Discovering Buddhism - Transforming Problems (23 January 2014)

0:05 Do we have a whiteboard? Report an error in the passage at 0:05 Highlight the passage at 0:05

0:21 know what, others, others, uh, maybe others. The Report an error in the passage at 0:21 Highlight the passage at 0:21

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1:42 frustration is to acknowledge the accomplishments of the Buddhas and all of the holy beings before us that have engaged in these practices and gotten these amazing realizations and attainments. To acknowledge that and to plant the seeds for ourselves to become Buddhas, to have the holy body, speech, mind, the Adnish Nisho and the Buddha fans up here. Report an error in the passage at 1:42 Highlight the passage at 1:42

2:13 And so we're acknowledging their accomplishments and planting the seeds for us, for ourselves, to gain those same accomplishments. So let me see if I don't fall off this. Report an error in the passage at 2:13 Highlight the passage at 2:13

2:32 See if I can get you through. Report an error in the passage at 2:32 Highlight the passage at 2:32

2:50 We Report an error in the passage at 2:50 Highlight the passage at 2:50

2:55 have a few people that will be joining us that emailed and said that they either had other engagements or had a horrible night and couldn't make it. Report an error in the passage at 2:55 Highlight the passage at 2:55

3:12 So hopefully we'll grow a few more in number as we... go along the classes it will be These are eight or nine weeks. I originally thought eight, and after rethinking it, and I'll explain maybe a little more later why, I thought possibly adding an extra week in before the practice day and putting the practice day a little further out. Report an error in the passage at 3:12 Highlight the passage at 3:12

3:39 So we can talk about it and see how it works for people. But anyway, so let's start. First, by kind of bringing ourselves into the room, settling ourselves from all of the activities of the day, all of the thoughts and everything that we did to get us here. Report an error in the passage at 3:39 Highlight the passage at 3:39

4:13 Body posture, I think you're all familiar with, just a comfortable sitting position, hands on the knees. or the right hand on top of the left as your thumb's touching on your lap and nice and straight. Report an error in the passage at 4:13 Highlight the passage at 4:13

4:29 So start by scanning the body and you can start at your feet and work up and just notice if there are any tensions, any muscle tensions in your legs, if you're holding your hips tight or stressing the knees, just try to let it relax. Report an error in the passage at 4:29 Highlight the passage at 4:29

4:57 Relax up your spine so that you feel your spine is straight, each vertebrae stacked on top of the other, and effortlessly. You don't need to hold it. Shoulders relaxed down, Report an error in the passage at 4:57 Highlight the passage at 4:57

5:16 arms and hands relaxed, Report an error in the passage at 5:16 Highlight the passage at 5:16

5:24 and the muscles in your face, and all the way to the top of your head. Just let everything relax. Report an error in the passage at 5:24 Highlight the passage at 5:24

5:37 The more relaxed your body is, the more relaxed your mind. Report an error in the passage at 5:37 Highlight the passage at 5:37

5:48 So then take three deep belly breaths and literally just use them as cleansing breaths to kind of clear away any energy blocks, any extra thoughts that are there. Just follow it through your body and you can even make a little noise as it comes out if you want. Just to completely kind of use it to pull any tension that's left. Report an error in the passage at 5:48 Highlight the passage at 5:48

6:22 it must dissolve away. Report an error in the passage at 6:22 Highlight the passage at 6:22

6:46 Just breathe in a normal fashion. Just watch your breath moving through your body for a while. Report an error in the passage at 6:46 Highlight the passage at 6:46

6:58 Try to keep your mind focused just on the movement of your breath, just in a natural rhythm, Report an error in the passage at 6:58 Highlight the passage at 6:58

7:10 not forced. Just let yourself watch it. If you notice your mind going through thoughts or sounds or other things. Just gently bring it back to the breath and just watch the breath for a while. Report an error in the passage at 7:10 Highlight the passage at 7:10

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8:13 You know there's a little tension somewhere in your body and Report an error in the passage at 8:13 Highlight the passage at 8:13

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9:50 our motivation. Report an error in the passage at 9:50 Highlight the passage at 9:50

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10:22 It's Report an error in the passage at 10:22 Highlight the passage at 10:22

10:29 to achieve enlightenment. Report an error in the passage at 10:29 Highlight the passage at 10:29

10:37 It does give us all the ability to have all the skills that we need in order to help each and every sentient being in whatever way that they need. And to know exactly what's right for each of them. So just like now, as we, in our own ways throughout the day and throughout our lives, try to assist others and be helpful, Report an error in the passage at 10:37 Highlight the passage at 10:37

11:10 we really don't have the skills to really bring them the happiness that they're looking for, to help them remove the suffering that they're enduring. Report an error in the passage at 11:10 Highlight the passage at 11:10

11:30 By our own practices, engaging in classes like this, that we can practice and hone our skills all the way up until we achieve that enlightenment. Report an error in the passage at 11:30 Highlight the passage at 11:30

11:48 And then we'd know exactly, without any effort, exactly how to be our greatest service. So with that in mind, and that's a lofty, lofty goal. Report an error in the passage at 11:48 Highlight the passage at 11:48

12:05 With that in mind, we start with small steps and engage in these practices and classes together. Report an error in the passage at 12:05 Highlight the passage at 12:05

12:16 So what I'd like to do is have everybody go to the white book. And it's in Sunday. It's page 9, Sunday morning service prayers. But these are the two that I wanted to do. They're in the gold book also. Report an error in the passage at 12:16 Highlight the passage at 12:16

12:42 I want to do... The Refuge in Bodhicitta and then I want to read this version of the Four Immeasurables because this one really, really hit me and I really like it. I think it's a good one for this class. So we can read this together. I go for refuge until I'm enlightened to the Buddha, the Dharma and the Supreme Assembly. Report an error in the passage at 12:42 Highlight the passage at 12:42

13:10 By the merits I create through listening to the Dharma, may I become a Buddha in order to benefit all sentient beings. I go for refuge until I am enlightened to the Buddha, the Dharma and the Supreme Assembly. By the merits I create through listening to the Dharma, may I become a Buddha in order to benefit all sentient beings. I go for refuge until I am enlightened to the Buddha, the Dharma and the Supreme Assembly. Report an error in the passage at 13:10 Highlight the passage at 13:10

13:37 By the merits I create through listening to the Dharma, may I become a Buddha in order to benefit all sentient beings. I think this time we can just read to it. Maybe another time we'll stop and think about it a little bit. How wonderful it would be if all sentient beings were to abide in equanimity, free from hatred and attachment. Report an error in the passage at 13:37 Highlight the passage at 13:37

14:02 May they abide in equanimity. I myself will cause them to abide in equanimity. Please Guru Buddha, bless me to be able to do this. How wonderful it would be if all sentient beings had happiness and the causes of happiness. May they have happiness and its causes. I myself will cause them to have these. Please Guru Buddha, bless me to be able to do this. Report an error in the passage at 14:02 Highlight the passage at 14:02

14:30 How wonderful it would be if all sentient beings were free from suffering and the causes of suffering. Report an error in the passage at 14:30 Highlight the passage at 14:30

14:44 Please, Guru Buddha, bless me to be able to do this. wonderful it would be if all sentient beings were never separated from the happiness of high rebirth and liberation. May they be never separated from these. I myself will cause them never to be separated from these. Please Guru Buddha, bless me to be able to do this. So I particularly like this version of the Four Miserables because when I think about it at home or doing it at home, it's like how wonderful it would be. Report an error in the passage at 14:44 Highlight the passage at 14:44

15:25 You just say the words. I sometimes don't really think about it, but you think how wonderful it would be if all sentient beings had happiness. Report an error in the passage at 15:25 Highlight the passage at 15:25

15:37 I mean, the people wouldn't be fighting. There wouldn't be wars. The politicians would be able to get along with each other. I mean, it's amazing. If you think about how wonderful it would be, it would be really wonderful. And so, you know, if you have a chance to just contemplate these a bit, they're really amazing ideas. Report an error in the passage at 15:37 Highlight the passage at 15:37

16:03 Anyway, so, hi all. Report an error in the passage at 16:03 Highlight the passage at 16:03

16:14 I'll get out my notes here. Report an error in the passage at 16:14 Highlight the passage at 16:14

16:19 This Discovering Buddhism class is the 11th of the series. It's called Transforming Problems. It's a thought transformation class or lojong in Tibetan, which means mind training. Report an error in the passage at 16:19 Highlight the passage at 16:19

16:43 It's Mahāyāna. Teaching, which means that it's included in the third of the three scopes. So just a quick review. The first scope is the scope where people are interested mainly in having a good future life, but they haven't gotten to the point where they... They want to be totally free from saṃsāra. So they're kind of going for happiness. They're looking for the future lives, to have a good rebirth in the future and have the good circumstances, resources and such. Report an error in the passage at 16:43 Highlight the passage at 16:43

17:26 The middle scope is a scope that wants to just be free of the whole cyclic existence and to end their suffering. It's called Nirvāṇa. So in that one, it's liberation for that person alone. And in some of the schools, they call it enlightenment, but it's just solitary, just themselves. It's not for the benefit of others. Report an error in the passage at 17:26 Highlight the passage at 17:26

17:59 The highest scope is the Mahāyāna, which is the desire and developing the wish to achieve enlightenment. Not for ourselves, but so that we can come back and so that we can help all the other beings to achieve enlightenment. Because we've looked at what we've done in the past, we've looked at how it causes suffering for ourselves. Report an error in the passage at 17:59 Highlight the passage at 17:59

