Conquering Stress And Anxiety Public Talk With Ven Amy Miller (part 1)

0:02 Thank you. Report an error in the passage at 0:02 Highlight the passage at 0:02

0:10 I'm just looking for Freddie, who said he was coming, but he's not here. Okay. Checking out all the people that told me they were coming, but I... Anyway. Report an error in the passage at 0:10 Highlight the passage at 0:10

0:20 Thank you so much for coming. I just want to get a check of who was not here last night, just so I know how to... Okay, so just a few people. Okay, because we're going to repeat a little bit from last night to get us back in the mood. Okay. So we're talking about stress and anxiety. And we're going to start with some motivational prayers. Okay? So I just need a booklet of thank you very much. Thanks so much. Report an error in the passage at 0:20 Highlight the passage at 0:20

0:49 And what we tend to do, and how many of you have been coming to some retreats at Shantideva? Some people brand new to Buddhism? Oh no, so you've been around a little bit new. Okay. So what we like to do is generally for a practice or a... Report an error in the passage at 0:49 Highlight the passage at 0:49

1:11 Thank you. A program, any kind of activity, a talk, we always have some kind of motivational prayers to a little bit set up the foundation for the practice and the day. Report an error in the passage at 1:11 Highlight the passage at 1:11

1:27 And we're going to start on page two. So I wanted to explain a little bit for people, how many people familiar with the Refuge Bodhicitta Prayer? Okay, so do you know the significance of the prayer and what it means and everything? Okay, some people not familiar with it? Okay. Let me just go through a little bit. Report an error in the passage at 1:27 Highlight the passage at 1:27

1:51 Let's read once in English this four-line prayer. Page two. Taking refuge and generating bodhicitta. I go for refuge until I'm enlightened to the Buddha, the Dharma and the Supreme Assembly. By my practice of giving and other perfections, may I become a Buddha to benefit all sentient beings. Sentient means with a mind, with a consciousness. Report an error in the passage at 1:51 Highlight the passage at 1:51

2:16 This four-line prayer contains basically the entire path. So we're taking refuge and basically the reason you take refuge is there's three different motivations that underlie the philosophy in our tradition, in the Galupa tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. And it underlies all the other traditions as well. And you begin to become... Report an error in the passage at 2:16 Highlight the passage at 2:16

2:44 concern Concerned about what will be next for you and that the next situation that you're going to live in or be in, whether it's a future life, will be immense suffering. Immense suffering. And that terrifies you. So this goes into people thinking this is like a God-fearing religion. It's actually not that the fear that becomes generated is actually a motivator to practice. Report an error in the passage at 2:44 Highlight the passage at 2:44

3:11 So it's not about a paralyzing, crippling fear. So you become this first level motivation as things could be much worse for me. And there's different parts of the philosophy that underlie this. So teachings on why it's advantageous to be human. This situation is passing away quickly. We are going to die soon. Report an error in the passage at 3:11 Highlight the passage at 3:11

3:34 If we die, we will end up in, could very possibly end up in lower rebirths of immense suffering. The best way for me to protect my mind from that suffering is to take proper refuge. And once I take proper refuge, I need to know how to conduct myself. So the teachings on karma. And those are included in what's called the lower scope of the lamrim. With the motivation underlying it that I am terrified of what could possibly come next. Report an error in the passage at 3:34 Highlight the passage at 3:34

4:04 So that motivates me to practice. Then build upon that motivation in the middle scope. are the teachings on suffering and reaching liberation or nirvāṇa. So building on this scope, I realized that actually even in this situation now, it's actually not good enough and there's still suffering. Report an error in the passage at 4:04 Highlight the passage at 4:04

4:26 So I get motivated to practice because I would really like to end my own suffering. And then built on that motivation come the highest scope motivation. So if I could generate the... Mental stabilization, shine, the right kind of meditation. And if I can apply that mindset, the single pointed concentration, to the nature of reality, emptiness, I could penetrate that to have a direct realization of emptiness, of the nature of reality. Report an error in the passage at 4:26 Highlight the passage at 4:26

5:03 And if I combine that with opening the good heart and developing bodhicitta, this enlightened awareness, Of wanting to benefit others more than myself, then I can get enlightened. I can get fully enlightened and become a Buddha, a fully awakened being. And from that place, then I'm unlimited in leading all these other beings out of their suffering. So the third scope deals with it's not just enough to get myself out, but all these other beings are suffering. Report an error in the passage at 5:03 Highlight the passage at 5:03

5:34 And I'm really motivated to benefit them. I really want to help them. So let me do that in the most fully empowered way. Report an error in the passage at 5:34 Highlight the passage at 5:34

5:44 And that's everything in this prayer. Believe it or not, it's all there. So when you go to light into the Buddha, the Dharma and the Supreme Assembly, so I'm acknowledging my refuge in them to do this. And through my practice of giving and other perfections, this is the six perfections. And this is about attaining bodhicitta, is part of the six perfections, bodhicitta and realizing emptiness. Report an error in the passage at 5:44 Highlight the passage at 5:44

6:10 And so can I do that? To benefit all sentient beings. Sentient are all beings with a consciousness. So just to give you a little sense of what are we saying. Because we blah blah the words but we don't have much meaning. So it's always nice when you do prayers to think about the meaning. So let's recite, have a little bit of thought to yourself about what refuge means to you and generating that good heart. Report an error in the passage at 6:10 Highlight the passage at 6:10

6:40 And with that mindset let's recite once again in English. I go for refuge until I'm enlightened to the Buddha, the Dharma and the Supreme Assembly. By my practice of giving and other perfections, may I become a Buddha to benefit all sentient beings. We're going to chant it once in the Tibetan phonetics so you get a sense of the sound of the chant. Report an error in the passage at 6:40 Highlight the passage at 6:40

7:05 O sangye jo dan so gi cho nam la jan chubha ju deg ni gyab su ji da gi jin so gi pe so nam gi tro la pen chur sangye drupar jo Report an error in the passage at 7:05 Highlight the passage at 7:05

7:25 The four measurables is next. So sending these wishes out to the universe, the planet can certainly use this right now. So if you look at, just to understand, May all beings have happiness and the causes of happiness. What is that? What would you call that? Immeasurable love? That's what love is, wanting others to be happy. Report an error in the passage at 7:25 Highlight the passage at 7:25

7:49 Okay? May all sentient beings be free from suffering. So if you're not familiar with these, what do you think free from suffering is about? One's about love, the other one, free from suffering is what? Report an error in the passage at 7:49 Highlight the passage at 7:49

8:00 Compassion. Okay, being free from having compassion. So we've got immeasurable happiness, immeasurable compassion. May they be, the third one, inseparable from the happiness that is free from suffering. What would you call that? Joy, immeasurable joy. And the last one, immeasurable equanimity, having equal regard, equal respect for all beings. Let's recite these in English. Report an error in the passage at 8:00 Highlight the passage at 8:00

8:29 May all sentient beings have happiness and the causes of happiness. May all sentient beings be free from suffering and the causes of suffering. May all sentient beings be inseparable from the happiness that is free from suffering. May all sentient beings abide in equanimity, free from attachment for friends and hatred for enemies. Report an error in the passage at 8:29 Highlight the passage at 8:29

8:53 Seven limb prayer. So if you're... Who can tell me what the seven lines represent? Report an error in the passage at 8:53 Highlight the passage at 8:53

9:05 Not exactly. Seven stages of the path, you said? No, each line has something else. So not seven stages of the path. Something else. I mean, it's related to the path. What is the first line about? Report an error in the passage at 9:05 Highlight the passage at 9:05

9:20 It's nice to know what the prayers mean, right? It's really nice. What's the first? Reverently I prostrate with my body, speech and mind. What is that about? Yes. It's similar to that. Yeah, it's related to that. And so what are the different cycles and what would the first one be? Prostration. Okay. Number one is we pay homage. Report an error in the passage at 9:20 Highlight the passage at 9:20

9:45 I pay respect to the Dharma. And so there's different things to know. For instance, it's very nice how they set this up. I'm very grateful to Shantideva Center and I want to thank all the people involved with the center. Jennifer and Arnaud and George and Dimitri and I forget your name. Steve and Bonnie. Report an error in the passage at 9:45 Highlight the passage at 9:45

10:13 There's many, many people involved to make this happen. And what's nice is I prefer to sit cross-legged. So they make a chair but they raise it up because some people want to sit in chairs perfectly fine. And what happens is And Bonnie, yeah. Report an error in the passage at 10:13 Highlight the passage at 10:13

10:26 Not that I'm on some trip, okay? But in respect for the Dharma, the throne should be higher than people, just out of respect for the teaching. It's not about the teachers are on a trip that I'm better than you, okay? But it's just out of respect for the teachings, to honor and respect. So that first line is all about that. Report an error in the passage at 10:26 Highlight the passage at 10:26

10:45 Is I prostrate with my body, my speech and my mind. We prostrate with our body. Some people make prostrations, right? I prostrate with my speech by... Offering praises to Buddhists, you can even say nice things about teachers or the Dharma. Lama Zopa Rinpoche, some of you are familiar with him or have heard about him, our main teacher. Report an error in the passage at 10:45 Highlight the passage at 10:45

11:08 And gossip is seen as a non-virtue. Gossip. Idle chatter. And we gossip a lot. We say something about that guy, you know, look at that funny thing he's wearing. You gossip at work, you get into negative stuff about people. Sometimes just blah, blah. Lama Zopa Rinpoche's gossip. This is how he gossips. He'll say, Riba Rinpoche, incredible Lama. Report an error in the passage at 11:08 Highlight the passage at 11:08

11:38 So incredible. That's praise with your speech. That's praise with your speech. Praise with your mind is thinking revered thoughts about, you might see a Buddhist statue and think, wow, beautiful. You might see... Right? That's... So it's Report an error in the passage at 11:38 Highlight the passage at 11:38

11:55 A video on YouTube of His Holiness teaching and your mind might be happy and think, okay? So that's prostration, reverence, homage. And when you mention the nundro, so nundro are preliminary practices, Report an error in the passage at 11:55 Highlight the passage at 11:55

12:09 preliminary practices that help us wash away negativities and accumulate the conditions we need to not only get into longer retreat, but to improve yourself, improve your mind, open your heart. Like that. And so a lot of us like to do nundro and you do a certain set, a number of certain practices and it seriously works. Report an error in the passage at 12:09 Highlight the passage at 12:09

12:35 It's quite amazing how it just helps to clear out some unhealthy patterns slowly, slowly like that. So that's what he meant by nundro and the nundro prostration, some people make 100,000 prostrations, full length prostrations with a certain practice and a visualization and prayers like that. Number two. Report an error in the passage at 12:35 Highlight the passage at 12:35

12:57 What's number two talking about? Report an error in the passage at 12:57 Highlight the passage at 12:57

13:04 Making offerings. Okay, they set up a small altar here and they have these water bowls you see filled with a yellow liquid. It's water with saffron in it. Saffron represents pure morality. So it's very nice, as does the incense sticks that are there. And they represent different things in the order. There's a certain way to do water bowls. This is another offering, flowers, hot water. So it's about making offerings. Report an error in the passage at 13:04 Highlight the passage at 13:04

13:33 Making offerings is the key to your prosperity. Generosity is what gets you out of poverty, believe it or not. And our culture is a little slower to catch up to that. But basically, when you're a little bit broke, and we all had those lean times, so people tend to tighten, I can't give any money. It's actually the opposite. It's to give. And it comes back a hundredfold to you. Report an error in the passage at 13:33 Highlight the passage at 13:33

14:00 So our cultures aren't exactly like I grew up with charity begins at home with that saying. So it's really the reverse. And sometimes our thinking, and we will talk about this today, is it's very opposite the way the culture is going sometimes. So if you want to combat stress and anxiety, sometimes you really have to be very strong-minded to do the opposite of what a lot of things around you are doing, a lot of the way it's going. Report an error in the passage at 14:00 Highlight the passage at 14:00

14:28 So you can make offerings in many different ways. It says actual and imagined. Actual offerings, you can make an offering. Imagined offerings, I do a practice every day and I recite a prayer that multiplies the offering so extensively and then I visualize various offerings. And you can do it anywhere. You can be on the train and you can do it. You see a beautiful sunset and the way to practice Dharma with the sunset is offer it. Report an error in the passage at 14:28 Highlight the passage at 14:28

14:56 You know, just imagine it, multiplying, filling all the space and making all these beings around the planet happy if they like to see a beautiful sunset. Like that, you can imagine jewels and chocolate and your favorite foods and all kinds of things and you can offer them. So I know sometimes if people are in a jewelry store, and I'll do this occasionally, I haven't done it this trip, but sometimes I go down Fifth Avenue and Tiffany and Cartier and I just offer all those things in my mind. Report an error in the passage at 14:56 Highlight the passage at 14:56

