May I be gladdened when someone belittles me, and may I not take pleasure when someone praises me. For example there is a passage which says: All these are mundane concerns that spoil one’s practice, and it is important to ensure that this is does not happen so we keep our practice pure.Īs you can see, the instructions that you can find in the lo-jong teachings on transforming the mind are very powerful.
The same applies if a practitioner thinks, “I hope people admire what I’m doing,” expecting to receive praise for the great effort he is making. Similarly, a practitioner may apply altruistic ideals in his daily life, but if all of a sudden he feels proud about it and thinks, “Ah, I’m a great practitioner,” immediately the eight mundane concerns defile his practice. For example, if, as I am giving this talk, I have even the slightest thought in the back of my mind that I hope people admire me, then that indicates that my motivation is defiled by mundane considerations, or what the Tibetans call the “eight mundane concerns.” It is very important to check oneself and ensure that is not the case. They are: becoming elated when someone praises you, becoming depressed when someone insults or belittles you, feeling happy when you experience success, being depressed when you experience failure, being joyful when you acquire wealth, feeling dispirited when you become poor, being pleased when you have fame, and feeling depressed when you lack recognition.Ī true practitioner should ensure that his or her cultivation of altruism is not defiled by these thoughts. The eight mundane concerns are attitudes that tend to dominate our lives generally. The first two lines of this verse are very critical for a genuine practitioner.
By the stains of the eight mundane concerns Īnd may I, recognizing all things as illusion,ĭevoid of clinging, be released from bondage.
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