May 2014

In This Issue

Fulfilling Life's Purpose

This Month at Jamyang

Geshe Tashi's column

The Director's Column

Lama Zopa Programme News

Lama Zopa sponsorship Opportunity

Communities Day

Andy Weber at Jamyang

MBSR at Jamyang

Land of Joy Update

Dave Benn recalls Lama Zopa

Dharma Bites

UK visit by Tibetan Doctor

25th Birthday of the Panchen Lama

About FPMT

Your Thoughts for Gentle Voice

Quick Links

Jamyang Website

Current Programme

Talking Buddhism The Foundation Study Course The Lamrim Chenmo Study Course

FPMT

Editor's welcome

Dear friends,

It is an exciting time for us all at Jamyang. There is a definite buzz in the air with the expected arrival of Lama Zopa Rinpoche in July. We include an extract from his book "Virtue and Reality" which gives a strong flavour as to the tenor of his teachings. We also include a reminiscence about his last visit to Jamyang by Dave Benn directly tapping into his stream of consciousness - and what a rich stream that is!

Also included are all the usual articles and news and views, including the latest updates from the Land of Joy project.

I hope you enjoy reading this issue so much that you almost burst with happiness!

John

With thanks to Wildmind

Fulfilling Life's Purpose by Lama Zopa Rinpoche

How can we make best use of this perfect human rebirth, the precious human body that we have received just this once? How can we make it most beneficial, not just for ourselves but for those other, most precious, extremely important human beings? Just like us, numberless other living beings, each of whom is as equally precious as we feel ourselves to be, seek only happiness and dislike any suffering. How can we make our lives productive for their sake? This is the main thing we should be asking ourselves. If we take care of others, work for their happiness, we are automatically taking care of ourselves. Trying to make others happy is the best way of loving ourselves. Similarly, if we harm others, we harm ourselves. Harming others does not bring us peace and happiness, only misery and grief, now and in the future. Bringing happiness to others is the best way of bringing happiness to ourselves; it follows naturally. It happens by the way. Things we do that bring happiness to others have a beneficial effect on our own minds. Conversely, if we act towards others with negative motivation and give them harm, such actions leave negative imprints on our mental continuum. These imprints later manifest as undesirable appearances. When our senses come into contact with these, unpleasant feelings arise. This is the evolution of our life's problems: this is how they start. Their origin is in our own minds, with our negative thoughts. The end result is the suffering we experience, in this life or in future lives. Healthy actions - positive actions, actions that benefit others, actions done with compassion, with sincerity, which bring happiness to others - leave positive imprints on our mental continuum. These manifest as desirable appearances. When our senses contact these, pleasant feelings, comfort, success - all enjoyable experiences we wish for and desire - result. This is the evolution of happiness, all the way up to enlightenment. Happy daily lives, pleasure and enjoyment - from now until enlightenment - result from positive thinking, positive intention, positive actions. That's why the Buddha of Compassion, His Holiness the Dalai Lama, often says that cherishing others is the best way to cherish ourselves. His Holiness calls this wise, or intelligent, selfishness because, as I mentioned above, by cherishing others, refraining from giving them harm, offering them all benefit, all our wishes for happiness, both now and in the future, will be fulfilled. Experience has proven that not only temporary happiness, but even enlightenment, the ultimate state of everlasting happiness, the highest, complete attainment of peace and bliss, results from serving others. In fact, the more we dedicate ourselves to others, the quicker and easier our own happiness arises. This is the natural evolution of happiness. This means living a life of compassion. Therefore, the answer to the question of how to make best use of our life is by living with compassion and wisdom.

