That Wheel of Life, it’s a little bit different from what the sutra text, how it’s explained by Buddha, maybe it’s not quite exact according to that. So that, the Yama like this, so that’s showing the nature of your life, impermanence and death. So, anyway, before explaining that. So the inside, the very center there is a pig and then from the pig’s mouth coming the tails, from the pig’s mouth, the tail of the pigeon, mostly it’s drawn as a rooster, so rooster’s tail and then a snake. Sometimes they draw from pig mouth, then snake, no, I think maybe the rooster and rooster’s mouth, snake, kind of they make like that. But this one has, from pig’s mouth then coming both tails come out, so that is more according to Buddha’s teachings, the inside one. Many they don’t draw like that. So that’s the more correct one according to Buddha’s teachings. The pig signifies ignorance, especially the ignorance, root, which last few days talking the root of samsara, the ignorance, okay, the wrong concept. The root of samsara, the ignorance, two types: ignorance holding the self, holding the I truly existent, then the ignorance holding the aggregates truly existent. These two are the root of samsara. So anyway, the pig signifies that. It signifies also the ignorance not knowing Dharma, ignorance not knowing karma, cause of happiness and cause of suffering. Then from the mouth of the pig coming the two, the snake and the rooster’s tails. So that, from ignorance then anger, the snake signifies anger, hatred. Then the, many of the artists draw the rooster, but I don’t know, I haven’t seen yet the teaching which says the rooster. It seems in the sutra it is a pigeon. So some draw a pigeon, those who understand the teachings. In Geshe Sopa Rinpoche’s the teachings on the Wheel of Life, quoted the sutra, Buddha’s teachings, the pigeon. That signifies attachment, desire; so, the pigeon, so this has unbelievable attachment, it’s said that, so the companion, other companion ?among the pigeons attached so much. Of course, I mean to stay together it’s not common, so even they find the human snot throw, they pick up the snot and give to feed the other companion, even snot. So ?unseparable. Then over and over the sexual act, kind of so many a day, over and over, so there’s a particular story, so much unbelievable attachment, desire, so then that’s why use that for attachment. But the rooster haven’t seen, maybe the other texts, I’m not sure ?where/whether Buddha explained, I’m not sure, but seems pigeon is the one.

So anyway, there’s the, signifies the three poisonous minds, okay. Delusions, cause of samsara, delusions. Then the white around, no, sorry. Then the black around, white around, so black around that signifies negative karma, this side, around like this. So the black one, negative karma, this white one is good karma. People who have created negative karma then they are led by Yama in the lower realms. Anyway, so that means, those who have created negative karma get reborn in the lower realms, that’s what it signifies, their body is upside down, go down. The people who have created good karma, much virtue, so then kind of well-dressed, and they’re kind of happily going up. Anyway, it means higher rebirth, take higher rebirth. [pause] There’s nobody, they haven’t drawn yet dressed up beach, beach dress, going up, with the surfboard. Maybe next Wheel of Life, anyway.

So anyway, so then the delusions, the cause of samsara, the delusion and karma, so that it talks about, cause of samsara, delusion and karma. So the karma, the nonvirtuous actions, the cause of the lower realms, reincarnate, suffer, unbelievable length of time; then the good karma, which makes to be born in the deva, human realm.

So now the, so down below there’s the hell, I don’t have to go through that, I did already at the beginning, so just down below there’s the eight major hot hells, eight major cold hells, then I don’t know, then four or six neighborhood sufferings, the hell sufferings.

