Aug 29

Compassion Series: Part 4 – Compassion In Action

“In having good intentions and compassionate motivation in our actions … we cultivate this abundance of spiritual merit for our path.”

~ Dorje Lopön Chandra Easton

When does Compassion come to life? In our activity, where the divine play of the world materializes. From a warm and open heart, our actions invite interaction into the present, healing into the past, and inspiration for the future.

Dorje Lopön Chandra Easton will be teaching the 21 Tārās for the 21st Century – Part II Online Program, September 8 to October 13. Early Bird opportunities end this Sunday, August 30. Click here to learn more.

In this final blog post of our four-part series, we learn how compassion touches the human heart.

Part 4: Compassion In Action

In opening to the Great Mother we plant the seeds of wisdom. In meditation we nurture the jewel of compassion. And in activity we share this with the world. Why is this powerful? Because it cultivates a rich and abundant existence, which relieves all suffering. This jewel fulfills our wishes, and delights our senses.

Compassionate activity is the perfection of practice, and can be found in people all around us. We can say that someone is an emanation of a great deity, because the enlightened qualities of the deity are alive through them. For example, the Dalai Lama is an emanation of Avalokiteshvara (or Chenrezig in Tibetan – “the Buddha of Compassion”) because he acts tirelessly with loving concern for all beings. Likewise, when we offer our unique gifts to the world, we are in co-creation with the divine.

In Buddhism, when we complete a compassionate act, we accumulate merit. This accumulation of merit is like a vast ocean, which continues to grow as our compassionate activity grows. This completes our relationship with the cycle of compassion, awakening us to infinite possibilities in the world, and peace in our hearts.

Tara Mandala will offer the 21 Tārās for the 21st Century – Part II Online Program, from September 8 to October 13, with Dorje Lopön Chandra Easton. Develop everyday activity inspired by Tārā, the female Buddha of Compassion, and discover the manifestations of her in real-life people. Learn more »

In this video, Dorje Lopön Chandra relates the worldly activity of Indian philosopher, scientist and environmentalist Vandana Shiva, to the third Tārā, Sönam Tobkyé.

Befriending Fear & Embodying Compassion

With Dorje Lopön Chandra Easton

September 8 to October 13

Learn about Tārā’s symbolic meaning, mantra, and meditations, and explore the universal aspects of the empowered feminine in her many diverse forms that support us in befriending our fears and overcoming the very real human challenges we meet in our daily lives. Through powerful and inspiring stories about real women, both historic and modern, Buddhist and non-Buddhist, you will gain knowledge and personal experience about the myriad qualities of these 21 Tārās.

Early Bird opportunities until August 30

REGISTER NOW

ABOUT THE RETREAT TEACHER

Dorje Lopön Chandra Easton

Dorje Lopön Chandra Easton, Buddhist teacher and translator, studied Buddhism and Tibetan language at the Library of Tibetan Works & Archives in Dharamsala, India, founded by H.H. Dalai Lama. She later received her degree from UCSB’s religious studies department at which time she co-translated Sublime Dharma, A Compilation of Two Texts on the Great Perfection, published by Vimala Publishing, 2012. From the very beginning of her Buddhist studies, Dorje Lopön Chandra recognized the profound need to bring forth the voice of the sacred feminine in Buddhist theory and practice. Due to this, in 1999 during her first pregnancy, she met and then later began to study with Lama Tsultrim Allione, pioneering female Buddhist teacher, national best selling author, and founder of Tara Mandala Retreat Center. Dorje Lopön Chandra is the Assistant Spiritual Director and Lead Senior Teacher at Tara Mandala Retreat Center. She serves on the Tara Mandala Board of Trustees, develops programs and curricula for Tara Mandala, as well as … Read more »

We hope you enjoyed this four-part Compassion Series, honoring the steps we take as we lovingly walk this earth together.

Read the other parts of our Compassion Series here:
Part One – Connecting to the Source (click here)
Part Two – Opening the Heart of Compassion (click here)
Part Three – Embodying Compassion (click here).

~With Blessings,
Tara Mandala Retreat Center

Photos: Header (Alan Kozlowski), flower (Akiko Oncken), flower garland (Joanne Brion)
gold geometric divider