15:27 To make an offering like that. And then the third line, what's the third line about? Confession. So just like Catholics, we have confession and it's a powerful place of regret. It's not about obsessive, negative cycling of guilt. It's about having sincere regret. I messed up. I feel really bad about what I did. I understand the ramifications of what I did and I feel really bad about that. And so to confess it is the beginning of kind of cleaning it out. Report an error in the passage at 15:27 Highlight the passage at 15:27

16:05 Number fourth is rejoicing. Rejoicing is the easiest way to accumulate positive energy, something we call merit, rejoicing. Report an error in the passage at 16:05 Highlight the passage at 16:05

16:18 So if you hear that something good, something positive happened to somebody and you think how wonderful, you get... You get some of that energy, the positive energy. It's a very powerful thing. Some people are not natural rejoicers. So rejoicing is an antidote to jealousy, harmful intent, wishing others ill, covetousness and greed. Report an error in the passage at 16:18 Highlight the passage at 16:18

16:43 Rejoicing is the antidote for all these things. So if you find your mind gets into a little bit of a possessive state, you feel greedy, you get jealous, you can practice rejoicing. I wasn't a natural rejoicer in the beginning. Report an error in the passage at 16:43 Highlight the passage at 16:43

16:57 So what we do is when we practice, in the beginning it is what we call contrived. We're forcing it. It's okay to force some things in the beginning because our minds are so glommed on to some often negative pattern that you need to kind of pull it with a crowbar. In my case it was like a few crowbars out of that place. So I would hear about somebody got this job that I wanted or something. Report an error in the passage at 16:57 Highlight the passage at 16:57

17:26 And I remember I heard about rejoicing in the beginning of my Dharma career. And then I thought, oh, rejoicing, right. Because I knew I had this little twinge of like, why did she get that job? Why did he get that thing? And so initially I was a little bit of a, you know, great. Like it started like that very slowly. It was hard, you know. But I started to do it. I started to practice it seriously. Like it would be great. So until great just... Report an error in the passage at 17:26 Highlight the passage at 17:26

17:57 It started to come out automatically. And now I feel quite genuinely, automatically I hear something good and I'm like, fantastic. And the other thing I notice is how good I feel from rejoicing. Check out the next time you're jealous or greedy or how does it feel in your body. We're going to talk more about that. I'll take questions in a little bit, yeah. Report an error in the passage at 17:57 Highlight the passage at 17:57

18:20 Okay, number five. Remain until the end of cyclic existence. What's another word for cyclic existence? Saṃsāra. Thank you. So you're asking the Buddhas and the holy beings to be here with us. It's very easy to do that here because we have lovely images around us of Buddhas and holy images, holy beings. Report an error in the passage at 18:20 Highlight the passage at 18:20

18:42 So we're asking them to stay with us. When they leave and they're not around anymore and they say karmically the teachers will stop reincarnating in this degenerate age that we're in, So then we don't have any guides and you're left with books but we don't necessarily have someone to explain those to us. So we ask them to stay with us till the end of this suffering cycle and asking them to turn the wheel of Dharma. Report an error in the passage at 18:42 Highlight the passage at 18:42

19:07 What does that mean? To teach. To teach the Dharma. Teach us. And then we dedicate the merit. Those are the seven limbs. Seven lines. And they're sometimes run out in a more elaborated way in a practice we do called Guru. Puja or Lama Chopa is an extensive seven limb prayer with many verses for each limb like that. Report an error in the passage at 19:07 Highlight the passage at 19:07

19:30 So what happens about teaching, we assume teachers will teach and we don't understand there's actually a cause and result process to that. So the only reason I teach at centers is because people have requested me to teach and my teachers have asked me to teach. Report an error in the passage at 19:30 Highlight the passage at 19:30

19:50 eventually Eventually what will happen is they say in a degenerate time the teachers stop reincarnating and then there are times when a Buddha will manifest in a certain world system but they won't teach. So it would be very interesting if Shakyamuni Buddha had been born and had reached this fully awakened state and there were people around him at the time that knew something extraordinary had happened to him, I would imagine. Report an error in the passage at 19:50 Highlight the passage at 19:50

20:17 Certainly the disciples with him, the people that were Doing the practices with him knew something had happened. And that was when they requested him to teach. They asked him over and over. The first seven weeks he was enlightened he didn't teach. And then eventually he decided the benefit, the conditions came together. So imagine if he didn't, opted not to teach. Report an error in the passage at 20:17 Highlight the passage at 20:17

20:39 We wouldn't be here right now, right? We would be back at the Union Square Market. I got a little tied up there coming out of the subway. I got a little caught up with the guy from Glover, Vermont, selling the Vermont maple syrup. I used to live in Vermont, so I was a little bit like, oh, what kind of grade is that? Report an error in the passage at 20:39 Highlight the passage at 20:39

20:58 He was happy I knew about the grades of the syrup. Then I saw he only had one kind on one thing because he said New Yorkers didn't really know about the grades of the syrup. Then we, as snobby Vermonters, could be like, yeah, they don't know about syrup. It was so funny. And then, yeah, it was very cute. So let's recite the seven limbs and really think about each line. Report an error in the passage at 20:58 Highlight the passage at 20:58

21:28 Reverently I prostrate with my body, speech and mind. I present clouds of every type of offering, actual and imagined. I declare all my negative actions accumulated since beginningless time and rejoice in the merit of all holy and ordinary beings. Please remain until the end of cyclic existence. And turn the wheel of Dharma for living beings. I dedicate my own merits and those of all others to the great enlightenment. Report an error in the passage at 21:28 Highlight the passage at 21:28

22:12 Can we shortcut through some of the prayers? Do you mind? Or do you want to do all? You're okay? Okay. So we're going to read the Heart Sūtra on page six. Report an error in the passage at 22:12 Highlight the passage at 22:12

22:30 This is a beautiful prayer about emptiness. And as much again as you can think of the words. So the Buddha went into a meditation. A lot of you are familiar with this prayer. Went into a meditation and then through his meditative powers there's a dialogue between Avalokiteshvara and Shariputra and basically it's the Buddha's mind going through the sūtra that's explaining emptiness through these two disciples as if they're really conversing. Report an error in the passage at 22:30 Highlight the passage at 22:30

22:56 And they are conversing but it's really the Buddha in his meditative state that brings out this teaching on emptiness. Let's just read this together. I prostrate to the Arya triple gem. Thus did I hear at one time the Bhagavan was dwelling on Massa Vultures Mountain in Rajgriha, together with a great community of monks and a great community of bodhisattvas. Report an error in the passage at 22:56 Highlight the passage at 22:56

23:20 At that time the Bhagavan was absorbed in the concentration on the categories of phenomena called profound perception. Also at that time the Bodhisattva Mahasattva Arya Avalokiteshvara, upon the very practice of the profound perfection of wisdom, And beheld those five aggregates also as empty of inherent nature. Then through the power of Buddha, the Venerable Shariputra said this to the Bodhisattva Mahasattva Arya Avalokitesvara. Report an error in the passage at 23:20 Highlight the passage at 23:20

23:49 How should any son of the lineage train who wishes to practice the activity of the profound perfection of wisdom? He said that and the Bodhisattva Mahasattva Arya Avalokitesvara said this to the Venerable Sharadvati Putra. Shariputra, any son of the lineage or daughter of the lineage who wishes to practice the activity of the profound perfection of wisdom should look upon it like this, correctly and repeatedly beholding those five aggregates also as empty of inherent nature. Report an error in the passage at 23:49 Highlight the passage at 23:49

24:21 Form is empty, emptiness is form, emptiness is not other than form, is also not other than emptiness. In the same way, feeling, discrimination, compositional factors and consciousness are empty. Shariputra, likewise, all phenomena are emptiness, without characteristic, unproduced, unceased, stainless, not without stain, not deficient, not fulfilled. Report an error in the passage at 24:21 Highlight the passage at 24:21

24:48 Shariputra, therefore, in emptiness, there is no form, no feeling, no discrimination, compositional factors, no consciousness. No eye, no ear, no nose, no tongue, no body, no mind, no visual form, no sound, no odor, no taste, no object of touch and no phenomenon. There is no eye element and so on up to and including no mind element and no mental consciousness element. There is no ignorance, no extinction of ignorance and so on up to and including no aging and death and no extinction of aging and death. Report an error in the passage at 24:48 Highlight the passage at 24:48

25:27 With suffering, origination, cessation and path, there is no exalted wisdom, no attainment and also no non-attainment. Shariputra, therefore, because there is no attainment, bodhisattvas rely on and dwell in the perfection of wisdom, the mind without obscuration and without fear. Having completely passed beyond error, they reach the end point of nirvāṇa. Report an error in the passage at 25:27 Highlight the passage at 25:27

25:52 All the Buddhas who dwell in the three times also manifestly completely awaken to unsurpassable, perfect, complete enlightenment in reliance on the perfection of wisdom. For the mantra of the perfection of wisdom, the mantra of great knowledge, the unsurpassed mantra, the mantra equal to the unequaled, the mantra that thoroughly pacifies all suffering, should be known as truth since it is not false. Report an error in the passage at 25:52 Highlight the passage at 25:52

26:19 The mantra of the perfection of wisdom is declared, Shari Putra, the Bodhisattva Mahasattva, should train in the profound perfection of wisdom like that. The Bhagavan arose from that concentration and commended the Bodhisattva Mahasattva, Arya Avalokiteshvara, saying, Well said, well said, son of the lineage, it is like that. Report an error in the passage at 26:19 Highlight the passage at 26:19

26:47 It is like that. One should practice the profound perfection of wisdom, just as you have indicated, even the Tathagatas rejoice. The Bhagavan having thus spoken, the venerable Sharad Vadiputra, the Bodhisattva Mahasattva Aryabalokitesvara, those surrounding in their entirety, with the world of gods, humans, yashuras and Gandharvas, were overjoyed and highly praised that spoken by the Bhagavan. Report an error in the passage at 26:47 Highlight the passage at 26:47

27:15 On the next page we will dispel any hindrances so the teachings can proceed in our retreat without any further problem. I prostrate to the gathering of Dakinis in the three chakras who abide in the holy yoga of using space. By your powers of clairvoyance and magical emanation, look after practitioners like a mother, her child. Report an error in the passage at 27:15 Highlight the passage at 27:15

27:37 Aka Samaraza Sadarash Samaraya Pe Aka Samaraza Report an error in the passage at 27:37 Highlight the passage at 27:37

27:55 Samarada Shadara Samaraya Pe Tayata Om Gate Gate Paragate Parasam Gate Bodhissoha By the teachings of the three supreme jewels possessing the power of truth, may inner and outer hindrances be transformed. May they be dispelled. May they be pacified. May all negative forces opposed to Dharma be completely pacified. Report an error in the passage at 27:55 Highlight the passage at 27:55

28:23 Host of 80,000 obstacles be pacified. Shintim Kuruye Soha Report an error in the passage at 28:23 Highlight the passage at 28:23

28:26 May we be separated from problems and harmful conditions to Dharma. May all enjoyments be in accord with the Dharma. And may there be auspiciousness and perfect happiness here right now. Report an error in the passage at 28:26 Highlight the passage at 28:26

28:40 So this is the best antidote to stress and anxiety is to meditate on emptiness. So we're going to talk about that later at the end, near the end of today. So I just wanted to introduce that. That's the best thing to do of all. And then first you have to learn how to do that, how to meditate on emptiness and then try to soak your mind as much as possible by practicing. Short mandala offering at the bottom of the page. Report an error in the passage at 28:40 Highlight the passage at 28:40

29:06 This is just before the teaching. It's symbolic of offering, of making of the most precious offering you can imagine in order for the teachings to happen. So it brings us to a remembrance of in ancient days. When people would bring their most precious jewel that they had, even if they were poor, their most precious possession, their open minds to a teacher and say, please, and beg them, please teach me, just give us one teaching. Report an error in the passage at 29:06 Highlight the passage at 29:06

29:37 Now the teachings are all over the place. They're everywhere. You can get Buddhist teachings all the time. And we don't seem to understand what creates a cause for them to happen. Like that's this. Excuse me, symbolic of that. Mandala is a world system, a universe. So you're symbolically offering the universe and you want to imagine in that universe the most incredible things you would like to offer. Report an error in the passage at 29:37 Highlight the passage at 29:37

30:05 This is symbolic, making your hands like this of the universe. The center of my ring fingers back to back are Mount Meru, the center of Buddhist cosmology. Report an error in the passage at 30:05 Highlight the passage at 30:05

