Mar - Apr Issue - Amitabha Buddhist Centre

mar/apr 2013MCI (P) 085/02/20131Magnificent andPrecious Root GuruLama Zopa Rinpoche @ ABC this March

Amitabha Buddhist Centre is a centrefor the study and practice of MahayanaBuddhism, based on the tradition ofLama Tsong Khapa, in the lineage ofLama Thubten Yeshe and our SpiritualDirector, Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche.OUR VISIONLearn to Be HappyCourage to cherish allWisdom to see the truthFaith in Buddha’s peaceFollow Our Four-fold PathInspireConnectLearnPractiseSPIRITUAL DIRECTORKyabje Lama Zopa RinpocheRESIDENT TEACHERKhen Rinpoche Geshe ChonyiPRESIDENTIn the previous issue (Jan/Feb 2013) I mentioned about having the rareand precious opportunity to attend Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s teachingsat Sera Je Monastery in south India. My rare and precious opportunitylasted through December, when I attended teachings that Rinpoche gave inKathmandu, Nepal.The teaching was specially organised for those from the Tharmangcommunity, one of Nepal’s main ethnic groups. More than a thousand of theTharmang clan came from all over the country to receive Chenresig initiationfrom Rinpoche. I remember having a surreal moment while sitting in theteaching tent, looking at the faces of these people—monks and ngagpa’s(lay tantric practitioners) dressed in an assortment of well-worn robes, theirfaces burnished by the high mountain sun. Many had travelled from distantvillages in the mountains, just to attend the teachings. I suspect many werereceiving teachings from Rinpoche for the first time. This could be a scenefrom a hundred years ago, I thought.After the Chenresig initiation and long life puja, there were lots of lovelypresents for all the students, from Rinpoche. Long life nectar pills, an arrayof malas, blessed cords, Namgyalma amulets and picture cards of Buddha’sTan Hup Cheng2 3SPIRITUALPROGRAMME COORDINATORVen. Tenzin GyurmeCENTRE MANAGERKoh Zi YenADMINISTRATIONAlicia LeeSerene TanDenis KwanOFFICE HOURSOpen daily except MondaysTuesdays – Saturdays:10.30 am – 6 pmSundays: 10 am – 6 pm(Hours extended to 7.30 pm whenevening sessions are scheduled)AMITABHA BUDDHIST CENTRE44 Lorong 25A Geylang RoadSingapore 388244Tel: 6745 8547 Fax: 6741 0438www.fpmtabc.orgcentre@fpmtabc.orgstatue in Bodhgaya’s Mahabodhi Stupa were distributed. Rinpoche said hewanted to give everyone sets of water bowls as well, but the delivery could notbe made in time. Rinpoche then went on to explain how to offer water bowls,every detail from how to pour the water, to be careful not to pour too quickly,to make sure the bowls were all set out in a straight row, and the bowls shouldbe spaced slightly apart but not too far apart.The attention and care that Rinpoche brought to explaining this simple dailypractice reminded me of when Rinpoche taught exactly how to prostrate:how one should place the hands, the pitfalls of not prostrating properly. Thatwas in Singapore, in ABC’s Level 2 gompa, and once at Root Institute inBodhgaya. In Bodhgaya too, while circumambulating the Mahabodhi Stupa,Rinpoche explained to a small group of us exactly what one should thinkand visualise while going round the stupa, so that we would accumulate themost merit.For his incomparable kindness and incredible patience in tirelessly teachingand guiding us, every little step of the way, entirely for our benefit, I am everthankful for the immense good karma to have Lama Zopa Rinpoche as mylama.Rinpoche is visiting us here in ABC for just one fleeting weekend this March.If you have never met Rinpoche, here is your rare and precious opportunity.If you have already met Rinpoche, then perhaps, you understand what Imean.The MaitreyaProject:A Letter from Lama Zopa RinpocheThe Maitreya Project is the heart project of the FPMT. Lama Yeshe had envisioned building agigantic Maitreya Buddha statue for the benefit of all sentient beings. Our precious guru andFPMT’s Spiritual Director, Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche, has tirelessly carried forth the wish tofulfil this grand vision. Here is a recent letter from Rinpoche announcing important changes inthe Project. Rinpoche addressed the letter to “my dear kind friends, those who like to benefit othersentient beings through the teachings of the Buddha”.Iwould like to announce thatthe Maitreya Project directoris changing from the currentdirector, the precious kind PeterKedge, to the precious kind Nita Ing.Also, the Maitreya statue will nowbe built in Bodhgaya, but due torestrictions there, the statue won’tbe as tall as originally planned (500feet); now it is going to be 150 feetin height. For the past nine years wehave worked hard with the UttarPradesh state government to locatethe Project in Kushinagar but becauseof very difficult issues regarding landacquisition, with the approval of HisHoliness the Dalai Lama we havenow decided to build the Maitreyastatue in Bodhgaya.For the last fifteen years Peter Kedgehas dedicated his life to the MaitreyaProject, working really, really hard. Hehas travelled to many countries such asChina, Japan and so forth where otherlarge statues have been built, to checkthe statues, meet the organisers and findout what difficulties they encounteredwith different aspects of the project,gathering as much information aspossible so that our planned 500-foot Maitreya statue would be a greatsuccess, last for a thousand years ormore and bring vast benefit to sentientbeings and the world.Peter also worked for many years inIndia, bearing many hardships