A Selection of Teachings from a Tibetan Buddhist Tradition

[From Commentary on The Daily Guru Rinpoche Sadhana with Tsok. Taught by Bardor Tulku Rinpoche. Translated by Lama Yeshe Gyamtso.]

For most of us meditation and post-meditation remain somewhat disconnected from one another. Some people meditate fairly well during a session, but others are basically just chanting without paying any attention to the meaning of what they are saying. In either case, it seems that we often do not pay enough attention to discipline or mindfulness in post-meditation. When we have no control or restraint in post-meditation, then we undo the benefits of the session. We need to enter post-meditation with the conscious affirmation of body, speech, and mind as deity, mantra, and wisdom. If we use speech as an example, the idea is that if you maintain the awareness of speech as mantra, you will refrain from unvirtuous speech in post-meditation. At best, you will recite the deity’s mantra. But if you just view all sound as the sound of the deity’s mantra, this should alter your conduct of speech. The same is true of body and mind. The key point is not to stray into ordinariness of body, speech, and mind because this would prevent the benefits of the meditation session from accruing. There is a traditional story about people who, when they practice a sadhana, will diligently recite the liturgy with accompaniment of the damaru and bell so that it sounds very, very nice. But as they chant, they are thinking about the stuff that they need to get done that day. When they have finished the liturgy up to the mantra and have started saying the mantra, they get up from their seats and go off to do their various jobs. Later they come back, pick up the damaru and bell again, and chant to the end of the practice, again very melodiously and properly. That is not really doing anything.

[Excerpt from a teaching at the Columbus Tibetan Buddhist Center in December 2011 by Bardor Tulku Rinpoche. Translator Lama Yeshe Gyamtso.]

Most of you who are here today have, in one way or another, formed a connection with the Karma Kagyu tradition. Some of you have actually met the 16^th Gyalwang Karmapa when he visited this city or in other places. But in any case, you’ve all somehow formed a connection with this tradition. I therefore regard all of you as disciples of the same guru as myself and as possessors of the same samaya as myself. 

About me, I do not regard myself as anything special. I think that as far as what I possess, I possess every imaginable fault. But through the blessings of my root guru, at least I’m able to recognize my faults and also to maintain the basic motivation of bodhichitta. As for the Dharma, it is not only profound, it’s also extremely vast. There are so many instructions, so many practices; it seems it would be impossible for anyone to practice them all. This can be bewildering and even off putting. But if you look closely at the meaning of dharma and at the function of all of its many profound instructions, you’ll observe that all of these systems, all of these teachings, all of these instructions have one single purpose: the purpose is to point out the mind’s nature and enable disciples to work with that once it has been recognized. Therefore in spite of the vastness of the teachings, if an authentic guru and a qualified disciple can meet one another and communicate, then tremendous things are possible as we see in the life and example of Jetsun Milarepa who achieved the state of Vajradhara, the state of great unity, in one life and one body. 

My root guru’s intention has always been to bring beings to liberation. The motivation behind all of his activity has always been bodhichitta. I therefore think it’s important that we try to conduct ourselves in line with this, implement this, and practice this. About our training we have a saying, “The sign of having heard the dharma is to be gentle and subdued; a sign of having meditated is to have few or no kleshas.”

This means that even through hearing the teachings, we should start to calm down. If the more we learn about dharma, the more we hear, the more we read, we become more and more arrogant, more and more rigid, our kleshas grow, our desire grows, then something’s gone wrong. The more we listen to the teachings, the more dharma books we read or study, the more gentle we should become: gentle in our minds, gentle in our speech, and gentle in our physical conduct. And this means that we are studying properly and getting closer and closer to buddhahood. Therefore this is my prayer, my aspiration, and my hope. Otherwise, if with every step we take on the path our kleshas become more and more coarse, our behavior becomes worse and worse, then we are walking backwards on the path. 

It’s also said that the sign of having meditated is to have few kleshas. This means that what we are dealing with in working with our minds and meditation practice is the problem that our minds have become overpowered by ignorance. That ignorance is the source and origin of all of our kleshas. And as time goes on ignorance reinforces itself, entrenches itself ever deeper. So there’s a danger that unless we remedy ignorance, our behavior will also get worse and worse. As we receive instruction and practice, our kleshas should become fewer and fewer if meditation practice is working properly. Therefore if this happens, if your kleshas diminish as you continue to practice, that is excellent. And this is my hope for all of you.