Audio recorded at Tibetan Buddhist Institute, Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 52-minute talk, Kyabje Rinpoche anchors his explanation of tantra in a foundational question: where does tantra fit within Buddha’s broader teachings? He distinguishes the transmission teaching (which explains the path to freedom) from the practice teaching (which arises from genuine realization), then situates both within the two vehicles—the inferior vehicle, where one works toward personal liberation, and the great vehicle, where one dedicates oneself to freeing all beings from suffering. Within the great vehicle, he contrasts the perfection vehicle or bodhisattva path, which takes immense time, with the vajra vehicle or tantra, which can lead to Buddhahood within a single lifetime. The driving motivation for tantra, Rinpoche emphasizes, is not personal ambition but the urgent determination to achieve enlightenment quickly so one can manifest countless emanations to serve all sentient beings.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 1989-12-01 – 1A – What is Tantra – KR.mp3
UUID: c4880c74-e654-4f7f-bc88-b457b17e3bdb
Teacher: Kyabje Rinpoche
Collection: Tantra General
Date: 1989-12-01
Recorded at: Tibetan Buddhist Institute, Adelaide
Words: ~3,698
Not distracted outside. So within that state of the mind being this are drawn inside, we try to generate a strong, caring, altru istic or mind or thinking that I’m going to work for the welfare of other beings. So I’ll try to generate that good attitude and trying to generate that, let’s meditate together for about three minutes. The greatly compassionate teacher Buddha has said in the discourse, completion of discourse called Lankavatara Sūtra, Descent into Lanka, where the line goes are my teachings of two kind advice and advice and accomplishment and I teach advice for those who are of common caliber in intelligence and I teach accomplishment teaching or instruction for those who are of higher level and who are technically called the yogis. So in meaning, the line says that Buddha’s teachings are of two aspect of two kinds.
The first is the teaching within the category called Tenpa explicitly called or called literally meant as exposition and ornamentally called as the advice and that kind of teaching is given to those beings who are normally called child, a child in the sense of very young in spiritual maturity and it is a kind of teaching shown to our ordinary beings. And the second kind of teaching is called accomplishment and also called by the old, normally called as tenets to establish our philosophical conclusions and that is our call. That second type of teaching is taught to the beings who are of high caliber and who are yogis who does our meditation and high practices. And regarding the first kind of teaching, exposition, that was it itself is of two kind and both the two kinds of the first group, the advice group are to be are to be explained and to be practiced by any practitioner as a first stage before going to the second type of teaching. And that first group itself has two and those two are called the transmission teaching and the practice teaching.
And regarding these two types of the first group, the transmission and the practice or teaching. Regarding that there is a famous line from our great master called Acharya Vasubandhu who says in line the teachings of two, the advice and the practice and the first being the work of teaching of explanation and second being the teaching of putting into practice. So the first one of which the two, the first one is the teaching of the transmission literally called transmission and sometimes ornamentally translated as academic aspect of the teaching. And that by that it is mean, it is to be understood as meaning that that kind of teaching is mainly that part of the Buddhist words which deals about how the beings, how people have to get rid of their faults, their source of unhappiness, problems, stress and how they have to try to our co cultivate and try to acquire the sources of our good qualities, happiness, satisfaction and so forth and that sort of teaching we can in easier term be called what is normally called the books. Books can be our core books of Buddhist or subject belong to that that group of teaching.
So whatever is shown in the books of Buddha’s compiled words or scriptures are such instructions like what we should do in order to get rid of sufferings and causes of suffering and what we should do in order to be with happiness and causes of happiness, all that are called the first kind of teaching the transmission or call academic learning aspect of the teaching and by learning it but being able to understand the contents of this teaching and putting it into practice after they arise within one’s mind such realization of the spiritual part like the mind of love, compassion, renunciation, the thought looking at some cyclic mundane thing as a work of faults, and the precious bodhicitta the precious bodhicitta, called complete care for all sentient beings unconditionally. So all those or whatever arises after one does one called studies and learning on those first aspect of teaching. So whatever realizations of the spiritual grounds and parts one is able to generate, that’s called the second type of teaching of the first group and it is called the teaching of practice or teaching of realization. Now to explain it in more easier terms of our day to day experience we can say with this example let’s say there’s a child who goes to a school and whatever our books or facilities which constitute the study of the child.
