«Дар освобождения», курс 25 «Совершенное прибежище», занятие 6

[Speaker 1]
And it's really good for young Dharma students to do some kind of heavy work around the house. So you can volunteer for Dharma Mom. They have lots of hard jobs here.

And it's a big part of Dharma practice. And you don't get spoiled. You don't get soft.

You become a hardcore Dharma person if you clean a lot of toilets. My special job was to clean up after ceremonies. And it's amazing how dirty Buddhists can be at a ceremony.

They used to eat all of the Lama Chodpa, and then they would leave. And there'd be 200 dirty dishes, and there'd be cakes all over the floor. Many years, 25 years.

So I think it's a valuable part of Dharma training. But I was the only Westerner in his home, so I can't do that with you guys. There's no time.

Anyway, it's good to learn to clean toilets. Okay. I think at Three Jewels they do pretty good.

I mean, people help, right?

[Speaker 2]
Pretty well. It's a culture. There it is.

[Speaker 1]
There is a direct correlation. Okay, now let's look at meditation number 17. I have to keep doing some.

And I'll do more book after the retreat.

[Speaker 2]
Meditation number 17 is the mind goes automatically to it.

[Speaker 1]
And part of taking refuge is to keep pictures and statues and books around your house. I like Gyelse's house because it's a very Buddhist house. Everywhere under everything there's some Buddhist thing.

There's pictures everywhere. There's a Tsongkapa on the heater. If you look close, you can see Tsongkapa.

He's in the heater. I was like, hi, I can see you. There's a part in The Long Rim that's...

We're neo-Tsongkapians. We don't... I mean, we'd rather go to a DCI event than go to a temple and wave incense, right?

But it's a very good custom to keep lots of Buddhas in your house. So, Mr. Woo, there's no room to sit in his house because there's all Buddhas. That's a good habit.

Jewish people have a custom to put a special thing at the door, right? What's it called? I don't know.

[Speaker 2]
Huh?

[Speaker 1]
Mizuta? Mizuta. Mizuta.

Mizuta. Anyway, they have this thing. I decided I want a Buddhist one, so I got a little Buddha from Sarnath, where Buddha first taught.

You gave it to me? No. It can be good.

No. Xiaoping? You gave me in Varanasi a little Buddha?

Who gave it to me? From where Buddha first taught. Then I carved a hole near my door and I glued it in there.

So every time I come and go, I have to see this Buddhist looking at me. In the Lam Rim it says that's a very good custom. Why?

When you have trouble, you will think about Buddhas. Generally, it's important... Jewish people have another good custom.

You're not allowed to make a statue of God. Right? In their temple there's no images.

Because they say it's impossible to make a picture of a holy being. Not possible. So you're not allowed to try.

I used to think, I don't need all these Buddhas around. I just have to clean them, right? So I'm like, I don't need them around.

I used to have them. They got dusty. My Lama said clean them.

I said I don't want to. Then I decided I just won't have any. But what the Lam Rim says about refuge, it's part of refuge to keep Buddhas in your house.

It could be Tara. It could be Jigme Gyurje Mo. It could be anything.

But just keep them where you have to see them. I put one on the refrigerator because that's my real altar. I'm always going there for refuge.

So I put one of those magnetic ones on the refrigerator. It's always looking at me. It's a custom.

The idea is, and if you have books all over your house, Buddhist books, it's a tradition to keep some above your head where you walk into your house. On the inside, above the door. There's a custom to keep them above your head where you sleep.

It's a custom not to keep them where your feet are pointing on your bed. So not at the end of your bed. No books or Buddha pictures where when you sleep your feet are facing them.

Put them on the other side, near your head. Maybe some place where you can see them when you fall asleep. I have some images in my bedroom.

I have Choney Lama's collected works above my head. I figure that's the best thing. Then I have all the Buddhas around that.

Tsongkapa is right there. It's part of going for refuge, to keep images around you all the time. Because when you die it will stay in your mind.

It will stay in your mind. When you get in a car accident, when you get cancer, when you're lying on the bed in the hospital the last time, your mind will go to that. Your mind will go to what you saw your whole life.

Keep lots of things around. It's not Buddhist home decorating. It's not a competition.

My Buddha is more valuable than your Buddha. Mine is silver. Mine is gold.

Yours is just wood. It's not like that. But keep them around.

We have a nice image of my teacher there. Anton from Moscow helped us to make it. It's nice to have your teacher's face around.

There's a Tsongkapa over here. There's a Tsongkapa here. Some of my teachers are here.

Keep images around. Keep books around. Little stupas.

The pictures represent Buddha. The books represent Dharma. Sorry, the stupas are Buddha mind.

Body, mind, and speech. In Tibet language we don't say altar. We say the place where Buddha's body, speech, and mind live.

Body is image. Speech is you keep a book there, like jing gang jing. Mind is you keep a small stupa there.

Then that's a good altar. It has three things, body, speech, and mind. During this meditation, you can just think about part of retreat is to make plans for after you get home.

Part of the experience of retreat is to make plans for when you get out of retreat. When I do retreats I keep a journal. I always bring an empty journal.

Maybe in the evening I sit down with my hot chocolate and I write. If I have good ideas, like, oh, I need a Buddha over my front door, or something like that, then I make a note. Because I will forget when I get on the airplane.

I will forget everything. Keep a journal. You shouldn't talk during these retreats, any retreat.

You shouldn't talk. Even if you're staying with other people, try not to talk. If someone talks to you, just go like this.

[Speaker 2]
Okay?

[Speaker 1]
Don't talk back. It helps the retreat. I did many, many, many one month retreats during my business career.

The first time I felt a little bit nervous, I thought, oh, my business will get worse. If I go away for one month, then my business will get worse. I was worried about it.

