GUARDING ALERTNESS
Those who wish to guard their
practice
Should very
attentively guard their minds,
For those who do not guard their minds
Will be unable to guard their practice.
In this (world) unsubdued and
crazed elephants
Are incapable of causing such harms
As the
miseries of the deepest hell
Which can be caused by the unleashed
elephant of my mind.
But if the elephant of my
mind is firmly bound
On all sides by the rope of mindfulness,
All
fears will cease to exist
And all virtues will come into my hand.
Tigers, lions, elephants,
bears,
Snakes and all forms of enemies,
The guardians of the hell
worlds,
Evil spirits and cannibals,
Will all be bound
By
binding my mind alone,
And will all be subdued
By subduing my mind
alone.
The Perfect Teacher Himself
has shown
That in this way all fears
As well as all boundless
miseries
Originate from the mind.
Who intentionally created
All the weapons for those in hell?
Who created the burning iron
ground?
From where did all the women (in hell) ensue?
The Mighty One has said that
all such things
Are (the workings of) an evil mind,
Hence within
the three world spheres
There is nothing to fear other than my mind.
If the perfection of
generosity
Were the alleviation of the world's poverty,
Then since
beings are still starving now
In what manner did the previous Buddhas
perfect it?
The perfection of generosity
is said to be
The thought to give all beings everything,
Together
with the fruit of such a thought;
Hence it is simply a state of mind.
Nowhere has the killing
Of fish and other creatures been eradicated;
For the attainment of
(merely) the thought to forsake (such things)
Is explained as the
perfection of moral discipline.
Unruly beings are as
(unlimited) as space:
They cannot possibly all be overcome,
But if
I overcome thoughts of anger alone
This will be equivalent to
vanquishing all foes.
Where would I possibly find
enough leather
With which to cover the surface of the earth?
But
(wearing) leather just on the soles of my shoes
Is equivalent to
covering the earth with it.
Likewise it is not possible
for me
To restrain the external course of things;
But should I
restrain this mind of mine
What would be the need to restrain all else?
Although the development of
merely a clear state of concentration
Can result in (taking birth in)
Brahma's realm,
Physical and vocal actions cannot so result
When
(accompanied) by weak (mental) conduct.
The knower of reality has
said
That even if recitation and physical hardships
Are practised
for long periods of time,
They will be meaningless if the mind is
distracted elsewhere.
Even those who wish to find
happiness and overcome misery
Will wander with no aim or meaning
If they do not comprehend the secret of the mind -
The paramount
significance of Dharma.
This being so,
I shall
hold and guard my mind well.
Without the disciplines of guarding the
mind,
What use are many other disciplines?
Just as I would be
attentive and careful of a wound
When amidst a bustling uncontrolled
crowd,
So I should always guard the wound of my mind
When dwelling
among harmful people.
And if I am careful of a
wound
Through fear of it being slightly hurt,
Then why do I not
guard the wound of my mind
Through fear of being crushed by the
mountains of hell? | 