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Buddhism proposes to get rid of suffering by getting rid of attachments or eight worldly dharmas(foundations). Literally translated as "what holds or supports." At first glance, it seems that eight worldly dharmas They bring happiness, but in reality they act like salty and spicy food: at first you get pleasure, but then you start to get thirsty.

Buddhists believe that eight worldly dharmas are the thieves that dwell within you. They will rob you until you recognize them and drive them out of your home. At least if you become aware of these eight worldly dharmas, then you will reduce the power of their manifestation in your life.

First and second worldly dharma – is to be happy from praise And be unhappy with criticism. Why is praise, if it gives happiness, a worldly dharma? The fact is that you experience states of happiness from praise due to the fact that you are attached to it. You like to be praised and you want to be praised again and again, and if you do not receive praise, then you get upset and worried.

Masters say: "Do not rejoice in praise, but rejoice in criticism." Criticism is a broom that sweeps up dirt. It is the same as if your face is dirty, and someone says to you: "Your face is dirty." What's there to be upset about? You just need to wash up. Criticism is just words. Whether you get better or worse depends largely on your own actions, not on how others see you.

When the Panchen Lama (title of the second, after the Dalai llamas, hierarch) was in a Chinese prison, the Chinese authorities applied both criticism and praise to him as measures of influence. The Panchen Lama behaved equally calmly when they insulted him, and when they praised him as the highest spiritual hierarch of Tibet. He maintained an invariably joyful mood. The Chinese were surprised by his behavior and asked why he reacted equally to praise and criticism. The Panchen Lama answered them, “I know who I am. Your words won't make me better or worse."

Third and fourth worldly dharma – is to rejoice in wealth and be unhappy in poverty. Many people have this concept. And as long as you have this concept, you will perceive wealth as happiness and poverty as unhappiness. But it's not. The poor suffer from poverty, but the rich also suffer from wealth.

You need to know the philosophy of the “wave”: luck in life is a wave that lifts you up, but sooner or later the same wave will fall down and you will fall down with it. When a person who knows this principle falls down with the wave, he will not be very upset, because he knows that then he will rise again. When you become richer, do not become attached to wealth, realizing that in fact you cannot become the owner of this wealth: nothing in the world can be acquired in your own property, you can only temporarily own it. Hence the conclusion: "Don't be too happy about wealth and don't be too upset about being poor."

The Fifth and Sixth Worldly Dharmas. In connection with them, there is a saying of the masters: "Do not rejoice in temporary happiness, but rejoice in temporary suffering." Attachment to temporary happiness and aversion to temporary suffering are worldly dharmas. The algorithm for cutting off attachment to temporary happiness is the same as for overcoming the worldly attitude to wealth. From a Buddhist point of view, what many people think of as happiness is not really happiness. Lying on the beach, overeating in restaurants, luxurious surroundings - that's all, there is no true happiness. If this were real happiness, then everyone who possesses it should feel happier and happier. But it's not. You can only drink up to a certain limit, and if you drink too much, it will bring you not happiness, but suffering. True happiness is nothing but a mind completely free from attachment. And when some temporary happiness arises in your life, tell yourself: “I shouldn’t cling to it: if it lasts, it’s good, if it ends, it doesn’t matter.” In general, if you manage to get the things you want, it's good, if you don't, it's also good. There is no need to cling to material objects. You don't have to have them. Life is short. The only thing that is indispensable for your true happiness is the freedom of the mind, and as for everything else, then if it is, it's good, if it isn't, it's okay.

What does it mean to rejoice in suffering from the point of view of Buddhism? Experiencing suffering at some point in your life, perhaps even physical pain, you will keep a calm mind, because you know that from the moment of birth, a person is subject to suffering - illness, aging, death. It only means that you have to accept suffering when it arises, but this does not mean that you do not need to make an effort to get rid of it. It is best to think like this: “If my suffering passes, then it will be very good, but if it does not pass, then it’s okay. I'll at least try to resist him."

Seventh and Eighth Worldly Dharmas are worldly dharmas that make you rejoice in a good reputation and be upset because of the bad opinion of others about you. Being attached to reputation and fame is like a drug, which is why Buddhism says that the end of a high position is falling down. And a wise person will think many times before climbing to the top: after all, the higher you climb, the more painful it is to fall. The best place finding is standing on the ground. And in a high place, you will move a little awkwardly, lose your balance and fly down. Having climbed to a great height, a person, most of the time, does not feel joy, he is always in fear: “Who will push me?”

In order for you to be able to reduce the power of influence eight worldly dharmas need constant and daily practice. This approach to life will make your mind calmer and calmer.

You can judge how well your practice is progressing only by encountering unfavorable circumstances in life. In fact, it is precisely such unpleasant situations that will give you the opportunity to show your strength. If you show calmness and endurance, meeting with misfortunes and troubles, then your practice is bearing fruit.

This is just how I understand the meaning eight worldly dharmas, may the true adherents of Buddhism forgive my free interpretation.

With love,
Life Improvement Specialist.

When Marpa sought out Naropa, he was living in poverty in a simple hut in the forests of Bengal. Marpa expected to find a great teacher in the middle of some highly organized religious setting; so he experienced some disappointment. However, he was somewhat embarrassed by the unusual situation of a foreign country; he wanted to find an excuse for what he saw and thought that, in all likelihood, this is the way of life of Indian teachers. Moreover, Naropa's fame outweighed his disappointment; so he gave Naropa most of his gold and asked him to teach. Marpa explained that he was a married man, a priest, scholar and farmer from Tibet, that he did not want to give up the life he had created for himself, but wanted to collect the texts, return to Tibet and translate them in order to earn a lot of money from it. Naropa very gently agreed to Marpa's request, gave him instructions, and everything went smoothly.

After some time, Marpa decided that he had collected enough teachings for his purposes and began to pack up for home. He reached a hotel in a large city, where he joined his traveling companion. Both decided to sit together and compare the results of their efforts. When Marpa's friend saw what he had collected, he laughed and said, “What you have collected is of no use to anyone! These texts are already in Tibet, you need to find something more exciting and rare. Here I have found extraordinary teachings, having received them from very great masters.”

Marpa

Of course, Marpa was extremely disappointed and shocked, because he had come such a long way with many difficulties and great expenses; so he decided to return to Naropa and try his luck again. When he came to Naropa's hut and asked for a rarer and more exotic, more difficult teaching, Naropa replied to his surprise, “I'm sorry, but now you cannot receive this teaching from me. You will have to go to another person named Kukkuripa and receive teachings from him. The path to it is difficult, especially because Kukkuripa lives on an island located in the middle of a poisonous lake. But this is exactly the kind of person you need to see if you want to receive such a teaching.”

