weekend teachings with
acharya lama gursam
Buddha Nature
November 30th
Thursday
Loving Kindness
December 2nd
Saturday
Vajrasattva
Empowerment & Teaching
December 3rd
Sunday
In The Jewel Ornament of Liberation (by Gampopa, and translated by Khenchen Gyaltshen Rinpoche) Buddha Nature is defined and described as follows:
(Buddha Nature is) the pure essence potential to attain enlightenment that is inherent I every sentient being. It is obscured to varying degrees by afflicting emotions and subtle obscurations, bit it can be actualized through the practices of moral ethics, meditation and wisdom.
Acharya Lama Gyursam will discuss the meaning of Buddha Nature and its relation to practice and attaining enlightenment.
Loving Kindness is defined as the wish that all suffering sentient beings have happiness and the causes of happiness. The Words of My Perfect Teacher (by Patrul Rinpoche, and translated by the Padmakara Translation Group) states:
The image given for boundless love is a mother bird taking care of her chicks. She starts by making a soft, comfortable nest. She shelters them with her wings keeping them warm. She is always gentle with them and she protects them until they can fly away. Like that mother bird, learn to be kind in thought, word, and deed to all beings in the three worlds.
Acharya Lama Gyursam will present this important teaching from the perspectives of “Loving Kindness For Self” and “Loving Kindness For Others”.
There are two things we need to do in order to attain enlightenment: purify our negative karma and obscurations; and accumulate merit and wisdom. Both are required. The best method for purification is the sincere practice of Vajrasattva, accompanied by the Four Opponent Powers. “The Preliminary Practices of the Incomparable Drikung Kagyu” states:
Generally speaking, virtuous and non-virtuous acts depend on mind. The mind is the master and the body and speech are the servants. Because of the degree of the power of afflictive emotions…we create non-virtuous acts (which will) bring suffering and undesirable conditions…Therefore, it is very wise to purify all non-virtues we create before they bring the result. This purification…can be very effective…Vajrasattva meditation is a special practice for the purification of non-virtuous causes, so with confidence and without hesitation, enter into the Vajrasattva practice.
In The Words of My Perfect Teacher it says:
The main obstacles that prevent all the extraordinary experiences and realizations of the profound path from arising are negative actions, obscurations and habitual tendencies. Just as it is important to clean the surface of a mirror if forms are to be reflected in it, so too it is important to eliminate our obscurations so that realization can appear… The Conqueror taught countless methods of purification for this purpose, but the best of them all is meditation and recitation related to the teacher as Vajrasattva.
