Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 165-minute retreat session, Ven Thubten Dondrub guides practitioners through a comprehensive exploration of karma—the law of cause and effect—teaching that forms the foundation of all Buddhist practice. He opens with breathing meditation and refuge prayers to settle the mind, then establishes the four fundamental aspects of karma: all experiences arise from causes; unplanted causes yield no results; karmic imprints remain in the mind until they ripen; and imprints can be destroyed or strengthened depending on dedication and effort. The core of the session involves a detailed examination of the ten non-virtues (killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, lying, divisive speech, harsh speech, idle gossip, covetousness, malice, and wrong view), walking participants through the four factors that complete each action—motivation, recognition, engagement, and completion. He emphasizes the three ripened results that manifest even in this life: rebirth in lower realms (from complete karma), direct experiential results, environmental results, and habitual results. Throughout, Dondrub stresses personal reflection rather than judgment of others, and addresses practical questions about purification practices, collective karma, and the real-world difficulty of understanding suffering’s karmic origins. Suitable for serious practitioners familiar with Buddhist ethics and doctrine.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 2015 10 25 DB Karma Retreat Day 25-10-15 Ven. Dondrub.mp3
UUID: 722099e2-2c5b-4300-8270-8706208dae94
Teacher: Ven Thubten Dondrub
Collection: DB All about Karma (Ven Thubten Dondrub)
Date: 2015-10-25
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 165.5 minutes
Words: ~3,091
So I think everyone knows that in this one hour session, we divided into two segments. So the first segment, we do some breathing meditation. So the purpose of this is to help us calm the mind down to help us gain some mastery over our mind So we proceed this by just checking our posture and also checking out our motivation. So there are some traditional prayers that we say. So this is these are on page two if you want to have people go if you’d like to join.
So we can begin by sitting comfortably in the correct posture as much as possible. Pay particular attention I go for refuge until I am enlightened to the Buddha, Dharma and the Supreme Assembly. By my merit of giving and other perfections, may I become a Buddha in order to benefit all sentient beings. I go for refuge until I am enlightened to the Buddha, Dharma and the Supreme Assembly. By my merit of giving and other perfections, may I become a Buddha in order to benefit all sentient beings.
May beings. May all sentient beings have happiness and the cause of happiness. May all sentient beings be free from suffering and the causes of suffering. May all sentient beings be inseparable from the happiness that is free from suffering. May all sentient beings abide in equanimity, free from attachment and aversion to friends and enemies.
So having prepared our body and mind in this way, the most single most important teaching. We would have all the other teachings of Buddha are connected to it. And so when we’re looking at the law of cause and effect, we’re not considering so much the effects of our actions in this life as of course everything we do has some effect in this life. But what the law of cause and effect is particularly talking about is about the four fundamental aspects of the law of cause and effect. That’s why the teacher also just says that we really need to be mindful of these in our daily life to encourage ourselves to avoid negative actions by remembering these four factors and So, again, we can begin by sitting comfortably in the correct posture as much as possible.
And then just refer reaffirming our motivation. It was not just for our own sake, not for our own just out there and then put in this line, the future lives. We’re really trying to have So the first of the fundamental aspects of the law of cause and effect, first of all, is that all our experiences had a cause. This is something different. Although there are conditions for our experiences in external world, which we tend in our conclusion, And it’s definite that the cause, the real cause of all our experiences is our own mind.
How can I? So the second of the fund aspects of the law of cause and effect states that if we have not created the cause, we will not experience the effect. If we haven’t created the cause for suffering, we cannot we won’t experience suffering. If we haven’t created the actual causes for happiness, we won’t be able to experience that. If we are experiencing suffering, it’s because we ourselves, but the happiness or suffering we’re experiencing is the result of karmic imprints ripening.
And those karmic imprints were created by our mind at some point. Either earlier in his life or more likely in the past life. So the third fundamental aspect of the cause and effect to consider is that we’re taught that once these karmic imprints, these karmic potencies and potentials have been generated in the mind by having done virtuous or non virtuous actions, the Buddha teaches that. Once those imprints are generated, they remain in mind until they ripen to bring the result. They don’t disappear We’re gonna talk there are two exceptions to this.
One is that our positive karmic imprints can be destroyed before they ripen So this is why on the one hand, it’s important to dedicate the the merit we create to protect it from being harmed by disturbing emotions. Similarly, with a little bit of effort, we can engage in a virtuous action, a kind action based on love, joy, and compassion. Just as our actions in this life, in a short time, can have long lasting effects just in this life. Even more so, our karmic imprints have enormous effects. So now we can bring meditation to a conclusion by making a strong determination to be more and more mindful in daily life.
Another session, another meditation. Another mystical but very important, very practical. Okay. So we’re gonna meditate on the ten non virtues. So because there’s so much in it, it’s it’s it gets very wordy if I leave it also.
