Who Can Be a Guru?

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An excerpt from a teaching called Compassion, Love, & Wisdom by Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo

According to the Buddha we continue in cyclic existence and suffer as we do because of desire, and that desire is born of the belief in self-nature as being inherently real.  Therefore the cessation of desire, in all its forms, is synonymous with enlightenment. That state of enlightenment is a pure awareness, pure recognition of the natural primordial wisdom state free of all contrivance.  That state is both blissful and awake or alive.  It is described as having the quality of innate wakefulness, which means when we describe that state as empty of self-nature, we are not describing something that is dead and dark and cold.  It has the quality of innate wakefulness.  In that state of pure awakening, free of the contrivance of desire, free of the very causes of hatred, greed and ignorance that arise within the mindstream once one has desire, free of these things that are seeds for all future sufferings, we are limitless and free in our capacity to be of benefit to beings.  If the Buddha is correct, and I know that he is when he says that all sentient beings are suffering because of desire and hatred, greed and ignorance that are results of desire, then who can help us?  Who can be a Guru? Who can benefit us if they themselves are not free of those causes, if they themselves are not free of desire, if they themselves are not free of hatred, greed and ignorance, in the sense that humans experience them?  Looked at this way, how can an ordinary sentient being lead us to enlightenment if they themselves have not obtained enlightenment?  How can they guide us to be free of the causes of suffering if they themselves are filled with the causes of suffering and will continue to create more and more results that are suffering?  So, if it is not possible, and I don’t think it is, for an ordinary sentient being with ordinary means at his disposal to give us what we need, then we need to look to a guide who is free of such things.

When I look at the Buddha and his life I am satisfied that he has achieved that pristine state of pure cognition.  I am satisfied that he experiences wisdom.  I am satisfied that he reaches the state, or has reached the state, that is wisdom itself. The pure natural uncontrived primordial wisdom state.  When he was asked, “What are you?  What manner of thing are you?”  he said, “I am awake.”  It is that state of innate wakefulness, that pure uncontrived realization, which must be considered the goal.  Therefore to help us accomplish our goals, to help us accomplish our path, we should only look to one who satisfies those questions and who has those qualities.

The Buddha teaches us that in order to be of benefit to sentient beings it is necessary to experience the pure uncontrived nature of one’s own mind in its natural state without the grasping of desire, without the limitation of the sufferings that are caused by that grasping, without the constant attraction and repulsion that we experience every moment, and without the resultant hatred, greed and ignorance. In order to be of use to sentient beings we must ourselves attain these qualities.  He describes wisdom in that way, putting a tremendous emphasis, through meditation and practice, on having a taste of that pure state. That taste so precious, without it we cannot know.

There is no way that I can tell you how to know the awakened state.  There is no way I can say to you, and have you really understand it: this is what you must do in order to be of benefit to sentient beings, to bring about the end of suffering, to yourself be free of suffering.  Because what I am telling you is only that which can lead to the accumulation of knowledge.  I have given you things and you know something, if you are listening, that you didn’t know before. If you use that which you are hearing to practice, and if you practice in such a way that your mind becomes deepened, and you really work at intensive and sincere practice for a great period of time and accomplish just what the teacher tells you to do, and you utilize a path that is pure, that has consistently proven results and brings about the necessary changes that lead ordinary beings, such as ourselves, to experience the natural state, then after some period of time you will have a taste of that nature.  That is the wisdom being spoken about; it is not the same as something you learn.

© Jetsunma Ahkön Lhamo

Astrology for 03/02/2018

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03/02/2018 Friday by Jampal & Wangmo

Theme: Karmic ripenings

If difficult causes and conditions occur today there might be a little silver lining that acts as a kind of offset. The full Moon in Virgo brings a perfectionist streak particularly in interactions with others. If you feel the urge to ‘nit pick’ try some gardening, therapeutic cleaning and organizing. Alternatively try reading or writing. In the Buddhist tradition this a good day to undertake virtuous/ethical activity as much as possible. ‘We are shaped by our thoughts; we become what we think. When the mind is pure, joy follows like a shadow that never leaves.’~the Buddha

Today the Moon is Void of Course from 6.51 pm EST USA until 3.22am the next day. If you’re in another country check what that means for you time-wise. It’s best to avoid making major decisions or signing contracts during this time.

