Time: 9am to 10am
Date: March 16 - December 31, 2009
Courses: Dakpo Lamrim
(March 16 – May 15)
Text: Gampowa’s The Jewel Ornament of Liberation (Dvgas po
thar rgyan)
The text consists of twenty-one chapters illustrating the presence of Buddha-nature within each and every individual. It gives instructions on: using the favorable conditions; the need of relying on a spiritual master; putting the instructions of a spiritual master into practice; attaining the ultimate state (enlightenment); engaging in the activities of boundless benefit to sentient beings and so forth. While studying the text, we will also come across the importance of meditating on the impermanence of the environment and the inhabitants as an antidote to our strong negative emotion of attachment and also as a means to help us realize how important and urgent it is to utilize this short yet favorable present life to reach closer to the state of enlightenment. The Jewel Ornament of Liberation is a text that elucidates some of the most essential teachings of Buddhism.
Letter to a Friend
(May 16 – June 15)
Text: Nagarjuna’s Letter to a Friend (Shurllekha, bShes pa’i springs yig)
Existing in the form of an epistle to the King Satavahana, the text explains the means of integrating spiritual teachings into our daily life. Although Nagarjuna is specifically teaching the king how to skillfully conduct kingly affairs, his text serves as a general advice to all lay members of the world community. In simple and succinct language, the master inspires lay practitioners, even those at the initial stage of practice, to assimilate the profound views and transcendental practices of the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas.
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Precious Garland
(June 16 – August 15)
Text: Nagarjuna’s Precious Garland (Ratnavali, Rin chen ‘phreng ba)
In the form of an epistle to a king, Precious Garland serves as a layperson’s guide to the complete path of enlightenment. Covering the first two chapters of the text, Geshe-la will enrich our understanding of higher rebirth and the two ultimate attainments—liberation and Buddhahood. The text first presents separate explanations and then an interwoven analysis of the causes and effects of higher rebirth and ultimate attainments. These chapters condense the various approaches that can be followed to understand the meaning of selflessness.
Jonang Lamrim
(August 16 – October 15)
Text: Taranatha’s The Essence of Ambrosia (bDud rtsi’i nying khu)
The Essence of Ambrosia is a guide to Buddhist meditation, composed by the prolific and eclectic Tibetan scholar Taranatha (1575-1634). Taranatha expounds a graduated approach addressing the needs of three types of individuals with varying mental dispositions. This text is a remarkably accessible and concise insider’s guide to the Mahayana Buddhist path.
An Introduction to Philosophical Schools of India and Tibet
(October 16 – November 15)
Text: The Origin of Tenets (Grub mtha’i byung ba brjod pa)
Geshe-la will explain the origin of the non-Buddhist philosophical schools of India and then proceed to interpret the origin of Buddhism, the origin of Buddhist tenets; Vaibhashika, Sautrantika, Chittamatra and Madhyamika based on the text.
Training the Mind
(November 16 – November 30)
Text: Geshe Langri-thangpa and Geshe Chekawa’s Eight Verses of Training the Mind (bLo sbyong tshigs rkang brgyad ma)
The Eight Verses of Training the Mind is a short yet very lucid and powerful text. As a way to accumulate merit, the text teaches us to consider each and every sentient being as precious as we would consider a wish-fulfilling gem. The verses also contain teachings on how to act with humility, how to examine one’s own actions and motivations, how to overcome anger, how to cultivate a mental attitude of willingly taking on the suffering of others, and so on. Thus, the text touches every aspect of daily life and provides solutions to overcome wrong attitudes and activities.
Geluk Lamrim
(December 1 – December 31)
Text: The Third Dalai Lama’s Essence of Superfine Gold (Lam rim gser zhun ma)
The Essence of Superfine Gold is the most famous literary composition of the Third Dalai Lama (1543-1588). It is a condensed but comprehensive commentary on Je Tsongkhapa’s (1357-1419) A Song of Experience which is the seminal guide on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment of the Beings of Three Capacities. Although brief, this text summarizes the three principal paths of the teachings of Buddha Shakyamuni.
Teacher:
Geshe Monlam Sangpo was born in the Tehor region of Kham in Eastern Tibet. In 1985, at the age of nineteen, he came into exile in India and joined the Monastic University of Drepung. He completed his studies for the degree of Geshe Lharampa in 2003. He then joined the Gyume Tantric University for one year. In February 2005 he joined Nechung Monastery as a Buddhist philosophy teacher. He began teaching Buddhist philosophy at the LTWA in May 2005.
Translators:
Tenzin Gyaltsen holds a Bachelor’s degree in Tibetan studies and Buddhist philosophy from the College for Higher Tibetan Studies, Sarah and a Bachelor’s degree from Delhi University. He joined the Research and Translation Department of the LTWA in the summer of 2006.
Sonam Gyatso holds an Acharya degree in Tibetan studies and Buddhist philosophy from the Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies, Varanasi. He joined the Research and Translation Department of the LTWA in the winter of 2005.
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