I waited for a long time. Then finally I did my first retreat in a bedroom next to my Lama's bedroom. I stayed in the bedroom for one month.

Some other monk brought me food and stuff like that. Then when I came out, I had all these ideas about ACIP, to create ACIP, to save all the books. Now it's 31 years, right?

You don't waste your time in retreat. It feels like you are going to get behind in your work. All the other people will get the good position and your work will be worse, or something like that.

But what I learned was all my cool ideas came during retreat, one month retreat. I encourage you to do it. Bring a journal with you when you do this retreat.

Don't forget.

[Speaker 2]
Let's look at the schedule. We talked about Monday already.

[Speaker 1]
Then Tuesday, seven in the morning, do the first part of this book. I told you, you don't have to finish it. It's pretty long.

Do it for half an hour. Mark where you stop. You're welcome to stop if you find something cool.

Like, oh, I want to do a lot of extra offerings. Or, I had a bad week and I want to do a lot of confessions. Then you can stop and do a lot of confessions.

Okay? Fit the book to you and not you to the book. If you need more confession time, take more confession time.

If you need more rejoicing time, take rejoicing time. Then 7.30 on Tuesday, you're going to do the first... Let me see how many parts there are.

You're going to do the first five meditations. Okay? In here.

[Speaker 2]
First five. Okay?

[Speaker 1]
You can pick... It's only 45 minutes, the first session.

[Speaker 2]
You can pick something from the first five. Okay? Then you do your own yoga.

Then you eat. Then important is 10.15 to 11.

[Speaker 1]
When you do retreat, you have to take rest time. Don't be like Scott and Orin, work all day, all night. You have to take a break.

It makes you smarter. Take a nice break. No responsibilities.

No guilt. Just goof off. Don't do anything.

Don't think about Dharma. Think about everything else. Just take a nice break.

Don't feel guilty. All these Dharma people feel guilty if they take a break. It's a big part of Dharma that you learn to relax and take some time off.

Then when you come back, your practice will be much better. But if you never take a break, your practice will get worse and worse. Okay?

11 o'clock, the second part of this book, called Thousand Angels, Tsongkapa Prayer.

[Speaker 2]
Do that.

[Speaker 1]
Then you do the second five meditations. Something from meditation six to number ten.

[Speaker 2]
You choose. Then you take a break. You can do a little bit of stretching.

[Speaker 1]
You can walk a little bit. Walk around. 12.30 to 1.30 is one long hour. Just mantra. You can do that Tsongkapa mantra in your own language, if you prefer.

[Speaker 2]
You can do it out loud.

[Speaker 1]
You can do it silently. But they say a loud whisper is ideal.

[Speaker 2]
Loud whisper. Then the spirits can hear you. Tsongkapa mantra.

What was I going to say?

[Speaker 1]
It's not a waste of time. I used to think mantras were a waste of time. I didn't want to do mantras.

I just wanted to study books. My teacher forced me to do retreat. My teacher took all my books away.

Said, just do mantras. I said, it's boring. I don't want to just do mantras.

But it's powerful. And it works. Now I believe it.

Just do mantras. Don't look at anything. See where your mind goes.

It works. It's a very good practice. RDZO, right?

RDZO It's a very good practice. It seems like superstition or something. It's not.

It's very, very good for you. Just do mantras. Don't try to control your mind.

During the mantras, what I'd like you to think about is people who helped you in your life. Just long list of people who helped you in your life. The first day you will say, Geshe-la, I can't do that for an hour because there's only five people.

Then start a list. Keep a paper. Every time you think of someone who helped you a lot, write it down.

Then by the end of the three days you will have two or three hundred people there who helped you a lot. But you never think about them. Keep a list.

It's very good practice. Keep a list. My mother carried me for nine months and almost died to give me my life.

Okay, number one. Then you will find two or three hundred and it's a beautiful practice. It makes you a very nice person.

It makes you a good person. Just think about people who helped you since you were a kid. Or since you were a dot inside your mom.

Then 1.30 to 2.30 you can take a walk outside. There's a rule about walking in retreat. What's the first rule?

No, don't go outside of the boundary. Okay? So there's a retreat boundary.

Don't go outside of the retreat boundary. Yeah, second rule, wear a hat. I had the pleasure in the last few years because I used to surf.

I was in the sun all day. I got... This got cut off here.

Big cut. Here I got a big cut. It's a skin cancer from sun.

So you don't want it. It's not fun. They cut deep.

They have to cut it out. So wear a hat. Don't be a tough guy.

Cover your arms. Cover your hands. I'm getting there.

Number one. Number two, wear some sunscreen. Put it on.

Don't be stupid. Wear it. Don't be a tough guy.

Everybody I know who doesn't wear it got skin cancer. So don't do that. And drink lots of water.

Drink a lot of water. Take water with you. If you get lost, you're going to need water.

You can't survive in this desert for more than a day or a day and a half without water. It's not possible. You need water.

Don't get lost. Don't go where you cannot see a building. Don't go someplace where you cannot see a building.

I got lost here. And I helped to build all these buildings. So it's possible.

So be careful. Stay on the road.

[Speaker 2]
And keep a building in sight. Okay? All right?

Agree? Okay. Then 2.30 have a light snack. Don't eat too much. Okay? I got some nice instruction from Anatole.

Some of you know Anatole.

[Speaker 1]
He gave me some eating instructions recently. It was very helpful for me. Maybe we can talk about it.

It's a Buddhist diet. You can eat something vegetarian and healthy. It's very light.

I lost a lot of weight. I don't know. Six kilos, seven kilos.

It's very good for your health. Maybe I'll teach you after the retreat. It's very helpful.

It's healthy. And it's vegetarian. So don't eat too much because you can't meditate if you eat too much.

3 to 3.45, the next part of the meditations, which is 11 to 15. Okay? Meditations 11 to 15.

