SHANTIDEVA’S Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way Of Life An oral explanation of Chapter Four: Conscientiousness Kyabje Gelek Rimpoche Teachings 1998 – 1999 Ann Arbor, Michigan Jewel Heart Transcript ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This book is a moderately edited transcript of oral explanations given by Kyabje Gelek Rimpoche on Chapter Four of Shan- tideva’s Bodhisattvacharyavatara, A Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life. Rimpoche gave these teachings on Tuesday nights in Ann Arbor, Michigan, from April 1998 through April 1999. Rim- poche’s teachings on Shantideva’s text have continued to the present; he has now reached Chapter 7. Transcripts of Chapters Five through Ten will be issued in separate volumes as they are completed. The transcripts on Chapters One, Two and Three are already available. Throughout this transcript, Rimpoche uses the English translation by Stephen Batchelor, published by the Library of Tibetan Works and Archives. Since Rinpoche frequently makes reference to Tibetan words and phrasing, the Tibetan transla- tion of the Sanskrit original is included in Wylie transliteration. Rinpoche did not introduce a traditional extensive outline in giving this teaching. For those interested, an outline of this sort may be found in Geshe Kelsang Gyatso’s Meaningful to Be- hold. The headings and subheadings in this present volume have been added by the editor for ease of reference, and to help de- lineate changes of topic. A brief bibliograpy is included. For a glossary, see the previous volumes in this series. The transcription of these teachings from tapes was done by Hartmut Sagolla and Jayapushpa. It has been my great good fortune to be able to work on this volume. Errors in this transcript are solely due to my careless- ness or lack of knowledge. Please let me know about any you may find in order that we may improve future editions. May this work be of great benefit to all who read it or even hear about it! Jang chub sem chog rin po che May the precious bodhimind Ma kye pa nam kye gyur chig Not yet born arise and grow. Kye pa nyam pa may pa yang May that born have no decline, Gong nay gong du pel war shog But increase forever more. AnneWarren Cleveland, Ohio Oct. 26, 2002 Contents INTRODUCTION 1 1 CONSCIENTIOUSNESS 23 23 Verse 1 23 Questions and Answers 27 Using Our Minds 29 Verses 2 and 3 34 Verse 4 38 Verse 5 39 Questions and Answers 42 What is Buddhism all about? 46 Questions and Answers 58 Verse 6 62 Questions and answers 67 Verse 7 69 Questions and Answers 73 Using conscientiousness 79 Verse 8 84 Verse 9 90 Verse 10 92 Verse 11 94 Questions and Answers 98 Why conscientiousness is important 104 Verse 12 110 Verse 13 114 Verse 14 116 Verse 15 122 Verse 16 131 Questions and Answers 137 Verse 17 to 20 140 Verses 21 and 22 144 Questions and Answers 154 An important point about karma 158 Verses 23 to 25 168 Verses 26 to 28 174 Questions and answers 199 Verse 29 214 Verse 30, 31 and 32 216 Verse 33 218 Verse 34 223 Verse 35 228 How to make spiritual practice count 232 Questions and Answers 237 Verse 36 242 Verse 37 244 Verse 38 249 Questions and Answers 252 Verse 39 254 Verse 40 255 Verse 41 258 Verse 42 259 Verse 43 264 Verse 44 271 Verse 45 274 Verse 46 275 Verse 47 278 Verse 48 283 TIBETAN TEXT (transliterated) 289 289 GLOSSARY 297 297 ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY 321 321 About Gelek Rimpoche 323 323 About Jewel Heart 324 324 2 INTRODUCTION Tibetans have a saying: “When something is important, re- peat it to make sure people understand. For important Dharma, repeat it one hundred times!” So I am going to repeat a lot of things I have said before. Basically, we need to look at ourselves. I have said many times that I don't care who I am or who I was. A lot of peo- ple want to know who they are or were, but it is very difficult from the background of reincarnation. Every time you rein- carnate, you change your identity, so “Who am I?” becomes a rather silly question because you may be this, you may be that. Knowing it doesn't make much difference. Our future is in our hands It is more important for us to ask, “What do I need to do? What will happen to me? What will I be in the future?” Basically, whatever our past was, on the one hand it is all just history, but on the other hand it is guid- ance for us how to function at the present. How we function at present is shaping our future. We learn from the mistakes we have made, and we also learn what is right to do. By looking at the result, we know what is right to do. Whatever experience we have right now is the result of what we did before. According to Buddha, we encounter nothing good or bad that we did not create the causes for. Whatever we do now determines our future with- 1 GUIDE TO THE BODHISATTVA’S WAY OF LIFE in this life or next lives or whatever it may be. The present shapes the future. Think about what I am saying. This is an important point. Who makes my future? Nobody else except me. I am the only one. Good or bad, it is my own deed. Whatever I do, I am responsible. I can neither blame anybody else nor wash my hands. Nor is it somebody else's fault or achieve- ment, it is my own. Once you begin to realize this, you begin to get the fundamental basic idea about karma. Karma depends on conditions People talk a lot about karma and sometimes think that when it is karma, they can do nothing. That is not true. It is karma because you can do something. You know why? Karma is a dependent arising; it arises on the basis of conditions. When the conditions are right, no- body can do anything to prevent it, it materializes. When the conditions are not right, it cannot materialize because the conditions are not right. Because karma depends on condi- tions, there is room for everything. You can have the room to cleanse, purify, do, and undo. Even miracles can take place, because karma depends on conditions. That is the basic principle in life and that's exactly how you see it. When the conditions have ripened, nothing can be done. No Buddha can come round and divert the thing from happening. That is why Buddha said that enlightened beings cannot wash our negativities by water, nor they can remove our pains by hand, nor can they transfer their spiritual development to us. They can only share their experience, and if we put efforts in, that can make a differ- ence for us. We have to understand this as a basic foundation of individual karmic evolution. We are responsible for ourselves The fact that our lives are gov- erned by our karma is the base for us to build our spiritual foundation. We are not looking at some kind of miracle, some mystical, mysterious development, though that can happen sometimes somewhere. If you are looking for that, 2 Gelek Rimpoche go ahead and do so, but if you really find a solid one, do come and tell me! Miracles do happen, mystical things do happen, but that is not going to lead you anywhere unless the individual puts efforts in. That's why a lot of things can be acknowledged as spiritual practice, because when you look in that way, there are countless ways of functioning as long as there is the basic principle of taking responsibility for our deeds. Actually, whether we take responsibility for our deeds or not, they are going to come home to us. We are not going to escape; there is no way. Our karma is going to get us, good and bad both. The good ones are getting us because we are enjoying our life, and the bad ones equally getting us because we do have ups and downs, particularly emotional stuff. Whether you take responsibility or not, we are responsible for what we did. How can we help ourselves? Knowing that, what can we do now to make ourselves better and happier? This is a big spiritual question to me. We have a lot of choices: meditations, tsoh offerings, saying mantras, doing circumambulations, going on a pilgrimage, eating brown rice or drinking wheat grass juice. We can do these, or we can be vegetarians, which is a great thing because it contributes to decreasing the killing of ani- mals. The other day I took a cab in New York and the driver happened to be Indian. I speak Hindi and Urdu and Punjabi, and we conversed in all the three as he changed from one to the other. Then he looked at me and said, “What are you?” I told him I was from India, and he said no, I must be from Japan. I told him I was from Darjeeling side. He looked a bit confused and then he asked whether I am a Tibetan. I said yes, and he said that Tibetans cut the animals and eat them. That really made me think. When you go to the super- market and buy beef or pork or chicken you don't notice. When it is cooked in your meal you enjoy and don't think about it.