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Tonglen:
A Spiritual Practice
by Andrew Harvey
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Dear Friends,
I am honored to offer this
practice. It is called "Tonglen." I learned it
in Laddakh many years ago. I've been teaching it a lot
lately. May it help you and bless you during these dark
times.
With all my heart, Andrew
Harvey.
Imagine all the others in the world who are suffering
right now. The families of the victims, the
firefighters, their children, the Afghani children. All
of us who are affected by the recent tragedy. Fill your
entire being with compassion and love for them, and pray
to whom you believe in that your suffering should help
soften theirs. Say to yourself--in your own words:
"May I take on the suffering of all those who are
suffering in the same way I am. May we all be
permanently freed from our afflictions"
Now, imagine that all the pain of the world leaves
your body, in the form of a grim black cloud of smoke.
As you breathe in, breathe in the suffering and pain we
all feel. As you breathe out, breathe out to the end of
all pain. Breathe out and visualize for all of us peace,
healing and health (Use your imagination. This might be
a seashore, a green pasture, your grand children's
smiles...)
Each time you do this practice, believe with deep
faith that everyone you are doing it for is healed and
consoled. Make sure that your in-breaths and out-breaths
are equally deep and long. Breathe in the black ball of
suffering our world is going through right now from the
stomach of your biographical self. Breathe it out and
imagine it dissolving in the boundless blue sky of your
eternal heart-mind. Breathe in and out deeply--with
great focus, sending out healing, so you do know that
the faith and radiance of your own Divine truth is
healing the world.
If you do the whole process nine times calmly and
confidently, you will be amazed at how much better and
more grounded you will feel. Start by doing this
practice once a day. Then, do it twice. Don't do it more
than three times a day. I always end my practice by
reciting a Hail Mary. But it can be whatever brings you
comfort and faith: A Buddhist prayer, a mantra, a
lullaby....
To be added to Andrew Harvey and Eryk Hunt's
"Divine Feminine" Email List, please email: divinefemininece@aol.com
Andrew Harvey was born in
South India in 1952 and lived there until he was nine
years old, a period he credits with shaping his vision
of the inner unity of all religions. He left India to
attend private school in England, and entered Oxford
University in 1970 to study history on a scholarship. At
the age of 21, he became the youngest person ever to be
awarded a fellowship to All Souls College, England’s
highest academic honor.
In 1977, Harvey became
disillusioned with life at Oxford and returned to India
to begin his spiritual search. He has since lived in
London, Paris, New York, and San Francisco, and has
continued to study a variety of religions, including
Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism, and Christianity. Harvey has
written and edited over 30 books. Honors he has received
include the Benjamin Franklin Award and the Mind Body
Spirit Award (both for MARY’S VINEYARD: DAILY
READINGS, MEDITATIONS, AND REVELATIONS – photographs
by Eryk Hanut), and the Christmas Humphries Award for A
JOURNEY IN LADAKH.
Among Harvey’s other
well-known titles are: THE TIBETAN BOOK OF LIVING AND
DYING, co-authored with Sogyal Rinpoche; DIALOGUES WITH
A MODERN MYSTIC; THE WAY OF PASSION: A CELEBRATION OF
RUMI; HIDDEN JOURNEY; THE ESSENTIAL GAY MYSTICS; and SON
OF MAN. He has written for publications such as The
New York Times Book Review, Yoga Journal, Body
Mind Spirit, Common Boundary, and Quest.
He has taught at Oxford, Cornell, and Hobart and William
Smith College, and was the subject of the 1993 BBC
documentary "The Making of a Mystic."
Harvey broke ties with the guru
establishment in 1994, and since then has devoted his
studies and writings to explaining the direct path to
God. He lives in Las Vegas with his husband, writer and
photographer Eryk Hanut.
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