ÉÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ» º º º BuddhaNet: Buddhist Info Network Buddha Dharma Education Assoc. º º Web Site: www.buddhanet.net PO Box K1020 Haymarket NSW 2000 º º Email: bdea@buddhanet.net Tel: +61-2-92123071 AUSTRALIA º º º ÈÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍͼ ------------------------------------- Purifying negativity and illness through Tomlim practice. - Ms Chris Roberts -------------------------------------------------- Abridgement of Unibuds Dhamma talk given on Friday, May 14th 1993 at the University of NSW. ----------- Good Evening to you all. In ancient India, philosophy and science never split. As a result Tibetan medicine incorporates aspects of karma and re-birth. Loving compassion is also a major part of Tibetan Buddhism. Buddha said you have to look within, but Western science looks at reality as an external experience. When you talk about mind, we believe you have to talk about the body. Tomlim practise is about taking and giving. Tibetans have a technique at looking at yourself and building on it. If a Lama suggested you (of student age) had 3 months to live, what would you do ? The usual answer to this question is "Go overseas". But if the Lama said you only had 2 weeks to live, how would you answer? Within this time frame, people normally say, "I'd probably visit my parents." However, if the Lama suggested that you only had 1 more day to live, the answer becomes quite interesting. Most people say,"I'd just pray!" Tonight I want to talk about love and compassion. I feel love is wanting to be happy, and for wanting others to be happy. However, Western love is normally about,"MY NEEDS" and,"MY ATTACHMENTS". Remember that song; "Baby can you see what you are doing to me?". Elvis Presley is actually singing about attachment and hurting, rather than love. Attachment is hanging on to things. In a relationship, sometimes you hang on to people because you don't feel good about yourself or you don't have high self-esteem. If you hang on to what we call "Love" in the West, it is often attachment. The more concretely we see things, the more attached we feel. If anything threatens our relationship, or we are afraid of losing it, then we get very upset! Tomlim practice is about learning to love yourself. The ego grasping mind that wants things and has lots of attachments, experiences greater unsatisfactoriness. Ego grasping makes you feel more unsure about yourself. If you are serious, you must practise detachment yourself. Be kind and nice to yourself. Learn to accept things. Look honestly at yourself and do not feel guilty. For example using visualisation, imagine a beautiful spring morning with clean fresh air and birds. Already you feel better. This is one way of developing your inner self. In the dhamma, the Buddha said that their are infinite ways and infinite beings. Don't give yourself a hard time. None of us are Buddhas, none of us are enlightened. Let us accept our karmas. Buddha taught us that we shouldn't hurt anybody. We can have goals and ambitions, but sometimes we get caught up with how everybody else might expect us to live. In the NY Wall Street stockmarket crash, I was amazed how many people jumped out of buildings. People obviously could only measure their worth in terms of money. They must have had such low self-esteem. In ancient India, Buddhists decided it was easier to control the mind than the external environment. But now is called the degenerate age. Look at how Western materialism has almost destroyed the planet. Degenerate illnesses coming from the degenerate age are through misunderstandings of reality. I went to the pub the other night with flashing lights. and poker machines and the DJ added more music. I couldn't talk to my friend it was so noisy and distracting. The proprietors probably believe that lots of noises and lights brings more happiness to people's minds. We in the West are so obsessed with sex and stimulation. Q1 Hasn't there always been illnesses ? A1 Yes but more illness and greater pollution has introduced an even greater range of illnesses than before. This is even wiping out animal species. Everything exists because it is caused to exist. The Dalai Lama taught; If you want peace,- you don't kill for it and you don't die for it. You find peace within yourself. Twenty to thirty years ago Westerners couldn't accept or understand the illness linkage between mind and body. For example visualize three people- a friend, a stranger, and an enemy. Analyse the difference between these three people. People change roles throughout your life as you know. Your friend may become a stranger to you, your enemy may become your friend, and the stranger may become your enemy! How does this suggest you should treat others always ? As your friend ? Or as your enemy or stranger ? Another meditation you can do is one to get rid of the ego grasping mind that we have. Visualize receiving black (taking another person's suffering), and white (giving love). Sometimes this is quite difficult. You have to practise it in stages. First try breathing in and taking in another's suffering through your central channel. Let this shatter your self-grasping mind that gets threatened when talking of death. The mind causes all problems and you can get rid of your negativities in this way. As you breathe out, direct your thoughts of white love and compassion to all living beings. Try this for five minutes now. You should come out of it feeling great inner peace. In an emptiness meditation, we think about an independent existence. Where do we exist ? From which point ? Our mind is a stream of impermanent thoughts. One thought comes from the thought before it. We exist in body and mind, but we have no focal point for existence. We always try to see ourselves as seperate and concrete, but we are not. The end result of this meditation should be to feel that you have given love and compassion to other living beings. A Lama once said,"If you can get rid of one negative habit in your lifetime you are improving." So do your best! ------------------- Miss Chris Roberts has been a Buddhist for 12 years, and is a teacher at the Australian Tibetan Institute of Medicine based in Sydney. The Institute was established in mid 1992. Abridgement of the Dhamma talk given on Friday, May 14th 1993 at the UNSW as reported by Mike Kiddle. Friday Dhamma Talks between 7pm - 8.30pm are conducted regularly by the Unibuds through out the year, and are open to all students and the general public. Talks are conducted through out the year, and are open to all students and the general public.