The Gyalwang Drukpa

I want to say to all of you who are working so hard to keep your promise to carry out "Live to Love" activities, "You are doing a great job!" Thank you for fulfilling my wishes and making my life more meaningful. I was particularly happy that now, even my nuns in Kathmandu are beginning to feel the positive effect of their formal practice. I was told that some of my nuns were extremely happy to be able to help the villagers in very practical way, like giving them blankets, giving schoolbags to the children and now they are thinking of giving rice to these poor people too.

I always say that being generous with a big heart makes you gain more than you can ever think of. It adds meaning and values to your own life. This is why in this degenerate time, we need to be living with love all the time to remind ourselves of our own values and of how to have a good heart. Happiness doesn't come freely. The bigger your heart, the happier you are. But of course, smartness should always be there. Love without eyes will make you suffer like nobody's business. "Live to Love" is something you have to do with good eyesight. I hope you understand what I am saying here.

These days, being a spiritual master is a very tough job. How to link spirituality and daily life? Most people feel that spirituality means meditation, praying, cutting yourself from the outside world, doing nothing except trying your best to keep your mind blank. I feel that this is not genuine spirituality, this is life of a plastic or a robot. Developing spirituality essentially is the process of developing your own nature of goodness, love, kindness and all the positive points. That adds life and meaning to your existence. Have you ever imagined a life without spirituality?

One other thing I want to say about "Live to Love" is that you have to keep it going. Many times, I find that my friends and students have the tendency to start something very nicely and then slowly by slowly, the interest starts to go away, and then gradually they even forget their promise to do at least something good, something that is related to "Live to Love", once a month, on the 3rd Sunday of each month. If you can keep this loving thoughts and put them into actions all the time, it would be a tremendous support for you in your life, it will give you strength and make you look beyond your own problems and self-related obstacles. That itself would give you tremendous freedom and that freedom would give you great happiness at the end of the day.

I was very touched by the spontaneous action by Ewa from Poland and Nina from Germany to practise "Live to Love" when they helped a dying woman in a street near the Boudanath Stupa. That is "Live to Love". I was also very happy to read that Drukpa Butterworth, Drukpa Penang, Drukpa Hamburg and several other Drukpa centres were keeping their commitment to plant trees, help the homeless people and the poor people etc. Yes, I know that you cannot help everybody, but at least you are doing something for someone, for some beings, for some other less fortunate ones in the society. If everyone can do this, wouldn't the world be transformed into a wonderful pure land of joy and happiness?