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Learning to meditate is a creative process of persistent enthusiastic effort in becoming familiar with functional minds such as the minds of compassion and the wisdom the knows emptiness. Being able to meditate deeply is not something that will naturally happen over night. Would you expect to become an artist or musician after just one lesson?

Artists and musician’s have their tools of the trade, as do meditators. What are these tools? Below is a list along with short explanations of each. However the list is by no means an exhaustive list.

There are external tools for meditation such as

1. A dedicated room or place within a room.
2. Cushion.
3. Blanket.
4. Table for books and meditation manuals.

and there are internal tools for meditation such as

1. An appreciation of the benefits of meditation.
2. Awareness of attention.
3. Enthusiasm.
4. Patience.
5. Knowledge.

So lets now expand on each of these a little.

A dedicated room or place within a room for meditation
It is useful to have a dedicated place for your meditation practice. By having a dedicated place for meditation you are saying to yourself:

I believe meditation is an important and worthwhile activity. I see the advantages it can bring to my life, my family and everyone I engage with throughout my life. For this reason I believe it is important enough to have it’s own dedicated space.

You will also be reminded every time you walk by the room. There are other benefits also besides these for instance; When I was young my grandfather, who we called “green pa” because he had a green car, had a shed in his backyard. My grandmother knew that when he was in his shed he could not be disturbed. My grandfather use to build things for people out of wood. It was like a meditation for him. So similarly, we need our own shed - a meditation shed. A place where we can build things like the minds of compassion, wisdom, equanimity and develop the skills to really help others.

Meditation Cushion
You don’t need to sit on the floor or in a crossed legged position to meditate. Meditation is a mental activity not a physical one but, you do need to be comfortable. If you are not comfortable it will be difficult to develop a deep and stable practice. So when you are first starting out, pay attention to how your body feels. If pain arises, try and fix it by adjusting your position slightly. However don’t fuss over this process. Don’t spend too much time worrying about the pain or discomfort. Otherwise this checking could itself become an obstacle to meditation.

Also, sitting in a chair is permissible. However sitting as the great meditators of the past did is best if you can. Why? Because adopting a cross legged position is a powerful signal to yourself that it is now time to meditate. However if you are sitting in a chair make sure it is not the same chair you use to have afternoon naps, as your meditation will probably just turn into more sleeping.

Also the cushion is to keep you comfortable. It is not a fashion item, or a decorative piece. Don’t turn your meditation practice into another worldly activity.

Meditation Blanket
There are two types of meditation blankets. One to keep you warm and one for keeping your hands comfortable. If you are too warm by having too many blankets wrapped around your body this can induce sleep. So make certain you are comfortable and warm while leaving some space for the air to flow around your body. Remember your meditating not sleeping!

The second type is for your hands. Place a soft piece of fabric or a fold of your blanket under your hands, this will help your mind relax. The sooner you relax the quicker your meditation will develop. However meditation is not just about deep relaxation, so don’t allow yourself to fall into the abyss of sleepiness. It is very much like tuning your mind. Too tight and conceptualization will occur, too loose and you will end up wasting time in the fogginess of laxity. In this regard meditation is a creative ongoing process of adjusting between too tight and too loose. So have fun learning to meditate!

If you live in a noisy area try using ear plugs.

Meditation Table
This tool is simply to allow you to read guided meditation manuals or writing notes without having to get up from your meditation seat. Not all meditation is about only focusing the mind. You can meditate on subjects that are quite subtle and difficult to understand. So you might need a couple of books handy in order to consult.

An appreciation of the benefits of meditation
This tool cannot be overemphasized. However an appreciation of the benefits of meditation can only develop over time as you see first hand the benefits. So given this some what difficult premise, that is, an appreciation of the benefits of meditation can only come after you see the benefits of meditation, try and research articles or stories of the benefits of meditation in order to inspire. If you like biographies, read the biographies of great yogis like Milarepa. If you are a science type, find articles on the science of meditation or http://www.danielgoleman.info/blog/2008/01/01/the-inexplicable-monks/ to inspire you. The point is, many have said there is benefits in learning to meditate. However the only way you can verify these benefits is to learn to meditate yourself.

Reading inspiring stories will help develop an aspiration to engage in meditation. Aspiration is the key to a successful practice. Without an aspiration to engage in meditation, even if you have all the external tools of the trade, the best cushions, a dedicated room, a beautiful meditation table made of fine antique timber, you will still find yourself watching television or finding some excuse to not meditate. It’s amazing just how sophisticated some excuses can be. Don’t get fooled by them.

