Stages Of Meditation: Book Club III, Episode 9

Join Sarah for the final episode of the third series of book club. During session nine in the third series of Book Club, Sarah will read from chapter ten, offering guidance, clarification, context, and precious time for practice and application of the teachings into lived experience. In the third series of Book Club, Sarah Sati works with the text Stages of Meditation by the Dalai Lama and Kamalashila. This book is an important guide to understanding the gradual path to awakening mind and connecting to compassionate thought. Through the study of this text, practitioners will deepen their capacity for insight and wisdom.

Transcript

Welcome,

Welcome.

I'm Saraswati.

If you don't know already,

Hopefully at this point in time you do know me because this is the third series of Book Club.

And today is our final session of the third series.

And it's our ninth session in this third series.

And we are dealing with the text,

The Stages of Meditation by His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

And this is a text,

A commentary on a text of the same name by Kamala Sheila.

I just want to start by saying it's just really been,

Again,

Another profound journey working through this text together with other people.

So today as we explore Chapter 10,

We're really going to take some time to reflect on and synthesize everything we've learned.

Of course,

This is,

Even though it's a very small and short text,

It's a heady text.

And for that reason,

There's no way to really capture all of that in a short synthesis,

You know,

Hour and a half thing.

But I will do my best.

And I just continue to invite people to go back and rewatch past sessions.

It's such a benefit to take a single text and look at it deeply when we are studying the teachings of the Buddha.

So of course,

Book club is a study of the teachings of the Buddha and framed in that perspective.

And I also have a particular style or approach that I use.

And I come from the Tibetan Buddhist space.

And so much of what I read and discuss is coming from the perspective of Tibetan Buddhism.

Of course,

This is no different,

But just to give some context for those who didn't already know that.

Maybe you jump into the end,

I don't know,

Coming to the ninth session without any previous experience.

But just in case that's the case,

I just want you to have some context.

So the final chapter here is really allowing us to integrate the core themes of this book.

And if you remember the core themes of the book,

It is about calm abiding,

Special insight,

And specifically how those two together lead to the awakened mind of bodhicitta.

Or we can also express that as a direct experience with compassion,

Wisdom,

And selflessness.

And so in this chapter,

We're really coming into this cohesive understanding of what comes next,

How can we move forward in our practice?

And I'll probably say this a few times today,

But it's not that we are ending something right now.

We are finishing reading a text together,

But it is just the beginning,

Hopefully,

Of a lifelong journey with these teachings and these practices.

So today we'll review the essential teachings from the text,

Sort of what have we covered so far.

We'll talk about how all those pieces fit together.

As usual,

I'm going to read from chapter 10.

And then after that reading,

I'll discuss some of the key messages.

And we will end with a brief meditation practice,

Just as we typically do.

So let's begin by settling in and setting our intention for today's session.

You don't have to change anything,

But if it feels good and you want to find a more meditative posture,

By all means,

Feel free to do that now.

Perhaps sitting up a little more straight,

Lengthening the spine and letting the chin fall slightly,

Eyes open or closed,

Whatever feels good for you here,

Whatever feels safe.

And perhaps you want to connect to the sensation of breathing,

If that feels safe for you,

Or otherwise a sensation,

Perhaps a feeling or sound,

Just connecting to some sensory experience and taking a moment to allow yourself in focusing on that sensory experience to relax your mind.

And as your mind begins to settle,

Perhaps you feel called to reflect on this journey we've taken together so far over these past sessions.

Perhaps you've been with me for longer and you've completed all three book clubs at this point,

Just really asking yourself questions like,

How have these teachings impacted me?

Perhaps what insights have stayed with you?

What may or may not have changed in your practice or your understanding of yourself so far?

And whether anything comes up or not,

It's no problem.

We're just simply setting our mind towards becoming more and more attuned to our own experience,

Our own subtle motivations,

Our own change and growth.

And dropping your reflection for a moment,

Turning your awareness back to sensory experience and just listening as I recite an opening dedication.

If this resonates with you,

Perhaps placing a hand over your heart,

Connecting to your heartfelt sense of care.

May our study and practice today integrate all that we have learned.

And may we carry these teachings beyond this book,

Applying them with wisdom and compassion for the benefit of all humanity.

If your hand was on your heart,

Perhaps releasing it now and taking a few deeper inhalations and exhalations through the nose.

And if your eyes were closed,

Gently allowing them to open and coming back into our shared space.

Over these past eight sessions,

We've really moved systematically through this text,

Exploring what is referred to as the gradual path to awakening,

As is laid out by Kamala Sheila and as the Dalai Lama has expanded upon for us so beautifully.

So I just want to talk about some of the key themes that we've covered so far to jog your memory,

Because it's been quite a journey and taken quite a long time to get through.

The first theme is that,

Of course,

This is the gradual path to enlightenment.

And that is a key theme because it awakens us to the idea that if we want something,

Anything,

If it's enlightenment or we want a PhD or we want to get a new job or a new partnership or we want to get better at a sport,

Tennis or something,

Yoga,

Anything that we want to improve upon takes effort and patience.

And that is really the crux of this idea of the gradual path to enlightenment,

That we need to have both effort and patience.

And throughout our reading,

We also covered other aspects of the Buddhist teachings that are quite important,

Specifically things like the Brahma Viharas.

And these are equanimity,

Compassion,

Loving kindness and joy.

And approaching these as really like the heart of our practice.

