[From an unpublished teaching on Taking and Sending given in Battle Creek, Michigan, by Lama Tashi Topgyal in 2013. Translated by Lama Yeshe Gyamtso.] No matter how much may be said about bodhichitta, and how much we may know about it and learn about it, it all comes down to benevolence, benevolence towards others. If…
Samaya
[A teaching from Songs of Barway Dorje, Part 2, by Bardor Tulku Rinpoche. Translated by Lama Yeshe Gyamtso.] The vajrayana vow, samaya, is even more difficult to keep than the bodhisattva vow. Because the vajrayana vow of samaya is so stringent, someone who undertakes it can only achieve one of two fates. Once you take…
Tertons are Emanations of Guru Rinpoche
[From a teaching Essence of Wisdom: Stages of the Path, Part 5, by Lama Tashi Topgyal. Translated by Lama Yeshe Gyamtso.] Tertons are always challenging to people because they often act unconventionally. And it’s natural, or not surprising, that during the life of a terton people usually think they’re crazy. (After they pass away, of…