SAT CHIT ANAND PLETTENBERG BAY INSPIRATION |
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HH DALAI
LAMA ANNUAL
TEACHINGS, DHARAMSALA, INDIA
“As
a blind man feels discovering a jewel in a heap of rubbish, so am I
amazed by the miracles of awakening rising in my consciousness. It
is the nectar of immortality that delivers us from death, the
inexhaustible treasure that lifts us from poverty into the wealth of
giving to life, the tree that gives us shelter when we roam about
scorched by life, the universal bridge that takes us across the
stormy river of life, the cool moon of compassion that calms our
mind when it is agitated, the sun that dispels darkness, the butter
made from the milk of kindness by churning it with the Dharma. It is
a feast of joy to which all are invited.”
[Shantideva: The Bodhicharyavatara]
India always comes as a shock to your
system, and it takes some time to adjust. No matter how many times
you’ve been to India, it hits you with shock waves of harsh reality.
We come from a much ‘softer’ environment in the West, cushioned by
comfort. I experience reactions of resistance and aversion, which
make me question my sanity for coming to this country (again).
Pollution, terrible poverty and too many people. After being in
India for some time, the ego surrenders to the noise, dust, dirt and
discomfort, and then it becomes possible to experience the magic of
India. Suddenly your heart opens and you are filled with immense
gratitude for being in this incredible country, land of beggars and
saints.
McLeod Ganj (also known as Upper
Dharamsala) is a small village located in Kangra Valley, in the
foothills of the majestic Himalayas. It has a spectacular setting:
surrounded by pine forests, with a backdrop of high mountain peaks
on three sides, and superb views over the valley. The snow-capped
Himalayas, stark and white, loom into the blue sky. They seem to
commune with the gods, declaring that purity is possible, and
inspiring you to reach new heights. They are a powerful reminder of
what lies beyond, within our reach and yet not within our reach, for
their very height makes them untouchable, inaccessible, beautiful
and mysterious. McLeod Ganj is the home-in-exile of Tibetan Buddhism
and culture. The village has a spiritual atmosphere, especially when
the Dalai Lama is in residence, and it is filled with maroon robed
monks and nuns. Dharamsala (upper and lower) has several thriving
monasteries, where monks of the four schools of Tibetan Buddhism
practice their rich spiritual heritage of learning, debate and
meditation.
ENLIGHTENING TEACHINGS
Thousands of monks and nuns, Tibetan
Buddhists, and people from around the globe, fill the large Temple
to overflowing. We have all gathered here to attend the Annual
Public Teachings of His Holiness, the Dalai Lama. We have come to
see and hear the spiritual leader of Buddhism in person, to be
blessed by His holy presence, and to receive vast and profound
teachings. In 2001, we were blessed to attend teachings on the
LAM RIM STAGES ON THE PATH TO
ENLIGHTENMENT; and in 2003, we were blessed to attend
teachings on SHANTIDEVA’S BODHISATTVA WAY
OF LIFE and
MIND TRAINING.
The teachings are given every day for
about two weeks at Namgyal Monastery Temple. They start with
chanting of prayers by the Tibetan monks, who chant with low,
growling undertones that reverberate through your body and mind. The
Dalai Lama then speaks for about two and half hours in native
Tibetan, which is simultaneously translated into most major
languages, and we listened with small transistor radios and
earphones. Conditions inside the Temple are tough – you sit on a
cushion on the hard concrete floor, with no space to stretch your
legs and no back support. In the afternoon, the hot sun streams
under the roof, and if it rains, the wind blows the rain under the
roof. Once or twice, we had to sit under umbrellas, but the rain
still drips off the umbrellas and makes you wet. We must accumulate
a lot of merit attending teachings in such conditions!
However, the spiritual benefits of receiving live transmission of
teachings hugely outweighs the physical discomfort.
HIS HOLINESS THE DALAI LAMA
The Dalai Lama is wonderfully kind and
humble. He is regarded as an incarnation of Chenrezig, the Buddha of
Compassion, yet he refers to himself as ‘just a simple monk’. One
cannot help having the utmost respect and admiration for Him, and
His kindness, compassion and sense of humour steal your heart. He is
one of the Great Beings on this planet, working tirelessly for peace
and harmony. The Dalai Lama is a very sophisticated teacher. It is a
blessing to sit in His holy presence and receive spiritual
transmission of teachings. Since the time of the Buddha, teachings
have traditionally been orally handed down from Master to disciple.
You feel part of a living lineage, which has been carried forward
from generation to generation over the centuries. You feel blessed
to be part of this stream of humanity, flowing towards its highest
destination of Enlightenment and Buddhahood. You feel like a
Bodhisattva-in-the-making.
