Lama Zopa Rinpoche in the garden at Kopan Monastery, Nepal, October 2020. Photo by Ven. Lobsang Sherab.

Last month we shared our 2024 Annual Review: What a Difference We All Have Made Together.  Every year we include poignant advice from lama Zopa Rinpoche as the opening to our yearly report. This year, as we work together on the future of the FPMT organization, we felt it fitting to share some sections of advice Rinpoche once offered a new FPMT center director. His words are meaningful to all of us serving in various positions with the FPMT organization, and offer a path of success, starting with— of course, kindness. 

An Unbelievable Opportunity 

A letter to a new center director from Lama Zopa Rinpoche

The purpose of an FPMT center is to take care of the minds of others, to keep the mind in virtue as much as possible. This means keeping your own mind in virtue. YOU HAVE TO TRY. IT IS VERY GOOD TO TRY. If you can’t do that, you can’t help others. So your motivation should be to use your body, speech and mind to create even the smallest happiness in others. Many people in the world waste their lives. People try to climb mountains no matter what risk to their life, some people use themselves as bullets, getting fired from cannons, and so forth, unbelievable things, putting their lives in danger to achieve such insignificant happiness in this life. … 

When you train the mind in positive virtue, especially a good heart trying to benefit others, it creates very good communication. There is no Great Wall between yourself and others. It brings so much happiness to you and others, and brings world peace. …

Every sentient being has buddha nature. Even a mosquito can achieve enlightenment and liberation from the oceans of samsaric suffering if it practices Dharma. So especially for us who now have this precious human body, which can do so many things to liberate from any problem or circumstance that gives rise to problems, especially having a perfect human rebirth on top of buddha nature, we are able to achieve all the happiness for all future lives, even for insects, ants, cockroaches, spiders and snakes, even for a mouse. …

Being the director of a center means you have an unbelievable, unbelievable, unbelievable opportunity to help yourself and others, to purify unbelievable negative karma that has been created since beginningless lifetimes, especially if this is the Guru’s advice or what you are doing makes the Guru very happy; then every second of that action as a director has incredible purification—the most powerful purification – especially if the work is more difficult and hard to bear. When there are more problems and difficulties, you should recognize all the most unbelievable, unbelievable, unbelievable benefit you receive: more powerful purification and collecting extensive merits to rapidly attain enlightenment. For example, Milarepa achieved enlightenment in the quickest time. Because of his enlightened Guru, Marpa’s most wise skills, he purified in the quickest way all the negative karma collected from beginningless rebirths, of killing humans and animals; then collected extensive merit that would take three countless great eons in the Sutra Paramita path, enabling Milarepa to become enlightened in a brief lifetime of degenerative time.

Now you should realize that Director means that you are going to be the principal person to receive blame, criticism and various things that cause the negative emotions to rise. It makes them very active, even violent sometimes, and it is possible even friends might become enemies because of having different views and the discipline you have to make. You can avert such things if you don’t want them by various practices, starting with kindness. Maybe here the motivation could be selfish, doing the practice so you can be happy, not thinking about others; doing this practice so others can be happy is not selfish.

Especially towards those who are angry or disrespectful, criticizing the director, practice compassion and loving kindness. Also practice patience, and rejoicing always in virtuous and meaningful things, those that result in good karma, which happened and are happening to yourself and other people. 

It is important to be clear about right and wrong patience and contentment. Bearing whatever hardships necessary in order to harm holy beings, other sentient beings, your enemy etc., also bearing much hardship for negative karma, is wrong patience.

There are three types of patience:

1. Patience of voluntarily taking on suffering or difficulties
2. Patience towards an enemy who is harming you or you don’t like
3. Patience of definitely thinking of Dharma, e.g. studying philosophy no matter how hard it is to understand; maintaining practice for realizations no matter how long it takes or difficult it is. …

Virtuous actions and virtuous thoughts need to be developed until enlightenment is achieved. Always continuously develop completing the great works, as much as one can, like collecting merit, the cause of happiness, developing realizations, to achieve liberation and enlightenment. One should never be content regarding developing positive actions, virtue, which lead to one’s own and others’ ultimate happiness, enlightenment; always strive to do more.

Apologize immediately if one did some mistake, harmed others, was disrespectful or said hurtful words. Forgive immediately if somebody gets angry, is disrespectful to you or harms you. Develop courage by thinking of the benefit to others, serving others. This is the best offering to the buddhas and bodhisattvas. Not courage in collecting negative karma, harming oneself and others, but develop courage in virtue, good qualities, that which is Dharma. Otherwise sometimes people have funny definitions of good qualities, what you should be or do—HA HA HA!

Yes, of course thinking of benefiting others, serving others from the heart —WOW!  Can you imagine? Like a mother cherishes her most beloved child, wishing happiness, especially ultimate happiness of enlightenment, as mentioned in Guru Puja, Lama Chopa.

If these things are done, trying to practice is the best offering, fulfilling all the buddhas’ and bodhisattvas’ holy wishes – WOW!

So please enjoy numberless billions trillions and zillions.

Excerpted from Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s letter to a new FPMT center director, 2009. 

If you haven’t yet taken at a look at our 2024 Annual Review, we invite you to view it online. 

Foundation for the Preservation of Mahayana Tradition (FPMT), is a Tibetan Buddhist organization dedicated to the transmission of the Mahayana Buddhist tradition and values worldwide through teaching, meditation and community service.