Sun Radiance: Thought Transformation, 29 August 1989, part 1

So we should adjust our motivation such that we’re going to listen to this profound teaching on the great vehicle with the attitude of the precious awakening heart. That is, I must attain perfect, complete, unsurpassable Buddhahood in order to establish all sentient beings equal to space and complete bliss and happiness. Śāntideva says that if one wishes to quickly release oneself and others from suffering and to attain the state of liberation and Buddhahood, one should achieve the awakening heart in the manner of exchanging self for others. So it is said with respect to equalizing and exchanging self for others that it is meant for the intelligent those intelligent practitioners. For such types of practitioners, an explanation will be of great benefit.

But the explanation of exchanging self for others for those of mediocre intelligence will not be of much benefit, and therefore the explanation is to be kept secret. So when it says that the explanation of exchange in self or others should not be made known to those of mediocre intelligence, it’s not to say that there is any fault in this particular doctrine. It is from the side of the practitioner that those of mediocre intelligence will not be able to put such a teaching into practice, and in fact they may, upon hearing the teaching, disparage this doctrine of the great vehicle, and therefore it would be of more harm than it would be of benefit to them. So it’s fortunate that we’re all here that all of us here are have practitioners of the highest intelligence. So in the actual explanation of mind generation, that is to say the awakening heart, unlike the initial cultivation within the context of the sevenfold cause and effect instruction, there is no explanation of the precepts such as recognizing all sentient beings as one’s mother, remembering their kindness, etc.

Here in this tradition the initial meditation is on equanimity. Previously we’ve had an explanation on equanimity, and that was in the context of the sevenfold cause and effect precept. The equanimity meditation which was explained then was the equality the equality which is common with the practitioners of the lesser vehicle such as the hearers and the solitary realizers. That is to say, the equanimity which does not hold some close and others distant, partiality does not have for those that we like and those we dislike. Is we say we develop an equanimity not holding some beings close and others distant.

This is as we said is in common with the practitioners of the lesser vehicle. Here we’re going to explain an equanimity which is unique to the greater vehicle. In the following explanation of the mode of meditating equanimity, we will use a nine part meditation technique. It is divided into a mode of meditating from the conventional point of view and from the ultimate point of view. From the conventional point of view there are three, that is to say from the side of others, three from the side of self, and then three from the ultimate point of view, making nine.

The reason that we have such an extensive explanation of equanimity is that without the arrival of equanimity then there will be no benefit derived from the meditation no benefit, one will not be able to generate the exchange of self for others. Therefore we have an extensive explanation of equanimity as a prerequisite to the meditation and exchanging self with others. So beginning with the first, that is the conventional from the point of view of other. This first point is that all sentient beings, whosoever, whether they are great or insignificant, want complete happiness, do not want the slightest of suffering. From this point of view, they’re all exactly the same, the same in type.

So all other sentient beings whosoever want happiness do not want to suffer. In this respect, there’s no difference. They’re exactly the same. So from their side, being exactly the same in wanting happiness and not wanting to suffer, then we should not be attached to some and have hatred for others, hold some near and others distant. So the second point, point from of view of others, is that though all of these beings desire happiness, in fact they are bereft of happiness.

They have no happiness. Now there are two types of happiness. There is contaminated happiness and uncontaminated happiness. Now we can and we don’t even need to talk about uncontaminated happiness, that is the liberation which is the abandonment of the afflictions. Even when we talk about contaminated happiness, their happiness is like a star seen during the daytime.

Occasionally, very rarely, you might see a star in the sky during the daytime, but it’s a very rare occurrence. Even when they have this rare occurrence of some happiness, that happiness immediately changes into suffering. It’s constantly changing and becomes suffering. Therefore, in this respect they’re all the same. Therefore, our response of attachment towards some and hatred for others is completely inappropriate when looked at from this point of view.

For example, in the case of beggars here in Australia there aren’t very many beggars, but in India and Tibet there are many beggars. And all of these beggars are the same. They all are in need, they all want food, they all need assistance. If we were to like only one and help one and treat the others badly, That is to say if we were to hold some close and others distant, then this would be completely inappropriate from the point of view that their needs are exactly the same. And then the third point is that though no sentient being wants to suffer, in fact they are constantly tortured by suffering.

That all of this all are the same in their constant torment by suffering. Therefore, you know, look at it from this point of view then to look at it from their point of view that they are all the same in this constant torment of suffering. To be attached to some and to hate others. To like some and not like another is inappropriate. By way of example, if there were 10 patients in a hospital and they were all suffering, they were all tormented by the same suffering, that to assist one, to help one, to have hatred or attachment to either of them, to like or dislike either of them would be completely inappropriate since from their point of view the torments are exactly the same.

So from the point of view of the sentient beings, from their side, looking at the situation from the point of view of sentient beings from their side, we have to think about this well That they’re all exactly the same. They all want happiness but they’re bereft of happiness. That none of them want to suffer, they’re all tormented by suffering. Exactly the same from their side. Understanding this then from our side since they are the same exactly from their side, from our side it is inappropriate to differentiate them into some that you like, some that you dislike, some that you attach to, some that you have hatred for.