Compassion alone is not enough. We also need to develop wisdom. How do we develop wisdom? We don't get wisdom from pills or a special diet or by transplanting somebody else's brain into our head or someone else's heart into our chest. We can develop wisdom only through our own effort, our own meditation practice. Wisdom comes from listening to the right teachings and reflecting and meditating on them. Therefore, we need to receive unmistaken teachings, gain unmistaken understanding, perform unmistaken practice and thus attain unmistaken realisations. This is extremely important. In this way we do not waste our lives, don't get led along the wrong path, and can realise the potential of our lives, which is as limitless as the sky. All living beings wish only for happiness and complete freedom from suffering. The purpose of our lives is to benefit them all, as extensively as possible. From "Virtue and Reality" by Lama Zopa Rinpoche

May and June 2014 highlights at Jamyang

CLASSES AND EVENTS IN MAY AND JUNE AT JAMYANG Full information about these and all our events can be found here on the

Jamyang Website

CLASSES and RETREATS with GESHE TASHI Jewel Lineage Tuesday evenings 13 May - 24 June Refined Gold Wednesday Evenings 14 May - 25 June FBT: Tantra weekend 10 - 11 May Enrolled students only FBT: Tantra weekend 7-8 June Enrolled students only Community Dharma 11 May and 8 June VISITING TEACHERS Andy Weber Art Workshop weekend 23 - 25 May Compassion and Wisdom in Daily Life with Jon Landaw Thursday 5 June RETREATS, WEEKEND

WEEK DAY EVENINGS AND AFTERNOONS Chenrezig Practice with the 8 Verses of Mind Training with Ven Angie Muir Thursdays 1 and 8 May 7.30pm Introduction to Meditation Monday 7:30 12 May Buddhist Meditation: Wisdom Mondays 7:30 19 May - 23 June Buddhist Meditation in Practice with David Ford Thursdays 7:30 5 May - 26 June Vajrasattva Purification Practice with Venerable Angie Muir Thursdays 5, 19, 26 June 7.30pm Tara Puja Tuesdays 4.30 - 5.45pm Medicine Buddha Puja

TEACHINGS and PRACTICE GROUPS Nyung Nay with Ven Angie and Steff Hill 29th May - 1st June Prostrations with Ven Angie 22 June Extensive Lama Choepa & Animal Liberation with Ven Angie 28 June How to set up an Altar with Ven Angie, 29 June Insight Meditation Practice Group 3 May 10.30-12.30pm open to all Guhyasamaja Practice Group 3 May, 7 June For initiates only Vajrayogini Practice Group Sundays 4 May - 29 June For initiates only Kalachakra Practice Group 21 Junel For initiates only SPECIAL EVENTS Buddha Enlightenment Day 13 June 8am - 5pm, (Mahayana precepts, precept lunch at 11.30am) Please book for all weekend classes or retreats other than practice groups on-line if you can. If you can't call the office on 02078208787 or email admin@jamyang.co.uk You can drop in to all evening classes unless we state otherwise Full details of these and all other events are on our website jamyang.co.uk

Tuesdays 6:15 - 7pm Silent Meditation Thursdays weekly 6.15 - 7.15pm Lama Choepa Puja 9, 24 May, 8, 22 June check website for times COMMUNITY Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) weekly 15 May - 10 July. Enrolled students only. Booking now open Chi Kung and Tai Chi Monday evenings taught by William Walker. For more information and to book call William (follow the link above) Satyananda Yoga Tuesday evenings taught by Judy Watchman For more information and to book call Judy (follow the link above) Hridaya (Heart Centre) Yoga Taught by Naz Wednesday evenings 7.30pm For more information please call Naz (follow the link above) Chair Yoga Taught by Cathy Brebion Tuesdays 10.30am - 11.30am COMING SOON

Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche Enlightened Courage: the Buddha's Path of Compassionate Wisdom Conway Hall, Red Lion Square, London WC1 10th July 7.30 - 9.30pm (book via Jamyang website) Kyabje Lama Zopa: Heruka 5 Deities Initiation 11 - 13 July (at Jamyang) Lama Choepa long Life Puja offering to Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche Wednesday 16 July 9am - approx 1pm

Jamyang Summer Retreat with Geshe Tashi 19 - 27 July Jangtse Choje Rinpoche Lobsang Tenzin: Wisdom of Emptiness Saturday 16, Sunday 17, Monday 18 August 2.30 - 6pm Tuesday 19 August, 7- 9pm Vajrasattva Jenang Initiation 20 August 7- 9pm White Tara Long Life Initiation Thursday 21 August, 9am - 11.30am

Geshe Tashi's column

Hello Everybody,

We are so fortunate to have a visit by Lama Zopa Rinpoche this coming summer. As you know he is a remarkable person who has been involved with the FPMT since its inception in the 1970s, first as co-founder of the Kopan monastery and the FPMT and then as the spiritual head of the FPMT when Lama Yeshe passed on in 1984. He is a great example to us all of dedication and devotion to Buddhist practice.

