Sydney Teachings on Mind Training

BY KHENPO NGAWANG DHAMCHOE
9-10 March 2024

Over the weekend of 9-10 March 2024, Khenpo la led a two-day teaching on Mind Training to a full house of students at Croydon in Sydney along with Zoom-ers joining us from right around Australia. Saturday’s teaching commenced with Khenpo taking us through the importance of the preliminary practices in the training of the mind: the Four Common Foundations, Taking Refuge and Generating Bodhicitta which is the main cleansing of our minds. He then taught the Four Reasons we recognise the Lord Buddha as perfect. In the main practice of mind training, Khenpo la taught that if we are to turn our mind into the Dharma we cannot be attached to this life. It is important that we don’t undertake our practice to achieve material success or fame in this life. If we have attachment to self-purpose, then we cannot be a Mahayana practitioner and if we have grasping, we do not have the view.
 
Khenpo then spoke about the four ways we can turn unwanted experiences into the path – how to respond when (1) someone takes advantage of our material possessions by appreciating the opportunity to practice generosity; (2) when people do things that create misery for us by developing Great Compassion; (3) when someone speaks negatively of us by welcoming the mirror and responding in a way that helps transforms the other person’s mind; and (4) when people point out our faults to view them as our teachers.

​Sakya Pandita told us that to learn from others they don’t have to be Great Masters or Enlightened Beings, that any person can be our teacher. Khenpo spoke to the importance of generating loving-kindness and compassion so that we can come to appreciate that any difficult circumstances we find ourselves in provide a special opportunity to transform our mind. He explained the Tong Len practice of exchanging self with others and led meditations for the students. 

On Sunday Khenpo taught on how our suffering is generated through the Three Poison Minds and how they can be transformed through abandoning clinging to self through the wisdom mind. Khenpo spoke of the importance of keeping our mind in a safe place including through Shamatha practice. Khenpo urged us to be conscientious 24/7 in training our mind and appreciate that with the wisdom mind all obstacles and hindrances become an opportunity to deepen our practice and ultimately achieve Buddhahood. At the conclusion of the weekend, students offered khatas and expressed their deep appreciation for Khenpo’s wonderful teachings.

A huge thank you to Linda McKeone for all the arrangements over the weekend kindly supported by Ann with the registrations and everyone who brought food and took care of Khenpo la on this visit to Sydney.