About Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche

Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche on the bodhisattva path.

Obstacles aren’t to be avoided. When we apply the right antidotes, they are the path itself. Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche diagnoses the different types of obstacles we face and prescribes the proper remedies.

Speed creates its own power and momentum, says Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche. When we speed around, are we mastering our life or hanging on for dear life?

“Mindfulness practice is simple and completely feasible, says Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche. “Just by sitting and doing nothing, we are doing a tremendous amount.”

No matter how hard we try to solidify our lives, says Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, nothing stays the same or lasts forever. Our denial of that basic truth is the reason we suffer.

A key element of bravery, says Sakyong Mipham, is abruptness—the ability to break free from hesitation and suddenly leap from our habitual patterns to the awake mind.

The fear so many of us are feeling these days can stress us into freezing our world and getting caught up in dualism. But, says Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, we can get past that by practicing mindfulness and gentleness.

“The process of undoing bewilderment is based on stabilizing and strengthening our mind,” says Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche. “Shamatha meditation is how we do that.”

Our mind is like hard ground, says Sakyong Mipham. As meditation practitioners, we begin to till that ground so that we can grow the mind of enlightenment.

Painting by Miriam Davis.

The way to free ourselves, says Sakyong Mipham, is to face life head-on without the seductive companionship of habitual patterns.