[…] competitive, they won’t try to get you to feel competitive, they will try to induce in you the fear of feeling competitive. It’s gonna be much more powerful. You won’t even be aware of what you are reacting to. Now, if you are aware and a person is trying to kill your mind, they […]

[…] to his guest. Now, Bay-Akal not knowing what had gone before started to think how he could perform a similar wonder. He knew that Dervishes had strange powers and concluded that it was necessary only to beat them to obtain gold. So he arranged for a feast to be held, to which every Dervish […]

[…] And it banged against the side of the pot, and it went “ding”. And she went om mani padme hung, and was released from hell. So, the power of momentum. I haven’t told that story for a decade or more. Finally, the training. When we know we’re going to die, when we’ve worked through […]

[…] And it shows up in the way that his life manifests. So I really want you to be clear about your intention in this. That’s where the power of your practice comes from, from acting on your intention. As practice matures, what we discover is all of the stuff that’s written in here, or […]

[…] On the other hand, as things develop, like this, they become a way of pointing out, or training people to approach their experience. And they accumulate a power over centuries, literally. So they become a kind of shorthand. And so Kongtrul, or in this case Chekawa Yeshe Dorje, can just refer to the shorthand […]

[…] is there, and it is more difficult to fool at those levels. So staying in touch with where we are in our bodies is a very, very powerful method for meeting the world appropriately. So this evening I want to turn to the … Art: Ken? [Unclear] Ken: Of course. Go ahead, Art. Art: […]

[…] the force.” It’s interesting he [Konchog Gyaltsen, p. 112] translates that as force, because sometimes I have seen it translated as to do with the senses, or power or whatever, means that the actor will be born in an inauspicious place where there is little dignity. And in other accounts, more detailed accounts, it […]

[…] for a few moments. There is nothing inside us and there is nothing outside us. So what are you going to do? I find that a very powerful way of looking at this. Because it means that it is useless or pointless or futile to look for something to save us. It means that […]

[…] it. Ken: Ability to take care of others in need. Okay. Chuck? Chuck: Buying what I want, or have to buy, or what I need. Ken: Purchasing power. [Laughter] Chuck: Right. Student: That’s it. Student: Safety. Ken: Safety. Okay. You doing okay there, Raquel? Raquel: Yeah. Ken: Okay. Anybody else? Student: Security. Ken: Security, […]

[…] the meaning? John: Dakpo was talking on the one taste. Page 91 he says: The qualities have arisen if, after mingling mind and perceptions, you’ve attained miraculous powers, such as being able to conjure and multiply. Clarifying the Natural State, Dakpo Tashi Namgyal, p. 91 Otherwise, you have to consider that your path is […]

[…] whichever way you want. Right? And that’s it. They cannot see the world in any other terms except money, which is really sad. For some people it’s power, which is equally sad, and equally problematic. So those are examples of two modern day gods or demons, depending on how you want to look at […]

[…] May it arise where it is not arisen. May it not fade where it has arisen. May it ever grow and flourish. Contemporary Session Prayers Through the power of truth, of aspirations made with a totally pure mind, Through the inevitability of dependence and conditions totally formed, And through the force of what is […]

[…] The Merchant of Venice, William Shakespeare And so this verse illustrates another key point with respect to the immeasurables, and that is that they have a transformative power. And whether it’s compassion, or loving-kindness, or equanimity, or joy. When you just have that open—let’s take loving-kindness—that open wish that others be happy, or that […]

[…] death and dying Ken: Originally this retreat was meant to happen, oh I think a year ago. But then, for various reasons, I decided to do a power retreat and we were going to do this retreat last fall. But then there were fires here so we couldn’t do the power retreat so everything […]

The importance of lineage Ken: A great source of power and strength in the Buddhist tradition, in my mind, is the emphasis on lineage. In the Kagyu tradition, the lineage prayer, which is part of the preliminary practices, has 43 or 44 teachers in it. So it’s quite a long list now. And it […]