We've also talked about the three types of suffering,

The suffering of suffering,

The suffering of change and this idea of the all-pervasive suffering.

And we talked about how understanding these really fuels our motivation to seek liberation.

When we really tap into what suffering is and we start to dissect it,

We naturally develop this sort of repulsion to it,

This aversion to it.

And then,

Of course,

We talked deeply about calm abiding and special insight,

Calm abiding also commonly known as shamatha.

And this being really the foundation for deep practice and also the stabilizing of the mind so that we have access to gain special insight.

And I feel it's important to constantly contextualize this and make it relevant to things that are beyond just our practice because this is also a system for living life,

Whether we're on the cushion or off the cushion in an effective and efficient way.

So,

You know,

I've talked about if we want to do any deep work at all,

If we want to gain any insight in any topic at all,

A stable mind and the ability to focus one pointedly is crucial.

And then we spoke about special insight or vipassana and this idea of using logical analysis to deeply investigate the nature of self and reality.

In the last few chapters,

I've talked about the five distractions and the eight antidotes and learning about these and knowing them really helps us refine our concentration and we understand what technique can I use at what time to be most effective in my practice to having any benefit at all.

I spoke last week about the aggregates and the idea that the self is a dependent designation rather than this independent inherent entity.

So we really looked deeply last week at this idea of what is the self.

And if you remember,

The Dalai Lama speaks about it's not do we or don't we have a self.

It's how do we understand the presentation of that self in a way that's adaptive and authentic to reality as it is rather than mere appearance.

So moving sort of beyond how things look to how things actually are.

And then talking lastly really about the balance and this is what today's chapter will dive even more deeply into the balance between concentration and wisdom and why both are necessary for true realization and how we can apply finding that balance in our own practice because it's a very unique balance.

It's not like somebody says in 10 minutes of this and five minutes of that and one minute of this and one minute of that.

It really depends on where you are in your own practice.

So we take this foundation and now we're going to turn to this final chapter and we're going to bring everything together and reflect on how to apply these teachings in our lives moving forward.

As usual,

Before we start listening,

We'll set our motivation.

This is as instructed by the Dalai Lama,

Aligning our minds with the text and really becoming present for the teaching because again,

Just to remind you,

It's not entertainment.

You know,

Most things you listen to or watch are just entertainment.

A lot of things.

Maybe only you listen to learning things.

I don't want to judge.

I don't know.

But in the end,

We really want to treat these teachings as very important like we're at,

You know,

A PhD class or in a final course for our highest level degree and we really need this knowledge and information in order to get to the next stage of completing our dissertation or something like this.

Just to bring it to academia.

I don't know why.

So sit up straight again or lie down in a way that you won't fall asleep or if you're walking,

Tune your mind to listening without any gaps.

No holes in the cup.

The cup isn't upside down.

It's not a dirty vessel.

If you remember these three flawed ways of listening,

We are correcting for those right now as we set this intention.

You can just listen and commit to this.

I shall listen to the intermediate stages of meditation by the great Kamalashila in order to attain supreme Buddhahood for the sake of sentient beings vast as the expanse of space.

Okay,

Let's get started.

Chapter 10 is long,

So settle in and focus the mind.

Unifying method and wisdom.

When both are equally engaged,

Keep still effortlessly so long as there is no physical or mental discomfort.

If physical or mental discomfort arises,

See the whole world like an illusion,

A mirage,

A dream,

A reflection of the moon in water,

An apparition,

And think these sentient beings are very troubled in the cycle of existence due to their not understanding such profound knowledge.

Then,

Generate great compassion and the awakening mind of Bodhicitta,

Thinking,

I shall earnestly endeavor to help them understand suchness.

Take rest.

Again,

In the same way,

Engage in a single-pointed concentration on the non-appearance of all phenomena.

If the mind is discouraged,

Then similarly take rest.

This is the path of engaging in a union of calm-abiding meditation and special insight.

It focuses on the image conceptually and non-conceptually.

Here the text explains how to achieve special insight after having achieved calm-abiding.

From that point on,

You can engage in the practice of the union of special insight and calm-abiding meditation.

In other words,

You engage in the practice of both single-pointed meditation and analytical meditation.

While practicing these meditations,

It is wise not to be over-enthusiastic.

You should take care of your physical and mental health.

The meditation session should not be too long.

Before sitting down to meditate,

You should gather whatever you need to protect your body from extremes of heat and cold.

When you become tired from long meditation sessions,

You should take a rest from single-pointed meditation and think of all phenomena as like illusions or mirages and so forth.

You can also think about compassion for all beings confused in the cycle of existence.

With such wholesome thoughts,

Motivate yourself to help sentient beings to realize the nature of reality.

Again,

Take rest and then resume the practice of concentration on the non-appearance of all phenomena,

Which refers to meditation on selflessness.

This is because when you meditate single-pointedly on selflessness,

Conventional phenomena cease to appear to your mind.

If your mind becomes weary as a result of such meditation,

You should again take rest.

Then,

Once more,

Continue your meditation on the union of special insight and calm abiding,

Which is also known as focusing on the reflection,

Both conceptually and non-conceptually.

Thus,

Through this progress,

A yogi should meditate on suchness for an hour or half a session,

In the night or one full session,

Or for as long as is comfortable.

This is the meditative stabilization thoroughly discerning the ultimate,

As taught in the Descent into Lanka Sutra.

Then,

If you wish to arise from the concentration while your legs are still crossed,

Think as follows.

