WORDS OF WISDOM AUTHOR: KHENPO TSULTRIM LODRO

Some people think that it is because killing and stealing are against religious beliefs that people refrain from doing so. The truth is that killing and stealing should be forsaken because they are against the natural law and hence inevitable punishment. For example, is it against the Buddhist doctrine to take poison? Although Buddhism forbids people to take poison, the real reason is poison itself which is inedible. If you insist on taking it, you will be poisoned and experience pain. This is the result of acting against the natural law. Certain kinds of poison can take effect immediately; others may take months or even years for the effect to set in. The same is true of karmic results. Although we cannot see the actual workings of cause and effect, the manifestation of effect follows the same principle. If people see that a person remains in good health after taking poison but before the effect setting in, they then assume that the person did not take poison after all. Does this make sense? In fact, one should not equate the absence of pain with non-poison; it is simply not time yet for the poison to take effect. Similarly, killing and stealing are like swallowing poison. They are bound to take effect, just a matter of time.

~ Depicted from THE RIGHT VIEW : Cause and Effect

Some non-Buddhists in India follow asceticism strictly, forsaking food, clothes, bath, etc. They believe liberation can be attained through physical austerity. Others suggest that practitioners must jump into five fires—fires in the four directions plus the sun—to attain liberation after the body has been burned down. In Hetuvidya,¹ the view of a non- Buddhist school was mentioned, which posited that both physical and mental phenomena are the causes of samsara. When one of them is destroyed, freedom from samsara may then be possible.

We must be clear that all these views are wrong.

Buddhism holds that the cause of our cyclic existence is nothing physical but karmic force. As long as karmic forces remain, physical body will continue to manifest no matter how many times it has perished. Once the habitual tendency accumulated in the alaya consciousness has reached a maturing point, physical body may manifest at any given time. It can also be said that the physical world, the universe and the body of sentient beings are the work of alaya consciousness, not unlike what the materialists suggest that mental phenomena are something manufactured by the brain. The fact is that it would be totally useless to torture the body to attain enlightenment so long as karmic forces remain in the alaya consciousness. That is why the Buddha asked the followers not to live in hardship deliberately because it will not bring anyone any closer to liberation, only suffering upon oneself. Naturally, it would be a different matter altogether if being poor was due to a lack of merit. The Buddha did not say that Buddhists cannot be poor, must be wealthy, or that the poor and those having a hard life cannot attain liberation. He only advised that there is no need to go to extremes to be poor.

~ Depicted from THE RIGHT VIEW: A Buddhist’s Mode of Life

To meditate regularly on the impurity of the body and impermanence can be very helpful. At the least these practices are effective in preventing desperate measures being taken in times of distress, as even Buddhists who are not trained in meditation practice may likely hurt themselves when in despair; burning incense and making offering to the deities alone won’t help very much in this kind of situation. In fact, there are some who know the importance of doing meditation practice but just cannot muster sufficient resolve to go ahead. It is a sign that their overall effort in Dharma practice is still somewhat lacking.

~ Depicted from "THE HANDBOOK FOR LIFE"S JOURNEY : On The Three Poisons - How to Handle Desire"

If one is proficient in the practice of aspiration and application bodhicitta when alive and undertakes to practice the same at the time of death, the practice will strengthen in power and guide one through the end of life.

How to conduct the practice at this time is also crucial. If one is able to sit up, adopt the seven-point posture of Vairocana; if not, lie on the right side of the body, hold the cheek with the right hand, then press the right nostril with the right little finger and breathe out through the left nostril. Meanwhile, cultivate loving-kindness and compassion, practice exchanging oneself for others by using the breathing method and so forth. Furthermore, one should know that all internal and external phenomena, either of samsara or nirvana, are manifestations of mind; and that the nature of mind has always been emptiness, devoid of any mental construct, since time immemorial. Once realized, rest the mind in this state of emptiness and wait for the breathing to stop. If breathing continues, repeat this practice once and again until it stops. This is the pith instruction for cultivating bodhicitta at the time of dying.

