Magic 4
(By Tsem Rinpoche)
Dear Friends,
This is very short, precise and to the point. I found on FB and posted it here for your benefit please. Everyone should read this carefully, understand, discuss and apply. If you apply, you will surely get the results. The more adversity, the stronger we grow. Accept adversity with a positive mind because it will come anyways. Adversity is something we cannot help, so turn it around for growth.
The teachings I posted below is EXACTLY what we all need. May you be blessed, transform and use your lives to benefit others without any self-centric concerns that confuse our minds. Remember, don’t follow the things that go on in our heads! It has not lead us anywhere positive until now.
Much Care,
Tsem Rinpoche
The Buddha said that he was enlightened only after he understood these Four Noble Truths.
Four Noble Truths. They are: the truth of suffering; its cause; its end; and the way to its end. Everything in this world is full of suffering, and the cause of suffering is craving. The end of suffering is nirvana.
The way to the end of suffering is via the Noble Eightfold Path.
The Noble Eightfold Path has eight parts or factors:
- Right understanding means to know and understand the Four Noble Truths.
- Right attitude means to have three kinds of thoughts or attitudes: (i) Thoughts of renunciation or an attitude of “letting go”. (ii) Thoughts of goodwill to others, which are opposed to ill will. (iii) Thoughts of harmlessness, as opposed to cruelty.
- Right speech deals with refraining from falsehood, such as telling lies or not telling the truth; tale-bearing or saying bad things about other people; harsh words and frivolous talk such as gossiping.
- Right action deals with refraining from killing, stealing and sexual misconduct.
- Right livelihood deals with the five kinds of trade which should be avoided in order to lead a noble life. They are: trading in arms (weapons), living beings (breeding animals for slaughter), intoxicating drinks and poison.
- Right effort has four parts using meditation: (i) To try to stop unwholesome thoughts that have arisen. (ii) To prevent unwholesome thoughts from arising. (iii) To try to develop good thoughts. (iv) To try to maintain good thoughts that have arisen.
- Right mindfulness is also fourfold. It is mindfulness of the body, mindfulness of feelings/sensations, mindfulness of thoughts passing through the mind and mindfulness of Dharma.
- Right concentration is one-pointedness of mind as developed in meditation. These eight factors can be grouped into three smaller groups, as follows:
- Sila (morality)
- Samadhi (concentrated mind in meditation)
- Panna (wisdom)
right speech, right action, right livelihood.
right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration.
right attitude, right understanding.
These three — morality, concentration and wisdom — are the three stages on the path to mental purity whose object is nirvana. These stages are described in a beautiful verse:
To cease from evil,To do what is good.To cleanse one’s mind:This is the advice of all the Buddhas.
Please support us so that we can continue to bring you more Dharma:
If you are in the United States, please note that your offerings and contributions are tax deductible. ~ the tsemrinpoche.com blog team
In Buddhism, the four noble truths are considered to be the first teaching of the Buddha. These four truths are called noble because they liberate us from suffering. They are real, infallible and do not change and were first taught by Buddha after his enlightenment. Its always be a reminder to all of us these powerful teachings, the way to achieve a release from suffering.
Thank you Rinpoche for this precise teachings.
Short and precise. Just as what I needed for daily reminder. Thank you Rinpoche.
Thank you Rinpoche for this short and powerful teachings . The Four Noble Truths are the most basic formulation of the Buddha’s teaching. They are the truth of suffering, the truth of the cause of suffering, the truth of the end of suffering, and the truth of the path that leads to the end of suffering. It was these four principles that the Buddha came to understand during his meditation under the bodhi tree.
To cease from evil, To do what is good. To cleanse one’s mind: This is the advice of all the Buddhas. Inspiring saying short yet powerful when we understand it . I will keep this in mind always.
Indeed a very important number 4 (Noble Truth) not only for Buddhist but everyone. If we understand the teaching then we will practise the right path and not do any more things that will create more suffering on ourselves. Therefore transforming our mind is very important.
