Saturday, September 19, 2009

Saturday's Recommended Reading

.
From Dilgo Khyentse's
"
The Heart Treasure of the Enlightened Ones,"
lets read from the Commentary on pg. 74-75 and
let's also read from the root text on page 193.





In today's selection from Dilgo Khyentse's commentary we can read:

"All the Buddhas of
the past, present, and future
have achieved and will achieve enlightenment
by relying upon a spiritual teacher.

The most profound of all teachings,
the Ma-ha-mu-dra [the Great Seal] and
the Great Perfection
[Dzok-chen or Ma-ha-san-dhi],

are realized through devotion rather than
through the fabrication of the intellect.

With unwavering and single-minded devotion,
see the teacher as the Buddha himself and
everything he does as perfect;
then his blessings,

the wisdom of the all the Buddhas' minds,
will flow effortlessly into your being.

Practice in accordance with his
instructions, and, as all the
clouds of doubt and hesitation are
cleared away, the sun of his compassion will

shine through,
warming you with happiness."




From the Dalai Lama's
"
The Path to Enlightenment,"
lets read page 97 and
let's also read from the
Translator's Introduction on page 12.





In today's selection the 14th Dalai Lama explains:

"A spiritual aspirant requires a model,
something he or she can look up to as
an ideal and thus find guidance and inspiration.

In Buddhism this the the Triple Gem,
the Three Jewels of Refuge:
the Buddhas, Dharma and Sangha.

When we think of the fully enlightened Buddhas -
the beings who have purified their minds
of all stains and obscurations and
who have expanded their wisdom to
the limits of existence -

we feel very attracted and awed;
but somehow there always seems to be a
great distance between the Buddhas and us.

Therefore, there is the refuge of the Sang-ha,
the community of spiritual aspirants,
the assembly of practitioners
dwelling in the various stages of
practice and attainment.

These beings provide us with a
perspective on the path.
We have to look up to the Sang-ha,
but NOT as far as to the Buddhas.

The Sang-ha make us think,

'This person is NOT that far ahead of me.
If I just make a bit more effort...' .


They give us confidence for spiritual practice.
Sometimes they make us feel like we can even
race them to enlightenment.
These are the Sang-ha of spiritual friends.

Thoughts of the Buddhas make us
numb with admiration;
thoughts of the Sang-ha cause us to
jump to it and to apply ourselves with
zeal to the spiritual path.

This path and the methods for traversing it
are the third Jewel of Refuge, the Dhar-ma.
This is the collection of
the teachings to be practiced and
the realizations to be attained."



The easiest way to contact me is at:
http://www.FaceBook.com/LamaJigme







In today's exploration of
the " Intermediate Collection of Practices "
we could consider an excerpt from:

Lama Praise


Beyond being defiled by the two
obscurations of pride and jealousy,
you pretend to still be purifying them.
Having certainly reached the sublime path’s very end,
you insist that you are still learning.

Beyond the extremes of Sam-sa-ra and Nir-va-na,
you still manifest here in Sam-sa-ra.
Peerless teacher,
I bow before you.



Why could some Full realized teachers
occasionally pretend to still be on the path?

The Dalai Lama's excerpt could infer
that in their compassion they
do NOT wish to overwhelm their students.



I invite you to share your feelings and insights with
my other students at:
Buddha's Quick Path


Om Mani Padme Hum,
Lama Jigme Gyatso: Rime Manipa Tantrika



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