Awareness of attention
Are you aware of your thoughts right now? Probably not. As you are reading this your mind is engaged in the process of reading. But, there are other things going on that you may not be aware of. I’m not just talking about being mindful per se but, rather a broader class of attention. It might even be classified as intention. I think it is more like being attentive of your intentions. What does that mean? If your intention is to sit down to meditate, be certain that is what you end up doing. Don’t spend your time worrying about money, or your job, or your children or your broken finger nail or whether your football team is going to win on the weekend. If you come up with some cool new idea for a project that will help get you a great new job. Jot down the idea while remaining seated, then continue meditating until you finish. Then start thinking about the idea after that. Actually this can be an issue. Because as your meditation deepens you will find that creativity can increase. So watch out for this one. Don’t let yourself go off day-dreaming or speculating about the future. Be attentive of your intention to meditate.

Through this, stability will develop. Stability is a lack of being here, there and everywhere! Stability will arise at the same time as conceptualization decreases. But conceptualization can only decrease if you do not engage it. It is a little like ignoring someone who is standing near you asking the same questions over and over again. If you ignore them long enough they will eventually go away.

For this reason it is also good to meditate at the same time of day, each day. This will allow you to develop the habit of meditating rather than spending this time stressing over things that can, in the end, be dealt with later.

Enthusiasm
This tool is the meditators engine. It is the one thing that will get you out of bed early every morning to meditate. It is closely linked with appreciation. So when you feel your enthusiasm waning, go back to internal tool # 1 and read something inspiring.

The more you appreciate the results of meditation, the more your enthusiasm will increase. But, be careful because too much meditation can be a large factor in destroying enthusiasm for meditation. So be smart with how much meditation you do. If you are new to meditation aim to meditate everyday for at least 20 minutes and, build from there. The goal would be 3-4 hours a day everyday. When you get to this point. The problem won’t be trying to meditate it will be stopping.

Patience
Patience is a necessary ingredient to a successful meditation practice. It is not only a willingness to practice. It is a steadfastness in the face of difficulties. When meditation gets boring, patience will be that voice in your head encouraging you to keep trying. It can be your best friend in meditation. Always there with kind words to help and encourage you along. When you have patience you can except difficulties without resistance. And if you have no resistance you will become irresistible! Just joking.

The point is be patient, with the right motivation, meditation can be the best thing you can do with your life. Wisdom, compassion and knowledge of how to help others will develop naturally. Then you can be of use to both yourself and others. Does that sound like something worth campaigning for? Geshe Loden my teacher often says, most people only campaign for this life. Thinking about having more money, a better car or a better looking body. Not so many campaign for better future lives! Which one do you want to be?

Knowledge
The topic of Buddhist wisdom used as both a method for the use within meditation and as the result of meditation, will be covered in an upcoming post entitled Buddhism as Philosophy.

But I will leave you with a quote from DromTompa the famous disciple of Atisha

Some think, Meditators do not need to study; those who teach need to study. Actually, learning is more necessary from the meditator; teachers may just incur the fault of explaining something incorrectly.

Do you see his point? I will let you think about it and explain what I think he is saying in the post on Knowledge.

Awareness and Knowledge an Introduction

Buddhism asserts the mind is not merely a function of the brain nor is it an emergent property of physical processes. Buddhist epistemology - a branch of philosophy that investigates the origin, nature, methods, and limits of knowledge - defines consciousness as: that which is clear and knowing. Consciousness, knower and awareness are synonymous. Awareness is ‘clear’ as in it is not obstructed by physical phenomena. It is the luminous aspect of mind and the knowing is the minds capacity to know or cognize phenomena - both internal and external phenomena. Therefore it is that which is clear and knowing.

Regardless of your inclination toward either the current Western notion of the nature of consciousness or the Buddhist definition. The project of developing a ‘good life’ or to use Buddhist terminology ‘practicing Dharma’ or ‘the path to Enlightenment’ is contingent upon understanding your own mind. Given that consciousness in the Buddhist tradition has been the primary object of investigation for more than 2500 years, it makes sense to at least understand what Buddhist literature has to say about the subject regardless of whether you are Buddhist or not.

The Buddhist approach to epistemology and psychology is one of enumerating the basic functions of the mind, as opposed to understanding it through brain processes or behavioral manifestations. By understanding how perception, conception and various mental factors such as the mental factor of feeling - one of the Five Omnipresent mental factors - operate and how the mental factor of feeling plays a crucial role in determining how we relate and react to most of life’s events, one can develop a greater understanding of our dependent nature. We, that is, you and I are after all dependent on various factors other than ourselves. My mind is not me, although it is a part of what makes up me. So by developing a deeper understanding of this very fact, we can better understand who we are, and how we exist. To a greater of lesser extent, it is this process that Buddhists are undertaking.

