The Seven Points of Mind Training

Tibet was non-Buddhist until the eighth century when its King, Trisong Deutsen, asked Padmasambhava to come to Tibet to introduce the Buddhist teachings there. It was Padmasambhava, along with the Indian scholar Shantarakshita, who established Samye Monastery in 779 C.E. To help in this endeavor, the Minister Thonmi Sambhota was sent to India to develop a written script for the Tibetans. Thereafter, numerous Tibetans made perilous journeys to India to bring back the dharma and translate it into Tibetan.

This text on mind training, called lojong in Tibetan, was brought to Tibet by Atisha in the eleventh century. Atisha brought over 100 instructions to Tibet, this particular text being compiled by one of his students who condensed it into the present form of seven points.

The Buddhism of Tibet was a combination of the Shravakayana, Mahayana, and Vajrayana. The Shravakayana sometimes called the Hinayana was practiced in terms of strict personal discipline and the fundamental meditation of Shamatha and Vipashyana. The Mahayana was taught in terms of engaging in an extensive study of the emptiness doctrine of the Middle Way (Skt. Madhyamaka) school and taking the Mahayana vow to help all living beings reach liberation. Helping all beings was accomplished through the practice of the six perfections (Skt. paramitas) (generosity, morality, patience, perseverance, meditative stabilization, and wisdom). The Vajrayana was achieved through yidam practices and the practice of examining mind directly, using Dzogchen or Mahamudra meditation.

The study of texts on the Middle Way concerning emptiness took a minimum of a year in the monastic college or shedra which, unlike our colleges, involved an eight to ten hour daily study, six to seven days a week, with only a few weeks of vacation a year. The study of the Middle Way was achieved by memorizing the root texts in the morning, then receiving a commentary such as Thrangu Rinpoche has provided in this book in the late morning, and then debating the points of the text in the afternoon. Sometimes these texts were studied not just conceptually, but in conjunction with analytical meditation. At Rumtek monastery in the Nalanda Shedra, for example, Khenpo Tsultrim Rinpoche would teach emptiness in the morning, and in the afternoon would have the students face the outside walls and go into a deep meditation while he would read passages from the sutras on these topics.

Another method for actually practicing the Mahayana is Atisha’s mind training practice. The purpose of this practice is to overcome the habitual tendency to center the world around ourselves, and thus decrease our ego. The belief in “I” and in what we hold as “mine” causes vast amounts of harm in the world. This habit of acting in terms of “self” and “other” comes from placing ourselves over others in terms of our nation, our race, our community and social class, right down to believing that we are somehow fundamentally better than friends and even family members.

When asked whether he felt anger towards the Chinese for surrounding his camp with machine guns when he was fleeing Tibet in 1959, opening fire on him and hundreds of others, Thrangu Rinpoche replied “No,” because the soldiers were doing what they were supposed to do—shoot at him—and he was doing what he was supposed to do—run for his life.

To reverse this belief in holding our body and our ideas to be extremely important, we must put others ahead of our own selfish, ego-clinging patterns. The Seven Points of Mind Training constitute exactly such a practice, beginning the second we wake up and then carrying the attitude on through-out the day as we eat, work, and socialize with others. Practice ends at night when we examine ourselves to see if we have followed the mind training principles. Finally, Thrangu Rinpoche has suggested that as we fall asleep we should do sending and taking practice.

Mind training is relevant for modern times because we do not need to go to an isolated cave or retreat to engage in it; we can engage in it while doing all the thousands of other things we do every day. This practice has also been condensed to a few dozen instructions which are easy to memorize, and which are actually standards for living our daily life. They tell us how to behave in ordinary circumstances and show us if our ego is increasing or decreasing. In modern life, we do not usually have the time or patience to memorize long texts, so this practice is perfectly adopted for the present day.

These teachings on the Seven Points of Mind Training were given on two different occasions: in 1993 with Maruta Stern translating and also in 2001 in Maine with Erik Kunsang translating. Since Rinpoche emphasized certain points in one teaching and other points in others, we have combined the two.

Clark Johnson, Ph.D.

An Introduction to Mind Training

Why We Should Study Mind Training

In the previous years, I taught the general approach of Buddhist practice and I have also given the instructions on the Shamatha and Vipashyana meditation according to Mahamudra. These teachings are very pithy and profound and they are especially aimed at achieving the ultimate level of reality. There is, however, a way of practice that places more emphasis on the relative or the conventional level of reality. Some of my students have asked, “I practice Mahamudra and it is very beneficial, but every so often strong disturbing emotions well up and the Mahamudra practice doesn’t seem to stop them. What should I do then?” This is a good question to ask because at such times there is a way of practice that emphasizes more the relative truth and this is a teaching known as The Seven Points of Mind Training, which is very useful because it can help us pacify the emotions.

This is not just my personal opinion. The Seven Points have been practiced by the lineage of masters up to the present. They are explained as the merging of two rivers, the Kadampa and Mahamudra instructions, into one style of practice. Gampopa fused the mind training instructions of the Kadampa together with the Mahamudra instructions which he received from the great master Milarepa. In this way, there has been a line of practitioners known as “the golden rosary” or “chain of golden links” which has remained unbroken until the present time. This tradition combines mind training together with the profound instructions of Mahamudra. I consider this long tradition as a very important and a very profound approach.

