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T A S H I C H O L I N G D H A R M A F O U N D A T I O N I N C .
Hobart BuddhistMeditation CentreNEWSLETTERIncluding Dorje Ling Retreat CentreTasmania
www.hobartbuddhistmeditationcentre.com [email protected] �
TCDF Quarterly Newsletter Winter 20�4 edition
Our Spiritual Director
Tashi Choling Dharma Foundation has a long-standing relationship with the Venerable Zasep Tulku Rinpoche, a meditation master of the Gelugpa Tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. Born in eastern Tibet in 1948, Acharya Zasep Tulku Rinpoche was recognized at an early age as a reincarnation of Lama Karma Kunchog Tenzin. Since arriving in the west in 1976, Zasep Rinpoche has taught Buddhism in Australia, Canada, the USA, and Mongolia. He is the spiritual director of Gaden for the West, headquartered in Nelson, B.C., as well as of other centres including Dorje Ling Retreat Centre and Hobart Buddhist Meditation Centre. Zasep Rinpoche believes that the precious teachings of Tibetan Buddhism can be made accessible to and meaningful for Westerners in a way that respects the integrity of the teachings. Rinpoche is known for his gentle compassion and good humoured wisdom.
Rinpoche has updated his guidelines for his students. The new version is available here: www.tashicholing.net/pdf/guideline2013.pdf.
In this issue ...President’s report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 2Upcoming program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 2Tarchin Hearn 2014 visit dates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 2Guidelines, part one . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 3Working bee update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 5Caretaker’s report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 6Tarchin Hearn: True Refuge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 7Lynn Engelfield . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 8Distant Prayers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 9
Guidelines for Dharma studentsRinpoche has sent us some guidelines for all who are his students. Even if you are not formally a student of Rinpoche’s, these guidelines contain much wisdom and will be helpful to you.
The guidelines are available online so that you can print them out: www.tashicholing.net/pdf/guideline2013.pdf or in epub (e-book reader) format here: www.tashicholing.net/books/guidelines/Guidelines-Rinpoche.epub
They will also be printed in this Newsletter in instalments. The first instalment is on Page 3 of this Newsletter.
Reminder:
Rinpoche will be coming to Tasmania in January 2015.
Evening talk, Hobart, Friday Jan 2. 1-day retreat on Mahamudra, Hobart, Saturday Jan 3. Dorje Ling retreat Jan 5-10: 3 Principal PathsDorje Ling Jan 11-14: Tara initiation and retreat.
VOLUNTEER COOKS NEEDED ...Cook for one of these two Dorje Ling retreats, get the other retreat free. Also, for upcoming Tarchin Hearn retreat, 14-23 November: Cook for half the retreat, get the other half free. Contact us for more.
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Gompa Roof: See Page 5 for update on our recent working bees.
T A S H I C H O L I N G D H A R M A F O U N D A T I O N I N C .
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P r e s i d e n t ’ s r e P o r t
Winter is here, time perhaps for contemplation and meditation, for healing and rest.
We have received the ‘Revised Guidelines for the Dharma Students of the Venerable Zasep Tulku Rinpoche. His thoughtful and loving advice is derived both from traditional Tibetan Buddhist training and experience of westerners derived from 37 years teaching in the west. He writes generally about westerners’ strengths and difficulties and discusses a wide range of topics including:
Why do we need a Dharma teacher?
Becoming a Dharma student
How to study Dharma
The Preciousness of Dharma traditions and lineages
Non-sectarianism and non-confusion
Organizing your Dharma practice
Annual retreats
Guidance for your practice
Initiating into Tantra
Dharma study on line
Children and the Dharma
Right livelihood and Dharma finances
These guidelines are essential for Rinpoche’s students, and very useful for anyone practising Tibetan Buddhism or interested in doing so. They are available for download on the website. See page 1 for details. Part 1 of the guidelines is printed on Page 3 of this newsletter.
Two working bees led by Guy Turnbull, and skilfully supported by Jack the caretaker, have successfully reroofed the Dorje Ling Gompa and improved its heating system. Many thanks to all those involved in these working bees.
