A special aspect of the training was its emphasis on bringing the teachings to life through contemplating their relationship to our own experience. Joey Waxman, who led the training, began by talking about the importance of the Three Wisdoms (hearing, contemplation, meditation) as the necessary steps for making progress on the spiritual path, and how in our busy, modern lives contemplation often is overlooked. After providing summaries of the preparatory assigned readings and talks, he presented a series of questions: how can I use my current life circumstances as a field trip to develop wisdom and be a lamp that could light those around me? how am I already doing this? what opportunities am I missing? can an examination of where I complain and blame provide a clue to where I am missing opportunities? After an extended period of contemplation, we then reassembled into smaller groups for lively discussions of our findings. The afternoon session began with Rinpoche’s 2011 guided meditation on the four immeasurables from Warsaw and was followed by more contemplation and discussion.

On the second Saturday, we turned our attention to the practice of exchange as an effective means of transforming habitual patterns of caring for a small self to new patterns of extending that care to all sentient beings. Keeping in mind the words of Shantideva, “All the joy the world contains has come through wishing happiness for others. All the suffering the world contains has come through wanting pleasure for oneself,” we were asked to examine for ourselves the truth of these teachings. How do we see things working out for buddhas and bodhisattvas, compared to beings who are more self-centered? In our own lives, what have been the results of focusing on the welfare of others as opposed to focusing on our own self-interests? If we are able to verify the truth of Shantideva’s words, then what are the forces holding us back from becoming less self-centered and more altruistic? After a period of contemplation, we again reassembled for a session of discussion. The final afternoon session was devoted to the study and practice of tonglen.

At the conclusion of the training, Rebecca Henry, who along with Paddy McCarthy and Vaishali Mamgain had helped Joey Waxman in leading the discussion groups, eloquently commented: “One of the things that really struck me was everyone in their various locations, outside—sitting on rocks, walking—and in the shrine room, contemplating the dharma. I truly felt the purpose of the center had been met, for people to come here and have a genuine opportunity to contemplate their lives and the Dharma. This touched me deeply. I also felt this marked a crossing over, so to speak, into self-sufficiency in that we are getting together to study and practice outside the formal opportunities presented through programs. So we have entered a new phase I think worth acknowledging and celebrating.”

Written by Susan Walp

What truly brings happiness and what causes our suffering?

Is karma “fate”?  What is the teacher’s role on the Buddhist path?

Kongtrul Rinpoche addresses
these questions and others
through his commentary on
the revered Tibetan Buddhist
classic The Words of My Perfect
Teacher.

This guidebook to a spiritual person’s life looks at the cornerstones of human experience—impermanence, suffering, and karma—from an honest and deeply
intelligent perspective. At once dryly humorous and
admonishing, and always full of heart, this powerful
and transformative text has inspired generations of
spiritual practitioners.

Kongtrul Rinpoche brings out the full impact of The Words of My
Perfect Teacher by weaving together his own experience as a
practitioner with traditional Buddhist stories and the teachings
themselves. His appreciation of this volume shines through,
making this two-weekend seminar a unique time to discover
our misconceptions about spiritual practice and clarify our
way forward.

Weekend One (February 17–19)
focuses on the “ordinary preliminary practices”
section of the text, which includes fundamental
reflections on the preciousness of human life,
impermanence, karma, and suffering—and it is
perfectly suited for those new to the spiritual
or Buddhist path.

Weekend Two (March 2–4)
focuses on the “extraordinary preliminary
practices” that are more specifically associated
with the Vajrayana ngondro practice, such as
vajrasattva mantra, mandala practice, and so
on up to Guru Yoga.

The program includes a full reading of the text, commentary, question and answer with Rinpoche, and periods of meditation.

Registration and program information.

IN PERSON
. . . . . . . . . . .
Per talk: $25
Full program: $250

To Receive Streaming Access:

Once you purchase your choice of per talk or full program streaming, you will then recieve an email with information on how to connect. Note, for per talk, purchase the number of talks you plan to listen to (e.g., 1 or 5) at first, and if you chose to listen to more, simply buy more talks. Please allow at least one day for response once you have made your purchase.

