Linda: Lecture, Tuesday Morning, April 28

Lecture, Tuesday morning, April 28

This lecture was on the first verses of the book The Way of the Boddhisattva by Shantideva. The fundamental virtues developed in the lecture were humility and its complementary virtue, gratitude, and the resultant virtue, Joy. (Things in parenthesis are often my thoughts.)

Text Discussed:

Homage to all buddhas and bodhisattvas

1. To those who go in bliss, the Dharma they have mastered, and to all their heirs,
To all who merit veneration, I bow down.
According to tradition, I shall now in brief describe
The entrance to the bodhisattva discipline.

2 What I have to say has all been said before,
And I am destitute of learning and of skill with words.
I therefore have no thought that this might be of benefit to others;
I wrote dit only to sustain my understanding.

3. My faith will thus be strengthened for a little while,
That I might grow accustomed to this virtuous way.
But others who now chance upon my words,
May profit also, equal to myself, in fortune.

4. So hard to find such ease and wealth
Whereby to render meaningful this human birth!
If now I fail to turn it to my profit,
How could such a chance be mine again?

Before the book begins, Shantideva explains why he has written the text. As with any practice, one must begin with certitude of humility (in the real sense of the word. In Christianity, one speaks of poverty. In Islam of faqr.). Shantideva explains that, in this text, he has not created any new ideas. All that he says in the chapters have been said by the Buddha, in the Mahayana sutras. He also states that he has not even said these words in a particularly special way. The text was not written to impress scholars who already easily understand the words of the Buddha. The purpose of writing the text was first of all to himself, “sustain my understanding, to strengthen my own commitment to the path and to think of the qualities I have not yet developed.” One must realize that Shantideva is considered to be a bodhisattva and certainly had realization and enlightenment. Nonetheless, these writings still strengthened his own commitment and helped him think of qualities within himself that he had not yet developed. The second reason for writing the text was so that others, like him, will proft and become equal to himself in good fortune. To write this text, Shantideva would have had to read, understand, assimilate, essentialize, and compile all the great Mahayana sutras (texts). And the idea that this may be good for others like him fills him with delight.


Enthusiastic Effort: engaging in virtue with delight!

Finally, the whole text is summarized in the hope that these words will go where the spirit of enlightenment has not yet arisen and to develop that spirit of enlightenment (chapters 1-3), to prevent the spirit of enlightenment from declining once it has arisen (chapters 4-6), to help the spirit of enlightenment to grown (chapters 7-9), and to dedicate any merit to all sentient beings (chapter 10). The last chapter, to offer all one’s merit to all sentient beings is the ultimate act of compassion and loving kindness. The lama then said to not worry – for if we practice this kind of loving kindness, we will not come away empty handed. So, this text is a manual for changing one’s self, for transcending one’s self, and there is no question that if one does this that you will be of benefit to others.

Chapter 1: Chapter of Benefit
Chapter 2: Chapter of Purification (acknowledging wrongdoing)
Chapter 3: How to hold onto the spirit of enlightenment (make a comittement)
Chapter 4: Conscientiousness – Don no allow one’s self to go in a negative direction
Chapter 5: Mental alertness, vigilance, constant awareness
Chapter 6: Patience. Anger is the biggest obstacle to the spirit of enlightenment
Chapter 7: Enthusiastic Effort – take delight in virtue
Chapter 8: Concentration – the ability to hold onto the spirit of enlightenment
Chapter 9: The cultiveation of wisdom and understanding, especially the understanding
of reality.
Chapter 10: Dedication


To follow these teachings, one must have a good mind and a good body.


Verse 4 summarized: If one does not turn the opportunity of this life to good profit, how will one ever get the chance again. The consequence of squandering the opportunity of this human state means, precisely, that you will not have it in the next life. We have a life of great freedom and fortune. It is a life that is very, very hard to come by. And because we have a life of great freedom and fortune, one can accomplish whatever one sets one’s mind to accomplish. However, if you do not use your mind for something constructive, you are wasting it. We have the best body and the best mind. There is no better possibility to develop the spirit of enlightenment than here and now.

There are so many situations where beings are not free to practice the spirit of enlightenment. There are 8 situations in which beings are not free to practice and 10 situations of good fortune (5 external; 5 internal). (Side note: Buddhists love numbers!) Think of your own situation. It is amazing, even amongst human beings, to have this possibility. One must have created some very good merit in the past to have even been able to have this opportunity. This opportunity is the result of something positive. However, our virtue is not very strong and this creates difficulties and sufferings. But, we have the freedom and the fortune to do something about it – and we may not be so fortunate again. One considers all the living beings, then all the human beings, then all the human beings with the freedom and fortune to be able to pursue the spirit of enlightenment, THEN the human beings who have an interest in pursuing it. One sees that this is a very, very special possibility and is not to be wasted. Besides the human realms, there are 8 states into which one could have been born that do not allow advancement in the spirit of enlightenment: hell beings, hungry spirits, animals, gods. With the hell beings, hungry spirits, and animals, it is RARE for there to be even a thought of virtue, and if that thought should arise, the situation is one of such overwhelming suffering that the being cannot follow through with it. As far as the gods, (gods is a term used quite differently in Hinduism and Buddhism – it is not God, but more of a positive state – a bit like angels, but much broader than that, too. Cosmology is very exact in these religions), this state was a result of deep meditative practices, but the mind is so absorbed that it does not actually progress or transform. The exalted state paralyzes you. Other gods are born in the desire realms – have earned this positive possibility through some merit in the past. They are, however, so absorbed with the pleasures of that realm that they, too, don’t develop the spirit of enlightenment.

As far as being born in the human state, there are 4 possibilities that would bar one from access to the spirit of enlightenment. 1. to be born in a time of darkness, when the doctrine and method for a given people had not yet been revealed. 2. to have a defect of the mind, which is a very unfortunate possibility. Even a defect of the body such as blindness or deafness is an obstacle. 3. To be born in a remote place where access to teaching is impossible. 4. to have an aversion to teaching and/or have other strong views. This is considered the worst possibility.

So, what do we have! We have the 5 external and 5 internal human possibilities!!!
External
1. We live in a time when a Revelation has been transmitted, in this case, Buddhism
2. There are teachings.
3. The teachings have not been corrupted.
4. We have role models (sages, lamas, teachers) to help us.
5. If we sincerely practice, we will have access to the support of others around us
Internal
6. We are human
7. We were born in a place where we have access to teachings
8. We have good faculties
9. We have committed no grievous crimes
10. We have an interest and we have faith.

And! If we do not have all 10 of these riches, we have the capacity to gain them, to make them complete.

Think of all this, and remember that it is an amazing and wonderful thing to be born in this human state!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!