~ Depicted from THE HANDBOOK FOR LIFE'S JOURNEY : On Death And Rebirth-Key Points for Practicing Bodhicitta on Deathbed

The Best Time to Meditate

Before we retire in the evening, the stress we have accumulated over the day due to complex personal relationships and social activities is at its peak. At this time, if we can use these methods to alleviate our stress, we will be able to sleep soundly through the night.

Also, we can wake up an hour earlier in the morning and, after freshening up, meditate for an hour, half an hour, or even twenty minutes. By adjusting our mindset before going to work, the mind can stay calm throughout the day, which is certainly a plus for whatever we need to do that day.

Meditation practice is a commitment requiring time and effort. We should not be discouraged by a few unproductive sessions and give up. Like all things, we need to build the practice step by step. Without putting in the time, we cannot succeed. 

~ Depicted from ARE YOU NOT HAPPY : The Significance of Buddhist Philosophy Today

When people fall in love, they are basically in love with the other person’s appearance. It has always been like this since time immemorial that as long as the first impression is good and we like what we see, we won’t examine much further, just trust our eyes. But please think more deeply what appearance represents.

What the eyes can see is just the skin. It is also said in the Buddhist texts that everyone will be grossed out if the eyes can see directly what’s wrapped inside the skin. Nobody likes to see raw flesh, bones, blood, etc. and the skin is just a very thin layer that covers all of these. Is this so-called body something you really want to give your love to? Having observed this way, one really can find no love interest at all in the end.

~ Depicted from "THE HANDBOOK FOR LIFE"S JOURNEY : On The Three Poisons - How to Handle Desire"

The most significant impact on us in everyday life is adherence to continuous permanence, which leads to the production of all kinds of emotional negativities and to bad karma.

Momentary Impermanence is the basis of continuous impermanence. All composite phenomena are impermanent in that they are momentary: the moment they come into existence, they disintegrate. In other words, whatever is created is annihilated in the same instant.

From a macro perspective, all things that are created abide in the world for a time before they disintegrate – the process of arising and ceasing cannot be instantaneous. However, in examining phenomena on a microcosmic level, we discover all things arise and cease at the same time.

Consider the following: suppose we divide time into an infinitesimal moment so small it cannot be further divided, can we still separate this time into a moment of arising and a moment of ceasing? No, we cannot. If we could, this moment would then be divisible, not indivisible. If there is only arising but no cessation in this indivisible moment, things would arise indefinitely and abide forever; if there is only cessation but no arising, what is it that has ceased to exist? Is it physical matter, mental phenomena, or something entirely different? We know that nothing exists apart from physical matter and mental phenomena. Within this indivisible moment, arising and ceasing can only happen at the same time. All things in the world are destroyed the instant they are created; their arising and cessation exist at the same time. Such is momentary impermanence.

~ Depicted from THE FOUR SEALS OF DHARMA : All Composite Phenomena are Impermanent

To meditate regularly on the impurity of the body and impermanence can be very helpful. At the least these practices are effective in preventing desperate measures being taken in times of distress, as even Buddhists who are not trained in meditation practice may likely hurt themselves when in despair; burning incense and making offering to the deities alone won’t help very much in this kind of situation. In fact, there are some who know the importance of doing meditation practice but just cannot muster sufficient resolve to go ahead. It is a sign that their overall effort in Dharma practice is still somewhat lacking.

~ Depicted from "THE HANDBOOK FOR LIFE"S JOURNEY : On The Three Poisons - How to Handle Desire"

Attachment to a person can be handled the same way. For instance, when one is going through the painful situation of falling out of love, one can visualize the other person in the front and reflect calmly: Is he or she really as lovable as I imagined? Why do I like him or her so much? Is it his or her looks, talent, money, power, fame that I like or something else?

~ Depicted from "THE HANDBOOK FOR LIFE"S JOURNEY : On The Three Poisons - How to Handle Desire"