His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche’s Puja Teachings – April 12, 2026

His Eminence Vajra Guru Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche ascended the Dharma throne and expounded the ‘Scroll 32, Chanding Paramita’(Chapter 10, section 2) of The Mahayana Sutra of the Bodhisattva Treasury of the True Dharma Taught by the Buddha. 

Rinpoche ascended the Dharma throne and recited the Great Six-Syllable Mantra, and His sacred body and the Mandala emitted a golden ray of light, and a miraculous fragrance permeated, and the assembly felt their bodies grow warm while all of their distracting thoughts suddenly disappeared so they could all concentrate on listening to Rinpoche’s incomparably wondrous and pure teachings on the Buddha Dharma.
 
Rinpoche bestowed precious Buddha Dharma teachings: 
 
The Ratnakuta Sutra maintains a substantial portion of the Tripitaka, and there are two volumes, quite large, divided into the upper and lower volumes; we have yet to complete this volume. The Ratnakuta Sutra is primarily about Shakyamuni Buddha expounding Buddhists on the mentality of practicing the Bodhisattva Path—what one can do, cannot do, have to prepare to achieve—all meticulously and ceaselessly explained. Many believe that practicing the Bodhisattva Path is about receiving the Bodhisattva precepts, burning a few scars, and that alone is the Bodhisattva Path. According to the Ratnakuta Sutra, none of the above count. Why does one learn the Bodhisattva Path? If learning Buddhism is simply for the various worldly benefits, for instance, curing diseases or clearing up matters of one’s own; these are all absolutely unrelated to Mahayana Buddhism. 

The Mahayana teachings primarily emphasize the practice of the Bodhisattva Path. Do not assume that simply by having heard the Ratnakuta Sutra you have already begun to practice. Hearing it only gives you an understanding of the theory. To truly practice, you must go on to learn the Vajrayana. Many people think that reciting sutras every day is already practice. Recitation can be considered a part of practice, but both His Holiness and I often remind everyone that whether it is reciting sutras, performing repentance practices, prostrating to the Buddha, or reciting mantras, these are merely ways of creating the virtuous fate and conditions for practice.

To truly practice Buddhism, one must alter all chances of falling into the ocean of suffering, and refrain from giving oneself any chances. According to all the teachings of the Ratnakuta Sutra, we must remember and learn—practicing the Bodhisattva Path is not simply about reciting a few Mahayana sutras, prostrating to the Bodhisattvas, but instead one must act upon proper basis. Therefore, if one cannot accomplish the states mentioned in the Ratnakuta Sutra, then one is definitely not a Bodhisattva. 
 
The states of being of Bodhisattvas which Buddha expounds in the Ratnakuta Sutra will definitely occur, these are not mythologies. Simply practicing Buddhism for a few years will not enable one to be able to practice and attain such states of being. To explain simply, apart from some of you who are very old, everyone has studied in school; ever since one is old enough to know better, you have attended kindergarten, elementary school, middle school, high school, college, graduate school, and even post-graduate doctorate courses, which takes over twenty years. Even if one does not attend graduate school, and post-graduate doctorate courses, from kindergarten to college, it still takes at least twenty years just to learn the basics on how to behave. 
 
How can one think that learning Buddhism would take one, two, seven, or eight years to suffice? Even worldly knowledge would take over twenty years to learn, during one’s best, youthful days. Because there is this system globally, one must attend school; without having gone to school, others would find you to be useless. After attending school, one receives a certificate, and would be able to make more money, but of course, this is unavoidable, this is how everyone behaves. If you do not behave the same, others would find you peculiar, further, they might even think that you’ve learned Buddhism to only become superstitious. Learning Buddhism is not superstition. 

If one must be well-educated to learn Buddhism—for instance, it is trending in some places to send monastics to attend doctorate programs—I think it’s a bit of a waste of time. If monastics must have a doctorate to qualify for teaching the Buddha Dharma, but what would one do since the Six Patriarch Hui Neng was illiterate, some of the older generation in Taiwan know that the Great Monk Guang-Ching was unlettered, and so was Drikung Kagyu’s guru, Mahasidda Milaripa? Thus, going to school is merely a matter of the worldly Dharma. Because we dwell in this world, and everyone thinks that we need this, and this is beneficial to us, so, without any choices, we must follow the current and do these things. However, while part-taking in such activities, we must adjust our time and mentality and sake whether or not we are truly practicing Buddhism. Just as mentioned in the Upāsaka Precepts Sūtra, the lay and the ordained may both practice and learn the Bodhisattva Path, but it is more difficult for the laymen since they are entangled by evil karma. 
 
If there were no evil karma, you would not be born in this lifetime, nor would you date, get married, or have children—these are all the results of evil karma. My evil karma is heavier than yours, because each of you has only one marriage, while I… (The assembly laughs). This shows that my evil karma is also very heavy, and that I have come into this life to repay these evil karmas. The repayment of evil karma accumulated over countless lifetimes cannot be done by merely reciting sutras. Recitation only helps to accumulate the fate for continued practice. One must truly and earnestly put the teachings into practice.

Outwardly, we appear to be ordinary people, but inwardly we are practitioners. A practitioner is someone who corrects and transforms the behaviors that lead to samsara. Once you make this decision, the evil karma you committed in past lives can definitely be repaid in this lifetime, before death. Because it can be repaid, in your later years you will not suffer excessively. Even though you grow old, the aging will be slower, I am a good sample of this. I am seventy-nine, approaching eighty, yet there are very few people of my age with this level of physical strength. Even within this Center, there are not many like this—there is no need to compare with people outside; just compare within here. Why is that? Because they have not practiced.
 
If you lack the ability to practice on your own, that is not a problem. Vajrayana teaches this very clearly: as long as you completely follow the guru and maintain one hundred percent reverence toward the guru, that itself is practice. Do not rely on your own ideas, because as ordinary human beings, your thoughts have nothing to do with what is taught in the sutras. Do not assume that just because you can read and understand the literal meaning of words, you understand the Dharma. That is incorrect. The Buddha, left with no other choice, used the most convenient tool available to humans—language—to teach and explain the Dharma. But beyond the Human Realm, in the Animal Realm there is no language, and in the Heavenly Realms there is also no language; instead, beings communicate through mind-reading supernatural powers, and everything is understood. In the realms of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, there is no need to speak at all; unlike when I speak here for two hours, you still do not understand anything. Language is merely a form of  expedient means. The Buddha had no choice but to use words to record what we need to pay attention to, to remember, and the direction in which we should proceed.

