by Michael Joseph
Geshe Acharya Thubten Loden, amongst great teachers past and present, emphasized that the best way to extract the essence of our special human rebirth is to cultivate the good heart of bodhichitta.*
There are two main methods for developing bodhichitta – the seven-point cause and effect, and the method of equalising and exchanging self with others. Of these, the second is superior; but it is also more challenging. It is not sufficient merely to have the wish to develop bodhichitta. Without creating its causes through the practice of either of these methods, bodhichitta cannot arise.
Geshe-la encouraged his students to memorise the following verse. It relates to the method of equalising and exchanging.
From Offering to the Guru:
The chronic disease of cherishing myself
Is the source giving rise to unwanted suffering.
Perceiving this, bless me to blame, begrudge
And destroy this great demon of selfishness.
The problem of self-cherishing
The attitude of cherishing oneself has two factors – pre-occupation with self and not caring about others. When selfishly preoccupied we gauge every experience from the perspective of what it means for me. We are hypersensitive – small or inconsequential events, viewed through the selfish lens, become significant. We easily develop aversion and anger towards those things we dislike and craving and grasping for what we like: I don’t like that; I want this.
Indeed, all delusions – all negative minds, arise from self-cherishing. The eighty-four thousand delusions can be grouped into three main categories – attachment, aversion and ignorance. The root form of ignorance is that which misconceives self.
In the absence of self-cherishing, delusions do not arise. When delusions arise, we are unhappy, and contrariwise, whenever we are unhappy, we are being influenced by one or other of the delusions! The path to creating negative karma is solely through actions of body, speech or mind motivated by delusion.
Negative karma is the root cause of all suffering
Negative karma is the root cause of all suffering. Thus, all suffering, both short and long term is caused by delusions, and underpinning all delusions is the attitude of cherishing myself. Cherishing one’s self is indeed a chronic disease because it has been with us without beginning, continuously bringing suffering.
The other aspect of self-cherishing is that through it we do not care about others. Without caring about others, love, compassion, generosity and bodhichitta cannot arise, like seeds that will not grow in arid soil. Absent of caring for others we cannot create virtue, the cause of future happiness and without virtuous minds we have no contentment and no happiness.
We thus can see that cherishing myself is our worst enemy – it only causes problems and destroys happiness, both now and in the future. It is indeed a great demon and overcoming it should be our principal dharma practice.
*Bodhichitta is the mind wishing to attain enlightenment for the benefit of others. See Geshe Acharya Thubten Loden’s Path to Enlightenment in Tibetan Buddhism, Chaps 18-19.