April 5 – April 11, 2020 3:30-5:30pm EDT  Ven. Khenpo Tsewang Dongyal Rinpoche will begin live streaming a second week of teachings and practices from his Padma Samye Ling monastery and retreat center from Sunday April 5 – Saturday April 11, 2020 from 3:30-5:30pm EDT! Ven. Khenpo Rinpoche will be offering heart advice on sacred Dzogchen pith instructions by His Holiness Dudjom Rinpoche Jigdral Yeshe Dorje, as well as leading silent Dzogchen meditations and additional practices on Orgyen Menla, Medicine Buddha, Vajra Armor, White Tara, Noble Lady Tara Ritod Loma Jonma, and Dharma protector prayers. ♦ Because of Zoom security upgrades, a password is now required to join the meeting. The password is 019376. Also, you may have to wait a moment to be admitted to the meeting. Please be patient and one of our technical staff will admit you promptly. ♦ Please note: In addition to the afternoon sessions with Ven. Khenpo Tsewang Dongyal Rinpoche you can also join morning and evening practices with the lamas from Padma Samye Ling:  8:00 – 9:00 am: Buddha Shakyamuni Practice 7:30 – 8:15 pm: Heart Sutra Practice This is Part 2 of a series of teachings that Ven. Khenpo Tsewang Dongyal Rinpoche will be kindly live streaming to members and friends of the Padmasambhava Buddhist Center around the world. Listed below is the daily schedule, and the list of texts we will use for this special time.  Included are links to our online bookstore, as well as complimentary pdfs of several of the practice texts.  You’ll even be able to write in with questions, and Ven. Khenpo Rinpoche will answer some of them the following day. Please spread word of this special opportunity to practice live with Ven. Khenpo Tsewang Rinpoche from your home!  You can forward this email or tell them to go to padmasambhava.org/events. Webcasts are being streamed via the Zoom platform. In the last section of this post are instructions on how to download the Zoom application. Join Live Via Zoom Daily at 3:30 EDT Password is 019376 Donations in support of these live webcasts are graciously welcome. To make a donation click here. Daily Schedule Everyone is warmly welcome to join webcast practices and teachings from Padma Samye Ling Temple as best suits your schedule… • 8:00 am – 9:00 am EDT Buddha Shakyamuni Practice • 3:30 pm – 5:30 pm EDT  Venerable Khenpo Tsewang Dongyal Rinpoche will lead meditation practice and give pith Dzogchen instructions   • 7:30 pm – 8:15 pm EDT    Heart Sutra Practice note: Times are Eastern Daylight Time. A time zone converter can be found by following this link. Connect each day for free via Zoom! Password is 019376 Donations in support of these live webcasts are graciously welcome. To make a donation click here. Texts we will use during this week’s retreat… If you don’t already have any of these prayer texts, hard copies can be purchased online at the PBC Chiso Dharma Store. Several of these texts are also available as complimentary downloads during this special retreat.  A Treasury of Precious Mantras and Prayers of Supplication, Dedication and Aspiration used every session Orgyen Menla Click here for complimentary download used 3:30pm session Condensed Medicine Buddha by Raga Asye Click here for complimentary download used 3:30pm session Dharmapala Prayers used 3:30pm session White Tara Click here for complimentary download used 3:30pm session Vajra Armor Mantra and Ritod Loma Jonma Click here for complimentary download used 3:30pm session Heart Advice to All Practitioners by H.H. Dudjom Rinpoche Click here for a complimentary copy Ven. Khenpo Rinpoche will give teachings on this text every day during the afternoon session. Buddha Sadhana used for morning and evening sessions Click here for complimentary download of the Heart Sutra Lineage Prayer Insert for Daily Prayers Book *Click here to download used every session A guide to the order of prayers we are using during the day’s practice sessions can be downloaded here. Connect each day for free via Zoom! To join the live Zoom Meeting (via internet or phone) click this link: https://zoom.us/j/724793529 Zoom has tightened their security and a password is now required to join this meeting. The password is 019376 After you enter the password, you may find yourself in a waiting area. This is another security feature that Zoom has added. Please be patient, and one of our hosting staff will admit you to the meeting very soon. Instructions for Zoom: It is best to download and install the Zoom application in advance, since this may take a few minutes. The application is free, and clicking on this link will take you to the Zoom site where you can download the version that is best for your device.   • For Windows or Mac computers, choose Zoom Client for Meetings. The correct software will download automatically. • For iPhones, and iPads,  and Android devices, choose either the Apple App Store or Google Play. • For Microsoft Outlook, choose Microsoft Outlook Add-in   • For Chrome and Firefox web browsers, choose  Zoom Extension for Browsers   Once you have downloaded and installed Zoom, you should be able to just click on the link below or any of the buttons above to join Rinpoche. If you run into trouble, you may have to type in the Meeting ID below. Please use the Zoom controls to mute your microphone so that we are all able to hear Rinpoche clearly. The telephone numbers at the bottom of the page are for your use if you prefer to simply dial in and listen instead of joining the video stream. To join the live Zoom Meeting (via internet or phone) click this link: https://zoom.us/j/724793529 Meeting ID: 724 793 529 Password: 019376 Tips for live stream video: Much of the quality of the audio and video dependent on everyone’s bandwidth and connectivity.  To provide the best experience for all sangha members, we would like you to be aware of the following. By default, your microphone and camera will be disabled; please leave them like this. We ask that all Sangha members leave their video cameras off during the live stream. Leaving video off will preserve bandwidth and allow for the best experience. Leaving your video off is also less distracting for other sangha members. When viewing in full-screen mode, you can minimize the thumbnails of other participants by clicking the small grey rectangle at the top of the thumbnail pane. We advise that you do this. Do note that the entire internet is under considerable strain as many people work from home, and schools and universities around the planet are rapidly moving to online education. Please keep this in mind as you enjoy these precious teachings. Below are the telephone numbers to use if you prefer to simply dial in and listen instead of joining the video stream. One tap mobile +16465588656,,724793529# US (New York) +13126266799,,724793529# US (Chicago) Dial by your location +1 646 558 8656 US (New York) +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago) +1 669 900 9128 US (San Jose) +1 253 215 8782 US +1 301 715 8592 US +1 346 248 7799 US (Houston) +1 787 966 7727 Puerto Rico +1 787 945 1488 Puerto Rico Find your local number: https://zoom.us/u/ahDmaJdi7

