Audio recorded at Tibetan Buddhist Institute, Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 97-minute teaching, Kyabje Rinpoche argues that renunciation is the indispensable root of all genuine Mahāyāna practice, not a secondary virtue. He opens with virtuous motivation and builds the logical chain: compassion requires renunciation; bodhicitta requires compassion; Buddhahood requires both bodhicitta and the correct view. He illustrates small-scope renunciation with a striking image: three friends share poisoned food—one is already dead (lower-realm beings), one is dying (those about to be reborn), one still alive but poisoned (us). Understanding this predicament, he traces the path through confession and virtue-practice to seeing cyclic existence as a burning house from which escape is urgent. He also directly refutes opponents who claim bodhicitta alone suffices for enlightenment. For practitioners with existing Dharma training.
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File: 2011-05-18 – KR.mp3
UUID: bcb1dfc9-afd2-4864-8083-a5b765129fa3
Teacher: Kyabje Rinpoche
Collection: Meditation
Date: 2011-05-18
Recorded at: Tibetan Buddhist Institute, Adelaide
Words: ~3,579
Lama. Now it is delight about the new flooring, which means the students will no longer be cold. So to listen to the Dharma, it is critical to create a good motivation. Generally speaking, we have been transmigrating since beginningless lives under the power of non virtuous state of mind, states of minds of afflictions, such as desire, anger and so forth, and have acted exclusively under their control. If we attend Dharma teachings with these non virtuous states of mind, there is no benefit to receiving teachings.
It is when a virtuous motivation has been created that the door of the Dharma teachings are opened and that the teachings begin to bear benefit. Generally speaking, the Buddhist teachings are teachings which emphasize the welfare of the majority, and therefore reflecting on the fact that we ourselves are one and sentient beings are infinite in number, we should put ourselves last and sentient beings first, and with the motivation of leading all sentient beings to a state of unalloyed happiness, we should eliminate all our defects and generate all qualities. With this as a motivation, we should engage in the three activities of hearing, thinking and meditating on these teachings. So as Nāgārjuna said in his praise of the supermundane victor, praise of Buddha Śākyamūni, you worked through countless eons with great compassion and abandoned all views. So Buddha’s working through great, countless eons through great compassion refers to Buddha Śākyamūni’s generation of bodhicitta motivated by the wish to eliminate the suffering of all beings and to place them all in a state of unalloyed happiness.
As for the abandonment of all views, it refers to the abandonment of all wrong views, which are numerous. These are the views of the existence of a self of persons, of a self of phenomena. The view of the extreme of existence and the view of the extreme of nihilism. There are countless such views. These views are the main cause for the accumulation of the non virtuous karma which causes us to transmigrate in cyclic existence, and they are abandoned through the correct view which acts as the counter to this and eliminates them.
And it is through the fusion or the inseparable union of bodhicitta and the correct view that the Buddha attained full enlightenment. When we speak of the great vehicle, this refers actually to the great vehicle from the standpoint of bodhicitta. If bodhicitta is present, then one can speak of the great vehicle, and if bodhicitta is absent, one cannot speak of the great vehicle. Therefore, the presence or the absence of bodhicitta is the criterion for whether or not one is on the great vehicle. And the main foremost practice is the practice of bodhicitta.
Training in the view is there to benefit the practice of bodhicitta. However, the practice of bodhicitta alone cannot eliminate or abandon wrong views. The authentic view is necessary to put an end to wrong views. And the complete elimination of all faults and the attainment of all qualities can only occur through the inseparable union, the indissociable union of bodhicitta and the view, this is what eliminates all afflictions from the root, and in dependence on this, the two collections of merit and wisdom can be attained. Therefore, our foremost practice must be training in bodhicitta conjoined with the view.
Otherwise, one will be unable to enter in the great vehicle. Therefore it is indispensable that we put effort in generating bodhicitta if it has not been generated and increasing it if it has been initially generated. Without bodhicitta there is no entry in the great vehicle, Likewise, without the authentic view of the nature of phenomena, one cannot pass beyond the path of accumulation. His Holiness the Dalai Lama says that it is true indeed that there are numerous secret mantra works, but his foremost practice is the conjoint practice of bodhicitta and the view, and for this reason he recites every morning these two verses of Nāgārjuna, that the Buddha since beginningless time accumulated and trained in great compassion and then abandoned all views, and takes this as an oath. Therefore, it is crucial for us to give rise to bodhicitta, and to give rise to bodhicitta we need renunciation.
