Basic Program
The Basic Program is a quite extensive study
program of the FPMT, which
is made available by the Maitreya Instituut in Amsterdam
(in English) and Emst
(in Dutch)
Devised by Lama Thubten Zopa Rinpoche as
an integrated program of Buddhist studies suitable for a contemporary
setting, the Basic Program is a comprehensive, practice-oriented
transmission of the Buddhadharma that will be of interest
to committed students who wish to progress beyond introductory-level
study and practice.
The program is introduced by Je Tsong Khapa's
masterwork on the stages of the graduated path to enlightenment
and further includes a sutra, four classics of the Indian
Mahayana tradition, ancillary Tibetan treatises on mind and
tenets and an introductory-level teaching on tantra. The curriculum
is taught by Geshe Sonam Gyaltsen in Emst and Venerable Kaye
Miner in Amsterdam, and is supported by meditation practice,
discussion and examination, in order to ensure that participants
develop an accurate, working understanding of the dharma as
a sound basis for daily practice, meditational retreat and
further study. A three month Lamrim retreat and optional examinations
conclude the approximate 5-year course of studies.
Students who pass the final, comprehensive
exam will be awareded an FPMT Basic Program Completion Certificate.
Candidates for the exam must have completed all the subjects
of the core curriculum and the Lamrim retreat. They also have
to satisfy the Basic Program criteria for behavior and conduct:
practicing to refrain from killing, stealing, lying, sexual
misconduct (adultery) and intoxicants, while developing their
concern for others and awareness of positive and negative
states of mind, and developing the practice of patience and
the bodhichitta motivation over the course of their Basic
Program studies.
The program consists of the following modules:
- The Stages on the Path to
Enlightenment (Lam rim)
- The Heart Sutra (Sherab
nyingpo)
- Mahayana Mind Training
(lo jong)
- Engaging in the Bodhisattva Deeds (Bodhicaryavatara)
- Mind and Cognition (Lorig)
- Tenets (Drubtha)
- Ornament for Clear Realizations - Fourth
Chapter (abhisamayalankara)
- Sublime Continuum if the Mahayana (Gyulama)
- First Chapter: The Tathagata Essence (Mahayana uttaratantra
shastra)
- Ground and Paths of Secret Mantra (ngag
kyi sa lam)
- Seventy Topics (togpa dün chu)
- Death, Intermediate State and Rebirth
(zhi'i ku sum lam kyer)
- A highest yoga tantra commentary
1. The Stages on the Path to Enlightenment
(Lam rim)
“With study comes
understanding; but this must be put to use. It is therefore
vital to put as much as one can of what one has studied
into practice…”
The celebrated system of teachings known as the Stages
of the Path (Lamrim) represents a synthesis of the entire
path to enlightenment.
Presented in a clear and concise form, these teachings are
easy to understand and apply in meditation. Instruction
begins with the preliminary practices, and then progresses
through the essential practices of the ‘beings of
the three scopes’, including correct guru devotion,
renunciation, the altruistic wish for enlightenment and
the view of the middle way. As a foundation and context
for Buddhist practice, this subject is a key element of
the Basic Program.
2. The Heart Sutra (Sherab nyingpo)
“Form is empty, emptiness
is form; form is not other than emptiness, emptiness is
not other than form…”
Among the most famous of all the Buddhist scriptures,
the Heart Sutra reveals the truth of emptiness through a
short exchange between two of the Buddha’s most illustrious
disciples, Avalokiteshvara and Shariputra. Traditional commentary
expands on the cryptic style of the sutra to clarify the
exact nature of the wisdom realizing emptiness and the ‘method’
practices that are its essential complement, relating these
two aspects of practice to the five levels on the path to
enlightenment. The brevity and profound nature of the Heart
Sutra have made its recitation popular as an effective means
for dispelling obstacles to spiritual endeavor.
3. Mahayana Mind Training (Lo jong)
“And thus bodhisattvas
are likened to peacocks: They live on delusions –
those poisonous plants. Transforming them into the essence
of practice, they thrive in the jungle of everyday life.
Whatever is presented they always accept, while destroying
the poison of clinging desire…”
The Mahayana path is characterized by the Bodhisattva’s
aspiration to become a Buddha for the sake of all beings.
The means to develop and enhance this extraordinary attitude
are revealed in a genre of teachings, at once practical
and radical, known as ‘mind training’, or ‘thought
transformation’ (Lojong). Dharmarakshita’s Wheel
of Sharp Weapons is one of the most esteemed mind training
teachings, and a powerful weapon to cut through our true
enemies - the self-grasping and selfcherishing which oppose
altruistic intent and prevent lasting happiness and peace.
4. Engaging in the Bodhisattva Deeds (Skt.
Bodhicaryavatara)
“For as long as space
endures, and for as long as living beings remain,
until then may I too abide, to dispel the misery of the
world.”
Shantideva
The teaching on the bodhisattva’s deeds is based
on Shantideva’s inspirational verses on Mahayana aspiration
and practice, composed more than a thousand years ago and
still widely regarded as the most authentic and complete
guide for the practitioner dedicated to the enlightenment
of all beings. This highest of motivations lies at the heart
of the Guide, which ranges in scope from simple, practical
techniques for developing generosity and dealing with destructive
emotions, up to the most refined
discussion of ultimate truth. Due to its authenticity and
relevance for everyday life, this classic is probably cited
more often in teachings by Tibetan Buddhist masters than
any other Buddhist scripture.
