Notes on Ngondro Practice
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Difference Between the Svatantrika Madhyamika and the Prasangika
Handout 07 - Spring 2011 / Bodhicitta Difference between the Svatantrika Madhyamika and the Prasangika Madhyamika tenets As mentioned in the previous handout (Handout 06), even though the main difference between the two Madhyamika (Middle Way) tenets lies in their interpretation of the ultimate truth, there are several other differences, one of which is outlined during the presentation of aspirational and engaging Bodhicitta. The difference that is outlined here arises from the two tenets' different assertions regarding the nature of vows. Svatantrika Madhyamika (Autonomy Middle Way) tenet From the point of view of the Svatantrika (Autonomy School) tenet -- which includes the Yoga Svatantrika and the Sutra Svatantrika tenets -- aspirational Bodhicitta arises even in the continua of Bodhisattvas who have taken and not transgressed the Bodhisattva vow. The reason for this is that, according to this tenet, vows are a mental factor. Vows are the mental factor of 'intention' which is one of the five omnipresent mental factors that is concomitant with every main mind. This means that whenever vows manifest in someone's continuum they manifest in the form of the mental factor of intention. However, this does not mean that every mental factor of intention (even in the continuum of someone who has taken vows) manifests in the form of vows. In the case of the Bodhisattva vow, it refers to the mental factor of intention that is concomitant with Bodhicitta. Thus, when Bodhisattvas newly take the Bodhisattva vow the vow first arises in their continua in the form of the mental factor of intention that is concomitant with Bodhicitta. In other words, during the ritual of taking the Bodhisattva vow the Bodhisattvas initially generate aspirational Bodhicitta. -
Buddhist Ethics in Japan and Tibet: a Comparative Study of the Adoption of Bodhisattva and Pratimoksa Precepts
University of San Diego Digital USD Theology and Religious Studies: Faculty Scholarship Department of Theology and Religious Studies 1994 Buddhist Ethics in Japan and Tibet: A Comparative Study of the Adoption of Bodhisattva and Pratimoksa Precepts Karma Lekshe Tsomo PhD University of San Diego, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digital.sandiego.edu/thrs-faculty Part of the Buddhist Studies Commons, and the Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons Digital USD Citation Tsomo, Karma Lekshe PhD, "Buddhist Ethics in Japan and Tibet: A Comparative Study of the Adoption of Bodhisattva and Pratimoksa Precepts" (1994). Theology and Religious Studies: Faculty Scholarship. 18. https://digital.sandiego.edu/thrs-faculty/18 This Conference Proceeding is brought to you for free and open access by the Department of Theology and Religious Studies at Digital USD. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theology and Religious Studies: Faculty Scholarship by an authorized administrator of Digital USD. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Buddhist Behavioral Codes and the Modern World An Internationa] Symposium Edited by Charles Weihsun Fu and Sandra A. Wawrytko Buddhist Behavioral Codes and the Modern World Recent Titles in Contributions to the Study of Religion Buddhist Behavioral Cross, Crescent, and Sword: The Justification and Limitation of War in Western and Islamic Tradition Codes and the James Turner Johnson and John Kelsay, editors The Star of Return: Judaism after the Holocaust -
Commentary by Khenpo Namdrol 1
COMMENTARY BY KHENPO NAMDROL 1 Introd U ction to the EX traordinary Inner Preliminary Practice S We have now reached the extraordinary inner preliminary practices. Patrul Rinpoche begins with paying homage to his guru Jigme Gyalwai Nyugu by explaining his superior qualities. After that he goes on to briefly explain the main practices themselves. Crowned with the Three Jewels, the outer refuge, He truly realized the Three Roots, the inner refuge; He made manifest the Three Kayas, the ultimate refuge. At the feet of my peerless guru, I bow down. The Three Jewels of Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha comprise the outer refuge, and are the objects of refuge of all the vehicles of Buddhism. How do we take refuge in them? The Buddha is the one who shows us the path to liberation. The Dharma – the Buddha’s teaching – is the actual path itself. The practitioners of the Buddha’s teaching are called Sangha. They are our friends for the purpose of liberation. With tremendous faith and devotion we take refuge in these three outer refuges as the teacher, the path, and the companions. Just like Jigme Gyalwai Nyugu we should carry the Three Jewels like a crown upon our heads at all times and in all situations. The inner objects of refuge are the Three Roots: the lama, the yidam and the dakini. The guru is the root of blessings; the yidam is the root of accomplishment; and the dakini is the root of enlightened activities. These three should be accomplished with body, speech, and mind. This is how Jigme Gyalwai Nyugu took the inner refuge. -