Since you believe yourselves to be learning Buddhism, you must listen, and have no thoughts of your own. Your thoughts may be developed in your mundane Dharma activities, such as going to work, studying, or dating, but to become a practitioner and a Buddhist, this is not the case. You must be clear that for every step that you take and every thing that you do, whether or not you have disobeyed the Buddhist teachings of Buddha, the Bodhisattvas, and the guru? If you have, then you are not a practitioner, a mere believer then; of course it is better to be a believer than not, at least you have good fortune. However, if you continue to waste time, and you merely listen and not act, act but refrain from making vows, then your practice has been in vain. 
 
The Ratnakuta Sutra is rarely expounded, why is that? Because it teaches the mindset required to be a Bodhisattva. It is just like completing university and then applying for graduate school—you must go through an interview. Nowadays, even universities require interviews, why is that? Of course, there are formal requirements, but the most important point is whether the professors feel that you are mentally prepared to study at the university or graduate level. The same principle applies here: if you want to learn Buddhism, are you truly prepared? Or are you still relying on your own ideas? If you are following your own ideas, then you are not prepared to learn Buddhism. Because your ideas are driven by desires—you hope that the guru and the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas will satisfy your requests and fulfill your desires. 

The Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center does not follow the current in propagating the Buddha Dharma; all teachings are according to Buddhist sutras and the Buddha Dharma I have learned, which I have continued to teach you step by step. Whether or not it all registers with you, whether or not you have truly learned is all up to you. The greatest contradiction of being lay is that you have to go to work, have husbands, wives, and children; on the one hand one has to learn Buddhism, one must not offend Rinpoche, nor one’s wife, but what to do? This is your own matter, and is it related to Buddha Dharma? You must learn to arrange matters yourselves instead of pleading to the Bodhisattvas to stop your wife from going on about you. Why don’t you plead the Bodhisattvas to help you get a divorce? You wouldn’t dare. What did I plead for? I did not plead for a divorce, I pleaded so that all that may obstruct me would no longer be around me, and how odd, one by one they disappeared. 
 
You do not plead—you hold on to them tightly. From a human perspective, that may seem good. Even now, when Rinpoche has practiced to this level, when something happens to my children, I still feel a bit concerned, because I still have this ordinary human body. But I am different from you, I can take things up and let go as well—I can let go at any time. In 2007, I was able to enter a retreat for more than three months, without regard for my life, letting go of everything, remaining in a single room for that entire period. That is because I am someone who does not cling to anything. I see very clearly that everything that happens around me arises from fate—they come and go; nothing is permanent. When conditions end, they end. When new conditions suddenly arise, I do not know either. But continuously helping sentient beings to create positive fates—this is my foremost responsibility.

Yesterday, several refuge disciples came to plead for consciousness-transference for their family members, but I did not agree. Because after being my disciples for more than ten years, they have never continuously created virtuous fate for their parents, yet they assume that simply by coming to plead, Rinpoche will nod and agree. This place is not a Buddhist center that makes money by performing consciousness-transference. If I wanted to do that, it would be very easy. At each Amitābha Grand Puja, there are over twenty thousand participants, with each submitting many names. If I were to charge even just 500 dollars per person—not even 1,000—one puja would be enough to make a great deal of money. Then why would I still work so hard to teach every Sunday? This shows that liberation is not what you imagine—it is not something achieved by kneeling down, shedding a few tears, and offering a red envelope, expecting Rinpoche to perform it for you. The Kṣitigarbha Sūtra has explained many times what kind of people can receive such liberation. It has been said again and again—so why do you not listen? Why do you keep going against the law of fate as taught by the Buddha? Why do you treat a Rinpoche in this way? You have parents—I also have parents. The older generation knows this well; in the past, my mother would sit in the back every Sunday and listen to my teachings.

My mother could never comprehend my Mandarin with a Cantonese accent, but if I did not bring her on Sundays, she would get upset. My father was a Daoist, and she knew how capable he was, thus it was nearly impossible to turn her around. But why did she change? She saw that her son made evident improvements because of learning  Buddhism. But have you? Everyone goes home and says once or twice, ‘Mom, come learn Buddhism! Our Rinpoche is very capable.’ But, when your parents refuse you, you say oh, but that’s all. Think about those times in your childhood, how much effort did your parents put into coaxing you into eating your food. In which ways are you filial? You leave everything for Rinpoche to deal with! The Buddhist sutras do not teach such, so how can I behave like this? You must think, Rinpoche will definitely agree! Indeed! Those who have good fate with me kneel down, and I immediately agree to help them. But for those of you who have taken refuge for over a decade, even if you think of me not as Rinpoche, but as a good friend, wouldn’t you tell your mother, ‘I know a great friend who has always helped me, and I’d like to bring you to see him more often.’ Why not say so? You think your parents won’t believe you, and Rinpoche would berate you, so you wait till they are dead to come and plead. 
 
Do not demean a practitioner this way, if it were for money, I could easily do such things—but I am not doing this for money. I am doing it to propagate the Buddha Dharma, entirely in accordance with what is taught in the sutras. Whether your parents can be liberated depends on whether they have the fate—the Kṣitigarbha Sūtra explains this very clearly. What did Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva do? She prostrated until she bled, and she even sold her luxurious home—did she not? (The assembly replies: Yes.) After selling it, she made offerings to the Buddha, and only then was he told in which realm her mother had been reborn—correct? (The assembly replies: Yes.) Afterwards, Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva practiced with great diligence, and his mother eventually attained Buddhahood—did she not? (The assembly replies: Yes.) Why does no one truly take this to heart? You may not be able to do what Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva did—selling your home, prostrating until you bleed, even fainting—but at least do a small part of it! 