30:16 And these four things here, those are the four continents. That surround Mount Meru. We are the southern continent. Zambuling. Southern continent. Our planet Earth and our galaxy is considered the southern continent. So it's not only about things, but maybe you want to offer all the love you've ever experienced. Your precious friends and family. Report an error in the passage at 30:16 Highlight the passage at 30:16

30:41 Your precious health if you're healthy. The fact that you have a warm bed to sleep in and a good job and whatever you'd like to offer. You just visualize it and imagine it expanding, multiplying, filling all the space. Report an error in the passage at 30:41 Highlight the passage at 30:41

31:00 And with that in mind, we will read this once in English and we'll do the chant in the Tibetan. This ground, anointed with perfume, strewn with flowers, adorned with Mount Meru four continents, the sun and the moon, I imagine this as a Buddha field and offer it. May all living beings enjoy this pure land. Report an error in the passage at 31:00 Highlight the passage at 31:00

31:33 Jujimedog Tramri Report an error in the passage at 31:33 Highlight the passage at 31:33

32:17 Shabbat On the Report an error in the passage at 32:17 Highlight the passage at 32:17

32:24 next page we'll read in English. The objects of my attachment, aversion and ignorance, friends, enemies, strangers, my body, wealth and enjoyments. Without any sense of loss I offer this collection. Please accept it with pleasure and bless me with freedom from the three poisons. O holy and perfect pure Lama, from the clouds of compassion that form in the skies of your Dharmakaya wisdom, please release a rain of vast and profound Dharma, precisely in accordance with the needs of those to be trained. Report an error in the passage at 32:24 Highlight the passage at 32:24

32:58 Idam Guru Radha Mandala Kam Niratayami So this is about please accept this precious mandala, holy guru. And then what you do is you collapse it into you so you're receiving the realizations like that. There's different variations on the mandala offering. Mandala offering is also one of our nundro, one of our preliminary practices to make a certain number of them. Report an error in the passage at 32:58 Highlight the passage at 32:58

33:27 And it is a cause of prosperity. It's one of the things that it creates. So thank you. I thought it was just helpful to... Is that okay? To explain some of the prayers. Some of you are newer and a lot of times it's a refresher because we do these prayers all the time at teachings and sometimes we just blah, blah, blah, blah and you never think about them. Report an error in the passage at 33:27 Highlight the passage at 33:27

33:51 Okay? Report an error in the passage at 33:51 Highlight the passage at 33:51

33:59 So now we can get down to business. Okay? Report an error in the passage at 33:59 Highlight the passage at 33:59

34:05 So let's sit for a moment and when we meditate, as most of you know, it's great to have your spine as extended as possible as if the back is straight. Report an error in the passage at 34:05 Highlight the passage at 34:05

34:21 And perfectly fine to sit in a chair. Just please have your feet straight down so Report an error in the passage at 34:21 Highlight the passage at 34:21

34:34 the body is balanced. You may lightly close your eyes. Report an error in the passage at 34:34 Highlight the passage at 34:34

34:44 And let's allow ourselves to go inward right now, slowly allowing your body to release any tension it is holding. This was the first antidote I offered last night to stress and anxiety, is sometimes we need to become aware of our body. Report an error in the passage at 34:44 Highlight the passage at 34:44

35:11 And the tension it is holding. Report an error in the passage at 35:11 Highlight the passage at 35:11

35:17 So starting from the very top of your head, we're going to bring the body to a more relaxed place. And Report an error in the passage at 35:17 Highlight the passage at 35:17

35:28 slowly begin to release tension you're holding in your brow, Report an error in the passage at 35:28 Highlight the passage at 35:28

35:36 the back of your head and down through your ears. Let the tension go. Report an error in the passage at 35:36 Highlight the passage at 35:36

35:49 Keep a normal natural breath moving through this process. Report an error in the passage at 35:49 Highlight the passage at 35:49

36:00 Release any tension you are holding in your face and your jaw. Report an error in the passage at 36:00 Highlight the passage at 36:00

36:11 Your lips can be lightly together. Report an error in the passage at 36:11 Highlight the passage at 36:11

36:24 Relax your neck and shoulders and Report an error in the passage at 36:24 Highlight the passage at 36:24

36:41 let any tension go you may be holding in your back. Just as you breathe out, just exhale it. Report an error in the passage at 36:41 Highlight the passage at 36:41

36:58 Relax your arms and elbows, Report an error in the passage at 36:58 Highlight the passage at 36:58

37:05 your forearms and let the tension melt and move out your hands and fingers. Report an error in the passage at 37:05 Highlight the passage at 37:05

37:36 Relax your chest and your waist, Report an error in the passage at 37:36 Highlight the passage at 37:36

37:41 the torso. Report an error in the passage at 37:41 Highlight the passage at 37:41

38:00 Release any tension you're holding in your hips and your buttocks. Report an error in the passage at 38:00 Highlight the passage at 38:00

· · · silence, 1 minute

38:34 Let the tension release from your thighs, your knees, Report an error in the passage at 38:34 Highlight the passage at 38:34

38:44 release it down your legs, Report an error in the passage at 38:44 Highlight the passage at 38:44

38:50 relax your ankles and your feet and let all the tension move out of your toes. Report an error in the passage at 38:50 Highlight the passage at 38:50

39:07 Just allow your body to relax into this posture and if you're seated in a chair, try as best as you can not to lean too heavily against the back of the chair. Report an error in the passage at 39:07 Highlight the passage at 39:07

39:20 You can build up strength in your back. Report an error in the passage at 39:20 Highlight the passage at 39:20

39:25 As we sit and practice and practice this posture. Report an error in the passage at 39:25 Highlight the passage at 39:25

39:49 Take a moment to reflect now on your own individual purpose for being here. Report an error in the passage at 39:49 Highlight the passage at 39:49

39:59 See if you can align that purpose with a Mahāyāna purpose. Mahāyāna, Sanskrit word meaning greater vehicle. Where we are interested in getting some information. Doing some practice that will inspire our hearts and minds to open. Report an error in the passage at 39:59 Highlight the passage at 39:59

40:26 And that may help us progress along a path to full awakening by becoming a fully awakened being, a Buddha. We are then completely unlimited in helping all others. So really for the purpose of benefiting all others, that may be a reason you're here today. See if you would like to align your motivation with that type of motivation. Report an error in the passage at 40:26 Highlight the passage at 40:26

41:01 Take a moment to set a positive intention right now. Report an error in the passage at 41:01 Highlight the passage at 41:01

· · · silence, 1 minute

41:41 So that's the number two antidote to stress and anxiety. So one was we relax our body and start to notice where we're holding tension. Report an error in the passage at 41:41 Highlight the passage at 41:41

41:52 Number two, set a good motivation for any activity you do. Report an error in the passage at 41:52 Highlight the passage at 41:52

42:00 It can pull your attitude out of the gutter. Report an error in the passage at 42:00 Highlight the passage at 42:00

42:06 Part of the motivation is actually a third antidote. If it's a Mahāyāna motivation, you're thinking about others. You are thinking of benefiting others. And often, when you're in that space, it's hard to hang on to your stress and fear and worry. Report an error in the passage at 42:06 Highlight the passage at 42:06

42:31 Your mind expands when we are thinking of others and how we can help them. Report an error in the passage at 42:31 Highlight the passage at 42:31

42:43 And throughout the day, the more you practice, you can remind yourself of your motivation. It helps to counteract many negative mind states, recalling your motivation. Report an error in the passage at 42:43 Highlight the passage at 42:43

42:58 Re-establishing a motivation. Report an error in the passage at 42:58 Highlight the passage at 42:58

43:04 The next antidote, breathe. How are you breathing? Let's just start with three. Just start with a very deep inhalation right now. Report an error in the passage at 43:04 Highlight the passage at 43:04

43:21 A very deep exhalation. Report an error in the passage at 43:21 Highlight the passage at 43:21

43:27 Do two more. Report an error in the passage at 43:27 Highlight the passage at 43:27

· · · silence, 1 minute

44:00 Bring your awareness now to a normal, natural breath. Focus on either the air moving in and out of your nostrils or the rising and falling of your abdomen. Whichever is more comfortable for you. Stay with one. Report an error in the passage at 44:00 Highlight the passage at 44:00

· · · silence, 1 minute

44:57 If the mind wanders off the breath, becomes distracted for whatever reason, simply observe without any further elaboration. Report an error in the passage at 44:57 Highlight the passage at 44:57

45:14 Just notice you're off the breath and then with gentleness directed towards yourself, bring your mind back to the breath. Report an error in the passage at 45:14 Highlight the passage at 45:14

· · · silence, 2 minutes

47:13 Take a moment right now and I'd like you to bring up in your mind a current anxiety. You are experiencing in your life at this time. Report an error in the passage at 47:13 Highlight the passage at 47:13

47:32 Just bring it to mind. Doesn't have to be in any heavy way. Just bring up, I'm thinking about, I'm worried about this. Report an error in the passage at 47:32 Highlight the passage at 47:32

47:48 Begin to get a sense of how it feels physiologically. Does it feel like anything in your body? This concern, worry, fear. Report an error in the passage at 47:48 Highlight the passage at 47:48

48:22 Buddhism says everyone with a mind, with a consciousness has Buddha nature. Buddha nature. Buddha nature is a seed, a potential, that again everyone with a mind has, that has the potential to develop into a fully enlightened being. Report an error in the passage at 48:22 Highlight the passage at 48:22

48:52 You have this seed in you now. The reason you're not a Buddha yet, if you're not, is because we have various veils of obscuration that cover over the Buddha nature. Report an error in the passage at 48:52 Highlight the passage at 48:52

49:11 And they simply come from previous obscurations, previous causes, from a fundamental confusion that causes us to misinterpret reality. Report an error in the passage at 49:11 Highlight the passage at 49:11

49:29 So we suffer from anger, attachment, desire, jealousy, pride, depression and stress and anxiety. But that's not who we really are. And that is not the nature of our minds. So as you're reflecting on this anxiety right now, Report an error in the passage at 49:29 Highlight the passage at 49:29

50:02 imagine this golden seed in your heart center. So not in the organ, the heart, just in the center of your being right now, the center of your body. Report an error in the passage at 50:02 Highlight the passage at 50:02

50:14 This is your Buddha nature, all of your goodness, infinite joy, loving kindness, wisdom and compassion. Report an error in the passage at 50:14 Highlight the passage at 50:14

50:29 It's there and it is yours for the taking. And imagine it right now, it begins to glow and rays of light begin to emanate out from that in your heart center. Report an error in the passage at 50:29 Highlight the passage at 50:29

51:01 Imagine it filling up right now at first your torso. Report an error in the passage at 51:01 Highlight the passage at 51:01

51:08 This glowing radiant light is pervading all of your limbs, Report an error in the passage at 51:08 Highlight the passage at 51:08

51:18 your head. Report an error in the passage at 51:18 Highlight the passage at 51:18

51:24 It is going through your bloodstream, coursing through your neurological system, Report an error in the passage at 51:24 Highlight the passage at 51:24

51:40 washing over every organ. Report an error in the passage at 51:40 Highlight the passage at 51:40

51:46 Through all the wrinkles and material of your brain, Report an error in the passage at 51:46 Highlight the passage at 51:46

51:54 every cell, every tiny molecule in your body right now is informed with this Buddha nature energy. Report an error in the passage at 51:54 Highlight the passage at 51:54

52:29 And honestly, this is connecting more with who you really are as opposed to your stress, anxiety or fear. Report an error in the passage at 52:29 Highlight the passage at 52:29

52:42 If you are fully connected with who you really are, Report an error in the passage at 52:42 Highlight the passage at 52:42

52:49 you will have major coping mechanisms for your stress. And anxiety every moment. You will have significantly beneficial ways to manage the stress and anxiety. Report an error in the passage at 52:49 Highlight the passage at 52:49

53:09 So just stay with this golden light moving through your being. Report an error in the passage at 53:09 Highlight the passage at 53:09

53:17 Observe for a moment how it feels in your body and mind and Report an error in the passage at 53:17 Highlight the passage at 53:17

· · · silence, 1 minute

53:54 let it bump up against the stress and worry and anxiety. Just observe what happens. Does anything change? Report an error in the passage at 53:54 Highlight the passage at 53:54

· · · silence, 1 minute

54:54 And slowly allow the golden radiance. To melt back into the tiny seat at your heart center. And Report an error in the passage at 54:54 Highlight the passage at 54:54

55:17 when you're ready, slowly open your eyes. Report an error in the passage at 55:17 Highlight the passage at 55:17

55:43 And feel free if you need to stretch. And we will take a break, for a bathroom break, in a little bit. And then we'll have a longer break for lunch. Report an error in the passage at 55:43 Highlight the passage at 55:43