THE BODHISATTVA WAY OF LIFE
“Every day, think as you wake up: Today I am alive, I have a
precious human life. I am not going to waste it. I am going to use
all my energies to develop myself; to expand my heart out to others;
to achieve enlightenment for the benefit of all beings. I am not
going to get angry or think badly about others. I am going to
benefit others as much as I can.” [Dalai Lama]
A Bodhisattva is one who is walking
the Path to Enlightenment and is learning how to develop and
manifest the enlightened mind. The ordinary worldly mind is filled
with negative qualities and afflictive emotions, the source of
delusion, confusion and suffering. The enlightened mind is filled
with positive qualities such as loving-kindness, compassion and
wisdom. It may take lifetimes to purify our mind-streams or
consciousness, so that our Buddha nature or inherent pure essence
can manifest. We all have the potential to evolve into enlightened
beings, and it is up to us to realise our unlimited potential. It is
a blessing and a privilege to receive spiritual transmission of
these great teachings from such a Great Being and Master teacher. It
is inspirational to be in the presence of the Dalai Lama as he
embodies the qualities that we aspire towards, so he serves as a
living example that it is possible to transform our negative
behaviour.
MIND TRAINING
“Abandon wrongdoing. It can be done. If there
were no likelihood, I would not ask you to do it. But since it is
possible and since it brings blessing and happiness, I ask of you:
abandon wrongdoing.
Your mind is the most powerful
instrument that you possess. It is important to study our minds,
because our minds are the creators of our experience of life. A
positive mind creates positive experiences, and a negative mind
creates negative experiences. Our bodies are temporal and die, but
our mind / consciousness continues after the death of our physical
body. We spend so much time taking care of our body, which doesn’t
last; but so little time taking care of our mind, which does last.
Our priorities are wrong.
Meditation and mind training help you
to cultivate inner awareness of what is happening inside your mind,
and then do something positive about it. Thoughts are the basis for
words and deeds, so if you are not aware of what you are thinking,
you will not have much control over your words and actions. Your
minds are undisciplined and uncontrolled. They are full of thoughts
and emotions that you cannot control. They are like a garden that
has been neglected and allowed to grow full of weeds. You have to
start weeding the garden so that beautiful flowers can grow.
Buddhism emphasises meditation, mind
training and transformation. It teaches techniques to discipline and
transform our minds, gradually eliminating negative qualities such
as anger, aggression, fear, hatred etc and developing positive
qualities such as peace, loving-kindness, generosity, compassion
etc. Buddhist techniques of mind training can be practiced by
everyone, irrespective of their religion, because everyone has a
mind and will benefit from transforming negative and destructive
states of mind into positive and beneficial ones. If our minds are
disciplined and we have more conscious control over our unhealthy
and negative thought patterns and bad habits, this will positively
effect our lives. The inner cause gives rise to the outer effect.
If you are unaware of the Law of Karma
and you don’t practice meditation, you will think that things happen
due to external forces. You will remain unaware of how you help to
set those forces in motion. Positive thoughts and emotions cause
positive behaviour, which creates good karma and happiness for
ourselves and others. Negative thoughts and emotions cause negative behaviour,
which creates bad karma and suffering for ourselves and others. The
real enemy is not outside. The real enemy resides within your heart
and mind. It is time to stop projecting our negativity onto the
outside world, and take responsibility for our state of mind. It is
time to change. Mind training teaches you how. A Buddha’s mind is
totally liberated from all defilements, including all subtle
negative and dualistic imprints. A Buddha has eliminated all the
gross and subtle defilements of the mind and has
fully developed its
positive potential. A Buddha is totally selfless.
“Our
problems, both those we experience externally such as wars, crime
and violence and those we experience internally as emotional and
psychological suffering will not be solved until we address this
underlying neglect of our inner dimension. That is why the great
movements of the last hundred years and more - democracy,
liberalism, socialism, Communism - have all failed to deliver the
universal benefits they were supposed to provide, despite many
wonderful ideas. A revolution is called for, certainly, but not a
political, economic, or a technical revolution. We have had enough
experience of these during the past century to know that a purely
external approach will not suffice. What I propose is a spiritual
revolution.” [Dalai Lama]
The teachings of the Buddha date back
2 500 years, yet their timeless truths are especially relevant and
important in today’s degenerate age. The message of peace and
non-harming is resonating in the hearts of more and more people, who
honor the preciousness and interconnectedness of all life on earth.
In order to make peace on earth a practical possibility, we must
start with ourselves.
“Through
training our minds we can become more peaceful. This will give us
greater opportunities for creating peaceful families and human
communities that are the foundation of world peace.” [Dalai Lama] Visit HH the Dalai Lama's teachings
Photos by Maurice Barker
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