July 15th...Teachings and reality...

For those that know me, they'll know this is not an easy post for me to write. I like things to be logical, to make sense in the ordinary way. Yes, I'm a nun, and am deeply devoted to the teachings of the Buddha and to those that teach them. But it is the very practicality of them that appeals to me. Yet, they do carry you to the door of understanding that there is truly something more. Even when my tiny samsaric mind resists really getting the whole potency of practice thing.

As a foundation for my post today I'd like to quote from Lama Zopa Rinpoche's book "Benefits and Practices related to Statues and Stupas" published by FPMT, who have given me permission to quote from this amazing resource. Here's the quote:

"A Stupa is also the best thing for healing cancer or other sicknesses; it is the best thing to use for healing. For example, if I go around this stupa [referring to the stupa at Rinpoche's house in Aptos] a little bit faster for just 20 minutes, it lowers my diabetes blood sugar level. This has happened many times. One day I compared: I walked down the road, and my blood sugar level wasn't lowered that much, but walking around the stupa lowered it. You can advertise the stupa as unbelievably powerful for healing. Here, I have been talking about [healing] diabetes, but it's also very good for cancer."

Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo, our spiritual director here at KPC (the very foundation of everything we have here), begs us (her students) to utilize the Stupas in this way, and to encourage others to do so as well. One reason I have this blog actually. Anyway, she had the Migyur Dorje Stupa build specifically for that purpose! To bring physical healing from illness, including mental illness! There are many stories I've heard of things really happening, like people being cured of lymes disease, cancer, hepatitis C, all kinds of things. I always take those stories with a grain of salt, I don't NOT believe them, but I have trouble with the whole thing...

Well, now I've got my own story to tell. Maybe it had nothing to do with the Stupa...but...