Living the Modern Path

The first thing that comes to your mind when you think of Buddhism might be worshiping the Buddha or that dramatic phrase “all life is suffering.” Maybe you think that Buddhism is an ancient religion and today you only see it appearing as mindfulness or a short meditation after your yoga practice. These thoughts aren’t totally wrong, Buddhism is an ancient religion but more than that it’s a philosophy and it is not inactive by any means. There is a myriad of diverse teachings and practices that are still present today, especially in the Pioneer Valley. We observed the Tibetan Buddhist center Jampel Nyingpo Ling (JNL) located in Amherst Massachusetts. We attended a practice session or “Dharma talk” and listened to Geshe Ngawang teach. The practice session begins with an opening chant. Geshe-la starts by going through a preselected root text with his own commentary and explains its meaning and importance. He then opens the floor for questions and comments to help his students reach a more concrete level of understanding. After we observed Geshe-la’s class, we had a chance to chat with members of the center and the teacher to hear about the essential role Buddhist practice and study plays in their lives. We talked to Sue Downing, one of the group’s organizers, Shawna Fisher, the chanting master of JNP, Geshe Ngawang Choetso, and his translator Dolkar Gyaltsen.

Shawna mentions some key Tibetan terms that we thought would be helpful to define:

Mahāyāna: Literally “Great Vehicle,” The main texts and teachings of early Buddhism and one of the two main branches of Buddhism.
Dharma: There is no perfect English translation but roughly “something that holds you.” Dharma refers to the doctrines that lie at the heart of Buddhist ideals.
Sangha: An assembly or collection of people.
Samatha: Single point concentration meditation.

Through our exploration of JNL’s teachings and values, topics such as emptiness, selflessness, and impermanence have become apparent as the heart of their Buddhist practice. In short, these ideas set up a foundational understanding of the world we perceive versus the world as it truly is– deeply interconnected and ultimately empty. In reality, no object in this world originates on its own, rather it requires the help of various objects and circumstances to exist the way it does. We fall into the trap of believing that we are passive observers of an absolute and substantial world. Geshe-la’s instruction intends to harness these Buddhist beliefs, release us from this thought pattern, and show us that the true nature of the world is empty, impermanent, and dependent on our own mental construction. Naturally, humans cling to stability and consistency and according to Buddhist teachings, this is the root of suffering.

But what do these big concepts really mean for us? And how do they translate into everyday life? These are the questions we strived to answer through our exploration of the JNL community. We discovered that a commitment to Buddhist practice and teaching has the potential to help you let go of anger, live with more kindness, and even transcend the fear of death. We have taken these important insights and compiled them into a digestible podcast for you to learn from and enjoy!

Written by Francesca Binder and Devon Fischer

Life is like a river, and people don’t realize that they’re floating in the stream.

White Tara image featured on the JNL website: https://jampelnyingpoling.org/