18:27 We understand our own suffering and we know that everybody else is in the same predicament. And a lot of times it looks like a really happy life. Report an error in the passage at 18:27 Highlight the passage at 18:27

18:42 It really, in essence, and it could be a temporal happy life, but in essence goes pretty much nowhere and we're still stuck. We still suffer with old age, sickness and death, even though we have a happy life. At some point there's sufferings in it, like obvious sufferings. Report an error in the passage at 18:42 Highlight the passage at 18:42

19:04 And so with the desire to be completely free of all of that, then we... Work to achieve enlightenment. And because we know that those kinds of things, I kind of skipped over the part about the other people, or other beings, but we know that everyone else is just like us. And the amount of ignorance that I had when I was little. Report an error in the passage at 19:04 Highlight the passage at 19:04

19:38 Not hearing the Dharma, not knowing about things. I mean, I killed a bunch of fish and grasshoppers and tortured little insects, you know, and the whole process. Report an error in the passage at 19:38 Highlight the passage at 19:38

19:50 Just out of ignorance. And, you know, people do all kinds of things like this out of ignorance. Not even realizing, you know, maybe kind of like we have blinders on. You know, we're just going to go along this track and it's okay. Without even considering the feelings of other animals, of other beings. As we develop and grow in our own knowledge and wisdom, then we can see how we were and how so many people are like us. Report an error in the passage at 19:50 Highlight the passage at 19:50

20:33 With a desire to really help people. Eliminate the causes for suffering and have the causes for happiness, then we do these practices so that we can achieve enlightenment. Report an error in the passage at 20:33 Highlight the passage at 20:33

20:51 And what happens is then we get happy. We get it. I mean, it's like the more happier you try to make help with everybody else and the more you progress on the path in order to be able to benefit others, the happier you get. Report an error in the passage at 20:51 Highlight the passage at 20:51

21:12 And so that's kind of what the Dalai Lama calls wisely selfish. Because you know if you do virtuous things, if you cherish others, that you're going to be happy. So that's a wise selfishness. You can do it for yourself too. But anyway, so the lojong is in that series of teachings. And it's an active practice because it allows us to really start to work on our minds and it's something we can do every minute of every day. Report an error in the passage at 21:12 Highlight the passage at 21:12

21:50 We don't have to have time to sit down and do a meditation or a practice. Of course it's not easy and it's not a beginner practice either. It's actually considered an intermediate practice or course or intermediate level. And that's why it comes up pretty much later. It's based on understanding a number of things which we'll talk about in a little bit. Report an error in the passage at 21:50 Highlight the passage at 21:50

22:21 So these teachings came, the Lojong teachings or thought transformation teachings, came from Shakyamuni Buddha. And they're based on his observations and insights. And after he achieved enlightenment under the Bodhi tree, and then started to teach. He wanted to teach others about what he observed and what he learned and what he saw so that he can help others to reach enlightenment also. Report an error in the passage at 22:21 Highlight the passage at 22:21

22:55 And so he didn't make any of it up. It just all came from his realizations. And so if we take these same practices and these teachings and apply it to ourselves, then we'll progress. On that path to enlightenment. And the key is just putting it into yours. We just have to, yeah, just have to start doing it. Report an error in the passage at 22:55 Highlight the passage at 22:55

23:26 So, you know, the idea is to move, we hear the ideas, and I've heard a lot of ideas, you know, and moving them out of the head into the heart takes some work. Report an error in the passage at 23:26 Highlight the passage at 23:26

23:38 Like I've had a toothache, you know, and part of the low drone practices is, you know, Looking at sufferings and being happy about the sufferings. Well, I wasn't happy about it. I've got to admit, I wasn't miserable or angry or upset. But, like I sat there today, or yesterday actually, yesterday and thought, happily take on sufferings. Report an error in the passage at 23:38 Highlight the passage at 23:38

24:11 I don't know. They're like, it's a little teeny toothache. don't know. Report an error in the passage at 24:11 Highlight the passage at 24:11

24:18 It's not huge in comparison to what it could be, but I thought, I don't know. I don't know if I could really be happy with this. Report an error in the passage at 24:18 Highlight the passage at 24:18

24:31 But then part of it too is the difference of your mental state. You may have a headache and you think you can be upset. Why me moan and groan and cry about it? Or you can just say, okay, there's a headache. Report an error in the passage at 24:31 Highlight the passage at 24:31

24:58 So taking on suffering or joyfully engaging in whatever, it doesn't mean you have to stay there. You can go walk to the cabinet, get your Tylenols or aspirin and take it. And if your karma is good, they'll work. If your karma is not so good, they won't work. Report an error in the passage at 24:58 Highlight the passage at 24:58

25:24 No, but that's true because there's nothing inherently healing in a Tylenol. They seem to claim it is, but then if that was true, everybody who took it would be healed and they're not. So that disproved that. They always have some way to explain it. Report an error in the passage at 25:24 Highlight the passage at 25:24

25:48 Anyway, let's see, I'm losing track where I'm at. So, so anyway, so by doing these practices, we can eliminate faults and exaggerated concepts of ourselves, which are like self-grasping and self-cherishing. Report an error in the passage at 25:48 Highlight the passage at 25:48

26:10 And we can, you know, we can reduce or agree, jealousy, anger, pride, selfishness, attachment. We get to know those, we can eliminate them so that we don't need to keep creating the negative karmas and actions that will cause us suffering in the future. Report an error in the passage at 26:10 Highlight the passage at 26:10

26:47 So all of these afflictions are not actually part of our, like inherent in us. They're just like kind of dirt thrown into the water in our mind and we can get rid of them. Report an error in the passage at 26:47 Highlight the passage at 26:47

27:07 And so with the Lanzhong practices, we can purify these misconceptions and the delusions. And by doing that, we can completely remove them and that would reveal our natural radiance, our clarity, wisdom and compassion, all of those things. And gradually as we do these, they grow. They grow gradually as we do these things. Report an error in the passage at 27:07 Highlight the passage at 27:07

27:41 So the main purpose of thought transformation is to change our mind from habitually cherishing ourselves to strongly cherishing others. Report an error in the passage at 27:41 Highlight the passage at 27:41

27:56 So that's the main point of all of this. And in doing that, it will bring us happiness and it will reduce our suffering. Report an error in the passage at 27:56 Highlight the passage at 27:56

28:13 and the ultra stick The bodhicitta attitude and the mind of enlightenment completely counters the self-cherishing attitude and so this is what we're trying to build up and it removes obstacles to developing bodhicitta. Report an error in the passage at 28:13 Highlight the passage at 28:13

28:39 so, um... In this, in this class, main, there's a number. There's a large number of word drum texts. One book has like 44 different text translations. But we're going to use what's called the eight verses of thought transformation. Report an error in the passage at 28:39 Highlight the passage at 28:39

29:00 And so that's why I thought if we did eight weeks, it would be good. But then today, when I came in here, I thought, well, if we do the last... Thought on the eighth week, that's the end. So we really should have one more week to work on that particular thought, the eighth one. So I thought, well, maybe we can put the practice day one week after and this way people can work on that one and kind of do prep on whatever they'd like to do for a little presentation. Report an error in the passage at 29:00 Highlight the passage at 29:00

29:34 So we'll look at that and maybe we can just extend it a little bit. So we have time to, you know, take time with each one. And we'll see. There are some that are easier than others. It may not take so much time to do. Report an error in the passage at 29:34 Highlight the passage at 29:34

29:51 But so, you know, that's kind of like what. And also, also, another thing I thought was I want to do the format of the class, maybe a little bit different than usual. Report an error in the passage at 29:51 Highlight the passage at 29:51

30:05 Because I want to really be able to try, since it is a lojong class, it's a practical mind training class, I want to have everybody more involved. So I thought maybe what we could do is, well I'll explain that part later. Let's do introductions first. So I'm Palmo. Report an error in the passage at 30:05 Highlight the passage at 30:05

30:26 And I received these teachings from Lama Zopa, from Geshe Dapa, from Ribu Rinpoche. A lot of the llamas at Lama Zopa this year, I think about either 2006 or 2008, in the school across from the old center. Report an error in the passage at 30:26 Highlight the passage at 30:26

30:51 And I've been working on them slowly. They're creeping in. Report an error in the passage at 30:51 Highlight the passage at 30:51

31:05 But they're really... The Lojong practices are really Report an error in the passage at 31:05 Highlight the passage at 31:05

31:17 interesting. It's fascinating because it gets me to watch more of my mind. So I've been working on it. It's still a work in progress. I don't always offer victories and that kind of thing, which we'll get into later. Report an error in the passage at 31:17 Highlight the passage at 31:17

31:41 I did once, actually. It made me feel like literally my body shook inside. It was like such a shock. Oh, wow. Gee, it's a good thing I was sitting in my own little office at my desk and on the phone nobody could see. Report an error in the passage at 31:41 Highlight the passage at 31:41

32:03 That was the first time that I consciously rockalacted. Anyway, so I've been... I've been studying since the early 2000s and went through all of the regular teachings of Gyalten. That's about it. Report an error in the passage at 32:03 Highlight the passage at 32:03

32:29 But anyway. Maybe you can say, I think pretty much everyone here has been to the classes before. Report an error in the passage at 32:29 Highlight the passage at 32:29

32:43 So you can just introduce yourself again in case. case we don't forget. Lisa, I've been coming to Sage Chenling since 2011. Luckily started with the first module of DB, so I've been able to start right from the beginning. And I'm the director of Sage Chenling. Didn't take her long. Jump right in. Report an error in the passage at 32:43 Highlight the passage at 32:43