55:59 We just need a car alarm outside now, right? It's always when you start meditating, somebody's doing some unloading dock with the tree. It's always so funny, the dog starts barking, right, when you start. Report an error in the passage at 55:59 Highlight the passage at 55:59

56:24 No, we're not taking a break now. We're going to take a break in a little bit. Yeah, sorry. I just said if you want to stretch, because some people are... Yeah, we'll take a break in about 20 minutes or so. Sorry, I can't Do you want to sit up here? Do you want to sit closer? Report an error in the passage at 56:24 Highlight the passage at 56:24

56:37 Because you're welcome to sit closer. That might be, I know some people can't hear. I'm not sure where the speakers are. They're up. Okay, so if you want to sit closer to me, if it's easier. Yes, yes. Report an error in the passage at 56:37 Highlight the passage at 56:37

56:59 Right away, we did some of this last night, you have many antidotes right away for stress and anxiety that are nothing complicated. But the issue is you have to start doing them. So some people are already doing them. You already have a meditation practice and we call it practice and we have a saying in our culture, practice makes perfect. Report an error in the passage at 56:59 Highlight the passage at 56:59

57:22 Okay, practice makes you a Buddha, makes you perfect. But while we're not perfect, it's very helpful to remember you have Buddha nature. You have a seed that can awaken into a fully realized being. Any observations in the meditation? Were there any changes with your stress and anxiety? What was happening to people? Report an error in the passage at 57:22 Highlight the passage at 57:22

57:47 Anybody? Report an error in the passage at 57:47 Highlight the passage at 57:47

57:56 I was having some involuntary movement. It happens to me sometimes. Involuntary movement, you said? Mm-hmm. Yep. That's just like a release of energy? Yes, yes. Sometimes it's just a release of energy. She's saying an involuntary movement where, you know, when you're meditating and there's twitches or that's just energy tension releasing. Report an error in the passage at 57:56 Highlight the passage at 57:56

58:17 So again, many things want to distract us from getting free. This is about freedom. That's what we're talking about. And many things want to take us away from that. The unhealthy sides of your ego don't want you to be free. It wants to control. It wants to keep you deluded and imprisoned. Okay? Again, okay, something's twitching my back or my something and then back to the breath or back to whatever you're concentrating on. Some of us do different kinds of meditations. Report an error in the passage at 58:17 Highlight the passage at 58:17

58:48 So just let it go. Other things? Anybody? Yes. Report an error in the passage at 58:48 Highlight the passage at 58:48

58:58 Oh, wait, he's going to bring the mic over. We're trying to get everybody so they can hear when they tape it again that they hear the questions. It occurred to me how... When you're in meditation, you're in this kind of place of calm place where you observe. But for example, when you're experiencing an anxiety attack, it's like you're caught in a current and you can't get out. Report an error in the passage at 58:58 Highlight the passage at 58:58

59:25 You know, like when you're swimming and a current catches you and it's hard to get out. So when you're in the actual situation... The difficulty is to get from this one place of mind to the other. So when you were doing, you brought up your anxiety, right? Whatever you were thinking of? Well, I didn't actually bring it up, but I, you know, tried to imagine it. Yes. Okay. And so does it have an effect, the meditation? Report an error in the passage at 59:25 Highlight the passage at 59:25

59:53 Oh, absolutely. Okay. So what happens is if you're having an anxiety attack, which is slightly different than just being anxious about something. And there are also people we know that from a young age, I would say from past karma, so we have a belief in reincarnation in Buddhism. And karma comes from whatever activities your body, speech and mind is doing at any time creates imprints in your consciousness, plants, seeds in your consciousness. Report an error in the passage at 59:53 Highlight the passage at 59:53

1:00:27 And those seeds ripen in certain ways. So if you have previous seeds and experiences of anxiety and worry and fear, that's going to create that perpetual habit. But that's not who you are, and that's not the nature of your mind. It is simply from a mistaken perception, this kind of thing got going. And anxiety loves to loop. It gets on a loop, as a lot of delusions do. Report an error in the passage at 1:00:27 Highlight the passage at 1:00:27

1:00:55 And each of us have our own network of delusions that operates. I know people that seem to manifest in a very angry way. We all know people like that. I know people that are intensely grasping at stuff. They always have to have stuff. And they see somebody get something and they want it. I need that. And then there's people I know that are full of anxiety. Report an error in the passage at 1:00:55 Highlight the passage at 1:00:55

1:01:18 I know people chronically depressed. So everybody has their thing. Sometimes these courses, it's a little bit like I want to have a billboard that says, know your delusion. Report an error in the passage at 1:01:18 Highlight the passage at 1:01:18

1:01:30 And then you have to go after that first. You have to take your biggest solution. So let's say somebody who's chronically anxious from a young age. So meaning there's no kind of real cause that you don't see. Like, oh, you know, a mother later in life, I'm worried about my teenage son because he's doing a lot of drugs. Report an error in the passage at 1:01:30 Highlight the passage at 1:01:30

1:01:49 That's different than having an anxiety attack. You see what I mean? Okay. So people with anxiety attacks. What you have to first to start to realize is, okay, this is one of my big delusions, and then I notice how it feels in my body and mind, and it's terrifying, it's awful. I can't breathe, my heart feels like it's going to jump out of my skin, and you start to realize, okay, this is negative, I don't like this, right? Report an error in the passage at 1:01:49 Highlight the passage at 1:01:49

1:02:13 And then my mind gets hooked in this, I can't get out of it. So again, through practice of meditation is... With those kind of anxiety things, you need to throw a wrench into the mechanism. You want to interrupt. So sometimes I'll even say to people, have a catch word as soon as it starts, that you have some very positive catch word that kind of trips you up. Report an error in the passage at 1:02:13 Highlight the passage at 1:02:13

1:02:38 You have to make up your own words. Sometimes it could be love, it could be laughter, it could be joke, or something that you start thinking of this other word, and then from there, try to get into your breath. Because you're immediately shallow breathing and then you're not getting oxygen. So it makes you more anxious. But have some word that interrupts. Report an error in the passage at 1:02:38 Highlight the passage at 1:02:38

1:03:01 I sometimes make it amusing. It's very hard to trip up the anxiety attacks. And then make sure you get to these deep breaths. Are you able to take deep breaths if you're having an anxiety attack? I know it's hard. Yeah, I can do that. Because the thing is, once you start deep breathing, Because that's an instant antidote to anxiety attacks. You start deep breathing. The anxiety attack doesn't want you to do that. Usually by the end of the third breath for most people. Report an error in the passage at 1:03:01 Highlight the passage at 1:03:01

1:03:31 But some people have really horrible anxiety. So maybe you need six breaths. Maybe you need ten. But you just stay very focused on inhalation. You might even have to say that to yourself. Inhalation. Report an error in the passage at 1:03:31 Highlight the passage at 1:03:31

1:03:46 Exhalation. Sometimes you just have to stay there. And so we talk about on this path. I mentioned this last night. We have this word bodhisattva. Bodhisattva is like a Buddhist saint. And their whole being is about getting enlightened to benefit others. All they want to do is think about others more than themselves. So I talk about being a bodhisattva warrior. Bodhisattva warrior doesn't go to war with other people. Report an error in the passage at 1:03:46 Highlight the passage at 1:03:46

1:04:18 It goes to war with negative mechanisms that run in... They're mine. We are all bodhisattva warriors. We can all be there. So warriors have to be strong. So you really have to kind of get a hold of the anxiety attack. You're not going to motor over me this time. I've got you. I feel awful right now. I'm totally freaked out of my mind. Inhalation. You know, have some mechanism that tries to, whatever words you need to say, to just get first into the breathing because it immediately starts to calm you down. Report an error in the passage at 1:04:18 Highlight the passage at 1:04:18

1:04:50 Some people can do that like that. Some people find other ways that release it, whether it's stretching, physical stretching. I find the breathing really generally helps people. And then you're able to start to look at, what am I really anxious about? Can you get a grounding of what's the base anxiety? Any idea? Report an error in the passage at 1:04:50 Highlight the passage at 1:04:50

1:05:15 And I'm just picking on people because I prefer to work with what's really happening for you to really get underneath what... A feeling of being trapped. Okay. And what are you trapped in then? Report an error in the passage at 1:05:15 Highlight the passage at 1:05:15

1:05:31 What's trapped in you? A situation where let's say something simple as standing in line at the supermarket and all of a sudden it says, got to get out of here. I have to say I've never run actually, but it's just painful when you're going through this. Okay, so now she's investigating. So another thing we do, and this is why we start a meditation practice. Report an error in the passage at 1:05:31 Highlight the passage at 1:05:31

1:05:56 I'll talk a little bit more about that, those who have not started, but why it is essential to have a meditation practice, consistent daily meditation practice. And if you miss a day, it's okay. Start the next day. But the reason is because you investigate your anxiety. So now she said, first of all, somebody says, I have anxiety attacks. Report an error in the passage at 1:05:56 Highlight the passage at 1:05:56

1:06:17 So this anxiety attack just becomes this kind of cloud of anxiety. So you have to ask yourself, what am I anxious about? Okay, then she went underneath, I feel trapped. A feeling of being trapped. Okay, well now we're another layer down. Well, that's interesting. Okay, fair enough. Feel trapped. A lot of people feel trapped in a variety of things. You're trapped dumb, I'm going to call it. Report an error in the passage at 1:06:17 Highlight the passage at 1:06:17

1:06:41 I find a little easier to deal with. I have a friend who is trapped right now in a horrible relationship, raising two teenage girls. They are heavily in debt. And it just goes on from there. It's a nightmare, her life. Okay, so then she said, then you said, what's your name? Birgit. Birgit. Then she said, well, and the trap is, well, it could be waiting in line. Report an error in the passage at 1:06:41 Highlight the passage at 1:06:41

1:07:05 I get anxious waiting in line at the store. Okay, now we're another layer down. Okay, let's analyze that. So you're waiting in line. So what's the problem? Is it freezing cold in line? I have a fear of passing out. Fear of passing out. Okay, now we're another layer. See where we're going? You need to thoroughly analyze the anxiety and it starts changing. Okay, fear of passing out. Report an error in the passage at 1:07:05 Highlight the passage at 1:07:05

1:07:34 Have you ever passed out in line? No, never. Okay, so now you say, now you go down another layer. Okay, I've analyzed, so I'm afraid I'm going to pass out. I'm afraid I'm going to pass out. Okay, do a visualization sometime where you pass out waiting in line. Okay, sometimes go into the fear. Do a visualization where you pass out waiting in line. And what happens? Well, I guess there are people around who are going to help me. Report an error in the passage at 1:07:34 Highlight the passage at 1:07:34

1:08:02 Okay. You fall on the floor. The worst thing might be you bump your head or something. But generally, often if you're in a line, people are going to grab you or somebody sees you. And okay. And now there's people there. And what people tend to do, I've seen people. I've seen this happen to people. Okay. Somebody quickly takes a jacket and puts it under your head. Report an error in the passage at 1:08:02 Highlight the passage at 1:08:02

1:08:21 Somebody says, raise her feet. There might be a doctor, a medical person around. Raise her feet. Somebody might get sugar water. I've seen all this happen at times. Get sugar water. And within a few seconds you wake up. You come up and you're a little disoriented and there's all these people in your face and you're like, ah! And you get up and you see that you're okay or you banged your knee, but you're okay. Report an error in the passage at 1:08:21 Highlight the passage at 1:08:21

1:08:43 And people help you up. And you sit down, they get your chair and you sit down and you make sure that you're okay. That's it. You don't usually die from passing out like that. Okay. But you haven't even passed out. But see what I'm saying is go down to say, what if I did pass out? What would happen? That's the worst thing that's going to go on in that scene, right? Report an error in the passage at 1:08:43 Highlight the passage at 1:08:43

1:09:04 Is there something, what else would happen? Do you have something else in your mind that would happen? I'm just going to say this now, even though it's personal. You just gave me a cue where it may come from. Okay. I had an accident at one time. I got, I was on the bike and I got hit by a car door opening and it was like, Well, you know, everything goes dark and that's it. And I woke up by the side of the road, you know, with people around me and they called the ambulance and nothing happened. Report an error in the passage at 1:09:04 Highlight the passage at 1:09:04

1:09:37 But I just wonder whether this, I've never thought about it, but I wonder whether this is where it originated, where this comes from. Did you have anxiety attacks before then? Do you remember? I've had anxiety attacks on and off for a very long time, since childhood. Report an error in the passage at 1:09:37 Highlight the passage at 1:09:37

1:09:57 And, you know, it's kind of on and off, but, you know, the situation with the accident, I've never thought about this and connected it. Yeah. So one of the things, see, I put her there. She's a plant. Okay. No, I'm joking. But thank you. Thank you very much. No, one of the things I'm saying is this is the key. You have to analyze. Report an error in the passage at 1:09:57 Highlight the passage at 1:09:57