[Speaker 2]
Okay? Pick one or two. Focus on those.

Then 2.45 to 4.15. There's a joke.

[Speaker 1]
Some yoga teacher had a joke. When you feel tired from sitting in meditation too long, you have two choices. You can do some yoga stretches or you can eat chocolate.

The yoga stretches don't make you fat. Yoga stretches are good for you. Then 4.15 to 5.15. You can do walking meditation. By the way, if you're walking and you meet somebody, the tradition is to look down and don't look at them. Just pretend they're not there.

[Speaker 2]
Don't go like...

[Speaker 1]
There was a linguist that came, I think after you guys' three-year retreat. They wanted to study how you communicate like this. It's a whole new language.

That's the same as talking really. Don't do it. It's a custom just to look down and keep walking.

Don't talk. Obviously you shouldn't turn on your cell phone the whole time. Just turn it off and put it away.

You can take it out when you get back, when you start again. In the first few retreats of this Lam Rim series, we took away people's cell phone and laptop. Then one day some lady said her laptop's missing.

We spent two days looking for her laptop. We couldn't find it. I think she thought we stole it.

Then she went home and she found it in her bathroom. Then we stopped taking people's laptops. If you want a good retreat, turn it off, put it away.

If you don't want a good retreat, use it. You're all over 16 years old, I think. Katie?

Yeah. You're all adults. I'm just telling you, if you think you have some important computer thing to do during the three days, you will have a lousy retreat.

The retreat won't help you much. Put it away. Put away the computer.

Put away the phone. Just do it. I can't...

I may spy on you. I do that. I'm good at it in the retreat.

But I can't be in your house. It's up to you. It's up to you.

What do you want from this retreat? If you don't want a very deep retreat, then do some computer work or do some texting. Look at WeChat.

WeChat is the retreat destroyer machine. WeChat is retreat destroyer machine. So please, I really, really encourage you just to give it up.

Try it. You will have a good time. You will enjoy it.

Why did we build a retreat center in this god-awful place of rocks and sun? It's because it's one of the last places in the United States where cell phone coverage doesn't cover. Really.

It's like two hours to the grocery store. So, don't waste our time. We put the retreat center here so you wouldn't use your cell phone.

Now the cell phone towers are chasing us. In some places, I know where they are, you can get cell phone reception. In my outhouse you can get cell phone reception.

But just forget it. It's up to you, what kind of retreat you want. I'm talking also to the older students.

The older students are as bad as the new students. They're like, I'm special. I don't...

I'm older student. I'm special. I can use computer.

Just forget it. It's a disease of older Dharma students. I'm so advanced, I can use laptop during retreat.

Forget it. It's wrong. All right.

All right. Mantras at 4.15 walking around if you want. But you just had a walk, so it should be okay.

Dinner at 5.15. Don't eat too much because you get very tired in the evening. 6.15 do the thousand angels from the middle of this book. If you don't have any money, we'll give it to you.

But don't go into retreat without this. You want to hear a Tibetan joke? So there was a war.

A war in Tibet means three people attack two people or something like that. They didn't have very good wars. So this guy heard there was a war.

So he got his gun, his rifle, and he started to walk to East Tibet to fight with somebody. And then on the way he had to poo-poo and he asked a farmer, can I use your outhouse? And he went in the outhouse and he put his gun down and he made a poo-poo.

And then he left but he forgot his gun. And then just after that he met the two enemy guys and he reached for his gun and it was gone. And then he's so scared he made a poo-poo.

[Speaker 2]
So they say, what?

[Speaker 1]
He left his gun where he shitted and he shitted where he should have had his gun. Or something like that. And it's a Tibetan joke for...

What's the joke for? Don't forget your gun. When you go to Dharma war you got to have your gun.

This is your gun. These three pairs. This is the gun.

RGYAGS PA TZAM ZA LA MEN DAG LAS MEN DAG RGYAGS ZA LA RGYAGS PA LAS It sounds better in Tibetan. Alright. In age 15 you do...

[Speaker 2]
What do we have to do? 21 to... Do the next five.

Do the next five.

[Speaker 1]
Choose something from the next five. Is it the fifth set? Oh, I'm talking about...

Yeah, you're right. After dinner fourth set of five meditations. Just do...multiply times five. Do the next five. Don't try to do all five, you don't have time. Pick one.

Pick the one that's most sexy to you. Age 15, pick another five.

[Speaker 2]
And then nine o'clock...

[Speaker 1]
When I did my three year retreat I stayed in a yurt for three years. I think the yurt is still there. I think we should take it down, to be honest.

Maybe I can help or something. I think we should just take down all the things that are not being used. Because they make the place look trashy or something.

So anything we're not using that's falling apart, we should just... we should make the place clean. It's like having junk in your house.

Anyway. It's very, very nice to do mantras under the stars. You can take a chair outside and just look at the sky and watch the stars.

I know, especially in China, oftentimes you cannot see the stars. In Phoenix, where I grew up, you cannot see the stars because of the city light. I think it's very good for your spiritual life if you enjoy the stars.

The Kalachakra Tantra says that. Spend some time, enjoy the stars here. Go outside, dress warm.

The desert gets very cold at night, as you know. It changes, how many degrees? 30 degrees?

40 degrees? A good meditator in the desert has lots of layers. They have T-shirt, then they have a shirt, then they have an over-shirt, then they have a sweater, then they have a shawl.

In the morning they have everything. Then at 10 o'clock they take off the shawl. At 11 o'clock they take off the sweater.

At 12 o'clock they take off the shirt. Then they put it back on at 5 o'clock, 6 o'clock, 7 o'clock. That's how people meditate.

Don't get cold on the floor meditating. Make sure you don't get cold. That's not good for you.

I forgot to mention, as you know, but I'm going to say it again, there are snakes here in the desert and they are poisonous. They're called rattlesnake. They have these two teeth.

