Teachings on Death and Bodhicitta - by various authors

From 'Death and Dying in the Tibetan Tradition',
edited by Glen Mullin

From the chapter called 
'Death and the Bodhisattva Trainings'
by Gyal-wa Tubten Gyat-tso, the Thirteenth Dalai Lama 

(notes selected and arranged for personal use)

Once one has developed a solid appreciation of the human potential, it is important to take up meditation upon impermanance and death.  

Death will definitely come one day to us all.  No matter how wonderful a body we may have, it does not pass beyond the reaches of death.

It is said in a Sutra, ',,,illness, old age and death destroy all achievements, just as mountains crumbling into one another destroy all foliage in its way.  It is not easy to escape by running, exerting physical force, bribery, magic, spiritual practice or medicine.'

When the time of death arrives one may take the most expensive medicines, or make elaborate ritual offerings to the most powerful protective divinity, yet death will not be turned away for long.

There is no way to extend our lifespan indefinitely, and our time is constantly passing.  The time that has already passed since our birth has mostly been dedicated to meaningless activity.  Of what remains, this is steadily going by year by year, month by month, day by day, moment by moment. 

Our life continually approaches its end, moment by moment becomeing ever more near.

During the first twenty years of one's life, thoughts of the spiritual path are rare, and during the last twenty years one's powers of memory and penetration are too weak to accomplish much.  

Of what remains of our life, half goes to sleeping, eating, collecting the requisites of life, and so forth.  As Geshe Che-kha-wa said, 'A person who lives until the age of 60 will, after subtracting the time taken by sleeping, eating, gathering the requisites and other such distracting activity, have only five years or so left for the practice of the spiritual path.  And much of this will be lost to impure practice.'

Our lifespan is something that is not fixed.  We have no set lifespan.

'Of the people seen in the morning, many are not seen alive at night.  And many people alive at night are no longer alive the next morning.

Boys and girls meet with death, and adolescents meet with death.  What youth can say that death will not come to them soon?  Some die in the womb, some die just after birth, some die as infants, and some in their later childhood.  Some die in old age, some in youth and some in the prime of life.
Death comes to all'

(Stop grasping this life as something permanant.)

We should consider: we cannot be sure that we will live to see old age.  Many people do not.  This is the nature of our situation.  Therefore we should deceide to practice the spiritual path now, without procrastination.

And it is not enough to simply determine to practice Dharma.
As the time when death will fall is unpredictable, we must determine to practice Dharma purely, without mixing our practice with worldly concerns. (the eight wordly concerns of: gain, loss, pleasure, pain, fame, obscurity, praise and criticism)

Death strikes suddenly, at unexpected times.  Do not say, 
'I will begin practice tomorrow.'  Engage in the holy Dharma immediately.

After death, nothing will continue but our stream of consciousness and the positive and negative karmic instincts that it carries, the karmic seeds that were developed during our lifetime.  

'Except for positive and negative karmic seeds, we enter the hereafter with nothing.  Nobody can accompany us.  Before that time, become a treasury of spiritual knowledege.'

The early Kadam masters always cultivated these preliminary meditations: the preciousness and rarity of human life; death and impermanance; the karmic laws of cause and effect; the shortcomings of unenlightened existance; and the nature of taking refuge and entering the spiritual path.

Some people have little regard for the preliminary trainings and regard the higher methods with great reverence.  However, although generally speaking gold is more precious than water, to a man nearly dead from thirst the water will be the more useful.  Only after he has had his fill of water and thus revived himself will gold be of interest to him.

We practitioners who are on the initial stages of development, who have been under the influence of the three psychic poisons for countless lifetimes, should first think about how to make firm the foundations of the path while the slender thread of our lifespan remains unbroken.  

Until the basis is laid, forget about grasping at the higher practices such as those of the tantric path, which are beyond our present abilities.  Once the foundations are secure the higher teachings of the Sutras and Tantras become meaningful.  

In the beginning it is more important to generate a confidant understanding of the preliminaries by recieving direct meditational instructions from a qualified master and then cultivating an inner experience.  We should make sincere efforts to fathom the more subtle levels of the basic trainings.  Only then can we enter the higher practices with the prescribed degree of competence and maturity.

In order to practice Dharma well we need to know the points and stages in training.  We must know what needs to be cultivated and what needs to be eliminated from within our psyche.  Then we have to take upon ourselves the responsibility of accomplishing the path.  Our progress depends exclusively upon our own efforts.  Others may guide us, but they cannot carry us to enlightenment.  We must personally understand the teachings and, by integrating them into practice, must accomplish their meaning within our continuum of being.  

At each level of training, we should always try to maintain the associated disciplines.  At the very least we should try to avoid the ten negative actions (killing, stealing, sexual misconduct; lying, harsh speech, divisive speech, meaningless talk; attachment, anger, and wrong views)

It is said that the practice of (moral) discipline for a single day surpasses the practice of generosity for a lifetime when the generosity is devoid of a sense of discipline.

A generous gesture is positive, useful and in fact a necessary virtue for anyone practicing the Bodhisattla path; but without moral discipline one merely uses one's acts for one's personal gain, rendering the activity spiritually meaningless.  The Bodhisattva practices six perfections- 
generosity, discipline, patience, energetic perseverence, meditative concentration and wisdom - but these are all interdependant and discipline is the basis for progress in the other five.

It does not matter which Buddhist path we follow, ethical discipline is required.  In the teachings on individual liberation, the principal method is the threefold application of discipline, meditative concentration and wisdom, or insight.  Without discipline, the first of the three, there will be no progress in the two higher trainings of meditation and wisdom.  

The same applies to the Mahayana, the essence of which is the practice of the six perfections.  Without a basis of self-discipline they exist only as words.

When our self-discipline is strong, all the forces of goodness are behind us.  As a result we will always be blessed with sufficient requisites of life, such as food, clothing and shelter.

To gain control over our stream of being and bring our rougher aspects under control, we require constant mindfulness of the events of our body, speech and mind.  Without mindfulness and self-observation there is no way to stay on the spiritual path.  Always be aware of your thoughts, words and actions, analyzing them for their content and source.

As our lives will be short, we should be like the swan, which if given milk mixed with water can, due to a special faculty of its beak, seperate the two and drink only the milk, spitting out the water.  When we know how to practice the spiritual path, each day provided us with the oppourtunity to extract the milk of goodness and joy and to spit out the ways of negative being that lead to frustration and misery.

(...'We should make sincere efforts to fathom the more subtle levels of the basic trainings.  Only then can we enter the higher practices with the prescribed degree of competence and maturity.')

(When we have become quite familiar with the precious human life, its suffering, impermanance and death, cause and effect, and ethics, or moral discipline, we can then proceed to the practices of love, compassion and altruism.)

One can then receive the wisdom teachings on the nature of the self, mind and phenomena.  The foundations however, must be made firm before the higher paths can be approached, otherwise, progress will be stilted or distorted.

(When, with a basis of love and compassion, one's spiritual practice is an expression of altruism, this is called the awakening mind.  (bodhimind, or bodhicitta)  Having this motivation is what distinguishes Mahayana practice.)

There are many ways to cultivate the bodhimind.  However, the basis of all is the cultivation of love and compassion, and the aspiration to highest enlightenment as the most effective means of benefitting the world.

As the principle Mahayana endeavour is the cultivation of the Bodhimind, in the beginning of each action we should think, 'May this work produce benefit and illumination for the sake of all living beings.'  This transforms all activities into Bodhisattva deeds.  During the action we should meditate upon the bodhimind spirit of enlightenment, and when the activity is complete, we should seal it with the dedication, 'May this action produce happiness and illumination for the uplifting of the world.'

We should try to dwell constantly in the Bodhisattva spirit of love, compassion and the wish for enlightenment as a supreme means to benefit the world.

Human life is very precious, and we who have attained it should turn our backs on the eight wordly concerns and instead make our primary concern the cultivation of spiritual goals.  If we have met with a spiritual master and have received his instructions, we should make every effort to practice well.

All living beings carry the Buddha-nature, the seeds of enlightenment, within their own mental stream.  

'The mind is the fountainhead from which wisdom is born.
Do not look for Buddha in any other place.'

The seed of perfect wisdom is always within us.  When fertilized by the forces of creative being and watered by the refreshing liquids of study, contemplation and meditation, the laws of causation and evolution encourage it to unfold and blossom.

Every moment of our life we are presented with a choice. On the one hand there is always the oppourtunity to waste time, or even worse, to engage in negative activity.  On the other hand is the constant oppourtunity to engage in spiritual practice.