The teachings on The Seven Points of Mind Training are regarded as contemplations. They were condensed from the words of the Buddha (Skt. sutras) or the treatises (Skt. shastras) by the Indian master Atisha.¹When he first embarked in the dharma, he understood that the attainment of full and complete enlightenment depends upon forming both relative and ultimate bodhichitta. Since he wanted to find out which is the way to make sure that the true bodhichitta dawns within individuals, he fervently prayed to the deity Tara. He had several visions of her; in one vision Tara made the prediction that Atisha should set out to meet three important masters to receive the transmission of how to be a true bodhisattva and develop the bodhichitta attitude. These three masters were Jampey Naljor, Dharma Rakshita,² and Jowo Serlingpa, the Guru from Serling. Of these three, Dharma Rakshita had an incredible life story and exemplified the bodhisattva ideal perfectly. It is said that he even gave away parts of his own flesh to someone who was needy. Atisha’s other guru was called Jampey Naljor meaning “the yogi of loving-kindness,” because he had that quality of bodhichitta. But the most important of these three was Jowo Serlingpa.

Atisha was born in the present district of Bengal but he went to Nalanda University to study. While studying at Nalanda he heard about Serlingpa. Serling is the Tibetan name for the island of Sumatra and his name means “the master from Sumatra.” In those days the Buddhadharma had spread to Indonesia and there were a great number of ordained monks studying with Serlingpa. He was so well-known that his fame had spread all the way to Nalanda in Northern India. When Atisha heard about Jowo Serlingpa, he made up his mind to go and visit. In those days this was a very difficult journey to undertake. Atisha almost died on the way because of violent storms, but whenever obstacles arose, he made fervent prayers to his chief deity Tara and always practiced loving-kindness and compassion. He somehow arrived and was accepted by Serlingpa, who told him, “Yes, bodhichitta is the most important practice and you must practice mind training. But don’t think you can do it in just a few days. It takes a long time to perfect this practice. You should stay here until you have completed this training.” So Atisha stayed with Serlingpa for twelve years and at the end of that time he had perfected his practice of mind training and returned to India.

Following Langdarma’s assassination in 808 C.E., many teachers emerged and some taught their own dharma by, for example, mixing Buddhist practices with black magic. In one of the districts in western Tibet, there was a king called Yeshe Ö (“wisdom light”), who wanted to determine what the true dharma was and what distortions of the Buddhist teachings were so he invited genuine Buddhist teachers to come to Tibet. After him, his successor Jangchub Ö, (“the light of enlightenment”), had the same intention, and he also invited Buddhist teachers to Tibet.

King Yeshe Ö sent numerous translators to India in order to achieve this aim and many of them died on the way. But a few who succeeded in reaching Atisha gave him the king’s request. Atisha replied, “It is not a matter of personal feelings of going or not going. I will make supplications to my yidam deity and will wait for the reply.” So, he made many supplications to Tara, asking, “Will it be worthwhile for me to go to Tibet?” Tara appeared to him and said, “If you go to Tibet, it will insure that the Buddhadharma again becomes reestablished in that country, but it will also shorten your own life by 10 years.” Atisha replied, “If I live ten years less, it doesn’t matter because what concerns me the most is that the Buddhadharma help living beings. That’s what my life is meant for. So, I will go.” When Atisha arrived in Tibet, he started from the very beginning by teaching about refuge, bodhichitta, and mind training to separate the true teachings from the distortions. Atisha went to Tibet in 1044 C.E. and remained there until the end of his life.

Atisha founded the Kadampa lineage and when he passed on, he left behind three outstanding disciples, the main one being Dromtonpa Gyalwai Jungnae. In general, the Kadampa teachings were divided into three sections. One is the Kadampa philosophical texts, which were held by the Riwo Gendunpa or the Gelugpa tradition. Another is the Kadampa secret oral instructions which were held by Dakpo Lhaje (Gampopa) of the Kagyu tradition. The final one is the key instructions of the sixteen spheres which are practiced by everyone. Of these three, we practice the oral instructions which have passed from Gampopa down to this present time.

Gampopa, prior to meeting Milarepa, had followed the Kadampa teachings and received instructions from that lineage. When he was about to meet Milarepa, Milarepa told his disciples, “Today there will come a true teacher from the Kadampa tradition. Whoever escorts him into my presence will never be reborn into the three lower realms.” Milarepa understood Gampopa’s value from the very start. Also, when Gampopa was leaving after having received all the teachings on Mahamudra, the Six Yogas of Naropa, and so forth, Milarepa escorted him to Garjeling in Gampo where Gampopa began to practice. At this time Milarepa told him that he had had a special dream: from his side a vulture flew forth and landed on the Lhachi Mountain Peak and became surrounded by numerous golden geese, each of which was surrounded by 500 more geese. When they all flew on high, the whole area turned a golden color. Milarepa said, “Even though I am a follower of the yogi tradition, an eminent disciple of mine will fuse the Kadampa and Mahamudra lineage.”