They have an injection, poison. Serious poison. You have to be careful not to step on them.

They are peaceful. They don't want to... You are too big to eat.

They use the poison to kill small animals. Then they eat them. The jaw goes like...

When they see a human, they don't want to hurt you because that's a waste of their energy. They cannot eat you. They will not hurt you.

They will give you a warning. It sounds like... Can anybody do it?

They have a little thing on their tail. They go... If you hear it, stop.

Don't walk. Find out where are they. Then just turn around and go the other way.

Don't say, Oh, what's that? I think 90% of people who get bitten are trying to play with them, or they are trying to push them. It's very rare they will bite you.

In my three-year retreat, we had many, many snakes. One night I had five around my... inside my fence.

They won't hurt you, but don't step on them. They are hard to see. Look where you put your feet.

Don't step over a rock or a log. You cannot see what's on the other side. Be careful with them.

If you get bit, or if you have an emergency, make a lot of noise, and someone will come and help you. We had one person in our retreat got bit on her finger right here. She had to go to the hospital.

Try not to. I think so far we've been pretty lucky. I don't want you to be the first one.

That's part of having a retreat center in a wild place. We can have the retreat center in the city, and you can't have a good retreat, because it's too noisy. There's too many cars, and too much energy.

When you go to the country, you have animals, and you have to share your space because they were here first. We have to respect their rights also. Wednesday, get up a little bit earlier.

You have to watch your schedule. I moved it earlier every day. Don't eat before your first meditation.

Just have some tea. If you can, stop black tea, stop coffee during the three days. It's not good for your meditation.

Then do the jor chu, the first part from here. Then go back to the first five meditations. Maybe choose a different one.

Then do your yoga. Then a light breakfast. Then goof off very well.

Then do the second part of this with the next five meditations. Choose.

[Speaker 2]
Same schedule. For Wednesday.

[Speaker 1]
Thursday, same schedule in the morning, up until 10.45. Then we'll start... Right, Melissa? We'll start bringing you back to the temple.

Then you can have... at 11.30 we'll do a short ceremony to open the boundaries. Before you come down on the bus, you have to take the boundary markers off of your cabin.

Why? They block traffic. Spirits cannot move.

Good spirits, bad spirits, nobody can move. It's like stop signs everywhere. They really work.

They're for real. They really stop spirits. They're irritated.

They don't like them because they can't go everywhere. It's important to take them off of your cabin. Take them off the opposite way that you put them up.

First one in front of your door, the side of your front door, take that one off first. Then go to the right. If this is my door, I will take that one off first.

Then I'll take this one off. The opposite of how I put them on. Then I'll take this one off, and then I'll take that one off.

What do you do with them? They are like scripture. They have holy words on them.

One of your refuge vows is to treat anything with holy words on it as Buddha's speech. Don't throw them in the garbage. I like to keep them in my house.

Then I look at them sometimes. Oh, that was 1985 Grand Canyon retreat. That was a good one.

I like to keep them. There's kind of good luck for people who are sick or something. When you get home, you can give them to a sick person, put it on their bed or something, and it's good for them.

It has a good energy. Then after that we'll take a group photo. Don't forget, try to look beautiful at 11.45 on Thursday. Then you can go back to normal at 12. Try to dress nice. For the photograph.

Then we'll have some more classes. We cut this retreat by one day because we had a special event after it, which was cancelled. But it was too late to change it.

It was the second term at the college, but we made the terms longer and we made less terms. Sorry about that. All right.

Let's go...

[Speaker 2]
What time do we stop Tim? 8.45?

[Speaker 1]
8.30. Well, I was going to give you questions but I talked too much, which is usual. Let's do some scripture. Let's go there.

This is one of the benefits of taking refuge. Ready? Hang in there.

You got 45 minutes. Let's use the time. MI DANG MI YIN GYIS GNOD PAS KYANG MI TSUG STE This is part of meditation number 13.

Which means if you're taking refuge regularly, if you're using the four steps regularly, then spirits can't harm you much and people cannot harm you much.

[Speaker 2]
Why? Just always go back to the second husband because you understand where they're coming from.

[Speaker 1]
So they get less. Shantideva complained, I don't like these four steps. His teacher said, Why?

He said, I don't have any enemies to be patient with. It just gets less and less every week. I don't like this system.

How am I supposed to become more patient if I don't have any enemies? It will get less and less. MI DANG MI YIN GYIS GNOD PAS KYANG MI TSUG STE MUD TE LUNG BZHAG SBYUG PAS SNANG MED RGYAS NYAN GZHI NUS ZHIG LA LUNG BZHAG PANG KYANG BLAG MA NYED PA DANG There's a demon who uses a special power called LUNG BZHAG.

LUNG means what? Wind. BZHAG PA means lasso, like a cowboy in a rodeo to catch things with a rope.

If he puts this on you, you start to have sickness and things like that. There was some bad guy chasing a Buddhist Genyan, lifetime layman's vow person, and he was chasing him with this special noose, trying to cause him trouble. BLAG MA NYED PA means he couldn't pull it off.

It's an idiom in Tibetan. He couldn't get it... the noose didn't work on the guy.

The spirit couldn't hurt him. You want to hear the whole story? I found it.

Okay. This is by someone named Kirti Rinpoche. MUD TE LUNG BZHAG GRUB PA'I GTAM NI Here's the story of the guy who tried to catch the Buddhist with his noose.

NGON MUD TE PA ZHIG GI DBANG CHUG CHEN PO'I GRUB PAS There was a non-Buddhist guy, mean guy, GRUB PA'I, and he reached some kind of special bad powers. LUNG GI ZHAG PA ZER BA'I ZHAG PA ZHIG BYIN That bad spirit gave him this special magic rope. DE'I GANG LA BTAB KYANG DBANG DU MIN DU BA MED PA ZHIG YIN If he catches you with that rope, you have to do what he says.