andexperiencing problems and difficultiesthere. The key difficulty, however, hasbeen acquiring sufficient land togetherin one parcel.There have also been other significantsetbacks, such as major donors beingunable to fulfil their commitmentsthrough difficult economic conditionsand untimely death.Once the Maitreya statue has beenbuilt it will benefit the world andthe sentient beings of the six realms,particularly those in this world, notonly for a thousand years but also for avery long time after that. Any sentientbeing who remembers, sees, touches orhears about the statue—and of course,no question, those who actually buildthe statue, who offer time, life, moneyand all the different things neededto actualise the statue—all thoseThank yousentient beings will ultimately achievefull enlightenment. By the way, theywill also achieve ultimate happiness,liberation from samsara and temporarysamsaric pleasure while still in samsara.So it is unbelievable, unbelievable,unbelievable, most unbelievable,the benefits that the Maitreya statuewill bring. It will bring happiness tonumberless sentient beings; this iswhat they will receive from the statue.Because of the inconceivable benefitsthat the statue will bring sentientbeings, then of course we have toexpect there will be many obstacles.As you know, you have to have goodkarma and unbelievable, unbelievable,unbelievable merit to be able to finishbuilding such a statue and thenfor it to last for such an incrediblelength of time, benefiting so manysentient beings. Even many ordinarycompanies in India that are onlydoing work for this life have to stopall their work and close down aftersome time because it is too difficultor there are too many obstacles. Ofcourse, for us, there is no way that wewill close down the Maitreya Project.Iwant to thank from my heart all the people who have dedicated so much of their life trying to help us buildthe Maitreya statue—those who have made offerings and given their time and energy. All the merit you havecreated will become the cause of enlightenment, to fully awaken your own mind. Even though we have not

yet actualised the statue, helping in the various ways youhave still becomes the most unbelievable purification,purifying negative karma and defilements created frombeginningless rebirths, and an unbelievable way to collectskies of merit, especially if your help has been offeredwith bodhicittamotivation. In thatway, every singleaction becomes acause to actualisethe Maitreya statue,every single actionbecomes highlymeaningful, and soyou have alreadycollected immense,immense merits.So don’t have anyregret at all. Youshould have notone single regret—if you do, you willharm the merit thatyou have alreadycollected.The benefitsJust to brieflymention thebenefits of thisstatue, not onlyfor those whohave dedicatedtheir time andmade donations,even one rupee,but for anybodywho touches, sees,remembers, makesofferings to orcircumambulatesthe statue and soforth. Such actionsimmediatelybecome the cause offull enlightenmentfor sentient beingsand, by the way,4 The “Sutra of the Mudra Entering, Generating the Power same.5an unbelievable,unbelievable causeof temporary pleasure and, after that, ultimate happiness,total liberation from oceans of samsaric suffering. But themain benefit is the ultimate one, full enlightenment forsentient beings—the total cessation of all defilements,even the subtle ones, and the completion of all qualities;full enlightenment, where there is not one sentient beingleft and all beings are enlightened by you, through allthose actions done in relation to the Maitreya statue.Then the ultimate goal is reached.Even if you offer just one grain of rice to the MaitreyaBuddha statue, that will be the result—all temporal andultimate happiness up until every single sentient beinghas been brought to full enlightenment. When thathappens, the benefits of having offered that single grainof rice to the Buddha have been realised. So you can seethat the benefits of the statue are really incredible.A sutra states that even if you look at a drawing of theBuddha on a stone wall with anger, that still creates thecause to eventually see ten million buddhas.There are five Mahayana paths to enlightenment: thepaths of merit, preparation, right seeing, meditationand no more learning. The first path, the path of merit,has three categories: small, middle and great. When youachieve the great path of merit, wherever you are, yousee an unbelievable number of buddhas in nirmanakayaaspect.Just like the Kadampa Geshe Chayulwa, who wasfollowing his guru Chengawa, doing service withgreat devotion. He cleaned his guru’s room every day,collecting the dirt in his robes and throwing it outside.One day, when he was going down the stairs with allthe room’s dirt gathered in his robes, upon reaching thethird step he achieved the great path of merit and rightthere saw innumerable buddhas in nirmanakaya aspect.So the benefit is not just seeing countless buddhas butultimately achieving the total cessation of both grossand subtle obscurations and completing all qualities: fullenlightenment.of Devotion” mentions another benefit:Buddha said to Manjushri, “If any son or daughter ofthe race [lineage] or other person offering every daydivine food of a hundred tastes and divine clothingto self-buddhas [solitary realiser arhats] equallingthe number of atoms of the entire universe for eonsequalling the number of sand grains of the PacificOcean and, Manjushri, any son or daughter of therace or other person seeing a drawing of the