You are surely one who has greater devotion than King Trisong Detsen. Old woman, cross your legs. Fold your legs in the vajra posture and straighten your spine. Align your spine and relax your mind. Now you listen. The Buddha has taught limitless Dharmas. I am going to teach you the very heart essence of those limitless Dharmas. Those to whom we refer to as Buddhas are actually no different from sentient beings. The only difference between Buddhas and sentient beings is that Buddhas know this Buddha nature and sentient beings do not. If you understand the nature of mind, you are a Buddha. If you do not understand it, then you are a sentient being who wanders in samsara.
In order for sentient beings to have the method which suits them according to their individual capacity, it is for this reason that the Buddha taught all of the eighty-four thousand categories of the Dharma. They are all for the purpose of helping beings to realize this pristine awareness or primordial wisdom inherent in their own mind streams. Now I am going to give to you, old woman, the very essence of these pith instructions, the very heart essence of all these eighty-four thousand categories of Dharma. You need not have any feeling of discouragement, thinking that you are not very bright or that you have less intelligence or wisdom. You don’t need to think in that way.
🔷 If you purify the fixation to outer objects, then naturally appearances are liberated in their own place.
🔷 If you purify the inwardly fixating mind, then mind itself is naturally liberated.
🔷 When clear light luminosity shines forth and you recognize the true nature of your own mind, then you have recognized awareness itself as the mind of enlightenment.
If you look directly at awareness itself, then conceptual thought will be naturally liberated in its own place. Old lady, if you meditate like this, you will become a Buddha. Old Lady, if you meditate like this, you have no need for fear at the time of death. You will not have any fear. If you meditate like this, there is nothing better that you could do with this life.
Remember that your life is impermanent, and there is no telling when you will die, so you should make effort only in these pith instructions that I have taught you. You should only make effort in this. To strive in the activities of this world for your children or husband and so forth, even if you were to engage in all these great worldly activities for thousands of years, just a single moment of recognizing the true nature of mind is of far greater meaning than all of the countless worldly activities that one could accomplish. Give up all worldly activities and simply focus on these pith instructions of mine. If you practice according to these pith instructions for the rest of your life, then Old Lady, you will have no fear at the time of death.”
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