Above the hell there is Yama there. It said that, anyway the conclusion is that Yama shows the mirror and then the, so all negative karma, how many negative karma and how much virtue, everything, so there it explains. So there’s drawn like that. Then after that, everything that shows, then decide which is, then your karmic appearance happens, either lower realms or deva realm. So anyway, so now the top part, this part is the animal realm, this side there’s the animal sufferings, animal realm, animal sufferings, and the other side, the hungry ghosts, all their sufferings. Then on top, I think sometimes one part of the human realm, sort of enjoying, because ?dendro, happy transmigratory beings, so then showing all the happiness, all the enjoyments, in the painting expressed. Then there’s deva realm, but bigger side, deva realm, but it’s kind of half, fighting each other; so deva realm, sura and asura. I think maybe suras, asuras, they fight for the wealth. The suras they want the asuras’ wife, I’m not sure, something like that, anyway. The asuras they have so much miserly or attachment, so much to their wives, something like that. Anyway, their suffering is always fighting, so asuras always get killed; and suras they don’t get killed until they cut their neck. Something like that, anyway.

However, shows the six realms there. Then above, that one I think maybe not have, but some of the Wheel of Life has the seventeen categories shows, so that shows the form realm, the, it’s a samsaric realm, the form realm. Within this circle there’s two, most part is the deva realm, then sura, asura. Then above, it doesn’t mean form realm is out of samsara; it’s not saying, but because there’s all those samsaric realms so that’s why above. I think maybe somehow that cannot be inside, so I think done outside. It doesn’t mean they are free from samsara; they’re part of samsara, they’re samsaric beings, form realm. Then there is the formless realm, four, I think some Wheels of Life you have seventeen categories; then after that, four categories above that.

So these six realms like that, so now held by the two hands, the Yama holding two hands, that shows you’re not free from true suffering, true cause of suffering, I don’t know. I think maybe not. I think maybe karma and delusion, not free from karma and delusion, might be that. Two hands holding. Totally under the control of that. Holding in the mouth means your, nature of your life, nature of impermanence and death. In that nature. So it means not only that there’s death but death can happen any time, so mouth can close any time; so to remind that; so then to persuade to practice Dharma. So the meaning is to, because of that, this is how the nature of your life is, so must practice Dharma all the time.

Anyway, I’ll mention here, must practice Dharma all the time. So, what it is exactly to practice? There’s so many things to do, what is it exactly to practice, okay? So, guru devotion, the root of the path to enlightenment, the lamrim, very important to know the title “lamrim,” the graduated path to enlightenment. There are so many mandalas, billions of mandalas, so many, there’s so many different things what you can do, reading and reciting, I mean, meditate, so practice Dharma. The whole answer, the antidote all the oceans of suffering of samsara and cause, karma and delusion, and the negative imprint, cause, the seed of delusion, the seed, which is cause of delusion. There are 84,000 teachings taught by Buddha but the whole essence, three basket teachings, and then even the essence of that is lamrim, which comes in three levels: graduated path of the lower capable being, middle capable being, higher capable being. Then, even the very heart of that is the three, renunciation, bodhicitta, right view. So this is what we have to practice. So it’s very important to know the title “lamrim,” it’s what we have to realize, what we have to actualize. Future life, it’s extremely difficult to say, to practice in the future life. I don’t practice this life, practice future, very difficult. Even one day, even we are trying to practice Dharma, I’m practicing Dharma, but actually if we check from morning until night, if we check the motivation, how many actions become virtue, become Dharma and become nonvirtue, cause of suffering, if we check, by checking the motivation, how many actions become Dharma, how many actions become non-Dharma, nonvirtue, cause of suffering, then we find most of it the motivation become nonvirtue, so mostly attachment, even, sometimes there can be anger, but mostly attachment, clinging to this life. So it’s all become nonvirtue. All the motivations become nonvirtue, so then all the actions whatever we do, even praying, meditating, everything become nonvirtue if it’s done with the motivation, attachment clinging to this life. So looks like we did, we do prayer, meditation, many things, looks like, but if we really examine from morning until night, if we examine, by examining the motivation, then you find very few that which become Dharma and mostly nonvirtue. Even the action which looks virtue, which looks Dharma, or which looks spiritual, or which looks religion but actually did not become; it become nonvirtue. Your motivation and actions become Dharma, virtue, spiritual or what you call religion, however, that protects you from negative karma, and protects you from reincarnating in the lower realms and experiencing those most unbearable sufferings unbelievable length of time, so protects you, and protects you also the suffering that you engage in negative karma then experience sufferings also in the human realms in the future due to another good karma you get born a human being but you experience many problems, result of past nonvirtue. So here, your mind, your actions become Dharma, virtue, spiritual, religion, protect you from all these sufferings; then also, not only that, from the whole entire suffering of samsara, and the cause, delusion and karma, then protect you from even subtle defilements and achieve enlightenment, so like that, cause to achieve happiness of future lives, cause to achieve liberation from samsara, enlightenment. So to be free from all this, however, the whole entire answer is the lamrim, there’s 84,000 teachings Buddha taught, so extensive, but however the very heart to actualize in your heart is the lamrim, okay, the stages of the path to enlightenment, and the heart of that is renunciation, bodhicitta, right view.

