In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;The Greatest Tragedyand#8221;, Subhuti invites us to look into the tragedy of not knowing what we want. He shares his thoughts on the nature of Samsara, contact with the Dharma and realisation as the deepest happiness.
This is and#8216;Eight Verses for Training the Mindand#8217;: Talk 1 from the four-part series on this Tibetan text attributed to Kadampa Geshe Langri Tangpa.
[Music] Dharma Vites is brought to you by Free Buddhist Audio, the Dharma for real life. Our work is funded entirely by donations from our generous listeners. If you would like to help us keep this free, come and join us at freebuddhistaudio.com/community. Thank you, and happy listening. [Music] So it requires us to look at beings in a quite new and different way. To look at beings ourselves included as self-interested, seeking our own best interests, but not really knowing what those interests are. In the text it says something like, "Beings seek happiness, but they don't know where happiness lies." What a pity. Of course, what a pity is a vast understatement is what a supreme tragedy. That's what tragedy is. It's where we seek great things, but we don't understand sufficiently clearly what greatness is. And in seeking, in even achieving a degree of greatness, we also achieve other things that we didn't expect or want. So, when we say, "May I cherish, may I always cherish, or beings?" With the resolve to accomplish for them the highest good that is more precious than any wishfulfilling tool, this is all that's implied. May we care for others the same ways we care for ourselves, but not just caring for others and ourselves as, you know, gratification seeking beings, beings who have a high destiny and whose highest interests lie ultimately in a spiritual realization, and whose deepest needs and strongest desires only find satisfactory fulfillment in that realization. This is what the text implies. And when we're doing the practice, we visualize all beings around us, and we try to create some identification with them, reflecting that they're like us seeking happiness. That's what they want. They're no different from us. Even the harmful things they do to us are done because they believe that's in their best interests. And if we can sort of identify with others in that way, recognizing that they're like us, just trying to find fulfillment. Well, we can cross that barrier. We can begin to cherish. If we can look around and see others in that way, we can begin to include them in our cherishing. But what we need to add to that is the depth of recognition that what they're striving for is best fulfilled in enlightenment. That's the only fulfillment for it. Short of enlightenment, there's going to be ruffs with the smooth, if you like. There's going to be always negative consequences flowing on from the positive effects, even if it's only binding ourselves further into the system of samsara. Samsara is seeking our happiness without understanding where our happiness really lies. That, if you like, is what samsara is. So we're continuously trying to benefit ourselves, but not really understanding where our benefit lies. And what we're trying to do in this bodhicitta approach is understand better our own highest interest and the highest interest of others, and see others as wish-seeking or fulfillment-seeking beings who just don't know where fulfillment lies, as we don't know where fulfillment lies. We've perhaps got the benefit of contact with Adharma and maybe some vision. And on that basis, we can try to help others. We go for refuge to the three jewels, and we can try in going for refuge to the three jewels to lead others on that path. So when we say, "I always cherish all beings," with the resolve to accomplish for them the highest good, that is more precious than any wishful feeling jewel, this is what we've got in mind. This desire to extend our cherishing of ourselves to others, and to see others and ourselves as seeking our highest happiness, but wishing for us and others the highest happiness where real fulfillment lies. And that's all we've got time for tonight. I thought I wouldn't do very much, but anyway, it's a good start, I think. Yes, I hadn't intended to promote discussion here, as it were. I just wanted to explore the text, and no doubt discussion can take place elsewhere. But if you'd like to, and in ten minutes time, we're going to meditate. Some of us are going to meditate downstairs, and you're welcome to join us. You're welcome, not too if you want to, too. Okay, and tomorrow night, same time, next verse. We hope you enjoyed the talk. Please come and help us keep this free at freebuddhistaudio.com/community. And thank you. [music fades out] [music fades out] [music fades out] [BLANK_AUDIO]
