One’s mind is transformed while listening to the teaching, while contemplating, and then while applying in practice, so one can achieve powerful mental transformation.
After a few years of learning, you would find yourself much clever than before. You are able to make judgment faster than before, have a serious and responsible attitude to explore any matter, not just brush it aside lightly. - Global Lamrim 2, Lecture 0012 BW Monastery 吉祥宝聚寺 — Lecture No. 0012
Do you agree on this? Why do you think this is so?
I have seen some change in myself as a result of listening, contemplating and trying to apply the Teachings.
I would not say I am more clever. It is more of a growing awareness of the many perspectives involved when making a judgement.
I think this awareness stems from seeing clearly my own conceit and pride when I make decisions. Most of the time, I would be thinking of my own self interest.
The emphasis on compassion and wisdom in the Teachings has helped to open up my closed up mind.
I see my mistakes more evidently.
And with that, there is potential to improve and be a better person.
Yes, the Master always taught us how to view things from different viewpoints and perspectives. When our viewpoints begin to change, the whole landscape looks different, making us realize that it is usually our perspectives that are at fault. - Global Lamrim 2, Lecture 0037
Late Master was reminding us that we do not have the concept of the past and future lifetimes; we view everything in terms of the present lifetime. We haven’t realized the concept that life is an ongoing process flowing from this lifetime to the next one unceasingly. Whatever present effects are, they are from causes and conditions in the past. If we lack such recognition, then we would tend to see whatever happens from a rather limited perspective, confining it to a certain time frame, a particular person, and certain arising condition. Thus, the domain of one’s existence, the scope of one’s thought, as well as the timing are all very limited. - Global Lamrim 2, Lecture 0125
I felt that Lamrim class was a training process of learning how to listen and contemplate the teachings. We learn how to weigh the pros and cons through the process which helps us to be more observant than before. So why could I increase the speed of my judgment? It’s because I have become more observant than before. So we are going through this process to be more discerning, to learn to base our decisions and judgement on dharma reasoning, meaning that we have a solid base to rely on, compared to a possibility where I will feel fickle-minded at times, where I couldn’t decide this or that is better for myself. So this is an example of how I can make faster judgement because I have dharma reasonings as my background, as my reason for doing this, eg. it is helpful to me because it’s virtuous, or doing that is harmful because it’s non-virtuous. Or sometimes when I feel that I can do this but I am not sure whether this way will really help me or will it be worse for me so that is the situation where we are not basing our decisions on dharma reasoning.