We have been given a very generous donation by the Karuna Intentional Community Association facilitated by Jan Edmitson. Jan’s vision is that the donation could be used in some building works or to help fund some teachings as Karuna’s aspirations were to build an Ecovillage and an Education Centre. On behalf of the organisation I would like to heartfully thank the Association for this generosity which significantly supports the Dorje Ling Retreat Centre development and our teaching program.
We are very pleased to announce that Tarchin Hearn will be returning to Tasmania to teach in Hobart and at Dorje Ling in November.
Charles Chadwick
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Upcoming meditation programOur meditation and discussion sessions are held every Tuesday between 7.30 and 9.00 pm. Location – Tashi Choling rooms, Floor 2, 73 Liverpool St, Hobart. Go down the laneway to the right of the building, then look for the door between the two bamboo pots. Continue upstairs to the second floor. Suggested donation: $5. All welcome.
JULY. Tony Dix will be leading in July.
Subject: What is it about the Buddha Dharma that makes it easier to “suffer the slings and arrows”, the “whips and scorns of time”, and “the thousand natural shocks” of life?
Let’s have a look at Chogyam Trungpa’s The Sacred Path of the Warrior, and Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism for a few clues!
With other interesting observations.
AUGUST. Roger McLennan and Maria Grist (alternate weeks).
SEPTEMBER. Madhu Lilley.
Please watch your emails to get updates to our meditation and discussion program, and other events as they are finalised. If you are not on our email list you can join here: www.tashicholing.net/htm/email-list.html
Tsog dates. Upcoming dates based on dark moon being day 1, Australian calendar:
Sunday July 6th, Monday July 21st, Tuesday August 5th, Wednesday August 20th, Thursday September 4th, Friday September 19th.
Tarchin Hearn datesTarchin Hearn will be visiting Tasmania in November 2014. Final details to be finalised, but here are the dates for your diary:
Hobart teachings: Evenings of 11, 12, and 13 November. Dorje Ling retreat: 14-23 November.
Volunteer cooks needed: Please see Page 1.
T A S H I C H O L I N G D H A R M A F O U N D A T I O N I N C .
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Revised Guidelines for the Dharma Students of the Venerable Zasep Tulku Rinpoche Canada, 2013, Part One.In these times of rampant consumerism and rapid technological and cultural change, more and more people are searching for a spiritual path that will help them live more meaningful lives and find deep inner peace. Many seekers are turning to Buddhist meditation as a way to address and overcome the problems of everyday life. The idea of living life in a more meaningful way, in a more mindful way, has profound appeal. Some people, moving beyond the idea of simply living more mindfully, espouse the Mahayana Buddhist path, which gives detailed instructions on how to transform their ordinary troubled minds into the serene mind of Enlightenment.
I have been teaching the Buddhadharma in the west for the past 37 years. In 1976, the Venerable Geshe Thubten Loden and I were the very first Tibetan Lamas to become resident teachers in Australia. Today, Buddhism is the fastest growing spiritual tradition in Australia. In 1981, I arrived in North America to teach. Since those early years, I have seen the Buddhadharma take root and flourish in the West; I am hopeful that it will continue to grow.
In my 37 years in the West, I have learned so much about so much about the Western way of life. I think that, generally speaking, people in the West are kind, sensitive, caring, honest, generous and helpful. Western education provides ample opportunities to study philosophy and human psychology; outside of formal education, bookstores have shelf upon shelf of self-help books; for those who cannot help themselves, the Yellow Pages list column after column of counselling professionals. Yet in spite of the availability of so much material about thought, thinking and feeling, and emotional well-being, many Westerners seem confused, lacking in self-confidence, and full of self-blaming and even self-loathing. In the midst of crowds, they feel loneliness; in the midst of plenty, they feel hunger. This is not to say that people in the East don’t have similar problems: they do, especially since the old social order is breaking down in many places in the East. But in these guidelines I am talking particularly to my Western students.
