Enlightened Heart
Bodhi means “awakened,” which is the same notion as buddha. Bodhi and buddha have the same connotation. Citta means “heart.” So bodhicitta means “awakened heart.” That is what we want to plant in our mind, in our existence, altogether. Sometimes, the heart comes first, citta comes first; and then bodhi comes later. The heart awakens, as it were. To begin with, we develop heart, heart that is not connected with egohood, personal longevity, personal entertainment, or personal egotism of any kind. We begin to develop that particular kind of heart. And that kind of heart begins to transmit the vision of heart, which is enlightened heart. So first we develop heart; then we develop what heart is all about–enlightened heart. Enlightened heart is expansive and awake. It does not demand any kind of territoriality. It does not demand that we organize or create a flock of our own egotistic companions around us; we don’t have to collect tribes of savages around us. When we begin to look into those two situations–basic wakefulness and the basic lack of any need to recruit support for our own territoriality–we begin to find ourselves having a taste of enlightenment for the very first time.
Randy spent his life communing with the mystical, exploring the myriad dimensions of consciousness, and on April 12, 2024, at 9:35 pm, he finally transcended, leaving his old and broken body behind. After 12 years struggling with Parkinson’s and...
Review of Pith Instructions from my Teachers
James Gritz has written a profound Dharma book, which he organized in the form of a spiritual memoir.
The Passing of John Odenthal
John Odenthal, a long-time student of Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, and a dear friend to many passed away in Halifax on February 25. Please hold him, and his daughter, Brighid, in your thoughts and prayers.
Surmang shedra completed and in use as a shedra
Starting in 2010, while work on the shrine room furnishings continued, the shedra building complex has been used for various children's programs, for shedra-type study programs for monks, as the temporary monastery lhakang (shrine hall) when the monastery's lhakang was being rebuilt, and as a temporary residence for nuns while the Kyelaka nunnery associated with Surmang Dutsi Til was under construction.
The Passing of Ricky Assaly
A sukhavati will be held on Friday January 26 at 2:00 p.m. in the Boulder Shambhala Center Main Shrine Room.
Father Thomas Keating and Trungpa Rinpoche Talk About Egolessness
This conversation took place during Naropa’s 1983 Christian Buddhist Conference
Mother’s Milk
When you take a leap into the phenomenal world, you may think it is a very bold and heroic thing to do. However, you might awake, as if from a dream, and find yourself in the mouth of a crocodile.
The Passing of Tania Leontov
We stand both in great sadness for the passing of Tania Leontov as well as a reverence and immense appreciation we feel toward a spiritual sister who has been such a pivotal person in the legacy of Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche and the genuine Dharma coming our way!
The Passing of Tulku Thondup Rinpoche
Loving-kindness is the thought of wishing total happiness for others and putting that wish into practice. It is the thought of unconditioned, pure, and universal love towards all beings without attachment, self-centeredness, or expectation of rewards.
— Tulku Thondup
Saraha and Sahaja
In this lecture, Roger Jackson talks about Saraha's songs, with a special focus on his teachings on sahaja – a vital tantric term variously translated as "the coemergent," "the connate," or "the simultaneously arisen."
Dön Season Retreat on Ocean
During the final days of the Year of the Water Rabbit, we will focus our
evening practice on Vajrakilya and Pacifying the Turmoil of the Mamos.
The Star of Bethlehem
You begin to experience the dawn or glimmer of light, which in Western language is called the Star of Bethlehem
The Cremation of Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche Notes from Nepal, November, 2023
Many years back, at the time of the first visit of Thrangu Rinpoche to Boulder, Colorado at the invitation of Vidyadhara Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, Trungpa Rinpoche was asked what code word we could use for Thrangu Rinpoche when communicating the logistics of his transportation, arrival at events, etc.
