Q & A with Jetsunma

OK, this is an interesting question. Plants respond to loving kindness. Why are they not considered to be sentient beings? It's a good question. It is absolutely true that we can communicate with plants.

I myself have tried this, and it's true. Yes, I mean, I don't know if I should bother with the story of the turnips. But one time, I had turnips. I had a little garden, you know? And I read about how you should talk to plants.

So I was growing turnips and potatoes. And I don't know if any of you have ever grown turnips. But when you pull them up, there's a lot of resistance, because they have long roots that go right down into the ground, and you have to pull. So I focused on a certain group of turnips. And I said to them, first, you have to show your appreciation.

So I said to the turnips, well, thank you very much, turnips, for growing in this difficult climate. And I really appreciate that their leaves also are very nutritious. So myself and the various rodents all enjoyed them. And so I said, thank you very much. But now it's time that you have to give up.

You are going to nourish me during my retreat. So please accept that you've finished growing now. And now I have to pull you up, and may you be well and happy. And so then the next day when I went, you have to give them time. So next day when I went to pull them up, I was ready for the resistance, which you usually get.

And they just came up, and I fell backwards, because it just came up. And then all the ones that I had talked to, they just came up. No resistance at all. And so I tried it on the others who I hadn't included. They were, again, that resistance.

They hadn't been talked to. But all the ones I talked to, they had already, all right. Here we are. We're yours now. So yes, plants are very sensitive beings, and we can communicate.

Why are they not sentient beings? Because they're not within the round of rebirth, and they don't make karma. You see, the older beings who are reborn are reborn within a cycle. So we can be reborn as an animal, or a bird, or a fish, or even an insect, I guess, or a spirit. But we cannot get reborn as a turnip, because turnips are not part of the rebirth process.

So whatever form of sensitiveness and consciousness they have, like trees, they are not part of the same cycle. So therefore, they are not regarded as sentient beings, which doesn't mean that, therefore, we can harm them. And certainly, we should have respect for them, and not harm them, obviously. If one has taken the bodhisattva vow, that's the vow to attain enlightenment for the sake of liberating all beings. Is there one particular teacher or practice that's most strengthening for future lifetimes that one should try to obtain?

The point is to cultivate bodhicitta, the aspiration for enlightenment. There's no specific practice, which is just intended for bodhisattvas. We would do the same practices as anybody, but only the motivation is that this will be in order to awaken others. It's the motivation which counts. It's not any specific technique.

There are, of course, texts which enumerate the bodhisattva vowels. And this is always good to look at. What are the vowels for bodhisattva? But in general, it's not what you do, it's why you do it. So it's the underlying motivation.

For example, I sometimes send people to Burma, to Myanmar, because people complain that they are not getting proper guidance in India. And so I said, well, if you want really personal one-on-one guidance, go to Myanmar because they have set up many very well-established meditation centers where you do get personal guidance. And then people say, oh, but that's like a Hinayana practice, that's a lower practice for attaining liberation for oneself. And I say it's nothing to do with that. It's just a technique.

It's a technique which was taught by the Buddha. Why you are practicing makes it a Mahayana practice or not. Not the actual technique. We can be doing highest and neutral yoga tantras, the highest ultimate tantras, but if we're doing it for the sake of benefiting only ourselves, it's a lower practice. So it's not the practice which is the difference.

It's the motivation, the intention behind it, which makes it a Mahayana practice or not a Mahayana practice, a bodhisattva practice or not. The world's needs are exhaustive. Am I greedy in keeping any money or time for myself? Oh, my dear. It's, you know, we breathe out, but we also have to breathe in.

If we're only breathing out and never breathing in, we will end up completely exhausted. We'll die. If you have an appliance, like a computer or anything, you have to recharge it. If you're only using it and never recharging it, it's going to run out and go flat. Many people who are in the social services, working, working, working, always feeling guilty about taking time out for themselves, they end up burned out.

It's not skillful. We have to benefit all sentient beings. We are also a sentient being, and we are the sentient being we're responsible for. So of course, we have to take care of ourselves in order to take care of others. So go out and have fun.