It’s Simply Phenomena

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An excerpt from a teaching called Compassion, Love, & Wisdom by Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo

It is difficult to see the many different spiritual systems prevalent in our country that are based on the accumulation of knowledge. The thought is that at some point you will have enough knowledge, as if you can get a big bag of it and you can get enough in the bag that finally you have enough knowledge. At that point some sort of change will occur, a switch will flip and you will have enough, and there it is.  Why is that not possible, according to the Buddha?  Because according to the Buddha what you are accumulating as you accumulate knowledge is a contrivance in itself.  It is the necessary road we must take in order to reach certain conclusions, in order to understand in the ordinary human way.   Because of the way our minds work, I can’t even talk to you about Dharma without using language. I can’t talk to you about the primordial wisdom state without describing it. The tricky part is that the moment I describe it, that is not it.

Every bit of information that you gather, whether it is good information or bad information, whether it causes you to draw good conclusions or causes you to completely ruin your life, whether it causes you to give up drinking and smoking or whether it causes you to go off the deep end and cut off the tip of your nose, whatever bit of information you get from the primordial wisdom state it can be viewed as phenomena, exactly the same.  It is hard to understand because we really think things need to be judged by high and low, good and bad, here and there, up and down, and we have our criteria for judgment. We think that this is meaning. Yet from the pure state we must understand that all phenomena is the same – it is simply phenomena, good or bad, high or low, it is all a contrivance.  It is all an encumbrance upon the natural view.

Ironically, if you cut off the end of your nose and it causes you to realize the suffering of sentient beings, and because of that you practice, then that is good phenomena.  Likewise, if you get on the wagon and give up your drinking and womanizing ways, and you live a good life and become an upright person, causing you to become satisfied and think that is enough, you become a little rigid. That causes you to become a little egotistical and that causes you to get a lot of pride going, and that causes you to never to look any further than yourself, and if it causes you to think that it’s important what a good person you are, then that is the worst kind of phenomena.  So from the natural state, phenomena only has importance or any meaning in relation to the ability you have to become awake and to realize the primordial wisdom state.  The only thing that is meaningful is that which leads to the ultimate goal.

If you take that standard and really learn it and adapt yourself to it, and you look at the life you have lived so far, you should think about the many different things that were important to you.  I look at my own life that way and I see that I have placed importance on things that have no meaning because they did not lead to supreme enlightenment. I can look at the lives of all sentient beings and I can see that we spend a hundred and ten percent of our energy doing that which you cannot take with you when you die.  We are all involved in doing things that are, from that point of view, utterly meaningless. Also meaningless in the sense that not only do they not lead to the supreme goal, but they do not empower us to be of any benefit to sentient beings because we do not remove from our minds the causes of suffering: desire, hatred, greed and ignorance.  I think this is true of everyone.  I don’t think anyone is exempt unless they were born supremely realized, born on a lotus, and I was definitely not born on a lotus.

© Jetsunma Ahkön Lhamo

Astrology for 03/01/2018

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03/01/2018 Thursday by Jampal & Wangmo

Theme: Life balance

With the Moon opposite the Sun today there is a balancing act between home and work, feeling and thinking and your unconscious and conscious personalty traits. Communication continues to be challenging. Today in particular it’s easy to over react reading too much into things that aren’t there. For instance you could think someone is challenging you but are they really? Complete thought processes might be challenging today. ‘My point is, life is about balance. The good and the bad. The highs and the lows. The pina and the colada.’~Ellen deGeneres

 

Undefiled Awareness

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An excerpt from a teaching called How Buddhists Think by Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo

As Buddhists, we are not as infatuated with the idea of gods and goddesses as people in some other religions.  Why not?  Because we think of them as part of cyclic existence.  Long-life gods can grant blessings.  But can they get anybody enlightened?  No!  They don’t have Enlightenment.  You can wait around for someone to give you a blessing––or you can practice Dharma.

Neither are Buddhists impressed by talk about going to heaven or going to God.  For us, all this is just part of perceptual experience––just phenomena.  I’m not saying that phenomena don’t exist, but the goal of a Buddhist is beyond all phenomena, beyond the fixation of being caught up in cyclic existence.  It is not a goal that can be externalized.  It is pure, awakened Awarenes.  We talk about being reborn in Dewachen (which can sound similar to “being reborn in heaven,” and in one sense it is), but what is actually meant by that is to be reborn in the Dharmakaya state––to be born in a state of pure, undefiled Awareness.  To shed ignorance and to be reborn in undefiled Awareness is the only goal of a Buddhist.  It is not a conceptual process.  It is liberation from all the components of suffering.

