Discovering Buddhism - The Wisdom of Emptiness (24 March 2011)

0:16 doesn't like that. Hey, Report an error in the passage at 0:16 Highlight the passage at 0:16

· · · silence, 1 minute

0:51 welcome. Report an error in the passage at 0:51 Highlight the passage at 0:51

0:54 My name is Chokyi. Report an error in the passage at 0:54 Highlight the passage at 0:54

0:59 Actually, we'll use the gold book later. I wanted to do a glance meditation on the lamrim, but that's okay. We'll do it at the end. That's good. So what I usually like to do is to start every class that I teach with a little meditation, just on the breath to kind of bring us all into the room. And, um, oh, can we get Report an error in the passage at 0:59 Highlight the passage at 0:59

1:20 What are you doing in here? Report an error in the passage at 1:20 Highlight the passage at 1:20

1:24 You're hiding in the back. Yeah, so I like to start with meditation. I think it's as good for all of us. There's never enough time in the day for more and more and more meditation. We need to do meditation. And it also allows the latecomers to come in and it also allows all of us to kind of arrive, even though our bodies might be here. The rest of us might be looking for a parking space or caught up with some discussion at work or whatever. Report an error in the passage at 1:24 Highlight the passage at 1:24

1:52 So it allows us to kind of breathe ourselves into the room. So let's just start that way right now and then we'll set a motivation for tonight's class. Report an error in the passage at 1:52 Highlight the passage at 1:52

2:02 So if you've never meditated before, just the most important thing is to extend your spine. Report an error in the passage at 2:02 Highlight the passage at 2:02

2:13 Try to sit upright and if you're sitting in a chair, is anyone in the chair? You're in the chair. To try to sit away from the back of the chair with your feet firmly on the floor and that allows your spine to be straight too. Report an error in the passage at 2:13 Highlight the passage at 2:13

2:27 It doesn't matter where you are. Even if you're lying flat on the floor, on your back, that's the one important thing is to keep your back as straight as possible. Report an error in the passage at 2:27 Highlight the passage at 2:27

2:42 And then just take about three nice big belly breaths and let them go. I just imagine I'm sort of cleansing your mind and body of everything that you've done today. Report an error in the passage at 2:42 Highlight the passage at 2:42

· · · silence, 1 minute

3:23 And then try to find a point, either the tip of your nostril or your belly, and just watch your breath for a few rounds. Trying to keep your mind on the breath, and every time it wanders off, just bringing it back to the breath. And just do this for a few rounds. Then Report an error in the passage at 3:23 Highlight the passage at 3:23

· · · silence, 2 minutes

5:14 we'll just set our motivation for tonight's class, which is the beginning of two months of... Discussing the nature of reality, Report an error in the passage at 5:14 Highlight the passage at 5:14

5:27 the wisdom of emptiness. Report an error in the passage at 5:27 Highlight the passage at 5:27

5:33 Lama Zopa Rinpoche has been teaching a lot lately and I think it was on Sunday that he actually said the Report an error in the passage at 5:33 Highlight the passage at 5:33

5:46 most important thing for us to do with our lives is to work on our mind. The most important thing, even more than helping others. Report an error in the passage at 5:46 Highlight the passage at 5:46

6:02 And working on our mind begins with meditation and the ultimate goal of that meditation. As having this direct perception of the nature of reality, including our own reality, our own self, our own mind. Report an error in the passage at 6:02 Highlight the passage at 6:02

6:23 Otherwise we can never actually be completely and sincerely compassionate to others. Report an error in the passage at 6:23 Highlight the passage at 6:23

6:39 So let's motivate tonight's class and this course to each one of us being able to get to know our own minds a little better and to dive into the nature of reality. And then to apply that understanding in our daily lives so that it doesn't become something academic or intellectual. Report an error in the passage at 6:39 Highlight the passage at 6:39

7:08 It actually changes our world, our life, our mind, so we can benefit all living beings. Report an error in the passage at 7:08 Highlight the passage at 7:08

7:27 Time as you're ready, you can end your meditation. I'm going to start with an opening prayer, which is in the white book in front of you. It's on page 8. Report an error in the passage at 7:27 Highlight the passage at 7:27

7:52 That should have a picture of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. If not, you're on the wrong page. See what I tell you. Come on in, we just started. With the wish to free all beings, I shall always go for refuge to Buddha, Dharma and Saṅgha until I reach full enlightenment. Inspired by wisdom and compassion, today in the Buddha's presence, I generate the mind of full awakening. Report an error in the passage at 7:52 Highlight the passage at 7:52

8:23 For the benefit of all sentient beings, as long as space remains, as long as sentient beings remain, until then may I too remain and dispel the miseries of the world. Report an error in the passage at 8:23 Highlight the passage at 8:23

8:45 So this is the first night of a nine-week course called The Wisdom of Emptiness. It's a Discovering Buddhism course, and I'll talk a few minutes about what that is in a little bit. Report an error in the passage at 8:45 Highlight the passage at 8:45

9:00 And then there will also be a chance for us to kind of go around and introduce ourselves to each other. One way that this course, this is the second to last of the Discovering Buddhism courses before we start again. So we just keep cycling through. And the next course after this one is on Tantra. And although there's not really... Report an error in the passage at 9:00 Highlight the passage at 9:00

9:27 Technically a prerequisite for either of those two courses. I've sort of always tried for this course and for the next course to encourage people to have had some study, so at least one other Discovering Buddhism class, or the equivalent, have studied something about the lamrim, at least know kind of where this fits, although we will review that tonight. Report an error in the passage at 9:27 Highlight the passage at 9:27

9:52 And so I just wanted to take a quick show of hands if there's anybody in here that's never studied Buddhism before. Okay, so I see some new faces. I know you guys have studied it before. But I see some new faces, so I just wanted to make sure that you guys have had a little bit of background at least. Report an error in the passage at 9:52 Highlight the passage at 9:52

10:12 And we can say a little bit more when we go around. Okay, yeah. But I just wanted... That at the very beginning. If it doesn't feel like it's a strong enough background, we can also talk about some outside reading, too, so that you feel like you're on the same page. But I did want to toss that out at the very beginning in case somebody went, oops, wrong class, and walked out before I'd rather on for, you know, a couple of hours. Report an error in the passage at 10:12 Highlight the passage at 10:12

10:41 Yeah. So tonight's class, this term emptiness, I think, is... So, um, Report an error in the passage at 10:41 Highlight the passage at 10:41

10:48 It's one of those both juicy and confusing terms in Buddhism. So I wanted to just sort of give you a little preview of coming attractions. Report an error in the passage at 10:48 Highlight the passage at 10:48

10:59 This thing called emptiness. What is emptiness? Report an error in the passage at 10:59 Highlight the passage at 10:59

11:05 And what does it refer to? And also what is this class going to cover? Sort of giving you a little idea. I don't have the binders ready and I don't have the syllabuses ready, syllabi ready because... I always like to count and see how many people actually come because we usually don't ask for pre-registration. I think I only got one. Thank you, Phil. Report an error in the passage at 11:05 Highlight the passage at 11:05

11:28 Maybe somebody else sent something to office at. So I like to count first. And so the first week, I don't give you much in the way of homework. I just have you do, you know, start, get out your meditation cushion if it's gotten dusty or rusty and just start getting ready to get ready. Report an error in the passage at 11:28 Highlight the passage at 11:28

11:48 But then next week I'll hand out the binder and probably some additional reading. I actually have been finding some additional emptiness reading and I'll pass that out next week too. Report an error in the passage at 11:48 Highlight the passage at 11:48

12:02 And then also I like to do a roster. And that's why I ran back out for the clipboard. I like to do a little class roster just so I have all of your names and contact information in one place for me. And I know that you give it to the center when you register and so forth, but I don't necessarily ever see those forms. And if I ever have to reach all of you in a single moment, it's a lot easier to just have it on one piece of paper. Report an error in the passage at 12:02 Highlight the passage at 12:02

12:26 So I'm going to pass that around too and just have you guys fill that in. And I just said contact information. So if you never look at your email, don't use that. Do your phone. And if you never answer your phone, don't do that. The reason for that roster is just if we have to cancel suddenly or change suddenly because of some unforeseen circumstances and these things do happen. Report an error in the passage at 12:26 Highlight the passage at 12:26

12:53 So it's just nice for it to all be in one place. Report an error in the passage at 12:53 Highlight the passage at 12:53

12:59 So emptiness. What is empty and empty of what? So we're going to try to explore that a little bit. Sometimes it sounds really esoteric and kind of obscure, I think this term emptiness, and also quite philosophical, like not so practical, but in reality it's incredibly practical. It's one of the juicier topics within Buddhism. Without emptiness, if there were no emptiness, if emptiness did not exist, so to speak. Report an error in the passage at 12:59 Highlight the passage at 12:59

13:37 It's an absence rather than a positive, but I'm using it that way in this sentence. We wouldn't be able to have karma. We wouldn't be able to actually develop true compassion for others. There would be no saṃsāra. There could be no nirvāṇa. There could be no enlightenment. So we need emptiness. We need to understand emptiness, but emptiness makes everything possible. So it's actually quite practical. Report an error in the passage at 13:37 Highlight the passage at 13:37

14:06 It's very practical. And the more we understand it, just like with karma, even if we don't have a huge understanding but we just have a little tiny understanding, we can immediately start putting it into practice. So it doesn't mean that we have to study it for 79 years before we can actually start using it in our lives. So in that way, it's like karma. Report an error in the passage at 14:06 Highlight the passage at 14:06

14:27 It's very much like karma, the study of karma. Nargajuna said, anyone who knows not emptiness has no hope of freedom at all. Left in darkness, they will circle in the prison the six realms of pain. Report an error in the passage at 14:27 Highlight the passage at 14:27

14:41 Anyone who knows not emptiness has no hope of freedom at all. Left in darkness, they will circle in the prison the six realms of pain. So that's us. We're in the darkness right now, but we're moving towards the light. So emptiness is a characteristic or a quality of all phenomena. It's not something that exists apart from objects or phenomena. And if that object goes out of existence, its emptiness also goes out of existence. Report an error in the passage at 14:41 Highlight the passage at 14:41