I know that not everyone will want to take on the commitments of the full empowerment that he is offering at Jamyang. That should not act as a barrier for all our students to attend his teachings. He will be teaching both at Leeds and in the Conway Hall here in London and these teachings are open to all. Please make the effort to attend as many of these as you can. After all Leeds is much closer than Kopan monastery or the USA. It is very important to establish a connection with our teachers and we can only really do this by sitting and listening to their teachings with an open mind. When I say an open mind, I do not mean a sceptical mind that just listens looking for things to dispute. This is not a useful way of attending teachings. An open mind means a willingness to hear things that may surprise us, that may even challenge some of our cherished opinions. It is only by accepting a challenge to our cherished opinions that we may be able to see them from a new viewpoint. So please make every effort to attend if at all possible both the teachings in Leeds and in London.

As well as these sutra teachings and the tantric initiation, there is also a Long Life Puja. This is a very joyous occasion and one that I hope we can all attend and celebrate together, expressing our thanks to Lama Zopa Rinpoche for everything he has done for us and the FPMT.

Also this month we have the good news that Land of Joy is nearly there. The

retreat centre may soon be in existence. This will be very important for all of us as retreat is such an important aspect of our Buddhist practice. I am very happy with this news and I really look forward to this exciting development for all of us.

Director's Column

Waking from hibernation with the dawning spring? Feeling good? "They are not long, the days of wine and roses. Out of a misty dream, our path emerges for a while, then closes, within a dream." Ernest Dowson. As with periods of happiness and prosperity, so with precious moments of clarity and realisation on the path to awakening! Mindfulness, practice, generating merit, study, reflection, contemplation and meditation are the ways in which the teachings urge us to increase and sustain our all too brief moments of emergence into clarity and awareness from the sleep that usually rounds our little lives. We have much to rejoice about and look forward to that can help us see our path more clearly, more often. Geshe-la is teaching both Tuesday and Wednesday evenings from this month until June and is doing his annual Lam Rim Retreat focusing on the Graded Path meditations in July - book early for that! The cultivation of retreat culture is continuing to be a strong theme here at Jamyang and both the Alan Wallace Samatha retreat and Geshe-la's Easter Compassion retreat were a great success. Many thanks to everyone who contributed to make those events run as well and as smoothly as they did. Speaking of retreat, there is also some very positive news on the progress of the Land of Joy retreat centre project - see elsewhere in this edition for a more substantive article on those developments. Preparations for Lama Zopa Rinpoche's visit in July are going well. This is another huge opportunity to generate merit and practice generosity. The costs associated with the visit and the organisation involved means that your generous donations and offers of service will be extremely valuable at this time and very much appreciated. This month we have our Community Day coming up on Saturday, 17 May, a great opportunity to celebrate Geshe la's anniversary of teaching at Jamyang - 20 years this month! Also a great opportunity to bring along your ideas to share with the Jamyang community and learn about the many projects which run under Jamyang's roof which affect the wider community. Much to do and much more to look forward to in the merry month of May and beyond. Much look forward to seeing you here. Enjoy!

Kyabje Lama Zopa's Programme in the UK

Lama Zopa Rinpoche in the UK

Details of the much anticipated visit by Lama Zopa to the UK have now been finalised. He will start his trip to the UK at Jamyang Leeds. The details are as follows:

'Making Life Meaningful: Teachings on the stages of the Path'.

