What’s the Point?

TK-254_Saga Dawa_6-9-09-25-M

Actually these teachings on the Four Noble Truths are the lessons that we are trying to implement here in this temple.  One of the goals that I have personally invested a great deal in is to try to create in this temple an opportunity for sentient beings to invest their effort, their kindness, their resources in whatever way in order to bring benefit to others. I feel that this is a beneficial practice. According to the Buddha’s teachings, this is one way to create the perfect interdependent cause and effect arising in order to create the kind of happiness that we wish. The efforts that we engage in here don’t seem to bring much result at this time, in this way.

Right now, for instance, we are holding a twenty-four hour a day prayer vigil. There’s always someone in that room behind the staircase, the shrine room, who’s praying for the welfare of sentient beings. There are 12 two-hour shifts a day and we go round the clock twenty four hours a day. Now what is that producing for us now? Nothing, absolutely nothing. We lose sleep, we get irritable, we’re tired. Sometimes we don’t want to get up and do this thing. Sometimes we do everything that we can to trade shifts so that we don’t have to be there on Saturday morning. But somebody gets stuck with it, I guarantee you. Where’s the payoff? Why would we want to do that?

Let’s talk about some of the other things that we do. Right now we’re building a stupa park with eight stupas in it. In the past we’ve built the stupa that is out on the grounds toward the parking lot. When we built that stupa out there, we had weather such as we’ve had in the last couple of days. For some reason, every time we build stupas this happens. I don’t know why, but it seems to be in the high nineties, if not a hundred or over, with humidity just under pouring. You know somewhere around ninety-nine point nine. It’s just beastly weather and it’s very difficult. We get out there and we work very hard and we sweat very much. And it seems as though the effort will never end. It’s very, very hard because we do everything ourselves. Sometimes we lose weekends for a whole summer. Sometimes we lose evenings for months. We don’t get much rest; we work very, very hard.

Why do we do this? What’s the benefit? What are we experiencing right now in building this stupa park that’s so wonderful, besides backaches and sore limbs.  It seems as though nothing. It seems as though we’re just working very hard for no good reason. But actually what we are doing here is we are implementing the Buddha’s teachings. The Buddha teaches us that whatever we can do to benefit beings, to bring happiness and well-being to sentient beings, will bring us happiness and well-being as well. The Buddha teaches us that the point of our practice, the point of our lives, is to actually engage in meritorious, generous, wholesome and virtuous activity that will be of benefit to sentient beings. And the Buddha teaches us specifically that the only lasting permanent true cessation of suffering, and therefore benefit to sentient beings, is enlightenment. The true cessation of suffering is the state of enlightenment.

Copyright © Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo.  All rights reserved

Putting the Teachings Into Practice

The following is from a series of tweets by Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo:

I wish my Sangha was more concerned with the welfare of others. And more concerned with our Temple (KPC) to the degree that they help.

Some in our community work for othersand do their practice with depth and concern. They truly have the proper intention and the Bodhicitta Many are simply lazy and unconcerned. They like the dog and pony show and the exotic belonging to a place like KPC. They sign up but do nothing, start but never finish, are like children who expect to have their toys cleaned and picked up for them. They don’t even recognize What needs doing. They just show up and enjoy the show. That is not Dharma and will not lead to the precious awakening .

This is a great weekend to do some outside cleaning and picking up. Get some fresh air and sunshine. The grounds are a mess. Plants that have gone down for the winter need cutting back and fallen branches, leaf trash, all need cleaning up. It is good to present ourselves in a neat, respectful way. We should have no junk laying around and get rid of abandoned, and now useless things like the RV. Which we really needed to transport animals and other things and people, especially to Dakini Valley, while we sat slack-jawed watching it rot.

Copyright © Jetsunma Ahkon Norbu Lhamo All rights reserved

KPC Hosts 1st Annual “Pet Day!”

Pet Day 3

A Great Time Was Had By All Creatures Great And Small

This past Saturday, October 26 was KPC’s first Love Your Pet Day, a family-friendly pet fair. Designed as a fundraiser for KPC’s ongoing renovation project, it was a resounding success, raising over $1100 to benefit the project.

Pet Day 2

The weather was beautiful – a crisp and clear fall day that was perfect for enjoying our 65 acres. Activities included pet blessings, guided tours of KPC’s Peace Park, bake sales for both humans and pets, face painting for kids and reiki and acupuncture for pets. We even had a dress-up your pet photo booth. The event was entirely outside because the number of animals visiting would have been difficult to manage in our newly renovated prayer room, open since September.

Pet Day 1

Special thanks go to Mama Lucia’s Restaurant and Nick’s Pizza & Subs for providing our lunch, Bark! Pet Store and Elizabeth Elgin for providing raffle prizes, Drs. Pema Mallu and Kitty Raichura, of Holistic Veterinary Healing, for offering pet acupuncture, Robin Gough who gave reiki and massage for pets and our partners in animal welfare, Lizzy’s Lodge Pet Rescue and MCPAW (Montgomery County Partnership for Animal Well-being).