The lineage of Buddhist epistemology comes from two Indian scholars Dignaga 5th CE and Dharmakirti 7th CE. Dignaga wrote a treatise on what constitutes valid cognition, valid ways of knowing, called Compendium of Valid Cognition. While Dharmakirti wrote Seven Treatises on Valid Cognition his treatise called Commentary on (Dignaga’s) Compendium of Valid Cognition is the foundational text for much of Tibetan monastic education of Buddhist logic and epistemology . The study of mental factors or psychology comes from Compendium of Knowledge written by Asanga 3rd CE.

In the Tibetan monastic education system, the study of epistemology and psychology are studied under the topic of Awareness and Knowledge (blo-rig) pronounced Lo-rik. Lo-rik is the study of consciousness, of mind and the understanding of mind is seen as essential in both it’s practical and theoretical aspects, as the process of the enlightenment project is one of replacing dysfunctional mind with functional ones. Therefore the clear identification of dysfunctional states of mind and the recognition of why they are dysfunctional is of vital importance in the progression from an unenlightened experience to an enlightened one. Meditation which is seen as an indispensable tool in a spiritual aspirant life, is used as both a diagnostic and therapeutic tool in this process. The culmination of this process is a state of mind, an experience that is free from all dysfunctional states. According to Buddhism, such a mind has the capacity to know all objects of knowledge without error. Buddhists merely label this experience Enlightenment. Perhaps this is what can explain gamma levels leapt’s of 700 to 800 percent

In Lo-rik, consciousness is studied by dividing it into types and sub-types from several different point of view, such as the seven-fold division of:

1. Direct Perceivers
2. Inferential cognizers
3. Subsequent cognizers
4. Correctly assuming consciousness
5. Inattentive awareness
6. Doubting consciousness
7. Wrong consciousness

The Three-fold division:

1. Conceptual consciousnesses that take a meaning generality as their apprehended object.
2. Non-conceptual non-mistaken consciousnesses that take a specifically characterized phenomenon as their apprehended object.
3. Non-conceptual mistaken consciousnesses that take a clear appearance of a nonexistent as their apprehended object.

The Two-fold division:

1. Self-knowers
2. Other-knowers

Another Two-fold division of:

1. Minds
2. Mental factors

This enables a student to develop a sense of how consciousness exists and manifests, by understanding the various types, their functions and how they interrelate. The study of Lo-rik also plays the role in formulating foundational concepts that a student will use in their future studies of Madhyamaka, as well as the Grounds and Paths found in texts like Maitreya’s Ornament for Clear Realizations.

Awareness and Knowledge - Table of Contents

Death is a progressive process of the dissolution of body and mind that can be divided into eight main stages. As the body deteriorates, the energy required to sustain sense consciousness such as our eye awareness, then course conceptual consciousness - thoughts and emotions - and finally subtle consciousness is lost. At the same time there are specific signs or appearances to mind that mark these eight stages. The last stage being called the Clear Light of death or Mother Clear Light.

The point at which this Clear Light of death becomes manifest is of vital importance in a meditators life, as it is at this stage that one’s meditation can herald deep realisations into the nature of reality and propel a yogi along the path to enlightenment in very short period of time.

Also from an ordinary point of view, when death comes to an ordinary human it comes in a series of dissolutions. Since we will all face this process at some point, it is seen as important to understand the death process, if only to not let oneself fall subject to fear and so forth.

The Mind at Death

It is said that the state of mind of an ordinary being at death plays a large role in determining the type of rebirth that the being will take. Therefore it is very important to die with a positive state of mind. Therefore it is very useful for the dying to practice meditation, practice generosity by giving away their belongs, and saying goodbye to loved ones.

The Twenty Five gross objects

The Five Aggregate:

1. Form
2. Feeling
3. Discrimination
4. Compositional factors
5. Consciousness

The Five Basic Wisdom:

1. Basic Mirror-like wisdom
2. Basic wisdom of equality
3. Basic wisdom of analysis
4. Basic wisdom of achieving activities
5. Basic wisdom of the nature of phenomena

The Four Elements:

1. Earth
2. Water
3. Fire
4. Wind

The Six Sources:

1. Eye sense
2. Ear sense
3. Nose sense
4. Tongue sense
5. Body sense
6. Mind sense

The Five Objects:

1. Visible forms
2. Sounds
3. Odours
4. Tastes
5. Tangibles

These 25 gross/course objects constitute one way of enumerating our mind-body complex.

The dissolution process as stated earlier can be presented in 8 stages.
In the first four stages there is the simultaneous dissolution of a group of the 25 gross object from the list above. Don’t think of this process as one thing dissolving into another, it is more like the power of one group can no longer operate and so another becomes manifest. At each stage there is both an internal sign and an external sign associated with the dissolution of the various elements of the body and mind.

The Dissolution Process

The First Stage:

Simultaneous dissolution of the form aggregate, the basic mirror-like wisdom, the earth element, the eye sense and visible forms.

