The Meditations
When you have finished reading this chapter and watching the videos, do the following meditations by reflecting on the quotes drawn from Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s teachings. During the meditation session, you can re-read the related section of the chapter to refresh your memory. Try to make the meditations as personal and meaningful as possible.
To qualify for the Certificate of Achievement, each meditation session should last a minimum of half an hour. Start the session with a short bodhichitta motivation and, if you like, do some preliminary prayers. End the session with some dedication prayers. Spend at least 20 minutes of the session doing the actual meditation.
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To qualify for the Certificate of Achievement, keep track of the meditations you do using the Personal Log. Then, when you finish the entire module, tick them off in the Checklist for the Certificate of Achievement.
Meditation 3: Destroy Self-Cherishing Thought
RANG NYI CHE PAR DZIN PÄI CHONG NÄ DI
This chronic disease of cherishing myself
MI DÖ DUG NGÄL KYE PÄI GYUR THONG NÄ
Is the cause giving rise to my unsought suffering.
LE LÄN DÄ LA KHÖN DU ZUNG JÄ TE
Perceiving this, I seek your blessings to blame, begrudge,
DAG DZIN DÖN CHHEN JOM PAR JIN GYI LOB
And destroy the monstrous demon of selfishness.
Instead of cherishing even one sentient being, a person or an insect, such as a mosquito or an ant, you cherish your I. Instead of cherishing someone who abuses you, who doesn’t like you, who doesn’t love you, who underestimates you, you cherish I. You renounce that other person and generate self-cherishing thought, the cause of all the sufferings of samsara and the obstacles to achieving enlightenment. The thought cherishing I is an obstacle to achieving enlightenment for the numberless sentient beings. Of course, cherishing the I is an obstacle to achieving liberation from samsara even for yourself and it is also an obstacle to all your happiness of future lives. That selfish mind is even an obstacle to achieving success in all your works for this life. In short, cherishing I is the cause of all sufferings and all obstacles to practicing Dharma. (Lama Zopa Rinpoche)
Meditate how cherishing I is the source of all suffering, obstacles, and misfortune and an obstacle to achieving enlightenment, liberation from samsara, the happiness of future lives, and the happiness of this life. Include other shortcomings of cherishing I such as the eight shortcomings of making a mistake in correctly following the virtuous friend, the four suffering results of negative karmas, and the three faults of putting the less fortunate down, competing with peers, and being jealous of the more fortunate.
(To qualify for the Certificate of Achievement do this meditation at least one time.)
Meditation 4: Cherish Even Your Enemies
MA NAM CHE ZUNG DE LA GÖ PÄI LO
The mind that cherishes mothers and places them in bliss
THA YÄ YÖN TÄN JUNG WÄI GOR THONG NÄ
Is the gateway leading to infinite qualities.
DRO WA DI DAG DAG GI DRAR LANG KYANG
Seeing this, I seek your blessings to cherish these transmigratory beings
SOG LÄ CHE PAR DZIN PAR JIN GYI LOB
More than my life, even should they rise up as my enemies.
By knowing that cherishing I is the source of all suffering, obstacles, and misfortune, and that cherishing others, wow, is the source of limitless qualities and all happiness, even if they all [turn into your enemy, you should cherish them]. However, usually, even if just one person abuses you, gets angry at you, or doesn’t love you, you get so depressed and it looks to you like everybody dislikes you.
But even if they turn into your enemy, from your side what should you do? You should cherish them as more dear and more precious than yourself. So you ask blessings to be able to do that. This is the real practice. When you have a problem, you need to know how to deal with the problem. (Lama Zopa Rinpoche)
Think of someone who has hurt you, been angry with you, or abused you and remember how that caused you to become depressed and unhappy. Then meditate on how that person is actually a source of limitless qualities and all happiness up to and including enlightenment.