Saturday 5 July and Sunday 6 July 2014 at Leeds Trinity University, Horsforth, Leeds LS18 5HD

For details please visit the Jamyang Leeds website

www.jamyangleeds.co.uk

Public Talk in London Enlightened Courage: the Buddha's Path of Compassionate Wisdom 10th of July 7.30 - 9.30pm. Conway Hall, Red Lion Square, London WC1 (doors open 7pm) Please book via the Jamyang webiste www.jamyang.co.uk Heruka Five Deities Great Initiation at Jamyang Buddhist Centre Friday 11 July from 7pm onwards (for a minimum of 5 hours) Saturday 12 July from 7pm onwards (for a minimum of 5 hours) Sunday 13 July from 7pm onwards (for a minimum of 6 hours) Please book via the Jamyang webiste www.jamyang.co.uk Lama Choepa Long Life Puja offering to Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche Wednesday 16 July at Jamyang Buddhist Centre 9am - approx 1pm IMI Ordained Sangha register free Yes that is it. You simply have to register and sort out your accomodation Donors (giving donations of £500, £1,000 or more) are registered free Yes, obviously. Without you these events wouldn't happen. Thank you so much to those who have given already.

Kyabje Lama Zopa's Visit - Opportunity to Sponsor Sutras

Opportunity to co-sponsor the production of Sutras with gold letters engraved on silver. Dino Joachim, one of our students and a volunteer here, is sponsoring the production of a miniature engraving of the 21st Chapter version of the Sutra of Golden Light, in the FPMT English translation. It will be on a silver sheet 61 cm by 61 cm and the engraved writing will be in gold. The cost will be £1,300. It will be offered to Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche. He is also having engraved copies of the heart sutra, Silver A4 size with gold lettering. The cost will be £220 each. One will go in a stupa he is building in his garden. If anyone would like to contribute to the making of these beautiful objects please contact Mike at the Centre on spc@jamyang.co.uk and he will then pass your email on to Dino. Otherwise, just rejoice. Even just thinking about it lifts the heart.

Communities Day Saturday 17 May

Make a note in your diary! Do try to join us to celebrate Geshe la's anniversary of teaching at Jamyang - 20 years this May! Also to share with the Jamyang community and learn about the many projects which run under Jamyang's roof which affect the wider community. Maybe you would like to help volunteer for some of them? Geshe la will give a short talk in the morning, followed by a community lunch and presentations of the community activities, not least a presentation of the new Retreat building, Land of Joy, with the latest news of developments. Look forward to seeing you there! Detailed Programme for the Day 1130 Arrive for a refreshing drink to meet old and new friends 1200 Caring for Communities, talk and meditation led by GesheTashi Tsering

1300 The Courthouse Cafe development, followed by a communal lunch, displays to see and informal meetings to enjoy. 1430 Time to hear and ask questions about the wide range of services offered to the local community by Jamyang's sister charity the Courthouse Community Centre. These include:

o SCHOOLS/FAMILY DHARMA Schools and Family Dharma o Dying Well o Interfaith o London Centre for Mindfulness o Repaying the Kindness o The Courthouse Garden

1545 Refreshment Break 1615 Jamyang Buddhist Teaching Programme

o News and Details about Lama Zopa Rinpoche's UK visit and sessions at Jamyang London o The Front of Building Development o Jamyang's Buddhist Education programme and Plans

1800 Day ends Looking forward to seeing you there. *** RSVP...Please email the office (admin at jamyang.co.uk) for lunch (offered free), so that we can get catering numbers right. Thank you

Andy Weber Art Workshop

We are delighted that world renowned Tibetan artist Andy Weber will be leading another of his highly successful and ever popular art workshops over the weekend of 23rd to the 25th May.

This time he is focusing on art painted specifically to promote well being, longevity and harmony in the person, in the community, in the environment - for example the 'Long Life Painting'.

Don't miss this unique opportunity to study with master thangka painter Andy Weber.

Check out Andy's website for stunning examples of his amazing work. http://www.andyweberstudios.com/

If you can't make the weekend workshop then you can also just come to the illustrated talk on Friday evening where he will explore these subjects in some detail. Always a fascinating insight into the iconography of the many images and thangkas that surround us at Jamyang.

Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction Course (MBSR)

With just 2 weeks left before the 8 week Course commences, we have a few more places left on this incredible course.

A well structured and systematic meditation course, with 10 sessions including an introductory session - that gives us a set of practices designed to enable new perspectives on our daily lives. The course provides techniques for gaining new glimpses into our lives enabling us to gain fresh insights and showing us ways to release those habitual thought patterns that cause so much confusion and trouble. The course provides us with invaluable tools with which to view life with a non-judging mind and with a new found sense of perspective.

