The Very Venerable Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche

The Seven Points Of Mind Training

Birmingham Karma Ling, December 2002

II. The Main Practice of Bodhicitta Training

Absolute Bodhichitta - Part 1

Now we come to the main practice. Within the seven points we have completed the teachings on the preliminaries. The second point is the main practice, which is training in Bodhicitta. There are two types of Bodhicitta, the relative Bodhicitta and the ultimate Bodhicitta.

Regard all Dharma as Dreams.

Firstly I will explain briefly the ultimate Bodhicitta. In the text it says, "regard all Dharmas as dreams". "Dharmas" means all phenomena. Generally when we say Dharma we mean what is practised, we practise the Dharma. Buddha, Dharma and Sangha. It doesn’t just mean that. At that time it means Dharma related to practice. This time "Dharma" means all, everything is called Dharma.

"All Dharmas are like dreams". Why are the Dharmas like a dream? It's because they are emptiness. How can we say that all Dharmas are emptiness? Generally all things arise with atoms and time. Einstein states that all things arise together with time, gravity, speed and atoms. All things are connected with time. Also the smallest of atoms are in all things. The Buddha has taught that time and atoms are not truly existent. Nowadays Stephen Hawkings, the scientist says that time is something that is made by the brain and not truly existent.

Also certain scientists say that atoms are not truly existent. For example if you put negative and positive together they disappear. Some scientist's say that all phenomena are projected from the brain, like a projector projects an image onto a screen. I'm not able to explain fully about emptiness and the way mind is, how we practice with emptiness according to the way Buddha taught, as there is not enough time. Instead I will give an example using the scientist's view.

The Buddha taught about the non-existence of time and atoms and it's similar to what some scientists say. The scientific understanding is limited and they cannot fully comprehend the emptiness. Why is this? It's because they have dualism. If one has a dualistic way of seeing things then one cannot understand emptiness completely, but they will have some understanding of emptiness and that will be beneficial. I have benefited from the scientific view.

Now I will give you an example like that taught by the Buddha. The example is that of a dream. Time doesn't exist, atoms don't exist everything is emptiness, there is nothing that is truly existent. There is nothing. Though there is nothing, there is a table here isn't there? If I want to drink water there and if I drink it, it tastes nice. How can this be? If I don't drink water I'll be thirsty. Why is this? This is what we call illusion, a projection. What is projection? Our projection is that we misperceive what does not exist as existing. That is what is called projection. Nothing exists but it appears to have existence, appears to be real.

What did the Buddha teach? Emptiness, empti-ness. He said two words. In Tibetan language Tongpa-nyi. In normal everyday Tibetan conversation the word nyi doesn't have any particular meaning. But the Buddha didn't just say empty, Tongpa. He said Tongpa-nyi, Empti-ness. The word Tongpa in Tibetan means empty, nothing at all. The nyi word gives the meaning of "is" in the sense of it is emptiness. Also Nyi has the meaning that anything can arise and appear. So then it's not absence or nothingness we are meaning here.

When we say emptiness we mean that anything can come from or arise from emptiness. If there is no emptiness then it must be real. If it is really, truly existing then one has to have permanence, a single thing and being free. But it can't happen like that. Permanence cannot be, there is nothing permanent. If things were permanent then nothing could arise. The six realms of beings could not arise. (Rinpoche drinks some water) I could not drink anything. Because of emptiness I can perceive the water. I can drink the water and satisfy my thirst. This is all emptiness.

So what is this emptiness like? It is said to be like a dream. For example, in a dream a person wins £1,000,000. Now some people would have a great grasping for this money and be very attached to the money. He would be so happy that even if he were to wake up from the dream he would still feel a little bit happy.

If suddenly, in the dream a thief came along and stole all of the money then the person would have so much suffering. You would be so upset that you might cry, and after waking up you would find your pillow wet from the tears.

Now I'm going to ask you a question. In the dream is the £1,000,000 real or not?

(Audience responds " It's an illusion. it seems real in the dream").

Ok, so if it appears real in the dream can it truly become real in the waking life? If it appears to be real but is not, then this is what we call illusion. So what that lady said is true, it appears real in the dream but is not in fact real. In the dream when we think that we have £1,000,000 really we don't have even 1p. Despite not having anything in the dream it appears as if we have. In the dream it appears to be true.

Even though in the dream the money doesn't truly exist, we feel joy when we feel we have it and sadness when we feel we have lost it. In the dream we can experience joy and sadness, likewise it is said to be the same with the phenomena we experience. Now, it is dream-like. So this cup is like a dream, the water within is like a dream. The drinker of the water, myself, is also like a dream. The pleasant taste of the water is like a dream. The benefit it brings to my stomach is also like a dream. It is all just like a dream.

The Buddha said that dream is like illusion on illusion. Double illusion. The dream phenomena and the normal phenomena follow the same rules, within the dream we take phenomena to be real. For example when we are dreaming we are asleep, now when we are awake we have the sleep of ignorance. In the dream we perceive various phenomena and in the waking state we also perceive various phenomena.

So, I'm going to ask you another question. When you are in the Dream State and you experience problems, suffering, or fear. At that time without waking up, what method could you use to pacify your difficulties or fears? What do you think?

Audience answers, To recognise one is actually dreaming. To say mantras to make things go away.

Sometimes when you say mantras in the dream the demons get bigger and bigger!

Ok, I'll tell you. That man was right. The method is to recognise that one is dreaming within the dream. That is the best method. If you recognise you are dreaming in the dream then you can do whatever you want within the dream. For example one could jump off of a 100-storey building and because you know it's just a dream you wouldn't break your legs. If you jumped into the ocean you wouldn't drown. If you walked into a blazing fire you wouldn't be burnt. Why is this? It's because if you know it's all just a dream then you can do anything you want.

Likewise if we recognise that all phenomena in the waking state are based on emptiness then we can have power or freedom over appearances. Firstly one's grasping would be diminished, gradually getting less and less. Then one's mind becomes more open and gradually you begin to see that all phenomena are dream-like and one really perceives them to be so. After you have understood that then one cannot be hurt by fire. Milarepa wasn't harmed by fire. He could walk unobstructed through rocks. If he ate poison it didn't harm him.

The reason for this is that the fire of emptiness cannot burn the body of emptiness. We can also become like this and have this experience. This is because all appearances are not, ultimately, real. They are projections from our mind. If we understand that our mind is the nature of emptiness then we can change the phenomena. Then one's wisdom, compassion and loving kindness become very vast.

The understanding of emptiness is the cause for all of the Buddha's omniscience.

Now, we don't understand emptiness and we take things to have real existence. This makes our mind smaller and smaller. We don't know if we are going to die tonight or not. So if you meditate on emptiness you won't go crazy in any way. You will become omniscient.

This won't happen immediately, but rather gradually over time. If after hearing a little bit about emptiness from me and thinking you understand it, you then go out onto the road and go in front of a car you will be killed. You have to have a gradual understanding of emptiness through progressive meditation. This is the explanation for "see all Dharmas as dream-like".