WORDS OF WISDOM AUTHOR: KHENPO TSULTRIM LODRO

In Buddhist scriptures, sometimes the ocean is used to represent people’s psychological state. At times, the blue sky and clouds are used to describe people’s nature or psychological movement.

~Depicted from LUMINOUS WISDOM BOOK SERIES

There is an interesting secret to confronting suffering: the more receptive and welcoming we are, the less it dares to approach us; the more hostilely we refuse it, the easier it can intrude our mind. For this reason, if not desiring suffering, one needs to embrace it courageously.

~Depicted from LUMINOUS WISDOM BOOK SERIES

From the perspective of material life, our era has the most abundance of material wealth in human history. We possess advanced devices and products such as airplanes, wireless, computers, etc. However, compared with ancient people, we lost freedom, which is the most precious thing in the world. We need to contemplate on this problem and make some proper choices, endeavoring to give ourself more freedom.

~Depicted from LUMINOUS WISDOM BOOK SERIES

The direction is very important in studying Buddhism. If the direction is wrong, then one gets farther and farther from liberation. If the direction is correct, then with each step, one gets closer to liberation.

~Depicted from LUMINOUS WISDOM BOOK SERIES

Commoners tend to think… if I contribute or give, then I end up with nothing. This is a misconception. In the process of giving, one is bound to attain more, according to Mahayana doctrines. It’s awful not having loving kindness. A person without loving kindness deems wealth and gain paramount, without any restraints, it’s hard to foretell what they will end up with.

~Depicted from LUMINOUS WISDOM BOOK SERIES

When first joining Larung Gar, due to immaturity, we tended to be prideful when making progress in our study, H.H. Jigme Phuntsok Rinpoche would regularly dismantle our ego by various means. Therefore, we dared not be conceited regardless how much progress we made. Our teachers were ruthless to a student with potential, seemingly scolding us daily. Because they were confident that the disciples would not get irritated and take off, thus he subdued us without holding back.

~Depicted from LUMINOUS WISDOM BOOK SERIES

Stress makes our life painful; desires evolve the pressures of life; hallucinations lead to various desires in space and time; and the wisdom of enlightenment can eliminate all illusions.

~Depicted from LUMINOUS WISDOM BOOK SERIES

According to Buddhism, the cause of sentient being’s cyclic existence doesn’t lie in the body, rather, it lies in karma. If karma exists, cyclic existence persists even if the body perishes. Because our alaya consciousness has lots of previous habitual patterns, when these habitual patterns ripen, the body comes into being. We can come to a conclusion that all phenomena is the by-product of alaya consciousness, be it a mountain, river, field, the sun, the moon, the stars or the body of sentient beings.

~Depicted from LUMINOUS WISDOM BOOK SERIES

For many practices, transmission is empathised, especially of the Vajrayana. What do we mean by transmission? It means since the first turning of wheel of dharma of the Buddha, the stream of dharma handed down from one generation to another is called lineage, or transmission, which is non-stop, if it’s broken, then the great blessing of the dharma will not continue. Thus, notwithstanding the existence of scriptures,without oral transmission and transmission of pith instruction, the dharma would be extinct.

~Depicted from LUMINOUS WISDOM BOOK SERIES