15:13 So it's not something that's separate over there. That quality is a mere absence of a false way of existing. So the way we think things exist doesn't exist. Report an error in the passage at 15:13 Highlight the passage at 15:13

15:33 So emptiness isn't a positive object out there somewhere. Sometimes we talk about it in those terms, but that's not accurate. It's an absence of existing in the way that we think things exist. So emptiness, we're talking about emptiness as an absence. It's a negative. Report an error in the passage at 15:33 Highlight the passage at 15:33

15:57 Emptiness doesn't exist without form, so form can't exist without empty. And we're going to get into the Heart Sūtra. People recognize that. We're going to get into the Heart Sūtra in some of the later classes, which is completely about emptiness. So much about emptiness that it can get confusing when you're chanting it before class. A lot of Geshe-la's classes, we start with reading the Heart Sūtra. Report an error in the passage at 15:57 Highlight the passage at 15:57

16:25 A lot of the big public teachings, we also start by reading the Heart Sūtra. And if you don't understand it at all, it's just like... What is he doing? He's just negating everything that we know that we exist. So we'll get into that. We talk about how necessary it is to have a direct realization or a direct perception of emptiness. Report an error in the passage at 16:25 Highlight the passage at 16:25

16:48 How do you directly realize something that doesn't exist, that's not there, that's an absence of something? Report an error in the passage at 16:48 Highlight the passage at 16:48

16:58 It's an absence of something that we always thought existed. And that's what we're trying to experience in meditation. We're trying to sort of catch ourselves. Getting it that we believe that things exist in a certain way, we have to sort of catch ourselves. It's like we have to be kind of sneaky. Catch ourselves and then expose to our mind that it never existed that way. So you might think of it as an example. Report an error in the passage at 16:58 Highlight the passage at 16:58

17:28 Imagine that your roommate, you think, your roommate's going to make dinner for you tonight. So all day at work, you're visualizing this incredible meal that your roommates, and I'll just imagine Charles, because he's a really good cook. So I'm just imagining in great detail this amazing meal he's going to make for me, and he's told me it's going to be in the fridge when I get home, and I'm imagining all the details, and he's even made like, you know, gluten-free cornbread and all this stuff. Report an error in the passage at 17:28 Highlight the passage at 17:28

17:56 And I can almost taste it, you know. And then I get home and I open the refrigerator and it's not there. And it's not that it's gone, which is likely in this house. It's not that somebody else has eaten it. It actually never existed. He got the day wrong or he forgot or he went and, you know, got ordained or something and, you know, just didn't do it. Report an error in the passage at 17:56 Highlight the passage at 17:56

18:16 So it's like the complete absence of something that I not only thought, I just totally 100 % believed was going to be there. That's what our goal is, to have this understanding. Because it's a big enough deal if you thought it was going to be dinner. Report an error in the passage at 18:16 Highlight the passage at 18:16

18:32 But if you're talking about the emptiness of the objects that we use in everyday life, or even more exciting, ourselves and our minds and the nature of all reality. Report an error in the passage at 18:32 Highlight the passage at 18:32

18:49 I might get upset about the dinner, but I probably wouldn't stay in the cyclic existence suffering just because of that. What causes our problems is this misunderstanding that things... Report an error in the passage at 18:49 Highlight the passage at 18:49

19:05 Our empty of this sort of solid, concrete, absolute, inherent existence that we project onto everything. And based on that, as Rinpoche says, and we take it another, that simple misunderstanding isn't enough, but we believe it 100%. We don't even question it. The questioning of it, they say, actually... Report an error in the passage at 19:05 Highlight the passage at 19:05

19:28 Begins to tear a rent in psychic existence. Just the beginning to have a little doubt, just questioning it, even if we don't have it 100%, which is good because it takes us a while to get it 100%. So the Buddha said that this grasping at true existence is a mistaken mind. It is a hugely mistaken mind. It is actually what ignorance... Report an error in the passage at 19:28 Highlight the passage at 19:28

19:57 When we talk about ignorance as the opposite of wisdom, we're talking about the ignorance. We're not just talking about ignorance of Mongolian, for example. For myself, I'm ignorant of Mongolian. Not of all Mongolians, because we have single in the house, but of the language of the Mongolian people. I am ignorant of that. But this isn't the type of ignorance that we're talking about here. We're talking about a specific type of ignorance that's a misknowing. Report an error in the passage at 19:57 Highlight the passage at 19:57

20:23 That's a misunderstanding. So it's not just not knowing. It's a misknowing. And in fact, then when we misknow reality, we aren't even catching ourselves. We aren't even questioning it. We're just believing in 100%. And based on that, we do actions that create karma that keep us circling in psychic existence over and over and over again. Report an error in the passage at 20:23 Highlight the passage at 20:23

20:52 This particular type of lack of wisdom or misunderstanding of reality or ignorance is actually what creates saṃsāra. But the good news is it's not an integral part of our mind. We can remove it in the same way that we remove all mental afflictions and all other delusions. Report an error in the passage at 20:52 Highlight the passage at 20:52

21:23 the same way that water is pure. Pure and clear by nature. Our minds are clear and pure by nature. And so we can remove that. Our ignorant nature isn't who we are. It's just obscurations on our mind that can be removed with understanding wisdom through this process of, even before we have a direct perception of emptiness, through the process of getting there, we can begin removing our obscurations of mind. Report an error in the passage at 21:23 Highlight the passage at 21:23

21:54 So, um... For us to understand this, that things don't exist the way that they seem to exist, that's the goal. That's the goal of Buddhism. That's the goal of this class. Not that we're going to have a direct perception of emptiness at the end of this class. But it's the goal of this class to at least present the main points on The path to having a direct perception of emptiness. And it's certainly my goal that each of you has, myself included, has a direct perception of emptiness in this lifetime. Report an error in the passage at 21:54 Highlight the passage at 21:54

22:40 And the Buddha said it's absolutely possible. It takes a huge amount of diligence. It takes an enormous amount of meditation and study and contemplation. Report an error in the passage at 22:40 Highlight the passage at 22:40

22:53 But we're starting it. We're starting that here. According to Lama Tsongkhapa, and this center is one of his centers, basically, Lama Tsongkhapa lived around the time of Columbus, actually, in the 1400s. He believed that the best way for us to get to that direct perception of emptiness would be to understand the nature of dependent arising. Report an error in the passage at 22:53 Highlight the passage at 22:53

23:20 He felt that understanding dependent arising empowers us to see empty. So we have to understand what dependent arising is and how it relates to emptiness, and we have to contemplate dependent arising. But that's sort of his unique spin on things that we're going to discuss more, what dependent arising is. Report an error in the passage at 23:20 Highlight the passage at 23:20

23:44 When we think about things in the context of their dependent arising, we're thinking about an object or phenomena as conventional. And when we're thinking about its emptiness, we're thinking about its ultimate nature. So we'll talk about that too, what that means. But you might hear some of these terms bandied about, and that's really what's talking about. Report an error in the passage at 23:44 Highlight the passage at 23:44

24:06 The conventional nature has to do with its dependent arising or how it exists. And emptiness has to do with how it doesn't exist and its ultimate nature. It's a quality of its ultimate nature. Report an error in the passage at 24:06 Highlight the passage at 24:06

24:22 So when we start out studying emptiness, one of the ways we sort of get closer and closer to it is thinking about the impermanence of all things. Because at this point, we can't even really get that. I think everybody in this room would be able to say, unless somebody in here is completely off the rocker, that things are impermanent, down to their tiniest, most subtle detail. Report an error in the passage at 24:22 Highlight the passage at 24:22

24:51 I think we can all admit that we are impermanent and that all the things in this room are impermanent and all the things in the world are impermanent. I think Western science backs us up on that. We don't get it necessarily. We don't necessarily behave that way. I don't. I forget that I could die every day. Report an error in the passage at 24:51 Highlight the passage at 24:51

25:10 One of the things in Buddhism that we're really supposed to be, at least those of us who really consider ourselves Buddhist, supposed to be constantly contemplating is that we could die every day. There's absolutely no reason that we couldn't. And so studying impermanence, especially the level of subtle impermanence, getting down to the level of atoms and subatomic particles and so forth, down to the tiniest, tiniest, most subtle level that way things exist, is that every single thing. Report an error in the passage at 25:10 Highlight the passage at 25:10

25:41 That we make use of, including ourselves and our body and our clothes and our computers and our houses and our relationships and so forth, all are impermanent and constantly changing and could go out of existence at any moment with no warning. So this is getting us closer to what emptiness is because it's sort of beginning to rock our world a little bit. Report an error in the passage at 25:41 Highlight the passage at 25:41

26:12 So when we have things like earthquakes, it's actually quite useful from the standpoint of impermanence because it reminds us things seem so solid. The ground seems solid, the house seems solid, the street seems solid, until you've seen it when it's not solid. Report an error in the passage at 26:12 Highlight the passage at 26:12

26:32 And I think otherwise we can say we understand something intellectually, but... What gets it to a gut level is really meditation. And so I'm really going to really try to encourage you strongly to do a lot of meditation, the meditation assignments in this class, because I think we can understand a lot about emptiness intellectually. Report an error in the passage at 26:32 Highlight the passage at 26:32

26:56 It's not so difficult to understand intellectually. But what's really going to begin to get us, change our hearts and minds, And get us to that direct perception of emptiness that we all have to have is meditating. That's really the only way we're going to do it. So I'm really going to try to encourage that in this class. The basic simplified meeting of shunyata, which is the Sanskrit for emptiness, or voidness they sometimes call it, which I don't like, is that things don't exist the way they appear to exist. Report an error in the passage at 26:56 Highlight the passage at 26:56

27:38 Things don't exist the way they appear to exist. They don't exist out there, independent, separate, solid, inherent, concrete, unchanging. All those ways that they don't exist. Separate from me. Report an error in the passage at 27:38 Highlight the passage at 27:38

