Buddhist Teachings

Teachings in Tibetan Buddhism

“Over 2500 years ago, Shakyamuni Buddha gained direct insight into the nature of reality, perfected the qualities of wisdom, compassion, and power, and revealed the path to his disciples. In the 11th Century, Atisha brought these teachings to Tibet in the form of the lam-rim – the stages on the path to enlightenment. The lam-rim tradition found its pinnacle in the teachings of the great Tibetan saint Lama Tsongkhapa in the 14th Century, and these teachings continued to pass from teacher to student up to this present day.” FPMT website

Tara Meditation Centre offers introductory and intermediate courses in Tibetan Buddhism. More information about these courses can be found at FPMT online. They are taught by Venerable Chokyi.

  Level 1- Introductory

Meditation 101– an introductory course on basic Buddhist  meditation techniques.It teaches Buddhist meditations that can be used by anyone to create more peace and happiness in daily life.

Buddhism in a nutshell– introduction to Buddhist thought and practice.

 

Level 2- Intermediate.

For students wishing to get a stronger understanding of Buddhist teachings HMT offers the FPMT program “Discovering Buddhism”. This course of study covers the entire Lam Rim, the Tibetan Buddhist path to enlightenment. It consists of 14 units, each of 4 weeks duration, and each incorporating a short retreat/workshop. All courses can be done for interest, to extend a student’s existing practice or to obtain a certificate of completion.

Discovering Buddhism subject areas

  1. Mind and its potential– Explores the nature of mind and its function, and how to transform destructive thoughts to create positive mind
  2. How to meditate–learn how to sit properly, set up a meditations session and how to deal with obstacles that arise
  3. Presenting the path–gives an overview of the Buddha’s teachings and the path to enlightenment
  4. The spiritual teacher– Investigates the need for a teacher, their qualities and how to relate to a teacher.
  5. Death and rebirth–Explores the death process and examines  how to deal with death to improve your life.
  6. All about karma– gain a clear understanding of how karma works and ways to purify negative karma.
  7. Refuge in the Three Jewels– become informed about what it means to take refuge and the advantages of lay vows.
  8. Establishing a daily practice– advice about what you need to establish a successful daily practice
  9. Samsara and Nirvana– find out how we are caught in cyclic existence (samsara) and find practical tools to be liberated.
  10. How to develop Bodhicitta– learn meditations that will develop our innate qualities of love and compassion
  11. Transforming problems– employ the techniques of mind training to reduce self-cherishing and gain happiness
  12. Wisdom of emptiness– understanding dependent arising and the philosophical basis of emptiness. Learn techniques for calm-abiding meditation
  13. Introducing tantra– gives abroad overview of the classes of tantra and how tantra works
  14. Special integration experiences (Lam Rim retreat)- undertake purification practices and prepare your mind for enlightenment.

 

Explore More Deeply

Teachings in Buddhist philosophy, for those with some understanding of the path.
In 2023 our teacher Venerable Chokyi will continue the course Exploring Buddhism which delves more deeply into the topics covered in Discovering Buddhism.