For details on our next Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) course, please see the details below:

Dates: 15th May - 10th July 2014 inclusive (with a full practice day on Saturday 28th June). Thursday Weekly Morning (10.30am-12.30pm) or Evening (6.30pm-8.30pm) classes. The course fee is £200.00 with concessions available. The fee includes a delicious vegetarian lunch during the full practice day, a collection of guided meditations on CD/MP3 and a coursebook. For further details, enquiries and booking forms, please see www.londoncentreformindfulness.com or email Vinod or Jane at info@londoncentreformindfulness.com

Land of Joy - Success!! ---- and now --- The Job Advert!

The Land of Joy - the project to establish an FPMT retreat centre in the UK has made some amazing progress this month. we take the following extracts from their newsletters. £1 million - from a kind and generous donor The original £500,000 donation made last year, was from a Buddhist nun who has long wished for an FPMT retreat centre based in the UK. In recent correspondence, she mentioned she has been looking forward to giving away all her inheritance to the Dharma, so that she can go back to being a 'little old nun'! To stimulate our fundraising activities, she was also the source of the additional £200,000 matched funding appeal, enabling us to attract funds from other donors. Knowing that we had located a suitable property and had been encouraged by Lama Zopa to pursue its purchase, she added a further £300,000 on the basis that we made an immediate offer to purchase Greenhaugh Hall. So we did! Greenaugh Hall - offer made and accepted!! Our total fundraising efforts meant we could make an offer of £1.2m, which has now been accepted by the owner, subject to survey and planning permission. Although the property remains on the market in case of planning permission failure, the owner does not wish sell to anyone else. But our great good fortune doesn't stop there - the owner has also made a personal donation to Land of Joy, of £10,000! We estimate a minimum of 2 months for surveys and planning permission approval. We are further blessed by many of our supporters who have volunteered their valuable time and skills to make this part of the process happen smoothly and professionally. Advertisement for Post of Director Land of Joy is a new FPMT retreat centre at Greenaugh, in the Northumbria National Park in the north of England. The board seeks a director to lead the establishment of the centre. In particular, the director must have proven excellent skills in team development and management, and in business management. The director will have devotion to Lama Zopa Rinpoche and alignment with the FPMT Mission Statement. The director will work closely with the spiritual programme coordinator and resident teacher in creating Land of Joy. The post will be subject to contract, with the possibility of a modest remuneration package. For a job description and applications information please contact:andy@landofjoy.co.uk . Applications deadline: 14th May; interviews 28th May 2104.

Dave Benn recalls his part in Lama Zopa's last visit to Jamyang - and more

It was after Lama Zopa gave the initiation of Gyalwa Gyatso on his last official Jamyang London visit. All ended happy with, as usual, a long life puja. My role was to play the part of representing our wishes for his long life. With my old mate Dorian Leaky we attempted to make me look old by filling my hair with flour & face powder. I looked like a reject Shiva Babbha coverd in cheap ash but no three lines on my forhead. The Gompa was full to capacity & I wandered in. Approaching Lama Zopa, the old ex-busker clown said to Rinpoche "Long life, Rinpoche" as I gave him a Katag which he accepted & patted me on my head. Which erupted with powder & flour.From about a foot away I could see Lama Zopa through a unique view of a haze of flour dust. The gompa errupted with laughter as I went out, stage right, by the door towards the kitchen. As was sung in the movie Singing in the Rain by Donald O' Connor "Make them Laugh". Next day Rinpoche painted in the eyes of the Paranirvana statue in the garden & I had to hold the paint pot for him like a student of Da Vinci before he (Lama Zopa not Da Vinci) had to rush for his flight out of the country. You see I worked as a fully painted face clown down the tube as a busker in my pre Jamyang incarnation. Arthur Koestler brings humour into his book "Janus a Summing Up" which is a theme he covered in his earlier work called "The Act of Creation" which I read in the sixties before I got married. This period in my individuation was a time of great learning for me. In "Janus a Summing Up" Koestler says "The coarsest type of humour is the practical joke; pulling away the chair from under the dignitary's lowered bottom. The victim is perceived, first as a person of consequence, then suddenly as an inert body subject to the laws of physics: authority is debunked by gravity, a mind by matter; man degraded to a mechanism. Goose-stepping soldiers act like automatons, the pedant behaves like a mechanical robot, the Sergeant-Major attacked by diarrhoea or Hamlet getting the hiccoughs show a man's lofty aspirations deflated by his all-too solid flesh. A similar effect is produced by artefacts which masquerade as humans; Punch and Judy, Jack in a Box gadgets playing tricks on their masters as if with calculated malice." Seeing a white shape in the garden in the half-light Mullah Nasrudin asked his wife to hand him his bow and arrow. He hit the object, went out to see what it was, and came back almost in a state of collapse. "That was a narrow shave. Just think. If I had been in that shirt of mine hanging