Some people feel that in order to practice Dharma properly one must become a monk or a nun.  This is untrue.  What is necessary to practice Dharma is awareness of and control over the activities of our body, speech and mind.  Whether we have taken the robes or not does not matter; this is more a matter of choice in lifestyles.  What is important is to be aware of our stream of being and the forces that direct, focus and motivate us, and to use our life experiences as a means to cultivate appropriate inner qualities.

The Fifth Dalai Lama once wrote, 'It may appear that the people who devote themselves to working in society have no oppourtunity to practice Dharma.  This is in fact untrue.  When a person maintains mindfulness of practice, all works become spiritually significant, as though touched by an elixir able to turn iron into gold.'

From this quotation we can see that whether we are ordained or not, of high or low position in society, rich or poor, does not determine how well we are able to practice Dharma.
We can read numerous accounts of accomplished practitioners who were not ordained.  Some were kings, other ministers, others totally ordinary in social standing.  High and low alike, those who devote themselves to correct training accomplish spiritual progress.

At the time of death it does not matter whether one is a monk or lay person, rich or poor.  What really counts is the state of one's mind.  If at the time of one's death one has managed to generate a state of mind posessed of clarity, control, love, wisdom and so forth, our life has been well spent.

Amidst the suffering and confusion that predominates in life, we have managed, to find this auspicious life, capable of spiritual endeavour.

And not only have we been reborn as human beings, we have also met with spiritual teachings and thus have the oppourtunity to accomplish the paths to higher being, enlightenment and eternal happiness.  Yet this auspicious human form that we have found will not last for long.  

Although we bring forth scriptural quotations from the Sutras and Tantras taught by the Buddha, or set out a great display of reasoning, none the less our life will not last forever.  Before long our existance as part of humanity shall cease.  

At present we have the inner and outer conditions by which the path to enlightenment and everlasting happiness may be accomplished.  We should not let the oppourtunity slip by, thinking, 'I will practice tomorrow or the next day.'

Do not be deceived even for a moment by the laziness of self-indulgence, which becomes entranced by the alluring images of the eight worldly concerns and loses sight of the spiritual path in its attachment to the ephemeral, transient persuits which benefit this life alone.

Every minute of our lives is precious, and if we cultivate the habit of idly wasting time due to direct or indirect attachment to the eight worldly concerns, before long it becomes a pattern in our lives and robs us of all spiritual progress.  We become like the fool who directs his energy to foolish things, and as a result gets only the fool's achievements.

We have to be honest with ourselves concerning our practices.  At the time of death we will not be able to hide the nature of our spiritual development.  (We should try to do our best to live our lives meaningfully.)

One should strive with utter concentration to take the essence of this precious human incarnation by accomplishing the path to enlightenment and higher being.  Then when the time comes for us to die we will be able to do so with confidence and serenity instead of regret and confusion, and thus will be able to find our way to a conducive rebirth.  

We should make our prime concern the accomplishment of the spiritual path and, to this end, should endeavour to practice the Dharma as intensely and purely as possible. We should practice with energy and care, not wasting a moment, steadily as a river's flow.

I have spoken here on a large variety of Buddhist topics, though mainly on the subject of death awareness and how it applies to spiritual training.  I pray that it may cause some of you to engage in the Bodhisattva practices with full intensity, with constant awareness that death could come at any moment and rob you of the golden oppourtunities afforded by the precious and rare human incarnation.  Now that we hold the jewel of humanity in the palm of our hand we should make full use of it and achieve perfect enlightenment.  Procrastination leads to further procrastination, and in the end death strikes and leaves us empty-handed.  Alternatively, if we grab the oppourtunity while we have the chance, the essence of a meaningful life can become ours.

But who am I, you may ask, to talk of such serious matters amidst a world of great philosophers, thinkers and practitioners?  How can I express myself on these affairs?  It is true, I may not be anything especially great.  However, I do none the less carry upon my head dust from the feet of many enlightened gurus whom I served with intense devotion in order to receive their teachings; and even though I may not have accomplished much myself, they were all perfect Buddhas and I thought that it may be beneficial to pass on to you some of the essential instructions with which they entrusted me.  My motivation, therefore, is simply to show what of their teachings was most beneficial to my own practice, with the hopes that it may be of value to others.  If you feel that anything in it could be of benefit to you, please take it into your hearts and lives.

From 'Samatha Meditation', by Gen Lamrimpa, On Impermanance

It is stated in the sutras that whatever arises must inevitably be destroyed, that each phenomena has the quality of passing away.  Everything around us, our parents, our children, our friends, all material things to which we are attached- each of these is in a continual state of change and moving towards its own dissolution.

If we really become familiar with the inevitability of constant change and impermanance- when we at times are compelled to part from friends, parents, loved ones, from all the things to which we are attached- in each of these cases we can respond correctly, simply recognizing that all phenomena are of the nature of things from which one must be seperated.  With this insight, attachment does not arise, we are not disturbed, and we are not subject to the anxiety that would otherwise arise in the face of parting with such things.

This relates directly to Santideva's statement which can be paraphrased as: When one being is an utterly changing phenomena, not remaining for a moment but in a constant state of change, and another being is also in a constant state of change, how can there be attachment by one for the other?  When suffering arises from attachment we can consider: When I am totally impermanant and the other is totally impermanant, how can there be attachment by one for the other?

This is not an antidote for attachment alone.  It works equally well with anger: When I am impermanant and the other is impermanant, how can there be anger of one for the other?  It works in the same way for competitiveness, jealousy, arrogance or pride.  In each of these situations the same verse can be a very powerful aid for changing and relaxing the mind.  The situation that frustrates you, that dissapoints you, is the result of causes and conditions.
The causes and conditions will change, and the situation will pass.  This is how the mind finds calm and equanimity.

During meditation, in the face of excitement arising from attachment, or when you feel excited about something, bring out the thought: This situation that excites me is something arising in dependance upon causes and conditions.  It has the nature to pass away and I shall be seperated from it.

When the nature of suffering is investigated in detail, the truth of impermanance inevitably appears.  This, in turn,can lead to a realization of selflessness.

In a sense, the recognition of impermanance can be applied as an antidote to both excitement and laxity. (86, 87, 88)

From the Chapter 'Tibetan Traditions of Death Meditation', 
by Ge-she Nga-wang Dar-gye

To be born as a human being in this world system is held by Buddhists to be a great blessing.  The human life is very powerful, able to cultivate all perfections of the spirit.  As humans we have the chance to become a Buddha within our lifetime.  This is a most rare oppourtunity not known to lesser forms of life.  

Yet not many humans take advantage of the human situation. When Buddha was asked how many people use their lives meaningfully, he scratched the earth with his fingernail and, pointing to the dust that he had picked up under the nail, replied, 'This many as compared to the weight of the world.'

To dedicate ourlives soley to materialistic or worldly persuits is to reduce our human status to that of a rat, who also has no spiritual sense.  It would be like a beggar who finds a wish-fulfilling gem but, rather than use it, he just throws it away.  Our life can be useful both to ourselves and to others; to throw it away on worldly concerns is foolish.

One of the most important meditations for encouraging the mind to follow the spiritual path is meditation upon death.  Through always keeping the thought of death present in our mindstream, life becomes increasingly meaningful.  To understand life we must appreciate it in context to impermanance and death, which is its final nature.

Not everything dies at death; only the body and the works of this life.  The mindstream, together with the instincts cultivated during life, continue into the bar-do, the hereafter, and then into our future cycle of lives.

Thus it is extremely important to emphasize the cultivation of spiritual traits in our mindstream while we are alive, traits such as love, compassion, wisdom, patience, understanding and so forth.  To generate such qualities is the most meaningful thing we can do.  If we die with a mindstream refined with positive qualities such as these, we will have harvested life's most wonderful treasure.  

The result will be a positive rebirth conducive to progress on the spiritual path.

There are many people who study and practice Dharma in words, but who never bring the essence of practice into their hearts.  Their Dharma remains in their mouth.  This is because they have not spent enough time meditating upon death and impermanance.

One of the early Ka-dam-pa masters commented, 'If on waking up in the morning one does not meditate on death, the entire morning will be wasted.  If we don't meditate at noon, the afternoon will be wasted.  Similarly, if we don't meditate on death in the evening, the night will be lost to meaningless persuits.'

In this way most people waste their lives.

Even if we do practice some Dharma, if we do not meditate on death, practice remains impure and mixed with worldly ambitions, such as the eight worldly dharmas.

In order to practice Dharma well, one must transcend the eight worldly concerns: wishing to experience wealth, fame, praise and pleasure; and wishing to avoid poverty, notoriety, criticism and discomfort.  

Without a continual awareness of death, attachment to the things of this life persists.

It is certain that death will come.  If one has not lived in mindfulness of it, it will come as a suprise.  At that crucial moment one will realize that all of the materialistically oriented attitudes one had cultivated during one's lifetime are of no value whatsoever, and that one's wealth, friends and power are useless.  When death strikes, nothing but one's spiritual realization is of value.