Ice cream. We have to look after ourselves, keep ourselves happy, healthy, supported in order that we also can give out to others. And then it's balanced. Otherwise, it is not balanced. And it can become, I mean, even the nuns who work for Mother Teresa, they don't spend all day long picking up the dead and dying from the streets of Kolkata.

More than half their time is spent in prayer. And they also have times when they go on retreats and then come back. So they're replenishing. Like this glass, if I'm always pouring out, out, out, becomes empty. We have to fill it up.

So it's very important not to feel guilty for taking time out for yourself, relaxing, having fun, doing some practice, just being centered. That makes us more efficient, not less efficient. So yes, we have to take care of ourselves. But there are needs and there are greed. And occasional little greed don't hurt.

And occasional little greed don't hurt. But if we're endlessly greedy and grasping and we are not prepared to share, then we're in trouble. But as long as we nurture ourselves in order that we also can nurture others, then that's how it should be. Nothing wrong with that. We don't have to feel guilty.

That's silly. So, you know, no, of course, of course, of course, of course, you have to have some money. You have to have time for yourself. There's no question. Of course.

Otherwise, we just end up either burned out or discouraged or tense or self-virtuous or whatever. Anyway, it's not balanced. Why is it that Buddhism does not speak of mystical union with the divine as the experience of ultimate reality? Because we believe the divine is inside. And we are always united with that.

We don't have to unite. We're already there. I mean, you know, we're already there. We don't have to. We don't have to.

We don't have to. We don't have to. We don't have to. We don't have to. We don't have to.

I mean, you know, so therefore, all we have to do is recognize what we've already got. It's not reaching out to something outside of ourselves or even thinking that Buddhism doesn't talk about mystical divine. Buddhism is a non-theistic religion, which always gets everybody puzzled. How can you be a religion when you don't believe in God? But Buddhism does believe, as the theistic religions also believe in their mystical aspect, that the divine is within.

But we don't have to have a mystical unity with something which we already are. We are already divine. The divine isn't separate from who we are. We are that. So what's there to unite with?

We're already there. Our problem is we don't recognize it. So therefore, this language of marriage with the divine and unity with divine, it's fine. I mean, there's nothing wrong with it. But in the Buddhist way of seeing things, it doesn't pertain.

We're not trying to unite with something which we're already in union with, which is our true nature, like Tara. We don't have to unite with Tara, because we are Tara. We might not realize it right now. We might be identifying with our false persona. But in our ultimate nature, we are Tara.

So we don't need to unite with her. We just have to recognize her here with Tara. Do you understand? If you don't understand too bad. Ooh.

Buddhism emphasizes the necessity of intense practice and meditation and other specific steps on the path through enlightenment. What then is your opinion of those who experience spontaneous awakening without ever having meditated or without ever having been on a conscious spiritual path? For example, Eckhart Tolle. Is the enlightenment of those people somehow less? No, I think the point with people like Eckhart Tolle and others is that, and Krishnamurti, is that they had done intense practice in past lives.

For example, my own Lama, when he got reborn, I met him when he was two years old. And he was already in a state of what is called rikpa, of the pure unborn awareness of the nature of the mind. I mean, at two years old, he was already there. He didn't have to practice. Why?

Because in past lives, they'd been practicing. So these people who get spontaneous, the problem with them, as with the problem with Krishnamurti, I might say, is that although they are very good at describing the nature of an awakened mind, they cannot give you a path to get there. So they point up to the top of the mountain, and they say, look, there it is. Go for it. But there's no mountaineering tools.

There's no guide. There's no prior training. Somehow you've got to get from here, base camp, up to the top of the mountain. Good luck. This is what the view is like when you get there.

But where's the path? There's no path. When I first came to the Buddha Dharma when I was 18, my first feeling was intense gratitude to the Buddha for giving a path. Thank you, Buddha. Now I know.

I have a map. It's one thing to describe the awakened mind. I mean, Eckhart Tolle's books are very inspiring, and you know the whole problem of the ego, and how to live in pure awareness. Wonderful, wonderful. But he doesn't tell you how to do it.

