Acharya Lhakpa Tshering – Karmapa Center 16

All is the Path in Pursuit of the Dream – 37 Practices – Session 11

Wishing everyone Losar Tashi Delek, a happy Tibetan New Year of the Female Wood Snake, we began our practice with the usual opening chants and śamatha meditation. After this, Acharya Lhakpa Tshering offered commentary on the thirteenth and fourteenth verse of Ngulchu Tokmé’s 37 Practices of a Bodhisattva. What to do when someone harms or says unpleasant things about you?

Formal Meditation: Entering Noble Silence

During our practice of śamatha, it is important to pay attention to our posture of body, speech, and mind. Sitting firmly grounded yet relaxed, we turn inward and are simply aware of what appears to our minds, without any evaluation or judgement.

For the posture of speech, it is said that we can think of formal meditation as entering a space of noble silence. We step away from the usual daily activity and, for a moment, don’t speak or use words at all.

Sitting in this physical posture and space of noble silence, we connect with the heart of awakening, bodhicitta: seeking genuine freedom, well-being, happiness, and the state of buddhahood for the benefit of everyone.

Keeping Our Big Vision in Mind

Beginning the discussion of our root text, Acharya Lhakpa mentioned that Gyelse Tokmé Zangpo’s 37 Practices condenses the practice of the Mahāyāna. In short, we set out on this heroic path of a bodhisattva with the intention to achieve enlightenment in order to free all sentient beings from the confusion of samsara.

With this big vision or dream in mind, we pursue it till its completion. What does this mean for our practice? In what ways can we approach our experiences as a path? The thirteenth and fourteenth verse each point to a particular aspect of our lives and how to take that as part of our journey. The first of these reads as follows:

“Should someone sever my head
Even though I did not do the slightest wrong
Through the power of compassion, to take on
Their negativity for myself is the practice of a bodhisattva.”

(Quoted from A Guide to the Thirty-Seven Practices of a Bodhisattva, translated by Christopher Stagg)

Turning Suffering into Path

Without a doubt, the world we live in and experience on a daily basis includes all kinds of difficulties and people harming us. Acharya Lhakpa joked that if one of us would find a peaceful place to practice the dharma without such situations, to please send him an email or let him know!

Although the root verse speaks about one particular form of great suffering — our own death — it is really about the way we can utilize hardships and pain in such a way that they become the causes and conditions for attaining enlightenment. It is not so much about someone actually cutting off our head but more about what we should do in response to any kind of harm, great or small, that is inflicted upon us. Ngulchu Tokmé writes that the path of a bodhisattva is to take on their negativity in return through the power of compassion.

How (and why) should we do this? Acharya Lhakpa explained that the person who inflicts any degree of harm on us is simply overpowered or controlled by mental afflictions like attachment, aversion, or ignorance. Furthermore, living in an interdependent world since beginningless time, he/she/they surely have benefited us at some point. Yet, above all, we have committed ourselves to seek enlightenment for the benefit of all beings. This aspiration includes anyone who might harm us. Instead of harming this person in return, we generate compassion and give rise to bodhicitta.

Taking Small Steps in Everyday Life

Acharya Lhakpa further commented that we may not be able to respond to suffering with compassion and give rise to the heart of awakening right away. However, we can at least begin by reflecting on our actions and learn how to work with suffering on our paths. If we are not able to do so and continue this downward movement of nonvirtuous activity due to our mental afflictions, we will never find a place that is in harmony with practicing the dharma and fulfilling our dreams.

Having the understanding that nonvirtuous activity is due to mental afflictions, and the person who harms us accumulates negative karma as a consequence of that, we engage in the practice of tonglen (“giving and taking”). This means that we take on his/her/their negative karma and give the virtue we have accumulated ourselves in return. This is something we can practice in everyday life, in small steps. For example, Acharya said, when someone cuts the line at the grocery store, instead of reacting negatively, we can just let it go.