Although,

Ultimately,

All these phenomena lack identity,

Conventionally,

They definitely exist.

If this were not the case,

How would the relationship between cause and effect and so forth prevail?

The Buddha has also said things are produced conventionally,

But ultimately they lack intrinsic identity.

Sentient beings with a childish attitude exaggerate phenomena,

Thinking of them as having an intrinsic identity when they lack it.

Thus,

Attributing intrinsic existence to those things that lack it confuses their minds and they wander in the cycle of existence for a long time.

For these reasons,

I shall endeavor,

Without fail,

To achieve the omniscient state by accomplishing the unsurpassable accumulations of merit and insight in order to help them realize suchness.

Then slowly arise from the cross-legged position and make prostrations to the Buddha and Bodhisattvas of the Ten Directions.

Make them offerings and sing their praises and make vast prayers by reciting the Prayer of Noble Conduct and so forth.

Thereafter,

Engage in conscious effort to actualize the accumulations of merit and insight by practicing generosity and so forth,

Which are endowed with the essence of emptiness and great compassion.

After you have arisen from meditative absorption,

Make proper dedication prayers.

The practitioner should place equal emphasis on generosity and other practices during the post-meditation period.

During that time,

Dependent origination and emptiness must be understood as interchangeable.

Emptiness in this context means that things lack their own intrinsic self-identity.

It does not mean non-existence.

Therefore,

It does not cause a fall into the extreme of nihilism.

One who properly fathoms the middle-way view of Madhyamika philosophy naturally eliminates both the extremes.

The implication is that when you understand the philosophy of emptiness,

There is no contradiction in presenting the law of cause and effect on the conventional level.

On the contrary,

You gain great certainty of the workings of the law of cause and effect when your knowledge of emptiness becomes more profound.

Emptiness does not mean nothingness.

It means that things are empty of intrinsic existence.

So during the post-meditation period,

The practice should accumulate merit,

Which will complement the practice of insight during the meditation.

If you act thus,

Your meditative stabilization will actualize that emptiness that possesses the best of all qualities.

The Jewel in the Crown Sutra states,

What is the emptiness possessing the best of all qualities?

It is that which is not divorced from generosity,

Ethics,

Patience,

Effort,

Meditative stabilization,

Wisdom,

Or skillful means.

Bodhisattvas must rely on virtuous practices like generosity as means to thoroughly ripen all sentient beings and in order to perfect the place,

Body,

And manifold retinue.

Supreme emptiness refers to the wisdom that directly realizes emptiness and is supported by the practice of the method of aspects.

Note that practice of generosity and the other perfections is essential.

This is because the fully enlightened state of Buddhahood is produced by the realization of favorable causes and conditions.

There is no causeless production,

And nothing is produced by contrary causes.

A bodhisattva has many wonderful advantages to help enhance the welfare of sentient beings.

Every virtue performed by such a noble being is very powerful and effective.

Therefore,

Bodhisattvas earnestly engage in the practice of the method aspects of the path,

Including the six perfections,

In order to swiftly actualize the state of Buddhahood.

If it were not so,

What would be the causes of these fields,

The field of Buddhas and so forth,

And the Buddhas spoke about?

The omniscient wisdom possessing the best of all qualities can be accomplished through generosity and other skillful means.

Therefore,

The Buddha has said that omniscient wisdom is perfected by skillful means.

Therefore,

Bodhisattvas should also cultivate generosity and other skillful means,

And not only emptiness.

The extensive collection of all qualities sutra also says,

O Maitreya,

Bodhisattvas thoroughly accomplish the six perfections in order to attain the final fruit of Buddhahood.

But to this the foolish respond,

Bodhisattvas should train only in the perfection of wisdom.

What is the need for the rest of the perfections?

They repudiate the other perfections.

Maitreya,

What do you think of this?

When the king of Kashi offered his flesh to the hawk for the sake of a pigeon,

Was it a corruption of wisdom?

Maitreya replied,

This is not so.

The Buddha said,

Maitreya,

Bodhisattvas accumulated roots of merit through their deeds in conjunction with the six perfections.

Are these roots of merit harmful?

Maitreya replied,

O Buddha,

This is not so.

The Buddha further spoke,

Maitreya,

You have also correctly practiced the perfection of generosity for 60 eons,

The perfection of ethics for 60 eons,

The perfection of patience for 60 eons,

The perfection of enthusiastic perseverance for 60 eons,

The perfection of meditative stabilization for 60 eons,

And the perfection of wisdom for 60 eons.

To this the foolish respond,

There is only one way to attain Buddhahood,

And that is the way of emptiness.

Their practice is completely mistaken.

This clearly expresses the importance of developing a combination of both method and wisdom.

After developing a comprehensive understanding of emptiness,

You should meditate in order to gain deep insight into it.

Equal emphasis should be placed on putting the method aspect into effect,

Which includes the six perfections.

A bodhisattva's final objective is to attain the highest enlightenment,

Transcending both the travails of the cycle of existence and the complacent peace of nirvana.

To this end,

Their practice must involve a union of method and wisdom.

A bodhisattva possessing wisdom but not skillful means would be like the hearers who are unable to engage in the deeds of Buddhas.

But they can do so when supported by skillful means.

As the Heap of Jewels says,

Kasyapa,

It is like this.

For instance,

Kings who are supported by ministers can accomplish all their purposes.

