Variegated Jewels

One For The Road

2006-07-12T22:08:00.000-07:00

In Vajrayana Buddhism there is a concept that the lamas try to pass on to their students. That lama is willing to take birth lifetime after lifetime to be of benefit to sentient beings. And I have heard my lama state that she would return for only one being if that is what was required to end suffering.

In keeping with that attitude, we students of Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo have certain efforts we try to make to train up in that Bodhisattva attitude. So it was with a heavy heart that John and I sat down to begin the Phoenix Variegated Jewels meeting without a single attendee present. We had set up the room (see photos)

and done our personal opening prayers (invoking the blessing of our teacher and the Palyul Lineage that she represents) and decided we should carry on with the meditation portion of the gathering to create the causes that others might come to future events.

Well much to our excitement - as we finished our short series of opening prayers, I heard a noise in the parking lot. I walked to the door to investigate, and sure enough there was a young man approaching the building. I told John, "we have a guest!" He thought I was being facetious (I suppose I have a history of trying to pull pranks or play practical jokes on him.) In walked a gentleman named Eric, and we officially had our first Phoenix Variegated Jewels attendee. We all introduced ourselves and spent a little time getting to know one another, and then we went ahead and repeated our opening prayers with Eric joining in. I gave a brief overview of the lineage, John read some of the instruction passages from Jetsunma's book Stabilizing the Mind and then we sat quietly together in meditation.

The trip to Phoenix from Sedona, for just one connection, was a resounding success in my mind. We will do more communication for the future events... but this is proof positive that it is time for our Phoenix contingent to expand!

See everyone next time (or the time after that, or perhaps the next time... come out, come out wherever you are!)

In peace,
Chris H.

Phoenix Meditation on July 8th

2006-06-17T22:56:00.000-07:00

We are going to have our first (well, technically second) Phoenix Variegated Jewels meditation on Saturday July 8th at 3:00 PM. The meeting place will be St. Stephens - if you need directions click here for their web page with an explanation of how to get there. This session will be an introduction to KPC/Variegated Jewels and a sitting meditation with brief instructions.

That's all for now - spread the word and keep checking back for the Flagstaff date and location to be announced!

Here is a snapshot of one of the Variegated Jewels Meetings in Dupont Circle (Washington, DC) back in 1998. (We were so young in the last millenium!!) : )

May all beings acquire a stable mind and naturally give rise to the intention to benefit all living beings!

Pride in The Pines

2006-06-12T05:02:00.000-07:00

Well, after years of discussing our need to have a booth at PRIDE, Variegated Jewels finally tabled at Flagstaff Pride this year! The festival was great, we all loved hearing "Chaka Khan" hold her own on the stage. But more importantly our monks (Thubten Palzang, and Thubten Gonpo Yeshe), our nun (Ani Vicki) and us lay practitioners (John and Chris) met a lot of awesome people who stopped by to learn about "Tara's Faeries".

[Photo L-R: John, Palzang, Chris]

Tara's Faeries is a name that the Variegated Jewels group derived in Sedona, AZ as an edgy way to represent the alternative lifestyle population of of our Sangha (Buddhist community). Tara is a female Buddha and is known as "the mother of all Buddhas". She is a protector and a loving, nurturing force for all living beings. Represented in 21 different aspects among the Tibetan Buddhist deities, she is also understood to take human form throughout time and space. Many of the highest teachers within the Tibetan Buddhist lineages (such as His Holiness Penor Rinpoche, and His Holiness Ngawang Tenzin ) have recognized the founder of KPC/Variegated Jewels as an emanation of the Indian Princess Mandarava (a consort to the Buddha Padmasambhava/GuruRinpoche). Princess Mandarava was also considered to be an emanation of the Buddha Tara. Therefore we consider ourselves representatives of the female wisdom mission and felt "Tara's Faerie's" was both devotional and "hip".

So what does all this emanation and reincarnation have to do with a bunch of us homos in a park in Flagstaff? Well, the meditation technique that is being offered by Variegated Jewels is a way to move beyond our fixation and facsination with our personality/ego (whatever perception we have of our "self".) Though there is nothing wrong with any of us whether we are straight, gay, or anywhere in between... the ultimate release from suffering is the ability to let go of any concept or notion of self. Jetsunma has always encouraged us to identify culturally and socially as gays, lesbians, transgendered, or whatever karmic expression we are experiencing in this life. There is no benefit in practicing denial. But beneath whatever "display" we have taken in this world is the underlying truth that is beyond description. As Jetsunma teaches again and again, enlightenment or emptiness is that place that has no seperate and inherently real "self".

PRIDE is an incredible event because it tells us to be proud of whatever karmic form we have chosen in life. And the ultimate expression of that unconditinal acceptance would be to see beneath this experience of being seperate or different from other beings, and taste DIRECTLY the nature of emptiness. I have not had that opportunity yet, but by studying the teachings of these Buddhist masters who appear again and again throughout time and space... we can have confidence that what we practice will bear fruit. These tulkus (reincarnate lamas) return to teach us how to overcome suffering, and they are recognized as reincarnations so that we can have faith in the knowledge that they "know of what they speak".

Well, I am grateful to all of you who stopped and chatted us up at the booth. We are currently putting together a plan for the Phoenix and Flagstaff monthly meditation groups. Check back here for more details, and please "sound off" on our comments. We will moderate comments just because "spirituality" and "homosexuality" are hot topics for slanderous remarks. I am not okay with that happening here. We will post intelligently expressed debates, arguments or "dissenting" opinions, but not gay-bashing, belief-bashing, or anything that we (at our collective discretion) consider inappropriate to this forum! After all tolerence and compassion are at the root of Buddhist philosophy.

Thanks! And peace to you all!