The Four Mind-Changing Contemplations

by Khenchen Appey Rinpoche

Whenever one thinks of those four contemplations, that is, “the difficulty of obtaining the freedoms and advantages,” and so forth, it enables one to direct the mind from its core toward the Dharma.

“The difficulty of obtaining the freedoms and advantages” refers to the fact that a human body is necessary to practice the Dharma. Since it will be difficult to obtain this kind of body again in the future, we have to resolve that we will make full use of the one we have obtained now. We should memorise and recite the following verse from the Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life starting with:

Relying on the boat that is the human body…

The meaning of this example is that if one needs to reach the other side of a river, it should be done while one has a boat. In the same way, since we have now obtained a human body, we need to try to cross over the ocean of samsara. This is the purport of “the difficulty of obtaining the freedoms and advantages.”

Regarding “death and impermanence” one should contemplate as follows, “I need to practice the sacred Dharma immediately because unless I do so, there is no certainty that I will be able to practice it later! There is no certainty about the time when I have to die and leave.” It says in the Guide to a Bodhisattva’s Way of Life:

Since death will come quickly…

We should memorise this verse and also recite it verbally. The meaning is that since we will die very soon, we need to determine to use all the time we have, from today onward, for Dharma practice. Later, when we become older and face unfortunate circumstances such as sickness and so forth, it will be too late.

As for “karma, cause and effect,” when we analyse the differences between happiness and suffering, they come about from virtuous and non-virtuous actions, respectively. Thus, we need to practice virtuous actions and abandon non-virtuous ones. It is said in Instructions to the King:

Great king, when the time of your death has come,

The wealth and retinue you have gathered in this life will not accompany you,

The karma that you have accumulated will be like

A shadow that follows the body.

Wherever you go, your karma will follow.

Contemplating “the disadvantages of samsara” makes us realise the need to accomplish liberation. Regarding the practice of achieving liberation, if we do not give up clinging to samsara, then the wish to accomplish liberation will not take root. We need a reason to give up our clinging to samsara. We need to understand the faults of samsara. But a mere understanding of the faults is not enough — we need to meditate on the faults again and again. Meditating in this way and turning the mind away from clinging to samsara is the contemplation on “the disadvantages of samsara.” The Buddha said in the Lalitavistara Sutra:

Under the influences of existence, craving, and ignorance in samsara,

And conditioned by karma, ignorance, and attachment,

We spin around endlessly, without pause,

As the five types of samsaric beings,

Like the spinning of a potter’s turntable.

When the Buddha was asked what faults there are in samsara, he replied that there are two. These two are suffering and impermanence. The Buddha taught that suffering is an unpleasant sensation. Impermanence refers to the fact that pleasant feelings of happiness are not stable — they constantly change.

Nāgārjuna said:

If your head or clothes were to catch fire… 

This means that if our heads or clothes were to suddenly catch fire, we would let go of all other activities and strive to put out the fire. Our efforts to put an end to samsara, however, should be even greater than those generated to put out such a fire. Without concern for our bodies and possessions, we need to strive in abandoning samsara.