Similarly,

When the wisdom of a bodhisattva is thoroughly supported by skillful means,

Such a bodhisattva also performs all the activities of a Buddha.

The philosophical view of the path of bodhisattvas is different from the philosophical paths of the non-Buddhist and hearers.

For example,

Since the philosophical view of the path of non-Buddhists perversely observes a truly existent self and so forth,

Such a path is completely and always divorced from wisdom.

Therefore,

They cannot attain liberation.

The hearers are separated from great compassion and devoid of skillful means.

Therefore,

They single-mindedly endeavor to achieve nirvana.

In their path,

Bodhisattvas enshrine wisdom and skillful means,

So they endeavor to achieve the non-abiding nirvana.

The bodhisattva path consists of wisdom and skillful means,

And therefore,

They attain the non-abiding nirvana.

Because of the power of wisdom,

They do not fall into the cycle of existence.

Due to the power of skillful means,

They do not fall to nirvana.

The Hill of Gayahead Sutra says,

The bodhisattva path,

In short,

Is twofold.

The two are skillful means and wisdom.

The first among the supreme and glorious also says,

The perfection of wisdom is the mother,

And expertise in skillful means is the father.

The teaching of Vimalakirti also says,

What is bondage for bodhisattvas and what is liberation?

Upholding a life in the cycle of existence,

Devoid of skillful means,

Is bondage for bodhisattvas.

But to lead to a life in the cycle of existence,

With skillful means,

Is liberation.

Upholding a life in the cycle of existence,

Devoid of wisdom,

Is bondage for bodhisattvas.

But to lead a life in the cycle of existence,

With wisdom,

Is liberation.

Wisdom not conjoined with skillful means is bondage,

But wisdom conjoined with skillful means is liberation.

The skillful means not conjoined with wisdom is bondage,

But skillful means conjoined with wisdom is liberation.

If a bodhisattva cultivates mere wisdom,

He falls to the nirvana designed by hearers.

Thus it is like the bondage,

And he cannot achieve non-abiding nirvana.

So wisdom separated from skillful means is bondage for bodhisattvas.

Therefore,

Just as a person chilled by the wind seeks the comfort of fire,

So a bodhisattva cultivates the wisdom of emptiness along with skillful means to eliminate the wind of wrong view.

But he does not endeavor to actualize it as the hearers do.

The Ten Quality Sutra says,

O son of good family,

It is like this.

For instance,

A person who is thoroughly devoted to fire,

Who respects it and regards it as guru,

Will not think,

Because I respect,

Honor,

And venerate fire,

I should hold it in both hands.

This is because he realizes that to do so would give him physical pain and cause mental discomfort.

Similarly,

A bodhisattva also is aware of nirvana,

But also does not try to actualize it.

This is because he realizes that by doing so he would be turning away from enlightenment.

If he relies merely on skillful means,

The bodhisattva will not transcend the ordinary level,

And thus there will only be bondage.

Therefore,

He cultivates skillful means along with wisdom.

By the power of wisdom,

Bodhisattvas can transform even the disturbing emotions into nectar,

Like poison under a tantric spell.

There is no need to express it,

The goodness of generosity and so forth,

Which leads to naturally elevated states of existence.

Bodhisattvas are skillful and endowed with wisdom.

Because of such qualities,

There are activities that,

When committed by hearers and solitary realizers,

Could be considered unwholesome,

But when performed by bodhisattvas,

Could greatly help them to enhance the welfare of other beings.

In order to benefit other sentient beings,

They do not have to strictly adhere to the rules governing the actions of body and speech.

The Heap of Jewels states,

Kasyapa,

It is like this.

Due to the power of tantra and medicine,

A poison may not cause death.

Similarly,

Since the disturbing emotions of bodhisattvas are under the power of wisdom,

They cannot cause them downfalls.

Therefore,

Due to the power of skillful means,

Bodhisattvas do not abandon the cycle of existence.

They do not fall to nirvana.

Due to the power of wisdom,

They eliminate all objects,

Misconceived as truly existent,

And therefore,

They do not fall into the cycle of existence.

Thus,

They attain the non-abiding nirvana of Buddhahood alone.

The Space Treasure Sutra also says,

Because of the knowledge of wisdom,

Bodhisattvas eliminate all disturbing emotions,

And due to their knowledge of skillful means,

They do not abandon sentient beings.

The Unraveling of the Thought Sutra also says,

I have not taught that someone who is not concerned for the welfare of sentient beings,

And who is not inclined to realize the nature of all composite phenomena,

Will achieve unsurpassable and perfectly accomplished Buddhahood.

Therefore,

Those interested in Buddhahood must cultivate both wisdom and skillful means.

Bodhisattvas are endowed with great wisdom,

So their disturbing emotions become ineffective and do not become causes to propel them into undesirable realms.

Since these noble beings strive to develop skillful means and wisdom equally,

They are neither overwhelmed by the cycle of existence,

Nor do they fall into the complacent state of nirvana.

They are constantly aware of the well-being of sentient beings,

And at the same time aim to achieve the highest enlightenment.

While you are meditating on transcendental wisdom,

Or while you are in a deep meditative absorption,

You cannot engage in skillful means,

Such as practicing generosity.

But skillful means can be cultivated along with wisdom during the preparatory and post-meditative periods.

That is the way to engage in wisdom and skillful means simultaneously.

The wisdom that is direct insight into emptiness is completely free of duality,

And the mind is fully absorbed in emptiness like water being poured into water.

