Other translations:

Twelve Things that Tend to be Misleading

By and large worldly activities tend to mislead you
I choose what is genuine, that’s what I’m living for


Distractions that go with possessions will tend to mislead you
I make the non-dual my sphere of experience


Servants and retinue, these also tend to mislead you
I keep to mountain retreats, where I stay all alone


Wealth and material goods also tend to mislead you
When I get things like that, for the Dharma I give them away


Objects appearing outside also tend to mislead you
And, therefore, I look at what’s inside, at mind within


Conceptual thinking will also tend to mislead you
I concern myself with original wisdom instead


What is meant as provisional Dharma will tend to mislead you
I gain rigorous certainty of the definitive point


And texts with their letters in black also tend to mislead you
I meditate on the whispered lineage instructions


Explications employing conventions will tend to mislead you
Free of contrivances, I simply rest relaxed


Birth and death, by and large, are a pair that will tend to mislead you
Therefore, I look to the unborn reality

Ordinary mind will tend to mislead you
The potential awareness has in it I exercise


Techniques for holding the mind will tend to mislead you
I rest in the depths of the basic nature itself


Under the guidance of Khenpo Tsultrim Gyamtso Rinpoche, translated and arranged by Jim Scott, Karma Tengyal Ling, Ludwigshorst, Germany, Summer, 1994, Tibetan page 389. Translation copyright 2012, Jim Scott