28:00 And every... And of things, emptiness is basically saying that everything is empty of this type of inherent existence that we project onto everything. So that's really just saying that one more time. That's what the Buddha observed to be the nature of reality. That's the nature of reality according to the Buddha as he was getting closer and closer to enlightenment. Report an error in the passage at 28:00 Highlight the passage at 28:00

28:23 When we have our direct perception of emptiness, and we'll talk a little bit about what that experience will actually be like. Report an error in the passage at 28:23 Highlight the passage at 28:23

28:32 Because I think it's good for us to imagine ourselves having that experience because it's possible for us to, according to the Buddha. We can't be thinking that the Buddhas are all these great people and we weren't. We aren't and we don't have a chance because this is one that we can do if we set our minds to it. Report an error in the passage at 28:32 Highlight the passage at 28:32

28:53 I lost my train of thought. What was I just saying? This is what Rinpoche kept doing. He would suddenly stop and he'd pick on somebody in the front row, you know, and be like, what was I just saying? And then people would call out different things, you know, and then he would go, oh, thank you, thank you so much, you know. Report an error in the passage at 28:53 Highlight the passage at 28:53

29:12 Except on his thing, I think he was just testing people with me. I actually did forget. But before Report an error in the passage at 29:12 Highlight the passage at 29:12

29:24 that, yeah, before that. Yeah, something between those two. Oh, well, it's okay. Oh, I can't the back. Oh. Report an error in the passage at 29:24 Highlight the passage at 29:24

29:35 It's okay. Report an error in the passage at 29:35 Highlight the passage at 29:35

29:40 Close, but that's related to what she was saying. It's okay. If it comes back to me, then I'll mention it. If not, I'll say it in the next class. Anyway, I do want to give you some of the things that I want to make sure that we cover in this two months. Report an error in the passage at 29:40 Highlight the passage at 29:40

29:56 One is, what's the point of studying all of this? This is a preview of what emptiness is, what the ultimate nature of reality is. Why study it? So that's the first one and this is in no particular order. Clearing up some misconceptions that we have about emptiness. That's one thing I want to cover because I think people might come in here with some different ideas on what emptiness is and isn't and I think it's good to get them out on the table. Report an error in the passage at 29:56 Highlight the passage at 29:56

30:27 And also how the study of the nature of reality relates to the other topics on the lamrim. You know, on the path to enlightenment. How accumulation of merit and purification help us have that direct perception of emptiness. They figure very huge. And if you don't know what that means, it's okay. We'll cover it. We'll cover it. So accumulation of merit and purification practices. Report an error in the passage at 30:27 Highlight the passage at 30:27

30:58 What the two truths are and the two extremes. And then also what this term, the middle way, means. So we're going to dot all those things. Report an error in the passage at 30:58 Highlight the passage at 30:58

31:11 Some things, I feel like it's important to talk about some of the things that you might hear in other study of emptiness. And those are things that will come up, the two truths and the two extremes in the middle way. Report an error in the passage at 31:11 Highlight the passage at 31:11

31:23 Much more time on dependent arising because Lama Tsongkhapa said, right, if we understand dependent arising, it empowers us to have a direct perception of emptiness. So we have to understand what this thing called dependent arising is. How to meditate on emptiness. Because that's where it's going to happen, right? So you're going to get some little meditations to get started. I'm also going to give you some resources to find some additional information. Report an error in the passage at 31:23 Highlight the passage at 31:23

31:51 Informations. Meditations. Report an error in the passage at 31:51 Highlight the passage at 31:51

31:56 And also how that direct perception of emptiness. Relates to enlightenment and what it will be like. I know what I was starting to say. That's what I was starting to say. When we have a direct perception of emptiness, which is a really amazing thing and we all want that in this life if we can, it's not like it's around the corner from enlightenment. Report an error in the passage at 31:56 Highlight the passage at 31:56

32:20 I think a lot of times people get the two states of being confused. One is called, if you have a direct perception of emptiness, you're called an Arya being. I don't know if you've heard that term, Arya. It just means superior being. Sometimes people get that confused with an Arhat. Another A, right? Report an error in the passage at 32:20 Highlight the passage at 32:20

32:41 An Arhat is somebody who's attained nirvāṇa. So somebody who's attained nirvāṇa on a Mahāyāna path, you're very close to enlightenment. Report an error in the passage at 32:41 Highlight the passage at 32:41

32:53 In the Theravadan tradition, that's your main goal, is to attain nirvāṇa. So you probably wouldn't keep going towards Mahāyāna enlightenment. So having a direct perception of emptiness, it's definitely great, but you've got a ways to go. You've got a ways to go. Something like seven to ten lifetimes is usually what they say. About seven lifetimes if you're really going for it. Report an error in the passage at 32:53 Highlight the passage at 32:53

33:25 Unless, of course, you practice Tantra. But that's the following class. We're not going to deal with that in this class. But this is on the sūtra approach to enlightenment. It would be about seven lifetimes. Report an error in the passage at 33:25 Highlight the passage at 33:25

33:41 So a little bit about logistics. This class is about two months. It's nine weeks. Starting tonight, and it ends on the 19th of May, I think. Report an error in the passage at 33:41 Highlight the passage at 33:41

33:54 26? Oh, is it? Oh, wow. Well, no, what I'm concerned about is Trin Rinpoche. Rinpoche is supposed to come that weekend. So I thought I looked at the calendar and counted it out. Maybe there's a soak or something. Report an error in the passage at 33:54 Highlight the passage at 33:54

34:15 Yeah, I know, but we have a retreat day. So I'm going to, by the next class we'll talk about this. I'll look, because I counted it out just on a regular calendar, and so there must be a soak day in there or something like that. And if that's the case, then maybe we can meet anyway, like in the cafe or the... Report an error in the passage at 34:15 Highlight the passage at 34:15

34:34 Whatever, you know, because if Geshe was here, then we would have the soak in here. And so maybe we can meet elsewhere in the building so that we don't miss a class because I don't want to run into Chitin Rinpoche's week. That would be too crazy. We did that this time. Report an error in the passage at 34:34 Highlight the passage at 34:34

34:50 So let me investigate that and I'll announce it next time. Sorry about that. I was just looking at a regular calendar rather than the master calendar. Or maybe on the break. We can investigate. You can go check the master calendar. That would be good. And like I mentioned, it's the 12th of the 14 modules, the 12th of the 13 classes to do with discovering Buddhism. Report an error in the passage at 34:50 Highlight the passage at 34:50

35:16 You don't have to have taken the previous 11. Of course, it's wonderful if you have. I think only one person in here has. And we can all celebrate and jump up and down. But most people come in. Um, um, Report an error in the passage at 35:16 Highlight the passage at 35:16

35:32 At various points in their life, depending on what's happening in their life and also depending on the topic that's being taught and depending on whether they have the night free and depending on whether or not they can stay in town and things like that. It's much more down-to-earth reasoning. So that's fine. This one, as I said, I am asking for a little bit of background just so that we don't... Report an error in the passage at 35:32 Highlight the passage at 35:32

35:54 And I'm also asking, I discussed it with Charles too, that next week is the last week for people to add the class so that we don't have to keep going over the same early material and also have people ask questions that we've already covered. So I don't normally do that with the Discovering Buddhism classes, but I noticed with a number of those classes people come in around the sixth week or the seventh week and it's like... Report an error in the passage at 35:54 Highlight the passage at 35:54

36:23 Well, you know, we did discuss that. So we'll still allow it for the early classes of discovering Buddhism, but I'm going to stop it for the upper classes, and this is one of the upper classes. Report an error in the passage at 36:23 Highlight the passage at 36:23

36:38 That being said, if I'm discussing something that you are unfamiliar with, don't be afraid to ask questions. Like, don't think, oh my God, everybody else understands that. I don't understand what she just said. So please feel free to ask questions. As we move forward, I can't always say that I'll know the answers. I know I've studied this subject quite a bit and I, of course, haven't had my direct perception of emptiness yet. Report an error in the passage at 36:38 Highlight the passage at 36:38

37:03 So what I know about emptiness, I know from my teachers and their teachers and what I've explored on my own. Tastes of emptiness and meditation, but not having had a direct perception of emptiness, I can't guide you in the same way as somebody who has had a direct perception of emptiness, which is of course why it's always better to have a fully qualified. Report an error in the passage at 37:03 Highlight the passage at 37:03

37:28 And that's unfortunately your karma to have me. So I will do the best I can. But I'm saying that right at the beginning. This is not a subject that I have that kind of experience with. But I do have experience studying it and meditating on it and trying to apply it into my life. So in those ways I can be an instructor. Our Discovering Buddhism program here is after this class will be one more class called Report an error in the passage at 37:28 Highlight the passage at 37:28

37:58 Introduction to Tantra and that ends this summer and so then in the fall we'll be starting the Discovering Buddhism program again. So if people are doing it for credit, I call it doing it for credit, are trying to do it for a certificate, you can actually, we can discuss what the additional reading is. Report an error in the passage at 37:58 Highlight the passage at 37:58

38:20 There are additional readings and there are additional integration. integration type experiences so practices like Vajra Safa and prostrations and And we can talk about that more or you can come up on the break, maybe ask me about that. If there's enough interest I can meet with you guys. Report an error in the passage at 38:20 Highlight the passage at 38:20

38:52 But for the rest of you, I'm just going to assume in the homework, and I'll try to mention in the homework if there's additional reading and what the difference is between doing it for credit and doing it to just get as much as you can out of it, which is all I really hope for. I do assign homework, and I know that that's not all that usual with Dharma classes. I do it because the way that I got the most out of my study is Having people give me homework. I think that's how the Western mind is sort of wired. We do homework and it kind of goes in a little bit more. Report an error in the passage at 38:52 Highlight the passage at 38:52

39:27 And of course most of the homework for this class, for the Discovering Buddhism series, is meditation and reading. I mean that's really it. It's not like filling in questions five through three or something like that. That's the opposite. Three through five or something like that. But it's more like just... Report an error in the passage at 39:27 Highlight the passage at 39:27

