Bread and Butter Verses
Some verses you'll hear again and again. Not a definitive list – there ain’t no such thing. But if you know these by heart and can join the recitation at the drop of a hat, you will achieve one great ...
5 Feb 202519min
What is the Lama for? Actually?
Q: Is the lama your boss? Big daddy? Friend? Mate? Therapist? A: Mostly not Then what? Words or phrases you might want to look up: Jamgon Kongtrul Treasury of Knowledge Longchen Rabjampa #Buddhi...
29 Jan 202525min
Empowerments
Empowerments – what happens? You’ve been to a Buddhist ceremony. Perhaps you knew it was an empowerment. Whatever does that mean? Are you cooked? Words or phrases you might want to look up: Einweihun...
22 Jan 202520min
Am I a vajrayana practitioner?
Or are you a vajrayana practitioner? Is it a question of rites and rituals and pictures and mantras? Or is it something deeper? Empowerment card showing a vajra Words or phrases you might want to lo...
15 Jan 202517min
Namo Buddha - best of three?
Namo Buddha - the smallest, but perhaps most beautiful, of the three stupas of the Kathmandu valley: Where the Buddha is said to have sacrificed himself to a tigress: And where this temple, study an...
8 Jan 202515min
Ultimate Practices? Mahamudra and Dzogchen
Mahamudra and dzogchen are often spoken of as the “highest” practices of Tibetan Buddhism. How very exciting! Are they really? What does “highest” mean anyway? And what is the difference between maham...
1 Jan 202524min
The Seven line prayer to Guru Rinpoche
Beside the best-known mantras used in popular Tibetan-style Buddhism – the famous “Mani”, Tara and Guru Rinpoche for example – there are a number of prayers which are also very widely known and used. ...
25 Dec 202421min
Emptiness. Or nothing?
Emptiness (shunyata, or tongpa in Tibetan) is an utterly core theme in Buddhist teaching. When we first hear about it, we usually don’t have much idea what it’s about at all. We may mistake it for som...
18 Dec 202420min
