Chapter 1: Verses 27-32
Venerable Thubten Chodron 
Teachings at Sravasti Abbey 
Jul 16, 2015 Chapter 1 addresses what to abandon and what to practice to attain upper rebirth and highest good. Part of a series of talks on Nagarjuna's Precious Garland of Advice for a King.
- There is the I that exists and the I that doesn’t exist
- We can not differentiate between the conventionally existent person and the inherently existent person
- Grasping the inherently existent I and the 12 links
- How ignorance leads to afflictions, karma and rebirth
- We want to stop the pain of cyclic existence but we like the pleasures of cyclic existence
- Looking closely at the pleasures of cyclic existence to see they are not real happiness
- Using the analogy of a face in the mirror to understand how the appearance of inherent existence is a false appearance
- How the mind moves from a valid mind apprehending I to the mind grasping at I
Precious Garland 12: Verses 27-32 (download)
Venerable Thubten Chodron
Venerable Chodron emphasizes the practical application of Buddha’s teachings in our daily lives and is especially skilled at explaining them in ways easily understood and practiced by Westerners. She is well known for her warm, humorous, and lucid teachings. She was ordained as a Buddhist nun in 1977 by Kyabje Ling Rinpoche in Dharamsala, India, and in 1986 she received bhikshuni (full) ordination in Taiwan. Read her full bio.