Internal sign - Mirage like vision.

External sign - the body withers, sights become unclear, and there is a feeling as if the body has become heavy.

The Second Stage:

Simultaneous dissolution of the feeling aggregate, the basic wisdom of equality, the water element, the ear sense and sounds.

Internal sign - Smoke like vision.

External sign - Feelings of pain and pleasure associated with the body are no longer felt. The bodies liquids dry up and sounds can no longer be hearing, including the buzzing in one’s ears.

The Third Stage:

Simultaneous dissolution of the discrimination aggregate, the wisdom of analysis, the fire element, the nose sense and odours.

Internal sign -The vision of sparks against a dark background.

External sign - The name’s of people and objects can no longer be remembered. The body loses it’s heat, and so the power to digest food is also lost. Exhalation of the breath is stronger than inhalation, and breathing becomes more difficult. The ability to smell is also lost.

The Four Stage:

Simultaneous dissolution of the compositional factors aggregate, the wisdom of achieving activities, the wind element, the tongue sense and taste.

Internal sign - flickering light, like a very small candle.

External sign - Breathing has stopped and all ability to move has been lost. Because the wind element has dissolved and therefore the breathing has stopped in the west most people are renounced dead at this point. But according to Buddhism death does not occur until the mind has left the body which is sometime after the 8th stage.

The Fifth Stage:

Gradual dissolution of the eighty indicative conceptions and the mind of White Appearance. As the mind of White Appearance becomes manifest a vision of pure white light is seen. It is said that at this point, the mind is empty of all conceptuality other than the mind of White Appearance.

As the mind of White Appearance loses it’s power, the Mind of Red Increase becomes manifest.

These appearances occur as the subtle energies of the subtle body (nervous system) are lost. or dissolve into one another.

The Sixth Stage:

The mind of Red Increase is a vision of redness, like a bright sunset in summer. At this point the mind is empty of all conceptuality other than the mind of Red Increase.

As the mind of Red Increase loses it’s power, the Mind of Black Near Attainment becomes manifest.

The Seventh Stage:

The mind of Black Near Attainment is a vision of complete darkness or blackness. At this point the mind of empty of all conceptuality other than the mind of Black Near Attainment.

As the mind of Black Near Attainment loses it’s power, the Clear light of death becomes manifest.

The Eight Stage:

Clear light of death is an experience of the pure radiance of the mind. This experience is of complete clarity and awareness, it is the most subtle aspect of the mind and is that which all phenomena manifest. A yogi can meditate on this mind for weeks.

The Actual point of death
One can still recognize if someone is alive at this point by whether or not there is any heat remaining at the point of the heart - the centre of the chest, not the physical heart. Once the mind leaves the body - the actual point of death - the heat at the heart will be lost.

Check you this post on Why do Buddhists meditate on death for more details on death and meditation.

In Buddhism there is the notion of a rebirth that provides us with a wonderful opportunity to change the course of our lives forever. Traditionally this is called a perfect human rebirth endowed with leisure and fortune. We have the leisure to practice and this is very fortunate indeed. Of course this topic is set within the context of a number of Buddhist beliefs including rebirth, karma, nirvana and so forth. Buddhism assert we have had limitless past lives. In some of these past lives we were born as humans, and in others we were not so lucky. A human rebirth in which one has meet the teachings of the Buddha and sees the value of these teachings is a perfect human rebirth.

A human life gives us the opportunity to read books on Buddhism, go to lectures and engage in meditation retreats. In terms of the different specifies of animals on this planet, this can only be done by humans. So our lives are precious and should not be taken for granted nor wasted by excessive meaningless activities. Is there a need for relaxation? Sure, go and enjoy yourself with friends and so forth. But not at the exclusion of study and meditation.

Buddhism asserts that we have the power to change our life, and that we not simply a victims of circumstances. The world that seems to throw itself at you, is in fact co-created by you, and so you can change your world by changing your mind! The intention behind of the subject of leisure and fortune is presented in order to motivate you, to get you to realize just how precious this opportunity is, and to help you develop the state of mind that says:

My life is immensely meaningful, I have a rare and wonderful opportunity to free myself from ignorance and to be of the greatest benefit to other living beings. I hereby make the determination to practice dharma now!

Many people think, ok this sounds good but, I’m too young or busy or I simply don’t have the time as I have a family. I will practice…just not now…I will start when I retire. So ask yourself which will come first, retirement or the next life? Given that none of us really know when this life will end. Surely we can spend 30 minutes a day meditating on the path to enlightenment!

In almost all traditions of Buddhism the teacher or guru or lama is seen as a vital ingredient to success in ones dharma practice.

