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INSTRUCTIONS ON TURNING

HAPPINESS AND SUFFERING


INTO THE PATH
OF ENLIGHTENMENT
BY
JIG-MED TEN-PA 'I NYI-MA
THE THIRD DODRUP CHEN RINPOCHE
TRANSLATED BY TULKU THONDUP
@ Tulku Thondup 1979
Published by:
Buddhayana
P.O. Box 66
Marion, MA 02738
Foes are (as unlimited) as space,
They cannot possibly all be overcome;
Yet if you just overcome the thought of hatred
This will be equal to overcoming all foes.
Where is the leather
With which one can cover the earth?
But (wearing) a leather sandal
Is equal to covering the earth with leather.
-and
If a problem can be remedied
Why are you unhappy?
And if it cannot be remedied
What is the use of being unhappy?
-Shantideva
Ill.
-The Buddha
PREFACE
This short text, "Instructions on Turning Happiness and
Suffering Into the Path" (sKyid-sDug Lam-Khyer-Gyi Man-
Ngag) was written in Tibetan by the renowned sage and scholar
Jig-med Ten-pa'i Nyi-ma, the third Dodrup Chen Rinpoche
(1865-1926).
The subject dealt with here is one of the most important
practices for the Bodhisattva's training in the Buddhist Mahayana:
the various methods by which the experience of happiness and
suffering can be used as the means of gaining liberation from the
bonds of sam sara. This is done by making use of both relative and
absolute truth as is taught in the Bodhicharyavatara and other
Mahayana scriptures.
In these troubled days, not only ordinary people but even
many practitioners experience happiness and sorrow in an
ordinary way, full of hopes and fears; they do not know how to
make these situations work for their development. Many people
try to get as much happiness as they can from worldly pleasures,
but, while experiencing them they forget the true aim of life and
fritter away their time in endless egocentric goals. On the other
hand, many people are oppressed by intolerable suffering, and
sometimes find no escape other than by taking their own lives.
Experience shows that to make use of suffering is relatively
easy by such practices as developing revulsion towards samsara
and turning instead to the spiritual trainings. The author also
deals with the more difficult matter of using happiness and
favorable circumstances as part of the Path; here the difficulty
lies in the ease with which we become attached to joy and
v.
happiness, even though worldly happiness can be neither pure
nor enduring. So in fact both happiness and suffering can
become obstacles to spiritual training and practice.
If we can perfect our training in turning happiness and
suffering into the Path, then, no matter what we experience in
our relations with the outer world, our mind will remain calm
and at ease, unperturbed either in happiness or in sorrow. To the
unfortunate people of this dark age in which chaos and
difficulties prevail, this practice is most useful, bringing relief
from the exhaustion of doubt and expectation, and guiding the
mind to find rest in its natural state of purity and peace.
I am grateful to Harold Talbott for all the assistance he kindly
gave me during the translation of the text. Thanks are also due to
Michael Baldwin and other members of the Buddhayana Foun
dation, U.S.A. for their generous sponsorship and for all the
arrangements they made for the research and translations
(including this text) that I have been carrying out in the U.S.A.
during the last four years.
28th October, 1979
Santiniketan
Tulku Thondup
During the last few years I have heard from a great number of
people that this booklet was beneficial for them when they
needed spiritual guidance on the journey through the wild paths
of their lives. I hope this second edition will reach more friends
and that they will read it not as an academic text to generate
intellectual anxiety and excitement but as a spiritual recipe for
tasting the peaceful state of the mind.
I am thankful to Constance Bigony for doing the typesetting
and arranging for the text to be printed.
Cambridge
January, 1984
VI.
T.T.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
A. THE WAY OF ACCEPTING SUFFERING
AS THE PATH TO ENLIGHTENMENT
I. By Means of Relative Truth
1. the State of Mind of Exclusively
Desiring not to Have Suffering.
(a) The uselessness of considering suffering as something
unfavorable.
(h) The great harm of eonsidering suffering as something
unfavorable.
2. Dt>velop the Attitude of Being Happy
That Sufferings Arise.
