Dharma Wheel

I do prostrations every day - I don't find that they put anything like the strain of a pushup on my arms. If you already have problems with your arms and shoulders I can understand why it would be a worry. But otherwise, I've not experienced any problems over several years with arms and shoulders. ...

Hey everyone, I need to burn 100,000 candles as offering. Does anyone know where i can get a ton of candles for cheap?? I have no clue; make your own or set up an event for an entire community to make renewable, environmentally-friendly candles? That way, everyone gains merits! Are there environmen...

How does one prevent elbow pain (golfer or tennis elbow) when doing daily full prostrations? Is the act of prostrations most likely to lead to golfer or tennis elbow? I know this is really butting up against the "no medical advice" so maybe a non-me focused discussion on this is prudent. If that's ...

This is explicitly outlined by Vasubandhu in his commentary on the Abhidharmakośa, so it is a principle that will not be unknown to educated East Asian Buddhists. Would you recommend Jewels from the Treasury as a good text to introduce abhidharma to beginners? https://www.amazon.com/Gateway-Knowled...

Actually, as a lay person, one has a choice to follow it or not. In the Tibetan tradition we purify all vows with the practice of Vajrasattva. Also, bodhisattva and Vajrayana vows take precedence. This is fascinating to me because it is not the way it is generally presented to laymen in most of Eas...

Malcolm wrote: ↑Sun Apr 11, 2021 3:23 pm

Könchok Chödrak wrote: ↑Sat Apr 10, 2021 6:12 am Is there an official Teaching for how Empowerments from past lives carry over?

Yes, the official teaching is that they do not.

I have always wondered, how is it possible then that just barely keeping samayas pure leads to liberation within 16 lifetimes?

Oh yes, how horrible! What if somebody took human bones and did something with them. Disgraceful!

This is a good point, but I think the question is something like "does this serve any real purpose in a Facebook group with Buddhist and Bonpo practitioners". I'm making an assumption here that this is the kind of situation gelukman is talking about, having run into it a number of times myself. Apo...

It's Buddha's words and Buddha never lies. If we are capable of producing these effects, I'd say that is a different discussion.

Not to be rude, but if someone is just skimming YouTube videos for empowerment, that is a lazy attempt to make a connection, generally speaking. I figure a lazy connection is better than none but... To my mind the earnestness of the attempt to connect to the Guru and the lineage have to be in play ...

Buddhism says nothing about transgender issues, other than the standard moral code applicable to all situations: be compassionate. As far as Buddhism is concerned, gender is a secular issue, no more or less illusory than any other secular issue. Om mani padme hum Kathy Great post Kathy! This is imp...

Padma is great as always. I'd just add that while "doing good deeds" whatever that really means, is great. But! You must not forget about yourself. One does not become a buddha through good deeds. You have to train yourself and pacify your mind. Even a bodhisattva who has promised to attain enlighte...

Thank you for the links and comments. Wiki mentions that the four foundations can be practiced from a Mahayana pov and Vajrayana pov, are there any useful guides to practice them from this pov?

Nonono, masturbation is also natural if you control lust, you can even use it to achieve states of bliss and then apply together with vipasyana to achieve emptyness. You can use it with imaginary consort in Vajrayana sadhanas. There is nothing saying about non virtue of masturbation in lay man vows...

Guru sadhanas are for blessings. Yidam sadhanas are for siddhi/accomplishment. Dakini sadhanas are for prophecies and/or activities. Guru is the yidam. Siddhis come from kyerim. Activities are for those accomplished; they call it dzogrim. Is this the kagyu view, while Lama Pema presented the nyingm...

Hello, I have encountered the four foundations of mindfulness in many texts where it is often praised as an important practice for one to engage in. From ChNN's Vase to many other wonderful texts. So I would like to ask if there are any good resources and advice on the topic and how can one learn th...

As a lowly and inferior spiritual person I don't hold any illusion believing I will accomplish any spiritual attainment in this life. People shouldn’t think that attainment and realization are beyond anyone’s reach. If that were the case, the Buddhadharma would never have continued for 2,600 years....

As a lowly and inferior spiritual person I don't hold any illusion believing I will accomplish any spiritual attainment in this life. People shouldn’t think that attainment and realization are beyond anyone’s reach. If that were the case, the Buddhadharma would never have continued for 2,600 years....

Or did you get teachings from you teachers that dealt with things like this? Doesn't count. If the chanting goes beyond counting, beyond the numbers, but becomes a part of your daily life such as a constant meditation, I'd say it counts. Garchen Rinpoche for example has stated that it's better to f...

GrapeLover wrote: ↑Wed Mar 24, 2021 6:25 pm Karma Chakme's "Comprehensive Critique of Meat" is available in the book "The Faults of Meat" by Geoffrey Barstow.

Thank you! That looks quite interesting.