Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 44-minute teaching, Lama Zopa Rinpoche shows how the cycle of suffering operates continuously, not just over lifetimes but moment by moment, even within a single hour. He begins by establishing why recognizing our problems matters—it generates renunciation, the determination to be free from saṃsāra. He then explains the twelve-link wheel of dependent arising: how ignorance triggers actions and mental defilements, producing consciousness, the aggregates, and rebirth. The teaching examines how the self appears permanent and self-sufficient—a fundamental misperception that Buddhist philosophy identifies as saṃsāra’s root. For serious practitioners studying the nature of mind and the philosophical bases of liberation.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 03 1991 08 08 E.mp3
UUID: 3e3c2716-bb4e-4ec9-ade2-3fdb50f3cdb5
Teacher: Lama Zopa Rinpoche 1
Collection: y Emptiness (Lama Zopa Rinpoche 1)
Date: 1991-08-08
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 44.6 minutes
Words: ~1,768
Because the nature of the mind, that which is called clear light, that is the non-arising. One can act like the two parts and achieve the two cessations, the two kayas. The types of observation, the impermanent observation and simple observation. So therefore, is temporary. The mental strength is temporary.
That is possible to mind, to continue using this mind, to become dharmakaya. And then the So because of this and there’s the vast capacity, the part that exists. But one can be instructed by listening to the Dharma. So so therefore so because of that because of that, there’s a word there there’s a word to recognize to recognize, you see, the suffering, to recognize one’s own problems, and to have aversion, have aversion, to have renunciation, to have aversion, the determination to be free from the suffering. So there’s work and there’s value in that.
If one does not if one does not reflect the shortcomings of the The truth if does not reflect shortcomings of the true suffering, if one does not attempt to reflect the true suffering, the the thought seeking liberation won’t rise won’t rise, you know. Without reason, without reason correctly. The thought is the correct thought of seeking liberation, you see, won’t won’t be a reason in the, you see, in what the man will continue. And then if does not reflect the arising, the arising — the gradual gradual entry, the gradual entry into saṃsāra, then one won’t know how to cut the root of the root of the saṃsāra. So if one doesn’t know the evolution that graduate And the gradual entry is the same entrance into saṃsāra. how one circles in saṃsāra.
In this cycle, you see. Then if one does know the evolution, then one wouldn’t wouldn’t know how to cut the root of the saṃsāra. Means that one wouldn’t know. If one doesn’t know the evolution, then that means that one one doesn’t know the origin. The old rising, the karma and delusion, which brings all the sufferings.
So one wouldn’t know and one wouldn’t one one cannot realize, they recognize the the cause of the sufferings. Then there’s no way to cut the root of the saṃsāra. Then, I, the yogi, practice this way. I said, I beseech you who seek liberation you who is seeking liberation, please I request I beg that to practice in that way, to practice like that. So one should oh, yeah.
The arising, the karma, the action, and the disturbing thoughts. So as it is mentioned in the teachings by Nāgārjuna, There are three delusions, two actions, seven results.
Then again, the rises, the three delusions arise. And this is the this is the wheel of life. So the three delusions, the ignorance, and the craving and grasping, the three delusions. And two actions, the compounding action and the throwing action. The becoming is one of these two actions.
Then, seven results: consciousness, name and form, sense basis, contact feeling, birth, old age and death. So then you see the second result happens. Again, the three delusions. Again, you see the three delusions rises. Then again, because of that, again, two action rises.
Then again, seven results come. So again, from that again, three delusions rises. So even that so so even that, not just one. Even that is not even that is not just one. You see, it’s not just one, not just rising.
The two delusions rising is not just one time. Three delusions, the two actions. Particularly the three delusions and the action. The action. It can be compounding action.
Not just once just once in their life, or even within one hour, even within one minute, then as one does not as one does not practice awareness, as one doesn’t practice Three Principal Aspects of the Path of enlightenment, Even just the renunciation of saṃsāra or even just emptiness. Only the awareness of emptiness, then the rising. Not the bodhicitta. So s one s one’s mind is not mind doesn’t meditate. See, the the common part, end of this, besides all three, without end of this, and then even within one hour.
So you see then it’s going to follow the concept of true existence, the concept of true self. I is the ignorance. The concept of this two legs in the person. Then, so this motivates the karma motivates karma. It’s in one hour.