Although the role and style of the teacher is different in many of the traditions, at the heart of our practice is the guru.
Guru Yoga is the root of the path, but this is often either overlooked or misunderstood. Sometimes students think they have to be just like their teacher in every way, sometimes down to mimicking his/her body language and style. One of my teachers has a very different personality compared to his teacher. This shows that what you are gaining from the relationship is internal qualities not behavioral gestures. The other extreme is through not understanding the point of Guru Yoga, the student simply ignores the practice altogether. This is even worse, as my teacher often says you become a boiled rock. What he means is that no matter how long you boil a rock (listen to teachings) the rock never softens (you will not gain realizations of dharma). Keep an open mind - Don’t be a boiled rock!

The guru is …

1. The one who reveals the path.
The guru is the source of all our wisdom, our empowerment’s and is therefore for students practicing Vajrayana the source of all our realizations.

2. Who embodies the teachings.
In Ornament for the Mahayana Sutras Maitreya’s lists 10 qualities that one can use as a guideline for the appraisal of a teacher.

Rely on a guru who is Controlled, pacified,
completely pacified, Who has more knowledge than you,
Perseverance, a wealth of scriptural knowledge,
Realization of suchness, Is skilled in teaching, has love
And has abandoned being discouraged from teaching.

3. Who is the Buddha entering our awareness.
By viewing the guru as a Buddha your practice becomes far more powerful. Think about it, imagine two different people going to hear HH the Dalai Lama speak. One perceives him a nice old Tibetan monk. While the other sees him as an emanation of the Buddha of Compassion, which one is more likely to integrate his words into their life? I’d say the latter. That’s not to say that the former got nothing out of the experience, of course they got something from it but, in terms on practicing Buddhism the latter would be listening to the teachings with a greater willingness to practice what they were hearing.

So you can see just how important to evaluation of a guru is. If you are currently in the process of evaluating a teacher, don’t in a rush. Because once you have accepted someone as a Mahayana teacher, make certain you are efficient with your practice by listening and following the advise and teachings of the guru.

Ten Qualities of a Perfect Mahayana Guru
1: Controlled by pure morality.
2: Pacified by the practice of concentration.
3: Completely pacified by discriminating wisdom.
4: Has more knowledge than you.
5: Has perseverance.
6: A vast knowledge of the scriptures.
7: Has realized emptiness.
8: Has great skill in teaching people.
9: Has unbiased love and compassion.
10: Has abandoned laziness in regards to teaching the dharma.

Has ten qualities are actually quite rare but, they are around.

From another perceptive the guru is like a caring therapist pointing out subtlety, with patience and care in order not to harm us, our most hidden psychological blind spots. Those areas of our personality that we don’t always see but, nonetheless need to be transformed. In Tibet there is an old saying It’s easier to see the flee on another’s back than to see the elephant on your own. This is so true, not because we are stupid or lazy but, because these psychological blind spots are what makes us, us!

For me this is what makes guru yoga such a fascinating practice. I can’t tell you how many time’s I have heard Geshe Loden say something to me and I find myself thinking hmm is he talking about me? Nah he couldn’t be…surely I’m not like that! Then hours or sometimes days latter, I realize the truth
These moments are like little gold nuggets where ones practice can really progress rapidly.

So the purpose of guru yoga

tags: Buddhism, Tibetan Buddhist, meditation, Lamrim

Buddhism asserts that all beings have the fundamental wish for greater happiness and also a natural aspiration to avoid any suffering, be it great or small. Every living being has the equal right to be happy and to create the causes for their future happiness. In this not a selfish aspiration but, unfortunately many tend to misunderstand the causes of real happiness and by this engage in negative actions.Buddhists don’t assert a single, all-powerful creator of the world and the beings within it.
The basic premise is that the mind is the primary source of all happiness, problems and the natural world – the environment. There is a well know discourse given by the Buddha where he says, All phenomena are preceded by mind.
When you comprehend mind, you comprehend all phenomena. The goal of Buddhism is to remove all dysfunctional states of mind, replace them with functional minds in order to be of benefit to all living beings, which includes oneself!
Therefore consciousness itself is the primary object of investigation for Buddhists and the principal tool used for this investigation is meditation.Buddhism has developed many techniques for stabilizing and refining consciousness. Just as the great scientists of the past such as Kepler and Galileo used the telescope to investigate the physical universe. Buddhists use meditation to investigate the inner world of the mind, the nature of reality, and to develop healthier, constructive and balanced states on mind which in turn enhance the ability of the mind to investigate mind itself.

