Texts and Practices

Lam Rim Meditation from the Lama Chopa Practice

By the power of my having made offerings and respectful requests to you, holy and venerable Gurus, supreme field of positive potential, inspire me, protectors and root of well-being and bliss, to come under your joyful care. Realizing how this body of liberties and endowments is found but once, is difficult to obtain and is …

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Guidelines for the Practice of Refuge

Having taken refuge, a safe and sound direction, in the Three Jewels – Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha – it is advantageous to follow certain guidelines for practice in order to make progress along the path to enlightenment. ++ In analogy to taking refuge in the Buddha, commit yourself whole-heartedly to a qualified spiritual master. ++ …

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Taking Refuge and Precepts

Spiritual mentors, Buddhas and bodhisattvas who abide throughout infinite space, please pay attention to me. From beginningless time until the present, in my attempt to find happiness, I have been taking refuge; but the things I have relied upon have not been able to bring the lasting state of peace and joy that I seek. …

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The Bodhisattva’s Jewel Mala by Lama Atisha

A translation for Dharma Friendship Foundation on the occasion of Geshe Yeshe Tobden’s teachings on the text I bow down to the Great Compassionate One. I bow down to the lamas. I bow down to the devotional deities. 1 Abandon all doubt, And earnestly apply yourself to practice. Abandon laziness, dullness and drowsiness, And always cultivate …

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A Glance Meditation on All the Important Points of Lam Rim

I take refuge in all magnificent pure gurus, who are the nature embodying all the Buddhas, the source of all the pure Dharma of transmission and realization, and the principal among all the arya Sangha. Please bless me so that my mind becomes Dharma, the Dharma becomes the path, and the path is free of …

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Various Mantras

Various Mantras It is good to recite the following mantras in the morning, to prepare for the day’s activities: Multiplying mantra om sambhara sambhara bimana sara maha dzawa hung/ om mara mara bimana kara maha dzawa hung The parinata-cakra-sutra says that if this is recited seven times, whatever virtuous actions one does that day will …

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Aspiring and Engaging Bodhichitta

There are two levels in the development of bodhicitta – the mind (or heart) dedicated to attaining enlightenment for the benefit of all sentient beings. These are the aspiring and engaging bodhicitta. Whereas a person with the aspiring dedicated heart wants to attain enlightenment for the benefit of all sentient beings, he/she is not yet …

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The Six Preparatory Practices

Prior to the first meditation session of the day, it is good to do the six preparatory practices: Sweep and clean the room and arrange the altar. Make offerings on the altar, e.g. light, food, incense, water bowls, etc. Sit in a comfortable position and examine your mind. If there is much distraction, do some …

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Practicing Dharma in Daily Life by Venerable Zopa Rinpoche

When Zopa Rinpoche stayed in Singapore in May, l988, he stayed at the home of a happy and very devoted family. Before leaving, Rinpoche, with his great compassion dictated the following to me to compile for the Lim family, especially the mother, to practice. He suggested it also be included in this book, so that …

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The Eight Mahayana Precepts Ceremony

Introduction The eight mahayana precepts are taken for twenty-four hours. It is especially good to take them on full and new moon days and on other Buddhist festival days. Observing precepts for even such a short time has tremendous benefits: one accumulates a great amount of positive potential (merit) in a short time. One will …

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Offering Food

Visualize the food as blissful wisdom nectar inside a vast jewelled vessel, and offer this to a small Buddha visualized at your heart chakra. Recite, “OM AH HUM” three times to consecrate the food and then offer it with any of the following verses: Guru is Buddha, Guru is Dharma, Guru is Sangha also. Guru …

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Dedication Verses

Dedication of positive potential (merit) is very important, as it prevents one’s positive potential from being destroyed by anger or wrong views. Dedicate the positive potentials created by oneself and others in the past, present and future in the following ways: Due to this merit may I soon Attain the enlightened state of Guru-Buddha, That …

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Prostrations to the 35 Buddhas

There are a variety of purification practices, “The Bodhisattva’s Confession of Moral Downfalls” being one of the most popular. We all have done actions that we now feel badly about doing, and we have aspects of ourselves that we do not like and wish to change. Purification practices are excellent means to remove emotional burdens …

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The Three Principles of the Path by Lama Tsongkhapa

I bow down to the venerable Spiritual Masters. I will explain, as well as I am able, the essence of all the teachings of the Conqueror, the path praised by the Conquerors and their spiritual children, the entrance for the fortunate ones who desire liberation. Listen with clear minds, you fortunate ones who direct your …

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The Foundation of All Good Qualities by Lama Tsongkhapa

The kind and venerable spiritual master is the foundation of all good qualities. Seeing that dependence on him or her is the root of the path, may I rely on him or her with great respect and continuous effort – inspire me thus! A human life with leisure is obtained this once. Understanding that it …

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Prayers Before Teachings and Meditation

1. Refuge I take refuge in the Gurus I take refuge in the Buddhas I take refuge in the Dharma I take refuge in the Sangha 3x or 7x 2. Refuge and generating the heart dedicated to attaining enlightenment for the benefit of all sentient beings I take refuge until I am enlightened in the …

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Morning Prayers

1. Refuge Guru is Buddha, Guru is Dharma. Guru is Sangha also. Guru is the originator of all (goodness and happiness.) To all Gurus, I go for refuge.1 3x 2. Generating the dedicated heart To accomplish my own and others’ aims, I generate the heart dedicated to attaining enlightenment for the benefit of all sentient …

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Heart of Wisdom Sutra

Thus I have heard: at one time, the Blessed One was dwelling in Rajagriha on Massed Vultures Mountain together in one method with a great assembly of monks and a great assembly of bodhisattvas. At that time, the Blessed One was absorbed in the concentration of the countless aspects of phenomena called Profound Illumination. At …

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King of Prayers

The Extraordinary Aspiration of the Practice of Samantabhadra In Sanskrit: samantabhadracarya pranidhana In Tibetan: ‘phags-pa bzang-po spyod-pa’i smon-lam-gyi rgyal-po I bow down to the youthful Arya Manjushri. You lions among humans, Gone to freedom in the present, past and future In the worlds of ten directions, To all of you, with body, speech and sincere …

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DFF Code of Ethics – 5 Precepts for a Harmonious Community and Spiritual Practice

Ethical behavior is an integral part of both a healthy community and individual spiritual development. Ethical practice helps to instill in us the importance  of respecting others’ lives, their property, their dignity, their right to know the truth and the clarity of one’s own mind. Without ethical discipline, suffering and harm inevitably result and many …

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