You’re gonna gonna have to do this yourself. Right? Right? Which is what you should do anyway. Meditate.
Oh, you you need your student material to have it. This is on page twenty five. The number ten on virtues. So what we’ll do is is the idea is to go in this half hour. It will take a three minute break and then have another segment session.
So in this section, we’ll go through just looking at the ten non virtues and how one creates the full remember, there are completing karmas. So there are throwing karmas and completing karmas. So a throwing karma is a a complete a full karmic action that requires the four factors? So this is what we’re going to look at the four factors that complete the action of killing, stealing, and so on. So what I’d like you to do is actually go through the ten non virtues is to look at the is to think, have I engaged in in in in this life?
Have I killed any any sentient being in this life? Or or how one could do that? And particularly with with the intention, there’s there there has to be the the conscious motivation to do to kill, the conscious motivation to steal, to engage in sexual misconduct and lie and so on. But also particularly to think of examples of how or check. Have I done any of these actions with motivation of anger?
How you know you can kill with anger? How you could kill out of attachment? How you could kill out of ignorance? How you could steal steal out of attachment, out of anger, out of ignorance, and have I done any of this or, you know, like that, particularly. It’s not about thinking about what other people have done.
Oh, Fred down the road did that and did that. This is not how you meditate on on anything to particularly in relation to oneself. Yeah. Because we’re trying to work with our Okay. So we’ll start with the the traditional prayers.
So just briefly sitting in the in the correct checking out posture and calming the mind by doing just briefly I go for refuge until I am enlightened to the Buddha, Dharma, and the Supreme Assembly. By my merit of giving and other perfections, May I become a Buddha in order to benefit all sentient beings? So now I think the Buddha seated just on the lotus sun and when it comes to the crown of one’s head, turning to face the same direction. So then once I’m paid, go through reflecting on the ten non-virtues one can engage in the great negative karmas of the ten non virtues. To create the be aware that to create the complete karma, one has to have that conscious motivation.
If one doesn’t have the conscious motivation, one may still create some kind of thing that it won’t be as strong. And, of course, the stronger the delusion is that is motivating that action, the stronger the imprint would be. And also the way one engages in the action, one engages in the the action of killing, stealing, and so on, particularly, So in the in the killing, there’s a mistake there in the printing where it says the intention, the recognition says you recognize mistakenly. Say unmistakable. You recognize unmistakable in the person.
Separate this section this main segment to a conclusion by making strong determination to be more and more mindful in daily life. Any thoughts arising towards engaging in any of these negative actions, be really mindful of any intention arising to engage in any of these negative actions and all the factors involved in creating these non virtues so that one can avoid them as much as possible, recognizing that these can only bring create the cause for great suffering now and in the future. So now we’ll go through the the results of our actions, the ten non virtues, the results to page twenty nine onwards. So if one engages in a complete throwing karma, then these four results follow. So one of them is with each in each case, the the right thing is to be reborn in one of the lower realm.
So depending on which of the ten non virtues it is and how strong the karmic imprint is, depending on the four factors which we just looked at, then one could be reborn in particularly when we, you know, reflect on these ten the results of the ten non virtues since we can’t remember being reborn in any of the lower realms as an animal in the hell realms. The main thing is to reflect on the the three ripened results that occur from that one action when one’s reborn as a human being and to particularly think about, have I experienced any of these results in this life? And and therefore, to realize if I want to avoid this kind of suffering, even this kind of suffering that happens in this life because I find it unpleasant, then I have to avoid these actions as much as possible. But those results that happened in this life results similar to the cause, the environmental result, and and the habitual result. That suffering is nothing And especially if we recognize that we have some kind of habit to engage in in any of these actions in this life, then this is something really So, you know, suffering just goes on and on.
We perpetuate cyclic existence this way by following these habits. So, yeah, very important to do these reflections, to put these imprints in our mind more and more. Because by putting these in our mind, hopefully, what will happen is if we start to engage in one of these non virtues that the memory of that will arise, which hopefully, if we have enough mindfulness. So let’s calm our mind again just briefly doing the nine round breathing exercise. In order to achieve enlightenment, I have to generate bodhicitta wisdom and to develop all of these qualities. The whole basis of all this is observing the law of cause and effect.
This is the very, very basis of all those practices. So I need to understand So then at your own pace, just, again, go through the ten non-virtues looking at the four results, particularly trying to see the psychological connection between the nature of the action and the result. So now we have half hour discussion time. Discuss the half hour. So if you have some questions, find your questions, which may be what you’ve written in your homework because I I as I’ve tried to explain sometimes, I just can’t answer the question because it takes too long.
It’s too complicated, or I don’t understand your You won’t have no difference in a very short time. So when a common result of sexual misconduct is you’re having can have relationships that they tend to go go wrong. But as a result of divisive speech, you it’s very difficult to have friendships at all. Yeah. Yeah.