Obviously,

It is not possible to pursue the practice of skillful means during such a period.

Nevertheless,

The importance of practicing the wisdom aspect and the method aspect in unison should be understood from the right perspective.

During the sessions before and after meditation,

An individual can practice compassion,

Altruism,

Generosity,

And so forth,

Thus enhancing the power of wisdom.

Moreover,

This is the path of bodhisattvas in which they engage in an integrated practice of wisdom and skillful means.

This is cultivating the transcendental path that is thoroughly imbued with great compassion,

Focusing on all sentient beings.

And while practicing skillful means,

After arising from meditative absorption,

You practice generosity and other skillful means without misconception,

Like a magician.

What are bodhisattva's skillful means,

And what wisdom is actualized?

The bodhisattva's skillful means are thinking and placing the mind closely on sentient beings with great compassion while in meditative absorption.

And engaging in meditative equipoise with peace and extreme peace is wisdom.

There are many more such references.

The chapter on controlling evil forces also says,

Furthermore,

The perfect activities of bodhisattvas refer to conscious efforts by the mind of wisdom and the collection of all meritorious dharma by the mind of skillful means.

The mind of wisdom also leads to selflessness,

The non-existence of inherently existent sentient beings and of life,

Sustenance,

And the person.

And the mind of skillful means leads to thoroughly ripening all sentient beings.

The extensive collection of all qualities sutra also states,

Just as a magician endeavors to let his creation go,

Since he already knows the nature of his creation,

He has no attachment to it.

Similarly,

The three worlds are like an illusion,

Which the wise Buddha knew about long before he knew the sentient beings in these worlds and had undertaken efforts to help them.

It is because of the bodhisattva's practice of wisdom and skillful means that it is said,

In their activities,

They remain in the cycle of existence,

But in their thoughts,

They abide in nirvana.

For instance,

A magician has created a projection of someone in prison.

He then attempts to free the person from imprisonment.

Since he knows that what he has projected is only an illusion,

He has no feeling of attachment or otherwise.

In a similar fashion,

Buddhas see all sentient beings in the three worlds as like illusions.

Buddhas see all sentient beings in the three worlds in a way that they do not cling to things as having intrinsic existence,

And they possess the wisdom realizing that things are empty like an illusion.

At the same time,

They engage in fulfilling the well-being of all sentient beings.

In this way,

Become familiar with generosity and other skillful means that are dedicated to unsurpassable and perfectly accomplished enlightenment,

Having the essence of emptiness and great compassion.

In order to generate the ultimate awakening mind of Bodhicitta,

As was done earlier,

Practice calm-abiding meditation and special insight as much as you can in regular sessions.

As it was taught in the Pure Field of Engagement Sutra,

Always familiarize yourself with skillful means by closely placing mindfulness on the good qualities of Bodhisattvas who work for the welfare of sentient beings at all times.

Those who become familiar with compassion,

Skillful means,

And the awakening mind of Bodhicitta in this way will undoubtedly excel in this life.

Buddhas and Bodhisattvas will always be seen in dreams,

And other pleasant dreams will also occur.

And appreciative gods will protect you.

There will be an immense accumulation of merit and insight at every moment.

Disturbing emotions and other bad states of existence will be purified.

You will enjoy much happiness and mental peace at all times,

And a great many beings will cherish you.

Physically,

Too,

You will be free of disease.

You will attain supreme mental facility,

And thus you will achieve special qualities like clairvoyance.

When you engage in the practice of the teachings,

Try to gain some intellectual understanding of the view of emptiness.

As we discussed earlier,

Things are devoid of true existence.

They do not have a unique existence from their own side.

When we recite prayers or make prostrations,

We must develop some feeling for the illusory nature of things.

Dedications,

Too,

Should be made within the framework of the philosophy of selflessness.

Understanding and remembering the meaning of emptiness is equally relevant within tantric practices.

Practice of all kinds of virtuous activities in relation to the knowledge of emptiness greatly helps us ascend the spiritual path.

At the same time,

Disturbing emotions and all other defects are reduced and gradually eliminated,

While compassion,

Altruism,

Skillful means,

And other virtues gain strength.

Then you will travel by miraculous power to innumerable worlds.

Make offerings to the Buddhas and listen to teachings from them.

At the time of death,

Too,

You will undoubtedly see Buddhas and Bodhisattvas.

In future lives,

You will be reborn in special families and places where you will not be separated from Buddhas and Bodhisattvas.

Thus,

You will effortlessly accomplish all accumulations of merit and insight.

You will have great wealth,

A large following,

And many attendants.

Possessing a sharp intelligence,

You will be able to ripen the mindstreams of many beings.

In all lives,

Such a person will be able to recall past lives.

Try to understand such immeasurable advantages that are also described in other sutras.

In this way,

If you meditate on compassion,

Skillful means,

And the awakening mind of Bodhicitta,

For a long time with great admiration,

The mindstream will gradually become thoroughly purified and ripened.

Then,

Like producing fire by rubbing together pieces of wood,

You will accomplish your meditation on the perfect reality.

You will thus achieve an extremely clear knowledge of the sphere of phenomena,

Free from conceptual elaborations.

The transcendental wisdom free of the impeding nets of conceptual thought.

This wisdom of ultimate Bodhicitta is stainless like an unwavering butter lamp,

Undisturbed by the wind.

Thus,

Such a mind in the entity of ultimate Bodhicitta is included within the path of seeing,

Which apprehends the selfless nature of all phenomena.