So now here, on the right side, you can’t see here because it is covered by the yellow cloth, so where the Yama’s head is, the right side so there’s Buddha. It is there, Buddha. Then pointing out like this, there’s a half, there’s a moon, I think, moon circle, maybe sometimes drawn like this, so anyway, moon, so above the hand, moon circle. So Buddha is showing the cessation of the suffering, cessation of all these unimaginable sufferings, hell, hungry ghost, animal, human beings, so forth, all the six realms oceans of each realm’s sufferings, general suffering of samsara, particular sufferings of each realm. Then the evolution of samsara, sorry, I left out that, evolution of samsara, how you evolve, how you reincarnate in samsara. So it’s shown by the, there are twelve drawings around, so twelve dependent related limb, so that shows we reincarnate in samsara. So, well, I think. So that one I left out, so the evolution of samsara, so that’s extremely important to understand.

[pause while Rinpoche drinks]

I mean, it just happened. I was not planning to talk, just, I was talking about Jinpa Pelgye, the old man’s life story, so got scattered away. It got elaborated. So it become my style at the moment.

So anyway, so many of you, I think, who have been studying, probably might know that but especially who haven’t heard much, then maybe important. But this is the reason why we take refuge. This is the reason we take refuge to Buddha, Dharma, Sangha; to get out of this, to be free from all these oceans of, each realm’s sufferings and general suffering of samsara, cause, karma and delusion. So it’s good that it came out; anyway. The more we understand the Wheel of Life, the need to practice Dharma, Dharma becomes more and more important and then also, as well as, of course, taking refuge, relying upon Buddha, Dharma and Sangha seriously, taking vows, to rely upon Buddha, Dharma, Sangha and to practice refuge vows; then you see how that is so important, that foundation, started with that.

So how you evolve the twelve links, sorry, the samsara, so there’s old man, blind person walking, so that shows the ignorance, the root of samsara, ignorance, concept holding the I truly existent, holding the aggregates truly existent, so believing something which is not there, that which appeared to the hallucinated mind, then holding it’s true, that ignorance. So signified by the old blind person walking with a stick. Next one there is a person who is making many pots, producing pots. That shows out of ignorance creating karma. So ignorance, from the root of samsara, then there’s anger, attachment, this, ignorance in karma. Then with those then you create various karmas, the negative karma, then the virtuous karma, the immovable karma. Immovable karma is virtue, part of virtue, so that which causes to reincarnate in the form realms, so the, which causes to be born in form realm, which has four categories, called ?samten zhi, four levels of the firm contemplation. Sam, contemplation, ten, firm. Like when you close a door, in Tibet, In Solu Khumbu, when myself and my uncle teacher, when we travel to another place in Solu Khumbu, then you close the door; but behind the door you have huge beams. Huge, back side of the door. The door close then you put beam like this, back side to keep, I think, strong. So like that, firm contemplation. What makes you to be born the first level of firm contemplation, doesn’t become cause to be born in the third or fourth, so immovable. Yeah, so that person making many different pots, signifies those karmas. Then the next one is monkey jumping, [pause] monkey jumping from one tree to another tree, I think. So the, after having created the karma, then the karma leaves imprint on the consciousness of the mind. All the consciousnesses doesn’t go from one to another life, but the consciousness of the mind, that one, that’s the one that goes from one life to another life, continuity from life to life, the consciousness of the mind. So signifies the monkey that jumping, Mexican monkey, jumping from one tree to another tree. I haven’t seen yet Mexican monkey yet.

