Audio recorded at Tibetan Buddhist Institute, Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 47-minute teaching on thought transformation, Kyabje Rinpoche examines why Śāntideva’s method of exchanging self for others generates far greater compassion than the traditional sevenfold approach. He opens with motivation-grounding and poses a foundational question: if both Buddhas and sentient beings are equally essential to our practice, why do we privilege one? The answer lies in scope. The sevenfold method recognizes kindness only when beings were our mothers, but Śāntideva’s way sees their kindness in all circumstances—and since vast causes produce vast effects, this broader vision yields exponentially greater love. Rinpoche walks practitioners through the key reasoning: self and others are equal in wanting happiness and fearing suffering, so favoring oneself while pushing others away is fundamentally inconsistent. The practice exchanges self-cherishing for other-cherishing, showing how this single fault has been the root of all suffering since beginningless time. For practitioners studying the bodhisattva path.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 1989-09-05 – 9A – Sun's Radiance of – KR.mp3
UUID: a6172e09-0714-4b88-a641-7be1e0cfa560
Teacher: Kyabje Rinpoche
Collection: Sun Radiance – Thought Transformation
Date: 1989-09-05
Recorded at: Tibetan Buddhist Institute, Adelaide
Words: ~3,031
We should adjust our motivation such that we’re going to listen to this profound teaching on the great vehicle with the attitude of the precious awakening heart. That is, that I must attain complete, fearless, perfect Buddhahood in order to establish all sentient beings equal to space and a happiness which knows no suffering. And for that end, we’ll spend two minutes adjusting our motivation. So, Śāntideva says that in dependence upon both sentient beings and Buddhas we will attain Buddhahood. Why is it we respect Buddhas and not sentient beings?
So we are trying to practice the great vehicle. In our practice of Dharma our aspiration is to achieve Buddhahood. And to this end, both the Buddhas and sentient beings are equal in the degree in which they facilitate our practice. Our practice is dependent partly upon the Buddhas and partly upon sentient beings. But we seem to be respecting Buddhas.
Why is it we don’t respect — we seem to be respecting Buddhas? Why in a similar way don’t we respect sentient beings? How is it that we depend upon the Buddhas? In dependence upon the teachings of the Buddha, we know what is to be adopted and what is to be rejected. We actually can carry out our practice.
Therefore it is the teachings of the Buddha which sets out how to practice. That is the means by which we will attain Buddhahood. This is the benefit of which the Buddhas bring us. In dependence upon the sentient beings, they likewise facilitate our practice. This is how they benefit us.
In dependence upon them we are able to carry out our practice through such means as the development of love, compassion, the awakening heart, the various six perfections such as generosity, ethics and patience, that we carry out the four means of collecting the, cultivating the minds of disciples, that all these are means of creating positive potential, of actually fulfilling, bringing one’s practice to culmination. Therefore the Buddhas facilitate our practice, sentient beings facilitate our practice. Without Buddhas there would be no practice, without sentient beings there would be no practice. Therefore it is through their great kindness of both the Buddhas and the sentient beings that we will ultimately attain our aspiration of Buddhahood. This is due to both their great kindnesses.
That the very fact that we attained a human life is dependent upon sentient beings that previously through our practice of ethics that we created the karma whereby we were born as a human being. And that fact that we have a beautiful body, a pleasant appearance is due to practicing patience with respect to sentient beings. Also the fact that we have a material prosperity is due to having sentient beings in order to practice generosity. The type of future existence that we will be able to attain, the fact that we will is dependent upon sentient beings, the fact that we will attain liberation is dependent upon sentient beings, the fact that we can become a bodhisattva is dependent upon sentient beings. That we will ultimately achieve Buddhahood is dependent upon sentient beings.
We are constantly dependent upon sentient beings until the very achievement of Buddhahood. And that in order to carry out the practice that we must achieve a human life again and again. And even this, in order to practice to achieve all these various ends, we must depend upon sentient beings. So, it is said that the tradition for generating the awakened heart, as explained by Śāntideva, is superior to that of the sevenfold cause and effect instruction. The means of attaining within the tradition of the sevenfold cause and effect instruction, we are seeking to attain pleasant love with respect to all sentient beings.
And this, we see the kindness of sentient beings in terms of recognizing all sentient beings as our mother. And by this recognition we begin to become aware of the kindness of sentient beings when they were our mother and dependence upon that we develop pleasant love. For the type of pleasant love that we attain through the method as explained in the exchange of self for others is said to be surpassing in this respect since we see that sentient beings are kind all the time, not only when they are mothers, and all the various whatever that we achieve, whether it’s high status, definite goodness, or Buddhahood, is dependent upon sentient beings. Therefore the pleasant love which is generated in the exchange of self for others is said to be surpassing. It exceeds that of the pleasant love within the tradition of the sevenfold cause and effect precept.