If you don’t even perform the slightest bit, and eat, sleep, go to work, go to the restroom, is this life? This is what animals do. Animals are just like this, they sleep, excrete, seek food, just like the way you go to work, and they also seek a spouse. Your life is that of animals! You can say that I am berating you, indeed I am berating you, since you don’t behave at all like you are practicing Buddhism! Your fathers and mothers are those with whom you may practice virtue from the root; they gave birth to you and have bestowed such graces upon you, and you dare let them go that easily. I have told you that when my father passed, I had not learned Buddhism, but the first thing I did once I began to learn Buddhism was perform repentance rites on behalf of him for two hours each day, until he rose to the Heavenly Realm. But did you do so? What are you crying about? You are disloyal and unfilial. 

Those of you who still have parents, remember this. When I ask you: have you ever seen Rinpoche? You say, ‘Yes, once.’ Does seeing me once mean I owe you a great favor, that I must transfer consciousness for your family member? I often ask you this: when your parents are ill, do you see a doctor only once? At the very least, you go once a month. Yet in your whole life, you come to see Rinpoche only once—even after nineteen years since taking refuge—and you still expect help. This is taking advantage of Rinpoche. Fine, if that is the case, then follow the example of Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva—sell your luxurious home and make offerings. But even then, I would not accept it. So what can be done? You do not listen when scolded, and you cannot be persuaded. If I had not made vows before the yidam, then being a Rinpoche in this very moment would have little meaning, because no one listens.

Yesterday, a disciple came to see me, his mother died but had cancer before she died, and so I hit him, why? You clearly know I am very capable, and as long as cancer patients come to see me, I will definitely prevent them from feeling pain in their later days, do I not? (The assembly replies: Yes.) Everyone is clear except him, and he let his mother remain bedridden until her death when she finally came to plead for consciousness-transference. Are such people filial? You left things to doctors, relatives, and said that those relatives are nurses, who know how to care for her. You better beg the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas so that you won’t die like your parents when you die because you have sewn this karma. 
 
I also have parents, just as you do. My father passed away when I was seventeen. I brought my mother to Taiwan, and she passed away peacefully—without undergoing any surgery or medical procedures. In fact, she had many illnesses: her gallbladder had been removed, she had a uterine tumor, a prolapsed stomach, and a weak heart. Because she had taken many lives when she was young, she relied on her son to practice on her behalf. If you are unable to practice, then at the very least, you should continuously create virtuous fate for your parents. You do not necessarily need to see me. I am here on Saturdays—even making a prostration to me is beneficial. Why are you so lazy? This proves one thing: after learning Buddhism, you have not changed. Your family does not feel that learning Buddhism has benefited you, so naturally they believe it will not benefit your parents either. If learning Buddhism has not changed you, it means you have not truly learned it.
 
Only your family members know your faults the best, if there is any behavior which your family cannot accept, I would change that. After going on again and again, you still refuse to obey my words, this upsets me. I am upset not because you do not listen, but because you clearly have the opportunity to create virtuous fate for your parents, so that in their later years they may have the chance to receive consciousness-transference, and yet you still refuse to do so! How are there such naughty people? Unfilial! If I never spoke of it, then your behaviour is forgivable, but I have made myself very clear!

Sutra: ‘Furthermore, one enters into equal understanding of the lands of Buddhas, causing them to manifest in presence as pure. This is called expedience.’
 
In Exoteric Buddhism, people often say,  ‘When the mind is pure, the lands of Buddhas are pure.’ You all like to repeat this phrase, but have you actually achieved it? Monastics who have taken refuge for decades, you constantly tell believers, ‘When the mind is pure, the lands of Buddhas are pure.’ Haven’t you said this? (The monastic replies: Yes, we say this, but we can’t accomplish it.) Why? The Buddha won’t give incorrect words. This statement means exactly what it says: ‘When the mind is pure, the lands of Buddhas are pure’ So why can’t you achieve it? Because this is merely a theory, and you lack the method.
 
There are methods in Vajrayana. Why, every time you learn a Dharma, must you raise the generation stage and the completion stage? Why must you recite the mantra of ūnyatā (Puja Teachings Index 21) Visualizing before performing the Dharma? It is precisely in order to purify. Naturally, the lands of Buddhas you visualize will be pure, and naturally you will come to attain it. Do you hear this? (The monastic replies: Yes, I heard it.) Do you understand, or not? (The monastic replies: I understand.) Is it real understanding, or superficial understanding? (The monastic replies: Real understanding.) Real understanding of what?  (The monastic replies: Real understanding is like what Rinpoche has realized, by entering sūnyatā (Puja Teachings Index 21) , one understands.) Ah, never mind, I won’t keep making things difficult for you.
 
For example, when practicing the Four Extraordinary Foundations of Vajrayana Ngondro, one must first visualize Refuge Field , because Refuge Field is pure. When you visualize it, everything around you is the pure lands of Buddhas, because there are no longer any distracting thoughts, no delusional thoughts, and no thoughts of breaking precepts. This is why one must first visualize Refuge Field, because Refuge Field is the lands of Buddas. Only after the visualizing Refuge Field clearly do you perform grand prostrations; only then are the grand prostrations effective. If we do grand prostrations here on Earth, even if we do them a hundred million or a billion times, it is useless, because this is the evil time of the Five Turbidities. How do we transform the evil time of the Five Turbidities into the pure lands of Buddhas ? It is not by flying to Amitabha Buddha, nor by having Amitabha bring the Buddhas here. Rather, it is by purifying the mind. The so-called purification is through mantras and prayers that our greed, hatred, ignorance, arrogance, and doubt are immediately brought to a halt. Once they stop, what we visualize is pure, and naturally the lands of Buddhas presence.
 
For instance, when Rinpoche performs Phowa for someone, do I bring Amitabha Buddha’s Pure Land here? No. When I practice the chod, do I bring the Pure Land here? No. I abide completely in a state of purity, and through the power of visualization, allowing all beings perceive a pure land of Buddhas, not in this Earth of the evil time of the Five Turbidities. Only when sentient beings enter this pure land of Buddhas can they receive liberation. The point is this: if you learn Buddhism and wish to help others, it is not enough to simply recite a few sutras. Without empowerment, retreat, and training of the generation stage and completion stage, it is impossible to have the capacity to truly benefit sentient beings.

