San diego tibetan buddhist center

Open to all schools and traditions of Buddhist wisdom, and with the guidance and gracious patronage of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Rigpa offers those following the Buddhist teachings a complete path of study and practice, along with the environment they need to experience the teachings fully.

A manual for life and death and a source of inspiration from the heart of the Tibetan tradition, The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying provides a lucid and inspiring introduction to the practice of meditation, to the nature of mind, to karma and rebirth, to compassionate love and care for the dying, and to the trials and rewards of the spiritual path.

There are many stages and many levels to meditation, but the highest goal or purpose of meditation is to awaken in us the sky-like nature of mind, our true nature.

As soon as we connect with the purity of our inherent nature, our buddha nature, what is revealed is our fundamental goodness—the good heart. Kindness, compassion and love simply exude. And so you are not only in touch with yourself, but completely in touch with others also. You feel a sense of real oneness with them. There is no barrier standing any longer between you and them. Nor even between you and yourself. So often the barriers, and so the problems, are our own; we are at war with ourselves.

Now, through this practice, as the grip of ego loosens and our tendency to grasp evaporates, so the conflict, the suffering, and the pain of fragmenting and fighting with ourselves dissolve. For the first time, a deep and fundamental forgiveness for ourselves becomes possible. At the same time, expectation, fear, and anxiety melt away, and with them all those feelings—of being blocked and closed, of not being in touch with ourselves or others, of being estranged even from our own feelings—that disqualify us from being happy.

When practicing meditation, all you need to do is let go and relax. Just rest, open, in the present moment, simply allowing whatever arises to rise. But neither do you have to follow them. Simply allow yourself to be aware of them. When you remain in this awareness, then you realize that you are much bigger than your thoughts, emotions and perceptions. Thoughts are not you. Emotions are not you. You become free of them, as you discover the confidence of your true nature.

So, do not follow after thoughts and emotions, but merely be aware of everything that passes through your awareness, as it is. What we are doing is resting our mind in its natural awareness, completely unaffected by whatever arises. At Jigme Lingpa Center, we also aim to preserve the Tibetan philosophy, history and culture. To achieve this, we organize cultural festivals, conduct celebrations and rituals of Tibetan Buddhism.

In San Diego, the Center operates in Balboa Park, as well as our original site near Lemon Grove, where we offer free courses, although donations are accepted. We give public lectures on a variety of topics concerning both the practical application of Buddhism and its cultural and historical aspects. In addition, the Jigme Lingpa Center network has various dharma centers around the world.

We also organize spiritual retreats in the United States, Mexico and Canada. As a child, he entered the Thubten Chokor Ling Monastery located in the Gande region, Golok under the guidance of his root teacher Kyabye Orgyen Kusum Lingpa, where in addition to developing a complete monastic education, he trained in the yogi lineage of Anu Yoga. In addition to the instructions of Buddhism, he studied history, astrology, grammar, Tibetan medicine, painting, sculpture, music, theater.

All this has led him to share teachings on the proper use of the body, the word and the mind; with the motto: world peace through inner peace. His life in the West has also been dedicated to sharing the teachings of the Buddha through his painting, in which he reflects his relationship with everyday life, no matter where he is in the world. Jamyang Khyentse Wanpo.