Explore/Chapter 2 - Confession of Negativity: Difference between revisions
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Since we have been bound to the wheel of samsaric existence since beginningless time, we confess every negative action that we have done in this and all other lives, actions which we did through lack of knowledge about the ripening results of karma. | Since we have been bound to the wheel of samsaric existence since beginningless time, we confess every negative action that we have done in this and all other lives, actions which we did through lack of knowledge about the ripening results of karma. | ||
Gyaltsap Je Darma Rinchen [LINK to the text] also points out in his commentary ''The Entrance for the Children of the Conquerors'' that all karma can be overcome with confession: | |||
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|quote-text=If the created and accumulated karmas are karmas definitely to be experienced then, since they can be cleared away, what need is there to say about those that are not definite.<ref>Fedor Stracke, trans., ''The Entrance for the Children of the Conquerors - A Commentary on the Introduction to the Actions of Bodhisattvas. Chapter Two: Purifying Negativities'' (N.p.: HappyMonksPublication, 2016), 15. https://happymonkspublication.org/product/bodhisattvacharyavatara-chapter-1-10-commentary/</ref> | |quote-text=If the created and accumulated karmas are karmas definitely to be experienced then, since they can be cleared away, what need is there to say about those that are not definite.<ref>Fedor Stracke, trans., ''The Entrance for the Children of the Conquerors - A Commentary on the Introduction to the Actions of Bodhisattvas. Chapter Two: Purifying Negativities'' (N.p.: HappyMonksPublication, 2016), 15. https://happymonkspublication.org/product/bodhisattvacharyavatara-chapter-1-10-commentary/</ref> | ||
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But this is not asking a savior to wash away those sins with the wave of the hand. This process involves a clear awareness of what we have done and heartfelt regret at the harm that those actions may cause. | But this is not asking a savior to wash away those sins with the wave of the hand. This process involves a clear awareness of what we have done and heartfelt regret at the harm that those actions may cause. | ||
Gyaltsap Je describes how the power of regret must arise from cultivating the understanding of the way in which negative actions give rise to the three kinds of result. <ref>Stracke, Entrance for the Children, 15. https://happymonkspublication.org/product/bodhisattvacharyavatara-chapter-1-10-commentary/</ref> | |||
Here the three kinds of result refers to the fully ripening result [LINK to glossary], the dominant result [LINK to glossary], and the result similar to the cause [LINK to glossary]. The result similar to the cause is further divided into (1) བྱས་པ་རྒྱུ་མཐུན་གྱི་འབྲས་བུ། the fruits corresponding to its actions (e.g., the fact that a person who may have been a sinner in the past life has the natural urge to do similar actions in this life, and (2) མྱོང་བ་རྒྱུ་མཐུན་གྱི་འབྲས་བུ། the fruits corresponding to its experience (e.g., the fact that a person who practices generosity in this life would become rich in his future life.) | Here the three kinds of result refers to the fully ripening result [LINK to glossary], the dominant result [LINK to glossary], and the result similar to the cause [LINK to glossary]. The result similar to the cause is further divided into (1) བྱས་པ་རྒྱུ་མཐུན་གྱི་འབྲས་བུ། the fruits corresponding to its actions (e.g., the fact that a person who may have been a sinner in the past life has the natural urge to do similar actions in this life, and (2) མྱོང་བ་རྒྱུ་མཐུན་གྱི་འབྲས་བུ། the fruits corresponding to its experience (e.g., the fact that a person who practices generosity in this life would become rich in his future life.) | ||
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{{PullBcaVerses|2.45}} | {{PullBcaVerses|2.45}} | ||
{{PullBcaVerses|2.46}} | {{PullBcaVerses|2.46}} | ||
As we near death, the possibility of falling into the lower realms suddenly becomes real. But if we have not made any effort to seek out and correctly rely on a valid source of refuge, and if we have failed to recognize our past negative actions and confess them, we will be helpless at the time of dying. | As we near death, the possibility of falling into the lower realms suddenly becomes real. But if we have not made any effort to seek out and correctly rely on a valid source of refuge, and if we have failed to recognize our past negative actions and confess them, we will be helpless at the time of dying. Gyaltsap Je's conclusion here is that we must put all of these practices into place now while we have the leisure and time, since leaving them to our last moments will be disastrous. | ||
<h5>2. The Force of Support</h5> | <h5>2. The Force of Support</h5> | ||
Verses 47 to 53 discuss the force of support. | Verses 47 to 53 discuss the force of support. Gyaltsap Je describes this third force as being the meditation on such practices as bodhicitta.<ref>Stracke, Entrance for the Children, 15. https://happymonkspublication.org/product/bodhisattvacharyavatara-chapter-1-10-commentary/</ref> | ||
The main body of this chapter is about the confession of negativity and how the Three Jewels can act as a support for that confession. But the Three Jewels are also able to act as a support for the process of purification. | The main body of this chapter is about the confession of negativity and how the Three Jewels can act as a support for that confession. But the Three Jewels are also able to act as a support for the process of purification. | ||
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Śāntideva sums up this section on the force of support as follows: | Śāntideva sums up this section on the force of support as follows: | ||
{{PullBcaVerses|2.53}} | {{PullBcaVerses|2.53}} | ||
Gyaltsap Je expands on this. | |||