33:09 Hi, my name is Matt. I started coming to the center earlier this year, around February. the bass track. Report an error in the passage at 33:09 Highlight the passage at 33:09

33:18 Last year now. Almost a year ago. That's wild. It doesn't seem like that. No, it really doesn't. I mean, even to me. Wow. Holy cow. Talk about rushing toward death. Report an error in the passage at 33:18 Highlight the passage at 33:18

33:34 I see that one. It's like, whew. And the older you get, the faster it moves. It's like, whew, boy. Anyway, sorry to interrupt you. It's good. it's good. Report an error in the passage at 33:34 Highlight the passage at 33:34

33:47 Yeah, I've never, I've read about Lama. I've not received any kind of Lama teaching before. I'm excited about it. Someone asked me about what I was learning about and I was sort of excited to be able to say I'm not really sure. Thought transformation. Report an error in the passage at 33:47 Highlight the passage at 33:47

34:11 Yeah, thought transformation. I was like, well, here's the link. Report an error in the passage at 34:11 Highlight the passage at 34:11

34:19 My name is Rich. I work for Lisa. And I do whatever the venerables need me to do. Report an error in the passage at 34:19 Highlight the passage at 34:19

34:29 I'm Sam. I've been coming here since March of last year. Report an error in the passage at 34:29 Highlight the passage at 34:29

34:36 Hi, I'm Steve. And yeah, I've taken several classes with Chipy over the last couple of years. Yeah, this will be interesting because I have lots of problems. Report an error in the passage at 34:36 Highlight the passage at 34:36

34:47 Oh, great. That means I'll be an A-plus student? Yeah, yeah, and you're still smiling. You smile as you say that. So this is a plus already. Report an error in the passage at 34:47 Highlight the passage at 34:47

35:02 Hi, my name is Ray. I've taken several Discovering Businesses and I'm looking forward to looking into my mind, looking to see how it's... Report an error in the passage at 35:02 Highlight the passage at 35:02

35:23 Theo, and I've been kind of searching later. About 2011. Sometime in probably August 2011. Oh yeah, right. Yeah, I've only been there. It started with the first beginning buddhas in class at that point. So it's hard to believe we're already in the 11th. Yeah. Yeah. Report an error in the passage at 35:23 Highlight the passage at 35:23

36:00 books for donation as a book on eight verses of my dream. Oh, and I picked it up last week. Uh-huh. So what one really good experience for it? Uh, bring it. If you can't take it, you can look at it. Report an error in the passage at 36:00 Highlight the passage at 36:00

36:26 Tammy. Report an error in the passage at 36:26 Highlight the passage at 36:26

36:29 sort of, I don't know, I think it's been up every year, probably more than I think. We're still in Webster, I guess. Right before the transition. Oh, oh yeah. Yeah. I don't think I, what is it, class 11? Class 11. Report an error in the passage at 36:29 Highlight the passage at 36:29

36:49 Anyway, I'm excited to be back and spend a little bit of a Well, welcome back. My name is Jage and like Steve I have a lot of thoughts to transform. Hoping I can get some transformation going. I've been coming to the center for on and off for quite a while. Report an error in the passage at 36:49 Highlight the passage at 36:49

37:11 Back when it was in Glen Park. Report an error in the passage at 37:11 Highlight the passage at 37:11

37:19 There you have it. Okay, so now do you have a list of everybody? We can get the emails. Report an error in the passage at 37:19 Highlight the passage at 37:19

37:30 Okay, okay. As long as we have a list in case we need to send out anything. Report an error in the passage at 37:30 Highlight the passage at 37:30

37:39 So this I'm going to have to read through and you'll have to excuse the pronunciations because some of these I have to like kind of really really kind of sound out. Report an error in the passage at 37:39 Highlight the passage at 37:39

37:51 But, um, basically... Basically, I want to give you kind of a lineage of the Lojong teachings. As I said before, it started with Shakyamuni Buddha. He transmitted the teachings. He actually transmitted a number of different teachings, but he transmitted this what they call extensive graded gradual path. Report an error in the passage at 37:51 Highlight the passage at 37:51

38:18 To Maitreya Buddha. And then he handed it down through 13 different followers of that specific lineage of teachings, which included a Saṅgha. Report an error in the passage at 38:18 Highlight the passage at 38:18

38:32 So then from there, Lama Shirlingpa, who was a great Bodhisattva, received the teachings from a Saṅgha, he received the teachings. So then Atisha, so now we're up to... The year 982, when he was born, he lived from 982 to 1054. So Atisha was an Indian scholar who studied with a lot of teachers, including Dhammarakshita, who was the author of a long-term text for cleansing our attitudes. Report an error in the passage at 38:32 Highlight the passage at 38:32

39:16 It's called The Wheel of Sharp Weapons, and it's one of the teachings that... That's given often. Geshe-la has done that one. And it's primarily aimed at cutting the self-cherishing. Report an error in the passage at 39:16 Highlight the passage at 39:16

39:36 And they're like throwing all kinds of daggers at self-cherishing. Anyway, so they focused on the hyunayana practices leading to liberation. But Atisha, most of it was that Atisha was always dissatisfied. And he really longed for the farthest way to realize his full potential, and he wanted to realize his full potential, which was enlightenment. Report an error in the passage at 39:36 Highlight the passage at 39:36

40:10 So he wasn't satisfied with just getting out himself. He had a feeling and knew there was more, and he wanted to find out how to get it. Report an error in the passage at 40:10 Highlight the passage at 40:10

40:24 So his Vajra master, and this is one of the Vahula Gupta, He told him, it doesn't matter how many pure visions you receive, you must train to develop care, caring love, compassionate sympathy and bodhicitta aim, totally dedicated to benefiting others and to achieve enlightenment. So he had some teachers that were telling him, well, you've got to get this bodhicitta, this is what you need. And a teacher was quite... Report an error in the passage at 40:24 Highlight the passage at 40:24

40:58 Amazing and quite evolved himself. I mean, he had visions of deities and people in the sky and, you know, even like statues. When he went to Bogaya, a couple of statues, he overheard them talking in a niche that was above his head. And one asked the other one, If you wish to achieve enlightenment as quick as possible, in what should you train? And the other statue replied, a totally dedicated heart of bodhicitta. Report an error in the passage at 40:58 Highlight the passage at 40:58

41:40 So a teacher keeps getting these messages from all over the place, from his teacher, from statues. There was one where there was a couple of people floating in the sky talking. Report an error in the passage at 41:40 Highlight the passage at 41:40

41:59 It's a little hard for us to get this, but this is what they say. Report an error in the passage at 41:59 Highlight the passage at 41:59

42:06 Anyway, so at that time there was a famous master who held the complete teachings on how to develop bodhicitta. And that was Selingpa or Dharmakirdi. And he was a teacher from, now this is a good one, this is the name of the place. You don't have to write it. Report an error in the passage at 42:06 Highlight the passage at 42:06

42:30 Farnada Vipa or called the Golden Isle. And it's like they calculate that it's probably now around the present day Indonesia. And that's part of where our pilgrims are going. They're going to go to the place where Atisha went to meet Serlingpa and where actually where Atisha learned. current of the Lordran teachings. Report an error in the passage at 42:30 Highlight the passage at 42:30

43:04 And they're going to do a mini class on the eight verses there. Although Atisha didn't write the eight verses, they came after him, but still it was through him that those verses was one of the teachings. Report an error in the passage at 43:04 Highlight the passage at 43:04

43:26 So the Lojong teachings, so Atisha spent 12 years. and attained the full realization of bodhicitta. The Lojong teachings went to Tibet when Atisha went during the 10th century. He was part of the Kadampa tradition and he introduced it to Tibet and it had a profound influence over the other traditions that existed in Tibet at that time. Report an error in the passage at 43:26 Highlight the passage at 43:26

44:03 And so the Lojong teachings, he taught a lot of lamrim to lots of people and to big groups. But the Lojong teachings or mind training teachings were like secret teachings. And those were usually passed just from one teacher to a particular disciple who they felt were ready for it. Because they were so contrary or opposite to the normal way of thinking. And they were afraid that it would be so contrary to the ordinary view that it would actually kind of put people away and push them away from Buddhism. Report an error in the passage at 44:03 Highlight the passage at 44:03

44:54 And so rather than taking that chance, they kept these things kind of secret. Sometimes they call it ear whispered lineages, you know, because you like to whisper from one ear to the next. So you have your primary teacher as a primary disciple and it passes to that disciple. Report an error in the passage at 44:54 Highlight the passage at 44:54

45:15 So from Atisha, the Lojung teachings went to his primary disciple, Dramptompa, and then when Atisha left Dramptompa, or actually when he died. Dramtunpa established a monastery that was one of the most important centers for the Kadam tradition and then he passed the lineage from Atisha that he received from Atisha to Geshe Porowa and Geshe Porowa taught it to Geshe Langitunpa. Report an error in the passage at 45:15 Highlight the passage at 45:15

45:52 You don't have to write all these down but it's kind of interesting and Geshe Langitunpa Was the one who wrote down the eight verses. So he was the first one to actually write the teachings down. It was still a secret teaching. Report an error in the passage at 45:52 Highlight the passage at 45:52

46:15 So in those days Geshe wasn't like now where you go through a series of classes and teachings and different things. It was more of a term just used to signify master. And it wasn't necessarily a level of study. Like you don't graduate to be a geshe in those days. You had a certain level of mastery of the teachings and you could be a master or a geshe. Report an error in the passage at 46:15 Highlight the passage at 46:15

46:44 But so, so anyway, so then the eight verses were, Report an error in the passage at 46:44 Highlight the passage at 46:44

