Audio recorded at Tibetan Buddhist Institute, Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 44-minute talk, Kyabje Rinpoche explores the ‘blissful path of liberation’ by contrasting mental bondage—unhealthy states that bind us like ropes—with the methods that free us. He begins with motivation adjustment and defines liberation as freedom from suffering through eliminating unskillful mental states. The path starts with developing healthy qualities: altruism, love, compassion, expressed through generosity, ethics, and patience. A central theme is radical interdependence—every possession and ability comes from others. Our mother’s care in infancy, teachers, friends, all who provided food and shelter are ‘extremely kind’ to us. This understanding motivates the aspiration to benefit others. The wisdom that cuts these ropes of suffering rests on the foundation of healthy states rooted in recognizing our total reliance on others.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 1991-04-07 – 1A – Public Talk Path of Liberation – KR.mp3
UUID: ae3c3f9d-e691-4690-b4e9-29361cbb58cb
Teacher: Kyabje Rinpoche
Collection: Public Talks
Date: 1991-04-07
Recorded at: Tibetan Buddhist Institute, Adelaide
Words: ~2,613
So we’ll begin by adjusting our motivation, cultivating as our motivation the awakening heart. So beginning by appreciating the fact of being a human being that we have this tremendous potential, that with this great intellect, that we can understand anything which is presented to our mind. And we’re all very much the same in that we all want happiness and none want to suffer. And to that end, having possessed in a human life, we are afforded the capacity whereby we can actually bring an end to our suffering and achieve an ultimate type of happiness. And how can we achieve this end of seeking happiness, achieving happiness, and alleviating our suffering?
It’s through the the cultivation of various healthy attitudes. And amongst these, the healthy attitude of altruism, a beneficial intention, by means of which we can achieve our desired result. So, in order to adjust our motivation for listening to this present talk, try to develop the attitude that perhaps by training my mind, by learning, by coming to a better understanding of my problems and the various methods whereby to alleviate my that I can be of that much more benefit to others. And therefore, for the next three minutes, try to cultivate an altruistic beneficial attitude for listening to this present talk. A short prayer that we usually recite in Tibetan, it’s again adjusting our motivation.
So Rinpoche is quoting from a verse in which the Buddha sets out the the nature of the path of bliss and liberation. So I’m going to talk about this blissful path of liberation. So we’re going to talk about two subjects encompassed in this in these words, the blissful path of liberation. What exactly is the blissful path, and what do we mean by liberation? So what is it that we mean by liberation?
Liberation entails that we are in some kind of bondage, and therefore, liberation has the connotation of being freed from a type of bondage and unfreedom. So by liberation, we mean a state where all suffering whatsoever is eliminated, and we experience only happiness. So to achieve this state of liberation, which is experienced as a complete happiness bereft of any type of suffering, it’s necessary to understand the nature of our present situation. That in general, what prevents us from having a complete type of happiness? What is it that stops us?
The mind is constituted of two types of states, healthy states and unhealthy states. And it is the unhealthy states of mind which as if bind our mind. Enfold our mind or wrap our mind and preventing us from complete happiness. So these un skillful or unhealthy states of mind as if bind us by way of analogy at like a rope. And if we can cut this rope, then we can we are as if freeing ourselves, our minds from the bondage of these unhealthy states.
Just by one by way of mundane analogy, that if someone were to be tied up and prevented from going to wherever they might like to go to, then they would experience this being tied up and bound as extremely frustrating, they would find it to be experienced as a great dissatisfaction. And then on the other hand, if this individual were their ropes which bind them were to be cut, and then they could move on to whatever destination they had in mind. That they’d be free to go. And therefore, all the types of frustration and dissatisfaction experienced in being tied and bound, which prevented them from going to their desired destination would evaporate. So we’re very much in we’re very much in the same position as this individual is bound by these ropes.
But our ropes are ropes of unhealthy or unskillful states of mind. And it’s due to these bondage that we find ourselves in that we have to undergo various types of dissatisfactory experiences, and which prevent us from being liberated from these dissatisfactions. So to continue this analogy, just like we can make use of a knife to cut the ropes by which we are physically bound, likewise we have to make use of a method whereby to cut loose the unhealthy states which presently bind our minds. So the the method whereby we cut the bonds of unhealthy states of mind, which presently bind our minds, the wisdom understanding emptiness. By implementing this method of the wisdom understanding emptiness, we can cut bindings of our own minds.
