Category Archives: Perfect Human Rebirth

The Power of the Object of Merit



If you don’t practice Dharma, don’t learn Dharma, don’t meditate, if you don’t pray to have realization of the path to enlightenment, at least even the path to liberation, if you don’t do that then so many sentient beings have to suffer for you to live, for your happiness, it is so unimaginable, unbearable, so unbearable.

-Lama Zopa Rinpoche

Everything we do to keep this human body alive inevitably harms other sentient beings and thus accumulates negative karma. Rinpoche describes this harm and the incredible power of the object to quickly accumulate huge amounts of positive merit. Contemplate how this power of the object can help us accumulate more than enough positive merit to offset the constantly accumulating negative karma of living. May we accumulate more than enough positive merit to quickly and more quickly constantly progress on the path to enlightenment for the sake of all mother sentient beings. Lama Zopa Rinpoche gave this Dharma talk prior to a refuge ceremony at Amitabha Buddhist Centre, Singapore, on January 18, 2009. You can read along with the transcript on our website.

 


This Precious Human Rebirth



It is amazing how even within a minute, even in each second, eating, walking, sitting, sleeping, wow, what you can do with this precious human body by understanding and practicing the Dharma.

-Lama Zopa Rinpoche

Lama Zopa Rinpoche celebrates our perfect human rebirth and encourages us to bring every single moment in our life into the path to enlightenment. Rinpoche gave these teachings prior to a chöd initiation at Maitripa College, Portland, Oregon, in June 2009. You can read along with the transcript on our website.


Basic Philosophy of Buddhism



This teaching is excerpted from Lecture 10 of the 41st Kopan Course held at Kopan Monastery, Nepal, in December 2008. In this section of the teaching, Lama Zopa Rinpoche discusses the great meaning of the precious human rebirth, with reference to a verse from Calling the Guru From Afar, and the story of Milarepa, who achieved enlightenment in one brief lifetime. You can read along with the unedited transcript here www.lamayeshe.com/article/chapter/basic-philosophy-buddhism-part-two

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The Urgency of Realizing Lamrim



So we’re going to destroy, to totally cease, make it completely non-existent, this enemy, this inner enemy, this delusion, this demon, this self-cherishing thought that harms, that has been harming you, torturing you, and all the time, giving you problem all the time, even this life.

-Lama Zopa Rinpoche

Lama Zopa Rinpoche gives this introductory teaching during a lamrim retreat at Vajrapani Institute in 2006. In this session Rinpoche impresses upon us the urgent importance of concentrating all our efforts on realizing the stages of the path to enlightenment for ourselves and all sentient beings. Read along with the transcript on our website.


Let Go of Suffering for the Sake of Others



As long as you don’t drop the burning fire, the fire that burns your hand, the burning cannot be stopped. So like that, as long as one doesn’t abandon the self, the I, one cannot abandon suffering, one cannot be free from the suffering.

-Lama Zopa Rinpoche

Lama Zopa Rinpoche guides us through the preciousness of our present perfect human rebirth and explains how abandoning the self is the path to freedom from suffering for ourselves and all sentient beings. These teachings were given at Root Institute, Bodhgaya, in December 2003. Follow along with the transcript on our website.


It’s all in your mind



You have no enemy when you don’t have anger. Only when you have anger you have enemy in your life. So it’s all to do with your concept. It’s all in your mind.

-Lama Zopa Rinpoche

These teachings by Lama Zopa Rinpoche on the power of our perfect human rebirth are from a commentary Rinpoche gave on the Eight Verses of Thought Transformation, an essential mind training text composed by Kadampa Geshe Langri Tangpa. These teachings were hosted by Tse Chen Ling Center, in San Francisco, California, in November 2003. You can also listen along with the transcript on our website.


Fulfilling Life’s Purpose



If we take care of others, work for their happiness, we are automatically taking care of ourselves. Trying to make others happy is the best way of loving ourselves.

-Lama Zopa Rinpoche

Listen to this profound teaching by Lama Zopa Rinpoche on transforming everyday actions into the cause of enlightenment. Given during a four-day course at FPMT’s Tilopa Center in Decatur, Illinois, August, 1997, these teachings detail practical methods for developing compassion and wisdom in our everyday lives. The teachings in this podcast were ultimately published as Chapter 1 in Virtue and Reality bit.ly/Fulfilling-Lifes-Purpose


The Qualities of the Dharma and Its Teachers



The particular nature of the Dharma is that the more you study the teachings, the more the Dharma becomes deep and clear. And the holy beings, those who work for sentient beings, those who have accomplished the path, these holy beings are who bring the Dharma teachings to us.

-Lama Zopa Rinpoche

Lama Zopa Rinpoche describes the qualities of the Holy Dharma and of those that teach us the Dharma. This teaching was given by Lama Zopa Rinpoche during the Fourteenth Kopan Meditation Course, Nepal, 1981. Read along with the transcript on our website at https://www.lamayeshe.com/article/chapter/lecture-1-qualities-dharma-and-teachers


Making This Precious Human Rebirth Meaningful



Be very clever. “I should be very skillful with my life from now on. I should be very careful with my life. I must make it, without wasting the precious human body which I have received now, without wasting it, I must make it meaningful, highly meaningful as much as I can.”

Lama Zopa Rinpoche

This teaching on the great preciousness of our perfect human rebirth was given by Lama Zopa Rinpoche at Manjushri Institute, Cumbria, England, August 16-24, 1979. Read along with the transcript at https://www.lamayeshe.com/article/chapter/making-precious-human-rebirth-meaningful