This Week at Kurukulla Center
September 27, 2010 - October 03, 2010
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From the Director
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Quick Links About Us Programs Calendar Audio Teachings Stupa Project Contact Us eNews Archive We need your support! With over $8,000 of monthly expenses, we need your continued support. Please consider making a one-time donation, becoming a member, or increasing your membership. Thank you for all you do to support our center and the Dharma! Kurukulla Center is affiliated with the FPMT. If you would like to receive the FPMT's monthly newsletter, please subscribe here. In affiliation with the Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive. Follow us on Facebook! Visit us on our Blog! |
Dear Kurukulla Community,
Geshe-la Update We had the amazing good fortune of receiving teachings from Geshe Tsulga-la this morning on the tenth and final chapter of Shantideva's Guide to the Bodhisattvas' Way of Life, after the completion of which he will have offered us commentary on the entire text.The tenth chapter is an elaborate dedication of merit, and in his commentary today Geshe-la not only offered wisdom regarding the cultivation of bodhicitta and the dedication of merit, but also what it means to be a true practitioner.He reminded us the importance of checking up with ourselves whether or not we are genuine Mahayana practitioners. Just listening to teachings does not make us practitioners; in order to be genuine practitioners we need to generate renunciation for samsara, cultivate bodhicitta and work toward realizing a correct view of Emptiness--we need to practice Dharma. Although manifesting physical frailty, Geshe-la continues to exude compassion, clarity and joyful perseverance.We have been recommended a number of different practices to help support Geshe-la's continued health and long life, the weekly tallies of which can be found below.While we request and encourage everyone to continue these practices, Geshe-la has expressed that what he believes that his students can do that will be of most benefit to support the causes and conditions for his continued good health and long life is to "Read more Dharma, study more Dharma, practice more Dharma. Open your minds. This is what is of the most benefit." With this in mind, I encourage everyone to rejoice in our good fortune to continue receiving teachings from Geshe-la, to come regularly or listen online if you cannot attend, and to really re-commit yourself to opening your hearts and minds through sincere effort and practice. This week's tallies are: Tara Pond Update Work on the stupa has largely been completed and work on the Tara Pond proceeds apace. You can see the latest photos and follow progress here. Please rejoice at what we've been able to accomplish with these amazing holy objects. Thank you so much. Kurukulla Membership As you know, we have about $8,000 of regular monthly expenses we have to cover and we rely totally on your memberships and other donations to meet them and keep the Center going. As usual, the summer has been a bit dry with respect to Center finances and we have exhausted much of our reserve, so please make sure your membership is up to date and if you are not a member, please do consider joining up, as this is the best way to ensure a regular flow of income into the Center's coffers. To help guarantee that we are able to track incoming donations and make the most effective and beneficial use of member generosity, the Membership levels have slightly changed, and we have added a new membership level for couples and families. The membership section of our website is currently out of date, something we will have remedied later this week, but if you have any questions, please email us. Sustaining Member $1,500 per year (can be spread out throughout the year, $125 per month) Member receives a subscription to the FPMT magazine Mandala, as well as a 20% discount on any items purchased in the Kurukulla Center Bookstore. Family Member $900 per year (can be spread out throughout the year, $75 per month) Member receives a (single) subscription to the FPMT magazine Mandala, as well as a 5% discount on any items purchased in the Kurukulla Center Bookstore. Regular Member $600 per year (can be spread out throughout the year, $50 per month) Member receives a subscription to all forms of Mandala publications, as well as a 5% discount on any items purchased in the Kurukulla Center Bookstore. Student Member $420 per year (can be spread out throughout the year, $35 per month) Member receives a subscription to all forms of Mandala publications, as well as a 5% discount on any items purchased in the Kurukulla Center Bookstore. Friend of Kurukulla $125 per year (only available as a single-donation per year) Kurukulla South Please note that the first of our Tuesday classes hosted south of Boston will be held this week, September 28. Monthly Book Club The next book club with Tsunma-la will meet on October 2, and the book will be Blue Poppy and the Mustard Seed. Please visit our calendar for more information. Thank you so much for your kind support of Kurukulla Center, which exists solely for the benefit of all sentient beings and the preservation of the holy Dharma. Much love, Nick Ribush Director |
Calendar of Events
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Monday, September 27 Introduction to Buddhism with Ven. Ani Yeshe 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm Introduction to Buddhism is an on-going series. Each class introduces a new topic as a way of providing newcomers a broad overview of Buddhism. The course is designed for those who are new or newly acquainted with the Center to hear basic Buddhist teachings, ideas and concepts, especially those emphasized by our resident lama (teacher), Geshe Tsulga. Bring all your questions. It is fine to attend any class without having attended prior classes. All welcome! Tuesday, September 28 Morning Meditation with Tsunma-la (Sue Macy) 6:30 am to 7:00 am Start your day on the right foot by calming your mind, setting your day's purpose to be a meaningful one and remembering to just breathe! Resident nun Tsunma-la leads basic meditations that help stabilize the mind by learning to focus on the breath. By using these simple techniques, you can bring a sense of tranquility to your day. If you plan to join Tsunma-la in the meditation hall (gompa) at Kurukulla Center please arrive a few minutes early. We will start promptly at 6:30 am. Feel free to listen live online.
