What are the Stepping Stones on Buddha's Path?

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Literally the phrase “Lam Rim” could be translated from
the Tibetan as “gradual path” or “path steps.”

Walking up a steep mountain path could be difficult,
if not treacherous,
however a path with hand rails and steps
could be both safer and easier.


It is said that Buddha taught for forty years after his enlightenment.
Others explain that by giving just 8 lessons a day it’s
no wonder his grand total was 84,000 discourses.

So it should come as no surprise that even Buddha occasionally
gave lessons that were summaries of all the essential points of the teachings.
That practice, in Tibet, is known as “Lam Rim”

An excellent example of that would be our practice of
“Buddha’s Extensive Three Cauldrons.”

There are Lam Rims of every length and style.
Some are short others long.
Some are scholarly while others are poetic.

Come, let us consider how “Buddha’s Extensive Three Cauldrons” could

touch upon all the essential realizations necessary to

accomplish full enlightenment in just 10 months, with OUT ever abandoning:

work, home, spouse, children or pets.



I. Bliss Training – Concentration Training

A. Bliss inducing Breathing
1. Gut-breathing
2. Chest-breathing
3. Lip-breathing

B. The Physiology of Bliss
1. Chin Tucking
2. Head Pulling
3. Relaxed Jaw
4. Gentle Smile

C. Devotion – the Quick path to great Bliss
1. Generating Gratitude
2. Generating Devotion



II. Essence of Renunciation
A. Precious Human Life
B. Suffering
C. Karma



III. Compassion’s Conventional Bodhichitta

A. Compassion
1. Sentimental Contemplations
2. Compassion Training
3. Compassion’s Bodhichitta {Mind-set of Enlightenment}

B. Love
1. Logical Contemplations
2. Love Training
3. Love’s Bodhichitta {Mind-set of Enlightenment}

V. Wisdom’s Ultimate Bodhichitta

A. The Union of Interdependence and Letting-go
1. Literal Contemplations
2. Figurative Contemplations

B. The Union of Impermanence and Letting-go
1. Literal Contemplations
2. Figurative Contemplations

C. The Union of Awareness and Letting-go
1. Imagination Contemplations
2. Logical Contemplations

Who is taking you by the hand, and
baby stepping you along Buddha’s path to
enlightenment while entertaining your specific
questions and needs EVERY week?

The Friday series of weekly webinars begins January 7th.

May you and yours be

happy and healthy!

Om Mani Padme Hum,

Lama Jigme Gyatso: Rime Manipa Tantrika

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Challenges are the Practice

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Many years ago, when my training was first beginning,
{in this life time},
I remember lamenting to my teachers,
how much more time and energy I would have for Dharma practice…
if only I didn’t have so many challenges.


My teachers assured me that
the challenges WERE the practice.

Come let us relentlessly drag,
whatever unpleasant or inconvenient challenges life throws at us
into Buddha’s path of:
• Devotion,
• Awareness,
• Love and
• Letting-go.
I’ll see you on the 4th.

Quick, there are only two weeks until the Thursday series of weekly webinars begins!

May you and yours be

happy and healthy!

Om Mani Padme Hum,

Lama Jigme Gyatso: Rime Manipa Tantrika

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Feeling Compassion

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Feeling the emotion of Compassion,
is really just a luxury.
Is it nice?
Ya, sure, ya bet’cha!

But is it necessary?
No, not so much.

But wait, IF we perform Buddha’s mental yogas of Compassion
with OUT actually feeling the emotion of compassion,
THEN doesn’t that make us just,
big, fat hypocrites?

No it does not.
We are only hypocrites when we tell someone
that we feel something
when we know we really don’t.

Does that mean,
that we should be completely oblivious
of our emotions at all times?
NOPE, not at all.

Remember, we’re traversing Buddha’s path of
devotion, AWARENESS, love and letting-go;
so awareness of our emotions,
even when they’re less then glamorous,
is crucial to our spiritual evolution.

Let’s talk about moms.

Sometimes a mom is delighted with her child,
and other times she isn’t.
Sometimes a mom earnestly desires to prepare a meal for her child,
other times she does not.

The difference between a good mother and a bad one,
is NOT if they feel enthusiastic to feed their spawn,
but if they actually DO
feed the little nippers.

Likewise, sometimes we will feel like our heart
is fit to burst with compassion,
other times we won’t.

The goal of Buddha’s path is NOT to habituate
one set of emotions and demonize another.

If we do that
rather than grow in merit and wisdom...
well I won’t say well become more neurotic,
I’ll just hint and say
it’ll make us as nutty as a sh*t-house rat!


So when we find ourselves in an ideal circumstance
to practice Buddha’s yoga’s of Compassion,
but we don’t feel like it,
what should we do?


