‘The Path to Happiness’ A Dhamma Talk by Sogyal Rinpoche
Presented by the RIGPA Fellowship (Melbourne)
Thursday 13 February 2003
Dallas Brooks Centre
300 Albert Street, East Melbourne 3001
This paper was written by:
Mr Julian Bamford BA AppRec
Director, Buddhist Discussion Centre (Upwey) Ltd.
President, Chan Academy Australia
Secretary, Standing Committee on Publication, Publicity, Education, Culture and Arts, World Fellowship of Buddhists
Assistant Editor, Longhair Australian News
Assistant Editor, Brooking Street Bugle
Presenter, Buddhist Hour Radio Broadcast
The paper was published on 3 March 2003.
It is from notes made of Sogyal Rinpoches talk and attempts to relate the main themes of the talk and where able capture as closely as possible the Rinpoche's words, anecdotes and stories.
The writer humbly apologises for any error or misinterpretation that he may have made in his note takings and requests the understanding of the Rinpoche, the great Teachers and the reader.
May the blessings of the triple gem bless you.
1. An Introduction to Sogyal Rinpoche and the Dhamma Talk ‘The Path to Happiness’
A representative from RIGPA Melbourne welcomed the guests and audience of over 850 persons to the Public Dhamma Talk by Sogyal Rinpoche at the Dallas Brooks Centre in Melbourne on 13 February 2003.
The Chan Academy Australia’s Resident Practitioners and Buddha Dhamma Teachers John and Anita Hughes attended the talk as special guests of RIGPA Melbourne. Our Chan Academy Australia President Mr. Julian Bamford was their driver and attendant for the evening.
John and Anita met with fellow guests Sandup, and Dr. Ranjith Hettiarachi from the Buddhist Foundation (Vic) Australia, a Regional Centre of the World Fellowship of Buddhists. Also in the audience were our Centre’s Members and friends Julie O’Donnell, Rani Hughes, Jocelyn Hughes and Lainie Smallwood.
As part of the introduction the Convenor spoke of Sogyal Rinpoche’s work and his program of Buddha Dhamma teachings and meditation retreats at Centres around the world.
In a hands-up poll of the audience about 35% (approximately 280 persons) signalled that they had not heard a Dhamma talk before.
Sogyal Rinpoche’s Dhamma teaching programs bring him to Australia each year. His first visit to Australia was in 1985 and our Teacher John D. Hughes recalls attending the Rinpoches first Melbourne talk with some of his students.
2.Buddha Dhamma Teacher, Translator and Aide to Great Masters
Born in Kham in eastern Tibet, Sogyal Rinpoche was recognised as the incarnation of Lerab Lingpa Terton Sogyal, a teacher to the 13th Dalai Lama, by Jamang Khyentse Chokyi Lodro, one of the most outstanding masters of the twentieth century,
Jamang Khyentse Chokyi Lodro supervised Rinpoche’s training. Rinpoche has studied with many masters, of all schools, especially Kyabje Dudjom Rinpoche and Kyabje Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche.
First as a translator and aide to these masters, and then teaching in his own right. He travelled to many countries, observing the reality of people’s lives, and searching for how to translate the teachings of Buddha Dhamma to make them relevant to modern men and women, by drawing out their universal message while losing none of their authenticity, purity and power.
Rinpoche is the Teaching Holder of the Lineage of Dogzchen.
He has studied in both the University of Delhi India and the University of Cambridge UK.
His book The Tibetan book of Living and Dying has been published in 26 languages and sold over 1.5 million copies in 54 countries around the world.
It has been adopted by colleges, groups and institutions, both medical and religious, and is used extensively by nurses’ doctors and health care professionals.
Sogyal Rinpoche teaches world wide, addressing thousands of people in his teaching programs and is a frequent speaker at major conferences.
There is an annual calendar of retreats and teachings at RIGPA Centres in France, Ireland, Germany, UK and major cities in Australia. Teachings are also provided through RIGPA’s Australian ‘bush telegraph’ network of students.
3.‘The Path to Happiness’ and Practice of Dzogchen or “Great Perfection”
The practice of Dzogchen, or “Great Perfection”, is the most ancient and direct stream of wisdom within the Buddhist tradition of Tibet. It is considered the very pinnacle of all teachings, and the most immediate path towards enlightenment.
As a way in which to realise the innermost nature of mind, Dzogchen is the clearest, most effective, and most relevant to the modern world. It is the path at once simple and profound, one that can be integrated with ordinary life and practise anywhere.
