Please listen to the teachings, having first developed a pure motivation of the mind of awakening – bodhicitta. Today I don’t have a text that I’m using as a basis for my teaching. I just want to give you some points of advice. The other day somebody here asked a very good question and in order to help that person, and for people who have the same sort of question,  I would like to expand a little on my reply. The question was, “If there’s no ‘self’ and no ‘other,’ then there’s no object of refuge. So why do we go for refuge?” I was happy when my Dharma friend asked that particular question because in order for us to receive and be satisfied by the blessings of the Dharma, we have to get rid of all our doubts. These doubts prevent us from receiving the blessings of the Dharma, so it’s important that they be cleared away. Not only this person but many people have exactly this question, and I was happy about this question because in very few words it hits the point of the teachings and of the pith instructions. That day, I gave a very brief answer and today I’d like to reply in a little more detail answering many facets of that question: What is the Dharma? How are we to practice it? What are the drawbacks of not practicing it? And what are the advantages of practicing the Dharma?

So, to begin we have to be able to distinguish what is a Buddha or an enlightened being as compared to a sentient being. Now both enlightened beings and sentient beings have the same stream of being. They share the same nature or essence and within our stream of being, that which is liberated is enlightenment and that which is deluded is the sentient being. How is it, then, that we sentient beings are deluded? How it is possible that delusion has entered into this is something that is described in detail in many texts. In brief, first of all we’ve got to see that within the essence of our minds, the essence of our being, there is no delusion. The one who has dualisticCultivating the Two Accumulations clinging is a sentient being. When there is no dualistic clinging, and in its absence there is non-dual wisdom, that is enlightened being. But within the essence there is no dualistic clinging. It is only based on delusion that this dualistic clinging arises, but it never exists in the essence.

When we enter into this dualistic experience, it is this experience that creates the sense of subject and object, of good and evil, of happiness and suffering. It is this dualistic experience that creates the cycle of the three realms that continually turns. It is this dualistic delusion that has created the three realms and this whole wheel of existence – samsara. It is this continual delusion that causes us to experience happiness and suffering within the three realms, because this continual delusion creates karma and it’s this karma that leads us to the experience of happiness and suffering. And the only thing that will extract us from this continual cycle of happiness and suffering and karma within the wheel of life are the sacred teachings of Dharma. More particularly, it is the path of the Vajrayana and especially that of Dzogchen Great Perfection teachings that guide us from our dualistic experience to that of non-dual wisdom. Apart from these paths, nothing will do away with our dualistic experience of delusion. Then based on our delusion and on our karma, we’ve been born within the six kinds of beings within the wheel of life. However, at this time we’ve gained a precious human birth where we have met with the sacred teachings, and more particularly, we’ve met qualified spiritual teachers. Therefore, we should use this opportunity by developing the motivation, “I must attain enlightenment. This is my opportunity to attain enlightenment. This is my opportunity to leave this experience of dualistic delusion and attain the enlightenment of non-dual wisdom.” We must gain this realization. The focus of our practice is this enlightened, non-dual wisdom, which is presently within the enclosure of the two obscurations, or two veils. Our inherent Buddha-nature is the essence of our mind, but it is now latent it is within the enclosure of the veil of afflictive emotions, which is a coarser obscuration, and the more subtle obscuration of knowledge or recognition. These are the two veils in which our inherent Buddha-nature dwells and the focus of our practice is to uncover that enlightened non-dual wisdom.

Our path then comprises purifying these two obscurations, of taking this enlightened nature from within its enclosure and thus revealing it. In order to do so, we cultivate the two accumulations of merit and wisdom. Without accumulating this two-fold cultivation we will remain a sentient being. Without this two-fold cultivation we don’t come to the end of our karma or our afflictive emotions and therefore our enlightened nature remains within this enclosure of the two veils. Therefore, we must cultivate these two accumulations of merit and wisdom – merit which is the cause and wisdom which is the result. But we accumulate them together, in union, not separating them, not dividing them in any way. This cultivation of merit and wisdom in union is one of the special qualities of the Vajrayana or tantric path. This then is the reason we do the preliminary practices or ngöndro. Ngöndro is also referred to as the accumulations and purifications. There is the outer ngöndro, which are the Four Thoughts that Turn the Mind to the spiritual teachings or away from the wheel of life. Then there are the inner preliminary practices which are the five that we cultivate and accumulate: going for refuge, developing the mind of awakening, mandala offering, Vajrasattva practice, and Guru Yoga. It is important during the time of doing ngöndro to read The Words of My PerfectTeacher (Kunzang Lamay Zhal Lung) by Patrul Rinpoche. Read it well, and one of the things you’ll find in there is some advice about the need to cultivate the two accumulations. We may ask, why is it that sentient beings are still sentient beings and are not enlightened? It is because they haven’t cultivated the two accumulations. It says in The Words of My Perfect Teacher that even with confidence in enlightenment one still has to cultivate the accumulations. In it you’ll see a quote from Tilopa telling his disciple Naropa, “Never be without this chariot that takes you along the path to awakening, which is this vehicle of the two accumulations.”