The distinction between webinar STREAMING and in-person attendance

Rinpoche makes an important distinction between listening to the teachings via the web and in person. On the web, receiving a teaching is akin to “listening to a book being read aloud.” In other words, participation via the webinar does not constitute the lung, or transmission, for the practice. If you plan to hear these teachings for the first time as preparation for beginning the ngondro practice, participation in person at Phuntsok Choling is required. Those who are already practicing the ngondro, of course, can listen to these teachings as an enhancement to their practice. Download Webinar FAQ.

Chokling Monastery

Pema Ewan Chögyur Gyurme Ling, also known as Chokling Monastery, offers us an intimate glimpse into Tibetan monastic life as it exists today in India. To visit Chokling Gompa is at once to peer into a distant past and to witness an ancient contemplative tradition surviving with undiminished power in the modern age. Monastic communities were once the focal point of much of Buddhism in Tibet, enjoying a relationship of mutual dependence with surrounding villages, in a culture that revered the choice to devote one’s life to dharma through vows of celibacy. That reverence continues today in Bir, even amidst the many attractions of modernity and even as monks are seen talking on cell phones or riding around on motorcycles. This is easily seen in the form of arduous and elaborate drupchens, whose melodies might evoke to the casual observer, a bygone age, but to modern students of Tibetan Buddhism, they resonant deeply with a non-conceptual spirit of devotion and faith.

The Third Neten Chokling Rinpoche

Chokling Monastery sits on a former tea plantation in the northern India state of Himachal Pradesh, in the town of Bir, which is Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche’s hometown, and the place where Guna Shedra, Mangala Shri Bhuti’s study and translation school, takes place. Chokling Monastary was established by Kongtrul Rinpoche’s father, His Eminence Neten Chokling Pema Gyurme, the third incarnation of the great tertön, Chogyur Lingpa. It was founded in the early 1960′s following Chokling Rinpoche’s exile from Tibet, along with the surrounding Tibetan settlement of Bir. The initial structures were merely tents in which drupchens and daily practice took place. Over time and through many phases of construction the monastery has fully re-established itself in Bir, with a complex of impressive temples and shrine rooms, a three year retreat center, stupas and monks quarters furnished with an incredible collection of statues, thangkas, wall paintings and sculptures. This all took place whilepreserving the practice lineage, including the numerous annual drupchens that the monastery is known for.

Inner Courtyard

As the monastery was built concurrently with Bir Colony itself, it has always played an important role in the community. Many of the families in Bir came with Chokling Rinpoche when the land was first acquired and worked to establish the community including the monastery, helping it grow and flourish. Chokling monastery is currently under the guidance of the Fourth Neten Chokling Rinpoche.

Mani stone

In 2009, Khyentse Yeshi Rinpoche, one of Chokling Rinpoche’s sons, initiated a major reconstruction and expansion of the monastery. The project began by razing the monks’ living quarters in order to build improved and expanded monastic housing. At that time, the inner courtyard between the shrine room buildings and housing quarters was expanded, and on the location of the former soccer field, eight new stupas were begun. The final project currently under construction is a prayer wheel room which will house three 10 foot tall prayer wheels. As Kongtrul Rinpoche jokingly said, “the young monks are disappointed to lose their soccer field but the older monks are very happy.”

The 8 Stupas during construction

Built by local workers, both men and woman, these impressive structures include all the artistic architectural details of the Tibetan tradition. The work was being supervised by four monks from the monastery. The monks quarters is a three story U-shaped building forming three sides of the inner courtyard. All of the rooms look into the courtyard as well as out onto views of the Kangra valley.

The 8 Stupas

The eight new stupas are truly sculptural works of art. At approximately twenty five feet in height they sit on a solid brick base. All of the concrete work of the stupa itself is formed, mixed and poured by hand, by craftsmen with no more tools than would fit in your back pocket. Without a crane in sight they clamored over bamboo scaffolding carrying small metal pans of concrete and pouring it into forms made from scraps of wood. Shaping and bending the reinforcing rebar as they progressed. The final detail of intricate plastering is all sculpted by hand using wet cement and basic trowels – the result is astonishing.

Stupa detail

The mani stone wall that now sits in front of the stupas and runs their entire length is an impressive and inspiring display of devotion and artistry. But it becomes even more so by the fact that nearly all the stones were carved by one man, now in his nineties and living at the monastery. He is a simple lay practitioner who devoted his entire life to the furthering of the monastery. This is the kind of devotion that Chokling Rinpoche inspired.