1:10:18 You have to investigate. And what I ask you, please, because you're here, is thoroughly investigate everything I am saying. In this workshop, in this retreat today. And the reason is, you have to make it your own experience. I love this about Tibetan Buddhism. It's how you come to it. It's not, you know, be a Buddhist because I'm really happy and I'm a nun and I shave my head and everything's great. No, I'm sorry. It has to work for you and it has to work for you and you. Report an error in the passage at 1:10:18 Highlight the passage at 1:10:18

1:10:44 It has to be, how does it relate to your life? Does it work for you? Of course, anxiety is caused by some previous trauma. And maybe it's in this life. And that door thing, certainly it's another cause, another condition, but if you had it as a child, it comes from a previous life, something that caused you anxiety. Report an error in the passage at 1:10:44 Highlight the passage at 1:10:44

1:11:04 When you thoroughly investigate and analyze in meditation, and even from just thinking about it the way we were, which is not formal meditation, you may not get to insights of past lives, you may not remember. That's okay, it doesn't matter what happened before. You're trying to release the hinges this life. Report an error in the passage at 1:11:04 Highlight the passage at 1:11:04

1:11:24 To say I don't need to be driven and manipulated by anxiety. Something got caused in the past, that's all. I don't have to be a mule to that anymore. But the beginning is I have to understand how it's functioning. Okay? So you never pass out in line. So be with being in line the next time. And notice, I'm not going to pass out, I never do. I'm okay in line. Report an error in the passage at 1:11:24 Highlight the passage at 1:11:24

1:11:49 And the other thing is, sometimes you can help people when you're in line. So here's the other thing I mentioned. We set a motivation to benefit others. That's a Mahāyāna motivation. I am set up and everything I'm trying to do all day long with my body, speech and mind. And this is a motivation I set in the morning. May I direct the activities of my body, speech and mind throughout the entire day as much as I'm able. Report an error in the passage at 1:11:49 Highlight the passage at 1:11:49

1:12:19 Directed towards something that will get me enlightened and will move me along a path to enlightenment, awakening, full in Buddhahood, whatever you want to call it, but to a place where I am unlimitedly empowered to benefit all others. Report an error in the passage at 1:12:19 Highlight the passage at 1:12:19

1:12:35 As soon as you think about all others, it's hard to hanker into your anxiety. That's another thing that pops you out. You're in line, you're waiting. In New York, you wait online, right? In England, it's the queue, okay? We wait on line. In Philadelphia, we wait in line. We're in the line. Even more anxiety ridden because you're in the line, right? In New York, you're on the line, okay? Report an error in the passage at 1:12:35 Highlight the passage at 1:12:35

1:12:59 Okay, but in any sense, you're in the line, on the line, but there's people that might need some help in line. Do you ever have a moment of, you know, and then you start connecting. Maybe you talk to the person behind you in the line. Oh, did you get that cheese? Is it good? Oh, I love it. My son loves it. You start. Report an error in the passage at 1:12:59 Highlight the passage at 1:12:59

1:13:18 So last night I took a taxi home. George was so sweet. And he goes, I'm going to put you in a taxi and offer you a taxi back to where I'm staying. Very sweet. Well, I get in the taxi and it's cold and the driver's there and you got the glass thing going and, you know, and you can just sit and do your taxi ride in silence. Report an error in the passage at 1:13:18 Highlight the passage at 1:13:18

1:13:36 And I thought I was going to do some mantras on the ride. And then I thought, well, here's somebody driving with me for a little while. And then I said, how are you doing tonight? And he started talking and all the drivers in New York are from someplace else, basically, even though they've been here 30 years, okay? But I always love, every country in the world is here in a taxi, driving a taxi. Report an error in the passage at 1:13:36 Highlight the passage at 1:13:36

1:13:57 It's such a geographical, amazing. So this guy was from Vietnam, Buddhist country. I don't think I ever had a Vietnamese taxi driver in New York. Okay, Vietnamese and... And I said, oh, you're from Vietnam. And then we start talking about the war and he was there during the war. He came out 10 years later and we talked about that. Report an error in the passage at 1:13:57 Highlight the passage at 1:13:57

1:14:18 And then he said, I said, it's a Buddhist country, right? And then he said, yes. And I said, are you a Buddhist? And he said, yes. And we got this whole talk. And I said, well, I'm a Buddhist nun in the Tibetan tradition. We had this whole thing. So then he, on his phone, I got a little worried because he started going to his phone. I was like, just drive, you know. But he said, oh, I saw the Lama. Report an error in the passage at 1:14:18 Highlight the passage at 1:14:18

1:14:37 That came and on his phone he's got a picture of the past abbot of Sarah. Monastery. And the Lama and I knew him and I said yes and it's all these Tibetan monks and he was all excited that he had me in the car and I and anyway it was this incredible connection and I get out of the car to pay him. He doesn't want any money. Offers. Right? So there's no anxiety in the car because we're talking. Report an error in the passage at 1:14:37 Highlight the passage at 1:14:37

1:15:02 We're connecting. Connect with people sometimes. I know sometimes it can also be an escape. So you don't want to not investigate thoroughly your anxiety by just talking. You need to do a little bit of both. So I think it's very powerful for you to say, I think I got a trigger of, yes, certainly. And then if you had anxiety as a child, it came from some past stuff that got caused. Report an error in the passage at 1:15:02 Highlight the passage at 1:15:02

1:15:28 Stuff gets caused out there. We don't necessarily need to know the root. You may not be able to find the root. But again, I can look at it and say, oh, that's just that old thing going on and I don't have to be subjected to it. So different things. Breathing, establishing a daily practice, continuing to do your practice. Through the practice, the beginning is notice your body. Report an error in the passage at 1:15:28 Highlight the passage at 1:15:28

1:15:52 Relax your body for one. There's people that, like I know somebody with a back problem. They had a back problem. I saw them going around like this all day. So as soon as I look at my body, I go, Oh, relax your neck and shoulders. Oh. Or I didn't realize that my brow was like this. Some people walk around like this all day. So just different things. Report an error in the passage at 1:15:52 Highlight the passage at 1:15:52

1:16:13 And then through the sitting, then I can go back and say, what would it be like to stand in line and pass out? And if you go to the worst of that, it's not that bad. First of all, it's never happened to you. So then I can kind of say, you know, it's never really happened. So maybe I can learn, I can practice releasing it. Report an error in the passage at 1:16:13 Highlight the passage at 1:16:13

1:16:32 Exhale. Let it go. Exhale, let it go. Exhale, let it go. And maybe then I'm back in line in actuality and I notice I'm getting kind of anxious but I can maybe more easily go into the triggers of I never did pass out. Why do I have to worry about it now? Breathe. Report an error in the passage at 1:16:32 Highlight the passage at 1:16:32

1:16:54 Maybe I'm just in line breathing and I'm noticing that that relaxes me a little bit. I'm okay. Oh, this must have been a thing, a result of that accident when I got hit by the car door. But I'm actually okay right now. I'm just waiting in line. It's an ambient temperature. I'm not really that uncomfortable waiting in line. You see what I'm saying is the mind needs to have some positive reinforcement. Report an error in the passage at 1:16:54 Highlight the passage at 1:16:54

1:17:18 Thank you very much. Okay. Let's take a short break. We'll just take a 10-minute break or so if you need to go to the bathroom or have something to drink. But we're not going to blah, blah on the break, okay, because we're in a little retreat. What I'd like you to do, if you want to maintain silence and think about your particular anxiety, what worries you the most? Report an error in the passage at 1:17:18 Highlight the passage at 1:17:18

1:17:41 As you go into that, can you notice, does deep breathing help that? Can you analyze your anxiety and go down a few layers below to see what's underneath that and what is underneath that and what is underneath that? What do you think the base layer is? So if you can come back after and discuss. What is the base layer? And if you want to talk with others, discuss those things. What do you think is underneath? Okay? Let's take a short break. Report an error in the passage at 1:17:41 Highlight the passage at 1:17:41

1:18:12 Time is a flitting. Okay. We had some, a couple interesting comments came to me during the break. So one of them I want to bring up about overthinking. Report an error in the passage at 1:18:12 Highlight the passage at 1:18:12

1:18:26 Overthinking. How many of you overthink? Right? Oh my goodness, right? Amazing cause of anxiety, overthinking. The mind is just, this happened and then I'm thinking about it again. Especially with some negative things that come up or very self-focused, very much self-focused on the self too much. So I love, I was reading a book, I had the good fortune to do a retreat for a few months this summer in autumn. Report an error in the passage at 1:18:26 Highlight the passage at 1:18:26

1:18:58 And I was reading an old book that happened to be in the library, this remote retreat center. There's this retreat center near Mount Everest, believe it or not, where Lama Zopa Rinpoche has a holy cave. His sister lives there. She's a 72-year-old Sherpa nun, a good friend of mine. And so they have a pretty decent library now and an old book of Trungpa Rinpoches. Report an error in the passage at 1:18:58 Highlight the passage at 1:18:58

1:19:23 Just a little meditation book that's some old copy of an old publisher, whatever it was, this book. And I always like when he says when you're trying to meditate on an object to keep a single-pointed focus on an object or a topic of the philosophy, and the mind gets distracted, as it normally often does. Report an error in the passage at 1:19:23 Highlight the passage at 1:19:23

1:19:45 No problem, right? So it's just thinking. I love that. It's just thinking. Like you don't have to have any major story, but thinking and then back to the breath. That's one thing about not necessarily overthinking, but just identify thinking. Sometimes I get distracted by a sound. I'm very sound sensitive. So we were this morning and then I kept hearing, you know, the whole loading, whatever's going on out there. Report an error in the passage at 1:19:45 Highlight the passage at 1:19:45

1:20:12 And it was like, and my attention would go right out the window. And then I'd be like, hearing, back to the breath. It's just hearing. These are little techniques in meditation to keep you focused as you identify what it is, but know more of a story about it. And I'm back here. But overthinking becomes another pattern, another habit in the mind. Report an error in the passage at 1:20:12 Highlight the passage at 1:20:12

1:20:41 So overthinkers, we have a pattern of overthinking. I know people that are incredible optimists. So anyway, yesterday I was laughing with some of the people because I took the R. Report an error in the passage at 1:20:41 Highlight the passage at 1:20:41

1:20:55 42nd Street down here. Okay, it was quite easy. But I was all the way on the other side, so I had to walk to the R. And when you walk to the R, you go through that, it's quite nice now, the new tiled area. And they had these words they put up. Do you know that? Okay, so I think it was song lyrics, I believe. It's a poem. It's called The Commuter's Lament. Report an error in the passage at 1:20:55 Highlight the passage at 1:20:55

1:21:19 Okay, Commuter's Lament. Thank you. Thank you. Actually, I almost memorized it. Look at you. I'm so impressed. Okay, so today I read it all. I made sure I wanted to see it. And at the end, there's a picture at the end. And the picture is supposed to be a bed and sheets with a pattern of a piano on it. Report an error in the passage at 1:21:19 Highlight the passage at 1:21:19

1:21:39 That's why I thought it was song lyrics. Okay, so here it says, and it gives you one phrase at a time as you're walking through this tunnel. Overslept, so tired, if late, get fired. Report an error in the passage at 1:21:39 Highlight the passage at 1:21:39

1:21:56 Why bother? Why the pain? Just go home. And then the next picture is the bed. Okay? Well, I have to say, like, I wasn't inspired by this. Okay? Thank you so much. That's very cute. Okay? So today I kind of was trying to memorize it. Thank you. That was very helpful. It's be careful what you're taking in as well. Report an error in the passage at 1:21:56 Highlight the passage at 1:21:56

1:22:25 And I'm on a little bit of a tangent. It's not a very inspiring thing. Most people going through that tunnel are probably commuting to work every day. It drained my energy reading it. I was like, you know, why the pain? Go home. Why sleeping? If you're late, you get fired. I mean, it's all negative, negative, negative. I remember. So be very careful of like there's lots of things around you that we can't control. Report an error in the passage at 1:22:25 Highlight the passage at 1:22:25

1:22:49 We can't control. On this side of me walking, I had iPhone 6. iPhone 6, iPhone 6, iPhone 6, iPhone 6. No wonder why I want an iPhone 6. I actually don't want an iPhone 6. Why? Because my bodhisattva warrior in me said, I'm totally content with the phone that I have. And thank you to these people that offer the phone to me. Report an error in the passage at 1:22:49 Highlight the passage at 1:22:49

1:23:13 It's like, can you be content with what you have? That counters stress and anxiety. Okay, the pictures there are the phone. Report an error in the passage at 1:23:13 Highlight the passage at 1:23:13