46:58 yeah. So the eight verses then were given to the immediate disciple, Shaloha. And then there was one master, Chekhoa. Who encountered the eight verses and they were known around Tibet by them. But he was puzzled by the fifth verse that focuses on the need to eliminate competitiveness and prestige. And so he went to search for Geshe language so that he could ask him about it. Report an error in the passage at 46:58 Highlight the passage at 46:58

47:35 Because he wasn't sure. And so by the time he was able to find where he was, he had died. And so then he, let's see, who taught him? Report an error in the passage at 47:35 Highlight the passage at 47:35

47:56 I think it was Sarawa, Geshe Sarawa, took him on as a disciple and explained to him the verses. And so Geshe Chagawa went on to write what's called seven point mind training, which is kind of like a commentary on the eight verses, but it's a little more palatable, a little easier to digest. And so that's mainly what was taught as a mind training text was the seven point mind training that Geshe Chagawa wrote. Report an error in the passage at 47:56 Highlight the passage at 47:56

48:39 And it was complete intellectual and emotional understanding of the verses. And if we do the same, if we're able to listen and then really incorporate them and really get an emotional feeling, a heartfelt feeling and work with the verses, we'll be able to transform our lives. Report an error in the passage at 48:39 Highlight the passage at 48:39

49:08 And so the eight verses comes... From a direct lineage of all these masters who have studied and actually embodied the teachings. Report an error in the passage at 49:08 Highlight the passage at 49:08

49:24 But anyway, so the preliminaries, and this is the very first point in Geshe Chikawa's seven-point mind training. The preliminaries, it says, train first in the preliminaries. That's the line. Okay, so what does that mean? Report an error in the passage at 49:24 Highlight the passage at 49:24

49:43 You train in precious human rebirth. So I think we've all had that, right? Everybody kind of agrees that we're really fortunate to have met the Dharma, that we're alive and have the resources and time and even inclination. Look how few of us are here out of all the people in San Francisco. It sounds like it's rare and then if we expand it even further. Report an error in the passage at 49:43 Highlight the passage at 49:43

50:15 And consider how difficult it is to have all the conditions come together like this and how much work we've done in the past. It's pretty amazing. It's really fortunate, extremely fortunate. And then also we need to have a pretty good understanding and realization of some sort of death and impermanence. Report an error in the passage at 50:15 Highlight the passage at 50:15

50:45 Because that's going to be the motivator that will keep us, one of them, that's the first one that will keep us going. And it also will help us to eliminate negativities, negative actions, and engage in virtuous actions. Because even if we don't get enlightened or, you know, Report an error in the passage at 50:45 Highlight the passage at 50:45

51:20 Don't get out of saṃsāra. We want to create the kind of circumstances and conditions that we can come back and keep working at it. So that we have a perfect human rebirth again. We don't want to fall into a lower realm. It takes forever to get out. Because all we do there is create more negativities. So to understand... Report an error in the passage at 51:20 Highlight the passage at 51:20

51:48 Death and impermanence. It's more like to understand that our time is limited and so we better not waste it because we don't know when we're going to die. It helps to keep us going. The next one is behavioral cause and effect. That's karma. We have to understand about karma. Report an error in the passage at 51:48 Highlight the passage at 51:48

52:16 Then also about the disadvantages of saṃsāra. Which leads to renunciation. So those are the four preliminaries. Precious human rebirth, death and impermanence, karma and renunciation. Report an error in the passage at 52:16 Highlight the passage at 52:16

52:36 And renunciation because that is like the end of the middle scope. You renounce saṃsāra. You say, okay, you've convinced me. Now I've examined my condition. I see. That was really nothing within cyclic existence that really is going to bring me really true happiness and all I do is go from one suffering life to another. Report an error in the passage at 52:36 Highlight the passage at 52:36

53:13 And these sufferings can look like happiness and it doesn't mean we're not happy to some extent but it's not a lasting happiness, it's not a true happiness and we'll always have suffering. There's no way to stop it unless we decide to just get out. So renunciation is the end of life. It's the culmination of all the meditations on that middle scope and it gives us the desire to get out. So that's where we need to at least start from in this class in doing this, at least with the desire to get out. Report an error in the passage at 53:13 Highlight the passage at 53:13

53:59 It's also good to have... We contemplated the idea of achieving enlightenment in order to benefit others. And I think that's why we did have the bodhicitta class, how to develop bodhicitta, just before this one. Report an error in the passage at 53:59 Highlight the passage at 53:59

54:16 So that this gives us the background, a little bit of background about how we might go about doing that. I think we worked on... Report an error in the passage at 54:16 Highlight the passage at 54:16

54:32 of Exchanging self and others, which dealt a lot with reducing the self-cherishing mind and building up the mind that cherishes others. Report an error in the passage at 54:32 Highlight the passage at 54:32

54:47 And that will be key throughout the practice and the verses. And we can touch on these other things, karma at different points or renunciation, any of these. We can touch on those as we go along. If it's necessary, if you like to clarify anything. So the Lojang or Mind Training teachings, where they fit in, as I said, it's in the Great Scope. Report an error in the passage at 54:47 Highlight the passage at 54:47

55:20 And the Great Scope, or the Mahāyāna, which is the Great Vehicle, the Great Scope has three sections. One is the teaching that bodhicitta... The mind of enlightenment is the gateway or entry to the Mahāyāna and the benefits of it. So first you learn that bodhicitta or the mind of enlightenment is the gateway to the great vehicle and you understand then what are the benefits. Report an error in the passage at 55:20 Highlight the passage at 55:20

55:58 So the benefits are that for one you become enlightened. And you end all of your suffering forever and you gain all of the tools, knowledge, wisdom, skills, abilities to effortlessly help everybody else to do that. I mean, just the idea of it is like amazing. You can't even comprehend because we can't even comprehend everybody else, let alone how we're going to help everybody else. Report an error in the passage at 55:58 Highlight the passage at 55:58

56:33 But without an effort, as easy as it is to just... Like I can just take the lid off the cup and take a sip of water. That's how easy it would be to help every single living sitting being that we can't even conceive of now. It's mind-blowing. Anyway, so, I'm way taller up here now. I was like, oh, the floor is way down there. I'm like, I put this down. I used to put it down here, but it's like, I think not too far. Report an error in the passage at 56:33 Highlight the passage at 56:33

57:08 Okay. Anyway. So that's the first one. So the second part of that is how to develop bodhicitta. And then the last part is how to train in the deeds of a bodhisattva. So once we develop bodhicitta, then we become a bodhisattva. So the work's not done, that's just when it starts. Report an error in the passage at 57:08 Highlight the passage at 57:08

57:34 Then we train in the six perfections. So that's the... the deeds of the Bodhisattva. So we can start on those now. We don't have to wait until we're like full-fledged bodhisattvas. We can practice. Report an error in the passage at 57:34 Highlight the passage at 57:34

57:51 But anyway, so the thought transformation teachings come in the second section and that's the section of how to develop bodhicitta. Report an error in the passage at 57:51 Highlight the passage at 57:51

58:03 So there's two ways and that's the seven point cause and effect. And the exchanging self and others. And the thought transformation teachings comes from part of the second method of developing bodhicitta and mainly with the practice of exchanging self and others as a means to convert suffering or problems into the path. Report an error in the passage at 58:03 Highlight the passage at 58:03

58:28 So that's what we'll be looking at. We'll be looking at all of the different problems and sufferings and how can we use them. As a part of the path in order to achieve our goal of becoming enlightened, you know, developing bodhicitta. Report an error in the passage at 58:28 Highlight the passage at 58:28

58:56 So like I said before, eight verses, eight weeks. There's every single translation, everywhere that you read the eight verses, they're all translated a little bit differently. Report an error in the passage at 58:56 Highlight the passage at 58:56

59:12 So that's one thing. You know, if you have a book at home or if you look up online or different places, you'll see some of them, you know, it's like the order is almost like reversed and other ones have different, little bit different words. But the general ideas are all pretty much the same. The ones that I'm going to use are from a book by His Holiness the Dalai Lama called Transforming the Mind. Report an error in the passage at 59:12 Highlight the passage at 59:12

59:50 So the eight verses are actually a complete teaching. It contains all of the Buddhist teachings in those eight verses. And it's a complete teaching on method and wisdom. I always heard it from Urbina. She would say, it's like the two wings of the bird. And they refer to that in other teachings too. You have method and wisdom. And just like a bird can't fly with only one wing, we need both in order to accomplish our goals and to get to where we're going. Report an error in the passage at 59:50 Highlight the passage at 59:50

1:00:34 So those are the two wings, method and wisdom. So the first seven of the verses fit into the method part. And the eighth verse is the wisdom aspect. Report an error in the passage at 1:00:34 Highlight the passage at 1:00:34

1:00:49 And so method, the aspect deals with compassion, altruism, the aspiration to attain Buddhahood. And then wisdom is just wisdom, cultivating wisdom. So we may use some of the kind of wisdom practices that would be like meditations on emptiness or things like that, the emptiness of XYZ thing. Throughout the class, but the last verse mainly focuses on that. Report an error in the passage at 1:00:49 Highlight the passage at 1:00:49

1:01:31 So what I thought that we could do, and it's a pretty good time to do it, if we split like three groups of three, if you split up and just kind of pick random people. Report an error in the passage at 1:01:31 Highlight the passage at 1:01:31