Taking Unpleasant Words Onto the Path

The fourteenth verse follows the same way of thinking:

“Even if some should proclaim unpleasant things
About me throughout the three-thousand-fold universe,
With a mind of loving-kindness, to speak of their qualities
In return is the practice of a bodhisattva.”

Our resident teacher shared that he thought this verse is particularly helpful in our twenty-first century, especially when thinking about how fast news spreads these days. Whether someone says something about ourselves, our close ones, our country, or whatever it may be that we experience as unpleasant, we don’t act (or react) negatively in return nor do we hold onto such incidents. Basically, this verse teaches us to take anything we feel as being unpleasant onto the path.

Khenpo Tsültrim Gyamtso Rinpoche’s Pith Instruction

Usually, we very much like hearing pleasant words or praise, and we easily get upset when people say unpleasant things or blame us. Acharya Lhakpa shared that he had the great fortune once to receive a pith instruction from Khenpo Tsültrim Gyamtso Rinpoche, the teacher of his own teacher, Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche, that relates to this. “Khenpo Rinpche gave this pith instruction to me, and it is still very vividly present in my mind and very, very beneficial for me. I hope it will bring the same magnitude of benefit to all of you.”

In short, Khenpo Rinpoche instructed not to get attached to the good things people say about us nor to hold onto any negative comments.. These are just a play of their thoughts. Praise or blame follow from people’s conceptual thinking. Those, in turn, are driven by the mental afflictions. So, if someone praises or blames you for something, it merely shows their mental constructs and afflictive emotions.

Furthermore, we know from our own experience that these remarks are not trustworthy or stable whatsoever. A person might have a positive thought and praise you in the morning, and have a negative thought and blame you the very same evening. Thus, there is no point in getting attached to either one.

When Things Go Viral

Ngulchu Tokmé writes in this verse that we should practice loving-kindness, “even if some should proclaim unpleasant things about me throughout the three-thousand-fold universe [Acharya’s emphasis].” This, Acharya Lhakpa commented, must be something greatly unpleasant. He likened this to someone expressing something negative about you and it going viral, the words finding their way to all corners of the world.

Instead of reacting negatively out of pride, which would become an obstacle for fulfilling our dream of attaining enlightenment for the benefit of all beings, we say positive and good things about that person in return. This will help to break or tear down our pride and thus bring us closer to attaining our goal. “Pride is one of the obstacles to attaining complete enlightenment. There is no enlightenment if there is pride. Therefore, to attain our goal, we should be free from any pride.”

The pith instruction given here by Ngulchu Tokmé and mirrored in the words of Khenpo Rinpoche is that of letting go of our attachment to pleasant things and aversion to unpleasant things. Acharya Lhakpa summed it up by saying:

“If our dream is to attain the state of omniscience, if that is what we are truly seeking to achieve, we need to let go of our attachments and not be affected by any negativity. By clearing away these obstacles, we will attain the state of omniscience.”

To conclude, Acharya Lhakpa emphasized not to get lost in the words and examples of extreme violence or unpleasant things mentioned in the text.

“Please try to get the message or instruction given here and how to apply that in our path. We don’t have to apply all that is taught but take one stance or word that is useful in everyday life. If this gives you the message, I think that will be okay.”

Following those words, we dedicated the merit and Acharya Lhakpa wished everyone a wonderful day, afternoon, or night, and warmly invited everyone to join again next Sunday.

Embracing Impermanence – 37 Practices – Session 4

Reminding us of the importance of the posture of our body – to sit straight yet relaxed – and the posture of mind – simply being aware – our resident teacher, Acharya Lhakpa, began the practice of śamatha, or calm-abiding meditation, for those who were present onsite and also online. Following our practice together, Acharya addressed questions that participants kindly had submitted about our previous sessions.

Knowing our capacity

In our last session, Acharya Lhakpa taught about the fragility of our compassionate heart at the beginning of our journey, likening it to a sprout. The first question spoke to this topic by asking what to do when we are exposed to a harmful environment.

