Translating Texts and Teachings

From the text, Having Realized and Revealed How Things—I, Action, Object and Phenomena—Are Dependent Arising, (tenjung in Tibetan), Lama Tsongkhapa not only praised the Buddha, but by revealing that, numberless sentient beings have not only been freed from samsara but have become enlightened, are being enlightened and will be enlightened in the future. It is said there, how much world suffering there is, the root is ignorance—unseeing—and for anyone, by seeing that, the world suffering gets stopped, gets ceased. Therefore, Buddha has taught dependent arising—tenjung. It has a very important meaning. Ten, meaning “depending on,” eliminates eternalism, existence from its own side. Even one atom does not exist from its own side, at all. Then, because of that, jung—“arising”—eliminates nihilism. Hence all phenomena exist in mere name, merely labeled by the valid mind because there’s a valid base existing, and even that exists in mere name.

Lama Tsongkhapa said in the lamrim that on the valid basis, exaggeration occurs. By exaggerating good or bad and specially, by exaggerated good or bad, attachment and anger arises. The way these concepts hold their objects, as proved by logicians, make them wrong concepts because their objects do not exist according to what they believe and hold on to. So it clearly shows that we live our life in suffering, because we live life with attachment and anger, with concepts that hold objects that do not exist at all. All these concepts hold objects that do not exist at all. This means all these concepts are totally wrong because they are built on the basis of ignorance, holding I, action, object, phenomena as existing from their own side, which is totally non-existent. This proves ignorance is a totally wrong concept.

We sentient beings do not like suffering and want happiness. Hence we should recognize and realize that believing this ignorance—the root of samsara—is a totally hallucinated mind, a wrong concept. Not only should we realize this, we need to try to achieve special insight, a meditation on emptiness unified with shamatha. This is achieved by depending first on the perfect higher training of meditation—shamatha—and for that we need pure morality, the higher training of pure morality.

Therefore, the Middle Way devoid of eternalism and nihilism, taught by Buddha and especially propagated by Nagajuna and after that Chandrakirti, is here clearly explained by Lama Tsongkhapa. He explains very deeply, like the oceans, with a very clear, deep and wide view, what the middle view is. The root text was written by Chandrakirti, the great pandit from Nalanda and its commentary was made by Lama Tsongkhapa, in Clarifying the Intention.

In spite of how many degrees we receive from the most famous universities in the world, if we haven’t studied these teachings, not elaborately, not even middling and not even the essence, then we are totally ignorant, like a pig. We become like that. We live our life, not only from birth but from beginningless rebirths, only in hallucination, acting with body, speech and mind out of this ignorance, in a total hallucination, thinking things exist from their own side. We have suffered from beginningless rebirths, experiencing oceans of each of the six realms’ suffering, by not being enlightened in this subject. With the wrong concept, then again endlessly we suffer in samsara. Of course we don’t want that, so then we must study these subjects as much as we can. It is the most important thing, more than money or any worldly pleasure in the life. Please study with all the hardships.

If you are like a pig, if you are too ignorant of the Middle Way, the Madhyamaka view, how can you benefit others, let alone become liberated from the oceans of samsaric suffering? No way. No matter how much hardship you bear, it’s worthwhile to study. The more and more you study, the quicker it is to realize emptiness, the quicker to be free from samsara and quicker to achieve enlightenment. It’s quicker to be able to generate very strong compassion, great compassion for the sentient beings and then bodhicitta. Those two are the two wings to go to enlightenment, to go to buddhahood—the total cessation of obscurations and completion of all the realizations—the peerless happiness. The swans with two wings can cross the ocean, so like that, with these two wings—right view, the middle view and bodhicitta—on the basis of these, you can cross the oceans of samsaric suffering and go to enlightenment.

Through developing the higher training of wisdom we can achieve the right-seeing path where we have wisdom directly perceiving emptiness and then by developing that, it removes the obscurations that that path needs to remove, and by developing that path further, we purify the obscurations, removed by the path of meditation. After that comes no more learning, whereby we have totally ceased the seeds of delusion and karma. That’s how we become totally free from the oceans of sufferings of samsara, forever.

For everyone who reads this, most welcome to complete the works for self and for others, achieved only when you accomplish this. I hope this book, the translation of which was done by His Holiness’ translator, Geshe Thubten Jinpa, will open the mind of wisdom to all the suffering of obscured sentient beings.