(a) Sufft>ring as the support of training in the thought
of away from samsara.
(b) Suffering as the support of training in Taking Refuge.
(e) as the support of training in overcoming pride.
(d) as the support for purification of defilements.
(e) Suffering as the support for attraction to virtue.
(f) Suffering as the support for training
in compassion.
(g) Taking suffering as the support of the meditation
that others are dearer than oneself.
II. By Means of the Absolute Truth
B. THE WAY OF TAKING HAPPINESS
AS THE PATH
I. By Means of Relative Truth
II. By Means of Absolute Truth
VII.
- Shantideva
Homage to Arya Avalokiteshvara
1
by the recollection of his
qualities, which were celebrated thus:
.,He who will ever be made happy
by the happiness of others,
And who feels extreme distress
when suffering comes to them,
Having fully attained the quality
of Great Compassion,
He will renounce his own happiness
and suffering."
I am going to write a brief instruction on acceptance of
happiness and suffering as the Path of Enlightenment. It is
the most precious teaching in the world, and a necessary
tool for the holy life.
A. THE WAY OF ACCEPTING SUFFERING
AS THE PATH TO ENLIGHTENMENT
I. By Means of Relative Truth
Whenever harm comes to you from beings or non-
beings, if your mind experiences only the consciousness of
sorrow, then even from a small incident great mental pain
will develop. For it is the nature of any consciousness,
either of suffering or happiness, that it will increase by the
experiencing of it. If the experience gradually becomes
stronger, a time will come when most of what appears will
become the cause of drawing unhappiness to ourselves and
happiness will never have a chance. If you do not know that
the responsibility lies with one's own mind's way of
experiencing, and you put the blame on external objects
alone, then the ceaseless flame of suffering and anger - bad
ka-rma
2
- will increase. That is called, .,Every appearance
arising in the form of an enemy."
1
You should thoroughly understand that the reason why
living beings of the dark age
3
are afflicted by suffering is
fundamentally related to the weakness of their discrim-
inative awareness. Therefore, not to be hurt by the
obstacles of enemies, illness, and harmful spirits does not
mean that we can drive away vicissitudes such as illness,
and that they won't occur again. Rather it means that they
will not be able to arise and take'the form of obstacles to the
practice of the Path of Enlightenment.
In order for this to come about, you should practice in
the following two ways:
l. Reject the State of Mind of Exclusively
Desiring Not to Have Suffering.
Ascertain again and again the uselessness and harm-
fulness of anxiety
4
arising from aversion to suffering when
it is considered as something totally unfavorable. Get the
experience of determination repeatedly in the thought that
from now on, whatever suffering ~ o m e s , I shall not be
anXlOUS.
a) The uselessness of considering suffering as
something unfavorable: If you can cure the suf-
fering, then you don't need to be unhappy. If you
cannot change it, there is no benefit from being
unhappy about it.
b) The great harm of considering suffering as
something unfavorable: If you do not feel anxious,
your strength of mind can help you to bear even
great sufferings easily. They will feel light and
flimsy like cotton. But anxiety will make even small
sufferings intolerable.
2
For example, while you are thinking of a beautiful girl,
even if your try to get rid of desire you will only exhaust
yourself. Likewise, by concentrating on the painful charac-
teristics of suffering, you cannot develop patience. So, as in
the case of the instructions on sealing the doors of the
faculties, you should not concentrate your mind on the
characteristics of suffering, but should become exper-
ienced in keeping your mind in its normal condition and in
its own state. s
2. Develop the Attitude of Being Happy
that Sufferings Arise:
Practice cultivating joy by considering suffering as an aid
to the Path of Enlightenment. Whenever suffering arises,
you must have a "training in virtuous deeds" to apply to it,
according to the ability of your mind, because it will be
difficult to succeed if you only ponder the general principle
that a spiritual method can bring certain benefits from
suffering as a support to practice. As it is said, "That is
farther than the earth from the sky."
a) Suffering as the support of training in the
impulse to achieve liberation from samsara:6
Think that as long as you are wandering powerless in
samsara, the arising of suffering is not an injustice, but is
the nature of being in samsara.