 

padmasambhava.org/events

Dearest PBC Sangha Members and Friends,

I hope that this message finds you safe and secure, and filled with courage and confidence.

During this difficult time, it is important to support each other and to remember the Dharma, seeing this as an opportunity to practice compassion and loving-kindness for ourselves and others.

The Padmasambhava Buddhist Centers are taking several steps to help us all do this.

Firstly, as my heartfelt offering to deepen your meditation and retreat with day-to-day study and practice, below please find general guidance and resources for doing retreat at home. This includes relevant videos and lineage heart essence instructions. If you have any questions, email us at: jowozegyal@catskill.net

Secondly, to help us stay in touch, we’re creating a private message board for each PBC Center’s website where we can leave notes, encouragement, and offer help to other Sangha members.

Thirdly, next week we will inform you of livestream practices from Padma Samye Ling monastery and retreat center beginning sometime in April, so that we can all practice and meditate together with myself and the lamas online.

In addition, here are special prayers we published last week in response to requests from our Sangha, including White Tara practice and others, which I have asked everyone to participate in if possible.

Recommended prayers and mantras

Requested White Tara practice and mantras

For the safety and heath of all PBC Sangha Members and Friends, all PBC Centers are temporarily closed until further notice.

I ask that you pray for the well-being of all sentient beings, and follow the advice of your health professionals.

Please be careful to monitor yourselves for symptoms of the Covid-19 virus, and contact your health care providers if you start to show any symptoms. This is a practice of loving-kindness, taking care of both yourself and those who you come in contact with.

May we all emerge from this difficult time more courageous, stronger in our commitment to the Dharma, and filled with even more bodhichitta.

Yours in the Dharma,

Ven. Khenpo Tsewang Dongyal Rinpoche

 

• • •

 

Useful sites for further information:

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

CNN: Coronavirus symptoms

 

• • •

 

If you’re at home and would like to do additional Dharma study and meditation practice, here are some general suggestions for organizing a week retreat.

Each day includes some PBC YouTube videos, reading selections, and meditations to supplement your usual daily practice schedule.

This week of study and practice could easily be extended, repeated, or supplemented.

Thanks for taking advantage of this special opportunity!!!