The Ka-dam-pa Ge-she Kar-ma-pa once remarked that we should fear death now, while there is still time for us to act, and at the time of death we should be fearless.  The situation is reversed for ordinary beings.  When strong and healthy, they never give a thought to death, yet when death comes to them they clutch at their breasts in utter terror.

Most practitioners never begin to really practice.  Every day they procrastinate.  Then, lying on their death-beds, they pray for just a few more days of life, hoping to do the practices they so long ignored.  But then, lying between the jaws of death, the time for practice is only a memory.  
Like a piece of meat which we held in our hands but, not eating it, let it slip from our fingers; the meat fell to the floor and is now in the belly of a dog.  It can never be brought back again.  Although regret is pointless, regret arises.

If one properly practices death meditation, one's mind will yearn to seek a deeper understanding of life.

In addition, meditation on death is an extremely powerful opponent to the delusions of the mind.  The strongest opponent to delusion and afflicted emotion is meditation upon emptiness, the highest nature of phenomena.  Death awareness is second to this alone.  If one recollects death whenever attachment or anger arise, that delusion is instantly dispelled.

The yogis and maha-siddhas of ancient India ate their food out of bowls made from human skulls and blew on trumpets made from thighbones.  Similarly, monks often painted skulls on the door to their washrooms.  This was not done to scare people, but to maintain awareness of death.  Even nowadays many Buddhist temples hang a painting representing death, holding the entirety of cyclic existance in its mouth.  This image is usually placed near the main entrance of the temple, not as a decoration, but to instill thoughts of death and impermanance in the minds of all who may visit.

Some people who have taken up the practice of meditation on death for the first time have had such an intense reaction to it and have developed such a heavy sense of renunciation that they have lost their perspective and, unready, have jumped into long meditational retreats.  Meditation on death is very powerful.  But we must be careful in the beginning to be moderate and not to be overwhelmed by our response to it.

Death meditation is of paramount importance.  It was Buddha's first teaching when he taught the four noble truths at Deer Park, near Benares; and it was also his final teaching.  Buddha once said, 'Everything in the world is impermanant like autumn clouds.  The birth and death of living beings are like scenes in a theatrical play.  Human life is like flash of lightning, and like the waters of a mountain stream.'

If a dog rushes out to bite you, there is no value merely in experiencing fear or apprehension.  To be of value, this apprehension must be used to propel you into moving into action and avoiding being bitten.  Similarly, there is no point merely fearing death.  We should use the apprehension of death as a prodding rod to inspire us in the practice of Dharma.

We should try to practice Dharma, to practice it right away, and to practice it purely.  Dharma practice has many levels, of which the most basic is the cultivation of a good heart, the mind of love and compassion.  Even if we cannot find the strength or time to take up the higher meditational practices or philosophical studies, at least we should try to maintain a sympathetic attitude toward our fellow beings, an attitude which never harms but only helps others.  If we do this, negativity will slowly leave our mindstream.  
The delusions and afflicted emotions will fade away, and our life will steadily improve in quality.  Then, at the time of death, we will be able to maintain a sense of peace and serenity, and to have confidence in meeting the future with skill and competence.

A more ambitious Dharma practitioner tries to develop renunciation, the three higher trainings of (moral) discipline, meditative concentration and wisdom, and the Bodhisattva attitude of seeking enlightenment as a means of benefitting all sentient beings.

(Lama Zopa taught: 'If we generate compassion towards another person, it helps stop the arising of delusions such as attachment.  Think: this is a sentient being, this is his or her one time trying to do something good, trying to work for omniscient mind, for liberation, trying to practice Dharma.  

After all their suffering, this one time he is trying to do something good.  How wonderful this is, how good it is.  So many lifetimes from beginningless time, so much suffering, and now he is trying to work for release from samsara, this one time he is trying to practice correctly.  If I cannot help him practice Dharma and achieve omniscient mind at least I should not bring him down with me.

See the person as very pitiful and from this pure compassion arises and the delusive attachment becomes invisible.  Compassion covers the mind.  This is one very good way for it helps to generate bodhicitta.  Our wish is for the other person to practice Dharma, we are inspired to help him or her reach omniscient mind.  Also practice rejoicing,  'This one time he is trying to do something good- how wonderful it is.')

Ge-she Dar-gye:

The principle Sutra technique for the transferrance of consciousness at death is known as 'the application of the five powers'.  (These are also practiced during one's lifetime)  The five factors involved are: intention, the white seed, familiarity, destruction of negativity, and the power of prayer.

The power of intention: generate the firm intention not to let the mind become seperated from the altruistic Bodhisattva spirit, not during the death process, 
the bar-do experience nor during rebirth.  

The power of the white seed: try to rid the mind of all forms of physical attachment.  In order to effect this, give away all wealth, property and possessions to noble purposes, such as the poor and needy, the sick, educational institutes or hospitals, spiritual institutes, and so forth.

The power of destruction: try to destroy the stains of any negative karmas collected during your lifetime.  This is done by applying the four opponent forces: regret for any negativity created; resolve to avoid mistaken activity in the future; taking refuge in the Three Jewels and generating the bodhimind, the altruistic aspiration to highest enlightenment; and, lastly, purifying the root of the stains by means of meditation upon emptiness, recitation of the hundred-syllable Vajrayana mantra of Vajra-sattva, and 
so forth.

The power of familiarity: generate the bodhimind as intensely as possible, and pass away in the sphere of meditation upon it.  

The power of prayer: here, prayer refers to the aspiration of the actual Mahayanist, which is the wish to take up the difficulties of others oneself, that they may thus become free of them.  This is made in perspective to the Bodhisattva aim of achieving full enlightenment as a means to benefit the living beings.

One day when Ge-she Po-to-wa was giving a discourse he suddenly sat in meditation for a moment and uttered, 'May I always be a protector to those who are helpless and a guide to those afflicted by confusion.'  
Then he passed away.

The application of these five powers at the time of death guarantees a rebirth with conditions suitable for continued practice of the Mahayana path.

Lama Yeshe said, 'You should remember the great protective power of the three principle paths.  For example, if you have developed the actual mind of bodhicitta, it doesn't matter what you do at the time of death: you no longer have anything to worry about.  Merely pray, 'May I be reborn in whatever place is most beneficial for other sentient beings. Oh, buddhas and bodhisattvas, please take me to wherever I can be most useful.'

From 'Gates to Buddhist Practice', by Chagdud Rinpoche

'So', you might think, 'the universe continuously changes, and likewise relationships, yet 'I' am always the  same.' But what is 'I'?  Is it the body?

The physical process of change takes place week by week, month by month, entil eventually we realize that things are getting a little bit worse rather than a little better.  We are no longer growing up, we are aging.  Inexorably, we lose certain capacities: our eyesight fails, our hearing dims, our thinking processes become muddled.  This is impermanance taking its toll.

If we live a normal lifespan and die a natural death, we'll become more and more feeble, until one day we won't be able to get out of bed.  Perhaps we won't be able to feed ourselves, eliminate, or recognize those around us.  At a certain point, we'll die, our body an empty shell, our mind wandering in the after-death experience.  This body, which was so important for so long, will be burned or buried.  It might even be devoured by wild animals or birds.  At a certain point nothing will remain to remind anyone of our ever having been here.  We'll become nothing more than a memory.

We must instill in ourselves an ongoing, moment-by -moment awareness of impermanance.  For life is a race against death and the time of death unknown.  Contemplating the approach of death changes our priorities and helps us let go of our obsession with ordinary involvements.  If we always remain aware that each moment might be our last, we will intensify our practice in order not to waste or misuse our precious human oppourtunity.

Question: I think what you're saying is true, but I still find that the weight of my many years of not thinking this way is stronger than my belief in the teaching on impermanance.  How can I change that habit?

Response: Suppose we start with a very simple excercise.  Examine the importance you place on the food you eat, your clothes, your house, your friends, your conversations, the books you read.  You'll probably find that you hold them to be so crucial you work night and day to maintain them.

Now examine these things differently.  Look at each in turn and ask yourself whether it is permanant.  Ask yourself whether it is something you can ultimately depend on.  At the hour of your death and beyond, will it be reliable? And is it worth all the effort and concern that you devote to it now?  Thinking about impermanance and death helps to cut through worldly values and changes your priorities.

Through contemplation and application of the teachings in each moment of your life, you will see your habits change.  You won't change only by reading books.  You must search and probe, question and examine.  You may have already been exposed to all kinds of ideas and understood many things intellectually, but without contemplation that takes you deeper in your practice and allows you to reach some very fundamental conclusions, you won't be able to make the next step.

