His Eminence Prof. Samdhong Rinpoche gave commentarial teachings at Sera Je Lawa Khamtsen

His Eminence Prof. Samdhong Rinpoche gave commentarial teachings at Sera Je Lawa Khamtsen, on Nagarjuna’s “The Precious Garland”, an important text on the middle view

In the afternoon of December 10, 2014 His Eminence Prof. Samdhong Rinpoche arrived at Lawa Khamtsen, Sera Je Monastery. The general congregation of the ordained scholar-practitioners of Lawa Khamtsen (Lawa Section) welcomed Rinpoche with a long reception line-up, and invited Rinpoche into the main prayer hall, where they offered to Rinpoche an auspicious Mandala Offering, together with the three Represents (of enlightend body, speech and mind). Those attending the ceremony included the Representative Heads of the two local Tibetan settlements: Lugsung Samdupling and Dekyi Larsoling.

On the following day, i.e., December 11, 2014, His Eminence Prof. Samdhong Rinpoche commenced the spoken commetarial teachings on “The Precious Garland”. The teachings continued for the next seven days, with a morning session daily, an afternoon session on the sixth day, and two sessions on the last seventh day.

On the morning of December 19, 2014 the Organizers of the teachings offered to Rinpoche a tenshuk (A long-life request ceremony). Besides the vast congregation of monastic scholar-practitioners and Dharma aspirants from numerous countries, the dignitaries who attended the formal ceremony requesting His Eminence Prof. Samdhong Rinpoche to kindly live long included the Honorable Abbot of Sera Je and other staff members of the monastery, the Managing officials of Sera Lachi (The General Office of Sera), the Principal of Sera Je Secondary School, the Representatives of the local two Tibetan settlements, the President of the Co-operative Offices of the two settlements, and others.

In the morning of December 11, 2014, at Lawa Khamtsen, Sera Jhe Monastery, Prof. Samdhong Rinpoche gave teachings preliminaries to Nagarjuna’s THE PRECIOUS GARLAND.

On the need to make achieve the highest of spiritual goals, to draw essence out of this rebirth as a human life with its attributes of leisures and endowments, one needs to think on the great capabilities of this precious human life, the difficulty of acquiring it, and the easiness of its perishbility; generating of bodhicitta (altruistic enlightenment mind) and to achieve Buddhahood, with its attributes of spontaneous and unending benevolent deeds for others, is to draw the highest essence out of this life.

Rinpoche, thereafter, touched upon Nagarjuna’s biography, outlining the various traditional sources and the various modern scholars’ “historical” (factual) perspectives on Nagarjuna’s life account.

December 12, 2014
Prof. Samdhong Rinpoche continued the teachings on THE PRECIOUS GARLAND, a text on the middle view, at Lawa Khamtsen, Sera Je Monastery.

Beginning with advices on setting of motive in explaining and listening to the sublime teachings, Rinpoche touched upon the greatnesses of the teachings, in order to generate reverence to them.

After that, Rinpoche continued explaining from the remainder, from yesterday’s session, of the biographical details of Nagarjuna, in explaining the greatnesses of the author, to show the reliable origin of the teachings. Rinpoche then kindly bestowed the transmission-blessing up to conclusion of Chapter One of the text, the chapter on high rebirths and definite goodness (liberation and omniscient state) explained separately, following which Rinpoche explained the opening several verses.
December 13, 2014
Prof. Samdhong Rinpoche continued the explanatory commentarial teachings, at Lawa Khamtsen, Sera Je, on the precious garland.

After advising on the ways of drawing essence out of this human life, Rinpoche explained the verses in continuation from yesterday’s session. Greatly insightful explanations by Rinpoche covered: identifying “high status” (high rebirths) and “definite excellences” (liberation and Omniscience); the means of achieving the two are inclusive to faith and wisdom, in a summary; the difference between assuming and knowing; a faith devoid of wisdom becoming a blind faith, a wisdom devoid of faith becoming a defective (misdirected) wisdom; the importance of identifying well the object of negation, or the risk of falling into the extreme of nihilism negating as well the conventional-existence feasibility.

 In the context of the precious garland’s presentation of the path, Rinpoche then cited a commentarial excerpt from Jey Rinpoche Tsongkhapa’s Miscellenous Collected Works, and made the viewpoint that this appears to have been actually a commentarial summary by Tsongkhapa on THE PRECIOUS GARLAND’s presentation of the path into two: high status and definite excellences.

More into verses, Rinpoche explained the sixteen attributes, which are the causes for attaining high rebirths. When explaining the consequences of non-virtuous actions, Rinpoche pointed out in detail on wrong livelihood, and the way non-virtues arise.