Reflect that if it is difficult to bear even the little
sufferings of the happy realms,
7
then there is nothing to be
said about the sufferings of the lower realms.
Develop sorrow and revulsion from samsara by thinking
that, alas, samsara is an endless and bottomless ocean of
suffering; and turn your mind to liberation.
3
b) Suffering as the support of training in Taking
Refuge:
Practice Taking Refuge by gaining certainty that the
Three Jewels
8
are the only unbetraying refuge amidst the
continuous suffering of fear and danger throughout the
succession of one's lives, so that you should depend on
them in all ways, not renouncing them in any circum-
stances.
c) Suffering as the support of training in over-
coming pride:
Dispel pride and contempt for others, which are the
enemies of merits, by becoming aware that one has no
autonomy, and that one has not passed beyond the control
of suffering.
d) Suffering as the support for purification of
defilements:
The sufferings you have experienced, and sufferings that
are unimaginably numerous and se,vere, all arise from the
evil deeds alone. So think carefully about these four
principles:
The certainty of the operation of karma.
The tendency of karma to increase greatly.
That you will not encounter the result of what you
have not done.
That what you have done will not be wasted.
So, reflect that if you do not want suffering, then you
should renounce the cause of suffering, which is un-
virtuousness; and purify the previously accumulated defile-
ments by means of the .. four forces;"
9
and try to restrainl
0
future defilements from arising.
e) Suffering as the support for attraction to
virtue:
4
Reflect that if you desire happiness, which is the opposite
of suffering, you should try to practice its cause, which is
virtue. Consider thoroughly and at length how to act for the
increase of virtue.
0 Suffering as the support for training in com-
passion:
Reflect that like myself, other living beings also are
tortured by the same or greater suffering. Train yourself to
think how good it would be if they also were to free
themselves from all sufferings.
By this means, you will also understand the way of
practicing loving-kindness, which is the intention
11
to help
those who are bereft of happiness.
g) Taking Suffering as the support of the medi-
tation that others are dearer than oneself:
The fact that one is not released from suffering is the
result of cherishing oneself from beginningless time. Now
you should practice thinking that you will only cherish
others, which is the source of happiness and virtue.
It is very difficult to practice taking suffering as the Path
of Enlightenment when you actually come face to face with
sorrows. So it is important to become familiar in advance
with the trainings of virtue that are to be applied to
unfavorable circumstances. Also it is best for you to apply a
training of which you have clear experience.
It is not enough simply for suffering to become the
support of virtuous training: you have to realize it perfectly
and sincerely; and you should certainly obtain a strong and
stable continuity of joy, which is brought about by that
realization.
5
So any time that you practice what I have unfolded, you
should reflect that by the suffering you experience you are
getting a great support for the good and manifold joys of the
higher realms, and for liberation, difficult to obtain; and
that in the future it will come about in this way again. So
even if the suffering be severe, it is a supremely agreeable
thing . .. It is like La-Du
12
of molasses mixed with cardamom
and pepper."
Think about this again and again, and gain experience of
the peace of the mind. If this happens, the superabundance
of mental peace will make the suffering of the sense-
faculties as it were imperceptible. The criterion for illness
to be overcome by patience is that the mind is not able to be
harmed by suffering. This also gives you the clue to
overcoming enemies and evil spirits as well.
As mentioned above, reversing the thought of dislike for
suffering is the foundation of taking suffering as the Path of
Enlightenment. Because, while your mind is disturbed and
your courage or i n t e r e ~ t is extinguished by anxiety, you
will not be able to turn your sufferings into the Path.
By training in taking suffering as the actual Path you will
also improve your capacity for peace, as mentioned above,
because by actually experiencing the increase of virtue
through the training in suffering you will become more and
more cheerful.
It is said: .. If you gradually train yourself through small
sufferings, 'by easy gradual stages' as it is said, finally you
will be able to train yourself in great sufferings also. "
So you should act accordingly. For it will be difficult to
gain experience through things that are beyond the ca-
pacity of your own mind.
In periods of withdrawal from meditation, you should
pray to the Lama and the Three Jewels in order to turn
suffering into the Path.
