{"id":16079,"date":"2025-08-17T14:59:40","date_gmt":"2025-08-17T13:59:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sangye.it\/dalailamanews\/?p=16079"},"modified":"2025-08-18T15:04:48","modified_gmt":"2025-08-18T14:04:48","slug":"eight-verses-on-training-the-mind-the-four-mindfulnesses","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sangye.it\/dalailamanews\/?p=16079","title":{"rendered":"Eight Verses on Training the Mind & the Four Mindfulnesses"},"content":{"rendered":"
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A view from the stage during His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s teaching at the Kalachakra Teaching Ground in Leh, Ladakh, India on August 16, 2025. Photo by Tenzin Choejor<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

August 16, 2025. Leh, Ladakh, India – This morning His Holiness the Dalai Lama drove from his residence at the Shewatsel Phodrang to the pavilion at the other end of the teaching ground where he has given the Kalachakra Empowerment twice in the past. The ground was packed with an estimated 50,000 people. Children were debating in front of the stage as His Holiness arrived.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Prayers that were said after he had taken his seat included the \u2018Prayer of the Three Continuums\u2019, the \u2018Heart Sutra\u2019 and the following aspiration: \u2018By whatever merit I may gain by listening to the teachings, May I become a Buddha to benefit all sentient beings\u2019. Tea and sweet rice were distributed and a short mandala offering was made.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

His Holiness began by recalling that he lost his own country, Tibet, but came into exile in India. Because he has since lived in the Himalayan Region, it\u2019s a place close to his heart. He noted that the people of the region have a special link to Avalokiteshvara. He spoke of leaving the Norbulingka Palace, crossing the Kyichu river and ascending the pass out of the valley. I felt sad to be leaving but reflected that we are all the same as human beings. We all want to be happy and not to suffer. I felt that even if I had to go into exile, I\u2019d still be able to share the teachings with others.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWherever I go in the Himalayan Region I find people to be faithful and devout\u2014dedicated to spiritual practice. Although Tibetans have faced great difficulties and Chinese restrictions have become ever tighter, the peoples of the Himalayan Region have been our friends.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAs someone who has the blessings of Avalokitesvara and who cultivates bodhichitta and the correct view, I have been able to generate the awakening mind and insight into emptiness. This is something we all can do. We can develop these practices with enthusiasm. My main advice is to constantly remind yourselves of the awakening mind of bodhichitta and the view of emptiness. I do this myself every morning as soon as I wake up and I remain in meditation for some time on these principles. We\u2019re talking about attaining enlightenment, the word for which in Tibetan is \u2018jang-chub\u2019. It consists of two syllables. The first, \u2018jang\u2019. means overcoming all faults and shortcomings, while \u2018chub\u2019 denotes becoming replete with every excellent attribute that can be attained.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cPeople are suffering all over the world. Regardless of whether we follow a religious practice or not, everybody wants to be happy and nobody wants to suffer. The root of suffering is two-fold: having a self-centred, self-cherishing attitude and misconceiving things as being independently existent. When I wake in the morning, I generate the awakening mind, the aspiration for enlightenment and by reflecting on certain lines from Chandrakirti\u2019s \u2018Entering into the Middle Way\u2019, I meditate on emptiness. These two principles, the awakening mind and emptiness, are the core of the Buddha\u2019s teaching.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cNot so long ago I had a vision of the Buddha before me. He looked up, saw me and beckoned me to him. He said a few words that invoked bodhichitta and emptiness, which made me very happy.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAs followers of the Buddha we should make cultivating the awakening mind and the view of emptiness our main practice. As devoted disciples you should remind yourselves of this on a day-to-day basis.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

His Holiness remarked that yesterday was Indian Independence Day. He expressed his admiration for India, suggesting that those of us who live here should be delighted at the freedom we enjoy here. We have the opportunity to make our lives meaningful, he added, by doing what we can to help other sentient beings. He noted that India is a land where many religious traditions flourish. It\u2019s a place where harmony prevails. The essence of religious practice is to be kind and non-violent, doing no harm to others. Therefore, India should do what it can to establish peace in the world.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cA huge number of people have gathered here today,\u201d His Holiness observed, \u201cand I\u2019d like to thank you all for coming. On my part, I was born near Kumbum in north-east Tibet but moved to Lhasa. I studied Buddhist philosophy with my tutors, which opened my eyes. I learned that everything in the world is like an illusion. Things appear to exist in a certain way, but that isn\u2019t actually how they exist. I feel that I have made my life meaningful and what I\u2019m saying to you is based on my own experience. Please keep in mind the importance of being warm-hearted and helping others.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

