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Cyber-Shedra is a distance learning program established by Namdroling, Montana and Khenpo Tenzin Norgey to help serious Dharma students receive pure Dharma teachings in the comfort of their own homes or offices, on their own schedules. Cyber-Shedra is a series of eight-month teachings sessions (Oct. - May) by Khenpo Norgey from the Palyul Tradition of Tibetan Buddhism followed by an optional retreat led by Khenpo. Participants have the opportunity to receive teachings from and communicate questions to Khenpo Norgey via email. Assignments and practice instructions related to the teachings will be incorporated into the program in order to increase understanding and accomplishment. This is an exceptionally rare opportunity for those students whose lives are mixed with the world and worldly activities.
This program is designed to include activity in the three aspects of the Dharma: hearing, contemplation, and meditation. It is a way to receive and practice deep, vast teachings on a regular basis; a way to integrate the Dharma into your life and deepen your relationship with the teachings.
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Khenpo Tenzin Norgay writes, "The teachings of the Buddha are very profound and are as applicable to this time and this tradition as they were when Buddha Shakyamuni first turned the wheel of the Dharma. "By his compassion and skillful means, he has taught different levels of teachings to meet the needs and understanding of the various sentient beings. The Buddha's teachings constitute one of the most logical and scientific of spiritual paths. It is the science of consciousness through which there is thorough study; at the relative and ultimate levels. "The power of our consciousness is so magnificent that whatever we see and experience is the direct result of it. When it tends to investigate outward to tangible phenomena, we can see all this sophisticated technology that it has created. When it looks inward at its own nature, at intangible phenomena, it can observe the spiritual path which reveals its true primordial nature, which is the state of complete enlightenment. "There are various approaches and techniques taught by the Buddha to understand the nature of our mind. The teachings are grouped in various levels, some more profound than others. The Buddha has taught in the Sutras that teaching sentient beings is like nurturing a newborn child. In the same way that a mother gives different food depending on the digestive power of the child, he has turned the wheel of the Dharma three times to gradually lead to the ultimate truth, the pristine primordial nature of our mind. This 'Cyber-Shedra,' this distance learning course, is also a gradual process leading to deeper understanding of our true nature. "Compassion is one of the qualities of our mind, and is the main practice in the Mahayana and Vajrayana teachings. It is said, in fact, that without genuine compassion, all of the Vajrayana's esoteric practices will be of less benefit. How to generate compassion, loving kindness, or Bodhicitta is clearly explained in the Bodhicaryavatara, the Bodhisattva's Way of Life; one of the first texts taught in the Shedra of the Nyingma Tradition. "The purpose of this course is also to help students of the Dharma understand the higher teachings offered by the high lamas and gain greater benefit from retreat programs such as the Summer Retreat at Palyul Ling International, in Upstate New York." |
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The Cyber-Shedra Distance Learning Program involves a commitment both financial and temporal. Each student is asked to make a commitment of study, practice, assignments, and paying a fee on time for each month of the session in which he or she enrolls. The next Cyber-Shedra session, scheduled to begin October of 2008, will offer teachings for first, second, third, and fourth year students. The sessions should be taken in sequence - a student should take Session 1 before taking Session 2, and take sessions 1 and 2 before taking 3 or 4. For more details, please see Cyber-Shedra Program Details
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