The whole whole work or the whole thing of learning. So that aspect is called in here it is like like the transmission teaching and after the child learns studies very well and learns everything and afterward he or call passes his school and whatever afterward as being able to generate within the child a kind of qualification and understanding by which the child is able to accomplish his own projects and also able to accomplish projects relating to other, our call others in society. So that understanding, that qualification which is within the child after long period of study that second is in the context like the second type of teaching, the teaching of realization, the practice teaching. So our teaching normally also in this context is popularly translated as doctrine so we can say doctrine being two aspect, the transmission doctrine and the realization doctrine. So whatever be in the whole aspect of these different types of teaching, they can belong within two main group that which are called the great vehicle and the inferior vehicle, the great part and inferior part.
The reason why there are there are two two types of the vehicle spiritual path, the first being the great vehicle and the second being the inferior vehicle. The reason why they are those two is because of the difference in the sentient being or people’s capacity to absorb things in understanding and in practice. So regarding the different types of mentality caliber or the what called difference in the capacity to absorb we can say the mind itself has so many different varieties of which there arise so many different problems, so many different what called association or things related with mind. Let’s say with mind itself there are a whole lot of different types of problems hardship which we normally experience. And we can understand that this is not just an isolated case that the different aspects the result being produced by mind is just limited to this life.
We can analyze and search for its previous continuity in which we can find that same has happened in the past that in this past there had been mind which had different aspect and having engaged in different work or work has produced so many different problems hardship which we experience. So the same thing if we analyze from the standpoint now into future then it also will be same. So the mind in its what are called actual nature has all those variety due to which there has been so whole lot of what are called problems hardship and this has been a case in all the three times past, present and future And this we don’t need to look too far if we just relate with ourself individually if it’s true or not or we can, you know, tell from our own experience that’s true with the mind. So anyway past is past, things problems hardship that happen has been past and in the present it’s not very probable how long we’re going to continue to live and also our temporal work on our present lives problems hardship that can be quite easily solved by work on by requesting for assistance of other people and so forth.
So therefore now really what we have to work for is the problems and hardships which we might experience in future meaning in the life after this next life. So in that next life now we have to really work on we really have to generate a kind of a wanting to not experience suffering continuously in future and really try to have a kind of long ing that I must try to find means by which I should should be able to avoid that suffering. So even if one has that strong longing but if it is limited only to one’s alone thinking that oh I must somehow try to work and find solution for myself alone to be not to be not to experience sufferings in my future life thereby try to work or find means. So that even though a person may have that’s a very inferior way of thinking therefore it is called whoever may have that kind of longing and that kind of mental attitude and afterward due to that if he works towards finding solution and if the person happens to generate some kind of spiritual progress on the then even though what call he’s working for removing the sufferings and causes of suffering but still because of being limited only to one’s own interest alone therefore it is a a inferior way of thinking and that that type of person is called inferior vehicle.
So this is connecting to the previous one why there are those two types of our spiritual path. And through that the person is able to attain a happiness of liberation completely — stressing, emphasizing on the word completely completely free of all the sufferings. So that’s the the inferior vehicle and now about the great vehicle it is as a great lama, great master, Lama Tsongkhapa has said in a line that the you know that the line goes in order to go to the state of Buddhahood there are the profound indestructible vehicle, and the perfection vehicle. So in accordance to what the master has said, the great vehicle is of two, the path of the indestructibility or normally called vajra vehicle, Vajrayāna, and the perfection vehicle, the bodhisattva path. So regarding the great vehicle, how would a practitioner of great vehicle part think?
