Gompa

Lama Atisha organized all of the Buddha's teachings into a step-by-step guide how to become enlightened in a short text called "Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment." Lama Tsong Khapa (the founder of our Gelugpa lineage) wrote a detailed explanation of Lama Atisha's text to help students understand and practice the instructions called The Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment (Lamrim Chenmo). This lamrim foundation is the basis of all practice in our lineage, including tantra. These incredible teachings by Geshe Gelek on this text is probably a once in a lifetime rare and precious opportunity, and likely to span several years.

This class has been going on for over a year, so new students need to do some study prior to joining the class. It's advised you complete the Discovering Buddhism classes first, and read the three volumes of the Lamrim Chenmo (available in Kadampa Center's bookstore). You should also listen to the prior classes - all the recordings are available free to members in the Members Only section of our website.

In addition to the teachings by Geshe-la, the final half hour of class time will be devoted to discussion. This is an important part of learning and practice - to check that we heard the instructions correctly and understand them, and, if not, to ask questions of the teacher the following week.

For more information about readings from class, please see our webpage for the class.

Guru puja (Lama Chöpa)  is a practice of making offerings and requests to all the Buddhas and holy beings, but especially the root guru, who, according to the teachings, is the root of the path to liberation. It is a practice recommended by FPMT's Spiritual Director Lama Zopa Rinpoche, who says:

This practice of Guru Puja is very profound, with many extra benefits, and is very quick to bring enlightenment. The lam-rim prayer, the prayer of the steps of the path to enlightenment, in Guru Puja has lam-rim and also lo-jong, or thought transformation. Generally, the whole of the lam-rim, from guru devotion up to enlightenment, is thought transformation. If your mind is not transformed into the path, how can you have realizations of the path? There’s no way, without transforming your mind.

As part of the puja, we perform a special practice called tsog which has extensive offerings. According to the Liberation Prison Project Tibetan calendar, on the 10th and 25th of every Tibetan (lunar) month, Lama Zopa Rinpoche says, “Those who have received an initiation into Highest Yoga Tantra have a commitment to perform tsog” on these days. Kadampa Center holds pujas with tsog on these dates (when they don't conflict with other programs).

Anyone is welcome to attend pujas, even if you are unfamiliar with the practice. This puja is recited partly in English and partly chanted in Tibetan. (It is possible to read the English translations of the whole puja, and there is optional sheet music available to help learn the Tibetan tunes.) Traditionally the offerings for the sangha and puja are sponsored by Dharma students, especially if they want to dedicate the puja to their spiritual teachers or loved ones in need of support and prayers.

Click here to sponsor a Guru Puja.

If you'd like to know more about sponsoring a puja, please contact pujas@kadampa-center.org for instructions about making the donation and sending your personal dedication.

Guru puja (Lama Chöpa)  is a practice of making offerings and requests to all the Buddhas and holy beings, but especially the root guru, who, according to the teachings, is the root of the path to liberation. It is a practice recommended by FPMT's Spiritual Director Lama Zopa Rinpoche, who says:

This practice of Guru Puja is very profound, with many extra benefits, and is very quick to bring enlightenment. The lam-rim prayer, the prayer of the steps of the path to enlightenment, in Guru Puja has lam-rim and also lo-jong, or thought transformation. Generally, the whole of the lam-rim, from guru devotion up to enlightenment, is thought transformation. If your mind is not transformed into the path, how can you have realizations of the path? There’s no way, without transforming your mind.

As part of the puja, we perform a special practice called tsog which has extensive offerings. According to the Liberation Prison Project Tibetan calendar, on the 10th and 25th of every Tibetan (lunar) month, Lama Zopa Rinpoche says, “Those who have received an initiation into Highest Yoga Tantra have a commitment to perform tsog” on these days. Kadampa Center holds pujas with tsog on these dates (when they don't conflict with other programs).

Anyone is welcome to attend pujas, even if you are unfamiliar with the practice. This puja is recited partly in English and partly chanted in Tibetan. (It is possible to read the English translations of the whole puja, and there is optional sheet music available to help learn the Tibetan tunes.) Traditionally the offerings for the sangha and puja are sponsored by Dharma students, especially if they want to dedicate the puja to their spiritual teachers or loved ones in need of support and prayers.

Sponsorship of a Guru puja is $75 - click here to sponsor this puja.

Many eons ago, seven bodhisattvas strongly prayed for the temporal and ultimate happiness of all sentient beings, that their names become wish-fulfilling in order to heal both the mental and physical sicknesses and diseases of sentient beings. They became the seven Medicine Buddhas, and the puja is prayers and offerings to create merit and make requests of the Buddhas. Just some of the benefits of this practice include healing of mental and physical suffering, helping those who have died, as well as removing obstacles and creating the causes of enlightenment.

Anyone is welcome to attend pujas, even if you are unfamiliar with the practice, and this puja is recited in English. Traditionally the offerings for the sangha and puja are sponsored by Dharma students, especially if they want to dedicate the puja to someone who is ill, dying, or generally in need of support and prayers.

Sponsorship of a Medicine Buddha puja is $60 - click here to sponsor this puja.

If you'd like to know more about sponsoring a puja, please contact pujas@kadampa-center.org for instructions about making the donation and sending your personal dedication.

Many eons ago, seven bodhisattvas strongly prayed for the temporal and ultimate happiness of all sentient beings, that their names become wish-fulfilling in order to heal both the mental and physical sicknesses and diseases of sentient beings. They became the seven Medicine Buddhas, and the puja is prayers and offerings to create merit and make requests of the Buddhas. Just some of the benefits of this practice include healing of mental and physical suffering, helping those who have died, as well as removing obstacles and creating the causes of enlightenment.

