Practice Advice

Practice Advice

Date Posted:
August 2011

A student wrote to Rinpoche for advice on her practice. 

My very dear Jennifer,
I checked regarding your practices, and this is what came out as most beneficial.

  • Vajrasattva: recite at least 21 or 28 mantras every day
  • Dorje Khadro (burning offering): 500,000
  • Lama Tsongkhapa Guru Yoga: would be good to do every day
  • Diamond Cutter Sutra: 300
  • Golden Light Sutra: 400
  • Lamrim meditation:
    Base all your lam-rim meditations on guru devotion, and meditate every day for whatever length of time you can—15, 20, 30 minutes or an hour—until you gain stable realizations.
    • Guru devotion: three months
    • The graduated path of the lower scope: three months
    • The graduated path of the intermediate scope: five months
    • The graduated path of the highest scope: bodhicitta: ten months; emptiness: two months

Keep circling like this until you have stable realizations. It doesn’t mean you should only meditate on these subjects, it just means this is your main focus for this many months. Use texts and other prayers to help with your lam-rim meditation. Also, the lam-rim meditation doesn’t have to be only while sitting on your cushion, it can be when you are walking, riding a bike, etc.

Regardless of what section you are up to, do a little meditation on emptiness and guru devotion every day. It would be very good for you to do more study of the Dharma, so later you can teach and offer service to others.

Please practice as much as you can. Life is not long, the nature of this life is impermanent and death can happen at any time. This is the foundation of Buddha’s teachings and this was the last advice Buddha gave, before showing the aspect of passing away.

What makes your life most meaningful is meditation on the lam-rim and living your life with bodhicitta motivation. This is the best.

With much love and prayers...