Through this achievement,

You enter into the path focusing on the reality of things,

And you are then born in the family of Tathagatas.

You enter the stainless state of a Bodhisattva,

Turn away from all wandering births,

Abide in the suchness of Bodhisattvas,

And attain the first Bodhisattva level.

You can find more details of these advantages in other texts,

Such as the Ten Spiritual Levels.

This is how meditative stabilization focusing on suchness is taught in the Descent into Lanka Sutra.

This is how Bodhisattvas enter into the non-conceptual meditation,

Free from elaborations.

When we see someone in misery,

We feel compassion.

We must realize that it is very important to cherish such an attitude and strengthen it with the help of other skillful means.

We also have our human intelligence,

Which gives us the ability to discern what is right and what is wrong.

This too should be improved and directed toward discerning the ultimate reality.

In achieving these purposes,

It is essential to perform meritorious deeds and acts of purification.

Fundamentally,

It is vital to cultivate the faculty of discerning wisdom.

With such wisdom,

Examine the ultimate reality over and over again and develop an intellectual appreciation of the meaning of suchness.

That,

In turn,

Will help generate a profound feeling for its reality.

This analytical approach should be augmented by meditative concentration.

The practice of compassion and the knowledge of emptiness will lead the individual to realize that the impurities of the mind can be removed and the state of omniscience can be achieved.

After prolonged practice of the teaching,

With compassion as the foundation complemented by wisdom,

An individual will strongly wish to attain the state of Buddhahood.

When such a wish for the welfare of all sentient beings is in earnest and comes from the bottom of his or her heart,

He or she will become a Bodhisattva and will attain the Mahayana path of accumulation.

Of the three levels of this path,

Small,

Middling,

And great,

The small level is attained.

This is called the earth-like awakening mind.

The awakening mind is of 21 types.

The practitioner improves the awakening mind as a result of compassion and also strengthens his or her knowledge of emptiness.

Calm,

Abiding meditation is practiced in relation to emptiness and when the wisdom deriving from the meditation is generated,

The individual attains the path of preparation.

The meditation should be continued with the awareness that full coordination between the method and wisdom aspects is crucial.

Through these practices,

The meditator becomes fully absorbed in suchness,

Like water being poured into water,

Free of every stain of duality.

At the first moment when the practitioner gains direct insight into emptiness,

He or she attains the path of seeing.

Since these realizations are gained in conjunction with the awakening mind,

It is obvious we are talking about the Mahayana path.

Of the ten Bodhisattva levels,

The meditator attains the first,

Known as the joyful.

This path has two segments,

Uninterrupted and liberated.

During the former path,

The obstruction with respect to this realization is counteracted and having overcome that obstacle,

The path of liberation is attained.

With sustained meditation,

The practitioner eliminates the obstructions and attains the path of meditation.

During the last moment of the concentration,

Known as the Vajra-like path of meditation,

The subtlest obscurities are eliminated from their very root.

Thus,

The individual generates the omniscient,

Transcendent wisdom and transforms into a Buddha.

In this way,

A person who has entered the first level later in the path of meditation familiarizes himself with the two wisdoms of the transcendental state and the subsequent wisdom and skillful means.

In this way,

He gradually purifies the subtlest accumulation of obscurations that are the object of purification of the path of meditation.

And in order to achieve higher qualities,

He thoroughly purifies the lower spiritual levels.

All purposes and objectives are completely fulfilled by entering the transcendental wisdom of the Tathagatas and by entering the ocean of omniscience.

In this way,

By gradual practice,

The mindstream is thoroughly purified.

The descent into Lamka explains this.

The unraveling of the thought too reveals.

In order to achieve those higher levels,

The mind should be purified just as you refine gold until you realize the unsurpassable and perfectly consummated Buddhahood.

Entering the ocean of omniscience,

You possess impeccable jewel-like qualities to sustain sentient beings and these fulfill your previous positive prayers.

The individual then becomes the embodiment of compassion,

Possessing various skillful means that function spontaneously and work in various emanations in the interest of all wandering beings.

In addition,

All marvelous attributes are perfected with total elimination of all defilements and their latent potential.

All Buddhas abide to help every sentient being.

Through such realization generate faith in the Buddhas,

The source of all wonderful knowledge and qualities.

Everyone should endeavor to actualize these qualities.

The Buddha thus said,

The omniscient,

Transcendental wisdom is produced with compassion as its root,

The awakening mind of Bodhicitta as its cause,

And is perfected by skillful means.

To summarize the teachings of this precious text,

We realize that first the two truths must be established because they are the basis.

In the course of practice,

The two types of accumulations and the method and wisdom aspects of the path should be implemented in perfect harmony.

Two types of Buddha bodies are achieved as the result.

When an individual attains the omniscient state of Buddhahood,

All disturbing emotions and obscurations are eliminated once and for all.

The person thus awakens to full knowledge.

From there onwards,

Such an awakened being has unlimited potential in helping sentient beings to achieve freedom and liberation.

The wise distance themselves from jealousy and other stains.

Their thirst for knowledge is unquenchable,

Like an ocean.

They retain only what is proper through discrimination,

Just like swans extracting milk from water.

Thus,

Scholars should distance themselves from divisive attitudes and bigotry,

Even from a child.

Good words are received.

Whatever merit I derive from the exposition of this middle path,

I dedicate for all beings to actualize the middle path.

