Ego Attachment And Liberation

The Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive (LYWA) is the collected works of Lama Thubten Yeshe and Kyabje Lama Thubten Zopa Rinpoche. The Archive was founded in 1996 by Lama Zopa Rinpoche, its spiritual director, to make available in various ways the teachings it contains. This book contains the teachings and meditations Lama gave at a five-day retreat he led near Melbourne, Australia, which he introduced by saying:"Whether or not this five-day meditation course becomes beneficial is up to you; it depends on your own mind. It's not a lama thing; I'm not going to bring you to enlightenment in this short time. Instead of having too many expectations of the lama, it's better that you generate a pure motivation for being here. Expectations cause mental problems; instead of being positive, they become negative..."If over the next five days you can begin to recognize the reality of your own nature, this meditation course will have been worthwhile. Therefore, dedicate your actions during this time to discovering inner freedom through recognizing the negative characteristics of your own uncontrolled mind."In line with Lama's intentions, this book is dedicated to the awakening of inner freedom within the minds of its readers and all other sentient beings.

Liberation is your birthright and anything that feels like a prison, like a confinement, needs your attention. Spiritualism is not very difficult to explain or understand. It is simply, freeing your spirit of all imprisonments. It is becoming aware of these sophisticated bars and then working your way out of them. It is being able to see the chains that are tied around the feet of your being and are making it tough for you to walk around. We have been living in these invisible jails for so long that they have become our homes. The world beyond our assumed limitations is unknown to us. Every now and then someone manages to jump across the high walls of the conditioning of the mind and enter the realm of enlightenment. But, the rest of us live and die within the four walls of mass consciousness.To a bird in a cage the greatest gift you can give, as an expression of love and compassion, is to open the gates and let it fly back to the open and vast sky. That is exactly what I have tried to do. I have tried to assist the bird of your spirit to fly out of the cage of spiritual enslavement. Watching that bird happily disappear into the vastness would be my joy. I love liberating and I love liberators. I write to liberate others and I liberate myself to be able to write about it. The freedom we have earned as nations is no doubt a great blessing. But it is only an environment. Authentic freedom has to come from within and only after having earned it can you call yourself a free man in a free country. I have witnessed my near and dear ones go through great pain and suffering because of the control exercised by invisible forces like lust, anger, greed, attachment and ego over their spirit. I have myself gone through an unbearable amount of it and would wish to eliminate as much of it as I can. It is quite tough to watch someone close to you consulting half a dozen doctors, spending thousands on clinical examinations and experimenting with 50 different medicines, never knowing that the real sickness is his or her ego. It is as if you were cursed to watch the whole drama helplessly. It is as if you know what someone is suffering from, have got the cure for it but can't give it because the one who is supposed to take it is not yet prepared to take it. It is a perfect situation for compassion to be born, a strange blending of helplessness, acceptance and understanding. The more I watch all this, the more I ponder into the potential of the various methods that can liberate a soul from its traps.

From a review in BuddhaDharma magazine: The Heart of the Path is a lengthy teaching on guru yoga by a contemporary exemplar of the practice, Lama Thubten Zopa. A close disciple of Lama Thubten Yeshe for more than three decades, Lama Zopa has taught by word and example the importance and power of properly following a guru. The book is based on several decades of dharma talks organized by editor Ailsa Cameron into twenty-four chapters, beginning with the question of why one needs a teacher to progress along the path. The remaining chapters discuss in considerable detail how to cultivate and practice devotion, and generate the view of one’s own teacher as the Buddha. It concludes with several short guru yoga visualization practices. Throughout the book Lama Zopa offers personal reflections and stories to illustrate his message that guru yoga truly is the heart of the path to liberation. From a review in Tricycle magazine: For those interested in stepping beyond the realm of ideas into the world of practice, the latest book from Tibetan master Lama Zopa Rinpoche is a helpful guide to one important aspect of the spiritual path. The Heart of the Path explains the importance of guru devotion and Zopa's view of the proper way to develop a student-teacher bond. Lama Zopa has had many teachers, but his unwavering devotion to Lama Thubten Yeshe shines through on every page. Drawing on this experience and the Buddha's teachings, Zopa effectively conveys the value of relationships based on Buddhist ideals. From a review in Mandala magazine: Although guru devotion is a foundational concept within Tibetan Buddhist thought, for many it remains a bewildering and impenetrable topic. Fortunately for contemporary practitioners, Lama Zopa Rinpoche has spoken extensively on guru devotion, giving teachings and advice about what it really means to have devotion to one’s spiritual friend. Drawing from nearly fifty teachings, this treasure is the result of seven years of painstaking editing by Ven. Ailsa Cameron. Not only does it include teachings on the traditional sub-topics that fall under guru devotion found in Tsongkhapa’s lam-rim, but also a useful outline to guide your reading, several supplementary prayers and teachings from other renowned Tibetan masters, and inspiring images of Lama Zopa, Lama Yeshe and other amazing teachers peppered throughout. A perusal of this masterful work by Lama Zopa Rinpoche will assuage any doubts about the utility or possibility of “seeing the guru as Buddha.” This book is made possible by kind supporters of the Archive who, like you, appreciate how we make these teachings available in so many ways, including in our website for instant reading, listening or downloading, and as printed and electronic books. Our website offers immediate access to thousands of pages of teachings and hundreds of audio recordings by some of the greatest lamas of our time. Our photo gallery and our ever-popular books are also freely accessible there. Please help us increase our efforts to spread the Dharma for the happiness and benefit of all beings. You can find out more about becoming a supporter of the Archive and see all we have to offer by visiting our website. Thank you so much, and please enjoy this e-book.

