Elizabeth Mattis Namgyel Teachings – 3 CD Set

Sacred World
Vajrayana Buddhism introduces us to a sacred world through the rich and magical imagery of deities and mandalas. Until we understand the wisdom behind this imagery, it will have no personal meaning for us. The Vajrayana challenges us to question: “How do we understand the deity beyond conceptual fabrication? What is the nature of the deity and how do we genuinely cultivate ‘pure appearance’ when the world around us seems so imperfect?” Such questions take us deeper into the practice of sacred world. We learn to value and utilize all of our experience to free the mind, which brings us to a very different way of seeing things.

Halifax, Nova Scotia, CN, May 2012.  MP3 CD • Four Talks • Running time: 5 hrs, 51 mins.

Mind at Ease
We often find ourselves struggling with our inner lives of thoughts and emotions as they relate to the pain and uncertainty of life around us. How does the mind rest at ease with its world? Meditation is a powerful means of working with challenges and helps us habituate our mind to a different way of understanding and relaxing with experience. Elizabeth examines this topic in a lively series of talks, discussions and meditation instruction. These teachings on shamatha or calm abiding, the basic meditation practice of Buddhist traditions, were given at Dharmata center, the sangha of Anam Thubten Rinpoche, Rochester.

Rochester, New York, April 2013.  MP3 CD • Four Talks • Running time: 7 hrs, 7 mins.

The Middle Way Experience
We often hear the term “Middle Way” in the context of the Buddha’s life, teachings and meditation practice. But what exactly is the Middle Way? Most essentially, it refers to a genuine insight that we experience when our mind finds its natural resting place through study and meditation. It also refers to the path that leads us to this natural resting place. Elizabeth clarifies and leads us through an exploration of this topic in a lively series of talks and discussions. Elizabeth originally offered these teachings as a primer to the Pundarika foundation’s Summer retreat with Tsoknyi Rinpoche and the MSB Shedra, both in Crestone, August 2012. A shedra is a Tibetan Buddhist college of philosophy, whose traditional thirteen year curriculum includes the major treatises of Madhyamikan thought. In these talks Elizabeth draws out the essential concepts of the Middle Way teachings and shows the relevance of the often challenging ideas to our everyday experience.

Crestone, Colorado, August 2012.  MP3 CD • Four Talks • Running time: 6 hrs, 3 mins.