Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 58-minute session, Lama Zopa Rinpoche guides practitioners through an extended Tonglen practice—a mind-training method of compassionately taking on the suffering of others—within guru yoga centered on Śākyamūni Buddha. After visualizing the refuge field and contemplating precious human rebirth, he leads detailed reflections on the distinct suffering of each of the six realms: hell beings’ unbearable torment, hungry ghosts’ eons of starvation, animals’ servitude, humans’ multiple afflictions, asuras’ warfare, and celestial beings’ sudden falls. For each realm, students generate genuine compassion and determine to achieve enlightenment specifically to liberate those beings. The session concludes with guru yoga proper, featuring visualization and elaborate offerings. Throughout, Rinpoche emphasizes feeling these contemplations deeply rather than merely visualizing them. For practitioners with prior Mahāmudrā instruction.
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File: 72 2004 04 25 MR.mp3
UUID: 2a717996-0d3d-43d1-8a7a-a62a0aa9cc41
Teacher: Lama Zopa Rinpoche 1
Collection: y Mahāmudrā International Retreat (Lama Zopa Rinpoche 1)
Date: 2004-04-25
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 58.0 minutes
Words: ~3,732
In emptiness, there is no I, the creator of negative actions. In emptiness, there is no action of creating negative actions. In emptiness, there are no negative actions created. Even though there are infinite phenomena in emptiness, everything is one taste. There is no this and that, no me and you, nothing.
From this emptiness, everything comes into existence. Whatever exists is simply the manifestation of emptiness. So in the on page nine, visualizing the field of refuge. And before that, the preliminary practices, sitting in the correct position, checking the mind, casting away the thoughts, evil thought of the attachment, clinging, grasping to the happiness of this life, and then cleansing the mind channels by doing the nine round breathing. Settling the mind and bringing it to a neutral state.
Are the hurt, kind lama, look to this pitiful one. How I behave and how I’ve cheated myself my entire life. Please look upon this mindless one with compassion. The essential advice to give yourself hot spoon, Keep it deep within your heart. Don’t be distracted.
Don’t be distracted. Reflect upon the state of your life from the essential drop of your heart. Since beginning a cyclic existence, which hasn’t ended up to now, Though you’ve experienced countless cycles of rebirth, just so many variations on happiness and pain, you’ve not achieved the slightest benefit from them. Though at present, you’ve attained leisure and fortune so difficult to find, always till now they’ve finished and have been lost, have been empty and without meaning. Now if you care about yourself, the time has come to practice the essence of future happiness, virtuous actions.
In space in front of me is a large jeweled throne supported by eight great lions, on top of which is a seat of variegated lotus and moon and sun mandalas. On top of this is the essence of my own root guru in the aspect of the conqueror, Śākyamūni Buddha. The color of his holy body is a pure as gold, and he has an uṣṇīṣa on the crown of his head. Śākyamūni Buddha has one face and two arms. His right hand is in the mode of controlling the earth, and his left is in the mode of concentration, holding a bowl filled with nectar.
He is wearing the saffron robes of monk and is adorned by the marks and signs. His holy body is in the nature of transparent light, and he sits in the vajra posture, in the center of an aura of light rays. Surrounding him are the direct and indirect gurus, deities, buddhas, bodhisattvas, arhats, dakas, dakinis, and protectors. In front of each of these holy beings on a faultless throne sits the texts explained by them in the form of texts, having the nature of light. All of these beings in the merit field are in the aspect of being pleased with me.
By remembering their qualities, by remembering their kindness, I feel great devotion towards them. Surrounding me going out endlessly are all sentient beings, all experiencing the various different types of suffering, the six realms, all in human form. They’re extremely pitiful and crying out for help. I lead them in taking refuge. From beginningless time until now, I and all mother sentient beings have been experiencing the various general sufferings of saṃsāra in numberless times, especially the sufferings of evil gone realms.
Still, it’s difficult to see the end of saṃsāra, to see the depth of suffering. At this time, I’ve received a perfect human rebirth, qualified by the eight freedoms and ten fortunes, which is difficult to find, but once found is high and meaningful. It can be used to attain a good future rebirth, liberation, even enlightenment. Now, after having met the precious teachings of Buddha, which is so difficult to meet, if I did not try to attain the most sublime state of full enlightenment, which is beyond the state of peace and all samsaric sufferings, I’ll have to experience over again the general sufferings of saṃsāra and the particular sufferings of three lower realms. Who has the power to protect me from these sufferings?
Only the guru and three precious gems abiding in front of me. I must achieve enlightenment for the benefit of all mother sentient beings. Therefore, I’m going to take refuge in my guru and the three precious gems. Focus on the gurus. Now with a mind of total reliance, thinking my whole life is in your hands, Like a small child taking refuge in the father, make of refuge.