1:01:48 And I'll give you, I was going to write it on the board, but I didn't have a board. So, and I was late, but I thought what we can do with each verse before we really get into the verse is have people kind of break up and kind of look at the verse, you know, look at it yourselves. And, you know, just for maybe 10 minutes and kind of discuss amongst yourselves what might be something that... Report an error in the passage at 1:01:48 Highlight the passage at 1:01:48

1:02:22 You know like a benefit of looking at this particular aspect of the teachings and then also something that you think might be difficult or might cause a problem or you know you might have some question about and this way I think by doing that you get a chance to think about it first of yourselves and then I can get an idea also of Maybe the kind of qualms or problems or questions that might come up so I can make sure that those things get addressed during the class too, so they're not just kind of hanging out. Report an error in the passage at 1:02:22 Highlight the passage at 1:02:22

1:03:07 So verse 1, and let's see, I guess if we have some people that write it down, then the people that don't write it, make sure you get somebody to wrote it. Report an error in the passage at 1:03:07 Highlight the passage at 1:03:07

1:03:22 Yeah, it's not the same one, but the one I'm doing and then this is what I'll discuss and I will pass out some after, but not tonight. With the determination to achieve the highest aim for the benefit of all sentient beings, which surpasses even the wish-fulfilling gem. Report an error in the passage at 1:03:22 Highlight the passage at 1:03:22

1:04:01 Which part? The highest aim of all sentient beings, which surpasses even the wish-fulfilling gem, I shall hold them dear at all times. So that's verse 1. So we can kind of use it sort of as a semi-break, but don't take too long of a break, because you want to be able to kind of discuss a little bit. Report an error in the passage at 1:04:01 Highlight the passage at 1:04:01

1:04:41 May I hold them dear at all times, which surpasses even the wish-fulfilling gem. May I hold them dear at all times. I'll be more organized. Next week I'll have it written up on the board. We'll have a board. Report an error in the passage at 1:04:41 Highlight the passage at 1:04:41

1:05:10 So figure out who your group, who you want to be. It works out nine people, so three each. And kind of discuss a little bit on the break with your group. Report an error in the passage at 1:05:10 Highlight the passage at 1:05:10

1:05:23 So then we have a report of what you think is maybe an advantage or benefit to looking at this particular verse and studying and what might be a problem or a difficulty. Report an error in the passage at 1:05:23 Highlight the passage at 1:05:23

1:05:40 Okay. Report an error in the passage at 1:05:40 Highlight the passage at 1:05:40

· · · silence, 1 minute

1:06:24 Try Report an error in the passage at 1:06:24 Highlight the passage at 1:06:24

· · · silence, 1 minute

1:07:18 not to take too long on your getting your tea and snacks so you have time to kind of chit chat a little bit. Report an error in the passage at 1:07:18 Highlight the passage at 1:07:18

· · · silence, 7 minutes

1:13:59 We'll get to that. So maybe one of the difficulties would be not understanding the wish-fulfilling gem or something like that. Report an error in the passage at 1:13:59 Highlight the passage at 1:13:59

1:14:20 I think you got most of it, all except for the wish-fulfilling gem. I've been eavesdropping. Report an error in the passage at 1:14:20 Highlight the passage at 1:14:20

1:14:49 The one in the book? Yeah. They're all different. I have at least five different ones and none of them are the same. But the reason I picked this one, well, I'll talk about that. Maybe for one word. Report an error in the passage at 1:14:49 Highlight the passage at 1:14:49

1:15:21 Okay, let's get back together again. I think. Yeah, maybe just a little bit of hot. Not too much. Report an error in the passage at 1:15:21 Highlight the passage at 1:15:21

1:15:41 So I'm going to kind of scribble down what people say. Report an error in the passage at 1:15:41 Highlight the passage at 1:15:41

1:15:54 So let's see, group one, looks like Lisa's here, so do you want to be the spokesperson for group one? So one of the maybe benefits that you see of... Practicing this particular verse and one of the difficulties. Report an error in the passage at 1:15:54 Highlight the passage at 1:15:54

· · · silence, 1 minute

1:16:59 I think it's kind of incomprehensible, actually. So what we need to do, I think, is going to start small and let it grow. But anyway, okay. So you want to be spokesperson for your group? It seems like there's enough it didn't get enough. Report an error in the passage at 1:16:59 Highlight the passage at 1:16:59

· · · silence, 1 minute

1:17:21 Who's the spokesperson? Report an error in the passage at 1:17:21 Highlight the passage at 1:17:21

1:17:33 you know... Report an error in the passage at 1:17:33 Highlight the passage at 1:17:33

1:18:02 And then some difficulty that could arise with all, all. Yeah, that's a big one. All. Report an error in the passage at 1:18:02 Highlight the passage at 1:18:02

1:18:20 I mean, we can barely conceive of all of the... People in the United States holding them there, you know, especially some of our politicians. Report an error in the passage at 1:18:20 Highlight the passage at 1:18:20

1:18:34 I work on that. Those are usually when I do friend, enemy, stranger, I put like some of my favorite politicians in the enemy section. Report an error in the passage at 1:18:34 Highlight the passage at 1:18:34

1:18:54 Do we have a spokesperson for group three? you know, but anyway. Report an error in the passage at 1:18:54 Highlight the passage at 1:18:54

· · · silence, 1 minute

1:19:46 Okay, so that's the difficulty, is understanding what this wish-fulfilling gem is. Do you have any difficulty with all sentient beings? We've got that covered. It's just that wish-fulfilling gem that's puzzling me. Report an error in the passage at 1:19:46 Highlight the passage at 1:19:46

1:20:07 No, no, I'm just goofing around here. Report an error in the passage at 1:20:07 Highlight the passage at 1:20:07

1:20:15 Okay, well, we're going to talk, you know, we'll talk about the wish-fulfilling gem or jewel, wish-fulfilling jewel. But so what most everybody comes up against is like this idea of all sentient beings. It's just, you can't even begin to imagine. I mean, when I read like little things, there's like, I don't know how many million. Report an error in the passage at 1:20:15 Highlight the passage at 1:20:15

1:20:46 Sentient beings just in a square mile of dirt or maybe billions. In dirt that's under your feet, there's probably hundreds of thousands of sentient beings. Just that alone. Well, they kind of defined a sentient being as a being. That as a consciousness they can kind of have feelings of happiness and suffering. Report an error in the passage at 1:20:46 Highlight the passage at 1:20:46

1:21:29 It doesn't have to be like, they don't have to have the thoughts of happiness and suffering. Like maybe an aunt may not necessarily think, oh I want to be happy, but they'll really run when they smell that honey spilled on the floor. like they can, you know. Report an error in the passage at 1:21:29 Highlight the passage at 1:21:29

1:21:46 Or something like that, and you know that that will make them happy. Report an error in the passage at 1:21:46 Highlight the passage at 1:21:46

1:21:56 Well, just like people are programmed that way, to be happy. You don't have to think about whether you want to go and get something out of the refrigerator to eat when you're hungry. Report an error in the passage at 1:21:56 Highlight the passage at 1:21:56

1:22:06 And you don't think, and you don't, yeah, Report an error in the passage at 1:22:06 Highlight the passage at 1:22:06

1:22:17 yeah. You know, anyway, but it's, they, yeah, I mean, you know, they definitely don't want to suffer. Because, you know, when you go to try to smush them, they're going to run. And they're not going to want to get smushed. Report an error in the passage at 1:22:17 Highlight the passage at 1:22:17

1:22:41 Maybe they're luckier than we are. Report an error in the passage at 1:22:41 Highlight the passage at 1:22:41

1:22:48 But, you know, it's like a... We do have the ability to, you know, a finer mind, the ability to distinguish different states, emotional states. So they have an emotional state. They just don't distinguish. They don't label this happy and label this suffering like we do, but they still have the same innate kind of desire not to suffer and to have things that will support their lives. Report an error in the passage at 1:22:48 Highlight the passage at 1:22:48

1:23:26 So this is kind of like their form of happiness. It's like supporting their life. It's kind of like what people do when they don't think too much here. Report an error in the passage at 1:23:26 Highlight the passage at 1:23:26

1:23:39 Yeah. Report an error in the passage at 1:23:39 Highlight the passage at 1:23:39

1:23:52 Oh, well, no, no, it, well, no, no, it, no, it, yeah. I'll double check, because there was one, I've got so many books out, I go, okay, let's see, there was a really good quote in this one, and then I go, oops, which one was that one? Report an error in the passage at 1:23:52 Highlight the passage at 1:23:52

1:24:10 Yeah, Report an error in the passage at 1:24:10 Highlight the passage at 1:24:10

1:24:38 yeah, yeah. Report an error in the passage at 1:24:38 Highlight the passage at 1:24:38

1:24:45 it's, it's, there's, there Yeah, some kind of consciousness. I don't know, because I was questioning, actually, when I was in India, I was kind of contemplating, well, so would bacteria be considered? And I think the general consensus was no, not really, but I'm not sure, to be honest. And so I'll look up and see. We'll look up and see. Report an error in the passage at 1:24:45 Highlight the passage at 1:24:45

1:25:12 like the way, kind of more. See if we find a more exacting definition. But what it reminded me of was a quote that they used, and it was actually quoted from something else, but it was in G.I.J. and it was like, I never saw a wild thing feel sorry for itself. But that's true. And it says, I remember I looked up the rest of the quote, too. It was something about, like, a bird will stay perched on its branch in the cold until it freezes and falls off and never have a thought of feeling sorry for itself. Report an error in the passage at 1:25:12 Highlight the passage at 1:25:12