While bodhicitta means having the aspiration to become fully awakened for the purpose of liberating all sentient beings, merely having the thought of benefiting others is not sufficient. Acharya pointed out that we also need the capacity to skillfully act on that intention, otherwise we risk the possibility of causing harm. He illustrated this with the example of medical professionals who are trained to help someone who sustained broken arms and legs in a car accident. The medics are those who can really help in that situation.

Bodhisattvas who have achieved one of the ten bodhisattva levels are the ones who can turn a harmful environment into something beneficial for everyone. They may even give their eyes and parts of their bodies away, if that is of benefit. As ordinary people, until we are further along the path, our focus should be on giving rise to bodhicitta and ensuring it does not lessen but rather increase. As beginners, if we see that engaging with or staying in a harmful situation is not beneficial, then it is better to keep some distance, while praying that we can change things for the better in the future. That, in itself, can be considered courageous.

Daily recitations

The second question asked about the way to integrate the 37 verses into formal practice and daily life. Acharya Lhakpa said that if we could recite these verses daily, slowly and while considering the meaning of the verse, that would be of great benefit.

He offered the suggestion to take one verse every week, using the first verse as an example: What is the meaning of that verse? How is that verse true? What are the reasons for our human lives being precious and what are the methods to make it meaningful? Reflecting on the verse in this way, no doubt, will be beneficial.

Connecting our understanding of these verses with the meaning of the dharma, Acharya emphasized that the teachings of the Buddha, like the instructions from the Mahāmudrā tradition, are all about taming and training our mind. Without worrying about how others are practicing, we should instead focus on our own mind and the cultivation of bodhicitta, for those are at the heart of the verses and instructions.

Letting go of the three spheres

The third and final question posed to our resident teacher asked about the challenge of understanding how to be compassionate and full of loving-kindness without becoming attached. In his response, Acharya indicated that it is indeed far from easy to have loving-kindness and compassion without attachment, at the beginning. “No matter how much we try not to have attachment,” he said, “there is always some level of attachment involved.”

So, what is the method to develop attachment-free loving-kindness and compassion? In the tradition of the Mahāyāna, the method to cultivate this is to begin extending loving-kindness and compassion to those close to us: our mother, family, friends, and relatives. Slowly we can strengthen and expand our loving-kindness and compassion so that it includes those we don’t like or consider enemies and beings we don’t know at all. In this way, we can slowly move towards loving-kindness and compassion without attachment.

Furthermore, Acharya Lhakpa pointed out that on the Mahāyāna path, our practice always needs to include the skilfull method of loving-kindness and compassion together with wisdom. “If the method is without wisdom,” he said, “then it actually becomes the base or ground for suffering.”

The wisdom taught in the Mahāyāna is that of loving-kindness and compassion free from the three spheres. With all our actions, we typically think in terms of the object of the action, the agent, and the act itself — these three spheres, however, are what we need to relinquish. Bringing method and wisdom together in this way will eventually help us accomplish attachment-free compassion.

Heart of awakening, breath of compassion

By way of making a bridge between the questions and the next verse, Acharya made a general comment about the 37 practices of a bodhisattva—that they are all a guide for us to give rise to bodhicitta, or the heart of awakening. This quality found within us needs to be activated and expanded, not just for our own benefit but for all sentient beings. Once we activate this heart of awakening, we must keep it alive.

For example, he said, when a heart is shocked and requires revival, it needs to start beating again. Similarly, after activating bodhicitta, we must sustain it with the breath of compassion. Just as breathing supports a heartbeat, our continuous practice of compassion sustains our bodhicitta.

Redirecting our minds

Acharya pointed out that to activate and sustain bodhicitta we must understand that “we need to mobilize the strength of our mind in the right direction and direct our thoughts toward wholesome and meaningful actions.” The mind serves as the key support for this process.”Without it,” he said, “there is no other avenue to give rise to bodhicitta.” This shows the immense capacity for our mind to cultivate bodhicitta, and the potential to benefit ourselves and others.

