Group Prayers
In general, prayers made by an assembly of many practitioners are very powerful and cannot be compared to the prayers of one or two people. The scriptures give the analogy of a broom. If we try to clean a floor with a few bristles we shall make little progress, but if we gather many bristles to make a broom we shall be successful.
- Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso Rinpoche
(In-person for everyone & Live-streamed for Monthly Members)
Heart Jewel
Heart Jewel is beautiful prayer practice designed to help us overcome obstacles and difficulties on the spiritual path by developing compassion, wisdom and spiritual strength. It is the core practice of Kadampa Buddhism that is practiced daily by sincere practitioners.
The first part of this practice is the Guru Yoga of Je Tsongkhapa through which we purify negativity, accumulate merit (or positive energy) and receive blessings.
The second part of Heart Jewel practice is reliance upon the Dharma Protector, Dorje Shugden, who assists us in overcoming obstacles to our practice and helps to create favorable conditions so that we can nurture and increase our spiritual realizations.
Everyone is welcome.
For up-to-date schedule, see calendar
Prayers for the Deceased
Powa Ceremony is a beautiful and powerful ritual practice drawn from the Buddhist Tantras. These prayers enable us to benefit the recently deceased by coming together as a group and making prayers and offerings on their behalf.
Through practicing transference of consciousness, known as ‘powa,’ with faith, compassion and concentration, we can transfer the consciousness of those recently deceased to a higher rebirth or to the Pure Land of a Buddha.
The Powa Ceremony can be done either by a group of practitioners or individually on behalf of one or more deceased people. It is traditionally done for those who have died within the previous 49 days.
At KMCSF we hold Powa monthly.
Everyone welcome.
Wishfulfilling Jewel
A special practice for developing compassion, wisdom and spiritual strength by relying on the Wisdom Buddha Je Tsongkhapa, and for overcoming obstacles and difficulties on the spiritual path by relying on his Dharma Protector, Dorje Shugden.
This practice can include a tsog offering of vegetarian food and drinks. You are welcome to bring an offering when tsog is being done with the prayers.
An extensive explanation of this sadhana and of Wishfulfilling Jewel can be found in the book Heart Jewel by Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso Rinpoche.
Everyone is welcome.
Held regularly
For up-to-date schedule, see calendar
Offering to the Spiritual Guide
The special Guru yoga practice of Je Tsongkhapa is done in conjunction with Highest Yoga Tantra and also includes all the essential practices of the stages of the path to enlightenment.
A complete commentary to this practice can be found in the book Great Treasury of Merit by Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso Rinpoche.
This practice includes a tsog offering of vegetarian food and drinks. You are welcome to bring an offering.
Everyone welcome.
Every 10th and 25th of the month.
For up-to-date schedule, see calendar
Bodhisattva's Confession of
Moral Downfalls
The practice of making physical and/or mental prostrations to the 35 Confession Buddhas is a sublime and powerful purification practice through which we cleanse the mind of the imprints of previous negative actions and thoughts.
This puja (chanted prayers) is live-streamed and includes a video of the 35 Confession Buddhas.
For up-to-date schedule, see calendar
Long Protector Puja
This is a monthly practice of making offerings and requests to the Dharma Protector, Dorje Shugden, to remove obstacles and to gather all favorable conditions for our spiritual practice. It is done on the 29th of each month.
This practice includes a tsog offering of vegetarian food and drinks. You may a bring an offering if you wish.
Everyone welcome.
Every 29th of the month. Sometimes Wishfulfilling Jewel w/tsog is done in its place.
For up-to-date schedule, see calendar
Tara Prayers
The 8th of the month is Tara Day. Tara is a female Buddha, a manifestation of the ultimate wisdom of all the Buddhas. Tara is one of the principal deities of Kadampa Buddhists.
Tara is our common mother, our Holy Mother. She protects us from immediate dangers, provides us with all our temporal needs, and guides and encourages us in our learning and personal development.
Everyone welcome.
Every 8th of the month
For up-to-date schedule, see calendar
Mahayana Precepts: A Pure Life
The practice of taking and keeping the 8 Mahayana precepts is a special practice of moral discipline that is performed with bodhichitta, the compassionate wish to attain enlightenment for the benefit of all beings.
