Stages of Meditation Read online

  Motivated by powerful compassion,

  May I be able to expound the treasure of Buddhadharma,

  Conveying it to new places

  And places where it has degenerated.

  The Buddha’s doctrine is not something physical. Therefore, the restoration and spread of Buddhism depends on our inner spirit, or the continuum of our mind. When we are able to reduce the defects of the mind, its good qualities increase. Thus, effecting positive transformations is what the preservation and promotion of the Buddha’s doctrine means. It is obvious that the doctrine is not a tangible entity, that it cannot be sold or bought in the marketplace or physically constructed. We should pay attention to the fundamentals, like the practice of the three trainings—renunciation, the awakening mind of bodhichitta, and the wisdom realizing emptiness.

  The responsibility for the preservation and furthering of Buddhist doctrine lies upon those of us who have faith in that doctrine; this in turn depends on our attraction to the Buddha and respect for him. If we don’t do anything constructive and expect that others will, then obviously nothing is possible. The first step is to cultivate within our minds those positive qualities taught by the Buddha. After properly disciplining our own minds, then we may hope to help discipline others’ minds. The great Tsongkhapa has clearly stated that those who have not disciplined themselves have hardly any chance of disciplining others. Acharya Dharmakirti has taught this principle in very lucid terms:

  When the technique is obscure [to you],

  Explanation is naturally difficult.

  Bodhisattvas with such an intention ultimately aim to attain the state of enlightenment. For this purpose, they engage in the practices of eliminating the disturbing emotions that afflict the mind. At the same time they endeavor to cultivate spiritual insights. It is by following such a process of eliminating negative qualities and cultivating positive ones that Bodhisattvas become capable of helping other sentient beings. The Commentary on (Dignaga’s) “Compendium of Valid Cognition” also says:

  The compassionate ones employ all means

  To alleviate the miseries of beings.

  Therefore, those of us who believe in the Buddha’s teachings should try our best to generate virtues. This is extremely important. It is especially relevant in this age when the Buddha’s doctrine is degenerating. We Tibetans are making noise and criticizing the Chinese for the destruction they have caused in our country. But the important thing is that as followers of Buddhism we must diligently adhere to its principles. The teachings are only purposeful when we see the advantages of practicing, undertake the discipline, and effect positive transformations in our hearts. Listening to lectures on other subjects has a different purpose—there we aim to gain ideas and information.

  You might wonder what the signs are of a true Dharma practitioner. Practice should begin with the ethical discipline of abstaining from the ten non-virtuous actions. Every negativity of body, speech, and mind should be properly identified and its antidotes fully understood. With this basic knowledge, an individual should eliminate negative actions like stealing, lying, and so forth, and practice honesty, kindness, and other virtuous deeds. Ordained monks and nuns have to follow the rules of monastic discipline. These are meant to discipline the way one wears the monastic robes, communicates with others, and so forth. Even the manner of looking at other people and the correct ways of addressing other people are taught in the rules of monastic discipline.

  For a Dharma practitioner, one of the major challenges is to counter our disturbing emotions and finally free ourselves from them. The difficulty of this is due to the simple truth that disturbing emotions have from beginningless time caused us to suffer all kinds of miseries. If someone bullies us or an enemy persecutes us, then we raise a hue and cry. External enemies, however brutal they are, only affect us during one lifetime. They have no power to harm us beyond this life. On the other hand, disturbing emotions are our inner enemies and can definitely cause disaster in future lives. These are, in fact, our worst enemies.

  The real test for a Dharma practitioner comes from this angle: if our disturbing emotions are reduced, then our practice has been effective. This is the main criterion in determining a true practitioner, regardless of how holy we appear externally. The whole purpose of meditation is to lessen the deluded afflictions of our mind and eventually eradicate them from their very roots. By learning and practicing the profound and vast aspects of the teaching, a practitioner with prolonged familiarity with and meditation on selflessness eventually gains an understanding of reality.

