HOW to be HAPPY

JUPITERASC

JUPITERASC

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Doing a retreat is very important in Tibet, many great masters did retreat.
Some of them spent half of their lives doing retreats
and then after than they benefited many people.

We say, "..First, liberate yourself.." :)

If you liberate yourself through realization, then you can help others.
Then others can also gain realization, true wisdom, and true compassion.
And they can really help others to open their hearts and minds
to achieve the freedom of liberation.

For example Buddha spent six years in retreat
Before that, Buddha went to many places, and learned many different dharmas
- but why did Buddha become a Buddha?
Because he practiced, meditated, and did a retreat near the river Niranjana. -

This is an excerpt from Mingyur Rinpoche's teaching,
"..The Importance of Retreat.".
full video link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=isFxy...

To learn more Tergar Meditation Community's Retreat Course
available on Vajrayana Online:
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JUPITERASC

JUPITERASC

Well-known member
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The nature of impermanence is that we are all dying every moment.
In a hospital there are doctors, nurses, and staff who are labeled “..not dying..”
and terminally ill patients who are labeled “..dying..”
but in reality there is no such difference. We are all dying.:)

Some of us have only a few hours left, some a few days, some a few years.
And who is to say that the doctor treating the person in the last stages of cancer
will outlive the patient? We all have a terminal condition called life. :)

The difference between our illness and that of the cancer patient
is just a matter of degrees. Ours will probably take a little longer to take effect. :)


All this is morbid and depressing unless
we can see the truth in it & how this is the big wake-up call
to get us to stop wasting our life.
eeing how we are racing toward death, we can think
“..I must not waste my life. I must practice the Dharma purely.
I must make my life highly beneficial by practicing bodhichitta.
I will do whatever is of greatest benefit to sentient beings..”
By thinking in all these different ways about impermanence and death
we should reach this conclusion.

☸️
From the chapter *..Overcoming Laziness..*
in which Rinpoche offers commentary and guidance
on how to overcome this greatest obstacle to our happiness
in 𝘗𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦: 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘋𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘰𝘥𝘩𝘪𝘴𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘷𝘢
🔽
Read the rest of *..Overcoming Laziness..*
https://wisdomexperience.org/wisdom.../overcoming-laziness/

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JUPITERASC

JUPITERASC

Well-known member
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He advocates
the cultivation of warm-heartedness
& human values
such as compassion, forgiveness, tolerance
contentment
& self-discipline.
He says that as human beings we are all the same.
We all want happiness and do not want suffering :)
Dalai-Lama-2008.jpg


"..I am
committed to promoting fundamental human values :)
like compassion.
What we need today are universal values
based not on faith but on scientific findings
common experience and common sense.
Just as we preserve our health by observing physical hygiene
we can protect our inner well-being
by tackling our destructive emotions
& cultivating emotional hygiene.."
- His Holiness The Great 14th Dalai Lama



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JUPITERASC

JUPITERASC

Well-known member
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There is simply no polite way to tell people
that they have dedicated their lives to an illusion.
May the verses below inspire us
to find the courage to recognize & walk away from the patterns of delusion
that bind us to suffering.
🙏

In towns, the way to freedom is obstructed by busyness
& pervasive destructive emotions.
In religious temples misuse of offerings blocks the path to liberation,
While being in the solitude of retreat is just like a heavenly realm -
In towns, the leaves of accursed violence sprout and spread,
In religious assemblies, the bitter poisons of pride and jealousy flow

While in the solitude of retreat, the wisdom born of meditation grows -
Never be without this meditative insight, O fortunate ones! :)

In towns, the patterns of delusion are distinct,
In religious assemblies, the blossoming painful emotions & thoughts are apparent,
While in the solitude of retreat, the flowers of stainless purity are clear -
Never part from the opening of clear light, O fortunate ones! :)

Ordinary town people attend to repetitive & meaningless tasks,
In religious assemblies, conduct degenerates
& higher aspirations
are practiced intermittently
& vows become lost,
While in retreat, commitments remain as pure as crystal -
Never part from this crystalline commitment to mindful awareness, O fortunate ones!

Ordinary townspeople eat unnecessary food & produce mountains of waste,
Monastic assemblies swallow the bitter pills of misused offerings,
While in the solitude of retreat, we savour meditative bliss & emptiness -
Never neglecting the nourishment of meditation, O fortunate ones!

Ordinary people delight in the company of friends and relatives,
Religious leaders flatter and fawn over their patrons,
While in the solitude of retreat, we practise looking into our own minds -
Never let your minds waver from the practice, O fortunate ones! :)

Ordinary town people sponsor ineffectual religious rituals when the need arises,
Religious assemblies all too often practice for their own peace and happiness,
While in mountain retreat, we follow the path of liberation for all beings -
Never part from the practice directed towards awakening, O fortunate ones!

Ordinary townspeople guard their wealth and possessions,
Religious assemblies watch over offerings and donations,
While in the solitude of retreat we safeguard emptiness -
Never part from the practice of ultimate reality, O fortunate ones! :)

Ordinary city people are deceived by the demons of desire, aggression & confusion,
Religious assemblies are misled by the temptation of seduction,
While in the solitude of retreat, the commitment to awareness subdues all inner & outer demons entirely -
Be sure never to part from the recognition of the mind that sees its own display.
That is how it is,
& what is more:
Determine clearly that all this is bound together with suffering -
This is my heart advice.

And seeing the solitude of retreat as a heavenly paradise
these verses were sung upon the slopes of the heavenly retreat hermitage
Sky-Fortress (Namkha Dzong) by the old beggar with the name of Dündul, “Demon Tamer.”
May we see the qualities of solitude as just like those of a pure realm,
And may those in their great hermitages, far from the bustle of saṃsāra,
Attain the level of ultimate enlightenment!
by Nyala Pema Dündul, 1819



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JUPITERASC

JUPITERASC

Well-known member
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Amitabha :)​

Amitabha, the principal Buddha in Pure Land Buddhism
is known for his longevity attribute, magnanimous qualities
& the pure land of Sukhavati
a realm free from suffering, often described as a paradise.


amitabha.jpg
 
JUPITERASC

JUPITERASC

Well-known member
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Amitayus, the Buddha of Eternal Life
is also known as Amitabha :)
one of the five Cosmic Buddhas of Esoteric Buddhism.
He is shown in his paradise, Sukhavati
the Western Pure Land
enthroned beneath a flowering tree
festooned with strands of jewels
& auspicious symbols.

amitabha-buddha.jpg

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