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  • hilaryherdman

    Member
    February 26, 2024 at 9:04 pm in reply to: Request to speak with an instructor

    Hi Sheri,

    Please feel free to contact me at hilary@samyeinstitute.org and we can set up a time to talk. Warm regards, Hilary

  • hilaryherdman

    Member
    February 1, 2024 at 7:24 pm in reply to: Guru Yoga instructions

    Hi Carson,

    Thank you for your recent question on the Guru Yoga. Rinpoche’s instruction is an example of how one would do the practice assuming you are only accumulating one mala in total and does not correspond to the accumulation of the 400,000 mantras that he asks you to accumulate in a year. This is the main point of confusion, I believe. What I’ve done to help clarify that is to revise your own notes to show how we can understand the instructions.

    Rinpoche explains how one approaches the practice by alternating between the steps. He often emphasizes that all these stages are necessary and that reminding ourselves of the point of practice avoids the common scenario of simply mumbling a lot of mantras.

    So we begin with 1) Spending a minute [or however long it takes you to feel the presence] inviting Guru Rinpoche to be present. 2) Outer – Chant the supplication. Chant the six-line supplication (Dusum Sangye) for a quarter of THE TIME YOU ARE DEDICATING TO THIS SESSION as you focus on the visualization of Guru Rinpoche. 3) Inner – Chant the Vajra Guru mantra while visualizing the blessings from the refuge tree.

    You may break this up by Chanting the portion of the text that describes blessing light from the four places of the guru. Then also pause and Chant a quarter mala of Six Line Prayer as you visualize the blessings dissolving. This is an alternation of practice that keeps you from mindlessly chanting. You are pausing to refresh your devotion, in a sense.

    4) Secret – Chant the portion from the text in which the guru dissolves into you. Chant more Dusum Sangye as you visualize this. This is for the same reason. You are chanting malas of the Vajra Guru mantra.

    Then you pause to remember the indivisibility of the guru by recollecting and reciting the guru dissolving. It helps to recite the Dusum Sangye at this point as well. You are seeing yourself as not separate from Guru Rinpoche.

    5) Rest in the nature of mind.

    My questions: Rinpoche specifies a minimum of 400,000 Vajra Guru mantra recitations. Does this mean I should chant 4 or 5 malas during the Inner portion of the practice?

    Mathematically, if you are accumulating 400,000 in one year, you will need to chant over 10 malas per day.

    Or is the Vajra Guru mantra recitation spread across the Outer, Inner, and Secret portions in a way I’m not seeing?

    The Outer practice is the Dusum Sangye six-line supplication full stop. So in the beginning of the Guru Yoga, this would be the main focus of your time. You would spend most of the session visualizing Guru Rinpoche, feeling the presence.

    Also, my understanding of the instructions adds up to just 3/4 of a mala for the Six Line Prayer (1/4 for Outer, Inner and Secret). One way to do this is to figure out the length of time it takes to chant a mala. Then you will know how many you can do in the time you have chosen for your session.

    Spend 1/4 of the time on the Outer in the beginning. Does Rinpoche want us to chant a quarter mala as we rest in nature of mind?

    YES. You would normally begin to extend the period of time when you chant while resting in mind nature. This takes time to master and so we start slowly.

    Is this the instruction he mentions about chanting slowly? Yes, because most of us find this quite difficult so it is easier if we chant the mantra slowly as we get the hang of it.

    I hope that these answers within each section are helpful. We want to feel the juiciness of Guru Yoga, and that is why Rinpoche is advising us not to think chanting mechanically will do the trick. By alternating in the manner Rinpoche suggests, we can keep coming back to the intent of our practice, to recognize that we are inseparable from the guru.

    I think this covers your main questions but if you have any other questions please let me know and I am happy to help!

    Best wishes for your practice!

    Hilary

  • Hi Carson,

    Yes, that is correct–the 660,000 short recitations are in addition to the long mantra. Traditionally a practitioner would complete whatever number desired in a session for the long mantra (so 300 in your example) and then follow on in the same session by accumulating the desired number for the short mantra. Is that clearer?

  • Hi Carson!

    It is great to hear that you are returning to the four foundations practice soon. Please make sure that you also spend time contemplating the four common preliminaries and taking those to heart as well. To answer your specific questions on the practices:

    1. Yes, you do the prostrations as you recite the verse. If you watch the videos, we have provided the chanting video so that you can get used to the words and the repetition of the verse. Then if you proceed to the next unit in the course–Prostrations–and scroll down to the fourth video, Tulku Migmar demonstrates in the “flow” video how to chant and prostrate simultaneously. Obviously, this is easier if you have already memorized the chant which is the purpose of the first video!

    2. If you are accumulating Vajrasattva it is generally said that one should accumulate 600,000 (plus ten percent) of the short mantra.

    3. Yes, when you begin accumulating you read through the entire text each time.

    That should be enough to get you started. If you review these units in the course first and concentrate on those instructions then we can talk about any questions that arise. And we can discuss mandala and guru yoga when you get to that part. For now, you would just be reading through those parts and visualizing as best you can.

    Wishing you joy in your practice,

    Hilary

  • Hi Carson,

    Which practice do you have questions about? I was not sure about your comment regarding the “manual” practice. There are 2 different versions of the Lamey Tukdrub Barchey Kunsel, The Guru’s Heart Practice, Dispeller of All Obstacles. In the Samye Institute course, Rinpoche teaches the condensed version. The main difference in that versions, arranged by Kyabje Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, is that the verses for refuge and bodhicitta are combined and the practitioner accumulates that short four-line verse.

