Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. Using the letter T as a teaching device, Lama Zopa Rinpoche explores the Prāsaṇgika Madhyamaka understanding of how things exist. In this 48-minute session, he shows how minds merely label phenomena—letters, tea, the self—then perceive these labels as existing independently, a hallucination lasting until enlightenment. The key distinction: after the mind labels something, it projects onto that label a false appearance of independent existence. He focuses on the self as the central example, explaining how we believe in an I residing on our aggregates when no such independently existing self exists. He then outlines the meditation practice: recognizing this appearance as hallucination, understanding the total non-existence of such an I, and concentrating on emptiness. References Nāgārjuna’s Yukti-Shashtika.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 2005 06 12 1 TWN S.C 10TH JUNE 05 3.mp3
UUID: 11c97164-7552-4bc9-bacd-262c3f90c87c
Teacher: Lama Zopa Rinpoche 1
Collection: z Taiwan (Lama Zopa Rinpoche 1)
Date: 2005-06-12
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 48.1 minutes
Words: ~2,599
So So what is the object to be refuted? What’s called the khachap. According to Madhyamaka school, they are from the four schools of Buddhist philosophy. I think I mentioned Buddhist philosophy. So, you know, Buddhist philosopher, four schools of Buddhist philosopher.
The Madhyamaka school, The Svatāntrika school and the Prāsaṇgika school. So Prāsaṇgika school view object very quickly which we have to recognize and realize that’s empty. So then we’re able to see the middle way view devoid of nihilism, eternalism that realized by all the Buddhas. As Lama Tsongkhapa said mentioned in the Three Principal Aspects of the Path teachings. So so if you can keep this in mind, this one is just one example.
So then from there, you can you can understand the I. So the so the there’s So there’s like this, there’s a line like this, you know. Anyway, this is T, this is T, you see, T, English letter T like this. So so we start like this. And when you’re a child, you don’t know this is you see this is this line, but you don’t know this is tea.
You see, you don’t know this is tea. You know, even though you see that you see this line, this design you see, but you don’t know this is tea. You don’t see that this is tea. You don’t see that this is tea. And that is because you haven’t that that because because it it it doesn’t appear you this is tea, that this is as tea.
It doesn’t appear to you. And that’s why this is not doesn’t appear to you as this tea. Don’t mean drinking tea, but the tea. So why it doesn’t appear as a tea, you know. That is because your mind hasn’t hasn’t labeled this is tea and believe in that.
Why? Because no nobody has introduced you yet. Nobody has taught you yet. Mhmm. This this is that this is tea.
So, when you’re not introduced by somebody that this is tea, if you just line design, but you don’t see that it’s that it doesn’t appear you as this is tea. All that, you see. Just design like this. So when your parents or a teacher introduce you introduce you the label, you see introduce you the label, the name, you see, for this, for the design tea. So then you believe it.
You you believe that person’s label taught you and then your mind make up the label. You see? Then your mind make up the label tea. Your mind, make the label tea. And believe in that.
By seeing this design by seeing this design first, teacher or parents introduce you introduce you. I see. So this design means tea. So you’re taught the label name for this tea. Then your mind, after you learn that, your mind labels, your mind just make up the label tea and believe in that.
Reason seeing this line. So that is That’s it. How the tea exists? That’s all. This isn’t more than that.
In my name, meeting people by mind, the tea doesn’t exist more than that. There’s no such tea more than that. You see? So what is what is tea? Is nothing ex other except what is merely in our mind.
What is merely in our mind? So something extremely fine. What is what is tea? It’s extremely it is something that’s extremely fine. What is tea?
Something which is merely labeled, merely imputed by mind. Merely imputed by mind. Existing me and him. It is not the tea doesn’t is not the tea doesn’t exist. So it’s, you know, so subtle.
What a tea is, it’s so subtle, so fine, so subtle. I must say, it’s not complete nonexistent, but it’s like life doesn’t exist. Life is the life doesn’t exist. It’s not doesn’t exist, but life doesn’t exist. When you see the ex the possibility of school view, extremely subtle dependent on horizon.
Extremely subtle. What is tea? See, nothing slight is from from its own side. Nothing slight is from an atom. So now now, this is the reality.
