hungry ghosts are hungry due to their miserliness in their past life. hunger can come in many forms, but the general type which results from being stingy in resources gives them a form whereby their throats are as narrow as a needle, making eating impossible.

And of course, there are many other diffrent kind of hungry ghosts and they can be hungry for any kind of things. Hunger in this case is caused by wanting that is not satisfied for long periods of time and the root of this is greed.

Wow!

Rinpoche has agreed to give me Refuge?  But why?

I know this might seem to be a little strange as far as answers go, but it is very important for me.  Why would Rinpoche want to give me Refuge on the basis of just a few lines in a letter?  I am not saying no, please understand this, I am just fulfilling my role as someone in search of a teacher.

How can Rinpoche teach me to meditate when we are so far apart?  How can I know that Rinpoche cares when we never see eachother?  These questions came to mind after having seen the video on Rinpoche's teachings on the student-teacher relationship.  Is it possible to develop sufficient trust over such a distance for me to become in time worthy to recieve higher teachings from him?  He himself says on the video that progress in Dharma depends on the relationship as defined in the 50 Verses (Verse 49).  If it is possible, then fine, if not, I need to know beforehand (verse 6).

It was because of the problems of distance that I was hoping to find someone in Italy.  Have no Masters come here?  Not even for the food?  Failing that, let's see what happens.

Sorrow for the questions, but I need to do this right.

Keep on rocking,

Simon

The truth is, Rinpoche will know everything about you, regardless if you meet him or not. And of course, you will never know if Rinpoche decides to drop by Italy to have pasta....

for now, just focus on your sadhanas and practices, as well as your preliminary (ngodro) practices until you are ready for HYT

Thanks Sampa for your comments. I don't have deep and profound wisdom. I am as deluded as anyone out there. Grasping, craving and attaching. It is hard taming the monkey mind and it seems an impossiblity to know what non-self is. I know yet I don't know. I find meditation despairing. I am attracted to rituals and devotions because I think they lend some structure to our beliefs yet I am deeply sceptical of them because I am afraid I will mistake the pointing finger from the moon. "Truth is a pathless land" (Krishnamurti). But how many of us can walk on a pathless land? 

here's a pointer: many things seem to be based on beliefs on the surface, but if you dig deeper, take more time to understand and you can see how exactly it works. All you need to do is a little curiousity.

A rinpoche or lama is not nessary a monk. those are just titles.

Rinpoche has hair because he needs to make some of his students feel more comfortable.

Hi

Can I suggest that this new column for the not-so-advanced people be named "Infant Talk" 

I share Yeshe Drolma's agony    Those high level discussions on topic such as "Emptiness" only bring more "emptiness" into my already 'empty' brain   

For me, if you dropped a 30 kilos metal can on my toe,  I would screamed my lung out and probably chant the world famous 4-letter word starting with "F"...  

I definitely can't say it is only in my mind...  with that kind of pain, I don't think I can look at you with compasionate eyes and wish you with the 6-syllable Chenresig mantra or greet you with "Namo Amitabha". No way.

So, let's discuss basic topic for 'infants' like me and perhaps Yeshe Drolma can learn faster too 

Cheers 

now we do, go check it out

Since my faith in buddhism has grown, i've come to have more respect for other peoples faiths which can only be good. As i found something thats helped me make sense of the world, i can see the benefit other people get from their faiths.

Jon

yep, that is how things should be glad stuff are working out for ya

understanding others requires compassion. If you already consider yourself a buddhist practitioner, it is time for you to change your views about life and people and try to understand people around you as much as possible so that you do not hurt them. Everyone else is dismissing their enemies and protecting their friends, so if we call ourselves practitioners what diffrent are we from them?

The actions of everyone can be explained, so it is best to understand why and how they did something. This helps to lower or eliminate hatred because now you see the reasons why they acted this way.

personally, I focus more on explaining his qualities rather than the "mystical" aspects i.e. that he has great effort and wisdom. You have to remember that many people and turned off when they hear anything mystical. Also, there is no need to mention that Lord Tsongkhapa is a Buddha as certain traditions do not accept the existence of any other Buddhas other than Lord Sakyamuni (Siddharta Gautama) and introducing Lord Tsongkhapa as a Buddha will clash with their beliefs. To theravardans or buddologists (people who only go for the scholarly aspects of the dharma, and reject all seemingly mystical influences) you should explain how Lord Tsongkhapa perfected his Parimitas. Theravardans are extremely skeptical when it comes to claims that someone is enlightented so its best to explain with Lord Tsongkhapa having perfected the perfections.

With people who support mystical ideas, telling them that Lord Tsongkhapa is the manifestation of the 3 great bodhisatwas along that he is a Buddha works wonders. This approach is best used for those from the chinese mahayana tradition.

Tashi delek!
 
Dear admin and friends

Where would i post simple request for teachings on a certain topics not on a certain text

Or somehow i am in the right section?

Thanks
Ganbat.D

Tashi Delek!

this would be the proper section: http://tsemtulku.com/Forum/index.php?board=5.0

[This live telecast has been postponed]

This live telecast has been postponed

Here is your chance to get up close and personal with Tsem Tulku Rinpoche. Rinpoche will be conducting the Monthly Book Club study session to small groups of students (less than 10), Rinpoche will guide the students using the book and you can tune in LIVE at www.rinpoche.tv to watch! (see time at your location below)

Thank you for your reply. Wonderful reply.

