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THE THREE PRINCIPLES of the PATH to ENLIGHTENMENT by Je Tsong Khapa Kyabje Gelek Rinpoche

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THE THREE PRINCIPLES of the PATH to ENLIGHTENMENT by Je Tsong Khapa Kyabje Gelek Rinpoche THE THREE PRINCIPLES OF THE PATH TO ENLIGHTENMENT by Je Tsong Khapa Kyabje Gelek Rinpoche a commentary in ‘Tuesdaynight teachings’ 1987-1988 revised edition Jewel Heart Transcript ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This is the transcription of a series of Tuesdaynight talks, given in the United States in 1987-1988 by Gelek Rinpoche, the spiritual leader of Jewel-Heart. The course is based on a text of Je Tsongkhapa, The Three Principle Aspects of the Path to Highest Enlightenment. We used the text-translation of Robert Thurman, to be found in his book Life and teachings of Tsongkhapa, pg. 57-58, the text used at that time. The transcript is lightly edited. In transcribing I took the liberty of adding a few words where thought necessary and moderately adjusting the sentences; only just enough for the text to be well understood without Rinpoche's intonation and way of talking. Questions and answers on the talks are only tran- scribed as far as understood and thought relevant and for the sake of easy study put in the Appendices. The drawing on the cover we received from Alfred Woll. These teachings have proved to be very, very useful for the first step - the introductory year- of the Jewel Heart Training Programm. After this one moves into the Odyssey to Freedom and from there into the big Lam Rim Teachings. For the sake of the students as well as the facilitators, headings and divi- sions in the text, suggestions for home-practice, suggestions for reading, notes, glossary and index were added. This third edition has been revised on three points; 1. The English is revised by Anne Warren, USA. 2. The total text has been adapted to the purpose these teachings: an introduction into Buddhism, as the first step of the Jewel Heart Training Programm. Pieces of text less suitable to this purpose and more suitable elsewhere have been transferred to their proper places. E.g. a teaching piece on dharma, which is very concise and difficult, has been moved to the Lam Rim Teachings. Pieces on refuge, on concentration and on emptiness haven been transferred to the Odyssey to Freedom. A small piece of the Lamrim teachings in Malaysia, Muar may-june 1992, have been inserted. Within this Three Principles teachings some pieces have been shifted around in order to make it easier for group discussion. 3. The suggestions for reading at each chapter have been updated. They are meant to be a help to the students as well as to the facilitators. Any mistakes are to be blamed to the transcriber, who enjoyed very much transcribing those beautiful inspiring western-oriented talks. Nijmegen, 3rd, revised edition August 2001 Marianne Soeters © 1994 Gelek Rinpoche / Jewel Heart CONTENTS The root text 5 Part I: INTRODUCTION 1. My need for spiritual development 9 2. Spirituality and watching the mind 15 3. What are our real problems? 21 PART II THE THREE PRINCIPLES OF THE PATH BY JE TSONGKHAPA 4. Preliminary remarks on the root text 29 5. Introductory stanzas 37 FIRST PRINCIPLE: DETERMINATION TO BE FREE 6. Why you need a determination to be free 45 7. 'Leisure and opportunity are hard to get’: embracing our life 53 8. ‘And there is no time to life’: facing death realistically 61 9. Seeking refuge 69 10. Renunciation 73 11. Karma: actions and their consequences 87 12. Suffering in samsara 93 13. Our distorted view 97 14. Circling in samsara building the determination to be free 103 15. How to lead a spiritual life: the four noble truths 109 16. Delusions and the circle of existence;determination to be free 117 SECOND PRINCIPLE: ALTRUISM 17. Why develop the altruistic attitude 123 18. How to develop the altruistic attitude 139 4 The Three Principles THIRD PRINCIPLE: THE PERFECT VIEUW 19. The perfect view: an unbiased outlook on reality 161 20. APPENDICES 173 Outlines of the root text 174 Preparing for meditation: the practice of Ganden Lha Gyema 178 Overviewing meditation 188 Questions and answers and discussions 193 21. Glossary 211 22. Literature 217 23. Index 219 THE ROOT TEXT THE THREE PRINCIPLES OF THE PATH by Je Tsongkhapa (Lozang Dragpa) (1357-1419) Reverence to the Holy Gurus! 1 I will explain as best as I can The essential import of all the Victor’s Teachings, The path praised by all the holy Bodhisattvas. Best entrance for those fortunates who seek freedom. 2 Listen with clear minds, you lucky people, Who aspire the path that pleases Buddhas, Who work to give meaning to leisure and opportunity, Who are not addicted to the pleasures of cyclic life (samsara). 