On 4 November, the Kunsang delivered a public talk entitled “Pure Mind, Pure World” to a local audience at Craighall Primary.
Originally from Switzerland, Kunsang has dedicated more than two decades to the new Kadampa Buddhism, delivering talks and teachings to audiences around the world.
The International New Kadampa Tradition was founded by the movement’s leader Geshe Kelsang Gyatso in 1991. Its expansion and development in the west over the years has seen centres representing the tradition from across the world.
The Vajrapani Kadampa Buddhist Centre based in Craighall Park, offers a range of meditation classes to the general public, study programmes for teachers of the tradition and outreach activities to the community.
Kunsang is the deputy leader of the tradition and spent her 4th visit in South Africa lecturing on meditation, as well as explaining Buddhist philosophy and teachings.
She led local attendees in a guided meditation, focusing and calming their minds.
Providing an introduction and overview of Buddhist teachings, she offered her perspective that meditation and Buddhist philosophy is applicable and compatible with modern western societies.
She emphasised that Buddhism was strongly logic based which influenced her choice.
Kulsang engaged the audience with a series of questions, asking them to interrogate the cause of their suffering and unhappiness, noting that often people disconnect one’s experiences with one’s mind.
Highlighting that everything depends on the mind, a pure mind free from negative thoughts, she explained that by deepening and improving an understanding of the mind, one is able to address the source of what infers suffering and unhappiness.
Kulsang expressed the belief that there is an unlimited potential in everyone to be a good person, to learn, control and transform their minds to improve their compassion and kerb the unpleasant feelings which stem from egoism and selfishness.
Details: www.meditation.org.za