The second part of the stages of meditation by Acharya Kamalashila is here completed,

Translated and edited in Tibetan.

We have now finished the teaching of this beautiful text by the great Kamalashila.

The author and his master,

Shantarakshita,

Had a special karmic relationship with the people of the land of snow,

And their kindness was beyond estimation.

I am happy that I have been able to give this explanatory transmission of the second part of Kamalashila's stages of meditation.

I urge all of you listening to or reading this to study the text.

To further enhance and extend your understanding of the middle way,

You should also study the excellent texts on Madhyamika by Buddhapalita and Chandrakirti,

Who propounded the ultimate viewpoint of the Madhyamika school of thought.

And there we have the final chapter in this absolutely beautiful commentary and reading from Kamalashila.

There's just so much here.

And I have to say I just love this process of working through these readings slowly because we not only have opportunity to work with the concepts which are perhaps quite in opposition to the way we're currently viewing reality,

But through this process we really allow ourselves to gain some direct experience with the idea of the gradual path because we are essentially on our own gradual path to learning and understanding and accepting that.

And I began this book club talking about this,

Which is that we are in a time in the world when people want things so quickly,

Faster and faster and faster.

We want our food fast.

We want our packages fast.

We want our fitness fast.

You know,

Whatever.

We want things to happen quickly.

And sometimes they do and that's great,

But often when we allow things to take the amount of time that they need to take that's necessary we have an opportunity to savor them.

There's nowhere we're rushing to.

There's no end we're trying to get to here.

There's no end of the teachings.

There's no end of learning.

There's no end of our practice.

There's no place we're going.

And that striving to get somewhere is itself an opportunity for us to tap into these teachings and say to ourselves,

Can I savor the moment?

And in that savoring of the moment although even this precious human life is temporary and bound to end at an uncertain time,

Can I make sure that while I lived it I got everything I could out of it?

And then we can turn that around and we can give it out.

And I work with this in my own practice just giving it all away.

Giving it all away because nothing I do can I take with me.

So what is the use in hoarding it?

And nothing I achieve came from only my efforts so what's the purpose in claiming it?

And when we work with these teachings especially the teachings on emptiness,

Selflessness this idea that there's no inherent existence to things things do not independently exist on their own side.

When we work again and again and again with these ideas then we start to really awaken to the truth of them and then like the Dalai Lama says so beautifully if you worship fire that doesn't mean that you hold fire in your hands you still know fire is going to burn you.

When you understand emptiness you don't then use that as an excuse not to relate directly to what's in front of you but rather you relate directly to what's in front of you in a more effective way because you see beyond mere appearance to the truth of how it is existing.

And I feel like that is just so profound and transformative and the world really needs more of us looking inward and making these internal changes and shifts and focusing on these six perfections you know especially generosity and patience generosity being the antidote to greed and patience being the antidote to anger and greed and anger are so present right now and they are absolutely maladaptive there is absolutely not a single benefit not one single benefit it's really like that not one single benefit to anger and greed so when we can cultivate their opposite and when we can investigate them deeply we actually see there is no such thing as an inherently existent anger and inherently existent greed there are causes and conditions that bring it about and we really know that then we can free it free ourselves of it and free humanity from it and transform it into wisdom so briefly I just want to reflect on the key points from this chapter and then let's do a short practice together so again we're reminded of this integration between shamatha and bhupasana and we want to have this back and forth toggling the Dalai Lama really emphasizes stability and insight always have to go together but that too much focus on stability can lead to stagnation and too much analysis without stability can lead to agitation so we have to find the right balance for ourselves and a really well-rounded practitioner finds this capacity to sort of move fluidly between the two concentration and insight refining both over time and that you know leads to the second key point of sustaining a lifelong practice meditation isn't just about sitting but about integrating awareness and wisdom into daily life so small and consistent practice is more beneficial than occasional intense sessions I have one teacher who says short times many times and that can easily be confused with just doing a short amount of meditation many times but you can also apply that to the meditation session for instance if you're going to sit for 45 minutes and your mind is maybe a little unstable you come into stabilization and then you relax and you release and then you come into analysis and then you relax and you release short times many times and that's much more effective than large doses that can burn you out and that we also want to really think about keeping the spirit of curiosity and joy in practice and when we keep that spirit we prevent ourselves from burning out and allow ourselves to deepen our realization and then the third key point worth mentioning is the path as a process enlightenment is not a sudden achievement it's the result of continuous practice and refinement obstacles and challenges are not only part of the journey they're actually benefits to it they're not signs of failure they're signs of deepening our practice so we actually want obstacles and challenges and if you were with me for my last book club then you already know that like Lama Zopa Rinpoche says we want to learn to love suffering as much as we love ice cream or whatever thing you love for me it's a soy milk cappuccino and then we want to remember we're not practicing alone every effort we make is benefiting other sentient beings in my own practice I often think like please help me eliminate these negative afflictive emotions for the benefit of others because if I'm an angry jealous ignorant person well yeah that's not great for me but it's really not great for everyone I come in contact with so it's in the end our effort towards this transformation is actually the highest benefit to others the best thing we can do to support humanity is this work on ourselves and our own perspectives and our own relating to reality in the correct way so let's sit for a minute together you can take a moment to find a meditation posture that feels right for you whatever that is adjusting your spine sitting up straight if you're able to sit up maybe shaking out any rigidity loosening the body a little bit as you bring yourself to a state of stillness eyes are open or closed it's your practice so whatever is right for you and then begin by stabilizing the mind settling the mind you can bring your attention to your breath and specifically your out-breath simply following the out-breath as it leaves the body perhaps you can follow it from these key points the belly button the heart the nose letting your out-breath be just a little longer and the in-breath and imagining with each exhalation that you dissolve your rigidity your defensive nature and any distractions if you find the mind is especially distractible today perhaps you want to keep with this idea of the belly button the heart the nose so as you inhale you can just touch with those areas the nose the heart the belly button on the inhale and as you exhale the belly button the heart the nose but if you feel quite settled and simply just allowing the mind to rest in a very neutral way on the movement of the breath and keeping this relaxed and settled frame of mind invite this question into the practice what makes you different from everyone else are you so different from everyone else or could it be that just like everyone else you wish for happiness and just like everyone else you wish to be free from suffering and in those basic wishes the wish to be happy the wish to be free from suffering can you find the sameness between you and others can you touch into the absolute sameness between yourself and everyone else and if you can connect to this idea of sameness this sense of sameness stay with that and generate a very visceral a very physical experience of open heartedness here to the deluded ways in which you and everyone else often looks to solve the problem of wishing for more happiness and less suffering thaw your frozen heart let it completely melt not holding on to any rigid idea that when someone does something in a way you view as wrong it's anything more than a deluded desire for happiness and freedom from suffering and soften and thaw your heart soften and thaw your heart to the idea that anytime you do something that you personally perceive as wrong that that is anything other than your deluded wish to be happy and free from suffering and sense this feeling a very open hearted feeling at the center of the chest perhaps imagining that the heart itself opens and blossoms like a lotus or that a light broadens,