However, Acharya continued, our worldly habitual patterns distract us from accomplishing this purpose. We often fall under the influence of kleśas, especially the three poisons—desire, aversion, and ignorance—which form the foundation for all other mental disturbances. As a result, our minds become habituated to instant gratification instead of seeking full awakening to liberate ourselves and all sentient beings. A main point of studying Ngulchu Tokmé’s The Thirty-Seven Practices of a Bodhisattva is to tame and train our minds so that we can overcome these tendencies and redirect ourselves toward the heroic path of compassion.

Following the Q&A, we turned our attention to the fourth verse, which emphasizes impermanence.

Seeing and accepting impermanence as change

The fourth verse reads as follows:

“We will part from every loved one we have long associated with.
We will leave behind the wealth we have so diligently amassed.
Our consciousness, the guest, will cast away this body, the guest house.
To let go of this life is the practice of a bodhisattva.” (4)
– from: A Guide to the Thirty-Seven Practices of a Bodhisattva, translated by Christopher Stagg)

The verse itself, Acharya Lhakpa noted, is very clear and not difficult to understand. The most challenging part is how to bring it into practice. How to internalize this verse?

When we hear about impermanence, we often feel a bit depressed. However, Acharya commented that it is just change taking place from moment to moment. “Understanding impermanence is to accept the change happening around us,” he said. Gampopa extensively discusses this in Ornament of Precious Liberation, where he outlines four kinds of impermanence:

Overall Impermanence: This refers to the universe and planets, which contemporary science confirms they are constantly moving and changing.
Subtle Impermanence: The constant changes in seasons and other natural cycles.
Outer Impermanence: The impermanence of others, such as our relatives and friends.
Inner Impermanence: This concerns our own personal impermanence and is about looking within ourselves.

While it may feel challenging to reflect deeply on this, the main practice taught in this fourth verse is to see and embrace the truth of impermanence.

Why hold onto things that fall apart?

The four lines in this verse teach about impermanence, which is directly related to death. They show how all phenomena of samsara are compounded and, at some point, will fall apart. No matter how strong our connections and attachments are, there will come a day when we will be separated from everything we hold onto. This is true for our family, relatives, and friends; this is true for our possessions; and this is also true for that which is closest to us—our own body.

If this is so, does “letting go of this life,” identified in the fourth line as the practice of a bodhisattva, mean we must abandon everyone and everything worldly or neglect our bodies? Acharya commented, “That is not the point here. The true meaning of ‘letting go of this life’ is to understand that all phenomena—people, things, and our own bodies—will eventually fall apart. Realizing this allows us to let go mentally while still engaging fully with the world in a meaningful way. If we have this understanding, then all is fine.”

Concluding words of advice

To conclude, Acharya Lhakpa shared that these verses can be difficult to comprehend at first. Therefore, it is important to read and contemplate them. If, for example, we contemplate and connect with the deeper meaning of this fourth verse, then it will help us let go of this life as being permanent and to embrace change, which will be of benefit to us and to others. “So, please read this verse,” he said, “be your own teacher, and practice.”

Seizing the opportunity: Embrace life’s meaning: 37 Practices – session 2

At the beginning of our second Meditation for All: Thirty-Seven Practice of a Bodhisattva session, Acharya Lhakpa Tshering kindly requested everyone to give rise to the heart of awakening – bodhicitta – and sit in śamatha (calm-abiding) meditation.

The Foundation: A Genuine Heart of Compassion

Following the practice of śamatha and before continuing our discussion of Ngulchu Tokmé’s text The Thirty-Seven Practices of a Bodhisattva, our resident teacher reminded us that this text outlines the Mahāyāna path. Engaging in this practice means seeking full awakening or complete buddhahood to liberate ourselves and all sentient beings.