Cause refuge, result refuge. Cause refuge, the enlightenment qualities of the triple gem, Buddha Dhamma Samha. Result refuge that oneself will accomplish also all those qualities, realizations. By taking refuge in the cause refuge, we create the cause to achieve the resultant refuge in our minds. From every pore of the holy body, light rays go out ripening and liberating all sentient beings.
The tip of each of these beams is a Buddha, comes to the crown of the head of each hell being, each hungry ghost, each animal, each human being, each intermediate state being. Their bodies become, their minds become. They transform into aspect, Śākyamūni Buddha, and the beings absorb back into oneself. Feel great joy in having been able to enlighten all sentient beings. Remembering this is just visualization.
Reality, sentient beings are still suffering because they still have the causes, karma and delusions in their minds. How wonderful it would be if all sentient beings which abide in equanimity, free from hatred and attachment, not holding some close and others distant, may abide in equanimity, I myself will cause them to abide in equanimity. Please, Guru Deity,, bless me to be able to do this. How wonderful it would be for all sentient beings who abide in equanimity, free from hatred and attachment, not holding some close and others distant, we abide in equanimity. I myself will cause and abide in equanimity.
Please, guru deity, bless me to be able to do this. How wonderful it would be if all sentient beings and happiness and the cause of happiness. May they have happiness in its causes, and myself will cause and have happiness in its causes. Please, Guru Deity, bless me to be able to do this. How wonderful it would be for all sentient beings and happiness and the causes of happiness.
May they have happiness in its causes. I myself will cause them to have happiness in its causes. Please, Guru Deity, bless me to be able to do this. Remember, every time you say happiness, don’t think of temporary happiness. Not just that, ultimate happiness, liberation, enlightenment.
When you hear the word happiness in your heart, you have that understanding. How wonderful it would be if all sentient beings are free from suffering and cause of suffering. May they be free from suffering and its causes. I myself will cause them to be free from suffering and its causes. Please, Guru Deity, bless me to be able to do this.
How wonderful it would be if all sentient beings were free from suffering and the cause of suffering. May they be free from suffering and its causes. I myself will cause them to be free from suffering and its causes. Please, guru deity, bless me to be able to do that. How wonderful it would be if all sentient beings were never separated from the happiness, the high rebirth and liberation.
May they never be separated from these. I myself will cause them never to be separated from these. Please, Guru Deity, bless me to be able to do this. How wonderful it would be if all sentient beings were never separated from the highest happiness of highest rebirth and liberation. May they never be separated from these.
I myself will cause them never to be separated from these. Please, good Eti, bless me to be able to do this. Says, we train the mind in Tonglen and then practically we help sentient beings however we can. When others are bearing hardships, take them upon yourself. Give the profit to others like carrying a load for others.
Give the comfort and happiness to other sentient beings. Not just always visualization, not only that. And then at the time of helping others, not doing so. Doing the visualization is to train to help. Start with small things, giving happiness and comfort to others.
And later, one will be able to make charity of one’s body just like Buddha. As our bodhicitta gets stronger and stronger, we are actually able to do perfect work for others like Buddha, emanating countless forms for others to be able to benefit. Special bodhicitta, each hell being is the most precious and kind one in my life. All my past, present, and future happiness comes from each one of these hell beings. Not only that, but each one of these hell beings has been my mother countless times in the past, cherishing me with the greatest affection and love.
It’s so unbearable for me to think of even one hell being having to experience the unimaginable sufferings of the hell realms for even one instant. And they are numberless, and they’re suffering to experience for a great length of time. It’s completely my responsibility to free each and every single one of these hell beings from their suffering and bring them to a state of perfect happiness. In order to do that, I’m going to engage in this profound quick path of guru yoga. Each animal, each hungry ghost being is a source for my past, present, future happiness.
Each one has been my mother countless times, protecting my life from danger countless times each day, sacrificing themselves for me in numberless ways. It’s so unbearable for me to think of even one of these hungry ghost beings having to experience the unimaginable sufferings of hunger and thirst, not finding anything to eat or drink tens of thousands of years, and not having the karma, the merit to be able to die from that intense suffering, but having to experience it continually, continually without cease. It’s so unbearable for me to think of even one of my kind mother sentient beings having to experience these sufferings for an instant and they are numberless. Therefore, I must do something. I must achieve enlightenment in order to free these beings from their suffering.
Therefore, I’m going to engage this profound quick path of Guru Yoga. Every single animal being source all my past, present, future happiness. Each one is most precious and kind one to me. It’s so unbearable for me to think that even one of these animals having to experience the suffering in the animal realms for even an instant, and they are numberless. Therefore, I must achieve enlightenment.
