Surprises

Hello all.
I got back from US Festival and visits with various family a few days ago.

One of the many highlights of Gen-la Dekyong's teachings on the life of Buddha Shakyamuni was a way for us to test our renunciation: Are we surprised or even shocked when something goes wrong? Do we really understand that the nature of samsara is constant suffering? If we do, then anything negative, strange or unexpected that happens should be considered normal, par for the course. You can consider the U.S. presidential race as one example.

I knew that test told me I still had work to do, especially when I got my latest tumor marker number. After just 2 treatments of the immunotherapy drug Opdivo before the trip, it had gone down 100 points. I was also looking better - according to various folks, including my oncologist - and feeling better, with a bit more energy. So I'll admit I was very surprised at yesterday's result, where my marker went up 200+ points.
I'm not there yet for renunciation, but not discouraged either. As Gen Rigpa told us in his Introduction Friday night, we should be like a toddler who falls when trying to walk but keeps getting up and trying again.

R & I thought we had a green light to go to Summer Festival, via Iceland, but the light is now back at yellow.

Please make prayers that I - and everyone else with the wish - can be at Manjushri KMC to receive the transmission of the Oral Instructions of Mahamudra.

Many thanks,
M.

Reg for US Fest Opens Tues

Registration for US Festival opens this Tuesday, Feb 11, at noon EST (9am Seattle time). If you want accommodations on-site (aside from camping), plan to be at that page at least a few minutes before then.
The Festival will be Empowerment of Wisdom Buddha Je Tsongkhapa and Teachings on How to be a Modern Kadampa by Gen-la Dekyong!
It runs April 25 – 30.
For more info about accommodations, transportation, costs, etc. see particularly The Festival menu at the top of the website. 
The closest, best airport is Newark (EWR), NJ.

I am planning to go. If you are thinking about attending and would be flying out of SEA (Sea-Tac), contact me so that we can all try to fly with friends - reliance on Sangha. I will keep a spreadsheet to help everyone coordinate their travels.

Usually I fly in the Thursday before Festival starts, stay at a hotel near the airport (the Wyndham Garden, which is safe, relatively cheap, decent service and has restaurant with a nice breakfast; also a shop crammed with just about any travel supplies you need and a small café in the lobby) to get a good night's sleep, then book the shuttle or take the train (which is a nice option, but note that you need to get a taxi or other ride from Pt Jervis to Glen Spey, which is where the US Temple is; taxi companies are listed on the transportation page).

If you take the train, you have to change at Secaucus Junction, which is easy to navigate. There's a good trip planner on the NJ Transit website, where you can enter Newark Airport Rail Station, Port Jervis Station, the date and time you want you to leave or arrive, and it will give you a list of trains. I think they don't have a schedule yet for April.
I like maps, and you can see a nice one of NJ Transit trains. It's the red or blue line from what's called Newark Liberty Int'l Airport, at the middle of the map just below Newark Penn Station (a terrible name, given New York City's Penn Station), then the change at Secaucus to the yellow Main Line, which you stay on to terminate in Port Jervis.

I am tracking flight costs with an Alert at Kayak.com (which you need to have an account for). I can't think of a reason not to get a non-stop, except if you're booking with miles.

May all obstruction be cleared for those who wish to go, and may many wish to go.

Karma and Reliance

At Summer Festival one of the questions I heard that people were contemplating was the relationship between believing in karma and relying on a Spiritual Guide. The New Heart of Wisdom, which Geshe-la is going to formally introduce at next year's International Fall Festival in Portugal, briefly addresses this question:
"... the effectiveness of our Guru yoga practice depends on the strength of our belief in karma. If it is weak we will neglect to engage in practices for accumulating merit, purifying our negativities and receiving Buddha's blessings, and then our Guru yoga practice will be just empty words."
It hadn't occurred to me that they were related, so I have more thinking to do.
We were also encouraged to think deeply about the many levels in Geshe-la's books, particularly Modern Buddhism, and that imagining we're reading his books in the company of Guru Tsongkhapa will help us discover the deeper meanings.