Buddhaor other material representation such as a painting orstatue, the latter [seeing the image] collects infinitelygreater merit than the former [making the offerings].So there’s no question that those putting their palmstogether or offering flowers, perfume, incense or lightcollect infinitely greater merit than those [merely seeinga drawing, painting or statue of the Buddha].”The quote above mentions solitary realiser arhats, who areliberated from karma and delusion. You can’t imagine thekarma of making just one offering of food and clothingto solitary realiser arhats equalling the number of sandparticles of the Pacific Ocean and offering one hundreddevas’ food and clothing every day for one hundredeons. You can’t imagine; you can’t imagine. If you thinkabout it, you might completely faint; you can’t imagineit. But this merit becomes miniscule compared to themerit of merely seeing a statue of the Buddha. Therefore,any sentient being who sees the Maitreya statue or just apicture of the Maitreya statue, you really can’t imagine!Wow! Wow! Wow! Wow! Wow! Wow! Wow! By merelyseeing it once in their lifetime they receive an incredibleamount of merit.The “Piled Flower Sutra” states, “The benefit youexperience from offering just one flower to a stupa isas great as all the happiness you have experienced sincebeginningless rebirths up to now.”If you think well about the benefit of making justthis one offering, it’s amazing, amazing, amazing,amazing! You receive all happiness up to ultimatehappiness, liberation from samsara, nirvana, and thenultimate full enlightenment for all sentient beings.Then, as I mentioned before, the final result is to freeeverybody—numberless hell beings, numberless hungryghosts, numberless animals, numberless human beings,numberless suras, numberless asuras and numberlessintermediate state beings—from oceans of samsaricsuffering and bring them to full enlightenment. That isthe result of offering one flower to a stupa just once.The sutra says a stupa, but it means a statue, stupa orscripture; basically any holy object. So, whether it’s astatue of the Buddha or a painting of Buddha, it’s theHere you can see that the benefits are unbelievable,unbelievable. It really is most amazing, most amazing,most amazing how building this Maitreya statue willbenefit sentient beings!This is really what the world needs. The real need is thegood heart, the ultimate good heart—bodhicitta andcompassion for all living beings: for numberless hellbeings, numberless hungry ghosts, numberless animals,numberless human beings, numberless suras, numberlessasuras and numberless intermediate state beings. Greatcompassion is needed more than anything else.That is beginning of bodhicitta. From the five Mahayanapaths to enlightenment, that is the root of all success upto enlightenment, all happiness; the root of temporaryand ultimate happiness, full enlightenment, for thenumberless hell beings, numberless hungry ghosts,numberless animals, numberless human beings,numberless suras, numberless asuras and numberlessintermediate state beings. Developing bodhicitta isunbelievable, most important, even without talkingabout buddhas in the world; the most important thingto bring peace and happiness. So we need to develop the

good heart, if not bodhicitta realisation, as much aspossible. With simply a good heart we give no harmand only benefit to sentient beings. In that way we canbe the cause of happiness for other sentient beings. Asmuch great compassion as possible, is what is reallyneeded in the heart of everybody in the world.To create the cause, talk is not enough. To generatecompassion and bodhicitta we need a great deal ofmerit. Therefore you can see how important it is tobuild the Maitreya statue and to actualise bodhicitta.The great holy being Lotsawa Rinchen Zangpo wroteon a stone in Ladakh that building Maitreya statueshelps decrease famine all over the world. Every year,countless people all over the world die from famine,sickness and weapons, so the more Maitreya statues webuild, the less this happens.as possible in the world to generate the good heart.That will bring much more peace and happiness inthe world and at the same time all undesirable thingswill decrease: economic problems, disease, war andtsunamis and so forth; all such things will be pacified.The Maitreya ProjectRegarding the Maitreya statue, it’s true that we madesome mistakes. This was due to karma. We discoveredmuch later that we made some wrong decisions withrespect to expecting more money for Maitreya after wespent some or hoping to get a big amount and so forth.That didn’t work out. So we did make some mistakesalong the way.However, there are no words left to thank Peter Kedge,the past director of the Maitreya Project. For the pastfifteen years he has sincerely dedicated one hundredpercent of the efforts of his body, speech and mind tothe Maitreya statue. Amazing! Amazing! Amazing! It isamazing the way he has dedicated his life to this. Fromthe depths of my heart, I really, really want to thankPeter and express my appreciation for him. There reallyare no words left to thank him.Join us in a practice of giving to the 12 types of guestsSunday 31 March 2013, 1.30 pm6 Performed by Khen Rinpoche Geshe • Transcendental guests—lineage lamas, 7Chonyi and ABC sanghaSo it is my dedication and plan to build large Maitreyastatues, not small, like tsa-tsa’s, but one storey or morethan one storey high, as many as possible, in thisworld, so that such problems become fewer and allthe benefits that I have mentioned