1:23:24 And sometimes I just see it as a gray thing with a six. I don't need it. It doesn't jump out at me. But some people go by and it's pulling, it's sucking you in there, into the picture. So be skillful with how you take in what's around you. Sometimes it's unavoidable. You can't. There's advertisements. There's things that are coming at you. Report an error in the passage at 1:23:24 Highlight the passage at 1:23:24

1:23:45 Especially in New York, it's quite a busy place. Like I said yesterday, go to Calcutta. This will seem like a rural haven to you. Okay? It's interesting. So I was thinking when years ago I lived in San Francisco and they had poetry on the public transportation and art and it was very nice and one of them I love, I usually bring this up in the courses I teach on death and dying. Report an error in the passage at 1:23:45 Highlight the passage at 1:23:45

1:24:11 One was a poem and it said, birthing is hard and dying is mean, so best to get yourself some loving in between. And I thought, that was uplifting. You know, I was like, because it reminds you to be in the now and appreciate it. Appreciate it. So what about the cyclical thinking? Is I tend to go in and really investigate and I can think, think, think things. I used to be like this, overthink. Report an error in the passage at 1:24:11 Highlight the passage at 1:24:11

1:24:39 And it would be just too much for people. It was just too intense. So what happens now is because I know I am prone to that, how do I know that? I know my mind. How do I know my mind? Because I meditate and because I've done retreat, right? And I've done a lot of study of the Dharma. So through the study of the Dharma, you start to realize, oh, yes, I have these patterns. Report an error in the passage at 1:24:39 Highlight the passage at 1:24:39

1:25:01 And you know what? I don't need to have that pattern. That doesn't benefit anybody, especially not me. So that I can start to move away from. This pattern I really like. I'd like to enhance that quality. And you can do that with your mind. You can totally change your mind. From one that is in the gutter to something that is bright and luminous. And then you're peaceful and happy all the time. So when you get into the loop, I started to recognize I'm kind of driving my boyfriend crazy. Report an error in the passage at 1:25:01 Highlight the passage at 1:25:01

1:25:33 This is before I was a nun. And I'm thinking, I mention this thing and I mention it again. And then I'd start to notice that. It's about observance, becoming aware. I'd notice and then I'd say, oh, I'm doing it, I'm overthinking. And then once I identified I'm overthinking, you know, I had a thing in my mind, stop thinking. And literally inside I had a voice that would say, stop it. Stop thinking. Report an error in the passage at 1:25:33 Highlight the passage at 1:25:33

1:25:59 And I would stop and I'd go off into something else. And then a little bit of thought would come in again and I'd be like, sorry, not now. Not now. So again, bodhisattva warrior, be strong to be, no, we've thought enough about that. And then what I said last night, this is another antidote. Report an error in the passage at 1:25:59 Highlight the passage at 1:25:59

1:26:17 Schedule time to overthink. Schedule time to worry. Seriously. You have an anxiety that continues to come up and it might be a very practical anxiety. It could be free-floating anxiety that some people have. Report an error in the passage at 1:26:17 Highlight the passage at 1:26:17

1:26:35 Sometimes a harder one to deal with because you have a perpetual loop that loves to worry. It's not that you love worrying but the unhealthy part of your ego worries and that's how it exists and survives. So it's just used to doing that. That's how it kind of is. Loves to do that, to cycle. So you want to interrupt it. So schedule the time and say, okay, I'm worried now. Report an error in the passage at 1:26:35 Highlight the passage at 1:26:35

1:27:01 I'm worried about this. I don't know what I'm worried about, but I'm worried. I'm anxious. Okay, Thursday, 4 o 'clock, 4 to 4.30, that's my time. And so when it comes up in your mind, you have to be very strong to say, I'm aware right now that I'm really anxious and I'm in line and this is happening and I think this. Report an error in the passage at 1:27:01 Highlight the passage at 1:27:01

1:27:19 But you know what? I made Thursday at 4, I'm going to worry. So right now I have to be very strong to let that thought go and stop. Thinking it. And then what you have to do is you're going to put something else in your mind that is positive, that makes you happy. Okay, so you're starting to introduce a new thought system, a new pattern. It takes two weeks to make a pattern, generally. So I have to, for two weeks, really very ardently concentrate on, I'm in line, I'm worried, I'm feeling anxious, I think I'm going to pass out, I'm worried that I'm going to pass out, I'm in this. Report an error in the passage at 1:27:19 Highlight the passage at 1:27:19

1:27:56 Thursday at 4 o 'clock is my time to do that worry. I'm in the line right now. And right now I'm going to think about blowing bubbles. Or I'm going to think about it snowing. I love the snow and I love when it first comes down. Or I'm going to think about playing with a puppy. Or I'm going to think about spending time with my sister. Whatever your thing is that makes you happy and bright. Report an error in the passage at 1:27:56 Highlight the passage at 1:27:56

1:28:18 I'm going to think about fresh chocolate chip cookies coming out of the oven. Or the salted caramel ice cream I had yesterday, seriously, was the most delicious thing I think I've ever eaten. I couldn't believe, you know, whatever it is that, you know, I'm going to think about going to the gym and swimming. Report an error in the passage at 1:28:18 Highlight the passage at 1:28:18

1:28:37 And you have to keep reintroducing that into your mind, even a momentary thought, oh, I'm blowing bubbles with my childhood friend. And we're giggling. And you're in the line and the worry is kind of, and then I'm back to the chocolate chip coatings coming out of the oven. Chocolate chip cookies coming out of the galvan. Chocolate chip. Over and over you're reintroducing some happy, positive thought. And maybe the thought is just, I'm good enough. Report an error in the passage at 1:28:37 Highlight the passage at 1:28:37

1:29:05 I'm okay. Why are you good enough? Because you're Buddha nature. You're Buddha nature. This is fundamental. Surprise. You know, news strip here. You are fundamentally good. Did you know that? Seriously? Are you aware of that? How many people didn't know that here? I just taught in an extremely Catholic audience in the Philadelphia area. Report an error in the passage at 1:29:05 Highlight the passage at 1:29:05

1:29:32 Philadelphia area has very strong, like Boston, very strong archdiocese and the area that I'm living in is heavily Catholic and some wonderful people, some great neighbors and great folks and these people came to this teaching and they brought up many things from Judeo-Christian culture and imprints and their ideas about God and it was very interesting. Report an error in the passage at 1:29:32 Highlight the passage at 1:29:32

1:29:55 For me, this is how I was raised, Judeo-Christian culture, and we were taught, and I often wondered where low self-esteem came from and discussed it with many Buddhist friends and teachers and priests and other people from other traditions, rabbis. But we were taught, the way I was raised, something in the beginning went very, very wrong. If you want to go back to the Garden of Eden, something went terribly wrong. Report an error in the passage at 1:29:55 Highlight the passage at 1:29:55

1:30:24 And then we got blamed for it. And whether it's Jesus hung up on the cross, we got blamed for that. That's heavy. I thought that was really heavy as a kid. I felt like I didn't have any place to go but to crawl out of this dark pit. It was just a continual crawling up out of this dark pit. Well, let me just tell you, you're not in a dark pit. You're in a glorious, glowing, amazing, blissful reality. We just don't always realize that because our minds reflect back. Report an error in the passage at 1:30:24 Highlight the passage at 1:30:24

1:30:54 The delusion in our mind reflects black delusion out there. So it doesn't mean that there aren't problems in the world. I'm aware there's some serious problems in the world right now. How much do you want to be encumbered by it? I like the news. I watch the news and tune in to see what's going on. I like to know world news, what's going on. Report an error in the passage at 1:30:54 Highlight the passage at 1:30:54

1:31:15 It gives you lots of things to pray for. But I don't have to be beaten down by it. It motivates me to practice. Fantastic that I found this path. And it's so positive. And through changing my mind, I can change my external reality and at least create a peaceful, happy bubble around me that is also rooted in reality and practical. Report an error in the passage at 1:31:15 Highlight the passage at 1:31:15

1:31:41 And that I function practically in my reality with a good mind on because I have Buddha nature and I'm fundamentally good and I'm okay. Report an error in the passage at 1:31:41 Highlight the passage at 1:31:41

1:31:51 So if I'm waiting in line, I feel like I'm going to get anxious and if I feel like in interpersonal relationships I'm giving too much, I'm not getting back, is I can just from a very good balanced place be aware of that and be observant the next time I'm in that relationship and watch how I behave and perform and what I give and what I get back or what I want to get back or what I'm saying and then sometimes I'm overthinking it. Report an error in the passage at 1:31:51 Highlight the passage at 1:31:51

1:32:17 So I can just say enough, stop thinking right now. Because if you want to think about something else, think about, learn a practice and then put your thinking into that. Highly beneficial. Is everybody with me? Possible? Okay. So in the break, what came up for you? Anybody get down under what was going on? Report an error in the passage at 1:32:17 Highlight the passage at 1:32:17

1:32:43 Did anybody come to the bottom for them? What was the fundamental thing that creates anxiety? Please. Report an error in the passage at 1:32:43 Highlight the passage at 1:32:43

1:32:53 Sorry. Thank you. And I want to get to your thing, James, as well. so you So, let's talk about the, okay, here's an anxiety. Here's an anxiety of, I meditate, nothing happens, and as soon as nothing's happening, it launches an anxiety attack. Okay. Actually? Go ahead. Yep. When nothing happened, that was actually no big deal. I mean, when you're just sitting, you're like, well, nothing's going on, no big, you know, it's a little frustrating, but that's not a problem. Report an error in the passage at 1:32:53 Highlight the passage at 1:32:53

1:33:26 At one point when I started meditating, and words may fail me so I apologize in advance for not describing it well, it was like thinking stopped and it was like there was nothing there. The best way I can think of to describe it is imagining if you're like a camera with footage happening, but there's nothing processing it. Report an error in the passage at 1:33:26 Highlight the passage at 1:33:26

1:33:52 It's almost like the world's going on. And you're not in it. And when that's happening, that, you know, because there's nothing there, you can't feel anything one way or another. But when it stopped and you come back to, you know, like, I am James, I live in New Jersey, you know, there's somebody have an argument downstairs, whatever. Report an error in the passage at 1:33:52 Highlight the passage at 1:33:52

1:34:16 That's when the panic attack hit. When you come back out of that, the panic attack hits? Yes, immediately. Not during it? Yeah, well, because during it. There's nothing to panic. There's nothing. Nothing to panic. Right. There's nothing there. Right. It's when you come back and you're like, you know, when you come back to your normal self, when you have a mind and thoughts and so forth and so on, that's, and it would hit me hard in the chest like every single time. Report an error in the passage at 1:34:16 Highlight the passage at 1:34:16

1:34:46 Okay. How long have you been practicing? Off and on for about 10 years. I've been doing my nundro for about five, give or take. And what tradition? Dujam Tursar, Nigma. Okay, okay. So it depends when you're doing that meditation, what are you focusing on? It gets you into that there's nothing space. What I would do is that it's when you're doing your purification practice, how there's the part in the purification practice where you're supposed to remain in even-minded meditation. Report an error in the passage at 1:34:46 Highlight the passage at 1:34:46

1:35:19 And it's basically when I remain in the even-minded meditation. It starts, you feel the thoughts come up, and then you say, oh, they're thoughts. Then just don't not look at them, don't focus on them, just let them do their thing. And then since I always had a knack for it, after like about a minute or two, since I'm not doing anything with them, they would just kind of peter out. Report an error in the passage at 1:35:19 Highlight the passage at 1:35:19

1:35:41 And then after they peter out, then there might be the ambient, you know... The deep thoughts, you know, like whatever neurosis, things in growing up. And then after a little bit, if you don't pay attention to those, those fall away. Great. And then after that, you know, like then all there's there is just the stuff happening. Report an error in the passage at 1:35:41 Highlight the passage at 1:35:41

1:36:03 And then there's no there there. And then there's no feeling. There's no nothing. And there's no joy. There's no lack of joy. Report an error in the passage at 1:36:03 Highlight the passage at 1:36:03

1:36:13 What I had expected to happen is most people, like when they say, you know, you get to this state, it's supposed to be like super joyous or happy or, you know, or rainbows or I don't know, whatever. Report an error in the passage at 1:36:13 Highlight the passage at 1:36:13

1:36:25 But there was nothing, like nothing. And then when, but since I'm not a super good meditator, I can't keep that forever. It usually stops. Right. And when it stops. That's when the problems start. Okay, so when it stops, and it might be good, and the Nigma tradition is slightly different methodologies, like the Kagyu and everything, and no problem at all. Report an error in the passage at 1:36:25 Highlight the passage at 1:36:25

