma, and will have special life next.
So, therefore, we need to practice Dharma. Then you like practice Dharma. It’s very important. You know? Then daily life you practice Dharma, then your mind become more clean clear.
You know? Then your clean mind, you clean clear, then you see your nature. Why we are not realize our nature, true nature? Because our mind’s dark. So much we had made negative.
So in the mind, so many negative seeds. You know? So if you you have glass, use eye. So this glass, you know, so dirty, dark, then you cannot see clear. Also, we see in the sky, you know.
Sky is always clean, nature clean. But with so many cloud that we cannot see like that. Now in our mind, so many cloud delusions, so many negative seeds. So we cannot realize. We’re not seeing inside so many beautiful things they have exist, but we do not realize.
We just try to looking all the time outside, know, not looking inside. So inner, our inner television is beautiful. So how we realize, how we see in the television, then we need daily life, practice Dharma, then we need purify our negative. Especially we need correct, purely motivation. You know?
Great motivation. Just we just this is not done. This is deficient motivation. You know? Oh, we need I think most of you people know.
We need bodhicitta motivation. Listening, whatever every day you have morning, you know, just think motivation, bodhicitta. I am working, doing everything for receiving the fully great enlightened mind, Buddhahood.
All sentient beings. For that purpose, I work. I practice Dharma, I working, whatever you have. So with that motivation, then so good. So then easily coming also, patience.
With that motivation, you remembering that motivation. Oh, yeah. I think now maybe you need to relax a little bit. Five minutes. Relax.
So you see, all just saṃsāra, my dear things, you know, just we need not we don’t need strong desire to eat because no beneficial. So what is beneficial? Need daily life practice Dharma. Especially helping other sentient beings, making happy other sentient beings. Make charity to other sentient beings.
And charity to the holy beings. Because we need much, much merit. If you have merit, much collection merits, then you have really easygoing your life. You like much practice that. You then you don’t have much desire to do saṃsāra things.
What we’re using, those things, then you don’t want much. So otherwise, we just stopping desire, difficult, always wanting, always some sort of things we want. Then strong desire, we get, then stopping very difficult. Then we not get renounced. Renounced.
Without renunciation, then it is hard, you know, to practice Dharma. Sometime, not doing can’t can’t you, you know. So you see, now conclusion, what is very important, I need practice Dharma in my daily life. So then how I do practice Dharma? Then first I need study.
Study Dharma, listening, taking teachings, then you teaching tells you how to practice Dharma daily life. Then you can build on that