Just saying, I have no ego. Doesn't it help? Who's saying I have no ego? The ego. Unless there is that genuine shift in consciousness, just reading about it isn't going to help.

So yes, they are very helpful for inspiring people in modern language to understand that there is this state and what it's like and what the problem of the ego is. Undoubtedly, wonderful, very inspiring, but they're not. I remember one time seeing a documentary on Krishnamurti, and the interviewer had obviously read Krishnamurti. But he was not intimidated. And so he said to Krishnamurti, OK, you talk about meditation.

All right. So then, how do I meditate? And don't say there's no how, which is what Krishnamurti is always saying, there's no how. Don't say there's no how, Krishnamurti. And then he gave this brilliant, very interesting, brilliant explanation of meditation, which was pure Mahamudra.

Bloody hell, why don't you say that? What's the mystery? When you talk about meditation, you know what you mean. Why don't you tell people? I met his headmistress of his school in London.

I mean, his school, not in London, but I met her in London. And she had been headmistress of his school for 40 years. And she came to me, and she said, I am so confused. I think I should become a Buddhist. Can you please tell me how to practice?

40 years of being headmistress. People get so confused. He was very good at breaking down and telling everybody what not to do. But he couldn't tell them what to do. And Eckhart Tolle is a bit the same.

Oh, well, you can meditate if you want to. But you know, that's just such a waste of time, because we're all in the agala state. I wonder if he's still in the agala state, when he got so famous, you know? Wonder what his wife thinks. Yeah.

Oh, OK. Well, I met Krishnamurti because I had just become a nun. And I was with this other American woman who was also a nun, and so the two of us were in robes. And we were in Saranat in India, Nevaranasi, where the Anibesant colleges. And so Krishnamurti was giving a week of talks.

I'd never heard of Krishnamurti, but this American nun had. So she said we should go for the talks. But he had a rule that once he was about to start speaking before he went in, the doors were closed. You couldn't just wander in or out. You were in.

So we got there a little late. And so we wandered. And I said, oh, well, the doors are closed, right? Let's go. No, no, no.

There must be a way of getting in. So we wandered around this college. And eventually, we found a window. It was quite high, but it was slightly open. So she said, OK, you climb on my back and get in the window.

Then you can pull me up. So OK, so I climbed on her back, stumbled through the window, turned around, pulled her up. She stumbled in through the window. And then we turned around. And there was this guy standing there by this double door with his arms closed, looking at us, and just laughing and laughing and laughing.

And of course, that was Krishnamurti. And then he spent his whole lecture about these people with shaved heads and marlors and all this and what a waste of time it all was. OK, what struggles have you faced as a woman monk in Buddhism? Well, you know, it's better than it was, but it isn't so great. The main problem has always been that the women were regarded as an inferior birth.

And so therefore, there was a lack of opportunity. We were not taken as seriously as men were, even if the males were not monks. But just having a male rebirth, the llamas could connect with them and took them more seriously than the females. So in a way, this was the main problem, that one didn't get the teachings one wanted, because one wasn't taken seriously enough. And this was one of the reasons why we wanted to start a nunnery in order to give the nuns the same opportunities the monks have always taken for granted.

And up to now, the nuns were denied. So this is why when I created the nunnery, my thought was, how would I like to have been trained if I was starting as a young nun? Let's give the nuns that kind of training which they are now having. It's better than it was. It isn't great, but it's better than it was.

And now, of course, many nuns are in the Tibetan tradition. They have taken the highest degree of geshe, becoming geshe-mas and kenmores. We have nuns who are in long-term retreat. They've finished about nine years now who are training to become yoginis or topdemma. All the nuns are studying.

They're learning, debating. Most nunneries now. In the last 20 years, really basically done a quantum leap as far as nunneries are concerned, because they're studying, they're practicing, they're learning rituals. They're doing all the things which traditionally was only permitted for the monks to do. So things have changed a lot.

I mean, I've been a nun now, I don't know, about 54 years. And I can see how different it is, especially for the traditional nuns. For Western nuns, there's still a big problem. They are not appreciated by the Tibetan community. And they are not appreciated by their own community here.