    The longer version, known as The Seed of Supreme Enlightenment, The Liturgy for the Full-Length Preliminary Practices from Lamey Tukdrub Barchey Kunsel, The Guru’s Heart Practice, Dispeller of All Obstacles is also what Druplam Sonam Tsering is currently teaching in his detailed teachings available here for viewing: https://samyeinstitute.org/courses/the-seed-of-supreme-awakening/. Please note that Drupla is taking us through the practices in great depth and is currently teaching on the four common preliminaries. His presentation emphasizes taking the practice of the four foundations into our daily lives and repeated reflection.

    Please do let me know if you have additional questions about a specific element and the accumulations verse!

    Wishing you joy in your practice,

    Hilary

  • hilaryherdman

    Member
    August 27, 2023 at 3:02 am in reply to: Difference between Riwo Sangchod and TBK Sang practice

    Hi again,

    Thanks for asking that question. Yes, Phakchok Rinpoche reminds us that the Chokling Tersar TBK Sang practice is especially beneficial for increasing good conditions and positive qualities and uplifting our practice.

    Warm regards,

    Hilary

  • hilaryherdman

    Member
    August 17, 2023 at 1:49 am in reply to: Sharing A Video on The Pure Realm of Tara

    And here, from Ani Jamyang’s site, is the text on Yulokod, The Pure Realm Of Tara:

    https://yulokodgallery.ca/buddhas.htm

  • hilaryherdman

    Member
    June 28, 2022 at 9:24 pm in reply to: Can we add Protector Offerings to this sadhana?

    Yes, because it is a complete sadhana that is okay ????

  • hilaryherdman

    Member
    May 2, 2022 at 12:50 pm in reply to: Patrul Rinpoche’s Essential Instructions on Bodhicitta

    Dear Katy,

    No worries at all–we can use this as a template and then take it to the next level–I’ve asked our graphic design team to also take a look at it. As this is a classic text from a revered practitioner, we want to make sure that we are representing his explanation as faithfully as we can. But we certainly appreciate the need for visual learners to approach the presentation in other ways, so thank you for starting that process! In the meantime, if you have any specific points on what may be confusing, please continue to share those so that we can work to improve!

    Warm wishes for your continued study and practice,

    Hilary

  • hilaryherdman

    Member
    April 30, 2022 at 7:59 pm in reply to: Patrul Rinpoche’s Essential Instructions on Bodhicitta

    Hi Katy,

    Thank you for your visual approach to this vast topic! In general, you seem to have captured most of the important points, but there are some elements that could be tweaked to show the relationship between categories and practices. As you pointed out, it is a lot to digest. We really appreciate your work on this and will reach out with some additional suggestions as soon as our team has time to look at all the elements. Kudos for the great work! How did the process of building the mind map help you to consider each topic? And were there any elements that you felt unsure of “where they belonged”?

    Warm appreciation,

    Hilary Herdman

    Samye Instructor.

  • hilaryherdman

    Member
    April 14, 2022 at 7:18 pm in reply to: Getting the band back together

    gotcha

  • hilaryherdman

    Member
    March 28, 2022 at 9:56 pm in reply to: Contentment

    Hi Ben,

    The Tibetan word that Rinpoche used was Wylie bde ba (pronounced de wa). But here in the Shravakayana context Rinpoche specifically chose the English translation of contentment.

    The Tibetan word can be translated in a number of ways depending upon the particular situation. It is also the Tibetan translation of the Sanskrit sukha. We commonly see it translated as happiness, ease, comfort, well-being, delight, and even bliss. And sukha is the exact opposite of duḥkha ( or Pali dukkha). 

    As Matthew explained, there are many different translations of duḥkha ranging from “suffering” to unease and stress. Etymologically, Sanskrit and Pali scholars say that it most probably derives from an Aryan term referring to the poor functioning of an axle-hole on a cart. To nomadic people who depend on transport by cart, the literal translation “bad opening” would have clearly inferred a “bumpy ride”–or a situation of unease.  The prefix “su” in Sanskrit and Pali means “good”.  A cart or transport with a good axle-hole would provide a comfortable ride–leading to contentment.

    Hope that helps!

    Hilary

  • hilaryherdman

    Member
    February 19, 2022 at 3:09 pm in reply to: Welcome to this Bardo Training Program Forum

    Hi George,

     

    The Zoom meeting we use is the same for all sessions: the next session is  Wednesday, March 16th  at 7pm

    https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85904834222?pwd=WmltZUl6ZDZkTnh5eEMrVEFsWFE1Zz09

    Meeting ID: 859 0483 4222
    Passcode: 108108

  • hilaryherdman

    Member
    January 7, 2022 at 2:03 pm in reply to: How does lion throne and sun/moon discs look like?

    Dear Jim,

    In addition to the photo that Tsunma-la posted above, be sure to check out Samye’s video visualization aid for the Treasury of Blessings practice that is available in our Chant Library. 

    We recommend that you watch the video repeatedly and use it as practice support until you develop a comfort level with the sadhana. We wish you all the best for your continued practice.

    Warm regards,
    Hilary Herdman

  • Rejoicing in your merit, Carson! That should give you great inspiration to take up the practice. Enjoy the retreat!

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