Category Archives: Lama Zopa Rinpoche

The Nature of the Mind on the Path

Compassion and Bodhicitta, Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Nature of the Mind, Refuge

Taking refuge, now, becomes a very serious matter or serious practice, very fundamental, like the earth is used for many things, roads, houses, to grow food, crops, plants and so forth; the earth is used for so many things, for happiness.

Lama Zopa Rinpoche

These teachings on the nature of the mind and the stages of the path, including extensive teachings on refuge, were given by Lama Zopa Rinpoche at the Twenty-Eighth Kopan Meditation Course in November, 1995. You can read along with the transcript at https://www.lamayeshe.com/article/chapter/lecture-nine-nature-mind

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The Meaning of Secret Mantra

Emptiness, Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Sutras, Mantras and Root Texts

The meaning of the word ‘mantra’ includes the whole path to enlightenment.

-Lama Zopa Rinpoche

Lama Zopa Rinpoche discusses the use of mantra in highest yoga tantra and explains how our minds should approach the practice of the mantra of Chenrezig. These teachings were given at the Twenty-Eighth Kopan Meditation Course in November 1995. Read along with the transcript on our website here.

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Buddha’s Compassion Never Gives Up

Compassion and Bodhicitta, Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Oral Transmission, Refuge, Sutras, Mantras and Root Texts

The Buddha of Compassion is the embodiment of all the buddhas’ great compassion that embraces and never lets go, never gives up on sentient beings even for one second.

-Lama Zopa Rinpoche

These teachings on the benefits of reciting the Compassion Buddha’s mantra were given by Lama Zopa Rinpoche at the Twenty-Eighth Kopan Meditation Course in November, 1995. After reciting Om Mani Padme Hum, Rinpoche also reassures us that no matter how low we may go, we can trust that the Buddha’s compassion will never give up on us. You can read along with the transcript at https://www.lamayeshe.com/article/chapter/lecture-one-compassion 

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The Benefits of Purification

Karma, Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Practice Commentary

There’s no other way to do this perfect work for others, so therefore one must actualize the steps of the path to enlightenment; to do that one must purify the obstacles, the negative karmas, obscurations, so therefore then one must do Vajrasattva practice which is the most powerful one by which any negative karma can be purified.

-Lama Zopa Rinpoche

Lama Zopa Rinpoche gave these profound teachings before a Vajrasattva initiation at Jinsiu Farlin Center in Taiwan in 1994. In these teachings Rinpoche explains the suffering realms of samsara and the benefits of immediately ending all our non-virtuous activities and working quickly to purify all past negative karma so that we may avoid the suffering realms while we practice the path and attain enlightenment for the sake of all. You can also read along with the transcript on our website-https://www.lamayeshe.com/article/benefits-purification-practice-audio-and-unedited-transcript

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Subduing the Mind

Emptiness, Lama Zopa Rinpoche

If one practices mindfulness in the reality of these things, that which is impermanence, there is liberation from samsara.

Lama Zopa Rinpoche

The mind is the source of all suffering and the source of all happiness. In this session Lama Zopa Rinpoche explains how subduing the mind by meditating on the reality of impermanence is the method by which we can become liberated from samsara. Many of the powerful and poignant examples Rinpoche uses to illustrate impermanence are also used as classic illustrations of emptiness. These teachings were given by Lama Zopa Rinpoche in Sydney, Australia, in 1993. Read along with the transcript at https://www.lamayeshe.com/article/chapter/subduing-mind-equanimity-meditation

 

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The Urgent Need for Bodhicitta

Compassion and Bodhicitta, Emptiness, Lama Zopa Rinpoche

Excerpted from a series of teachings given by Lama Zopa Rinpoche in Sydney, Australia in 1993. Listen to the rest of the series and follow along with the unedited transcript here.

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The Power of Cherishing Others

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

Even if we feel we are only capable of doing small things to help others right now, don’t feel hopeless or depressed. Instead rejoice because even the smallest attempt to help others should fill our hearts with happiness and joy.

-Lama Zopa Rinpoche

Lama Zopa Rinpoche encourages us to examine whether our attempts to help others are in fact motivated by cherishing ourselves. Rinpoche assures us that even if our capacity to cherish others is small right now, even our smallest attempts to cherish others should fill our hearts with joy. Rinpoche then illustrates the power of cherishing others by telling the story of Asanga and Maitreya. These teachings given by Rinpoche in Sydney, Australia, 1993. You can read along with the transcript at https://www.lamayeshe.com/article/chapter/cherishing-others-asangas-teachings

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Karma: Intentions and Results

Karma, Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Lamrim (Path to Enlightenment), Practice Commentary

Excerpted from a series of teachings given by Lama Zopa Rinpoche in Singapore in 1993. Listen to the rest of the series and follow along with the unedited transcript here.

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The Power and Potential of the Mind

Guru Devotion, Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Nature of the Mind

Our meeting the spiritual friend, the spiritual master, who reveals the right path, is like the stick that meets the gong.

-Lama Zopa Rinpoche

In this talk Lama Zopa Rinpoche explains how the nature of our mind is the source of our freedom. It is simply a matter of gathering the causes and conditions to remove the temporary obscurations and reveal our mind of clear light. Like a stick hitting a gong, meeting a qualified teacher is essential to activate this potential for enlightenment. These teachings were given Singapore in January 1993. You can read along with the transcript at https://www.lamayeshe.com/article/chapter/nature-mind-meeting-guru

 

 

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The Dharma Will Protect Us

Dharma in Daily Life, Introductory, Karma, Lama Zopa Rinpoche

How to live the life? First your attitude becomes Dharma. Then with that attitude one lives the life, one does the works, one does the activities.

-Lama Zopa Rinpoche

Lama Zopa Rinpoche observes that we think we can rely on purification practices to deal with our negative karma. Rinpoche warns us against relying too much on purification because it must be done perfectly to be effective. Rinpoche then directs our attention to the suffering realms around us and explains that in order to resist our karmic tendency to accumulate such causes of suffering, our main effort should be focused on living our lives according to the Dharma. These teachings were given by Rinpoche in Sydney, Australia in 1993. Follow along with the transcript on our website at https://www.lamayeshe.com/article/chapter/purification-karma

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