The Heart of Devotion: The Guru is the Path

This event is available both In-person and Online.

There is a reason why great spiritual teachers, from Rumi and Osho to many others throughout history, speak so much about love: the path to realization is the path of the heart. All of tantra is simple—it’s contained, from start to finish, in the path of devotion to the Guru. In modern times, we often want to know and understand everything, to elaborate and dive into details. For this, we have highly elaborate Tantras. But if you want to cut to the heart, to the essence, and follow the simplest and most direct path, then that is the path of Guru devotion. You can start with the Guru, but no matter what form of Tantra you choose to practice, and no matter where you begin, you are guaranteed to end up with the Guru.

All Vajrayana traditions may have significant doctrinal debates, but when it comes to the path of Guru devotion, there is absolute agreement. There is no debate between traditions because this path has been proven through centuries of experience.

A scholar who is currently the most respected and highly regarded at Larung Monastery, and whom Khentrul Rinpoche deeply respects, says:

“Unconditional love is the highest form of desire.
Ultimate Bodhicitta is Buddha-nature, the Guru.
As we increase this Love and Bodhicitta, our awareness increases.
Devotion to this cause is devotion to the ultimate Guru, the ultimate love.
Devotion is simply keeping the view.”

In Vajrayana, if you have the View, you have the key to everything. When you truly love your beloved, everything happens naturally and spontaneously. Does a mother need to think about whether she should try to save her dying child? No, she just acts out of love and attachment. This love and desire are incredibly powerful. If a mother can feel that love for her child, imagine how powerful that feeling could be if you have that same love for your Guru.

We all know that the most powerful force in the human mind is love, and there is no Buddhahood without ultimate love. Guru devotion means loving the Guru unconditionally and dedicating yourself to that path. In tantra, we integrate everything from our life experience into the spiritual path. We may not have direct life experiences with gods or Buddhas, but we can have direct experiences with the Guru. By doing so, we bring the path closer to us in our everyday lives through the human Guru. The most profound connection a human can have is the divine love for the Guru. Devotion is a process that helps uncover all of our limitations and self-cherishing, while also opening the door to a downpour of incomparable blessings.

This course will explore what it means to take devotion as the path.

Who is this for?
This course is for those who want to understand the heart essence of all tantra paths and the fastest way to accumulate merit. You do not need to have a current Guru to whom you are devoted. You don’t need to take the Guru as your path just yet. If you want to explore and understand the ultimate path of Vajrayana, this course offers a good introduction.

Topics to be covered include:

• Examining and understanding the three levels of Guru
• Guru devotion as a process: gaining clarity on the maximum and minimum
• Training your mind and heart through Guru yoga and Jonang Kalachakra Guru Puja
• Clearly understanding how all aspects of the Kalachakra tantra path are the Guru
• Approaching this path with honesty and clarity
• Discussing pure view and authentic versus inauthentic Gurus

Schedule by Timezone

QUESTIONS?
Please email [email protected]

Fireside Chat on the Feminine Aspect of Buddhism with Khentrul Rinpoche and Judith Simmer-Brown

This is a FREE event and will be available both Online and In-person.
Please select the RSVP ticket if you wish to join for the Online or In-person event.

Khentrul Rinpoche and Judith Simmer-Brown sit down for a fireside chat on the feminine aspect of Buddhism. Tibetan Buddhism has for centuries been dominated by male Guru figures in patriarchal society. This lead women in Tibet to pray to be reborn a man and many women in western society question whether there are only male buddhas? This is far from the nature of what is actually taught in Dharma. In Kalachakra Tantra we have the ultimate union of both the feminine and masculine aspect both of which we need to realize enlightenment. So today Rinpoche and Judith sit down for a very special conversation to talk about the divine feminine aspect of practice and why all of us need these qualities in our lives. This is not a rejection of the male qualities. Sometimes when there is a talk on the feminine qualities or Khentrul Rinpoche has mentioned that there will be female Kalki in Shambhala, students wonder if this is a backlash or a rejection to the masculine. The answer is no.  It’s an integration of all aspects of our nature. We are very fortunate to have Judith here to talk to us about this as she is the author of Dakini’s Warm Breath: The Feminine Principle in Tibetan Buddhism and has for a long time taught and explained this aspect.

About Judith Simmer-Brown

Boulder, Colorado – FRIDAY September 20, 2024 / 7:00 PM
Melbourne, Australia – SATURDAY September 21, 2024 / 11:00 AM
Hong Kong, Shanghai, Mongolia, Singapore and Taiwan – SATURDAY September 21, 2024 / 9:00 AM
Hanoi, Vietnam – SATURDAY September 21, 2024 / 8:00 AM
Romania – SATURDAY September 21, 2024 / 4:00 AM
Central Europe and South Africa – SATURDAY September 21, 2024 / 3:00 AM
Sao Paulo, Brazil – FRIDAY September 20, 2024 / 10:00 PM
East Coast USA, Toronto – FRIDAY September 20, 2024 / 9:00 PM
West Coast USA – FRIDAY September 20, 2024 / 6:00 PM

Zoom Information:

Zoom Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85774372010?pwd=OJcD8lf7nBgXRCMy9u1KT17DWnFTVc.1
Webinar ID: 857 7437 2010
Passcode: 108108

QUESTIONS?
Please email [email protected]