I mean, everybody is all goo-goo and gaga over Tibetan monks. But they don't get very excited about Tibetan nuns. I mean, you might think, oh, look, and you come for the talk. But then, you know, I've read books, and I'm on YouTube, and so, so, so what. But if I was just a Tibetan nun and you'd never heard about, you wouldn't come.

And all the Tibetan nuns who might be living in your community, who is helping them, who is supporting them, who is inspiring them? So these for the modern day nuns from the West or from other parts of Asia who ordain in the Tibetan tradition, there still really is no support system. They're not supported by their organizations. They're not supported by the Lamas. And they're also not supported by their own people.

And so many, many of them, even after many years of struggle, finally give up because there's just so little support on any side, not just financial support, which is, after all, important. We all have to live, but also psychological support, just the appreciation of what they're trying to accomplish. That's not there either. So from that point of view, it's still very hard to be especially a non-Himalian nun within the Tibetan tradition. And in recent weeks, many of our very old friends who have been nuns 20 years or more have disrobed because it just got so disheartened.

There was no advantage. They had no community at the same time. They weren't accepted. They were alien. And they just, what's the use?

I mean, they're still practicing and studying and doing what they're doing, but not as nuns anymore because there was no point. So what they need is encouragement and support and help, especially for, like, if you want to go for a course, a meditation course, or even a study course, you know, monastics have to pay the same as anybody. And no Buddhist country would they charge monastics for going for a Dharma teaching. It's ridiculous. Well, I mean, normally in an Asian country, they don't charge anybody anything, but it's a different situation in Asia.

But still, the monastics are not respected as monastics. And they're not upheld and encouraged and helped. And so that hasn't changed in all these years. It's just as bad as ever. Nobody has woken up to recognize that the Buddha praised the fourfold sangha of monastics and laity.

In Asia, the problem is that all the knowledge was contained by the monks. And so the nuns got only a little, and the lay people very little. Now in the West, it's gone the other way, and it's all lay people. And the monks and the nuns are very, very few. And so again, it's out of balance.

The Buddha wanted a fourfold sangha in balance. He always said, when the fourfold sangha studies, practices, propagates the dharma, then the dharma will flourish. Because there is this balance between the life of renunciation as a monastic and the lay people bringing the dharma into their daily lives. And in this way, the dharma flourishes because it is balanced. Now it's not balanced.

It's gone over the other side. And this non-appreciation of the monastic life is, I think, also a serious challenge in the West. They've lost something. They threw the baby out with the bath water. Anyway, that's my opinion.

How are we doing? OK. Top tips for someone going into solitary retreat for six weeks. Well, Steve, the first thing when you go into solitary retreat is that you should feel safe. Boys have an easier time than girls.

But you should feel safe in your solitary retreat and have all your provisions provided, however. But the most important thing is to know what you're doing. Normally, when people want to do a retreat, I encourage people to start by doing group retreats. Because in group retreat, you get instruction. And also, if problems come up, you've got someone you can turn to.

When one is well-accomplished in group retreats, also in group retreats, you have the discipline because you're sitting there. And then suddenly, you need to go to the bathroom or something you sort of need to go to the bathroom or you think, well, I don't know. My mind's a bit distracted. Let's have a cup of coffee. No.

Sitting, right? So this teaches discipline. When we're in a group retreat, no matter what we're feeling or not feeling, we can't get up and walk out. We have to keep sitting. So this teaches discipline.

Once one is solitary retreat, then we have to be our own disciplinarian. And the important thing is to know what you're doing. Set your meditate. All right. You're going to be in group retreat.

I don't know. I assume you know what you're doing. Because there's no one to ask, of course, I guess. Leave aside your computers, your smartphones, any external contact, set your GPS, enlightenment, right? If you're in a Mariana Path, enlightenment for the sake of all beings, that's where we're going.

Then drop it. Now we're driving. We don't have to think we're going to Washington. We know the GPS is set for Washington on New York or wherever. So we look at the view outside the window.

And where's the next turn? Because we know we're going in the right direction. So first set your direction, then let it go. Leave that. Practice whatever your practice is.

