We have added new courses and enhanced and developed courses that were already part of the curriculum. CLICK to visit Reba’s visitor and user guides if you need help in navigating the Learning from Buddha College & Seminary (LFBCS) website.
G03(A)-Evolution of Buddhism & the Five Vidyas: An article on the Five Vidyas has been added to this course. This is a background course to provide some context for the other courses. It traces the evolution of Buddhist practice as the teachings of Shakyamuni Buddha spread to different cultures and locations. It introduces the sutras that formed the doctrine for the various sects as well as the founders and the patriarchs and matriarchs of these sects. It also talks about what Buddhas and Bodhisattvas do—the Five Vidyas—and how you can become a Buddhist. The G03 version that will include homework and supporting resources and will be a required course for the paid programs is still under development. The video tracing the evolution of Buddhism and the major traditions and sects can be viewed by anyone by clicking the preview button.
D03.4 & D03.4(A)-Karmic Effect: This is a very short discourse with one message—“You should be concerned about the causes you plant, not the effects.” It also discusses the importance of having “good fortune”.
D13 & D13(A)-Cutting-off Attachment to Self: This course provides a reading of a preliminary translation of a Dharma Discourse by H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III on “One Needs to Cut Off the Attachment to Self in Worldly Matters First to Begin Self-Cultivation” given in 1995 in Taiwan. The course focuses on what it takes to cut off attachment to self in both the worldly and the ultimate sense and what happens if you do and if you don’t. It includes the bardo, ghosts, spirits, consciousness and many related concepts as well as a discussion of the “Straw Man” Dharma and Dream Yoga.
Only the first part of this discourse is included now as Cutting-off Attachment to Self-PART II will be read and discussed this Saturday, April 30, 2022 at our 9:00 am PDT Lemonade Sangha Class. We should be able to update this course for our next blog. CLICK for article and link to register for class.
P10-The Great Dharma of Zen Practice: This course is almost complete with homework and enhancements. It is a teaching transmitted by H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III in 2013 to help you develop your mind—to acquire transcendental wisdom or prajna. This translation of a discourse originally intended for Western students provides background on the origin of zen practice, as well as instruction of how to do a meditation practice and instructions on how to remove obstacles to practice. It includes the meaning and history of zen with stories about the Gaomin Monastery in China and the Sixth Patriarch of the Zen School in China, Patriarch Huineng.
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