Gompa

1:30 pm Saturday, December 16, 2017

Group of 30 Hindu Schoolchildren, from Elementary to HS age to visit Center for a tour and talk about Buddhism

Location at Kadampa Center: 
Gompa
7:00 pm Friday, November 10, 2017
      

There is great suffering around the world right now: Many people and animals have died, become ill and/or lost their homes because of hurricanes, floods and wildfires, or because of political upheaval causing them to flee for safety.

On this Buddha holy day, Lhabab Duchen, when the merits of virtuous actions are multiplied exponentially, we offer a Medicine Buddha puja to alleviate the suffering of all sentient beings.

Medicine Buddha puja is beneficial for mental and physical healing and world peace, and is especially beneficial for those who are experiencing physical or mental illness or those who have recently passed away. In this beautiful practice, we invoke the names of the seven Medicine Buddhas, contemplate and appreciate their qualities and request their blessings.

Typically we do Medicine Buddha Puja in English, so it is easy to follow along.

 

Everyone attending the puja is encouraged to bring medicines -- in a bag or box labeled with your name -- to be placed on the altar and blessed.

Anyone can sponsor this puja, and offer a dedication to be read and shared by all who participate.

Sponsor this puja here.

Location at Kadampa Center: 
Gompa
Repeats every week every Tuesday 5 times.
7:00 pm Tuesday, November 7, 2017

Are you interested in Buddhism but don't know where to start? Have you heard words like dharma and karma and samsara thrown around and wondered what they meant or why they mattered? Do you want to get a quick overview of Buddhism without making a long-term commitment?

Then…we have just the program for you. In five short classes, we introduce you to the major terms and concepts of Buddhism - a fast tour of the basics to enable you to take the next steps if you want more.

In five classes we provide a broad, simple overview of these and other key aspects of Buddhism and our practice. There is no required reading, no homework and no quizzes! There is, however, a suggested reading list for those who want to read more. Topics covered include:

  • The Four Noble Truths
  • Different kinds of Buddhism: Theravadan, Mahayana, Vajrayana, etc.
  • Buddha's teachings in a gradual form for the practice of one individual...where to start, what next, etc.
  • A brief introduction to meditation

In keeping with our tradition, these classes are offered on a donation basis. No pre-registration is needed.

This course is led by Sandy Carlson

Location at Kadampa Center: 
Gompa
5:00 pm Sunday, December 3, 2017
 

Medicine Buddha puja is beneficial for mental and physical healing and world peace, and is especially beneficial for those who are experiencing physical or mental illness or those who have recently passed away.

Typically we do Medicine Buddha Puja in English.

Sponsor this puja here.

 

Location at Kadampa Center: 
Gompa
12:00 pm Monday, October 30, 2017

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 $70 - click here to sponsor this puja.

Location at Kadampa Center: 
Gompa
9:00 am Saturday, December 9, 2017

Spend a day focusing on examining the mind and your potential to create a positive and joyous mind.

The day will be will be from 9 am - 3 pm and divided into four 60-minute sessions with 20 minute breaks and lunch. To enable participants to keep focus and concentration, the retreat will be silent other than guided meditations and essential communication. Sessions will consist of information on the topic presented by the facilitator, motivation, meditation on the topic, and dedication. To maintain a stable and peaceful retreat environment, participants should commit to attending the entire day. Meditations: Continuity of Consciousness, Equanimity, Clarity of Consciousness, and Meditation on the Buddha.

Please bring food for your day such as snacks and lunch.

For anyone working towards completing the Discovering Buddhism certificate for The Mind and its Potential, these sessions meet the requirement for the Intensive Practice Day.

To REGISTER, enter or select your name and click the blue Next button. Then, answer a few questions and click the blue Next button. Finally, click the Register button. 

We offer this opportunity on a donation basis so that money is never an obstacle to practicing the Dharma. If you are able, please indicate your donation by clicking on one of the following buttons where you will be led to our secure online system. Thank you!!

Set my own amount

$50 - With Love

$75 - With Compassion

$108 - With Joy

 
Location at Kadampa Center: 
Gompa
9:00 am Saturday, November 11, 2017

Spend a day focusing on core meditation practices that are ideal for incorporating into your daily practice.

The day will be from 9 am - 4 pm and divided into six 35-minute sessions with 20 minute breaks and lunch.

Sessions will consist of motivation, meditation on the topic, dedication, and a few minutes of journaling to record how the session was for you, anything you learned, and any challenges that arose. Please bring a journal and food for your day such as snacks and lunch.

