The traditional explanation of emptiness using the pen example begins with a humorous reference by Geshe Michael Roach to a major international airline in England. He recalls a lesson given to nine vice presidents, where he asked what seemed to be a simple question about an object on the table. When he asked, “What is this?”, some hesitated to answer. Eventually, someone said, “It’s a pen.”
Then he introduced a thought experiment: “If a dog walks into the room and sees this object, what does it perceive?” The answer is that the dog sees a chew toy, not a pen. So, who is right — the human or the dog? Both are correct. This leads to the concept of emptiness, or shunyata.
When neither a human nor a dog is in the room, the object is neither a pen nor a chew toy — it is nothing. That is emptiness. It has the potential to be something, but it is not inherently anything by itself. This is the core definition of emptiness.
As Geshe Michael puts it, “When the humans and dogs leave the room, the object becomes nothing. When a human returns and looks at it, it becomes a pen. That proves it’s coming from the observer.”
This leads into the concept of karmic seeds. When a human perceives the object as a pen, it’s because a karmic seed in their mind opens — in 1/65th of a second — projecting the image of a pen onto the object. The dog’s seed produces the image of a chew toy. Both see the same parts, but through different karmic projections.
Rebirth, in this framework, also happens in 1/65th of a second. A shift in perception — due to different seeds — can change our experience entirely. Geshe Michael jokes that the 49 days of the bardo state is outdated thinking, suitable only for “lower school.”
The Four Steps to Planting Financial Karma
Geshe Michael then introduces a powerful practice known as the Four Steps, used to plant karmic seeds for success — particularly financial. He uses a $100 bill as an example and explains the steps as follows:
Step 1: Decide clearly what you want. For example, turning $100 into $1,000 within 10 days. Choose a goal that is measurable.
Step 2: Find a partner who wants the same thing. You cannot plant a karmic seed alone. In this example, he asks Denise if she would like to make money, and she agrees to be the partner.
Step 3: Help that person get what they want. Geshe Michael gives Denise $100, placing it in her hand and closing it. This action, observed by his own mind, plants a seed. Karma is created by the mental recording of one’s actions — the image of giving the money imprints the mind.
Step 4: Water the seed daily. Every night before sleep, think of the good deeds you did that day. If you can’t think of any from today, recall yesterday, last week, or even something someone else did. Never go to sleep with a negative thought. This nightly practice cooks the seed and ensures it will ripen.
Meditation as Mental Discipline
Geshe Michael emphasizes the importance of controlling the mind, especially before sleep. Your mind wants to focus on problems — financial, relational, professional. But you must resist. That effort is called meditation: fighting with your own mind to focus on positivity so that your seeds ripen properly overnight.
If you don’t water the seed, it can remain dormant for a hundred years. But once planted, it cannot be destroyed. With proper nurturing, you can experience incredible success, even attracting large financial support seemingly without effort — as happened when they raised $1 million recently.
In conclusion, Geshe Michael warns that the old way of making money — hard work alone — has cracks in it. Some people work hard and stay poor, others don’t work at all and become rich. The solution: plant and water karmic seeds.
“Just try it. The worst thing that happens is you give someone $100. The best thing — it comes back many times over.”