This is the case because the direct cause of bodhicitta is great compassion and as is asserted by Maitreya, I affirm that the root thereof is compassion, the root of bodhicitta is compassion and the root of compassion itself is renunciation. So if we do not generate great compassion, we cannot give rise to bodhicitta. So, regarding renunciation or definite emergence, the definite emergence or the renunciation of practitioners of the small and middling scope is a wish to be free from their own suffering, and this wish to be free from their own suffering is what we call the wish for liberation or renunciation. So, initially, one must gain a strong sense of one’s own suffering. If one does not gain a strong sense of the suffering within one’s own continuum, it is impossible in turn to generate a sense of the suffering in the continuum of others.
So for this, one initially must gain an experience of one’s own suffering, and in dependence on this alone, one is able to gain a sense of the suffering of others which arises like ours from non virtuous deeds. We and others are identical, we are similar in this matter. Initially one gains a sense of one’s suffering, and that in turn enables one to understand the suffering, sufferings others are experiencing. Otherwise it is impossible to understand. Śāntideva says, If we have not wished to be free from our own suffering, even in a dream, how can we speak of wanting to free other beings from their own suffering?
So, if we ourselves do not understand our own suffering, then our talk of compassion, of empathy, of love is just empty talk. It is mere words. It is when from the very depths of our hearts we understand our own suffering, and in dependence on this understand the suffering of others, and think how is it possible, how is it bearable for them to experience this, and an overwhelming wish to be free from this arises, that at this point those words have meaning. Otherwise, it is empty and meaningless talk. So, if you want to build the roof of a house, you start by building the foundations and you build upwards until you set down the roof.
You cannot place a roof from the beginning. This is why we must generate first renunciation, and then build upwards. Now generally speaking, renunciation refers to that wish of the being of the middling scope to be free from the totality of sufferings of cyclic existence, but that will not arise, you will not be able to create it unless you have first created that wish of the being of small scope to be free of the sufferings of the lower realms. It is in dependence on that that the wish to be free of the suffering of all cyclic existence can arise, otherwise it is impossible for it to arise. So, the passage in our root text reading here, or as to this, refers to the path of the being of small and middling scope.
Therefore, initially, one must generate a renunciation which wishes to be freed from the suffering of the lower realms, to be liberated from the suffering of the lower realms, and in dependence on this one can generate, on this basis one can generate a renunciation which wishes to be freed from all of cyclic existence. The renunciation which wishes to be freed from the lower realms opens the door to this renunciation which wishes to be freed from all of cyclic existence. So the practice of the being of small scope is training first in the awareness of the precious human rebirth which causes one to understand that one is able to practice the Dharma and then in addition to reflect on death and impermanence, specifically on the fact that death is certain, the time of death is uncertain, and at the time of death only one’s Dharma practices of benefit, and this generates a strong realization that not only can one practice but one must practice. So one realizes reflecting on the fact that death is certain, that this death is certain as a result of the limited karma which impels this life. The uncertainty of the time of death means that we can die at any moment, and finally the fact that at the time of death nothing else is of benefit is something we understand reflecting that we cannot carry any of our wealth or possessions with us.
We have to go completely alone, and we carry with us only the virtuous and non virtuous deeds, which we have accumulated. Apart from these, we carry nothing with us. Now if we reflect, we can see that the weight of non virtuous deeds is overwhelming, it is far greater than any virtuous deeds we ever accumulated. It is comparable to a king’s treasure, because to look at the sum total of non virtuous deeds at the time of death, we have to look at the non virtuous deeds we have accumulated in this life, and add to them the well nigh infinite amount of non virtuous deeds accumulated in past lives. When we look at this massive non virtuous deeds there is only one possible destination and that is the lower rebirth.