You can't refuse. Nobody. LEN CIG CIG PA ZHIG LA BTAB PA'I DE DBANG DU MA DUS Then he saw a mother with a small child in her arms and he thought, I will take control of the child.

So he put the rope over the child's head. But it didn't work. The rope didn't work.

ZHAG PA DE BDEG TSE CI BA'I CI BA DE LA BDEG KYANG MI ZHIG Up to that time, every person he put the rope on died. He killed them. But he put the rope on the kid and nothing happened.

Then, DBANG NA LUNG ZHAG GI NUS PA NYAMS SAM NYAMS NAS Then this bad guy started to think, maybe my magic rope lost its power. CIG ZHIG PA DEG PAS So he saw a dog and he put the rope around the dog's neck. DE MA THAG ZHI BA'I And immediately dog died.

So he said, okay, so my rope is okay. It's not a, what do you call it? Malfunction rope.

LUNG ZHAG GI NUS PA MA NYAMS PAR RTOGS PAS CI BA DE LA YON TAN ZHIG YOD NGES PAS Then he thought, this kid must have some kind of magic power. DE'I RGYUD DGOS NYAMS NAS CIG PAS Then he asked, I forget, it doesn't say who he asked. Anyway, maybe he asked the Buddha or something.

What's so special about this kid? YON TAN GZHAN GANG YANG MED This kid has no other powers. KHO BA'I RGYUR GSUNGS LA BSKYABS SU SONG BA ZHI YIN When he was very young, he had an idea of taking refuge.

This kid took refuge once, correctly. So it's not going to work. Your rope won't work on him.

[Speaker 2]
So it means if you take refuge, they can't hurt you.

[Speaker 1]
And the story ends, the bad guy became a good Buddhist. RGYA RGYUN NAS MI PHYI LAS RGYAL PO PHYIN POG DE'I GDUR DU DUG PO BA NA Then in India, they didn't bury people, they just threw them in a field, burial ground. And they didn't bury them under the ground, they just throw the dead body in this field.

And then that became a very frightening place because animals would come to eat the bodies. Dangerous animals would come to eat the bodies at night. So it used to be a punishment.

Like if somebody stole something and the king wanted to punish them, they make them stay in that field the whole night. DUR DU DUG PO BA NA GZHAN MA DUR DU DER GYUR BA THAMS CAD DE NUB NAS MI MIN SHA SA LTA BU RGYUR TE SANGS SBROR BA Then generally, anybody they threw in that field would be carried away by evil spirits and killed and eaten. GCIG KYANG BDAG PA MI YONG Nobody survived.

KHOS RGYEN RTEN GYI SNAB ZAD ZAL NA ZHIG CHI BAR ZHAGS NAS ZHIG CHI BAR ZHAGS NAS MI MIN GYI NUS PA MA TSUD PA Then he found a little piece of somebody's robe, this Buddhist robe, in the graveyard. He found this little piece. He put it on his head.

Then he said, I take refuge in Buddha, I take refuge in Dharma, all night. And spirits couldn't touch him. Then you guys don't believe in spirits and I'm sorry, but they exist and they cause a lot of trouble.

And it's not some kind of superstition. There's a joke in hell that the greatest thing that demons have done in this world in the last couple hundred years is make people think they don't exist. That's their best accomplishment in this world.

It's kind of funny. They're very happy about that. They don't believe in us up there.

So we can do whatever we want. SNGON SGROL PA'I MI ZHIG SA STONG DU ZHAGS CIG LUS PA PHRAD KYIS GSUNGS DE ZHIG LA SKAD DU BYED Then there was a nomad, sheep herder in Tibet. He was sleeping outside and one night a bear caught him.

We have bears here also. You don't want to meet them. ZHIG LA SKAD DU BYED Almost killed him.

If you see a bear, just turn around and walk the other way. Just turn around. Don't go running because they like it.

Just back up and walk away. Okay. Hi.

Bye. ZHIG LA SKAD DU BYED I think there's not any right now around. Don't worry.

CI SOS NAS DGOS MA'I RUR SONG BA LA He got a terrible scar on his face from the bear attack. LAM MA ZHIG GIS DE RGYUD GCIG PA NA One Lama asked him, why you have this scar on your face? KHO LO RGYUR ZHES PAS He told the Lama the story.

Oh, I was sleeping and a bear caught me. Then LAM MA'I KHYIM DU MED NGAGS BSTAN Then the Lama said, next time, try doing the refuge. SANGS RGYAS CHOS DANG RDZOGS KYI CHOS NA MA BYANG CHUB PA LUS DAG NAS KHYAMS SU BYED That's refuge, okay?

Probably he's saying it so bad that the bear ran away. I don't know. KHYAMS SU BYED PA'I MED NGAGS BSTAN He taught him to do the prayer.

CI ZHIG YANG RGYAL BYAS DANG THUG SKABS Then he ran into another bear later. KHYAMS SU BYED PA'I He did the SANGS RGYAS CHOS DANG RDZOGS KYI CHOS NA MA BYAS DE NA RNOM TZAM BYAS NAS MIN CI TZAM YANG MA TSOR BAR SONG BA Then the bear was smelling to find him. Sometimes the wild animals here find you by smell.

They cannot find you. They don't have good eyes. So they're like...

But he couldn't find him. And he just left. One time I met a deer in the forest.

I was doing retreat and we just both stopped. I stopped, he stopped. And he's looking at me and I'm looking at him.

Then I thought, let's see how he likes mandala offering. ZA'I ZAS ZA'I ZHIG BU GYIS GYUR ZHIG Because in the Buddhist scripture it says they like songs. And I sang him the mandala.

And he was like... And he stayed through the whole mandala. It was very beautiful.

