Every January, many students have the opportunity to acquire or deepen their knowledge of the Dharma at various centers in Europe.
This year, at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling, the Institute’s students continued studying the Gyü Lama, Treatise on the Supreme Continuum of the Great Vehicle, composed by Maitreya and Asanga. The explanations of this text were given by Khenpo Samdrup, principal of Dzongsar Shedra.
At the beginning of each session, Khenpo encouraged students to generate bodhicitta and to listen on this basis. “It’s important to truly develop this inner motivation of enlightened mind by saying to yourself, ‘I shall engage in the study of the Gyü Lama to accomplish the benefit of beings, to progress towards the state of buddhahood.”
Khenpo Samdrup emphasized that the Gyü Lama, a text that he himself has studied for the past thirty years, is an extremely profound text containing many important points.
Closing the three-week study retreat, Khenpo recalled that the goal is to understand the meaning of each word in the root text. “My wish is that thanks to the commentaries, explanations and our discussions, you will reach a good understanding of the root text given by Maitreya,” he said.
In the second part of the retreat, Acharya Kalsang Puntsok finished the explanations of Tsema, Clarification of Reasoning, To the Attention of the Lord of All Beings, composed by Yongzin Namgyal Drakpa. The study of this fundamental text of the curriculum began in January 2023.
Thanks to the guidance of Lama Jigme Rinpoche and lineage teachers from Asia, students can access the fundamental texts of Buddhist philosophy.
This retreat, which also included daily revision and meditation sessions, is part of a yearlong learning process of study and reflection. When combined with meditation and action, it becomes the ground for a fertile practice.