3 Lust for existence chains all corporeal beings. Addiction to the pleasures of the life-cycle Is only cured by transcendent renunciation. So seek transcendence first of all! 4 Leisure and opportunity are hard to get, And there is no time to life; keep thinking on this, And you will turn off your interest in this life! Contemplate the inexorability of evolutionary effects And the sufferings of life -over and over again- And you will turn off interest in future lives! 5 By constant meditation, your mind will not entertain A moment’s wish even for the successes of life, And you will aim for freedom day and night, Then you experience transcendent renunciation. 6 Transcendence without the spirit of enlightenment (bodhicitta) Cannot generate the supreme bliss Of unexcelled enlightenment; therefore, The Bodhisattva conceives the supreme spirit of enlightenment. 6 The Three Principles 7 Carried away on the currents of four mighty streams, Tightly bound by the near-inescapable chain of evolution, Trapped and imprisoned in the iron cage of self-concern, Totally wrapped in the darkness of misknowledge, 8 Born and born again and again in endless life-cycles, Uninterruptedly tormented by the three miseries, Such is the state of all beings, all just your mothers. From your natural feelings, conceive the highest spirit! 9 Even though you experience transcendent renunciation (niryana) And cultivate the spirit of enlightenment (bodhicitta), Without the wisdom from the realisation of emptiness (shunyata) You cannot cut off the root of the life-cycle So, you should strive to understand relativity (pratityasamutpada) 10 Who sees the inexorable causality of all things Both of cyclic life and liberation And destroys any sort of conviction of objectivity Thereby enters the path pleasing to Victors. 11 Appearance as inevitable relative, And emptiness as free of all assertions; As long as these are understood apart, The Victor’s intent is not yet known. 12 But when they are simultaneously without alternation, The mere sight of inevitable relativity Becomes sure knowledge rid of objective habit-patterns, And the investigation of authentic view is complete. 13 Further, while appearance eliminates absolutism, Emptiness eliminates nihilism, And you know emptiness manifest as cause and effect, Then you will not be deprived by extremist views. 14 When you realize the essentials Of the three principles of the path, Rely on solitude and powerful efforts, And swiftly achieve the eternal goal, my son! PART I: Introduction 1. My need for spiritual development 9 2. Spirituality and watching the mind 15 3. What are our real problems? 21 1. MY NEED FOR SPIRITUAL DEVELOPMENT Welcome to this series of talks. This is a meditation opportunity provided by Jewel Heart, open to friends who are interested in spiritual development. Why we base spiritual practice on a tradition As you all know, today many different people offer a number of spiritual paths in various different ways. What you are going to read here is based on the Buddhist tradition as it developed first in India, then in Tibet and is now developing in the West. However, it will not necessarily be presented here in a strictly traditional way. I would like to focus on people’s needs and teach accordingly. Still, what is taught here is based on traditional Buddhism as it developed via Tibet. The reason we need to base our practice on a tradition is that we want development; we want bene- fits. Developments and benefits are sure to come if we follow a path that has been taught by somebody who has him- or herself developed spiritually and obtained the awakened state by following certain prin- ciples and practices. Not just one, but a number of people, one after another, have done so by following this path. So, it is safer for us to follow this path, because it has been proven by experience. If we don’t have this sort of base, we won’t know what we are doing. Actually, in the West, the spiritual path has developed quite well now; it is developing every- where. However, most people do not know what they are doing. They just do it for the sake of doing it, they sit for the sake of sitting, they aim for the sake of aiming. Really, they don’t know exactly what they are doing, where they are going, or what they are working for. That is what I observe; you find different things here and there, but, in general, people do not know exactly what they are doing. Take those who emphasize sitting meditation. They sit because they are told to sit, but I do not know whether they really know where they are going, what their goal is, how they would like to pursue the goal and all this. I do not know. People have short-range goals sometimes, “Well, I’d like to have a little harmony and a little pleasure and so I’ll sit down and meditate.” I am not saying that is bad, do not misunderstand, but I don’t think it is a very good way of pursuing a spiritual path.
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