The teachings on mind training have been articulated in various ways. There is one set of teachings called Mind Training in Eight Verses and another called Mind Training like a Peacock Overcoming Poison. There are many other instructions like these. The one that is most popular is known as The Seven Points of Mind Training, which is what we will actually practice after having received instructions. The Seven Points of Mind Training was written by a master called Chekawa Yeshe Dorje,³ who went through many difficulties to receive these teachings.

The Bodhisattva Vow

The bodhisattva vow constitutes a major part of the Mahayana path. One of the main ways to accomplish this vow is through the practice of mind training. This mind training, or lojong in Tibetan, that we are studying is composed of seven precepts whose purpose is to develop a feeling of love, compassion, and bodhichitta for all living beings. Usually, we tend to think of ourselves as really important. If we have any kind of suffering, we think that it is unbearable and that nobody else suffers as we do. We want to have happiness for ourselves and do not really consider that others feel the same. But the foundation for love, compassion, and bodhichitta is to think that others are equal to us and that we are able to exchange ourselves for them. Actually to do this we have to rid ourselves of this notion that only we are important, that only our suffering is unbearable, and that our desire for joy is of paramount importance. How do we train our mind to do this? The first step is to realize: “If I feel that I am important and that my suffering is unbearable, then other beings must have the same attitude. When they suffer, they too must feel that this suffering is “unbearable.” This is the meaning of training the mind.

We may ask how Mahamudra meditation and mind training are related. There are two kinds of truths, conventional and ultimate. Mahamudra is a very high level teaching which concerns the ultimate truth. But sometimes we are unable to realize that ultimate meaning, and because of this, various things happen. Sometimes our meditation goes very well, but at other times our diligence decreases, our pride increases, and our meditation doesn’t work the way it should. During these down times, the instructions of mind training are very good. Often people come to me and say: “I really want to practice dharma. I really want to study. I want to meditate but it seems I am very lazy and cannot do it.” For times like this, it is very helpful to contemplate again and again the instructions of mind training. In fact, if we can do this over and over, then the diligence which has decreased will again increase, as will faith. This is what the mind training precepts are for: the times when these obstacles, called “inner obstacles of the mind,” occur. When this happens, contemplate these thoughts over and over again. When diligence is decreasing and pride and jealousy are increasing, all of the mind instructions help. Once we have contemplated them repeatedly, then we can again go back to Mahamudra practice.

Atisha formulated about a hundred different mind training instructions. In Advice from a Spiritual Friend it states that Geshe Chekawa, who inherited the teachings from a disciple of one of Atisha’s disciples, put these instructions into the form of the seven points of mind training.

The first part of the mind training is a presentation of the preliminaries, which are the bases for dharma practice. In this text, the preliminaries are divided into two parts: the contemplation at the beginning of the preliminaries, i.e., what we must visualize and think of when we start, and then the actual explanation of the preliminaries.

Question: You talked about the relationship between this practice and The Wheel of Sharp Weapons.

Rinpoche: This text and The Wheel of Sharp Weapons are basically the same instructions, but are a little different in the meditation instructions. Both are very powerful, as the title suggests, really forceful in getting rid of negativities.

Question: Do the inner obstacles arise because of past bad karma? Could inner obstacles be purified through purification practice?

Rinpoche: Inner obstacles do not come from previous karma. What comes from previous karma are such things as physical suffering and being born in poverty. Inner obstacles, which are various negative conceptual thoughts, come >from previous negative habits of thinking. What does purify inner obstacles is, for instance, contemplation on the four thoughts which turn the mind, because inner obstacles are very, very old habits. Doing the four contemplations will gradually change the negative habits of mind and that will clear away the inner obstacles.

Question: When anything happens, negative or positive, to what extent does this depend on karma? For instance, if I am in a train accident, it is my karma, or could it also be the bad repair of the train? Or if something positive happens, like I find money and am happy, is that due simply to the fact that somebody lost this money?

Rinpoche: Not everything is karma. There are two things to consider: your previous karma and the immediate circumstances. Things like our physical suffering, or whether we are wealthy or impoverished, depend upon previous karma. Other things, like our state of mind, are more dependent upon circumstances than upon karma. For instance, if we have good Dharma friends with us, then it might be that our mind is in a good place for practicing and we are quite happy most of the time, whereas when we are around people who are not good for us, then our state of mind will not be good either, so we will be quick to become angry. That is called “the circumstance.” It functions more like barche, which could sometimes be an accident and sometimes a misfortune of some kind. It is based more upon immediate circumstances than upon karma. An airplane accident is karma, the karma of all the victims coming together at one time. It was their karma that they had all gathered together in that airplane. Another example: a man in India wants to get on the bus but doesn’t have one rupee, so he can’t get on. The bus crashes and everybody dies. It was his karma not to get on that bus, based upon the fact that he didn’t have that one rupee. That was his karma.

Question: It is very difficult to distinguish between circumstances and karma. For instance, if a brick drops on my head or my lama passes away, is it my karma or is it also his karma to pass away?

