Table of Contents
Homage ix
Foreword: His Holiness the Dalai Lama xiv xiii
Foreword: Gochen Tulku Sang-ngag xv
Who Is Lama Tsomo? xvii
Prologue To This Series xix
Introduction 1
Methods So We Can See For Ourselves 5
Checking Our Motivation 5
The Tibetan Nose Blow 11
The Theory 11
The Practice 13
The Finer Points 15
Back to the Blow by Blow 19
Connecting 26
Tranquil Abiding 29
Shamata 29
The Actual Practice of Tranquil Abiding-A Brief Introduction 32
Some Shamata Tips 34
Shamata: The Main Event 37
Now What? 40
Mind in Agitated State 40
Unrealistic Expectations 46
When We Realize We've Been Following a Thought 47
Agitation: Perhaps Our Most Popular Pitfall 49
Dullness, the Other Pitfall 52
Yet Another Pitfall: Great Experiences 54
Beginning the Session 55
Ending the Session 58
In Conclusion 59
My Own Little Experiment 62
Tonglen 65
The Setup 66
The Actual Practice 67
Questions (and Answers!) 71
Additional Comments 74
Doing Daily Practice 77
Round Robin 77
Sample Daily Practice Session 79
The Practice of Doing Daily Practice 80
Working It into Your Schedule 81
How to Do a Prostration 83
Setting 84
Frame of Mind 85
In Closing-Some Words Of Advice 89
A Word or Two about Drugs 90
More Support-Why Not? 92
Empowerments 95
Refuge Ceremony 97
More about the Three Jewels 97
What Will Refuge in the Three Jewels Do for Me? 101
How Will I Know if I'm Ready to Take Refuge? 102
More Follow-Through: Some Qualified Teachers 102
The Next Step-When You're Really Ready 104
Appendix A How to Find or Start a Group 107
Appendix B Glossary Ill
Appendix C Recommended Reading. 116
Appendix D Credits & Permissions 1-1
Index 123
Lama Sangak Yeshe Tsomo: Curriculum Vitae 126
Acknowledgments 131