Verse 11 of the 37 Bodhisattva practises
All suffering comes from the wish for your own happiness. Perfect Buddhas are born from the thought to help others.Therefore, exchange your own happiness for the suffering of others This is the practice of a Bodhisattva.
Geshe Tenzin Zopa said:
Practice no: 11 is the practice of the exchanging of self forothers, the second method of cultivating bodhicitta.
The source of everlasting happiness comes through cherishing
others. It begins with shifts in one’s daily life, finding ways to bring
happiness to others, then dedicate strongly for their ultimate
welfare. Shantideva advised that if one wishes to be free from
samsara and its entire web of suffering, one must cherish others
over oneself. This is the practice of the Bodhisattva.
Babies and little children do things only for their own comfort
and happiness. “Babies “ here refers to ourselves, we adults.
Due to self interest, babies and children get easily upset when
their self-centredness is not attended to; whereas Bodhisattvas
and Buddha work effortlessly for others and are in a constant
state of bliss.
Before we are able to cultivate bodhicitta - before we can use
the 6 - cause –and-1 effect method (verse 10) or the exchanging
of self for others method stated in this verse - we need to
establish equanimity, an attitude of non-discrimination towards
everyone. In our normal life, we tend to cherish family & friends,
abandon enemies and ignore strangers. To actualize bodhicitta,
one needs to put an end to this discriminating mind. There is
no bodhicitta if one selects to help some beings and not help
other beings. Giving equal, unconditional love and help is the
foundation of all Bodhisattva practices.
The practice of tong len is part of the exchange of self for others
practice. In tong len, one uses meditation to visualize taking on
the sufferings of others and mentally transfer the happiness of
oneself to others; we take on their hardship and we give them
our virtues. All this is done during the tong len meditation.
Let us analyse: In one’s ordinary life, are we really able to
transfer our virtues, good karma health, prosperity to others? It
is impossible. Is it possible to wish that others’ sufferings ripen
upon oneself? Impossible. Only Buddhas and Arya bodhisattvas
can take the sufferings upon themselves. However, whether
one can derive this benefit, whether one can feel the effect of
having our afflictions removed in this way depends on whether
one has faith and conviction in the Buddha and whether one has
established the cause for this to happen. Hence the actions and
response of ordinary beings is important. Many actually through
ignorance, lack of wisdom, knowledge, reject such help and do
not adopt the teachings on karma etc.
This fact should inspire us to attain bodhicitta faster, to
accumulate the necessary extensive merit to become an Arya
Bodhisattva and best of all, to attain Buddhahood itself. For only
then can one truly benefit numberless beings.
This practice of taking (the suffering of others) and giving (our
happiness to others) is a very powerful method to develop
your heart. It is a mighty practice that requires some courage
and fearlessness. Whenever tong len practitioners get sick, they
immediately use their sickness as a tool of cultivation – how? By
visualizing the sufferings of sentient beings merging with their
sickness and then through the same meditation, sending out
good health and happiness to sentient beings. Very effective. If
oneself is sick or facing hardship, that is the best time to engage
in tong len practice. After all, one is already sick, so meditating on
taking on the sickness of others will not worsen one’s sickness.
This is an important point to reflect on - if one does not have the
karma to get more sick, one will not get more sick from doing
tong len. And if one has the karma to get more sick, it will not be
on account of doing tong len! Through logic and reasoning, one
can see why tong len should be engaged in, as the benefits for
others and for the practitioner are immense.
If we catch the flu after sitting next to someone with the flu, it
is because we have created the cause to catch the flu. After all,
there are many people who work in hospitals or visit hospitals
come into contact with germs of all sorts of infectious diseases
but they do not get infected. This is because those persons did
not create the karma to contract those particular diseases. For
us to avoid sickness – the ordinary way is to keep clean but
that alone will not determine whether sickness will befall you.
Ultimately, the way is to purify negative karma and avoid creating
new negative karma which will bring sickness, loss and all forms
of suffering. Tong len practice combines both purification and
generating merit.
Therefore, tong len practice is not about the literal exchanging
of your karma with that of sentient beings. Through one’s
meditation motivated by the wish to benefit others in priority
over oneself, this powerful mind is able to influence the
conditions of others – for example – a person is sick but through
the wholesome energy of your tong len practice directed at him,
that person suddenly meets the perfect doctor or encounters
the very medicine needed to heal him or ease his pain. You can
become instrumental in their finding what they need to alleviate
their suffering. Therefore, do not worry. Our virtuous practice
can reach them but their suffering and karma cannot afffect us.
However, if the above explanation does not totally remove the
fear within you to do tong len, then one can perform tong len in
another way. Think this way instead: Whenever one gets, let’s
say a stomach ache, think , “May this stomach ache that I’m
having be sufficient to remove all sufferings of living beings so
that they don’t have to endure hardship”. It helps. It brings
relief to others. It strengthens our mind at the same time.
Once in a while, even though we are in samsara, a feeling of
happiness comes over us for no apparent external cause. This
sensation may not last long but it is definitely felt and is one of
calm joy, especially when you think of your Guru who has been
in the past lives, present lives and future lives, who has given to
you the knowledge of the entire Path for you to attain liberation
and enlightenment. Do you want to know why this subtle
profound feeling of happiness arises? Because the deepest
part of you feels the protection, the unconditional love, the
unwavering security provided by the Guru, by the Triple Gem –
like an unexpected gift that has just been opened.
