Cultivate renunciation in the tradition’s sense: the determination to be free

See clearly that the pleasures of cyclic existence never finally satisfy, and let that turn into a wish for freedom — not into contempt for life.

Por que funciona

The intermediate scope begins when the reflections of the initial scope are turned on the whole of cyclic existence. Tsongkhapa’s Three Principal Aspects calls renunciation the determination to be free, without which the thirst for pleasure in saṃsāra cannot be pacified, and says it has truly arisen when hope for saṃsāra’s pleasures no longer arises even for an instant and one longs for liberation day and night. The Foundation of All Qualities asks to see that mundane pleasures disappoint and cannot be relied on, and to pursue liberation instead; Geshe Dhargyey describes the method for that liberation as the three higher trainings of ethics, concentration and wisdom. The very next verse of the Three Principal Aspects says renunciation must be embraced by bodhicitta, which keeps it open toward others rather than closed in on oneself.

Como fazer

1. Recall something you strongly wanted and got. Notice how long the satisfaction lasted, and what you wanted next.
2. Widen it: the same pattern with praise, comfort, possessions, approval — the tradition’s “pleasures of saṃsāra.”
3. Ask what you would want if no next thing could ever settle it; let a wish for real freedom from the cycle, rather than for a better object, take shape.
4. Connect it to the three trainings: one small step of ethics, steadiness of mind or understanding you can take toward that freedom.
5. End by remembering that others are caught in the same cycle, as the Three Principal Aspects goes on to say, so the wish includes them.

Evidência

Renunciation is defined in verses 3–5 of Tsongkhapa’s Three Principal Aspects, with verse 6 linking it to bodhicitta; the Foundation of All Qualities gives the stanza on the shortcomings of mundane pleasures; Geshe Dhargyey sets out the intermediate scope and the three higher trainings. Support is textual. (anecdotal)

The traditional renunciation is radical and is framed by rebirth and liberation from it; this exercise is an entry point, not the full realisation the texts describe. It has not been studied. If “nothing is worth wanting” starts to feel like hopelessness rather than freedom, that is different and worth talking through with someone.

Fontes

• Tsongkhapa Lobzang Drakpa. Three Principal Aspects of the Path, trans. Adam Pearcey (2006, revised 2012). Lotsawa House.
• Tsongkhapa Lobzang Drakpa. The Foundation of All Qualities (a fourteen-stanza summary of the stages of the path), trans. Adam Pearcey (2018). Lotsawa House.
• Geshe Ngawang Dhargyey. Main Points of the Intermediate Scope of the Lam-rim Graded Stages. Study Buddhism (Berzin Archives).

Erro comum

Mistaking renunciation for self-denial or disgust with life. In Tsongkhapa’s verses it is a determination to be free, and he immediately says it must be held by bodhicitta — a renunciation that only hardens you against the world has gone off course.