Now, look at your view of tea. The next, after your mind label tea, you’re looking at that design. So, you see tea there on the design. You see tea on the base. That’s wrong.
That’s hallucination. T, you see t on this design. Says, see, how things exist. You see, tea, findable. Tea exists on the base.
Tea can be found on the base. So that’s totally wrong. Objectively refuted according to Prāsaṇgika’s school view. What Madhyamaka’s school view so what I’m still thinking is correct, but that’s totally wrong. You see, total hallucination.
That total is see, cannot find on that. She cannot find on the base, you see. So that’s that’s that point is very that’s very important point. Difference between the to to realize the the the view of the and the then you can realize what is the of the, you see, the extremely subtle one that which we have to realize the empty so so, you see, tea there. Here, where your mind, merely labeled T and believe.
Reason seeing that, but the next but your mind after your mind, see T there on the base. And appearing from there, qi appearing from there. So that’s hallucinate. That is the khachap of the you see, of the T not appearing to you as immediately labeled by mind. That’s that’s what is supposed to happen.
After the next second, first your mind is immediately imputed tea, immediately imputed, next second should appear back immediately imputed by mind, but that doesn’t happen. That should should be this way, but that doesn’t happen. So what happen then how the tea next second appear, it appeared back. You see, not immediately but never mind. You see, so there on the base.
It’s there on that base. Tea there on the base. It is found and appearing from that side. There is no such thing. You see?
And believes, but there’s no such that object what is so believe that’s true. That total nonsense. That total hallucination. So like that, I same. That how that is total false view.
So now here, you see, because by seeing that against mind labeling I, mind labeling I, you see. I believe in that. But next second, when I appear back to you, doesn’t appear back to you merely labeled by mind, it appears back to you not merely labeled by mind. It appears when it appears back, it appears back as if there’s I on the aggregates. You see, eye on the aggregates appearing from that.
Or or that’s one way to say, other than indifferentiable, the label t and the base, the design, the label t undifferentiable. That is the the explanation of definition of objective repute objective repute as objective refuted. So, however, in our view, you see, it become undifferentiable. The the label tea the label tea exist from the base, the label tea doesn’t exist separately from the base. This design doesn’t exist separately from the base, that design, but it exists differently from the base.
It exists differently from the base. It doesn’t exist separately from that. So that’s a very important point to understand. By understanding that by under this, it doesn’t exist label doesn’t exist separately from the base, but it it exists differently from base. If you ever differentiate the base and the label, and then and then you wanna be able to recognize object the you see it?
Say it. Say it. Then you see. Can I say can I say? What when you’re able to say, differentiate, then also can recognize I would think, I guess, my guess can recognize the object.
What is what is objectively produced? The tea which doesn’t whole tea, you see. So similar, that that example So you see, I repeat again. You see, next second, you see the I as I said, the T appeared not immediately labeled by mind and the T is the label T on that base, on the design. So that so that’s wrong.
I see it’s found over there, see it. Appearing, I see it. The real ones in the sense appearing from there. Appearing from there, existing from inside, existing by its own nature. So that’s the object to be refuted.
So realize so realizing that is totally nonexistent, is empty. There’s no such thing there, even a slice of atom, which that’s the emptiness of the tea. So same thing here. Now we use that example here. So I mentioned already before, the mind merely labels I, believes that.
But next second, you see for us, appeared not merely labeled, but mind and appeared, let’s say, there’s I on the aggregates. Next second. And appeared from its own side from appear on the aggregates, I appeared from its own side. So so that is You see, I dare unlike this and exist from the side. So I see.
So that’s the object to be object. They believe that’s true. That’s the object to be refuted. So real. So that is so that is I that is I.
You see, that we believe all the time, twenty four hours, devoted to that. From beginning to birth up now, you see, that is such an I. So we we believe this is the I. If there’s an I, this has to be this. There’s not an So so when we have problem in our life, we think this I is suffering.
This eye is have problem. When we experience happiness, we think this eye is happy. But actually, there’s no actually, there’s no such idea. So this eye is gonna get married, you know. This eye is gonna die.
But but the real, there is no such an I. You see? So the whole life is like that, you see? There is no such an I. So, I see, the reality is something else.