Vajrayogini Abhisheka Announcement
Dear Vajra Sangha,
Under the Open Umbrella initiative of the Druk Sakyong Wangmo, Diana Mukpo, we are delighted to announce that with the blessing of His Holiness Karmapa XVII, the Venerable Ringu Tulku Rinpoche has consented to confer a Vajrayogini empowerment to our group of suitably prepared students. This request was initiated by the Kagyu ngöndro working group under...
Conversation with Ringu Tulku
An Interview from 2013
Jakusho Kwong-roshi on Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche
Jakusho Kwong-roshi on Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, Video by Bill Scheffel.
Elocution Lessons with Chögyam Trungpa, Part Two: Form as Practice
If you are paying attention to how you speak and how others communicate, you will find that you are paying attention altogether to the environment, to how you sit or stand, to how you hold your hands, to how you look at people — all those things.
Four Moments of Truth
I was living in Boston at the time of the Vidyadhara's 1986-87 illness, and we in the sangha there had been doing intense practice because of this on and...
A Lover Not a Fighter
It was 1976 and I was attending a public seminar at Karme Choling conducted by Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche. A close friend and I first met Rinpoche in 1971 and my...
No Man’s Land
In No Man's Land, Robert Merchasin talks about an extraordinary day in September 1971, and reflects on the lasting impact the events of that day have had on his life.
Absolutely Suicidal
Valentine's Day Edition
One day in Boulder, circa 1978, Larry Mermelstein had a very interesting conversation with Trungpa Rinpoche about relationships. Here for Valentine's Day (okay, we're a day late),...
Glimpses of Tail of the Tiger 1970
Jonathan first heard of Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche in 1970 when his mother, Nancy Eric, showed him a brochure she had picked up about Tail of the Tiger. Jonathan read...
Radio Free Asia Hosts 17th Karmapa
Radio Free Asia Press Release
15 July 2011
WASHINGTON, DC On the heels of the Dalai Lama's visit to Radio Free Asia earlier in the week, Tibetan spiritual leader Ogyen...
The Earth is Our Witness
As I practiced the Vajrayogini sadhana in front of the sunlit shrine next to the porch, graceful deer bounded through the woods outside, finding a refuge from their fear...
Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche Celebrates Chögyam Trungpa and the Kagyu Lineage
Photo by Marvin Moore
Khyentse Rinpoche's Teachings in Halifax
During his talks on the foreword to The Rain of Wisdom, Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche marveled at Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche's guru devotion,...
We’re Here
Qatar Airlines surprised us at the gate with first-class seats. So we arrived in style: row 1, seats A, B and C. Then the wild cab ride to Boudhanath...
Memories, Dreams and Reflections of the 16th Karmapa
Black Hat, Black Mountains
I met the 16th Karmapa in 1976 when he was invited to a farmhouse in the Black Mountains of Wales. If there is one event which...
Riding on the Wind: The Culture of Windhorse
by Clarke Warren
As we enter the year of the wood horse, it seems appropriate to delve into the qualities and significance of the horse in Tibetan culture. Students of...
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Prajna and Upayaby Martin Evans
Three Tuesdays at 7:00 pm Eastern starting September 19. We will listen to Rinpoche’s three talks together and, as always, […]
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Outer, Inner and Secret Levels of Mindfulness Practiceby Lodro Sangpo
Please note: Participants in this course may also be interested in Lodro Sangpo’s course on Abhidharma in the Context of […]
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Kitchen Sink Series: The Path is the Goalby David Nudell
This five-week course will use Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche’s text, THE PATH IS THE GOAL. Taken from two seminars in 1974, one held […]
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Mind, Symbol, and Word: The Three Levels of Vajrayana Transmissionby Judy Lief
According to the Vidyadhara, our understanding of the three lineages begins with our relationship with the teacher. It begins […]
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Mahamudra Aspiration of Rangjung Dorjeby Gerardo Abboud
Rangjung Dorje’s Mahamudra Aspiration is an extraordinarily pithy and comprehensive text. Not only does the text elucidate the […]