To discover what's really important to you, you could take a few minutes now to reflect on what's been said here and see how it relates to your own experience.  Only through contemplation will you find out whether spiritual practice has heart and meaning for you.

Advantages to meditating on death

What is important becomes very clear

Meditation on death encourages us to make our life meaningful.  If we think about our mortality this will lead to thinking about what really matters in life.  From this we can find purpose, and a clear sense of direction. Contemplating impermanance and death then helps us to have patience when we are doing something worthwhile.  This comes from 'taking the long view'.

It also brings a feeling for having things in proportion.

Meditation on death changes, or clarifies, one's priorities.  What is important becomes very big, and what is not important is very easy to let go of.  The small becomes very small, insignificant, 'not big enough to catch on'.  
It stops being an obstacle.  

These contemplations, of course, put an end to pettiness and the delusions that depend on a very limited view; delusions such as pride, anger, jealousy, and attachment.

What is important becomes clear.

It wakes a person up, and sobers the mind

Before we might have been half asleep most of the time, but these reflections naturally make one more attentive, more present, and more conscientious.  It helps us to avoid the negative actions that drag us down, and cause harm, and to practice positive actions.

There are many forms of intoxication, physical, mental, emotional, but with this meditation we get rid of their obscuring influence.  Everything becomes very crisp.  This clarifies and steadies the mind.

It stops 'fiction mind'

Once the initial fear and sadness subsides, a person becomes more willing to look at what is here without any illusions.  And fantasy, trivial thoughts, imaginings; all these stop on their own.  Some of that sadness remains and 'depresses' the mind, or brings the mind down a little bit.  This helps to calm a person down.

Helps to develop love, compassion, and generosity

What is important?  Giving to those we care for, and to everyone, for that matter.  There is not enough time, really, to give all we would like to, so it becomes easy to offer all we can, now that we do have the oppourtunity.  
This chance is seen as being even more precious because it won't last forever.  And the fact that we don't know how long even this will last brings us to the feeling that now is always the time to do the best we can.

People who do not have very much, those who are dissatisfied, or angry, confused about what is important, or those who are ill, these people especially deserve our attention, our concern, and compassion.  This brings with it a willingness to do all we can to help them, because what else is important, really?  This life is a brief oppourtunity, and yet many are struggling with just the basic issues of survival, or of mental and emotional balance.  For different reasons, many do not recognize how precious this life is.  Seeing the circumstances we are in together, then, it's natural to want to do all we can for them.

This gives one strength

We can feel more determination, more resolve, and dedication
to the ideals we have.  This helps a person to practice purely.

Liberates from meaningless entanglements, and helps one to enjoy life

This is like having pulled old pieces of metal and like having these ropes cut- one becomes lighter.  It helps to let go of meaningless things, such as self-importance, vanity or self-pity.  And without having so many hangups, about things like food, clothing, or reputation, or money, there is more room to enjoy the beauty of life, and to enjoy living.

We should keep reviewing thoughts about impermanance and death until they are with us always, and we can see that this is so.  This is like striking sparks onto tinder in order to start a fire; we keep doing this until the fire catches.

From 'Teachings at Tushita'; From the chapter called  'The Three Scopes', by Trijang Rinpoche.  These are his notes of teachings given by his root guru, 
Pabonkha Rinpoche.

The Kadampa Gompa Rinpoche Lama advised, 'Think in the long term, develop your mind, and relax.'

These three points are very important.  It means that we should look far ahead to omniscience, develop our minds by the paths of small and medium levels, and relax by meditating with a mind that is neither too up-tight nor too slack.  This advice also applies to our daily practice.  For instance, practicing renunciation with great zest for a day or two and them dropping it is a sign that we will not progress.

To get any benefit out of practicing Dharma you have to be constantly aware of it, otherwise you will become engrossed in keeping your life together, worrying about food and clothes, and not get around to doing anything to prepare for your future lives.  

Our obsession with food, clothes and image is exacerbated by our grasping at permanance.  If you do not think about impermanance, whatever time passes is that much of your life wasted.

The great Tibetan Lama Je Tsong Khapa said, 'Although everyone knows death comes in the end, you have this stupid mind which keeps on saying, 'But I won't die today...' right up to the moment of death!'

When your mind is fixed on thoughts of permanance, you come under the sway of procrastination, thinking, 'It will be alright if I practice Dharma next year, or the year after that...'  You will not even try to remember Dharma, and in that state of mind, distracted by thoughts of wanting this and that, your human life will pass away.

Even now, while we are trying to practice Dharma, we cannot do so purely because of having indulged our materialistic persuits in previous lives,  Thus we study and contemplate the teachings, but it is because we want to be great and famous scholars.  And we meditate and recite the scriptures, but it is because we want things to go smoothly in this life or because we want to become famous hermits and mahasiddhas.  Our aspirations are mixed with thoughts like these.

Right from the start, those who want to practice Dharma should ignore all thoughts of this life.  That does not mean you have to become a pauper.  Even beggars have to wander in cyclic existance because they have not given up on material things.  What you must give up is the eight worldly interests.  Any action mixed with these eight is not Dharma.

When the yogi Chag Trichog asked Atisha, 'Should I meditate? Should I teach?  Or should I meditate and teach alternately?' to each question Atisha replied, 'That will not help.'  Perplexed, the yogi said, 'If that is so, what should I do?'  Atisha told him, 'Give up materialism.'

You need not be preoccupied by all three- food, clothes and reputation.  Some people are more into food and some are more into clothes.  But the most difficult to abandon is wanting a good reputation.  There are many people who are after fame and name, even amongst scholars, teachers and meditators.

Lama Gyer Drowai Gonpo described it, 'You may be a scholar or a meditator in this life, but wanting to be known as a scholar, or even as a hermit in meditation with 'no admittance' on the door of your retreat house, wanting to be spoken well of, means you are a meditator of this life.   Then every offering you make to the Triple Gem is done only to be seen by others.'

(the same problem is described in the Gospels)

These are the disadvantages that come from not remembering death.  If you are not aware of it, you cannot keep on practicing because you will never be able to become seriously involved in Dharma.  The reason we do not practice virtue enthusiastically is because we do not think about death and impermanance.

To be aware of death is to remember the great purpose in life.

We should make sure we can die in peace, or at the very least, without regret.

From 'Teachings at Tushita'.  From the chapter 'Renunciation', by Serkong Rinpoche

The Sanskrit word Dharma, cho in Tibetan, means to hold, or to uphold.  What is upheld, or maintained?  The elimination of suffering and the attainment of happiness.  Dharma does this not only for ourselves, but for all beings.

Dharma practice entails two things: recognizing the root of samsaric suffering and eradicating this root.  What is the root of cyclic existance?  It is the grasping for a truly existant self and for the true existance of phenomena.
We need to develop a repulsion for this grasping which brings us all our sufferings.  We must develop an antidote to the grasping at true existance.  This antidote is the wisdom of selflessness or identitylessness.  It is this understanding of selflessness which will bring us liberation from suffering.

The sufferings we experience in cyclic existance do not occur without a cause.  They are caused by the delusions and the karma created by the delusions.  The root of all delusion and karma is the grasping for a self.  Why have we not yet developed the antidote in our mindstream?  Why don't we understand selflessness?  One reason is that we are not sufficiently aware of death and impermanance.

The only possible outcome of birth is death.  We are inevitably going to die.  There is no living being whose life did not end with death.  People try many methods to prevent death's occurance, but it is impossible.  No medicine can cure us of death.  

Just to think, 'I'm going to die', isn't really the correct way to contemplate death.  Of course, everyone is going to die, but merely thinking about this fact is not very powerful.  It is not the proper method.  In the same way, just thinking of the fact that one is going to disintegrate and degenerate , that one's body is going to decompose, is not enough.  What we have to think about is how to prevent our downfall.

Even though we sometimes plan to practice the Dharma, we usually plan to do so tomorrow, or the day after.  However, no-one can tell us when we will die.  If we had a guarantee that we definitely had one hundred years left to live, we would have free space in which to arrange our practice. But there is not the slightest certainty when we will die.  To put off our practice is very foolish.  Some humans die in the womb even before they are born, others die as small babies before they learn to walk.  It doesn't follow that you are going to live a long life.

Our bodies are very fragile.  If they were made of stone or iron perhaps they might give some feeling of stability.  But if we investigate we will see that the human body is very weak.  It is very easy for something to go wrong with it.  It is like a delicate wrist-watch made from countless tiny and fragile parts.  It is not something to be trusted.  

There are many circumstances which can cause our death: food which has become poisonous, the bite of a tiny insect or even the prick of a poisonous thorn.  Such small conditions can kill us.  The food and liquid that we use to extend our life can become the circumstances which end it.  There is no certainty at all as to when we will die, or what circumstances will cause our death.