Upon feeling this, dedicate that blissful sensation to sentient
beings that they too may experience this and be released from
every form of suffering.
Our lives in samsara is like a big a roller coaster ride. Until we are
enlightened or at least become Arya beings, our lives go up and
down, are painful, uncertain. Tong len enables us to meaningfully
deal with life whether it presents positive circumstances or
negatives ones.
Shantideva gave his advice very plainly – he said that one
should regard all other beings like oneself and regard yourself
in the situation of others. Only then can we overthrow the
self-cherishing mind and cherish others. We need to realize
that sentient beings, no matter how pleasant, unpleasant
or insignificant they may appear to us, they are the root our
enlightenment because they permit us to practice cherishing
others, the core of bodhicitta practice.
If you want to practice very extensively, then you can practice
like this - whenever you experience mental happiness, mentally
offer that joy to others. If you get a windfall like a promotion or
a good meal, do your best to offer happiness to others in the
same way and dedicate it for all beings ot have everything they
need for happiness and enlightenment. However, we need to
apply wisdom even when being compassionate e.g. sometimes,
we are so anxious about bringing food to poor people, that we
forget to feed our own children on time! Or sometimes, we allow
ourselves to be abused or taken advantage of. Both compassion
and wisdom are needed.
In modern world relationships e.g. marriages, there are
situations where initial love declines to the point of divorce
and then the fight for possessions becomes very bitter. If one
party in this marriage is a practitioner of this 11th verse, the
even if the other party demands for the entire possessions from
the marriage, the practitioner would offer it up. However, one
needs the strength of mind to do this. It is a great opportunity to
transform the other party’s grasping mentality into the practice
of cherishing others. Again, one has to assess the circumstances
and apply wisdom.
Then there is the matter of organ donation: When you are ready
to do so without a mind of regret, then do it. If you have doubt,
don’t press yourself. Participating in this kind of generosity
requires the unshaken mind of giving , of helping others selflessly.
There is so much merit, much more merit than offering material
gifts. If somebody is dying from the lack of blood and if your
blood type is the only one that matches the patient, if you do
not give when you are in a position to do so, it is selfish.
The generosity of offering limbs and life is illustrated in the well
known account of one of the deeds of the Buddha in a past life,
when he was a prince in Nepal. While walking in jungle, he saw
a tigress with 4 cubs, tortured by hunger. The tigress was so
hungry that she was about to devour her cubs – seeking this, the
prince (Buddha) asked the tigress not to commit the killing of
her cubs and out of great compassion and bodhichitta, offered
his own flesh to her and her cubs. At first, the tigers did not dare
not come near. The bodhisattva prince urged them to consume
his flesh by saying, “I offer my entire body in order that you may
live and by the power of my prayers, by consuming my flesh, you
will not commit the negative karma of killing and I pray that this
be the connection for you to meet me in my next rebirth when
I come to reveal the Dharma and you 5 tigers will be my first
disciples”. With that, the tiger family consumed the bodhisattva
prince. The place where that happened is called Namo Buddha
in Nepal and is one of the holy Buddhist sites.
The importance of confidence and not having regret in giving up
one’s limbs is very important. This is shown in the story of the
great scholar Aryadeva. One day, during his journeys, he met
an old blind lady who asked for one of his to enable her to see.
Filled with compassion, Aryadeva did so and upon her receiving
his eyeball, she (a spirit in disguise) threw it to the ground and
smashed it to bits. Upon seeing this, Aryadeva felt strong regret
at giving her his eye as it was now wasted. Had Aryadeva not
regretted his loss, through the power of his practice, his eye
would have been restored through self generation but due
to his regret at his own virtue, he remained blind in one eye.
Hence, offering of limbs requires one to have stable bodhicitta,
confidence in giving up one’s limbs and never to regret the act
of giving.
My late master Geshe Lama Konchog was often approached
for interviews about his life, as he was known to be a great
mahasiddha and Kadampa (lojong) master who was un-attached
to worldly concerns, to himself, to this life. Geshe Lama Konchog
would repeat this answer each time he was asked, “I have
nothing to tell. I am in this samsaric world where there will
be good parts of one’s life and bad parts. If I speak of only the
good parts , there is danger of pride arising. If I speak of only
the bad parts, those who have faith in me will be disappointed.
So, the best is just to state facts. No is no greater story than
the story of the Buddha, of Milarepa. There is no need to know
who I am. The question is, have you practiced seriously? If you
want to know my story, then it is the fact that there are 2 dogs
in Kopan. One is called Gomchen and the other is Mahakala.
I am no different from these two dogs. “ Geshela was never
going to reveal his qualities and his response was indicative of a
successful practitioner .
Kadampa master Geshe Chekawa wisely advised that whatever
merit one has, one should offer that to all mother sentient
beings . Whatever suffering all the mother beings are enduring,
indirectly or directly, secretly take it upon oneself. Realise that
whatever the faults you see in others is a reflection of yourself.
Whatever good qualities you have are all due to others giving you
opportunities to practice virtues of every kind, even though you
may have acquired these qualities through enduring hardship.
Good qualities did not come about because you are smart or
great. Rather, it is because others made your virtues possible. In
this way, all living beings are extremely kind to you.
We should feel very fortunate to have now encountered the two
principal techniques to cultivating bodhicitta, including the tong
len practice.
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