Quiet moment in the forest and he's just like... They like it. Animals like singing.

[Speaker 2]
And everybody likes mandala. Okay. What time is it?

8.30? 8.15? Oh man.

[Speaker 1]
Okay, I'm going to keep going. I know you're tired. So am I.

Let's just keep going. KHYIM BDAG DGOS MED ZAD BYIN GYIS KHYAMS SGROL ZIGS BSAM LTOS BZHIN DU TSE MO'I DUS GRUB TU SONG BA'I LAM MTHONG BZHIN MI MA YIN GYI GNOD PA'I BYAMS MA NUS LA MTHUGS PA'I LHA STE ZHIG LA CHAGS GSAL NAS NYAMS PAS BLO RGYUD LTAR DANG So there was a Buddhist named Anathapindada.

[Speaker 2]
Who is that? Yeah.

[Speaker 1]
He bought the park for the Buddha where the Buddha taught the diamond cutter. Anathapindada means people who have nobody to help them. Pindada means gives them food.

His name is Mr. Gives Food to People Who Have Nobody to Help Them. That's his name. Anathapindada.

Then he learned how to say SANGS RGYAS CHOS DANG TSOGS KYI GNOD NA Okay, in Sanskrit. I don't know what it is, but he learned how to say. TSE MO'I GDUG BYED TU SONG BA'I LAM MTHONG BZHIN He was stuck in a dangerous burial ground that night.

And because he recited the SANGS RGYAS CHOS DANG TSOGS KYI GNOD NA he could see a path through the graveyard. And he got away. MI MA YIN GYI GNOD PA'I BYAMS MA NUS PA The spirits couldn't hurt him.

MTHUGS PA'I LHA STE ZHIG LA CHAGS GSAL NAS Then one day he prostrated to a stupa. Non-Buddhist stupa. And he lost that power.

NYAMS PAS love you. YANG RGYAS LONG ZHIG LA GZHAN GYIS RE BU BA KUN MED MTHONG NAS TSE MO'I KHUR BAS KHUR RONG PA'I TSE RGYAS RNGON GYI THAB BYED NAS MTHONG NAS KHO'I BSLAB PA GYIS This is a cute story.

[Speaker 2]
There was a monk and someone gave him cloth to make new robes.

[Speaker 1]
Then a robber saw him carrying the cloth home. MTHONG NAS TSE MO'I KHUR RONG BAS Then the robber came at night to steal the cloth. RGYAS RNGON GYI THAB BYED NAS Then the monk was kind of strong and he caught him.

BSLAB PA GYIS means he tied his hands. KHO'I MCHOG GSUM GYI MTSAN NAS SMOS TE YUL PA'I LEN GSUM DU RGYAL PA'I Then he took a big stick and he said, I take refuge in the Buddha. I take refuge in the Dharma.

I take refuge in the Sangha. He beat him each time, one time. So he got hit on the head three hard times.

Buddha, Dharma, Sangha. KHO'I MCHOG GSUM LEN GSUM DU RGYAL PA'I KU MA DE PHYIR TE Then the thief ran away. He's got three bumps on his head.

MI MA YIN PA'I RGYU BA'I BSAM PA ZHIG GIS OG TU SNGA RGYAS RNGON GYI BYOS PA GYAL BYIN Then he went and hid under a bridge. That bridge at night was used by many bad spirits. It was a highway for bad spirits at night.

So actually a very dangerous place to stop. But he didn't know that. So he went to the bridge.

He hid under the bridge. These very dangerous spirits are coming and going on the bridge. Then he was talking to himself.

He said, that monk, he hit me three times. He said, Buddha, Dharma, Sangha. DE GSUM LAS MED PA LTAB LAS I'm glad there's only three jewels.

DE LAS MANG TZAM YON NA KHO NAM PA DU If there was more than three jewels, he would have killed me. KHO NA CHEN NAS BDE MED He just said it quietly to himself. He said, I know he's yelling Buddha, he's yelling Dharma, Sangha.

Then because he's repeating those three words, the spirits couldn't touch him. Otherwise they would kill him. But he kept saying to himself, stupid monk.

It was Buddha, Dharma, Sangha. Why do you say Buddha, Dharma, Sangha? Then the spirits couldn't hurt him because he's saying these good words.

Kind of funny. BSAM MED DANG DU MI MA YIN PA RGYUD MA NUS PAS The words also caused a traffic jam on the bridge because the spirits couldn't go past it. They got really upset with him because they can't go past the place where someone's reciting Buddha, Dharma, Sangha.

RANG RES YANG GAL LA THUG NA JIG RTAG MI BYAS PA Then he gets serious and he says, people like us, if you get into a really dangerous situation, somebody's pointing a gun at you or something. I don't know. It happened to me another time.

Somebody had a gun, they were going to shoot me. That moment, somebody's got the gun at you. Then at that moment he says, don't get freaked out, don't worry.

You got refuge. BLO DANG BLO DANG means you have a Dharma insurance policy. DANG means insurance, like guarantee or insurance.

BLO DANG KHO NYID RTOG LA STE DE Just think of the Buddha, Dharma, Sangha. SKYABS NAS GCIG CHOG CHE NAS RGYAL SRID RTOG DGOS Stick to that, those three, Buddha, Dharma, Sangha, and you don't have to worry. So it's good to have it ready.

NGAN SONG GI SKYE BA BDAG PA'ANG PHAG TU SKYE NGES PA'I LHA'I BU ZHIG GIS PHYI KHAR RGYA RJUN LA SKYABS CHU BA NA DE SKYABS MA NUS PAR SANGS RGYAS NA ZHUS SANGS RGYAS KYI SKYAMS ROL DANG PA BSTAN PAR BZHIN LHA'I BU'I SKYAMS ROL BYED PAR BZHIN DU ZHIG NGAN SONG GI SKYE BA BDAG PA'ANG Also it can stop you from going to a lower rebirth. PHAG TU SKYE NGES PA'I LHA'I BU ZHIG GIS There was a young man living in the lands of the devas. Worldly gods.