Even if we feel certain that we will live for a hundred years, many years of that span have passed already and we haven't accomplished much.  We approach death like a man sleeping in a railway carriage, constantly getting closer and closer to the destination yet unaware of the process. There is little we can do to stop this process.  We just constantly come ever-closer to death.

No matter how much money, jewelery, houses or clothes we have accumulated during our life, it will make no difference whatsoever at the time of our death.  When we die we will have to go empty-handed.  Not even the tiniest material object can be taken with us.  The body itself must be left behind.  The body and mind seperate and the mindstream continues by itself.  Not only is is impossible to take a possession with us, we cannot even take our body.

What accompanies the consciousness after death?  If we have to leave our body, our friends and all our possessions, is there any helper or anything which accomanies our consciousness to future life?

There is something that follows the consciousness after death: the karmic imprints that we have accumulated during this lifetime.  If we have committed any negative karmic actions, a negative karmic debt will accompany the mindstream as it evolves into future rebirth.  The reverse is also true.  If we have performed virtuous actions and turned away from creating negativity, the seeds of such positive energy will travel on our mindstreams and produce better circumstances in our future lives.

When we really think about the situation we are in, we will resolve to try in every way to generate positive karma and eliminate its opposite.  We should try to cleanse ourselves of as much negativity as possible, not leaving even the smallest karmic debt to be repaid in our future lives.

We need to look at what type of reactions can happen within the law of cause and effect.  A seemingly small action can have a very large result.

Contemplating the various types of non-virtue that we have committed and their results is a very effective way of ensuring our welfare and happiness.  If we think of the suffering we ourselves will have to experience as a result of negativity and thus give birth to a very strong wish not to have to experience this type of misery, we have developed what is called 'renunciation'.

Acquainting ourselves with this type of thinking in itself is a form of meditation.  First we should develop mindfulness of our own suffering; then we should extend this mindfulness to all living beings.  Consider how all beings do not wish to have any suffering, yet are caught in a suffering predicament.  This type of thinking leads us to compassion.  If we do not develop the wish to be free from all our own suffering, how can we develop the wish for other beings to be free from theirs?

(This is expressed well by Shantideva: 'If those beings have never before even dreampt of such an attitude for their own sakes, how would it ever arise for the sake of others?')

We can put an end to all our own suffering, yet this is not ultimately beneficial.  We should extend this wish to all living beings, who also desire happiness.  We can train our mind and develop the wish for everyone to be completely parted from their sufferings.  This is a much wider and more beneficial way of thinking.

No matter what type of practice we do- the recitation of mantra or any kind of meditation- we should always retain the thought, 'May this benefit all living beings'. This will naturally bring benefit to ourselves as well. Our ordinary life situations can give us an appreciation of this.  For example, if someone is very selfish and always works for his own gain, he will not really be liked by others.  On the other hand, someone who is kind and always thinks of helping others is usually liked by everybody.

The thought to be developed in our mindstream is,  'May everybody be happy and may nobody suffer'. We must try to incorporate this into our own thinking through recollecting it again and again.  This can be extremely beneficial.  Beings who in the past developed this type of thinking are now great buddhas, bodhisattvas or saints; all the truly great men of the world based themselves on it.  How wonderful if we could try to generate it ourselves!

      Foolish art thou who, in the midst of life,
      ignores the coming of death; 
      For all thou doest and countest as great
      is worth nothing in that final moment;
      Life's oppourtunity hast thou lost.
      Take that which death offers thee, now it is nigh,
      And leave not having lived in vain; 
      Set thy mind on the holy law,
      Go hence with the mind so fixed.

                      The Tibetan Book of the Dead

You young men and girls assembled here, do not think that death will saunter to you; death comes like lightning.

                                Jetsun Milarepa

    The human body, at peace with itself, 
    Is more precious than the rarest gem.
    Cherish your body, it is yours this one time only.
    The human form is won with difficulty, 
    It is easy to lose.
    All worldly things are brief, like lightning in the sky;
    This life you must know as the tiny splash of a raindrop      
    A thing of beauty that disappears 
    even as it comes into being.
    Therefore set your goal, 
    make use of every day and night to achieve it.
    
                                Je Tsong Khapa

Why do we human beings suffer and why are we confused?  Because our minds grasp at happiness and pleasure.  
Failure to understand the transitory quality of temporal pleasures causes us to cling to them.

Dharma means understanding reality.  Meditation and prayer are not Dharma; they are merely tools for reaching this inner wisdom.

Buddhist refuge is a process of turning inward that begins with our discovery of our own unlimited potential as human beings.
 
                             Lama Thubten Yeshe

      
      All worldly pleasures should be abandoned, 
      But if you are unable to do so, 
      Then cling to the holy.
      Thus will be found the cure.

      All desires should be abandoned, 
      But if you are unable to do so, 
      Let your desire be for salvation.
      Thus will be found the cure.

      Desire, hatred, ignorance and
      the actions they generate are non-virtues;
      Non-desire, non-hatred, non-ignorance and 
      the actions they generate are virtues.
   
      From non-virtues come all sufferings
      And likewise all bad migrations
      From virtues all happy migrations
      And all the pleasures of all births.

                             Nagarjuna

Do not think of the shortcomings of others, but instead examine your own faults and expel them as if they were poison.  Do not think about your own qualities, but dwell on the virtuous qualities of others and venerate them as if you were their servant.

                              Shantideva

Contemplate how 'I' am just a single being, but others are infinite.  The question is, which is more important- self or others?  All others are like me; but I am only a single being while others are limitless.  From this viewpoint 'the others' are infinitely more important than one single 'I'.  So rather than using othes to benefit ourselves, we should use ourselves to benefit others.  
This is the democratic way, for the majority is far more important than the single person.

Practicing Dharma means having a noble, broad and generous mind- a mind that has been tamed, brought completely under control.  The practice of Dharma is that which enables us to be true, faithful, honest and humble, to help and respect others, to forget oneself for others.  That is Dharma.

                          His Holiness the Dalai Lama

From 'The Life of Milarepa'

'Having begun in this manner with the Song of the Sevenfold Devotions, I, your humble follower, wish to express my feeble understanding, made possible by the perfect action and power of spiritual influence arising from the boundless compassion of the lama (who is inseperable from the Buddha Vajradhara) together with the mother and son, and the deep gratitude I owe them.

'Please listen to me out of the unchanging state of your mind.  I have understood that this material body, made of flesh and blood along with mental consciousness, is gathered together by the twelve links of cause and effect- one of which is volition- originating from ignorance.  This body is the blessed vessel for those fortunate beings who wish for freedom, but it also leads sinners into the lower realms.

'I understand that in this body lies the vital choice between enormous profit and loss, relating to eternal happiness or misery on the border between good and evil. Relying upon your power of compassion as the venerable guide of sentient beings, I am hopefully endeavoring to achieve liberation from the ocean of existential bondage, from which escape is very difficult.

'Having first sought refuge in the Three Jewels and having scupulously observed the precepts, I understand that the source of all happiness is the lama, and therefore the first principle is to fulfill all his instructions and maintain, unblemished, a spiritual bond with him.

'Furthermore, a fortunate human existance is a state difficult to acquire.  By rousing the mind with great intensity regarding impermanance and death, the consequences of action, and the pain of samsara, one develops a longing for liberation and must persue it through the observance of moral precepts.  Such is the foundation upon which one must build.

'From this point, progressively ascending the Path, it is necessary to observe one's vows as carefully as one guards one's eyes.  Even in failure, remedies must be employed.

By not seeking one's own liberation on the path of the Lesser Vehicle, one develops Bodhicitta (enlightened mind), which seeks to work toward the liberation of all sentient beings.  It is my understanding that the development of an enlightened attitude leads one to rededicate, for the good of all, the fruit of one's action, born of love and compassion.

'In order to embrace the path of the Greater Vehicle, one abandons the path of the Lesser Vehicle.  Based upon the foundation of perfect seeing, he enters the supreme path of Vajrayana.

'In order to achieve perfect seeing one needs a perfect master who knows how to transmit fully and unerringly the four aspects of initiation and skillfully explain the hidden meaning with compassion.  Initiation awakens one to ultimate reality and from then onwards one meditates through all the various stages of the Path.  Having endeavored to discover the non-selfhood of personality, which is common to all exoteric traditions, one examines the self by means of logic, the teaching, and analogies and, not finding the self, one understands selflessness.  One must then bring the mind into a quiet state.  When the mind is calmed by means of such reasoning, discriminating thought ceases and mind reaches a non-conceptual state.  If one continues in this state for days, months, and years, so oblivious to the passing of time that one needs to be reminded of it by others, one has achieved tranquillity of mind.