Rinpoche: If a rock falls on your head, it is karma. If it just falls from nowhere and you didn’t know about it beforehand, it is karma. However, if you pick up that rock and think, “I must build something with it,” then it is not karma. With your lama, one cannot tell whether it is karma or not. It might be, but he may have had a reason to pass into nirvana at that time, in which case it is not karma. Did he die because of your karma? No, it is not your karma. Now you don’t have a lama because he has finished teaching you, so it will be up to you whether you practice or not. That’s your karma. Because the lama has passed away, he is finished. All the Kagyu lamas have passed away. All lamas die, all living beings die; there is nobody who won’t die.

Question: An aspect of Buddhist practice that has been getting more attention in the West these days is social activism in which you bring your practice out into the community to make a positive change. There has been a growing interest in the socially active aspects of going from your meditation seat into the community and bringing about positive change. Some of the instructions of mind training could be interpreted as a sort of withdrawal from social activism, so that others are not given the benefit and opportunity of dharma.

Rinpoche: If everybody would practice these mind training instructions, it would really be good for everyone, including the community in general. For instance, it is beneficial for oneself, and if that person over there is doing it, then it is beneficial both for that person and everybody around. Mind training is very good for individuals and communities.

Eight Freedoms and Ten Riches

The Eight Freedoms (Tib. dal wa gye)

The first four freedoms involve the human realm.

1. Not holding wrong views

2. Not being born in a primitive border land

3. Not being born in an age without a Buddha present

4. Not having all the physical faculties complete, such as being deaf or mute

The next four freedoms involve the non-human realms where attaining enlightenment is not very possible.

5. Not being born in the hell realm

6. Not being born a hungry ghost

7. Not being born an animal

8. Not being born a long living god

The Ten Riches or endowments (Tib. jor wa chu))

These ten conditions make it conducive to practice.

1. Taking human birth

2. Being born in a Buddhist place

3. Having intact senses

4. Being free from extreme negative karma

5. Having faith in the Dharma

6. A Buddha has appeared

7. The Buddha has given teachings

8. The Buddha's teachings continue to exist

9. There are people still following the Buddha teachings

10. Having compassionate feelings for others

The Practice of the Preliminaries

I. THE PRELIMINARIES

I prostrate to the Great Compassionate One.

We begin lojong practice with a visualization and a prayer.

In yidam practice of the Vajrayana we usually meditate, visualizing ourselves in the form of a deity or yidam. In mind training practice we just see ourselves in our ordinary form, but on the crown of our head we visualize our root guru who is the source of all our blessings. First, we visualize on the crown of our head a lotus flower which is untouched by any of the faults of samsara; on top of that we visualize a moon disc, and on top of that we visualize our root guru with a smiling face.

We visualize our root guru either in his or her actual form or in the form of Gampopa or Atisha, whomever we are most comfortable with and in whom we can generate the most faith. It is very important to visualize him or her with a friendly, smiling face and a resplendent body. The lama has great love and compassion for us, so the lama’s face is seen with a beautiful and magnificent smile. To create great merit, we visualize the lama’s body as being very brilliant and resplendent. We think of the lama as having great loving-kindness and compassion for all living beings and wishing that they all be free >from suffering. This compassion and love is not limited to particular individuals, but includes all living beings. In this way, the lama’s mind abides naturally in the sphere of reality (Skt. dharmadhatu).

Because it is also important to think of the lineage of lamas that came before our root guru, we think that the root guru embodies all the lamas of the lineage as well. There are three basic ways to visualize the root and lineage lamas: one is to visualize the root guru with all the lineage lamas stacked above him; another is known as “the great gathering,” in which we visualize the root guru with all the lineage lamas surrounding him like a great crowd; a third way, called “the precious way in which all are subsumed into one,” is to visualize the root guru as the essence of all the lineage lamas who are subsumed into him or her.

While visualizing the lamas, we keep in mind all the enlightened qualities of kindness and compassion possessed by our root guru. While doing so, we supplicate our lama. Sometimes we say prayers to the lineage lamas, asking for blessings from our lama. We pray that we can achieve the kind of loving-kindness for all living beings and the compassionate wish for all of them to be free from suffering which are held by our root guru. We pray that these qualities of the lama are born in us as well. Then with great faith and devotion to our lama, we say this prayer:

I prostrate to the Great Compassionate One

Whose form is the compassion of the Buddha and his children.

You are the incomparable lord of dharma with whom any relationship is meaningful.

My root guru, you embody the life-breath of this lineage.

I pray to you from the depths of my heart.

Bless me with the full development of love, compassion

And the ability to dismiss and dispel (all obstacles).

With this prayer we then visualize the lama coming down through the top of our head and entering a tent in our heart where he resides. This causes faith and devotion to increase. It is very important at the beginning of any meditative session to generate great faith and devotion in the lama and to ask for blessings in this way.

Having received the blessings and generated great faith and devotion, we sit with our body lengthened and simply pay attention to the passing in and out of the breath. We don’t try to regulate the breath, but breathe naturally, staying aware of the breath going out and coming back in. We count the in-breath and out-breath as one. We do not count out loud but are just aware. On our rosary we pay attention to the passing of the breath in and out for twenty-one counts.

We should do this very carefully because this is said to be the vessel for Shamatha practice. We should just be very mindful of the breath going in and out and not consciously think, “Now it is going out; now it is coming in,” or the other way around. Very carefully and mindfully we pay attention to counting to twenty-one and then starting at one again. It is very important to make a container for Shamatha practice.

