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.
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Venerable Thubten Chodron Cultivating our motivation
The three levels of motivation as a key to understanding the Buddhist path.
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Obtaining a precious human life
The purpose and meaning of a precious human life, and the difficulty of obtaining such…
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The fortunes of a precious human life
Examining the 10 richnesses of a precious human life and how to meditate properly on…
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The freedoms of a precious human life
The purpose of reflecting on a precious human life and learning to recognize the eight…
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Relying on teachers in thought and deed
Recognizing the kindness of our teacher and learning to repay that kindness through our actions.
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Relying on teachers in thought
Review of the advantages of relying and disadvantages of not relying on a teacher as…
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Disadvantages of improper reliance
The first two disadvantages of not properly relying on or abandoning the spiritual teacher.
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Advantages of relying on a teacher
The eight advantages of relying on a spiritual teacher.
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Visualizing the merit field and offering the seven-l...
How to set up the meditation session by doing the refuge visualization, contemplating the four…
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Obtaining offerings properly and setting the right p...
Further instruction on how to make offerings, and a commentary on the third preparatory practice:…
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Preparing the meditation space and making offerings
Instructions on the first two preparatory practices for a meditation session: (1) cleaning the room…
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