In late summer of 2011 the Chokling monks were finally able to move into their new rooms. These new quarters have greatly enhanced the monks’ living situation and besides upgraded rooms, the building includes new bath and shower facilities and a new kitchen and dinning area. The expanded courtyard provides more space and opportunities for the community to gather and watch the lama dances and ceremonies, while a new statue of the Buddha sits under one of the two bodhi trees that shade the courtyard. The addition of the stupas, mani wall and prayer wheel house create an expanded kora path for the people of Bir who constantly circle the monastery. The final work on the outer path is being completed now and soon the old folks of Bir can continue their endless rounds of kora, unimpeded by rebar and rubble. This new construction furthers His Eminence Chokling Rinpocheʼs original intention of creating a community where both the secular and spiritual aspects of Tibetan life could be preserved and continue in harmony.

View into the Chokling Monestary courtyard.

The link below has some wonderful archive footage of Bir and Kongtrul Rinpoche’s family. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_XzWVXLrVNE

Here is a link with information on the Neten Chokling line as told by Orgyen Tobgyal Rinpoche

http://www.rangjung.com/authors/Neten_Chokling_tulku_line.htm

Guna Norling (red building) and the Bay

For ten days recently Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche visited Salvador, Bahia, the capital city of Brazil’s Eastern most state, itself located at the furthest point that Brazil juts into the Atlantic Ocean. He was there to teach Nagarjuna’s Letter to a Friend and initiate a Shedra Program in Brazil. He was also there to spend time at Mangala Shri Bhuti’s city center, Guna Norling, and meet with students interested in following the spiritual path more seriously, as well as those who are working on behalf of Mangala Shri Bhuti to support the center and community.

Recognizing that the Dharma is quite accessible in Brazil already, largely due to the efforts of Chagdud Tulku Rinpoche, his wife and students, Rinpoche feels that the rigorous philosophical education of a Shedra would enrich students’ understanding and contribute to the growth of Dharma. He envisions a five year Shedra, including key texts such as Shantideva’s Bodhisattva’s Way of Life and Shantarakshita’s Madhyamakalankara. Letter to a Friend made a wonderful starting point; the text is loaded with advice for daily life and relative practices while introducing Madhyamika logics, those that will be explored in depth as the Shedra continues.

An audience of over 100 attended consistently the seven nights of teachings at the Portobello Hotel, nearby the center, and the final days culminated in many students taking and re-taking the Refuge and Bodhisattva vows (moments from the vow in video above). Rinpoche gave a short Manjushri transmission to conclude the course.

During his stay, Rinpoche accompanied Sarah Gomes and other students for life release practice (tsethar). Sarah is deeply committed to this most essential of Buddhist acts on behalf of beings. To date she has released 200,000 mud crabs and muscles into the warm rivers that feed the Atlantic along the coast. On this day Rinpoche and students bought 1000 crabs at the local market and drove a half hour north of Salvador, then boated up a river and into a mangrove marsh to release the crabs into the thick, rich mud out of which the mangroves grow. Even as they approached the site and loosened the ties on the bags holding the crabs, a frenetic and certain mass movement began in each bag as the crabs must have sensed their native environment. Quickly they spread out back into the forest, while Rinpoche read the Manjushri tantra out loud.

Rinpoche spent his days in retreat at Guna Norling. The center is remarkably suited for retreat. Nestled against a steep hillside made of rock and facing first a protected tidal pool and a natural breakwater, then the Atlantic itself, the center feels exposed and protected, safe and edgy, grounded and vast all at once. Visitors and students who currently gather for Sunday sitting and tsoks all comment that “you don’t want to leave” – such is the special atmosphere of this unique location.

Renewed interest and care in the center in recent years has led to plans for a renovation (see Art Auction at Guna Norling). Toward that end, one evening a combined capoeira demonstration and auction was held at a nearby hotel, followed by a dinner for participants. The auctions raised over $3000 US in seed funds, which grew by the visit’s end to around $15000 US!

Auctioning Photographs and Paintings

Visiting the center, and generally in Salvador, one feels a certain warmth, or heat, that permeates the environment. The longing and strong commitment on the part of students, the actual weather of the equatorial climate, and something in the land, sea and air themselves makes Brazil feel ripe for Dharma while already spiritually strong.

