Karmapa Devotees

Our life is vast. It does not stop at the limits of what we personally experience. It is not something concrete or bounded. I do not think it is valid to view our life as limited to just ourselves — as if our human life extended only as far as our own body. Rather, we can see that a life extends out in all directions, like a net. We throw a net, and it expands outward. Just like that, our life extends to touch many other lives. Our life can reach out and become a pervasive part of everyone’s life. 17th Karmapa from the book "The Heart Is Noble: Changing the World from the Inside Out"

The 17th Gyalwang Karmapa and Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche. Bodhgaya, India, November 2014

The natural joy of breathing ~ 17th Karmapa Once I was going around the monastery and the weather was nice. I relaxed my mind and noticed that I was just breathing. I thought that’s not special, we always breathe, yet spontaneously, I thought how satisfactory this experience was—there was a natural joy in it. Taking one breath is a rather complex process; it depends on oxygen from trees, an elaborate system of exchange within the body, and so forth. And yet my experience of that one breath came without any effort, and I just thought, "It’s amazing that I’m alive now and can breathe so easily." If I had had to think about creating oxygen, for example, it would have been very complicated. But I was simply happy because I could breathe. It all depends on how we think. 17th Karmapa source: https://ift.tt/1pnD5vm

Gyalwang Karmapa and Goshir Gyaltsab Rinpoche Bodhgaya, February 2017

Remembering the Lama ~ 17th Karmapa Cutting through afflictions is difficult, especially once they have come up, because we are so habituated to them. What we can do is recognize that anger is about to arise and then take action. We can use a method or remedy that will deter the anger from becoming a full-blown negative emotion. One way I have found effective is to recall a particular lama whom I trust and like and whose speech is pleasing. For example, one lama may have taught me why anger or aversion undermines practice and how negative its effects are, so I bring to mind that lama’s advice: “Don’t be influenced by the afflictions. Be careful!” Whenever I sense that anger is about to arise, I just remember that lama and his instructions. When I do this, it helps me not to be overpowered by the negative emotion. My closeness to that lama and my respect for him makes me think, “This is not right. It goes against my lama’s words.” Another way of using this method is to remember a book we really like that deals with the afflictions, and bring these passages to mind. Then, like a sound becoming ever louder, when we sense that an affliction is on the rise, we can turn the volume back down before it fully manifests. This, too, can be useful. 17th Karmapa from the book "Traveling the Path of Compassion: A Commentary on The Thirty-Seven Practices of a Bodhisattva"

The 17th Gyalwang Karmapa and the 12th Tai Situ Rinpoche

How many obscurations and how many afflictions have been subdued or cleared away? This is the true test of meditation, not what wonderful or special experiences we might have. 17th Karmapa from the book "Traveling the Path of Compassion: A Commentary on The Thirty-Seven Practices of a Bodhisattva" source: https://ift.tt/1yDBTHp

We seem to have lost the sense that we can freely and happily extend ourselves for others. In modeling our social institutions on business principles, we have become very disconnected from our own noble heart. 17th Karmapa from the book "The Heart Is Noble: Changing the World from the Inside Out"

His Holiness the Gyalwang Karmapa and His Holiness Kyabgon Gongma Trichen Rinpoche Tsechen Kunchab Ling, New York, September 2018

From the space of the utterly pure extent of phenomena, deep and clear wisdom expands. Mind's primordial nature is forever free of elaboration. Not deluded by habitual mind or samsara and nirvana as they naturally arise. To this expanse, the equal nature of all things, I bow. 17th Karmapa from the book "Music In The Sky: The Life, Art, And Teachings Of The 17Th Karmapa Ogyen Trinley Dorje"

Gyalwang Karmapa and His Eminence the 12th Tai Situ Rinpoche.

Interdependent reality ~ 17th Karmapa Interdependence is our reality, whether we accept it or not. In order to live productively within such a reality, it is better to acknowledge and work with interdependence, wholeheartedly and without resistance. This is where love and compassion come in. It is love that leads us to embrace our connectedness to others, and to participate willingly in the relations created by our interdependence. Love can melt away our defenses and our painful sense of separation. The warmth of friendship and love makes it easy for us to accept that our happiness is intimately linked to that of others. The more widely we are able to love others, the happier and more content we can feel within the relations of interdependence that are a natural part of our life. Love is possible in all our relationships because all people want happiness. No one wants to suffer. This is true of the people we love. It is also true of those we dislike. We are all absolutely identical in this respect. I think this universal wish for happiness is something we can easily grasp intellectually. When we learn to also feel and respect this in our heart, love naturally flourishes within us. 17th Karmapa from the book "The Heart Is Noble: Changing the World from the Inside Out"

The 17th Gyalwang Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje and the 9th Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche Thrangu Monastery Canada - Vancouver, June 2017

Although each of us has our own personality, our circle of friends can influence and change us. So it is important to rely on friends who have intelligence and integrity. 17th Karmapa from the book "The Future Is Now: Timely Advice for Creating a Better World"

Gyalwang Karmapa, Drupon Dechen Rinpoche and Ato Rinpoche Cambridge, England, May 2017

There has to be a wide variety in methods for traversing the path ~ 17th Karmapa There is no single, definitive tradition in the buddhadharma, because there are all kinds of sentient beings who have their own interests and dispositions. For that reason, there has to be a wide variety in methods for traversing the path. Mind is not a definite, concrete thing. For that reason, the methods for relating to the mind also cannot be concrete and universal. The main objective of the dharma is to tame our minds — to bring peace and happiness to our minds — but there needs to be a wide variety of methods available for different sentient beings. For example, some beings might give rise to bodhichitta, the wish to attain enlightenment, through meditating on emptiness. The meditation on emptiness might be an avenue for them to connect with the altruistic heart of bodhichitta. On the other hand, other beings might not be able to connect with bodhichitta through contemplating emptiness. So there’s no universal rule, no definitive set of methods. Again, it leads back to the state of mind: since there’s no definitive, universal state of mind, there can never be any definitive, universal set of methods. At the same time, there are traditions within Buddhism that are very beneficial and carry great blessings, because they are the traditions of highly accomplished spiritual beings. These blessings are special and should be seen as sacred and beneficial. That’s why we respect the teaching styles and methods of the great spiritual masters of the past. They don’t have to be regarded as concrete rules, but at the same time they do carry supreme blessings. 17th Karmapa source: https://ift.tt/2whDZGa

Taking advantage of opportunities ~ 17th Karmapa Whatever our negative situation may be, we need to take a long-term view and sustain our hope with an aspiration, which could be a goal that we seek or a way that we want to be. Our aspiration is like a spy keeping an eye out for opportunities. In the olden days, a spy would sit on a high mountain and survey everything that was happening. Looking down the road into the future and maintaining our hope is like that watcher. When an opportunity arises that fits our plan, we can call on our experience to take advantage of it. When experience and hope join together, whatever difficult, negative, or tragic situations occur in our life, we can always pull ourselves together and start anew. 17th Karmapa from the book "Traveling the Path of Compassion: A Commentary on The Thirty-Seven Practices of a Bodhisattva"