Taming the Elephant Mind: A Handbook on the Theory and Practice of Calm Abiding Meditation

Mindfulness and meditation are two aspects of the Eight Fold Noble Path taught by the Buddha in 500 BC. Buddhists have been practising these for many centuries and have made a valid contribution to create peace in people's lives. Today people think Buddhist teachings are scientific, logical, practical and sensible. Buddhism does not need science to prove the authenticity of its teachings. It only needs people to engage in meditation and promote it as such, without watering it down for the purposes of mere stress reduction and performance enhancement. A large number of people have taken on what is known as Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction Therapy and it has been promoted as if it was developed by someone in recent years, without giving credit to the teachings of the Buddha. Elsewhere, others try to promote the same by calling it Compassion Based Stress Reduction Therapy. The form of meditation the Buddha taught and practiced is called 'Calm Abiding Meditation' and it is the remedy for all 84,000 afflictions - not just stress. The teaching of the Buddha is wisdom based reduction and elimination of all afflictions and sufferings.
This handbook consists of notes compiled primarily to accompany the 8-Week Course on Calm Abiding Meditation that I conduct for students of Buddhism and the general public. I have been conducting these courses for over 18 years. There are also many of my students who have been facilitating this course on a regular basis throughout Australia and New Zealand. Nowadays, a few Tibetan Buddhist centres are starting to offer classes on Calm Abiding Meditation, but they are usually taught as a philosophical explanation of the topic without devoting any time to sit in quietness and do the practice of meditation.
Over the years I have adapted these courses to provide practical techniques for the general public. It is not necessary to hold any religious beliefs in order to benefit from Meditation. Calm Abiding Meditation might also be useful for people of other faiths who wish to enrich their religious life.
You will gain the most benefit by practising every day, even for just a few minutes, rather than from longer occasional bursts of enthusiasm. Even when you are not meditating formally, you can carry the bene its into your daily life by doing everything with a sense of purpose and a gentle attitude. Enlightened experiences do not necessarily occur only on the meditation cushion. You may have such an experience walking to the shops, provided you walk along with a calm, clear and stable mind
Calm Abiding Meditation tunes our minds to the wave length of spaciousness, freedom and happiness. If you desire these qualities, may you find them by following the practices contained in this booklet
Lama Choedak Rinpoche 2013

Author: Lama Choedak Rinpoche
Publisher: Sakya Losal Choe Dzong
Published: 05/10/2016
Pages: 98
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.31lbs
Size: 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.20d
ISBN: 9780994581303

About the Author
Lama Choedak Rinpoche: - "Lama Choedak Rinpoche was born in the yak hair tent of a nomad family on the Tibetan plateau in 1954, growing up in Nepal as a refugee where he took ordination as a monk while still attending high school. As a novice monk Lama Choedak was accepted by the great Tibetan master His Eminence Choegye Trichen (1920-2007) in Lumbini, Nepal, the birthplace of the Buddha. Rinpoche proved to be a particularly bright student, completing twelve years of rigorous monastic training including a traditional three-and-a-half year solitary meditation retreat. Lama Choedak encountered many pilgrims visiting Lumbini showing a flare for English. He was encouraged by Lama Yeshe to help bring Buddhism to the West settling in Canberra to study at the Australian National University. Being a qualified Tibetan lama Rinpoche caught the attention of the few Canberrans interested in Tibetan Buddhism. In 1989, Sakya Losal Choe Dzong (SLCD) - the Tibetan Buddhist Society of Canberra - was officially launched and blessed by His Holiness Sakya Trizin in Canberra. In 1996, His Eminence Chogye Trichen came to Australia and launched Rongton Buddhist College at Evatt, ACT. Rinpoche promotes the benefits of Calm Abiding Meditation as a secular mindfulness technique, as well as recognising the importance of its Buddhist origins. Since 1996, he has been conducting 8-week meditation courses each term and annual 10-day residential retreat at SIBA Retreat Centre in East Gippsland Victoria, which have become some of the most popular events on the Australian Buddhist calendar. Rinpoche has been conducting Buddhist philosophy classes for more than fifteen years on a vast range of subjects and has published several books on the subjects of Buddhist philosophy and Tibetan history. He promotes the Vajrayana Buddhist meditation practices of the Sakya Tradition of Tibetan Buddhism, including Ngondro, White Tara and Medicine Buddha. His Eminence Choegye Trichen regarded Lama Choedak as his heart son. In 2001, in recognition of his great contribution to the propagation of Buddhadharma in the West, and in particular the promotion of the Tsarpa tradition of the Sakya Lineage, His Eminence bestowed on him the title Tsarpa Lochen Lama Choedak Rinpoche meaning Great Translator of the Tsarpa Tradition. Lama Choedak Rinpoche is a popular guest speaker and a regular participant on discussion panels during the visits of His Holiness the Dalai Lama to Australia. Excerpts from his public talks around Australia have been compiled into his bestselling book, Healing Relationships. Other books by Lama Choedak Yuthok include Original Virtue and Lamdre - Dawn of Enlightenment. Sakya Losal Choe Dzong - the Tibetan Buddhist Society of Canberra - has grown to become one of the most established Tibetan Buddhist centres in Australia with two residential retreat centres and over a dozen sister centres. Most weekends, Rinpoche conducts residential meditation retreats, workshops and public talks at the invitation of Buddhist centres throughout Australia and New Zealand, including the SIBA Retreat Centre in East Gippsland, Victoria. Lama Choedak Rinpoche's profound explanation of meditation and its everyday relevance is renowned for its lucidity, authenticity and humour. His teachings are offered from the heart, and spiced with the richness of his experience, dedication and realisation."

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