Here is what I thought in your reply.

You Wrote:
"the correct view where objects are empty by nature. Since they dont exist. Since they dont exist"

I think you get yourself into one of the extreme view as Lord Je Tsong Khapa's says in the Three principle path.

"In addition, appearances clear away the extreme of (inherent) existence; emptiness clears away the extreme of non-existence. When you understand the arising of cause and effect from the viewpoint of emptiness, you are not captivated by either of the extreme views. " -- three principles of the path.

You can't says the smoke, incense don't exist and deny their existence, even though their nature is empty. that is valid, however, their existence is also valid.  Because, what Lord Je Tsong Khapa says. Emptiness clears away the extreme of non-existence.  Clearly, Lord Je Tsong Khap didn't deny the fact they exist. He warn us to watch out of this wrong way of thinking using emptiness logic.

However, I have to agree in you part on the mind. I understand that. We have to go back to the mind before thinking as Zen Master Seung Sahn say it  (don't know mind), and Hui-Neng Six Patriarch's example, two people are arguing on the moving of the flag. One says it's the wind is moving, another the flag is moving. But, Hui-Neng says, it's your Mind that is moving.

All the concept of in our mind that is thinking. We have to stop it.

the lower paragraph of both our posts is my point. the reason why I said it dosent exist is because they are mere projections of preception. It helps in promoting detachment and lessening emotional pain on the surface as well as help understand that all sufferings and happinesss are unreal but ultimately, it leads to enlightment when you have complete understanding of it. The incense and smoke exists, but the birth and dying does not. If you're wearing glasses of the wrong type you'd see incense, but of a diffrent shape. So the incense dosent change but your preception does, and since your preception isnt perfect how can you say it exists?

sampa: the shuragama sutra has very elaborate examples on that as well as discerning the sensory conciousness. Likewise, this sutra is feared by many buddhist scholars who declare it as a fake because in the end it reveals the true nature of your own mind as you read it. And that is exactly why sutras are not revealed that easily in the tibetan tradition: so that we dont misunderstand and create bad karma.

Hi all,

labels at least do feed the ego. And you can go through 24h without wasting one conscious thought, without perceiving what really happens, just using habitual projections and conceptions, sleeping more or less all the time, you never are in the moment and things are not real but mere pictures. You never have to get in real contact with life. Quite comfortable.... as long as the sun shines.
Seriously, if we stop to label, equanimity, compassion, if we apply the teachings honestly to our life, results, change will come. I truly believe this. But one can`t really believe to develop/change without having to change.
And only getting a climpse now, how dramatic this change could be (the actual drama is, there is no drama...), the ego/self gets afraid of the medicine it considdert sweet, for exactly this medicine will erase just this self. And that really is a good laugh.
You know, the knight on the look for the holy grail and when he finds it, he only gets to know he never was on the look, for there is no knight, no holy grail....

Best regards Krusty

well, labels are still needed in the world. Worldy people can only understand labels. the thing is, as practitioners we should not be attached to them but we should not go to the other extreme to declare everything as a label. Lord Buddha used hindu terms and labels during his time in order to help people of that time understand. Thervardan teachings have a lot of terms and labels for many things especially in the Abhidharma texts which describe the mind (the 32 states, 31 planes of existence). They rely on labels to convey the dharma. So it is not all that bad. I guess the key here is to not be obsessed with labels; this is right or this is wrong; this is holy, that is not holy, etc.

But since we already understand that labels are not beneficial in the long run and that we do not need to use them to understand the dharma, it is best that we dont use it to ourselves, but to more worldly people whose lives revolve around labels. The still need them to get thru and understand the dharma. That is how our kind Teachers work with us --  from our point of view and mental level instead of from their's. And to do that requires the 6 perfections itself which is the reason why the kind Guru is inseperable from the Buddha. So dont use labels for yourselves, but only to people who need it. Its not that bad depending on how you use it.

As Rinpoche had mentioned, we shouldnt regress in spiritual practice once we have advanced. We shouldnt regress back to labelling every single thing and slapping everyone in the face with it, especially dharma brothers and sisters and walk around thinking we're so smart. Being "labelless" will also promote ego if you're not careful and confuse and hurt people around you. So the whole label thing is all for the self, and dosent apply to another person.

All three of your sources are referring to nagajurna's view of emptiness -- the correct view where objects are empty by nature since they dont exist. Since they dont exist, changes they exhibit are not real. I am not really an expert on this, but I recommend you to read the shuragama sutra that elaborates this as well as other things.

The incense smoke is a nice realization but well, was it ever born in the first place? did it ever die in the first place or it is just a by product of burning and dissipating? the terms born and die appeared in your own mind and since it is not true, how can it be "solid" in the first place? So it must be empty.

I believe that is what the analogies are trying to imply, but I could be wrong, as I have said I lack practice and study.

hello everyone, I'll be taking care of this forum alongside with a few others. Nice to meet you all