39:46 Getting additional information that sort of rounds it out in reading, usually with really high qualified beings. And then also having a direct taste or experience in meditation so you can begin getting an idea of what that is and how that feels. Report an error in the passage at 39:46 Highlight the passage at 39:46

40:02 That being said, if you haven't had time to do the homework or the reading, just show up. You know, and I really encourage you to just show up because what we talk about in class can't be repeated and often, especially in the wisdom class, but often something will go wrong with the recording. So don't be thinking that, oh, I'll just download it later, you know, or she'll send me her notes later. Report an error in the passage at 40:02 Highlight the passage at 40:02

40:26 That's just getting lazy and we can't be lazy like that in the wisdom class. So we can be lazy like that in the very beginning classes, but we can't be lazy at this level. So just come because then you'll be a part of the questions that get asked and the discussions that may happen. And obviously in any kind of class. Report an error in the passage at 40:26 Highlight the passage at 40:26

40:45 Being in the room, you're going to get much more experience, much more of a taste than you will if you're just sitting there at home, distracted, looking at your notes, you know, emailing somebody while you're listening to me, downloading me. So please just come. And if you can, try to do the homework too. I mean, really, honestly, just for your own benefit. Report an error in the passage at 40:45 Highlight the passage at 40:45

41:16 Personal context, a little bit about me. Um... Report an error in the passage at 41:16 Highlight the passage at 41:16

41:18 I have been studying Buddhism for about 15 years and have studied the lamrim from a variety of teachers over the years. My main teacher is Lama Zopa Rinpoche who is just here and has been teaching a lot in the Bay Area this month. I studied, I guess some of my main teachers have been His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Chodron Rinpoche. Report an error in the passage at 41:18 Highlight the passage at 41:18

41:47 Riva Rinpoche, Kirti Sinsha Rinpoche, Geshe Michael Roach. And I would say probably my strongest influences in the study of emptiness have been Lama Zopa Rinpoche and Geshe Michael Roach, both of whom I sort of hit early. And I started studying emptiness quite early. That was like one of my first classes because I kind of did it. Report an error in the passage at 41:47 Highlight the passage at 41:47

42:10 backwards Which I always think is interesting when people do show up for an emptiness class first thing. Actually, the very, very first class I ever took from Lama Zopa Rinpoche was a public talk, and of course he talked about emptiness, because he just does, and I didn't understand a word, but that was in 1992, so I didn't walk out either. Report an error in the passage at 42:10 Highlight the passage at 42:10

42:32 So obviously some strong influence of emptiness. I think my strongest... Attraction was actually towards the compassion wing of Buddhism, not towards the emptiness wing. But obviously you need both. Report an error in the passage at 42:32 Highlight the passage at 42:32

42:52 And we will talk a little bit more. We're going to go around now and introduce ourselves. And we are going to talk a little bit more after. We're going to have a break after that, after the break about meditation and the importance of meditation. I'm not sure how much time we will have. Um... Report an error in the passage at 42:52 Highlight the passage at 42:52

43:09 I like to sort of bring it up in every single class, but in this class we're actually going to focus a lot on both types of the main two types of meditation in the Tibetan system. So I'm really going to, I just want to talk about some overview of meditation tonight. And really that's all your homework assignment is, is just to get started. Report an error in the passage at 43:09 Highlight the passage at 43:09

43:31 If you're not already doing a meditation practice, to just get started on a simple one on the breath so that we can introduce. The topics a little more easily. And retreat. We will talk about retreat, especially in the final couple of classes, because that's where it's going to happen. You know, we can understand stuff here. We can even have little blips of insight at home in our meditation cushion. But when you're alone with your own mind for, you know, a month or two or three or four, a year or two or three or four, Report an error in the passage at 43:31 Highlight the passage at 43:31

44:10 That's where it's really going to happen. That's really where our mind is going to transform. And obviously not all of us are at the place right now that we can do that, but even to have the aspiration to do it is huge. Report an error in the passage at 44:10 Highlight the passage at 44:10

44:25 So, yeah, we want to aim towards that aspiration. We want to aim towards getting ready to get ready. So let's go around. I started. Report an error in the passage at 44:25 Highlight the passage at 44:25

44:36 So maybe... Let's start on this side of the room. Do you want to start, Marcela? Yeah. I don't know. Yeah, maybe the mic, mostly for amplification, just so people can hear you in the back. Report an error in the passage at 44:36 Highlight the passage at 44:36

44:51 It is being recorded, yeah. Report an error in the passage at 44:51 Highlight the passage at 44:51

44:58 Hello. I know. Hi. My name is Marcela. Yeah, I saw new faces too. I'm very happy and very blessed today to have the opportunity to be here. Continuing my studies and trying to transform this mind. I feel I'm practicing Buddhism since last August and August is going to be two years. I'm trying to come for all the classes that is coming out as much as I can. Report an error in the passage at 44:58 Highlight the passage at 44:58

45:36 A little son that my babysitter is helping me all the time. So please, I believe she's a bodhisattva because she's supporting me a lot in my life. Report an error in the passage at 45:36 Highlight the passage at 45:36

45:47 I'm so happy to study with you at this time. Thank you. Report an error in the passage at 45:47 Highlight the passage at 45:47

45:57 My name is Eleanor and this is my second class here at Seishandling. And I'm pretty new to Buddhism. Studies, although I've been kind of visiting Buddhism on and off in my life, mostly off, but now mostly on. Now totally on. So yeah, and then I'm also the volunteer for this class, so if you need anything or have a question, you can ask me and I'll be at that desk before class and then usually during break as well. Report an error in the passage at 45:57 Highlight the passage at 45:57

46:36 That's cool. I should always just start with you because then you can do that nice little pitch. Report an error in the passage at 46:36 Highlight the passage at 46:36

46:46 My name is Anne and this is my second Discovering Buddhism class too. And I've been coming to Seishinling since I think last August and feel so amazingly grateful for all these teachings, the kindness of everyone here. Very happy to be in this class with you all. That's great. Report an error in the passage at 46:46 Highlight the passage at 46:46

· · · silence, 1 minute

47:09 Some new... I don't know. Yeah, and I was raised with Pure Land Buddhism, Jodo Shinshu Buddhism, a sect in Japan and studied some Zen Buddhism too. So this is quite wonderful. Report an error in the passage at 47:09 Highlight the passage at 47:09

47:33 Hello, my name is Phil. This is my second Discovering Buddhism course. And I've been off and on studying, practicing. practicing for maybe while but mostly off and on so um i'm just looking forward to it emptiness something i've been looking forward to learning more Hello, Report an error in the passage at 47:33 Highlight the passage at 47:33

48:00 my name is Alonzo and I've been studying Buddhism for about... five years, and I've had the very good karma to have Choki as my teacher for several of these classes. I have a daily practice, and I'm currently studying in an online Buddhism course through Gesi Tashi the Jamyang Center, which is very good. Report an error in the passage at 48:00 Highlight the passage at 48:00

48:23 Hi, I'm Morgan, and I've been coming here on and off for years now, it seems like, but I'm dusty. So I've been tackling – Chokyi knows me and I've been tackling emptiness I think a little bit too solo. Report an error in the passage at 48:23 Highlight the passage at 48:23

48:46 And so it just was time to kind of reinforce some of these teachings and get more social with Buddhism again. Cool. Report an error in the passage at 48:46 Highlight the passage at 48:46

48:58 Hi, I'm Gina. I've been coming here on and off for a couple of years, mostly for the DB classes. And I think the more I come, the more work I realize I need to do. So I'm happy to be here. It works that way. Hi, I'm John. I've been involved with Buddhism, this time around anyway, for probably about a year and a half. Report an error in the passage at 48:58 Highlight the passage at 48:58

49:25 And, you know, I come and, Take as many teachings here as humanly possible. So, yeah, I hope to hear good stuff from everybody. And Chokyi is a wonderful teacher. John lives here, too. My name is Alan. I've been practicing Buddhism for a number of years, but pretty much self-taught. I just completed a nine-week class on the Platform Sūtra, and that just acted as a catalyst to get me in a more formal setting. Report an error in the passage at 49:25 Highlight the passage at 49:25

49:40 you know. Report an error in the passage at 49:40 Highlight the passage at 49:40

49:58 Excellent. Where was your, where was that class? At the Zen Center. At the Zen Center. Do you remember Rose? Yeah, yeah. Yeah, she said to send her greetings. Oh, wonderful. Yeah, yeah, yeah. She not only studied here, but also was a volunteer. She highly recommended you. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. She's doing the cooking now, right, isn't she? Report an error in the passage at 49:58 Highlight the passage at 49:58

50:17 Isn't that, yeah, that has a position title, doesn't it? It does, but I don't know what it is. I can't remember what it is. It's pretty serious. Yeah, yeah, yeah, it's pretty serious. Hi everyone, I'm Charles. I work at Tsai Chin Ling. I'm the SBC, the Spiritual Program Coordinator, and I've been here about, it feels like a long time, but I think only a year, a little over a year. Report an error in the passage at 50:17 Highlight the passage at 50:17

50:38 And I got interested in Buddhism actually ten years ago. I was in seventh grade world history class, and I read about the Four Noble Truths, and I was hooked. And so this is my first, well, the first one I'm actually going to do, the first Discovering Buddhism class. I also recently took preordination with Lama Zopa. Report an error in the passage at 50:38 Highlight the passage at 50:38

50:57 So it's a pretty big step for me and I look forward to coming to this class and learning more about emptiness. It's a very amazing topic. Hi, my name is Daniel and this is my second Discovering Buddhism class. I really enjoyed the last one and so I'm really happy to be back here studying emptiness. and I've been Sort of in and out of studying Buddhism on my own for maybe 10 years or so. So it's nice to be in a formal setting learning this stuff in a sort of linear way. Report an error in the passage at 50:57 Highlight the passage at 50:57

51:36 So I really appreciate it. It's really been just wonderful for me in my life and hopefully and obviously to everybody's life. Report an error in the passage at 51:36 Highlight the passage at 51:36

