Introduction to the Foundation Program

The following is extracted from a talk given by Geshe Kelsang Gyatso on the occasion of the inauguration of the Foundation Program at Tara Centre, October 1990

"How does the Foundation Program fulfil our own wishes? By increasing our wisdom and our experience of Dharma. With wisdom and Dharma experience we can solve all the problems we encounter in daily life and we can protect ourselves from danger in the future. Since beginningless time we have had strong, bad habits that arise from our self-grasping and self-cherishing. We all want to better ourselves and to be happy and successful in life but our bad habits lead us in the opposite direction. Instead of finding happiness we create the cause of more suffering. None of us wants to suffer and yet, because of our bad habits, we are continually strengthening our deluded minds, which are the cause of all our suffering.

With wisdom and Dharma experience we can bring our deluded minds under control. We can reduce our attachment, anger, jealousy, and so forth, and subdue our self-grasping and self-cherishing. By controlling our deluded minds we will come to experience permanent peace day and night. We will bring about a permanent cessation of human problems in particular and of samsaric problems in general. In this way we will become our own protectors.

...How does the Foundation Program fulfil the wishes of others? If we increase our wisdom and Dharma experience we can give teachings and spiritual advice to others and set a good example for them to follow. In this way we can lead others into spiritual paths.

...Our present understanding and experience of Dharma is quite superficial. We are like someone who has entered a huge food store and seen many things but sampled only a few. We may have received many different teachings from many different Teachers, but we have taken in very little, just a few morsels. Therefore our actual experience remains superficial. There is a gap between us and the Dharma. It feels as if Dharma is there and we are here. Our mind is not mixed with Dharma and so we cannot apply it in our daily lives. As a result our ordinary everyday problems remain. For example, we may have received many teachings on Lamrim and read many books. Intellectually we find it relatively easy to understand and we accept it all, but we find it difficult to integrate into our daily lives, and so we cannot use this Dharma to solve our daily problems. When we study Dharma our mind remains passive, like someone watching television. It does not engage in the subject and mix with it. Therefore our daily life and our Dharma remain completely separate and unrelated. Why is this? It is because we are not studying systematically according to a specially-designed program. If we just pick at Dharma randomly we will never gain a deep and stable experience, and our wisdom will never become like a full moon.

...During Foundation Program classes the Teacher will read from the text and give additional explanation. This has two purposes: to clarify difficult points and to pass on the oral lineage. Thus when the Teacher is reading from the book he or she is not just reading to us, they are also transmitting the lineage of the text to future Teachers.

The texts themselves are quite clear. The Lamrim and Lojong texts in particular are quite easy to understand. However, when we are studying on this program we need a special way of understanding. This involves listening, contemplating, discussing, memorizing, and meditating. Discussion is a particularly important aspect of the program because we can help each other greatly by sharing our experience and understanding of Dharma. Sometimes we can discuss in pairs and sometimes the whole class can discuss together.

When we discuss we should always have an open mind and be motivated by the wish to help our partner. If you have some special experience or understanding, try to share it. Always conduct your discussion as if you are giving something precious to a friend. When you ask questions of your partner you should do so only with the intention to learn from them or to clarify a point, not in order to find out how much or how little they know; and when they reply you should listen attentively as if you are receiving something precious from a friend. Do not get involved in heavy discussions, and avoid explicit disagreements. If your partner says something wrong, quietly point it out, but be careful not to cause offence. Some people do not respond well to being contradicted, so bear this in mind and speak gently and considerately. Sometimes if someone says something wrong we can mentally disregard it whilst appearing to agree. This helps to keep the discussion peaceful and friendly. Actually no one has a bad nature, but sometimes people can appear to be upset or disappointed. If your partner has difficulty understanding or accepting your point, be patient and try to help him or her understand gradually.

Our discussion should not be like fire crackers - a lot of noise with no real meaning - but should be meaningful and conclusive. We should try to conclude each discussion with a clear decision about the meaning of the subject in question. Later, when we take the examinations, the conclusions we have reached in discussion will be very helpful. Discussion helps us to formulate our ideas and come to clear decisions. Then we have certainty and confidence. Otherwise, without regular discussion we will be left with doubts and discomfort about the subject.

We should try to memorize the important points of the subject and combine whatever we understand in a practical way with our daily activities. We also have to observe the various commitments of the program. There commitments are designed to help us accomplish our aim. Without them there is a danger that we will be distracted by laziness or other circumstances and not complete our studies."