Photo: Tenzin Choejor
His Holiness the Dalai Lama began a four day teaching in Manali in Himachal Pradesh from August 13. The first day began with a brief introduction to Buddhism wherein His Holiness acknowledged that there are many people who follow Buddhism in Kullu, Manali.
His Holiness said that one’s belief in any religion is their personal choice stating that he doesn’t claim that Buddhism is the best religion, nor does he force non-believers to follow any particular religion. His Holiness underlined the importance of following a religion based on one’s personal preference and inclination. His Holiness spoke about the teacher/student relationship and the importance of motivation from both sides.
The second day saw His Holiness teaching Nagarjuna’s Commentary on Generating the Awakening Mind of Bodhichitta. His Holiness began by reading the commentary and discussing it verse by verse.
His Holiness stated that “We often believe things exist from their own perspective, but when we investigate and try to find them based on our point of view, we are unable to pinpoint it. So, nothing exists objectively; it only exists by way of convention or designation. Even a moment of mind cannot be pinpointed.”
Photo: OHHDL
On Saturday the August 17, an estimated 8000 people gathered, despite inclement weather, to witness His Holiness give a Mahakarunika Lokeshvara empowerment. His Holiness stated that those with faith and conviction who were unable to attend the discourse in person could take the empowerment through a webcast, adding that there was a precedent in Buddha’s life. His Holiness then gave a short introductory talk once the preparations for the empowerment were complete.
Just prior to the empowerment, His Holiness spoke about the intentions involved in the act of generating Bodhichitta, stating that the primary intention of generating Bodhichitta should be to become a Buddha to benefit all sentient beings.
On the last day of the teaching, His Holiness first started with Geshe Langri Tangpa’s Eight Verses for Training the Mind. His Holiness spoke about the importance of respecting one another: even if people take advantage of us after we have been kind, we should not let our compassion fade. His Holiness underscored the importance of countering afflictive emotions, as they lead to ruin if left unchecked.
Volunteer handing out books to audiences on the second day of His Holiness teaching
Photo: OHHDL
His Holiness then began teaching on Gyelsay Togmey Sangpos 37 Practices of Bodhisattvas. His Holiness stated that the contents of the Three Baskets ( Tripitaka) of the Buddha , namely the Sutras, the Vinaya and Abhidharma, were meant to be practised. Based on an individual’s capacity the result increases from achieving the high status of good rebirth, to accomplishing liberation from the cycle of existence, to the highest achievement of working to benefit all sentient beings by attaining enlightenment.
His Holiness stated that the effectiveness of the Dharma depends on whether you manage to transform your mind, and pointed out that it is up to each individual person to bring about such a transformation.
His Holiness said he was happy to have been able to teach and expressed gratitude to the Hindi, English and Chinese interpreters.
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