So it is not the case that we are cast into lower rebirths by another, we ourselves through our own deeds in this life and past lives are basically sending ourselves there. So there is an example which is given for this, and that is that of three friends who have gone to eat at an inn and they have shared the same meal and after sharing the meal one rises and collapses dead because there was poison in the food. The second is in an agony of pain and is on the point of dying. The third has not died yet, he has no pain and he looks at the other two, one who is dead and one who is dying, and he thinks to himself we have shared the same food. One is dead, one is dying in agony, my turn will come at any moment.
Such a one cannot stay motionless and calm. Instead, he tries to vomit the poison. He rushes around to try to find a doctor who can help him. He performs long life pujas and tries to find help in any form. So this is our situation.
The poison corresponds to non virtuous karma, and death in the metaphor corresponds to a rebirth in the lower realms. So we can see around us people who have already been reborn in the lower realms, people who are dying and who are just on the point of being reborn in the lower realms, and we ourselves who are not yet dead, but who are similar to them. The non virtuous deeds which they have accumulated, we have accumulated, there is no difference. And once one realizes that, one is awash in fear and horror at the thought that oneself will be soon reborn in the lower realms. And we ourselves are in exactly that situation, running left and right in a state of extreme fear.
We must reflect on the fact that people we know who are dead are already in the hell realms, that people we know who are dying are in the process of going to the hell realms, and that we ourselves will go to the hell realms. Thinking about this, great fear must arise within our mind, and this great fear in turn gives rise to the wish to be freed from this, to find a way away from this. And one then turns to the spiritual teacher and asks him for help. The spiritual teacher teaches Dharma, and the Dharma he teaches is, if you want to be freed from a rebirth in the lower realms, then you must abstain from non virtue, and the non virtue which you have committed in the path, you must confess. Likewise, you must practice virtue, you must generate faith in the triple gem, in the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha, because the spiritual teacher says to us, You will die.
Your friends have died already, and where they are, you will go. So if you yourself do not want to go to this state, you must abandon non virtue and you must practice virtue. This is the medicine which a spiritual friend prescribes. What did the Buddha teach us to do? The Buddha taught us, do not perform any non-virtues and practice perfectly virtue.
To do this, one must tame, one must subdue the afflicted mind. These are the teachings of the Buddha. Nāgārjuna says, the source of all suffering is non virtue, from this one is reborn in all of the lower realms, the source of all happiness is virtue, this gives rise to happiness life after life. Therefore, rebirth in the lower realms is a corollary of non virtue, it is a necessary result of it, and virtue in turn leads to happiness not just in one life, but life after life. We should reflect on the level of suffering we would experience if we are reborn in the lower realms, for instance, in the cold hells, where the levels of suffering are inconceivable, where if we are reborn as an animal, will we ourselves be able to support this?
And reflecting on this, we should give rise to a wish to be liberated from this. We at present cannot support the touch of a piece of hot iron on our body for even an instant. We are unable to go outside when it is cold without wearing clothes. We cannot stand living without a meal for one full day. How will we be able to handle this for countless eons?
Will we be able to support such suffering? Understanding that we are unable to do so, we will then try to find a means to be liberated. And here the advice which is given, the instructions which are given, is to have faith in the triple gem, to give up non virtue, to train in virtue. In other words, to eliminate the afflictions from one’s own mind. This is a means which is proposed to us, to abandon non virtue and to train in virtue.
There is no other path to be followed. Then, if we from our side do not practice, nothing can be hoped for for us. So if we fear the lower realms, we are of the wise because the wise understand what the lower realms are and they search for means to be liberated from them. If we do not fear the lower realms, we are of the stupid and the dumb. The stupid and the dumb just hang around, fear nothing, and face their results, precisely because they do not understand the sufferings which are facing them.
What are the means to be freed from the lower realms which the wise have found? These are, first and foremost, refuge. The dumb lack faith in the triple gem. Without faith and without conviction, it is impossible for the triple gem in turn to protect them. It is impossible for the objects of refuge to give refuge.
So we must reflect for ourselves whether we are of the wise or of the dumb, and we should ask ourselves what we have accumulated in past lives. In countless past lives we have accumulated gigantic amounts of non virtuous deeds. These can only give rise to their results which are the lower realms. Then, once one is reborn in these lower realms, it is impossible to be freed from them. Therefore, the gateway to true renunciation is that initial wish to be freed from the lower realms.