The essence of this practice is taking 8 precepts and keeping them purely for 24 hours. We first need to receive these precepts from a qualified Preceptor and then we can take them on our own as often as we wish.
This practice is motivated by bodhichitta and is thus especially powerful for purifying negativities, accumulating merit (positive energy) and creating the cause for us to attain the unsurpassed happiness of enlightenment.
Everyone welcome.
Every 15th of the month | 7 am – 7:30 am
By Request Only. Email: epc@meditateinsanfrancisco.org to request a Mahayana Precepts Puja on the 15th of the month.
Blissful Path Prayers
To partake in this puja, you must either have the Highest Yoga Tantra Empowerment, or the wish to recieve it as soon as you can.
For up-to-date schedule, see calendar
Amitayus Prayers
'Amitayus' means 'Infinite Life' and signifies that by relying on this holy being we will not only overcome the dangers of untimely death in this life, but eventually through Tantric practice attain the pure illusory body - a vajra body that is permanently free from ageing, sickness and death.
By engaging in the practice of Buddha Amitayus we also accumulate profound wisdom and extensive merit.
For up-to-date schedule, see calendar
The Great Mother Prayers
Although we all wish to be happy, we often find ourselves frustrated by obstacles or hindrances—both external and internal. When our mind is filled with negative thoughts and delusions, such as attachment, anger, and ignorance, we experience great harm and suffering. They prevent us from maintaining a peaceful mind, and also destroy whatever happiness we may have gained. These prayers contain a special method for averting and overcoming hindrances either for one’s own sake or for the benefit of others. KMC SF is making dedications in particular for the arising of a Heruka Temple in Northern California.
For up-to-date schedule, see calendar
Medicine Buddha Prayers
A practice for receiving a special power of body, speech and mind through which we can help both ourself and others through healing actions.
Medicine Buddha is a Buddha Doctor whose function is to release living beings from outer and inner sickness by bestowing blessings upon them. By relying upon Medicine Buddha sincerely, living beings in these impure times can be cured of heavy physical and mental disease, and find release from the internal pain of the three poisons: attachment, anger and ignorance. They can also receive protection from many other dangers and obstacles. By practising this Medicine Buddha Sadhana sincerely, we receive a special power of body, speech and mind, which we can then use to help others through healing actions.
Monthly
For up-to-date schedule, see calendar
Prayers for World Peace
By learning to cherish others we can experience greater peace of mind and help establish world peace in general. Through contemplating these prayers compiled by Geshe Kelsang Gyatso from traditional sources, we learn to cherish others. If everyone sincerely prays to be able to cherish others, then gradually through the power of this prayer, everyone will actually cherish each other. The world will then be permanently at peace, and pure and everlasting happiness will pervade the entire world.
Sunday Mornings
For up-to-date schedule, see calendar
Gema Del Corazon
Gema del Corazón contiene dos prácticas reveladas por Manjushri, el Buda de la Sabiduría. La primera es un yoga especial del Guru en el cual visualizamos a nuestro Guía Espiritual bajo el aspecto de Yhe Tsongkhapa, manifestación de Manyhushri. Mediante esta práctica podemos purificar nuestras faltas, acumular méritos y recibir bendiciones. De este modo alcanzaremos con facilidad todas las realizaciones de las etapas de los caminos del sutra y del tantra y, en particular, desarrollaremos una sabiduría de Dharma muy especial.
La segunda práctica es un método para confiar en el Protector del Dharma Doryhe Shugden. Con ella podemos superar los obstáculos que impiden nuestro desarrollo espiritual y crear las condiciones favorables para que crezcan en nuestro interior las realizaciones puras de Dharma. Al confiar con sinceridad en el Protector del Dharma Doryhe Shugden nuestra fe en Yhe Tsongkhapa crecerá de manera natural y lograremos con facilidad la experiencia del Budadharma puro transmitido directamente de Manyhushri, el Buda de la Sabiduría, a Yhe Tsongkhapa.
Estas dos prácticas constituyen la esencia de la Nueva Tradición Kadampa del budismo mahayana. Si las realizamos con regularidad y sinceridad, producirán los frutos de las realizaciones puras de Dharma y finalmente alcanzaremos el gozo supremo de la Iluminación.
¡Todos son Bienvenidos!
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