1:26:00 It was very poetic, hashing it up. But, I mean, if you think about it, there's a benefit to that because you're suffering. You're suffering, you kind of accept suffering in a sense. What we do as humans, our intelligent human minds, take the suffering and then we add mental suffering on top of it. Report an error in the passage at 1:26:00 Highlight the passage at 1:26:00

1:26:30 See, we're so smart. We can think. So we can make ourselves suffer even more. So this is really a talent we have. Report an error in the passage at 1:26:30 Highlight the passage at 1:26:30

1:26:46 This will come up in another one too. Anyway, so the first part of the verse, with the determination to achieve the highest aim for the benefit of all sentient beings. Now I put that all together. It doesn't necessarily have to be all together. Report an error in the passage at 1:26:46 Highlight the passage at 1:26:46

1:27:14 The highest aim, of course, refers to bodhicitta. And the verse already assumes, it says, with the determination to achieve the highest aim, that we already have the desire. We already want to achieve it. And I picked this verse because I like the word determination because we really have to set our minds to it. Report an error in the passage at 1:27:14 Highlight the passage at 1:27:14

1:27:45 Like with the wish, you can say, oh, with the wish. You know, if you're determined to do something, no matter how hard it is, no matter how long it takes, no matter how much you're going to have to work, then you'll do it. So I picked this particular series of verses because I liked the word determination. Report an error in the passage at 1:27:45 Highlight the passage at 1:27:45

1:28:11 So we're determined to achieve this highest aim. So the highest aim actually is enlightenment. And we do that by practicing, letting go of self-cherishing, cherishing others. And we progress on the path as bodhisattvas. So right now, hopefully, we have at least aspiring bodhicitta. So that's kind of like your... Report an error in the passage at 1:28:11 Highlight the passage at 1:28:11

1:28:49 You're really wanting to engage in these practices. You want to become a bodhisattva. It's kind of like the part of you want to go to India. So you're sitting at home and you're aspiring to go to India. So you haven't really done anything yet. You just want to go. Report an error in the passage at 1:28:49 Highlight the passage at 1:28:49

1:29:13 So as we move along in this progression on the path, then there's engaged bodhicitta. Which is kind of like where you're actually actively engaging in getting there. You know, this is where you buy the tickets, you get the book, you do the contemplations and that kind of thing. Report an error in the passage at 1:29:13 Highlight the passage at 1:29:13

1:29:40 So, you know, we can understand it intellectually and it can take a really long time to actually realize it, but we just do it little by little. Report an error in the passage at 1:29:40 Highlight the passage at 1:29:40

1:29:52 Things will begin to see over a period of time, and not tomorrow morning or by evening after work, but over a period of time, things will begin to change. Report an error in the passage at 1:29:52 Highlight the passage at 1:29:52

1:30:04 And then we can actually generate this thought of enlightenment and this aim in our minds and really work at it. So once we generate it, stabilize it and realize it, Then everything we do, we do for others. When you look at Lama Zopa, Geshe-la, they don't have to really think too much about it. They just, everything that they do, especially Lama Zopa, everything Report an error in the passage at 1:30:04 Highlight the passage at 1:30:04

1:30:49 he does is for others. Geshe-la too, just everything. So a lot of our teachers are good examples of what it looks like. Report an error in the passage at 1:30:49 Highlight the passage at 1:30:49

1:31:06 I did put in the notes here that I wanted to mention all because all sentient beings, I mean, you know, it's everybody. The people that you don't agree with, you know, the people that are the really bad ones that you read about or hear about, people from other universes, people from other beings from other realms. Report an error in the passage at 1:31:06 Highlight the passage at 1:31:06

1:31:42 Alms existence. All the animals and the ants and the bugs. So all is huge and really inconceivably. So it's always good to start with the things that are close. You can start with like your workmates and maybe the people that you see at the center and family, friends. Report an error in the passage at 1:31:42 Highlight the passage at 1:31:42

1:32:17 Get a feel for that and then grow it into the city and then into the state and allow it to keep growing. So just whatever is good for the rate that you feel. And if you develop it slowly with people that you kind of care about, that you see, it becomes stronger first. Report an error in the passage at 1:32:17 Highlight the passage at 1:32:17

1:32:43 Like my tendency would be like I think... When we're doing dedications, oh, I dedicate to this person and that person, you know, may they be well or they're suffering so much from being sick. And it's like right away my mind says, well, you know, why is that person more important than this person? Pretty soon it's like out of control. But, you know, you have to be careful because often when it just explodes out like that, you kind of lose the intensity of the feeling. Report an error in the passage at 1:32:43 Highlight the passage at 1:32:43

1:33:12 You want to keep a strong feeling so that you can let it. Go in and kind of integrate more fully. And then when you get that stronger feeling, let the stronger feeling kind of expand bigger. Rather than just, oh yeah, this is this. Bam! All of a sudden it's so huge, it's just all diluted and, you know. So, that's what I'm working on that one still. Report an error in the passage at 1:33:12 Highlight the passage at 1:33:12

1:33:39 Because my mind just goes, you know. Report an error in the passage at 1:33:39 Highlight the passage at 1:33:39

1:33:44 Okay. So, basically, when we work on this, We can't leave any being out. It has to include everybody. We can't. There's one horrible, horrible, the worst in the whole universe. Report an error in the passage at 1:33:44 Highlight the passage at 1:33:44

1:34:04 We can't leave now. And I just say him or him. It could be her. Or it. Whatever it is. I don't know. So that's a pretty tall order, benefiting all sentient beings. Report an error in the passage at 1:34:04 Highlight the passage at 1:34:04

1:34:28 It's possible to get to enlightenment because we know we have examples of it. Report an error in the passage at 1:34:28 Highlight the passage at 1:34:28

1:34:37 So the next line, which surpasses even the wish-fulfilling gem. So the way this particular verse reads, it's kind of like this wish-fulfilling gem refers to, or what surpasses the wish-fulfilling gem kind of refers back to sentient beings. Report an error in the passage at 1:34:37 Highlight the passage at 1:34:37

1:35:02 Meaning that sentient beings are greater than the wish-fulfilling gem. I like wish-fulfilling jewel, but this happens to say gem. So I'll probably use jewel instead. So the wish-fulfilling jewel is a legendary or an actual jewel. I'm not sure. I think it might be an imaginary one, but then... Who knows? Because there's a lot of things that aren't what they always appear to be and there's a lot of things that we don't understand or know. So let's say it's legendary or actual. Report an error in the passage at 1:35:02 Highlight the passage at 1:35:02

1:35:43 It could be either one. And it's said that if you pray to it, any of the worldly things that you pray for, you'll get. Like money, prosperity, a good job, a good position. But it can only bring... worldly benefit We get protection from harm, from disasters, floods, any of those kinds of things. But it only brings worldly results or something worldly. Report an error in the passage at 1:35:43 Highlight the passage at 1:35:43

1:36:16 But sentient beings, on the other hand, are essential for attaining Buddhahood. So we need sentient beings at the beginning, in the middle and at the end. Report an error in the passage at 1:36:16 Highlight the passage at 1:36:16

1:36:31 At the beginning, if we go right to the beginning. You need sentient beings just to have a life here. And then we can look at it in a couple of ways. Report an error in the passage at 1:36:31 Highlight the passage at 1:36:31

1:36:46 From a mundane level, we're totally dependent on sentient beings from the minute that our consciousness dropped into the egg and sperm all the way through our entire lives on the kindness and on sentient beings. On other sentient beings. They grow the food for us. They make the clothes for us. They do all kinds of things. Report an error in the passage at 1:36:46 Highlight the passage at 1:36:46

1:37:15 If it was only us, we would have never survived. So our entire well-being, our entire lives are all independent on others, on sentient beings. Report an error in the passage at 1:37:15 Highlight the passage at 1:37:15

1:37:33 And so they're also essential for attaining Buddhahood. So in the beginning, Of our Dharma practice, we need sentient beings as teachers. They print texts, they translate texts like all the work that people do in order to translate these, just even the verses for us so that we can study them. Geshe-la and all the people who have studied. We need Dharma centers, you know, and retreat centers, and then we have the people that make tankas and statues and all the things for us to use so that we can... Report an error in the passage at 1:37:33 Highlight the passage at 1:37:33

1:38:11 Engaging practices and all of that kind of thing. So in the middle, they help us with generating the altruistic motivation so that we actually kind of use sentient beings. They're essential for us in order to gain merit, in order to purify our minds, in order to work on our minds. And they're essential in the thought. Report an error in the passage at 1:38:11 Highlight the passage at 1:38:11

1:38:44 Transformation and process because it's those sentient beings that are going to help us to progress on the path and we couldn't do it without them. Report an error in the passage at 1:38:44 Highlight the passage at 1:38:44

1:39:01 We need to generate their altruistic or bodhicitta motivation and this all comes about due to sentient beings. The collection of merit and the six perfections we can't practice. Generosity or any of the other six perfections without having someone to be generous to. Patience. We can't practice patience without sentient beings. We couldn't do it. It would be impossible. So all of the bodhisattva path is totally dependent on sentient beings. Report an error in the passage at 1:39:01 Highlight the passage at 1:39:01

1:39:40 And then at the end, Buddhahood is dependent on sentient beings all the way up to Buddhahood. Because the Buddha works in order to achieve enlightenment for the benefit of sentient beings and then spends the rest of the time benefiting those sentient beings. Without sentient beings there would be no need. Report an error in the passage at 1:39:40 Highlight the passage at 1:39:40

1:40:14 It's just every step of the way you need sentient beings. Report an error in the passage at 1:40:14 Highlight the passage at 1:40:14