December 14, 2014
This morning Prof. Samdhong Rinpoche continued teaching, at Sera Je Lawa Khamtse, THE PRECIOUS GARLAND.

Starting with the preliminary advices on setting an appropriate motive in receiving the teachings, by thinking on the great potentials of the present human life and the difficulty of attaining again such a precious human rebirth with its attributes of leisures and endowments, Rinpoche, prior to explaining the verses, advised the need to keep in one’s mind as the background understanding on the following important aspects of the middle view: not existent in the ultimate meaning (the ultimate mode of existence) does not mean absolutely non-existent; the manner how all phenomena exists nominally, which suffices as existing phenomena; the criteria of a valid basis for labelling, otherwise there would be the fallacy of there being no difference between labelling (imputing) as ‘snake’ to a snake’s body and to a motley-coloured rope; in essence, the dangers of falling into the two extremes (of permanence and of nihilism) if the object-of-negation is not identified properly; and others.

Rinpoche thereafter continued explaining word-by-word the verses of THE PRECIOUS GARLAND, pointing out: When the supposedly truly-existent “I” (ego), which is the object of clinging by the innate ego-grasping, is found to be non-existent, those who are unwise and infantile become frightened; how that fright arises from ego-grasping; the way of negating self, by some Buddhist tenets and the classical non-Buddhist tenets; the dependent-linked-arising nature of phenomena, in that they are mere-name, imputedly existent. Rinpoche explained in great detail, clarity and decisiveness these and other analyses into reality

December 11, 2014, at Lawa Khamtsen, Sera Jhe Monastery, Prof. Samdhong Rinpoche gave teachings preliminaries to Nagarjuna’s the precious garland.

On the need to make achieve the highest of spiritual goals, to draw essence out of this rebirth as a human life with its attributes of leisures and endowments, one needs to think on the great capabilities of this precious human life, the difficulty of acquiring it, and the easiness of its perishbility; generating of bodhicitta (altruistic enlightenment mind) and to achieve Buddhahood, with its attributes of spontaneous and unending benevolent deeds for others, is to draw the highest essence out of this life.

Rinpoche, thereafter, touched upon Nagarjuna’s biography, outlining the various traditional sources and the various modern scholars’ “historical” (factual) perspectives on Nagarjuna’s life account.

December 15, 2014
Prof. Samdhong Rinpoche continued teaching, at Sera Je Lawa Khamtsen, on THE PRECIOUS GARLAND.

Starting the session with advice on the importance of making this life essentially meaningful by utilizing the potentials of leisures and endowments with this human life in achieving the ultimate goal, Rinpoche explained the verses in continuation from yesterday, explaining word-by-word, and their purports.

Rinpoche taught the analogies in establishing emptiness through reasonings, covering these avenues:

Akin to lack of water upon mirage, there is not an ‘I” upon the aggregates; how such an ‘I’ supposedly appears as the apprehended object of the innate ego-grasping; if one gains the ascertained realization of the ‘I’ as mere-name, nominally existent, one can terminate one’s wandering in the Cycle (Samsara); attaining of Liberation when there is the correct view of realizing (1) non-inherent existence of self and phenomena in the ultimate reality, and (2) the nominal existence of all, a view free of the two extremes; the difference arises between the proponents of material existence ([inherent] existence of things) and The Middle View proponents because of the difference in the inner core thoughts; how those following the former, view the oneness of existence and inherent existence; the way of negating inherent existence of things; the inseparability of Samsara and Nirvana in the reality sphere; the mode of existence of all phenomena as not inherently existent but as mere-name and imputedly existent, dependently existing.

In the context of looking into these points, Rinpoche explained that if Nagarjuna had not written the texts on the middle view, elucidating correctly the thoughts of The Perfection of Wisdom Sutras by Buddha, it would be difficult for the future trainees (sentient beings subsequent to Nagarjuna’s time) to establish (posit) the feasibility of all phenomena’s dependent-arising, mere-name, nominal existence and their devoid of inherent existence.

At the conclusion of today’s teaching session Rinpoche advised the need to recall the kindness of Sera Monastery’s founder Jamchen Choejey, whose parinirvana anniversary is today

December 16, 2014
Prof. Samdhong Rinpoche continued teaching, at Sera Je Lawa Khamtsen, The Precious Garland.

Beginning the session with advice to reflect on impermanence of this human life, and thus to draw essential meanings out of it, while one has this life, Rinpoche continued word-by-word explanation of the verses.

In explaining the refutations of the classical non-Buddhist tenets’ assertions of an inherent existence, Rinpoche taught in great details and clarity the ways of negating (disproving) products (compound phenomena) as permanent, person as permanent, and inherent existence of compound phenomena, as asserted by those tenets.