As Buddha Shakyamuni taught in the Sūtras, the only method leading to this state is through loving-kindness and compassion. These form the sole foundation before practicing anything else. What is the genuine heart of compassion? Acharya referred to his teacher, Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche, who says “it is a genuine concern and willingness to give anything of ourselves that is necessary to alleviate the sufferings of sentient beings.” (Quoted from: https://www.shambhala.com/snowlion_articles/entering-the-trainings-in-compassion/)

This altruistic heart is indispensable foundation for those on the bodhisattva path. Following the two opening verses discussed last week, we turned to the verse that expresses the first practice: seizing the opportunity offered by a precious human existence.

Precious human life: A rare opportunity

The verse that points out the first practice of a bodhisattva is about our precious human birth as a rare opportunity, as indicated by the first two lines:

“Now we have this great vessel of freedoms and resources, so difficult to obtain.
So that we may liberate ourselves and others from the ocean of samsara.”
– from: A Guide to the Thirty-Seven Practices of a Bodhisattva, translated by Christopher Stagg)

Acharya Lhakpa explained that just being born as a human being, according to this text, is not fully considered to be precious. It becomes precious when it offers the potential or abilility to free oneself and many other sentient beings from the ocean of samsara. This relates to the ‘freedoms and resources’ mentioned in the text which Gampopa has extensively taught in Ornament of Precious Liberation. For now, Acharya said we can understand this as an opportunity to practice the Dharma — not only to cross the ocean of samsara ourselves but also, as indicated by the example of a ‘great vessel,’ to accommodate many others.

Understanding our precious human life as an opportunity to free ourselves and many others from sufferin means that we must seize it. Why? Because this opportunity is difficult to obtain and easy to lose. Who knows when we might have it again? So, for someone with a genuine heart of compassion —bodhicitta— the question now becomes: How do we seize this opportunity?

Seizing or Missing the Opportunity

Acharya Lhakpa explained that the two last lines of this verse show us how to seize this rare opportunity to free ourselves and all beings from the ocean of samsara:

“Day and night, without distraction,
To listen, contemplate, and meditate is the practice of a bodhisattva.”
– from: A Guide to the Thirty-Seven Practices of a Bodhisattva, translated by Christopher Stagg

In his comments, our resident teacher shared that ‘without distraction’ refers to a form of samsaric laziness. While this could indicate doing nothing, it could also mean getting attached to nonvirtuous actions of body, speech, and mind. When making this samsaric distraction a habit, we risk falling into the lower realms or miserable states of being. If we do fall into those states, we will remain there for a very long time without being able to obtain the freedoms and resources that constitute a precious human existence. “That means,” Acharya said, “the opportunity knocked only once and we missed the opportunity.”

The text says to practice without distraction ‘day and night.’ Does this mean we don’t rest at all? Acharya shared that he thought it probably doesn’t mean that; instead, it suggest that we should make a continuous effort.

So, to fulfill our intention to liberate ourselves and other sentient beings from the ocean of samsara, what should a bodhisattva do? Ngulchu Tokmé teaches us clealry in this text that we need to listen, contemplate, and meditate. This, Acharya emphasized, is very important.

First of all, we listen or study the teachings of the Buddha as taught in the Sūtras, together with the commentaries and treatises of the great masters, enabling us to eliminate the darkness of not knowing. Yet, we don’t just leave it with that. As taught by Buddha Shakyamuni, we analyze the teachings like a goldsmith accepts gold as true only through heating, cutting, and rubbing. Through contemplating and thoroughly investigating the teachings, we dispel any doubts and things that were not yet clear to us.

Finally, we practice meditation. Acharya shared that we often hear that it is important to meditate. While this is true, it is essential to understand the main point of meditation: to bring whatever we understand through hearing and contemplating into practice. “To internalize whatever we have studied or practiced, that is meditation.”

In sum, Acharya commented that to liberate ourselves and others from the ocean of samsara—a great responsibility—we need to engage in listening, contemplation, and meditation to fulfill it. This is the practice of a bodhisattva.

Embrace life’s meaning

Sometimes we ask questions about the meaning or purpose of life. This verse, Acharya Lhakpa said, offers an answer to such questions. Rather than asking ‘what is the meaning of life?’ or ‘what is its purpose?,’ we could ask ‘How to make life meaningful and give it a purpose?’. This is the question answered by this verse: Through listen, contemplate, and meditate upon the teachings of the Dharma and engage in the practice of the bodhisattvas—the path of the Mahāyāna.