Once one has generated that wish, one can be freed once from the lower realms and be reborn, for instance, as a human being. However, such a human rebirth is nonetheless afflicted by the sufferings of cyclic existence, specifically birth aging, sickness and death, and we ourselves during that life, if we do not practice, can again be reborn in the lower realms at the end of that life. We can fall again in the lower realms. So we should reflect on the general sufferings of cyclic existence and get a sense that cyclic existence is akin to a blazing house. Nobody wants to stay in a burning house.
We should reflect on the general sufferings of all six realms of cyclic existence, and understand them clearly, and then, in dependence on this, train in the three trainings of ethics, concentration and wisdom, and gain an understanding of the Four Noble Truths. As Je Tsongkhapa said in his Song of Realization, one who does not reflect on the truth of suffering would not give rise to the mind wishing to be liberated, and one who does not reflect on the truth of origination will not be freed from suffering. Here the truth of origination actually refers to that which leads us to the truths of cessation and of the path. So it is not easy to give rise to renunciation. However renunciation is the foremost means to eliminate, it is the only means to eliminate desire.
The desire for friends, male and female, the desire for food, for clothing, for money and so forth. It is therefore important for us to see cyclic existence as a burning house from which we have to be freed. And now, in Pabongka Rinpoche’s commentary, the commentary reads as follows. Here, the path which is presented encapsulates the path of the beings of small and middling scope. So, what is referred to with this line is the fact that without renunciation it is impossible to enter the path of the being of great scope, and therefore renunciation is a necessary preliminary.
And the text reads onwards, some, in other words, these are opponents whose views one does not agree with, believe that to attain full enlightenment, in other words Buddhahood, apart from bodhicitta, renunciation is not necessary. Now this is a wrong understanding. To attain Buddhahood, both bodhicitta and renunciation are necessary. And therefore, even though such a one reading on in the commentary should be learned, one must understand that the renunciation which is required to attain mere liberation is not only necessary, but to go above that even more forceful, more powerful renunciation is required. As Je Tsongkhapa says, this line of thought is akin to that of Geshe Sharawa.
Sharawa here refers to Geshe Sharawa, a great Tibetan bodhisattva. And the quote here reads as follows, Just as when one wishes to remove the froth from the beer and spreads a bit of tsampa on top, nonetheless one is unable to reach to the beer which is in the cup. Likewise, one who does not wish to eliminate the cause of cyclic existence, which is the truth of origination, is in a similar situation. So this refers, Rinpoche says, to the behavior of farmers in Tibet who did not drink, as we do here, cold water, but when they went to work it was hot, to drink beer, and this beer had froth on top, so someone who stops at the froth and doesn’t drink the beer is just similar to someone who refers to the words of renunciation and speaks of renunciation, but actually has no wish to be freed from cyclic existence in his heart. These are mere words.
Behaving in this way, one is in turn unable to give rise to a wish for liberation, which leads one to a truth of cessation freed from both suffering and the cause of suffering. Therefore, it is necessary for one’s striving for the path of liberation to be more than mere words. It is not possible to give rise to the compassion which cannot stand the suffering of other beings wandering in cyclic existence and which wishes to attain the uncontrived, peerless state of a bodhisattva without in turn giving rise to such a renunciation, and if one does not give rise to such a renunciation, then one’s so-called great vehicle is merely a great vehicle in words alone. So what is being said here is that renunciation is the very root which gives rise to bodhicitta, which gives rise to the authentic view, which enables one to abandon the noble truth of origination and of suffering, and which enables one to actualize the noble truths of the path and of cessation. So Rinpoche, we’ll stop here for today, and if you have questions, he will take questions.
So, therefore Rinpoche will stop here for today, and we have to meditate on renunciation. This was the instruction of Geshe Sharawa. Without renunciation, all of these so called practices we do, bodhicitta, emptiness, deity and so forth, there is no great result. Think well about this. We all say we want to be happy, we all say we do not want to be unhappy, then we can better be acquainted with the causes which leads to happiness and the causes which lead to unhappiness.