  We are engaged in teaching and listening, and it is essential to know the proper ways, the effective methods, of listening to the teaching. This constitutes the elimination of the three defects of a listener (likened to a vessel), and the cultivation of the six favorable intentions. The first of the three defects is listening in a way that is like an upside down container. This means that physically we may be attending to the teachings but mentally we are busy somewhere else. So when someone is teaching, we are in fact not listening at all. In such a case we have no interest in the teachings and in fact do not hear anything that is taught. This is obviously a great obstacle to learning, and we must eliminate this problem and attend to the teaching with keen interest.

  The second of the defects is to listen in a way that is like a container with holes. This means that even though we are listening to the teachings, we do not retain their contents. In this case we lack mindfulness and memory. Practice of Dharma means that we should be able to benefit from what we have heard. It is not a pastime, like listening to a story. The teachings give us guidance on how to live meaningful lives and how to develop proper attitudes. So in order to benefit from the teachings, we must retain them with mindfulness. In all kinds of learning processes, listening, reading, etc., we must pay full attention and should endeavor to remember their contents. When our interest is halfhearted, we only remember half the points, and we retain them for only a short time. We should reflect and think about whatever we have heard, over and over again. In this way, the knowledge will stay in our mind for a long time. Another technique for remembering instructions is debate as it is practiced in the traditional debating schools.

  The third defect of a listener concerns the motivation, and is likened to a vessel containing poison. When we listen to the teachings, we must avoid deluded motives. All activities, particularly Dharma practices such as listening to and reading scriptural texts, must be done with a wholesome motivation. We should aim to control the undisciplined mind, and then gradually attain the state of Buddhahood to benefit all sentient beings. I urge you not to treat Dharma knowledge like any other kind of science just to earn a living.

  Now let me turn to the main topic, the text by Kamalashila known as the Stages of Meditation. The author was immensely kind to Tibet. The great Tsongkhapa referred to him as an honorable scholar and the title is befitting. Of the several treatises he wrote, Illumination of the Middle Way and this text are the most highly respected.

  The transmission lineage of the three Stages of Meditation texts is fairly rare. In the central and southwestern regions of Tibet, its transmission was not widely known. Maybe it was available in isolated and remote areas. Khunnu Lama Tenzin Gyaltsen received the lineage in Kham, and Serkong Rinpoche received it from him. At that time, I was not able to receive the transmission, although I wanted to. I thought that since the text is not very long there wouldn’t be much difficulty in receiving it later. Instead, I put my efforts into receiving teachings on some of the major treatises like the Great Commentary on Kalachakra by Buton Rinchen Drup, the Summary Tantra on Kalachakra, and the six volumes of the Annotations of the Great Commentary Called Stainless Light.

  I was away in Switzerland when I received a telegram saying that Serkong Rinpoche had passed away and Yongzin Ling Rinpoche was in poor health. Then it struck me that I was paying the price for my laziness in not having taken
teachings on the Stages of Meditation texts. My mind was filled with sorrow and a sense of loss. Afterward, I would ask who held its lineage of transmission whenever I met lamas and geshes. Once, when I was in Bodhgaya, I met the Sakya abbot Sangye Tenzin. He told me that he had received teachings on the Stages of Meditation from an old lama from Kham who was in Lhasa on pilgrimage. Later, I thought that since Khunnu Lama Rinpoche had also received the teaching from Kham, the lineage would be the same. I also thought that it would be fine to receive the teaching.

  Previously when I embarked on new texts, I would consult Yongzin Ling Rinpoche. By then he had passed away. At that time, Ven. Gen Nyima was also at Bodhgaya. So I told him the situation and asked for his opinion. He said that it was a good idea. In this way I received the teaching transmission from the Sakya abbot Sangye Tenzin. I felt very happy and fortunate, and that automatically freed me from feelings of remorse. This Sakya abbot is quite well-known and used to be a respected master in Sakya itself. Now he is in his eighties. It seems there are no written commentaries on this text; at least I haven’t seen any. The great Tsongkhapa quotes from it at length in his Great Stages of the Path, so I think it would be appropriate if I supplement my commentary from there.