His Holiness turned to the \u2018Eight Verses on Training the Mind\u201d and read out the fourth verse: \u2018When I see ill-natured people, overwhelmed by wrong deeds and pain, may I cherish them as something rare, as though I had found a treasure-trove.\u2019 Gesh\u00e9 Langri Thangpa\u2019s advice is that we should cherish other beings, even though they may be ill-natured, when we see them suffer.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The next verses say: \u2018When someone out of envy does me wrong by insulting me and the like, may I accept defeat and offer the victory to them. Even if someone whom I have helped and in whom I have placed my hopes does great wrong by harming me, may I see them as an excellent spiritual friend.\u2019 His Holiness clarified: \u201cWhen other people criticize you, instead of being angry with them, you should check whether their criticism is valid. Check whether you have these faults or not. If you do, be grateful to them for pointing them out. Consider their criticism to be spiritual instruction.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The seventh verse reads: \u2018In brief, directly or indirectly, may I give all help and joy to my mothers, and may I take all their harm and pain secretly and quietly upon myself.\u2019<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The final verse\u2014\u2018May none of this ever be sullied by thoughts of the eight worldly concerns. May I see all things as illusions and, without attachment, gain freedom from bondage.\u2019 His Holiness commented that the suffering we encounter in our lives is a result of our misconceptions. However, by seeing all things as illusions we can imagine our delusions dissolving into emptiness.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Next, His Holiness read through the \u2018Song of the Four Mindfulnesses\u2019. He listed the four mindfulnessess: mindfulness of the teacher, mindfulness of the altruistic aspiration to highest enlightenment, mindfulness of the body as a divine body and mindfulness of the view of emptiness.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

In connection with the second mindfulness, he said we should understand that we face suffering because of our own unruly minds and the mental afflictions to which they give rise. We gain relief by reminding ourselves that our fathers and mothers, who protected us with kindness, are also suffering and bereft of happiness. \u2018Forsaking desire and hatred, meditate on endearment and compassion, and, not letting your mind stray, place it within compassion.\u2019 His Holiness declared that he consistently puts what this text advises into practice.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

With regard to the fourth mindfulness\u2014mindfulness of the view of emptiness\u2014he said we need to understand that things appear to us as if they have some objective, independent existence, but they do not actually exist that way.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIn Tibet,\u201d His Holiness continued, \u201cwe integrate the practice of Sutra with Tantra. In tantra we meditate on deity yoga, visualizing our body transformed into that of a deity. We also learn about the varying degrees of subtlety within our minds. We go beyond ordinary perception, which is based a coarse level of consciousness, to access and develop our more subtle mind\u2014the luminous mind of clear light. This is the mind we employ to experience emptiness.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe Buddhist tradition we preserved in Tibet was unique from a psychological point of view. In the practice of Highest Yoga Tantra we try to identify and use our subtle consciousness. Other traditions do not explain how to do this. Like them we cultivate the awakening mind and view of emptiness, but only in tantra do we cultivate the subtle and innate mind of clear light, transforming it into the path to enlightenment.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIf we can do that, the coarser levels of mind will subside and we can use the subtle mind to realize emptiness. This is something extraordinarily profound.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m someone who was born in Amdo, who came to Lhasa and received teachings from my tutors. In addition to studying, I meditated on what I\u2019d learned, so I was able to gain experience on the teachings.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been able to come to this part of the Himalayan Region on this occasion and have been able to share the teachings with you who follow the same tradition as we do in Tibet. There have been many great masters in Tibet, extraordinary adepts\u2014practise well and you may be able to become like them.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe have an opportunity here and now to develop the awakening mind of bodhichitta and it would be good to do so. Think of becoming a Buddha for the sake of all sentient beings across the expanse of space. Please recite these lines after me:<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

I seek refuge in the Three Jewels;
\nEach and every wrongdoing I confess.
\nI rejoice in the virtues of all beings.
\nI take to heart the state of Buddhahood.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/em><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

I go for refuge until I am enlightened
\nTo the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Supreme Assembly,
\nIn order to fulfil the aims of myself and others
\nI develop the awakening mind.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/em><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Having developed the aspiration for highest enlightenment,
\nI invite all sentient beings as my guests,
\nI shall enact the delightful supreme enlightening practices.
\nMay I become a Buddha to benefit all sentient beings.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/em><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

His Holiness remarked that he had been able to give teachings about two texts of which he had received the transmission, as well as leading the ceremony for cultivating bodhichitta for which he has received the blessings that come from the lineage of lamas. He then gave an oral transmission of the mantras of Buddha Shakyamuni, Arya Tara, the Medicine Buddha, Manjushri, the Vajraguru, J\u00e9 Tsongkhapa and the Mig-tse-ma praise.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The event concluded with a thanksgiving mandala being offered to His Holiness and recitations of the \u2018Prayer of the Words of Truth\u2019 and the \u2018King of Prayers\u2019.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Smiling and waving, His Holiness saluted the gathering and returned to his residence.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.dalailama.com\/news\/eight-verses-on-training-the-mind-the-four-mindfulnesses<\/a> <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

August 16, 2025. Leh, Ladakh, India – This morning His Holiness the Dalai Lama drove from his residence at the Shewatsel Phodrang to the pavilion at the other end of the teaching ground where he has given the Kalachakra Empowerment twice in the past. The ground was packed with an estimated 50,000 people. Children were […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[3],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sangye.it\/dalailamanews\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16079"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sangye.it\/dalailamanews\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sangye.it\/dalailamanews\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sangye.it\/dalailamanews\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sangye.it\/dalailamanews\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=16079"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.sangye.it\/dalailamanews\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16079\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16081,"href":"https:\/\/www.sangye.it\/dalailamanews\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16079\/revisions\/16081"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sangye.it\/dalailamanews\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=16079"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sangye.it\/dalailamanews\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=16079"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sangye.it\/dalailamanews\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=16079"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}