The Rinpoche explained to the audience in the first minutes of his talk that he was going to give the complete Buddha Dhamma path.
He began with the words:
Looking at the world today...and being human....the main purpose of life is to be happy. All people share that same goal.
Buddhism is all about ultimate happiness or enlightenment. Following the spiritual path. It is nothing more than practice to achieve enlightenment, to be completely free from suffering.
Whatever happiness we have now is only temporary.
Where do we find ultimate happiness within ourselves?
It cannot be found in anything external from ourselves. But unfortunately we spend most of our time looking outside.
As an old story tells: it is as if you have left your elephant at home and gone to look for its footprints in the forest’.
While there is a small percentage of happiness and suffering that comes from outside circumstances, ultimately happiness and suffering depend upon the mind.
The term Dhamma is what Buddhism (or Buddha Dhamma) is all about. It is not so much about religion.
Dhamma can be understood on many levels. At the highest level Dhamma is ultimate truth. It is the absolute, no characteristics, and no methodology, described as ‘not even a hairs breadth of teaching’.
At the relative level it is the path leading to that truth. The realisation of the inherent nature of things. Dhamma at the relative level is the means to realisation.
At this point in his talk the Rinpoche asked the audience ‘are you ‘OK’. He then came down of the stage and stood at the front row of the audience and delivered the whole Dhamma talk from there.
4. The heart of the practice of Buddha Dhamma.
The Rinpoche commented that while his talk may be called a public talk, in reality he was giving a Dhamma talk. The most essential teaching...the heart of the practice of Buddha Dhamma.
Ultimate truth is the whole of dhamma.
Dhamma is the ultimate truth itself.
Relative truth or conventional truth is the path to realise the inherent nature of things.
The practise is to realise the inherent nature of everything.
Relative dhamma is to make it more accessible.
This is called ground path foundation.
5. What is the ‘Ground’ path foundation?
It is this, the original primordial teaching – Buddha nature.
What it speaks of is our potential seed, the seed for enlightenment in all of us.
One ground is that there is not the slightest difference between the Buddha and ourselves.
The second ground is that the Buddha recognised the adventitious stains, the temporary obscuration.
Ground is often represented by the primordial Buddha Sammanthabhadra Buddha.
Always well, always good. Forever unchanging fundamental nature which is unchanging, beyond words and thought.
As an example of primordial nature think of the sky.
In the sky the sun is shining this is like the Buddha.
Even though the sky and the sun may be obscured by cloud they are still there. The sky is still there; the sun is still shining.
The Great Perfection speaks of this very nature. Buddha nature is unstained and pure. At the highest level sooner or later you will get it. By hearing this dhamma teaching just once plants the seed.
There are three qualities: essence, nature and compassion.
Essence is the clear sky
Nature is the clear sun
Compassion is the shining of the sun – outwardly in all directions this is what compassion is like.
The whole point or purpose for following this path is to become like this.
Every being has the Buddha nature.
But our minds are rooted in ignorance – and the destructiveness of emotions brings negative kamma. Being like this, clouds our original nature our true nature.
6. Following a means of realising your true nature.
Buddha Dhamma is not about dogma – it is about following a means of realising your true nature.
There are three qualities or grounds. They are true nature, nature of truth, and the nature of Lord Buddha.
Essence is empty
Nature is cognisant
Compassion is confidence
Essence is sometimes described as shunyatta – great openness.
In mathematics if there were no ‘zero’ there would be nothing. The origin of zero is a topic that India’s past Prime Minister Nehru talked about in his book.
Emptiness or shunyata.
As an example it could be described as teaching or study in a very scholarly way. It is so rich. When we practise it has to become essential. Practice is experiential.
Way of teaching: da (permanence) che (non existence) brahva (real).
Truth is nature is the whole of nihilism and externalism.
The trouble is that because something exists we think it is permanent. An example is this glass of water.
You look at it, you see it here in my hand, you think it must be permanent. But what if it drops to the floor and breaks. Then breaks into smaller and smaller bits down to the size of an atom. And even atoms can be broken down until there is just light and energy.
It is not permanent even though it appears so.
Nothing is independently existing. If you and I would be permanent we wouldn’t die.
We are nature and nature is impermanent. Then we might say its nothing.
But it is not nothing either.
It appears because of many causes and conditions that each being creates for himself or herself.
This is what is called dependant origination.
