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Mind Training Like Rays of the Sun
by Venerable Thubten Chodron©
Sravasti Abbey, Washington, USA
September 2008 ongoing
4 September 2008
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Venerable Chodron begins the teachings on the text. She gives an introduction and talks about the lineage source of the text. She also talks about the goals of the mind training practices. She begins an oral transmission of the text.
11 September 2008
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Venerable Chodron continues the oral transmission of the text. She finishes the section on the history of the mind training practices. The history includes inspiring accounts of the lengths to which the masters went to get the teachings. She explains how Bodhicitta is the nectar that leads to the non-abiding nirvana of enlightenment. She also explains the three early Kadam traditions and how they relate to our practice.
18 September 2008
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Venerable Chodron explains how self-centeredness is at the root of all problems and conflicts. Self-centeredness is our actual enemy not external enemies. She goes on to discuss the section of the text entitled "The Unique Features, Value and Extraordinary Functions of this Secret Instruction." She talks about the benefits of the mind training practices and how they can help to transform unfavorable circumstances into favorable conditions for spiritual progress.
25 September 2008
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Venerable Chodron begins the chapter on the preliminary teachings. She explains the line of the text that says, "First, train in the preliminaries." Ven. Chodron goes on to explain the six preparatory practices for the actual practice session.
3 October 2008
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Kevin Conlin shares what he learned about the teachers of the mind training practices and the evolution of the mind training teachings. He discusses the eight verses of thought transformation and leads a tonglen meditation based on verse seven.
9 October 2008
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Venerable Chodron continues talking about the four preliminary practices. In this talk she talks about the actual meditation session and begins the commentary on the precious human life. She explains the eight freedoms and the benefits of meditating on them.
16 October 2008
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Ven. Chodron continues the section on training in the preliminaries. In this talk she discusses how meditation on a precious human life counteracts depression and self-pity. She explains the ten beneficial circumstances of a precious human life. She also explains how meditating on the freedoms and opportunities of a precious human life helps us to see its importance, not waste it and use it to create virtue. She also talks about what practicing the Dharma means.
23 October 2008
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Ven. Chodron talks about the rarity of a precious human life. She talks about the rarity from the view point of the difficulty of creating the cause and the view point of the difficulty of obtaining the result. She begins the commentary on death and impermanence explaining the benefit of meditating on death and the disadvantage of not meditating on death.
13 November 2008
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Ven. Chodron continues the commentary on contemplating death and impermanence. She explains the points to contemplate in the nine point death meditation. In this talk she covers the three points under the inevitably of death and the three points under the uncertainty of the time of death.
20 November 2008
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Venerable Chodron continues the section on contemplating death. In this talk she explains how nothing helps at the time of death except the Dharma. She explains how our body, possessions and friends do not help us when we die but that the karma we create in relationship to them does follow us at death. Ven. Chodron also explains how contemplating death can help us from spending all our time on the eight worldly concerns. She talks about having a healthy relationship with our possessions, friends and our body.
27 November 2008
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Venerable Chodron begins the section on the third preliminary practice, karma. She talks about the importance of contemplating actions and their consequences.
18 December 2008
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Venerable Chodron talks about the importance and benefits of the preliminary practices. She discusses the commentary on the third preliminary practice, karma, explaining the four characteristics of karma.
25 December 2008
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In this talk Venerable Chodron explains the ten non-virtuous paths of actions. She also talks about the four factors that make a complete karma. Ven. Chodron also explains the vitruous paths of action and how one can make neutral actions virtuous through mind-training.
1 January 2009
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Venerable Chodron continues the section on karma. She talks about the five factors that determine the weight of a karma. She goes on to discuss the results of karma. She explains the result to be expected from the various nonvirtues and how contemplating these results can help us restrain from nonvirtues.
8 January 2009
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Ven. Chodron explains the results of karma. She talks about how a complete karma can have four types of results. The ripening result, the causally concordant result, the experiential concordant result and the environmental result. Ven. Chodron then goes through ten non-virtues and talks about the results specific to each.
15 January 2009
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Venerable Chodron continues talking about karma. In this talk she explains that we need to see what samsara is and what the first noble truth is in order to develop a genuine determination to be free. She also talks about the relationship between the determination to be free and developing Bodhicitta. Ven. Chodron explains what factors determine which karma will ripen sooner. She also talks about how karma can be diminished, reduced and destroyed.
22 January 2009
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Venerable Chodron begins discussion of the fourth of the four preliminary practices - the disadvantages of cyclic existence. She talks about the disadvantage of uncertainty and the disadvantage of dissatisfaction. Ven. Chodron also answers questions on the karma from eating meat
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