'This state of tranquillity is maintained by means of continued attention and awareness, not allowing it to become distracted or to sink into passivity.  Intensified by the force of awareness, one experiences pure consciuosness without differentiation- naked, vivid, and crisp.  These are the characteristics of tranquillity of mind.

'Pure consciousness may be regarded as a flash of perfect insight; individuals do not actually experience it until they reach the first stage of Enlightenment.  At this stage, one meditates, visualizing the forms of the yidam.  In doing so one may experience visions and forms, but these are devoid of substance and are merely products of meditation.

'To sum up: First, a vivid state of mental tranquillity and a sustaining energy together with a discerning intellect are indispensible requirements for attaining perfect insight.  They are like the first steps of a staircase.

'Second, all meditation, with or without form, must begin from deeply aroused compassion and love.  Whatever one does must emerge from a loving attitude for the benefit of others.  

'Third, through perfect seeing, all discrimination is dissolved into a non-conceptual state.

'Finally, with an awareness of the void, one sincerely dedicates the results for the benefits of others.  I have understood this to be the best of all ways.

'Just as a starving man cannot be fed by the knowledge of food but needs to eat, so too one needs to experience in meditation the meaning of emptiness.  I understand more particularly that in order to arrive at perfect insight, 
it is necessary to practice meritorious deeds and self-purifacation, without respite, in the interals between meditations.

'In short, I saw that this meditator's understanding of the emptiness of things, of their unity, of their indefinability, and of their non-differentiation corresponds to the four aspects of initiation according to Vajrayana.

'In order to make this knowledge manifest in myself, I subdued by body, deprived it of food, harnessed my mind, and achieved equanimity in the face of all circumstances including the danger of death.

'I have not come before the lama and the mistress, my father and mother of unsurpassable goodness, to repay them with services and riches.  But I offer the best I shall be capable of attaining in my practice of meditation as long as I shall live, and I ask them to accept the ultimate understanding that I shall attain in the palace of Ogmin.'

In 'Joyful Path of Good Fortune' Geshe Kelsang Gyatso taught about the characteristics of karma:

That the results of actions are definite (that is, that positive actions have or contribute to a positive or beneficial effect, and that negative actions have or contibute to a negative effect)

The results of actions increase

An action is never wasted

Factors in the strength of actions:

The nature of the action
The intention
The method
The object
How often the action is done
and, the application of non- application of an antidote
to negative actions

Factors in the power of an action

The person who is the object of the action
The vows taken
The object that is used in the action
The motivation

He said that to rejoice in our positive action increases the strength of that action.

Lama Yeshe taught that the nuclear energy of an action is the motivation.

When we have become quite familiar with the precious human life, its suffering, impermanance and death, cause and effect, and ethics, or moral discipline, we can then proceed to the practices of love, compassion and wisdom.

When, with a basis of love and compassion, one's spiritual practice is an expression of altruism, this is called the awakening mind.  (bodhimind, or bodhicitta)  Having this motivation is what distinguishes Mahayana practice.

Notes on the subject:

Kalu Rinpoche taught: 'In order for this quality of bodhicitta, this enlightening attitude, to develop within the practitioner, a certain understanding is necessary.

We should have an understanding of ourselves and all other sentient beings as unenlightened creatures in the cycle of conditioned rebirth.  In short, we should have at least some understanding of the state of samsara, unenlightened existance, and of the potential for nirvana, the enlightened state of being.  Then true bodhicitta can begin to develop in our mind.'

The awakening mind begins with the motivation to help others by developing kindness and understanding, and is accomplished through the practice of the Six Perfections: generosity, moral discipline, patience, effort, meditative concentration and wisdom.

If you can do something for yourself, that is good. If you can do something for you and me both, that's even better.  And if you can do something for you and me and our family too, even better still.  If it can be something good for you, me, our family, friends and acquaintences also, then add strangers and those we are in some temporary adversarial relationship to, that is best.

Like meditation on impermanance and death, bodhicitta changes what we think of as important.  It puts an end to pettiness, laziness, procrastination, and distraction, and gives strength.  This makes life meaningful, and gives supreme happiness.

When we take into consideration even one other person, this helps to keep the feeling of being connected, even when living in a way that may be very different.  We can have the feeling of our life being very much connected.

This way of life is based on sympathy and seeing what is needed.  It is an expression of the love and compassion that we have.

We practice for the ones we feel for, that they can have true peace of mind, happiness, and health.

So then, how important is feeling?  Being able to feel is very important, and we should do what we have to to take care of ourselves so that we are able, so that we are capable of feeling, of sympathy, because this is the basis for so much.  This is what make our practice, living in relation, real, and not just a concept.

Unconditioned (meaning not fabricated, not contrived) bodhicitta is great wakefulness, real responsiveness, with no illusions.

Seeing our situation, bodhicitta is an attitude of devoting one's self completely to the enlightenment of all others through one's life and practice.  Wishing for their pure temporary and ultimate happiness, and for them to be free from all suffering, it is seeing this is what they need, this will help.

Bodhimind is wishing all beings to be free of all sufferings, to have every happiness, and for this to last forever.

'To awaken for the benefit of all' is not something that has to be conjured, it is already there within us.

Clearly knowing what is going on in the present moment, having sensitivity to where we are, who we are, and therefore what is important, this kind of inclusive comprehension I call intelligence.

This is where the natural intuitive knowing and the logical rational awareness are one.

We all do the best we can, given what we know.We can notice sometimes how our movement can have an effect on others, and if we are with more than one how our action can effect both.  Where there is the sense of being part of the whole, of being with all others, thought about our action changes.

Our activity can be a kind of sensitivity and keeping balance that says, 'If we move this way, this will be the favorable result', or,'If we don't move this way, this will be the favorable result'.

Awakening mind is when you are where you should be, by nature, and doing what you should be doing.  This unifies all paths and practices.

To call this 'One heart' has awareness, intelligence, and feeling.  When we say 'one mind', there is awareness and intelligence, but the way 'mind' is interpreted these days, the connotations it has many times has the element of feeling missing (affection, appreciation, concern).
One heart has all this, unity, and works.

Spiritual practice if by nature for all life, and the awakening mind is recognizing this and aligning one's self with this fundamental motivation.  It is thought and feeling that is extensive, long term, profound, and natural 
Great Love, Great Compassion.

The Thirteenth Dalai Lama, Thubten Gyatso, taught on the subject of the awakening mind as follows:

There are many ways to cultivate the bodhimind.  However, the basis of all is the cultivation of love and compassion, and the aspiration to highest enlightenment as the most effective means of benefitting the world.

As the principle Mahayana endeavour is the cultivation of the Bodhimind, in the beginning of each action we should think, 'May this work produce benefit and illumination for the sake of all living beings.'  This transforms all activities into Bodhisattva deeds.  During the action we should meditate upon the bodhimind spirit of enlightenment, and when the activity is complete, we should seal it with the dedication, 'May this action produce happiness and illumination for the uplifting of the world.'

We should try to dwell constantly in the Bodhisattva spirit of love, compassion and the wish for enlightenment as a supreme means to benefit the world.

The practices to be accomplished are collectively known as the 'Dharma'.  It is said that the Buddha, seeing that the living beings were afflicted by 84,000 delusions and emotional disturbances, expounded 84,000 aspects of Dharma as a remedy to these.

(One way to consider the Doctrines of Buddha is under the headings of individual liberation teachings, and the teachings on universal enlightenment, or enlightenment that is for the benefit of all.  The latter are often called the Mahayana teachings.)

The Mahayana Vehicles take as their main gateway the altruistic bodhimind, the aspiration to gain enlightenment as the best means of benefitting the world.  For all Mahayanists, the bodhimind is the key point in practice.

When Jowo Atisha was asked about his teacher Ser-ling-pa, he touched his hands together in a gesture of reverence, tears came to his eyes and he replied, 'Whatever Mahayana spirit I have attained is due only to the kindness of that great guru.  Even when I would see him ten times in a day he would each time ask me, 'Is the spirit of enlightenment, the bodhimind blended in with your thoughts?'  His emphasis upon the cultivation of the bodhimind was always first and foremost.

Thus, although the Buddha taught 84,000 practices, we as Mahayanists should always make our foremost concern the cultivation of the bodhimind, the Bodhisattva spirit of enlightenment, the mind of equality of view, love, compassion and empathy, that seeks full omniscience for the benefit of all living beings.  Progress in all other Mahayana practices depends upon progress in the cultivation of the bodhimind.

Shantideva said:

  Just as the alchemist's stone turns base metals into gold,
  when this impure body is touched by the awakening mind, 
  it becomes the body of an Awakened Being.
  Therefore firmly hold onto this awakening mind.

