Excerpts from Heart Sutra teaching by Sangye Nyenpa Rinpoche
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Trying to summarize what was so excellently being said by Sangye Nyenpa Rinpoche this evening! I missed out a lot of good stuff already though... S.N. Rinpoche said this was the first time he's teaching such a deep and important teaching (Prajna-paramita) in English, so he was concerned that there could be misunderstanding... but I think he spoke so clearly and so well.
Well, tonight he focused on introducing to us what is Prajna-paramita. So tomorrow he'll start on Heart Sutra itself. Tomorrow will be 7.30pm, Thurs will be 2.30pm. At Karma Choying (Yeo's Building at Telok Blangah St 31) www.karmachoying.org/event.html
If you have the time, do come and attend the talk. It's really good.... (though my summary wouldn't be as good as what he actually said!)
***************** Excerpts from S.N. Rinpoche's talk*****************
Understanding the importance of LKC in Mahayana practice
In Mahayana practice, what is important is the combination of loving kindness & compassion (LKC) & Prajna-paramita.
We have to understand that Mahayana is "Maha" not because of Prajna-paramita, but because of LKC. Because of LKC, one naturally arises the understanding of emptiness. WIthout the base of LKC, one cannot arise Perfection of Wisdom.
That is why in the teaching of Bodhicitta, there is Relative and Absolute Bodhicitta. Relative Bodhicitta is LKC. Loving Kindness is the wish that all sentient beings obtain happiness & its causes. Compassion is that wish that all sentient beings abandon suffering & its causes.
Relative Bodhicitta & Absolute Bodhicitta are the two wings that will bring us to Enlightenment.
Ranking of Body, Speech & Mind
When we rank our three doors - Body, Speech & Mind, which one is most important? It is the Mind, because the Mind controls our Speech & Body.
Therefore, we must judge how strong are the defilements in our mind.
Reality is within us. But we do not see, because we have defilements, or obscurations, or afflictive emotions.
Therefore we need to do preliminary practices to purify them. -
The 3 Difficulties as taught by Shantideva
1st Difficulty: It is difficult to Identify Obscurations in our mind
Shantideva says that our obsecurations in mind are difficult to identify in the beginning.
We may read sutras, listen to teachings, study the texts 100 times etc.... But we still lack the true knowledge to identify these obscurations. The practice of identifying these obscurations is difficult.
These obscurations (e.g. desire, hatred, ignorance) are the source of all our problems - personal, family, country...
Therefore, for Bodhisattvas and Mahayana practitioners, our first attempt should be to try to apply diligent effort, to try to identify the obscurations, which are the sourlce of our problems.
This is actually Shantideva's key instructions/reminder for us: Careful. Notice. Alert. Be mindful. You can't really react to someone because it will only give you more problems. Be mindful with every circumstance. Then you will slowly then be able to get out of the cycle of difficulties.
So Shantideva's instruction is that for Bodhisattvas and Mahayan practitioners, our key/main practice should be to identify afflictive emotions.
2nd Difficulty: It is difficult to Continue our Remedy (Practice)
Apply. Bring it into your life. Experience it.
It is not enough to just identify the afflictions. We have to apply the remedy and experience it.
We may meditate for 10 minutes, then think wah so good, I meditated for 10 minutes today. We feel pleased that I had a good meditation today. Then we try to meditate for 20 minutes, 30 minutes, up to an hour. And we start to think..."arh, my leg pain, back pain". "My doctor said I should not meditate." "I'd better not meditate today because I have problem in family"... "Today's weather is too hot"... "I have headache, meditate tomorrow"...
You know how many problems there are in Samsara. Headache, hot weather...these things are not a problem. Headache can be removed by taking Panadol. But mental afflictions cannot be cured by Panadol! They cannot be cured by anything external.
Continuity is important. No excuse.
You have to choose between Temporary suffering of Body, Speech & Mind or Long-lasting suffering.
If you're hungry, you probably just feel uncomfortable for 5 hours. That is temporary suffering. If you're born in the hungry ghost realm, what excuse can you give?? You cannot say, today I want to go up and see my family for a while, then come back again.
You have to choose whether you want temporary or long-lasting suffering.
Then when you continue the remedy (practice), you are making your life meaningful.
The question then is, what practice should I do? what should I apply?
The answer would be, start from the Preliminary practices (common & uncommon). So that each day, we do not waste our time.
What do we mean by wasting our time?
You may think I'm busy working everyday so as to support my family, I'm doing a lot of things... so how can you say I'm wasting my time?
When we say not wasting our time, it means at least 1-2 hours a day, to continually do our practice for other sentient beigns.
In Tibet, the great Bodhisattvas and practitioners had very hard lives. They went through a lot of difficulty to receive teaching and left us very good teachings. But nowadays, the value of Dharma is on longer there. We just use hand phone to call and say Rinpoche, can you give me what I need now? I have no time to fly over there to listen to your teaching. Or you can email me, then I read the email when I have the time.
The Buddhas and Bodhisattvas have done much for us. The books are here, the Dharma texts are here, the methods are here. We just only enjoy them, but we should also repay their Loving-Kindness & Compassion to us.
To repay their LKC, we don't need to give them money. We just need to listen to them, don't waste what they've done for us. We should practice - so that we can be out of suffering. And this is fulfilling their wishes! -
3rd Difficulty: It is difficult to Uproot Completely Suffering & Its Causes
Shantideva said that, in the end, although you identify the cause of suffering; although you apply the remedy continually; but you still need to uproot completely the suffering and its cause.
The only way to completely uproot suffering and its causes is to apply the practice of Prajna-paramita.
Why is it that suffering and its causes can be uprooted, is because they do not truly exist. It is because suffering & its causes do not truly exist, therefore we can apply/develop the wisdom of Prajna-paramita.
When we talk about Perfect Wisdom (P.W.), we have to understand that P.W. is within our selves. It is not from outside. Due to defilements, P.W. is covered. Through listening, contemplation and meditation, we discover P.W. Then we realize that Suffering & its causes is just a name, a thought. And therefore Suffering & its causes are uprooted. No more suffering.
That is why in one of Milarepa's doha, he sang, "I am very happy, because there is no difference for me between happiness & suffering. It's just a matter thought. I can transform hapiness & suffering because both are just thoughts. It is through applying this that I gained liberation."
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With that, Sangye Nyenpa Rinpoche ended today's teaching!
With the introduction on Prajna-Paramita today, tomorrow 7.30pm and on Thursday 3.30pm, he will start teaching of Heart Sutra.
Those who are interested, you are welcome to attend! -
Wow!.. You really took down the notes!
His teaching is really great, and interesting too, so much so that I've unknowningly stayed throughout the whole session...
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YeahOriginally posted by coolbluewater:Wow!.. You really took down the notes!
His teaching is really great, and interesting too, so much so that I've unknowningly stayed throughout the whole session...
I actually put down the wrong timing on Thursday. The Heart Sutra teaching on Thurs, Vesak Day, starts at 2.30pm!
Hope people don't go at the wrong time!
Happy Vesak Day to everybody!! -
Hmm... why don't you edit your first post then..Originally posted by _wanderer_:Yeah
I actually put down the wrong timing on Thursday. The Heart Sutra teaching on Thurs, Vesak Day, starts at 2.30pm!
Hope people don't go at the wrong time!
Happy Vesak Day to everybody!! -
ThanksOriginally posted by An Eternal Now:Hmm... why don't you edit your first post then.. Just edited liao! -
Thats gdOriginally posted by _wanderer_:Thanks Just edited liao!