Nagarjuna’s Letter to a Friend
(Skt. Suhṛllekha; Tib. བཤེས་པའི་སྤྲིང་ཡིག་, shepé tring yik)
A Letter from a Friend, written by Nagarjuna in the 2nd century, is a well-known text of the Tibetan Mahayana tradition. Throughout the various lineages, all great Tibetan scholars have referred to this text in their teachings, including Je Tsongkhapa in his Lamrim. The intended audience of this teaching are lay people who wish to fix the problems related to their livelihood and are ready to learn Buddha’s Dharma in a simple, yet comprehensive way.
Nagarjuna’s teaching is a major source of Dharma instruction in the general stream of Tibetan Buddhism. It includes material for meditation focused on mindfulness and awareness, self-development, taming the turmoil of our crazy lifestyle, what kind of livelihood we should have, how to train our mind and body, and the complementary nature of selflessness and existence. In short, Nagarjuna offers us the meaning of life and skills to find happiness.
This summer retreat will be a perfect teaching retreat for someone who wants to begin the journey along Buddha’s path. It will also help those who wish to gain a deeper understanding of Buddha’s original teachings within the course of everyday life.
Demo Rinpoche will give a White Tara Longevity Initiation at the conclusion of the summer retreat on Sunday, July 28, 2024 from 10:00am – 1:00pm ET. This event is live onsite with an option to watch via Zoom. This will be followed by a potluck picnic. Visit the Ann Arbor chapter page for picnic details.
Fee: $400 / Give What You Can
Schedule for Monday – Saturday (all times ET subject to change):
8:30am – 9:30am: White Tara Guided Meditation
9:30am – 10:00am: Break
10:00am – 12:00pm: Morning Teachings
12:00pm – 2:00pm: Lunch
2:00pm – 3:00pm: Discussion Groups
3:00pm – 3:30pm: Break
3:30pm – 6:30pm: Afternoon Teachings
6:30pm – 8:00pm: Dinner
8:00pm – 9:00pm: Social Activities (times vary throughout the week – to be announced)
Sunday
10:00am – 1:00pm: White Tara Initiation
1:30pm – 4:00pm: Jewel Heart pot-luck picnic (all invited)
About Demo Rinpoche
Access Nagarjuna’s Dedication teaching from The Gelek Rimpoche Archive for free
For context and background of the Nagarjuna’s Letter to a Friend teachings, here is a link to the Nagarjuna’s Dedication workshop from The Gelek Rimpoche Archive that Gelek Rimpoche held in Cleveland. You should also note the Archive contains many other teachings Gelek Rimpoche gave over the years but we think this is a good one to start with.
From the Archive: Nagarjuna's Dedication - 2009
