Lama Zopa Rinpoche continues his video teachings on thought

transformation from Kopan Monastery in Nepal, offered to students from

China and Malaysia via Zoom on June 13.

All of the 84,000 teachings of Buddha are included in the advice to not

harm sentient beings and to benefit them, Rinpoche explains. If we harm

sentient beings, we can’t benefit them. All of the suffering we

experience ourselves, as well as the suffering we cause others to

experience, is caused by our self-cherishing thought. Our worst enemy is

our self-cherishing thought. From Shantideva’s Bodhicharyavatara (v.

8.120):

If you want to quickly guide

Yourself and others,

Secretly practice

Exchanging yourself and others.

The conclusion, Rinpoche explains, is that the solution to our problems

is bodhichitta. Our main practice in life should be bodhichitta,

cherishing others. Without giving up the I, we cannot abandon suffering.

The less self-cherishing and the more we cultivate the good heart, the

less problems we have.

Rinpoche discusses the kindness of mother sentient beings, and also the

kindness of those who are not your mother starting at (1:07:28) in the

video.

In preparation for offering the refuge ceremony, Rinpoche discusses four

of the five lay vows which one can take in addition to refuge. One can

take refuge alone or any/all of the following vows in addition: the vow

to abandon killing (1:16:57), the vow to abandon sexual misconduct

(1:19:43), the vow to abandon stealing (1:20:27), the vow to abandon

lying (Rinpoche did not discuss this vow in this teaching), the vow to

abandon alcohol (1:21:37).

Rinpoche offers the refuge ceremony at (1:24:48).