This time Marpa became completely desperate and decided to find Kukkuripa. Among other things, Marpa thought that if this Kukuripa had a teaching that the great Naropa himself was unable to give him, if, moreover, he lives in the middle of a poisonous lake, then he must be an absolutely extraordinary person, a great mystic.

And so Marpa set out on his journey. He managed to swim across the lake; landing on the island, he began to look for Kukkuripa, and he found an old Indian man living in the mud among hundreds of dogs. The situation was unusual to say the least; however, Marpa still tried to talk to Kukkuripa. But everything he heard was pure nonsense; Kukkuripa said something completely incomprehensible.

The situation became almost unbearable, not only because Kukkuripa's speech was incomprehensible, but also because Marpa had to constantly be on the lookout for hundreds of dogs. As soon as he managed to make friends with one of them, the other began to growl and strove to bite him. Finally, out of temper, Marpa gave up all efforts, stopped trying to take notes, and gave up his intention to receive any secret doctrine whatsoever. Just at that moment, Kukkuripa began to speak to him in a completely understandable, coherent language, and the dogs stopped bothering him. Marpa received the teaching.

After completing his studies with Kukkuripa, he once again returned to his first guru, Naropa. Naropa said, “Now you must return to Tibet and teach. It is not enough to receive only a theoretical teaching. You have to go through certain life experiences. Then you can come back here again and study further.”

Marpa again met his fellow seeker with whom he had come to India; together they went on a long journey back to Tibet. Marpa's companion also learned a great deal; both carried piles of manuscripts with them and talked about what they had learned along the way. Soon Marpa began to feel some kind of awkwardness towards his friend: it seemed to him that he was more and more trying to find out what teachings Marpa had collected. Their conversations somehow got more and more insistent on this subject, until finally the comrade decided that Marpa had managed to obtain more valuable teachings, so he began to show real envy. And when they crossed some river on the ferry, Marpa's comrade began to complain that he was crushed by the load they were carrying, that it was uncomfortable for him to sit. He began to move to another place, as if trying to get comfortable - and, doing this, managed to drop all the manuscripts of Marpa into the river. Marpa desperately tried to save them. but in vain - his manuscripts were lost! All the texts he collected with such incredible difficulty disappeared in an instant.

And just like that, Marpa returned to Tibet with a sense of great loss. He talked a lot about his travels and activities, but he did not have any solid evidence of his own knowledge and experiences. However, he spent several years working and also teaching people, and after a while, to his surprise, he began to realize that his notes would be useless to him even if he managed to save them. While in India, he took notes only on those aspects of the teaching that he did not understand, and did not write down those teachings that formed part of his own experience. And only a few years later he discovered that these teachings had become part of himself.

Having made such a discovery, Marpa lost all desire to profit from the teachings received. He no longer worried about making money or gaining prestige; instead, he felt inspired to achieve enlightenment.

2.1.2.1.1. Renunciation of the eight worldly dharmas

What makes us impure spiritual practices? I'm not talking about higher levels, but o initial stage Buddhist practice. It is the eight worldly dharmas that pollute your Dharma practice. The eight worldly dharmas are the thief who robs you, and he dwells within you. Therefore, you need to identify this thief in order to expel him from your home. If you don't do this, practicing the Dharma can only increase your delusion. Do you understand? All these worldly concerns - the so-called worldly dharmas - are like poison. If you do not notice them and do not stop them at the moment of their generation, then they will grow very strongly in your consciousness and spread their poison to your entire consciousness. Therefore, it is very important for us to get rid of the eight worldly dharmas at the very beginning. This is our main goal at the beginning of the practice, this is the main target.

Thus, the removal of attachment to this life means the elimination of the eight worldly dharmas, for if we think of attachment to this life in a condensed form, then all kinds of attachment can be included in the eight worldly dharmas. If you get rid of the eight worldly dharmas, or at least reduce the power of their manifestation, then you will really have the opportunity to become a real spiritual practitioner, and peace will arise in your mind. At first glance, the eight worldly dharmas seem to bring you happiness, but in reality they create more and more problems - more and more problems. They act like salt water: they give a little satisfaction, but at the same time aggravate thirst. And the time will never come when you get drunk, really quench your thirst with the salt water of the eight worldly dharmas.

If you consider yourself spiritual practitioners, then you are ashamed not to know what the eight worldly dharmas are. This is the same as calling yourself a professor and not knowing the ABC. So, the first practice of Buddhism begins with a declaration of war on the eight worldly dharmas, with a decrease in the influence of the eight worldly dharmas. What are these eight worldly dharmas? First worldly dharma is to be happy with praise. Why is praise, if it gives you happiness and makes you happy with it, a worldly dharma? The fact is that you experience states of happiness from praise due to the fact that you are attached to praise, and since you are attached to praise, then from this you have a lot of negative thoughts. For example, if you are attached to praise, then you want to hear more and more praise in your address. It's like salt water: you like to be praised and you want to be praised again and again - always only praised, but from these praises you stop getting satisfaction, you want to be praised and extolled more and more. It's like drinking salt water: the more praise you hear about yourself and the more you attach to it, the bigger the wound in your mind will become. And if your mind has a wound, then offensive words addressed to you cause excruciating pain. And another person who has knowledge of the Dharma and no wound in his mind will only laugh when he hears the same words addressed to him. Words in themselves words do not offend anyone and do no harm to anyone, words can only hurt you if you have a corresponding wound in your mind. For example, if you say to a man: “You are not handsome”, he will not be offended, but simply laugh. For a woman, these words are the worst insult. But if a man is called a coward, he will get angry. After all, men, as a rule, are very attached to the fact that they are very courageous, strong. If you are attached to praise, then from this your wound in the mind only becomes deeper and wider, and it will come to the point that you will want only one thing - praise. In order for people to praise you, you will do so many different things, very bad things, and you will lie. And then, if you hear not praise, but only criticism addressed to you, then in a state of anger you can do even more bad things. What is the meaning of your life then? Only one thing will become the meaning of your life - the collection of laudatory words addressed to you. This happened in the past with kings who were so attached to fame and reputation that they tried to control so many people and even many states. And because of their thirst for power, they had only conflicts, wars, civil strife, and in the end did not achieve anything. Remember the story - how many people died because of attachment to fame, fame, reputation! And you will understand how stupid it would be to waste your life on such things.