accrue. So buildingthe Maitreya statue also has this last benefit that Imentioned.Even the name Maitreya, ‘Gyalwa Jampa’, means“Victorious Loving Kind One”. One of my main aimsin building the Maitreya statue is for as many peopleI also want to thank from my heart all the past directorsof the Maitreya Project and Ven. Pende Hawter, MarcelBertels, all the kind benefactors, and the many otherpeople and companies who dedicated their time andenergy as well.All their work and our many years of experience willserve as the basis for building the statue in Bodhgaya.Also, I hope that we will be able to build large Maitreyastatues in other countries. So all that has happened hasbeen very useful, very important experience, for thefuture and for the many other large statues that I hopewill be built in this world.Now the responsibility for the Maitreya Project passesto our most kind Nita Ing. She has been a greatsupporter of the FPMT organisation for many, manyyears and through her immeasurable kindness Nita isgoing to actualise the Maitreya statue. So I rejoice andI ask you to please rejoice too.Finally, I request anybody who wants to achieve thebenefits I have mentioned above and especially wants tobenefit sentient beings in this world to please continuehelping the Maitreya Statue Project in whatever wayyou can so that this time we will be able to overcomethe obstacles and actually see the statue.Transcribed by Ven. Holly Ansett, USA, August 2012; edited by DrNick Ribush, November 2012. Further edited for TASHI DELEK.The original letter can be found at www.maitreyaproject.orgThis Qing Ming, honour your ancestors anddeceased loved ones through a practice of extensivegiving. Dedicate for them to receive the vast meritsthat will sweep away their negative karma and helpthem in their future rebirths.Generating the vast compassionate qualities ofChenresig (Guan Yin), two kinds of offerings are made.First, water is offered to the wealth deities White andYellow Dzambhala. The blessed water is then offered tothe hungry ghosts, intermediate state beings and thenagas.Next, with a bodhicitta motivation, specially prepareddough balls are offered to the 12 types of guests,transformed into oceans of nectar that satisfies them.Offering to the transcendental guests invokes theirblessings while offering to the worldly beings dispelsharms and repays our karmic debts. Thus we accumulatemerit through our practice of generosity and fromhaving pleased the respective guests:meditational deities, the Three Jewels, Dharmaprotectors, sages and wealth deities• Worldly beings—local deities, landlords, yakshas,interferers and spirits• Sentient beings of the six realms• Hungry ghosts• Spirits to whom we owe karmic debts from ourpast acts of killing, beating and stealing• Intermediate state beings• Remaining guests, the most pitifully weak amongthe hungry ghostsThrough this 100 Torma Offering Ritual [Tibetan:torma gyatsa] we bring bliss and happiness to all theinvited guests, dedicate for the happiness of belovedancestors, and create the cause for our own happiness.- Dedications can be made for the benefit of all persons,living or deceased.- Donations are voluntary. Any amount is welcome.- No registration required. Drop off your dedications/ donations at Reception by 1.30 pm on 31 March.- All present will get to sip the water blessed by theDzambhala wealth deities.

The Meaning of LongLife Puja—Not just aTibetan pastime!The FPMT has a tradition of offering a long life puja to our precious guru and Spiritual Director,Lama Zopa Rinpoche, in Kopan Monastery at the end of each year. During thelong life offering to Rinpoche on 29 th December 2012, Rinpoche spoke about the significance andmeaning behind performing the puja. The long life puja, Rinpoche explained, was based on theLama Chöpa or Guru Puja practice. It was through the practice of guru yoga that many masters ofthe past were able to achieve full enlightenment quickly, within one lifetime.Rinpoche cited the great yogis, Saraha, Tilopa, Naropa, Marpa and Milarepa, as examples as wellas Gyalwa Ensapa and Lama Tsong Khapa.This Lama Chöpa is what theypractised, what made themenlightened in a brief lifetimeof this degenerate time. This iswhat they had practised. In a veryshort time, they could achieve fullenlightenment. Panchen Lobsang8 Chökyi Gyaltsen [who composedamazing—can’t imagine the amount but you cannot count the merit of happen to us. We have to know that 9the Lama Chöpa] checked manyguru yogas, from ancient Indianpandits and from the four differentsects—Nyingma, Sakya, Kagyu,Gelug. This Lama Chöpa whichhe himself practised, he himselfchecked many others, and he himselfexperienced, and practised, achievingenlightenment. This was [entirely] hisexperience.For us just even to hear the words,besides to practise, is something likea dream for us—extremely precious,most precious.There’s one verse, two stanzas Ithink, by Gyalwa Ensapa: “The validguru—without looking at mistakes,look at the side of the qualities.” Thispractice should be the heart practice.Do not look at the side of mistakes,look at the side of the qualities—itshould be the heart practice and to beable to complete such a practice, sucha commitment.Seven-Limb PracticeThe seven-limb practice, as you allknow, is the normal daily life practicewhich creates enlightenment—sevenvery important practices to createenlightenment. It is the preliminarypractice for the actual body of lamrimpractice of Lama Chöpa, GuruPuja practice.1. ProstrationsThat’s the antidote to the generalnegative