Page 21 - EH57

TEACHINGS | EASTERN HORIZON 19

TWO EXERCISES FOR

TURNING INTENTION

INTO MOTIVATION

By Dr Thupten Jinpa

Thupten has been the principal English translator to the Dalai
Lama since 1985. He has translated and edited more than ten books
by the Dalai Lama including, including the New York Times bestseller,
Ethics for the New Millennium (Riverhead, 1999). He He received
his early education and training as a monk at Zongkar Choede
Monastery in Hunsur, near Mysore, South India, and later joined
the Shartse College of Ganden monastic university, in Mundgod,
Karnataka, where he received the Geshe Lharam degree. He taught
Buddhist epistemology, metaphysics, Middle Way philosophy and
Buddhist psychology at Ganden for five years. Jinpa also holds a B.A.
Honors degree in Western Philosophy and a Ph.D degree in Religious
Studies, both from Cambridge University, UK. He is currently the
President of the Institute of Tibetan Classics, and Chairman of the Mind
and Life Institute.

How do we motivate ourselves to live true to our best
aspirations?

Framing our days between intention setting and joyful dedication, even
once a week, can change how we live. It’s a purposeful approach of self-
awareness, conscious intention, and focused effort—three precious gifts of
contemplative practice—by which we take responsibility for our thoughts
and actions and take charge of our selves and our lives. As the Buddha put
it, “You are your own enemy / and you are your own savior.”

The Buddha saw: our thoughts, emotions, and actions are the primary
sources of our suffering. Equally, our thoughts, emotions, and actions can
be the source of our joy and freedom. Living, as much as possible, with
conscious intention is the first step of this transformation. So, the following
two exercises in intention and dedication are the first step to greater clarity
and cohesion in our life, our work, and our relationship with others.
Not only that, when our aspirations include the welfare and happiness of
others, our deeds and our life as a whole acquire a purpose that is greater
than our individual existence.