there to dry I would have been killed it was shot right through the heart". Humour can be used to point out if we perceive the reality of a situation correctly; it is a form of escape from the fear of the consequences seen in an event. The laughter if we see someone slip on a banana skin is not really at the hurt that the fallen person may feel but just gladness that we didn't slip and hurt our self and then we laugh with relief in denial of our guilt. In the Gene Kelly film "Singing in the Rain" Donald O'Connor sang: Make 'em laugh Make 'em laugh Don't you know everyone wants to laugh? Ha, ha My dad said "Be an actor, my son But be a comical one" They'll be standing in lines For those old honky-tonk monkey shines Now you could study Shakespeare and be quite elite And you can charm the critics and have nothin' to eat Just slip on a banana peel The world's at your feet Make 'em laugh Make 'em laugh Make 'em laugh Make 'em, make 'em laugh Don't you know everyone wants to laugh? My grandpa said, "Go out and tell 'em a joke But give it plenty of hoke" Make 'em roar Make 'em scream Take a fall, butt a wall Split a seam You start off by pretending you're a dancer with grace You wiggle 'til they're giggling all over the place And then you get a great big custard pie in the face Make 'em laugh Make 'em laugh Make 'em laugh Make 'em laugh Make 'em laugh Don't you know everyone wants to laugh? I guess I must be thought of as an old guy now at the age of seventy three though my energy is not what it was when I climbed around the roof of the Old Court House in Kennington when we acquired it to create Jamyang Buddhist Centre; or knocking out the toilets in the holding cells which had held members of the IRA before they went to the Old Bailey for the big trials. I now spend my time as relaxed as I can reading voraciously. It's as if my life has gone back to school and as I can't read fiction these days; it doesn't interest me as a written form though I can follow a story line on DVD or a recorded audio book with ease. I feel just like a line in the White Manjushri sadhana which reads "Thus

you epitomise the tranquillity of eternal youth". I can't remember my youth as being tranquil as I searched for a meaning of life and existence. Now I just wish to relax as my need to read grows more each day. For what reason I don't know. I can understand why I read a lot of psychology but my interest in history leads me into politics and global issues, it's not as if I wish to be a politician, there are too many people drawn into that game and driven almost mad trying to organise the lives of other beings........ Extract taken directly from Dave Benn's Mental Continuum

Dharma Bites - More than One Way to Practice

Sitting in formal meditation posture in the seven-point position of Vairochana is excellent. If we are able to give up everything and just devote our time to meditating on emptiness and bodhicitta, it will be wonderful. But that is not the only way to practice. A practice that combines learning the teachings, reflecting or contemplating on their meanings, and meditating to integrate those meanings with our minds is a complete process. This is the approach of Dromtonpa, the famous emanation of Chenrazig and disciple of Jowo Je Atisha. Dromtonpa would receive teachings on a particular topic and then follow up with reflecting and meditating on their meanings. His reflection on a topic was always done on the basis of first having received teachings on it, and his meditation was always done on the basis of having listened to teachings about the topic and reflected on their meaning. Not only did he advise us to practice like this, but he also modelled it himself. If we think that Dharma practice occurs only when we are sitting in formal meditation posture, we will miss out on many opportunities. The great yogi Milarepa described himself as having attained enlightenment by meditating at all times. We have to properly understand what this means. When he ate he meditated; when he walked, he meditated; when he sat down, he meditated. This is an excellent way to make good use of every moment of our lives to cultivate Dharma understanding and realization. This resembles the advice the Buddha gave to his disciple, King Bimbisara. Since the king had so many responsibilities to his subjects, he could not give up his kingdom, go to a secluded place, and spend all his time in formal meditation. The Buddha told him nevertheless he could make his life rich and worthwhile by continually meditating on bodhicitta while remaining involved in the activities of the kingdom. In other words, the king should use whatever circumstances he