51:51 Hi, I'm Katya. This is my third. Discovering Buddhism class with Chokyi, I think. And I don't know what happened that summer, but I also started coming around July or August, a year and a half ago. Report an error in the passage at 51:51 Highlight the passage at 51:51

52:07 Astrological planetary shift or something. Hi, I'm Christine. I've been coming to the center for about two and a half years, and I've been taking each of the classes in order. The first in our history to ever do so. yeah um so yeah astrological Report an error in the passage at 52:07 Highlight the passage at 52:07

52:25 The next class. Report an error in the passage at 52:25 Highlight the passage at 52:25

52:29 I love it. I love it. That's great. Hi, I'm Catherine. I'm visiting from Santa Fe, New Mexico, where I've been involved with the FPMT Center there since it started in 2000. Report an error in the passage at 52:29 Highlight the passage at 52:29

52:46 Came, went, came, went, and I kind of rededicated myself to the studies again. We just did this module. I think it was June, July. With Connie? Who taught it? No, Don. Oh, Don. Oh, cool. Yeah, Don teaches those. Oh, excellent. Report an error in the passage at 52:46 Highlight the passage at 52:46

53:06 Very fortunate to have been here during this time visiting, trying to help my family out a little bit, which is, you know, kind of difficult when you haven't seen them for a long time. So I was really fortunate to go and listen to Lama Zopa. Oh, wonderful. For the first time. Oh, wow. That's great. That's great. So I brought this young man with me who's my nephew and I don't know what he's going to say. Report an error in the passage at 53:06 Highlight the passage at 53:06

53:35 Hi there. How's it going? My name is Patrick. Report an error in the passage at 53:35 Highlight the passage at 53:35

53:42 I've studied Buddhism off and on a little bit on my own for a number of years now. I had some, I don't know, I guess. The realization a few years back that everything that I thought I knew and was told was basically crap and that I had to start over and take a reassessment of all of reality in life. So that's been a real trip and it's been coming along quite well and this is a really honor to be here and be with you all tonight. This is cool. This is really awesome. Report an error in the passage at 53:42 Highlight the passage at 53:42

54:08 That's very cool. So, Patrick, are you also in New Mexico? I'm not. I actually live in San Francisco. Excellent. So you may want to come back with me. Well, we all do, actually. Report an error in the passage at 54:08 Highlight the passage at 54:08

54:21 I love New Mexico. And I know there's a couple of people that are not here tonight that are planning to. Jessica is one and David Drabel is the other. But neither of them could come. So they will introduce themselves next week. Report an error in the passage at 54:21 Highlight the passage at 54:21

54:37 So I'm going to make a couple of quick announcements and then we're going to take a break. It's an interesting first, I guess, quarter or first term of the year in that there's going to be a lot of emptiness going around. So either you can stick with one or you can... Just really dive in and come several nights a week. Geshe-la returns from India on April 4th, and he'll be starting chapter 9. Report an error in the passage at 54:37 Highlight the passage at 54:37

55:09 He's going to finish chapter 8, which is the concentration chapter of Shantideva's Guide to the Bodhisattva's Way of Life. Report an error in the passage at 55:09 Highlight the passage at 55:09

55:17 Pretty much through April. But then in May, right, is when he'll start on the ninth chapter, the chapter on emptiness. So if you like your taste in the March and April here, then you can dive into coming on Wednesday nights too. That chapter is... It's definitely a much more advanced presentation of emptiness. He's going to get into the different schools, but we have, for the first time in our lives, we have a really brilliant translator. Report an error in the passage at 55:17 Highlight the passage at 55:17

55:46 So I would highly suggest if you feel that you can and you feel up to it, I think it will be a wonderful experience to experience Geshe-la teaching emptiness with somebody who is really, really qualified herself, a master's student. Report an error in the passage at 55:46 Highlight the passage at 55:46

56:07 A graduate from the master's program at Lama Tsongkhapa Institute. So capable in her own right of teaching it, and now she's translating it for Geshe-la. Then on Tuesday nights, Emily is starting on the Special Insight chapter of the Lamrim starting on April 24th, I think. She has been teaching. The kama biting, which is also the concentration chapter. And now she's going to be moving into emptiness as well. So if you really are up for it, you could be coming to emptiness classes three nights a week. Report an error in the passage at 56:07 Highlight the passage at 56:07

56:43 Then to balance it off, I'm starting a six-week class tomorrow night on the bodhisattva vows. So a little bit of compassion to just sort of keep things a little more grounded. Report an error in the passage at 56:43 Highlight the passage at 56:43

56:58 And that's six weeks. And you are welcome to come to that even if you don't have the Bodhisattva Vals. If you are contemplating taking the Bodhisattva Vals, you're welcome to come. It's the first time I've taught this class before. I'm making it up as I go along. So it's the first time I've taught an ongoing class that's not a Discovering Buddhism class. Report an error in the passage at 56:58 Highlight the passage at 56:58

57:17 But I definitely intend to have fun. So that's Friday nights. So yeah, it'll be Emily on Tuesday nights, Geshe-la on Wednesday nights, me on Thursday nights and me on Friday nights for a while. And I guess Geshe-la will begin teaching on Sunday mornings, the Sunday after he returns, right? Maybe on the Sunday after that. The Sunday after that, yeah. Okay, so just keep your eyes open for the emails and for the flyers. Especially now that we have Phil back, we might have some flyers. Report an error in the passage at 57:17 Highlight the passage at 57:17

57:48 Um, um, Because then we'll know what he's teaching and when on Sundays. But he will be doing the Shantideva pretty much immediately when he gets back. Okay, so let's just take a break. Report an error in the passage at 57:48 Highlight the passage at 57:48

58:18 I haven't heard that he's leaving, but I'm sure that they'll announce it when it's time. He has to be leaving soon because he starts April 2nd. So I would assume he has to leave no later than the 30th. And today is the 20th. So sometime in the next five or six days. And they usually announce it just a couple of days before. Report an error in the passage at 58:18 Highlight the passage at 58:18

58:49 I know, yeah. He's going to Australia, so I think it's often a nighttime flight. It could be a nighttime flight. Report an error in the passage at 58:49 Highlight the passage at 58:49

59:09 That's it. That's it. You just fight as much as you can and you just can't get it. Report an error in the passage at 59:09 Highlight the passage at 59:09

59:32 Oh, Teresa, yeah, yeah. Report an error in the passage at 59:32 Highlight the passage at 59:32

59:43 Coming here? I just put things away in the center. Report an error in the passage at 59:43 Highlight the passage at 59:43

1:00:00 So you weren't there when he, that's true, I remember that now. let's get that one. Report an error in the passage at 1:00:00 Highlight the passage at 1:00:00

1:00:11 just karma, yeah, that's it, yeah. And I even purposefully mentioned you to her because I wanted to make sure that you were included because you had worked so hard, but it's nothing to do. Report an error in the passage at 1:00:11 Highlight the passage at 1:00:11

1:00:35 That's it. Yeah, yeah. That's right. Yeah, yeah. I always tie blessing cords several times because they fall off very easily. The minute if it starts getting wet. Yeah, I just tie it three times. It just happened that the first two kind of fell together. I just tie it three times just to make sure because I've so often with just one knot, it gets wet and then it falls off. Report an error in the passage at 1:00:35 Highlight the passage at 1:00:35

1:00:58 You don't even notice. All of a sudden you look down, it's gone. So, oh, I just tied it. Just knot. Yeah, that's it. Yeah. and I just do it, yeah, I just, yeah. Report an error in the passage at 1:00:58 Highlight the passage at 1:00:58

1:01:11 yeah, yeah, yeah, that's it, yeah, Report an error in the passage at 1:01:11 Highlight the passage at 1:01:11

1:01:35 Keep people's personal stuff not going out. Oh well. My intention was good. Report an error in the passage at 1:01:35 Highlight the passage at 1:01:35

1:01:45 Anyway, so just talk a little bit about meditation and the importance of trying to develop a daily meditation practice. A little bit about the posture, a little bit about the preliminaries to sitting, which we didn't spend so much time in the last class on. Report an error in the passage at 1:01:45 Highlight the passage at 1:01:45

1:02:03 And then we'll just end with a simple meditation. Oh, thank you. I didn't see you pick it up. Thank you. Report an error in the passage at 1:02:03 Highlight the passage at 1:02:03

1:02:17 And if some of you maybe have gotten a little dusty or rusty, then this might be a really good time to make a commitment to try to sit every day, whether it's in the morning or at night. People have different minds. Traditionally, they say the morning is a good time because our mind is kind of fresh. But I have known people that are, you know, I consider good meditators who, of course, how would I know? Report an error in the passage at 1:02:17 Highlight the passage at 1:02:17

1:02:43 They do it at night because they're just night people and that's easier for them and it works for them. So I give you the traditional instruction, but we can bend it to our individual lives and minds. So basically I had mentioned that there are a couple of main types of meditation into which all the other ones sort of fall in this tradition of, actually in all the traditions of Tibetan Buddhism, but in this. Report an error in the passage at 1:02:43 Highlight the passage at 1:02:43

1:03:12 in Tibetan Buddhism. One is called stabilizing or concentration meditation where we try to keep our mind on an object without losing the object and eventually developing clarity and intensity on that object for as long as we can. That's really the sort of short version of the definition of stabilizing meditation. This kind of meditation is essential for having a direct perception of emptiness. Report an error in the passage at 1:03:12 Highlight the passage at 1:03:12

1:03:43 We're going to spend time directly on developing what's called a calm-abiding practice, really trying to develop little tiny periods of very intense concentration. We need to develop longer and longer periods of intense concentration. This one, we don't spend so much time in the other classes. In this class, we do. The second type is called analytical meditation, and it's kind of a spin-off of... Report an error in the passage at 1:03:43 Highlight the passage at 1:03:43

1:04:14 The special insight meditation. This is where the mind moves. The mind moves. So during an analytical meditation, the mind actually analyzes the subject, a subject, and tries to gain an insight into that subject. So the mind actually moves. We need both actually to have this direct perception of emptiness. We definitely need both to have Report an error in the passage at 1:04:14 Highlight the passage at 1:04:14