The Noble Eightfold Path can be grouped into the Three Higher Trainings: Sila (higher morality), Samadhi (higher concentration), and Panna (higher wisdom). The difference between the Theravada and the Mahayana traditions is in the practice of Sila. Theravada practitioners train in Pratimoksha vows while Mahayana practitioners have Pratimoksha and Bodhisattva vows. Both traditions practise the Three Ethics or the three pure/root precepts found in the Buddha’s famous teaching: “avoid evil, do good, purify the mind.” But the difference between the two traditions is in the third precept. For Theravada practitioners, the third precept is “to purify the mind”, but for Mahayanists, they have to purify the mind as well as to be of benefit to all sentient beings. In Tibetan Buddhism, the Noble Eightfold Path is implicitly taught as part of the thirty-seven paths to enlightenment, and as one of the groups of paths that lead to cessation. In Mahayana Buddhism, the focus is on the study and practice of the Three Higher Trainings (of the Mahayana) and the five paths and less on the Noble Eightfold Path.
i clicked on this link because i thought it was going to talk about wizard’s magic like black magic, white magic, or some other type. It’s good to review these (4-noble truths & 8-fold path) everyday but sometimes i don’t. my desktop picture for this laptop is actually a picture of the 8-fold path (a wheel with each of the 8 Rights in words & a short explanation of each)and has been for months. Thank You.
謝謝仁波切的分享，天下无难事，只怕有心人。只要我们的心念坚持到底，什么事是没有不可能的。学佛也是一样，偶而会遇到一些障碍，但我们依止上师的教诲和开示，还是可以完成任务的。加油吧！
I read about the 4 noble truths many time. It is simple & yet so profound. Of all the 8 factors of the eight fold paths, right understanding is most important because without it we will not even begin our practice. Right understanding is also essential in developing higher wisdom. I find the 8 fold paths very helpful & practical in some way in dealing with everyday problems with work, people & situation. I am mindful & aware of others & my own feeling in most time when in discussion, it helps to be more patient & focus on the matters more. I believe our mind can be trained, when we understand & practice the dharma correctly then we will experience its benefits, this energy helps to propell us further and eventually the mind become stronger & controllable.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this profound teaching on a means to an end.
With folded hands!
Wow..succint…yet requires alot of thoughts to make it happen. I am working towards them.
Thank you Rinpoche, for such short, yet powerful words of wisdom.
Thank you Rinpoche for this short and powerful teachings .nice teachings of four noble truth.
Thank you Rinpoche, this is simple and easy to understand. I wish I can always remember all these. The more I know the more I feel worry about myself. Simple is that I just far far away from all these good qualities. Somehow need to start somewhere, to practice bit by bit.
Thank you very much for the sharing Rinpoche. I would put into practice on what was mention on the 4 Noble Truth and the Noble Eightfold Path.I am aware that my mind is weak and the tendency to do the opposite is strong. But in due respect to the above teaching of the Buddha, at least I would developed mindfulness in my actions when I am given a choice in my thoughts before actually committing out my action.There would be a constant debate in my mine before an action is perform .But at least I would train up my positive motivation in my action.
I love this quote because it challenges us to think positive, to stop being afraid and to conquer our fear. And with the 4 noble truths and 8 fold path presented to us by the Buddha if applied, it is the method to cleanse our minds from negativities that only make us self destruct.
We say we wish for peace and happiness but most often we create our own obstacles by limiting ourselves and conditioning ourselves in with likes and dislikes, what we can and cannot do. Most often we say we cannot, is simply because we choose not to. This is something Rinpoche has constantly advice and been consistently telling, teaching and advising us.
If we but live our lives with the right conduct, right mindfulness, right attitude, there will definitely be less stress, less wars, less arguments, less negativities. What I like about Buddhism is that it does not tell you there is someone else you are dependent on for your own happiness, but rather gives you that power to control your own happiness with methods and ways which we can easily apply and test it out. So far we’ve tried our failing self-destructive ways… why not try another way 🙂
Thank you, Rinpoche, for these concise and precise teachings of Lord Buddha on the Four Noble Truths.Suffering is to be recognized and its cause identified. There is cessation of suffering and the way out of suffering.Now that we identify its cause as craving, we must walk our way out of craving into Nirvana and peace.
The way out is via the eight-fold path, which can be grouped into higher morality – right speech, right action and right livelihood; higher concentration – right effort, right mindfulness and right concentration; and higher wisdom – right attitude and right understanding.By treading these three stages of the path, I will attain ‘mental purity’ and ultimately Nirvana. The three stages are encapsulated in the lovely lines from Lord Buddha:
“To cease from evil,
To do what is good,
to cleanse the mind.