  Kamalashila did a wonderful service for the Buddha’s doctrine. With a steadfast and kind motivation, he established a perfect foundation for the Buddha’s teaching during his time in Tibet. The Tibetan religious king Trisong Detsen invited Acharya Shantarakshita and Guru Rinpoche Padmasambhava. These three great beings were extremely kind to the Snowy Land of Tibet. It was through their collaboration that a complete form of Buddhism, including the tantras, was properly established in Tibet. Acharya Shantarakshita saw the possibility of misunderstanding and misinterpreting the philosophy, and so he left instructions to invite Kamalashila when such occasions arose. History reveals that these were the reasons Kamalashila was invited to Tibet and composed the Stages of Meditation. At the end of the first part, the author states that he composed the text at the request of King Trisong Detsen.

  For the benefit of the Tibetan people and to establish the Buddha’s doctrine among them, the great Kamalashila very kindly came to Tibet. The three parts of the Stages of Meditation were written in Tibet and the Chinese Hvashang became the catalyst for the composition. The content of his general philosophy is a different matter, but the Chinese Hvashang’s interpretation of the Buddhist view was definitely mistaken. Acharya Kamalashila wrote this text to preempt the advancement of those wrong views. What we may note here is that the great beings in those days exhibited much scholastic and moral strength. They used very refined language while refuting wrong views and didn’t target their opponents as individuals. What they actually did was to formulate a lucid and clear presentation of the fundamental philosophical view, meditation, and conduct as taught by the Buddha. In that fashion, the Buddha’s doctrine outshone the inferior and wrong views, which declined on their own. So this precious text has a special karmic link with Tibet, the Land of Snows.

  It is obvious that the author Kamalashila was immeasurably kind to the Tibetans. But history reveals that the Tibetans made some mistakes instead of showing proper gratitude. Certain inappropriate incidents occurred. Looking at it from another angle, it was something like the saying in Tibetan, “Where the Dharma flourishes, the devil is also active.” In order for well-founded temporal and spiritual institutions to last in Tibet, Guru Rinpoche created favorable conditions and blessed the environment. Even during such a time, there were people saying unhelpful things. It seems, at times, even the king did not fulfill all the wishes of Guru Rinpoche.

  It is sad to note these things. Of course, there are other ways of looking at it. Buddhas and Bodhisattvas have nothing to do save work in the interest of all sentient beings. Lord Avalokiteshvara has a special link with Tibet and has done great kind deeds through numerous manifestations. We Tibetans, however, face unending problems even up to the present time. Still we must not lose heart. The international situation is fluid and constantly changing. There is support for the truth, and truth is precious. We have so far been able to establish proper foundations for our future. We should all work diligently to fulfill our individual interests of this life and the lives beyond, paying equal attention to the common cause. We are all fortunate to be able to study this wonderful text. It would be wise on our part to learn its guiding principles and try to transform our lives.

  Within the context of Buddhist teachings, the generation of a positive attitude is very important. I urge you to listen with a wholesome motivation, thinking “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.” The quality of any action of body, speech, and mind is primarily determined by the motivation. Thus any action done with positive motivation brings virtue and happiness and becomes a cause to attain Buddhahood in the long run. On the other hand, if a good or healthy motivation is missing, then even apparently spiritual practices could bring negative consequences in place of virtue. Since the line between them can be very thin at times, individuals need to pay extra attention to this aspect.

  In this text the author presents the essence of the path of both the Hinayana and the Mahayana vehicles. He expounds the mode of practicing conventional bodhichitta and the six perfections with special emphasis on calm abiding meditation and special insight. Those of you who are new to Buddhism and not familiar with the modes and procedures of practicing the teachings should try to form a coherent understanding of this text, because on the basis of this knowledge you will be able to understand other treatises without great difficulty. This text can be like a key that opens the door to all other major Buddhist scriptures.