1:04:44 To get enlightened. So the analytical meditation is the one that we do the most in the Lamrim and therefore the one that we do the most in the Discovering Buddhism classes. Report an error in the passage at 1:04:44 Highlight the passage at 1:04:44

1:04:59 Something about the posture. So I'm just going to review. Depending on who the instructor is, seven or eight points of the Vajrayana posture. So I'm just going to talk about what that is. It usually begins with the legs being crossed in either full Vajra position or lotus, you sometimes call it, or half. Report an error in the passage at 1:04:59 Highlight the passage at 1:04:59

1:05:28 You can also sit in a chair for meditating. I'm just mentioning the meditation posture. And at some point, all of us will probably have to sit in a chair or on a stool. Report an error in the passage at 1:05:28 Highlight the passage at 1:05:28

1:05:40 And you have to know how to meditate if you're in bed sick too. So you might as well practice next time you get a cold. But I'm just going through the posture if you're seated in the traditional way. All of the points of the posture when we're meditating have to do with the subtle body, going with the winds and channels that we get into in the Tantra class. Report an error in the passage at 1:05:40 Highlight the passage at 1:05:40

1:06:05 And so they have to do with ways that we can concentrate for longer periods of time according to not just the Buddha, but actually a number of the traditions that were popular in India and Hindu too. They also have this concept of different ways, although it's a slightly different posture. Report an error in the passage at 1:06:05 Highlight the passage at 1:06:05

1:06:28 The legs being in especially full Vajra position are said to reduce desire attachment, which actually John and I were just having, John and I sit in the morning together and I was saying that my biggest problem is this desire attachment. Desire attachment doesn't mean that I'm sitting there lusting after anything or anyone. It just means that my mind is constantly attracted to something. Report an error in the passage at 1:06:28 Highlight the passage at 1:06:28

1:06:54 Something that's not what it's supposed to be on. So usually if your mind is scattered or distracted, they say the base, the root problem there is desire attachment. And sitting in full Vajra posture, which is a little difficult when you get into Buddhism later in life, is said to fight that. That's actually supposed to be a counter to that. Report an error in the passage at 1:06:54 Highlight the passage at 1:06:54

1:07:16 The hands in the Tibetan tradition, we have the hands in our lap or at the level of our navel. Right over left, thumbs touching lightly. And this is supposed to enhance our concentration. So again, it's working with the subtle winds and energies in our body, and it's meant to increase our ability to concentrate. Report an error in the passage at 1:07:16 Highlight the passage at 1:07:16

1:07:40 What I usually do when I'm sitting, I don't think I left it down here, I have this little tiny shawl that I roll up and I just put it in my lap. Of course, I have the robes also. It's different when you have pants on. Report an error in the passage at 1:07:40 Highlight the passage at 1:07:40

1:07:54 Because when I do, if I meditate with my yoga pants on or something, it's really important for me to have sort of something there so that it's more at this level. If it's too far down, see what happens to my arms. My arms get kind of straight, and that's not really what the Buddha had in mind. If we have our hands kind of here, for one thing, it's possible for air to come between our body and our arms, which matters a lot if it's hot for sure. Report an error in the passage at 1:07:54 Highlight the passage at 1:07:54

1:08:22 But it also just helps us to have stronger concentration. I know when Tenzin Chokyi taught at one point on meditation, she was saying that she just trained herself to keep her hands there. And so that's an option, too, for people to do. If you're sitting in full Vajra, so if my feet are really resting on my, then you don't have to worry. Report an error in the passage at 1:08:22 Highlight the passage at 1:08:22

1:08:45 Your hands resting on your feet will be right there, will actually be at your navel. For those of us who don't, we come up with a way to keep our hands in the right place. As I mentioned in the earlier meditation, it's really important for our spine to be extended. And this one I have some personal relationship with. I've developed a fairly strong sitting posture. Report an error in the passage at 1:08:45 Highlight the passage at 1:08:45

1:09:09 Because I have noticed that as your body begins to kind of do this, you know, as you're like sitting there and gravity happens and your body kind of comes down, your concentration just goes. It just goes. They're intimately connected. So keeping the spine as extended as you possibly can is good. Not to the point where you're like kind of in a weird... Report an error in the passage at 1:09:09 Highlight the passage at 1:09:09

1:09:37 Hyper extension or something like that. But just keeping it extended. And that was also why I mentioned if you're sitting in a chair, come away from the back of the chair because it gets a little too comfortable and we kind of start really relaxing. And keeping your feet on the floor. I had an experience where I tore my meniscus. Actually I did twice the same meniscus. Report an error in the passage at 1:09:37 Highlight the passage at 1:09:37

1:10:03 So I couldn't sit for probably about three years. It healed and then it tore again. And so I had to experiment with what would work. And for me, actually, there's some little stools you sometimes see that are here that we use sometimes as table, like that one right behind you guys. That actually worked the best for me. So experiment if you're ever in a situation where you are injured and you can't sit because I was surprised to find that worked the best because I had the same feeling of, you know, when you're sitting on a cushion, you feel that contact between like your sits bones and the cushion. Report an error in the passage at 1:10:03 Highlight the passage at 1:10:03

1:10:38 I had that with that and I never had that with that, with a chair or any kind of, definitely all the soft chairs just don't work. So don't give up. If you injure yourself, if you have, you know, Things happen. We are impermanent. And so take the time to find a cushion that works for you, which I also always bring down my cushion. Report an error in the passage at 1:10:38 Highlight the passage at 1:10:38

1:11:02 I use a bean bag kind with buckwheat hulls, and that's also really, really good for just adjusting to the various problems that one has over the course of life. Not even to do with age, but car accidents happen. Sometimes several car accidents happen. So the body changes over time. So don't give up. Just keep working with it. And there's like a way that you will find that you can keep meditating. Report an error in the passage at 1:11:02 Highlight the passage at 1:11:02

1:11:26 Because we're going to have to be meditating for a long time, right? We want to have a direct perception of emptiness and get enlightened. So we have to find a way to be comfortable while we're doing it. Report an error in the passage at 1:11:26 Highlight the passage at 1:11:26

1:11:36 The jaw is supposed to be relaxed, and this is like an area, I used to be a massage therapist, this is an area that we hold a lot of attention in. We don't even realize that we're holding that much, so we don't have our mouth open when we meditate, but just definitely take a minute. What I'll do as, well, I don't know that I will every time because of time, but it's good for you to go through the eight points if you can, because relaxing the jaw is an important. Report an error in the passage at 1:11:36 Highlight the passage at 1:11:36

1:12:05 And actually doing a whole body relaxation is a really good step. And even doing yoga, which we're not going to get into, but doing yoga to support a sitting practice is hugely important. That's why it was created. It allows us to sit. There's interesting music happening, but I'm going to ignore it. See, the desire is distracted from it. Report an error in the passage at 1:12:05 Highlight the passage at 1:12:05

1:12:32 The tongue. We usually have the tongue on the roof of our mouth just behind the front teeth but not touching. And the reason that we do that is to keep from having to swallow so much. It keeps our mouth moist and it keeps it possible for us to sit for longer and longer periods without having to swallow all the time. Report an error in the passage at 1:12:32 Highlight the passage at 1:12:32

1:12:53 And swallowing any movement in the body when we're doing concentration meditation, not so much with analytical meditation, but any movement at all. Becomes distracting once we're really good at this. At the beginning it's not going to distract you too much because the mind's already just completely distracted. But as we meditate for longer and longer periods of time, they say even a swallow or even a movement of like an eyebrow or so forth, that's going to be distracting. Report an error in the passage at 1:12:53 Highlight the passage at 1:12:53

1:13:23 I know it is humorous at this point, but I'm mentioning it because we're setting up the conditions so that we will be able to meditate strongly and alertly and concentratedly for two hours if we need to. Report an error in the passage at 1:13:23 Highlight the passage at 1:13:23

1:13:39 Somebody's phone is ringing or else my head is. I'm not sure. The chin is tucked just a little bit down. This is another one that's kind of interesting because if we have our head back too far, The mind gives into a lot more of that sort of distracted, scattered mind. So if this is a problem for you, tucking the head a little bit, kind of experiment with that. Report an error in the passage at 1:13:39 Highlight the passage at 1:13:39

1:14:04 For me, it actually helps to really tuck my head down. You don't want it too far down because, of course, you'll just fall asleep and go into a big nod, so you don't want to do that. But the position of the chin is something you can play with a little bit. Report an error in the passage at 1:14:04 Highlight the passage at 1:14:04

1:14:17 In this tradition, our eyes are slightly open. So they say actually kind of hooded. This is a real problem for some people. Give it time. It took me a solid year. I made the decision. At first I just ignored it. I was like, forget it. They don't know what they're talking about. I'm not going to do it. It's too late. And then I was like, yeah, of course I'm going to do it. I want to get enlightened. So just set your goal. Report an error in the passage at 1:14:17 Highlight the passage at 1:14:17

1:14:42 You know, to working with your eyes being open as you're meditating and give it time and it will work. Now it just doesn't feel like I'm actually meditating if my eyes are closed. Report an error in the passage at 1:14:42 Highlight the passage at 1:14:42

1:14:55 But you're not actually looking at anything. Your eyes are sort of gazing off the end of your nose and then just sort of going unfocused. So you're not focusing on... some dot on the floor or something like that you're actually just they're just open to let in a little bit of light and that's another important thing if you find that you're really sleepy or dull or whatever to let in light and we'll we'll talk about some of the antidotes and things with meditation later the class the steps of meditation and so forth Report an error in the passage at 1:14:55 Highlight the passage at 1:14:55

1:15:32 Shoulders level, slightly back. Sometimes one of them is up more than the other, so you're going to take a little bit of time. I usually roll my shoulders before I meditate, and I mention the elbows being away from. The eighth one is the one that sometimes doesn't get mentioned as one of the points of the posture is the breath. Report an error in the passage at 1:15:32 Highlight the passage at 1:15:32