1:40:30 So this is what they say, sentient beings produced all of the past Buddhas, all of the present Buddhas and are going to produce my Buddhahood and all the Buddhas of the future. So all the Buddhas are produced as a result of sentient beings. So I wish we're feeling Jewel can just give us worldly things. Report an error in the passage at 1:40:30 Highlight the passage at 1:40:30

1:41:02 A sentient being... Can help us to get all the way to enlightenment. So there's no comparison. It's like we can get a little pile of stuff. Report an error in the passage at 1:41:02 Highlight the passage at 1:41:02

1:41:19 Try to be polite. Report an error in the passage at 1:41:19 Highlight the passage at 1:41:19

1:41:23 A little cow pie over here. You know, total enlightenment, total freedom up here. No comparison. So then the last line, may I hold them dear at all times. Report an error in the passage at 1:41:23 Highlight the passage at 1:41:23

1:41:43 We see them as dear because we recognize the kindness. We recognize how indispensable they are and how much we need them. Report an error in the passage at 1:41:43 Highlight the passage at 1:41:43

1:41:57 And we appreciate the importance and significance and relate to them as dear and worthy of respect and affection. Report an error in the passage at 1:41:57 Highlight the passage at 1:41:57

1:42:12 So if we hold people in this way, it prevents us from harming them, from disregarding them or thinking of them as unimportant. Report an error in the passage at 1:42:12 Highlight the passage at 1:42:12

1:42:27 And so you can see how even just that one, just thinking about that one line, how that expands your mind already. Report an error in the passage at 1:42:27 Highlight the passage at 1:42:27

1:42:47 So there's basically... There are three ways that you can interpret this first verse. So it says, with the determination to achieve the highest aim for the benefit of sentient beings, which surpasses even a wish-fulfilling gem. So the preciousness of the sentient beings. Report an error in the passage at 1:42:47 Highlight the passage at 1:42:47

1:43:23 It can be what they are talking about, greater than the wish-fulfilling gem, more precious. It could be the sentient beings are most precious. Report an error in the passage at 1:43:23 Highlight the passage at 1:43:23

1:43:35 Another way is that the mind of bodhicitta, because the determination to achieve the highest aim can surpass even a wish-fulfilling gem. So holding the mind of bodhicitta could be interpreted in that way. Report an error in the passage at 1:43:35 Highlight the passage at 1:43:35

1:43:56 Because we're achieving that aim for the benefit of sentient beings. So they don't put any punctuation in here. So you get to interpret it all these different ways. Report an error in the passage at 1:43:56 Highlight the passage at 1:43:56

1:44:09 And then the last one is that Buddhahood itself is better than a wish-fulfilling gem. So when you achieve that highest aim, that's better than a wish-fulfilling gem. So there's like kind of three ways to... Report an error in the passage at 1:44:09 Highlight the passage at 1:44:09

1:44:36 But the main point of this first verse is to really grow that bodhicitta, the kindness, compassion, love in your heart. And so what I want to do is just like a really quick review of just the points of exchanging self and others. Report an error in the passage at 1:44:36 Highlight the passage at 1:44:36

1:45:11 It's directly changing self-cherishing into cherishing others. And Lama Zopa says in Transforming Problems, unless you exchange yourself for others, you cannot become enlightened. And even in saṃsāra, you will never find happiness. Forget about the happiness of future lives. Without bodhicitta... You will be eternally frustrated even in the activities of this life. No matter how hard you strive towards happiness in your everyday life, you simply cannot experience it unless you develop a good, compassionate heart. Report an error in the passage at 1:45:11 Highlight the passage at 1:45:11

1:45:54 Without a good heart, you will never have peace in your life. Report an error in the passage at 1:45:54 Highlight the passage at 1:45:54

1:46:02 So that's pretty potent, but it's true. And unfortunately, what most of us, and what I still do, and probably will do for a good bit longer, is we chase happiness in the wrong direction. Report an error in the passage at 1:46:02 Highlight the passage at 1:46:02

1:46:27 We still look at it as something that we can get by bringing things into us from outside. But the real, true happiness and what really is going to make us feel... Calm, complete, satisfied is inside. Report an error in the passage at 1:46:27 Highlight the passage at 1:46:27

1:46:57 Anyway, so the exchanging self and others, the first step is that we need to see how self and others, how ourselves and others are equal. And this is particularly done in equal in wanting to have happiness and not wanting to suffer. Report an error in the passage at 1:46:57 Highlight the passage at 1:46:57

1:47:26 And so there's not one single person that really wants to suffer. Even a masochist suffers in order to be happy. Report an error in the passage at 1:47:26 Highlight the passage at 1:47:26

1:47:45 So, you know, it's like everybody, everybody, no matter what they're doing, whether it's kind or unkind, always does it with the motivation to be happy themselves. Report an error in the passage at 1:47:45 Highlight the passage at 1:47:45

1:48:07 Like we start wars in order to try to be happy. We figure if we kill enough of the bad guys or the beings we don't like, then we can be happy. Report an error in the passage at 1:48:07 Highlight the passage at 1:48:07

1:48:19 There's lots of things like that. But anyway, so the next one is contemplating the many disadvantages or faults of self-cherishing. The Report an error in the passage at 1:48:19 Highlight the passage at 1:48:19

1:48:42 third one is contemplating the qualities of cherishing others. Report an error in the passage at 1:48:42 Highlight the passage at 1:48:42

1:48:55 We have the actual contemplation on exchanging self and others, which we'll talk about throughout the class because it'll come up in a lot of the different things. Report an error in the passage at 1:48:55 Highlight the passage at 1:48:55

1:49:09 And then on the basis of that, we meditate on giving and taking, taking and giving, Tonglen. Report an error in the passage at 1:49:09 Highlight the passage at 1:49:09

1:49:23 So I think most of you did, was everybody in the class that Chaka did, the bodhicitta class? Report an error in the passage at 1:49:23 Highlight the passage at 1:49:23

1:49:36 So the homework that I picked for this time, it's like I couldn't decide. I kept going back and forth and I thought, oh, I'm going to do this. No, I'm going to do that. So I decided I would do a couple of things. Report an error in the passage at 1:49:36 Highlight the passage at 1:49:36

1:49:57 And you can decide. I have five copies and we can make a few more copies so that if everybody wants a hard copy that they can just put down and read, which might be easier, I can send it out electronic, but then you have to look at it and you have to open the computer and sometimes you just go, oh, it's an email and you read it once and then the rest of the week you forget about it. Report an error in the passage at 1:49:57 Highlight the passage at 1:49:57

1:50:24 So if you want the actual papers, you can write. We can make a few extra copies. But what I thought for homework this week was to, and you can do this as a meditation or as just a contemplation, was to go over the first three of those. Report an error in the passage at 1:50:24 Highlight the passage at 1:50:24

1:50:50 So equanimity, and I'll give you these sheets. All sentient beings are we. Meaning all sentient beings are all the same. We all want happiness and we don't want to suffer. So this is something you can do. You can contemplate this while you're walking around, while you're at work, especially when that annoying person starts nagging at you and, you know, you think, all you want to do is be happy and not suffer. Report an error in the passage at 1:50:50 Highlight the passage at 1:50:50

1:51:35 Just like me. at me, look what they're doing. Report an error in the passage at 1:51:35 Highlight the passage at 1:51:35

1:51:40 anyway, it's like every being, fish, animals, insects. Report an error in the passage at 1:51:40 Highlight the passage at 1:51:40

1:51:51 have a little ride up here, I think, or maybe I have time to just kind of read through. We all know this is true for ourselves. We need to expand this idea to all our friends, enemies and strangers and to all types of beings. So contemplate and observe those around you on the street, at work, at home and see how this is true and see how those who have different ideas and opinions than you still want to be happy Report an error in the passage at 1:51:51 Highlight the passage at 1:51:51

1:52:25 and how they like you think that the way they see things will create that happiness and lack of suffering for themselves. So nobody, I mean people, we have different views about how things should be done or what should be done. We have different views than some of the politicians. But all of these people that have different views, just like us, like we think our view will bring happiness and end suffering, they think their view will bring happiness and end suffering. Report an error in the passage at 1:52:25 Highlight the passage at 1:52:25

1:53:03 So it's not, I'm not going to, it's not for me to judge whether... Their view is right or not right now. But the main point of this is to just to equalize ourselves so that we realize that everything that we do is in order to have happiness and to end suffering. Report an error in the passage at 1:53:03 Highlight the passage at 1:53:03

1:53:29 Nobody wakes up thinking today I want to have a miserable day. No one wants misery and suffering. Report an error in the passage at 1:53:29 Highlight the passage at 1:53:29

1:53:41 So then the other one would be, I just kind of made a little list, faults of self-cherishing and a quote from Guru Puja and that's the only part I'll read. This chronic disease of cherishing myself is the cause giving rise to all my unsought suffering. Report an error in the passage at 1:53:41 Highlight the passage at 1:53:41

1:54:04 So, you know, if you just, if you want, you can just read through these once a day or once during the week. or, you know, little steps. Report an error in the passage at 1:54:04 Highlight the passage at 1:54:04

1:54:18 You can sit and contemplate them while you're at the beach or at the park or something like that. You don't necessarily have to do a meditation on it. Report an error in the passage at 1:54:18 Highlight the passage at 1:54:18

1:54:31 And then the benefits of cherishing others, the Guru Puja says, the mind that cherishes all mother beings and would secure them in bliss is the gateway leading to infinite virtue. So basically it just says this is going to bring you happiness. This is going to end your suffering, going to bring you happiness. Report an error in the passage at 1:54:31 Highlight the passage at 1:54:31