To maintain a stable and peaceful retreat environment, participants should commit to attending the entire day. To enable participants to keep focus and concentration, the retreat will be silent except during guided meditations and for essential communication. Meditations: Breathing, Clarity of the Mind, Precious Human Life, Purification, Impermanence, and Meditation on the Buddha.

For anyone working towards completing the Discovering Buddhism certificate for How to Meditate, these sessions meet the requirement for the Intensive Practice Day.

Chairs and cushions are available for your seating/meditation comfort. You are welcome to bring along your favorite cushion, if desired. Arrive early enough to get settled in.

To REGISTER, enter or select your name and click the blue Next button. Then, answer a few questions and click the blue Next button. Finally, click the Register button. 

We offer this opportunity on a donation basis so that money is never an obstacle to practicing the Dharma. If you are able, please indicate your donation by clicking on one of the following buttons where you will be led to our secure online system. Thank you!!

Set my own amount

$50 - With Love

$75 - With Compassion

$108 - With Joy

 

Location at Kadampa Center: 
Gompa
12:00 pm Saturday, October 21, 2017

Tara is a female Buddha whose qualities include enlightened action and swiftly removing obstacles (Tara's 21 aspects are represented in statues on our altar). Geshe Gelek translated this special practice for us, The Practice of Tara that Fulfills All Wishes, and assures us that this will greatly benefit not just our center and community, but have the best benefit of helping all sentient beings. His teacher, (the Abbot of Sera Je Monastery) Khen Rinpoche Lobsang Delek, also said when he visited in 2011 that we have a special connection to Tara, so doing her practice is incredibly beneficial for our community, harmony working together, and the success of Kadampa Center.

This practice is for all levels of students and is done in English. It begins at 6:00pm with the group setting up an altar of extensive waterbowl and sense offerings. Once that's finished, we say prayers that include the Praises to the 21 Taras, mantras, and the opportunity to do prostrations if desired.

Traditionally the offerings for the sangha and altar are sponsored by Dharma students, especially if they want to dedicate the merit to their loved ones in need of support and prayers. Sponsorship of Tara practice is $150.

Please click here to sponsor Tara practice.

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.

Location at Kadampa Center: 
Gompa
Friday, October 13, (All day) to Monday, October 16, (All day) 2017

Heading out of town to VA for a long weekend. Back in the hot seat Tuesday Oct 17.

Location at Kadampa Center: 
Gompa
7:00 pm Thursday, October 12, 2017

We offer this Medicine Buddha Puja to benefit Barbara Kathleen Smith, who passed away September 29.

Medicine Buddha Puja is particularly beneficial for those who have passed away and are passing through the bardo. In this beautiful prayer service, we recollect the qualities of the seven Medicine Buddhas and pray for a beneficial rebirth.

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 vowed that their prayers will be actualized during these degenerate times when the teachings of Shakyamuni Buddha are in decline. When they became enlightened, one of the ten powers of a Buddha is the power of prayer - that means that all the prayers that have been made get fulfilled. As the Buddha's holy speech is irrevocable, you can wholly trust in their power to quickly grant blessings to help all sentient beings in these degenerate times. They are called the Seven Medicine Buddhas, the main one is `Lapis Buddha of Medicine, King of Light'. Buddha Shakyamuni taught the teachings on the Medicine Buddha, and according to one tradition, is also considered as one of the Medicine Buddhas, and hence the Eight Medicine Buddhas.

    

The seven Medicine Buddhas manifested in order to pacify the obstacles to the achievement of temporary happiness, liberation and the ultimate happiness of full enlightenment. They are powerful in healing diseases as well as for purification. The Medicine Buddha practice can be used to help purify those who have already died and liberate them from suffering. It is also very powerful in bringing about success, both temporary and ultimate.

The reason why the Medicine Buddha practice brings success is that in the past when the seven Medicine Buddhas were bodhisattvas practicing the path to enlightenment, they promised and made extensive prayers to actualize all the prayers of living beings of the degenerate time when the teachings of Shakyamuni Buddha are in decline. They generated a very strong intention to become enlightened for this reason; this was their motivation for meditating on and actualizing the path.

Lama Zopa Rinpoche says, "It is very important that the elaborate Medicine Buddha puja with extensive offerings be done regularly. The offerings should be as extensive and as beautiful as possible, and done in order to benefit all sentient beings."

Location at Kadampa Center: 
Gompa

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