Taking time away from a busy life is not easy, but when we do, we are able to absorb ourselves in our practice and find new meaning and new freedom in its presence. In this talk Lama Kathy describes how to structure a one-day or two-day retreat to get started with the practice

Sometimes it’s difficult to see beyond the mundane complexities of our lives – our assignments, our work, our chores – so to get closer to our spiritual life, sometimes we have to remove ourselves from our everyday world and plunge ourselves into the world of the sacred. Retreat, in which we place our attention on meditation and prayer: and Pilgrimage, where we meet sacred objects and teachers –  are two time-tested ways of bringing us closer to the spiritual. This talk describes both, and how one might plan to do a retreat or pilgrimage.

Engendering Bodhichitta Through the Path of a Good Heart

This talk is the ninth in a series of talks on The Seven Points of Mind Training, by Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche. It gives instructions on the fifth point of mind training: evaluation of mind training.

Topics Discussed

When we see other beings suffer, it’s difficult to remain unmoved. We feel the sting of injustice; we feel the rush of anger; we feel the flood of compassion; we want to know how to harmonize all these feelings and know what to do when times are tough. What does it mean to encounter The Other – the person whose views are so different from ours that we fear and feel anger toward them?  How do we turn hate into love – and is that even possible? This talk will share ideas from Buddhist teachings and suggest ways to encounter – and feel love for – The Other that is within us.