Above is the visualization for the preliminaries. Now comes the actual explanation of the preliminaries, which begins with the contemplation of the four thoughts that turn the mind, also known as the four ordinary foundations. 4

The sutras are primarily concerned with the instructions on how to reflect upon impermanence. In addition to reflection on impermanence, the great siddhas of India added three additional reflections: the preciousness of the human body comprising the eight freedoms and ten riches, the consequences of karmic actions, and the negative quality of cyclic existence or samsara. First, we all have this incredibly valuable human body which is much better than an animal body. Of course, an animal can behave nicely and have a kind attitude, but can an animal receive teachings and reflect upon them? Can an animal practice deep meditation or samadhi? Can an animal liberate itself from the causes of samsara? There is no way for an animal to receive teachings as a human can. Not only do human beings have the ability to listen and to understand the teachings, but they also practice intelligently and understand what they are doing. When you think about it, this is of immense value. The preciousness of the human existence is not just a belief, it is really true. If we reflect upon this, then there is an actual reason to rejoice in the immense wealth of having a precious human body.

Milarepa ⁵ said that one does not really need to read about the four ordinary foundations in a book; one only needs to look around and see that impermanence is obvious everywhere. We have the precious human body now, but it does not last. Everything is impermanent. It is clear that we have reached a very special circumstance now in having this precious human life. We can see that this precious human birth is a great opportunity. But if we do not use it, then it is a complete waste. What a shame to squander this opportunity! We can see that a human birth is very precious and that it is important to use it as such. So the first contemplation is on the precious human existence and all its possibilities.

The second contemplation is on death and impermanence. If we sit and think about death and impermanence, we are bound to become a little sad. Most people think it is not a good idea to sit around and think about something which will upset us. But actually, it is a good idea because if we do not think now about death and impermanence, one day they will definitely arrive anyway and then we will not be prepared. Not knowing what to do and what will come next, we will experience great suffering, whereas if we start thinking about impermanence now, while we still have time to find skillful means to deal with it, then later we will not be caught unaware. Even though in the short term the contemplation of death and impermanence might cause discomfort, in the long term it will actually save us from greater suffering.

The third contemplation is on the infallibility of karma, which is cause and effect. The word “karma” is often understood as a fate that is impossible to change or alter. But that is not the Buddhist concept of karma. The Buddha taught that one can do something about one’s karma. Happiness and suffering are created by karmic actions; they are the results of actions; and these actions are the result of our choice of what we do. We cannot change the results immediately, but we can still change the new causes that we create with our behavior.

All living beings want to avoid suffering, but we need to understand that negative karmic actions cause suffering, so if we try our best to avoid creating new negative actions, then their effect which is suffering will diminish. Living beings also want happiness, but we need to understand that wholesome or positive karmic actions bring on happiness. In this way, karma is not out of reach, because we can do something about how karma will ripen for us later on. As practitioners we should definitely take it upon ourselves to avoid what is unwholesome and to do what is meaningful and good.

So in this contemplation we contemplate that if we do virtuous actions, then the effect or result is happiness; if we create a cause of non-virtue by performing a negative act, then the result will be suffering. So there is a way of overcoming suffering in life, and this is by creating virtuous causes which can only arise by pursuing a path of dharma.

If we have doubts about these four contemplations, it is said that it is very helpful to recite prayers like The Seven-Branch Prayer6 in which we take refuge, generate bodhichitta, confess, dedicate the merit, and so on. When doubts arise, this is a very important and beneficial practice.

The fourth contemplation is on the inherent tragedies of samsara. The inherent nature of samsara is that there is always something wrong and this is true for everyone. All living beings suffer in one way or another. But it doesn’t have to be that way. We don’t have to continue suffering. We can overcome not only the causes of suffering, but we can overcome the entire environment of suffering, which is samsara, by making use of the instructions of mind training on the relative level and the instructions of Mahamudra on the ultimate level. Reflecting upon the negative quality of samsaric existence inspires us to want to overcome suffering and to attain liberation and be free; it makes us want to put more energy into mind training and Mahamudra practice.

Milarepa said, “I do not study what is written with black ink.” Rather, Milarepa studied everything as it actually is. We can also just look around and see how things are. All living beings are born, grow up, age, become sick, and pass away. We can also observe the consequences of actions and what is painful in all different ways. All this is observable if we pay attention. But we can also see what is truly valuable: a precious human body, which can lead us to embrace a spiritual path by understanding what it means to cultivate spiritual qualities and to practice. Such a person is very precious. When we acknowledge that we have this preciousness, we can rejoice in that. Also, we will be inspired not to leave it at that, but to put it to use with a lot of energy, enthusiasm, and perseverance. That is a special way of studying the dharma through understanding how things are.

From time to time a student will say to me, “I like the dharma and am interested in practicing, but I feel that it is difficult for me to practice. I cannot really get into it. What should I do?” I suggest, “Spend some time reflecting upon the four thoughts that change the mind—the precious human body, impermanence, karma, and suffering.” This is not like training in Shamatha and Vipashyana, but more a reflection, thinking about how things are: Are they permanent or impermanent? We spend time working with these four topics in our mind. These will cause inspiration, in which case we feel that it is not difficult to practice. This is why the first of the seven points of mind training is the preliminaries, or the foundation, for any and all practices that follow. If we have that foundation of having reflected on the four thoughts that turn the mind, we are then able to proceed with every practice that comes afterwards.

