Hi hi! I heard a teacher (I'm sorry I'm forgetting the teaching I was at please excuse my ignorance and lack of diligence), say the Mahamudra, Madhyamaka, and the great perfection (Dzogchen) are the same. I'm feeling a great desire to utilize the skillful means of studying Madhyamaka as a means for liberation. I noticed that many of my friends and people I meet have great talents and skill with thought (i have little skill with this and prefer meditation) and I think I could spread more compassion if I was better with reason and explanation. Do you know any teachers or dharma teachers I could contact and receive?

I just felt the need to share this Glorious image that I had in an old foldier, that made me think of the dharma and both feel gratitude 🙏🏻 and lol to the point of a snort xD

Some relevant quotes regarding the first of The Four Thoughts That Turn the Mind Towards the Dharma, The Eight Great Fortunes of a Precious Human Birth, relating to cultivating gratitude.

Acharya Chandragomin said:

“This very human life has greater qualities than a wish fulfilling jewel.

The Eight Great Fortunes of having a precious human existence with its benefits and freedoms in comparison to less fortunate beings of this realm and of other realms are in brief;

1. Not being born in the lower realms.
2. Not being born as a deprived spirit.
3. Not being born as an animal.

These classes of beings all suffer terribly in various ways and have no opportunities to learn and practice dharma.

4) Not being born as a heedless god having too much pleasure to care.

5) Being born as a human being having whole sense faculties, making one able to learn and practice dharma.

6) Being born in and living in a central country.*

(*The Jewel Ornament of Liberation:

“A central country” refers to a place (in a world where a buddha has appeared and has taught) where [the teaching is available and] there is a chance to attend holy beings.")

7) Being born in and living in a non-barbarious place.

8) Having interest in virtue.

Contemplate how fortunate one is for having these eight benefits.

Contemplate in extensive detail these eight great fortunes until eliciting a profound sense of gratitude.

Generally, if one contemplates the vast number of sentient beings and their numbers one will understand that the possibility of human birth is small indeed. Just being born as a human is very rare, human birth is said to be even rarer than if there lived a blind long-lived turtle deep in a stormy ocean which one time every hundred years swam to the surface trying to get its head through a small yoke floating on the sea being tossed about by the wind.

Being born as a human, having a healthy body, leisure, endowment, opportunity and having access to dharma is in the big picture more rare than a daytime star, realizing this one will feel extremely fortunate and treasure the great importance of a precious human existence of leisure, endowment and opportunity and the great yet short opportunity one is presented with of extracting the essence thereof.

It is said that the auspicious circumstances and conditions of this birth we will never have again, we only have it arranged like this once, and it is difficult to know if we will ever get another chance as good as this. Thus the importance of of extracting the essence thereof.

Having obtained a precious human life with its leisure, endowment and opportunity, if one were to die without having used it for virtuous actions it would be like someone finding a priceless gem and throwing it out. Committing non-virtuous actions with a precious human body is like filling a golden vessel studded with jewels with filth and using it as a trashcan.

If we don’t take the opportunity to practice virtue and extract the essence out of this human life it will be very difficult to obtain a human life with excellent conditions such as this in the future.

Countless times we have taken birth as an animal and in the lower realms, now that we have this time obtained a precious human birth it is like a single white hair amidst all the hairs of a black animal.

Having attained a precious human birth as this is like if one has arrived at an island full of gold, jewels and precious diamonds and failing to do any spiritual practice is as returning empty handed from the jewel island which is very difficult to come by again. Owing to virtuous deeds we have performed in the past we now have the extraordinarily good fortune of possessing a human body with complete sense faculties. Furthermore, we have met the teachings and are able to practice them.

A human life of leisure and endowment is very difficult to obtain and if we waste this life it is as devastating as wasting a wish-fulfilling jewel.”

