Category Archives: Lama Zopa Rinpoche

Where to Find Happiness

Compassion and Bodhicitta, Dharma in Daily Life, Introductory, Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Nature of the Mind

Happiness comes from a positive attitude and action motivated by that.

-Lama Zopa Rinpoche

This month on the Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive podcast, Lama Zopa Rinpoche answers a student’s question about the relationship between the mind and the heart when practicing bodhichitta, how to be authentic in the practice of compassion, and where to locate happiness. This teaching was given by Rinpoche in 1990 in Boston, Massachusetts and was hosted by Kurukulla Center. You can also watch Rinpoche give these teachings on the LYWA YouTube channel.

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Our Practice Is Like A Seed

Compassion and Bodhicitta, Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Lamrim (Path to Enlightenment), Purification

The meditation practice is like the seed. The actual body of meditation, the practice, that is like the seed and purifying the hindrances and the accumulation of merit are like the soil and water.

-Lama Zopa Rinpoche

Lama Zopa Rinpoche explains why we must prepare the ground of our mind with merit accumulation and karmic purification so that the seeds of our practice of listening, contemplation, and meditation can grow into realizations on the path to attain enlightenment for the sake of all mother sentient beings. These teachings were given by Rinpoche at Manjushri Institute, Cumbria, England, August 16-24, 1979.

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The Loving Compassionate Precious Thought for Enlightenment

Compassion and Bodhicitta, Lama Zopa Rinpoche

Even giving just one single tiny grain of rice to one single sentient being will accumulate infinite merit when you are motivated to give by the precious wish to attain enlightenment to benefit numberless sentient beings.

-Lama Zopa Rinpoche

Lama Zopa Rinpoche discusses the power and importance of the precious bodhicitta during teachings on Geshe Langri Tangpa’s Eight Verses of Thought Transformation, given at Manjushri Institute, Cumbria, England, August 16-24, 1979. Read along with the transcript on the LYWA website.

 

 

 

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How We Name the World

Emptiness, Lama Zopa Rinpoche

Every single phenomena is like that. There’s merely gathered, the base to be labeled, then due to that, then mere imputation, then only after that, then you have that appearance.

-Lama Zopa Rinpoche

In these teachings by Lama Zopa Rinpoche given during a lamrim retreat held at Vajrapani Institute in Boulder Creek, California, from August 20-23, 2006, Rinpoche explains how everything we experience is merely imputed by our minds by using the example of a child who is too young to speak. If a child doesn’t know the name of something, does it exist? You can follow along with the transcript here.

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The Living Heart of Compassion

Compassion and Bodhicitta, Dharma in Daily Life, Introductory, Lama Zopa Rinpoche

 

Compassion should be at the heart of our life, at the center of all our relationships and in all our practices.

-Lama Zopa Rinpoche

Lama Zopa Rinpoche gives the transmission of the mantra and dharani of Chenrezig, the Buddha of Compassion and explains why reciting these mantra helps us to develop compassion from the center of our heart for all beings and especially for those we see as the enemy. Rinpoche illuminates how the path to enlightenment depends first on developing immeasurable compassion for each and every being. These teachings were given by Rinpoche during a Maitreya puja at Shakyamuni Center in Taichung, Taiwan, in March 2007. You can follow along with the transcript on our website.

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The Power of the Object of Merit

Dharma in Daily Life, Guru Devotion, Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Perfect Human Rebirth, Practice Commentary

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.

 

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Chanting the Names of Noble Manjushri

Death and Transitions, Dharma in Daily Life, His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Oral Transmission, Sutras, Mantras and Root Texts

Manjushri bodhisattva is the highest manifestation of being, the embodiment of all knowledge.

-Lama Zopa Rinpoche

The Ārya-mañjuśrī-nāma-saṅgīti (Chanting the Names of Noble Manjushri) consists of 160 verses and mantra sentences, condensing an enormous tantric lore. Listen to Lama Zopa Rinpoche reciting the Ārya-mañjuśrī-nāma-saṅgīti in Tibetan. Rinpoche recorded this recitation in 2006, and asked for the recording to be made available for anyone to listen at any time during their day. Rinpoche also suggested to play it loudly so that animals and others nearby can hear it, and thereby benefit from it as well.

Recently His Holiness the Dalai Lama has offered us all the precious advice to recite Chanting the Names of Noble Manjushri continuously for a few months, for the swift return of Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s reincarnation. Thus all students of Lama Zopa Rinpoche are requested to please recite Chanting the Names of Noble Manjushri as much as you can, continuously, starting now. You can download the English translation of Chanting the Names of Noble Manjushri and read His Holiness’s letter of advice on the FPMT website.

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Taking Care of the Mind

Compassion and Bodhicitta, Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Lamrim (Path to Enlightenment)

Sometimes uncontrollable anger arises and uncontrollable self-cherishing thought arises, self-concern, anger, pride also, but then sometimes it makes you aware there’s choice. There’s choice. You can choose.

Listen to a public talk by Lama Zopa Rinpoche on how to bring peace and happiness to oneself and others, given at Conway Hall, London, England on July 10, 2014. Read along with the transcript and more at http://www.lamayeshe.com/article/taking-care-mind-audio-and-transcript

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Meditation on Emptiness at Vulture’s Peak

Emptiness, Lama Zopa Rinpoche

On March 12, 2014, Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche ascended Vulture’s Peak, Rajgir, India, to give a transmission of the Vajra Cutter Sutra to a group of students. Rinpoche began by reading out a Dedication Prayer by Mipham Dawa Rinpoche, then, after the sutra transmission, Rinpoche led students in a meditation on emptiness. Read along with the transcript at https://www.lamayeshe.com/article/meditation-emptiness-vultures-peak-audio-and-transcript

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Imagine the Power of Bodhicitta

Compassion and Bodhicitta, Introductory, Lama Zopa Rinpoche

The incredible, unbelievable, most unbelievable, no words, how most important to generate bodhicitta, can you imagine?

-Lama Zopa Rinpoche

Lama Zopa Rinpoche celebrates the power of bodhicitta during teachings given by Rinpoche at the Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive home office in October 2012. Rinpoche was in town to attend the visit of His Holiness the Dalai Lama to FPMT’s Kurukulla Center in Boston, Massachusetts. You can read along with the transcript here.

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