I have found that many people in the West spend a great deal of time either thinking about the past or dreaming about the future, with the result that they are never in the present. When they look back, they often are full of regret for what was or what was not, and when they look forward, they are full of expectations that seldom come to fruition, leading to more regret when the future they had been dreaming about has become the past. Buddhist meditation teaches how to be in the present, how to be present. Some people think that a meditation practice is an escape from everyday life, but in truth, a
meditation practice teaches us to be present in the world with a peaceful and compassionate mind. Some people also think that only ordained Sangha or yogis can be good practitioners, but the Buddha taught the Dharma for the benefit of all people, be they ordained or lay. With the right motivation, everyone can be a good Dharma practitioner.
Why do we need a Dharma teacher?
Many people in the West ask why a spiritual teacher or guide is necessary. Sometimes when Westerners turn to spirituality as a way to deal with their malaise, they think they can get all the guidance they need from the self-help section of a bookstore or from the Internet. This approach is likely to result in more rather than less confusion. Others may be determined to find a spiritual teacher who can show them a true spiritual path, who can give them spiritual support when they are struggling, and comfort when they are suffering, when they are experiencing Dukkha. This spiritual teacher may exemplify for the seeker what it means to be a spiritually realized person. The knowledge and wisdom that this person has, his Dharma realizations, become the seeker’s Refuge and protection from Dukkha.
In the East, the idea of a spiritual teacher-student relationship is an ancient one, having been there for millennia. After he renounced the life of a prince, Prince Siddhartha went looking for a possible teacher. He placed himself under the spiritual guidance of two renowned Brahmin teachers, Master Alara Kalama and Addaka Ramaputta; then, deciding to become an ascetic, he practised severe austerities for years before realizing that self-mortification was not the way to achieve his goal. Great Buddhist scholars like Nagarjuna and Asanga had teachers, as did Mahasiddhis such as Tilopa. Atisha was so eager to meet his teacher Dharmakirti that he embarked upon a dangerous 13-month sea voyage to Sumatra in Indonesia to meet him. Marpa travelled to India to study under Naropa. And the founder of our tradition, Lama Je Tsong Khapa, studied under many great masters in Tibet. In the Tibetan Buddhist view, the spiritual teacher is the root of all spiritual realizations and attainments. According to Mahayana and Vajrayana teaching, we should consider our teacher as a Buddha for our own spiritual benefit. According to the Theravadin tradition, a Dharma teacher is a very special spiritual friend known as Kalyana-mitta (mitra). Spiritual friendship is Kalyana-mitttata.
A Dharma teacher is a spiritual guide who can show us how to meditate correctly so that we can make progress on our spiritual path and gain Dharma realizations. I
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(Part 2 will be printed in our next Newsletter.)
suggest you study Lama Je Tsong Khapa’s Lamrim Chenmo, in which he clearly defines the qualities of good Dharma teachers and students. Some people have the fortunate Karma to recognize a good Dharma teacher immediately upon meeting one, but others are full of indecision and
doubt, and cannot make up their minds to commit to a particular teacher. They may spend their whole life shopping for the perfect teacher and yet never find him or her.
When we are shopping around for a teacher, we will find teachers with widely different personalities. Teachers come in many shapes and sizes because each of us is different, with different attitudes and aptitudes. With Dharma teachers, there is no one size fits all. Most Buddhist teachers are calm, gentle and very kind towards to their students; they are usually highly disciplined because this is how they were trained. Some teachers may have very strong personalities, and can seem very stern, dogmatic or possibly even wrathful. A handful of teachers are real yogis or yoginis who are eccentric, spontaneous, and unpretentious.