In concluding today’s session, Rinpoche advised the congregation on today’s special occasion of Jey Tsongkhapa’s parinirvana anniversary the need to recollect the immense kindness of Jey Tsongkhapa, and do fervent supplications and prayers.

December 17, 2014
In the afternoon today Kyabjey Prof. Samdhong Rinpoche continued teaching on the precious garland, at Sera Je Lawa Khamtsen.

At the start of the session Rinpoche advised on, as the preliminary motive-setting instruction, the need to reflect on the awareness of the great potentials of this human life, and the difficulty of acquiring it, and to set one’s motive in listening to the sublime teachings in accordance with instructions from the Teachings on Stages of the Path to Enlightenment: listen to the sublime teachings through forsaking the three defects, as of an imperfect container.

Thereafter, while explaining every word of the verses in continuation from yesterday, Rinpoche explained the means of attaining high rebirths, and liberation and Omniscient state (definite excellences). In that context, Rinpoche elucidated with great clarity and decisiveness the verses concerning the presentation of the two selflessnesses, explaining, how through refuting inherent existence of person it is established that there is not a person existing from its own side upon either each of the elements, or upon the composite of the elements.

Likewise, the way of refuting inherent existence of the aggregates and so forth other phenomena; if they exist inherently, such mode of existence should be seen by the pristine wisdom in equipoise of a Superior (who has realized the profound emptiness), but it is not seen.

Towards the end of the session, Rinpoche gave guidances on the way of doing studies on the precious garland. In conclusion Rinpoche presented a concise summarization of the topics of the Chapter One, the chapter showing high rebirths and definite excellences.

December 18, 2014
Prof. Samdhong Rinpoche continued teaching on THE PRECIOUS GARLAND, at Lawa Khamtsen, Sera Je. With a session each in the morning and afternoon, today, Rinpoche began by advising on the need to train on Bodhisattva practices.

The explanatory spoken commentary on the text was not going to get completed this time in the scheduled duration, that is, by today, as regards Chapter Two onwards Rinpoche gave brief outline remarks on the verses while kindly bestowing the transmission-blessing, of the entire text in continuation from Chapter One, through a clear and moderately paced reading of the verses.

In Chapter Two, the chapter showing high status and definite excellences in a blended presentation, some key points Rinpoche outlined were: The difficulty of realizing the profound emptiness if one could not even realize a gross phenomenon, the body as unclean; the way of training on the perfections: generosity and so forth; the way of training on the four means of drawing in [the trainee sentient beings]; the ways of accomplishing the causes and results of high status (high rebirths); forsaking the causes of bad rebirths; meditation on ugliness of body; the ways of accomplishing the causes and results of definite excellences; bodhicitta (enlightenment mind), compassion, wisdom realizing emptiness; the specific uncommon causes of the noble marks and the noble exemplifications.

On Chapter Three, the chapter on gathering multitude [of causes for] enlightenment, Rinpoche outlined the feasibility of accumulating limitless collections of merits because of the limitless number of sentient beings; one must not become disheartened or lazy in accumulating the multitude of merits and causes for achieving omniscience; the methods of accumulating them; the king (for whom Nagarjuna wrote THE PRECIOUS GARLAND) could accumulate merits through the regular activities of running the kingdom; and so forth.

When bestowing the transmission blessing of Chapter Four, the chapter showing royal modes, Rinpoche pointed out that the verses therein instruct: in running of the kingdom the king must do so in accordance with Dharma, spirituality; the criteria and appointing of administration personnel; subdueing (‘defeating’) of the unruly persons (criminals, etc) should be done out of compassion, not by hatred and for material riches; the stages of the path to Liberation; the reasonings establishing the authenticity of the Great Vehicle as Buddha Words, taught by Buddha; if the king could not run the kingdom Dharmically, spiritualy, the king should rather give up the kingdom and get ordained; and so forth.

With Chapter Five, the chapter showing Bodhisattva practices, Rinpoche pointed out that the verses explain: The ethical precepts of both the ordained and lay; the presentation here of the afflictions (afflictive mental factors) being classified into 57 differs from the upper and lower Abhidharma scriptures’ listing of afflictions; the ten grounds (bhumis); the seven-limb practices which consist of the pivotal practices of purification and accumulation; the need to rely on the four sequential things for leading to definite excellences, and how in that context, with the reliance on Teacher/s, how one should devote to Teacher/s appropriately without lapses; and so forth.

At the end, Rinpoche gave an extensive guidance advice to the monastic scholars and practitioners.