They have a thing that just before they die they can see where they're going. They're called kapsumba sometimes. One of the most famous prayers of Tsongkhapa is called kapsumba.

Kapsumba means three times. They can see where they are now, they can see where they came from, and they can see where they're going. It's a synonym for deva.

Three timers. So their suffering is very great because they can see where they're going to go after they die. And he saw he's going to be born as a pig.

LHA'I BU ZHIG GIS LHA'I BU ZHIG GIS RGYA' BYIN LA BSKYABS CHU BA NA He took refuge in the chakra, which is like Indra, who themselves is in samsara. They're just in a better samsara for a while. DE'I BSKYAB MA NUS PAR But Indra knew he couldn't help protect him.

So Indra went to the Buddha and said, can you help this guy? He's praying to me. I don't have the power to help him.

SANGS RGYAS KYI KHYAMS SGROL DANG PA BRTAN PA BZHIN Then the Buddha came and taught about taking refuge to the young deva. LHA'I BU'I KHYAMS SGROL BYED BZHIN DU ZHIG And then the deva, young deva, young god, he died taking refuge. BYAS SU RGYA' BYIN TE GANG TU SKYE RDUG LTAGS PA NA Then chakra decided to check where was he reborn.

This powerful god wanted to check where was he reborn. BSA'I RNAMS KYI RANG SRE'I SEMS KYI NAS OB MA RNAMS MTHONGS GA'O DGOMS MA MI MTHONGS And he couldn't find him. In all the realms of the universe.

He checked the whole universe and he couldn't find him. Because it's the nature of people at those high levels that they can only see the people below them. They can't see the people above them.

You see what I mean? And they open them, GOM MA MI MTHONG BA'I CHOS CAN YIN PAS BDE MA MTHONG NAS SANGS RGYAS LA ZHUGS PAR Then Shakra asked Lord Buddha, Where is this guy? I can't find him.

I don't see where he was reborn. Then Buddha said, He's busy. He's in Tushita.

He went to Tushita. And that's above your place. So you can't see him.

So he was supposed to be born as a pig. But he died with Buddha's name on his lips. So he was born in Tushita.

Modern people don't believe in Tushita. They don't believe they can be a pig. They don't believe in all...

Okay, I'm sorry. DE LTA BU'I BAG TU SKYE NGES PA'I LHA'I BUD NGAN SONG GI SKYE BA GDOG PA'I MI TSE PAR Not only was he not born as a pig, LHA GNAS THUN PA DE TZAM DU SKYES NA He was born in this divine realm. THA LTA RANG RES SANGS RGYAS CHOD SOGS MA SOGS DONG SKABS DE LA GNAS CHEN PO YOD PAR MI SHES PAR BAR YANG TSOR YANG CHE DE SDOD Then Pabongka Rinpoche said, I taught you guys every single class.

You start with SANGS RGYAS CHOD YANG SONG GI BYANG RNAM LA He says, I'm trying to help you. I want it burned into your brain. Because if you just think of it when you're dying, you won't go down.

He said, that's why I told you, you have to do this prayer every single class. SANGS RGYAS CHOD YANG SONG GI BYANG RNAM LA Okay, you ready? In the monastery.

SANGS RGYAS CHOD YANG SONG GI BYANG RNAM LA BYANG CHUB PAR DU DAG NAS RGYAL TSUL GYI DAG NAS CHEN TSUL GYI PA'I GSOS RNAMS KYIS DANG NA DPA'I PHYIR SANGS RGYAS DU PAR CHOG SANGS RGYAS CHOD YANG SONG GI BYANG RNAM LA BYANG RNAMS PAR DU DAG NAS RGYAL TSUL GYI DE'I TSUL BYAS KYI RGYAS BDAG GYI BDE BA DE BYAS NA BYANG RGYAS DE BRTZON PA DE RGYAL DU DGA'O BYANG RGYAL RGYAL DU RGYI RGYEN NA BYANG PA DANG BYANG RGYUL BSAM PA RGYEN NA BYANG MA DANG THAG ZHIG TU ZHIG PA'I DE'I TSUL BYAS BYANG MA DE SANGS RGYAS RNAMS GNOMS SHES BYAR BA'I PHYIR KYIS RNAMS NA RGYAS RTING NGE BRTZON RNAMS NYON MO SHUGS SO YANG DE'I TSUL BYAS BYANG RGYAS And my Papa Chenry said, why don't you be sure? He said, Bardo du che-pa nyi-pa...

Heart Sutra. And they don't think about it once. They recite twenty-one in a row before the debates.

And it's amazing. Nobody's listening to it at all. It's amazing.

I mean some people probably. But don't get in this bad habit before class. Somebody starts a sanggye chodron.

So you're just like, okay, think about the meaning. What's the meaning of the mandala before class?

[Speaker 2]
SA GZHI YI PO GYI RJE BZHIN MED TO DAG What's the meaning? Yeah, offering a perfect world.

[Speaker 1]
It means when the people put their hands like this, you're supposed to imagine a world where everybody is using the four steps. Everybody. Whole world.

Every businessman is trying to make other businessmen successful. Every country is trying to make other countries successful. Everybody who wants a cute girlfriend is trying not to hurt other people's relationship.

And then the whole world is like heaven. Because the whole world is using the four. So the whole world is taking refuge.

So when you do the mandala, just think about it. This is DCI reached, I don't know, Africa. And everybody is using the four steps.

Think like that. Don't waste your time. Offer a perfect world.

That's the meaning of mandala. Mandala means a world where everybody is taking refuge. I got the whole story from the Kangyur.

