Lama Zopa Rinpoche

There are so many animals. There are uncountable gnats in the swarms that fly up when we
walk on the grass; there are so many ants in just one nest. The number of human beings
compared to the number of ants living in all the ant nests is tiny. We need to make such
comparisons in case we think that the number of human beings is so huge.
However, we do not just have a human rebirth but a perfect human rebirth, this life in which
we have met not just Buddhism but the Mahayana teachings, and of the Mahayana teachings,
both sutra and tantra. We have this perfect human rebirth because in past lives we observed
the pratimoksha, bodhisattva and tantric vows purely. Therefore in this life we are again able
to meet all these different levels of teachings and have the opportunity to take these vows
again. This is almost the only time we will ever receive such a perfect human rebirth. We
have this opportunity now, but the future depends on what we do with it.
Having received this perfect human rebirth is like a dream. Achieving the eight freedoms and
the ten richnesses seems impossible but it has happened. I don’t need to detail the eight
freedoms and the ten richnesses here. If you are unfamiliar with the teachings on the perfect
human rebirth, please study them. There are many lam-rim books that cover this topic. If
you don’t know how precious this precious human body is you will not value it.
Besides seeing the rarity of this perfect human rebirth by comparing it to the number of
other beings, we can also understand its rarity by investigating its causes and seeing that they
are incredibly difficult to create. It is difficult to find even a human rebirth in general let
alone a perfect human rebirth. Reflecting on such things over and over again dispels negative
states of mind such as laziness, anger, attachment and ignorance, all those things that waste
this life.
There is also this example. 97 A golden ring floats on the ocean. It is not a wooden ring that
would float easily but a golden ring, something that would normally sink. Somehow it
remains afloat but not in one place. It is constantly moved about by the wind and waves.
The golden ring represents pure Buddhism, not corrupted Buddhism. I think without
studying much Dharma it is difficult to understand what “pure” means, what is pure
Buddhism and what is corrupted. If you study the world, however, and the Dharma you
have been practicing, you will understand how other people suffer and how difficult it is to
find the correct Dharma. Then you will understand the whole situation. Otherwise you can
just run to anybody who teaches meditation and never check whether he or she is a
meditator or not.
It’s like the quote from Panchen Losang Chökyi Gyaltsen that I have already mentioned. We
should not be like an old dog looking for food in the street, grabbing it from anybody and
gobbling it down as quickly as possible. This quote relates to finding a guru but it applies to
the teachings in general as well. A dog sees somebody handing out food and just runs to
him. Even if there are no other dogs around, he eats the food without first checking whether
it is good for his health or not. You should not be like that dog, running to somebody
teaching meditation without checking the person or the teachings. You need to learn more,
especially Lama Tsongkhapa’s teaching, but also look at other teachings. Then you will
know.
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