When your mind has grown a little stronger, after
making offerings to the Three Jewels and the spirits, you
should request them to send unfavorable circumstances,
"In order that I may receive training in the practice of virtue."
Y au should always have the confidence of happiness and
cheerfulness.
When first training yourself, it is important to keep
entertainments
13
at a distance. ..In the midst of enter
tainments you may be influenced by many bad friends who say,
how can you bear suffering and contempt?"
From many worries caused by enemies. relatives. and
wealth your mind will be polluted and disturbed beyond
control, so that you will develop bad habits. In addition, the:
mind may be diverted by various incidenta\
14
circum
stances. In solitary places these distractions are not
present. There the mind will be very clear, so that it will be
easy to concentrate.
7
For this reason, when Chod
15
pract1t10ners do the
meditation of controlling sufferings, at first they will avoid
practicing the training with the harmful actions of men or
in places of distraction. Instead, they will mainly train with
the apparitions of gods and demons in solitary cemetaries
and other wild places.
Briefly, not only so that the mind may be unaffected by
bad circumstances and sufferings, but also in order to
extract peace from the vicissitudes themselves, you should
stop the arising of aversion to internal illness and outer
enemies, evil spirits, and unharmonious speech, and should
accustom yourself to the arising of just the feeling of liking.
For this you should cease to view dangerous circumstances
as defects, and should train yourself with every effort to
view them as valuable.
Because whether things are pleasing or not depends on
how they are perceived by the mind. For example, if a
person consistently perceives the faults in worldly enjoy-
ments, then if his retinue and wealth increase he will feel all
the more s i ~ k of them. Whereas if a person perceives
worldly enjoyments as beneficial, he will even aspire to
increase his prosperity.
By this kind of training the mind will become gentle and
open; and you will become easy to be with, courageous, and
free from obstacles to spiritual training. All bad circum-
stances will arise as noble and fortunate, and the mind will
always be satisfied by the bliss of peace.
~ ~
~ ~ - ~
8
To practice the Path of Enlightenment in this dark era
you must not be without the armour of this kind of training.
When you are not afflicted by the suffering of anxiety, not
only will other sufferings disappear, like weapons dropping
from the hands of soldiers, but even most of the negative
forces such as illnesses will automatically disappear.
The holy ones of the past used to say: "By not having an
unhappy mind and not being discontented about anything,
your mind will not be disturbed."
When your mind is not disturbed, your energy
16
will not
get disturbed, in which case other elements of the body also
will not be disturbed either. Because of this, your mind will
not be disturbed, and so "the wheel of happiness will
revolve."
.. As birds find it easy to injure horses and donkeys with sores
on their backs, evil spirits will easily get a chance to harm those
whose nature is fearful. But it will be difficult to harm those
whose nature is stable." We shall gain understanding
through sayings like these.
Learned people perceive that all happiness and suffering
depend upon the mind. So they search for happiness from
the mind itself. The causes of happiness are complete
within oneself, they are not dependent on externals. There
is nothing to be hurt by any afflictions from beings or non-
beings. The same (that is, not to be hurt by suffering) shall
be true at the time of dying (when circumstances of
sufferings and fears may arise). One shall always be free.
The Bodhisattva 's
17
"samadhi
18
of pervading all elements
by happiness" is also accomplished by this means.
9
Foolish people run after external objects, thinking
thereby to search for happiness. Whatever happiness great
or small they try to gain, they will face many failures, such
as non-attainments, imperfections, and misjudgements.
Because, as people say, .. Control is in the hands. oj others-
your hair is tangled in a tree. "
19
Enemies and thieves will
easily get the opportunity to do harm. One will be separated
from happiness by a little criticism, and one's state of mind
will be unreliable; as when a crow nurses a baby cuckoo,
however much it nurtures him, it will be impossible for the
cuckoo to become a baby crow. There is nothing that is not
tiresome for the gods (positive forces), miserable for evil
spirits, and suffering for oneself.
