Geshe Thubten Palsang
We do not just live this one life. Therefore, we have to consider what comes after this life. With the view that our mind continues on in future lives, we have to train our mind and generate courage. When the mind is more courageous, it becomes more magnanimous, spacious and accommodating. Then, life’s circumstances will not control us totally.
The more certain we are that past and future lives exist, the easier it becomes to use Dharma teachings in our daily thoughts and decisions. Through training your mind, external circumstances may change, but you will not be overcome by the difficulties, nor would you be deluded by the good situations.
If you have not trained your mind then you are like a puppet. When good things happen, you are exhilarated. When suffering comes, you are totally enslaved by the disturbing emotions. You do not have the slightest control over yourself…
If you think that only this life exists, your focus would only be on gains in this life. You ignore many important matters like taking rebirth in the pureland, attaining liberation, and how to benefit sentient beings as vast as space. But if you understand that life continues after life, you will dedicate your efforts to accomplishing these greater goals.
There are more than 100 volumes of the Kangyur (Buddha’s collected teachings). If you are only concerned about this life, then what you need is only about five volumes. If you believe in future lives, then all of Buddha’s teachings are relevant to you. If you believe in past and future lives, that is the key to opening the Buddha’s teachings.
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Is death scary? We are already old and getting older. If we continue to age and yet cannot die, isn’t that something to be more scared of? The human body arises from virtues and merits, it is not able to sustain too much damage, suffering or pain. From a certain point of view, the ability to die is something positive.
Beings in the hells and hungry ghost realm experience infinitely greater sufferings than us, but as long as the negative karma is not exhausted, they have no choice but to live on in that existence. In such a case, not being able to die is a great torture.
Humans are not the same. We will die one day. This is a good thing. Through contemplating in this way, we remove all fears of death and generate the feeling that “death is no big deal!” We should think of this repeatedly and get used to this understanding.
If one uses the Dharma teachings to gain a complete understanding of death, there is nothing much to fear about death. Death in itself is not fearful. But where we go after death is something we should think about while we are alive. Thinking of death, we must remember that we will go somewhere after death and that only Dharma can help when we die.
If we contemplate correctly, even if fear arises at the threat of death, it is only for a short while and subsides quickly.
Whatever you do, the ending is nothing other than to die. This is a fact. Using this fact, we can become braver. This is what we should strive in. If you contemplate impermanence so much that you feel you are going to die anytime, generally this is a good sign.
However, if you do not have the corresponding courage to face death due to the lack of the above-mentioned contemplations, then you could become very paranoid and suspicious. You may think that you will die anytime in a car accident or a plane crash. Then the contemplation of Dharma makes you more fearful and tense-- there is no point in this!
