View and Search Online Advice Book
Below is a listing of advices in the Online Advice Book. They are sorted and grouped by the date posted on our website, with the most recent additions showing first. You can enter a keyword to search for advices containing that term.
Advices posted during the month of April 2022
Path to Enlightenment (lamrim) > Guru Devotion > The Guru/Disciple Relationship
A student had offered her house to Rinpoche, who responded with this advice about the unbelievable merit of making even a small material offering to the guru.
Compassion and Bodhicitta > Mind Training (lo-jong) > Transforming Problems
Rinpoche sent this advice to a student who was being accused of different things and criticized publicly.
Path to Enlightenment (lamrim) > Karma > Understanding Karma
Rinpoche explains that a wealthy hotelier who appears happy and successful may be just collecting negative karma, while a simple monk who is practicing Dharma purely is creating the cause for happiness up to full enlightenment, even though they...
Sickness and Health > General Illnesses > Various Illnesses
A student had kidney cysts, high cholesterol and high blood sugar level. Rinpoche gave this advice.
Contemporary Issues > Practices for Success > Overcoming Obstacles
A student had health problems, including severe pain passing urine, but doctors were not able to help his condition. The student was also depressed after Lama Lhundrup passed away and was experiencing many obstacles, including unemployment,...
Sickness and Health > Musculoskeletal Disorders > Back, Leg and Joint Conditions
This advice was given to a builder who had very bad back pain. Rinpoche said it was caused by nagas.
Family and Relationships > Marriage and Divorce > Marriage
Rinpoche sent this long letter with relationship advice to a student. Rinpoche said that the usual motivation for marriage is attachment and we need to have a bodhisattva attitude, free from the self-cherishing thought, so that our actions become...
Advices posted during the month of March 2022
Death and Transitions > Caring for Others at the Time of Death > Caring for the Dying
A student asked Rinpoche whether they should visit their mother, who was very close to dying. Rinpoche advised these practices.
Buddhist Practices > Protection from Spirit Harm > Protection from Spirit Harm
Rinpoche recommended these practices for a student who was experiencing naga harm.
Sickness and Health > Brain and Nervous System > Brain Disorders
A student felt mentally numb and was unable to focus, comprehend or retain memory of their Dharma studies. They sought mental clarity and asked Rinpoche if there was any form of disturbance.
Family and Relationships > Having a Baby > Practices for Pregnancy and Birth
A student was two months pregnant and medical tests showed that the unborn baby had a low risk of developing Down syndrome. She requested practices that could help with this.
Sickness and Health > Cancer > Breast Cancer
A student wrote that after reciting the Vajra Cutter Sutra 100,000 times, they had contracted breast cancer.
Buddhist Practices > Protection from Spirit Harm > Possessed by Spirits
This advice was given to a family whose father had committed suicide. Rinpoche said the advice should be made available to anybody in the world who needs it.
Buddhist Practices > Practicing in Prison > Advice for Prisoners
This advice was given to a person who had just been released from prison after being incarcerated for eighteen years.
Family and Relationships > Children > Teenagers
A teenage student had doubts about how buddhas can exist when we can't see them, and whether prayers, pujas and mantras work. The student was also experiencing anxiety and OCD, and was worried about accidentally killing insects, getting sick and...
Holy Objects > Making Offerings > Offering Practices
Advice on the benefits of writing the Prajnaparamita sutras and offering to holy objects. Rinpoche requested that this continues after he passes away. This advice was given during a teaching in Bendigo, Australia.
Holy Objects > Advice on Holy Objects > Statues
Rinpoche sent this advice to a shopkeeper after seeing a statue of the Buddha in their shop.
Advices posted during the month of February 2022
Family and Relationships > Relationship Problems > Advice on Relationship Problems
A student felt she was being possessed and controlled by another person. Rinpoche recommended these pujas and advised he would make strong prayers for the student.
Path to Enlightenment (lamrim) > Lamrim Study and Practice > Training the Mind in Lamrim
A student was already doing eight to ten hours of practice each day, however, Rinpoche recommended daily lamrim meditation, especially on guru devotion, in order to gain stable realizations.
Sickness and Health > Healing and Pacifying Illness > Eliminating Life Obstacles
A student’s elderly mother had been unwell for three months. She had lost a lot of weight but refused to go to hospital for examination.
Contemporary Issues > Dharma in Daily Life > Understanding the Suffering of Samsara
A student was experiencing many obstacles. Her mother had recently had a stroke and the student was now caring for her father as well as her children. Her husband was working overseas and it was a very difficult situation. She requested prayers...
Meditation and Retreat Advice > Retreats > Obstacles to Retreat
A student asked Rinpoche whether they should begin a three-year retreat. Rinpoche observed that there were life obstacles and recommended these practices.
Working for the Dharma > Service and Support of the Dharma > Generosity and Charitable Projects
Rinpoche heard about a nunnery that would not accept a money offering for a puja they were doing because the benefactor had been a big donor to FPMT. Rinpoche sent this message to the nuns.
Emptiness > Advice on Emptiness Practice > Emptiness Meditation
Rinpoche advised how to maintain awareness of emptiness in daily life, even when we go shopping or to the beach. Rinpoche explained that only the wisdom of subtle emptiness can eliminate ignorance, the root of all the delusions.
Compassion and Bodhicitta > Mind Training (lo-jong) > Transforming Problems
Rinpoche wrote this letter to a builder who was being accused of a crime and possibly going to jail. He didn’t understand why this was happening to him. Rinpoche advised that the best solution is to renounce attachment and to practice patience,...