In truth, I think it is hard to choose a Dharma teacher wisely. Some people use logic and reason to select a teacher, others intuition and faith but really, a lot of it comes down to personality. Some people are attracted to a teacher because he or she is celebrated for being charismatic and inspiring or for writing many books. Others are attracted to a teacher’s appearance, to the warmth of his or her smile, and to his or her teachings on topics like love and compassion. Still others are attracted to teachers who can do magic tricks, such as making an iron rod glow just by rubbing it with their hands, or by causing a rain of rings to fall from their fingers. Yet still others choose a teacher who gives people big hugs as his or her way of teaching. Some extremely naïve people will blindly follow a teacher who claims to be perfect and infallible, shutting their eyes to his or her imperfections. You can choose whomever you want be your teacher, but the most important thing is that you find a teacher who is compassionate and wise, has impeccable integrity, and is well-respected as a teacher. He or she should not be prejudiced, biased or hypocritical, and his or her conduct should not contradict the very teachings he or she is giving.
Some teachers may disparage or even denounce other teachers because they don’t agree with their positions on various doctrinal issues or because they do not approve of their life style. It is useful to remember what Buddha said in the well-known Kalama Sutra, which advises seekers how to choose the right teacher. The Kalamas were a clan who were confused by many teachers who passed through their territory, criticizing and contradicting each other. Buddha told the Kalamas not to believe something simply because it is often repeated, because it is a scripture, or because it is stated by an authority. He told them to test everything that said with their own experience: only if it proves conducive to goodness and happiness should it be accepted as true.
One of the most important things in a teacher-student relationship is for the student to be able to communicate directly with the teacher so that he or she can ask questions and have an honest discussion if one is needed; it is always good to have a teacher who encourages questioning; you don’t have to accept anything on blind faith. There is old Tibetan saying, “A guru is like fire, if you stay too close you get burned; if you stay too far away, you don’t get enough heat.” I think some people actually prefer a teacher who is very remote and personally inaccessible so that they can only relate to him or her at a distance; without direct contact they feel safe, knowing they won’t ever be close enough to get burned. Other people would like to have constant easy access to a teacher so that they can ask questions all the time, without having ever having to figure out the answers for themselves. Some people look upon a Dharma teacher as a family doctor, one who will give them a new prescription for happiness whenever they think they need one. Teacher-student relationships are nuanced, with both teacher and student bringing their dispositions and their histories into their interaction. In my own case, different people see my relationship with my students in different lights. A few people have told me my students treat me with too much reverence while others have told me I am too casual and relaxed with my students and should demand more reverence! I cannot please everyone; indeed I doubt there is any teacher who can.
If someone is fortunate enough to have the good Karma, he or she will eventually find a good teacher who is willing to commit to being the student’s teacher and spiritual guide. On his or her side, a Dharma student must be sincere and willing to commit to and trust the Dharma teacher. A healthy teacher-student relationship makes for a healthy Dharma practice. The Dharma teacher will guide the student step by step and assist him or her in everyday Dharma practice. The Dharma teacher and student must have mutual respect and appreciation. The student should take the teachings and instructions into his or her heart and learn the correct protocols of teacher and student relationships.
T A S H I C H O L I N G D H A R M A F O U N D A T I O N I N C .
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Working beesGompa roof and other things
Prior to the Easter working bee we had visited to measure and discuss final colour choice with Jack. Then, 3 weeks later, before we drove to the bee, we consulted with the Tao, in the form of the I Ching. The six throws gave us a very interesting and appropriate guidance….even the wording resonated.
Reading: Hexegram 13.
‘Fellowship with men in the open.’
Heaven reflects the flame of clarity:
The superior person analyzes the various levels and working parts of the social structure and uses them to advantage.
Success if you keep to your course.
You may cross to the far shore.
Situation analysis:
This is a matter of positioning—not only yourself but others as well. There are niches to be filled, potentials to be realised, right livelihoods to be found. You are not building a new organization, but shoring up an existing infrastructure.
It’s worth the effort, because it will provide union, community, and an iron clad alliance.
This confirmed the economic and practical decision to clad the Gompa roof in iron, not copper as Guy had originally dreamt of….
Therefore, during the Easter working bee, the corrugated iron roof was laid, directed by Guy with Teams A, B & C over a 10 day period. We were all focused purely on the tasks at hand. A record number of 17 people turned up to help with this major working bee.