You know, what you believe is something else, the reality is something else. So, when he’s on his when he’s on his in his own secret life story, but they mentioned that after reading the Nāgārjuna’s teaching, root wisdom is called Yukti-Shashtika root wisdom. The commentary by, I think, Kedrup, I think by Khedrup Norsang Gyatso. After as the yeah, the commentary, Tashi Namgyal. So after he as soon as read that, then as soon as he said, after that, then whatever he see He said, it is a life story.
That after he read that text, you know, then whatever he see, he always think this is not, this is there’s something else. So, whatever whatever is a phenomenon he see, he think this not this one, there’s something else. So, since from that time, it’s not that since from that time, he had this experience, Since from that time, whatever he see is not this one or something something else. Flower or table or whatever. It is what exists something else, not this one.
Not this one means this, you know, to this appearing to you not immediately from my mind, you know. So that one. So what it means, not this one. There’s something else. The flower, what is the flower is exist is something else.
Table which exists in the house, but this is the same. So it is great it has a great sense, great meaning, you see. So next one. Yeah. Sorry.
Yeah. When is the program? Tomorrow morning? Sorry? Morning.
Morning. When is the program? Five So just remind again, the the compare, the when you’re a child, when you’re not taught that this tea, how you see the what how do you see? How so you see this design, but this design like this on the on, let’s say, on the paper or blackboard or whatever on the wall. There’s no see, you don’t see that this tea and you there’s no appearance that this tea and that because you you haven’t labeled this tea, believe in that.
So that very beginning, you know, how you how you see, then now how you see it. Then you can see the then then you usually can get some understanding. Let’s see. So by seeing that design, you know, and then your mind by following somebody who taught you the label tea, then your mind make the label tea and believe that. Reason by seeing that desire.
But when it but when it appeared, it doesn’t appear. It suppose it it should appear being labeled by the mind, by your mind, but that doesn’t happen. So that doesn’t happen until you achieve enlightenment. Things appearing to you merely labeled, the generally speaking generally speaking, without going into details, getting experience, but generally speaking, that that that is it. Until we become enlightened, everything every any phenomena that appear to our mind is a how do I say appears as truly existent, a hallucination.
We have hallucination until we achieve that. Except when you become having been in the equipoise meditation in this, that time, there’s that time, I think the that time, the things such as emptiness do not appear truly existent that time. And when you’re in equipoise meditation, with wisdom directly perceiving emptiness by having absorbed all dual view, not by cutting dual view, but absorbed dual view and the and in post meditation. Except that time, but otherwise, until until they imprint of until they imprint left in the mental continuum by the concept true existence, ignorance is removed completely, until that’s removed completely, there is a hallucination, you see, projection from the imprint. Whatever whatever whatever your mind merely impute, you see, right after that second, the negative imprint left on left on the mind by the by the by the past ignorance.
Immediately, it decorates, projects the truly existent appearance on the merely labeled phenomena. This is what happens in the second. You see, after your mind, merely labels, then there’s a projection, which is from negative imprint left by the past ignorance, decorates, project from the like the like the like the the film projecting machine and then project in the movie screen, you see the TV screen, then appear from there, you see. So that exactly same. So therefore, that’s why the hallucination, whatever, until we achieve enlightenment for that.
It means until this negative the negative imprint left by the concept, or say, the truly existent appearance until this is completely removed. There’s imprint, two types. One is seed, which produces delusion, there’s imprint which is not seed producing delusion. So, removing that completely which projects the truly existent appearance. So that kind of the you know, your mental can become omniscient mind.
There’s no there’s no blockage. There’s no resistance. So you can see all the past, present, future, future phenomena directly. So now so now look at the eye, how the eye appears to you. You see, and appearing not merely labeled by mind.
Eye, there’s I on the aggregates. There’s eye appearing from there or then think while you’re focused on that, think this is hallucination. So this is object to be refuted. This is object to be refuted. Think that.
While one is thinking object to be refuted, then think meaning of that hallucination. And while you are thinking that this hallucination, you see, understand then think the meaning of that total non non existent. In this eye, total non existent, right there. So it is concentrating on emptiness.