This "essence-advice" is the condensation of a hundred
different points in one. There are many other ways of
acceptance of the suffering of ascesis for practicing the
Path; instructions for turning idleness and harm into the
Path, as taught in Zhi-ched, etc. But here I am just writing
an easily understood outline of the acceptance of suffering
based on the teachings of Shantideva
20
and his learned
followers.
II. The Way of Suffering as the Path
by Means of Absolute Truth.
This is the drawing of the mind to supreme peace, and
dwelling there by the knowledge of "the refutation of the
arising of the four extremes,"
21
etc.: dwelling in that empty
nature in which there is no suffering or unfavorable
circumstances, in which even the names (of suffering, etc.)
cannot be found. Eve>l when you come out of that state (of
supreme peace), the way in which suffering arises in your
mind is not the same as before, when fear and apprehen
siveness arose. These you must overcome by observing
them as being hollow, merely words.
10
B. THE WAY OF TAKING HAPPINESS
ASTHEPATH
I. By Means of Relative Truth.
When happiness or objects that cause happiness come to
you, if you slip under their then pride, arrogance,
and laziness will increase; and these will obstruct your path
of enlightenment. It is difficult not to fall under their
control, as Pha Dam-pa22 says: "Men can bear great
suffering, but only a little happiness."
For this reason, consider by various methods that all
existent things are impermanent and full of suffering. Try
to develop strong revulsion from them and turn your mind
away from carelessness.
Again, reflect that the wealth and happiness which the
world affords are insignificant, and are connected with
many harmful things even though some of it has value.
The Buddha
23
says: "For a person whose freedom is
impaired by suffering, it is very difficult to attain Enlight-
enment, but it will be easy for a person to achieve
Enlightenment is he is happy."
You ought to think, "It is my great good fortune to have
practiced the Dharma
24
in happiness. Now, whatever the
circumstances, I am exchanging this happiness for Dharma."
Also, from the Dharma happiness will arise continuously.
Thus you should train Dharma and happiness to become
the support of one another. Otherwise, like boiling water in
a wooden pot,
25
in the end it will become what it was
before.
26
You should achieve the essential by applying
whatever happiness arises to the Dharma. This is the vision
of the Ratnavali.
27
Even if you are happy, if you cannot
recqgnize it, (the opportunity) will not become the instru-
ment of Dharma training and you will waste your life in the
pursuit of more happiness. So, as the antidote to hopes for
11
additional happiness, you should apply the appropriate
method and should possess the "ambrosia" of contentment
with whatever you have.
There are other ways to take happiness as the Path based
on the instructions of training in Bodichitta,
28
and by
remembering the kindness of the Three Jewels; but for the
time being this is sufficient.
As in accepting suffering as the Path, in the case of
happiness also, you should alternate the trainings of
purification and accumulation of merits in a solitary place.
II. By Means of Absolute Truth
You will understand "Happiness taken as the Path by
means of Absolute Truth" by understanding the training.
29
When you are suffering, if you cannot practice Dharma
by means of that sorrow; and when you are happy, if you
cannot practice Dharma because of attachment to hap-
piness, then it will be impossible for a chance to practice
Dharma to present itself. So if you practice Dharma, there
is nothing more essential than this training.
If you have this training, whatever kind of place you stay
in, whether in solitude or in a city; whatever sort offriends
you associate with, either good or bad; whatever comes,
riches or poverty, happiness or sorrow; whatever speech
you hear, either praise or disparagement, good or bad, you
will not be afraid that it will harm you. So this is called the
"the Lion-like Yoga."
Whatever you do, your mind will be happy and relaxed.
Your nature will be pure and, ultimately, accomplished.
Even if, physically, you are living in the impure land, your
mind will enjoy the splendor of unimaginable peace, like
the Bodhisattvas of the Pure Land. It is like the saying of the
Ka-dam Lamas:
30
"Happiness should be brought under
control, and suffering ended. If you are lonely, it will be the
companion in sorrow. If you are sick, it will nurse you."
For example, goldsmiths purify gold by melting it; and by
rinsing it in water again and again they make it flexible. It is
like that with the mind also: if by taking happiness as the
Path you develop ardent desire (for the practice of the
Dharma); and if, by taking suffering as the Path, you
cleanse the mind, then you shall easily attain the ex-
traordinary samadhi which makes one's mind and body
capable of accomplishing what one wishes.
