Chanted Prayers Schedule
All chanted prayers are offered in person only! Please see our calendar to confirm days and times. We have chanted prayer booklets (sadhanas) available to use during the chanted prayers, however, if you wish to purchase prayer booklets CDs, art and books, go to Tharpa.com/us.
HEART JEWEL
Mon - Sat | 5-6pm & Sun | 2-3pm
WISHFULFILLING JEWEL with TSOG
Wed | 6-7:15pm (check calendar)
Excluding weeks with OSG and Melodious Drum
OFFERING to the SPIRITUAL GUIDE
10th & 25th of each month check calendar for times
TARA - LIBERATION from SORROW
8th of each month check calendar for times
PRECEPTS
15th of each month 6:30-7:15 am
MELODIOUS DRUM
29th of each month check calendar for times
MORE DETAILS about the PRAYERS
HEART JEWEL
The daily puja at Kadampa Buddhist Centers is Heart Jewel, which is a Guru yoga of Je Tsongkhapa combined with the condensed sadhana of his Dharma Protector and a short mediation on Lamrim.
This puja includes two practices revealed by the Wisdom Buddha Manjushri. The first is a special Guru yoga in which we visualize our Spiritual Guide as Je Tsongkhapa, who himself is a manifestation of Manjushri.
By relying upon this practice, we can purify negativity, accumulate merit, and receive blessings. In this way, we will naturally accomplish all the realizations of the stages of the path of Sutra and Tantra, and in particular we will attain a very special Dharma wisdom. (45min)
WISHFULFILLING JEWEL with TSOG
Wishfulfilling Jewel is a special practice for developing compassion, wisdom, and spiritual strength by relying on the Wisdom Buddha Je Tsongkhapa, and for overcoming obstacles and difficulties on the spiritual path by relying on his Dharma Protector Dorje Shugden.
These practices were revealed by the Wisdom Buddha Manjushri who emanated as Je Tsongkhapa. By relying upon this Guru Yoga practice of Je Tsongkhapa, we can purify negativity, accumulate merit, and receive blessings. In this way, we shall naturally accomplish all the realizations of the stages of the path of Sutra and Tantra, and in particular we shall attain a very special Dharma wisdom.
The second practice in Wishfulfilling Jewel Puja is a method for relying upon the Dharma Protector, Dorje Shugden. Through this, we can overcome obstacles to our practice and create favourable conditions so that we can nurture and increase our Dharma realizations. If we rely upon the Dharma Protector Dorje Shugden sincerely, our faith in Je Tsongkhapa will naturally increase and we shall easily gain experience of the pure Buddhadharma transmitted directly to Je Tsongkhapa by the Wisdom Buddha Manjushri.
These two practices are the very essence of the New Kadampa Tradition of Mahayana Buddhism. If we practise them regularly and sincerely, we shall reap a rich harvest of pure Dharma realizations, and eventually come to experience the supreme joy of full enlightenment.
Wishfulling Jewel tsog offering prayers are ceremonies that involve making offerings of food and drink to the Buddhas in conjunction with prayers and meditation of Wishfulfilling Jewel. They are an excellent method for accumulating merit, purifying negativity and receiving blessings.
Tsog’ means ‘collection’ and when we make Tsog offerings we do them collectively, as a group. In this way we accumulate collective karma – we create the cause to progress along the Spiritual Path together. We also accumulate a great deal of merit – positive mental energy – the cause of good fortune.
During a Tsog puja we arrange a table of food and drinks – making it look as beautiful as we can. We imagine that we are preparing a banquet of delight for the holy beings to enjoy. We then invite the holy beings to the place of offerings and imagine they enjoy this blissful banquet. (1hr)
OFFERING to the SPIRITUAL GUIDE
The practice of relying upon a Spiritual Guide, or ‘Guru Yoga’, is the root of the spiritual path and the foundation of all spiritual attainments.
In Kadampa Buddhism, Guru Yoga is practiced in association with Je Tsongkhapa, an emanation of the Wisdom Buddha Manjushri.
The principal Guru Yoga of Je Tsongkhapa is Offering to the Spiritual Guide, which is an extensive practice that is usually performed twice a month, on the 10th and 25th days, at Kadampa Buddhist centers.
It was compiled by the first Panchen Lama, Losang Chökyi Gyaltsän, as a preliminary practice for Vajrayana Mahamudra.
Although the main practice is reliance upon the Spiritual Guide, it also includes all the essential practices of the stages of the path (Lamrim) and training the mind (Lojong), as well as both the generation stage and completion stage of Highest Yoga Tantra. (1.5hrs)
TARA - LIBERATION from SORROW
The Tara Prayers, Liberation from Sorrow, includes a special prayer Praises to the Twenty-one Taras composed by Buddha, and is performed regularly at Kadampa Buddhist centers worldwide.
Tara is a female Buddha, a manifestation of the ultimate wisdom of all the Buddhas. Each of the Twenty-one Taras is a manifestation of the principal Tara, Green Tara. Tara is also known as the ‘Mother of the Conquerors’. If we rely upon Mother Tara sincerely and with strong faith she will protect us from all obstacles and fulfill all our wishes. Since she is a wisdom Buddha, and since she is a manifestation of the completely purified wind element, Tara is able to help us very quickly.
If we recite the twenty-one verses of praise we shall receive inconceivable benefits. These praises are very powerful because they are Sutra, the actual words of Buddha. It is good to recite them as often as we can. (45min)
PRECEPTS
The essence of the practice is to take eight precepts and to keep them purely for a period of twenty-four hours.
By doing this practice again and again, we acquaint ourself with the practice of moral discipline and thereby make our human life meaningful. We receive many great benefits from practicing moral discipline in this way. It helps us to solve the problems of this life by avoiding the causes of suffering; and it creates the cause for us to take fortunate rebirths in future lives and thereby protects us from the sufferings of lower rebirth.
In particular, because it is performed with bodhichitta motivation, this practice is very powerful for purifying negative karma. It accumulates a vast collection of merit and creates the cause for us to attain the unsurpassed happiness of enlightenment.
We first need to receive these precepts from a qualified Preceptor, and then we can take them on our own as often as we wish. Instructions on both these methods are included in this sadhana.
If we wish to take the essence of this precious human life we should strive to engage in this practice as often as we can. (45min)
MELODIOUS DRUM
This monthly practice consists principally of prayers to our Dharma Protector, Dorje Shugden. A Dharma Protector is an emanation of a Buddha or Bodhisattva whose main functions are to avert the inner and outer obstacles that prevent practitioners from attaining spiritual realizations, and to arrange all the necessary conditions for their practice. Dorje Shugden always helps, guides, and protects pure and faithful practitioners by granting blessings, increasing their wisdom, fulfilling their wishes and bestowing success on all their virtuous activities. This practice includes a tsog offerings are made. (3.5 hours)
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Melodious Drum is recommended for experienced practitioners only. Newcomers are welcome email info@meditationinbloomington.org to get more information about it.
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Please check KMC Bloomington calendar.
Powa - Transference of Consciousness is by request, please email rt@meditationinbloomington.org