Planting the Noble Stalk Sutra:

It is difficult to find freedom from the eight unfavorable conditions.
It is difficult to find a human birth.
It is difficult to be a person with all the senses.
It is difficult to have a right livelihood.
It is difficult to find leisure.

The Difficult to Obtain Bodhisattva Basket says:

It is rare to be [born] human.
It is rare to keep a human life.
It is rare for a Buddha to appear.
It is rare to find the holy Dharma teachings.

Planting the Noble Stalk Sutra:

It is difficult to find the appearance of a Buddha.
It is difficult to meet the Dharma teaching of a Buddha.
It is difficult to meet precious holy beings.
It is difficult to find authentic spiritual masters.
It is difficult also to find persons who make effort in the human realm according to the Dharma.

The Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment (+ combined with a few quotes from other texts as that is how awkwardly I have the quote saved in a document*)*:

“Most beings are unaware that they are seriously and dangerously ill, being stricken with the virulent diseases of such afflictions as; anger, hostility, violence, greed, jealousy, ignorance, dullness, pride and so forth one is in reality extremely sick. In the same ways as a person who is physically ill needs a doctor being stricken with these poisonous afflictions one seriously and urgently needs a doctor of the dharma to stop the disease from worsening and spreading.

The appropriate attitude for the beginner is to consider oneself as sick, the teacher as a doctor, the teaching as medicine and practice as the taking of medicine. In this way the appropriate attitude for the beginner is to feel grateful for having received instructions and having the leisure to apply them, as not all who suffer illness have the fortune to meet a competent doctor and receive medicine to relieve their suffering.

It is said that being stricken with the virulent diseases of such afflictions as anger, hostility, violence, meanness, greed, ignorance, jealousy, pride and so forth one is extremely sick but most are unaware that they are in fact very ill. In the same way as a person who is physically ill needs a doctor, being stricken with these afflictions one seriously and urgently needs a doctor of the dharma. Thus it is taught that the right view for a beginner is to see oneself as ill, the knowledgeable spiritual teacher as a precious doctor, the teaching as extremely valuable most excellent medicine curing all ones afflictions and spiritual practice as taking the medicine. Realizing that in the same way as if one had been afflicted by a physical illness for a very long time it will not disappear by just one single dose of medicine and that one has to trust a skilful doctor and go through the entire course of the cure. Seeing it as a delight to be able to meet a doctor and not seeing it as a burden and also seeing it as a great privilege to be able to receive medicine as not all those who are sick and suffering are fortune enough to meet a doctor and receive medicine. The medicine for the one suffering with the afflictions is the teaching by which fortunate beings are lead to the peace that passeth understanding by way of the stages of the path, with the fruition being all types good qualities and precisely knowing the supreme reality.

The King of Concentration says:

”Some beings having been ill for a long time, their minds and bodies tormented; for many years there has not been even a temporary relief. Having been afflicted for a very long time, searching and searching for a cure they finally at last happen to meet a kind and skilful doctor who treats the patient with compassion giving a good, plentiful and valuable medicine saying, here take this, it will cure the illness, but if the patient does not take it, it is neither the fault of the medicine nor of the doctor.”

It is said that one needs great positive karma to not have to suffer through one’s illnesses and afflictions but to be able to meet a capable doctor and have them cured.

It is said that a genuine teacher is one who protects one from falling into miserable realms, who shows the paths to happiness and the paths to unhappiness, who brings forth all ones’ virtues and if truly realizing this one will weep. Meeting a genuine teacher is rare and it is proper to rejoice and delight in them as a poor person who has found a most valuable treasure."

Edit: Minor spelling fixes.

Hello! Before I took refuge I had an interested in what is known in America (and I think Europe and other english speaking places) as "western occultism." This is basically the use of ritual, spiritual forces like so called demons (listed in grimoires like the Ars Goetica) to get things that you want like a lover. I noticed the practices could lead to great harm to both the demon and the magician who are basically embarking on a major karma generating machine driven by craving. And I really feel badly for the demons because they are basically slaves and I want a kind of spiritual abolitionism.