Rinpoche will return next year and, along with continuing the Shedra program, he will bestow the abhisheka of Rigdzin Dupa as well as conduct the MSB Sangha Ceremony.

A Slideshow of Rinpoche’s Visit

Created with Admarket’s flickrSLiDR.

Subscribe to MSB’s Photostream

In his LINK teaching from Sunday, November 6, Rinpoche poked at, teased apart and ultimately put the burden… actually the joy!… of understanding attachment on us. Rinpoche’s talk calls us to identify the ignorance that underlies why we get attached and, by no means, to be hard on ourselves when we suffer in this way. Judging ourselves strongly for being “weak, lame, materialistic or a bad practitioner” is just one tangent we go on rather than looking honestly at ourselves, while the other, getting angry and defensive if our attachments are pointed out (which may lead to some “flipping of fingers” Rinpoche humorously suggested), also leads us astray, “like a CIA agent going rogue.”

Instead, turning inward and reflecting, considering the deeper causes of our suffering in the two ignorances, and finally developing a strong intention, as the Buddha said, can gradually reduce this nuisance and bring great joy into our lives. Because without attachment, we can appreciate what life brings, and appreciation is truly like “a taste bud to enjoy the goodness of life” — free of attachment.

Enjoy the full 55 minute talk below.  

As you might know by now, Venerable Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche will begin a yearly Shedra program in Salvador Bahia, Brazil starting in November of 2011. Rinpoche plans to return to Salvador every year and teach a different classical Buddhist text. His aspiration is that these traditional teachings will contribute to the dharma taking root in Brazil.

You may not know that Rinpoche and his Sangha have a center, Guna Norling, in Salvador. It is centrally located in the historic neighborhood of Rio Vermelho but tucked away in an alcove in front of the ocean. Rinpoche has already taught and done various retreats there. He described it as a special and magical place, a powerful place for practice where one can gaze out at the vast ocean and sky while hearing the waves crash against the rocks, all the while easily forgetting that the city is literally right around the corner.

Guna Norling was built by a student of Rinpoche’s sixteen years ago and officially became an MSB center eight years ago. Over time, due to salty air and harsh weather conditions, the center has sustained some serious structural damage that needs attention. Pillars and vigas have begun to crack and the roof has sustained irreparable damage. At the same time, we also need a larger space to accommodate our growing sangha. We met with structural engineers to discover ways to add another floor to the center and how this could solve our structural problems as well. We have found a solution; a large open addition with a magnificent view of the ocean. This space will be used as our shrine room and also as a teacher’s suite for Rinpoche and other visiting teachers when they are in Salvador. The existing floors of the center will continue to be used for residents and retreatants. It is an ambitious project we hope to complete within the next 2-3 years.

Art Auction

In order to raise money we are beginning to hold various events and fundraisers. Rinpoche, his son and Dharma heir Dungse Jampal and two of his students who are

Sunset in Bir by Kongtrul Rinpoche

known and respected artists have very generously donated original works of art and photography with 100% of the proceeds going towards the renovation of our center. By supporting Guna Norling in this and other ways, you will also be supporting Rinpoche’s future visits and teachings in Salvador and his vision of helping the Dharma take root in Brasil. Visit the Auction Site.

It is with certainty and enthusiasm that we are promoting this Art Auction to raise funds for structural reform of  Guna Norling. For more information and other ways that you can give support to this vision, please contact: Sarah Gomes — saraha.ziji@hotmail.com

Guna Norling Renovation Project
1.     4 new structural pillars for reinforcement.
2.     Replace top concrete floor (laje) with a new reinforced floor that can hold the weight of up to 55 people.
3.     Ceramic roof
4.     Shrine room/ Teachers suite including a small bathroom and kitchen.

Estimates of costs of our renovation project is $55,000.00
We understand the magnitude this project , and what inspires us and motivates is the Rinpoche’s vision for Guna Norling, as a place where the dharma may flourish and may  benefit many people. We believe that we can count on open hearts and the generosity of those willing to support this  project.

