— Khenpo Karma Tenkyong
To illustrate his talk, Khenpo Tenkyong brought a tray with three cups: one was turned upside down, the next had a hole in it, and the last one had drops of color in it.
The first upside down cup represents not paying attention to the teaching or, more literally, “not giving our ear consciousness to the sound.” In such a situation, we don’t get anything. We have just wasted our precious time. [He pours water over the cup and it runs onto the tray.] The problem, then, is not with the teachings but with us—our lack of awareness of the sound and its meaning.
The second cup with a hole in it represents not retaining the teachings. We give our ear and eye consciousnesses to teaching but do not know how to preserve it inside. [He pours water into the second cup and it leaks onto the tray.]
The third cup shows that if listening is mixed with the afflictions, the teachings turn into poison. We are using the teaching to support our afflictions, so what we hear does not benefit us. [He pours golden colored water from a glass pitcher into the last cup and the water turns murky red.] The Buddha gave the pure Dharma to everyone but we need to bring a clean cup.
Khenpo then gave some commentary on these three faults and how to apply the teaching. This Dharma comes directly from the Buddha, and if we can make a connection with it through our feeling, we will receive a blessing. If we cannot, it will not function as an antidote to our faults.
First we need to establish a practice of shamatha, so that we can listen closely or fully and then retain what we have heard. Being in the present moment is key to all three practices of shamatha, vipashyana, and mahamudra. The power of shamatha is that it develops our ability to focus one-pointedly, and so we can, for example, really give our ear consciousness to what the teacher is saying.
There are two main problems for all types of meditation, Khenpo stated. One is Auntie Dullness, who whispers to us, “You’re tired, just take a little break,” and Uncle Agitation who tempts us with thoughts, “Come with me. I know a great restaurant.”
Knowing how to focus on an object and not become distracted is a first step, and then we need to find our own truth, which is different for each person. The Buddha’s truth or the teacher’s truth is not enough: we need to find our own truth and use that in our meditation. And so whether the teaching functions as an antidote for our afflictions or not, depends on us and not on a teacher or a particular teaching.
The word dharma (chos in Tibetan) has ten different meanings and one of them is “to train,” so Dharma means to train our mind and change our mental habits. This is how we free ourselves from the causes and conditions that create suffering. This teaching on the three cups can be used in all situations—in practice, at work, in relationships, and so forth. If we understand these three illustrations, we can do perfect practice; if not, we will not be able to move along the path to mahamudra and dzogchen.
— edited by Michele Martin