44 Tong Len Meditation and Mental Afflictions

Fall 2013 Shamatha and the Bodhisattva Way of Life

The session starts with the Tong Len meditation. After the guided meditation, we go back to the aphorism "Blame everything on the culprit", using a verse of Shantideva (chapter 4, verse 34 of the Bodhicaryavatara) and the story of Ben Gungyal, the leader of a gang in Kham.
Mental afflictions always point to other people than yourself. Alan tells about three remedies for when mental afflictions come up, as taught by Geshe Rabten: 1) apply antidotes, 2) settle the mind in its natural state, or 3) direct your attention to something else.
Next, Alan Talks about how Shamatha and Vipassana "deal" with the five obscurations. He also points out that when self grasping and self centeredness are diminishing, that is a sign that the practice is working.
Followed by a question on the four methods of Shamatha meditation: should we pick one out? or practice all of them?
Finally, don't miss the story of Lobsang Tenzing!

Meditation starts at: immediately