In the Heart Sutra and the Prajna Paramita it is noted that form is emptiness – emptiness is form.
7. The practical benefits of discovering impermanence
What then is the practical benefit of this?
When you realise impermanence it helps us to let go of our attachments and grasping.
When a person has ignorance they believe that things are permanent, so then they grasp at them.
When they realise that things are impermanent then they will stop their attachment.
Love is not attachment. When a person grows more in freedom and letting go, from this action comes real love.
When you destroy an atom it releases tremendous energy.
When we destroy attachment it releases compassion.
When we realise impermanence we can let go and become free.
At the same time knowing that things are not permanent and not nothing.
Because of inter-dependence whatever words we say or think the resulting kamma is our own.
Nagajuna said: we are our own past.
Buddha said if you want to know your past, then look at your present.
Whatever we say or do, we have to be responsible, particularly what we think.
The Buddha’s words in the Dhammapada stated: we are what we think.
8. Mind is not just mind, it is also heart.
We are what we think – all that we are, misery and happiness, is the outcome of our own actions in the past.
When we do something noble it is a good thing, but if our motivation is screwed up the resulting kamma can be not so good.
Mind is free of permanence and non-existence.
The Buddha said commit not one single unwholesome action, avoid negativities and unwholesome harmful actions.
About unwholesome actions Shantideva said all the suffering there is in this world comes from thinking of oneself. All the happiness in the world comes from thinking of others.
While the essence of mind is emptiness, its nature is cognisant.
At a certain level everything breaks down to light and energy – clear light is cognisant nature. Awareness equals knowing of emptiness.
9. The usefulness of words as indicators of meaning
The basis or root of the problem is at the moment that light is misused by the ego.
We need to understand that words are only indicators of meaning.
To explain this another way, think of a movie projector.
The projector sends light onto a screen to light all our senses.
The phenomenon housed inside the projector is a light bulb that enables images resident on the film to projected onto a screen. But the bulb is not involved in the outcome, not at all.
Another example that explains this is a piece of rope on the ground.
The person fails to see the rope where it is, or what it is, but instead mistakes it for something else that is not there – a snake.
Ego is the nature.
Cognisance is cognition.
We use cognisance to get awareness of cognition.
The manifestation of energy of the enlightened mind.
There are three equal parts.
Wisdom that knows
Compassion that loves
Power that is able to conquer.
When you see the sky, the sun shines bright in it.
This an analogy for the enlightened mind
The tremendous light is wisdom
The tremendous warmth is compassion
Together they give life tremendous power – light - warmth – power - luminosity.
10.What is our real nature?
How can we show people their real nature?
Who are we?
When we are happy – that’s who we are
When we are sad – that’s who we are
We end up not only believing but becoming as well.
But this is only temporary.
Everything around us, everything we associate with ourselves is impermanent.
If you really look all these talks, stories come because of causes and conditions, were these to cease the stories would end.
If you look with your mind, if you exercise your good thoughts it is already past.
Because whatever arises when you start thinking, it is already gone.
A great master once said you can never have a thought in the present.
What is the essence or the nature of our mind? Clarity, cognisance, fundamental nature of mind is awareness.
With our mind is also that of our wants, feelings and understanding.
Our purest mind, purest feeling, purest heart. It is always with us, it always has been, it always will be with us.
The mind is there at all times, whether we are happy, high or low, sick or well.
Pure consciousness will continue until enlightenment.
The Dalai Lama said this consciousness is mind most conscious.
The Prajna Paramita and Heart Sutra speak of this.
Nagajuna said that it is beyond words, beyond thought, beyond description. The fundamental innate mind of Buddha is the ordinary mind – it is the most natural in the sense that it is nature.
Wisdom is ordinary whereas delusion is extraordinary.
It is simply your flawless present awareness, cognisance awakened.
When we come to discover this fundamental grounded mind then we discover ourselves.
11. Finding the antidote to suffering
The greatest source of suffering is not knowing who we really are.
People are under a great amount of stress, so much pressure on keeping morality. The new morality is not about good or bad but it is about whether living is fun or boring.
When you really practice meditation you can discover this incredible joy, compassion, love, in fact we discover ourselves.
Everything is with you, what the masters give is incredible love, wisdom, they show us but they cannot liberate us.
In order to realise, how to realise is to go straight there. There are some extraordinary beings, when they realise; they are liberated there and then.
We view and we see. With meditation we confirm and maintain the view as reality. Then we take action.
