Audio recorded at Tibetan Buddhist Institute, Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 49-minute session, Kyabje Rinpoche teaches the Ornament of Clear Realization’s framework for meditation on the Four Noble Truths. He clarifies a crucial structural principle: practitioners developing renunciation begin by reflecting deeply on suffering to generate the urgent wish to escape; bodhisattva practitioners learn the Four Noble Truths in reverse order—first causes, then effects—following the natural logic of causality and liberation. Rinpoche then walks through the eight aspects of true sources, the causes of suffering. These comprise three types of desire and attachment, the three poisons as roots of all suffering, self-grasping at a permanent self, and three misconceptions of the aggregates as permanent, pure, and satisfying. Wisdom realizing emptiness is the antidote that abandons these causes. For practitioners with grounding in Lamrim and Buddhist philosophy.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 1990-05-17 – 41A – KR.mp3
UUID: b62ea414-9e2f-431d-b141-7258c5aa675d
Teacher: Kyabje Rinpoche
Collection: Ornament of Clear Realization
Date: 1990-05-17
Recorded at: Tibetan Buddhist Institute, Adelaide
Words: ~1,940
So we’re discussing the knower of all aspects and amongst the and with terms of the 11 topics. So the objects of meditation of the complete the the what time? I I said the the complete training in the aspects. That’s what we’re discussing, which has 11 topics. Complete we’re discussing the peak complete training in the aspects, which has 11 topics.
This is on this the objects of meditation of this complete training. There are a 173 aspects in terms of the three exalted knowers. And the first of these, in terms of the exalted knower of basis is 27 aspects. And we discussed these 27 aspects in terms of the four noble truths. True suffering having four, true sources having four, true cessation having four, and true paths having 12, making total 27.
So there are three vehicles, the hearer’s vehicle, solitary, the realizer’s vehicle, the great vehicle. And the within the hearer’s vehicle, the hearer’s vehicle and the solitary realizer’s vehicle, the main objects of meditation, the main practices are taken up by means of these 27 aspects. So so they’re mainly, cultivate the mind of renunciation, that is the the mind which seeks to definitely be emerged from cyclic existence by means of abandon abandoning cyclic existence and achieving. Can you hear me? Can you hear me, Sonia?
Okay. Is it okay now? The exalted knower of paths, which has 36 aspects, the exalted knower of paths having 36 aspects is the the main object of meditation by the bodhisattva superior among the two types of superior, the lesser. It just says the 27 aspects of the knower of basis was in was explained in terms of the four noble truths. Likewise, the 36 aspects of the knower of paths is explained in terms of the Four Noble Truths. But the mode of presentation with respect to the four noble truths in the present explanation, the four noble truths are presented in the order of first true sufferings, then true cessation, true sources, and true path.
So the mode of presentation of the four noble truths differs in terms of the explanations of the knower of basis, knower of paths. In terms of knower of paths, first, the causes are presented and the effect of those causes are then explained. Here, first, the the the effects or the effect is first explained, and then the cause is explained in terms In terms of the our basis, first, the effect is explained, and then the the cause is explained. In this presentation of the four noble truths, first, the cause is explained, and then the effect. And, for example, the cause of suffering is true sources and the effect is true sufferings.
The cause of the cause of the true paths are presented as a cause for true cessation. So, mode of explaining the cause and effect is in terms of entering into or taking rebirth within cyclic existence and being liberated from cyclic existence. Is a a cause which brings about rebirth in cyclic existence, the effect, and there is a cause which brings about an effect of liberation from cyclic existence. So first, as far as entering into cyclic existence, taking rebirth within cyclic existence, which is the cause of is karma and afflictive emotions which are true sources. The effect of that is suffering.
That is a true suffering. That’s the effect of taking re birth within cyclic existence. From the point of view of liberation, its cause is our true path. And the effect of true path is liberation from cyclic existence, which are true cessation. The reason in the previous explanation of the Four Noble Truths that true sufferings were presented first, which is the result, as a means of developing the mind of renunciation with respect to cyclic existence.
Taking the mind, reflecting upon the sufferings of cyclic existence, again and again, one develops the mind of renunciation which is a striving for liberation. So, initially, true sufferings are presented first in order to develop such a mind of renunciation. So having by means of presenting true sufferings first and reflecting upon the nature of suffering when you don’t mind the renunciation that is the striving for liberation and goes on to examine what are the causes of cyclic existence from which we seek to be liberated from and this would take you to an understanding of true sources and then questioning whether one has the ability to actually be rid of these true sources. Can they be abandoned? Would would would cause you to understand that the third of the four noble truths, the true cessation, that one actually has the ability to attain true cessation is the understanding of the ability to abandon the causes of cyclic existence.