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|quote-text=Previously I transgressed your words, committed negativities and did not practice virtue. Now, having seen the infinity of cyclic existence and the great horror of the lower realms, I take refuge in you. | |quote-text=Previously I transgressed your words, committed negativities and did not practice virtue. Now, having seen the infinity of cyclic existence and the great horror of the lower realms, I take refuge in you. | ||
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<h5>3. The Force of the Antidote</h5> | <h5>3. The Force of the Antidote</h5> | ||
Verses 54 to 59 deal with the force of the antidote. | Verses 54 to 59 deal with the force of the antidote. Gyaltsap Je describes this force in the following way: | ||
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|quote-text=There are, as explained in the Compendium of Trainings, relying on profound sutras, meditating on emptiness, relying on recitation, relying on the holy form, relying on offerings and relying on the names.<ref>Stracke, trans., Entrance for the Children, 15. https://happymonkspublication.org/product/bodhisattvacharyavatara-chapter-1-10-commentary/</ref> | |quote-text=There are, as explained in the Compendium of Trainings, relying on profound sutras, meditating on emptiness, relying on recitation, relying on the holy form, relying on offerings and relying on the names.<ref>Stracke, trans., Entrance for the Children, 15. https://happymonkspublication.org/product/bodhisattvacharyavatara-chapter-1-10-commentary/</ref> | ||
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In relation to this force, Śāntideva provides us with reasons why confession is necessary. He does this using two examples, the first of which is the example of a common illness, which is used to explain why it is necessary to make effort in applying the antidote. | In relation to this force, Śāntideva provides us with reasons why confession is necessary. He does this using two examples, the first of which is the example of a common illness, which is used to explain why it is necessary to make effort in applying the antidote. | ||
{{PullBcaVerses|2.54}} | {{PullBcaVerses|2.54}} | ||
If we are scared of ordinary illnesses, particularly serious ones that might threaten our lives, we will immediately attempt to overcome that sickness by implementing all the advice of the trained medical practitioners and taking the appropriate course of medicine. If that is so, | If we are scared of ordinary illnesses, particularly serious ones that might threaten our lives, we will immediately attempt to overcome that sickness by implementing all the advice of the trained medical practitioners and taking the appropriate course of medicine. If that is so, Gyaltsap Je advises us: | ||
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|quote-text=. . . what need is there to mention that it is appropriate to rely on the antidote according to the instructions of the conqueror, the supreme physician, in order to be cured from the great chronic disease of the three poisons of attachment, anger and ignorance, as one has been continuously beaten down since beginningless time by the sources of hundreds of thousands of shortcomings.<ref>Stracke, Entrance for the Children, 24. https://happymonkspublication.org/product/bodhisattvacharyavatara-chapter-1-10-commentary/</ref> | |quote-text=. . . what need is there to mention that it is appropriate to rely on the antidote according to the instructions of the conqueror, the supreme physician, in order to be cured from the great chronic disease of the three poisons of attachment, anger and ignorance, as one has been continuously beaten down since beginningless time by the sources of hundreds of thousands of shortcomings.<ref>Stracke, Entrance for the Children, 24. https://happymonkspublication.org/product/bodhisattvacharyavatara-chapter-1-10-commentary/</ref> | ||
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Sonam Tsemo explains how the first two lines of verse 55 indicate the great faults of such illness. The next two lines indicate the rarity of the remedy.<ref>O’Sullivan, ''Bodhicaryāvatāra with Commentary'', 100.</ref> | Sonam Tsemo explains how the first two lines of verse 55 indicate the great faults of such illness. The next two lines indicate the rarity of the remedy.<ref>O’Sullivan, ''Bodhicaryāvatāra with Commentary'', 100.</ref> | ||
We may wonder at the meaning of this verse. How can just one of these poisons drag down all the beings in this world system and cast them into the lower realms? In his commentary, | We may wonder at the meaning of this verse. How can just one of these poisons drag down all the beings in this world system and cast them into the lower realms? In his commentary, Gyaltsap Je qualifies this statement, explaining the shortcomings of the three poisons and the rarity of the medicine which counteracts them. | ||
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|quote-text=Even one moment of anger towards a bodhisattva can destroy all humans in Dzambuling and throw them into the lower realms. The medicine against this great sickness, meditating on the path and so forth, one will not find anywhere else, apart from the texts that reveal it. If one cannot find it in any other place, such as the world of Brahma and so forth, then it is unfindable elsewhere and therefore rare.<ref>Stracke, ''Entrance for the Children'', 24. https://happymonkspublication.org/product/bodhisattvacharyavatara-chapter-1-10-commentary/</ref> | |quote-text=Even one moment of anger towards a bodhisattva can destroy all humans in Dzambuling and throw them into the lower realms. The medicine against this great sickness, meditating on the path and so forth, one will not find anywhere else, apart from the texts that reveal it. If one cannot find it in any other place, such as the world of Brahma and so forth, then it is unfindable elsewhere and therefore rare.<ref>Stracke, ''Entrance for the Children'', 24. https://happymonkspublication.org/product/bodhisattvacharyavatara-chapter-1-10-commentary/</ref> | ||