There is a direct approach.
Meditation on peace.
In order to remove distraction and mindlessness – the antidote is mindfulness – being in the present.
One is lightly mindful focussing on breathing, in and out, but not 100%. Place 25% on mindfulness of breathing.
Breathe in and breathe, knowing that you are breathing in and breathing out, no other analysis or commentary.
Pure attention for 5 to 10 minutes – this is anapannasati, meditation on the breath.
Thinking about this and that.
Another 25% is on our senses, whenever you feel your mind being distracted you bring your mind back to the breath.
Meditation is still purist. Breath is the object. Pure attention, pure attention. Slowly the mind will settle.
Breathing in breathing out. One pointedness is the foundation meditation. Shamatha meditation.
Now the preliminary. Now what is the essence, heart foundation of meditation? It is the state of non-state, this is the reality the goal.
12. Arousing bodhicitta for the sake of others
The state of non-distraction is simply knowing, nothing to meditate on. You are undistracted, undisturbed. Bodhicitta – compassion.
Stay in that meditation, and wait for a few moments, it has the power to purify much negative kamma.
You come closer and closer to the true state.
Bodhicitta - enlightenment
Heart of - enlightenment
Mind of - enlightenment
What is it?
Arousing bodhicitta for the sake of others is wanting to attain enlightenment.
What you really want to do is awaken them from suffering.
Bodhicitta – is love and compassion. It is wanting to free beings from suffering – wanting all beings to be free suffering and the causes of suffering.
It is wanting all beings to reach this state of enlightenment. Only this lasting happiness is the state of enlightenment.
Wisdom - love - enlightenment. There are two aspects:
Aspiration aspect
and
Action aspect.
Aspiration aspect is the goal. That you want all beings to be free from suffering.
Action aspiration is practising. Meditation, dana, patience, wisdom and the six paramitas.
You dedicate that course of action to all beings enlightenment.
By this power and the merit of this action may this become the causes for all beings to become enlightened.
That is the teaching, that is the practice.
If this practise is held for a few moments it has the power to purify many eons of negative kamma.
With the heart and wisdom of bodhicitta – you connect with it forever.
It is incredibly powerful. All that is needed is to pray very strongly for the peace and sanity of the world.
You must not sacrifice long term benefits for short-term gain.
Because in the long term you will suffer more pain.
13. The practise of calm abiding
Some persons are not able to remain in a state of undisturbed meditation. For those persons there is another method.
Use the five sense doors, because they are the source of negative emotions. For example:
Eye - beauty – desire
Eye – ugliness – abhorrence
If we really look deeply at something arising we see that there are many causes.
Objects of blame or anger are from many causes. To understand this we can become free of much suffering.
Even though negative emotions may arise, grasping has not yet arisen. It is only when you act on the negative emotion that is does become dangerous.
Many emotions can arise but it is how we respond to them.
Realise that the essence of mind is empty – from that emotion are empty. For example: as soon as you awake you are liberated.
It is when you start thinking why? It is then that problems, stresses begin to arise.
When you remain undisturbed and negative emotions clear. Our restless thinking subsides into peace.
This is the practise of calm abiding.
Our restless thinking mind subsides into a mind of peace.
Negativity and aggression are disarmed, unkindness removed, revealing our true happiness from a state of calm abiding. The confusion evaporates and gives peace from our emotions.
The more we purify and come in touch with our true nature the more our compassion can arise.
Knowing the quality of mind. This goodness is who we really are.
Buddha nature.
Skylight nature.
Wisdom and loving compassion radiate out.
Ego has dissolved and we simply rest in this nature of mind, a quiet state of confidence and peace we can ever imagine.
When we keep in this state of mind, we become more at peace.
Mind is peaceful.
By the power and the merit of this dhamma talk may it become the causes for all beings to become enlightened.
May you cultivate all the blessings from this talk
May you aide Buddha Dhamma Teachers, Translators and Great
Masters.
May you dedicate the blessings of reading this dhamma talk to
finding ultimate happiness within yourself.
May you practice to achieve enlightenment, to be completely free from suffering
May you come to realise your true nature, Buddha nature.
May you find peace within yourself
May you be well and happy
References:
RIGPA Melbourne, Centre for the Study and practice of Tibetan Buddhism. Program 2003 brochure.
Public Talk 'The Path to Happiness'. Sogyal Rinpoche. Australian Tour 2003 brochure. RIGPA Melbourne Centre.