Tibetan Buddhism: Intro to The 37 Verses on Bodhisattva Practice

This Sunday, Nov. 9th, is an intro to The Heart of Compassion, a book by the great Dzogchen master and yogi Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche. The book is Rinpoche’s commentary on The Thirty-Seven Verses on the Practice of a Bodhisattva. This book is our Book Study Group selection for the Nov. 16th, Dec. 14th, and Jan. 18th. The root text, by the legendary twelfth-century bodhisattva and yogi Gyalsé Tokmé Zangpo has been required reading in all Tibetan monasteries for generations. Over the centuries, many great masters have offered their commentaries on this text. In this introductory class, we’ll talk about the life of Tokmé Zangpo and present an overview of his text.

In our weekly classes, we explore the richly variegated jewel that is Tibetan Buddhist doctrine or liturgy, including a short meditation or two. There is plenty of time for open discussion and questions. All interested beings are warmly invited.

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Please join our meeting through the internet by using Zoom.

Meeting ID number: 814 3390 5026
Password: pcddc
Please join a few minutes before the scheduled time.

NOTE: Our program plan is to rotate the topic of the tutorial portion of our sessions from week to week, from basic meditation, to philosophy, our book study group, and more. Our intent is to serve our newest members as well as our more senior members. Please let us know how this scheme works for you.

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PCD-DC (Palyul Changchub Dargyeling—D.C. Area) is a Tibetan Buddhist Dharma center affiliated with Palyul Ling International. Every Sunday morning (please check our calendar for occasional irregularities) we offer a class aimed at learning about Tibetan Buddhism. Each class includes instruction on various aspects of the Buddhist practices, or meditation, and discussion of those instructions. Classes are led by senior students of our Palyul spiritual lineage masters. Our teachers include His Holiness Pema Norbu Rinpoche, Khenchen Tsewang Gyatso Rinpoche, and others. All who are interested, including beginners, are welcome; there are no prerequisites. Time for Q&A is available.

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“The Tibetan word 'jin-lab' is loosely translated as ‘blessings.’ Jin-lap transforms our whole being—our body, our speech, the way we think, how we understand phenomena, and the way we relate to ourselves and the world. Ultimately, however, what jin-lap does is to break the shell of our ego and force us to see the true nature of our minds. Among the many other causes and conditions, in the Vajrayana it is the guru who is considered the most important and indeed supreme cause for doing all of the above.” -Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche, “Ocean of Blessings” (p. vii)

“If we had pure perception from the beginning, we wouldn’t need to train in it. However, at present our mind is filled with disturbing emotions, our way of perceiving is very obscured, and we lack pure perception. Therefore, we need to train in pure perception.” -His Holiness Penor Rinpoche, “Ocean of Blessing” (pp. 9-11)

May All Beings Benefit!

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