So on. You see? Like this. So, you see, even with one hour, one creates, you see, created so many future life saṃsāra. On this particular, you see, with this ordinary mind, with this ordinary person’s mind, you see, particularly in the lower realm.
Two delusions: craving and grasping and becoming — that is, just before that is experienced at the time of death. So when one is near when one is near, you see, the craving and grasping arise. They said, you see, one was near to death. So before taking before taking the rebirth of that particular link. Imprint of the potential that is left unconscious that which is not powerful, by the craving and grasping.
So rebirth certain after death, one experienced the saṃsāra, which is the production of that imprint, which comes from that potential of that imprint. So so within one hour, one started one started one started, you see, so many has twelve twelve link. The twelve branches of twelve, let’s say, twelve branches, limbs of dependent arising, dependent arising. One started so many even within one hour. Then like this, we can say, one one day one day, but one starts from any.
One one starts from any. And then like this, one week, one month, year. And then from birth from birth to death, in one life, so many. One started to see the twelve link. So how is that?
Therefore, one has to recognize the cause of suffering, the whole rising, karma and the second cause, delusion. Then, the very root one should recognize what is the ignorance. The that which is the root that which is the very root of all the other disturbing thoughts and the karma and the whole rest of the you see? The whole true sufferings. So So like this.
You see, in in our view in our view. And, you see, the way the the way the eye appears to to oneself. You see, the eye is appearing to oneself. If you look at eye, you see how it’s appearing to to oneself. You see, it appears permanent.
Permanent. This is s. Even though even though so while, while, while — while the. While the art dependent on cause and conditions, the cause of today’s eye, today’s eye is caused by the yesterday’s I. This hour I is caused by previous hour’s I.
It’s the previous combination of previous hour. I which was existing. The previous hour. This minute I is a result of the previous minute I. This second I, in this second I, you see, this I, so is a result of is a result of, you see, the previous second I.
So like that, even we can even we we can split seconds, so goes like that. So that I is result of result of previous split second. You see that I. So then this one causes, today’s eye causes next to my eye, and this eye causes the next hour eye. This minute eye causes the next minute.
This second I causes the next second I. The split second in the I causes the next split second I. Depending on the cough and the condition that you see. So depending on cause and conditions. So while it is while it is naturally changing, you know, within every second, But appearing as permanent as permanent.
It’s permanent. Then one one believes in that. The impermanent I, then this I appears existing alone. Existing alone. This without depending on existing alone, without depending on the path.
And then while it’s dependent on the path, then these eyes appear to oneself, it’s existing with own freedom. Their soul entity or without cost conditions. This one with existing existing with its own freedom without being the cause conditions. The previous one, the first one is More concentrated on not changing. Unchangeable, it’s permanent.
So if it exists without the cause and condition, then it means it exists existing with its freedom. So this I is appearing like this, and they see one believes that is true. So this concept of believing that the I is permanent or existing alone or existing with its own freedom. So these are these are not the root of saṃsāra. That is the ignorance which drives saṃsāra.
There’s an appearance like this, but I is appearing like this to us. And one is believing. You see that too. This is not there. There’s a from the four schools from the four schools, there is a Vaibhāṣika.
For this first school, this is true. So within this school, The this school that which believes in this concept as a cause of saṃsāra. However, in the reality in the reality In the reality or according to the Madhyamaka, the fourth school, the last one, Madhyamaka, the Prāsaṇgika school, it is not the root of the saṃsāra. Also there’s appearance. That is where the eyes are appearing to us.
Where the eyes are appearing to us, there is, without depending on the aggregates, the group of aggregates and the coordination of aggregates. Without depending on that, then eyes appearing. Self supporting. Self The meaning is that without depending on the aggregates, the group of aggregates, the group of aggregates and continuation of aggregates. So this appearance is also there.
The eyes are appearing to us also that way. It is there. It is also there. Believing that this is true is also there. You see?
Ask who have a serious who have a truly existent appearance — we, who are sentient beings having the truly existent appearance, Having not having realized emptiness, us who are all of them, have this appearance and this concept are there. So this is regarded as the root of saṃsāra the second school — from the first school, one part of the school, from the first one, one part — thinks this concept, believing that I is self-sufficient or self-supporting, is the root of saṃsāra. Also, the second school called Vaibhāṣika also believes that this is the concept of the Sautrāntika.