1:36:51 Like you might call it even-minded meditation, and we might have a meditation on emptiness that initially there's a little, if you're doing it properly, it can generate some fear that, you know, I don't exist. Report an error in the passage at 1:36:51 Highlight the passage at 1:36:51

1:37:05 And yet it's actually... Quite a positive space when you go through that and when you soak your mind in it again and again. So I think it's quite powerful when you can get the thoughts to stop and have that space. Report an error in the passage at 1:37:05 Highlight the passage at 1:37:05

1:37:21 I think that, and it might, I'm just trying to think, I want to think a little bit more about this of what goes on for you in that space because it often can be blissful. When the thoughts stop. But sometimes it's just observing the nature of your mind. That can be very powerful, is what I would suggest for you. Observing the nature of the mind. Report an error in the passage at 1:37:21 Highlight the passage at 1:37:21

1:37:40 Meaning, you come to a space between the thoughts. It sounds like you have a good sense of that space. And I would single-pointedly concentrate on that when you're in that space. To deepen it. And to really understand that my mind is not the other glunky thoughts when I come out. But it's actually this other... Report an error in the passage at 1:37:40 Highlight the passage at 1:37:40

1:38:01 Penetrative space. If you can fill that space in the meditation, and again, I don't want to distract you from other meditations you're doing, but if you can fill that space with bubbles of light and the light is in the nature of bliss, try that. Report an error in the passage at 1:38:01 Highlight the passage at 1:38:01

1:38:21 Because that's really kind of your mind in a sense. So sometimes you need a little encouragement to get the bliss and that space in there. However, now when you come out, when you come out, Okay, so go into, I come out and I've hit back with reality and the panic sets in. So what are you panicked about when you come back? You're you, you're James, you're... Report an error in the passage at 1:38:21 Highlight the passage at 1:38:21

1:38:42 What I panic about is one of the, and I'm not sure if this is something that, sorry, trying to find the right words. One of the things that I have kind of a fear of, like a deep underlying fear, is... Total non-existence. Like are you familiar with scientific materialism? Say it again. Scientific materialism. Yes. Report an error in the passage at 1:38:42 Highlight the passage at 1:38:42

1:39:09 I mean a little bit. Yeah, like the idea that, you know, basically when you die that's it. Right. And what kind of comes in, and this is what I was thinking about during our break, is that it was almost like I saw that non-existence that they talk about, that, you know, total oblivion that I experienced it. Report an error in the passage at 1:39:09 Highlight the passage at 1:39:09

1:39:33 And therefore it could be real. And it's a difference between this thing that somebody talks about that I don't like but I don't think it really exists as opposed to this thing that I experienced, therefore it can exist and I'm seeing it. You know, sort of like there may be a tiger and now there's a tiger that I'm staring at. And I think that's kind of what it is because it's sort of like I saw nothing so therefore the idea of the consciousness going... Report an error in the passage at 1:39:33 Highlight the passage at 1:39:33

1:40:04 Becomes real. So you're in the extremes, which is what disturbs us. Meaning, in the Galupa tradition of emptiness, the nature of reality, meditating on emptiness, very profound, you have to strike the middle way. And what happens is if you go to nihilism, where nothing exists, it's a mistake. It's a mistaken perception. Report an error in the passage at 1:40:04 Highlight the passage at 1:40:04

1:40:30 Scientific materialism is the way we mostly engage with everything, that everything's solid and exists. So if you disturb my chair, first of all, I attach my to it, my chair. It's solid. And if you disturb this and upset it and destroy it, I'm going to get very angry at you. Because I don't understand how the chair exists. It doesn't exist as my chair at all. Report an error in the passage at 1:40:30 Highlight the passage at 1:40:30

1:40:50 It's not a solidly existing thing. Okay, so this takes much more teaching. However, what we're trying to do is that's also mistaken perception. So in my tradition of Tibetan Buddhism, we're trying to find the middle way, which is a very profound notion. So the thing is that these things do not exist in the way they appear to us. Report an error in the passage at 1:40:50 Highlight the passage at 1:40:50

1:41:12 It doesn't mean they don't exist at all. But the concrete, inherent, independent existence that we impute on it, that doesn't exist. That doesn't exist at all. But the chair does exist. How does it exist? Independence on causes and conditions that make it a chair. People started to sit down and they wanted to sit on something. Report an error in the passage at 1:41:12 Highlight the passage at 1:41:12

1:41:35 That's a condition for a chair to come into existence. A chair depends on its parts. It's another way it exists. The arm of the chair, the back of the chair, the seat. We don't call this a chair. This doesn't have the parts of a chair. This has the parts of a table. So the chair comes into existence based on its parts. Report an error in the passage at 1:41:35 Highlight the passage at 1:41:35

1:41:55 And the highest school, Prasangika Madhyamika, of the Galukpa tradition, says the ultimate way the chair comes into being and becomes a chair is based on my mind takes in the data of a valid basis of designation, meaning there's a back, there's a seat, there's arms, it's got legs. My mind, visual consciousness, I'm just using that now as an example, visual consciousness, takes in the data of that thing, that basis. Report an error in the passage at 1:41:55 Highlight the passage at 1:41:55

1:42:25 And then my mind puts a label on that basis. So there's a gap of the labeling process for my mind to take in the information. Is everybody following me? I take in the information. My mind synthesizes the information based on the karmic propensities in my mind that can identify what that is. And based on that, my mind then puts a label on that basis of designation. And I label it. Report an error in the passage at 1:42:25 Highlight the passage at 1:42:25

1:42:52 From my consciousness as a human being in this part of the world with my karmic seeds and I say chair. And then the chair comes into being. Report an error in the passage at 1:42:52 Highlight the passage at 1:42:52

1:43:03 Do you see what I'm meaning? So your external reality of coming out and bumping up against your consciousness in this reality, it exists in a certain way. And we need to participate in that. How do I want to participate in it? well, as peaceful and as not Non-hostile and non-conflictive and open and practical as I can be in it. And then when I go into the other reality, it's not that nothing, everything's completely void and gone, but you do sometimes get to a space where that concrete existence that I knew of, concrete thoughts, they don't exist at all like that. Report an error in the passage at 1:43:03 Highlight the passage at 1:43:03

1:43:40 So finding that middle space, you see what I'm saying? Does that make sense? I think it'll make sense after I spend some time thinking about it. Yeah, do think about it. Do think about it. We can follow up to later, you know, just to see how it's going. Yeah, it makes enough sense that I think if I ponder it for a while and meditate on it, it'll make a lot more sense. Report an error in the passage at 1:43:40 Highlight the passage at 1:43:40

1:44:01 And I would recommend, there's some books I'd recommend on emptiness. What I do say to most people, bless you, is stay with one tradition for a while. When you get well-versed in that tradition, there's four lineages of Tibetan Buddhism. They're all great. Okay, there's no problem with any of them. It really depends on your own karma, which teachers you connect with, what center might be near you. They're all fantastic. Report an error in the passage at 1:44:01 Highlight the passage at 1:44:01

1:44:28 Stay with one lineage for a while and the reason is emptiness is slightly different as taught in the Kagyu tradition as taught in the Galupa tradition. So what happens, until you have a good basis in your own, you start to get confused. So get very well versed in one and then start to pick up the books. Report an error in the passage at 1:44:28 Highlight the passage at 1:44:28

1:44:45 By others, but I could recommend some books on emptiness in our tradition that I think might really help you, that you might enjoy. You may have already read them, so I just think it would be great. Thank you, ma 'am. Okay, so let me go into, I just find it helpful to really help you analyze what's underneath. Report an error in the passage at 1:44:45 Highlight the passage at 1:44:45

1:45:05 Okay, so I wanted to go down underneath. What's underneath these fears and anxieties you're having? We need to understand what's underneath to start to... And dismantle the mechanism that creates fear and anxiety and worry and stress. Anybody else get... You went down, you went down. What else is coming up for you? We talked about a little bit of this last night. Report an error in the passage at 1:45:05 Highlight the passage at 1:45:05

1:45:32 Yes? Report an error in the passage at 1:45:32 Highlight the passage at 1:45:32

1:45:36 Fear of not being good enough. Fear of not being good enough. Okay. So what did you think about Buddha nature? I agree with it. Sorry. It's okay. No problem. You don't have to be sorry for crying, right? Report an error in the passage at 1:45:36 Highlight the passage at 1:45:36

1:45:54 When we did the meditation, the light coming out, could you get into that meditation a little bit? Yes, most definitely. And let it kind of permeate your being. We need practice in this because a lot of us have been brainwashed from a young age that we're not good enough. And it's reinforced by different things. Report an error in the passage at 1:45:54 Highlight the passage at 1:45:54

1:46:11 It could be subtle emotional abuse in families. How many of you were raised with this, right? Many people. Many people. And you kind of go along with it because it's the only way you know how to survive. I've lived at Dharma centers for nearly 20 years of my life. Buddhist centers. New staff would come to Dharma centers, retreat centers and other centers and we sometimes would ask them, it was like a trick question. Report an error in the passage at 1:46:11 Highlight the passage at 1:46:11

1:46:38 Why do you want to work here? These are the residential retreat centers. Why do you want to work here? Well, they'd say, I want to be at a place where everybody's really peaceful and gets along. Report an error in the passage at 1:46:38 Highlight the passage at 1:46:38

1:46:52 Right? And we used to say, take it down the road. It's not here. Because they think we're Buddhists, we're perfect. No, we are Buddhists. We're not Buddhas yet. We're Buddhists. We're trying. We're trying. So what Dharma centers do, what residential Dharma centers do, and they try their best. They're great places. I loved it. Totally loved it for the most part. But what they do is they play out all the dysfunctional family things. It's amazing. Report an error in the passage at 1:46:52 Highlight the passage at 1:46:52

1:47:20 And as the director, I was always the evil mother or father. It was so fun, you know. The stuff that was projected on me, and I was amazed, which was very kind, how many years later the emails and phone calls I got from past staff people apologizing to me and saying, I can't believe I put you through that. Report an error in the passage at 1:47:20 Highlight the passage at 1:47:20

1:47:40 I can't believe I laid that trip on you. I can't believe, you know, it was very nice people to own their things, but people play out these things. So you have to get in question. Are you not good enough? You know, intellectually, I know that I am. And I can dissect and analyze and know the roots. And there's been times in my life where I've been at peace with it and then times and then it comes back. I also have a problem with there was a time in my life where I felt very spiritually connected, quote unquote. Report an error in the passage at 1:47:40 Highlight the passage at 1:47:40

1:48:21 Before I even knew anything about the Dharma and then something happened and then I kind of wasn't as connected and then when I go to meditate again I don't meditate as deeply and I'm like grasping for what I had and I know I'm not supposed to do that and that causes that sometimes prevents me from Meditating on a regular basis because I feel then I start to beat myself up for not continuing it and oh I could have been in this place now or I'm back where I started and it's just kind of like a vicious cycle of... Report an error in the passage at 1:48:21 Highlight the passage at 1:48:21

1:49:05 Okay so some fundamental things is you said something happened in meditation, you had an experience in meditation or something else happened in your life traumatic that... I had an experience in meditation. So the thing is, we have experiences in meditation. Some people do, some people don't. There's no contest here. Report an error in the passage at 1:49:05 Highlight the passage at 1:49:05

1:49:25 It's you on your path up the mountain. And each path is individual. So you have to do it at your own pace and you have to manifest yourself fully how you have to do it. You can't be me and do it. I'm on my own path. Sometimes you walk along with people together for a while. Fantastic. And sometimes you branch off and you go over here and you meet these other people. Report an error in the passage at 1:49:25 Highlight the passage at 1:49:25

1:49:47 So the thing is, fantastic you had an experience at some point. And what happens is when we grasp onto that experience, it goes away. And it may never come again in this life. Report an error in the passage at 1:49:47 Highlight the passage at 1:49:47

1:49:58 That's just a normal kind of thing. So it's kind of like saying, well, how wonderful. Celebrate. I had something happening. Celebrate that at an early age you got into a spiritual life. Some people start at 65. No problem. But celebrate that. We don't rejoice enough at the good things. And then you just start. For me, every day is a new beginning. So you start again. Another beginning. It's not that you would be someplace. Report an error in the passage at 1:49:58 Highlight the passage at 1:49:58

1:50:25 And had I done this, I would have been. There's no could have, should have, would have. I feel like I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be right now. I have made a tremendous amount of mistakes in my life. I've missed opportunities. I don't basically, I don't dwell on that. I'll put it this way. I try to learn from that. That was a really valuable lesson. Okay, wow, I really screwed that one up. But did I get the lesson? Well, I just feel like I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be, even when I make the mistake. Report an error in the passage at 1:50:25 Highlight the passage at 1:50:25