1:54:54 And so I wrote a little bit on there, but it's good, like when you work with these ideas, kind of read over it, get the gist and kind of think of your own examples and look into the, you know, look around at the people, because this is all based on sentient beings and we're really fortunate because there's a whole bunch of sentient beings around. Report an error in the passage at 1:54:54 Highlight the passage at 1:54:54

1:55:18 So we can use them right now. We don't have to wait until some other time when we're maybe a little closer to bodhicitta. But we can use them now when we get up from the class to start to see how they all want to be happy. Remember that when they're doing things that you know that are going to cause them suffering. Because we do that ourselves. We do things we want to be happy. Report an error in the passage at 1:55:18 Highlight the passage at 1:55:18

1:55:50 Like, okay. I want to be happy. Oh, I want to be happy. I have this big bag of this caramel corn with chocolate on part of it. It's really good. So I want to be happy. I'm going to eat the caramel corn. So I eat part of the caramel corn. And it's like, I know if I keep eating the caramel corn, it's going to make me feel sick. Report an error in the passage at 1:55:50 Highlight the passage at 1:55:50

1:56:12 But, you know, there's some part that just loves that caramel corn and is like thinking, oh, well, if I eat the caramel corn, I'm going to be happy. Report an error in the passage at 1:56:12 Highlight the passage at 1:56:12

1:56:22 It just doesn't quite work. I end up feeling sick. Then I think, oh good, well that's enough Kamo Karn for this year. Report an error in the passage at 1:56:22 Highlight the passage at 1:56:22

1:56:36 Just watching those kinds of things. That's just this mind that's following the attachments. That's the part of the self-cherishing mind. The mind that's full of the afflictions. Report an error in the passage at 1:56:36 Highlight the passage at 1:56:36

1:56:57 Anyway, so I can pass these out. Let's see, should we make some more copies? Report an error in the passage at 1:56:57 Highlight the passage at 1:56:57

1:57:07 Let's see, I have one, two, five. How many? Let's see, maybe, yeah, just four more, four more. Report an error in the passage at 1:57:07 Highlight the passage at 1:57:07

1:57:26 So are there any questions? I know it's probably a little confusing for you, Tammy, not having done the other class, but these first three contemplations, and we can write. Or we can talk sometime during the week if there's particular questions that come up. Report an error in the passage at 1:57:26 Highlight the passage at 1:57:26

1:57:48 But if you read through and kind of get an idea of this is the main, these three are the main things to contemplate before we look at the idea of exchanging self and others. Report an error in the passage at 1:57:48 Highlight the passage at 1:57:48

1:58:09 Because you see, I mean, the benefits to cherishing others, there are benefits. There's really no benefit to cherishing ourselves. And, you know, for eons and eons, we've been fooling ourselves. It's like this little evil twin living inside going, no, you know, if you go and do this, you'll make me happy. Report an error in the passage at 1:58:09 Highlight the passage at 1:58:09

1:58:36 You know, forget about them. Take care of yourself. Report an error in the passage at 1:58:36 Highlight the passage at 1:58:36

1:58:44 And we really think that that works. Report an error in the passage at 1:58:44 Highlight the passage at 1:58:44

1:58:51 It's so ingrained and it's so habitual. And that's one of the reasons why a lot of these practices were kind of like secret practices. Because it's so contrary to our way of thinking and to the normal way of thinking. If you tell somebody, oh, well, you know, if you just cherish yourself, you're just going to be suffering. Report an error in the passage at 1:58:51 Highlight the passage at 1:58:51

1:59:17 They're going to go, you're crazy. They'll run out the door and go to another different kind of center somewhere. It's going to give them some good news. Report an error in the passage at 1:59:17 Highlight the passage at 1:59:17

1:59:36 Oh, well that's okay. Meditation class one. I hear some more of them. Report an error in the passage at 1:59:36 Highlight the passage at 1:59:36

1:59:53 So I know that a lot of people have busy lives with lots of things to do and don't have... A lot of time for a regular practice. How many people here have some sort of a regular practice that they do? Report an error in the passage at 1:59:53 Highlight the passage at 1:59:53

2:00:13 Oh, that's good. Kind of, yeah. Kind of yes and then no a little bit. So, you know, if you have a regular practice, you can do some meditation on the topics if you want. You know, a few minutes, fit it in. Or just, you know, read it during the day. And if you don't, you can just read it during the day and, you know, maybe contemplate, watch as you're going around the city. Report an error in the passage at 2:00:13 Highlight the passage at 2:00:13

2:00:46 You know, watch people and watch what your mind does when you see certain things. Most of all, watch your mind. Report an error in the passage at 2:00:46 Highlight the passage at 2:00:46

2:00:58 Different thoughts, different judgments, all kinds of different things will arise in relationship to all these other people. And so we can start first this week by watching that, recognizing that even though the behavior isn't what we approve of, that person is really just trying to be happy without putting judgments on things. Report an error in the passage at 2:00:58 Highlight the passage at 2:00:58

2:01:26 He doesn't want to suffer just as much as I don't want to suffer. And it may even look like they're causing you to suffer, but not really the way it is. Report an error in the passage at 2:01:26 Highlight the passage at 2:01:26

2:01:44 You have to realize that all of our happiness, all of our suffering, everything that we experience comes from ourselves inside. Report an error in the passage at 2:01:44 Highlight the passage at 2:01:44

2:01:55 And the way to prove that is that not everybody likes chocolate cake. Report an error in the passage at 2:01:55 Highlight the passage at 2:01:55

2:02:04 And if chocolate cake had this deliciousness built into it, Some of us would say, oh, it's so delicious. So if it had this deliciousness inherently built into this piece of cake, then everybody that ate it would think it was delicious. But it's not. So it's just like that. Report an error in the passage at 2:02:04 Highlight the passage at 2:02:04

2:02:33 As long as there's two opinions about anything, it proves emptiness. Report an error in the passage at 2:02:33 Highlight the passage at 2:02:33

2:02:43 What's that have to do with it? Delicious chocolate cake I'm probably thinking about eating and I don't eat after lunch. Report an error in the passage at 2:02:43 Highlight the passage at 2:02:43

2:02:57 So, you know, we have a difference about, you know, maybe for one person it's listening to really loud music that makes them happy. And for you, you find that that will bring up sometimes some annoyance. Report an error in the passage at 2:02:57 Highlight the passage at 2:02:57

2:03:15 They're not annoying you because the neighbor that's sitting next to you goes, hey, this is really annoying to me. So that means that's your mind. Your neighbor's mind says, oh, this is really great. Your mind says, I don't like this. Just like the chocolate cake. That's what it's like. Report an error in the passage at 2:03:15 Highlight the passage at 2:03:15

2:03:35 Anyway, so thank you. Let's do a little dedication. Report an error in the passage at 2:03:35 Highlight the passage at 2:03:35

2:03:53 On the dedication prayers. We'll read the first two on page six of the dedication prayers. So what we're doing is by dedicating and whenever you do a practice or even if you engage in some... Virtuous activity like observing and working with your mind while you're riding the bus, looking at individuals on the bus thinking, they just want to be happy. Report an error in the passage at 2:03:53 Highlight the passage at 2:03:53

2:04:30 They're just like me. You know they're totally different. Any kind of virtuous activity, always dedicate those merits because it's kind of like putting it in the bank. Report an error in the passage at 2:04:30 Highlight the passage at 2:04:30

2:04:43 Saves it. So we'll dedicate the merits that we created by... Thinking about the Dharma and engaging in the Dharma, listening, working to improve our minds, open our heart, be more loving, more compassionate, more kind, Report an error in the passage at 2:04:43 Highlight the passage at 2:04:43

2:05:14 so that we can reach enlightenment. So through the merits of these virtuous actions, may I quickly attain the state of a Guru Buddha and lead all living beings without exception into that enlightened state. May the supreme jewel bodhicitta that has not yet arisen arise and grow and may that which has arisen not diminish but increase more and more. Report an error in the passage at 2:05:14 Highlight the passage at 2:05:14

2:05:49 So let's also just, I know it's getting a little bit late, we're five minutes over, but let's, where's the, on the page behind it, we'll read the Generating the Mind event because that's really nice too to read. With the wish to free all beings, I shall always go for refuge to the Buddha, Dharma and Saṅgha until I reach full enlightenment. Report an error in the passage at 2:05:49 Highlight the passage at 2:05:49

2:06:13 Inspired by wisdom and compassion, today in the Buddha's presence, I generate the mind for full awakening for the benefit of all sentient beings. For as long as space remains, as long as sentient beings remain, Until then may I too remain to dispel the miseries of the world. Report an error in the passage at 2:06:13 Highlight the passage at 2:06:13

2:06:38 Okay, well thank you. So look at that first verse too during the week and kind of look at the implications and the meaning and just do whatever best you can. Report an error in the passage at 2:06:38 Highlight the passage at 2:06:38

· · · silence, 1 minute

2:07:51 Oh yeah, if we have soap, yeah. Report an error in the passage at 2:07:51 Highlight the passage at 2:07:51

2:08:08 Okay, so, so. I guess everybody has the homework. What I'll do, there is reading too. Maybe we can talk about it next week because I think maybe a few more people will be here and we'll see who wants an electronic version and who actually needs a printed version. Report an error in the passage at 2:08:08 Highlight the passage at 2:08:08

2:08:33 We have a lot of weeks and so there's no rush through. Report an error in the passage at 2:08:33 Highlight the passage at 2:08:33

2:08:42 8 or 9, 8 or 9. Report an error in the passage at 2:08:42 Highlight the passage at 2:08:42