#1 use Buddha’s compassion yogas to take away
all of everyone’s sufferings,
such as those generated by Pakistan’s floods;

#2 use Buddha’s love yogas
to send your partner and everyone else
all that they require,
such as greater love and devotion;

#3 and finally we could drag the guilt,
of not feeling the emotions that we think you should,
into Buddha’s path of awareness and letting-go.

The Thursday series of weekly webinars begins in 3 weeks!

May you and yours be

happy and healthy!

Om Mani Padme Hum,

Lama Jigme Gyatso: Rime Manipa Tantrika

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How are we Enlightened?

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How do we experience the Liberation that Buddha offers us?
By mastering his mental yogas {or techniques} of:
• Devotion,
• Awareness,
• Love and
• Letting-go.

“Mastering his mental yogas,” what could that mean?
Think of it this way; let’s pretend there are three ways we can lead our lives:
• as Buddhas,
• as Bo-dhi-sat-tvas or
• as Boobs!

What’s a Boob?
Homer Simpson is a great example of leading one’s life as a Boob.
The poor fellow has absolutely NO impulse control.

When he feels the impulse to strangle Bart, he does so,
without even a moment’s hesitation.
Homer Simpson is a complete slave to his darker impulses
such as despair, rage and panic,


and servitude to one’s darker impulses
is what being a boob is all about.

What then is a Bodhisattva?
Just as Neo and the gang were subversive to the matrix,
likewise a Bo-dhi-sat-tva rebels against the tyranny of their darker impulses.
But how do they do that?

#1 They seek a teacher to lead them to full enlightenment.
#2 They receive his teachings of Buddha’s various mental yogas.
#3 They apply his instructions at least twice a day, EVERY day.

Alright, then what’s the difference between a Bo-dhi-sat-tva and a Buddha?
Mastery; what a Bo-dhi-sat-tva does with great effort and middling competency
a Buddha is able to do spontaneously, habitually, easily and effectively.

Sounds good, sign me up!
So how is it that a Bo-dhi-sat-tva can go from boob to Buddha
in less then 11 months?

By relying upon the right teacher
and the right teachings
as well as by enthusiastically doing his homework twice a day,
every day.

How are we to know which teacher and which teachings are the most impowered?
There is only ONE way to know.
• Prestige – won’t tell us.
• Beauty – won’t tell us.
• Fame – won’t tell us.
• Logic – won’t tell us.
• Resume – won’t tell us.
• Credentials – won’t tell us.
• Letters of recommendation – won’t tell us.

How then,
how are we to know?

#1 Find a teacher who offers full enlightenment in 11 months or less.
#2 Give him the benefit of the doubt by suspending judgment.
#3 Receive his first lesson.
#4 Follow his instructions, that is, do your homework every morning and
every night for 7 consecutive days…

#5 Notice the results of enthusiastically applying his instructions.
#6 If you got bad results, then find a new teacher.
#7 If you got good results, then attend your teacher’s next class.

Your empowered journey to enlightenment begins by
learning Buddha’s four mental yogas.

The Thursday series of weekly webinars begins 5 weeks

May you and yours be

happy and healthy!

Om Mani Padme Hum,

Lama Jigme Gyatso: Rime Manipa Tantrika

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Expressing Devotion

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#1 Devotion to Chenrezig {the Buddha of Compassion}
is often expressed though offerings and praise,
I’m telling you it is best expressed through invocation
of either one of his names or his mantra
while practicing your teacher’s instructions.

#2 Devotion to one’s teacher is best expressed
by simply applying his instructions.


The Wednesday series of weekly webinars begins NEXT week.

May you and yours be

happy and healthy!

Om Mani Padme Hum,

Lama Jigme Gyatso: Rime Manipa Tantrika

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Sunday's Recommended Reading

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From Dilgo Khyentse's
"The Heart Treasure of the Enlightened Ones,"
lets read from the Commentary on pg. 66-67 and
let's also read from the root text on page 185.





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

"It is said that when those who are
afflicted in the prison of Sam-sa-ra
generate the thought of enlightenment,

they are instantly adopted by the Buddhas
as their sons and daughters,
and they are praised by both men and gods.

The whole of their existence
takes on a new meaning.
This is all due to the measureless power of
the jewel-like Bo-dhi-chit-ta.

Bo-dhi-chit-ta is the essence of
the eight-four thousand sections of
the Buddha's teachings,
but at the same time it

is so simple, so easy to understand and
practice, even for a beginner.

Absolute Bo-dhi-chit-ta is the
inseparability of voidness and
uncontrived compassion.

It is the simplicity of the natural state,
beyond all concepts
and intellectual limitations,
out of which

spontaneous, objectless compassion arises,
benefiting all sentient beings. "


From the Dalai Lama's
"The Path to Enlightenment,"
lets read page 88-89 and
let's also read from the biography of
the 3rd Dalai Lama on page 220.





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

"It is NOT difficult to recognize
the certainty of death.
The world is very old,
yet there is NO sentient being we can point to
who is immortal.

