In general, there are many categories of objects of patience. In brief, it can be explained by condensing them into five main points:
1. Showing the need to cultivate patience
2. The patience of remaining unperturbed towards harm-doers
3. The patience of willingly accepting suffering
4. The patience of enduring hardships for the Dharma
5. Concluding with the story of the sage Patibhava
Showing the need to cultivate patience:
Generally speaking, patience does not refer to merely enduring unwillingly while displaying a false demeanor of body and speech when one is unable to retaliate against an enemy-like object of dislike, all the while harboring resentment in the mind. Rather, if, at the onset, one cultivates patience based on a thorough understanding of the benefits of patience and the drawbacks of anger–towards both oneself who faces mistreatment and towards the enemy object of patience–patience itself can become a joyful and delightful state even while undergoing unpleasant experiences.
Read the whole teaching: The Third Paramita: Patience
Written by Khenpo Karten Rinpoche, posted to his Blogspot on February 20, 2025. The teachings from Rinpoche on the Six Paramitas will eventually be bound in a book, sometime in 2025.
