Midwest Dharma

Tibetan Chanting before and during the visit of Dalai Lama's sister to Minneapolis

Jetsun Pema, sister of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, will be in Minneapolis at the end of May.  The following details appeared in an article on www.edgelife.net:

Year of Tibet in Minnesota
In celebration and honor of the Tibetan community in the Twin Cities, the second largest such group in the United States, a festival entitled "2007: A Year of Tibet in Minnesota" will take place in May, featuring the Gyoto Monks of Tibet, the personal assistant to the Dalai Lama, a Tibetan Film Festival and a visit from Mrs. Jetsun Pema, sister of the Dalai Lama.

The Gyoto Monks of Tibet will be in the Cities May 11-21 to demonstrate their worship rituals, performing with flutes, horns, drums and unique multiphonic singing and chanting. The monks also are known for their intricate sand mandalas and butter sculptures, which will be created in front of live audiences at the Minnesota Institute of Art.

The keynote speaker will be the personal assistant to the Dalai Lama, Mrs. Jetsun Pema, sister of the Dalai Lama. She will be speaking at St. Catherine's on two occasions, and a local Tibetan dance group will perform a series of traditional folk dances in costume. Like her famous brother, the 14th Dalai Lama, Mrs. Pema is known for her personal warmth and wisdom. She has taken on the task of caring for the welfare of the thousands of orphaned and destitute children who continue to flee from oppression still imposed by the Chinese government.

THE CHOIR'S PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE:

Next Saturday: 8 p.m., Basilica of St. Mary, Minneapolis; tickets $15 ($10 for seniors and students); 612-333-1381 or www.mary.org.

May 13: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Minneapolis Institute of Art's Family Day; free.

May 20: 6:30 p.m., Center for Religious Inquiry at St. Mark's Cathedral, Minneapolis; tickets $15 ($10 for seniors and students); 612-870-7800 or www.religiousinquiry.com.

May 24: 7:30 p.m., Cedar Cultural Center, Minneapolis; tickets $15 in advance, $20 at door ($10 for students); 612-338-2674 or www.thecedar.com.

May 27: 7 p.m., St. Joan of Arc Church, Minneapolis; tickets $15 ($10 for seniors and students); 612-823-8205 or www.stjoan.com.

Pema will be keynote speaker at the following venues, which will also feature the choir:

May 29: 7 p.m., Children's Theatre, Minneapolis; tickets $22-$28 ($15 for children, seniors and students); 612-874-0400 or www.childrenstheatre.org.

May 31 and June 1: 7 p.m., Jeanne D'Arc Auditorium, College of St. Catherine, St. Paul; tickets $20; 651-690-6000 or www.ticketworks.org.

Schedule provided by an article in the Star Tribune.

 

New class starting this Wednesday with Khen Rinpoche

Essential Dharma - Key Principles of the Buddhist Path

Wedneday evenings, Feb. 21st to March 28th, 7:15 - 9pm

In these teachings, Khen Rinpoche will present the most important principles of the Buddhist path. The series will begin with a teaching on the stages of meditation practice in the Tibetan tradition, before moving on to other core concepts, such as devotion and the guru principle, the twelve links of interdependent origination, visualization and mantra, the six perfections, and the two truths. The topics discussed in these lectures are all considered "essential" principles to understand for spiritual study and practice. All are invited to attend; drop-ins welcome.

Suggested donation:    $20 per class or $90 for the 6 class series

Location:                     Khen Rinpoche's residence
                                    2414 Taylor St. NE
                                    Minneapolis, MN 55418

Khen Rinpoche is currently in the Twin Cities through the support and generoisity of the Rime Foundation.  You can find further information as well as Rinpoche's biography and teaching schedule at www.rimefoundation.org

Maitri: Five Wisdom Energies

Acharya Richard John will teach Maitri: Five Wisdom Energies at the
Chicago Shambhala Center, Fri, March 9, 7pm-9pm; Sat March 10, 9am-8:30pm;
and Sun, March 11 9am-6pm

This weekend presents the unique meditation practice created by Chögyam
Trungpa Rinpoche based on the traditional principles of the five buddha
families. Maitri practice tunes us directly into our different
psychological styles or energies, allowing us to clearly see and
experience how we embody and relate to them in either a sane or neurotic
fashion. As we embrace these energies in ourselves and our world with
friendliness, we can transform the frozen energy of self-centeredness into
the flowing creativity of compassionate wisdom.

Members $125 ($115 for early registration by March 4).
Nonmembers $145 ($135 for early registration by March 4).
$15 fee for rental of practice materials, for those who do not have them. 

For more information or to register on line, visit www.chicagoshambhala.org or call 773-743-8147.

HHDL in Chicago - tickets go on sale March 9th!

The website for the Dalai Lama's visit to Chicago has been launched and tickets will go on sale March 9th.  Click here for details.

If you are flying from the Minneapolis area, flights are on sale as low as $88-99 roundtrip.  Check with Airtan Airways or Northwest Airlines or, better yet, contact me! 

How to Be a Bodhisattva

Dharma talk posted on the Northfield Buddhist Meditation Center website-

February 4, 9:45
Dharma Talk: “How to Be a Bodhisattva”
by Roger Jackson

In Buddhism, a bodhisattva is a future buddha, or enlightened being. In
the Mahayana Buddhism that predomintes in East Asian and Tibetan
Buddhism, any of us can aspire to buddhahood–and become a bodhisattva,
intent on achieving enlightenment for the sake of all beings. The talk
will focus on a classic manual for would-be bodhisattvas, “The Way of
the Bodhisattva,” by the eighth-century Indian Buddhist monk,
Shantideva. Shantideva’s text is full of poetry, paradox, psychological
insight, and philosophical wisdom, and he leaves us inspired to believe
that the bodhisattva’s task, difficult as it may be, is one that each
of us can undertake.

