I'm a Buddhist Monk born and bred in New Jersey. I dropped out of High School, and followed a lifepath that could best be described as juvenile delinquency. I sort of got my act together and played mostly in obscure metal and punk bands around the tri-state area from 89-94. I was about to off myself due to Samsara's suffering in general, and due to the specific sufferings associated with the human condition when i met Geshe Michael Roach who changed my life by introducing me to the BuddhaDharma, and by taking me to Seramey monastery with him for his Geshe examination. He was instrumental in introducing me to the Incomparable Seramey Khensur Lobsang Tharchin who in turn gave me the most precious things in my life Dharma teachings and vows.For twelve years i studied at the Asians Classics Institute in Manhattan, and with Khensur Tharchin Rinpoche at Mahayana Sutra and Tantra Center[Rashi Gempil Ling First Kalmykian Buddhist Temple ], in Freewood Acres Howell New Jersey. Khensur Rinpoche eventually ordained me as a Buddhist monk and exorted me become knowledgeable of the scriptures and teach the Dharma to the "American Barbarians" I was also asked to teach by Glorious Lama Geshe Michael Roach. I resisted for many years due to the fact of not being very knowledgeable or virtuous at all.But due to some signs and advice from Khensur Tharchin Rinpoche before his passing i took it upon myself to start a temple to transmit the pure Mahayana Dharma as it has come down to me in this lineage. The lineage of" He whose name I utter with great difficulty", "the Illustrious King of the Dharma", Je Tsongkhapa.I am a co-founder of Tashi Lhunpo Mahayana Buddhist Temple who's mission is the proper transmission of the Gelug presentation,of the Mahayana Buddhadharma in Southeastern Arizona.I am also the founder of Gyalrong House Who's rather lofty mission is the translation of the Tibetan Buddhist canon into English.
People I'd like to meet- Dalai Lama, Anna Paquin, Keith Caputo, Bill Murray. It's not that I am partial to the teachings of the Buddha; It's not that I'm against the other teachings that I see. Whether I decide to praise or pay some honor to them Relies instead on whether words stand up to reasoning; And that's a reason for me then to follow what they teach-old buddhist debate verse The thought manifests as the word; The word manifests as the deed; The deed develops into habit; And habit hardens into character. So watch the thought and its ways with care, And let it spring from love Born out of concern for all beings- Shakyamuni Buddha Shake off all the fears of servile prejudices, under which weak minds are servilely crouched. Fix reason firmly in her seat, and call on her tribunal for every fact, every opinion. Question with boldness even the existence of a God; because, if there be one, he must more approve of the homage of reason than that of blindfolded fear-Thomas Jefferson Violence isn't always evil. What's evil is the infatuation with violence- Jim Morrison I am a kind of paranoiac in reverse. I suspect people of plotting to make me happy- J. D. Salinger"The Dude abides. I don't know about you, but I take comfort in that."-The Big Lebowski The depressing thing about tennis is that no matter how good I get, I'll never be as good as a wall- Mitch Hedberg Skeptical scrutiny is the means, in both science and religion, by which deep insights can be winnowed from deep nonsense - Carl Sagan Can machines have souls? You ask me that and I ask you if souls can learn. If they can't -- then of what importance is this concept? Sterile and empty and unchangeable for eternity. How much more preferable it is to understand that we create ourselves. Slowly and painfully, shaped basically by our genes, modified steadily by everything we see and hear and attempt to understand. That is the reality and that is how we function, learn and develop- Harry Harrison and Marvin Minsky Men willingly believe what they wish- Julius CaesarI have three treasures. Guard and keep them: The first is deep love, The second is frugality, And the third is not to dare to be ahead of the world. Because of deep love, one is courageous. Because of frugality, one is generous. Because of not daring to be ahead of the world, one becomes the leader of the world- Lao-tzu, I don't have to take this abuse from you I've got hundreds of people waiting to abuse me- Bill Murray,Ghostbusters A bookstore is one of the only pieces of evidence we have that people are still thinking- Jerry Seinfeld Eccentricity is not, as dull people would have us believe, a form of madness. It is often a kind of innocent pride, and the man of genius and the aristocrat are frequently regarded as eccentrics because genius and aristocrat are entirely unafraid of and uninfluenced by the opinions and vagaries of the crowd - Edith Sitwell Insanity in individuals is something rare but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule -Friedrich Nietzsche If you knew what I know about the power of giving, you would not let a single meal pass without sharing it in some way- Shakyamuni Buddha What luck for rulers that men do not think - Adolf Hitler The character inherent in the American people has done all that has been accomplished; and it would have done somewhat more, if the government had not sometimes got in its way- Henry David Thoreau Victory belongs to the most persevering -Napoleon Bonaparte For certain is death for the born And certain is birth for the dead; Therefore over the inevitable Thou shouldst not grieve -Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 2 Many that live deserve death. And some die that deserve life. Can you give it to them? Then be not too eager to deal out death in the name of justice, fearing for your own safety. Even the wise cannot see all ends.- J. R. R. Tolkien, The Lord Of the Rings, Book Four, Chapter One I like to play blackjack. I'm not addicted to gambling, I'm addicted to sitting in a semi-circle- Mitch Hedberg Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it. Do not believe in anything simply because it is spoken and rumored by many. Do not believe in anything simply because it is found written in your religious books. Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of your teachers and elders. Do not believe in traditions because they have been handed down for many generations. But after observation and analysis, when you find that anything agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it- Shakyamuni Buddha Knowledge, if it does not determine action, is dead to us- Plotinus Neither from itself or from another,or from both,or without a cause,does anything whatever, anywhere arise-Nagarjuna All those who are unhappy in the world are so as a result of their desire for their own hapiness.All those who are happy in the world are so as a result of their desire for the hapiness of others.Enough of much talk!Note the difference between the fool who seekshis own benefit and the sage who works for the benefit of others-Shantideva You have no frame of reference, Donny. You're like a child who walks into the middle of a movie-The Big LebowskyIt is a miracle that curiosity survives formal education- Albert Einstein There is no nonsense so gross that society will not, at some time, make a doctrine of it and defend it with every weapon of communal stupidity- Robertson DaviesMost people have seen worse things in private than they pretend to be shocked at in public - Edgar Watson Howe I have long been of the opinion that if work were such a splendid thing the rich would have kept more of it for themselves - Bruce Grocott Sometimes in my dreams there are women...When such dreams happen, immediately I remember, 'I am a monk.'...It is very important to analyze 'What is the real benefit of sexual desire?' The appearance of a beautiful face or a beautiful body - as many scriptures describe - no matter how beautiful, they essentially decompose into a skeleton. When we penetrate to its human flesh and bones, there is no beauty, is there? A couple in a sexual experience is happy for that moment. Then very soon trouble begins- The Dalai Lama I like to believe that people in the long run are going to do more to promote peace than our governments. Indeed, I think that people want peace so much that one of these days governments had better get out of the way and let them have it - Dwight D. Eisenhower To read a newspaper is to refrain from reading something worthwhile. The first discipline of education must therefore be to refuse resolutely to feed the mind with canned chatter -Aleister Crowley Holding onto anger is like grasping onto a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else. You are the one who gets burned- Shakyamuni BuddhaMy loathings are simple: stupidity, oppression, crime, cruelty, soft music -Vladimir Nabokov Therefore, be lamps unto yourselves, be a refuge to yourselves. Hold fast to Truth as a lamp; hold fast to the truth as a refuge. Look not for a refuge in anyone beside yourselves. And those, who shall be a lamp unto themselves, shall take themselves to no external refuge, but holding fast to the Truth as their lamp, and holding fast to the Truth as their refuge, they shall reach the topmost height- Shakyamuni Buddha To succeed in the world it is not enough to be stupid, you must also be well-mannered - Voltaire We've heard that a million monkeys at a million keyboards could produce the complete works of Shakespeare; now, thanks to the Internet, we know that is not true - Robert Wilensky If you drink, don't drive. Don't even putt - Dean MartinBODHISATTVA WARRIORS Many great Buddhist masters have prophesied that centuries from now, when the forces of aggression amass on earth and no reason can turn them back, the kingdom of Shambhala will open its gates and its enlightened warriors will