Anyone is welcome to attend pujas, even if you are unfamiliar with the practice, and this puja is recited in English. Traditionally the offerings for the sangha and puja are sponsored by Dharma students, especially if they want to dedicate the puja to someone who is ill, dying, or generally in need of support and prayers. Sponsorship of a Medicine Buddha puja is $50. Please click here to sponsor Medicine Buddha Puja.  Don't forget to include your dedication!

Medicine Buddha Puja for Tim Powell  Oct. 27, noon

Kadampa Center will dedicate our regularly scheduled Medicine Buddha Puja at noon Tues, Oct. 27 to benefit Tim.  As always, anyone who wishes may sponsor the puja for anyone’s benefit.

The Discovering Buddhism (DB) two-year course emphasizes an authentic yet culturally relevant presentation of the Buddha's teachings. Taught by FPMT registered teachers and facilitators, the classes lay a strong foundation of the entire Tibetan Buddhist path including how to integrate study and practice. This is an excellent “next step” for students who have taken the Buddhism in a Nutshell class and want to learn more. Students are also welcome to stay after class for a peer-led discussion group. There are no pre-requisites or fees, although donations are appreciated.

We ask that new students starting the course start at the first week of the module, on February 2, when we'll have volunteers ready to explain how the course works and how to access online teachings by becoming a member. This makes the transition easiest for new students, and we've found that attending the entire module is the least confusing for everyone (rather than starting in the middle, not having clear instructions, and finding the topic difficult after missing the early classes).

In the Presenting the Path module, get an overview of the entire Tibetan Buddhist path to awakening. Study the life story of the Buddha and discover a unique system for putting Buddhist philosophy into practice – the lam-rim, or “graduated path to enlightenment.” Led by Don Brown.

Lama Zopa Rinpoche recently gave advice to FPMT centers about how to be successful, and part of that advice was that we need to do practices of great merit such as reading sutras. The Inspiring Generosity Committee plans to join together to fulfill Rinpoche's advice, and invites anyone from the community who would like to join them in reading The Sanghata Sutra. We'll divide up the pages and all read quietly aloud together, reading the entire sutra at least once together. With great devotion in our hearts, we'll dedicate the merit to the success of Kadampa Center so we can serve you, our community, and all sentient beings.

The time the reading(s) will take will depend on how many people attend, but for sure it will be less than an hour.

During this session, students will review the answers on their exams for the Mind and its Potential module in a discussion format.

The Maitreya Loving Kindness Tour is a world-wide touring collection of sacred relics of the historical Buddha Shakyamuni and many other Buddhist masters from India Tibet, Korea & China.

The relics were found among the cremation ashes of these Buddhist masters. They resemble beautiful, pearl-like crystals that Tibetans call ‘ringsel.’ Buddhists believe relics embody the master’s spiritual qualities of compassion and wisdom and are deliberately produced by the master at his death.

His Holiness the Dalia Lama has graciously offered to this collection, eight relics of the historical Buddha that are over 2,500 years old. The tour also features relics from forty other Buddhist masters from different parts of the world, in all there are over 1,000 relics in this collection, making it the largest touring relic collection of its kind.
The tour was created in 2001 by the modern day Buddhist master Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Lama Zopa collected the relics from all over the world, over a period of many years. The tour has now visited 68 countries and over 2.3 million people have visited the relics. Currently two collections are touring simultaneously, one tour is traveling in Europe/Asia and the other in the Americas.

Maitreya Loving Kindness Tour events are multi-faith, multi-cultural and are always free to attend. The exhibition is intended for all walks of life and faith, to learn about and to experience these historical relics.

*We encourage visitors to bring their pets at anytime during the event for blessings from the relics and to circumambulate the center's stupa. For the safety and comfort of all visitors (human and other animals), please make sure your pet is on a leash or in a crate/cage/container as you'd think is appropriate.

Hours

Friday: 6pm to 8pm - Opening Ceremony followed by viewing of the relics

Saturday: 10am to 7pm

Sunday: 10am to 5pm

Many volunteers are needed as well! To sign up, go to this special Volunteer Spot calendar: http://vols.pt/mwnJt5

The Maitreya Loving Kindness Tour is a world-wide touring collection of sacred relics of the historical Buddha Shakyamuni and many other Buddhist masters from India Tibet, Korea & China.

The relics were found among the cremation ashes of these Buddhist masters. They resemble beautiful, pearl-like crystals that Tibetans call ‘ringsel.’ Buddhists believe relics embody the master’s spiritual qualities of compassion and wisdom and are deliberately produced by the master at his death.

His Holiness the Dalia Lama has graciously offered to this collection, eight relics of the historical Buddha that are over 2,500 years old. The tour also features relics from forty other Buddhist masters from different parts of the world, in all there are over 1,000 relics in this collection, making it the largest touring relic collection of its kind.
The tour was created in 2001 by the modern day Buddhist master Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Lama Zopa collected the relics from all over the world, over a period of many years. The tour has now visited 68 countries and over 2.3 million people have visited the relics. Currently two collections are touring simultaneously, one tour is traveling in Europe/Asia and the other in the Americas.

Maitreya Loving Kindness Tour events are multi-faith, multi-cultural and are always free to attend. The exhibition is intended for all walks of life and faith, to learn about and to experience these historical relics.

*We encourage visitors to bring their pets at anytime during the event for blessings from the relics and to circumambulate the center's stupa. For the safety and comfort of all visitors (human and other animals), please make sure your pet is on a leash or in a crate/cage/container as you'd think is appropriate.

Hours

Friday: 6pm to 8pm - Opening Ceremony followed by viewing of the relics

Saturday: 10am to 7pm

Sunday: 10am to 5pm

Many volunteers are needed as well! To sign up, go to this special Volunteer Spot calendar: http://vols.pt/mwnJt5