Confidence

Building dignity through supplication may sound contradictory. In the Vajrayana path, however, supplication is continually emphasized. Why is this so?

A marriage is not just a union of one person to one person. Actually we need to build and combine skillful means, wisdom, enlightenment.

Belief in dharma practice is crucial.  Yet, often we approach our practice in a half-hearted or not fully committed manner.  Then, if we don’t believe in what we are practicing, we may not recognize our own experiences on the path.  And if we don’t believe that the practice will bear results, then we may end up abandoning it altogether.

Phakchok Rinpoche observes that many Dharma students these days are not decisive. Why aren’t we more decisive?  Because we lack confidence.  We need to develop a sense of dignity and force inside ourselves. We may have many excellent qualities–we are nice people.  Many of us are kind, calm, and compassionate. On the other hand, we lack decisiveness.  This can be an issue in many aspects of our life. But Rinpoche stresses that in spiritual practice, being decisive is one of the most important elements.

Phakchok Rinpoche says that if we really examine ourselves, we can learn how to develop stable confidence. The good news is that as practitioners we can easily train in developing confidence, also known as dignity. He notes that every single Buddhist practice, especially on the Vajrayāna path, is designed to empower us with dignity.