Therefore, many people cannot explain this sentence, because they have not practiced Vajrayana. Once one has practiced Vajrayana, one understands its meaning. So-called ‘purity’ is that the lands of Buddhas are certainly pure, but in this evil time of the Five Turbidities, it is impossible to bring the lands of Buddhas here. Unless one possesses the great supernatural powers of Shakyamuni Buddha, who could take his younger brother to see the Heaven Realm and hells. Thus, Vajrayana teaches us to use the generation stage and the completion stage. The Dharma texts also state very clearly: if one practices the yidam using generation and completion stages according to the guru’s transmission yet does not attain realization in this very lifetime, then Vajradhara would be lying.
 
Why do I tell you not to be disobedient? Why do I teach you to be respectful? It is not for my sake, I do not need this kind of hypocritical respect. What matters is that when you have respect, your mind becomes pure. Only then can it unite with the guru’s pure mind, and what you visualize can also be pure. After that, the lands of Buddhas will presence. You may not see it, but those sentient beings can see it, this is why, when you recite mantras, beings will come to listen. The Sutra of Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha’s Fundamental Vows also explains this clearly: if one continuously recites the sacred name of Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha, ten thousand times daily for three years, then good spirits and deities in the surrounding area will come to protect his/her home. What is the logic behind this? It is because your recitation make the environment become purified, and Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha constantly blesses you. Now, we simplify this: if you take refuge in Rinpoche, and are willing to listen, uphold the precepts, and continuously practice the Thirty-Seven Practices of Bodhisattvas; if Rinpoche grants you empowerment and you have the opportunity to enter retreat, then what you cultivate will be purity. Naturally, good spirits and deities will come to protect your home; there is no need to spend three years reciting. 

Why do we say that the Vajrayana is the swift path? Because its Dharma methods are faster than Exoteric Buddhism. It is not that they are different, the principles are the same, but the methods are quicker. Therefore, for those who wish to learn Vajrayana: if you are not prepared to practice the Bodhisattva Path, have not accepted its theoretical foundations, and are not ready to act accordingly, then you should simply uphold the precepts, practice the Thirty-Seven Practices of Bodhisattvas, and practice the Dharma Protector Achi, that is sufficient. Do not indulge in delusions about practicing the Four Extraordinary Foundations of Vajrayana Ngondro. For example, in the Guru Yoga of the Four Extraordinary Foundations of Vajrayana Ngondro, I have only transmitted the middle portion; much of the later Dhamas has not yet been transmitted, because you are not yet qualified. Many people think this is too strict. It is not strict. Shakyamuni Buddha taught in the Ratnakuta Sutra that if one does not have the root-capacity, even the Mahayana Sutra should not be shown to them; even the names of those sutras should not be revealed. Thus, many people are curious about Vajrayana and think it is very powerful. It is indeed powerful, its power lies in its ability to completely transform a person’s life. But one’s mind must be absolutely correct; even the slightest deviation is not acceptable. So today, these two lines explain it clearly: Furthermore, one enters into equal understanding of the lands of Buddhas, causing them to manifest in presence as pure. This is called expedience. This too is a Dharmas of expedience. Before we practice, whether visualizing the preliminary practices or the main practice, they are all Dharmas of expedience.
 
Sutra: ‘Thought of that lands of Buddhas are void. This is called wisdom.’
 
This refers to the completion stage. After we finish practicing the generation stage and complete the recitation of mantras, we must visualize sūnyatā (Puja Teachings Index 21), this is what this sentence means. Void means that all phenomena are not fixed or unchanging, but are constantly changing. All the lands of Buddhas exist only because Buddhas, in response to the prayers of some beings, visualize and manifest a land for them. Such a land of Buddhas is not necessarily eternal, once the prayers of those beings are fulfilled, that land of Buddhas disappear. Therefore, when we learn Vajrayana, we must visualize sūnyatā (Puja Teachings Index 21) at the end. Visualizing sūnyatā (Puja Teachings Index 21) does not mean nothing. Rather, we must understand that within the ten directions of the Dharma Realm, all people, events, and things, indeed, all Dharmas are empty in their true, original nature. Sūnyatā (Puja Teachings Index 21) is not nothingness: it is arising through a fate, and extinction through a fate. When fates are sufficient, it appears; when fates are lacking, it disappears. Thus, we must understand that what the sutras teach is not what you say it is. Thought of that lands of Buddhas are void, you may repeat this phrase endlessly, yet you won’t understand what it truly means.
 
Therefore, Exoteric Buddhism is the substance, while Vajrayana is the application. If you learn the substance but do not know how to apply it, you will never accomplish realization, many disciples are always like this. It does not matter, you will still become a Buddha one day. But it will take three great asamkhyeya (innumerable) kalpas, which is a full cycle of the world’s formation, existence, destruction, and emptiness, and even then, you have not yet attained Buddhahood. Many people are lazy and think, ‘It’s fine to wait, one day I will become a Buddha anyway, as the sutras say.’ But Venerable Milarepa once said: as long as you remain in reincarnation, there will certainly be at least one lifetime in which you fall into hell. He is a ture Mahasiddha, a great practitioner.
 
I went to his place to enter a retreat, he was extremely powerful, truly not an ordinary practitioner. After I came out of retreat, His Holiness said, ‘Tomorrow we’ll go up higher.’ The place where I had been in retreat was already at 4,600 meters, and above that there was another cave at over 5,000 meters. I could hardly walk anymore. But the next day, His Holiness said, ‘Let’s go, let’s go,’ and tricked me up there. Inside that cave was a small Buddhist shrine. Above it, Venerable Milarepa had left two footprints and two handprints. How tall was that cave? Even if I stood on this Dharma throne, I still wouldn’t be able to reach it. How could he have leapt up there and left those imprints? We do not know. But in Vajrayana it is often said that a practitioner who has truly realized sūnyatā (Puja Teachings Index 21) can leave handprints and footprints in stone. If we see thangkas with two handprints and two footprints, this indicates that the thangka has been placed by a practitioner who has realized sūnyatā (Puja Teachings Index 21).
 