Most importantly, you yourself must be a good person - not for the sake of people speaking well of you. You just have to be a good person yourself. If you are a good person and people call you bad, then it is even good for you: you will have less attachment (to this life and samsara in general). If you have real gold, and people say that it is not gold, then it is good for you: you will have fewer obstacles, you will not be envied, etc. Therefore, the masters of the Kadampa tradition advised: "Do not rejoice in praise, but rejoice in criticism." Praise will make you arrogant, proud, arrogant, and criticism will help you get rid of mistakes and shortcomings. Criticism is a broom that sweeps away all the dirt. But let's not talk too much about it now. This is more appropriate to do during instruction on Lojong.

In Buddhism, it is believed that the debut mistake in our life is attachment to fame and reputation, and these are nothing more than words. When playing chess, one should not strive for beautiful moves - counting on admiration from the outside - but one should make effective moves - so as to win the game. Our life is like chess, so don't make opening mistakes. And because of the attachment to praise, opening mistakes occur. If you have retained an attachment to praise, then even if you start practicing the Dharma, you will not be able to do it purely. For in this case you will want to become somehow special, outstanding from all students. And in order to stand out from the crowd of students and become someone special, you will develop some far-reaching plans and do everything so that people praise you. As a result, you are deceiving yourself: you are not doing real Dharma practice at all, but you are only doing what is moving the wheel of worldly dharma, even if you are reading texts of some sadhana - tantric practices. If you are practicing Yamantaka just for the sake of reputation in this life, it means that you are only engaged in worldly dharma. This is not Dharma practice.

BUT second worldly dharma is to be unhappy because of criticism. To cut off this worldly dharma, you must know that criticism is a very useful thing for you. If you really have flaws, and someone criticizes you for it, then this is better for you. It's the same as if your face is dirty and someone comes up to you and says, "Your face is dirty." What's there to be upset about? You just need to wash up. Similarly, while we are in samsara, we will have a lot of dirt all the time. It is impossible to stay clean in the dirty swamp of samsara. And don't be surprised and indignant if someone criticizes you: your shortcomings are not news to you, and there is nothing unusual about this. Someone else's criticism should not shock or surprise you. If you, children playing in a muddy field, return home and your mother says: “Yes, your trousers are dirty, your shirt is dirty, your shoes are dirty, and even your nose is in mud,” then why be surprised? You played in a muddy field, where there are a lot of puddles, mud, etc. The only thing you can do in this situation is to wallow less in this mud, play less briskly and try to save your clothes so that they remain not very dirty. Is it clear? If you do not have these shortcomings, which are discussed, but, nevertheless, you are criticized out of envy or for some other reason, then in this case you should not be upset either: you do not have these shortcomings. And criticism is just words. Let them continue to criticize you until I get tired, their words will not make you worse: whether you become better or worse depends mainly on your own actions, and not on how others see you.

When the Panchen Lama was in a Chinese prison, the Chinese authorities used both criticism and praise as measures of influence. The Panchen Lama behaved equally calmly when they insulted him, and when they praised him as the highest spiritual hierarch of Tibet. He maintained an invariably joyful mood. The Chinese were surprised by his behavior and asked why he reacted equally to praise and criticism. The Panchen Lama answered them, “I know who I am. Your words won't make me better or worse." This absence of worldly dharmas is one of the evidences of his perfect spiritual realization. In Tibet, people who know philosophy are not impressed by someone's ability to fly or some other miraculous ability. But the truly worthy of respect they consider people who, through meditation, freed themselves from the power of the eight worldly dharmas. One who has come out from under the influence of the eight worldly dharmas is indeed a holy person, for he is completely harmless: not only does he never harm anyone by deed or word, but he does not even think badly of others.

When you meet such a person, you will immediately understand this by his appearance and by the way he speaks: he always says only good things about others and is ashamed to say something good about himself. Now, when I tell you about this, it probably seems to you something extremely difficult to achieve. In fact, this is not so difficult to achieve. When a person does not know how to type on a typewriter, if he is told to type one hundred words "blindly" in a very short time, this will seem to him something impossible. But, having skills, the secretary of any office can easily cope with such tasks. After a few months of training and you will be able to do the same. Even very difficult things can be done through practice. It just takes constant, hard work. Constant training of consciousness - this should be the goal of your meditation practice in Kurumkan. I want you to first achieve the result in this initial level of practice - get rid of the power of the eight worldly dharmas and engage in pure spiritual practice.

Third worldly dharma is to rejoice in wealth. AND fourth worldly dharma is to be miserable from poverty. All ordinary people have this worldly concept: not only rich people are attached to wealth, poor people are also. And as long as you have this worldly concept and perceive wealth as happiness, and poverty as unhappiness, then for you wealth is of paramount importance, and Dharma takes a secondary place: you push spiritual practice into the background, and to the fore you bet just that - the achievement of material well-being. You have a lot of plans and concepts about this. You start to act and constantly experience falls. And you blame others for your failures. And someday the day will come when death will come to you, your life will end. At that moment, when your eyes will no longer be able to see, when it will be difficult for you to breathe, the thought will flash through your clouded mind: “At one time I received the precious Dharma from my Teacher, but I never found time to practice it. I completely immersed myself in the affairs of this life. I tried to accumulate good things, but I didn’t achieve anything.” And at the moment of death, you will feel regret: both worldly goals were not achieved, and the practice of Dharma did not work out. The affairs of the world cannot be changed. It's like shaving your beard: every day you shave, and every day it grows back. Think of the people who lived before you. All of them died without having redone all their affairs, their affairs remained unfinished. Remember the greats of this world, the mighty Russian tsars or the English kings. No matter how great their power was during their lifetime, they died, leaving behind unfinished worldly affairs. Their children tried to continue their work, but also died without completing it.

So, worldly affairs are endless. If a thing cannot be completed, why put so much effort into it! All these opening mistakes arise from attachment to wealth. And if you are poor, then deep down you think that wealth will make you happy. This is mistake. The poor suffer from poverty, but the rich suffer from wealth: they sleep less, they have more worries, worries, stress factors. Living in a country house, the rich man worries about his city property. Having, say, five cars, he drives only one. Although rich people have a lot of things, they do not have enough time to use them all. They have only one body. Human life is short, and a few things are enough for this short life: simple food to satiate oneself, and simple clothes, so that there is something to protect the body from cold or heat and survive. It's enough. You don't need to have too many things. Understanding this will give you pure contentment. As soon as contentment appears in your mind, from that moment on you will become a truly rich person: this is inner wealth.

