Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 25-minute teaching from a Mahāmudrā retreat, Lama Zopa Rinpoche guides practitioners through taking the eight Mahāyāna precepts with a bodhisattva motivation. He begins by developing the awareness that every sentient being—from insects to whales—has been our mother countless times, is the source of all our happiness, and is now trapped in endless suffering. From this understanding, he frames the precept-taking as a concrete commitment: for one day, practitioners abstain from killing, stealing, sexual activity, lying, and intoxicants, and avoid high beds, eating at wrong times, and entertainments like singing and dancing. The precepts serve both personal spiritual discipline and a direct contribution to world peace. Suitable for practitioners wishing to strengthen their bodhisattva commitment.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 102 2004 04 29 MR.mp3
UUID: 8629280c-b274-48b4-b83b-8cdc56406dfc
Teacher: Lama Zopa Rinpoche 1
Collection: y Mahāmudrā International Retreat (Lama Zopa Rinpoche 1)
Date: 2004-04-29
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 24.8 minutes
Words: ~1,708
The guru is Buddha. The guru is Dharma. The guru is Sangha also. The guru is the creator of all happiness. To all gurus, I call for refuge.
Now develop the awareness that all sentient beings, each one, the tiniest insect, the hugest whale, is most precious and most kind in one’s life. Each single sentient being is the source of all one’s own past happiness, present happiness, and future happiness, both temporary and ultimate. Every single realization of the past, including enlightenment itself, depends on each sentient being without exception. Not only that, but each one of these beings has been our mother countless times, caring for us when we were totally helpless, utterly lost, completely dependent on them. And each one of these sentient beings is trapped in saṃsāra, endlessly experiencing suffering without a moment’s break, continually wishing for happiness.
Therefore, it’s totally my responsibility to free these beings from suffering and bring them the happiness they seek. To accomplish my own and other things, I generate a mind seeking enlightenment. Room, all the FPMT centers, and houses, wherever there are offerings, as they are arranged, these are a Buddha, and mentally creating numbers more. Variety in this mantra causing numberless offerings to be received by all the Buddhas. By the power of truth, the Three Jewels blesses all Buddhas, Bodhisattvas.
By the power of great mind, the completed two collections are completely pure and inconceivable sphere of reality. May all these offerings become just so. In space in front, Lama Tsongkhapa Guru Śākyamūni Buddha surrounded by a multitude of Buddhas and bodhisattvas. Reverently, I prostrate with my body, speech, mind. And present clouds of every type of offering action imagined.
And declare all my negative actions accumulated since beginningless time. And rejoice in the merciful holy and ordinary beings. Please remain until the end of cyclic existence. And turn the wheel of Dharma for living beings. I dedicate my own merits and those of others to great enlightenment. The objects of, my attachment, aversion, ignorance, friends, enemies, strangers, my body, wealth, and enjoyments.
Without any sense of loss, offer this collection. Please accept with pleasure and bless me with freedom from the three poisons. And this time, I’m free from all obstacles and have every opportunity to practice Dharma. It is not sufficient that I simply avoid being born in the lower realms and take rebirth in a deva or human realm. Even my achieving liberation from saṃsāra is not sufficient.
I must achieve enlightenment in order to liberate the numberless hell beings, numberless hungry ghosts, numberless animals, numberless humans, numberless asuras, and numberless suras, the source of all my past, present, and future happiness, and bring them to full enlightenment. Therefore, I’m going to take the eight Mahāyāna precepts. Develop a very wide mind thinking, taking these precepts for every single being. Then especially all those beings in this world who are suffering from wars, all those who are sick in hospitals or sick at home, all those who are dying, all those undergoing operations not knowing if they will live or die, all those who are grieving, all those suffering from homelessness, not having a job, not being able to support their families, all those suffering from depression, and various mental problems and sicknesses of the mind, All those suffering from natural disasters, earthquakes, and so on, fires. Think, Mind taking these precepts is contribution to world peace right now, and this is a beginning step for me to achieve enlightenment and be able to free sentient beings not just from temporary sufferings, but from ultimate, the causes of those sufferings, to liberate them from sufferings and causes forever.
All Buddhas and bodhisattvas, dwelling in ten directions, please pay attention to me. Just as the previous Tathagatas, foe destroyers, perfectly completed Buddhas, who are like the divine white horse and the great elephant, did what had to be done, performed actions, laid down the burden, subsequently attained their own welfare, completely exhausted the fetters of existence, and had perfect speech to our liberated minds, with liberated wisdom, for the welfare of all sentient beings in order to benefit, in order to liberate, in order to eliminate harm, in order to eliminate war, in order to stop the harmful elements, in order to eliminate sickness, in order to fully complete thirty seven practices harmonious with enlightenment, in order to definitely actualize the unsurpassed result of perfect complete enlightenment, perfectly performed restoring purifying ordination. Similarly also I, also called. From this time until sunrise tomorrow, the welfare of all sentient beings in order to benefit, in order to liberate, in order to eliminate famine, in order to eliminate war, in order to stop the harmful elements, in order to eliminate sickness, in order to fully complete thirty seven practices on enlightenment, in order to definitely actualize the unsurpassed result of perfect complete enlightenment, shall perfectly undertake restoring purifying ordination.
