Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 45-minute teaching from 1987, Lama Lhundup explores how to cultivate genuine effort along the Buddhist path by examining three types of laziness that obstruct practice. He explains procrastination—putting off Dharma study—and counters it by meditating on death and impermanence. He identifies a second laziness: becoming attached to worldly pursuits like fame and business, which renunciation dissolves by recognizing the unsatisfactory nature of samsaric pleasures. A third, self-doubt about whether enlightenment is achievable, is overcome by remembering that even animals can attain Buddhahood if they make effort. The teaching then turns to the fifth perfection: meditative concentration or calm abiding. Lama Lhundup outlines the necessary conditions—solitude or good companions, a blessed or safe location, freedom from excessive desire and superstition—and describes several meditation objects, noting that the Buddha’s form is particularly beneficial because it strengthens remembrance at the time of death.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 13 GP.mp3
UUID: d0e79809-45ba-4c7f-96bb-b6106247cde1
Teacher: Lama Lhundup
Collection: The Graduated Path (Lama Lhundup)
Date: 1987 (exact day not recorded)
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 45.4 minutes
Words: ~2,254
So Candrakīrti says that all excellent qualities arise in habituating ourselves through effort. So the nature of effort is taking joy in constructive areas, in constructive directions, in the virtuous actions, activities, constructive activity. So, in developing, in habituating ourselves to effort, developing effort, cultivating effort, there are three obstacles. The main obstacle to this cultivation is laziness, and there are three types of laziness. So the first type of laziness is reluctance to engage in constructive actions, in virtue, reluctance to engage in virtue.
So, that’s probably best translated as procrastination, procrastinating in virtue. Think, for example, with regard to our practice of Dharma, maybe tomorrow or the next day. Next year. I’ll get around to So, the second type of laziness is a liking for non virtuous activities. So, the second type of laziness, all the efforts that we make which are directed solely for activities of this life.
For example, making effort to attain fame, reputation, all our efforts directed towards business and meaningless activities, activities which have no essence. This is the laziness which is attachment to these meaningless activities. The third type of laziness is the laziness of self defeatism. One thinks that it’s really difficult to practice Dharma. How can I ever attain Buddhahood?
There are so many different practices in Dharma. There are so many different types of practices. How can I ever hope to practice such a thing? So thinking in this way that, how can I ever hope to attain Buddhahood? This type of thinking is actually a laziness.
So this first type of laziness, it is procrastination, a reluctance to that is putting off engaging in constructive activities. The method whereby we can eliminate this is through meditation on death and impermanence in death and leisure and fortune. When we begin to think about putting off our practice of Dharma tomorrow or the next day our practice, then we should think about that we are definitely going to die but the time of our death is uncertain and it is only our practice which will be of any benefit at the time of death. So by remembering death and impermanence and the leisures and fortunes that we have, then that will stop, that will eliminate this first type of laziness, procrastination, or reluctance to engage in constructive activities. So the method for eliminating the second type of laziness that is liking for non constructive activities is renunciation.
When we find ourselves making effort toward the happiness which are within cyclic existence, all the marvels of cyclic existence, then we should remember that they are untrustworthy, that they are in the nature of suffering. And thinking this way, we develop disgust for any types of activities within cyclic existence. In this way, renunciation acts as a way to eliminate the second type of laziness. So this third type of laziness, the laziness of self defeatism, we look at all the realizations of the graduated path such as death and leisures and fortune, etc, and the various stages of the three capacities of beings. And in order to we must think that will whatever is necessary, even if I need years to gain these realizations, will do that.
We have to develop courage and that for the sake of benefiting We have to develop the courage that even if I have to stay many eons in cyclic existence for the benefit of all sentient beings, then I will do that. I will experience this suffering, be willing to undergo. As it says in the In the offering to the spiritual master, Lama Chöpa, there is the prayer for the perfection of effort, in which it states that even if I must remain in the hell of endless suffering for countless eons, I forbear in order to attain supreme enlightenment? May I forbear in order to establish them all, even for one sentient being. Even for the sake of one sentient being, may I be able to forbear the hell of endless suffering in order to place them in supreme enlightenment.
May I be able to stay there for countless eons in order to gain the perfection of effort. Something like that. Now we make effort not to be born in hell because for us to take birth in hell would be through the power of karma and afflictive emotions, in which case we would have nothing but suffering. To make such a prayer, there’s a deal of benefit. Even the bodhisattva has fear of being born with cyclic existence through the power of karma and afflicted emotions.
So, we have to make effort. To be born within cyclic existence under the power of karma and afflictive emotions. So when he reaches the grounds, the bhūmis, then the bodhisattva does not take rebirth under the power of karma and afflictions. But he takes rebirth wherever it is beneficial through the power of his prayer and compassion. Through the power of his prayer and compassion, he can take rebirth wherever he wants, within cyclic existence.
Even he can take rebirth in hell, but when he takes rebirth in hell through the power of prayer and compassion, he does not experience suffering. He only experiences happiness. Why is that? Because even though he’s reborn in hell, he does not have the karma to suffer, and therefore he does not suffer even though he’s born in hell. So he only experiences happiness.
If we make effort, not only do we not have to take rebirth in cyclic existence, but we can attain Buddhahood. So the Buddha himself said that he named some types of animals. Buddha said he would name some types of animals. Bees, bees, bees, etcetera. That That Buddha himself said that he was talking about the various types of animals and he named a species such as bees.