come forth into battle. Whoever they encounter will be given a choice--turn away from non virtue to virtue or, by direct, wrathful intervention, be liberated into a pure land beyond suffering. A Buddhist story tells of a ferry captain whose boat was carrying 500 bodhisattvas in the guise of merchants. A robber on board planned to kill everyone and pirate the ship's cargo. The captain, a bodhisattva himself, saw the man's murderous intention and realized this crime would result in eons of torment for the murderer. In his compassion, the captain was willing to take hellish torment upon himself by killing the man to prevent karmic suffering that would be infinity greater than the suffering of the murdered victims. The captain's compassion was impartial; his motivation was utterly selfless. Now, as I write this, the Middle East is inflamed with war. Watching the television news, I pray that this war will prevent greater wars, greater suffering, and that those opposed to war develop the skills to bring about authentic peace. We cannot fully discern the motivation of any participants involved in the conflict, but it is unlikely that many have the ability to bring about ultimate liberation for friends and enemies alike, or that they will be able to sustain the bodhisattva's impartial compassion as they engage in conflict. What we can know is our own minds. We can adhere to Buddhist ideals in our activities, whether we are combatants, protestors, decision- makers or concerned witnesses. We can pray that whatever virtue there is in the situation prevails, that genuine peace be established. The Buddha has taught that throughout countless lifetimes all beings have been our parents and have shown us great kindness. Now they have fallen under the sway of the mind's poisons of desire, anger, ignorance, and they suffer terribly. Could we exclude any from our compassion any more than the sun could exclude any from the warmth and radiance of its rays. As we aspire to peace, now and in the future cycles of our existence, we cannot deny the possibility that each of us may be confronted with the need for wrathful intervention in order to prevent greater harm. May the spiritual mining we undertake now allow us to enter such situations free from the delusions of the mind's poisons. May we act with spontaneous compassion to bring ultimate liberation to all alike, both victims and aggressors-Chagdud Tulku Rinpoche
Life of agony, Clutch, Misfits,Social Distortion, A.F.I. Dead Milkmen,Minor Threat , Murphys Law, Tool,Stooges, MC5, Cro Mags,H20,S.O.D.,M.O.D.,Agnostic Front, Black Sabbath, Blue Cheer, S.O.I.A., Breakdown, Velvet Underground,Iron Maiden, Creem, Mountain, James Gang, Black Flag, Descendents,D.R.I., The Doors, Mettalica, Slayer,Danzig,Mathew Sweet,Rollins Band,Fugazi,Weezer,Ween,Stray Cats, Phill Hummer,The Undead,Elvis Hitler,Beastie Boys, Cypress Hill, House of Pain, Slaine, Public Enemy, N.W.A. , Ice Cube, Kiss, Anthrax,N.I.N., Ministry, Portishead.Favorite Singers; Maynard-Tool, Glen Danzig-Misfits, Keith Caputo-Life of Agony Favorite Drummers; Neal Piert-Rush, Bill Stevenson-Descendents, Dave Lombardo-Slayer.Favorite bass players; Steve Harris-Iron Maiden, Geddie Lee-Rush, Les Claypool-Primus.Favorite Guitarists; Kirk Hammett-Mettalica, Greg Ginn-Black Flag, Dave Murray/Adrian Smith-Iron Maiden,Orgone, Fishbone, 24-7 S.P.Y.Z., Red Hotts, Nine Inch Nails,
the Punisher, Road Warrior,X Men trilogy,Ran,Seven Samurai,Lock Stock & Two Smoking Barrels, Life of Brian,Almost Famous, Kelly's Heroes,High Plains Drifter,The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly,Hang em High, Stripes, Star Wars, Empire,First Blood,Lord of the Rings Trilogy,Crack in the World, When Worlds Collide, Day of the Triffids, Them, War of the Worlds original film adaption,Fight Club, Out of Sight,Die Hard, The Razor's Edge, Terminator, Alien, Aliens,Gladiator,A Clockwork Orange,Mezzo Forte, Racing with the Devil, Shockwaves, the many Basil Rathbone Sherlock Holmes flicks, Phantasm 1&2,Manhunter,Superbad, Knocked Up, 40 Year Old Virgin,District B-13,
Original Star Trek Series , the West Wing, 24, Monty Python's Flying Circus, The Young Ones,Law and Order, and it's various permutations,Twin Peaks,Barney Miller,M.A.S.H.,Brady Bunch,Kung Fu,Freaks and Geeks, undeclared, Human Weapon.
Meditation on Emptiness, Maps of the profound,Emptiness in the Mind Only School of Buddhism by Jeffrey Hopkins . Lam Rim Chen Mo by Je Tsongkhapa Liberation in the Palm of your Hands by Pabongkha Rinpoche,Achieving Bodhichitta, Treasury of Shunyata,Ponting the Way to Reasoning,by Seramey Khensur Tharchin Rinpoche. Bill the Galactic Heroe, the Stainless Steel Rat, by Harry Harrison
Wolverine, the Punisher, H.H. the 14th Dalai Lama, B.Alan Wallace, Seramey Khensur Tharchin Rinpoche, Jampa Lundrik, Henry Rollins,Snake Plissken, Geshe Tupten Rinchen,Geshe Michael Roach,Tupten Kunkyen, Geshe Lothar.