Therefore, lands of Buddhas are void means that all lands of Buddhas are like void itself. This is called wisdom. Only in this way can one be a truly wise practitioner.

Sutra: ‘Furthermore, one thought of entering into equal understanding in the Bodhimanda of Bodhicitta, and thereby making it manifest solemnly. This is called expedience.’
 
One must direct one’s thoughts toward the bodhicitta path, that is, the path of bodhicitta’s practice. Bodhimanda refers to this very place of cultivation. It is not a place for practicing the Hinayana, but for practicing the Mahayana, the Bodhisattvayana , or Bodhicitta Path. Therefore, this place is centered on the Bodhicitta Path. Entering into equal understanding means constantly emphasizing equality, free from discriminating mind. Entering into understanding means entering into the method for resolving reincarnation. And thereby make it manifest solemnly, thus, a true place for practicing the bodhicitta path, a genuine Buddhist center or monastery, will naturally manifest solemnness. For example, many people who visit my Monastery say that the moment they enter, their first impression is that it is very solemn and majestic. This is not because the Buddha statues are tall, nor because the Monastery is large. It is because Rinpoche is practicing the bodhicitta path, therefore, that place itself is a bodhicitta place, and so this solemness naturally appears. Why do people sometimes smell fragrance there? It is because my practice can give rise to such fragrance, allowing sentient beings, upon smelling it, to enter into condition to learn the Buddha Dharma, not to improve their physical health.

Sutra: ‘Furthermore, one contemplates the cessation of all defiled Dharmas. This is called wisdom.’
 
Within one’s thoughts, one must bring to cessation of all defiled Dharmas. Defilement refers to greed, hatred, ignorance, arrogance, and doubt, these contaminate all of our actions and thoughts, even in learning Buddhism. We must stop them. Cessation means to let them come to a halt, to no longer give rise to such thoughts. All defiled Dharmas means that not even the slightest trace of contemination can be allowed to remain. For example, yesterday several disciples came to implore consciousness-transference for the deceased. I could have accepted their money and said I would perform consciousness-transference, but would they even know whether it was actually done or not? For me, however, that would be a defiled act. Why? Because the deceased clearly did not have the fate to receive such transference, and those who came to implore them had not truly received permission. If I were to insist on accepting their offering and claim to help them, that would be the arising of greed. I could simply take the money first, but I would not dare, because the Buddha has taught otherwise. One who practices the Bodhisattva Path would not act in this way. You may be firm, even to the point that others misunderstand you or dislike you, but you must not allow yourself to be defiled for the sake of wealth. Even if someone cries bitterly, you must not accept it. Yesterday, they cried in front of me as if it were real, but no matter how much they cried, it was of no use. Rinpoche remains unmoved. I am already 79 years old, have I not seen people cry before? Why am I not moved? Because I am not affected by defilement. I look at the entire situation to see whether I can truly help them. If I cannot, then I create some fates for them and see whether they can accept them. If they can accept, then there is naturally an opportunity. If they cannot accept, then, perhaps in the next lifetime.
 
If today I were to casually agree to perform consciousness-transference for the deceased, I could easily become extremely wealthy. The Great Amitabha Puja alone could bring great profit. Why is it that everyone can participate in the Great Amitabha Puja? First, because it is the Great Indiscriminate Puja. Second, because this is the great vow power of Amitabha. Third, before holding the Great Puja, I must enter retreat for at least three days. Fourth, for at least one month before performing the Dharma, many monasteries of the Drikung Kagyu perform Dharma protector practices for me, because the karma of sentient beings is too heavy. If I were to forcefully attempt to liberate them, how could an ordinary human body bear it? Therefore, if you usually do not come to implore consciousness-transference, you must wait until there is an opportunity to hold the Great Amitabha Puja. Of course, I am getting older now, holding the Great Puja is very exhausting for me; it is not like before.
 
What this means is: if you want to invoke consciousness-transference for the deceased, you must prepare for your parents in advance, and also for yourself. It cannot be done at the last minute; someone died yesterday, and today you come to implore Rinpoche. It is useless. I would not be defiled. Yesterday, how many offerings did I return?  (The monastic disciple replies: Reporting to Rinpoche, at least 1.5 million was returned.) Why were these offerings returned? Because I do not accept defilement. Could I have taken the money first and dealt with it later? Or said it was not enough? That would violate what the sutras teach. A practitioner of the Bodhisattva Path should not act in this way. I would rather let people scold me, hate me, or resent me than allow myself to be defiled. If they hate or criticize me, that is fine; it helps me form a fate for the future. But if I become defiled, then my ability to help sentient beings and my capacity for practice will be diminished. I will not do that.
 
​​I only saw this sentence today, but haven’t I always acted this way? (The assembly replies: Yes.) So, your luck is not very good, you have taken refuge in me, and I place great importance on what the sutras teach. I could have chosen not to mention this sentence, or even concealed it, or avoided explaining it to you in this way. That is why, even when some people repeatedly implore, I still do not accept their offerings. If they are wrong and I still accept their offerings, I would have to take on too much responsibility for them. I still have many sentient beings to transfer their consciousnesses, and many Dharma activities to carry out. To contaminate my pure nature for the sake of a small red envelope is simply not worth it. So everyone should be mindful, do not assume that because Rinpoche is compassionate（maitrī and karuṇā), I will accept everything you say.
 
Sutra: ‘If, within the turning of the Dharma wheel, one enters into equal understanding and is able to universally respond to favorable conditions, this is called expedience.’

Able to universally respond to favorable conditions. This is exactly what I just talked about, to be able to correspond to each being’s motivations and fates. Yesterday, I kept demonstrating this, wasn’t I? (The monastic disciple replies: Yes, according to what sentient beings implore, and depending on their different conditions, to offer help, or refuse, or admonish, or scold, even strike or reprimand, or to accept them with a kind smile.) This is called expedience. So in the future, do not say, ‘Rinpoche is like this or that’, the sutras have already stated it. 