Great excitement, and an efficient start to our working bee, was to watch Damien pull the old chimney down with his tractor and chains. www.tashicholing.net/htm/2014-bees.html
Balancing on the steep new roof to place the glass pyramid cap was challenging, because of variations in roof pitch, and as a result we held a stage 2 working bee on the birthday of Queen Elizabeth. During this second stage of the working bee , the roof was sealed with a glass-cap. Tony, Peter J & Guy made up the skeleton crew, along with our trusty caretaker who will put final touches to the roof later.
The more specialised stage 3 roofing task will be the guttering. All of the materials have been purchased and we are awaiting skilled people. We also need a tank to run the rain water into. Great fundraising project; rain
water tank for the new Gompa roof? Any ideas? And the little lama room still needs its new roof.
So now we have a warm gompa, a wood box connected to the outside, and a new efficient wood fire stove. We can now at last consider winter and spring retreats and promote our wonderful Centre all year round.
Evenings on the Easter working bee were toned with healing massages from Kate, and fireside Dharma conversations with hearty laughter. The kitchen buzzed and extended to hot morning teas of pikelets, scones, grilled cheese…..with Jonah and Jamie Bladel, Ngaire Green, Tony and Anna Crotty whipping up a storm. Richard, Ross, Suze, Rosie, and Kate Mac supported the building process wherever needed.
We marked with a paint splash a line of young trees for felling to enable more light and view from Rinpoche’s house. When we have a “tree fella” in the group we can remove some of these trees.
Renovations of the Villa are well underway, with the completion of the deck that Andy Mac laid out in his solo retreat Karma Yoga time. Thanks Andy! The ceiling was removed, and plywood sheets have arrived to line the hut. If this projects resonates with you, please come up on the October Hobart Show weekend for the next bee. Let Guy know if you intend to be there. We really value the Dharma in action of these working bee retreats. www.tashicholing.net/htm/2014-bees.html
The Beyond hut now has a new deck thanks to Maria, John and Richard Upton.
One of the best news items for me, is that there are lights now in the gompa (thanks Jack), so we can have discussions and late night pujas and meditations, during which we can comfortably read our sadhana notes.
We celebrated with the burning of the big pile after we had clad the roof which provided a great photo shoot.
We will have more working bees later this year for the preparation of Rinpoche’s retreat, and also there will be the Karma Yoga component of the proposed Yoga retreats and Tarchin’s visit in November.
Roslyn Alexander Project manager Guy
T A S H I C H O L I N G D H A R M A F O U N D A T I O N I N C .
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A Winter Snippet
After quite a moist and mild autumn in the valley, it is refreshing to enter the season where “Dorje Ling” truly lives up to its name. That magical few weeks of enchantment squeezed in around the winter solstice when the tranquil, high pressure atmosphere loiters over the land, creating a pristine declaration of joy every morning. It is indeed the time of diamond consciousness and clarity; a fleeting, lucid moment that manifests symbolically within the landscape.
Heavy frosts come out of hiding and slink over the landscape, matting the shorn, emerald paddocks with entwined tendrils of ice; the perfect bouncing board for creating spectral shards of sunrise exhibited in a million tiny translucent diamonds that float and dance with the syncopated rhythm of ones footsteps softly scrunching on a sea of crystalline carpet. The sounds
from one’s body in motion, footfalls, breathing, and the occasional whoop of elation are just as enigmatic. It’s as if one exists in a hollowed-out sound chamber where every noise amplifies but travels nowhere.
Likewise, the skies on these days are a crisp, pearlescent blue, vacuumed
dry of moisture by the sub-zero nights. Just letting one’s focus remain still, but fuzzy, creates phosphenes out of the corner of one’s eye whilst looking into the ether. Like a subtle rendition of a Jackson Pollock painting, the particles of light dance in organised chaos, no doubt on an elusive mission that only the sub-atomic realm can divine.