1:50:57 Because you made the mistake, you can't help it. We're human. So instead of getting mired into, I should have and had I done that, and she's ahead, and she did this, and had she done, I could have been there. Report an error in the passage at 1:50:57 Highlight the passage at 1:50:57

1:51:09 There's no point because I'm on my path. And this is my path. And my path is I had this experience and then I stopped for a while and then I thought it was great and then I tried to grasp onto it and here I am. Here I am. Report an error in the passage at 1:51:09 Highlight the passage at 1:51:09

1:51:25 So that's where I would say it's come from that place. And it's a place of good health. My eyes are opened and I see all that's happened and I just continue to move up the mountain with what you've got. Report an error in the passage at 1:51:25 Highlight the passage at 1:51:25

1:51:39 So underneath, you went into I don't feel good enough. You are good enough. But again, check it out and go continue to look in. So we're going deeper and deeper. What's the worst thing that can happen to you? When you worry and you fear, what's the worst thing? What do you think? Let's just get that, let's put it out there and before lunch let's get it out of the way. What's the worst thing that's going to happen to you? Yes. Okay, buildings and bridges collapsing. Report an error in the passage at 1:51:39 Highlight the passage at 1:51:39

1:52:08 Okay. Have you been in any that collapsed? Been on any bridges that collapsed? No. Good thing. Okay. How often does that happen? It happens. Not that often though. Okay, in New York? In New York City? Once in a while it happens. I've heard about it. Not that often. Report an error in the passage at 1:52:08 Highlight the passage at 1:52:08

1:52:35 Right. Okay, so what if it happens? What if you're there that day and it happens? You could die, okay? I'm going to break this to you now. I'm just going to, like, this is scary. This is scary. You are going to die, okay? That's a known fact. And there's nothing you can do about it. Let's just get that out of the way. We're all going to die. Report an error in the passage at 1:52:35 Highlight the passage at 1:52:35

1:52:57 That's a big fear for people. And then we have fears of how we are going to die. 90 years old, peaceful, in my bed at night, that's how I want it happening. How often does that happen for people? Not that often. So we can't control how we're going to die. What you can control is, how's your mind when you're dying? Report an error in the passage at 1:52:57 Highlight the passage at 1:52:57

1:53:22 That you can control. That's the only thing you can control. Is your mind, okay? You might be in the building when it happens. So how's your mind now? If the building's falling down... So I lived in San Francisco, many earthquakes. You know, buildings falling down, yeah, from earthquakes. Bridges collapsing, things like that, okay? So when you had an earthquake, and I was just a new Buddhist at the time, you get to see your mind. Report an error in the passage at 1:53:22 Highlight the passage at 1:53:22

1:53:49 This thing, the building is shaking, and I was at 30 co-workers screaming, some of them. That was more terrifying to me than the earthquake. Because I thought they're suffering. You know, people suffering. But I heard this earthquake. I heard it coming down the street right before it hit. It makes a sound. It was bizarre. The whole thing was bizarre. And then the building is shaking very significantly. Where's your mind? You know, you see when the building... Report an error in the passage at 1:53:49 Highlight the passage at 1:53:49

1:54:13 And you can visualize. You could imagine. You're not going to create this happening, really. Imagine what if I'm in the building and it starts coming apart and I realize I'm going to die. And the building's going to come down on my head. What do you want your mind to be doing? Practice it now. Practice it now every day. Report an error in the passage at 1:54:13 Highlight the passage at 1:54:13

1:54:32 Could I be thinking of others? Could I be thinking of this building is collapsing, I'm going to die? You only maybe have a split second. But what about buildings all over the world that have worse building codes and they're falling down a lot more than here? What if I just thought to take on all the suffering of the people that die in these buildings because I'm going to die? If you have that thought when you die, the thought of others? Report an error in the passage at 1:54:32 Highlight the passage at 1:54:32

1:54:54 Enormously powerful for your mind. And I wouldn't really worry about anything because you're thinking of others when you're dying. You have to die at some point. Get yourself patterned now to be thinking of others in that moment. Report an error in the passage at 1:54:54 Highlight the passage at 1:54:54

1:55:08 We're going to do a meditation after lunch, Tong Lin meditation. Tong Lin meditation. So if you could get that going and do that every day, it's very powerful. Report an error in the passage at 1:55:08 Highlight the passage at 1:55:08

1:55:25 It's something to first realistically analyze how often do buildings fall down. It does happen, but it's not that often, the chances of me being in it. More chances are you're killed in a car accident. People don't think about that when they get in taxis and cars. We get in an airplane and we worry. But more people die in road accidents every year. So you first analyze on that practical level, and then it's kind of like... Report an error in the passage at 1:55:25 Highlight the passage at 1:55:25

1:55:54 Well, what's my mind if it does happen? Where's my mind if it does happen? How can I get my mind into a good place regardless of whatever kind of death I have? So then you're ready. But you have to practice it every day. Practice it every day and then 10 years go by, 20 years go by, and then you're actually actively dying a slow death or a fast death. Report an error in the passage at 1:55:54 Highlight the passage at 1:55:54

1:56:20 And automatically that's the mind that comes up. That's the mind that's there. Thinking of others or somewhat peaceful and realizing saṃsāra is like this. Saṃsāra has pain and suffering. May this not go on for too long. We've been through it before. And just whatever antidotes that come up in your mind that put you into a much more peaceful, happy place. Report an error in the passage at 1:56:20 Highlight the passage at 1:56:20

1:56:44 And sometimes we can't control it. But Buddhism says you've died before many times. You've died in many buildings that fell down. In fact, you might have had a more recent death in a building that fell down, which is why you have that concern. Some of those carry over. So I just carry over and I'm aware and awake that sometimes this is my fear and anxiety. We all have different ones. Report an error in the passage at 1:56:44 Highlight the passage at 1:56:44

1:57:07 And I'm just aware of that, but I don't have to give it any more mental time than I need to. And Thursday at 4 o 'clock, that's my time I'm going to worry. 4 to 4.30, put it on your calendar. So when it comes up in your mind, you don't need to take up the mental space with it because 4 to 4.30 on Thursday, that's my time for it. Report an error in the passage at 1:57:07 Highlight the passage at 1:57:07

1:57:29 Thursday rolls around and 4 o 'clock comes and you don't feel particularly worried about it. Let it go. These are just different techniques to get you to give more space in your mind for something healthier. And introducing positive thoughts. Hey, I'm not in a building now that's falling down. How wonderful is that? I have a great life right now. Fantastic. Report an error in the passage at 1:57:29 Highlight the passage at 1:57:29

1:57:50 Maybe I can use my life for something really wonderful, positive and beneficial. Maybe I should devote like five hours a month to offer, volunteer my time to something because I have this life that's good. That's a great way to pop you out of anxieties or fears. Volunteer. Do something else. I volunteered for the homeless for a couple of years in Washington, D.C. and I gave out food on a soup truck once a week and then I helped in their kitchen and did some other things with the homeless at this store they had. Report an error in the passage at 1:57:50 Highlight the passage at 1:57:50

1:58:25 And boy, does that put things in perspective. So there's many people that need help. So as soon as I was around people that were more disadvantaged than myself, it was hard to stay in. These sinking thoughts I have of I'm not good enough and I can't meditate and nothing's happening for me or I feel this or I'm, is suddenly I realize all these other people really suffering. Report an error in the passage at 1:58:25 Highlight the passage at 1:58:25

1:58:49 No bed to sleep in at night. In this weather, you can't stay on the street overnight. It's not possible. So I don't know, is that somewhat helpful? But today I went out, it was 17 degrees Fahrenheit today when I left and I was like, balmy, right? Compared to yesterday, I was like, oh, it's going to warm up. It's supposed to snow, actually, so it'll be warmer now. Balmy 17. Report an error in the passage at 1:58:49 Highlight the passage at 1:58:49

1:59:24 My hat blew off. My ski cap blew off of me yesterday. It was one thing that was cold. That was one thing. But then it was windy. That made it worse. I'm sure it did. It was like 2 yesterday morning. Yeah. Very, very cold yesterday. I intended to do this walk, and I went out, and then the wind came, blew my hat off, and then I was like, it's cold out here. Report an error in the passage at 1:59:24 Highlight the passage at 1:59:24

1:59:48 Okay, so we're going to take a lunch break and we're going to come back with more specific, really specific antidotes to stress, anxiety and worry. We're going to do some more meditation. What I want to do with the lunch break, we have an hour and a half until two. Please again, don't just waste time blah-blahing. Report an error in the passage at 1:59:48 Highlight the passage at 1:59:48

2:00:10 Okay, so I want you to explore your control issues, what you think you can control in your life. What you actually can control. What do you try to control in your life? How frustrating is that? How much anxiety does that cause for you in your life? Can you let go? How would you like to let go of some of that? How would you do that? Ideas like that. What are your concepts about death and how you want to die? Report an error in the passage at 2:00:10 Highlight the passage at 2:00:10

2:00:38 Can you realistically open your eyes to maybe you can't control when and how you die? How's your practice now? That's another thing, a third thing. What's your practice like now? How could you get it started? How could you invigorate that? Okay? Some juicy things to think about. Yes. Yes, absolutely. Let's do that. Yeah, absolutely. So then we're going to take a break and then two o 'clock we start back. Report an error in the passage at 2:00:38 Highlight the passage at 2:00:38

2:01:04 So we're going to do a food offering. Let's just do it right here because it's important to offer the food rather than just diving in. Lama Zopa Rinpoche some years ago was in Italy. He had a translator translating into Italian and it was a massive amount of people in the gompa and they were having food there and everybody had their food and then Rinpoche said, you visualize yourself as big as a house. Report an error in the passage at 2:01:04 Highlight the passage at 2:01:04

2:01:34 And the translator translated and then Rinpoche said, now eat. So Lama Zopa Rinpoche is known for half hour food offering, prayers, where the food gets cold. So the translator... Looked at him kind of like this was unusual. So then Rinpoche said it again. Visualize yourself as big as a house. Now eat. So everybody started getting a little uncomfortable in the room. Report an error in the passage at 2:01:34 Highlight the passage at 2:01:34

2:02:00 And then Rinpoche said it again. And then everybody looked kind of surprised and they were kind of nervously giggling and they looked around. And then Rinpoche looked at them and he said, isn't that how you usually eat? Report an error in the passage at 2:02:00 Highlight the passage at 2:02:00

2:02:12 So we usually just, we're hungry and then we just shovel it in. Like, okay, so we make a food offering. And we bless the food in a sense. Then it's better. Then it's a Dharma activity, eating. We eat with the thought of others. Let's just take a moment. You can lightly close your eyes. Report an error in the passage at 2:02:12 Highlight the passage at 2:02:12

2:02:31 Is the food offering in the prayer books? No, no. Okay, so we'll just do like this. No problem. Lightly close your eyes. Just consider for a moment how wonderful for Shanti Davis Center all the food that we have and the food that is absolutely available in Manhattan is extraordinary in this area. In the markets and in the restaurants. And imagine if we could offer that food now, just visually offer it to all the beings around the planet who are suffering. Report an error in the passage at 2:02:31 Highlight the passage at 2:02:31

2:03:04 May it immediately release them from their suffering and bring them to ultimate happiness. Report an error in the passage at 2:03:04 Highlight the passage at 2:03:04

2:03:14 Particularly those who are hungry and starving. Imagine them full and satiated and nourished. Report an error in the passage at 2:03:14 Highlight the passage at 2:03:14

2:03:27 Food that is ultimately empty of any inherent nature. Report an error in the passage at 2:03:27 Highlight the passage at 2:03:27

2:03:34 Imagine offering it to all the holy beings around the planet and it brings great bliss to their holy minds. Report an error in the passage at 2:03:34 Highlight the passage at 2:03:34

2:03:57 And may the food nourish us so we may nourish all others and continue our retreat in good energy and health. And may that help us to plant seeds that will help us progress along our spiritual paths to full awakening so we can unlimitedly benefit all other beings. Report an error in the passage at 2:03:57 Highlight the passage at 2:03:57

2:04:23 So really it is for the purpose of benefiting others that we are going to practice the yoga of eating lunch. We'll bless the food three times with the body, speech and mind of the Buddhas. All my home. Aum Ahong Report an error in the passage at 2:04:23 Highlight the passage at 2:04:23

2:04:52 Rāsāng e lāma. Chö-jin-la Report an error in the passage at 2:04:52 Highlight the passage at 2:04:52

2:05:10 Jepho Lama Te Lama Nama nam la shabar. Report an error in the passage at 2:05:10 Highlight the passage at 2:05:10

2:05:31 Please enjoy. Report an error in the passage at 2:05:31 Highlight the passage at 2:05:31