An introduction Can we ever know anything in this world? If everything is empty––devoid of any essential nature as this or that––then all appearances are just like dreams or illusions. In that case, what reliable sources of information could we ever have?  How much can we trust what appears to our eyes and ears? Maybe we could rely…
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Nagarjuna’s Letter to a Friend (Skt. Suhṛllekha; Tib. བཤེས་པའི་སྤྲིང་ཡིག་, shepé tring yik) A Letter from a Friend, written by Nagarjuna in the 2nd century, is a well-known text of the Tibetan Mahayana tradition. Throughout the various lineages, all great Tibetan scholars have referred to this text in their teachings, including Je Tsongkhapa in his Lamrim. The intended audience…
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In Buddha’s Sutra he says: Discard non-virtue that is already generated. Prevent non-virtue not yet generated. Develop virtue that already have generated. Generate virtue not yet generated yet. In order to do these four deeds, have the motivation first. Then try, and then work hard, then hold your mind and then place your mind. Usually there are two…
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Sakadawa Day is celebrated as the day of Buddha’s birth, enlightenment and death. There is great merit in taking the Eight Mahayana Precepts for 24 hours on Sakadawa Day. The precepts are taken at dawn before the local area’s sunrise. Taking these precepts for the first time requires in-person transmission from a qualified person. Eight…
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