Therefore, I’m going to engage profound quick path of Guru Yoga. Each human being is a source of my past present future happiness. Each one of these human beings been my mother countless times in the past. So unbearable for me to think of even one human being undergoing all the various types of suffering in the human realms, and there are numberless. Therefore, I must achieve enlightenment.
Therefore, I’m going to rely upon this profound quick path of Guru Yoga. Each sura being is the source of my past, present, future happiness. Each one has been my mother countless times. So unbearable for me to think that even one of these sura beings undergoing their sufferings in sura realms for an instant, and they are numberless. Therefore, I must achieve enlightenment.
Therefore, I’m going to rely upon this profound quick path of Guru Yoga. Each asura being is a source for my past, present, future happiness. Each one has cherished me numberless times, has been my mother and protected me when I was helpless. It’s so unbearable for me to think even one of these asura beings undergoing the sufferings in the asura realms. When the time comes to die, those final seven days the asura beings experience far greater suffering than even the lowest hell realms.
Therefore, I must do something. Therefore, I must achieve enlightenment, free all these beings from suffering. Therefore, I’m going to engage profound quick path of Guru Yoga. Every single intermediate state being has been my mother countless times and cherished me with the greatest affection and love. It’s so unbearable for me to think of even one of these beings suffering.
The great fear and panic and anxiety of the bardo realms. Therefore, I must do something. I must take full responsibility to free each one of these beings from their suffering, place them in a state of perfect happiness. To do this, I’m going to rely upon this profound quick path of Guru Yoga which is full of blessings, by which countless past great siddhas and masters have accomplished enlightenment in a very short time. For the sake of all mother sentient beings, shall quickly, quickly in this very life, obtain the state of primordial Guru Vajradhāra Buddha.
I shall free all mother sentient beings from suffering and place them in the great bliss and buddhahood. Therefore, I shall now practice profound path of Guru Yoga. The merit field absorbs gradually into light, which absorbs to oneself. Oneself absorbs into emptiness. Then do the practice taking the three kayas into the path and arising as a deity and blessing offerings and empowerment and the beings.
To the endowed, gone beyond, the foe destroyer, completely perfected, fully awakened being, perfect in knowledge and in good conduct. Knower of the world, supreme guide, beings to be tamed. Teacher of gods and humans, the founder, the Bhagavan, fully awakened one, to all of you here. To the Bhagavan possessed of all qualities. The bathhouse has an extremely sweet fragrance, crystal floor, beautiful sparkling jewel pillars.
Roof is covered by canopy decorated with shining pearls. So this is like a swimming pool with golden steps going down to the water, and inside beams decorated with jewels, extremely beautiful. Outside, there’s a divine dress and jewels and platforms. The pillars and beams all decorated with jewels. Oneself as a deity transforms goddesses from the heart who offer the bath, divine dress, who clean off ornaments and so forth.
Essence of the meditation is that everything offered to the guru, each offering generates and will bless. Just as after the birth of Buddha, the gods made offerings of pure water. I also offer a bath of pure water to the gurus. Holy body created by ethics and virtues, holy speech fulfilling the hopes of infinite migratory beings, holy mind seeing all existence as it is, I offer this bath to Thubwang Dorje Chang. I offer this bath to holy bodies and lineage gurus, extensive conduct.
I offer this bath to holy bodies and lineage gurus, profound view. I offer this bath to holy bodies and lineage gurus, Vajradhāra. I offer this bath to holy bodies of all the lineage gurus, embodying all three refuges, taking the form of the virtuous friend whoever is needed, granting sublime and common realizations to the kind gurus I offer bath. Who taught me education, your revealed sūtra and tantra text and advice, and who gave vows, initiations, and commentaries on tantra to direct and indirect gurus. For total control of the speech of the hero, Mañjuśrī, you preserving the teachings completely control in the three realms to you, the incomparable one.
Eyes to view all the vast teachings, supreme gateways to liberation for the fortunate, using skillful means to lead each of you, to the illuminating spiritual friends I offer this bath. Blissful, most glorious, the rest. The tethers of four wheels, countless tantras to the assembly of dakas I offer this bath. I offer this bath to the holy bodies of the founding Buddhas.
I offer this bath to the Dharma. I offer this bath to the guiding Sangha. I offer this bath to three precious gems. In times long past before the Bhagawan, you committed to supporting all beings as your children. Your accomplished practices according to Dharma, to the assembly of Dharma protectors and supporters are offered this bath and flowers.
