Seven Points of Mind Training

Point 6 : Disciplines of Mind Training

28: Abandon any hope of fruition.

Point Six : Abandon any hope of fruition.

Commentary :

This slogan means that you should give up any possibilities of becoming the greatest person in the world by means of your training. In particular, you may quite impatiently expect that because of lojong practice you will become a better person. You may be hoping that you will be invited to more little clubs and gatherings by your proteges or friends, who are impressed with you. The point is that you have to give up any such possibility; otherwise, you could become an egomaniac. In other words, it is too early for you to collect disciples.

Working with the slogans does not mean looking for temporary revelation or trying to achieve something by doing little smart things that have managed to quell people's problems in the past. You may have become a great speaker by giving one talk or a great psychologist who has managed to conquer other people's neuroses or a great literary figure who has written several books or a famous musician who has produced several albums. Such things are somewhat based on relating with reality properly, being connected with reality. But you want to subjugate the world in your own particular style, however subtle and sneaky that may be.

By doing the same kind of trick, you hope to attain enlightenment. You have tuned in to a professional approach and become a professional achiever. So there is the possibility that you might approach practice in the same way, thinking that you can actually con the buddha mind within yourself and sneakily attain enlightenment. That seems to be the problem referred to in this particular slogan. It says in the commentary that any pursuit of this life's happiness, joy, fame, or wisdom, or the hope of attaining some state of glorious liberation in the life hereafter, could be regarded as a problem.