Surrendering Attachment and Lessons from His Holiness The Dalai Lama - Geshe Lhakdor on What Ancient Spirituality Teaches Us About This Moment

Today’s guest was the person I needed to speak with - Geshe Lhakdor. Geshe is a Tibetan Buddhist monk who fled his homeland of Tibet when he was six years old and has committed his life to spirituality, Buddhism and service. Geshe served His Holiness the Dalai Lama as his English translator and religious assistant from 1989 until 2005, and has co-translated and co-produced several books by the Dalai Lama. As Director of the Library of Tibetan Works and Archives in Dharamsala, Geshe facilitates the Science for Monks program and shares his own expertise as a scholar of science and philosophy. Geshe is also trustee of the Foundation for Universal Responsibility, established by His Holiness.

I am very thankful to former pod guest Nadya Hutagalung for making possible this extraordinary experience as part of Geshe’s recent trip to Australia. Coincidentally meeting just five meetings from my place, spending time with him was a gift. When so much feels out of control - whether that’s global affairs through to what we can actually manage and influence on a day to day basis - spending this time with Geshe reminded me so much of the ills our world faces are the result of what he describes as the polluted mind. Fear, self centredness, greed, contempt - we all know where that leads us. I know I can’t help it myself sometimes - I want to hold a grudge, I want revenge when I feel crossed, I’d love to get exactly what I want in the maximum dosage as quickly as possible and for the least amount of effort. That’s not a recipe for living in harmony and with reciprocity with others though.

Geshe Lhakdor reminded me of what works - progress over perfection, having the wisdom to know the difference between what I can and can’t control, to be as compassionate and loving as I possibly can be. It all sounds trite and soft and woo woo, but we know it intuitively. We want to belong, we want to feel connected, we want to feel safe. In this conversation we talk about the dangers of every form of attachment, the potential for liberation, what spirituality is and what ancient teachings offer us as a poignant reminders for living today.

With this episode I need to offer a slight audio warning - the mysterious fizzing and splattering of the recording equipment appeared when I listened back. I’ve removed as much of it as possible while maintaining the majority of the episode, but I apologise for any listener discomfort as you go. I was really bummed to hear it myself, and as with every time this seems to suddenly occur without warning, I’ll be running a bunch of audio tests to rectify.

It always sounds so simple to adopt and live by a set of spiritual principles found across all the major religions in the world. Doing it - and doing it consistently and regularly - isn’t so easy. Geshe Lhakdor is a reminder to do it today and to worry about tomorrow tomorrow.

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