Yoga & Meditation with Wendy Cook 7:00 pm to 8:45 pm These classes include therapeutic movements, standing postures, back strengthening postures and hip openers. The last twenty minutes are spent in guided meditation, including breath awareness, visualization, and analytical techniques to enhance our inner good qualities. Suitable for both experienced and new students, you are welcome to attend on a drop-in basis. Please arrive a few minutes early and wear comfortable, fitted and modest clothing. Improve Your Life From Within, an Introduction to Buddhism with Tsultrim Davis [Kurukulla South at Dancing Crow Yoga Studio, 98 Derby Street Suite 440, Hingham MA] 7:30 pm to 9:00 pm What is Buddhism and why practice it? Why is Buddhism one of the fastest growing religions in America and why are so many Americans turning to it to find true happiness and real meaning in their lives? Wednesday, September 29 Thirty-seven Practices of Bodhisattvas with Venerable Geshe Tenley 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm Geshe-la continues an explanation of the Thirty-Seven Practices of Bodhisattvas by Togme Sangpo (1245-1369). Come and discover what it means to model your actions after those of a bodhisattva. All are welcome. A copy of the text will be distributed in class and a commentary by His Holiness the Dalai Lama is available on the Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive website. Other contemporary commentaries are available for purchase in our bookstore. Feel free to listen live online.
Thursday, September 30 Discovering Buddhism: Presenting the Path with Tsunma-la (Sue Macy) 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm Resident nun Tsunma-la continues teaching the Discovering Buddhism program with the third module: "Presenting the Path." Think of this series as understanding how to GoogleMap your mind--how to figure out the directions to get from where you are now to your eventual destination, complete enlightenment. This overview of the Buddhist path will give you a summary of the most fundamental ideas in Buddhism.
The course meets on six Thursday evenings: Sept 9, 16 & 30 and Oct 7, 14 & 21. It is highly recommended you attend all six sessions but it is not required. Feel free to listen live online. Friday, October 1 Morning Meditation with Tsunma-la (Sue Macy) 6:30 am to 7:00 am Resident nun Tsunma-la continues the Morning Meditation series on Fridays with a variation on the stabilizing meditations that have been offered earlier. The focus is now using our analytical mind to investigate core Buddhist concepts as a way to deepen our understanding of them. Today we explore our impermanence as it manifests in our breath and our body. If you plan to join Tsunma-la in the meditation hall (gompa) at Kurukulla Center, please arrive a few minutes early. We will start promptly at 6:30 am. You are also welcome to participate from your home by listening on-line to the live broadcast. The class continues each Tuesday and Friday through the summer - 6:30 to 7:00 am - at your home or ours!
Saturday, October 2
Book Club with Tsunma-la (Sue Macy) and author Katie Willis Morton Each month Tsunma-la offers an informal discussion of Buddhist-themed books that have practical significance for one's daily life. The book for October is The Blue Poppy and the Mustard Seed. Written by center member Kathleen Willis Morton, the book chronicles the loss of her first born child and her courageous struggle to regain her footing while both challenged and consoled by her Buddhist beliefs. Beautifully written, Katie's book is mesmerizing.
Sunday, October 3 Confession & Prostrations to the Thirty-five Buddhas with a senior student Dedication - Chapter 10 from Guide to the Bodhisattva's Way of Life with Venerable Geshe Tsulga Guru Puja (Lama Chopa) 4:00 pm to 5:45 pm The word puja means "to please" and has the connotation to please through offerings and practice. The Guru Puja lays the whole path to enlightenment on our mindstream, connects us more strongly to our teachers, allows us to accumulate skies of merit and purifies eons of negative karma. We perform this practice on the 10th and 25th of the lunar Tibetan calendar, a time that is special for making the "tsok" offering, a particular ritual inserted into the Guru Puja. We chant the first 2/3rds of this puja in Tibetan and the last 1/3 we recite in English.
All are welcome.
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Kurukulla Center for Tibetan Buddhist Studies 68 Magoun Avenue Medford, MA 02155 617.624.0177 http://www.kurukulla.org |
May all sentient beings have happiness and its causes! |