5. Mind and Cognition (Lorig)
“All human accomplishment
is preceded by valid cognition.”
Dharmakirti
Mind and Cognition (Lorig) begins with the study of mind,
both in its valid and distorted forms. In addition a number
of important themes are introduced, including the relationship
between subject and object, supramundane (yogic) knowing
and the connection between thought and reality. An introduction
to Buddhist psychology forms the latter part of the teaching,
where the various positive and negative emotions as well
as the cognitive states relevant to practice of a liberative
path are identified and defined.
6. Tenets (Drubtha)
“My doctrine has
two modes: advice and tenets.
To children I speak advice, and to yogis, tenets.”
Lankavatara Sutra
Based on the idea that the Buddha taught different things
to different people in line with their capacities, Tibetan
scholars systemized the numerous trends in Indian Buddhist
thought and taught the four schools of Tenets (Drubtha)
as a means to approach the most profound philosophical teachings
via more accessible levels. The text that is the basis for
study of this subject gives a brief overview of the assertions
on minds, objects, selflessness and the nature of attainment
within each of the schools, culminating in the tenets of
the most highly esteemed school, the Madhyamikas.
7. Ornament for Clear Realizations -
Fourth Chapter (Skt. Abhisamayalankara)
“That which through
the knower of all leads Hearers seeking pacification to
peace, which through the knower of paths causes those helping
migrators to achieve the aims of the world, and through
the perfect possession of which the Munis set forth these
varieties having all aspects, to the Mother of the Buddhas
as well as the host of Hearers and Bodhisattvas, I pay homage.”
Maitreya’s Ornament of Clear Realizations is the
root text for the study of the levels of realization related
to enlightenment according to the Madhyamika school. This
important scripture, traditionally the basis for extensive
study in the monastic curriculum, made explicit these levels
which were otherwise presented in only a hidden manner in
the Buddha’s Perfection of Wisdom teachings. From
among the seventy topics covered by the Ornament, the eleven
topics of Chapter Four have been selected for commentary
in the Basic Program curriculum.
8. Sublime Continuum if the Mahayana -
First Chapter: The Tathagata Essence (Skt. Mahayana uttaratantra
shastra Tib. Gyulama)
“I bow to
the one who, with no beginning, middle or end, has a serene
stillness and
is clear-minded and fully evolved, who became clear from
his own aspects and once
clear, shows fearless, constant paths of the mind to bring
realisation to those with
no realisation…”
One of the major texts studied in all traditions of Tibetan
Buddhism, Maitreya’s Sublime Continuum clarifies the
meaning of our Buddha potential, in particular the emptiness
of the mind that allows evolution to a state of complete
enlightenment. The first chapter of this work which explains
four related ‘vajra’ subjects - Buddha, Dharma,
Sangha and Buddha potential - will be the focus of this
teaching.
9. Ground and Paths of Secret Mantra (Ngag
kyi sa lam)
“In brief, the Buddhahood
achieved over countless aeons, you will attain in this birth,
through the most excellent bliss, or the state of Vajradhara.”
Samputa Tantra
Grounds and Paths of Secret Mantra offers a concise overview
of the structure of the Tantric path, widely acclaimed in
Tibet as the swiftest and most sublime means to realize
Buddhahood. Tantra distinguishes itself in particular through
a unique combination of method and wisdom, achieved through
meditation on the perfect form of a Buddha as completely
devoid of true existence. Kirti Lobsang Trinley’s
commentary presents the most important features of the four
classes of Tantra as well as the initiation procedures and
particularities of the deity yoga related to each class.
10. Seventy Topics (Togpa dün chu)
Seventy Topics is an important study of the entire sutra
path to enlightenment as presented in the Ornament of Clear
Realizations, including all the fundamental features of
the basis, path and goal in the Mahayana. The Topics are
listed and each is defined and explained in turn.
11. Death, Intermediate State and Rebirth
(Zhi’i ki sum lam kyer)
Death, intermediate state and rebirth underpin samsara,
the condition of repeated rebirth impelled by previous action
and delusion. But they are also the three ‘basic bodies’
of Highest Yoga Tantra practice, forming the bases for altruistic
transformation into the Truth, Enjoyment and Emanation Bodies
of a Buddha. This transformation is brought about by means
of simulating in meditation the stages of the death process
that result in manifestation of the clear light mind. Therefore,
this teaching explains in detail both the death process
and the way it is brought into the path to enlightenment.
12. A highest yoga tantra commentary
Commentary on an actual Highest Yoga Tantra deity-practice,
in particular the two stages of generation and completion.
Generation stage practice utilizes the imagination as a
means to cultivate the pure form and environment of a Buddha.
Completion stage follows, during which the practitioner
gains increased mastery of the subtle vital energies, culminating
in the ability to manifest the powerful clear light mind
- the optimum mind for realization of emptiness –
and ultimately the union of the clear light mind and the
illusory body. The precise details of the associated vizualisations
and meditation rituals are also clarified, and the complex
symbolism explained.
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