The freedom and resources mentioned earlier refer to the eight freedoms and ten resources. These include references to various types of rebirth in the desire realm, from the hell beings up to the devas. [include a footnote to mention all of them] While we have identified planets like Mars and Saturn, we haven’t found any hell realms, hungry ghost realm, et cetera. Consequently, many people have ask Acharya where these realms, if they indeed exist.

The Ornament of Precious Liberation and Abdhidharmakosa teach in great detail where these realms are located. However, Acharya said, trying to find these as physical realms somewhere would be missing the point. These texts all say that we are born in a particular realm due to particular kleśa (afflictive emotions/mental disturbances). Due to strong anger, for example, we fall into one of the hell realms. “We don’t have to be born in the hell realm to understand it. Whenever we encounter this kind of kleśa like strong anger, the hell realm is right there, within ourselves.” Not only will this burn ourselves, so to speak, but also others; thus, we need not look elsewhere for these realms—they exist within our own experiences.

Acharya Lhakpa continued his commentary on this by stressing that we must understand that the teaching of the Buddha is to tame and train our mind. This means that we should not be looking for a hell realm, hungry spirit realm, and so forth, outside. If we carefully consider this notion of the various realms, it is about working with our afflictive emotions or disturbed states of mind. All the teachings about this are methods to tame and train our mind. That is the most important, essential point.

By way of conclusion, Acharya mentioned again that the verse of this second session is about the precious human birth. How to make this life meaningful? Through listening, contemplating, and meditating the Dharma. As taught by Gampopa, this is not something we do stage by stage, while that is also good, but in an integrated matter. We constantly move back and forth between these three practices of a bodhisattva.

Acharya then led us in our dedication of merit: whatever merit or virtue we have gained through this practice and session, we dedicate it to all sentient beings.

The Heroic Path of Compassion: Meditation for All – 37 Practices of a Bodhisattva – session 1

“The Thirty-Seven Practices of a Bodhisattva presents an alternative way of thinking, of relating to the outer and inner worlds of everyday living. It is a refreshing, revolutionary, and radical approach to a life that is worth living.” — Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche, Foreword to A Guide to The Thirty-Seven Practices of a Bodhisattva, translated by Christopher Stagg.

Warmly welcoming everyone onsite and online to Karmapa Center 16’s Meditation for All, Acharya Lhakpa Tshering, briefly shared about the history and purpose of KC16. Our vast aspiration is to establish a place for pilgrimage, meditation, retreat, study, and refuge, in honor of His Holiness the 16th Gyalwang Karmapa, Rangjung Rigpe Dorje, who passed into parinirvāṇa in Zion, Illinois. Since the location of the passing into parinirvāṇa is considered sacred and full of blessings, Karmapa Center 16 was established in Wadsworth, Illinois.

Śamatha (calm-abiding) meditation

Before starting his commentary on The Thirty-Seven Practices of a Bodhisattva, the text that Acharya Lhakpa will be teaching about in this new series of Meditation for All, he guided us in a brief śamatha (calm-abiding) meditation session. Acharya emphasized the importance of simply being aware.

**The Author of The 37 Practices of a Bodhisattva: Gyalse Ngulchu Tokmé**

Following our practice of śamatha meditation together, Acharya began his teaching on The Thirty-Seven Practices of a Bodhisattva by introducing the author of the root text, a great scholar and practitioner, Ngulchu Tokmé (ca. 1295 – ca. 1369).

There are many stories, Acharya shared, that speak about Ngulchu Tokmé being very compassionate at a very young age. For example, one time, during Losar (Tibetan New Year), a special occasion in Tibet, Tokmé was dressed up and his mother sent him out to play with other kids. After some time, he returned without clothes. His mother asked him: “Where are your clothes?” The young boy replied that he had used his garment to cover an ant colony to protect them from the cold.