For example, when His Holiness celebrated his 60th birthday, I brought 500 disciples to India to offer congratulations. We were seated above, watching the disciples’ performances as offerings to His Holiness. In front of me sat His Holiness and Garchen Rinpoche, who is now the most senior Rinpoche in our Drikung Kagyu lineage. I sat behind them, the two of them spoke in Mandarin surprisingly. His Holiness’s Mandarin was slightly more standard than mine, though his vocabulary was limited. Garchen Rinpoche’s Mandarin was almost unintelligible, yet the two of them spoke in Mandarin, what were they saying? His Holiness pointed at me and said, ‘This disciple of mine, he beats and scolds his disciples.’ Garchen Rinpoche replied, ‘That is not compassionate (maitrī and karuṇā)!’His Holiness then said, ‘This is true compassion (maitrī and karuṇā)! This is our traditional way of teaching.’ (See precious video: His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang Affirming Strict Ｍethods of Teaching) So now I have a ‘license’ to discipline the disciples. (The assembly laughs.) His Holiness said this publicly in front of me. Most people would say you may have permission—but for us as Buddhist practitioners, we must teach according to the disciple’s capacity and fate. Under that circumstance, they should have spoken Tibetan; but perhaps because they were concerned I might not understand, they deliberately used a language they themselves were not fluent in. You all keep saying Rinpoche is harsh, but this is not harshness. Now that I have explained this, is there a basis for it? (The assembly replies: Yes.) And was this taught by the Buddha? (The assembly replies: Yes.)

Before  I expounded this sutra, I had already acted in this way, I never opened the text beforehand to see what I was going to speak about that day; I only opened it once I arrived, I am absolutely not deceiving you. This shows that what Rinpoche does was not learned only in this lifetime; most likely, I had practiced and seen these teachings in past lives that I am able to do this in this life. Since I am able to do it, you should have faith. Do not say that the sutras do not mention it;  today everything has been explained, and it exactly corresponds to what I did yesterday. Is that not so?  (The assembly replies: Yes.) What do the monastic disciples say, is it so? (The monastic disciples replies: Yes.) Yes, for what?  (The monastic disciples replies: Rinpoche provides help according to the fate of sentient beings.) Why don’t you say that I am untainted by all contamination? (The monastic disciple replies: Rinpoche would never violate the Buddha Dharma for his own benefit.)
 
Therefore, a practitioner is absolutely not what you think; being gentle and nice toward you, saying pleasing words to you, nor what you think about him being compassionate （maitrī and karuṇā )and should smile at you every day. According to what the sutras said, this is not the case at all. Because your root  capacity is not supposed to be in such a way, he then uses other methods to help you. When you want to learn Buddhism and are determined, you will face many matters that you were previously unable to accept in the past; challenge your heart of arrogance, challenge your concept of self-centeredness, and challenge your so-called ‘know-how’. He keeps challenging you, constantly helping you to break through it. Even if you have lived for decades and feel that you have been doing quite well. That is the way of being ‘well’ as an ordinary person, but from the perspective of a practitioner, it might be tainted, it might be incorrect, one might use the wrong method. Therefore, he has to help you to break through it.  
 
To break through it is to make you understand what will happen if you keep using this method. This method can help you adjust; and it could also be used. Once the heart is different, then it can be used. How is it different? For example, in one of Shakyamuni Buddha’s past lives, in order to save five hundred arhats, he killed that boatman. Because the boatman was preparing to sink the ship in order to kill the five hundred arhats, and rub their belongings. In theory, how could someone practicing the Bodhisattva Path kill a person? It is prohibited! To kill the boatman, Shakyamuni Buddha was to save him from falling into hell, and also to save the five hundred arhats. When the heart is correct, such an act can be done.
 
For example, the sutra mentions Venerable Ananda. Monastics are not permitted to stay overnight in the house of lay people, is there such a precept? (The monastic disciple replies: Yes.) Rinpoche said to the monastic disciples: You have all broken it now.  Venerable Ananda expounded Buddha Dharma to the king’s concubine and he stayed overnight there. Originally, one could say that he broke the precept, but since his mind was very pure, he entered ding (Puja Teachings Index 06) to speak the Dharma, so he did not break the precept. Whether a precept has been broken or not isn’t what you think; it is the guru who will help you to see. Because the guru is a person who observes the precepts, he is very clear about what it means to break a precept, to open a precept, or to violate a precept. In some circumstances, if your mind is correct, this action you had done is permitted. What so-called ‘permit’ does not mean that it is correct; it means that, for the sake of convenience, you may carry out this action. But that does not mean it is correct; it does not ensure that it is definitely correct.

For example, there are red ants at our Monastery. You know that when fire ants bite, things go very seriously. So I instructed them to spray diluted bleach to let them stop coming near. Because if they were to bite people who come to visit, bite the monastics, or even bite me, it’s karma would be heavy. Once it was sprayed, it stopped coming over.  Ordinarily, one should not kill living beings, right? This does not count as killing, because it is to let them not do evil karma.  For example, poisonous snakes often appear at our Monastery. I have repeatedly told everyone not to hit or chase them away , just let them be. Poisonous snakes come because there are many frogs there, and they want to eat them. If we were to hit or kill the snake, that would be killing the snake. If it wants to eat the frog, that is the fate between them. If the frog did not have the fate to be eaten, it certainly would not be found. Recently, something new has happened: many tree frogs die naturally near the Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara Monastery. They didn’t want to be eaten by snakes, so they died. Now, as long as any insect or animal dies at the Monastery, I instruct them to collect the bodies and bury them on a piece of land outside the North Gate, and let them hear the voice of me reciting the mantra to help transfer their consciousness. 

Therefore, Buddha Dharma is not a matter that must be in a certain way. What matters most is your heart, your attitude, and your point of origin. In English, it is called ‘motivation.’ In Chinese, it is about where your intention lies? If your motivation is to help sentient beings, then of course it could be used. For example, on an airplane, I told that person who believed in a non-Buddhist religion, ‘Your Lord will help you.’Logically speaking, I am a Rinpoche, how could I speak of the Lord of others? From the perspective of the precepts, it was incorrect, but I hoped that she did not suffer. If I had spoken of Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara, she would not have listened and understood, she would say, ‘Why, Who, and What?’So I told her, ‘Your Lord,’ and she immediately stopped making noise and became quiet. As a Buddhist learner, our purpose is to help sentient beings solve their sufferings. But the method one uses, as long as your heart is for the sake of their wellness, even forceful means may sometimes be used. For example, yesterday I hit a male disciple because he was not filial to his parents, I hit his karma a little; if without the hit, his karma would become heavier and heavier. Therefore, within the Buddhist sutras, they mention lots about cultivation.
 