The added inactivity of all fauna, still in a state of becoming with the morning thaw, gives the impression that in this moment, one’s self awareness is in exile and all matter exists just to be seen, heard and emotionally caressed by some numinous, collective consciousness. It is in such fleeting fragments of discernible eloquence as these, when the cosmos conspires to put on a show of awakening, that “Diamond Land” is a fitting, if not purely accurate translation of “Dorje Ling” and that somehow, somewhere, in this transitory moment of bliss, there is a sanctuary where all is well and in exquisite order.
The Caretaker.
Australian Fair for Freedom of Belief and Religion (AFFBR)
MONA museum at Berriedale, Tasmania, have instigated a fair for freedom of belief and religion.
Hobart Buddhist Meditation Centre has been asked to provide a stand at this Fair, which will be held in the MONA museum building, on Saturday 26 and Sunday 27 July, between 10 am and 5 pm each day.
There will be workshops, lectures and performances, as well as a booth for each participating organisation.
We are still in need of help from a few more people to man our booth at different times during the 2 days. This would be an opportunity to be a part of a brand new initiative and join in the sharing of ideas, as well as meeting and discussing with members of the public. Please let Maria know if you can help: Phone 62 349404 or email [email protected].
AFFBR’s web site is at http://www.affbr.org/.
New Dorje Ling postcards
We have recently printed some new Dorje Ling postcards. Please pick up your copy next time you come to meditation, and feel free to take a few for your friends.
T A S H I C H O L I N G D H A R M A F O U N D A T I O N I N C .
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True Refuge is a beautiful weaving of poetry, philosophy and instruction – a prolonged meditation on the mystery of refuge.
Copies are available for $20 plus postage from Margaret Steadman, 03 6231 4751
Here is a short excerpt form True Refuge.
I’m sitting outside a retreat hut at Dorje Ling near Lorinna, an ancient eucalypt clothed valley in the heart of Tasmania, one or two ranges away from Cradle Mountain. The dawn air is shimmering with light and sound and the continuous gurgling hiss and ‘lubble’ of the creek as it tumbles through the fractured limestone of the red soiled hill, as if aiming for the centre of the world, but then meeting resistance, hiving off tangentially in an improvised riff with rock and frozen tectonic dancing; a vast choreography of aeons. Immense trees, over seventy metres tall, extend skyward like cathedral columns. A wave of golden green laps this ocean of living world, as the first rays cut across the valley heights and roll shifting breezes and warm radiance in ever joining patches of morning dazzle. The cold shadow in which I sit begins to stir, while all around me is a raucous chorus of laughing kookaburras, cockatoos, wag-tails and numerous other feathered beings, natives all to this sacred place. Mobs of Bennett’s wallabies and pademelons quietly graze the dew tipped grasses occasionally pausing to look around before returning to their morning communion.
Earth and creatures and crystal sky and warming radiance are all of one piece. We fit together. This morning, there’s a palpable goodness that is surely felt by every living being singing this chorale of birthing sentience. Another dawning, a fresh beginning, a living grace and graciousness.
God is all around us, is us through and through. Dharmakaya is all around us, is us through and through. Unbroken wholeness is all around us, is us through and through. Nature is all around us, is us through and through.
Being this, with appreciation/knowing, is refuge. Living this, with appreciation/knowing, is refuge. Communing in this, with appreciation/knowing, is refuge.
Born in this. Living in this. Dying in this. Refuge is all around us, is us through and through.
Oh God – Dharmakaya – Unbreakable wholeness – Nature, We release in each other, through and through.
Releasing in thusness, I find refuge. Every blade of grass, every fly and cricket, every breeze and ray of sun and call of owl and cry of child. This world. This privilege. This blessing of release.
This is refuge, our beginning, our middle and our end. May I and all beings realize refuge.
New Publication by Tarchin Hearn
T A S H I C H O L I N G D H A R M A F O U N D A T I O N I N C .
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Lynn Engelfield
The following was written by Lynn prior to her death:
A c k n o w l e d g e m e n t t o o u r y o g A t e A c h e r s .I know that there have been many experiences such as my own over the three thousand years of Yoga, but to offer further inspiration to the many yoga teachers who strive to bring these ancient traditions to the West, I would like to share with you my own experience and in so doing give gratitude to you, the teachers, who bring yoga to the current time.
