From The Archives – Dharma Lecture 2004

Brief Dharma Lecture by H.H. Jigdal Dagchen Dorje Chang

January 12, 2004

Chenrezi Meditation and the Nature of Mind

Translator:  Dr. Jeffrey Schoening

Transcribed by Ogyen Choezom

Now, we’ve come to the practice of Chenrezi. This is a practice we do in order to cultivate the qualities of loving kindness and compassion. And loving kindness is included among the four measurable attitudes: namely loving kindness, compassion, sympathetic joy and equanimity or impartiality.

So, we can understand it (loving kindness) through studying the four immeasurable attitudes. Compassion, likewise, is there, and it is often described as having three levels:

• There’s compassion for the suffering of beings.
• Compassion for their qualities such as being impermanent.
• And an ultimate level of compassion which has no object or does not objectify.

So, we do this meditation of Chenrezi in order to develop these qualities. We do this through meditating on Chenrezi’s body, speech, and mind.

We meditate on his body; we visualize ourselves as having his body or form. And through doing this, we cultivate these qualities of loving kindness, and compassion. And we receive his blessing. As we direct our loving kindness and compassion towards all beings, wishing that they be free of suffering, and they be established in happiness. In this way, we cultivate these qualities when we meditate upon his body.

We meditate upon his voice, then we think that within our hearts that there’s the seed syllable HRIH, surrounded by the mantra. And we send out light rays to all the beings in the six realms. Again, with the wish that they be free of suffering and established in happiness.

When we meditate on his mind, on the mind of Chenrezi, we recognize that our own bodies and minds are interconnected. That’s just the way that they are. And when we try to understand the nature of our bodies and minds then we can try to do this through just observing how phenomena arise, abide, and cease.

And especially we can do this by observing our thoughts – just how our thoughts will arise, last for a moment, cease, then another thought arises. And in this way we can better understand the nature of our own minds.

Link to audio recording: https://www.sakya.org/2009/12/chenrezi-teaching-1-12-2004/