We were delighted to have Rinpoche in Ireland again last month. This is his 29th year visiting us and he continues to travel great distances to teach to whomever wishes to hear Dharma. We are very fortunate in Ireland that he spends almost a week here in a very busy schedule.
For the first few days, Kagyu Samye Dzong in Dublin were hosting him and delivered three evenings of teachings.
These teachings were regarding the text ‘Precious Garland of the Supreme Path’ by the great master Gampopa, founder of the Kagyu lineage. The first evening Rinpoche introduced the root text and gave a short Biography of its author followed by an explanation of the first of 27 chapters. 
He would go on to deliver a teaching on each chapter per night so this work will take several visits to complete. He taught from several translations and cross–referenced the original Tibetan to deliver an accurate as possible explanation always concentrating on the essential aspects, full audio and video recordings were made and are available in the Bodhicharya Teachings Archive. He also gave Lung transmission of ‘Shower of Blessings’ for those wishing to practice this aspect of Guru Yoga and on the last evening a Lung for the ‘Milerapa Sadhana’.
He made himself available throughout his stay in Dublin for many personal interviews and also had a meeting with small group of students from Bodhicharya that took the form of a relaxed conversation: this was regarding the topic of how Buddha Dharma is being delivered and received outside of Tibet in the modern world and personally how he thought the last 30 years of his work is progressing. This rare, unusual and candid conversation is also recorded and available on the same archive under the title ‘Discussing Essential Dharma’.
At the end of the week Rinpoche journeyed to the other end of the Country, down to the tip of South West Cork where Dzogchen Beara were hosting him for a weekend retreat, this beautiful location even more so with sunshine and blue skies that somehow seem to accompany his continued visits.
This weekend was entitled “Meeting Challenges: Unshaken by Life’s Ups and Downs” and co-insides with the release of a new book of the same title in the Heart Wisdom series by Bodhicharya publications. This Lojong (Mind training) teaching is based upon the root text “Bringing Happiness and Unhappiness onto the Path.” Also translated as “Turning Suffering and Happiness into Enlightenment” by the third Dodrupchen -Jigme Tenpe Nyima, A Dzogchen master from the Nyingma Lineage. (The fourth Dodrupchen-Tubten Trinlé Pal Zangpo lives in Gangtok, Sikkim and is a teacher of Ringu Tulku Rinpoche).
The first teaching session was spent addressing questions prepared by Rigpa students that included: Bodhichitta, A healthy sense of self and, Dealing with our personal practice in an unjust world. He also reminded us that skillful, direct and practical actions should never be forsaken. This was an excellent introduction to the weekend of Lojong teaching and provided a summary of the topic Rinpoche would further explore in relation to the text and the questions that arose from the audience, many of whom were new to such teachings and Buddhist Dharma in general.
Over the next three sessions Rinpoche focused on the early part of the text dealing with challenges and suffering and how they can be an opportunity, he occasionally used brutal and horrific examples of the Tibetans’ experiences––including friends and family, but somehow maintained his familiar warmth and humour throughout.
Regardless of examples, metaphors, stories and jokes the teachings always returned to and demonstrated the essence of such teachings, that it is our perception and reaction to external and internal phenomena that creates our world. With compassion and wisdom, Mind’s true nature can be revealed, this requires diligent training and practise and is of benefit to ourselves, those around us and all beings.
Andy
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