Judy Lief

Buddhism – Shambhala – Profound Treasury – Making Friends with Death

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Blog 47: Keep the three inseparable.

February 10, 2015 By Judy Lief

 47. Keep the three inseparable.
It is easy to think of lojong practice as just a mental exercise, after all, lojong is translated as “mind training.” But according to this slogan, lojong practice should engage our whole being: our body, our speech, and our mind. The idea is that we should be so thoroughly and completely permeated with mind training that there is no separation whatsoever.

When you practice wholeheartedly, it shows in your body. The way you handle yourself physically and the way you relate to the even the most ordinary objects in your life reflects in a very concrete way the depth of your practice. So working with the body is a very powerful way to practice lojong. The idea is not to force your body into shape as if you were working out or doing yoga or going on a diet. Instead, no matter what condition your body is in, you can still manifest in your physical presence the qualities of gentleness, awareness, and openness.

When you practice wholeheartedly, it shows in the way you relate to your speech and emotions. In the phrase, “body, speech, and mind,” speech refers not only to talking or expression, but to the world of emotions as well. When emotions arise or when you are about to speak, you can apply lojong. Through lojong, instead of speaking impulsively and being driven by emotional habits, you can express yourself simply and directly.

When you practice wholeheartedly, it shows in your thinking patterns. Part of lojong training has to do with simply noticing how your mind works. What do you do with your mind? What do you think about most often? By applying lojong to your mind, you can begin to reverse the habits of preoccupation and self-absorption that take up so much mental energy. As a result, your mind becomes less tight. It begins to relax and turn outward.

This slogan points out that lojong applies to whatever we do, feel, think, or say. It is a way of bringing our whole system into harmony.

Today’s practice

When you think about your lojong practice, does it seem balanced and wholehearted or one-sided and limited? What helps you come into harmony in your body, speech, and mind and what tends to make you lose that feeling of harmony?

Upcoming Events: Profound Treasury Retreat

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8th Annual PROFOUND TREASURY RETREAT at Saco, Maine 

June 12-24 at Ferry Beach Conference Center, Saco, Maine

 

Living Dharma: The Joy and Challenge of Joining Practice and Action

 

 

“Mindfulness practice is not just about what is happening to you individually and personally—it is about how much you are going to transmit your sanity and your insanity to the rest of the world.”—Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche

 

“If you don’t live it, it won’t come out of your horn.”  Charlie Parker

 

Living Dharma

The Joy and Challenge of Joining Practice and Action

 

In these times of turmoil, it’s important to reflect on ways to bring our lifestyle and our actions into greater accord with the dharma.   If your life does not reflect your practice, what is the point of meditation and study?

 

The time spent in sitting meditation is much less than the time spent going about our everyday lives. Therefore, postmeditation practice is essential. The combination of meditation and postmeditation makes our practice complete—running through our entire life rather than something we turn on and off.

 

In this class, we will focus on the challenges of living a dharmic life, and how they are addressed in the three stages of the Tibetan Buddhist path.  We will work with the foundational or hinayana guidelines for living life with simplicity and contentment. We will study mahayana teachings on how to activate compassion and benefit others. Finally, we will explore vajrayana teachings on how to engage more freshly and spontaneously by cutting hesitation and fixed views.

 

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Topics include:

The three essentials: discipline, meditation, and wisdom

Refraining from harm: working with the five precepts

Being of benefit: practicing the paramitas

Overcoming hesitation: engaging with the four karmas

Obstacles, mistakes, and fresh starts

 

From Judy’s Blog

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Judy Lief • 802-598-5832 • judy@judylief.com