Be very sure you know exactly what you're meant to be doing and how to do it. Then recognize that when the mind is deprived of external distraction and entertainment, it will very conveniently set up its own entertainment program inside. So this is why we need to have a mind which is relaxed. Relaxed, spacious mind, not tight. But at the same time, really mindful that we are not swept along by our inner mental entertainment program.

I don't know who this person is, how much practice he has done before. If one has not done too much practice before, it is better to keep the session shorter and frequent rather than too long, which gives the mind a chance to be very bored and distracted. I don't know what their practice is or how long they are being told to practice. But keep it regular. I would say if you're not very practiced, don't ask yourself whether you feel like practice.

Practice. Set your schedule and keep to it no matter what you're feeling. And enjoy. Because if we enjoy something, then it's effortless. If we are looking at an interesting program or if we're reading an interesting book, nobody has to force us to do that.

We do it naturally because our minds are engaged. So try to make the practice of a sufficient duration that we have time to get into the practice, but at the same time, not so long that we get bored with it. The teachers usually say to stop while we could still go on a bit more because then the imprint in the mind is that that was nice. Let's do it again. If we push it too far, the mind remembers that it got fed up and bored and tired, and there's a resistance.

So therefore, to tune ourselves to just stopping just before we could go on a bit more, but we don't need to. Let's stop here, and then we'll start again fresh. And as much as possible to motivate ourselves to read those books which are not intellectually demanding but inwardly inspiring. And so in the breaks, one can read if you are depending on the kind of retreat. Go out, look at nature, especially look at the sky, look at trees, look at the mind.

But really just feel what enormous blessing to be able to be in retreat. And that one is doing this on behalf of the whole world, who desperately needs some good spiritual energy at this time. So always at the end of the session didn't dedicate the merit to all beings. But as I say, enjoy. The Buddha said he described it like he had one monk who was very, very diligent and was walking up and down, walking up and down, walking up and down until the soles of his feet, which were very delicate, began to bleed.

And so the Buddha appeared before him and he said, when you were in lay life, you were a musician, yes? And he said, yes, I was a musician. He said, so when you tuned your lute, if you tuned it too loose, what happened? And he said, oh, it didn't make any sound. And if it was too tight, he said, then it was a harsh sound or it snapped.

He said, so you needed to just get it balanced so it made a beautiful tune. The Buddha said, that's like your practice. Not too tight, not too intense, and not too lax, but just right so that it just keeps going and plays a beautiful melody. And if one gets bored, if one gets tired, if one gets fed up, doesn't matter, just keep going. So sometimes the mind is up.

Sometimes the mind might be down. Doesn't matter, just the mind. The waves are sunk, sorrow is up, it's down, who cares? The important thing is just to keep going and enjoy, yes. I am not going to make any comments on Donald Trump.

We finished at 4.30. Oh, we're supposed to finish at 4.30. Oh, I'm so sorry. We have to finish because we have to get a plane. Oh, OK.

So we're dedicated. But you did mention it. I did. And our mantra is always, even Trump has Buddha nature, and he may be doing wonderful things. We don't know yet.

Everybody, everybody has the potential. The important thing is to give out lots of love and support, supports for all the beings in this country and on the planet and good energy, not paranoia, anger, fear, frustration. We already have more than enough of that energy. We need to give out loving kindness and compassion energy. We don't need to increase the darkness.

We need to bring in some light. And so the best thing you can do on a psychic level, of course, on a physical level, you do what you can do. But on a psychic level, to just give out so much loving kindness and compassion in this world. And real wish that all beings should be well, unhappy, peaceful at their ease, free from suffering. That's the best thing you can do, is just to give out lots and lots of positive energy to neutralize the negative energy.

Not to plug into the negative energy. What does that have? Just creates more. The Buddha said that hatred is not ceasing by hatred. Hatred only ceases by non-hatred.

We have to give out a good energy. The whole world, not just America, the whole world is in need of good energy. And if people like you don't do it, who's going to do it? So during your meditation period, you can sit just five minutes, send out some good energy around the whole world, not just America. Our whole world is in a mess.

But every being on this planet has a good nature. Even though not from. So. Thank you all so much.