Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 46-minute talk, Lama Zopa Rinpoche establishes that consciousness must have a prior cause and therefore cannot be independent. He opens with a simple analogy—today’s plant produces tomorrow’s plant—to show why this is logically necessary. He then explains why it matters: if consciousness were uncaused, no mental state could change; anger, once it arose, would be permanent. Since we know our minds do transform, consciousness must depend on prior causes. He connects this to rebirth, explaining how consciousness continues from past lives into conception. He emphasizes that the Buddha’s complete understanding of causality surpasses what science and ordinary analysis have achieved. Pitched at those exploring the philosophical foundations of rebirth and dependent origination.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 25 WWNN.mp3
UUID: 2988ce9e-87c8-45a7-b201-6bff3fdf13b8
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: 46.5 minutes
Words: ~648
So like this? It cannot continue into space, continuation of that in space, like plants. From the seed, plant comes. Today’s plant becomes cause of tomorrow’s plant. Plant which will be tomorrow is similar to the which will be tomorrow.
So today’s plant is the substantial cause, the direct cause to tomorrow’s plant. It continues. Continuation of continuation of this plant, of course, is tomorrow. The result of tomorrow’s plant. So hurry up.
It doesn’t — continuation of the doesn’t become a result in the space. In the essence of space, it doesn’t happen that way. So similar to fertilized egg, the substantial part doesn’t become the direct cause that transforms, which continues to becomes formless, shapeless, colorless, the known phenomena. In that case, it doesn’t sustain. There’s such thing, and then the consciousness begins with this life.
Which means the continuity begins with this life. First of all, contradicts these common experiences. Past, future lives, those who can see future lives, those who can remember past lives, oneself and others. And those knowledge, you know, it contradicts those supreme knowledge. That that everyone does not have, that everyone does not have.
Extrasensory experience or remembering the knowledge. Those people who have beings who have this capability to remember The continuum is empty. This means mhmm. Then, without the previous cause, ignorance, the same nature, has been on previous continuation. In this case, if the person begins with his life without depending on the previous cause and the continuation, the similar nature.
Then it would be causeless, it would be independent If it happened without it being a cause condition, then it would be, without cause and conditions, if the cause has happened, then it would be independent. Independent. Unchangeable, that it does not change. It cannot be changed by any condition. Then once the angle is rising, then you see on that object, then forever there will be anger.
Forever. Now, if the consciousness now exists without cause condition, then it’s independent. That means every single part, every single moment of mind that arises, once it arises, will be independent in every single part, in every single virtuous part. For this, it’s independent, so we cannot change. So this way, we have no freedom to change the anger.
Another part, another positive mind can remove anger. Doesn’t happen. So it’s complete Once the dislike of the mind rises, dislike of the thought rises on that object. The mind will be disliked forever on that object. Whatever the condition changes, even the person’s actions changes, behavior changes.
Cannot happen. First, it is impossible to remove any condition on that anger of this all the time. Are independent. However, without saying much, All these thoughts, all these When the conception is taken on the fertilized egg, when the conception happens in the mother’s womb on the fertilized egg. Why?
However, another reason why we have body, why we body that we do make our suffering. That’s one question. Why? Why we don’t have consciousness without anger, attachment, without problem? Okay.
The other thing, I think one day Now, what about that? Yeah. So now, what is the complete explanation of reincarnation? No, no. I’m not talking about the bird outside.
Yeah. Now what is more important? Now, anyway, it’s good to understand these different points. It’s now, where here is it, now here is the, yeah, in the West, can be This is probably more important. And one thing is, isn’t the science have completed their understanding or not?
That’s one thing. Buddha has completed. Buddha has completed. They have a lot to understand. What taught for noble truths.
There could be different teachings to a different level of mind. So if that’s not complete, then how can the present answer, can one trust in the present answer, add every single answer? The person says because he doesn’t know.