Preliminary Practices

The Basic Prerequisites for Achieving Shamatha Having presented the various traditions that transmit methods for meditating on mahamudra, the Fourth Panchen Lama now begins his discussion of the actual methods for mahamudra practice. He explains that there are two...

Tantra Is an Advanced Practice For our last session together, let’s speak a little bit about tantra. We also need to bring tantra down to earth. Often, Western people, when approaching the tantric teachings in Tibetan Buddhism, fall into one of two extremes. One extreme is to...

Verses 26 through 31 Now, we are going to continue talking about the six perfections, or the six far-reaching attitudes. You might have notice that they go in the order of generosity, ethical self-discipline, and then patience. This is because the focus of our practice should...

Review Tantra practice is a full practice that entails putting together a tremendous number of things and is something that we approach slowly and gradually. We can’t expect at the beginning to be able to do it in a full way; obviously not. Therefore, whether we are practicing...

In an age of addiction to constant distractions, focusing on the breath and quieting down our thoughts would be a good start before engaging in the preparatory practices.

The seven-limb practice in itself is s an excellent enlightenment-building action.

The six preparatory practices derive from Atisha. They are preparation for any meditation session or session of ngondro preliminary practice.

A look at common misunderstandings people have about tantra.

The primary connotation of “ngondro” is preparation. These practices are absolutely essential preparation for undertaking and sustaining our “spiritual journey.”

We need first to understand what a Buddha-field or pure land is before offering a mandala.