After that there’s the, in the boat traveling, being in the boat, ?people draw, so that shows after conception, when you are in mother’s womb, the fertilized egg, so that signifies name and form. I think the boat is something kind of temporary, you don’t have all the time, temporary use, so this body is not forever you are going to have, it’s temporary. So shows the aggregates. So, name and form. Form is the body, name is the mental factors, those things, the mind, body and mind. Then after that, the six sense bases, it’s called six sources or six sense bases. The sense bases actualized. Then, after that, there’s contact, contact with the objects, sense and the object, form, sound, smell, taste, tangible, contact. After that, the feeling, I think, feeling. No, not feeling, sorry. Then craving and grasping, is it right? Craving and grasping, no, there’s no feeling. Is there feeling? Huh? So I think must be craving and grasping, yeah after that, not feeling. Feeling should be there. Feeling’s there? Let me count. Ignorance, okay. [Tibetan] That’s right, feeling. So I think the feeling is that, in the drawing that somebody shoot arrow to the eye or something like that, shows the feeling. After contact then there’s feeling. Then craving and grasping. Craving it shows that people, shows in the drawing, having some drink, maybe some wine or something, drinking wine or something, something that kind of strong attachment, so probably enjoying. That’s the craving. From the three poisonous minds that’s the attachment. Craving and then the grasping, then after that shows grasping, the desire craving. After that there’s a monkey taking fruit from the tree, so the grasping. The difference between craving and grasping is the same, desire, but when the craving become so strong and you actually decide to get the object. First we are thinking, having desire to that object, then it becomes so strong that you actually want to get it, ?decide, then that’s grasping. So the monkey taking fruit from the tree, signifies that, craving and grasping.

After that there is, I think, birth, so pregnant. Then there’s old age and death. Old age and death there’s no separation, it’s one. I think the drawing is one old person carried a dead body.

So now the way it’s done, the way the twelve dependent related limbs, the way it goes, it’s according to three different lives, the way it’s done there in the Wheel of Life. According to three different lives. The gradual evolution is that [pause], the evolution is, so it starts with ignorance, root of samsara, then karma, karmic formation, leaving imprint on the mental continuum, which throws the future rebirth. Then near the death craving and grasping arises. Oh, that’s right! I made one mistake, sorry. Becoming is one action. So the imprint that was left on the mental continuum by the past karma, after craving and grasping, then to take the future rebirth, made ready to throw its future rebirth, so that’s becoming. That one is the pregnant one. So I think the birth one is baby coming out. So, what do you call, becoming is the imprint left by past karma on the mental continuum, become, by craving and grasping arises, so made ready to produce its result of future life, future rebirth.[pause] Relating to our life now, so the out of ignorance created karma that could be in the life before this; it could have been billions of eons ago, trillions, zillions eons ago, unimaginable, but the craving and grasping, becoming, that happened life before this, whether it’s animal life, whatever, whichever life it was, life before this, so it happened that time, craving and grasping which is part of the limb of this human being, it’s part of the twelve dependent related limbs of this present human being. So craving and grasping, becoming happened, so life before this, whatever the past life was, it means near to the death time, during that life near the death time. Then, so the ignorance and karma that could happen life before this or could have been unbelievable, numberless eons ago, could happen like that. Then you experience seven results in this life: took the consciousness on the fertilized egg, then the name and form, the six sense bases, contact, the feeling, then birth, old age and death. So, seven things happened, experience this life.