It's not that interesting. So I'm not going to spend the time. It's pretty long.

If you want to, I'll give it to you. You can try to translate it. It's pretty long.

It's called the story of the wild pig.

[Speaker 2]
It's a sutra. It's long.

[Speaker 1]
And the story is in there. Last thing. I still got eight minutes, right Tim?

SVA BA BA SOGS KYIS TSE BSGOM BSAM DOG GYIS DMIGS TSUM TSUM GYIS SOGS BYAS Okay. OM ZUGS PA BA ZHUGS LA ZAG PA'I DANG MA ZUGS PA BA ZHUGS LA HANG RTOGS PA NYID DU RGYUR RTOGS PA'I NGANG NAS YAMS DANG NUR RANG NAS MED BA'A'I MI MI DGE PA'I RGYUR MI GYIS RIGS KYIS RIGS KYIS RIGS NYID DU'A'I LAS LTOS PA YANG ZHING RGYAS BYAS BA'I NUS DU'ANG MA GANG MA'ANG MA DRANG MA'ANG HUNG RIGS KYIS BDE DAG GIS RTZA BA'I DUNG YOD MED PAR BA'I THOB PA'I RNAMS KYI RNAMS BZHIN Okay, this is some tantric, deep tantric thing. And you're supposed to go like this. We say, ,'ONG SU BA BA ZHUGS LAS DBANG BA DAG LA ZHUGS BA BA YIN NA'ANG, ,DUG BA NI YANG MNGON DANG YANG DUG PA YANG YI RGYUR GYUR BYANG CHUB YIN NA'ANG DUG BA DBANG BA, ,'ONG MA MA BTAG MO'I DUG PA YIN NA'ANG, ,DUG BA NI YANG YANG DUG PA YANG YI RGYUR GYUR BYANG CHUB YIN NA'ANG, ,DUG BA MI'I MNGA' MNGA' MA MA BTAG MO'I DUS GYUR NA'ANG, Then Pabongka's making fun of those guys.

He says, Oh, those guys, tantric college, They pretend to be having this deep meditation. They're hoping the sponsor is looking at them. Not everybody, okay?

It's just possible. I'm not saying... Some of them really are having tantric experience.

I believe that. But it's possible some are not serious. Okay?

Possible. I'm not saying all the monks are like that. They're not.

Those monasteries are the most blessed place on the earth. And what's happening there is unbelievable. And everybody should try it.

There's no place like that in the world. But there are some fake guys. Okay?

I think so. Anyway, he said that. MIG MTSUM MTSUM SOGS BYAS MIG MTSUM MTSUM means like this.

With your eyes. And then SOGS BYAS means fake it. ZOB.

Just look for ZOB. Space.

[Speaker 2]
Space ZOB. You got it. Space ZOB.

There you go.

[Speaker 1]
SOGS BYAS PA NI, SNANGS PA'I BYUNG GO DANG NGAN SONG GI SKYE BA RTOGS PA'I THOB MED DU CHUNG BA GANG NA YOD MA SHES PA'I RANG LTAG BSTAN PA YIN SNANGS PA'I BYUNG GO DANG NGAN SONG GI SKYE BA RTOGS PA'I THOB MED DU CHUNG BA GANG NA YOD MA SHES PA'I You are demonstrating by your tantric practice that you don't understand how it is that you become a Buddhist. By this deep, deep tantric practice you are showing... Say GUG LTAG BSTAN.

GUG LTAG BSTAN GUG LTAG BSTAN My Lama used to tell it to me all the time. GUG means idiot. I taught you that, Shintokupa.

GUG LTAG BSTAN means if you are a fool and you walk into a room of wise people, you are okay if you keep your mouth shut. They won't realize you are a fool. You see?

If you walk into a room with a bunch of really great Lamas, keep your mouth shut. Maybe they think you are the same. But if you open your mouth and you start to talk, that's called advertising your gukpa.

Advertising your gukpa. So, Pabongka Rinpoche said people who do this deep tantric practice, they are ringing bells and banging things. He said GUG LTAG BSTAN.

GUG LTAG BSTAN Better you didn't say anything. We might have thought you were wise. Got it?

Okay.

[Speaker 2]
He said, you want to show you are intelligent?

[Speaker 1]
You want to show you are a real tantrica? It's not with this, whoa. All these American people, if somebody rings a bell or wears a special hat, they all run there and they give money and they take initiations.

It's funny. They don't even know the teacher. The teacher doesn't know them.

They don't get their vows. They just pay some money and they think because the lama is banging on things and say some strange words, they think, oh, this must be special. Pabongka Rinpoche says what's special is the second husband.

Okay? That's a high tantrica. Okay?

Come home, husband says you're an idiot and you go, you...

[Speaker 2]
Yeah, yeah, okay. All right.

[Speaker 1]
That's okay. That's a tantrica. Okay, got it?

They don't have this, whoa, and they're not ringing a bell. They don't have special... It's amazing how many people get excited by bell and they're ringing boom, boom, boom and wow, wow, wow.

Oh, they must be very big lama. I'm not saying it, Pabongka is saying it. Pabongka says the wife who comes home and stops what she...

phantom? Stops to call her husband stupid, that's a tantric. That's a tantrica.

Not these big guys with the crowns and the bells. Okay, really, really. That wife who comes home and understands the emptiness of her husband is more advanced.

Okay, got it? She's more advanced. She's really practicing the root of tantra.

[Speaker 2]
Okay, got it? That's very cool and it's true. Okay?

It's true. Okay, we'll stop there.

[Speaker 1]
That's a cool place to stop. Okay? If you stop yourself from hurting someone who hurt you because you realize you made them, you're a high secret Buddhist.

Okay? You are more advanced than all those tantric guys. Okay?

Got it? All right. All right.