Sutra: ‘Furthermore, one contemplates that what is to be transformed cannot be transformed for another. This is called wisdom.’
 
This means that, as practitioners practicing the Bodhisattva Path, we cannot transform one’s karma, but we can teach them the methods so that they may transform it themselves. For example, telling someone to perform a certain number of grand prostrations each day is a way of transforming. I cannot do it in their place—I am not their mother’s son; they must perform the prostrations themselves. Then what does cannot be transformed mean? It means that I help them and tell them how to transform their karma, but I do not transform it for them. Even Shakyamuni Buddha cannot transform the karma of sentient beings unless they transform it themselves. Why learn Buddhism? After learning Buddhism, through gradual reflection and listening to the teachings, one comes to know where one must adjust, change, and even transform oneself. It is something you must do yourself. The Buddhas and Bodhisattvas cannot erase karma for you—you must do it yourself.

We are not non-Buddhist religions, do not think that by simply taking up incense and asking for blessings, you will be granted an easy life. Of course, the Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and all gurus will create favorable fates for you, so that you continue to have fate to listen to the Dharma. In this way, things may gradually turn in a better direction. Yet cannot be transformed means that nothing has literally been turned away for you. Rather, you have simply stopped doing the things that should not be done, and the force generated by your past unwholesome actions begins to lessen. Because you are now doing virtuous, the power of virtuous can cause the power of evil to cease. And when the force of your virtue becomes strong enough — even ten times greater than the force of evilness — it can suppress it and keep it from moving.

Sutra: ‘By applying the practices that lead to Bodhicitta, one enters equal understanding and is able, in the present moment, to know what to relinquish and what to leave behind. This is called expedience.’
 
Only when you analyze all methods of practice through applying the practices that lead to Bodhicitta — through Bodhicitta and the Bodhisattva Path — can you enter understanding with equanimity, unlock samsara, and be able to relinquish and let go in the present. Only then can you know what should be relinquished and what should be left behind. This relinquishing and letting go includes, while still alive, how to discern what to release and what to leave behind in relation to the affairs of the world. It also includes, at the time of death, how to let go of this lifetime’s body and of all one’s family members, attachments, and concerns. To be able to relinquish and let go in the present means that when, in this lifetime, you have learned bodhi and use Bodhicitta and the Bodhisattva Path to discern the conduct of practice, then by entering equally into this gate of understanding — the gate that opens liberation from samsara — you will immediately know what it means to relinquish and what it means to depart from attachment, and you will no longer cling. The reason we have so many afflictions and so much suffering is that we cling, we are unwilling to let go, and we do not want to part. Then, when the time of death comes, it becomes very painful. Because you cannot bear to let go, once the mind of attachment arises, all afflictions follow after it, and you suffer greatly.
 
Sutra: ‘Furthermore, one contemplates that with regard to all Dharmas, one is not in accord with them nor with the various accompanying afflictions; through the Tathāgata’s wisdom and the wondrous bliss of chanding (Puja Teachings Index 06), there are no feverish vexations.’
 
This means that when you practice the authentic chanding (Puja Teachings Index 06) taught by the Buddha, the subtle bliss that arises cannot be expressed in words. Through chanding (Puja Teachings Index 06) cultivation, we can attain great bliss, and this great bliss is able to suppress all afflictions. What I said just now is now confirmed by this sentence. Without this subtle bliss, you cannot subdue your afflictions, nor can they be brought to cessation. ‘All Dharmas’ here means all the things you think about and all the circumstances that appear before you; they do not arise because you are in resonance with something. With the various accompanying afflictions. Follow from all your afflictions. Affliction means a state of not seeing clearly, from which various appearances arise — leading you to think that others are harming you, treating you badly, or that you cannot obtain what you seek. But all of this comes from your own afflictions; it is simply the arising of greed, hatred, ignorance, arrogance, and doubt. If one can cultivate the Tathāgata’s wisdom, chanding (Puja Teachings Index 06) , and this subtle bliss, then all afflictions are gone. ‘Gone’ does not mean that they have literally vanished; rather, it means that the wisdom born of  chanding (Puja Teachings Index 06) is able to subdue greed, hatred, ignorance, arrogance, and doubt, preventing them from taking effect. That is why one can be freed from affliction.
 
Why is Rinpoche able to remain in retreat for more than three months — seeing no one and speaking not at all? Because of  chanding (Puja Teachings Index 06). Through chanding (Puja Teachings Index 06), all burning afflictions cease and no longer arise, it even allows me to remain within a pure state, a pure power of ding (Puja Teachings Index 06), and continue practicing without interruption. This is absolutely not something that can be accomplished overnight, nor something achieved through slogans, it is attained through practice and through the power of the guru’s blessings. For example, this time I brought thirty people into retreat. Their ability to retreat was not because they themselves were so remarkable, but because of the power of the guru’s blessing. The guru temporarily suspends their afflictions, allowing them to re-examine, in the process of learning Buddhism, whether they have truly practiced correctly, whether they have gone astray, and enabling them to see their true face clearly.

Sutra: ‘Whether in forms or in formlessness, all grasping after fate is subdued, and all this is thoroughly understood.’
 
Form means what you believe you see, formlessness means what you believe is no longer there. All grasping after fate must be subdued. A practitioner does not casually chase after fate. For example, all of you have followed me for so many years—why does Rinpoche not go on television or promote himself through websites, but only publish what I say at the pujas and do nothing else? Because that would be called grasping after fate. A practitioner can help sentient beings create virtuous fate, a practitioner should offer help according to the fate of sentient beings, and should practice according to one’s own fate. If one’s fate is unvirtuous, one should work to change them and perform virtuous deeds, rather than chase after such fate. For example, I have practiced for decades, I do not spend my days asking around where there is something good to hear, or what lecture I should attend so that I may become famous, I do not go. All these things are grasping after fate.
 