My most dear, most kind, most precious, wish-fulfilling one,
A billion, zillion thanks for your willingness to translate Lama Tsongkhapa’s Lamrim Chenmo into German language, which doesn’t exist. That is so good, so worthwhile, a great purification for yourself, and you will collect extensive merits, especially if it is done with bodhicitta. So you should do it well with a group of people who have good knowledge of Dharma and German language.

The English translation of Lamrim Chenmo was done by different professors and I think there are still some words that need to be corrected.

As you know, the Buddha’s way of liberating sentient beings from the oceans of samsaric sufferings and bringing them to enlightenment is through the holy speech, so your translation into German language is to liberate numberless sentient beings from the oceans of samsaric suffering and bring them to enlightenment.

If everyone who reads your translation into German benefits, that means it benefits every single sentient being. So that means you are liberating every single ant in the universes, every single mosquito in the numberless universes, numberless slugs in the numberless universes and so forth, like that, every single hell being in numberless universes, who are suffering the most right now, the numberless hungry ghosts and all the rest.

You have to think like that, motivate like that. Think you are bringing them to enlightenment every time you begin to translate.

Thank you very much.

With much love and prayers ...

My very dear, very precious, very kind, wish-fulfilling one,

Billions and zillions of thanks to you for translating this text.

I wanted to mention that by you translating the Vajra Cutter Sutra, now many people use this and receive so much benefit. It plants the imprint to realize emptiness in their mind and that gives them the incredible opportunity to be free from hell, hungry ghost, animal, human, sura and asura suffering.

Not only that, the subtle obscurations will also cease, by realizing the wisdom directly perceiving emptiness. It is only then that we can achieve full enlightenment.

So it’s unbelievable, unbelievable, unbelievable, most unbelievable, the merits, the incredible benefits to the sentient beings, this is what they get, so you are giving that.

Now you are translating this new text, which will also be translated into different languages, especially Chinese. I can see many Chinese people will want to practice this also.

Thank you very much.

With much love and prayers ...

My dear one,
Regarding the word “mad” that you used to describe the elephant mind in the verses for encouragement, that is not the correct word to use.

Ordinary worldly people have what is commonly called a normal life, but there is some valid mind knowing what is harmful and what is helpful. There is some general knowledge of that.

There are also great yogis who behave as if they are totally crazy by acting totally opposite to ordinary people. They appear insane, but in reality it’s all done on the basis of realizations of guru devotion, renunciation, bodhicitta, and even the tantric generation stage (gross and subtle) and the completion stage, such as clear light and illusory body, and even higher than that, unification.

Before achieving enlightenment there’s conduct of the secret mantra. So, for some months or years, the yogi appears totally crazy, insane, to ordinary people. But that is a means just before achieving enlightenment.

Choden Rinpoche mentioned one practitioner who, just before achieving enlightenment, was a butcher and cut worms or animals. There was also someone in a monastery who built a two or three story house but in the ordinary view there was no particular purpose for that.

Another example is Tilopa, who was already enlightened when he ate a live fish. This happened when Naropa went to look for Tilopa. Or the great yogi of Mahakala, Sharaipa, who lived in Bodhgaya in the Mahakala cemetery where there is a monastery built now. During the day he was like a hunter who killed deer, but in reality he was liberating them, sending their consciousness to the pure land. It looked like nonvirtue in the three actions of body and the four actions of the speech; it looked as if he was engaging in negative karma but in reality he was bringing great benefit for sentient beings.

Anyway, “mad” is not the correct word to use. It should be translated like this:

If the elephant of the mind
Is fastened tightly with the rope of remembrance,
All fears will become non-existent
And all virtues will come to one’s hand.
     [A Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life, Ch. 5, v. 3]

This means all the happiness of this life and all the future lives, then ultimate happiness, liberation from the oceans of samsaric suffering and then great liberation, enlightenment. We don’t experience all this without a virtuous cause. That is why it says here that all virtues will come to one’s hand. Even this life’s happiness has to come from virtue. Happiness does not come from nonvirtue, which brings only suffering.

In the thirty-eighth chapter of the sutra known as Kon Tseg, Shakyamuni Buddha declared:

All phenomena like conditions
Extremely abide on the tip of wishes.
Whatever kind of prayer is made,
That kind of result will be received.