Now, if you don’t understand these things, then when you have a certain amount of money, you are delighted with it - you express your joy very emotionally, jump and fly, and as soon as the money runs out and a streak of financial failure sets in, you plunge into depression . So you should know philosophy. You need to know the philosophy of the “wave”: luck in life is a wave that lifts you up, but sooner or later the same wave will fall down and you will fall down with it. People who know they're riding a wave won't get too excited about it, because they're already ready to fall. When a person who knows philosophy falls down with the wave, he will not be very upset, because he knows that then he will rise again. Our life is like a wave. This example illustrates the philosophy of life: sometimes a certain wave of wealth arises in the ocean and carries you up, but as you go up, you should already be aware that all ups end in a fall, and this wave will also fall down. Many do not understand this, and when they rise a little, they immediately begin to lead a luxurious life and get used to wealth, and when the wave lowers them down, they are very upset - precisely because they are used to luxury. And then such people become worse than dogs, because dogs, when they cannot find food, do not react so sharply. And people of this type, who do not understand that they are being carried up and down by a wave, when they rise up, think of themselves: “Oh, how smart I am!”, And when they fall down, they become depressed: “Ah how unhappy I am!” Buddhist philosophy puts you down to earth.

When you become richer, don't become attached to wealth, realizing that you cannot really become the owner of all this wealth: nothing in the world can be acquired in its entirety. Realize that you are only temporarily in possession of your property. Even oligarchs like Berezovsky, although they think that they own their huge fortunes, in reality they own them temporarily: they will die, and they will leave everything, they will not be able to take it with them. If a man cannot even become the owner of his own body, how can he become the owner of the earth? If you conduct this kind of analysis, then you will come to the conclusion: “Both I and Berezovsky only temporarily own things. And in terms of temporary use of things, we are in an equal position - we own many cars, planes and other things - only temporarily. This land is also our land, the riches in its bowels and on its surface are our riches, this is our oil, this is our Russia.” That is, the material situation is the same for oligarchs and ordinary, poor people. But you and I have the advantage that we are not afraid to lose everything. And for Berezovsky, because he is very attached to his wealth, his attachment acts like a sweet poison.

So understand: attachment to wealth is very harmful. For you, the saying of the Kadampa masters might sound something like this: "Don't be too happy with wealth and don't be too upset with poverty." That is, you can be a little happy when money appears. If you didn’t enjoy wealth at all, then you wouldn’t want to work. If you are rich, that is also good, because money gives you many opportunities. But don't be too happy about wealth, because there is a great danger in it. You must understand the meaning of these words. But if you want to engage in pure spiritual practice, then it is better to be poor than rich. And for such practitioners, the Kadampa masters just said: “Do not rejoice in wealth, rejoice in poverty. Because of wealth, all five kinds of defilements will increase in you. Poverty will help you practice the Dharma. And poverty is an adornment of a spiritual practitioner.” These are words from the teachings of the Kadampa masters. I myself repeat them to myself all the time during my trips, at a time when I am busy with all sorts of things, and this is very useful for me. When worldly concerns, worldly dharmas arise in your mind, then at that time you should remember these sayings, and they will help you.

Now - fifth and sixth worldly dharmas. In connection with them, there is a saying of the Kadampa masters: "Do not rejoice in temporary happiness, but rejoice in temporary suffering."

Attachment to temporary happiness and aversion to temporary suffering are worldly dharmas. All worldly problems are the result of the eight worldly dharmas, and if you want to solve your problems, this can be done very easily by giving up the eight worldly dharmas. Then you can live in such a metropolis as Moscow and calmly do your practice. When I talk to people and they find out that I live in Moscow for a significant part of my time, they usually say: “Moscow has terrible conditions for meditation. It is impossible to meditate there.” Muscovites and nonresidents alike think so. When I am in Moscow, as usual, I read texts, do a little meditation. For me, it makes no difference where I am - in Moscow or in some other place. Because I don't open the door to the eight worldly dharmas. If I allowed the eight worldly dharmas to enter the door of my mind, then I would be very busy, so there would be no time for reading and meditation. Early in the morning I would have to run to the subway, go somewhere, meet someone, talk, fuss, worry, be nervous, etc. All my time would be occupied with worldly vanity. So I tell you from my own experience, if you want to solve your worldly problems, then try to reduce your eight worldly concerns or the eight worldly dharmas. And it will be very helpful for you. Because this practice will give you mental strength. If a person does not have the power of the mind, then such a person cannot moderate his joy when he becomes rich, and cannot get out of a state of depression when he loses money.

In order for you to be able to reduce the influence of the eight worldly dharmas, you need philosophy and some inner strength. It was not for nothing that Master Ashvaghosha said that Buddhist practice is very difficult, that it is much more difficult than the spiritual practices of other religions, because Buddhist practice is a practice of the mind, while most other religious practices are mainly speech and body practices. Correcting the way of thinking is a very difficult task. If under the influence of the eight worldly dharmas the mind goes in the wrong direction, then whatever you do, thinking that you are practicing the Dharma, whether you light oil lamps in front of the Field of Merit, whether you make prostrations, recite mantras or recite sacred texts, or perform Buddhist rituals , - all this is not the practice of Dharma. This is all the practice of worldly dharmas, for your motivation is influenced by them.

With the help of philosophy and reflection on the eight debut mistakes, you will gain spiritual strength and then begin to correctly relate to wealth and poverty, as well as temporary happiness and temporary suffering. The algorithm for cutting off attachment to temporary happiness is the same as for overcoming the worldly attitude to wealth. You need to realize that temporary happiness, that is, worldly happiness possible in samsara, is a deception, because it is not real happiness, and it "devours" your long-term happiness and creates a lot of suffering. Why is it so? It's all about your attachment to temporary happiness. Because of our attachment to temporary happiness, we do so many wrong things, even commit crimes.