The very nature of our body is
vulnerability and impermanence.

Beautiful or ugly, fat or thin,
we all steadily approach death, a
nd nothing can avert it.

Physical power, flattery, bribery,
and all things of this world can NOT
persuade it {death} to turn away."


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





In today's exploration of
the " Beginning Collection of Practices "
we could consider:


What about the Fourth "I"?
That is for "Inclusion."

Whether you are practicing the
Concise, Middling or Extensive versions of
"Buddha's Three Cauldrons"
found in either the

Beginning, Intermediate or Advanced
collections of practices
you are embracing the essence of
all that Buddha Taught.

The Theravadans have cyclopedically organized
Buddha's teachings
as have the Tantrikas
who call it "Lam Rim" or "gradual steps upon the path."

Whether you catagorize Buddha's teachings as:
-Sutra and Tantra,
-Renunciation, Love and Wisdom,

-View, Meditation and Action,
-Concentration, Compassion and Contemplation,
-the Two Bodhichittas or
-Devotion, Awareness, Love and Letting-go;

the fourth "I" {inclusion}
is all about effectivly putting into practice
the essence of all Buddha taught.

What then is the path of
NON-sectarian Devotion to the Buddha of Compassion
in a nut shell?

#1 - Inscription,
#2 - Inquisition,
#3 - Invocation and
#4 - Inclusion!



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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Puppy Love

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Tips on Meditation and the Spiritual path - idea #189
from your Buddhism expert



Today I came across a delightful comic
illustrating the simple, yet profound, devotion that
many dogs feel for their owners.


I was a particularly sickly child. I remember having
a devastating bout of something when I was in Junior
High. Isn’t funny how profoundly emotional we can
get when we’re ill? Even now, I remember being
astonished at how irrationally sentimental I felt at
that time.


How do we know when we are being “way” over emotional?
Let’s face it folks, when even a Campbell’s Soup
commercial, can drive you to tears… then it could be
safe to assume, that something is afoot!





Mom, Dad and Sister had left to go somewhere they
felt was important and so I was left to sit in bed,
and watch “The Wizard of Oz”; which of course, you
guessed it, was driving me to tears. But I really
wasn’t alone. My little dog “Bernie” was sitting
vigil with me.


So what! This was a dog, not a doctor. This was not
a shaman, come to lay hands upon me, it was merely
a barking mop that we called Bernie. But you know
what, when that sweet little dog:
• slowly walked into my room,
• jumped on my bed,
• sat beside me,
• stretched it’s front legs across mine,
• and rested her chin upon my legs,
• while sweetly gazing up at me;
I truly felt a little better.





Gaze long and hard upon the face of your cat or dog.
There is NOT a lot of forehead there, my friend.
And you know what that means; there’s not a lot of
cerebral cortex there either. Obviously devotion;
spontaneous, heart felt devotion does not require
a great deal of brain power!


The ability to feel devotion comes, factory installed,
in every brain stem.





Devotion effects our emotions, awareness, bodies,
auras and environment. And, according to the
teachings of Buddhist Tantra, devotion can be a
short cut to experiencing great bliss. That is why
the two mental yogas “Essential Devotion” and
“Essential Meditation” can be found on page 3 of
“Quick Path to Happy Peace.”


Om Mani Padme Hum,
Lama Jigme Gyatso
Tibetan-Buddhist: Monk, Teacher, Healer and Tantrika


P.S. This month, in my audio CD revealing the
treasures of the “Centering Questions,” I’m going
to teach you a secret way to quickly catapult
yourself to greater, peace, bliss and balance, that
is so powerful you’ll feel like you were
transported back to ancient India, sat at the feet
of Buddha, and had truly accomplished his teachings,
much to his delight, and your astonishment





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Bliss and Openness

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Meditation and the Spiritual path - idea # 137
from your Buddhism expert



Happy Impermanence-Tuesday!

There are so many Buddhist practices! There are practices of Renunciation, practices of Love, practices of Concentration, practices of Sight, practices of Sound, practices of Sensation and practices of Devotion. How easily one could squander their: time, wealth and energy always chasing after the next teaching like a child running to find the end of a rainbow.

I am so glad that Patrul Rinpoche, the great Tibetan devotee of the Buddha of Compassion provides an essentialized path for us to traverse:

“…one Dhar-ma, Bo-dhi-chit-ta, embodies all practices
of the development and completion stages...”

So that is the essence of all Buddha’s teachings, huh? But what does it mean?
We’ll explore that on Tomorrow.



How could your next rebirth be perfectly auspicious, advantageous, blissful, happy and profound?
To find out, go to: http://www.LamaJigme.com



I’m preparing special “Thank you” gifts for everyone who donates in February…
which is almost here.



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May you and yours be happy and healthy!

Om Mani Padme Hum,
Lama Jigme Gyatso - Tibetan-Buddhist: Monk, Teacher, Healer and Tantrika



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