Lama Tharchin Rinpoche
Cultivating the Two Accumulations
A Teaching for the New Three ~Year Retreatants
Drub Nyiy Döjö Gatsal
February 22, 2005

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The first of these is never to think of anything as a fault in the teacher. If you see apparent faults in the teacher, you will be like Sangye Yeshe. Seeing Mañjushri as a lay practitioner with a wife and children, his faith wavered,158 and this acted as an obstacle to his attaining the supreme accomplishment. It is your own impure mind that is responsible. How could there be a single fault in the Buddha? Let your teachers do what they are doing. Even if you see them doing such things as acting unchastely or telling lies, train in thinking that these must be the best methods for benefiting beings. By using such skillful methods, they are certain to be maturing and liberating numerous beings, and they are therefore a hundred times, a thousand times more to be marveled at than others who observe strict vows. From the very fact that they are not doing it artfully or hypocritically, there can be no doubt that their conduct is that of a sublime being. In particular, if they should happen to scold you, it is to exhaust your evil deeds from the past; if they give you a beating, it is to drive out negative forces and obstacle makers. Think how immensely kind they are being in treating you lovingly and not dishonestly, like fathers with their children. If they seem not to take any notice of you and to be displeased with you, realize that it is because of your impure actions and obscurations, and make every effort to purify your obscurations and to do anything that will please them by serving your teachers’ body, speech, and mind.

The second branch is to recognize that whatever your teachers do is a virtue, for as the accomplished beings of the past have said, These precious, authentic teachers— All that they do is excellent; Whatever they do is a virtue. Even if they are murderers or butchers, Be content, it is perfect; They surely hold beings with compassion. Even if they appear to have loose sexual morals, Good qualities are increasing, good qualities arise: It is a sign that they are uniting skillful means and wisdom. In fooling others with their lies, They’re using a variety of gestures and means To guide all beings on the path to liberation. Even though they act as thieves, robbers, or gangsters, They are transforming others’ property to accumulate merit And reducing people’s poverty. In truth, when teachers like these Deliver a reprimand, it is a wrathful mantra: It is sure to dispel bad circumstances and obstacles. When they give a beating, it is a blessing: It gives rise to all accomplishments. Beings who have devotion, be glad!

The third branch is to decide that you have to put an end to all your hopes and doubts. Do not be concerned that by meditating with devotion on your teachers you will please or displease them in this life, let alone entertain the hope that you will attain the supreme accomplishment. No matter whether or not they hold you with their compassion, no matter whether or not you attain accomplishment, there is nothing else for you to do than to have devotion.

The fourth branch is to always remain flexible and agreeable in your attitude to your teachers. Even in ordinary life, how much do respectable people put up with being polite and honest with their superiors, and that is only for this life, for a matter of months and years. Your teachers are the sources of all happiness, excellence, and good qualities, major and minor, in this life, the next life, and all your lives until you reach enlightenment. Therefore, you should be constantly adaptable in your wish to do everything you can, physically, verbally, and mentally, to serve them, including praying for their long life and the blossoming of their activities, for any Dharma qualities you obtain are entirely due to their kindness.

Use these four branches to train in developing devotion. For beginners it is difficult to give rise to uncontrived devotion right from the start and you have to create the foundation by deliberately arousing devotion. Later, develop the flow of devotion, getting used to it. Finally, when you gain the confidence of uncontrived devotion, you can be certain that your stream of being will inevitably be matured and liberated.

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