This is the advice of the Buddhas”.
Particularly, must I remember the three right attitudes –
renunciation or ‘letting go’, good-will to others ; and harmlessness as opposed to cruelty. This must inform all my actions.
The four noble truths were the first teaching taught by the holy buddha to his five ascetic friends who accompanied him during the first 6 years of Buddha’s of his struggle to achieve enlightenment. They abandoned lord buddha because when Buddha realised by extremely torturing himself it was getting him nowhere, he wanted to stop torturing his body and hence his five friends thought he was abandoning the struggle. Well his five friends were the first to receive this amazing teaching from Buddha Shakyamuni.
Thank you Rinpoche for the teachings. I do love this quote “To cease from evil,To do what is good.To cleanse one’s mind”. Its one of the best advice ever! Much to learn and much to change towards this direction. Or else, I will be stuck in samsara for many more lives to come. May I always remember, practice/realise them and hold these teachings in my heart.
I like “(i) To try to stop unwholesome thoughts that have arisen (ii) To prevent unwholesome thoughts from arising.(iii) To try to develop good thoughts(iv) To try to maintain good thoughts that have arisen” in particular because one of our biggest challenges is to control our thoughts. Rinpoche mentioned recently that it’s always just between us and our mind. Once we are able to tame our monkey mind, everything else will fall into place.
Thank you Rinpoche sharing this simple and profound teaching of Four Noble Truths. This is very important for us practice on daily, so that can let us understand the cause of suffering and stop the suffering. I’ll always keep remind myself.
Thank you Rinpoche for this teaching.
It is true that many of us are actually unaware that we’re suffering! We think that life is good… We have everything we need for a comfortable life, some even more than what’s needed… But the suffering is very subtle that we don’t realize it if we’re not wise or are not taught the truth of it… Deep down we all know that whatever comfort we have can be easily taken away from us any time… That is a form of suffering.
Also if we think about it, everything in samsara is the nature of suffering. Take for example, some ppl find it fun to drink alcohol, but the truth is, if we drink too much it will make us feel horrible and even die in some rare cases. So logically speaking it is our mind that sets all these conditions to us… Our mind tells us that drinking is great but the true nature behind it, is if it was real, then no matter how much alcohol we take we will not suffer from it. But that’s not the case.
In the end it all boils down to our attachment to the 5 senses that has brought us all these suffering. Thank goodness we have the Sangha community that shows us how to detach or atleast lessen our attachments to the 5 senses.
Thank you for the sharing Rinpoche, the noble eight folded path is not only applicable to Buddhist but to everyone as well. Will share this one with my friends. 🙂
The teaching on the 4 Noble Truths always reminds me of how powerful our ignorance is and how disconnected we are towards the repercussions of how we cultivate our thoughts, what we say and the manner in which we conduct ourselves. This disconnection is what causes us untold problems and sufferings. I guess, in a way, the Dharma ‘connects’ us with our true virtuous selves. It is always an uphill battle to recondition and retrain ourselves but it is definitely worth the pain and difficulty considering where we would be heading if we have never met the Dharma.
A simple teachings to understand from Buddha, apply it for daily practice.
Thank You Rinpoche for sharing this to us.
Regards : Eric kksiow
To stop doing evil and just do good is hard but it is the truth and the solution to our suffering. Number 6 is very intriguing because one needs to focus on the mind through meditation before practice. Also, Number 3 is very applicable to the modern world as many like to engage in the act of false speech.
If we don’t practice, we don’t know the result.thank you for the valuable advice.to become a better person, this is the path we should follow.
Thank you, Rinpoche, for your reminder by posting this and for your blessing and sound advice. Please live long, Rinpoche.
We always have these self doubts and always give ourselves the excuses that it can’t do this or that. By having these thoughts, we are unconsciously mental blocking ourselves. I truly believe in the self fulfilling prophecy theory. When we set our mind to do something, and if we really are sincere about it, we would see that the particular task would be completed by hook or by crook.
What struck me the most is this sentence:
“To cease from evil,To do what is good.To cleanse one’s mind:This is the advice of all the Buddhas.”
By following these Four Noble Truths and The Noble Eightfold path and contemplating on them, we should be one step closer to transforming our monkey minds..