was living in to practice bodhicitta. He did not give up on practice simply because the ideal circumstances were not present. If we think about it, when will the ideal circumstances for practice ever appear? If we wait for the perfect situation, our lives will go by and no inner transformation will take place. We want get out of cyclic existence because cyclic existence is not satisfactory. So how can we wait until cyclic existence is satisfactory in order to practice to get out of it ? it's impossible. We must practice in whatever situation we find ourselves. Of course, if we can devote our entire lives to listening, reflecting, and meditating on the Dharma, that is wonderful. If we can assemble all the conditions to go off to an isolated place and do serenity meditation, that is fantastic. But that doesn't mean that if we can't do that, we cannot do anything. We should practice and meditate during the time and in the situations available to us. Sometimes we might be undisciplined or distracted and not get around to practicing. Those are situations we can do something about. In addition, we can combine our daily activities with Dharma practice, doing more serious practice and formal meditation when we have time. The effect of doing this over the long term will be very good. Our Dharma experience will grow gradually, like a large container is filled drop by drop. A tiny drop may not look like much, but eventually the whole container is full. The point is to do whatever we can without lamenting the lack of perfect conditions and to rejoice and give ourselves credit for whatever we do with berating ourselves. Taken from Insight into Emptiness by Khensur Jampa Tegchok, edited and introduced by Ven Thubten Chodron, Wisdom Publications, Boston, USA

Visit by Tibetan Doctor and Astrologer to London

Dr. Rigzin Sangmo la (Tibetan medical doctor) and Mrs Tenzin Lhamo la (Tibetan medical astrologer) from Men Tsee Khang (Tibetan Medical & Astrological Institute) based in Dharamsala, India, will visit the UK in May and June this year. The Tibetan Medical & Astrological Institute (TMAI) was re-established in India by His Holiness the Dalai Lama in 1961. The main objective of TMAI is to preserve, promote and practice Sowa Rigpa, the ancient Tibetan system of medicine, astronomy and astrology. More information on the TMAI and its work can be found here: www.men-tsee-khang.org. As part of their UK tour, Dr. Rigzin Sangmo and Mrs Tenzin Lhamo will be holding Tibetan medical and medical astrology consultations at the Office of Tibet (1 Culworth Street, London, NW8 7AF) all day on Saturday 7 & Sunday 8 June, 2014.

The fee for a Tibetan medical consultation is £35 for a 25 minute session and the fee for a Tibetan medical astrology consultation is £65 for a 45 minute session. Anybody who is interested in booking either a medical or an astrological consultation appointment should send an email with subject 'appointment' to info@otlondon.org with their name and preferred appointment date/time.

25th Birthday of the Panchen Lama

April 25th marked the 25th birthday of the Panchen Lama. He is a a highly important figure in Tibetan Buddhism and traditionally has been responsible for the search for the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama who in turn is responsible for the search for the reincarnation of the Panchen Lama. The current Panchen Lama was abducted and has not been seen since, at the age of six, he was identified by the Dalai Lama as the reincarnation of the previous Panchen Lama. The monks of the exiled monastery of Tash Lhungpo have maintained a long vigil awaiting news of their missing lama. Let us not lose sight of the world's youngest political prisoner who remains in detention somewhere in China, now for 19 years.

FPMT

Jamyang is affiliated with FPMT (Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition) and is one of more than 150 centers and projects worldwide.

FPMT is based on the Gelugpa tradition of Lama Tsongkhapa of Tibet as taught by our founder, Lama Thubten Yeshe and spiritual director, Lama Zopa Rinpoche. If you would like to receive FPMT's monthly newsletters please subscribe here.

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