karma collected frombeginningless rebirths with body,speech and mind. What is to beachieved by doing the practice is thethree kayas.2. OfferingsOfferings are the antidote tomiserliness. Those delusions, negativekarma, these are obstacles to achievingenlightenment. The result, whatyou achieve, is unceasing, like sky,unceasing offerings, what buddhasreceive, unceasing offerings.3. ConfessionThe antidote to negative karmacollected with body, speech andmind, and what it purifies bydoing the practice of purification iscessation of the two obscurations—cessation of the disturbing-thoughtobscuration and the obstruction tofull enlightenment in your mind—thecessation of those two obscurations.4. RejoicingRejoicing is the antidote to jealousy.By doing the practice, you achieve theresult, Buddha’s holy body which hasall the beauties [marks and signs]. Itmakes you achieve that, by rejoicing.Each time as you rejoice, yourmerits collected from beginninglessrebirths—just by rejoicing, howwonderful it is—all the merits youcollected from beginningless rebirthsbecome double. By rejoicing a secondtime, it becomes triple. Double!Triple! Amazing, amazing, amazing.As Lama Tsong Khapa mentioned,“Ge la je su yi rang chog tu sung.”The easiest way to collect mostextensive merit is rejoicing. Rejoicingin your own merits, wow, wow, wow,wow! Can’t imagine, can’t imagine.Just in the next second—double,triple—through rejoicing, howwonderful it is. And then, by rejoicingin others’ merit, other sentientbeings’ merit—the numberless hellbeings, numberless hungry ghosts,numberless animals, numberlesshuman beings, numberless surabeings, numberless asuras, numberlessintermediate beings—even in justone realm there are numberlesssentient beings. If you rejoice, howwonderful it is, all the sentient beings’merit. How much the numberlesssentient beings, in zillions, collected,that much merit you gain. So byrejoicing, that much merit, whatsentient beings collected, you gain.Then by rejoicing the second time, itis double! Triple! Oh, that is amazing,of merit you collect.For example, Pabongka DechenNyingpo has mentioned in “Liberationin the Palm of Your Hand” that if yourejoice in one bodhisattva’s one day ofmerit, you collect half day’s merit.What they collect in one day, youcollect half day’s merit. By rejoicing,in one second you collect that muchmerit. But without rejoicing, it takesthirteen thousand years. That muchrejoicing, it takes thirteen thousandyears for you. But if you rejoice inone bodhisattva’s one day of merit,in that second you collect that muchmerit. Half day—that much merityou collect—what one bodhisattvacollects in one day. So we rejoice inbodhisattvas’ merit—past, presentand future—and not only that, thenumberless bodhisattvas. There arenumberless bodhisattvas. Can youimagine when we rejoice in merit,how much merit you collect? Canyou imagine? Amazing!Then by rejoicing in the Buddha’smerit, by dividing by ten, you getthat much amount of merit. In theKangyur, in the Buddha’s teaching,it is mentioned that you can countMount Meru into [heaps of] sang,Tibetan coins, but by rejoicing onetime, the amount of merit cannotbe counted. Also it is mentioned,you can count each continent [ofthe mandala] into sang, small coins,rejoicing one time. Unbelievable,unbelievable, unbelievable! It ismentioned in the Kangyur.5. Requesting to Turn theDharma WheelNext one, requesting to turn theDharma wheel, to the Buddha’snirmanakaya aspect, the gurus’and buddhas’ nirmanakaya aspect,requesting the merit field to turnthe Dharma wheel, to pleasegive teachings, is the antidote toignorance and abandonment of theholy Dharma. That is very dangerousfor us, very easy to create this negativekarma, to abandon Dharma.For example, the Abhidharmakoshaor philosophical subjects which youdon’t understand, whatever is theBuddha’s teaching, you lose faith inthe text, in the subject, you don’thave faith. It’s not out of respect ofyour body, speech and mind. All thisphilosophy, you don’t understand,have no faith, or it’s not the objectof your respect, that is avoiding theholy Dharma. Even the Nyingma,Kagyu, Sakya, Gelug, those TibetanBuddhist teachings, and thosethat are presented according to thedifferent levels of mind of sentientbeings, Hinayana, Paramitayana,Tantrayana, for example. Any of theBuddha’s teachings, when you losefaith in the text, have no respect,that’s avoiding the holy Dharma. Butyou know the missing pages of textswhich we burn in the fire, withoutlosing your respect when offering tofire, that is not necessarily avoidingholy Dharma. If you have respect, no;anyone who has lost respect, has nodevotion, yes.That’s very, very, very dangerous forus, avoiding the holy Dharma. Youcreate the negative karma of havingdestroyed all the chorten. Not onlyholy stupas, chorten means all theholy objects. All the temples, all thestatues, stupas, scriptures in the world,if you destroyed those completelyyou would create more negativekarma than that [of abandoning theDharma]. It is very easy for this towell.Requesting to turn the Dharmawheel is the antidote to that. Theresult is you achieve the Buddha’sholy speech. Because you request forteachings, you achieve Buddha’s holyspeech. Not only that, then also as akarma, you are able to give Buddha’steachings to sentient beings. There aremany, many, many benefits explainedin the sutras.6. Requesting the Guruto Live LongThe next one is requesting for longlife, the antidote to disturbing theguru’s holy mind. If you disturbedthe holy mind in past lives, in thislife, by requesting the guru’s long life,this purifies that. It is the antidote tothat. You achieve the undying vajraholy body.7. DedicationI want to emphasise that dedication