What is mind?
Some people think that the mind is the brain or some other part or function of the body. Buddhism disagrees with this view. Buddhism says that the mind is not a physical object. It cannot be seen with the eyes, nor can it be photographed or repaired by surgery. The brain is not the mind but simply part of the body. In fact, there is nothing within the body that can be identified as being our mind because our body and mind are different entities.
In Buddhist scriptures, our body is compared to a hotel and our mind to a guest. When we die, our mind leaves our body and goes to the next life, just like a guest leaving a hotel and going somewhere else.Many people believe that when the body disintegrates at death, the continuum of the mind ceases and the mind becomes non-existent, like a candle flame going out. There are even people who may contemplate suicide in the hope that if they die their problems will come to an end. Buddhism asserts these ideas are incorrect. So even though the body disintegrates at death, the continuum of the mind remains unbroken. Instead of ceasing, the mind simply leaves the present body and goes to the next life. Therefore, rather than releasing us from suffering, suicide only brings more problems. If the mind is not the brain, nor any other part of the body, what is it? It is a formless continuum that functions to perceive and understand objects. Because the mind is formless, or non-physical, by nature, it is not obstructed by physical objects. Also it is very important to be able to distinguish dysfunctional states of mind from peaceful states. The states of mind that disturb our inner peace, such as anger, jealousy, and desirous attachment, are called ‘delusions’; and these are the principal causes of all the problems in our lives. We may think that our problems are caused by other people, by poor material conditions, or by society, but in reality it all comes from our own states of mind. The essence of spiritual practice is to reduce and eventually to eradicate altogether these dysfunctional states of mind, and to replace them with the actual causes of happiness such as compassion and wisdom. From a Buddhist point of view this endeavor makes our lives very meaningful. This is the real meaning of our human life.The essential point of understanding the mind is that happiness cannot be found outside the mind. Real happiness can be found only by purifying the mind from its dysfunctional aspects. Therefore, if we want to become free from problems and attain lasting happiness we need to increase our understanding of the mind.Getting back to the original quotation from the Buddha…
All phenomena are preceded by mind.
When you comprehend mind, you comprehend all phenomena.
So, there is nothing that exists independent of mind. This doesn’t mean that everything is just imagined like in a dream. Things do exist, but they don’t exist the way we innately or naturally conceive of them to exist.So if that is the case how do phenomena exist then, you may ask.

All phenomena exist as an aggregation of causes and conditions; parts; and imputation – the process of consciousness naming or labeling things.Example of a cup…In fact the Buddha and many Buddhist saints throughout the history of Buddhism have written 1000’s of books on the different states of mind, nature of reality and what constitutes destructive minds and constructive minds like compassion.

Why is compassion a constructive state of mind – Virtuous Mind?
In Buddhism we have this term called Karma. An often misunderstood and misused term.
Karma is a Sanskrit word that means ‘action’, and refers to the actions of our body, speech, and mind. Every action we perform leaves an imprint, or potentiality, on our very subtle mind, and each imprint eventually gives rise to its own effect. Actions done with compassion will ripen in the future as effects similar in type to the initial action. So from this you can see that the real causes for happiness are in fact these constructive states of mind such as compassion and so forth!
Our mind is like a field, and performing actions is like sowing seeds in that field. Virtuous actions such as generosity, patience and compassion sow seeds of future happiness, and non-virtuous actions such as killing, lying and stealing sow seeds of future problems – future suffering. The seeds we have sown in the past remain dormant until the conditions necessary for their germination come together. In some cases this can be many lifetimes after the original action was performed.The sources of life’s problems are our own dysfunctional states of mind such as anger, attachment, and self-grasping ignorance. Once we have purified our mind of self-grasping and other dysfunctional states of mind, all our actions are naturally pure. As a result of our pure actions or pure karma, everything we experience will be in the nature of pure happiness. This is how to find true happiness – that is from within our mind.When we speak of spirituality the original Sanskrit term that is being translated as spirituality or religion is Dharma and in Tibetan it is cho. The Tibetan term cho has the connotation of transforming and this I think is very inspiring because what is being implied in the very notion of spirituality is the idea that the individual is capable of being transformed at the level of one’s thoughts and emotions – from the factors and conditions that give rise to dysfunctional states to a functional states. So this notion of transformation is built into the very meaning of the word cho or Dharma.