I feel that for myself, I should abandon my self cherishing acts and start following these True Path instead..
Thank you for sharing, Rinpoche!
This post is so meaningful and nice teachings of four noble truth. Also it is easy for us to understanding and can knows the truth how the Buddha get enlightened.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this post and reminding us.
Embracing the right beliefs:- The teachings of Lord Buddha are timeless. We can still follow in his footsteps, use his teachings to inspire people and to transform and purify their minds. It requires joint efforts, a strong sense of commitment and constant mindfullness of course. Everyone is born with an innate nature. It’s just that as people grow up, they may be exposed to bad influences and thus allow ignorance and delusion to taint their innate purity. If we close off and refuse to take in good influences, our hearts will be plunged into darkness. Therefore, we should open our hearts and let the sunshine of goodness filled our hearts, but we must hold on to the goodness and put the love in our hearts into action so that we can live a life free of afflictions. When we can constantly act out our life and sow blessings for ourselves by benefiting and helping others, we’ll be leading a most blessed life! As spiritual practioners, we must not seek only for our own liberation. We must also help and guide others onto that path as well, and deligently continue to do good deeds to benefit others all the way.
“To cease from evil,To do what is good.To cleanse one’s mind:This is the advice of all the Buddhas.”
So short yet so profound. We know that we should cleanse our mind as negative mind arise negative speech and actions. Yet this advice is not easy for most people to practice. I will contemplate this daily and put in extra effort to purify and free my mind from
negative thoughts.
Thank you, Rinpoche, for sharing these Teachings.
Under “Right livelihood”, the article mentioned 5 but only listed only 4. Various sources I found on the Internet listed human beings (slavery, prostitution) as the other one.
It’s hard to apply the Four Noble Truth and the Noble Eightfold Path, but it’s even harder to not apply them when we know the karmic repercussion of not applying them.
Thanks Rinpoche for always reminding us.
Actually in our samsara life, we always can listen, understand and see. But we will be hard to be consistent in what will truly benefit us.
I wish that our ignorance will be lesser and lesser through practice hence to follow the 4 Noble Truth and Noble Eightfold Path easily to out of samsara faster…
Rinpoche, under right livelihood you only list four or did I misunderstand how they were listed? In the US as well as other places some people are engaged in raising marijuana for distribution to people via dispensaries who get relief from the pain of various diseases by using this substance. Ordinarily the avoidance of any intoxicants is encouraged for practioners but if a substance such as marijuana is used medicinally is it any different then using any other medicines and are those who cultivate for it’s use as medicine engaged in wrong livelihood? I’d like to know your opinion and I hope this isn’t controversial in anyway but it would address an area of conduct not specifically covered that I know of and is part of modern life for some. Thank you, Rinpoche.
Thank you Rinpoche for this short and powerful teachings of the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path that will lead us to nirvana.The advice of all the buddhas,’To cease from evil, to do what is good and to cleanse one’s mind.’ may look short and simple but have to really put in efforts to practice it daily. Even though i feel that the last one is not easy to do so, i need to learn to control my mind in order to purify it.
The 4 noble truth is about realizing the cause of our suffering till the end of the suffering. Many times in our lives, we do perceive those sufferings as happiness, due to the wrong perception and the attachment to desire, we chose to believe the sufferings are happiness and even craving for it again.
understand this is one thing, accepting it and practicing it is another thing, so since we already know about this, next step is to practice and withdraw ourselves from these cravings that brings us to suffering.
Thank you Rinpoche for reminding us again, I’ll will print it out and paste it at my working place so this can act as consistent reminder to us.
To cease from evil, to do what is good. These are incredibly wise words that are very hard to fully realise. They may be very simple thoughts, but realising it, understanding it, contemplating on it and most important practicing it most of us find it very difficult. Especially no.6 to try to develop good thoughts, the ability to not angry at someone or the ability to get angry at someone but without bad thoughts i still find it very difficult to achieve. Even when I hear upsetting news on the television, viewing people committing such evils acts, i start developing really mixed emotions that I am not proud of just wishing they would stop committing evil acts. Being able to develop compassion, forgiveness and patience is something I need to continue to practice. The Buddha is such an incredible being. Able to fully become enlightened with just understanding the four noble truths. Thank you for sharing this teach Rinpoche.