Wheel of Sharp Weapons: Verses 102-105 (Review)
Venerable Thubten Chodron 
Wheel of Sharp Weapons 2004-06 
Sep 2, 2006 An expanded commentary on Dharmarakshita's The Wheel of Sharp Weapons given at Sravasti Abbey from 2004-2006.
Verses 102-103
- Aspiring with the bodhicitta motivation
- Cyclic existence: being caught under the influence of afflictions and karma
- Nirvana is the state that’s free of that
- How false conceptions of inherent existence are vanquished by wisdom
Wheel of Sharp Weapons (expanded) review: Verses 102-103 (download)
Verses 104-105
- All phenomena originate dependently, nothing exists independently
- The afflictions are not one solid thing that’s there, there are many moments, many causes
- Recognizing that our relationships with others also lack inherent existence, are merely labeled
- Looking at things as like illusions
Wheel of Sharp Weapons (expanded) review: Verses 104-105 (download)
Questions and answers
- Labeling
- Projections: when we’re putting something there that’s not there
- Making plans realistically
- Seeing the qualities of the enlightened state realistically
- Seeing others as sentient beings trapped in samsara rather than buying into the façade they present
- Giving labels, but not confusing the label with the object
Wheel of Sharp Weapons (expanded) review: Q&A (download)
Venerable Thubten Chodron
Venerable Chodron emphasizes the practical application of Buddha’s teachings in our daily lives and is especially skilled at explaining them in ways easily understood and practiced by Westerners. She is well known for her warm, humorous, and lucid teachings. She was ordained as a Buddhist nun in 1977 by Kyabje Ling Rinpoche in Dharamsala, India, and in 1986 she received bhikshuni (full) ordination in Taiwan. Read her full bio.