After studying, contemplating, and practicing the teachings of the Buddha, Ngulchu Tokmé came to be called and widely known as Gyalse Tokmé. The name “Gyalse” (in Tibetan: རྒྱལ་སྲས།) means “son (or child) of the Victorious Ones,” referring to the Buddhas.

The Text: The Heroic Path of Compassion

The previous weekend, Acharya shared a litte bit about the paths of the śrāvakas (hearers) and pratyekabuddhas (solitary realizers) in comparison to the way of the bodhisattvas (literally “awakening hero”), the Hīnayāna and Mahāyāna, respectively. Whereas the Hīnayāna teachings emphasize individual liberation, the Mahāyāna teachings stress practicing in order to liberate all sentient beings. The latter is therefore said to be the great vehicle.

From this traditional framework of the Mahāyāna, our root text encapsulates the heroic path of compassion in 37 key practices. Compassion, Acharya pointed out, is like a seed at the beginning; in the middle, it is like water providing moisture for that seed to grow. At the end of our practice, it culminates in the attainment of awakening and benefiting other beings. To be a practitioner of the Mahāyāna means to practice compassion. This is the heroic path—the path of a bodhisattva.

Two Opening Verses: Homage and Statement of Purpose

Before explaining how to follow the heroic path of the bodhisattvas verse by verse, Ngulchu Tokmé begins his text with two opening verses: the homage or verse of offering and his statement of purpose or intention behind this text.

Acharya first read the homage as translated by our dear dharma friend, Christopher Stagg, who is dearly remembered, in A Guide to the Thirty-Seven Practices of a Bodhisattva:

Namo Guru Lokeśvara
Although he sees that all phenomena are free of coming and going,
He strives only for the benefit of beings.
To the protector Avalokiteśvara and the supreme guru
I continually pay homage with my three gates. (A)

Two truths

The key point expressed in Ngulchu Tokmé’s homage is twofold. The first line refers to the two truths in the Mahāyāna tradition: conventional (or relative) truth and absolute (or ultimate) truth. Explaining this in an easy manner, this means that while all phenomena appearing to us constitute conventional reality, they are ultimately empty in nature – signifiying absolute reality. In other words, things seem to come and go; they can be perceived as long or short, good or bad, and so forth. However, upon closer investigation, we will find that nothing truly exists as it appears.

Acharya taught that the ultimate nature of all phenomena is emptiness, a view that can be difficult to grasp. To help us understand this, he pointed to how the great master Tsongkhapa explained emptiness by teaching about the interdependence of all phenomena. The booklet containing Christopher Stagg’s translation may seem small, but its size is relative. If there were a smaller booklet, this one would appear larger in comparison. In short, recognizing the reality of interdependence—conventional reality—is key to understanding emptiness—ultimate reality. For our practice, it is essential to see that these two truths are inseparable.

Avalokiteśvara, the supreme guru and the light within

The three lines that follow the first line of the four-line verse, which comes after the Sanskrit honoring India as the birthplace of the Buddha’s teachings, express Ngulchu Tokmé’s homage to Avalokiteśvara and his root teacher, the supreme guru.

Why does he pay homage to them? Avalokiteśvara has realized emptiness and strives, as the verse indicates, for the benefit of all beings in samsara who have not yet understood that all phenomena lack inherent existence. Since his teacher embodied the compassion of Avalokiteśvara and diligently worked to liberate all beings, Ngulchu Tokmé prostrates to both of them as inseparable.

Acharya pointed out that paying homage in this way helps us realize that the enlightened qualities of Avalokiteśvara can be found within us. He shared how his own teacher, Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche, often illustrates this with the metaphor of a candle. While we all share the candle of compassion, it needs to be lit through our practice of paying homage as we embark on this revolutionary and heroic path. Thus, we begin by honoring both Avalokiteśvara, the embodiment of compassion, and our own spiritual friend as one.