When we train in the teachings of the seven points of mind training, we still have some problems. Sometimes these problems can take the form of happiness, success, and good times and sometimes the form of difficulties, physical and mental pain, and misfortune. Success becomes an obstacle when we are affluent, have lots of satisfaction, and everything goes well. This causes a tendency to forget the dharma practice because everything is fine; we just go along and get caught up in it, forgetting our usual practice. That’s a problem and, therefore it is called “the obstacle of happiness.” The other obstacle comes when we experience misfortune, failure, or physical and mental pain. We could also forget dharma practice then because we are too caught up in being depressed, and so forth. As a matter of fact, we can use both situations for mind training and in that way become more even-minded so that we are neither depressed during difficulties nor carried-away by success. In this way mind training lifts us during difficulties and grounds us during success.

Question: You said we should visualize our root guru either in his or her own form, or as Gampopa or Atisha. I always visualize him either in his own form or in the form of Vajradhara. Should we visualize him in this case as Gampopa or Atisha?

Rinpoche: There are several ways of visualizing one’s root guru. For instance, it is fine to visualize him as Vajradhara because Vajradhara, having all the qualities of the Buddha, is stainless. One can also visualize one’s own root guru as he or she is if one has complete faith and confidence in him or her. But sometimes because we are very familiar with our lama, we can lack complete faith and devotion and, therefore, tend to see faults in our root guru. When this happens, we can visualize the root guru in the form of Gampopa or Atisha, because these teachings of mind training come from Atisha, who passed them down to Gampopa. These individuals lived far in the past, so never having met them we cannot possibly see a fault in them.

Question: As a student new to Buddhism I have not developed a strong connection to a root guru. How does one practice in that case?

Rinpoche: Well, the one for whom you feel faith, devotion, and respect no matter which individual, should be your object of refuge. That is whom you visualize.

Question: You taught that it is necessary to supplicate the guru with deep devotion, as well as to follow his instructions. When the root guru dies, do we continue this practice to create openness and further devotion, further commitment, or is there some actual living quality of the root guru? Is there a Buddha-field that the root guru is part of, a sort of energy field, or does the practice just help us follow the instructions more clearly, more devotedly?

Rinpoche: Whether your lama has passed away or is still living doesn’t really make a lot of difference because the point is the strength of your faith, devotion, and prayers. For instance, Milarepa often prayed to Marpa and many of his spiritual songs start with prayers to Marpa, though at the time Marpa had already passed away. It is said that if one has enough faith, sacred relics (Tib. ringsel)7 will issue even from a dog’s tooth! This refers to the story of an old woman in Tibet whose son was a great trader and was always going to India. The mother was very old, and when her son was to go to India she said, “Oh son, you are always going off to India. It is such a wonderful place. The Buddha was there, as well as many great saints. It would mean a lot to me if you would bring me back some kind of relic from this holy land.” The son went off to India, had a lot of work to do, and totally forgot the relic. When he returned, his mother asked, “What did you bring me?” The son said, “Oh. I’m so sorry. I forgot all about it.” The next time he went she said again, “Please don’t forget. Please bring me something from India.” Again he got really busy and forgot it, leaving her very disappointed. Then came the third trip. Once more the son had so much to do that he forgot. The fourth time the mother said, “If you forget again, I will know that you don’t really love me at all; in fact, if you don’t bring me something this time, I am going to die in front of you.” He went and again became very busy and forgot. But this time, just before reaching home, he remembered and thought, “Oh no! I completely forgot. What am I going to do? My poor old mother! She is going to die in front of me.” He was really in despair and looked around frantically for something to give her. Seeing the dried up skull of a dog lying there, he approached it, thinking: “I just have to get her something. She is going to die in front of me if I don’t. I can’t let this happen.” So he took a tooth out of the dog’s skull, wrapped it very nicely, and went home saying, “Look mother! You are really lucky today. You are very fortunate. I have brought you a tooth of the Buddha himself.” His mother was so pleased that she put it on the shrine, made many offerings, and prayed to it. One day ringsel came from that tooth. Now ringsel can be produced from the tooth of the Buddha, but not from a dog’s tooth. So it was her great faith and devotion and the power of mind which made that happen.

Arousing Bodhichitta

The main part of the mind training practice is concerned with bodhichitta. Bodhichitta is a Sanskrit word which literally means “awakened mind.” It refers to the desire to help all living beings achieve complete happiness. Living beings, by the way, refers to all beings who have a mind, so this includes animals as well as beings we cannot see, such as hungry ghosts, jealous gods, and beings in the god and hell realms. Generally, there are two kinds of bodhichitta: relative bodhichitta and ultimate bodhichitta. Usually, it is taught that ultimate bodhichitta is more important than relative bodhichitta. However, because we are beginners in the mind training teachings, it is taught that relative bodhichitta is most important, while ultimate bodhichitta is only briefly mentioned. The practice begins with a brief teaching on ultimate bodhichitta. We begin with visualizing the lama as explained above, reciting prayers to him or her that we might receive blessings, and counting the breath twenty-one times so that we become proper receptacles for training in ultimate bodhichitta.