So now this is a very, very brief explanation, so when you go through twelve links, there’s so much, there’s characteristics, full explanation of each one, definition of each one; there’s many more, much more detailed explanation. However, this all shows the four noble truths, essence four noble truths: true suffering, true cause of suffering, and cessation of the suffering and causes, and true path, the method.

So now, since I mentioned the twelve links, I must mention this, okay. You are experiencing the seven, I mean, now what’s left, we’re experiencing old age and now what’s left is death; what’s left is death, from the twelve dependent related limbs. Now you have to remember this for meditation, meditation on reality. While we’re experiencing this, from the twelve dependent related limbs of this human rebirth, present human rebirth, these seven results, as I mentioned before, so some part of that is already gone, during the, yeah, anyway, while you are in mother’s womb. So anyway, so while you are experience this result, the present human rebirth, so one day, even within one hour, minute, so there’s ignorance, root of samsara. Except times when you meditate, you don’t hold on to the I, aggregates, so, that which appear not merely labeled by mind to your hallucinated mind and so, then what we normally do is hold on to this; we let our mind hold on to this, then that time we are creating ignorance. Believe the I, aggregates, something which is not there, you constantly believe it’s true, which doesn’t exist at all, even slightest atom, constantly so which we have been habituated from beginningless rebirth. So now here, so only when you, think total opposite, so only when you meditate on emptiness, which means instead of holding this true, then holding this is totally false, holding this I, these aggregates, totally false, the way it’s appeared to the hallucinated mind, then instead of holding this true holding, holding this is totally false, totally nonexistent.

Or the other one is thinking the I is a dependent arising; there’s I exists in mere name, merely imputed by mind because there’s the aggregates, dependent arising. So which means, which makes you, you think of dependent arising but then it makes you to think that the I is empty, empty of existing from its own side. Because you’re thinking merely imputed by mind, so when you think the I is merely imputed by mind, it gives you the understanding that it’s, that doesn’t exist from its own side; it gives you that in your heart, that idea.

Otherwise, except when we do, when we see like this, when we meditate or see, that time then your action does not because cause of samsara. Visualizing deity, even practicing tantra or eating, walking, sitting, sleeping, whatever you’re doing doesn’t become the cause of samsara or playing golf, playing soccer, but with this realization, with the understanding, then that doesn’t become cause of samsara. Or even the ?gliding, what do you call this? You fasten your hands with the wing, [pause], like the bat, we’re talking about bat. So anyway, jump from the mountains. With this realization, with this understanding then doesn’t become cause of samsara.

Anyway, so now, one day, even one hour, constantly we let our mind to hold on to this I, aggregates, this is a hundred percent true; this really exists, a hundred percent true. So like that, so constantly, so then with that ______ mind create karma. Then, karma, but as I mentioned already before, the, much of the motivation, even we’re trying to practice Dharma, but much of it attachment clinging to this life, so then all the activity with the body, speech and mind becomes negative karma, okay. So it leaves imprint on the mental continuum that which produce rebirth of the lower realm, and so where one has to, which experience most unbelievable length of time, ?so ?many eons, unbelievable, human being year, so many billions and zillions, also as the lower hell, then unbelievable much more. So anyway, and those other realms, lower realms.

So anyway, so now here you have to understand, so constantly, from out of ignorance then those poisonous minds rises, then especially attachment, okay, so constantly leaves negative imprint on the mind, constantly, which causes the future rebirth, here negative karma so rebirth in the lower realms. So constantly, then minutes, within a minute, so much, then yeah, as the seconds goes like that. So, one day like this, we start so many twelve links, within one hour, a minute, so many twelve links initiated. That means we tie, while you are experiencing these, the result of, twelve dependent related limbs of this present human, while experiencing this result, then one day you tie yourself in the prison of samsara, the twelve dependent related limbs, start so many, so you tie yourself, start so many twelve links within one hour, within a minute, minute, second goes like that. So yourself fastened, like many prisons . So now then like that it goes weeks, years, weeks, months, I jumped from weeks to the year. Weeks, months, years, so life goes like that, from birth until now. Can you imagine? From birth until now, can you imagine how much we created samsara, how much we started, initiated twelve links to take rebirth in the six realms one after another. Amazing, amazing.