From a Buddhist point of view, what we think of as happiness is not really happiness. Lying on the beach, drinking, smoking - all this is not real happiness. If this were real happiness, then as you enjoy it more and more, you should feel more and more happy. But it's not. You can only drink up to a certain limit, and if you drink too much, it will not bring you happiness, but only suffering. Therefore, you must understand that what people call happiness is actually not real happiness, but the essence of the suffering of change, while true happiness is nothing but a mind completely free from obscurations. And when some temporary happiness arises in your life, you should immediately say to yourself: “This is not real happiness, so I should not cling to it: if it lasts, it’s good, if it ends, it doesn’t matter.” No worldly object can really give you true happiness, so if you have something that brings you pleasure and joy, it's good, if it disappears - it's not a tragedy. Don't get attached to worldly objects. If you are attached to some object, then first of all you will suffer because you do not have this object. Some people suffer because they do not have a husband (wife), others suffer because they do not have children, others suffer because they do not have a car or an apartment. Where does all this suffering come from? The people who suffer from the absence of a husband (wife) are those who are attached to the idea that they need to have a husband (wife). When they fail to create a family, they begin to “complex”: “Why am I worse than others? Why can't I find a husband (wife)? If you study the mechanism of our suffering, you will see that everything comes down to attachment, to attachment to this or that object. Each of you manifests some kind of suffering due to the absence of this or that object in you. The reason for all this is attachment.

Secondly, there is suffering due to the fact that you have this object - the object of your attachment. For example, you did not have a husband, and you suffered a lot about this, but now, finally, you got married. Now you are suffering because you have a husband. Modern husbands in Russia are not always very good husbands. Maybe your husband is walking or drinking, or maybe even beating you. He limits your freedom, you are very tired of the hassle and worries about him. You think: “That's when I did not have a husband, I was free, and now that I'm married, my life has only become worse. And this is a kind of suffering that is caused not only by your husbands (wives), but in general by all the objects of your desires that you possess: this is "suffering from the possession of a desired object." And when your suffering from the possession of the desired object becomes especially strong, you say: "It is better to live without a husband than with a husband." And you want to divorce your husband. Because the pain of having a husband is greater than the pain of not having a husband. And you are separated from your husband. And when you part with him, then you have a third type of suffering - this is "suffering from parting with the object of desire." You start to miss your husband, and he misses you, you and your husband only remember all the good things that happened during your life together, and you want to get back together, you get together, for a few days you feel very happy man, but then the cycle begins again, and a new suffering arises. Understand these words correctly: Buddhism does not say that one should not get married and get married. Marriage is necessary, just don't have wrong ideas about marriage. What should be the attitude towards marriage? Marriage must be entered into with an understanding of the situation in which you find yourself, with the understanding that you are not independent. If you were independent, you would not need anything at all, including a husband (wife). You need to rely on a reliable person, a husband (wife), so that in difficult times we can help each other. If a man and a woman marry on the basis of such a principle of cooperation and mutual assistance, then such an alliance will be very stable and durable. But, as a rule, men look for wives for themselves, based on their egocentrism, and the same thing with women: they look for life partners, prompted by an egocentric desire to become happy themselves. The husband hopes: "The wife will cook for me, wash and iron clothes, and clean the house." The wife thinks: "My husband will buy me a fur coat, a car, clothes." And when these expectations are not met, they feel unhappy. The fault is their worldly principles.

All these useful tips that I give you are not directly related to the text that I am commenting on, but they are related to your life. If you really think about it carefully, you can draw some nectar from these tips that will be very useful in solving your life problems. If you drink this nectar for prevention, that is, even before you have a problem, then you can easily solve the problem that arises. If you take my advice seriously, you will understand that if you have a husband (wife) - that's good, if you don't have a husband (wife) - that's also good. Generally speaking, if you manage to get the things you want, it's good, if you don't, it's also good. There is no need to cling to worldly objects. You don't have to have them. Life is short. The only thing that is indispensable for your real happiness is the freedom of the mind from obscurations. As for everything else, if they are - it's good, if they are not - it's okay. This is the principle that must be affirmed in one's position in life.

Therefore, the masters of Kadampa said: "Do not rejoice in temporary happiness, rejoice in temporary suffering." From temporary happiness, three types of obscurations grow, and temporary suffering purifies from negative karma. Temporary suffering is the blessing of a spiritual mentor. If you really understand this, then they will be very useful for you. In this case, experiencing temporary suffering, perhaps even physical pain, you will keep a calm mind, because you know: from the moment you are born, you are subject to suffering - illness, aging, death. The noble truth of suffering says that your own body and mind, because they were born in dependence on the afflictions and negative karma, are the basis of suffering. You will realize: “Samsara by its very nature is suffering. As my teacher explained, this suffering is still a small suffering, if I do not remove the cause of suffering that is in my mind, then in the future I will experience much worse suffering than this pain of mine, which opens my mind.

In the text "Lamrim chen-mo" Je Tsongkhapa also says that suffering has many positive qualities. First, through suffering, one can develop renunciation much faster. If you do not experience temporary suffering, then you will completely immerse yourself in worldly concerns and will be in the clouds, out of touch with reality, and will never think about the Dharma. You will simply become engaged in collecting material wealth, as rats do, accumulating heaps of grain, and, in the end, they die in their hole next to a pile of grain. Therefore, temporary suffering just helps you develop renunciation. . On the other hand, temporary suffering also helps in the development of compassion. If you yourself have experienced suffering, it will be much easier for you to understand the suffering of other people. You will think: “They suffer like me, and they don’t want to suffer just like me, so let them be free from their suffering!”

The third positive quality of suffering is that one experienced suffering frees you from any one negative karma. The fourth positive quality of suffering is that through suffering you will feel fear of the negative karma that is the cause of that suffering. Therefore, the masters of the Kadampa tradition said that one should rejoice in temporary suffering. But the saying “rejoice in temporary suffering” does not mean at all that you should look for suffering specifically for yourself or create them specially. This is not at all what is meant here, but only that you must accept suffering when it arises for you. Suffering should not be created artificially.

What some Hindus do, who walk on broken glass or otherwise engage in self-torture and mortification, is seen by Buddhists as wanton extremism because such practices will not lead to liberation. Buddhism states that the experience of suffering does not in itself lead to a state of liberation. If Liberation were attainable by such methods, then all sentient beings would have attained Liberation by now, because every living being has already experienced an ocean of all sorts of suffering. The mere experience of suffering is not enough. But suffering can be used to generate love, compassion and renunciation. And when negative karma manifests in you and suffering arises, then at that moment you must accept this suffering with the realization that this is the result of your own negative karma, which has matured, come to terms with it.

But this does not mean that you do not have any ways to reduce suffering. When something hurts, it would be a mistake to refuse to use medicines, saying: “Oh, this is my karma!”. If you do not try to protect yourself from suffering by any means, then you also misunderstand karma. You must internally accept these sufferings, but at the same time, remember that karma arises from causes and conditions, therefore, if you create appropriate causes and conditions that counteract suffering, which are, as it were, an antidote to it, then this suffering can go away, you can get rid of it. And you need to think to yourself like this: “If my suffering passes, then it will be very good, but if it does not pass, then it’s okay. I'll at least try to resist him."