is the antidote to heresy and anger.Anger destroys merits. Anger andheresy destroys merits.For example, you don’t havebodhicitta but you get angry at abodhisattva. In one second if you getangry at a bodhisattva, you destroyone thousand eons’ good karma,merit, whatever you collected bymaking offerings to Guru, Buddha,Dharma, Sangha for one eon andmaking charity to extensive sentientbeings. Any merit you collect withsentient beings, for one eon, all themerit gets destroyed in one secondif you get angry at a bodhisattva. Soit is much, much, much, much, muchmore if you get angry at Buddha. Justone second, how much merit, howmany eons of merit get destroyed, noquestion. Many, many, many eons ofgood karma get destroyed completely.On top of that, towards the guru, ifyou get angry one second, if you getheresy, anger for one second, canyou imagine? How many eons, howmany eons? Wow, wow, wow, wowcan’t imagine. Even though in theoutline of lam-rim it is mentioned,if you get angry one second, oneexistence, not existing from its ownside, existing by its own nature, ifyou don’t do that, if you don’t lookat it as empty, then even if you collectmerits like Mount Meru, the meritsthat you collect does not becomeunceasing. It is extremely importantto seal without the hallucination, toseal with the right view.If you don’t rejoice, then the merit youcollected, the happiness beyond, forfuture lives, you collect like treasure—unbelievable, unbelievable—but ifyou don’t rejoice, the merit won’tincrease. Therefore, to rejoice in yourmerit is very, very, important.The Long Life PujaThe long life puja, long life tothe Guru, to the Buddha, to thenirmanakaya aspect of the buddhas,by the way, as a result of that actionit becomes long life for yourself.Requesting the long life of the guru,the nirmanakaya buddhas, makesyour life longer. It becomes a long lifepuja for yourself, for the disciple.Normally, parents praying for theirchildren, children praying for theirparents, a blood connection. Thenthose living in the same house, usingthe materials in the same house, ifthey pray for each other, there is muchpower. The other thing is the gurupraying for the disciple, the disciplepraying for the guru, there is Dharmaconnection. The guru praying for thedisciple, the disciple praying for theguru, definitely due to that, there issome power.10 eon I think, not thousand eons, onereceive $80 worth of food donations including rice, Look out for more news about JINPA for Our Community 11eon of merit gets destroyed. But in“Lam-rim Chen-mo”, and there aremany places where it is mentioned,if a non-bodhisattva gets angryat a bodhisattva for one second,then one thousand eons’ merit getdestroyed. Therefore if you get angryat Buddha for one second, then howmuch, wow, wow, many, many eons,much, much, more. Then at theguru—unbelievable, unbelievable,unbelievable, the number of eons ofmerit get destroyed.Therefore I would like to say, in oureveryday life if you don’t practisepatience. In our everyday lives,we think collecting merit is veryimportant, yes, that is right. Butpractise patience. Even if you don’tpay attention at all, ah, can yousee? How much extensive merit youcollected, so much, so much, so muchget destroyed in one second. If wedon’t practise patience, have heresy,anger towards the guru. So, how wecan have realisations? It is very, verydifficult, extremely difficult. How canwe develop our minds on the path toenlightenment? Yes, collect merits,even small merits, so importantto collect, even to abandon smallnegative karma, yes, for the next life.But practise patience, oh, that wehave to pay a lot of attention. It isvery, very, very, very important.Sealing with EmptinessIf you don’t dedicate the merits, thenthe merits get destroyed like this so fast[snaps fingers], so easy, in a second,like this [snaps fingers]. Therefore, weneed to dedicate the merits to achieveenlightenment for sentient beings. Inthis way whatever merit you collect,it becomes unceasing. Not only that,we need to seal with emptiness.Kyabje Pabongka Dechen Nyingpohas mentioned in “Liberation in thePalm”, that if you don’t seal withemptiness, you have a mountain, amountain where many trucks cameto get the rocks, took them away,you still have the mountain but itbecomes weaker, smaller, weakens themerits. If you seal with emptiness, theone who collects merit, and the actionof dedicating merit, enlightenmentfor sentient beings, the whole thingif you seal with emptiness, even ifheresy, anger arises later, it doesn’tdestroy, doesn’t harm at all.The root of samsara is ignorance.What destroys that, what eliminatesthat directly, is the wisdom directlyperceiving emptiness. That wisdomrealising emptiness is the one thateliminates ignorance. Therefore, notonly dedicating for enlightenment,but you seal with emptiness, in thisway then later when heresy, angerarises, it cannot destroy the merits. Itis protected.