LOVE LEVEL 2 Exchanging Self and Others SCRIPTURAL SOURCES DEEPEN YOUR UNDERSTANDING
Everyone is equal in wanting happiness MASTER SHANTIDEVA (687-763) Bodhisattvacharyavatara, Guide to the Bodhisattva s Way of Life PABONGKA RINPOCHE (1878 1941) Liberation in Our Hands Given the fact that both myself And others are exactly the same in wanting happiness, What difference could there ever be Between us, what reason that I work Only for happiness for myself? Given the fact that both myself And others are exactly the same in not wanting pain, What difference could there ever be Between us, what reason that I protect myself And not all others? 1 They [sentient beings] are alike in that they are subject to the same desperate conditions of samsara [the cycle of suffering]; They are also alike in their desire to find happiness and escape from suffering. No one who singles out and excludes certain individuals from the general category of all sentient beings and then refuses to feel any concern for them will ever succeed in generating true enlightenment mind. 2
MASTER SHANTIDEVA Bodhisattvacharyavatara, Guide to the Bodhisattva s Way of Life Happiness comes from taking care of others The total amount of happiness That exists in the world has come from Wanting to make others happy. The total amount of suffering That exists in the world has come from Wanting to make yourself happy. 3 * * * If you fail to practice perfectly This exchange of your own happiness With the suffering of others, You will never reach that enlightenment, And even here in the cycle of life There is no happiness. 4 O my mind, you have wasted Countless eons wanting to do Only whatever would serve yourself; But with all that exhausting effort All that you ve been able to gain Is nothing but suffering for yourself. 5
MASTER SHANTIDEVA Bodhisattvacharyavatara, Guide to the Bodhisattva s Way of Life Forget the goals of the world beyond; Even in this life none of the things You hope to achieve will come about: [If you don t put others first] Those whose duty it is to serve you Will do none of their work, and those Masters you serve will never pay. 6 * * * All that time I made myself unhappy, Trying to make myself happy. All this time I ll watch out for others, And finally watch out for myself. 7 Nothing works without putting others first
MASTER SHANTIDEVA Bodhisattvacharyavatara, Guide to the Bodhisattva s Way of Life Taking care of others is the best protection Anyone who really wants To quickly reach some shelter for Themselves and every other being Must exchange themselves and others. 8 * * * What need is there for many words? The children of the world Work for their own sake; The able Buddhas do their labor For the sake of others. Come and see the difference. 9 * * * Thinking of yourself and saying, If I give, what will I have for me? Is nothing but demonic. To think of others and to say, If I use this for myself, What will I give? is Angel Dharma. 10
How to Practice Exchanging Self and Others MASTER SHANTIDEVA Bodhisattvacharyavatara, Guide to the Bodhisattva s Way of Life From the very beginning exert yourself In the practice of treating others And yourself the same. When the happiness and the sufferings Are the same, then you will care for all Just as you do yourself. 11
LOBSANG CHUKYI GYELTSEN (1570-1662) De Lam, The Path to Bliss Now turn your thoughts to your own mind, and examine it. Think to yourself, Who is it that I cherish myself or others? And who is it that I ignore? You will find that feelings of cherishing yourself, and ignoring others, automatically rise up in your mind. At this point you should think to yourself as follows. It s not right that I cherish myself, and ignore others; for both I and everyone else are completely equal, in wanting happiness and not wanting suffering. And so I must cherish others just as I cherish myself. When I know that others cherish me, I feel a sense of joy. Now, when they know that I cherish them, then others will feel the same joy. And that s not all. For time with no beginning here in the cycle of pain, I have cherished only myself, seeking the best of things only for myself. But doing so hasn t accomplished anything for me or for others. On the contrary; it has forced us to undergo an endless variety of sufferings. Now I realize that taking care only of myself is the source of all the different troubles of life: the source for the cycle of pain in general, and for the sufferings of the three lower realms, and for everything of the like. Now then I will never allow any new thoughts of looking out for myself to grow in my heart; and I will put an end to any such thoughts that may have grown there before. Looking out for others, on the other hand, is the source of every good quality that a person can have. And so now I will see that those thoughts of looking out for others which have not yet grown in my heart do; and those which have already grown there increase, higher and higher. 12
PABONGKA RINPOCHE The Key that Unlocks the Door to the Noble Path A beautiful new habit People who are trying to practice the greater way should set aside some regular periods of time to consider how harmful it is to concentrate on your own welfare, and how much good can come from concentrating on the welfare of others. Eventually these thoughts can become habitual; nothing that you ever do without them will ever turn to a path that leads you anywhere. 13
Scriptural Sources 1 Master Shantideva (687-763), Bodhisattvacharyavatara, Guide to the Bodhisattva s Way of Life, Verse 95-96. Translated by Lama Christie McNally. See also Asian Classics Institute, In-Depth Course III, Exploring the Border Between You and Me, Reading Two, pp. 4-5 2 Pabongka Rinpoche (1878-1941), Liberation in Our Hands: Volume III. Translated by Sermey Khensur Lobsang Tharchin and Artemis B. Engle. Mahayana Sutra and Tantra Press, 1990, p. 129 3 Way of Life. Translated by Geshe Michael Roach. See Asian Classics Institute, Course XI, Guide to the Bodhisattva s Way of Life: Part II, Reading Nine, p. 189 4 Way of Life. Translated by Geshe Michael Roach. See Asian Classics Institute, Course XI, Guide to the Bodhisattva s Way of Life: Part II, Reading Ten, p. 194 5 Way of Life, Verse 155. Translated by Lama Christie McNally. See also Asian Classics Institute, In-Depth Course III, Exploring the Border Between You and Me, Reading Eight, p. 15 6 Way of Life. Translated by Geshe Michael Roach. See Asian Classics Institute, Course XI, Guide to the Bodhisattva s Way of Life: Part II, Reading Ten, p. 195 7 Way of Life, Verse 173. Translated by Lama Christie McNally. See also Asian Classics Institute, In-Depth Course III, Exploring the Border Between You and Me, Reading Eight, p. 13 8 Way of Life. Translated by Lama Christie McNally. See Asian Classics Institute, In-Depth Course III, Reading Five, p. 3 9 Way of Life. Translated by Geshe Michael Roach. See Asian Classics Institute, Course X, Guide to the Bodhisattva s Way of Life: Part II, Reading Nine, p. 189 10 Way of Life. Translated by Geshe Michael Roach. See Asian Classics Institute, Course X, Guide to the Bodhisattva s Way of Life: Part II, Reading Nine, p. 188 11 Way of Life, Verse 90. Translated by Lama Christie McNally. See also Asian Classics Institute, In-Depth Course III, Exploring the Border Between You and Me, Reading One, p. 5
12 Lobsang Chukyi Gyeltsen (1570-1662), De Lam, The Path to Bliss. Translated by Geshe Michael Roach. See Diamond Mountain Advanced Course III, Reading One: Who Is It That I Cherish? pp. 17-18 13 Pabongka Rinpoche, The Key that Unlocks the Door to the Noble Path. See The Principal Teachings of Buddhism. Translated by Geshe Lobsang Tharchin with Geshe Michael Roach. Mahayana Sutra and Tantra Press, 1998, p. 35