Understandably? As Shantideva said, if you can change something in your situation, then there is no reason to worry, you just need to act. And if the problem is unsolvable, then worrying is also pointless. In this case, when all efforts are useless, one must accept one's suffering. Generally speaking, there are two kinds of problems: some are solvable, others are unsolvable. But how can you understand whether your problems are solvable or unsolvable? Just trying to solve it. If you try to solve it and you can find ways to solve it or scale it down, then it is solvable. And if, despite all your attempts and efforts, nothing works out for you, then the problem is insoluble. In this case, there is no need to dramatize the situation. This is very useful advice, it can be useful in your daily life.

If you live with such a worldview, then this is also a practice of Dharma, for such an approach to life will make your mind calmer and calmer. Therefore, you can only judge how well your practice is progressing by its results. When you encounter adverse circumstances in life, for example, you should test your reaction to them and see how deep your practice really is. If you just shout like an ordinary person, then all your practice has been superficial. In fact, it is precisely such unfavorable situations that provide you with an opportunity to show your strength. If you can show calmness and endurance in the face of adversity and trouble, then your practice is bearing fruit. Learn to face reality. Without seeing the difficulties of life, understanding the problems and suffering, it is impossible to achieve good things. Don't close your eyes to pain and suffering. Go towards them.

Now - seventh and eighth worldly dharmas . These are worldly dharmas that make us rejoice in fame and good reputation and get upset because others think badly of us or because of obscurity and lack of good reputation. In fact, the fact that you do not have a high reputation, great fame, is much better for your practice. Because reputation, fame make you waste time. When you get attached to reputation, fame, it's like a drug. So when you don't hear about yourself in the newspapers, on TV, you start feeling upset. You can ask Chernomyrdin. When he was prime minister, he looked very happy: there was fame, reputation, fame. Look at what kind of face he had when he was prime minister and what kind of face he has now - there is a big difference. Or take Stepashin. When he was prime minister, what was he like? Very self-confident. With a charming smile. Now everything is different. The same will happen with Putin. Now he looks very confident. Then it all goes away. Therefore, Buddhism says that the end of a high position is a fall down. And a wise person will not climb this peak: the higher you climb, the more painful it is to fall. Before, when people were wiser, they did not strive to become someone. They said: "I don't want to take this post." A lot of people these days say, "I want to be this, I want to be the boss." The best location is to stand on the ground. Sitting on the ground, one cannot fall further than the ground. And in a high place you move a little, and you fall. And even having climbed to this height, a person does not experience joy. All the time he is in fear: "Who will push me?" And he is constantly suspicious of his surroundings. Someone said something, and he thinks, "He probably wants to take my place." And therefore, being there, in a high place, a person begins to make a lot of efforts to stay in this place. First you need to get to this place. A lot of dirty deeds are done to get to a high place, and then, having climbed up, people begin to do even more dirty deeds in order to stay in this place, so as not to fall off this place. Although sooner or later they are forced to fall from there. There is one hundred percent certainty that sooner or later this will happen. Or death will come. Therefore, the masters of the Kadampa school say: "Do not rejoice in high position, rejoice in the absence of fame." The higher the reputation, the greater the three types of delusions: ignorance, attachment and anger. If you do not have fame, reputation, it is easy for you to be in an isolated place and meditate. Those who are under the control of these worldly dharmas suffer because no one knows them, that they do not bathe in the rays of glory. If no one knows you, that's good: you can live in peace. Sometimes people complain about the lack of attention to them, interest from others. Why do you need a lot of attention? These are all worldly concepts. Judge for yourself. Let's say you were suffering because you had nothing to eat. And when your stomach is full, you acutely feel that your clothes do not protect you from the cold, you suffer from cold, and you need warm clothes already. When you have warmed up the body and the stomach is full, you have this kind of suffering: “Why does no one know me? why don't I have fame? You watch TV, see all sorts of celebrities and titled persons, sit: “I wish I were in their place - I would be very happy.”

This is how ignorance manifests itself: you do not understand that this person, in whose place you dream of being, also experiences a lot of various sufferings. If you have fame and a good reputation, then all defilements will increase in you. The more fame you have, the greater your envy of others. As the followers of Kadampa said, the degree of your fame corresponds to the degree of your envy and other delusions. If you do not have fame, fame, good reputation, then you can live quietly in seclusion and engage in pure practice. The best place to practice the Dharma is a secluded place.

So these eight worldly dharmas are what you have to fight against first of all and try to minimize them. I tell you, it is absolutely certain - one hundred percent certain - that these eight worldly dharmas are the main cause of your suffering. Although, of course, you have suffering that occurs as a result of the ripening of your karma. For example, natural disasters occur during which you may die, or you may be injured during an accident, etc. All this is the result of a certain ripened karma. But although these types of suffering appear as a result of negative karma, it is these eight worldly dharmas that contribute to a large extent. It is because of them that you constantly feel some kind of anxiety, anxiety, depression, you cannot rest, you do not feel a state of peace in yourself. If you keep the eight worldly dharmas to a minimum, then it will simply not be realistic for you to get into a state of depression. Even if you lose a leg in an accident, you will still smile and say, “I am very lucky that I didn’t die, but only lost one leg.” This kind of thinking is very helpful. This is the benefit of Buddhist philosophy in life. But all these are only temporary antidotes. What is the absolute antidote, the real antidote that Lama Tsongkhapa spoke about?

If Je Tsongkhapa had not appeared in Tibet, then we would not have had such detailed instructions how to get rid of the eight worldly dharmas. The secret of the mechanism for the radical elimination of the eight worldly dharmas belongs to Je Tsongkhapa. He explained the path in great detail, starting with those initial, debut practices that ensure the purity of spiritual practice. Therefore, although my father was a practitioner of the Kagyupa tradition, my mother was a follower of the Nyingmapa tradition, when I myself saw how precious the teachings of Je Tsongkhapa are, explaining in detail the full mechanism of Buddhist practice with all its secrets and subtleties, I refused to become an adherent of the schools to which I belong my parents. I have immense respect for Je Tsongkhapa: his teachings are not only theoretically flawless, but also practically effective. Despite the fact that I am rather lazy, I have little experience of meditation according to his system and I can say that he spoke the absolute truth: “If you practice correctly, step by step, the result will definitely come.”