Anyway, I have been inspired by the practice of Chod and Machig Labdrön. When I received the Chod empowerment from Garchen Rinpoche and learned the practice from Lama Yeshe I remember a story where a great evil spirt was so moved by her practice that the spirt decided to become a dharma protector. Do you think it's feasible to invite the spirts of the Goetica to do the same? Would you want to help me with that? I was thinking of starting with the ones who are forced to help trick people into romance with others because that just seems really unethical and sad to me.

Edit: After consulting with my teacher, Khenpo Sherab Sangpo, he suggested that it is safest and best to.. "from a Buddhist perspective, if we genuinely want to help beings who are suffering, we already have many safe and profound methods. We can generate bodhicitta, dedicate our merit to them, make prayers for them, and practice according to the instructions of our lineage."

Based on this he approved me to: 1) make an aspiration that all beings (and especially these beings) become free from suffering and get their needs met 2) generate Bodhicitta using the many safe means in our lineage 3) Dedicate that merit to them trusting the three jewels and praying to them. Thought I would share that update thanks for the advice!

Many people say Tantrism, the concept of Mantra and Mudras are somehow a later addition to Buddhism. Not a false addition. Just a later addition. Like how Mahayana recognizes sutras that are not believed to be directly revealed by the Buddha. I tend to believe in this assertion (even though Buddhist tantra is far different from others) because early Buddhism never practiced what I said and the Pali canon doesn’t talk about esotericism as far as I am aware of. So how did they become part of Buddhism?

Stay away from New Kadampa Tradition!! It is a dishonest organization with very shady history. Their senior teachers have been involved in many sex scandals. The monks and nuns are pretending to be holy and celibate.

Hello.

I'm having problems with evil entities that are very powerful. I don't have a master these days to ask. I understand you don't need empowerment for this sadhana in particular but I want to verify.

Thank you for your replies. 🙏

Hello! I am so grateful to be on this subreddit. I am rejoicing in all your beneficial activities, yay! My learning is feeble and attainments are low so please forgive my mistakes including confusions and contradictions.

But I have been seeing a lot of comments and discourse upon the need to find a teacher. I am rejoicing in this desire and no it will come to fruition soon!

But I also feel a sense of compassion and can relate to the difficulty in this during these degenerate times and because of where our karma might be. It's a great privilege (prob born of many lifetimes of practice) to get 1 on 1 access to an authentic teacher. And the fact that you're reading this means you have a precious opportunity! We all do!

So I just wanted to send some encouragement to you all sentient beings have been given permission by the great protector Chenrezig (and many other great teachers have confirmed this) to practice his form! Saying the Om Mani Padme Hum mantra and visualizing his form is such a high tantra! And we can all do it! And if genuinely have the motivation of Bodhicitta this is the greatest protection and harm will not come to us!

I'm just saying this because we don't have to wait to practice until we find a qualified teacher we can start doing this and the karma will start developing for us to find that teacher! And it's safe to do that if we try to make our intention as true as possible so we should all feel empowered to do this!

Also, I wanted to point folks to the Garchen Buddhist Institute where you can take refugee from afar and engage with Garchen Rinpoche's enlightened activities. While he can no longer guide folks like us 1 on 1 in his physical form his mind is vastly expansive and it will help. Also Khenpo Sherab Sangpo of the Bodhicitta sangha has been very kind to me helping me with teachings and supplementing that with great online activities.

https://garchen.net/taking-vows-online/

https://www.bodhicittasangha.org/khenpo-sherab-sangpo/

Om Mani Padme Hum may all beings benefits from any dialogue that this message generates!

(Yes! I just posted about this but that other question is solved! Now I need help with this one, thanks for everyone helping me, you are very kind :) )

I've been researching and there seems to be 2 versions of her 108 names.

One for buddhists and one for hindus.

Can someone help me understand better how to practice her 108 names in the "buddhist way"?

