KHENPO'S BLOG

The way is to recognize clearly the cause of one's suffering in countless lifetimes is selfishness. That includes suffering of death in this life as well as innumerable such suffering over previous lifetimes. In the context of relative truth, selfishness is a mistaken concept; in the ultimate truth, there is neither self nor life or death. Therefore, we must resolutely put an end to all those notions born of selfishness, such as "I want", "I hate", "I like", "I ..." and so forth.

~Depicted from THE HANDBOOKS' FOR LIFE JOURNEY - On Death And Rebirth-Key Points for Practicing Bodhicitta on Deathbed

It is clearly stated in The Way of the Bodhisattva that a moment of fury or hate is capable of destroying completely most of the virtuous roots accumulated over innumerable ages, just as a moment of compassion or bodhicitta can accumulate inconceivable merit.

~Depicted from THE HANDBOOK'S FOR LIFE JOURNEY - On The Three Poisons-How to Confront Anger

Our revered master H. H. Jigme Phuntsok Rinpoche chose to go to Amitabha's pure land. Naturally, as followers, we should do likewise. If Pure Land practice has been undertaken on a regular basis, we will know what direction to take when facing death; without any preparation in advance when alive, we are likely to panic and not know what course to follow at the moment of death. Therefore, we should never underestimate the importance of both the practice and the pith instruction in end-of-life teachings.the 

~Depicted from THE HANDBOOK FOR LIFE'S JOURNEY - On Death And Rebirth-Key Points for Practicing Bodhicitta on Deathbed

About the powers of the four different types of karma, only the omniscient Buddha knows. Ordinary people or non-Buddhist practitioners possessing some psychic powers and even arhats would not know their intricate workings thoroughly. During the time of the Buddha, there were many non-Buddhist practitioners in India who, with their clairvoyance, saw lifelong virtuous people find rebirth in the hell, hungry ghost, or animal realm instead. They questioned, “If cause and effect was truly infallible, why would virtuous people not end up well?” Hence, they viewed the idea of cause and effect as pure nonsense.

~Depicted from THE RIGHT VIEW - On Cause and Effect

How did the concept of the Three Dharma Seals originate? According to the sutras, when Sakyamuni Buddha was about to enter parinirvana, a disciple asked the Buddha, “If a non- Buddhist or some other person comes along after you are gone to give teachings and proclaims that to be the Dharma, how should we discern if it is the true Dharma?” The Buddha replied, “After I am gone, any belief or teaching which incorporates the Three Dharma Seals is the true Dharma; any belief or teaching which not only excludes but also refutes the Three Dharma Seals is not the true Dharma.”

~Depicted from THE FOUR SEALS OF DHARMA - SUMMATION

We have mentioned many times before that renunciation and bodhicitta are the basis of Vajrayana practice. Why is it necessary to reiterate this point here? Because they are the prerequisite a practitioner must have; without renunciation and bodhicitta, no benefit is to be derived from undertaking even the very sacred Vajrayana tantras such as Dzogchen—the Great Perfection. Only with renunciation and bodhicitta as a foundation can one formally enter Vajrayana practice.

~Depicted from GATEWAY TO VAJRAYANA PATH - Entering the Vajrayana Path

In our innumerable past lives, had we ever committed this type of immutable karma? The answer is yes. Therefore, we can be as virtuous as we would like in this life, retribution may still await us if we cannot purify all our negative karma of the past. Once this type of karma matures, there is no escape but to bear its effect albeit temporarily. Does this mean that virtuous karma we have accumulated in this lifetime will go to waste? It certainly won’t. They also bear their own fruit. However, if virtuous karma is not powerful enough and ripens slowly, it is possible that we may have to suffer first before enjoying any reward.

~Depicted from THE RIGHT VIEW - On Cause and Effect

When facing death, all the worldly wealth, knowledge, experience and so forth are rendered useless. Without prior training in preparation for one’s mortality, every person, however prominent his or her status in life is, will panic in the face of death. Many people become extremely pessimistic and despaired, turning gray-faced and gaunt in no time, after being diagnosed with advanced cancer and given the verdict of death by the doctors. Very often their fear is more detrimental to their condition than cancer itself.

~Depicted from THE HANDDBOOK'S FOR LIFE JOURNEY - On Death And Rebirth-How to Face Death

In the Samyuktagama Sutra, it is said:

When desire is exhausted, anger is exhausted, delusion is ex- hausted, and all afflictions are exhausted — this is called nirvana.

What is nirvana? Liberation is nirvana. From the standpoint of Mahayana Buddhism, the three bodies of an enlightened being – dharmakaya, sambhogakaya, nirmanakaya – and the five wisdoms are called nirvana.

~Depicted from THE FOUR SEALS OF DHARMA - Nirvana Is True Peace