Keeping in mind what these masters have said, realize that your life is full of hope and that you can accomplish everything you wish.

Goodbye depression. HA HA.

Much love and prayers …

My very dear one,
Sorry it took time to write. I am happy you are at the Dharma center and helping to translate for Geshe-la. Thank you for reading the eight thousand stanzas [Prajnaparamita in 8,000 verses]. You might be one of the rare ones who read it. It is unbelievable. I have been collecting the benefits of the eight thousand stanzas, but have not finished. I have been writing the stanzas in gold, but I haven’t had time to write for a long time. The text will be put in the Maitreya statue, where everybody will see it and receive inspiration.

You should recite the praise of the names of Manjushri. It came out good to recite it every day if you can. So many people recite this every day in the Nyingma, Sakya, and Kagyu. This might help your translation and for you to learn Dharma. Memorization becomes easy. For example, the Sera Je ex-abbot, Geshe Donyo, who passed away recently, and Gen Drubthob, the ex-abbot of Gyume Tantric College, have unbelievable wisdom. Geshe Drubthob can memorize a long Tibetan page just by reciting it four times. It seems Tsen-la, the translator, the first nun at Kopan, who built the Kopan nunnery, asked them how they could do that, and Geshe Donyo said it was because of reciting the Manjushri prayer that he has a very good memory and is able to understand. They are learned. You will have the same result, and be able to learn Dharma well. For help with translating, it came out very good for the center.

One most beneficial thing for the center is Medicine Buddha puja. This came out very good for the center. If possible, do this every day, if not, do it once a week, if the center needs help. It helps anybody who recites it to have all success, including with Dharma practice and realizations. Anyone who recites Medicine Buddha’s name and mantra seven times receives all the prayers Medicine Buddha made in the past. Your wishes and prayers will be fulfilled. Medicine Buddha came out best according to my observation. People can write the Sanghata Sutra for individual benefit and for the center—writing it has unbelievable benefit. It’s also extremely good to do prostrations by reciting the Thirty-five Buddhas’ names. That is something most important that you can do every day. Many people do one hundred prostrations every morning.

I remember many years ago, Thubten Chodron, who has a center in Seattle, would do this every day, wherever she was. It is unbelievably good and so many eons of negative karma are purified. For example, reciting the name “Tathagata, the Glorious Flower” purifies one thousand eons of negative karma; it is really unbelievably powerful purification. If you do this well once, with the four remedial powers, and meditate, not just reading the name and prayers, it has the power to purify karma that ripens without interruption or a break, called Tsam Me Nga, from having killed your father, mother, an arhat, caused disunity in the Sangha, or caused blood to flow from a Buddha. If any of these karmas are committed, you are born in the lowest hot hell, with the heaviest suffering in samsara, for the longest time of one intermediate eon.

When reciting the Thirty-five Buddhas’ names, if you have the realization of bodhicitta and emptiness as a support, or if you have the clear light realization of tantra and are able to bring the winds into the central channel, of course the benefits increase. One mantra is then like one hundred million, and the benefits of purification increase. If you cannot do one hundred, do whatever you can. To get used to doing it every day is so important, because purifying negative karma makes life easy. Many obstacles are pacified, even for success in this life. However, if you are doing them for that purpose, the action doesn’t become Dharma, even though it has the effect. The suffering result can be purified and it helps you to achieve liberation from samsara and enlightenment, especially if it is done with a bodhicitta motivation. It helps you to achieve enlightenment quickly, the ultimate goal of life, which is to liberate numberless sentient beings from each realm from the ocean of samsaric suffering and bring them to enlightenment. You are able to do this quickly. By the way, it also becomes exercise, to be healthy. In the lamrim lineage, prostrations are very important and many lineage lamas do many hundreds of prostrations. That’s how they have great success in attaining the path and benefiting sentient beings.

Thank you from my whole heart for helping the center, helping sentient beings and helping me.

With much love and prayers...

My very dear one,
I am very happy to have you translating my teachings and Lama Yeshe’s into Vietnamese, also other Tibetan lamas’ teachings. I am very happy about this.

Please have a long life, because your life can benefit many sentient beings, especially the Vietnamese people. I have been waiting to write to you for a long time, mainly to thank you. I appreciate your knowledge, compassion, and service for most dear, precious sentient beings. Please continue.

With much love and prayer to you...