Realizing Enlightened Society

Talk Three: Fruition of Enlightened Society

Good even, ladies and gentlemen. It's the third day of our study of Shambhala and buddhadharma, how buddhadharma and Shambhala could be put together.

In our first talk we discussed background and foreground. With that reference point we are continuing to work on how to lead life properly. Leading life may be putting together some kind of dichotomy, but it's workable. Basically speaking, it is creating enlightened society. Society from this point of view is the general set-up of putting people together within their own reference point. It doesn't have to be particularly revolutionary. It is very simple and direct-what people need. And what people need is security, comfort-which we could relate with very simply-and moreover some sense of psychological environment.

If people would like to get involved with a discussion on that, that's fine.

STUDENT: Sir, I've been living in Nova Scotia for two years now, and I find a tremendous sense of sadness there.

VIDYADHARA: I think that's precisely the reference point of why we should go there.

S: Thank you. I guess I'm in the right place.

S: Sir, you said that living life involved a sense of resolving a dichotomy. What dichotomy did you mean?

V: Cheerful, but strange.

S: Are these in the environment—or are they things that we project onto it?

V: In any case it's slightly Étrange.

S: How do we begin to relate with sadness?

V: Being more sad: sadder and sadder.

S: Forever sadder and sadder?

V: Yes.

S: Purely for it's own sake?

V: Just simply being sad. You wouldn't understand how to be sad. Simply being sadder.

S: Sir, you said that in working to realize an enlightened society, we can feel comfortable in giving people what they need if what they need is security and comfort. Is that one of the things we have to do, give people what we see they need?

V: I think so, yes.

S: To follow that a little further, sir—in order to do this and to try to realize an enlightened society in that way, are you suggesting more emphasis on the Shambhala approach?

V: Yes.

S: And in the way that we carry on conversations and reach out to people?

V: That's questionable.

S: That's questionable?

V: Conversations we discussed-last night.

S: But you said we create a psychological environment for people.

V: You'd better watch out for that!

S: Well, I know that in Shambhala Training a lot of attention is paid to the environment.

V: We'd better watch out even for that!

S: I don't remember your words exactly but I think you said you would be talking about the inseparability of buddhadharma and Shambhala. If they're inseparable, would it be right to say that basic goodness is inseparable from awareness?

V: Yes.

Thank you for arriving here safely—in one piece-and for taking part in this short but very potent training program—though we have a long way to go. It is very definite and very serious. Thank you.