1:15:49 It's the breathing itself. So our breathing should just be relaxed and ordinary, and when we focus on the breath, you don't need to make the breath any more pronounced than it normally is, so you don't have to be... Or anything like that. Sometimes I'll notice myself doing that. It's like, no, that's not really the point. You're just bringing awareness and observation and focus to what already is. Report an error in the passage at 1:15:49 Highlight the passage at 1:15:49

1:16:14 So your breathing is happening all the time, I hope. And you're just simply now bringing your awareness to that. And we'll talk about sort of, as we get started on this, we'll talk about how you bring awareness to that. But that's the idea. You're just constantly bringing awareness back to the breath. And we will, I know in the Tantra class, and I can't remember in this one, but in later, as you're getting more and more, as you're getting deeper and deeper into meditation, there are certain breathing exercises that help you clear your winds and channels. Report an error in the passage at 1:16:14 Highlight the passage at 1:16:14

1:16:58 It's sort of reducing that agitated mind. But at this point we just want to sort of allow our breathing to be as it is. If you're just starting a practice or starting it over again, which is also really good, it's really good to set a certain time that you do, that you meditate every day. It's really good to set a certain place up. Report an error in the passage at 1:16:58 Highlight the passage at 1:16:58

1:17:22 that you meditate every day, if you don't already. If you have an altar and you haven't dealt with it for a while, cleaning it off is a really good place to begin and getting started. If you share a room with somebody or a house with somebody and it's hard to find a place, you just need to sit down and talk to them if you need ideas on how to broach the subject. Report an error in the passage at 1:17:22 Highlight the passage at 1:17:22

1:17:45 Talk to me. It's harder if you share space with somebody, but it's really important to do so you can probably negotiate it out. It's just 20 minutes a day just to come up with that time. Report an error in the passage at 1:17:45 Highlight the passage at 1:17:45

1:17:59 I'm not going to talk about creating an altar, but if you want some help creating an altar, I can talk about that later. The main three points with starting a meditation... practice. Report an error in the passage at 1:17:59 Highlight the passage at 1:17:59

1:18:14 Practice are, you know, make your place feel really special so you want to go. It should be enjoyable, right? This is true for anything. It should be meaningful to you in some way, you know, but keep it fun and keep it changing. The second one is we have to be disciplined. You know, we have to set some goal. For me, what works is... Report an error in the passage at 1:18:14 Highlight the passage at 1:18:14

1:18:38 Just setting a goal, just like with a diet or going to the gym or something. I'm just going to do it for six months or three months or whatever and I'm just going to do it. And then just doing it. And then the third thing, of course, is to be really gentle with yourself because our minds are an unruly mess for the most part. Report an error in the passage at 1:18:38 Highlight the passage at 1:18:38

1:19:00 And meditating is... Just like with anything else that you're starting, it's going to be hard. I think a lot of times with spiritual stuff, we think that we're just going to instantly sit down and attain nirvāṇa. Maybe the third time that I sit down, I'll attain nirvāṇa. I often compare it to if I want to become a concert pianist, I'm going to have to study, I'm going to have to play the piano, I'm going to have to do scales, I'm going to have to... Report an error in the passage at 1:19:00 Highlight the passage at 1:19:00

1:19:30 I probably have several teachers, I would assume, to be able to play Carnegie Hall. So it's like that with meditation too. It's not just going to be like instantly I'm going to become this incredible meditator on the third try. you know, um, so. One of my meditation teachers, Venmo Renee, once said our minds are very much like cats. So we have to be very sweet and very gentle. Report an error in the passage at 1:19:30 Highlight the passage at 1:19:30

1:19:56 And if we do, the cat might stay put. It might be very calm. If we jerk it around and we get mad at it, whatever, the cat's out of there. And our mind's the same. Our mind does not want to be controlled in that really kind of rough way. So think of the mind like kitty. It's also really important for us to do some things preliminarily. Report an error in the passage at 1:19:56 Highlight the passage at 1:19:56

1:20:17 Before we meditate, this is also one that I have noticed profound differences when I do and when I don't. It's good to make an offering of some sort, even if it's just lighting a little tea light, you know, putting a candy bar on the altar, just something with that idea of the Buddhas don't need candy bars and they certainly don't need tea lights, but it's just this idea of sort of like what would I offer to have a mind like yours. Report an error in the passage at 1:20:17 Highlight the passage at 1:20:17

1:20:46 If I want my mind to be subdued, what would I give for that? Of course, I want to give something, so I just give something. It's from our side. Report an error in the passage at 1:20:46 Highlight the passage at 1:20:46

1:20:57 It's also really, really good to do some preliminary practices with our minds. Traditionally, we also do frustrations, and you can decide whether or not you want to try that. Whether you do just a couple, I mean three, or whether you do an actual... you know. Report an error in the passage at 1:20:57 Highlight the passage at 1:20:57

1:21:15 Prostation practice is up to you. And then we start with taking refuge. And I'll talk you through this because I'm going to lead you in a little meditation that basically is just what you would do if you did a meditation. That's how we're going to end the class. So refuge can be... There is a traditional refuge prayer that we can do or you can just take refuge in something that I talked about tonight. So maybe it's the idea of I will have this direct perception of emptiness. Report an error in the passage at 1:21:15 Highlight the passage at 1:21:15

1:21:49 I will become a Buddha. I can take refuge in that. Maybe it's the idea of the law of cause and effect of karma. Maybe it's the idea of bodhicitta. So something, some teaching you can take refuge in. And if you know more about what refuge is, then you might do that in a more... Report an error in the passage at 1:21:49 Highlight the passage at 1:21:49

1:22:08 That's enough for tonight. Generating bodhicitta is just remembering to do whatever it is that you're going to do, in this case the meditation practice, so that you can benefit others. That's enough. You might actually do it for somebody specific. It could actually be for a specific person. And then ultimately we're trying to expand on that a little bit. And that'll be in your homework. It'll sort of give you some ideas on how to expand that heart of bodhicitta because we don't want to forget bodhicitta. Report an error in the passage at 1:22:08 Highlight the passage at 1:22:08

1:22:42 And then the final thing is a seven limb practice. And I do, all of this sounds like it takes a long time. I usually do, once I sit down, it takes me like a minute. Um, so. Report an error in the passage at 1:22:42 Highlight the passage at 1:22:42

1:22:55 I just go through this stuff really quickly. I ask my teacher to be there with me. I take refuge. I remember to do this for others. And I go through the seven limbs really, really fast. And I'll guide you through that. If I don't do that and I just plop my butt on the cushion and I just think I'm going to be able to meditate, I can't. Report an error in the passage at 1:22:55 Highlight the passage at 1:22:55

1:23:16 It's just gone. There's no juice to it. It's just this... It's like some sort of weird physical exercise or something that's not even comfortable. So don't do that. Try to allow your mind and body to – it makes it a Dharma exercise. If we sit down and meditate without doing any of those things, then it's not even a Buddhist exercise. It's not even a Dharma experience. Report an error in the passage at 1:23:16 Highlight the passage at 1:23:16

1:23:47 So be careful of doing that because I think a lot of Westerners – Do just jump into meditation and just sort of think it's like hopping onto a horse or something. Of course you have to do a little preliminary practices before you get on a horse too. Report an error in the passage at 1:23:47 Highlight the passage at 1:23:47

1:24:02 Again, with analytical meditation where the mind is moving, analytical meditation has a definite beginning, middle and end. It's not just sitting and thinking for 20 minutes. What you're trying to do is gain some specific... Insight and then end with a strong determination or strong resolve or strong understanding of something. So it has a definite beginning, middle and end in your taking your mind on a specific path through an analysis until you get some aha moment. Report an error in the passage at 1:24:02 Highlight the passage at 1:24:02

1:24:40 And then when you get that experience, then you try to apply your concentration to that insight that you've gained. For example, if you're meditating on death and in permanence and you have some experience of, oh, wow, that's going to happen to me or something like that, which is like a huge one. Tenzin Chokyi said at one point when she had that for the first time, she gasped really loudly and everybody in the Gamba was like, what's with her? So we actually want that. Report an error in the passage at 1:24:40 Highlight the passage at 1:24:40

1:25:09 you know, um, Report an error in the passage at 1:25:09 Highlight the passage at 1:25:09

1:25:15 You know, that's actually a good thing. Meditation is not necessarily a comfortable experience either physically or mentally at first. But the ultimate form of analytic meditation is this type of meditation called special insight where the mind is able to move between sort of analysis and back and forth between analysis and concentration. Report an error in the passage at 1:25:15 Highlight the passage at 1:25:15

1:25:40 It's very, very precise and specific. Analytical meditation in the form that we're most familiar with it is specific to Lama Tsongkhapa's tradition. He actually created it. And so that's why we do it. Stabilizing meditation. Which is the one that I mentioned that we have to be able to have a really strong and stable concentration practice. You usually are picking an object. Report an error in the passage at 1:25:40 Highlight the passage at 1:25:40

1:26:12 They often say that it's quite good to do a virtuous object. For example, the image of the Buddha or a Vajra or something like that. You can also do the breath. There's nothing wrong with doing the breath. And for people who have a lot of distraction, Geshe-la says, it's very good. You should do the breath, so I'm on the breath, thank you. You can also do things like the mind of compassion or love, which is very difficult in a way because first you have to generate that. Report an error in the passage at 1:26:12 Highlight the passage at 1:26:12

1:26:43 And then you hold your mind on it. But you can also do a physical object. You can do a stone or a stick or something like that. But remember that meditation is a completely mental experience. So if you choose a physical object, you might look at it and then you're going to go into your meditation. So you're not going to be meditating looking at it. Report an error in the passage at 1:26:43 Highlight the passage at 1:26:43

1:27:06 Do you know what I mean? Between sessions you can look at it. Same with the image of the Buddha. You can get all the details in between the session. And then when you're meditating, you're trying to make that image arise in your mind. So it's not that you're going to meditate just sitting there looking at the Buddha. That's not going to work. Because what you're trying to do is to strengthen your mind to allow that image to arise in all of its precise detail. Report an error in the passage at 1:27:06 Highlight the passage at 1:27:06