So the way such person would think is this way that all as I’m going to experience sufferings, stress, problems in future lives same applies to all other beings, other sentient beings. Therefore it is not appropriate that I should work only in trying to get rid of or trying to avoid and get rid of my own sufferings of future. Therefore, I should try to work or work to remove the future suffering so other sentient being especially with the reasoning that the other sentient beings have been so kind to me in all my periods of what call existence all throughout like when I was to be born it is with dependence on sentient beings or with dependence on their kindness and effort that I was able to be born and after when I was when I grew up it is because of the sentient beings kindness and effort in relation with whom that I’ve been able to grow up and now when I’m quite well or reasonably well and comfortable that’s also because of their kindness and effort and also the whole, whole providence of food or drink, clothing, everything somehow has to come by dependence on the kindness of sentient beings.
Therefore, this type of person with all this reasoning makes a kind of an attitude promising that because it is not appropriate therefore I must work for the removing of suffering so all other sentient beings and in this way that person has such a wide such a such a wide vast such a vast good way of thinking. For example, if there are two persons out there and one is fairly well off and rich and others are desperately poor everything and in that case if the rich person provides food, clothing and even put up in his own place, they’re poor person. And in that case we would say the rich person is incredibly kind and good. But after let’s say in the change of a circumstance where the poor person after a while becomes well off and the rich person becomes quite poor. In that case, if the we’re calling if the poor, the previous poor person who is now rich in that case, if that person doesn’t care to that person then we would say that that is a very ill or very bad thing and it is a very bad way of doing things and it doesn’t confirm or it doesn’t go in parallel with spiritual advice and it even doesn’t go in parallel with the only society way of thinking.
And whereas if we have a situation where the poor person, the previous poor person afterward become rich and when the rich, the previous rich person become poor then in that case if the previous poor person helps the other person then we would say, that’s a very good conduct, it’s done very nicely and it confirms both with the spiritual advice and the way how only society, our moral way of doing things has to be. At the moment, we are within the group of humans who has who have all the complete or what call good factors and circumstances and conditions to be able to practice the Dharma well that we have met with the teacher that we have our call practicing companion and if from our side if we put all effort that we have all potential to be able to attain Buddhahood, to become Buddha within this very body, therefore we have attained such a powerful or potentially very powerful body. Now because the body in the sense of rebirth. So because we have this now on the other hand, the situation is that all other sentient beings who have been very kind to one or to oneself if they at the moment, the situation being that they are in a very poor state of not having a lama teacher or not understanding about the spiritual path and not having any companion who somehow may what call are encouraged towards their spiritual direction.
So if that’s the case then we it is what I call, It is our most upright duty or right thing to do that we should try to remove their sufferings as well. And how regarding the way how we have to work towards others regarding the exact way of removing others suffering. What principally we have to do is because sentient beings do not want suffering at all and because they want unchanging ultimate happiness therefore the right thing we can do regarding the welfare side of sentient being remove their suffering has to be in the sense of completely removing their suffering and leading or placing them to a state of happiness where there is no suffering at all and literally call excellent happiness without suffering at all. And even though one may have that understanding and that what condition in one’s mind that that’s the most appropriate, the perfect thing one has to do regarding others welfare but still at the moment one is without any power and it is not possible and therefore one has to find for means where actually is the possible fuller source and power by which one is able to do that and in trying to search out for that full resource one understands it is only in the state of oneself becoming a Buddha, oneself become completely enlightened or being that one is able work on or one is able to do those welfare completely and in that state alone one can do the work whole welfare of all sentient beings or every sentient being.