To reach the state of not chasing after fate is not easy.Since many people are afraid that, without fame or without disciples, how will they be able to survive? And so they begin to chase after fate. Titles such as president of some merit association, and nowadays there are many kinds of ‘chairpersons’ and all sorts of other ‘important people’—these are all methods of grasping after fate. For a practitioner, if in past lives and in this present life one has practiced the Dharma properly, then followers and supportive connections will naturally be complete, and disciples will appear on their own—you could not drive them away even if you tried. No matter how I try to drive you away, you still will not leave. I have driven away hundreds of people, yet there are still a thousand remaining. Truly, it is quite exhausting.

Grasping fate does not mean that you should not know people, nor that you should avoid all contact with others. That is not the meaning. Rather, it means not deliberately manufacturing opportunities for your own benefit. In worldly matters, of course it is acceptable to earn money. But the supramundane Dharma is different. You may ask: if I call people and invite them to attend a puja, is that grasping fate? No, that is not grasping fate. Because you are not the one presiding over the puja. Who is? I am. You are simply helping sentient beings form a virtuous fate, to see whether they have the fate to form fate with Rinpoche, that is not grasping fate. So do not say, ‘Rinpoche taught us not to grasp fate, so I won’t make phone calls, won’t tell others, and won’t introduce people to Rinpoche’s stores.’ Do not talk nonsense! That is called ‘lazily exploiting fate.’ (The assembly laughs.) You are very good at twisting my words and then finding excuses.

Sutra: ‘All those Bodhisattva-Mahāsattvas abide in ding (Puja Teachings Index 06), yet are not fixed in any particular state. Through virtue they renounce and accords in this way. This is called wisdom.’
 
This passage is not easy to explain to you, it means that all great Bodhisattvas remain in ding (Puja Teachings Index 06), yet they are not fixed in any particular place or state. They are constantly in ding (Puja Teachings Index 06), but not attached to abiding anywhere within it. Through virtue they renounce means that they renounce this worldly realm through all the virtuous Dharmas they have cultivated. Renounce from what? First, from the world of reincarnation; second, from the body of an ordinary worldly person; and third, from all the forces of virtuous and evil karma that bind one to remain behind. Therefore, in everything they do, they renounce through virtue. No matter what they do, the final basis of it is virtue. For example, if I strike this disciple, it is for his benefit, not for my own. I could also choose not to strike him and instead say, ‘You are so filial—implore to make offerings on behalf of your mother, plead for her liberation, offer a little more!’I have heard of such methods and understand them too, but they cannot be used. And accords in this way. This is called wisdom. That which renounces through virtue is true wisdom.

Sutra: ‘And all Bodhisattva-Mahāsattvas attain the endless chanding (Puja Teachings Index 06) paramita. Any deeds of demons are unable to find any means.’
 
This means that when you attain the paramita of chanding (Puja Teachings Index 06), all demonic matters are unable to find any means to harm you. For example, during their recent retreat, by all ordinary reasoning there should certainly have been obstacles from demons. So-called demons refer to karmic creditors accumulated over many past lives, as well as one’s inner demons and external demons. Why were they not harmed? Not one person caught a cold, and not one person encountered any trouble. It was because they were protected by the wisdom of chanding (Puja Teachings Index 06). All demonic deeds are unable to find any opportunity to harm you.
 
Sutra: ‘Having attained virtuous and stable abiding, they become Dharma implements for all Buddhas.’
 
You attain virtuous and stable abiding through chanding (Puja Teachings Index 06). Let me explain chanding (Puja Teachings Index 06) further here: it does not necessarily arise simply because one sits in for a certain number of hours each day. The simplest and most concise explanation of chanding (Puja Teachings Index 06) is that one has realized sūnyatā (Puja Teachings Index 21), the mind is freed from scattered thoughts, every moment abides in state of ding (Puja Teachings Index 06), and whatever one does is done within that state of ding (Puja Teachings Index 06), then chanding (Puja Teachings Index 06) has arisen. Of course, this does not appear in a day or two, it must come through much practice and cultivation. Because you have attained this chanding (Puja Teachings Index 06), and all demons can no longer harm you, you then attain virtuous Dharmas. Having stable abiding, they become Dharma implements for all Buddhas, this means that you remain with the Buddhas as an implements of the Dharma. What does this mean? Since we wish to help sentient beings, we must also assist the Buddhas in fulfilling their vows, and thus become one of the Buddhas’ Dharma implements. To become an implement of the Buddha, at the very least one must be a Bodhisattva. Therefore, in our Dharma texts we always make the vow: For the benefit of sentient beings, I aspire to attain Buddhahood. Because we wish to become an implement of the Buddhas, we must make this vow.
 
Sutra: ‘Śāriputra, the wisdom and skillful means thus spoken of enable those Bodhisattva-Mahāsattvas to attain liberation through the pāramitā of chanding (Puja Teachings Index 06).’
 
If you wish to attain liberation from this world of reincarnation, you must attain the pāramitā of chanding (Puja Teachings Index 06). To attain the pāramitā of chanding (Puja Teachings Index 06), it is not necessary only to practice sitting chanding (Puja Teachings Index 06). Reciting mantras, prostrating to the Buddha, and showing reverence to the guru can also lead to it. For example, many old disciples, through their reverence toward Rinpoche, have in effect cultivated a kind of pāramitā of chanding (Puja Teachings Index 06). Therefore, many of them knew the time of their passing beforehand. They foresaw their time of death, departed without suffering, and before passing they were able to request and receive the Phowa. They did not practice many other things—only two: faith in the guru and reverence for the guru! With no other thoughts, their minds were pure, and thus they attained it. The Buddha Dharma is not very complicated, what is complicated is your mind, do not make it overly complicated. ‘But Rinpoche teaches so much!’ Of course I must teach a lot, because all of you are very complicated. If you were simple, like Venerable Mahākāśyapa, who saw Shakyamuni Buddha holding up a flower and smiled, he attained. Because they were simple, even a single flower could bring awakening and Buddhahood. But for you, even if you were handed a bar of gold, you still would not attain it. (The assembly laughs) Ah, there is nothing to be done about it!

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Updated on April 17, 2026