Emptiness

The Ceasing of Conceptual Fabrication: Nyingma Explanation Tsenshap Serkong Rinpoche II: So, now in the commentary, it looks like of the two conceptual fabrications, the first conceptual fabrication is the grasping for truly established existence [as is usually explained in...

Three Divisions of the Complete Stage After the generation stage, we go on to the complete stage practices. This is explained in three divisions: The basis, or basic situation that we are dealing with The path to follow The result that is manifest. The Basis The first of...

We have been looking at methods for integrating the various aspects of our lives. We’ve seen that in order to deal with the various things in our lives and in order to follow the spiritual path in a more whole-hearted way, it’s very important to have a clear idea of all the...

The next level of determination to be free is renunciation of clinging to self-established existence and having our main interest instead be in voidness, emptiness. What a Buddha Perceives To understand this, let me explain a little bit about what a Buddha actually perceives...

The Relation between the Object of Refutation in Voidness and the Ease of Understanding Voidness as Dependent Arising Tsenshap Serkong Rinpoche II: [In the context of cognition of conventional truth] because there are cognizing minds (shes-pa), that’s why there are objects...

Training in Higher Discriminating Awareness  Removing the Obscurations to Liberation and Enlightenment The discussion of training in higher discriminating awareness starts with the second half of verse 41:  (41b) However, if you have failed to apply yourself to...

Going Beyond a Settled Mind: Vipashyana Once you have gained a stilled and settled state of mind of shamatha, one that is held with great flexibility of mind and exhilaration and ecstasy, just to have this by itself, this single-pointedness of a stilled and settled state of...

Recognizing Anything to Which Mind Gives Rise The Fourth Panchen Lama next explains how to cultivate seeing everything to be like illusion with the deep awareness we subsequently attain after we arise from total absorption on voidness. We cultivate this during our so-called...

Assertions and Refutations of Self-Established Existence The next verse states: (IX.5) Functional phenomena are seen by the (common) world and conceptualized to be absolutely existent, and not like an illusion. It’s in this regard that there’s dispute between...

The Great Compassion of Bodhichitta When we think of the most kind and compassionate Buddha Shakyamuni, we think of his great qualities and his amazing deeds, and specifically of all the teachings he gave purely to benefit all others. Among all these teachings, when we think...