Buddhist teacher, Judy Lief, joins Raghu to discuss training under Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, sharing transformative stories of Tibetan Masters and crazy wisdom from the 1970s.
Judy Lief is a Buddhist teacher who trained under the Tibetan meditation master, Ven. Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche. She has been a teacher and practitioner for over 35 years, and she continues to teach throughout the world. Judy is known for offering insights and practices stemming from the Buddhist tradition as a support for ordinary people facing the difficulties and challenges of modern life. Judy leads retreats and workshops as well as presenting online teachings. For information, offerings, and to listen to her Dharma Glimpses Podcast, please visit JudyLief.com
Trungpa Rinpoche: Connector to a Lost Heritage
Welcoming Buddhist teacher, Judy Lief, to the podcast, Raghu invites her to share how she found the path of spirituality under the transformative guidance of her teacher and Tibetan Lama, Ven. Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche. Recounting dropping out of graduate school and moving to Boulder to study Buddhism, Judy relays the miraculous (and simple) experiences, lessons, and vibratory essences of hanging out with Trungpa Rinpoche – a modern connector to an ancient heritage of wisdom.
“The way Trungpa Rinpoche was—so solid and so empty, and so loving, and so wrathful—the combination, something about it…It just seemed so much closer to the heart of things, deeply held experiences. It wasn’t him as a person. It felt like a connector, like he was a connector to a lost heritage.” – Judy Lief
Explore the notion of ego with Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche and Ram Dass, from the infamous ’74 Naropa sessions, on Ep. 112 of Here & Now
Transcending Madness: Aloneness, Self-Responsibility, & Bardos (14:24)
Speaking to the concept on aloneness through the lens of Trungpa Rinpoche, Judy explains how he connected it with a tenderness, vulnerability, and openness; as well as the recognition of our loneliness. Touching on Transcending Madness, Judy and Raghu elucidate the wisdom inherent in the ‘small conflicts of the bedroom and sink,’ in accepting the responsibility and poignancy of each of our unique lives, predicaments, and spiritual path. From this perspective, they highlight nuances of the (ever-present) Tibetan Bardos.
“Are we willing to be who we really are without trying to be some special being? And not try to hide our brilliance either? I think we’re scared both ways: scared of our brilliance, and scared of not being special.” – Judy Lief
Ram Dass recounts wise, hilarious, and insightful moments alongside Tibetan Lama, Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, on Ep. 39 of Here & Now
Tibetan Wisdom Comes West: HH Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche & HH 16th Karmapa (40:04)
Prompted by Raghu to share about meeting HH Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche (Brilliant Moon documentary), Judy describes him as ‘Mr. Universe,’ a wise flowing river, and grandfather-esque, cosmic, beyond-ordinary being. Inspired to trade stories of HH the 16th Karmapa, Judy and Raghu discuss the East-West cultural-spiritual intersection of the 1970s, as the tidal wave of Tibetan wisdom drenched the shores of (earnest, yet wild) hippie seekers in the vapid spiritual desert of American culture.
“[Trungpa] was really trying to pound something into us about how to be effective within a culture; how to relate to people within the forms that are there, instead of complaining about forms all the time; and how to learn about forms all together. What are forms? What are rituals? What are shrines?” – Judy Lief
For more Raghu spelunking the life, teachings, and timeless wisdom of Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, tune into Ep. 277 of Mindrolling
Photo via Marvin Moore