The face of addiction and alcoholism is a face that many have seen before -- it may be a celebrity, a colleague, or even a family member. And though the 12-step program by itself can often bring initial success, many addicts find themselves relapsing back into old ways and old patterns, or replacing one addiction with another. Author Darren Littlejohn has been there and back, and presents a complimentary guide for recovery to the traditional twelve-step program, out of his own struggles and successes through the study of Zen and Tibetan Buddhism. Working with the traditional 12-Step philosophy, the author first shares his own life path, and how he came to find the spiritual solace that has greatly enhanced his life in recovery. Then, he details out how his work integrating Buddhism into the traditional twelve-step programs validates both aspects of the recovery process. While being careful not to present himself as a Tibetan lama or Zen master, the author shows how each step -- such as admitting there is a problem, seeking help, engaging in a thorough self-examination, making amends for harm done, and helping other drug addicts who want to recover -- fits into the Bodhisattva path. This integration makes Buddhism accessible for addicts, and the 12 Steps understandable for Buddhists who may otherwise be at a loss to help those in need. The 12-Step Buddhist is designed to be a complimentary practice to the traditional 12-step journey, not a replacement. While traditional twelve-step programs help addicts become sober by removing the drug of choice and providing a spiritual path, they rarely delve deep into what causes people to suffer in the first place. The integration of Buddhism with the traditional process provides the wisdom and meditations that can help addicts truly find a deep, spiritual liberation from all causes and conditions of suffering -- for good.

This is truly a book for everyone, and probably one of the most important to have among your Buddhist book collection. By pulling together some of Lama Yeshe’s introductory teachings on Buddhism, meditation, compassion and emptiness, and combining them with the definitive explanation of tantra, this one valuable volume will inspire students to go more deeply into the Yoga Method of Buddha Maitreya–a tantric practice. Lama helps us to understand all the ways we can use meditation to develop transformation and gain transcendent experiences. It’s still important to find a fully-qualified teacher like Lama or seek out a group deity yoga retreat, but this new offering from the Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive is a very good explanation of Universal Love. Highly recommended. - Mandala Magazine This book is made possible by kind supporters of the Archive who, like you, appreciate how we make these teachings freely available in so many ways, including in our website for instant reading, listening or downloading, and as printed and electronic books. Our website offers immediate access to thousands of pages of teachings and hundreds of audio recordings by some of the greatest lamas of our time. Our photo gallery and our ever-popular books are also freely accessible there. Please help us increase our efforts to spread the Dharma for the happiness and benefit of all beings. You can find out more about becoming a supporter of the Archive and see all we have to offer by visiting us online! Thank you so much, and please enjoy this ebook.

“Aptavani 1” is the first in a series of spiritual books titled “Aptavani”. In this series, Gnani Purush (embodiment of Self knowledge) Dada Bhagwan addresses age-old unanswered questions of spiritual seekers. Dadashri offers in-depth answers to questions such as: “Who am I?”, “What is our purpose in life?”, “What is the nature of the journey of souls?”, “Why do bad things happen to good people?”, “What does karma mean?”, “How was the world created?”, “Who is the ‘Doer’ (ego definition)?” Dadashri also provides spiritual expositions on the topics of: “What is religion?”, “How to find God?”, “What is the difference in religion vs. spirituality?”, “How do you define spirituality?”, “How can I attain knowledge of Self?”, “How can I experience my own pure Soul?”, and “What is liberation?” Ultimately, Dadashri describes how the knowledge of Self is the final goal of all seeking. Without Self knowledge, one cannot attain ultimate liberation, or moksha.

For centuries, the age-old teachings of the Bhagavad Gita had politicians, leaders, saints, and sages turn to it for answers to solve the dilemmas of administration, the mind, and everyday life. It emphasises the value of reflection and self-awareness and pursuing inner harmony and tranquillity by being aware of our thoughts, deeds, and intentions. The teachings of the Bhagavad Gita are all the more significant today when India is going through rapid change due to globalisation. While it results in the world's interconnectedness and evolution of global culture, it is taking Indians away from traditional values and beliefs. Another facet of globalisation is the western fascination with the Indian scriptures, teachings, traditions, culture, etc. This aspect is testimony to the fact that the gems of wisdom held in the Gita and other ancient texts of India have immense power and relevance, and the world is waking up to them. The author believes this is the exact point in time when young Indians should return to India's ultimate book of answers to enrich themselves with ancient wisdom while scaling new heights. In this book, the author has shared nuggets of priceless wisdom and teachings from this revered text, which can guide those seeking to attain the full expression of life on earth and evolve into their best versions.