Sun, 15 Jun 2008
Perfect Conduct
Here's a little more from Khenpo's talk on Gampopa's Pricious Garland. The topic is perfect conduct. In can you didn't know, Precious Garland has been translated with a commentary by Khenpo Karthar Rinpoche.
Guarding one's conduct like the pupils of ones eyes is the perfect conduct for a person of lesser capacity. My cousin gave up his monastic vows. He was criticized and responded by saying in the Madhyamika there is no such thing as a monk or no monk. Sometimes people use this kind of excuse for their own conduct. But until you realize emptiness you cannot talk this way. As long as you get angry when criticized or happy when praised, you cannot adopt this view. You should judge your understanding and act accordingly. In Drikung Thil a retreat master drank tea every day from the same cup that was spoiled with rancid butter, but he would not allow others to drink from it. Because he was realized he could do that. It is better to act as you are than pretend to have an understanding that you don't.
To judge all experience as dreams and illusions is the perfect conduct for a person of middling capacity. I told you the story of Saraha, who adopted the conduct of a siddha and said, "Today I am truly ordained." That is because he saw all phenomena as illusory. That is something we cannot yet do. There was a student of Rechungpa who meditated on the element of water. A hunter who went by his retreat saw a spring and threw a rock in it. When the student arose from meditation, he felt uncomfortable. Rechungpa told him to re-enter the meditation and took the rock out. We do not control our mind, much less our body. There's a saying that if a fox tries to leap as a lion does, he will break his back. So seeing all phenomena as illusory is the conduct of a middling person.
Being without any conduct whatsoever is the perfect conduct for one of highest capacity. At this level one does not commit to either virtue or non-virtue.
