In the Arcadia room, the Dhagpo center for Buddhist studies and meditation organized a conference presented by a lay teacher Drupia Birgit on June 9th. It was at the end of her two three-year retreats that she wanted to teach the precepts of Buddhism.
This 2,600-year-old teaching advocates love and compassion. It is first of all about acting in a positive way and avoiding harm, respecting ethics; an outcome which Buddha attained thanks to his immense potential for understanding. Everything we experience is the result of previous actions. If we behave well, we will have a good return from things, it is the law of interdependence, of karma which means action.
The Creator does not exist in Buddhism, everyone lives the life he has created for himself, there is no notion of good and evil. We are responsible for what happens to us. It is up to me to change the situation. The actions of the present always induce the future; everything we do has consequences, it is the law of karmas. You have to accept that you can’t be perfect.
In fact, Buddhism is neither a philosophy nor a religion. Its precepts were transmitted in Tibetan by the disciples of the Master and translated into a specific language intended for spirituality. The teaching leads us to look at the other’s qualities rather than their faults, not to put people in a judgment drawer, not to deny any spirituality – Buddhists are not missionaries – to first open to oneself and to all beings, do not ignore others, be attentive, observe, watch, listen, reflect and finally, take care.