Four Noble Truths

This weekend I’ve been asked to speak about self-voidness and other-voidness, what is called in Tibetan rangtong (rang-stong) and zhentong (gzhan-stong). This is a very advanced topic, and very complicated, and also a very important topic. Therefore, it requires a great deal...

Understanding the Five Aggregates in Order to Understand Our Experience The first question that might come up when we begin this topic is why would we want to study and learn about the five aggregates – forms of physical phenomena, feelings of some level of happiness,...

The Four Creative-Energy Drops and the Mental Holograms to Which They Give Rise [For further elaboration, see: Kalachakra: The Four Creative Drops] Introduction As a Buddhist practice, Kalachakra fits within the context of the four noble truths and its practice is a method...

Introduction I’ve been asked to teach about Kalachakra this weekend. There are of course many, many aspects of Kalachakra that we could discuss, but I think that what is most important is to maintain the proper Buddhist context for our Kalachakra study and practice, which is...

Mind as Mental Activity This evening, I have been asked to speak about mahamudra and the conventional nature of the mind. It is difficult to speak just about the conventional nature of mind without also bringing in mind's deepest nature, since both natures are inextricably...

Introduction By nature, everyone wants to be happy and no one wants to be unhappy. No one wants to suffer. That nature is what drives an infant to suck milk; it drives us to eat, to find shelter, etc. – it is a natural drive. In order to rid ourselves of unhappiness and...

Basic Buddhist practice entails training ourselves in three areas. We can train in them in order to overcome our own problems and sufferings, because of concern for our own well-being. Or we can train in them with love and compassion in order to be of more benefit to others....

Introduction: The Lam-Rim Graded Stages and Levels of Motivation This evening we’re going to start our seminar on a very vital topic. The topic is how to meditate on the voidness of a false “me” experiencing the four noble truths. That sounds complicated and it is complicated....

Motivation Many people are here today from various different places, even Tibet, and you have all come for the Dharma purpose of listening to teachings. Therefore, concerning the development of a bodhichitta resolve and so forth, I shall teach here in Bodh Gaya 37 Bodhisattva...

Part One: Contrasting Bodhisattvas with Ordinary Beings Two Traditions for Developing Conventional Bodhichitta To destroy self-grasping and self-cherishing and to attain enlightenment, all mind training texts emphasize tonglen. This is the practice of giving and taking as...