Buddhist retreat set for Saturday and Sunday at Edwards Riverwalk

Home The Americas US Central

Vail, CO (USA) -- Venerable Tenzin Priyadarshi will lead a weekend retreat on some beloved verses widely read by Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike.

The Dhammapada is part of the Pali Canon and captures the philosophical and practical essence of the Buddha's teachings. Attendees will contemplate how these simple, yet profoundly deep, verses demonstrate the power of the human mind in shaping their lives and happiness. The retreat will consist of commentary on this text, meditation sessions, time for questions and answers and prayer.

The event is by donation. All are welcome, but space is limited. Chairs are available, but bring your own cushion if you want to sit on the floor. RSVP to Ben Gaylord at 970-390-9299 and sign up online at www.bodhimarga.org.

Priyadarshi is the president of The Prajnopaya Institute and Foundation, a worldwide humanitarian organization. He is the founding director of The Dalai Lama Center for Ethics and Transformative Values at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, www.thecenter.mit.edu.

He was ordained by His Holiness the Dalai Lama, his spiritual mentor, and has received instruction and training under many great Buddhist teachers. He teaches around the world, in the spirit of the nonsectarian Rime tradition, in Russia, Mongolia, Indonesia, Thailand, India, Japan and Mexico.

If you go ...

What: Venerable Tenzin Priyadarshi leads weekend retreat focused on the Dhammapada.
Where: Riverwalk Hall in Edwards.
When: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to noon Sunday.
Cost: By donation.
More information: RSVP to Ben Gaylord at 970-390-9299, or sign up online at www.bodhimarga.org.

View the original article here

Sikkim quake: Early Sunday prayers saved monks of Ringjhim monastery

The monastery houses five senior monks and 55 students and as it was a Sunday, the monks had finished their prayer session half an hour earlier rather than the usual time of 6 pm on weekdays.

The earthquake struck at 6.10 pm ruining the holy prayer hall in a matter of minutes before the monks could run for shelter. Had the prayer meeting continued till 6 PM as on week days, the monks could have been trapped inside, the Principal of the Institution of Buddhist Learning of the monastery, Acharya Prema Dorjee told PTI.

"On weekdays the routine afternoon prayer session is from 4 pm to 6 pm but as it was Sunday we finished the prayer session at 5.30 pm in the evening and the earthquake hit this part of the region at 6.10 pm," Acharya Prema Dorjee told PTI.

"We saw part of our coveted institution crumbling down like a house of cards. Had it been a weekday we would all have been under the debris" Dorjee said.

"We would all have died but it was our good luck that we survived. Had it been a week day no one would have survived" a senior monk said.

View the original article here

Zimbabwe's Leading Sunday Newspaper

This month, a rather unusual happening takes place at the Tibetan Buddhist Centre in Harare.  Whether or not you practise Bhuddism, or indeed, any particular religion, this is an interesting event, and one worth experiencing with an open mind. It is quite amazing how many interesting happenings of all kinds take place in our country, and those that are more unusual and infrequent need to be seized!
There is a thriving Tibetan Buddhist community here, which has taken the opportunity to invite the Heart Shrine World Tour of Buddhist Relics organised by the Maitreya Project, to visit Harare.

Buddhists practise the daily discipline of meditation, and also say prayers, whether indoors or outdoors, and strive to put into daily practice, loving-kindness — which is the exercise of compassion towards all living beings that is central to their spiritual path, in the belief that this leads to peace — inner peace, peace within the family, society, nation and the world at large.

Buddhism is a tolerant spiritual path followed in many parts of the world, which warmly embraces other religions and belief systems. Religious tolerance, and tolerance generally, is a fundamental value at the heart of a healthy, peaceful society.

Loving-kindness translates as Maitri in Sanskrit — and the Maitreya Buddha is the embodiment of it. The belief that visiting and being in the presence of holy relics will bless, help, inspire and enlighten us, is not unique to Buddhism, and is also found in other religions and spiritual paths, including Christianity.

The relics that are being toured are from the original Bhudda himself, and from many other spiritual masters and teachers from past times as well. They are beautiful bead and pearl shaped objects and crystals found amongst the ashes of these spiritually enlightened individuals. In the Tibetan language, these are called ringsel. They are considered physical evidence that the teacher attained the spiritual qualities of compassion and wisdom, and are often found to instil a sense of peace and compassion in those who visit them, emanating a positive, peace-enhancing energy.

The broad purpose of taking them on tour of countries across the globe is to promote peace and understanding amongst people across all faiths and beliefs. The desire for peace in the world, an end to war and conflict, and for peace of mind at an individual level, is shared by all religions and spiritual paths and something we would all wish to attain.

The idea behind the tour is to bring people together to experience an inter-faith celebration focused on shared human qualities that lead to a more peaceful world — love, compassion, tolerance, living a good life, doing no harm to others.

The relics tour is completely non-denominational and has been experienced and enjoyed by people of all sorts of beliefs and following all kinds of spiritual paths who report being moved, calmed, uplifted and inspired.

With an open mind you can see experience these interesting relics at the Tibetan Buddhist Centre, 7A Ernies Lane off Lyndhurst Road in Monavale, Harare. The Opening Ceremony takes place at 5.30 pm on 15 July, all are welcome at no charge and the relics can then be visited from 9 am to 5.30 pm on both 16 and 17 July. This is one of those rare opportunities to explore and experience something new and rather unusual! If this piques your interest, the Maitreya Project has an informative website.

View the original article here