Practices for World Peace​

[senseless virtue]

Practices for World Peace

Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s Recent Advice for Generating Peace in the World

When the world is in trouble, it can feel very powerless and overwhelming to not know what we can do to actually help. IMI Sangha recently asked Lama Zopa Rinpoche for advice on prayers and practices they could do at this time. We are happy to share this valuable advice with you as well:
 

1. Sampa Lhundrupma
2. Recitation of Guru Rinpoche mantra
3. Heart Sutra recitation
4. Prayer to stop war: Prayer in Accordance with the Times
5. Most Secret Hayagriva sadhana (for those who have received the initiation and can do the practice)

• Download compilation: Prayers to Stop War – Prayers 1–3
• Download Prayer in Accordance with the Three Times – Prayer 4.

For those who can do, or sponsor at a monastery, please also do:

1. Drugchuma
2. Most Secret Hayagriva Tsog Kong

Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s advice for how to motivate and think when doing these prayers and practices:

At the beginning generate strong bodhicitta, then do these prayers and practices to stop the war between Russia and Ukraine. The main purpose is to stop the war immediately. Then also to prevent famine, disease, and all the dangers of earth, water, fire, and wind, for all these dangers to be pacified immediately. To fill the whole world with perfect peace and happiness, including enlightenment, and to generate loving kindness, compassion and bodhicitta in the heart of all sentient beings, especially in that of the President of Russia.

Think that from Guru Padmasambhava’s heart, beams radiate and totally purify all the six realms’ sentient beings, totally purify all the delusions and negative karmas collected from beginningless rebirths, especially anger, attachment, and ignorance; think that these are totally purified. Then recite Sampa Lhundrupma, followed by the Padmasambhava mantra (one or two malas).

With strong faith in Guru Padmasambhava and total reliance, Guru Padmasambhava will definitely help because his compassion embraces all sentient beings.

Then another way to think is, with strong faith in His Holiness the Dalai Lama in the aspect or Guru Padmasambhava, nectar beams are emitted to the Russian President and enter his body, and totally purify all his negative karma and obscurations; all the dissatisfied mind, desire, ignorance, anger, and selfish mind are totally purified; he generates bodhicitta especially, and then the whole path to enlightenment. Do that very strongly, making strong prayers to His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

Then nectar beams are also emitted to all the Russian and Ukrainian armies, and these purify all the anger and self-cherishing thought on both sides, but mainly President Putin’s. They generate bodhicitta, and stop giving harm to even one sentient being and only benefit sentient beings, up to enlightenment.

Then recite the Heart Sutra and the prayer to stop wars.

For those who can do the Most Secret Hayagriva sadhana, do this at the beginning of the practice. When reciting the mantra, you can do the same visualizations as above, and think President Putin’s mind is totally changed and he generates bodhicitta.

 

Source: Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition website, article Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s Recent Advice for Generating Peace in the World.

 

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My additional thoughts: Always believe that peace and harmony are possible! Never lose your heart even if times appear grim!

[senseless virtue]

Meeting with European Campaigners for Peace

November 8, 2023

Thekchen Chöling, Dharamsala, HP, India - This morning His Holiness the Dalai Lama met a group of peace campaigners mostly from Europe. Their leader, Sofia Stril-Rever from France, declared that their hearts were filled with joy to meet him again. She told him that they were inspired by the example he has set in service of humanity. She reported that the group took part in observing the UN endorsed Day of Conscience on 5th April. This occasion is dedicated to establishing fundamental freedoms and human rights for all people without distinction.

 

Stril-Rever asked His Holiness how good conscience and love can contribute to lasting peace in the world and he responded:

 

“As human beings we all receive our mother’s love as soon as we are born. As young children we unhesitatingly play with other children without caring where they are from or what they or their family believe. This kind of openness is our basic human nature.

 

“As adults, too many of us see other people in terms of ‘us’ and ‘them’, basing our discrimination on secondary political or religious differences between us. If we are to contribute to peace among us, we must find ways to acknowledge that fundamentally, as human beings, we are all the same. We share a common experience. We are born the same way and ultimately, we all die.

 

“Focussing on differences of nationality or faith just becomes an excuse to kill each other. It’s unthinkable. Even animals live together more peaceably. If things are to change, we 8 billion human beings must learn to live together on this planet. We must recognise our common humanity. That’s why, whenever I meet someone new, I always see them as another human being like me. And because of this I recognise that we all belong to one human family.”

 

In answering questions about the climate crisis, His Holiness remarked that the changes taking place seem to be beyond our ability to control. He reiterated that as human beings we are all the same and we must learn not only to live together but also to work together in our common interest.

 

“While we still have time,” he added, “it would be sensible to cultivate a sense of brotherhood and sisterhood and help each other. We need to find a way to prolong the basic human love our mother shows us at birth and extend it to others for the rest of our lives.”

 

Asked how religion can influence the future of the world, His Holiness replied:

 

“The essence of religion is warm-heartedness. This is what all religions teach, whatever philosophical stance they adopt. Warm-heartedness is the essence: cultivating this is what will help.”

 

https://www.dalailama.com/news/2023/meeting-with-european-campaigners-for-peace

 

 

 

The Efficacy of Non-Violence

 

[Cobie]

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Edited December 10, 2023 by Cobie