How to Understand the Mind. Geshe Kelsang Gyatso
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on the first and second grounds experience ordinary attachment, but this does not disturb their spiritual practice, and they are able to use it as a means of benefiting others. Just as farmers use unpleasant things such as manure to create favourable conditions for growing crops, so Bodhisattvas use their attachment as a means of helping others. The main objects to be abandoned by Bodhisattvas are attachment to solitary peace and concern for their own welfare.
We overcome these three types of attachment by training in the stages of the path of the three scopes. By practising the stages of the path of initial scope we overcome attachment to this life, by practising the stages of the path of intermediate scope we overcome attachment to samsara in general, and by practising the stages of the path of great scope we overcome attachment to solitary peace.
NON-HATRED
DEFINITION OF NON-HATRED
The definition of non-hatred is a mental factor that functions as the direct opponent of hatred.
In Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life Shantideva says:
There is no evil greater than anger,
And no virtue greater than patience.
Hatred, or anger, is the most destructive of all non-virtuous minds. It has the power to destroy our Dharma experiences and the merit we have accumulated in the past. Unless we make an effort to practise non-hatred we will find it difficult to control our anger; and if our mind is filled with anger we will not experience peace or happiness. When we are angry we cannot enjoy life, even if we live in a luxurious house and eat the most expensive food. It is difficult to fall asleep with an angry mind, and when we do sleep we have unpleasant, disturbing dreams. When anger controls our mind we develop the intention to harm others, and we may even wish to kill ourself. We usually cherish ourself dearly, but hatred can so disturb our mind that we consider committing suicide. Shantideva said that for as long as we harbour painful thoughts of anger our mind will not experience peace.
Unless we have some experience of Dharma we will think that our enemies are other people who cause us harm, but according to Dharma our real enemies are the delusions in our mind, such as anger and attachment. If we regard other people as our enemies we will try to harm them, and this will only make the situation worse. Our relationships will deteriorate, and we will gradually accumulate more and more enemies. On the other hand, if we practise love, regarding all living beings as our kind mothers, our relationships will improve and our problems will gradually disappear. If we are going to retaliate we should do so against our delusions, for they are the source of all the harm we experience. If we succeed in destroying these inner enemies we will bring an end to all our suffering and problems, but if we show them patience and understanding they will continue to betray and harm us.
The mental factor non-hatred opposes our internal enemy of hatred. If we are about to develop hatred towards someone but counter it by thinking ‘It is inappropriate for me to hate this person because hatred is like poison’, we are practising non-hatred. It is most important to practise non-hatred as soon as we detect signs of anger or hatred arising in our mind. Anger is like fire. If we detect a fire as soon as it starts it will be easy to extinguish, but if we wait until it has taken hold it will be very difficult to control. In the same way, if we catch anger as soon as it arises in our mind we can easily counter it with non-hatred, but if we leave it to develop fully we will find it very difficult to stop. Therefore, as soon as we become aware that anger is about to manifest we should prevent it by reflecting on its many disadvantages. These are explained extensively in the chapter on patience in Shantideva’s Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life and in the commentary Meaningful to Behold.
FUNCTION OF NON-HATRED
Non-hatred has many functions. It overcomes irritation and frustration and enables us to respond to adverse conditions with a calm and positive mind. It frees us from the inner pain of hatred, and makes our mind smooth and comfortable at all times. It is the basis for generating affectionate love and all the other Mahayana realizations. When our mind is filled with non-hatred we have no enemies because everyone appears to us as kind and agreeable. As a result, we do not engage in negative actions such as fighting or killing, and so we do not have to suffer the consequences of such actions. Affectionate love, cherishing love, wishing love, compassion and patience are all the nature of non-hatred.
DIVISIONS OF NON-HATRED
There are three types of non-hatred:
1 Non-hatred towards those who harm us
2 Non-hatred towards inanimate objects that cause us suffering
3 Non-hatred towards resultant suffering
The first type is the same as the patience of not-retaliating. If someone attacks us, insults us or causes us harm in some other way, and we manage to stop ourself getting angry with them, it is the first type of non-hatred that prevents the anger from arising.
There are many inanimate objects with which we get angry. For example, we may get angry with the weather if it is too hot or too cold, with our car if it will not start, or with a piece of furniture if it falls on our foot. Some people are angered by the existence of nuclear weapons or pollution, while others become upset if their food is not to their liking. Whenever we encounter inanimate objects that cause us suffering we should remember the futility of getting angry with such things and prevent anger by practising the second type of non-hatred.
The third type of non-hatred, non-hatred towards resultant suffering, is the patience of voluntarily enduring suffering. When we are unhappy or sick we are much more prone to anger than when we are happy and healthy. People who are usually patient when they are well often develop a bad temper when they are sick. This indicates that they lack the patience of voluntarily enduring suffering. All our suffering, both physical and mental, is the result of our own negative karma. Therefore, when we are about to become angry with our suffering we should think:
This pain is the result of my own non-virtuous actions. Since I committed these negative actions I must experience their resultant suffering. Therefore, I must accept this suffering patiently.
If we are able to think like this we will not get angry or upset but will be able to endure our suffering with a peaceful mind. If our pain becomes unbearable we should try to ease it with medicines or, if our mind is strong enough, use our pain to enhance our experience of the two bodhichittas by meditating on compassion and emptiness. With a direct realization of emptiness we will not experience pain even if our limbs are cut off, because when we have seen emptiness directly we experience only peace. Even a relatively superficial experience of emptiness can ease our pain and restore our body and mind to health. We should use whatever methods we can to cure our sickness but even if these fail there is no point in becoming angry with our pain, for this will just add mental suffering to our physical suffering.
NON-IGNORANCE
DEFINITION OF NON-IGNORANCE
The definition of non-ignorance is a mental factor that functions as the direct opponent of ignorance.
Non-ignorance is a special type of wisdom that acts as the antidote to ignorance. Examples are wisdom realizing selflessness of persons and wisdom realizing selflessness of phenomena.
FUNCTION OF NON-IGNORANCE
The function of non-ignorance is to enable us to understand emptiness, the ultimate nature of phenomena. As our understanding of emptiness grows, our ignorance gradually becomes weaker, and is eventually eradicated altogether. The temporary benefit of non-ignorance is that it helps us to overcome daily problems that are caused by attachment, anger and other delusions; its long-term benefit is that it leads us to liberation and enlightenment. Our friends and family cannot solve our internal problems for us, and even our Spiritual Guides cannot remove them directly. The only way to eliminate our mental problems is to rely upon our own wisdom. Those who possess wisdom realizing emptiness can solve all their internal problems by meditating on emptiness. It is because we lack this wisdom that we need to ask others for advice when we are confronted with problems. If we had wisdom we would be able to solve all our own problems.
The benefits of wisdom realizing emptiness are inconceivable. If we had a million