© Jetsunma Ahkön Lhamo

To download the complete teaching, click here and scroll down to How Buddhists Think

Astrology for 02/28/2019

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02/28/2019 Wednesday by Jampal & Wangmo

Theme: Dissolving boundaries

With the Sun moving closer to Neptune for the next several days it’s an for opportunity to explore the nature of reality as normal ego structures are softened. Take time out to explore within and ones spiritual aspects. Sometimes fear can coincide with the dissolving of our normal structures and there may be a desire to lose oneself. It’s important to have good anchors at this time. ‘I know only love is worth our time. Will we reach our bliss with a life sublime Or just continue to run blind?’~ Jetsunma Ahkon Norbu Lhamo

Astrology for 02/27/2018

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02/27/2018 Tuesday by Jampal & Wangmo

Theme: Steering a course and harnessing energy

There is an opportunity today to make practical advances today. Discipline helps give birth to concrete outcomes.  The challenge is to both understand and overcome unconscious emotional patterns. With the Moon in Leo there is a continuum of potential behaviors ranging from the generous and magnanimous through to pridefulness. However, the Moon is also close to the asteroid Ceres which favors environmental awareness, and care for the caretakers if the earth. ‘One touch of nature makes the whole world kin.’~William Shakespeare

 

Life is Fleeting

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An excerpt from a teaching called How Buddhists Think by Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo

Have you ever seen someone made completely  miserable by neediness?  Some people are like a big gaping hole,   and all the love you could pour in there would not be enough.  Haven’t you ever gone through a phase like that yourself?  We’ve all had extremely needy, hungry-ghost-like phases.

Have you ever been prideful, arrogant?  Deludedly thinking that you’re better than other people?  Have you ever felt yourself so attractive that you thought you were hot stuff?  Do you ever think you smell better than other people?  I do.  I wear Estee Lauder.  Many people have that kind of pridefulness.  Haven’t you seen people being arrogant––while you wondered why they considered themselves so special?  It’s a kind of dream-like delusion from which they’re not able to wake up.

We have seed-like causes planted within our mindstream that we may be unaware of, among them our jealousy and competitiveness.  Have you ever been so angry that you were hell-bent to get someone’s goat?  That was all you could think about until you realized that you had put yourself in a kind of hell.  Have you ever seen other people living that way, continually frothing at the mouth and hell-bent on being right?  We can detect these things in our own mind––the impressions of them, like footprints in the sand.

The Buddha taught that these six realms exist and that we all have the karma to be reborn in any one of them.  He also taught that we have the right, the power, and the responsibility to produce the causes to ripen auspicious karma––to be reborn in an auspicious way.  In other words, there is no predestination.  No one is doomed.  No one is jinxed.  We all have both beneficial and unfortunate karmic potential in our mindstreams.  To the degree that we decide, we can engage in the ten virtuous activities which produce an auspicious rebirth.  No one is special, no one is flawed, no one is damaged, no one is brain-dead.  While you’re human, you have many options.

Having understood that rebirth in any of these realms is possible for each of us, we must make the best use of our time now.  There is an urgency in Buddhist thinking: you are asked, please, to make use of this fortunate human rebirth.  Don’t waste your time.  If you feel pushed to do as much as you can, the purpose isn’t to entrap you or to tell you that “there is only one right way.”  It is only to urge you to use your time effectively and courageously––because there is so little of it.

Buddhist teachings describe this human life as a waterfall.  Now, where is the drop of water that even a moment ago was at the top?  That’s how our lives are.  They appear stable, but they go by in a flash.  We need to use our opportunity.

 

© Jetsunma Ahkön Lhamo

To download the complete teaching, click here and scroll down to How Buddhists Think

Astrology for 02/26/2018

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02/26/2018 Monday by Jampal & Wangmo

Theme: Healing past relationships

With the Moon trine Jupiter there are blessings today. In addition there is an opportunity to day to heal from past hurts including relationships. Only you heal yourself in these circumstances. On a deeper unconscious level your feelings run deep today. How to let go of the past and our tendencies to want to control and be jealous. ‘In the end I think it will be the small things that keep us from completely giving ourselves.’~Anonymous

Today the Moon is Void of Course from 4.52pm EST USA until 11.43pm. If you’re in another country check what that means for you time-wise. It’s best to avoid making major decisions or signing contracts during this time.

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