Brightens and widens out maybe just a warm sensation centering at the chest and flowing outward into the rest of the body simply touch into this felt sense of open warm heartedness cutting everyone a little slack from their delusions,

Cutting everyone a little slack from their mistaken understanding of how to achieve happiness and be free of suffering cutting yourself a little slack offering generosity of compassion to yourself and others for just not knowing any different perhaps you want to invite in a phrase something that really resonates with you but only if it feels good only if it resonates starting with yourself may I be happy may my problems transform into wisdom really set an aspiration may my problems transform into wisdom may I awaken to true happiness and then as it feels good perhaps extending that out may everyone's problems transform into wisdom may everyone awaken to true happiness and drop that just drop it and come back to the breath and a quiet mind or a busy mind,

It doesn't matter and however it feels right for you generate this commitment to continue feel this enthusiasm for the practice and set your aspiration to deepen your personal practice to deepen your understanding of the teachings and to find this unity between skillful means and wisdom may every one of us awaken to this authentic path of compassion and wisdom and then just let go let go of structured thought or concentrated focus just rest here for a moment in spacious awareness let the wisdom that we've listened to together settle into your mind and perhaps deepening your breath a little bit here and letting your eyes blink open if they were closed and coming back into our shared space okay this is the end of book club for this third series as we conclude this I invite you to continue your practice beyond these sessions and so as usual I leave you with a little bit of homework I'm inviting you to sustain your daily practice short times many times balancing calm abiding resting with analytical meditation even for just five minutes a day making making it consistent and then perhaps you want to choose one core teaching that excuse me that resonated with you during our time together and dedicate time to deepening your understanding of it and then off the cushion try to bring these principles of wisdom and compassion into your daily interactions applying mindfulness as a support allowing you to see these moments of suffering and joy as opportunities for practice as usual I invite you to revisit this text in the future perhaps noticing how your understanding of it evolves over time this is really not the end of something but but truly just another piece of the mandala that is perfect exactly as it is so let's close with a final dedication let's dedicate the merit of this practice let's give it all away we don't need to hold anything back we don't need to keep anything for ourselves however it feels right to you perhaps imagining that you're giving all the benefits of what you've learned here with me away all the benefits of what you've received from these teachings give them all away to someone who deserves them needs them an animal a forest a group of people whatever you feel called to may the merit of our study and practice benefit all beings may we carry the wisdom compassion and clarity we've cultivated into our lives bringing peace and understanding to all of those we encounter may all beings be free from suffering and realize their true nature may this be so thank you so much for joining me for this third series of book club I'm Sarah Sati and we have just now completed the stages of meditation by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Kamala Sheila may this offering benefit all beings and may it be a support on the path for those who are in need and may these teachings thrive and flourish in our modern times thank you so much for joining me and this isn't the end this was the third series of book club but I am coming back with the fourth series and I have decided to step back a little bit into the heart of the Buddhist teachings if you were with me for my first book club that is where I worked with the heart of the Buddhist teachings by Thich Nhat Hanh and then I read my last book was by Lama Zopa Rinpoche and then this book was by the Dalai Lama and I'm actually going to have the next book be by the Dalai Lama as well and he has this great book An Introduction to Buddhism and I'm going to be using that book there are three really important teachings in this text and I think for practitioners or I like to call it like Buddha curious Buddhist curious people these early teachings you know that sort of set the stage for Buddhism in general are really valuable and so I want to go back and I want to start there and build from there book club is just an opportunity to work deeply with the teachings of the Buddha in a way that relates to our modern experience so I think this will be a benefit I hope so so I hope to be here again with you I think I'm going to change the format a little bit but we'll see how that goes and I look forward to announcing it soon so once again thank you so much for joining me I hope you have a beautiful day a blessed life and that you are always free from suffering and experiencing ultimate happiness thank you so much