 

Day 1: Four Thoughts that Turn the Mind from Samsara

Videos:

Benefits of Reflecting on the Four Thoughts that Turn the Mind Towards the Dharma

Renunciation, Bodhichitta, and Pure Perception

Thoroughly Investigating Impermanence

Karma

Don’t Be Too Attached to Worldly Things: Understand Suffering and Its Cause

How to Keep Your Practice Fresh

Readings:

“The Preparation—The Four Thoughts That Reverse the Mind”

Illuminating The Path: Ngondro Instructions According to the Nyingma School of Vajrayana Buddhism (pgs 65-76)

“Chapter 4: The Four Thoughts That Turn the Mind Towards the Dharma”

Walking in the Footsteps of the Buddha: The Path to Freedom (pgs 29-50)

 “How to Meditate”

“Framing Your Practice with the Three Noble Ones”

“A Simple Meditation Practice”

Walking in the Footsteps of the Buddha: The Path to Freedom (pgs 115-135)

 Practices:

20-minute Shamatha Calm Abiding Meditation (multiple sessions)

Ngondro Foundational Practice

• • •

Day 2: Refuge

Videos:

The Essence of Refuge

Essential Meaning of Taking Refuge

Serving the Three Jewels in Post-Meditation

Readings:

 “Taking Refuge”

The Buddhist Path: A Practical Guide from the Nyingma Tradition of Tibetan Buddhism (pgs 23-25)

 Chapter 3: Discovering a Reliable Refuge

Walking in the Footsteps of the Buddha: The Path to Freedom (pgs 17-25)

 “Going for Refuge”

Illuminating The Path: Ngondro Instructions According to the Nyingma School of Vajrayana Buddhism (pgs 77-92)

 Practices:

20-minute Shamatha Calm Abiding Meditation (multiple sessions)

Ngondro Practice

• • •

 

Day 3: Bodhichitta

Videos:

The Key Point of Motivation

Immense Heart of Wisdom and Compassion

The Essence of Bodhichitta

Readings:

 “Four Thoughts the Turn the Mind Towards the Dharma”

Walking in the Footsteps of the Buddha: The Path to Freedom (pgs 29-50)

 “The Power of Compassion”

and “The Inseparability of Compassion and Emptiness”

The Buddhist Path: A Practical Guide from the Nyingma Tradition of Tibetan Buddhism (pgs 41-48)

 “The Generation of Bodhichitta”

Illuminating The Path: Ngondro Instructions According to the Nyingma School of Vajrayana Buddhism (pgs 93-102)

 Practices:

Four Boundless Meditations

Tonglen

Ngondro Practice

 

• • •

 

Day 4: The Heart Sutra

Videos:

How to Practice Shamatha Concentration Meditation

How to Practice Vipashyana Supreme Seeing Meditation According to Mahamudra and Dzogchen

How to Develop Your Meditation by the Great Master Kamalashila

Readings:

 “Prajñāpāramitā and the Heart Sūtra”

and “The Two Truths” and “Ground, Path, and Fruition”

Ceaseless Echoes of the Great Silence:
A Commentary on the Heart Sutra Prajnaparamita (pgs 13-17 and 40-52)

 Practices:

Heart Sutra Prajnaparamita Practice

Ngondro Practice

• • •

Day 5: Foundational Ngondro Practice

Videos:

Waking Up from the Deep Slumber of Ignorance

Essence of the Three Samadhis of Tibetan Buddhist Visualization

Readings:

 “Ngondro Practice According to the Dzogchen View”

Illuminating The Path: Ngondro Instructions According to the Nyingma School of Vajrayana Buddhism (pgs 19-26)

 Practices:

Ngondro Practice with Ven. Khenpo Tsewang Dongyal Rinpoche

• • •

 

Day 6: Supplication to Guru Padmasambhava

Videos:

Guru Padmasambhava Embodies All the Buddhas

How to Practice Dzogchen and Guru Yoga

Connecting to the Lamas of the Lineage

Readings:

“Guru Yoga Practice”

The Buddhist Path: A Practical Guide from the Nyingma Tradition of Tibetan Buddhism (pgs 93-96)

 “Introduction”

Liberating Duality with Wisdom Display:

The Eight Emanations of Guru Padmasambhava (pgs 7-20)

 Practices:

Seven Line Prayer of Guru Padmasambhava

Guru Yoga of Padmasambhava

• • •

 

Day 7: Supplication to Noble Lady Tara

Videos:

You Are Tara

Introduction to Tara Empowerment

Readings:

 “Understanding Tara at the Relative Level”

and “Understanding Tara at the Ultimate Level”

Tara’s Enlightened Activity: An Oral Commentary on the Twenty-one Praises to Tara (pgs 17-32)

 Practices:

How to Practice Any Tibetan Buddhist Meditation (Kurukulle Sadhana)

• • •

 

 

Daily Supplemental Practices

 

• Dharmapala Protectors

• Great Cloud of Blessings

• White Umbrella

• Lion-Faced Dakini
  

• Tara Mantra Accumulation

• Vajra Armor Mantra

• Additional Mantra Recitations from the PBC Daily Prayers Sadhana