For the past 7 years I have been living with secondary breast cancer. For me this means cancer that originated in my breast, but has now taken up residency in my bones. There is no medical cure for this cancer. Yoga with its many practices; asana, pranayama, meditation and relaxation – in particular Yoga Nidra has been the stabilising influence throughout my cancer experience. These activities have supported me on numerous occasions, and throughout my daily living. Their power really struck me last summer.
Until this time I had the hope and belief that when life got really difficult for me, and my cancer symptoms became more apparent, that I would have my practice to guide and steer me in the right direction. What I didn’t realise, however, was just how instantaneous the yoga path would be. How when the need came there would be no direct decisions for me to choose, as to what would be the best way to support myself. The most appropriate path was just there inside of me, a spiritual guidance that took over my consciousness and carried me through to this next stage of my life.
The day started like any other. A short meditation, reflective thanks for all that I have, and a little chanting to get me out of bed. Once dressed I put on a CD of Saundharya Lahari led by Swami Niranjananda to accompany me as I emptied the dish washer and set about my day. I didn’t always do this, but somehow the days seemed brighter when I did. Around 11am everything was to change. I was crossing my lounge room when I heard a loud crack, felt a violent pain in my leg, and fell to the floor. My femur, weakened by cancer had snapped. As a trained nurse I knew instantly what had happened, and I also knew that if I didn’t get help quickly then I would have bled to death by the time my husband came home from work.
My phone was only 4 meters away, but it may as well have been a mile. Every time I lifted my head I was swathed with nausea, and on some occasions the additional pain caused me to lose consciousness for a few seconds, maybe minutes, I don’t really know how long. Strangely I didn’t experience panic, not even once. Saundharya Lahari, long since finished on my CD player, came back into my head. I couldn’t remember the Sanskrit words, but the rhythm was there imprinted in my brain, and ready for me to call upon:
Hmm,mm,mmm,mmm breath, push, rest,
Hmm, mmmm,mm,mmmm breath , push, rest,
over and over again.
Moving only millimetres at a time, I dug my good leg into the floor and pushed my body along the carpet towards the telephone. Every few pushes I had to lift my hips off the ground to stop my jeans from holding me tight to the floor. The pain would grab my leg like a vice, the nausea would swoop and I would vomit, briefly losing consciousness. Looking down at my leg it somehow looked flat. Flat and wide, as the two halves of my femur no longer supported the muscle. I had to look away.
The mantra in my head continued, over and over as my body took up the rhythm and the pace of the mantra. At one point I even heard the voice of Swarmi Niranjananda as he called out “excellent” to his chanters. I took it personally. He was calling out to me. Several
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times I needed to rest, but I was never discouraged, the mantra continued and I knew I had work to do. It never once crossed my mind that I wouldn’t reach the telephone.
Finally, after almost an hour, I reached the chest of drawers on which the telephone sat. I lunged backwards towards its overhanging cloth cover and pulled everything on its surface to the ground. The phone landed only centimetres from my hand. I called triple zero and sunk to the floor in gratitude. Then, I heard the sound of my personal mantra in my head, softly saying “well done”, “I am still with you”, “things will be fine”. I relaxed into its calm tones and waited. What a beautiful comfort. I was even silently reminded to keep moving my feet, to keep the blood to my legs moving and reduce the possibility of further complications. Around and around my ankles went, up and down my toes, mindfully coordinated with my breath and in this way I was also distracted from the pain.
When the ambulance crew arrived, and later in the emergency department, everyone did there utmost to comfort me, and to stabilise my leg and bleeding. It hurt a lot, but I am positive that without my yoga the pain would have been much worse. It was such an amazing experience. Almost like I was watching it happen, and feeling it, but from a big cradling hand that would never let go of me. I wish I had words to express it clearly, but there just aren’t any words to describe: the comfort that I felt; the lack of fear; the sheer bliss of knowing that something else that I had never experienced before was holding me. I was part of an interconnected universe.