I understand this alone to be important for the method of
perfecting moral discipline, the root of the virtues. Because
of non-attachment to happiness, the foundation of the
exceptional moral discipline of renunciation
31
is created,
and absence of fear of suffering will purify moral discipline.
As it is said, "Giving is the basis of moral discipline, and
patience is the cleanser of moral discipline."
By training this way now, when you reach the higher
paths, then it will come about as it is said:
"You shall realize that all phenomena
are like Maya,
32
And that your births are like
entering a garden. 33
It will be the same in time of
prosperity and of decline -
You will have no fear of defiled
emotions and suffering."
13
Here is an illustration from the life of the Buddha:
before attaining Enlightenment he renounced the universal
rulership as if it were straw and dwelt by the Nairanjana
river with no concern for the harshness of the austerities he
was practicing. This indicates that you should develop the
non-distinction of happiness and suffering in order to
realize Enlightenment.
After he attained Enlightenment the chiefs of human
beings and gods, up to the highest realms, placed the
Buddha's feet on the crowns of their heads and offered him
respect and service for all the needs of comfort. On the
other hand the Brahmin Bharadvaja abused him with a
hundred scoldings, a Brahmin's daughter slandered him
with accusations of sexual misconduct, and he ate rotten
horse fodder for three months in the country of King
Agnidatta, etc.; yet the Buddha remained without any
alterations of mind, excitement, or depression, just as
Mount Sumeru cannot be displaced by the wind. This
indicates that you should make no distinctions between
suffering and happiness in order to act for the benefit of
living beings.
It is appropriate for this doctrine to be taught by those
who are like the]o-Wo Ka-dam-pas, who have a history of
"not crying when there is suffering" and of having "great
revulsion from samsara when there is happiness." If a man
like me teaches it, I am afraid that my own tongue will have
contempt for me. But with the aim of myself achieving the
habit of "same taste" in different circumstances, I, the
poor old man Ten-pa'i Nyi-ma, have written this in the
forest of many birds.
14
FOOTNOTES
1. He is the embodiment of the compassion of the
Buddhas who manifests in the form of a Bodhisattva
(see footnote 17).
2. The law of the cause and effect of actions - that every
action one performs has a commensurate effect in this
and future lives.
3. Tib.: sNyigs-Ma, the age of war, disease, famine and
emotional struggles.
4. Tib.: bZe-Re.
5. If one's mind follows the sufferings, the sufferings will
disturb the peace of the normal state of mind. So when
suffering arises, without concentrating on it, keep the
mind in its own normal, relaxed state. Then the mind
will be free from the control of suffering. If the person
is a meditator of higher practices such as Tantra or
DZog-Pa ChenPo, he can relax his mind free from
suffering more effectively by his own particular meditative
methods.
6. In contrast to Enlightenment, samsara is the vicious
cycle of existences, the mundane world. It arises out of
ignorance, functions through the causes and effects of
emotional actions and is characterized by suffering.
7. Of the six realms of samsara constituting the cyclic
existence," three are designated happy realms",
namely the dwelling places of gods, demi-gods, a11d
human beings. The remaining three are the tower
realms," peopled by animals, hungry ghosts and
the beings in hell. The central or axial position in this
existential scheme is occupied by man, who alone
has access to the possibility of Enlightenment. He
alone can deal with suffering and happiness in a
spiritually creative way, which is the subject of this
instruction.
15
8. ( 1) Buddha, the enlightened guide who shows the Path
of enlightenment, (2) Dharma, the Path of enlighten-
ment with its attainments, and (3) Sangha, the community
who pursues the Path of Enlightenment.
9. The Forces are: (1) to rely on a blessed support, (2) to
generate sincere regret for evil deeds previously commit-
ted, (3) to pledge to refrain from committing evil
deeds again, and (4) to apply antidotes which are means
of purification through spiritual training.
10. Tib: bsDams-Pa, literally "to seal, close, refrain,
prevent or bind."