The Depth Psychology of the Yogacara
Aspects of Buddhist Psychology Lecture 42: The Depth Psychology of the Yogacara Reverend Sir, and Friends Our course of lectures week by week is proceeding. We have dealt already with the analytical psychology of the Abhidharma; we have dealt also with the psychology of spiritual development. The first lecture, we may say, was concerned mainly with some of the more important themes and technicalities of early Buddhist psychology. We shall, incidentally, be referring back to some of that material more than once in the course of the coming lectures. The second lecture in the course, on the psychology of spiritual development, was concerned much more directly than the first lecture was with the spiritual life. You may remember that we traced the ascent of humanity up the stages of the spiral from the round of existence, from Samsara, even to Nirvana. Today we come to our third lecture, our third subject, which is the Depth Psychology of the Yogacara. This evening we are concerned to some extent with psychological themes and technicalities, as we were in the first lecture, but we're also concerned, as we were in the second lecture, with the spiritual life itself. We are concerned with the first as subordinate to the second, as we shall see in due course. So we may say, broadly speaking, that this evening's lecture follows a sort of middle way, or middle course, between the type of subject matter we had in the first lecture and the type of subject matter we had in the second. Now a question which immediately arises, and which must have occurred to most of you when the title of the lecture was announced, "What is the Yogacara?" I'm sorry that in the course of the lectures we keep on having to have all these Sanskrit and Pali names and titles and so on, but until they become as it were naturalised in English, there's no other way. -
Eight Manifestations of Padmasambhava Essay
Mirrors of the Heart-Mind - Eight Manifestations of Padmasam... http://huntingtonarchive.osu.edu/Exhibitions/sama/Essays/AM9... Back to Exhibition Index Eight Manifestations of Padmasambhava (Image) Thangka, painting Cotton support with opaque mineral pigments in waterbased (collagen) binder exterior 27.5 x 49.75 inches interior 23.5 x 34.25 inches Ca. 19th century Folk tradition Museum #: 93.011 By Ariana P. Maki 2 June, 1998 Padmasambhava, also known as Guru Rinpoche, Padmakara, or Tsokey Dorje, was the guru predicted by the Buddha Shakyamuni to bring the Buddhist Dharma to Tibet. In the land of Uddiyana, King Indrabhuti had undergone many trials, including the loss of his young son and a widespread famine in his kingdom. The Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara felt compassion for the king, and entreated the Buddha Amitabha, pictured directly above Padmasambhava, to help him. From his tongue, Amitabha emanated a light ray into the lake of Kosha, and a lotus grew, upon which sat an eight year old boy. The boy was taken into the kingdom of Uddiyana as the son of King Indrabhuti and named Padmasambhava, or Lotus Born One. Padmasambhava grew up to make realizations about the unsatisfactory nature of existence, which led to his renunciation of both kingdom and family in order to teach the Dharma to those entangled in samsara. Over the years, as he taught, other names were bestowed upon him in specific circumstances to represent his realization of a particular aspect of Buddhism. This thangka depicts Padmasambhava, in a form also called Tsokey Dorje, as a great guru and Buddha in the land of Tibet. -
Two Dogmas of Zen Buddhism
George Wrisley Associate Professor of Philosophy University of North Georgia [email protected] *This is an early draft. I’d be grateful for any feedback, particularly critical feedback. Please send any to the above email address. Thank you! Two Dogmas of Zen Buddhism Read widely in Zen Buddhism and it becomes clear: the majority of writers, with the notable exception of Dōgen, approach language as Wittgenstein does in the Tractatus. That is, they write as though language, concepts, and meaning are centered around the function of describing the facts. These writers do not offer a theory of how this is possible, as Wittgenstein did; instead, they offer a theory of how terribly inadequate language is for the task of describing the world as it really is. In fact, language not only fails to allow us to say how things really are, but it necessarily obscures reality from us. This is what I am calling the first dogma of Zen Buddhism. The second dogma of Zen Buddhism is that enlightenment is centrally the cultivation of a certain kind of experience, e.g., the experience of realizing the true nature of reality, i.e., its emptiness. These two dogmas usually go hand in hand, the one supporting the other. Representative of these claims, consider Mario D’Amato’s noting that, “a dominant theme in Mahāyāna soteriological thought is that language and conceptualization are at the root of the problem with sentient existence…”1 Further, discussing what he takes to be the third of three ways one may describe something, Garma C.C. -