That night, tucked up in my hospital bed, my leg in traction as I awaited theatre the next morning the feeling overtook me again. My personal mantra gently sang to me like a mother sings to her child, then the mantra would change spontaneously to Om Mane, Padme Hum, and then to Gate, Gate. Each time the words of the familiar mantras were just right for the moment and I sailed through the night without tears. Even going to theatre I involuntarily found myself Om chanting with my breathing as I sank into unconsciousness, and there it was again when I woke up from the anaesthetic, Om, Om, Om... None of it was my conscious decision, it was just there for me, and with me, and it was just right.
So my message to all of you yoga teachers out there, is please don’t ever lose sight of the difference you are making each and every lesson that you give. You just never know what a difference you are making. Without you and without your commitment to yoga, the outcome for me, for my husband and my children would have been very different.
Sarva Mangalam (all is blessing)
Lynn Englefield / Tam Hy.
Postscript (this happened almost 12 months ago now, and since that time Lynn has attended the marriage of her daughter, celebrated her 50th birthday and continued to inspire all who know her with her indefatigable courage and resilience to the disease that consumes only her body). Her daily yoga practice continues in spite of living currently with two broken collarbones and the effects of radiation and chemotherapy.
The above was written shortly before Lynn’s death. At right is Ven. Shih Jingang at Lynn’s funeral.
Distant Prayers
The wind moves softly through the grass, Unhurried by ideas of time as we are, Free to move in any direction, The wind invites the grass to dance, And it moves as one, rhythmic in its grace.
On any given day I lay my head to rest amongst it, Give my troubled thoughts the simple beauty, Of swaying stalks and stems.
The grass moves like prayers, Offered from a temple at dawn, In the Himalayas.
Sitting here I wonder, do they reach me? If, as physicists and meditators tell us, Time and space do not really exist, How far away could they be?
Catriona Scott
T A S H I C H O L I N G D H A R M A F O U N D A T I O N I N C .
www.hobartbuddhistmeditationcentre.com [email protected] �0
Tashi Choling Dharma Foundation Inc.Tashi Choling Dharma Foundation Inc. is a non-profit incorporated association based in Tasmania, Australia.
Our Spiritual Director is Zasep Tulku Rinpoche.
TCDF Inc. aims to ensure the continuity of the study and practice of buddhadharma through providing teachers, courses and facilities, to foster open communication amongst all spiritual traditions, and to bring benefit to others through providing opportunities for the development of wisdom and compassion.
We have two main thrusts: Hobart Buddhist Meditation Centre (running in Hobart since 1982) and Dorje Ling Retreat Centre (running at Lorinna, Tasmania since 1977, and purchased by us in 2002).
You can find out more about Tashi Choling at www.tashicholing.net/htm/about.htm
Become a member
Memberships are the lifeblood of our organisation.
You can become a member in two ways:
Become a regular member: $45 per year.
Donate to Dorje Ling Retreat Centre and automatically become a member.
To join, go to our web site.
We also deeply appreciate any practical help that you can give to our Retreat Centre at Lorinna. Jobs may vary from large (e.g. caretaking or building projects) through to small (e.g. gardening or cleaning).
You can also help us by supporting our fundraising ventures, serving on our committee, or simply attending retreats or coming along to our regular meditation meetings in Hobart on Tuesday evenings (see p. 2).
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Committee 2014
Charles Chadwick – PresidentGuy Turnbull– Vice PresidentMadhu Lilley – SecretaryKate MacNicol – SecretaryGeorge Ramm – TreasurerRoger Maclennan – Public OfficerMaria Grist – Committee, web & newsletterGuy Turnbull – Committee, building project managerAnna Burgess, Richard Bladel, Jill Wright, Christine Batten – General Committee
Mailing address
PO Box 593 North Hobart TAS Australia 7002
Online
www.tashicholing.net www.hobartbuddhistmeditationcentre.com [email protected] Facebook: http://fbl.me/hbmc Twitter: @tashicholingWe thank Andrew Wilkie MP for his kind assistance with printing this newsletter.