But this is we are talking just now, this life, not the previous life. From beginningless rebirth there’s so much karma started, twelve links, started out of ignorance but not finished yet, there’s so much which we haven’t finished yet experiencing, twelve links. So evolve samsara, to die, reborn, experience all the suffering. It’s unimaginable how we are fastened by the chain of karma, and delusions.

So, here now, you see how important, so important, without Dharma practice no way to get out of this, no way to be liberated from this. You have to cease the delusions and karma, especially by wisdom directly perceiving emptiness. Without talking the realization of renunciation, without talking realization of the five paths, there’s five paths to liberation, without talking enlightenment, ?Mahayana, but just talking the five paths to liberation, so that you have to cease the true cause of suffering, karma and delusion, you have to cease that. Then even the cause of delusion, negative imprint, have to cease completely. Only then you don’t have to die, reborn, circle in the six realms. Only then.

So, therefore now, Dharma practice, I mean, chanting mantras and so forth, they, of course, it contains the whole path and leaves imprint on our mental continuum, positive imprint on our mental continuum, so then after some time, then gradually, I mean, in this life if you don’t try to study Dharma, the path, and really meditate, really practice, learn and really practice, meditate, try to have realization, if you don’t do that then of course, chanting mantras or something, of course, long-term it did affect, you meet Dharma, actualize the path and then slowly, slowly then achieve liberation and enlightenment. It has that effect. But as I mentioned now, one day how much twelve links we start, we fasten ourselves in samsara. Then the year, then from birth then ?add from the past life, so many twelve links we started, not finished experiencing those results, rebirth, it’s unimaginable, unimaginable. You can’t stand, can’t bear; you need to be free from samara right this minute, right this second, can’t wait. Can’t wait. Reality it’s like this, if you understand what samsara is and the whole evolution. So it’s most unbearable thing. Can’t wait even, so unbearable, can’t wait even a second, must be liberated from this.

So therefore now, now you understand, so practice Dharma. So practice Dharma, as I mentioned before, the path to achieve liberation, just spending the whole life watching the breath or watching walking or watching, just spend the life just chanting mantra or just some prayers; you really got to learn Dharma and really understand the path and really actualize in your heart the lamrim, so the essence, the lamrim, the stages of the path to enlightenment. I mean, the last few days we talked a little bit on emptiness, so that’s a very important one. So you can see now how that is so important. So we did touch to something very important. So we need to actualize the three principal aspects of the path to enlightenment. So that’s the first thing we need: renunciation then bodhicitta, so those two come, after renunciation, the only thing you can do is realize bodhicitta; otherwise, you can’t realize bodhicitta before. But right view you can actualize any time if you have lots of merit and imprint from past and correctly meditate, receive correct teaching, unmistaken teachings.

So now, what makes to be successful all this, the three principal aspects of the path to enlightenment, then two stages of tantra for quick enlightenment, that one is for quickest enlightenment. So now, the whole path to actualize, to be successful, depends on the first thing, the root of the path of enlightenment, guru devotion. Looking for guru, searching for guru, and then after one has found, by analyzing, one found. Then make connection, first analyze, then something that one can devote, however, make determination to follow. Then you have to understand the whole entire teaching of guru devotion; otherwise, you make a lot of mistakes, so many mistakes. Then instead of achieving realizations then you create many heavy negative karmas, then experience so much problem in this life and then rebirth in the lower realm for unimaginable time. Instead of achieving enlightenment and realizations. So it becomes very important, you have to know the teaching on the guru devotion, all that, benefits, shortcomings, all the things, how to do. That’s why Lama Tsongkhapa put this at the very beginning of the lamrim; then you have whole idea. Then from then, then you don’t make mistakes, from the beginning of the path to enlightenment, so becomes successful.

Okay, so now, those who are taking refuge. So, okay.