Education Teacher Professor College University Diploma Doctorate - Barbara Pijan Lama Jyotisha Vedic Astrology

"Argala is a very important concept in Vedic astrology.

Literally speaking, Argala means "a bolt". Argala on a house shows the influences that intervene in its affairs and decide some aspects of it and close the bolt on it, so to speak.

A planet or house in the 2nd, 4th and 11th houses from a house causes primary Argala on it. This simple concept can be better appreciated if some examples are given.

The 4th house stands for education. The 2nd, 4th and 11th from the 4th house are 5th, 7th and 2nd houses respectively.

intelligence (5th),

interaction with others (7th)

and overall character and samskara (2nd)

make or break one's education.

If Jupiter is in 5th house, he will give intelligence and his Subhargala (benefic intervention) on 4th will help one's education.

If Rahu is in 5th house, his Papargala (malefic intervention) on 4th will cause obstacles in one's education by way of poor intelligence.

Similarly, benefics and malefics in the houses causing Argala cause good and bad intervention.

Basically, the point is that intelligence, interaction and samskara are the things that decide "education."
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~~ Pandit Sanjay Rath of Sri Jagannath -- http://srijagannath.org/learn/practical_use_of_argala.htm

"I find that giving a discourse based on religious texts is a good way of showing that religion has a lot to tell us, no matter what situation we find ourselves in.
However, I am better at it now than I was in the beginning.

In those days I lacked confidence, although it improved every time I spoke in public.

Also, I found, as every teacher does, that there is nothing like teaching to help one learn."

~~ H.H. Dalai Lama, The Path to Tranquility. www.snowlionpub.com

...at Bodh Gaya, [Shakyamuni] displayed the ways of becoming fully enlightened. Then in stages he turned the three renowned wheels of doctrine.

In the first period, at Varanasi, Buddha turned the wheel of doctrine that is based on the four noble truths; he did this mainly in consideration of those having the lineage of Hearers (Sravaka).

In the middle period, at Grdhrakuta, he set forth the middle wheel of doctrine, which is based on the mode of non-inherent existence of all phenomena; he did this mainly in consideration of trainees of sharp faculties who bear the Mahayana lineage.

In the final period, at Vaisali, he set forth the final wheel [which is based on discriminating between those phenomena that do and those that do not truly exist]; he did this mainly in consideration of trainees of middling and lower faculties who bear the Mahayana lineage.

The teacher Buddha also appeared in the body of Vajradhara, setting forth tantric doctrines."

~~ H.H. Dalai Lama, The Buddhism of Tibet. Jeffrey Hopkins (Trans.and Ed.). www.snowlionpub.com

"According to Buddhist theory, there are some things that belong to the subtle consciousness, or subtle mind, that are independent from the body, from the brain.

There is no assertion in Buddhism that there is a 'thing' called a soul or a 'thing' called consciousness, some 'thing' that exists independently of the brain.

There is no such 'thing' existing independently of the brain or being dependent upon the brain. But rather, consciousness is understood as a multifaceted matrix of events.

Some of them are utterly dependent on the brain, and at the other end of the spectrum, some of them are completely independent of the brain.

There is no thing that is the mind or the soul."

~~ H.H. Dalai Lama. Consciousness at the Crossroads: Conversations with the Dalai Lama on Brain Science and Buddhism. Zara Houshmand, R.B. Livingston, and B. A. Wallace (Eds.); Snow Lion Pub.

Crucial to the hermeneutical approach is the Mahayana principle of the Four Reliances. These are:

1. Reliance on the teaching, not the teacher

2. Reliance on the meaning, not the words that express it

3. Reliance on the definitive meaning, not on the provisional meaning; and

4. Reliance on the transcendent wisdom of deep experience, not on mere knowledge.

~~ H.H. Dalai Lama, The Path to Tranquility. www.snowlionpub.com

What you know should be put into practice immediately

"You should understand the whole purpose of listening to teachings, taking teachings and studying them is to put them into practice, just as after having learned how to prepare a certain dish, you utilize that knowledge to make the dish and derive full nutritional benefit from it.

What you know should be put into practice immediately; you can thus derive the benefit of having some transformation within your mind.

Even though it might be a very minor effort, a very small practice just leaving imprints within your mind, still you must think that it is worthwhile to do. Otherwise your knowledge of dharma will be quite fruitless, and like merely playing something on a tape."

~~ H.H. Tenzin Gyatso, Path to Bliss: A Practical Guide to Stages of Meditation. Geshe Thubten Jinpa (Trans.), Christine Cox (Ed.). www.snowlionpub.com

Abandonment of the non-virtues.

"The root of all the vows for laypersons and for monks and nuns is the ethics of the abandonment of the non-virtues.

Three physical actions (killing, stealing, and sexual misconduct),

four verbal actions, (lying, divisive talk, harsh speech, and senseless chatter),

and three mental actions (covetousness, harmful intent, and wrong views)

are to be abandoned."

~~ H.H. Dalai Lama. The Dalai Lama at Harvard: Lectures on the Buddhist Path to Peace. Snow Lion Pub.

Different perspectives can be very helpful

The ability to look at events from different perspectives can be very helpful. Then, practicing this, one can use certain experiences, certain tragedies, to develop a calmness of mind. One must realize that every phenomenon, every event, has different aspects. Everything is of a relative nature.

For example, in my own case, I lost my country. From that viewpoint, it is very tragic--and there are even worse things. There's a lot of destruction happening in our country. That's a very negative thing.

But if I look at the same event from another angle, I realize that as a refugee, I have another perspective. As a refugee there is no need for formalities, ceremony, protocol. If everything were status quo, if things were okay, then on a lot of occasions you merely go through the motions; you pretend.

But when you are passing through desperate situations, there's no time to pretend. So from that angle, this tragic experience has been very useful to me.

Also, being a refugee creates a lot of new opportunities for meeting with many people. People from different religious traditions, from different walks of life, those whom I may not have met had I remained in my country. So in that sense it's been very, very useful.

It seems that often when problems arise, our outlook becomes narrow.

All of our attention may be focused on worrying about the problem, and we may have a sense that we're the only one that is going through such difficulties. This can lead to a kind of self-absorption that can make the problem seem very intense.

When this happens, I think that seeing things from a wider perspective can definitely help -- realizing, for instance, that there are many other people who have gone through similar experiences, and even worse experiences.

This practice of shifting perspective can even be helpful in certain illnesses or when in pain. At the time the pain arises, it is of course often very difficult, at that moment, to do formal meditation practices to calm the mind.

But if you can make comparisons, view your situation from a different perspective, somehow something happens.

If you only look at that one event, then it appears bigger and bigger. If you focus too closely, too intensely, on a problem when it occurs, it appears uncontrollable.

But if you compare that event with some other greater event, look at the same problem from a distance, then it appears smaller and less overwhelming."

~~ H.H. Dalai Lama & Howard C. Cutler, M.D.. (1998). The Art of Happiness: A Handbook for Living. www.snowlionpub.com