And then one would go on to question, well, how do I go about abandoning causes? This would lead you to true paths. So this is what in this manner of presentation, the effect is presented first. The effect just as in the case where we can come to understand that by planting a flower seed that eventually a sprout will arise. Likewise, by understanding that if we bring about the causes, So from the within the category of abandonment, first, true true sources are presented, and then the effects of those true sources, true suffering.
And within the category of factors of liberation, Category of liberation, first, the cause, true paths are presented, and then the effects, true cessation or liberation itself. So first, the causes within the category of abandonment. This would be true sources and within there are eight aspects in terms of the exalted knower of paths. Eight aspects of true sources. So as was mentioned previously in explanation of the four noble truths, that each of the four noble truths has four characteristics making a total of 16 with respect to the to the first in this mode of explanation, true sources.
They are as was mentioned, cause and source, condition, and strong production. True sources are causes in that suffering depends upon true sources for their arising. They are sources in that in dependence upon true sources all suffering arises. They are conditions in that they assist in the production of suffering, and they are strong producers in that by means of true sources we experience pronounced suffering. As was mentioned, are eight aspects with respect to this this noble truth of sources. The first characteristic cause has three aspects.
Source has three aspects, and condition and strong production, which have one in total of eight. So we said there were three aspects to this first characteristic, which is that is caused. And these three these three aspects of this first characteristic, cause, are the three types of desire attachment. Three types of desire attachment. Desire slash attachment.
Maybe something like that. Desire attachment or just attachment. These three types are thinking about the the desire the desire which arises in respect to gaining future objects. Like, I would like to have that object. Desiring object in the future, I would like to have that object sometime.
Then the desire which arises desire attachment which which arises in respect to present objects, holding on to present objects. Then the desire attachment which arises at the time of death when one is about to die in this life, desiring and having attachment for appropriating a new set of aggregates in the future rebirth. These are the three types of desire attachment, three aspects of cause. So cause has three aspects. Sources also has three three aspects.
This is explained in terms of the root of of all suffering arises by means of three. That is these three being desire attachment, hatred, and obscuring ignorance. Acting as the root of cyclic existence. The source of suffering is in terms of these three aspects, desire, hatred, and obscuring ignorance, these three. And the the third characteristic, and perhaps the order has changed a little bit, is strong production.
And strong production is by means of strong production, as was mentioned, is that true sources act as a means of producing pronounced suffering. And this is by means of in three ways. And these three ways are combined into taken as one aspect. And these three ways are holding the impermanent aggregates as permanent; grasping or conceiving the impure aggregates as pure; and grasping or conceiving that the nature of the suffering aggregates is happiness or satisfactory.
The aggregates, which are in nature suffering, have a nature of happiness. These are combined into one aspect. And the fourth characteristic was conditions. These assist in the production of suffering. And this aspect is the conception grasping at the self of persons, and this is the condition..
So, True sources are to be abandoned. And in order to understand what we mean by true sources, and thereby, in order to understand what we need to be abandoned, we have to be able to identify what the true sources are. And we identify true sources by means of these eight aspects. As was explained, that the characteristic of cause there are three aspects. Source was three, condition one, and strong production one.
These are the causes of suffering and these are what are to be abandoned. When we talk about abandoning true sources, we’re talking about abandoning these eight aspects. So true sources are that which is to be abandoned. And we use an antidote which does the abandoning..
And what is the antidote which does the abandoning? It is the exalted wisdom directly realizing emptiness. Exalted wisdom directly realizing emptiness is the abandonment is the antidote which does the abandonment of these eight aspects of true sources. Therefore, because the bodhisattva superior is seeking to abandon these eight aspects, he or she meditates in order to generate exalted wisdom directly realizing emptiness..
Directly realizing. So this is is why these eight aspects are objects of meditation of the exalted the exalted knower of paths because these true sources — there are these eight abandonments of true sources — are directly abandoned by means of exalted wisdom, the exalted knower of paths, by means of developing a direct realization of emptiness. So these eight aspects are what are are being abandoned. They themselves are not an exalt or not aspects of the exalted knower paths. What is the exalted what are the eight?
There but there are eight corresponding realizations, direct realizations of emptiness, which are the antidotes which abandon these eight. And these eight antidotes are the actual aspects of the exalted knower of paths, which do the abandoning. So there were eight aspects with respect to true sources in terms of the antidote which abandons the eight abandonments. And now we’re going to discuss true paths, which is a cause. And we’ll discuss it in terms of two categories: thesis and proof.
Thesis and proof. So as we as as was previously explained in terms of true paths, there were four characteristics. I hope — correct me if I translate differently this time. I don’t have a text to look at.. The first was first character was path was path.
The second was knower. The third was achiever, and the fourth was definite emergence.. And these there are seven aspects with respect to these four, which will be shared out amongst these set four. With respect to the first path, in in general, the the the great vehicle Dharma is extremely profound and difficult to understand. Difficult to understand in the sense that to come to a stable, thorough understanding is difficult.