But completely, I’m not sure. I’m not sure. Because, again, it would depend on how strong the imprint is. And even if it’s not dedicated, but it was a very, very powerful virtuous action, it would require very, very negative one to one. I’m not just logically thinking.
But if it’s just a very weak positive imprint, that because, also, if if you can recognize some negative habit in this life from those ten, doesn’t mean that it that the cause of them. You can try and catch them. But if you have a great fear of them, if you see, you know, from a karmic point of view, this is probably indicating But to try just try and think that they yeah. They’re not trying to kill you or eat you or poison you, and they’re just mother sentient beings. They’ve been nice to you.
Work on it. Work on it. But at least don’t kill her. Like I said, it’s not like yeah. One can purify a a great deal, but to purify, you know, a lot, you have to put in a lot of work.
There’s no just like a few rounds of Vajrasattva that all goes away. I mean, that that’s why there’s in in all the traditions of Buddhism, the Tibetan So I didn’t try wasn’t trying to put people off the place. I I just want I just want to make a point that one shouldn’t think, oh, it’s super easy to purify. Know, you preliminary practices to do, and one is encouraged to do in one’s life at least a hundred thousand of these prostrations. It’s also like Bodhisattva is something that is encouraged to do every day if one can.
Well, spec specifically, the practice of the thirty five Buddhas is about purifying bodhisattva vows. And since the bodhisattva vows are more begins at times more powerful than the pratimoksha vows and things, and, like and will purify those. So it will purify breaking any of the ten non virtues, etcetera, etcetera, or five lay vows or the vows of nuns and monks. Whereas Vajrasattva comes from the tantric tradition. So it is it is specifically It does vary from time to time because it requires overqualified to give.
Lama to give. A lot of people do. Yeah. The way it’s set out here, which is where it’s set out in many places, we do get the impression of talking about practically anything is idle. I I have a lot of trouble with this one.
No. No. Not well, just but I quit seeing that as a cause, especially for the lower realms, this is quite problematic. Yes. I think this needs to be investigated more.
I mean, this this is the basis of something meaningless or insignificant. I mean, this the ten knot purchase is really the basis for all those practices. Like, lay people as well. I’m sure. But I think it’s particularly related to I mean, one way to understand what idle gossip is is because my favorite definition of it is which I read somewhere I don’t know.
Can’t imagine. Never. Is discussing the faults of others. So if so I I think that’s very helpful because what it’s saying is that idle gossip is negative in the sense that you you talk about non-Dharma things, which are really deeply meaningful. And by doing so, one is putting the input in the mind or by discussing a lot of stuff, you know, really seriously.
You know? So this is really important group. Don’t know whether movie star so and so is going to be with movie star, you know, other than whatever. It it’s really what it’s doing is yeah. It it’s Right.
Yeah. It’s in attachment and emphasizing the things of this life. Whereas what we’re trying to do about if one is taking refuge, one is trying to follow. And and the law of cause and effect is specifically taught in the context of developing renunciation of this one so that we can direct down line to what is really meaningful for ourselves. Whereas when we if we talk a lot about put a lot of emphasis on talking about stuff, ordinary stuff, it’s just keeping.
It’s it’s it’s keeping our mind stuck in this stuff. So this is the be all and end all. Yeah. So from that point of view, I I I so if if you’re doing it with that kind of with that kind of mindset, it’s not so great. Just like Kathy says, it’s also a a lot to do with really one’s motivation.
I I actually want to ask one question because we’re out of time, but what is the one thing that you find most difficult to you believe in relation to karma? What do all believe in? It’s all a problem. I’ve got quite a lot of problem. I won’t start I won’t get to the goal, but just the collective karma worries me.
But just as an example, World War two, millions died. Which one would say was their karma ripening? I find it weird to say that because millions of people’s karma all ripening at the same time, same place, same date to be killed in camps, burnt in ovens. Cause. Well, not the same cause, but the suffering that’s happening today is caused by a regime change or a war.
Or Yes. So there’s the conditions. So you when we all do create the same kind of actions at different times in different places for different reasons. Mhmm. But for the karma to arrive there, you need the conditions.
And when the the particular set of conditions come together, then many people can experience the result. Okay. Lots of people, for example, pops into my mind. Lots of people all over the world for various reasons at various times and various ages like the Rolling Stones music. But you can’t, you know and only a Rolling Stones concert happens every now and again.
And when one comes, thousands of people come. Bingo.. And then you can hear the music. But, you know, and then there’s some people who are very, you know, very oldies like me. Well, I don’t — it can get embarrassing — as part of it.
I’m not interested in this stuff anymore, Well, I think that’s very simplistic because the the there’s not such thing as inherently existing China Chinese or Tibetans. The Tibetans who invaded