In fact that we should, since they are equal from their side, we should treat them equally from our side. And this is the three reasons for the necessity to see the equality of sentient beings coming from the point of view of their side. Then there are three reasons from our side as to why holding some close and others distant is an inappropriate response, way of relating to sentient beings. That understanding that it is inappropriate to have attachment for some, hatred for others, how that this way of responding should not even exist from our side. That if we ask, you know, why from my side should I treat all sentient beings exactly the same, it’s because all sentient beings have benefited us.

They have benefited us in the past, they are benefiting us in the present, and they will benefit us in the future. So when we should think about this well, from our own side why it is inappropriate to have hold some beings close and others distant to have attachment for some and hatred for others. And we said that because all sentient beings benefit us. They have benefited us in the past, they have benefited us now in the present, and they will benefit us in the future. And you might think, well okay I I go along with the fact that they have benefited me in the past.

That except in considering rebirth, all of these beings have benefited me when they were my father and my mother, etc. They have in fact benefited me in the past. And again, this same situation will occur in the future, so they will benefit me in the future. Presently I question whether all sentient beings are in fact benefiting me. I know a few of them actually are benefiting me, but then some are not benefiting me and in fact some are actually harming me.

So you know, way of thinking doesn’t really act as a method for me to alleviate this feeling of distance and nearness that I presently have. This method doesn’t work for me. You actually think in this way? So we can say some beings are definitely actually benefiting me now. So there are many who are not actually benefiting me now.

And there are some who are actually harming me now. So you know when we meditate this would this is the type of thought which would arise if meditation wouldn’t work for us because we couldn’t we would not see that it’s inappropriate to have distance and nearness. In fact we would we would have closeness to those who benefit us and we would feel very distant toward those who harm us. So then thinking in this way that some beings in fact aren’t directly benefiting us is not having really reflected well on the subject, on object to be understood. First, you know, there are beings who are directly benefiting us, so we don’t even need to speak about them.

But how about those beings who are neutral, those strangers, who we feel presently aren’t benefiting us, are not benefiting us, but we see no direct benefit. But in fact they are benefiting us. How? If we take the example of Buddha House, you know this building, that all of the builders who engage in its construction, the glazers, the carpenters, the masons, and all of these people working built this building. And that now we can enjoy it, we can stay here warm out of the cold, we can stay dry out of the rain, and we derive a lot of comfort, a lot of benefit from being to stay within this building.

And this was all due to their difficulty, the trouble that they went through in building it. They have indirectly benefited us. We don’t know who they were. They built this building many years ago, but still they built this house. All of the food that we eat, the drink, the clothing, these all show that the strangers, neutral people are in fact benefiting us all the time, demonstrating their great kindness.

Though this benefit is not direct. So, from this we can understand that neutral people are benefiting us. But again, those who harm us, those who cause us to become angry at them, or those who would make us angry, become those angry, those who become angry at us, those who harm us, how are they benefiting us if we question that? It is in dependence upon such types of individuals that we cultivate patience. That in dependence upon oneself developing patience, cultivating patience, we purify a vast amount of negativity.

In dependence upon cultivating patience, we bring to perfection the transcendence of patience, that is we practice the perfection of patience. Therefore, this is the great kindness of such beings who bring us harm. Without someone bringing us harm, we would have no chance to practice to cultivate patience. It’s quite easy to find objects for us to practice generosity with, ethics with. There are many chances to practice these perfections, but it’s very rare that we find individuals who become angry at us and harm us such that they can act as an object of cultivation of patience.

They are very kind to us and this is the way they can benefit us. So even when some harm occurs to us, it really doesn’t matter because we have to understand that this harm which has befallen us is simply the result of harm that we have caused to others in the past. This is harm returning back to us. If we had not caused harm to others in the past, then we ourselves could not be harmed. And by experiencing this harm, then this eliminates the negative, the karma action that was left by harming others, that this negativity is purified and therefore this is a great kindness of them.

Such an individual, those who bring us harm are actually our spiritual friends and in dependence upon them we can practice compassion, that we accumulate positive potential, that we purify negativities, and in dependence upon them that we will ultimately achieve Buddhahood. So that’s the second of these two sets of three the equanimity from one’s own side, from one’s own point of view. So I made a mistake in that last statement. That was the second of the three reasons from the side of oneself why hatred and attachment is inappropriate. Now this is the third of the three reasons from one’s own side.

Now this is the third of the three reasons from one’s own side. Is that all sentient beings are under the control of actions, that is to say karma and afflictive emotions, both oneself and others, that we have no control. We have no self control. That since both oneself and all others are under the control of actions and afflictive emotions, then it is inappropriate to treat them in any way unequally. That also we are all impermanent.

That is to say we momentarily arise and disintegrate. We are exactly the same in that respect. Additionally, we are all non truly existent. We’re all exactly the same from that respect. So from these three points, it is inappropriate to have attachment and hatred.