11. Tib: dMigs-Pa.
12. An I n d i a ~ sweetmeat, the taste of which is both sweet
and spicy. Although it is hot, if you are used to it, you
enjoy it.
13. Tib: 'aDu-'aDzi: worldly affairs.
14. Tib: gYeng-Ba: literally, "wandering, straying, or
drifting" circumstances.
15. Tib: gCod: the Tantric ritual and meditation for
overcoming the four demons: "The demons of the
body, death, pleasure and defiled emotions."
16. Tib: rLung: "inner energy and air."
17. An ardent Mahayana trainee who has taken the
Bodhicitta vow (see footnote 28). These include
beginners as well as highly enlightened ones; and
when they become fully enlightened they are known
as Buddhas.
18. It is the absorption in contemplative meditation.
There are many kinds and levels of samadhis, and
they bring tranquillity and peace to the mind.
19. Literally, "Hair is in the hands of a tree." If your hair
gets caught in trees you won't be free to move.
20. A celebrated Mahayana teacher, who wrote the
B odhicharyavatara.
21. The four extremes: ..,is; is not; both is and is not;
neither is nor is not."
16
22. Indian aint who founded in Tibet the Zhi-ched-pa
(Zhi-Byed-Pa) order. His principal student was the
Tibetan woman saint, Ma-chig Lab-dron {Ma-Chig
Lab-sGron) who propagated the Chod (gChod) teaching
in Tibet.
23. Fully Awakened One or Fully Enlightened One.
Buddha refers to the principle of enlightenment or to
any enlightened individual such as Shakyamuni, the
historical Buddha. Here it refers to the historical
Buddha.
24. The Buddhist teachings which consist of the scrip-
tures and the spiritual training with its different
levels of attainments.
25. When one feels happy he should remember to use
that happiness in order to develop his Dharma
practices. It will help to increase both his happiness
and his practice continuously. Otherwise the hap-
piness will be extinguished after a while and he will
return to his previous condition without any devel-
opment in his happiness or practice, "like boiling
water in a wooden pot."
26. If you boil water in a wooden pot, the fire will burn up
the container; similarly happiness will exhaust itself.
27. By Nagarjuna. Tibetan title: Rin-Chen Phreng-Ba.
28. The Awakened Mind. It is an aspiration to serve all
living beings without self-interest and to pursue the
training in the six perfections.
29. That is, acceptance of suffering as the Path.
30. Tib: bK'a-gDams -The school founded by the Indian
pandit Atisha in Tibet in the llth century.
31. Tib.: Rab-tu-chung (Rab-Tu-Byung). Renunciation of
household life.
32. This line is on the wisdom which is the ultimate aspect
of teachings.
33. This line is on compassion which is the skillful means
aspect of the teachings.
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.. If I give this, what shall/ {have left to} enjoy?"
Such selfish thinking is the way of demons.
,.If I enjoy this, what shall I (have left to) give?"
Such selfless thinking is a q u a ~ i t y of the gods.
- Shantideva
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Other Publications of Tulku Thondup
Written and Translated
Under the Auspices of Buddhayana:
The Assemblage of the Knowledge-holders, the Inner
Sadhana from The Long-chen Nying-thig Collection
(translation)
The Queen of Great Bliss, the Root Sadhana from
The Long-chen Nying-thig Collection (trans.).
Buddhist Civilization in Tibet.
Commentary of the Seven Line Prayer
The Dzogchen: Innermost Essence Preliminary Practice
by Jig-med Ling-pa (trans. with commentary).
The Blessing Treasure, A Liturgy of the Buddha
by Mi-pham (trans.).
The Excellent Path of Ominiscience
by Jig-med Lingpa (trans.).
The Short Preliminary Practice
of Long-chen Nying-thig (trans.).
Forthcoming Publications:
Dharma Treasure, the Discovered Esoteric Scriptures
of Buddhism in Tibet
by the third Dodrup Chen Rinpoche
(trans. with introduction).
Naturally Liberated Mind by Long-chen Rab-jam
(trans. with introduction).
The Tantric Tradition of the Nyingmapa,
The Origin of Buddhism in Tibet
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