Bringing Mind Into View

The Ten Things Wherein One Does Good for Oneself from A Precious Garland of the Supreme Path, interwoven with practical commentary from Mark van den Enden's Bringing Mind Into View.In this episode, the hosts will deeply explore the ten actions that represent a true kindness to oneself, freeing the mind from samsaric entanglement. They will unpack the profound benefits of:Abandoning worldly conventions and human attachments to practice the pure Dharma.Leaving behind worldly life to follow a lineage guru or sublime personage.Giving up distractions to devote oneself to learning, reflection, and meditation.Embracing solitude rather than remaining enmeshed with village people and neighbors.Cutting the ties of sense pleasures and remaining stable in nonattachment.Being content with the bare necessities and simplicity, without craving luxuries.Keeping steadfast resolve and not surrendering one's independence to the influence of others.Pursuing the lasting happiness of enlightenment (cultivating bodhicitta) without regard for the temporary pleasures of this life.Giving up clinging to things as being real and bringing emptiness into your experience.Guarding your actions of body, speech, and mind to exert yourself in gathering the two accumulations.

The Ten Self-Accomplished Sufferings.In this episode, the hosts unpack how we manufacture our own misery through misguided actions and worldly fixations, using Gampopa's text from A Precious Garland of the Supreme Path and Mark van den Enden's commentary from Bringing Mind Into View.Episode Show Notes: The 10 Self-Accomplished Sufferings The hosts explore these ten profound metaphors that describe how practitioners bring unnecessary suffering upon themselves:Loveless Worldliness: Living a family life without love is like an imbecile eating strong poison.Abandoning Dharma for Evil: Committing negative, unspiritual deeds instead of practicing the Dharma is like a madman jumping into a bottomless abyss.Hypocrisy and Deceit: Deceiving others with undue pretensions or acting as a charlatan is like willingly eating poisoned food.Foolish Leadership: Entrusting leadership to someone of little intelligence, or foolishly acting as a leader for others, is like asking a frail old woman to herd cattle.Selfish Pursuits: Laboring entirely for selfish, worldly aims (the eight worldly concerns) instead of working with pure motivation for the benefit of others is like a blind person wandering aimlessly in the northern plains.Grabbing for Grandeur: Undertaking impossible tasks or striving for unreachable feats is like a weakling trying to carry a massive, heavy burden.Disregarding the Guru: Arrogantly belittling the words of the Buddha or disregarding your holy guru is like a ruler ignoring their council, or losing the protection of a powerful escort.Abandoning Meditation: Giving up your meditation practice to roam through the towns and return to worldly distractions is like a mountain deer descending into the valley where it will be hunted.Succumbing to Distraction: Getting carried away by the elaboration of distractions rather than encouraging and sustaining your innate natural wisdom is like a mighty garuda bird breaking its own wings.Misappropriating Sacred Property: Carelessly consuming the property and funds of the guru and the Three Jewels is like a small child trying to eat burning embers.The episode weaves these ancient warnings together with modern mind-science, reminding listeners that these troubles are "self-imposed" system errors that can be remedied through sincere practice, ethical restraint, and waking up from the delusions of the human suit.

In this episode, the hosts will deeply explore the ten things that ultimately provide no lasting benefit, especially when viewed against the reality of impermanence and death. They will unpack the futility of:Serving and obsessing over the perishable, illusory body.Hoarding wealth with greed and avarice.Labouring to construct beautiful mansions or palaces that you must eventually leave behind.Giving wealth to children or relatives who will have no power to help you at the moment of your death.Giving excessive attention to family and friends, since you must face death alone.Increasing your number of heirs just to leave them amassed wealth.Putting your life's effort into acquiring land, property, and worldly authority.Entering the Dharma but failing to conduct yourself with sincerity.Being highly educated in Dharma through hearing and reflection, but failing to actually practice it.Remaining with a holy guru for a long time but lacking the faith and respect needed to receive their blessings.