Although we have studied this treatise for 20 years, however, in reality, this treatise (Lamrim Chenmo) should be studied continuously life after life.You might consider, “After 20 years, you are still studying the same treatise?” It is marvellous to study one treatise for 20 years and with consistency!
Global Lamrim 2, Lecture 0017
Why should we keep on learning the Lamrim Chenmo repeatedly for so many years?
There are still a lot of things we have not discovered, there are a lot of beautiful sceneries ahead waiting for us, so we need to continue to study the Lamrim Chenmo. Teacher also pointed out that the teaching in the Lamrim Chenmo is very extensive and profound because it contains the key points of the Five Great Treatises and all of the Buddha’s scriptures.
The Lamrim Chenmo can be condensed into the three principal paths - renunciation, bodhichitta and wisdom of emptiness. Volume 1 of the Lamrim Chenmo teaches us how to generate renunciation, Volume 2 how to generate bodhichitta and Volume 3 how to realize wisdom of emptiness. These three principal aspects of the path are what the Buddha has taught.
The Five Treatises is actually an expansion of the Lamrim Chenmo, so the Lamrim Chenmo contains the essential of the Five Great Treatise and all of the Buddha’s teachings, it is a very extensive and profound treatise which covers the wisdom of emptiness and the law of cause and effect, karma. We can realize the full potential of our minds by learning the Lamrim Chenmo repeatedly as we go deeper into understanding the teachings.
It is marvellous to study one treatise for 20 years and with consistency. It is not only marvellous, it is impressive! As Abbot once gave an analogy, “Let’s say the best university in the mundane world is Harvard. After graduating, Harvard encourages you to repeat the course starting from Year One without paying school fees this time, so that you can learn even deeper. Do you think anyone would take up this offer? I don’t think so. Therefore, for those who learnt the Lamrim Chenmo for the second and even third time, this is really very impressive!
Therefore, we really have to thank our Master and Teacher. If Master did not set up the Lamrim discussion class and explain the meaning behind the Lamrim Chenmo, and if Teacher did not explain the deeper meaning behind Master’s discourse, I think it would be very difficult for us to be able to keep on learning the Lamrim Chenmo repeatedly for so many years.