Roger Jackson is the Stephen R. Lewis, Jr. Professor of Religion and
the Liberal Arts at Carleton College, where he teaches the religions of
South Asia. He is the author of many works on Buddhist topics, and is a
long-time practitioner of Tibetan Buddhism. He teaches regularly at
Gyuto Wheel of Dharma Monastery in Minneapolis, and is a founding
member of the Northfield Buddhist Meditation Group.

A Weekend Program with Dr. Robin Kornman

The Milwaukee Shambhala Center Invites You To Enlightened Society, Shambhala, and the Kalachakra Tantra.

A Weekend Program with Dr. Robin Kornman
February 9, 10, and 11, 2007

Enlightened society is a term Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche coined to describe the culture that manifests in society around the path of meditation. The individual seeking enlightenment is trained to be a culturally well-rounded person who is engaged in the arts, contemplation, politics, the sciences of heaven and earth, and the bodhisattva path of devotion to the benefit of others as ways to manifest an enlightened world in everyday life. In this weekend program, Dr. Kornman will examine the scriptural origins of these Shambhala teachings, particularly in the Kalachakra Tantra and other Asian Buddhist traditions. Robin Kornman, Ph.D., is a professor of comparative literature, specializing in Eastern and Western epics. He is currently translating the Tibetan Gesar of Ling Epic into English, and is one of the original students of Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche.

            Costs: $125; $100 for members, seniors & students.
            Pre-registration is advised, call Steven at 414-481-2604 for registration and more info.

            Schedule: Fri., Feb. 9, 7:00 pm on-site registration followed
            by Talk; Sat. and Sun., Feb. 10 & 11, 8:30 am continental
            breakfast, 9 am-5 pm: Talks interspersed with meditation, tea
            breaks and discussion groups.  Sunday closing reception.

      Location: The Milwaukee Shambhala Center is at 2344 N. Oakland Ave., Milwaukee, WI 53211

Please join us for what promises to be a wonderful weekend of immersion in the living vision of Trungpa Rinpoche!

Teachings by Khen Rinpoche in Minneapolis

SATURDAY MORNING CLASSES
10:15 to 12:00  Location: Khenpo's Residence

    * The Fundamentals of Tibetan Buddhist Meditation - the Practice of Ngöndro
      Saturday mornings, January 20th to March 10th

      The preliminary practices of Ngöndro are common to all sects and lineages of Tibetan Buddhism. These practices contain an outer phase, in which one contemplates topics such as impermanence and karma, and an inner phase. In this series of teachings, Khen Rinpoche will introduce the inner preliminary practices. These profound meditations are comprised of five steps that lead the practitioner to increasingly pure and subtle experiences of the awakened mind. These teachings are open to all. Drop-ins welcome.

      Suggested donation: $20/class or $120 for the entire series (8 classes)

      The classes in this series are as follows:

• January 20th - Entering the spiritual path and the practice of taking refuge
• January 27th - Cultivating compassion and the Bodhicitta prayer
• February 3th & 10th - Creating the right conditions for spiritual practice through the mandala offering
• February 17th & 24th - Purifying obstacles and negativity with the visualization and mantra of Vajrasattva
• March 3rd & 10th - Connecting directly with the enlightened state and the practice of guru yoga

Details available at the Rime website.

Teachings by Khen Rinpoche in Minneapolis

WEDNESDAY EVENING CLASSES
7:15 to 9:00 – Location: Shambhala Center

    * Peace of Mind - The Fundamental Practice of Tranquility Meditation
      – Wednesday evenings, Jan. 17th to Feb. 7th

      The practice of shamatha, or tranquility meditation, is designed to still the mind and bring about a profound state of peace and relaxation. Once this state is achieved, the practitioner will be well-equipped to begin more advanced forms of practice that aim to cultivate wisdom and connect directly with the nature of mind. In this series of teachings, Khen Rinpoche will explain the subtleties of this practice, bringing his own extensive experience as a meditator to bear on the topic. All are invited to attend. Drop-ins welcome.

      Suggested donation: $20 per class or $60 for the 4 class series

Details available at the Rime website.

NOTE: Check it out...I went to the first class - Rinpoche is a very accessible and knowledgeable teacher.  The translating is top-notch and Rinpoche's good grasp of English makes the students feel very "understood." - Debe 

Five Wisdoms Institute

The Five Wisdoms Institute is delighted to announce the Minneapolis
launching of Five Wisdoms @ Work, a two-year personal and professional
development training. It is for professionals in the service of others:
Health Caregivers, Educators, Organizational Leaders, Artists and anyone
else interested.

Module I Five Qualities of Authentic Presence will take
place Feb 2-4. The modules can be taken on an individual basis. Everyone in
invited to the free Friday evening talk.

The training is located at the Studio for Creative Leadership at 2637 27th Ave, Suite 224 in Minneapolis.

For information go to www.FiveWisdomsInstitute.com

Bill Karelis in Chicago

Bill Karelis will speak on various topics during his 10 day stay in Chicago.  Please see the attached flyer for details.

Download karelis_word_flyer112rev1.pdf