To the five long life goddesses, Buddha, Sadharma, Anel, Patenta, and Snowland of Tibet, especially those of this country in this place, to all the local gods, nagas, landowners, and spirits who offer this bath To the Tārā and princess with many jewels, the scented water, beautifully filled up, with excellent songs and a variety of music, offered this bath. Imagine all the water gathers on their forehead, heart, neck, left and right shoulders, and you wipe off from these five places. I now dry their holy bodies with incomparably clean sweet smelling cloth. Om Om Tram Sri Ah Kaya Vishvadhana Svāhā. Just as a goldsmith polishes gold, already pure and refined, so do I apply the best fragrance that pervades billions of universes to the holy bodies, the controlled ones.
Remember, I’m sure his comment about making just one drop of ointment offering to one pore, the guru. By offering these soft light divine clothes with indestructible faith in those who have attained the indestructible holy body, may I also achieve the vajra holy body. Here, you’re offering robes to those in the form of monks, divine dress garments to those in the form of deities, and so on. Because the conquerors are adorned by the natural ornaments and marks and signs, they do not need any other kind of ornament. But by offering these supreme jewel ornaments, may all sentient beings achieve the holy body adorned by the marks and signs.
By offering this auspicious vase, beautify with jewels and filled with various essences, may the stains of the karma and delusions of all six realms sentient beings be purified, and may we be moistened with the wetness and bodhicitta. Imagine offering to all sentient beings purifying all negative karmas, delusions. With most excellent light radiating forth in ten directions, splendor of good fortune ablaze just everywhere. This crown ornament of precious golden powers to the crown of the Shakya king I offer. May thereby precious teachings spurred in the ten directions.
The world become pervaded by major happiness. And by its becoming the crown ornament to transform my great gods included, may they all gain the level of one endowed with the ten powers. Out of your loving compassion for myself and all beings, O Bhagawan, please remain as long as I continue to make offerings through the force of your magical power. Think the merit field absorbs back. Visualize that the rest of the water from the bathing house runs through the gutters and down to six realms, purifying the negative karmas of also those beings.
The old robes and the platforms all hanging outside are taken to all six realms given to sentient beings to keep as relics, holy objects. Due to the merit of the three times, created by me, Buddha’s, bodhisattvas, and all other sentient beings, may bodhicitta, cherishing others, letting go of oneself, letting go of the I, which is source for the happiness and success of myself and other sentient beings, be generated within my own mind, the minds of all sentient beings, without even a second’s delay. With that which has already been generated increase. Due to the merits of the three times created by me, Buddhas, bodhisattvas, and all other sentient beings.
May all the father and mother sentient beings have happiness, may three lower realms be empty forever. May all bodhisattvas prayers succeed immediately, may I be able to cause all this to happen by myself alone. Due to the merits of the three times created by me, bodhisattvas, and all mother, sentient beings. May the holy Dharma, the lamas, Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, Sangha, all other holy beings, all our virtuous friends of stable lives. May all the holy wishes succeed immediately.
Due to the merits of the three times created by me, Buddhas, bodhisattvas, and all other sentient beings, may I be able to offer skies of benefit to all sentient beings as Lama Tsongkhapa does, by having within me the same qualities Lama Tsongkhapa has from now on in all my future lifetimes. Due to the merits of the three times created by me, Buddhas, bodhisattvas, and all other sentient beings, which are totally non existent from their own side. May the I, which is also totally non existent from its own side. achieve Guru Śākyamūni Buddha’s enlightenment, which is also totally non existent from its own side. lead all sentient beings, who are totally non existent from their own side.
That enlightenment which is totally nonexistent from its own side. by myself alone, who is also totally nonexistent from its own side. I dedicate all my merits in a way greatly admired by Buddhas of the three times. realized by Samantabhādra, May I be able to completely actualize Lama Tsongkhapa’s teaching which unifies Sūtra and Tantra within my mind and spread these teachings to the minds of all sentient beings. Thus, may Lama Tsongkhapa’s teachings flourish forever.
Never ever be reborn in the lower realms. May those sentient beings immediately be liberated from all disease, spirit harm, negative karma, defilements, and quickly achieve enlightenment by actualizing the whole path, especially bodhicitta. By my hearing that anybody is sick, may cause that person immediately to be recovered. By my hearing that somebody has died, may cause that person to immediately be born in in pure realm where they can achieve enlightenment. So the next session will be at nine o’clock.
So there’s a bit of concern about the noise levels. I think actually in the mornings, it’s not a problem. And in the evenings, there’s a lot to talk about because when we’re all discussing. But my main concern is definitely Rinpoche has repeated over and over again to me and also to all of us that the session times are not a time to not practice. The break times are the alternative meditation times to the session times, the alternative meditation times to the break times.
So whatever happens, please try to do the meditation exactly in accordance with his instructions in the break times. And definitely in the morning, silence helps that.