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06
July

Inspiration at the Light of the Path Retreat

Inspiration at the Light of the Path Retreat By Ven. Tenzin Chogkyi   When I walked into the dining room at the Blue Ridge Assembly in North Carolina on the morning that the Light of the Path retreat was scheduled to start, it took me about 20 minutes to walk through the room to the buffet – the…

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06
July

Preparing for Ordination

Pratimoksha is a bridle With hundreds of sharp spikes, suited to The horse of the mind, so hard to steer And always driven with effort ~The Pratimoksha Sutra Preparing for Ordination Written by Ven. Thubten Dondrub Motivation Adopting the life of a renunciate is a life-long commitment in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. One takes ordination because one realizes that this human life…

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06
July

The Job of Ordained People

The Job of Ordained People By Ven. Antonio Satta     It is important to know-and for those who do know, to remember-that desire does not start with becoming ordained. We may sometimes find ourselves wondering why we are so full of desire, as if the ordained life increased or brought desire. Abstinence (for ordained people) and giving vent…

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06
July

Be a Professional Dharma Practitioner

It is difficult to let go of this level of control over our lives, but it is a part of the lesson we must learn. We all want to control our lives, to come and go as we please, to do what we want. But, when we have to rely on the kindness of others,…

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06
July

Remaining Celibate in an Environment of Attachment

While it’s true that one can practice in a relationship, it’s more difficult to counteract attachment when one lives in an environment permeated by it. If lay life were the most effective way to practice, the Buddha himself would not have been a monastic. Ven. Thubten Chodron Remaining Celibate in an Environment of Attachment By Ven. Thubten…

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06
July

A Monastic’s Mind

As we remain ordained longer and longer, we come to understand how our behavior affects other people, and we begin to feel some responsibility for the continuity of the teachings. These precious teachings, which have helped us so much, began with the Buddha. Ven. Thubten Chodron A Monastic’s Mind Ven. Thubten Chodron Excerpted from a talk given at…

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06
July

On Celibacy

They also need faith. This is achieved by the inspiring example of monks and nuns whose pure lifestyle and inner attainment of peace show that renunciation is possible. On Celibacy By Ven. Thubten Gyatso It is 1972, in Jalalabad, and travellers on their journey to the east, stranded in Afghanistan by the Indo-Pakistani war, are partying. A…

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06
July

A Renounced Mind

We know the general methods for protecting our mind: recollecting the imminence of death, the sufferings of samsara, the skeleton beneath the skin, the rotting corpse, honey on a razor blade. But we don’t really believe them. Ven. Thubten Gyatso A Renounced Mind By Ven. Thubten Gyatso One evening in 1975, on the hilltop at Kopan, my girlfriend…

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05
July

Sojong-Purifying and Restoring our Vows

Since the pratimoksha vows are received from a preceptor, an instructor, and several members of the sangha, the rite of confession must also be carried out before members of the sangha-that is to say, a group of bhikshus. Ven. Sangye Khadro Sojong-Purifying and Restoring our Vows By Ven. Sangye Khadro According to Geshe Jampa Tegchog in Monastic Rites,…

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05
July

Meditating on the Body

On reflection we can see that the Buddha is not having us look at the body and be repelled by it or have distaste for it in any way, but to be discerning and dispassionate in the same way that one looks at a bag with various kinds of beans and seeds and whatnot. Ven. Sangye…

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