We begin with ultimate bodhichitta followed by relative bodhichitta. The reason Chekawa Yeshe Dorje decided on this order is because relative bodhichitta is the desire that forms the noble intention to proceed with developing ultimate bodhichitta. The dualistic mind is not very stable and to work with something that is so unstable is very difficult to do. Wouldn’t it be better to stabilize the mind in real meditation or samadhi? To train in absolute bodhichitta first and later train in relative bodhichitta based on the stability achieved? Then relative bodhichitta will be more lucid, clear, and steady so that progress is more likely. That is the reason why absolute bodhichitta is discussed first.

Generally speaking, there are two types of meditative training: analytical meditation and resting meditation. We usually begin with analytical meditation, which is inquiring about the nature of phenomena, beginning with external phenomena as explained in The Heart Sutra with the statement, “No eye, no ear, no nose, no tongue” and so forth.” When we examine the nature of phenomena, we fail to find any phenomenon which truly exists, so everything is regarded as dream-like. This then leads to the first instruction:

The word “dharma,” here translated as “phenomenon,” is used in many different contexts. Sometimes it refers to teachings and sometimes to a particular practice or a specific quality that we try to cultivate in our practice. But in this particular context, the word “dharma” doesn’t mean the teachings, rather it means any perceivable object or entity, such as an external sight, sound, smell, and so forth. These are not as they seem: they are visible or perceivable but not truly existing, just like dreams. Therefore, first understand that all phenomena are dream-like and then train in regarding them as being so.

I don’t feel that it is necessary to spend a lot of time in this teaching discussing emptiness and whether things are real and concrete or do not exist as real and solid as they seem. As a matter of fact, they can be taken apart into smaller and smaller parts until they are atoms. However, even the smallest particles cannot be established to truly exist as something concrete and real. This can be arrived at through intelligent reasoning from the Middle Way philosophy. Using Middle Way logic, it is possible to show that all phenomena are not as real as they seem. This method proceeds by proving that every view we hold about reality can be disproved. Another approach is to establish how things are, rather than disproving their reality.

The nature of the emptiness of phenomena can be illustrated with the example of a dream. Every one of us dreams at night, and while we dream, it seems that there are objects, sounds, and so forth, which are exactly the same as they are while we are awake. We see hills, forests, houses, people, and so forth, during our dreams, but these phenomena are not as they seem. They appear to us, but they are not solid even though we can hit them, fall off them, and so on. Is everything we see in our dreams there? No. When we dream of a house or mountain, there is no real house or mountain in the room. In other words, while not existing, these phenomena still appear. How is it possible that something that doesn’t really exist still appears to us? The answer is that it is like a dream, when we see, hear, feel textures, taste, smell, and so forth though these things are not really there. How should we regard the phenomena in our waking state? As empty just as in a dream. We, therefore, should “Regard all dharmas as dreams.”

Sometimes we contemplate that all outer phenomena—trees, houses and mountains—are not real, but resemble appearances in a dream. We also contemplate that the inner phenomenon of our mind, which perceives all outer phenomena, is also not real. Rather, our mind is empty of inherent existence.8 To engage in the two contemplations that outer and inner phenomena resemble a dream, we first think that everything we see in the animate and inanimate world is like the appearances arising in a dream and that our sensations of these phenomena—smell, taste, touch, sight, hearing, and feeling—are also like the sensations felt in a dream.

To repeat, we think that everything we perceive outside of us is not real; it is like a dream or an illusion. If everything out there is just a dream or illusion, then these phenomena must come from the mind. The next thought is, “Well, is the mind itself real?” To determine if mind is a real, solid entity or empty just like outer phenomena, we can, employ the Mahamudra or Dzogchen instructions9 to look directly at our mind. This practice of looking at mind is explained in the next instruction:

Looking nakedly at the essential nature of mind,10 we find that mind is not established as any “thing” at all. This means that if we look for the mind, we find it has no color or shape, or any other definable characteristic which an object does. Since objects have a beginning, we may wonder, “Where does the mind start? Is there a point of origin for the mind?” Again if we look, we cannot find a point of origin for the mind. Other than thinking that it is like the wind moving in the sky, there is nothing to indicate what it is like. Since there is no place where it begins, it is said that mind is unborn.

If mind is unborn, we may then ask, “So where is it now?” Examining the present mind to see whether it is somewhere outside the body, we find that there is no place where it resides in the objects that we sense or see. It is not separate from the body, so we ask, “Well, is it inside?” But we cannot find a particular place where it is located in the body. Since mind does not have a color or a location, we therefore say that it is by nature empty.

Finally we wonder, “Where does mind stop when thoughts stop? And where do thoughts go?” Again, there is no place we can find where thoughts end. The mind does not attach itself to an outer object and stop there. There is no origin of mind, it does not dwell anywhere, and it does not end anywhere because it is empty. So the mind is without birth, abiding, and cessation. This awareness can’t be found. This contemplation of looking for the mind, trying to find if it has any reality or not, is a very important practice to do over and over again until we are convinced that the nature of mind is emptiness.