Therefore that understanding followed by a wish or faith thinking that in order to attain that first I must try to get rid of all my faults obscuration and I should try to myself with completely all the work of good qualities and that is the work of precise requirement in the way of thinking about others and on top of that one can also practice on other spiritual or pure mind like being used to with the thought of unconditional universal love and on compassion and on bodhicitta and on actual emptiness and so forth. And that way of having that motivation or way of thinking and doing those practices is what is called the way of doing practice and going progressively on the path through the perfection vehicle and that perfection vehicle in the first of the two great vehicles. And in that part, even though one is I work on trying to get rid of the faults and trying to be with all the excellent happiness but still that part takes immensely long time. Therefore the other more intelligent type of practice new things that that part takes such immensely long time therefore I can’t bear or I must attain the state of complete perfection with all the qualities without even the slightest fault in the Buddhahood, I must attain it quickly quickly that I can’t bear it to let it go on or let it continue too long that I must attain it quickly quickly that even if if things from their side they may want or they may feel it quite okay to continue remaining in saṃsāra or in cyclic existence but from my side I can’t bear to let them continue suffer for such long.
Therefore this type of person thinks that way and in trying to find a solution for a greater attainment of the progress on the path the person what I call analyze is what are the means he tries to search for means. So this practitioner really wants to attain that perfection state quickly, quickly and as trying to find means, he our practitioner comes to understand the solution lies in the secret mantra part, so now normally called tantra. So it lies in the secret mantra part, the tantra part and this secret mantra part how it is very quick is because the most or the longest time if a person takes it would be to attain enlightenment in the next life and the intermediate duration of time it takes would be attaining enlightenment in the state in between this life’s death and next life’s rebirth. And the quickest one would be attaining Buddhahood within this body, within this lifetime. And why it is quite important that one has to attain that complete state of perfection Buddhahood and very quickly as quick as possible is because once a practitioner attains that state then the practitioner is able to able to transform 100 or 10,000, 100,000 millions of his what called transformed bodies normally called emanations.
So he may be able to, our call, he may be able to transform countless emanations and each of the emanated body would be able to perform, accomplish and work for other beings and the beings even each of the emanations worked for would be countless in number. Therefore, the whole resourcefulness in that state is so immense that one is able to transform into such emanations of bodies and able to do welfare for sentient beings or to such unlimited numbers. So once a person attains that state then whatever activity the person does in the course of helping other sentient beings it is all beneficial. There is not the slightest of a part of his activity being mixed with the harmful consequences to other sentient being and why that is so is principally whatever that person does in the state of enlightenment, whatever activity the person does will have to be with the sole or with the sole basis of being motivated by the great compassion and with great compassion the person may do such activities like giving teachings or showing the paths and so forth. So whereas in at present, we are so limited in being able to reach countless beings in our course of engaging in activities helping others.
For example, if Rinpoche, what I call, says a word so it doesn’t mean anything and especially for you you just hear it as a you wouldn’t hear the word in most diverse form like with the Buddha, it would be heard in the language and the meanings of which whatever is required by the individual or sentient beings and if the Tibetans hear then they might hear what the changes are and they might get an idea what language is talking otherwise language has to depend on lot of translator. Whereas with Buddha, let’s say if there are 100 people listening to a Buddha then even if a Buddha says the word, the Tibetan word for enlightenment mind. So even if a Buddha may say the word, it could be heard with the individual languages of each of the 100 different people assembled to listen to him and also it would be heard as a kind of advice and instruction whatever is required by different mentality of those 100 people. For example, those 100 it could be possible everybody may not like to hear Buddha talk about impermanence, some may like to hear Buddha talk about impermanence, some may like Buddha to talk specifically about the functions of mind and so forth.
So even if there are different mentalities of wanting to hear different teachings could be heard respectively just by that mere one word from Buddha or. And even if all the 100 people put one question each of them together simultaneously to Buddha. Buddha will be able to understand each unmixedly in the right context whatever the questioner wants to ask and also in answering to those question Buddha may just need to say one word and that would, what I call, answer whatever the question are. Regarding the good qualities of Buddha, Tibetan word Yönten has or whatever excellent qualification Buddha has. So regarding the qualifications, good qualities of Buddha, it is something we can’t finish talking talking on.
It is limitless like the expanse of space.