The enemy of self-grasping and self-centeredness
Good Karma 30
Venerable Thubten Chodron 
Good Karma Annual Retreat 
May 24, 2026 Part of a series of talks given during the annual Memorial Day weekend retreat based on the book Good Karma: How to Create the Causes of Happiness and Avoid the Causes of Suffering, a commentary on "The Wheel of Sharp Weapons" by Indian sage Dharmarakshita
- Seeing our practice as happening over many lifetimes
- Cultivating a sincere Dharma motivation
- Overcoming discouragement in our practice
- Verse 50: Identifying the enemy
- How the self-centered mind works
- Suffering of beings in the three realms
- Verse 51: Striking the enemy
- Learning to identify our afflictions
- The correct meaning of selflessness
- Grasping at characteristics of others and ourselves
- Questions and answers
- Why is it so hard to overcome afflictions?
- Verse 52: Achieving genuine freedom
The next talk in this series:
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.