With warmest wishes,
Thank you to everyone for making this possible.
Sangha Guna Norling

In the West, this suffering is often tangibly felt around the issue of identity. The juncture where Buddhism’s view of ego and ego-lessness and the notion of “identity” meet  forms the basis of Elizabeth Mattis Namgyel’s recent teaching on the LINK titled “Enter the Circle of Dogs: Searching for our True Identity.” Elizabeth is Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche’s wife and first student. She is the author of “The Power of an Open Question: The Buddha’s Path to Freedom.”

“Identity is exclusive, not inclusive,” Elizabeth says during this talk, pointing to the fact that our creation of an identity stems from a fundamental misunderstanding of our relationship to the world. She continues, “You don’t have to hold onto an identity to be a functioning human being. If fact the more holding on, the less you are in accord with the way things are, which is in movement, not static. Without holding on to identity, there is flexibility and freedom.” This multi-faceted examination of this topic offers wonderful and practical advice on how to take the common pains of “identity crisis” onto the path.

The more we honestly look at how identity – and ego – are in conflict with how things are, the more we can live life from the perspective of, as Elizabeth says, not “‘who am I?’ but ‘what serves.’”

We’ve delighted to offer the entire audio of this talk below.

Dungse-la, who is Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche son and dharma heir, delivered  these teachings with all the poise and confidence we have seen develop in recent years since he began to talk about the dharma publicly.  He was relaxed, funny and very sharp.  His talks touched on points from the role karma plays in shaping our sense of reality according to the traditional Buddhist view as well as how we experience it personally on our paths.  His approach to the subject was loose and open so that we might “find themes within the theme,” as he said. Drawing on traditional Buddhist texts, personal anecdotes and storytelling, Dungse-la again and again returned to the conclusion that exploring karma requires that we shake-up our mental habits by shifting perspective and examining many unquestioned assumptions.  Karma is described throughout all three yanas of Tibetan Buddhism, and, according to Dungse-la, “we must learn about karma if we want to enhance the clarity and intelligence by which we relate to our path.”

It seemed that nearly everyone asked a question during the ample question and answer section following each talk, and in this way Dungse-la was able to engage directly with many of the program participants.  A van-full of 11^th graders from the neighboring Mountain School attended Saturday morning’s teaching.  Their rich and probing questions were evidence that Dungse-la was able to present the material in a way people at various levels of familiarity with Buddhism could understand. In one humorous exchange, a student asked, “what were you like when you were a teenager?” To which Dungse Jampal replied, “I remember being a teenager very well… because it was just a few years ago that I was one!”  A fact easily forgotten due to the courage, maturity and insight he displayed throughout the weekend.

Following the program we all celebrated the opening of “Life In Focus”, which was a public exhibition of his photography.  There was a lovely reception with refreshments provided by the local sangha as well as an offering of live music by Samantha Moffatt.  Featured were eleven of Dungse-la’s recent photographs from his travels through India (and Longmont, CO).  Images from Bir, Bodhgaya, Varanasi and the Indian railways reveal an eye focused on the heart, the humor and the living energy of our world.  Two dozen prints were sold, making the event a big success for the budding young artist, who has already invested the proceeds in furthuring his craft. The reception was both relaxed and lively, and was the perfect end to a wonderful weekend and another remarkable program season in at Pema Osel, in Vershire.

To see Dungse Jampal Norbu’s “Life in Focus” exhibit, or to purchase prints, please visit his photography page.

The artist in his element

Dungse Jampal’s anecdotal style and first-hand curiosity about Buddhism give his teachings a fresh perspective, and reveal a natural wisdom and humor.

September 30 – October 1, Pema Osel Do Ngak Choling, Vershire, VT

More program information.

Life in Focus – A Photographic Exhibit

Dungse Jampal is an avid, amateur photographer. Pema Osel is delighted to host an exhibit of his photographs from Asia in conjunction with his teaching program, “Exploring Karma” (9/30 – 10/1). Dungse Jampal says photography allows him “to see life in focus” – to observe the details of the world around him, the prominent and the subtle, and avoid taking them for granted. In this exhibit he shares his appreciation of the incredible and the overlooked, that which requires an open gaze in order to be seen. “A photo reminds me that there is always something good out there,” he says. The photographs will be on view throughout the weekend. View a slideshow of the work.

Young Village Girl, Bir, India, 2010