Kopan Course No. 27 (1994)

By Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche
Kopan Monastery, Nepal, 1994 (Archive #996)

These teachings were given by Kyabje Lama Thubten Zopa Rinpoche at the 27th Kopan Meditation Course, held at Kopan Monastery, Nepal, in Nov-Dec 1994. The transcripts are lightly edited by Gordon McDougall.

You may also download the entire contents of these teachings in a pdf file.

Kopan Course No. 27 Index Page

The Index Page provides an outline of the topics discussed in each of the lectures. 

Lecture One: November 30, 1994

  • Refuge
  • Generating bodhicitta
  • The kindness of mother sentient beings
  • The rarity of this precious human rebirth
  • The importance of morality
  • What is nonvirtuous?
  • Fearlessness at the time of death
  • The time of death is uncertain
  • We can’t prove there are no past or future lives
  • We can have faith in the Buddha’s words
  • Only two ways to go after death—practice morality
  • Labeling phenomena
  • Mind training: Our enemy is our best friend
  • The merely-labeled I

Lecture Two: December 2, 1994

  • The emptiness of time
  • The power and benefits of bodhicitta
  • Develop familiarity with the whole path in every meditation
  • Effortful experience and effortless experience
  • Training on the lower scope
  • Training on the medium scope
  • Training on the great scope
  • Training on the tantric path


Lecture Three: December 3, 1994

  • The purpose of life
  • The four harmonious brothers
  • Actualizing the path depends on all three scopes
  • The various vows
  • The importance of morality
  • With powerful objects, we experience the result in this life
  • The need to practice Dharma between sessions
  • Dedication

Lecture Four: December 3, 1994

  • The merit of living in vows
  • Karma: Without the cause the result cannot be experienced
  • Two solutions to problems: Purification and creating positive karma
  • A good intention is the most important thing
  • Liberation needs refuge in all three Jewels
  • Precepts ceremony motivation
  • Precepts ceremony
  • The hallucinating mind
  • The buddhas return as gurus in degenerate times
  • Integrating the lamrim in daily life
  • Guru devotion: The hallucinated mind sees the guru as ordinary
  • The guru is one with the buddhas
  • The absolute guru is the dharmakaya
  • Think on the kindness of the guru
  • Seeing the guru as Buddha is the core of guru devotion
  • Doing practices based on guru devotion
  • Refuge practice with the guru and offering bath practice
  • The oral transmission of the lamrim prayer: Motivation
  • Dedication

Lecture Five: December 4, 1994

  • Bodhicitta is the main trunk of the Dharma tree
  • Actions without a lamrim motivation become the cause of suffering
  • Saying the Tara prayer with four different motivations
  • Emptiness: Shopping with emptiness
  • The base and the label
  • Emptiness: We see things as truly existing due to past imprints

Lecture Six: December 4, 1994

  • Medicine Buddha: Why the practice is so powerful
  • The Medicine Buddha: The power of the mantra
  • The Medicine Buddha initiation
  • With the perfect human rebirth we can achieve the three great meanings
  • Doing everything with renunciation and bodhicitta
  • The Dharma saves us from the lower realms
  • Medicine Buddha initiation motivation: The kindness of the mother
  • Medicine Buddha initiation motivation: All beings have been kind to us in four ways
  • Medicine Buddha initiation
  • Dedication: There is no better healing than the lamrim