While the Tibetan word for meditation is gom which has the connotation of habituation. So the meaning behind this is to become familiar with constructive states of mind and the nature of reality.In Buddhism the nature of reality is often spoken of in terms of two levels, which we call the Two Truths.
The two truths are conventional truth and ultimate truth or appearances and dependant-arising.Example of a dependant-arising…like the cup or the Prime minister or a Head Master/Principal.The reason why understanding the two truths is so important is because we are lead into and fall victim to conventional appearances. We believe these false appearances to exist the way they appear, and through this all destructive states of mind such as anger, attachment, jealousy and arrogance are generated. These minds distort our view – the way we perceive things and events. Shantideva a 7^th century Buddhist sage said…
Although they wish to be free from problems they run to problems.
And although they long for happiness, through ignorance they crush it like an enemy.What he is saying is that, although we innately want happiness and to avoid even the slightest form of suffering. Through not understanding reality and the true causes of happiness, whatever happiness we experience is fleeting at best.
Now some will say “this is just life! This is the human condition!” Buddhism asserts that the human condition is transformable, changeable and ultimately transcendable. How is this so?
By going beyond mere appearances – conventional truths – to see the reality of phenomena, that is their dependant-arising nature. How does this happen? Well by seeing the dependant nature of things and events we are sucked in by these appearances.So someone could object by raise the question, then so far as the fulfill of this basic aspiration to seek happiness and overcome suffering is concerned, why do we need spirituality?
Why can’t we just through money, friends and physical stimulus solve all our problems and fulfill all our aspirations. This is a serious question that shouldn’t just be put to one side!So the question is. Are friends, fame and money alone adequate for human beings to fulfill their aspirations and overcome their suffering? If happiness came only from external stimulus, then those individuals, who have excellent material facilities as a result of their wealth, would not experience problems. But we can see these people who are materially well provided for can sometimes be extremely unhappy, anxious and restless. This shows that there is a level of experience which is beyond physical sensations of pain and pleasure. So clearly the answer has to be no! Why, because in addition to having a physical body, we also have the mental world – the world of the mind. We all possess consciousness so therefore when we speak of our experiences of happiness and suffering or pain and pleasure we do so both at the level of our physical body and at the level of consciousness – the level of thoughts and emotions. Many of our experiences tend to be at the physical level, dominated mainly be our sensory experiences. For example, as a result of hearing pleasant music, or seeing an attractive form, we have physical sensations relating to those experiences. Also taste by eating some delicious food, we have sensory experiences that respond to these external stimulus. All of these different sensory stimuli are contingent on our physical existence. However all of these perceptions and sensations arise on the basis of subjective consciousness – that is mind.It is the subjective experience of consciousness that allows us to have these kinds of perceptions and sensations in response to external physical stimulus. Also no matter how powerful these sensory experiences are, if you compare them to the experiences of happiness at the level of thoughts and emotions, the experiences at the level of consciousness are far more powerful.Since happiness and unhappiness is not so much due to some external stimuli but, rather as an internal process of our mind. The solution has to come not from external conditions but from internal processes themselves. It is in this domain that the role of Dharma (spirituality) comes into play.

So the point is friends, fame and money alone cannot solve all your problems or fulfill all of your aspirations.There is a need for some form of spirituality in every person’s life, be it Buddhism or not.
By understanding your mind you will greatly enhance your life. Whether you want to be a great sports person, a doctor, lawyer, farmer, homemaker or whatever, by understanding the inner world of your mind you will be more successful than if you don’t understand your mind!Having said that, if someone is suffering from hunger religion is not going to fill their stomach!
There is nothing wrong with having a lot of friends or money or fame! In fact one could bring a lot of happiness and do a lot of good in the world if one had it!

What do you think?

Preliminaries

· Guru Yoga.

1. Who reveals the path.

2. Embodies the teachings.

3. Who is the Buddha entering our awareness.

· Leisure and Fortune.

1. Through meeting the teachings of the guru, our rebirth becomes a perfect rebirth.

2. We have the opportunity and capacity to practice dharma.

3. Temporary Value – Health, wealth and good conditions.

4. Ultimate value – Complete release from Samsara.

5. Value in every instant – The opportunity of utter joy of each moment of life through joining it with Dharma. With Love, Compassion, generosity, patience, joy, equanimity, wisdom, concentration and so forth.

Small Scope

· Impermanence

1. Death is definite - Reflect that such a life is impermanent, like a bubble in water.

2. Time of death uncertain – With limited time we know we must practice dharma.

3. Only Dharma can help – Therefore we must do the thing that is of most value to ourselves and other. Practice dharma now, in this moment, at this instant. Generating the minds of love, compassion and wisdom now! Practice dharma now!

4. Practice Dharma properly and purely – As dharma is the only thing that can help us in this life and the next we must practice properly and purely and so we take refuge in the 3 Jewels.

· Refuge

1. Buddha Jewel – As the embodiment of the goal of refuge.

2. Dharma Jewel – As the means to its attainment.

3. Sangha Jewel – As the community of supporting practitioners.

· Karma

1. Abandoning the negative.

2. Cultivating the positive.

3. Deconditioning the mind from negative karma of the past.

4. Purifying negative karma through the 4 opponent powers.

5. Constantly directing ourselves the positive, to virtue.

Medium Scope

· Suffering – 4 Noble Truths

1. True Suffering –

§ 8 Sufferings

· Birth.