We look forward to seeing everyone next year at the 2nd Annual Love Your Pet Day!

KPC Participates in “Clergy Without Borders”

Attendee Group Picture[1]

The “Clergy Without Borders” bus rolled up to the Unitarian Universality Church in Rockville at 4:20pm on Sunday – just about on schedule – for a rally in Montgomery County.  Clergy Without Borders” is an interfaith effort that acknowledges diversity and seeks to raise consciousness of peace and unity in Maryland.  A bus of 12 clergy drawn from Christian, Jewish, and Muslim traditions traveled over a 4 day period to a dozen communities in Eastern, Central and Western Maryland.  The rally in Rockville featured remarks from County Executive Ike Leggett and included musical offerings from Sikh, Jewish and Unitarian musicians, statements from clergy on the bus of personal commitment to creating a safe environment for all spiritual traditions, and a rousing call to action by one Imam who asked that everyone, when they look in the mirror, to recognize the face of other spiritual traditions. Montgomery County interfaith groups also gave a short description of their work in County.

KPC friend Rev. Mansfield “Kasey” Kaseman spent three days on the bus with the Clergy Without Borders and was the emcee for the Rockville rally.  He introduced County Executive Ike Leggett who reaffirmed his and the County’s commitment to a diverse and peaceful Montgomery County.  The Clergy Without Borders group departed for Baltimore, their last stop, at 6pm.  Four sangha from KPC attended this event – Gonpo Yeshe (David) Williams, Tashi Dawa (William) North, Ani Alyce Louise Bertsche, and Ani Tenzin (Lynn).

Kunzang Palyul Choling: NEWS

The following YouTube video was prepared in response to recent challenges faced by Kunzang Palyul Choling Buddhist Temple:

If you would like to help support the restoration of all activities KPC has offered to the community please click here.

Learn more about Kunzang Palyul Choling (KPC) in this excerpt from “Reborn in the West” by Vicki Mackenzi

Jewel of the Dharma in the West

Prayer Room In Progress

The following is from a series of tweets by Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo:

I am racking my brain to think of more ways to fund raise. It feels like crying in the darkness. His Holiness Karma Kuchen Rinpoche tells me KPC is absolutely necessary, as did His Holiness Penor Rinpoche. Palyul needs us to be strong for the sake of all beings and for western Dharma.

We are not on time, we are lagging. Please wake up and march forward with me and make the world a better, kinder place.

Support the Renovation

 

HH Karma Kuchen at KPC 2009: Stabilizing the Dharma in the West – Video

The following is a video excerpt from a teaching offered by His Holiness Karma Kuchen Rinpoche, 12th Throneholder of the Palyul Lineage, at Kunzang Palyul Choling in Maryland:

His Holiness will be visiting KPC once again on August 4th to confer special Long Life Empowerments of Amitabha and Amitayus. For more details or to register for the event visit: http://www.tara.org/program/his-holiness-karma-kuchen-rinpoche-to-offer-empowerment-ceremony/

Have Fun and Help Support the Garuda Aviary

Garuda Aviary

Aviary for Neglected Birds Hosts Day of Fun and Learning

Enjoy a day of fun, food and entertainment to learn about and support the Garuda Aviary, a non-profit lifelong shelter for abused, neglected and abandoned companion birds. The event will take place on the grounds of Tibetan Buddhist Temple, Kunzang Palyul Choling (KPC) on Saturday, June 22, 2013 from 12 noon to 4:00pm.

A number of the colorful aviary birds will be on view in their outdoor flight cage for all to see, weather permitting. Talks focused on the plight of captured exotic birds will be presented.

Live entertainment will be presented by musical group “Crosswinds”, playing an eclectic mix of hits from the 60’s through today. This family friendly event will also feature children’s activities, and a variety of foods, including kid favorites such as hot dogs and a sampling of vegetarian and non-vegetarian entrees. There will also be a bake sale.

All proceeds will benefit the parrots and birds of the aviary. It takes an average of $19 per bird, per month to feed the birds their diet of fruits, vegetables, seeds and nuts, in addition to medical and facility expenses.

The aviary was created by Spiritual Director of KPC Buddhist Temple , Jetsunma Ahkön Lhamo, starting with one neglected Moluccan Cockatoo.  Now, the aviary houses more than 55 birds, including several types of Macaws and Cockatoos, African Gray parrots, Amazon parrots and Conures.

Parrots have the social and intellectual development of a 2 to 5 year old child, and a potential lifespan of about 80 years or more.  Because many people who purchase birds are ill-prepared for such a long, intensive commitment, parrots are often the subjects of mistreatment and neglect. To ensure that the cycle of suffering for the birds is broken, Garuda Aviary does not adopt out its parrots and instead provides a sanctuary until the end of their natural lives.

All are welcome to be a part of this fun and educational event. Admission is free. The location is 18400 River Road, Poolesville, MD 20837. For more information, contact [email protected], call 301-710-6259 or visit  www.garudaaviary.org.

 

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