Practicing the genuine dharma

Before closing our session, Acharya Lhakpa briefly explained the second verse:

The sources of benefit and happiness, the perfect buddhas,
Come from accomploshing the genuine dharma.
Since this depends on understanding their practices,
I will explain the practices of the bodhisattvas. (B)

This is Ngulchu Tokmé’s statement of purpose, revealing the intent behind composing this text. The practices he will explain in the next 37 verses are the practices of the bodhisattvas. We might wonder, why?

Well, our resident teacher explained that bodhisattvas become buddhas through these practices. Therefore, if we want to attain buddhahood like them, we need to practice in their ways. What are these practices? As the verse states, it is the practice of genuine dharma. What is genuine dharma? That is the practice of compassion.

The practice of compassion serves as the cause for both temporary benefits in this life and the next, helping us avoid non-virtuous actions that could lead to miserable states. Additionally, it provides the ultimate benefit of achieving awakening or realizing buddhahood.

Therefore, Acharya Lhakpa explained that without the practice of compassion, there is no way to find genuine happiness in this life, nor any chance of attaining ultimate happiness. Thus, for both our well-being and the realization of complete buddhahood, compassion is indispensable.

Acharya said he would stop here for this first session in the new series of Meditation for All, wishing that our practice and engagement with this text may serve as a cause for our own awakening. He concluded by inviting everyone to join together in the dedication of merit.

An Aspiration for the World at KC16 during Nalandabodhi’s ninth 2024 Tārā Drupchen

Offering prayers, making aspirations, and many supplications to Tārā, KC16 joined Nalandabodhi’s ninth Annual Tārā Drupchen from our shrine room together with friends onsite and online from all around the world.

Tārā is not only one of the most popular deities in the Buddhist world and part of the Vajrayana tradition. Tārā was also one of the main practices of His Holiness the 16th Karmapa, Ranjung Rigpe Dorje, and is taught to be a very powerful practice, with vast blessings, and immeasurable kindness.

We would like to express our gratitude to Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche and Nalandabodhi for organizing this Tārā Drupchen, and a special thanks to our dear resident teacher, Acharya Lhakpa Tshering for his presence, practice, and guidance at KC16.

We concluded this year by chanting the Aspiration for the World, composed by His Holiness the 17th Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje.

In the spirit of this song, which is like a poem or doha, may we transform the world into a pure realm, a world that is equal for all, loving, warm, and where all creatures can experience peace, joy, and freedom. And, as the final words of this poem read, “filled with the many sweet scents of freedom. May we fulfill our countless and boundless wishes.”

Oṃ Tāre Tuttāre Ture Svāhā

Karmapa Khyenno!

Meditation for All – Every Sunday, Online and Onsite

Since October of last year, our resident teacher, Acharya Lhakpa Tshering, has offered guided meditation and short dharma teachings every Sunday at Karmapa Center 16, and friends in the area have been able to join us onsite.

As everyone is welcome, and no prior experience is needed, Acharya calls the Sunday sessions Meditation for All.

We are delighted to announce that beginning January 14, 2024, Acharya’s teaching and the opportunity to practice together, will be offered online, so that Meditation for All will, indeed, be available to all!

Please join us onsite or online!

For online access, please register here for the Zoom link. The sessions begin at 10 am and finish at 11:30 am Central Standard Time. Please be sure to log onto Zoom a few minutes before we start. Below, you can find a few other guidelines that will help all of us practice together in the most beneficial way possible.

KC16’s resident teacher – Acharya Lhakpa Tshering. Photo Credit: Gloria Sherab Drolma

We aspire to follow in the footsteps of His Holiness the 16th Gyalwang Karmapa by offering Meditation for All to everyone and practicing together as he once expressed:

“I will always exert myself in dharmic recitation, proclamations, and readings. In mind, I will not flutter back and forth like a young bird on a branch. Not getting absorbed in discursive thoughts of good and bad, I will meditate, cultivating forbearance and relying on my own perceptions, not those of others. I will reflect on how best to benefit the teachings and beings.”

Karmapa Khyenno!