All Buddhas and bodhisattvas dwelling in ten directions, please pay attention to me. Just as the previous Tathagatas, foe destroyers,, perfectly completed Buddhas, who like the divine white horse and the great elephant did what had to be done, performed actions, laid down the burden, subsequently attained own welfare, completely exhausted the fetters of existence, and had perfect speech, with liberated minds,, liberated wisdom. The welfare of all sentient beings in order to benefit, in order to liberate, in order to eliminate famine, in order to eliminate war, in order to stop the harmful elements, in order to eliminate sickness, in order to fully complete thirty seven practices harmonious with enlightenment, and in order to definitely actualize the unsurpassed result of perfect complete enlightenment, perfectly performed restoring purifying ordination. Similarly also, I, also called, from this time until sunrise tomorrow, for the welfare of all sentient beings in order to benefit, in order to liberate, in order to eliminate famine, in order to eliminate war, in order to stop the harmful elements, in order to eliminate sickness, in order to fully complete thirty seven practices harmonious with enlightenment, in order to definitely actualize the unsurpassed result of perfect complete enlightenment, shall perfectly undertake restoring purifying ordination.
All Buddhas and bodhisattvas dwelling in the ten directions, please pay attention to me. Just as the previous Tathagatas, foe destroyers, perfectly completed Buddhas, who like the divine white horse and the great elephant did what had to be done, performed actions, laid down the burden, subsequently attained own welfare, completely exhausted the fetters of existence and had perfect speech, with liberated minds, with liberated wisdom. The welfare of all sentient beings in order to benefit, in order to liberate, in order to eliminate famine, in order to eliminate war, in order to stop the harmful elements, in order to eliminate sickness, in order to fully complete thirty seven practices harmonious with enlightenment, in order to definitely actualize the unsurpassed result of perfect complete enlightenment, perfectly perform restoring purifying ordination. Similarly, I, also called, from this time until sunrise tomorrow, for the welfare of all sentient beings in order to benefit, in order to liberate, in order to eliminate famine, in order to eliminate war, in order to stop the harmful elements, in order to eliminate sickness, in order to fully complete harmonious with enlightenment, in order to definitely actualize the unsurpassed result of perfect complete enlightenment, shall perfectly undertake restoring purifying ordination.
Just as the foe destroyers of the past abandoned all misconduct of body, speech, and mind, such as taking the lives of others, so shall I, for the sake of all beings, abandon for one day these wrong actions and devote myself to pure practice of training. From now on, I shall not kill, steal others’ possessions, engage in sexual activity, or speak false words. I shall avoid intoxicants from which many mistakes arise. I shall not sit on large, higher expensive beds. I shall not eat food at the wrong times.
I shall avoid singing, dancing, playing music, and I shall not wear perfumed garments ornaments. Just as the arhats avoided wrong actions such as taking the lives of others, so shall I avoid wrong actions such as taking the lives of others. May I quickly attain enlightenment to liberate living beings. May those who experience various sufferings be released from the ocean of cyclic existence. May I maintain flawless morality, rules, and minor morality. May pure moral conduct be completed by keeping morality purely and untainted by pride.
Think this is my contribution to peace and happiness, all sentient beings, in particular, to peace and happiness, all sentient beings in this world. May the supreme jewel, bodhicitta, that has not arisen, arise and grow, and may that which has arisen not decline, but increase more and more. Because of the merits of taking the ordination and keeping the precepts, may I and all sentient beings be led to enlightened holy bodies created by the two vast accumulations of merit and transcendental wisdom. May all beings everywhere plagued by sufferings of body and mind obtain an ocean of happiness and joy by virtue of my merits. May no living creature suffer from evil or ever fall ill.
May no one be afraid or belittled with a mind weighed down by depression. May the blind see forms and deaf hear sounds. May those whose bodies are worn and frail be restored and find repose. May the naked find clothing, the hungry find food, may the thirsty find water and delicious drinks. May the poor find wealth as weak with sorrow find joy.
May the forlorn find hope, cause them happiness and prosperity. May there be timely rains and bountiful harvest. May all medicines be effective and wholesome prayers bear fruit. May all who are sick and ill quickly be freed from their ailments. Whatever diseases there are in the world, may they never occur again.
May the fearful cease to be afraid and those bound be freed. May the powerless find power. May people think of benefiting each other. For as long as space remains, for as long as sentient beings remain, until then, may I too remain to dispel the suffering of the world. May these aspirations be fulfilled.
From the heart of my guru, come five-colored light rays, transforming