The Bodhisattva Vow by Thrangu Rinpoche
The Bodhisattva Vow by Thrangu Rinpoche NAROPA PREDICTED TO HIS STUDENT MARPA that in the future the teachings of the Dharma would become increasingly profound and the students successively greater. The proof of this prediction can be seen in the transmission of the teachings from Marpa to Milarepa and then to Gampopa. Gampopa integrated two traditions, that of the six yogas of Naropa, included the mahamudra, and the Kadam system of Atisha. Next the Third Karmapa, Rangjung Dorje, who was realized in both the maha ati and mahamudra systems, integrated these two traditions. It was in this way that the profundity of the teachings increased. The tradition of mahamudra that we are practicing now has the lineage of instruction from Atisha on the taking of refuge, bodhichitta and the two points of bodhisattva training also integrated with the systems of Maitripa and Nagarjuna. The development of bodhichitta is essential. All the Buddhas and bodhisattvas attained realization through first developing bodhichitta within themselves. Because the realization of the bodhisattva level comes from developing bodhichitta, we need to follow the same system of developing bodhichitta within ourselves. * The important subject of bodhichitta is actually a method of thinking, the essence of which is developing limitless loving-kindness and compassion. This is not the ordinary loving-kindness and compassion that we have for those close to us. Instead, it is the development of an attitude of wishing to remove suffering and give happiness to all sentient beings. It is loving-kindness and compassion that is vast, limitless and profound. Ordinarily, the development of loving-kindness and compassion occurs when an individual sees someone suffering. -
Collection of Praises for Monthly Offerings
http://yogilin.net/ Collection of Praises for Monthly Offerings Written by the Buddhist Yogi C. M. Chen or his disciple Dr. Yutang Lin Translated and Edited by Dr. Lin Part One Part one is recited at the beginning of recitations on all four special days for making offerings. Gathas for Regular Supplication and Dedication of Merits for the Dharma Lineage of Adi Buddha Mandala Supplication to the Refuge Tree of the Dharma Lineage of Adi Buddha Mandala Amid limitless oneness of original purity Father and Mother in union, Adi Buddha appears Harmony of wisdom and compassion The wondrous image represents Dharmakaya As the flow of Dharma spreads naturally The whole Dharmadhatu is blessed through conversion To liberate all suffering beings from transmigration in the six realms Sakyamuni Buddha founded the Dharma teachings Tantric teachings without peers well established in the snow land The source of such grace is the rainbow-body Padmasambhava Offered body to Guru, the unsurpassable mother of great pleasure Mandarava set example to reveal profound teachings Compiled biography and essential teachings of Guru Rinpoche 1 http://yogilin.net/ Yeshe Tsogyal spread and continued the Tantric teachings Root Gurus of the founder of our Dharma lineage are three holy ones Nona Tulku revealed to Guru Chen the Great Perfection Patriarch Gangkar transmitted Four Seals through great initiations Patriarch Papong Khyentse bestowed over five hundred initiations Patriarch Chen, Manjusri of Original Purity Harmonized Sutrayana and Tantrayana to propound the three-yanas-in-one -
Going for Refuge to the Three Jewels Handbook Version
Going for Refuge to the Three Jewels Study material for your retreat at Tiratanaloka Page 1 of 43 Edited by Vandananjyoti, Version 2:1, July 2020 Table of Contents Introduction to the Handbook Study Area 1. Centrality of Going for Refuge to the Three Jewels Study Area 2. Going for Refuge to the Three Jewels Study Area 3. Opening of the Dharma Eye and Stream Entry Study Area 4. Going Forth Study Area 5. The Altruistic Dimension of Going for Refuge and Joining the Order Page 2 of 43 Edited by Vandananjyoti, Version 2:1, July 2020 Introduction to the Handbook The purpose of this handbook is to give you the opportunity to look in depth at the material that we will be studying on the Going for Refuge to the Three Jewels retreat at Tiratanaloka. In this handbook we give you material to study for each area we’ll be studying on the retreat. We will also have some talks on the retreat itself where the team will bring out their own personal reflections on the topics covered. As well as the study material in this handbook, it would be helpful if you could read Sangharakshita’s book ‘The History of My Going for Refuge’. You can buy this from Windhorse Publications. There is also some optional extra study material at the beginning of each section. Some of the optional material is in the form of talks that can be downloaded from the Free Buddhist Audio website at www.freebuddhistaudio.com. These aren’t by any means exhaustive - Free Buddhist Audio is growing and changing all the time so you may find other material equally relevant! For example, at the time of writing, Vessantara has just completed a series of talks called ‘Aspects of Going for Refuge’ (2016) at Cambridge Buddhist Centre. -