  1. WHAT IS THE MIND?

  It is not possible for omniscience to be produced without causes, because if it were everything could always be omniscient. If things were produced without reliance on something else, they could exist without constraint—there would be no reason why everything could not be omniscient. Therefore, since all functional things arise only occasionally, they depend strictly on their causes. Omniscience too is rare because it does not occur at all times and in all places, and everything cannot become omniscient. Therefore, it definitely depends on causes and conditions.

  According to this text, there are two types of existent phenomena: those that exist permanently and those that exist at some times but not at others. What is the implication of this second kind—existing at times but not existing at others? Such a question naturally arises. The implication is that temporary things depend on causes. The fact that certain things are produced at certain times proves the existence of causes. To say that certain things are produced at some times but not at others indicates that they are not independently produced, but rather that they depend on other conditions. Therefore, all those phenomena that are produced at some times but not others depend on causes and conditions, and they are of various types. Causes are of different types, such as substantial cause, direct cause, indirect cause, cause of equal state, concomitant cause, and so forth. Similarly, there are various types of conditions, like objective condition, causal condition, immediate condition, and so forth. So those phenomena that depend on causes and conditions change by nature; they do not abide in one place and they are not permanent.

  Conditioned phenomena in turn can be classed under three categories—form, consciousness, and neither of the two. Form consists of such aspects as shape, color, and so forth, which can be seen by the eyes and touched by the hands. Consciousness has neither shape nor color and cannot be measured in any physical terms, but it exists in its nature and ability to feel and sense. Time, on the other hand, has neither form nor consciousness and belongs to the third category.

  Omniscient transcendental wisdom refers to the consciousness that knows everything. Omniscience is not a quality found in soil, stones, rocks, or mountains. It is produced by something w
hose function is awareness of objects, and therefore it cannot be produced by anything that lacks the property of awareness. Of course, the state of omniscience is the ultimate goal encompassing every perfection, and of the three categories of conditioned phenomena it belongs to the category of consciousness. Knowing or understanding is the function of consciousness. For example, when we say, “I understand” or “I see,” and we have an experience or feeling about something, the experience is activated by consciousness. When the eye consciousness sees a physical form, we say, “I see the physical form,” and when the mind consciousness experiences happiness or pain, we say, “I am happy,” or “I am in pain.” Thus, when we say, “I experience,” “I see,” or “I hear,” and so forth, it is consciousness that acts as the agent. That which possesses the function of knowing is consciousness. Consciousnesses vary in the scope of their knowledge and in their intensity or sharpness. An obvious example is the consciousness of a human being, compared to an animal’s consciousness. The human being’s perception is much broader and it understands a much greater variety of objects. The consciousnesses of human beings vary with education and experience—the more educated you are and the more experience you have, the broader your consciousness. Knowledge and understanding develop on the basis of a consciousness that has the ability to perceive its objects. When the necessary conditions are met, its ability to perceive increases, the scope of its objects of knowledge expands, and understanding deepens. In this way the mind can develop its full potential.

  Omniscience is the full consummation, or perfection, of the mind’s ability to perceive objects. It is omniscient in the sense that it can know each and every thing without being obstructed by differences of time and space. All-knowing wisdom arises from consciousness and by definition it is produced by causes and conditions. This implies that even omniscient wisdom cannot come about without its causes. If this were not the case, and an omniscient mind could arise without causes, it would imply that every consciousness was omniscient. This is because if things are produced without causes and conditions, either they must exist at all times or they must be completely non-existent. “If things were produced without reliance on something else, they could exist without constraint.” This is to say that if things were produced without depending on other causes and conditions, there is no logical reason why they should be obstructed at any point. Since this is not the case, it is logical that everything cannot be transformed into omniscience. For these reasons, functional phenomena can be produced at certain times and are not produced at other times. At a certain point in time, when favorable conditions come about and adverse conditions are absent, a consciousness can be transformed into omniscience that has the knowledge of all phenomena.