So the Buddha said that I do not wash away sins with water nor do I remove the sufferings of others by their hand. But by the practice, by by showing the truth, all will be made free. So the method whereby to free our minds is the method of the wisdom, understanding, emptiness. The wisdom understanding emptiness is not going to arise haphazardly, but it has to be systematically cultivated. And development of the wisdom, understanding, emptiness relies upon healthy states of mind as its foundation.
So it’s necessary to begin to decrease the unhealthy states of mind and begin to implement healthy states as a foundation for the ultimate development of the wisdom, understanding, and emptiness. And primarily when we speak of healthy states of mind, we are talking about those states such as altruism, that is to say beneficial intentions toward others, qualities of mind such as love, compassion, and exceptional resolve. So, illustrating these various types of healthy states such as compassion, this is expressed in the thought which thinks, Wouldn’t it be wonderful if others were free of suffering and the causes of suffering? May they be free of suffering and the causes of suffering. I myself would take responsibility to free them from suffering and the causes of their suffering.
And the healthy state of mind expressed by love is expressed in the words, wouldn’t it be wonderful if those who did not have happiness had happiness in the causes of happiness? May they have happiness in the causes of happiness that I myself take responsibility to bring them happiness in the causes of happiness. So the mind is trained in to being able to develop, in fact, these actual states of mind of love and compassion, these beneficial intentions that we’ve just described. These are the most excellent qualities that we can develop with our minds. So this begins our course of practice in ultimately developing a blissful path.
That is the practice of first developing altruistic attitudes within our mind. But simply developing these healthy states are not sufficient. It’s just by way of analogy that if we had a thought that I’m hungry, I want something to eat, merely that thought is not going to fill your stomach. That we have to actually implement the methods of preparing some food, and then eating the food. In this way we can, our thoughts will be fulfilled and we can fill our stomach.
So motivated by this thought of love, we actually begin to implement this in fact that seeing sentient beings who are in some way impoverished, seeking to bring them happiness in the context of wishing them happiness, actually implementing the methods whereby to bring them happiness, such as through our practice of generosity. Those who need food, giving food, clothing, shelter, whatever conducive conditions are necessary to bring them happiness. And on the other hand, expressing our compassion or sympathetic caring in terms of actually eliminating the sufferings of others in fact. And those who are without without food, providing them food. Those who are suffering because of lack of clothing, lack of shelter, providing them with their material needs and thereby alleviating their suffering.
So, by these various material means that we can alleviate the sufferings and bring happiness to others. But this, these material means can only happiness in the course of this life alone. We have to try to help them to achieve not only the happiness of this life and to alleviate the sufferings of this life, but also to help them to achieve those same ends in future lives. And this involves the cessation of bringing to an end their various faults, and development of various healthy qualities. And so we can begin to demonstrate what types of conduct or ways of acting are destructive and what types are constructive.
Implementing the methods of beginning to implement constructive types of actions, ways of conduct, beginning to lessen our destructive ways of acting, again developing healthy states of mind, beginning to decrease unhealthy states of mind, then this acts as a foundation for the actual path which we’re seeking to develop in terms of the wisdom, understanding, emptiness. So we can benefit others through our love and compassion by temporally providing for their material needs. This will help to alleviate their physical problems, their physical sufferings, and by helping them begin to decrease destructive ways of acting, and this will help them with respect to their minds. But not only by out of the motivation of love and compassion, can we help others both materially and spiritually or in terms of their mind. But additionally this helping of others will as a result we ourselves will be made happy.
How does this happen that by helping others that we, each of ourselves individually, will be made happy? If we if we try to alleviate the sufferings of others, we see someone who has a problem, and we actually make an effort to help them solve their problem. And through this seeking to help them solve their problems, they are made happy. And their their elimination of their suffering, the fact that they’re able to achieve happiness acts as a condition for ourselves whereby we will be able to achieve happiness and and solve our problems. By benefiting bringing happiness to others, we ourselves will be benefited and brought happiness.