It is said that the determining quality of the superiority of these two traditions is in terms of the pleasant love that we are able to generate in dependence upon their various causes. And within the sevenfold cause and effect instruction tradition we use the basis of recognizing all sentient beings as our mothers, remembering their kindness of their mothers. So we’re remembering the kindness of sentient beings in a small area, with a specific reference when they’re our mother. And it’s said that this type of reference, this type of focus is like the amount of, is small like the palm of our hand. We’re focusing our attention on that type of kindness of sentient beings when they’re our mother, and this is compared to the area of our hand.
Whereas within the tradition of Śāntideva we’re seeing that the kindness of all sentient beings at all times to achieve all ends, that both our temporal and ultimate ends, are ends of high status, definite goodness, and liberation in Buddhahood. That they are kind to us all the time in all these various ways, everything that we achieve is dependent upon sentient beings. So the the focus of the area of our, the area upon which we’re focusing in determining the kindness of sentient beings is like vast like space. It’s much, much greater. Therefore, if our cause is great, then our effect is going to be great.
We can understand it quite easily. Depending upon the power of the cause, to that same degree we’re going to have that much power within the effect. This is why because of the great power and seeing the kindness of sentient beings in all these vast areas that we relate with them to, then the effect, the pleasant love that we’re going to be able to generate from these causes of remembering their kindness is going to be what need to say how much greater it’s going to be than the previous tradition. We can understand readily that from small causes we arise as small results. From great causes, great results.
So it is here in the vastness of seeing the kindness of others that we’re going to develop a great, pleasant love. This degree of the power of the cause is going to determine the greatness of the effect. So the distinguishing factor which is going to bring about the surpassing quality of the awakening heart within the exchange of self for others is the way we remember the kindness of others producing a much more powerful type of pleasant love. As preliminary to the development of pleasant love, we, as was explained last week, we developed equanimity. And we did this in a nine part round meditation, nine round meditation.
Seeing, looking upon sentient beings first from their own side, that all sentient beings want to be happy, that none want to suffer, seen equality with respect to this. Then from our side, that there is no difference in benefit which sentient beings are constantly giving to us. And then from the ultimate point of view, that sentient beings, that enemies are merely imputed by name. That the Buddha does not see anyone as an enemy. In fact, he sees all sentient beings as dear ones.
What did I use last week? Dear ones? As close or dear ones. That is to say, we develop a type of equanimity in which the Buddha has equal love and compassion toward all sentient beings. The type of equanimity that we are developing a type which is not doesn’t only does it not hold some beings close and others distant, but in fact holds all sentient beings equally as dear, and therefore seeks to benefit and bring happiness to all sentient beings equally.
And this is the special equanimity of this tradition. Within the tradition of the sevenfold cause and effect instruction, the equanimity which is the preliminary, is an equanimity, not holding some distant and others near in the manner of not developing attachment and hatred toward others. This type of equanimity is common to the hearer vehicle, that is to say the lesser vehicle. But within this tradition the type of equanimity is again does not hold some near and others distant, but in a manner of holding all sentient beings as dear, and therefore seeking equally to benefit all sentient beings. And this is unique to the bodhisattva.
The equanimity, the essence of the equanimity is mainly the fact that all sentient beings want to be happy, they don’t want to suffer. That just like ourselves, that we don’t want the slightest suffering. And we want any type of happiness that we can get. In that same exact way, all other sentient beings are just like ourselves. Both self and others are equal in this respect.
That none want the slightest of suffering, we all want however much happiness that we can get. We’re all equal in this respect. We’re talking about self and others, and self is referring to I, me, myself. Others are every other being but myself, all others. The fact is that both self and others desire happiness and seek to and do not want to suffer.
We’re completely equal in this respect. But because we but in fact the way we operate is that we hold ourselves dear, that we cherish ourselves, that we seek we make effort we are constantly making effort trying find happiness for ourselves, trying to eliminate our suffering because we hold ourselves dear. On the other hand, when we look at others, we hold them at a distance. We do not in fact hold them dear at all. We push them away.
We have no cherishing toward them. Even though they want to be happy and they don’t want to suffer just like ourselves, we make no effort to bring about their happiness. We don’t try to bring their happiness, try to eliminate their suffering. There’s this great difference in the way we relate to ourselves and to others. So we hold ourselves very dear.
We cherish ourselves. And others we have no cherishing for. We don’t hold them close. And this is the great difference between the way we relate with ourselves and the way we relate with others. But is in fact, is this an appropriate way to act in view of our situations?