Concerning the nature of the bodhimind, the text 
Seven Points for Training the Mind, which embodies the oral tradition given by Ser-ling-pa to Atisha, states,

      The bodhimind is like a diamond sceptre, 
      The sun and a medicinal tree.

In spiritual training, the bodhimind is like a diamond.  Just as a diamond can eradicate poverty and fulfill all needs, the bodhimind eradicates spiritual poverty and fulfills all spiritual needs.  Just as a fragment of a diamond outshines all other ornaments, even a partial development of the bodhimind surpasses more complete achievements in lesser practices.  A tiny piece of diamond is far more precious than a large piece of a lesser gem.

The bodhimind is like the sun in dispersing darkness.  When the sun rises, how can darkness remain?  A sun rising over an entire continent illuminates the entire land.  In the same way, the generation of the Bodhisattva spirit within ourselves is like the rising sun of the mind.
The bodhimind is also likened to a medicinal tree.  The tree as a whole is an effective antidote to all 404 types of diseases, and also its individual components such as leaves and berries have their own individual healing abilities, their unique powers to cure specific diseases.  Similarly, if we develop the bodhimind within ourselves we become cured of every spiritual affliction, thus attaining to full enlightenment.  Even if we only develop a few small branches of the Bodhisattva spirit, these will have their own spiritually reviving effects.

The bodhimind has the inherent ability to remedy the inner darkness of emotional afflictions and delusions, such as falsely grasping at the nature of the self and phenomena.As it has the power to cure the mind of the roots of cyclic suffering- the product of delusion and compulsive karmic patterns- it is indeed a supreme medicine, having both conventional means for curing conventional afflictions and ultimate means for dealing with deeper spiritual problems.

This is what is meant by the expression 'method and wisdom combined'.  There is the training in the conventional bodhimind practices of patience, love, compassion, and so forth; and also the training in the ultimate bodhimind, which is the wisdom of emptiness that realizes the most profound and essential nature of the mind, body and world around us.  

When we accomplish the ultimate bodhimind, we attain everlasting emancipation from the imperfect world of suffering and confusion.  We then become an Arya, a High One, a transcended being who is free from samsara's claws.  When this is achieved on the basis of a training in the conventional bodhimind, we go on to actualize fully omniscient knowledege and the complete powers of a Buddha's body, speech and mind.  This provides us with the ability to fulfill the Bodhisattva spirit by manifesting in the world as is most effective in the uplifting of sentient life, while ourselves retaining complete abilities to maintain absorbtion in the vision of the highest truth.  Thus the bodhimind is a most precious method, and one should make every effort to accomplish it in its two aspects of conventional and ultimate.

From 'Wisdom Energy 2', the chapter called 'Dissolution', 
by Lama Yeshe:

Water rushing down a steep mountainside, a natural force:
there is life but the force of dying is there, driving.

Many people think I am crazy when I talk to them about death. They think I don't understand life.

'If you think about death and suffering, you make yourself miserable.'

They think I'm obsessed.  

'Dying is horrible.  Why do you dwell on it?'

Ridiculous.  They do not understand life.  We exist in a dance between life and death: a masked drama with one actor changing character, one face then another and another, moving, changing.

From the first instant of life impermanance is with us.
From the moment of conception decay begins.  In the second moment of life a change has already occured and the first moment has disappeared.  That is impermanance and death.

'I exist.'
'I exist' is a misconception, a permanant-conception.

Every energy is moving, changing, coming and going.  
Coming, then growing old, older and dying, dying, dying.

When we see a dead body we never visualize our own corpse there.  'Ah, it's dead.  Horrible.  I'm leaving now.'

We never think, 'That's me.'  There is fear.  
Not understanding.  That terrible corpse is within you now.

All sense world phenomena exist like a cloud.  If there is a meeting or beginning or contact, there is naturally change, seperation and disappearance.

Man and woman, friends, mother, father, family, atoms, 
fire and water, things.  

If there is a meeting, seperation must follow automatically.
And there will be clinging fear and suffering.

Evey imaginable super samsaric experience, every contact, every enjoyment will disappear.  It's natural.

But we are so insecure; we find a friend and worry that he will disappear.  We find pleasure and worry that it will end.  We are afraid to lose our home and money, our loved ones, our body.

We all fear seperation and disappearance, this is universal fear, but is is useless, creating only confusion.

Milarepa said, 'When worldly people see me they think I am completely crazy.  And, when I see worldly people I think they are completely crazy.'

Our materialistic lives are devoted to temporal pleasures.
We think this is the best we can do, but when death comes we end up with nothing and we die in misery.

There is not much difference between our way of life and a dog's life, except the potential.

Samsara never ends because we don't remember death.

'Not today.  No, not today.'

Life is only breath coming in and going out.  If the breath goes out and does not come in again, life is finished.  
That is death.

Until death we are going to think, 'No.  Not today.'

Life is running: death is definite and we never know when it will come.

Life passes like lightning; it is there, then it disappears.
But something in us believes death will come slowly- 
our permanant-conception; because we do not remember death.

Wisdom memory is the atomic energy that destroys delusion,
but we forget.  We never think, 'Death is definite and we never know when it will come.'

Since birth we have been collecting; we collect friends, we collect posessions, family, lovers, property, this one and that one, this and that.  We cling to each one, and there is fear.  And when we die not one of these things helps.  Instead of helping, our collection destroys us.  Because we did not remember death.

It will come, definitely.  And the time is never certain.

'Ah, today I'm alive.  I'm alright.  Not today.'
Why not?

'Your father died today.'  O.K.  It was time for him to die.
Everybody has to die.  Now that he is dead, it's my turn.

Do you understand?

I must do something right now.

Like this: If I know that within ten days someone is going to cut off my nose, but I don't know who and I don't know when, I'm going to be so careful; I'll protect my nose as much as possible and not waste time putting on make-up to make it beautiful.

We have this choice: To die is a natural thing, but it is possible to die joyfully, like going home.

From 'Transference of Consciousness at the Time of Death',
by Lama Yeshe:

All relationships are transitory, even the rather special relationships between Dharma brothers and sisters, and grasping at such relationships is obviously a great hinderance to our practice.  We must understand that as soon as we have met someone, the cause for our eventual splitting up has been created.  Meeting always leads to seperation; if we investigate our own experiences we shall see that this is true.  

No matter how much pleasure we receive from someone or something, the time will come when our connection with that person or thing will be no more.  It does not require too much reflection to see that this is true.  

Everything is momentary, and when the actual time of death comes none of the people or things we have met with can help us at all.  Worse than that, not only do they fail to help us but, because of our attachment to them, they also create great problems for us.

That is why it is important to prepare ourselves now.  By practicing the awareness of impermanance and death we should at least realize that there is no reason for hanging on to things the way we do.  At the very least, we should gain this realization.  By training ourselves in the awareness of impermanance and preparing ourselves for death we become more easy-going.  We can learn to accept the impermanant nature of our lives, our relationships and so forth.

When you have an awareness of impermanance and death, your attitude towards life becomes more easy-going and realistic. And if you can learn to accept the death of your loved ones as something natural, then these teachings will have been successful.

From 'Transference of Consciousness at the Time of Death', 
'Wisdom Energy 2', 'Light of Dharma', and 'Transference of Consciousness at the Time of Death', again, respectively, 
by Lama Thubten Yeshe

The verses for the generation of bodhicitta tell us to dedicate all our merits to the attainment of enlightenment for the sake of others.  This includes the merit of any virtuous action we perform- speaking soothingly to others, listening sypathetically in silence while they tel use their troubles, or meditating together with Dharma brothers and sisters in order to give them clear, compassionate energy- the merit we generate can be dedicated towards the enlightenment of all sentient beings.  Thus there are many different ways in which merit can be created, and an essential aspect of all Mahayana practice is to dedicate whatever positive activity we have done to the ultimate benefit of others.

To be totally dedicated to others in this way is not easy, but despite its being difficult it is the most meaningful way to live your life.  The more you become familiar with this altruistic attitude, the deeper it becomes.  Thus it is extremely worthwhile.  You should feel very happy that you have had the extreme fortune of meeting with such a comfortable and practical path as the Mahayana- deep, profound and limitless.

Anything you do with a big mind to benefit others is itself a solution to the problems of your narrow mind.  In addition, it is important to generate the Mahayana prayer, 'For the rest of my life I shall dedicate the energy of my body, speech and mind to benefit other beings as much as possible.  It makes no difference to me where or in what circumstances I shall live; may I benefit others as much as possible wherever I am; and may I especially use my energies to show the three principle paths to others.'