[Rinpoche reads from a text] If youcollect merits like Mount Meru orlike the highest merit, but if you didn’tseal with emptiness of phenomena,if you didn’t seal with emptiness, ifyou don’t look at all phenomena asnot truly existent, with no existencefrom its own side. If you don’t lookat phenomena as having no trueThis long life puja is notjust a Tibetan pastime. Tohave some understandinghow this is practised, avery important practice,some idea for those whohave no idea.Recorded, transcribed and edited for AmitabhaBuddhist Centre’s free distribution media byVen. Tenzin Tsultrim. All mistakes are entirelythe editor’s. (January 2013)JINPA for Our Community– Let’s reach out to those in needJoy in Practising Altruism for Our Community[Jinpa: Tibetan for ‘generosity’]Join us at Amitabha Buddhist Centre in our FIRSTever food distribution drive to families in need all overSingapore.Saturday, 13 April 2013 (Revised date)All-day programme starts at 9.30 am with amotivational talk by Khen Rinpoche Geshe ChonyiIn conjunction with the Chinese Development AssistanceCouncil (CDAC), ABC will be distributing basic foodnecessities to over two hundred low-income households inthe heartlands, island-wide.• Contribute to the food fund: Each household willcooking oil, biscuits and beverages. ABC is donating$15,000 to the food fund towards the purchase of theseDelightful Gift Ideas fromABC’s Specialty Storev Tibetan-style metal incense holders engravedwith the Mani mantra and the Eight AuspiciousSymbols – available in gold and bronze coloursv Gold-coloured round metal incense holders –intricately carved, compact and uniquev Tea light holders with ornate filigree designs – ingold and bronze coloursv Miniature butter lamps in decorative reusableholdersessential groceries. Any additional cash contributionsare welcome.• Drive and deliver: Join us if you and your familieswould like to help with the food delivery to variouslocations around Singapore. What we need: at leasttwenty drivers with vehicles PLUS more volunteers tohelp despatch and deliver.• Sign up: Be a part of JINPA for Our Community,our gift of generosity to the less fortunate. Contact ouroffice or visit our website www.fpmtabc.org to make adonation or register as a volunteer.via our website and electronic updates.These and other inspiring creations to offer onyour altar or as gifts to your loved ones!Come visit us at Level 4.

Bonding in the Mountains –Relying on TaraSeet Huiying, aged 24:“Before embarking on this adventuroustrip, I pondered at many times of theday whether I should sign up for thistrekking trip—the cost of the trip, thephysical fitness required, the hygieneof the place, and the harsh weatherABC Youths in Nepalby Lama Zopa RinpocheSome of our ABC Youths got a taste of trekking in the Himalayas of Nepal in November last year.The team of eight, guys and gals, not only discovered steep trails, high altitudes and holy places, butforged deeper friendships during their journey. The two-week long trip was organised with guidanceand encouragement from Khen Rinpoche Geshe Chonyi. Besides trekking, the group also visitedKopan Monastery and holy sites in Kathmandu such as Boudhanath and Swayambhunath stupas.TASHI DELEK invited our youthful team to share what they learned and experienced in their firstmajor venture into the great outdoors together. Here’s what four of our happy trekkers had to say.conditions versus the breathtaking12 13scenery and the tranquillity of theplace. After weeks of consideration, Idecided to give it a try.Our memorable journey started offwith the eight of us and a group ofvery experienced tour guides, cooksand porters trekking through theforests of Langtang Valley to the alpinemeadows and yak pastures aroundKyangjin Mountain. After a night’sstay at Kyangjin Ri, we retraced ourroute back down the valley to SyabruBensi and drove back to Kathmandu.Acclimatising to the mountain wasextremely demanding and tedious onmy physical fitness. My team memberswaited and walked alongside with me,taking care of me when I felt extremelyfatigued especially on the second dayafter crossing the 3,000m mark.Along the journey, what captivatedme were the endless streams ofwaterfalls, the breathtaking ice-cappedmountains, the friendly smiles of thelocal people, the delicious organicvegetarian food that we had alongthe stream, and most importantly theincredible bond that kept us going.I will always remember the happyfaces of the locals and learn to besatisfied with what we have, and atthe same time, to be generous towardsall. Lastly, I would like to thank all theteam members for the encouragementand support given throughout thewhole trek. I will definitely cherish thefriendship that was created and I lookforward to more of these ABC trips.”Huang Tengyi, aged 30:“Part of me remains in the valleysof Langtang and part of her dwellswithin me as memories. Never mindthe treacherous terrains or the freezingcold weather for her beauty hasawestruck us all!Nepal’s Langtang Valley, her snowymountains, rocky hills and streamscomplemented by blue skies arebeyond what words can express. Youhave to experience it!But above all, it was this family of26 that created the camaraderie, joy,The trekking team perched on the peak of Kyangjin Ri with the prayer flags that they hadcarried all the way from Singapore. Written on the prayer flags are wishes from ABC members,friends and visitors that were penned down during ABC’s Vesak Celebration 2012.laughter, friendships, care and lovethat made it complete and whole.