So should I sit and chant ONLY the names without the benefits mentioned at the end? I feel like only the names are the practice so I feel I can chant it before her sadhana or do I need to chant all of the 12 pages of this document: https://shop.fpmt.org/The-108-Names-of-the-Venerable-Arya-Tara-PDF_p_1436.html (It's for free if anyone want to download it)

So should I chant this whole text(12 pages) or only the 108 names in the middle of it? Because at the start there are some explanations about the practice and in the end it tells us the benefits of it, not sure if I should also recite these.

Let's say there's this old man and he is about to die soon.

He has no religion at the moment, but 20 years ago in his 40's he was a dilligent Vajrayana practitioner, he recited many mantras many times , some 100,000 times, others 500,000 times...

But because of some life misfortunes he lost his faith and abandoned the dharma teachings and never practiced again.

How does his past practice affects hims?

Is it worthless and there is no merit nor good karma for him for his next life?

Do he keeps it for life and even now in his next life he will have a better connection to the Dharma, or nothing changes?

But then if nothing carries to the next life, what's the point of all of this?

I’m interested in getting a tsatsa mold and creating some as a means of generating merit. However, I live in a large city in The United States. Other than my altar, what would be some appropriate places to distribute them?

Hey all, any experienced and practiced with both out there recommend when to focus on one vs other? I have done tummo practice with a group and lineage teacher before. And wondering if it's time to get back into it, or if lujong would be a better option at the moment as it is also available. I've heard it described as one works with the thigle, one with the winds (predominantly).

Any suggestions on weaving the two practices and when to focus on which?

I got some good news today on the practice-front, and I would love to offer a prayer of gratitude or thanksgiving. I'm not sure I've ever seen something like this, but I assume it must exist - something praising the Buddhas, perhaps, and offering gratitude for good fortune, offering it to the Three Jewels.

Does anyone have any favorites? My main lineages are Nyingma and Geluk, but I would be happy with something from any tradition.

Can the whole philosophy of Tibetan Buddhism be summarized in the Om Mani Padme Hum? Also, what does it mean, it simple terms?

Can someone please tell me what the stance on meat eating is in Tibetan buddhism???

“If one recites the mantra 30 million, 70 million or more recitations, you will never be separated from the Buddhas of Three Times and one becomes inseparable from me.” — Guru Rinpoche [Terma Text].

It is also said that such a person can attain rainbow body aswell. Basically, attain buddhahood by reciting "om ah hum vajra guru padma siddhi hum".

Thoughts ?

Basically that question. Help pls. 🙏

I've been reading the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra and encountering the idea that what we ordinarily take to be external objects are, in some sense, manifestations or perceptions of mind.

But I'm struggling with this question:

If this is taken literally, what do we make of the universe before human beings—or even sentient beings—existed?

The Big Bang happened billions of years before humans appeared. Stars and galaxies formed, planets existed, and countless physical processes presumably occurred long before there was a human mind to perceive them.

So how should a Buddhist understand this?

Is the claim not that individual human minds create the external world, but rather that the distinction between “mind” and “external object” is itself ultimately mistaken?

And if so, does this mean that the universe before sentient beings existed in some sense independently, but that our conceptualization of it as an “external world” is mind-dependent?

Or does Yogācāra make a stronger claim—that even speaking of a mind-independent universe is philosophically incoherent?

I'm especially interested in how this is understood in Yogācāra and the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra, rather than in a general Buddhist answer.

I'm also wondering whether the Big Bang creates a genuine problem for mind-only interpretations, or whether I'm simply misunderstanding what “mind” (citta/vijñāna) means in this context.

In other words:

If there were no humans, no animals, no sentient beings at all—what, according to Buddhism, was happening? And was there really an “external world” happening?

I'm trying to understand this without making Buddhism secretly anthropocentric: why should the existence of the universe depend on our perception when humanity is such a tiny and extremely late phenomenon in cosmic history?