We should send forth sincere prayers constantly.  Some people, however, have the wrong idea about praying.  They think prayers must be made in a very formal manner with great seriousness and heaviness.  But this is not true.
Prayer can be and should be done in a completely relaxed state of mind.  

The thought that is prepared to go anywhere or do anything, as long as it is of benefit to others, is the true mind of prayer.  Repeating such thoughts in your mind over and over again under all circumstances is extremely powerful.  Therefore, you should always ask yourself, 'What does it matter what time it is or where I am, what is the best way I can help others?'

We have been taking refuge all our lives, though mainly in external things.  Our successive involvements may sometimes offer temporary relief but, in sober truth, seeking refuge in physical posessions and transient pleasures merely deepens our confusion rather than ending it.

Buddhist refuge is a process of turning inward that begins with our discovery of our own unlimited potential as human beings.  This discovery generates tremendous zeal for the development of our inborn wisdom-energy.  Complete, perfect wisdom is buddhahood.  Perhaps the word 'buddha' conjures up a remote and rather oriental image.  But 'buddha' is just a word, and it means a totally opened mind, an 'opened lotus'. When we finally realize our human potential and arrive at this total openness of mind, we become buddhas.

At the outset, however, we may feel hopeless and incapable of self-improvement.  But we shouldn't underestimate ourselves.  All living beings have the innate capacity to unify their minds with the unsurpassable clarity of enlightenment.

By cultivating our own latent powers and continuously developing our wisdom, we can immensely benefit others. However much the world around us changes and our fortunes fluctuate, our inner world can remain stable and balanced when fortified by this profound understanding.  Wisdom brings unfailing happiness, unlike those temporal objects of refuge which bring only tantalizingly brief and inconclusive moments of pleasure.

There are two aspects of refuge: the outer and the inner. Outer refuge means seeking guidance from living buddhas, since we are unable to achieve liberation without a teacher. Buddhas also provide inspiration and are sublime models for us to emulate.  When we contemplate the enlightened state, its reflection within our own mind fills us with joyful, radient energy.  

Inner refuge is directed towards the seed of enlightenment, our inner buddha-nature.  We recognize that, ultimately, we are our own refuge.
Dharma is wisdom: the wisdom that understands our own true nature, and reveals our own latent power of self-liberation. Taking refuge in Dharma means using that wisdom now.

Dharma means understanding reality.  Meditation and prayer are not Dharma; they are merely tools for reaching this inner wisdom.

True Dharma or religion is a personal experience that each of us must elicit from within himself alone.  There is a dormant bell within us and we should use it to awaken and activate our own dormant wisdom.

Practicing Dharma means ringing our inner wisdom-bell, being always on the alert and clearing away the refuse that clogs our mind, the attachments and addictions that haunts our day-dreams.  By making this our daily practice, we ourselves become Dharma; all our energy becomes Dharma wisdom.  
Then we are truly taking refuge, allowing the inner Dharma alone to regulate our lives.

Sangha consists of those endowed with wisdom.  Sangha is not only those who wear red or yellow robes, but also those friends who influence us beneficially.  These spiritual friends energize and inspire us, and are therefore to be clearly distinguished from those who hold us back. True spiritual friends support one another in their practice and promote each other's growth in knowledege and awareness.

Sangha are those with whom we sense a spirit of unity: together we have responded to the beauty of Dharma wisdom.

Taking refuge is not difficult, but it would be a mistake to think that we can passively sit back and let buddha, dharma and sangha do the work for us.  Buddha said, 'You are responsible for your own confusion, and you are responsible for your own liberation.'  

What saves us from confusion is our wisdom.  If we take refuge while fully understanding the meaning of the three objects of refuge, our wisdom will grow and will of itself fill us with energetic determination to follow the path to liberation.  Once we have taken refuge, we assume a certain responsibility for our bahavior.

To recapitulate: buddha is the totally opened mind, the state beyond confusion; dharma is the path of wisdom leading to that state; and sangha consists of those who are endowed with wisdom and can help us along the way.

It is our own lifelong dissatisfaction that impels us to take refuge in buddha, dharma and sangha.  We realize that clinging to daydreams and physical posessions has never given us lasting joy.  Therefore, in order to rid ourselves of this dissatisfaction and gain an understanding of reality, we take refuge in wisdom, the path to inner freedom.

But you should be careful neither to exaggerate your own problems, nor to be concerned exclusively with taking refuge for yourself alone.  Remember that all beings alike are confused and unhappy.  Therefore, whenever you take refuge, visualize your mother and father at your side, your friends and relatives behind you, those who agitate you sitting before you, and all other beings surrounding you.  

With sympathy and loving-kindness think, 'All living beings in the universe, including myself, have been in confusion since time without beginning, taking refuge in fictions and constantly encountering obstacles.  Now I have the oppourtunity to develop my human potential and become unified with the omniscience of totally opened consciousness.  Instead of listening to my confused, clinging mind, I shall listen to wisdom; this is the only way to liberate myself and all beings.  For this reason I now take refuge in buddha, dharma and sangha.'

So many times in the past we have sought security in trivialities, but now we have discovered our innate capacity to fulfill the most exalted destiny of all: complete emancipation from suffering.  We are determined that, from this moment on, rather than taking refuge in ephemeral fictions, we will take refuge in our own pure, clear wisdom-energy and set out on the path to liberation.

Buddhism is so simple, extremely simple.  Seeking the truth does not mean that we emphasize Buddha; we don't emphasize truth being here or here (Lama points to some thangkas).  We never emphasize that truth is here (the thangkas) or truth is Buddha.  From a Buddhist point of view if you seek truth outside, if you seek the absolute somewhere outside, then it is hopeless, there is no way you will solve your problem.  No way.

The absolute, or totality, is within you.  It is already with you from childhood, as soon as you are existant.  There is no seperation between the conventional you, the conventional truth of you, and the absolute truth.  This fundamental union is already existant, it is just a matter of recognizing and comprehending it.

Anyone who wants to take refuge should remember that taking refuge means having determination.  Before we took artificial refuge in temporal pleasure; now, you discover that that is wrong, and you want some clean-clear state of wisdom.  That wisdom is the object of taking refuge, not some samsaric object.  So you determine that from now on, as much as possible, taking ultimate refuge in really worthwhile.

Determine that from now on you are going to take refuge in the clean-clear state of intensive awareness of Dharma, instead of taking refuge in samsaric objects, material objects.  You determine to do this as strongly as possible.
Close your eyes and determine with sincerity.

Think: 'For the rest of my life, I am going to act peacefully and follow the path to liberation.  Especially, I am going to observe my body, speech and mind and put them as much as possible into right livlihood.'

And determine: 'Loving-kindness is my path.  Therefore, I will never harm anybody from now until I die.  I will never harm anybody.'  Contemplate this; just contemplate and meditate.  

Have strong determination: 'Taking refuge in inner intensive awareness is essential; this is the way for me to take ultimate refuge.'

Also, have equal compassion for all beings.  Visualize your father, your mother, your relatives, and all universal beings around you.  Wish that they all take refuge in the intensive awareness and clean-clear state of Dharma.  
And outside, the Buddhas and bodhisattvas of the ten directions also pay attention to you, giving you inspiration to be successful in your determination.

Generate the determination that, 'From now on, I am going to take ultimate refuge in the inner intensive awareness of Dharma and the inner intensive complete state of developed consciousness of Buddha.'

Okay, simple!  That is all.  Taking refuge is very simple; you just recognize your clean-clear state of wisdom, Dharma. And when you have developed that, that is Buddhahood.   That is all.  Have confidence in your own wisdom.  That is all.  I think what you can do is to determine as much as possible not to harm anyone but to have compassion.  That is all.

My conclusion is that you should enjoy your life.  If you do, then your Dharma practices are better; but if you don't there is no way to practice anything worthwhile.  Shakyamuni Buddha's method of teaching the path to enlightenment leads from one state of happiness to another.  Thus the point is to become happier, gain more control and become more liberated day by day.

We should all be very happy.  We are so fortunate; there is no reason to worry.  Just keep in mind, 'My main practice is the three principle paths to enlightenment.  In particular, I should develop renunciation and not remain stuck to any sense object or to any idea.'  

Be blissful and enjoy your life; do not let yourself become obsessed with anything.  Determine to use the rest of your life to benefit others as much as possible.  It is not necessary to subject yourself to suffering, but you should have the attitude that you will happily bear any experience, as long as it benefits others.

As for meditation on emptiness, just keep and eye on your everyday life and observe how you surround yorself with incredible projections.  Also remember that if you have compassion, you already have the best method.

The best way to lead your life and to be happy is by giving the best possible vibrations to others.  Instead of being angry, uptight, guilty or upset with yourself you should try to be happy with both yourself and others.

So now let us practice all little bit and then do the dedication.  

Thank you.