Buddhist Treasures of Knowledge: A Buddhist Study and Meditation Course
Understanding Reality: The Four Seals
- Supplementary instructions on emptiness
by Khenpo Chödrag Tenphel Rinpoche
17. - 18. October 2020
24. - 25. October 2020
The authentic implementation of Buddhism is based on turning to the Buddha, the Dharma (his teaching) and the Sangha (the guides along the path) for help. This practice of refuge requires one to know the qualities of the Three Jewels and the context in which they work. This was taught by Khenpo Chödrak Rinpoche in his course on the Four Seals - impermanence, suffering, emptiness and nirvana - last July. Voidness is an important topic, as many practitioners contemplate their different aspects and integrate them into their meditation. However, such meditation does not come about by itself and many mistakes and errors are possible all along the way. Based on Milarepa's instructions, Khenpo Chödrak Rinpoche points out the various traps one can fall into in his practice of meditation on emptiness.
The four seals sum up the essence of all the Buddha’s teachigns. They are also what allows us to verify whether a doctrine can be qualified as Buddhist or not, in the image of a royal seal that was a mark of quality in ancient times. These four seals are precious points of reference for a practitioner because they describe our current situation and the one we wish to progress toward. They can be expressed in four sentences, “All conditioned phenomena are impermanents, all contaminated phenomena are suffering, all phenomena are empty and devoid of true existence, and nirvana is peace.” Khenpo Rinpoche will explain each of these aspects and how to apply them in detail, basing his teaching on two texts: The Jewel Ornament of Liberation by Gampopa and The Treasury of Precious Qualities by Jigme Lingpa. These texts are available in English.
Course Organization:
Saturday, October 17 and Sunday, October 18, 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
Saturday, October 24 and Sunday, October 25, 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
The teaching, given in Tibetan and translated into English, will be available on Karma Samphel Ling’s YouTube channel. A simultaneous translation into French will be available of Dhagpo Kagyu Ling’s YouTube channel along with Spanish and German translations.
German: DKL - Translation
French: Dhagpo Kagyu Ling's Youtube Channel
Spanish: Traduction DKL
Following the livestream, the teaching sessions will remain available on their respective YouTube channels.
Khenpo Rinpoche recites the Manjushri Prayer at the beginning of each session. Khenpo Rinpoche explained this last year during the summer course in Dhagpo Kagyu Ling, and the transcript is available as download. Also in Vienna last year Khenpo Rinpoche explained the Manjushri Prayer during the explanations of Nagarjuna's "Letter to a friend".
For translations of the prayer please contact your centers or Dhagpo Kagyu Ling.
Download: Manjushri-prayer - english
In general, when we physically attend this type of teaching, we take part in course fees that cover the expenses the center incurs to make Dharma transmission possible. In light of the current circumstances and the transmission via Youtube intended for the greatest number of people possible, these teachings will be open-access and free of charge.
In order to expand this generosity further—according to Khenpo Chodrak Rinpoche’s wishes—you may make a donation to the French humanitarian association Knowledge Rising, which is active in Nepal at Sharminub, Shamar Rinpoche’s large humanitarian, educational monastic center. (insertion du lien direct vers la page de soutien du site de Knowledge Rising).
www.knowledgerising.org/support