I couldn't believe that two traditional Tibetan Rinpoches were actually coming to my house for a retreat weekend. Susan was a bit unsure since she had not been taking part in the meditation groups. She wasn't sure she liked the idea of having thirty or forty people over for the weekend. The week before their arrival we started decorating the house. I had picture books about Tibetan Buddhism and we looked at all the pictures of the inside of the temples and tried to do what we could to transform the house into the likeness of those temples. 

The day before the retreat we took all the furniture out of the living room and the dining room and put it all in Coree's room and then built our first shrine on top of the record cabinet. I covered the counter with maroon cloth and put a concrete Buddha in the middle with some candles and some incense. Then we took bright colored fabrics and covered the walls and draped fabric over the stairs and hung it in ribbons down from the loft. It looked great.

Then on Friday afternoon I went to the airport and waited anxiously for their arrival. When they deplaned it was not difficult to recognize them. They were the only ones on the plane in maroon robes. When I saw them coming I lit some incense and had a home made kata, a white scarf that is used for a traditional greeting in Tibet, and an orchid.

The older brother, Khenchen Palden Sherab Rinpoche, was about 40 and his brother was about 30. They were very jovial and seemed delighted to be here. It was an hour and a half drive from the airport to the house. We started out on the Interstate and after about thirty miles got off onto some back roads, then the back roads got narrower and narrower and then, when we came to Jackson County, we were on winding country roads. Finally we came to East Fork Road and then back East Fork to the dirt road that leads to the house. 

They apparently had not been in the country much and seemed surprised to be driving on a dirt road. The little dirt road leads into a narrow hollow, with the road right beside a little creek. Then it goes through the woods and comes to an end in the front yard of the house.

I honked the horn as we approached and everyone came running out and formed two parallel lines. Susan was standing at the head of the line with more flowers and another homemade kata. Everyone in the lines had incense and as they walked between the lines of people everyone bowed. When we walked into the house and they saw all the fabric on the walls and the crude little shrine they both stopped dead and said, "Wow". We all got a big laugh out of that and escorted them to the cushions we had laid out for them in front of the shrine.

There were about thirty-five or forty people at the house. We all sat on the floor and after formally greeting them we relaxed with some tea and then started the first teachings. The elder brother spoke in Tibetan and the younger translated. They seemed very familiar and at ease. He started right in, "In this world every sentient being has problems or fears or something uncomfortable they have to struggle with and fight. Every person goes through this at some time. Where do these things come from? We should not look externally, these things are totally dependent on our inner state. What is this inner state? We have many different things in our body but when we say inner state we refer to the mind. 

“The mind is the producer, the cradle, of all our different experiences. When we are able to tame the mind into a peaceful, crystal-like relaxed state, at that moment all our visions and all our experiences are calmed. Until you are able to tame your mind you can experience peace and harmony only for a short time, if at all. It doesn't matter how many external techniques you try to use, only when you tame the mind will you find ultimate peace and joy and understanding of one's self and others."

"Sentient beings, whatever they are doing, in all their activities are looking externally and searching in different directions. If you look for happiness externally you may find a temporary kind of happiness, but you will never find absolute happiness. When sentient beings look for happiness they typically find temporary happiness which sooner or later turns into sadness or suffering. Happiness is followed by suffering and after the suffering, perhaps more happiness. So they are never resting in an ultimate state of happiness. 

To look for happiness and peace externally will not bring ultimate happiness. This can be understood by examining your own experience or by reading history or by looking at your memories. When we realize we cannot find happiness or peace in external ways it means we are looking in the wrong place, that we are not experiencing the natural state as it is."

"It is like people who are very thirsty digging in rock to get water. They dig and dig but it is difficult to get water from the rock. This doesn't mean that they don't have good effort. They have intention and they know you can get water from the earth. Eventually when they don't get water they get tired of the work. Therefore we should not look externally for peace and happiness, we should look internally, inwardly. If you seek peace and wisdom and understanding then look within your mind. You can find peace and happiness and joy and satisfaction within your own mind."

"The nature of mind is very profound. It is very wonderful and very blissful. The natural state is not hollow or essenceless. It is full of qualities, full of wonderful things. The mind is the source of both Samsara and Nirvana. Samsara is the world and Nirvana is the state of enlightenment, the mind is the source of both. It is the source of liberation and understanding. Everything you need to find peace and happiness is contained in the mind."

"In the Nyingma School there are teachings called Dzog Chen. These are called the "Great Perfection" and they are the highest teachings of Buddha Shakyamuni and Guru Padmasambhava. Dzog Chen teachings are directly related to our present thought or present mind. I will tell a story, it is a true story. In Eastern Tibet, where we were born, before the Chinese invaded there was a very famous Dzog Chen master. He went from village to village giving Dzog Chen teachings. His students were not only monks, but also nuns and lay practitioners, both men and women. Many people came to receive teachings from him. His techniques were quite famous. 

He started his students with the foundation teachings for Dzog Chen practice. After he finished the foundation practices he would tell them, 'Now it is your responsibility to find your mind. Go anywhere, go where ever you can, and find your mind and bring it to me.' Then, even if the student wanted to stay he wouldn't let them, he insisted they go off to find their mind and bring it back. He sent them off in all directions. They went to different places, some went to the mountains, some to the river and others in different directions. He instructed them to stay at least three days. 

Many of his students thought they had to find something to bring back. One student who felt very devoted went to the different places and looked for something to bring back. So he went along the big river and found a nice round stone. He brought the stone back and told the master that he had gone walking by the river and found this stone which he felt represented his mind. 

The master was very famous for being strong and wise. When he saw the small stone he grabbed the man by his collar and said, 'Look at what you are saying. Are you crazy?'

At that moment the man was frightened and sad. Then the master said, 'This rock is not your mind but that is your mind that is now getting sad'. The man had heard many teachings but had not gained any understanding, now for the first time he understood about the mind and after that he became a famous master also."