He said they have the ability to attain Buddhahood. If they make the effort, then they can attain Buddhahood. And if these animals can attain Buddhahood, we who are humans, who have come in contact with the Dharma and we understand the Dharma, we understand what is to be cultivated and what is to be abandoned, then there is no doubt that we can attain Buddhahood. So essentially effort is taking joy in constructive activities and virtue. It is taking joy in the practice of Dharma.
So if we again and again take to mind remember the benefits of practicing the Dharma, again and again think about the benefits of practicing the great vehicle, Mahāyāna, and about the benefits of the mind of enlightenment, then we will develop a liking, a happiness for practicing. So if we look at the difference in how happy we are, the difference is when we are practicing the Dharma, when we are not practicing the Dharma, the difference in how happy we are. At those times when we are practicing, then we’re always experiencing happiness in that moment. At other times when our mind is just empty, then we’re not as happy as those times. So if we continuously practice Dharma, then we will continuously be happy.
Whenever this third type of laziness self defeatism manifests, then we should take to mind what we’ve just spoken about. Take that to mind and this way we can get rid, we can stop this mind of self defeatism, this laziness. So, amongst the six perfections, this is the we’ve spoken about the perfection of effort. So as we said, the effort is the taking joy in constructive activities or virtue. The perfection of effort is in making effort in developing the mind which seeks to place all sentient beings in Buddhahood.
So the fifth fifth perfection is the perfection of meditative concentration. This is roughly defined as the mind which abides single pointedly, having as its object of observation virtue for the welfare of all sentient beings. In general we can say that meditative concentrations are simply the awareness which single pointedly takes as object of observation a virtue. But this does not necessarily have to be a Buddhist. non-Buddhist could develop the same awareness.
But when we say the perfection of a meditative concentration, this is that same awareness within the mind of one who is practicing the great vehicle. So aside from the practitioner of the great vehicle, such a mind would not be in the mind in the continuum of other types of people. Mainly, when we talk about this meditative concentration, the awareness of calm abiding or śamatha. Without developing this calm abiding, We cannot develop liberation or the state of omniscience. So in order to develop the stable and pure realizations, such as the realization of emptiness, it is necessary to develop calm abiding.
So in order to actually cultivate calm abiding, it is necessary to, as a preliminary, to gather together all the conditions and causes for its development. So we have to have the causal collection. From the point of view of mind, we should have little desire. That is, we should have little desire, be easily satisfied, have few activities, and not have any superstitions, superstitious minds. So for those beginners who are trying to develop, cultivate the For those who desire to newly develop calm abiding, then you should stay in an isolated place by oneself.
So the place where one is going to engage in meditation should be a pleasant place. It’s having been blessed by holy beings, a place that’s been blessed by holy beings. It should be a place where there is no Or if we can’t find a place that’s been blessed by holy beings, then we should stay in a place where there’s no fear of being harmed by humans and non humans. So no problem from snakes? There’s no fear of being harmed by snakes?
Snakes and any animals. So in cultivating the calm abiding, many obstacles may arise. Only one person stays alive, not one person If we stay by ourselves, many obstacles. So it is best if we can stay near a lama, but if we can’t stay near a lama then we should have at least three good friends. They should be our Dharma friends.
Dharma friends. Dharma Dharma friends are those who are beneficial to our practice. The main inner obstacle to our practice is So our attachment and superstition, so therefore we should have little attachment and have no superstitions, superstitious mind. These are the main obstacles, inner obstacles. So we have to we have to make effort to eliminate our attachment to such things as sounds, tastes, sights, smells, all the various objects.
So if we complete this causal collection, we can easily develop calm abiding. But even if we don’t complete this causal collection, if it’s not complete, even though we try to cultivate it, we will not get it. So Kamalaśīla has said that even if we make effort for thousands of years, if our causal collection is not complete, we will not develop calm abiding. So for us, due to our great attachment, we have difficulty in giving up such things as food, clothing, our possessions, so we have to make effort in eliminating our attachment. So in order to develop calm abiding we have to have all the necessary causes and conditions.
Then it’s okay if I don’t make any effort to develop calm abiding. That’s not okay. We have to practice it. In general, we can talk about the object of observation, the object used for developing calm abiding. In general, we can use any object that we want.
For example, the non Buddhists sometimes use a stone or a piece of wood as an object. But even within Buddhism, are many different types of objects. But the master, Tsongkhapa, said that making use of the Buddha’s body, are great benefits to it is very beneficial to make use of the Buddha’s body as the object. So there are many benefits to begin by taking the body of the Buddha as object for developing the calm abiding. There’s the benefit just again and again remembering the Buddha.
Also, we will not forget the Buddha, and we will remember the Buddha at the time of our death. And also, it will serve as a cause for attaining Buddhahood in the future. So when we actually visualize the body of the Buddha, it can be either at the level of our forehead or at the level of the navel, but the size should be the size of your thumb. Visualize either at the level of the forehead or at the level of the navel. Or if we have a meditational deity, we do the self generation of ourselves in the deity and that can be the basis for developing calm abiding.
Or we can develop, we can imagine ourselves in the nature of Buddha, our own self in the nature of Buddha. And we can we can take that as object of observation and develop calm abiding. Or we can take the clear knowing factor of our own mind as the object of observation and develop calm abiding based upon that. So there are many different objects we can make use of. We should make use of the one for us.
So we can take any object we want, once we take an object as a basis for developing calm abiding, we should keep that object, that same object, until we actually attain calm abiding.