· Aging.

· Sickness.

· Death.

· Meeting the unpleasant.

· Separation from the pleasant.

· Not gaining what is desired.

· The 5 contaminated aggregates.

§ 6 Sufferings

· Uncertainty.

· Dissatisfaction.

· Discarding your body again and again.

· Being reborn again and again.

· Constant change of status.

· Loneliness.

§ 3 Sufferings

· Manifest suffering.

· Changeable suffering.

· Pervasive suffering.

§ Paranoid and painful states of the hell realms.

§ Grasping states of the preta realms.

§ Ignorant states of the animal realms.

§ Confused states of the human realms.

§ Competitive states of the demi-god realms.

§ Indulgent states of the god realms.

2. True Source

§ Suffering is created by us not by others, not by those that seem to afflict us but, by the mind that engages them improperly through the force of delusion and karma. Thus the true source of suffering is our own delusion.

· Attachment.

· Anger.

· Pride.

· Ignorance.

· Doubt.

· Deluded View.

1. View of the Transitory Collection.

2. Extreme View

3. Holding a false view as supreme.

4. Holding false ethics and conduct as supreme.

5. Preserve View

§ All of these arise from not understanding the nature of reality. From not realizing emptiness. From an ignorance adhering to inherent existence which is a non-existent imaginary.

3. True Cessation

§ By knowing true suffering we strive for true cessation a state free from karma and delusion. A state no longer obscured by any form of ignorance. A state utterly free, utterly at peace and completely blissful.

§ True Cessation is the state where complete extinguishment of true suffering and true sources to the point that they will never return.

4. True Path

§ True Paths are the means for attaining True Cessations.

§ Just as a state of health is to be attained by the sick and the medicines to attain that state are to be relied upon, so True Cessations are to be realized and
True Paths are to be relied upon. True path are minds such aslove, compassion and wisdom and the 3 Higher Trainings.

§ The 3 Higher Trainings.

· Higher training is Wisdom – The wisdom that eliminates the ignorance that is the source of any form of suffering. The wisdom that cuts through the basis of samsara. The higher training in wisdom depends itself upon the higher training in concentration.

· Higher Training in Concentration – Which in turn depends on higher training in ethics.

· Higher Training in Ethics – The ethics of restraining from harm, of actively helping others and of cultivating virtue such as the
8 Fold Noble Path –

1. Correct View.

2. Correct Realization.

3. Correct Speech.

4. Correct Actions.

5. Correct livelihood.

6. Correct Effort.

7. Correct mindfulness.

8. Correct Meditative Stabilization.

Great Scope

· The Mind of Enlightenment.

1. With love for being that wishes them happiness, with compassion that would free them from suffering, we determine to become enlightened, to be of ultimate value to every living being, to be able to release them from suffering and bring them happiness.Ornament for Clear Realisation – Maitreya
Bodhichiita means: for the sake of others,
Wishing to attain complete, perfect enlightenment.

· The 6 Perfections -

1. Generosity.

§ Giving materially.

§ Giving love.

§ Give the dharma.

§ Give protection.

§ Conjoining with Bodhichitta and Emptiness, Generosity becomes the Perfection of Generosity.

2. Ethics.

§ Restraining from harming others.

· 10 non-virtues.

· Breaking vows.

§ Actively seek to help those in need, those that are suffering, those that are confused, those that are on the wrong path, those that are on the right path. The sick, homeless, those that are suffering.

§ Practice the ethics of consciously cultivating virtuous states or generating positive minds.

§ Conjoining with Bodhichitta and Emptiness, Ethics becomes the Perfection of Ethics.

3. Patience.

§ Not retaliating to the harm from others.

§ Voluntarily bearing suffering.

§ Remaining definitely immersed in the dharma.

§ Definitely thinking of dharma.

§ Definitely generating the minds of love, compassion and wisdom.

§ Conjoining with Bodhichitta and Emptiness, Patience becomes the Perfection of Patience.

4. Joyous Effort.

5. Concentration.

§ Generating Clam Abiding by removing agitation, excitement and dullness. Of achieving great steadiness, utter peacefulness of mind.

§ Conjoining with Bodhichitta and Emptiness, Concentration becomes the Perfection of Concentration.

6. Wisdom.

§ Then with this concentration we then actively remove the obscurations to liberation and the obscurations to omniscience by focusing our meditation on emptiness, on ultimate truth, on the non-affirming negative which is the final nature of all phenomena – their emptiness of inherent existence.

§ This emptiness implies dependant arising, ultimate truth implies conventional truth. Ultimate and conventional truths, emptiness and dependant arising are utter non-contradictory and support each other.

§ With Bodhichitta motivation our meditation on emptiness becomes the Perfection of Wisdom.