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Lama Zopa Rinpoche offering Thought Transformation teachings to Russian students via Zoom from Kopan Monastery, Nepal, on June 25, 2022.
Lama Zopa Rinpoche continues his video teachings on thought transformation. Here is a summary of a teaching given on June 25 from Kopan Monastery, Nepal, at the request of Telo Tulku Rinpoche, Ganden Tendar Ling FPMT Buddhist Center, Aryadeva FPMT Study Group, and the Save Tibet Foundation in Russia.
The foundation of thought transformation is to stop harming others, Rinpoche explains. When anything undesirable happens to us, we believe it came from outside, we never relate it to our own mind. If we didn’t harm others in the past, nobody could harm us in the present time. If we are harmed by people or animals, anger arises and we want to harm them back, we view them as an enemy. If we really want to stop experiencing harm, we have to learn and understand karma, we have to stop harming others.
Happiness and suffering in life depends on how we think. If we want less problems in life, then we must look at the situation as positive and healthy. The more we can look at things as positive, the less angry we will be. Then life isn’t destroyed by anger, our liberation from samsara isn’t destroyed by anger, our enlightenment isn’t destroyed by anger. The more we can look at miserable or bad conditions as positive, the more patience and good heart develops, the more compassion toward others we have. Thought transformation means we look at bad conditions as positive.
When we practice Dharma, we take care of the world. If we think in a positive way, there is peace for oneself and peace for others—we can bring peace to the world and in our family by practicing Dharma. Practicing Dharma means taking care of the mind and benefiting others. Happiness follows a good heart and suffering follows a bad heart. With a good heart, when we speak to someone or undertake any activity—it becomes virtue, the result is only happiness. This is why it is very important, in any action of body, speech, and mind in daily life, before we start, generate a good heart, a Dharma mind. Then every action becomes Dharma.
We invite you to go deeper into the topics presented here, plus many others, by watching Rinpoche’s video and reading the full transcript of Rinpoche’s teaching.
- Read the transcript of Rinpoche’s teaching
- Find Rinpoche’s Teachings on Thought Transformation translated into various languages.
- Dedication verses
Summary of Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s teaching by Carina Rumrill based on the transcript by Ven. Joan Nicell with editorial input and additions by Justin Jenkins. This summary is meant to highlight key topics presented by Rinpoche in the recorded video and is not intended to serve as a full representation of Rinpoche’s teaching, which is best received through watching the video and/or reading the full transcript.
Watch more from the video series Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s Teachings on Thought Transformation and find links to videos in transcripts, MP3s, additional practice advice, and more:
https://fpmt.org/fpmt/announcements/resources-for-coronavirus-pandemic/advice-from-lama-zopa-rinpoche-for-coronavirus/
You can listen to this teaching on our full-length-teachings podcast as well:
https://fpmt.org/media/podcasts/
Lama Zopa Rinpoche is the spiritual director of the Foundation for the Preservation of Mahayana Tradition (FPMT), a Tibetan Buddhist organization dedicated to the transmission of the Mahayana Buddhist tradition and values worldwide through teaching, meditation and community service.