On the other hand, in in as in reaction to our harming and bringing suffering to others, we ourselves will experience the same types of results. So if we were to question, how does this happen that by causing to bring happiness to others that we ourselves are made happy, by causing others suffering that we ourselves are caused suffering. How does that work? From from our point of view, we can we can make an analogy that others are very like a field. So in this field of others, whatever we plant, we’re going to get a specific type of result.
For example, just in general in a field, if we plant wheat, we’re going a wheat crop will rise. If we plant barley, a barley crop will rise. But in accordance with what we plant, we’re going to have a result arising. If we plant fruit trees, and these fruit trees are a variety of a sweet fruit, then we’re going to enjoy a sweet fruit from from having planted that seed. On the other hand, if it’s the variety which is very sour, then our fruit is going to be sour.
And benefiting others that we ourselves will be benefited. On the on the other hand, if we were to cause others suffering, that we were to kill others, steal from them, fight with them, speak harsh words toward them, that in some way harming them. And this is like as if we’re planting a seed in accordance with that seed that we’ve sown, we’re going to experience the fruits of that seed. So we presently possess an excellent body that we generally it’s very healthy, and generally it’s quite beautiful. And the reason we have this body is a result, and it’s a result of having in the past foregone or abandoned the harming of others such as by killing, stealing, and lying to others.
This is result. And the fact that we have a high degree of material affluence our material prosperity in terms of food, clothing, and shelter. This is again a fruit of something that we’ve created in the past, and that was out of our practice of generosity. We are now able to enjoy all these various results of a livelihood. And the fact that we have good friends, harmonious relationships is a result of having practiced tolerance in the past, being patient with others.
Whatever we enjoy in life, whatever we may may have that is worthwhile, all comes about in dependence upon others. Each of each of them in their own way has come about in reliance upon others. That we ourselves cannot create these for ourselves, but only in reliance upon others are they brought about. There is nothing in the world that is achieved without relying upon others. Whether whatever it might be, whatever great qualities an individual might possess, whatever power power status they may have achieved, all relies upon others.
All that we experience has come about through other reliance upon others. So others, but to say all other sentient beings are extremely kind to us. They’re very beneficial to us. Whatever we may enjoy, bodies that we now possess, the clothes that we wear, the food that we eat, all comes about in dependence upon others. There’s nothing that we create by ourselves independent of others.
When we’re when we’re just born, we’re like a a bug, a worm that we don’t know anything. We can say, ah, ga, ga, ga. We can we all know is how to wet our diapers. So we brought nothing into this world as far as excellent qualities nor material possessions, that we we actually only brought our various faults with us into this world. And at the just after our birth, if our mother had not tended to us, even for just a few minutes, it’s probable that we would have died.
So it was through the nurturing kindness of our mother that we we grew as we have. And that that but but additionally, those all of that we our various qualities have been brought about by others. Our education had to be dependent, arose in dependence upon our teachers. So the fact that we’re that we can come and go, that we’re educated, that we are able to earn a livelihood, that everything that we take so much for granted has come about through the kindness of others, our parents, our teachers, our various companions, and those who aid us unknowingly. So we’re extremely fortunate individuals having this our present bodies that we now possess with the high intellect and with all the various conducive conditions that we’re able to enjoy.
So we have to make use of this opportunity while we possess it begin to cultivate healthy states of mind and begin to decrease unhealthy states. So the cultivation of healthy states, the various excellent qualities, have to be cultivated again and again through the various practices. Some of them which we have briefly outlined, such as generosity, ethics, and tolerance. By these means that we increase the frequency of our healthy states, and on the other hand, beginning to decrease the unhealthy states. And it depends upon the lessening of unhealthy states, the cultivation of healthy states of mind as a foundation, we can then go on to develop the wisdom realizing emptiness.
And through this realization, the increase of our wisdom, we can can cut the ropes which now bind us to the experience of suffering. By cutting away the ropes of the unhealthy states which presently bind our minds, then we will, they will naturally flow out of this, a lessening, and finally a cessation of destructive act physical and verbal actions.