Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 46-minute teaching, Lama Zopa Rinpoche explores the root causes of suffering and how they can be stopped. He begins with the inner mechanism of discontent — how anger and attachment, rooted in ignorance, combine with external conditions to produce an unpleasant, restless mental state. He then explains the Buddhist doctrine of dependent origination: because suffering arises from causes and conditions (primarily destructive karma and disturbing thoughts), it can be eliminated by changing those causes — through ethical discipline, creating positive karma, and purifying past actions. The second half shifts to a lengthy Socratic dialogue with a student about the nature of place and identity, using Adelaide and home as examples to explore whether objects exist independently of our labelling and perception. The exchange probes the boundary between conventional and ultimate reality, asking whether Adelaide exists when people leave, and whether a city is reducible to physical form or requires our mental designation.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 06 WWNN.mp3
UUID: 4c97f626-7556-4639-b3a0-685c34c01111
Teacher: Lama Zopa Rinpoche 1
Collection: y What the World Needs Now 1987 Audios (Lama Zopa Rinpoche 1)
Date: 1987 (exact day not recorded)
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 46.4 minutes
Words: ~1,453
Either anger or attachment on the basis of the ignorance. So that’s the inner cause. Then, you see, depending on depending on what happened, you see, outside condition happened. This, know, outside condition, which, you see, which makes the feeling is unpleasant. We change this feeling, you know, which means unpleasant, unjust, you know, undesirable, unbearable.
So for this okay. So this un peaceful feeling, one has the let the mind is merely labeled on this suffering, you know, unhappiness, discomfort. So like this, the suffering all exist. So the problem, the self problem exists depending on inner cause, the unskillful action, non virtuous action. Then, the outside condition, outside condition will come from that inner karma, the non virtuous action, that outer condition that has that, such that place, you know, in the environment.
So which came from one’s own mind. Then then what is it? So depend depending on these things then, is the feeling is the un peaceful feeling. The feeling changes, you know, become un peaceful un peaceful. Uncomfortable.
Uncomfortable. So, only one has made one’s mind merely labeled merely labeled on this problem, suffering. Because is the suffering is dependent on cause and condition of all this, So therefore therefore, you see, this suffering can be stopped. This suffering can be stopped, you see, by changing this inner cause, karma, by stopping creating again, by purifying what one has created already, by purifying by changing that, the inner cause which from where the negative from where the the environment or the place, you know, or the which changes the feeling, you know, which makes feeling unpleasant. You see?
Wouldn’t it? So by changing the cause and conditions, you know, and then you see, you can stop the suffering. You can stop the suffering. So by depending on other by depending on other cause and conditions, you can stop the suffering. That is why how one can stop the suffering and one can stop the suffering, you see, and have, say, happiness, is because they are dependent arising.
That is because are dependent arising. That is because the cause are dependent arising. The cause of the self, you see, and the cause of the self, it’s it’s disturbing thoughts disturbing thoughts and karma. You see? And the positive part in the good karma, you know, of this or the happiness.
See? Is there dependent arising? Yeah. Thanks. So here, stop.
Yeah. There’s some questions, maybe. Yeah. Before somebody before somebody, you see. Has has Adelaide has Adelaide been from during this time or not?
Okay. When did it begin? Hundred fifty years ago. Before So before The Buddhas before before the people gave name before the people gave name, Adelaide. Did Adelaide exist?
So So after the place started, then Adelaide start. Then Adelaide. After after the arrival of the people, after they settled, earlier. Yes? Before what? Before They came.
Yeah. Before before they came. The Adelaide already exist. Yes. .
Yeah. You’re right. You’re right. So so Adelaide is people and building everything. Right?
So so when there’s nothing so when we call home, home, no home, so that means including building people. Right? Yeah? So when the family goes for so when a family goes to the clinic, you know, house is empty, but there’s no home there. There’s a home.
When the family is when when the family is when the families are at the beach, you know, at that time, there’s no home. But that time there’s that time there’s no home. When when the the peep when the people are left when the people are left for Tibet, you know, when the people are left for when they’re when they’re left for Tibet, how’s the ending? So they don’t have home in any they they don’t have home in any outlet. Right?
So while you’re in Tibet while you are in Tibet, you don’t think you have so you you don’t think you you have home in Adelaide Adelaide. While, you know, while you and your family are in Tibet, you don’t think you have home in Adelaide. Birthplace. So birthplace where you’re living now, where you’re born. You know?
K? So when birth house is empty, no people living. So during that time, you you think I have home in Adelaide or not? Yeah? So you don’t go so then you don’t have home.
While you’re away, you don’t have home in Adelaide. Then how how do you go back? How do you return back to home? So, is it right? Is it right?
So you don’t return back home. So Adelaide people, Adelaide people people, you see, when they when they are out of the city, when everyone’s out of the city, okay, away from the city, then when they go, then it’s not just a place. Places and are not just Adelaide. People just people not just people not Adelaide, but all together, it’s Adelaide. Yeah?
So when the people are away from the cities, so there’s no Adelaide here. There’s no Adelaide here. So that’s the Adelaide. That’s so that’s the Adelaide. Now, I’m not a question about I’m not questioning about that ultimately.
Of course, the conventional way. Okay? So they so people did so people they said people don’t return back to. When they come here, they don’t return to. So, the so the people, when they are away from the city, not talking about the reason.
I’m not talking about the reason. You know, that’s a different thing. And it’s talking about whether they should have this place or not, you see. I’m saying, while the people are away from the city, is there Adelaide? In mind.
Is there is there another another Adelaide beside that? Only in mind. Only in their mind. Only in their mind. Adelaide is only in their mind.
The You have all your friends in your mind. The same thing, Adelaide. All the families in your mind. Then then you don’t need to go then then you see, you don’t need to go to you don’t need to go to see me. What does he need to run up again?
Put it all in mind. Put all the families in mind, all the friends in mind. When you don’t think that the family is outside, when you think the family is in your mind, like that, they all come in your mind. So you so you bring them in your mind? You know, you’re making you like soup, you know, soup.
Right. Isn’t isn’t the combination Notice. Kind of the, you know, The block and what is printed there? The block and what is printed there? Is that one?
The block, the block, block Block. Block, printing block. The block and what you print there? Not one. Is it?
The the feeling, feeling which has. Not same. Not the same. Yeah. The same, but continue. That’s totally what you see into your mind.
But doesn’t but that doesn’t mean that that does not mean your memory your memory of the parents, of of your family is is a family. Instead of in that, what you’re saying is your memory is a, you know, your family. So you see, you’re making it one. Your memory of family is like a family. In that case in that case, then, you know, if all the time they are in your mind, then they then they don’t need to live with.
When they when they when they die, they don’t need to live will live. They don’t need to live will, you know, because everything’s in your mind. Okay? Everything’s wrong to you. Yeah.
So does does Elliot exist? Does does Elliot does Elliot exist? Does Elliot exist? You see? Even even when there’s a even when there’s a seed is established, you see, before before the before the label, before the label Adelaide, is that is that that Adelaide existing?
So what do you mean? So because you perceive and label. Yeah? Right? Okay.
Now. Now. Now you see? In that time, somebody’s coming. You know, you said, somebody’s coming.
Okay? Somebody’s coming out from along the path or outside the house. And if you perceive that’s my girlfriend, Okay? Not no. No.
One man is coming. And then, if you perceive, you know, that my girlfriend is coming or my girlfriend came outside the house. So does a girlfriend exist does a girlfriend exist on that man? No. Yes.
It exists. It exists. Before the people raided on this, you see, this place, you see, Adelaide, does Adelaide exist?