A collection of stories, teachings, and thoughts shared by members of the wider IMI network.
By Venerable Lobsang Tsultrim The second Dharma book I ever bought was The Wheel of Sharp Weapons with commentary by Geshe Ngawang Dhargyey. I was just seventeen at the time, with little life experience and even less understanding of the Dharma. Yet its short, pithy verses reached out and took…
By Venerable Robina Courtin I live in New York City these days, on my own. I’ve spent my life living in communes — first in a family of nine, then at a Catholic boarding school, then in hippie communes, radical left communes, feminist communes, and finally Buddhist communes. I must…
Teaching Each Other The Dharma A report from the Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche retreat in Bendigo, Australia 2014 By Gelongma Lozang Yönten (Larisa Wahler) Bendigo, Victoria fulfilled its promise of variable weather from biting cold to blazing hot – sometimes all in one day. Mirroring the changeable weather…
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…
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…
“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…
“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….
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…
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…
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…
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