If you take into account the advice of Je Tsongkhapa and get rid of the eight worldly dharmas, you can become a real spiritual practitioner, a yogi. To be a yogi chadrel(Tib.: bya' bral ) - and means not to have attachment, or "to renounce activity". A first-level yogi in the Tibetan tradition is a spiritual practitioner who "denies the affairs of this life", at the second level - "who renounces activities in samsara", at the third level - "who renounces activities for his own sake", or a Bodhisattva. Already second-level yogis are superior in spiritual goal and results to Hindu yogis. To begin with, one who wants to be a yogi and a Bodhisattva reduces the attachment to this life, that is, the influence of the eight worldly dharmas. There are very few people in the modern world who not only completely renounce attachment to this life, but who work at least half for this life and half for the future life, that is, they belong to the quasi-primary. Those who work partly for this life and partly - for the sake of the future life, are not, strictly speaking, practices of the initial level, they can only conditionally be attributed to the very initial level of Buddhist practice.

Questions from students of His Holiness Gyalwa Karmapa Orgyen Trinley Dorje in the framework of the teachings on the text of Nagarjuna "Letter to a Friend" (December 21-23, 2009, Tergar Monastery, Bodhgaya, India)

- When we are separated from our root guru and think about him - about his greatness and compassion - we are unable to hold back tears; they flow like a stream from our eyes. What's this? A sign of insanity? Another manifestation of negative emotions?

This is hardly insanity, because when people go crazy, they lose awareness and do not understand what is happening. That is the definition of insanity.

Is this a manifestation of negative emotions? You think about the virtues of your root teacher, focus on his compassion, wisdom, positive actions, abilities, and you are overwhelmed with a feeling of devotion, and tears come to your eyes - we consider such devotion to be among the very, very positive qualities. [In spiritual practice] we try to achieve such an experience. I personally try to find it. So, if you have it in abundance, maybe share with me?

What are the eight worldly dharmas or worries?

The eight worldly dharmas (gain and loss, praise and blasphemy, pleasure and pain, fame and infamy) can be divided into three types: white, black and mixed. Black dharmas are caused solely by concern for well-being in this life and the desire to benefit oneself alone. We do not think about others, and our concern for ourselves is excessive.

White dharmas involve caring for others. We all have mixed dharmas, some black, some white.

The true Dharma is that which is done not only for the sake of achieving the goals of this life, but for all successive lives and for the sake of other beings. If you practice only for this life, only for the present moment, only for yourself, then everything becomes "worldly dharmas." When we use the term "worldly dharmas" in a negative context, we are talking about black worldly dharmas. Mixed is not so bad.

– When a negative emotion appears in me (for example, attachment), and I try to focus my attention on it, then this negative emotion becomes even stronger. What to do?

You can work with different negative emotions. For example, you feel anger towards a particular person that you do not like, or in connection with some incident or event. If your mind is overly focused on this, then the emotion experienced becomes stronger. Sometimes it's good to just shift the focus from that person or event to something else. Sometimes it helps.

Is it acceptable to make a living selling Dharma items if we are driven by the intention of benefiting others? People in the West need shops where they can buy Dharma-related objects.

If you're selling them for more than just profit, then maybe that's okay. But there are a number of questions that need to be answered. How do you sell them? Who are you selling them to? You can sell in different ways. Perhaps it is better to sell them to those people who express their sincere respect for them or really need them.

– Monks and lamas in Tibet eat meat, especially on the days of the Tibetan New Year (Losar). By accepting this meat from relatives and friends, they rely on those who make their living by killing animals. So these fully dedicated monks and lamas become involved in these negative deeds, don't they?

Yes, this problem exists. One of the points of view on this problem is that Tibet in former times, due to its geographical location, was distinguished by a very limited variety of food products. There was a shortage of vegetables and herbs, and people mostly relied on food of animal origin. And under these conditions, the Tibetans, including the Sangha - monks and nuns, did not have much choice, and perhaps that is why they began to eat meat. But now the situation has changed somewhat. Even in Tibet, vegetables and other foodstuffs appeared. Some are imported from China, some vegetables are grown locally thanks to the emergence of new technologies. As a result of these changes, meat consumption has been reduced in many monasteries. That is, we can talk about positive changes, and there is hope that they will continue, and soon there will be no ground for the doubts you have expressed. For now, this problem remains.

“Sorry, although I don’t like it, but when there are too many mosquitoes, I can’t help myself and I kill them. How to stop killing insects?

I am also facing this difficulty. Probably, this can be avoided if you settle in the appropriate conditions, choose the right room, equip it, and so on. But the main thing, nevertheless, is to understand that, although the mosquito is a small insect, it also has life. In this sense, he is not much different from us. Even if he has slightly different sensations, it doesn’t matter whether we are talking about a large animal (for example, an elephant) or a small one (mosquito), they all have life. And taking this life away because of the little discomfort they cause is probably not the wisest decision. It's worth thinking about this.

We humans are much more skilled than mosquitoes, because we have so many opportunities. Surely we can find a way to get rid of bites without killing mosquitoes. We are very resourceful and should come up with a more constructive solution to this problem.

We would like to ask Your Holiness to become our root guru. Are there any prerequisites, is there any special ceremony needed?

I think I should give you the appropriate clarification, because I myself had to think on this topic, and these thoughts give me anxiety. So I'll take this opportunity to clear things up.

In general, the term "root guru" (or tsave lama) is used in the Vajrayana context. From the Vajrayana point of view, we call a root lama a mentor from whom we receive initiations, oral transmissions and deep instructions. If these three components are present, then we can say that he is a “tsave lama”, or “root guru”.

In the Sutrayana we do not find a term for a root guru, but the term kalyanamitra, or spiritual friend, is used there. Of course, in a Sutrayan context, we can also talk about a "root" spiritual friend who shows us the right path; explains what should be developed and what should be avoided.

These are the most general explanations of what a root guru is. As for me personally, at the moment I do not have all the necessary qualifications to be anyone's root guru. I try to develop them in myself - of course, anyone who aspires to Enlightenment will move in this direction. I try to acquire those qualities that a true and qualified teacher should have, but, in my opinion, I do not yet possess them. But since many people place their hopes in me and have confidence in me, then, not wanting to upset and disappoint them, and, on the contrary, wanting to inspire them, I agree to be their root teacher.

And here, although I, as an individual, as Orgyen Trinlay, do not have the set of qualities necessary for a root guru, but due to my connection with the lineage, my connection with the name "Karmapa", I believe that if we make efforts from both sides, then perhaps it will lead to good results.

Therefore, when I agree to become someone's root teacher, when I take someone as a disciple, this does not mean that I consider myself a fully qualified guru. At this moment, I think of all the spiritual teachers and their instructions and try to draw inspiration from them...