So, first we examine outer phenomena to establish that they are like a dream ; then we look at mind itself and see that it is without birth, abiding, and cessation. From this we establish that the inner phenomena of mind are also empty. But this thought that mind and phenomena are empty is just another thought, so now we must look at the person who has that thought with the next instruction.

Let us examine what the perceiver is, what we call “me.” Actually, when we look for it, we cannot find it anywhere; we fail to find it, and yet at the same time it seems that there is someone. This lack of finding is here called “unborn,” which means it doesn’t come about nor does it exist right now; it didn’t arise and it doesn’t abide anywhere in the present. This is exactly what we need to look into in order to find that this also does not really exist, which is called “empty of essence” or “empty of identity.”

Earlier, two different types of meditation were mentioned: analytic meditation,¹¹ and resting meditation. Analytical meditation which uses rational thinking, is not the method meant in “investigate the nature of unborn awareness.” Here, the instruction means to look at unborn awareness. This is like observing birds, just seeing what they are doing. Where do they live? How do they get there? How do they fly about? What do they eat? Inquiry is simply taking a look by observing. In exactly the same way, we take a look at the mind and ask: Where does it dwell? How does it behave? What does it look like? What color does it have? What shape does it have? And where is it? How does it move? How does it stay? And so forth. This type of inquiry is not intellectual.

From time to time we have the feeling that the mind is steady and remains calm. Then when we take a close look at it, what is it really that remains calm now? We fail to find that there is someone or something that remains. In the same way, sometimes we notice that there is thinking, and when we look into the identity of what is it that thinks, we fail to find that there is a thinker, someone or something actually thinking the thought. This is not some kind of rationalization, but something we see when we look. This is what is being taught here in the statement: “Investigate the nature of unborn awareness.” Unborn here is a synonym for absence of identity.

We begin with the belief that everything is solid and real. Then we develop the belief that this is incorrect and everything is just emptiness or like a dream. This second belief, however, developed by the previous instruction, is not real either. To illustrate this point, Shantideva gave the following example: If you were dreaming that you had a son and the son died, you would think, “I had a son and now he is gone.” You might think that the thought that he is gone is an antidote to the thought that he existed. But in fact this can’t be correct because none of it is real: it is all like a dream. So the thought that you had a son was not real, and the thought that your son had died was also unreal. That is what “the antidote released in its ground” means. When you begin to believe that everything is emptiness, then you have to let that thought go, too. You have to look at the one who is thinking that thought and realize that this one, too, is not real.

In his commentary on The Seven Points of Mind Training, called The Great Path of Awakening, Jamgon Kongtrul said that this teaching is explained as conceptual meditation because examination of outer objects as having no birth, no abiding, and no cessation is done through using our intellect.

As previously mentioned, there are two ways of meditation training: the analytical meditation of a scholar, a pandita, and the resting meditation of a kusulu, a simple meditator. Analytical meditation of a pandita involves questioning, inquiring, and quoting the scriptures from masters of the past. To gain some certainty about how things are, we need to look at external things to see how they are, and we need to look within to see how our mind is. We even look at the remedies against the usual belief about outer and inner phenomena. As we reach some kind of conviction, all we can see is direct experience. Then comes the next training called “resting meditation of a simple meditator.” The above instruction concerns analytical meditation, while the next instruction concerns resting meditation of direct perception.

What does the all-basis, the alaya, mean? We have the eight consciousnesses:¹² the five sensory consciousnesses of sight, hearing, smelling, tasting, and body sensation; the sixth mental consciousness, the seventh afflicted consciousness, and the eighth alaya consciousness. We do not “rest in the consciousnesses” because the consciousnesses are externally oriented. We don’t rest in the sixth mental consciousness which is thinking mind, engaged in thoughts of the past, present, and future. These six consciousnesses are sometimes present and sometimes not. For example, our eye consciousness will not be present or functioning when our eyes are closed or it is completely dark. Does this mean that when the consciousnesses are not present, we die or turn into a stone? No, because there is an ongoing sense of the present and a lucid knowing quality of mind. This knowing, or awareness, is the eighth alaya or all-ground consciousness. The alaya consciousness has the quality of being always present and the quality of knowing. The quality of knowing or luminosity (Tib. selwa) is always there whether we are awake or asleep or dreaming; it is a conscious quality that is never interrupted.

I once had an operation in which they gave me an anesthetic. I experienced the sensory consciousnesses all being interrupted and there was no physical sensation and at the same time there was this lucid quality which was not interrupted. I think this was the eighth consciousness and this is what we need to rest in.

There are two aspects to the eighth alaya consciousness: the consciousness aspect called the kunzhi namshe in Tibetan, and the wisdom aspect called the kunzhi yeshe. What is the difference between these two aspects? Even though the wisdom quality of the eighth consciousness is ongoing and unimpeded, we may not be aware of the emptiness of phenomena. Not realizing this characteristic of phenomena is called the consciousness or namshe aspect of the alaya. This ignorance forms the foundation for the other consciousnesses. However, with meditative training we see that even though there is no entity