1:27:31 And the strongest form of stabilizing meditation is... Calm-abiding meditation where they say arshine in Tibetan or shamatha in Sanskrit. Report an error in the passage at 1:27:31 Highlight the passage at 1:27:31

1:27:46 Which you need to get to the point of calm-abiding meditation is where the mind can be placed on any object of your choosing for as long as you want without effort and without any movement. For a minimum of four hours, without any movement at all, for a minimum of four hours, but maximum of any amount of time. Report an error in the passage at 1:27:46 Highlight the passage at 1:27:46

1:28:15 So great, great yogis can sit for hours and hours and days and days and even more. And when you're in that really deep state of meditation, it's like you're so subtle that you don't even need the gross things that we rely on so much, like food. Liquid and things like that. And we need to develop calm abiding meditation to actually have a direct perception of emptiness. Report an error in the passage at 1:28:15 Highlight the passage at 1:28:15

1:28:45 Which doesn't mean that we can't have a taste of emptiness before we have that. Report an error in the passage at 1:28:45 Highlight the passage at 1:28:45

1:28:52 I'm going to skip where it fits into the path and I'll talk about that at the beginning of next week's class because I'd rather just end with us doing some meditation. So let's go ahead and do that. You don't have to get into full Vajra posture unless you're used to it. Please don't hurt yourself, I would say. Report an error in the passage at 1:28:52 Highlight the passage at 1:28:52

1:29:10 Again, if you're sitting in a chair. Oh, and I didn't allow any time for questions. Let's end with the meditation and dedicate and then if people have questions then people can, some people if they need to get out of here can leave and then other people can stay and ask questions, that's okay. Report an error in the passage at 1:29:10 Highlight the passage at 1:29:10

1:29:25 So we're just going to sit. Try to remember if you're sitting in a chair to move away from the back of the chair and have your feet flat on the ground. Report an error in the passage at 1:29:25 Highlight the passage at 1:29:25

1:29:37 If you're in a cushion you can have your legs in whatever position works for you that you don't have to fidget so much. But don't worry, it's only going to be a five minute meditation. Report an error in the passage at 1:29:37 Highlight the passage at 1:29:37

1:29:50 Four hour meditation. So I'll just go through the posture really quick. Keeping the spine extended, shoulders relaxed, back and level. Report an error in the passage at 1:29:50 Highlight the passage at 1:29:50

1:30:08 Chin slightly tucked. Report an error in the passage at 1:30:08 Highlight the passage at 1:30:08

1:30:14 Try having your eyes open just a little bit. Just sort of gazing off the length of your nose, maybe about two, two and a half feet in front of you. Report an error in the passage at 1:30:14 Highlight the passage at 1:30:14

1:30:29 Tongue resting on the roof of your mouth. Report an error in the passage at 1:30:29 Highlight the passage at 1:30:29

1:30:36 Hands in your lap or at the level of your navel. Report an error in the passage at 1:30:36 Highlight the passage at 1:30:36

1:30:42 Right over left, thumbs touching lightly. Report an error in the passage at 1:30:42 Highlight the passage at 1:30:42

1:30:58 And then that last one, the breath, just allowing your breathing to be relaxed and what feels normal for you. Report an error in the passage at 1:30:58 Highlight the passage at 1:30:58

1:31:17 And just take some deep breaths like we did at the beginning, just allowing your day to sort of dissolve away. Even all the talking that you've just been listening to, just let it go. Report an error in the passage at 1:31:17 Highlight the passage at 1:31:17

1:31:33 And this is the point at home where you could do some progressive relaxation if you know them. Do some breathing exercises or just imagine your breath sort of washing your mind and body clean. Report an error in the passage at 1:31:33 Highlight the passage at 1:31:33

· · · silence, 1 minute

1:32:19 And then start with asking your teacher to come sit with you. And if you don't have a teacher, you can use His Holiness the Dalai Lama in a pinch. Report an error in the passage at 1:32:19 Highlight the passage at 1:32:19

1:32:33 Just invite them into the room with you. I usually imagine having suddenly arising like a nice little throne that just happens to pop up right in front of me. I usually offer Rinpoche some tea. You might think about whether your teacher likes tea and what they'd like, but don't get too caught up in those details. Report an error in the passage at 1:32:33 Highlight the passage at 1:32:33

1:32:55 Ask them to sit there and meditate with you and help keep you concentrated. Report an error in the passage at 1:32:55 Highlight the passage at 1:32:55

1:33:10 And then the first step is taking refuge, whatever that means to you. So if you've studied for a while and you know sort of how to take refuge in the Three Jewels, that's great. And if not, then you can think just about something that I might have talked about tonight. That you can take refuge in, you can rely on with all your heart. Whether it's emptiness, whether it's the fact that you can become a Buddha, your future Buddhahood. Report an error in the passage at 1:33:10 Highlight the passage at 1:33:10

1:33:47 Whether it's that mind of bodhicitta that wants to work for the benefit of all living beings without exception. Let's take refuge in something. Report an error in the passage at 1:33:47 Highlight the passage at 1:33:47

1:34:17 And then generate bodhicitta, this mind wanting to do this meditation for the benefit of all living beings without exception. Report an error in the passage at 1:34:17 Highlight the passage at 1:34:17

1:34:31 And you might think about somebody you know who's been suffering and how much you'd love to remove that suffering if you could. Report an error in the passage at 1:34:31 Highlight the passage at 1:34:31

1:34:47 Imagine how amazing it would be if we could and do this meditation for that person or those people, however big you can make that mind. Report an error in the passage at 1:34:47 Highlight the passage at 1:34:47

1:35:16 And then the seven limb practice. Again, remember your teacher in front of you and think about one quality that they have that you would like. Report an error in the passage at 1:35:16 Highlight the passage at 1:35:16

1:35:28 Maybe it's a subdued mind. Maybe it's the ability to concentrate really well. Maybe it's their wisdom, their compassion and bow down to that quality. Report an error in the passage at 1:35:28 Highlight the passage at 1:35:28

1:35:41 That's prostration. That's all a prostration is. Report an error in the passage at 1:35:41 Highlight the passage at 1:35:41

1:36:00 And then the second limb is making offerings. So you can offer something you can visualize like flowers or tea or something. Report an error in the passage at 1:36:00 Highlight the passage at 1:36:00

1:36:14 Music, perhaps. Or some practice that you've done. Maybe you can offer the meditation itself. Report an error in the passage at 1:36:14 Highlight the passage at 1:36:14

1:36:38 And the third limb is confessing. And that's really basically thinking about something specific that you've done. Hopefully today. Keep it as close as possible. It doesn't have to be I've been a horrible person my whole life. Just think understanding karma in even a tiny way. Any negativity that I've done with my body, speech or mind is going to cause me suffering, much less anybody else. And from that perspective, I can regret it and just offer it up, let go. Report an error in the passage at 1:36:38 Highlight the passage at 1:36:38

1:37:36 And then always balance that with the fourth limb, which is rejoicing. I'm really good at the confessing part and I don't spend nearly enough time on the rejoicing part and I think that's epidemic in our culture. Report an error in the passage at 1:37:36 Highlight the passage at 1:37:36

1:37:50 Take one moment to feel really happy that you're in this class and that you're meditating right now. And even if you can think of one thing that you've done today, that's good. Those two alone are priceless. So just feel really happy. That's all rejoicing is. Report an error in the passage at 1:37:50 Highlight the passage at 1:37:50

1:38:29 And then ask that teacher or the Buddha to stay, not to leave, not to pass into Paranirvana. Report an error in the passage at 1:38:29 Highlight the passage at 1:38:29

1:38:42 We have to request this. Report an error in the passage at 1:38:42 Highlight the passage at 1:38:42

1:38:52 And ask them to teach us, to guide us, to show us the way, especially on this path to understanding emptiness. Report an error in the passage at 1:38:52 Highlight the passage at 1:38:52

1:39:17 And then we dedicate this opening part of our practice to our own enlightenment for the benefit of all beings. Report an error in the passage at 1:39:17 Highlight the passage at 1:39:17

1:39:35 And then just focus on your breath, finding that point, a little patch of skin inside the nostril, tip of the nostril, or the level of your belly. As it expands and contracts with each breath. And an in-breath and an out-breath is one, and try to count to ten. And keep your mind on that breath as sharply, alertly as you can. Report an error in the passage at 1:39:35 Highlight the passage at 1:39:35

· · · silence, 1 minute

1:41:05 This class, dedicating all the merit, all the positive karma that we've just created by talking about the nature of reality, Report an error in the passage at 1:41:05 Highlight the passage at 1:41:05

1:41:18 I dedicate it to each one of us in this room. Having a direct perception of that nature of reality, ultimately, and also being able to use whatever understanding we gain in this class and elsewhere every day to become more and more wise, compassionate, loving, giving human beings. Thank Report an error in the passage at 1:41:18 Highlight the passage at 1:41:18

1:42:02 you very much. So if anybody has any questions, you can stay and ask questions, or if anybody else needs to go, then that's fine. You don't have to feel bad. Report an error in the passage at 1:42:02 Highlight the passage at 1:42:02

1:42:17 Does anyone have any questions about anything? Yeah. Where is the mic? Report an error in the passage at 1:42:17 Highlight the passage at 1:42:17

1:42:27 And if you have to go, that's fine. Oh, but there is homework. Sorry. And I don't think 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11. 12, 13, 14. You want to get one too? No, you can share. Okay. I only made 10. So do you want to run off a couple copies? Okay. Why don't you just make. Report an error in the passage at 1:42:27 Highlight the passage at 1:42:27

1:42:55 And then you can have your So just make four copies of that and then you just hand those out to everybody else. Report an error in the passage at 1:42:55 Highlight the passage at 1:42:55

1:43:04 I don't have an altar and I would love to... Do you have recommendations on how to set one up? It can be very simple. I used to just cover a crate or a bookshelf or something like that. It doesn't have to be like this. I get more and more elaborate the older I get. I start to make every available space into an altar in my room. Report an error in the passage at 1:43:04 Highlight the passage at 1:43:04