Meditations for a New Student  

Meditations for a New Student  

Date Posted:
November 2009

Rinpoche sent this letter to a new student outlining essential lamrim meditations. 

My very dear one,
Please find attached a form that explains how to do the meditations and other essential practice advice.

It comes out very good for you to meditate as follows:

  • Six months: Meditate on the graduated path of the lower capable being.
  • Seven months: Meditate on the graduated path of the middle capable being.
  • Fifteen months: Meditate on bodhicitta.
  • Five months: Meditate on emptiness.

Then, start over again. You don't need to do extensive analytical meditation on which realization you have achieved, that is stable, which means not just lasting for a few hours or days, but longer than that.

Every day, follow the outline of the guru devotion meditation. Meditate on guru devotion every day for however long you can manage: ten minutes, fifteen minutes, half an hour, or one hour, following the outline of the guru devotion meditation. Continue for the number of days it takes to complete the outline, and after that start again from the beginning. See the attached sheet for more explanation on this.

Regarding your question about how to love others: Meditate on the cause and effect of the seven points. Equanimity regarding all sentient beings is the foundation before meditating on bodhicitta:

1: Realizing sentient beings as one’s mother

2: Remembering their kindness

3: Repaying the kindness

4: Loving kindness from seeing others as beautiful

5: Compassion

6: Special attitude

7: Bodhicitta—the altruistic mind to achieve enlightenment for sentient beings. It is a principle consciousness and extraordinary mind that is endowed with two wishes: seeking the happiness of others and seeking enlightenment. It is the wish to free sentient beings from suffering and its causes and bring them to enlightenment. So, to be successful in that, you need to achieve enlightenment.

The foundation for all of this is the equanimity-equilibrium meditation, which is the same as immeasurable equanimity. This is not the same as the great equilibrium from the practice of equalizing and exchanging self for others. The thought of great equanimity is that, even in a dream, you desire happiness and do not desire suffering, and all other sentient beings are exactly the same, like that.

With much love and prayers...