Tsugla Lopen (2017). from Monks to Yogis: Historical Transformation Within the Vajrayana Buddhist Sangha: Opening Address by Tsugla Lopen
Tsugla Lopen (2017). From Monks to Yogis: Historical Transformation within the Vajrayana Buddhist Sangha: Opening Address by Tsugla Lopen. In Dasho Karma Ura, Dorji Penjore & Chhimi Dem (Eds), Mandala of 21st Century Perspectives: Proceedings of the International Conference on Tradition and Innovation in Vajrayana Buddhism (pp. 22-23). Thimphu: Centre for Bhutan Studies. From Monks to Yogis: Historical Transformation Within the Vajrayana Buddhist Sangha: An Opening Address by Tsugla Lopen Lord Buddha first generated the bodhichitta, accumulated merit and perfected the paths for countless aeons, and finally attained the complete enlightenment. He taught thousands of different teachings to lead all the followers to higher realms and nirvana. Lord Buddha’s teachings if summarized can be categorically grouped into two: i) the sutrayana system of defining characteristics and ii) the vehicle of Secret Vajrayana. In the teachings of suttra and tantra, many different paths are being taught, but the real meaning of the paths can be categorized into threefold vows. The classification of the threefold vows is pratimoksha (individual liberation); the foundation of all the path is the outer pratimoksha vow. The main source of all paths is the inner bodhisattva vow, and the secret mantrayana vow is the main pillar of the path. Those three vows are all interdependent, giving rise to one another depending on each other, thus giving rise to higher and lower levels. The three vows each inside have many categorization, with sub-division and different methods of receiving vow, etc. In general, we say monk or bikshu to those ones merely wearing the outer attire of monk and also to those wearing clothes similar to that of a monk. -
The Bodhisattva Ideal in Selected Buddhist
i THE BODHISATTVA IDEAL IN SELECTED BUDDHIST SCRIPTURES (ITS THEORETICAL & PRACTICAL EVOLUTION) YUAN Cl Thesis Submitted for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy School of Oriental and African Studies University of London 2004 ProQuest Number: 10672873 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a com plete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. uest ProQuest 10672873 Published by ProQuest LLC(2017). Copyright of the Dissertation is held by the Author. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States C ode Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106- 1346 Abstract This thesis consists of seven chapters. It is designed to survey and analyse the teachings of the Bodhisattva ideal and its gradual development in selected Buddhist scriptures. The main issues relate to the evolution of the teachings of the Bodhisattva ideal. The Bodhisattva doctrine and practice are examined in six major stages. These stages correspond to the scholarly periodisation of Buddhist thought in India, namely (1) the Bodhisattva’s qualities and career in the early scriptures, (2) the debates concerning the Bodhisattva in the early schools, (3) the early Mahayana portrayal of the Bodhisattva and the acceptance of the six perfections, (4) the Bodhisattva doctrine in the earlier prajhaparamita-siltras\ (5) the Bodhisattva practices in the later prajnaparamita texts, and (6) the evolution of the six perfections (paramita) in a wide range of Mahayana texts. -
Benefactor Practice for Natural Meditation Series
Benefactor Practice for Natural Meditation Series Benefactor Practice is shorthand for a kind of meditation developed by Lama John Makransky, who adapted it from traditional Buddhist practices. It is a key element in a series of meditations that has been more formally called Innate Compassion & Wisdom (or Innate Love & Wisdom) as well as Sustainable Compassion Training. The Margha Program Bodhicitta Series year, which focuses on compassion practice, explores the Benefactor Practice in-depth and step-by-step over the course of months. However, this is not the primary focus of the Natural Meditation year, so we are not teaching these practices in depth at this time, nor is it a required practice during this year. However, many find some version of Benefactor Practice to be an important element in a full spiritual life, as well as supportive and empowering as they access Natural Meditation. Background Benefactor Practice is based on traditional Buddhist devotional practices. These practices include Taking Refuge, Guru Yoga and Deity Yoga. In the traditional practices, the practitioner visualizes a caring spiritual figure – or a field of such figures – in whom one can place one’s trust and from whom one can receive inspiration and unconditional love and guidance. This could be the historical Buddha, or another teacher in our lineage – or a whole field or “tree” of lineage masters. The field of Refuge could also include your own teachers, as well as Sangha, the community of practitioners (and ultimately all beings) on the path of awakening with you. It could also be a deity, such as Chenrezig or Tara.