In view of the fact that all sentient beings are exactly the same in wanting to be happy and not wanting to suffer, then this seems to be a very inappropriate way to relate, this great difference in the way we relate between ourselves and others. The way that we hold some beings close and others distant, when in fact they are exactly the same. The practice of a bodhisattva is that he holds none differently in degree of closeness and distance with it. That he sees that if we were to present a syllogism in why we should establish the fact of treating all sentient beings equally, we say that it is, we could say for example, that it is inappropriate to hold some beings close and others distant by the reason because they all want to be happy and none want to suffer. And therefore this is the reason that we give to establish why we should begin to modify the present way we’re relating and holding some close and others distant.
Simply become a completely inappropriate way to relate from the pure fact of wanting happiness and not wanting to suffer. They’re equal. So this is the reasoning that Śāntideva sets forth. This is using the logic of a correct reason. Take as a subject oneself and others.
The predicate, both they are it is inappropriate to hold some one close and the other distant. And the reason establishing this thesis because they both want to be happy and don’t want to suffer equally. So, you know this way of reasoning, the syllogism that was presented, you know, the self takes self and others as a subject. It is inappropriate to hold self close and others distant, by the reason of that both self and others are equal in wanting happiness and not wanting to suffer. Is that way of reasoning, does it make any sense to you?
How does he think about that? Is that a good reason? So, you know, if we have this type of reasoning, you know, sounds good to us, by using this type of reasoning, understanding that all sentient beings are equal, but both in self are equal in wanting to be happy and not wanting to suffer, then it would appear that using this way of reasoning that we should treat sentient beings in the exact same way that we treat ourselves, since we’re exactly equal in wanting happiness and not wanting to suffer. If we promote our own welfare and liking ourselves, then equally we should do that for others. If we hate ourselves, then likewise we should do that toward others since we are exactly equal.
So this is the rationale as presented in Buddhism from the point of view that we are to treat both self and others exactly the same, since in fact there’s no difference in we are exactly the same. Using this reasoning that since we both want happiness and don’t want to suffer equally, we’re exactly the same in this, then we should treat both self and others equally since we are same in this. So, you know, if we extend this reasoning that we’re making use of, that since we are exactly the same in self and others in wanting to be happy and not wanting to suffer, that we should, since we are exactly the same in this respect, then we should treat both self and others in equal way. But at present we don’t do that. We hold ourselves close and others distant, but in fact we should be relating to both self and others in an equal fashion.
Now how do we relate with ourselves? We relate to ourselves by cherishing ourselves. So likewise we should relate to others in the same exact way and cherish others. So if someone were to ask you, since we’re supposed to, it seems that it is appropriate to relate to sentient beings, others in the same way that we relate ourselves since we’re both exactly the same, then what should we do? Should we treat or should we relate with others as we do with ourselves presently?
That is to say, should we cherish others just as we cherish ourselves? Or should we, just as we do not cherish others, should we not cherish ourselves? So we have two alternative possibilities. So it seems that we should cherish others, we should also cherish ourselves. So then we should cherish both self and others.
So this is not sufficient. But in fact we should begin to cultivate and cherish in others and begin to adopt a means of ridding ourselves of self-cherishing. We are to cultivate other cherishing and to rid ourselves of self-cherishing. So previously we’ve cherished ourselves and not cherished others, but now we are going to try to reverse that. We are going to exchange the cherishing.
We’re going to now try to cherish others and not cherish ourselves. You know, would apparently seem that while we should cherish both oneself and others equally. But in fact this is not skillful. That if we look at the outcome of these attitudes, then we can begin to understand that holding this attitude, this way of relating is unskillful from the point of view that in cherishing oneself we’re going to see that there are many great faults will arise. But on the other hand, by cherishing others we’re going to see how this brings about all the excellent qualities.
So it’s from this point of view that we see that the cherishing of self and cherishing of others are not similar. They’re not alike in what is going to come of these. And therefore, but in fact it’s much more skillful to begin to cherish others and diminish our self-cherishing. Now we a line from the actual root text of thought transformation set forth, in which it says, Drive all blame onto one, or place all blame onto one. What has been referred to is that from beginning-less time up to now that all the various sufferings which we experience, that we undergo, all our various miseries is brought about by this one great fault of self-cherishing.
And if we don’t change this attitude presently, then we are going to remain in the same situation and we will be constantly experiencing the same in the future. If we if we simply abide with our self-cherishing, if we remain in this state with this attitude, Then we will continue to experience all of the suffering that we previously experienced up to now. And that our present situation of continually circling through all the migrations of cyclic existence, the six migrations of the hell beings, the hungry ghosts, the animals, humans, demigods, and gods, continuously circling through these dissatisfactory states that is all dependent upon maintaining the self-cherishing attitude. Not only that, but if we don’t begin to exchange the self-cherishing attitude, we are never going to attain liberation, the bliss of liberation, and nor what to say of Buddhahood.