Therefore, the most important thing here is not me as a single teacher, the most important thing is the line of succession. [Understanding] the teachings of the lineage is where one should direct one's efforts. Tibetans have one saying: even if a person has hundreds of negative qualities, but at the same time he is able to give one single good instruction, then it makes sense to follow it. The fact that the person who gave it has flaws does not make this instruction bad.

So, not because I am a great teacher, but because we have a great, true teaching, I want to ask you - let the instructions, the teachings be your main guru. If you do this, then, in my opinion, there will be no difficulties.

– Should we have only one root teacher, or can there be many?

In the past, some students had only one root guru, while others had many. That is, apparently, both options are possible. However, when you say "tsave lama", "tsava" means "root". Usually a plant has one root, and it has many branches. The root must be strong; stability is the main thing.

– How to generate Bodhichitta, this courageous state of mind that will no longer decline?

There is one saying. Once mastery is acquired, zeal naturally follows. What does this mean? If you have skillful means by which you work on yourself, generate interest, inspiration in yourself, then you learn to draw enthusiasm and joy in what you do, and this entails diligence. Diligence results from the use of skillful means. Thus, we need to use skillful means in working on ourselves; we need to understand what skillful means will suit us, what will benefit us.

Secondly, we need the courage that comes from understanding the importance and urgency of doing work for the benefit of other beings. Look at yourself: you are just one single being, but there are many others. Therefore, the interests of the majority are in many ways much more important than the interests of a single person. If we think like this, we can be filled with the courage we need to work for the benefit of sentient beings.

Thirdly, we need a strong determination not to be able to turn back. Where does the determination to work for the benefit of all sentient beings come from? When we understand the benefits of such labors, we naturally dedicate our body, speech, and mind to this purpose. We do not rush from side to side: sometimes we work for the benefit of beings, sometimes we don’t work, sometimes we ask questions, sometimes we have doubts. Not! Our body, speech and mind are entirely focused on Bodhichitta. This gives her stability.

“Shouldn’t [some] Rinpoche generate the desire to be reborn as a woman in the next life, as Tara did, to show the students that having a male body is not prerequisite to achieve Enlightenment?

Maybe it would be good to find a Rinpoche who would offer such prayers. Pray for him to appear.

Buddha can manifest in any form - it can be a female form, there is no contradiction. Enlightened women have already appeared before - Tara and others, they may appear in the future. However, there should be no place for a feeling of competition with men: against all odds, I must come to Enlightenment in a female body! If you are guided solely by a sense of competition or political motives in your movement towards Enlightenment, then it is not known whether you will come to Enlightenment. But if you are compassionate, really want to benefit women, and think that for that purpose it would be better if you achieve Enlightenment in the body of a woman, then it makes sense.

It is not necessary for Rinpoche to make such wishes. Each of you can make such a wish. If you work hard and achieve Enlightenment, the result will be the same. You don't have to be any special person for that, Rinpoche.

There are a lot of fully ordained nuns (bhikkhunis) here from different countries, but none from the Tibetan tradition. When will Your Holiness begin to give full vows to women in the Tibetan tradition. Who else but Your Holiness should start taking bhikshuni vows (Tib. Gelongma)?

OM MANI PADME HUM… [Sighs.]

A few days ago we had a heated discussion about giving full vows to women at a small conference on Vinaya that we are holding. In Tibet [in monastic ordination] the Mulasarvastivada tradition is followed, and we discussed whether it is possible to give vows to women in accordance with the Mulasarvastivada tradition.

In the history of Tibet, there have been cases where teachers of the past conferred bhikshuni vows on women in accordance with the Mulasarvastivada tradition in the presence of only the Sangha of bhikkhus (monks). There have been such cases.

We also discussed whether the Sangha of bhikkhus (monks) who have received vows in the Mulasarvastivada tradition can be united with the Sangha of bhikkhunis (nuns) who have received vows in the Darmagupta tradition, which is common in China, and jointly give full vows to women.

The discussions were very fruitful and positive. I cannot tell you exactly when the right time will be to give full vows to women. But I sincerely hope that this will happen, as it is of great importance for the future of Tibet. After all, bhikkhus and bhikshuni are the basis of Vinaya, the basis of Buddhism. And I, guided by good motivation, make all-round efforts. However, this is a very serious issue, and it is better not to rush here. So I ask you all to leave your doubts. Don't worry, it will happen. I'll do it, but be patient.

Your Holiness, what should be the correct way of life for a nun who continues to work in a hospital away from the Sangha?

If you think solely in the context of the Vinaya, then there are many points that need to be taken into account. But if you are a Getzul or Getzulma, then the most important thing for you is to keep the four root vows. In addition, you need to be careful not to cause displeasure of the laity, society. If you do things that people, society considers bad, then this is bad.

How to meditate on selflessness and how to help other beings with the help of this meditation?

I will talk about selflessness from my own experience, not from Buddhist literature. The self, or "I", which is referred to here, is what we consider to be absolutely independent, not connected with other phenomena.

Everyone else is there, and I am here, all alone, not dependent on anything. But if we look deeper, this is not the case at all. I depend on everything: on the air I breathe; from the food that I eat; from the books I read. I depend on all these factors. Without them, I cannot survive. When I analyze this more deeply, I see that I am unable to exist separately and independently. I am connected to everything. I am part of everything that surrounds me.

Even if I just want to eat delicious food, then I need “others” who will cook this food, etc. Many factors are needed, and they must all be favorable, and all the people involved must be in a good mood, otherwise nothing will work.

The more I understand interdependence, the more I understand how important others are to me, the more this understanding of selflessness makes me realize the importance of others and feel compassion for others. And then work for the benefit of others becomes a necessity.

When we talk about emptiness, about Mahamudra, about Dzogchen, the point here is not to reveal something deep in oneself alone, but to help others. Those who do not understand this interdependent nature of things, this true way of being, have a lot of problems and suffering. And therefore, compassion for them and a desire to help them are naturally born in us. Therefore, the comprehension of selflessness, emptiness is closely related to compassion and the desire to help others. They must go hand in hand. If this does not happen, then such insight is of little use.

So we should understand very clearly that if there are no others, then I will cease to exist immediately. Usually we think: “I am here, and they are there.” But if they don't exist, there won't be me either. Realizing this, we begin to understand more deeply the importance of other beings. And the more we think about it, the more obvious it becomes.

Translation from Tibetan: Ringu Tulku Rinpoche
Translation from English: Julia Zhironkina