Buddhist Meditation & Study Group

We will begin with a short introduction followed by listening to the Prayer of Kuntuzangpo and a short meditation..

Prayer of Kuntuzangpo (or Samantabhadra’s Prayer) is a timeless message about how our perspective creates our reality. It presents the ultimate Primordial Buddha—representing pure, open awareness—speaking directly to the nature of existence. The prayer explains that all living beings share the exact same fundamental, pristine nature, but we get trapped in suffering because we mistake our temporary thoughts, fears, and desires for who we truly are. By comparing this pure awareness to an endless sky and our fleeting emotions to passing clouds, the prayer serves as a compassionate wish for everyone to recognize their inherent wisdom and wake up from confusion, realizing that peace and clarity have been within them all along.

Rather than setting up a battle between good and bad, or sacred and mundane, it traces both enlightenment and confusion back to the exact same source: whether or not we recognize the true nature of our own mind in any given moment.
By addressing every realm of existence and every pattern of delusion—from anger and attachment to subtle ignorance—it functions almost like a complete map of consciousness. It gently reminds us that no matter how far we seem to stray into confusion, the ground of pure awareness remains entirely untouched.

It is said that during solar or lunar eclipses,
when clamor or earthquakes happen,
at the solstices, or at the turn of the year,
if we let ourselves arise as Samantabhadra
and recite this prayer within the hearing of all,
through the aspiration of us yogic practitioners,
all sentient beings of the three realms
will gradually become free from suffering
and then swiftly attain Buddhahood.

As usual, we will begin with 1/2 hr. meditation followed by our Dharma discussion...

Tonight we are beginning our study of "Another Kind of Freedom" by Pema Chödrön we will also be referring to "The Myth of Freedom"...by Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche as the source text for Pema's teachings.

About the texts:
The Myth of Freedom and the Way of Meditation by Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche Based on teachings given in the early to mid-1970s, this foundational text explores how we mistakenly seek freedom through our attachments, ego, and conditioning—often falling into what Trungpa famously termed "spiritual materialism." It breaks down the nature of mind, the mechanics of samsara, and how mindfulness-awareness practice (shamatha-vipashyana) allows us to cut through self-deception and experience true, unconditioned freedom.

Another Kind of Freedom by Pema Chödrön As one of Chögyam Trungpa's primary student-teachers, Pema Chödrön offers a deeply personal, accessible, and practical commentary on The Myth of Freedom. She takes her teacher's radical, uncompromising insights and grounds them in daily lived experience, offering actionable guidance on working with fear, groundlessness, and reactive habits.

Reading them together provides a rich dynamic: Trungpa Rinpoche presents the direct, penetrating blueprint of the teachings, while Pema Chödrön brings the compassionate, step-by-step application for navigating everyday life.