(The entourage comprised the eight ofus and 18 locals: our guides, kitchenstaff and porters.)Every one of us experienced momentsof our own inner peace, disconnectedfrom the world outside with noiPhones to distract and get engrossedin. Mantras were recited, holy objectswere constantly in sight, and mostlyimportantly ABC prayer flags wereflown. Our minds were light, ourmundane worries vanished and ourhearts were opened by the positiveenergies. We were connected.Perhaps Khen Rinpoche had alreadyforeseen how the trek would prepareus for the many holy sites which wevisited later. As if silenced, our mindswere more focused and we were ableto truly appreciate and be connectedwith blessed sites at Kopan, Pharping,Swayambhunath and Boudhanath.We invite you to be part of our family!Approach any one of us and we willshare with you the stories of ourjourney!”Sangye Quek Qiping,aged 15, describeshimself as “the youngestand most playful”:“No one word has the ability tofully express my feelings for thistrip. Before the trek, I was full ofexcitement, leading to an active mindthat continuously made up thoughtson how the following days wouldbe like. During the trek, the level ofexcitement did not cease but wasmaintained continuously throughoutthe trek, and my mind, still activelyproducing thoughts throughout thetrek, filling my mind with wonderfulimages on what I would be able to see,causing me to have a smile on my facethat didn’t vanish during the course ofthe trek.Excitement and happiness are notenough to describe my feelings.Delight was also experienced wheneverwe did prayers for a smooth and safeThe group with Khen Rinpoche during a pilgrimage to Pharping, outside Kathmandu.journey, whenever we talked, sharedor discussed things related to Dharma,whenever we chanted mantras whiledescending, and whenever one or twoof us stopped to chant some mantrasto the animals that we saw. Fear alsotook over me occasionally due to myfear of taking a wrong step that mightend my trek halfway, my fear of sixand eight-legged creatures, and myfear of the beings that are unseen,living around us.One of the main reasons why KhenRinpoche suggested that we organisethis trip is to strengthen the bondbetween one another, and I believethat the bonds among us have grownstronger. It is surprising how in justspending a few brief days of our lifetogether, such a bond can be formed.All in all, it was a trip worth going.I enjoyed my time there, and eventhough my physical body is residingin Singapore, my mind is constantlytravelling back to Nepal, beingsurrounded by mountains, looking atthe spectacular view made by nature.Looking forward to our next gatheringand our next overseas trip!”Cai Zhenrong, aged 28:“I feel that without any doubts, themountainous landscape, and thetranquillity from the holy places weexperienced is one of the biggestrewards from this trip. But thewinning takeaway is the closer bondwe have forged as a family.What really brings us closer are thehardships we went through together,the conquering of a treacherous trek,the days we went without showering,and the help and encouragement wereceived from and gave one anotherthroughout the journey.Every night, we did our refugetakingprayers, mantra chanting anddedicated these merits to the beingsand everyone we met along ourjourney, wishing sincerely that theywould benefit from our deeds. Onnights when we weren’t so tired, weshared Dharma stories to inspire oneanother.The joy of giving and the genuinesincerity of wishing the best foreveryone has been my greatest lesson.I have to thank everyone in the team,from the cooking staff that preparedour meals, our porters who carriedour bags, our guides, as well as myfellow brothers and sisters in theteam for these lessons. No words candescribe how grateful and thankfulI am towards them and our kinship.Thanks for the lesson, thanks for thekinship, thanks for the happiness!I hope that there will be more trips likethis in the future so that more peoplecan benefit from them.”Connect with ABC Youths and their activities atwww.facebook.com/abcyouths

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Join Us for a Weekend withOur Precious GuruLama ZopaRinpoche @ AmitabhaBuddhist Centre9 – 10 March201316 Medicine Buddha COMMITMENTS, there is alifelong commitment to reciteJenangthe mantra of Medicine BuddhaSaturday / 9 March / daily (up to 108 times). The actual2.30 pmnumber of mantras will be as advisedby Rinpoche during the initiation.16Come receive the precious MedicineBuddha jenang (subsequentpermission initiation) from LamaZopa Rinpoche.With ONE of the followingcommitments:1) Take the Bodhisattva Vow, OR ifthis is not possible at this time,2) Take aspirational bodhicitta withthe commitment to practise thefour white dharmas and abandonthe four black dharmas, OR ifthis is also not possible at thistime,3) Resolve to increase one’scompassion in daily lifeIN ADDITION to ONEof the ABOVE THREEMore information about taking ajenang, as well as the commitmentsfor this initiation, is available atwww.fpmtabc.orgLong Life PujaSunday / 10 March /9 amAs students of Lama Zopa Rinpoche,let’s come together for this auspiciouslong life offering to the Guru.Through our collective prayers anddedications during the puja, let’spray and request for Rinpoche tolive an extremely long and healthylife, for his every activity to flourishand be successfully accomplished,and for all his holy wishes to beswiftly fulfilled.Refuge & Lay PreceptsCeremonySunday / 10 March /7 pmAll are welcome, old and new, toreceive Refuge and Lay Precepts fromLama Zopa Rinpoche. Through thisceremony, one takes Refuge in theThree Jewels and commits to takingANY OR ALL FIVE of the LayPrecepts. The five lifetime preceptsare: refrain from killing, stealing,engaging in sexual misconduct,lying, and drinking alcohol.All are welcome!Note: Rinpoche’s teachings will besimultaneously transcribed andbroadcast onto several televisionscreens during the above events.For more information andupdates about Rinpoche’sprogramme, visit www.fpmtabc.org