Detailed Introduction to Khenpo Rinpoche's Teachings
Space remains available for the program. Registration will be available during the program at Nalanda West
Khenchen Tsultrim Gyamtso Rinpoche's Program
on Wisdom, The Four Yogas of Mahamudra and
Vajra Songs
Course led by Ari Goldfield
Nalanda West, Seattle, Washington, USA
December 2-10, 2006
 As in past years, the course will be divided into a public component (December 2-3) and a Mahamudra component (December 4-10).
The public weekend's topic will be the new book The Moon of Wisdom, which Khenpo Rinpoche directed should be the main topic of the North American teachings in 2006. The Moon of Wisdom is a translation of the "Wisdom Chapter" of Chandrakirti's Entering the Middle Way, including a commentary by the Eighth Karmapa Mikyö Dorje entitled The Chariot of the Dagpo Kagyü Siddhas. It is the text that Khenpo Rinpoche personally taught to His Holiness the Seventeenth Karmapa in 2002. The book explains: the true nature of relative appearances and genuine reality; how it is that knowing this true nature is helpful to us and increases our wisdom and compassion; and step-by-step, how we can understand, gain certainty in, and realize it, to the great benefit of both ourselves and others.
In Seattle Ari will summarize the key points of the first part of the book in direct connection with how to apply them in meditation and daily life.
During the Mahamudra teachings, the main topic of the morning teachings will be the Four Yogas of Mahamudra, which are: one-pointed-ness, freedom from fabrications, one taste, and non-meditation. These four yogas describe the complete Mahamudra path, from the stage of a beginning meditator all the way until the true nature of mind is perfectly realized. Khenpo Rinpoche's remarkable tradition is to explain the four yogas in a clear, easy to understand series of increasingly profound stages of view and meditation that we can directly apply in our own practice.
As a basis for his teachings on the four yogas, Khenpo Rinpoche recently began to use the renowned Drukpa Kagyü scholar-siddha Pema Karpo's text entitled Pointing Out Genuine Reality. Rarely taught in the West, Pema Karpo's concise text is literally a treasure of brilliant insight that illuminates precisely what the Kagyü view of Mahamudra is, and of pith meditation instructions on how to realize this view in one's own experience. Students who encounter this text find it highly revealing and beneficial to their meditation practice, which is why, out of all the texts on the four yogas available, Rinpoche has selected this one to serve as the basis of his own teachings. At the same time, in order to present to students the different perspectives of the great masters of Mahamudra, Khenpo Rinpoche augments his explanations of Pema Karpo's text with teachings on the vajra songs of realization on the four yogas sung by the Lord of Yogis Milarepa and Jamgon Kongtrül the Great, along with Dzogchen Paltrül Rinpoche's verses describing of the four yogas in connection with the deity practice of Chenrezik. Rinpoche has twice presented this amazing combination of profound teachings on Mahamudra four yogas' view and key meditation instructions on Mahamudra four yogas' practice. Ari had the great fortune to receive both of these sets of teachings from Rinpoche and will be delighted to share them with the students in Seattle in a step-by-step way that will include explanation of the view, guided meditation instruction, and question-and-answer sessions.
The main topic of the afternoon teachings will be Milarepa's Vajra Songs of Realization that Khenpo Rinpoche taught to His Holiness the Seventeenth Gyalwang Karmapa. Khenpo Rinpoche has given all of his students the wonderful blessing of explaining the profound view, meditation, conduct, and fruition as they are described by the Lord of Yogis Milarepa in his vajra songs of realization. Rinpoche has shown us how these incredible songs sung by Milarepa, the only Tibetan in history whom all followers of Tibetan Buddhism agree attained enlightenment in one lifetime, are of direct relevance and benefit to our cultivation of wisdom, compassion, faith, transformation of difficult circumstances into advantageous ones, and joy in the practice of Dharma. And by giving us the priceless gift of teaching us how to sing these songs, Rinpoche has helped us to make a direct connection with Milarepa's brilliance, devotion, love, and blessings. For a month in 2001, Khenpo Rinpoche gave teachings to His Holiness Karmapa, including explanations of a series of Milarepa's songs. Karmapa later stated, "Everything I know about Milarepa I learned from Khenpo Rinpoche. With Milarepa's songs, Khenpo Rinpoche is like my mother." Ari delights in the opportunity to share with the students of the Seattle course Rinpoche's teachings on these songs that he taught to His Holiness.
And for an hour each day after the afternoon teaching, Ari will teach a third daily session on "Illusory Body Yoga Song and Dance" 5:00-6:30pm. During this session, we will train in the methods that Khenpo Rinpoche has taught for how to use song and dance to both practice and enhance mahamudra meditation. There will also be explanations of and practice with some of Khenpo Rinpoche's compositions that until now have not been widely distributed, and during certain sessions, Khenpo Rinpoche's Sadhana of Mahamudra. Song and dance are a special and ever-present part of Khenpo Rinpoche's instructions on how to connect with the true nature of reality with both our bodies and minds, and so many people-men and women, old and young alike-have enjoyed and benefited from learning Rinpoche's dance tradition in the past.
Notes:
 The teaching schedule of the first session will be from 10:30-12:30 and the second session from 2:30-4:30. The dance instruction by Ari will go from 5:00-6:30 every evening.
New students should have read the Progressive Stages of Meditation on Emptiness, The Sun of Wisdom, and should have listened to at least the 2005 teachings' tapes before the course. If they could listen to both 2004 and 2005 that would be the best, but if they can't finish 2004 before the course, they should do so afterwards. Click here to purchase recommended recordings and readings for the course.
Publications:
Everyone at the public teachings should have the The Moon of Wisdom, which is available at the store at Nalanda West and Snow Lion Publications. The Progressive Stages of Meditation on Emptiness and The Sun of Wisdom will also be available and are recommended. Ari will provide materials for the Mahamudra teachings in an English-only book of about 35 pages. This will be available at the bookstore at Nalanda West, and a longer Tibetan- English edition may also be available. If you are interested in a Tibetan-English edition, please contact
ktgrregistration06@nalandabodhi.org.
Click here to go to registration for Khenpo Rinpoche program
Click here to purchase Recommended Recordings and Readings for the course
Click here for cost and other details of the program |
