Prerequisite: Study of the Lam Rim

 

Commitments: Refuge, Bodhicitta and Tantric Vows (to be given at initiation), and Venerable Zasep Tulku Rinpoche as one of your gurus

 

Note: Rinpoche's has written two books about Chöd practice: Profound Chöd Practice — Cutting Through Inner Demons: Book One and Book Two. Information about the books with links to Amazon can be found HERE.

 

Chöd practice originated from the teachings of the Perfection of Wisdom sutra Prajnaparamita, which has four versions — One Hundred Thousand Verses, Twenty Thousand Verses and Eight Thousand Verses. The condensed version is Sherab Nyingpo, known as the Heart Sutra. The Prajnaparamita Sutra and the Diamond-Cutting Sutra both explain that it’s most important to cultivate the realization of Shunyata, and that one should view all conditioned phenomena as being like a dream, an illusion, a bubble, a shadow and lightning; momentary and insubstantial. 

As Mahayana Buddhists, we should recite the Heart Sutra daily. Although many people don’t know the meaning of the Heart Sutra or how to apply it in everyday life, if one has faith, then merely reciting it daily helps to resolve our afflictions, settle our minds, purify our karmic obstacles, and free us from delusions. Every phrase in the Heart Sutra helps us to calm our mind and be peaceful. Chöd is a Tibetan term which means “to cut” — in this case, the cutting of self-cherishing and ego-grasping. 

 

Chöd is first and foremost a method of releasing our fixation on what we might believe is some kind of intrinsic reality regarding self and phenomena. In that sense, the essence of Chöd is no different from other major Buddhist teachings. 

 

The essence of Chöd practice teaches us ways to cultivate the three principal paths of Mahayana Buddhism: Renunciation, Bodhicitta and Shunyata. 

 

As Chöd practitioners, we invite demons, evil spirits and ghost as our guests, making them feel comfortable and welcomed. We show sympathy for those spirits suffering from hunger, loneliness, intimidation and persecution. Chöd employs an abundance of imagery and visualization to invoke our inner demons or delusions (inner poisons) such as attachment, fear, hatred, pride, jealousy, ignorance, and so on. Once they are brought under the light of our own awareness, we can use radical methods to cut through our identification with them. Chöd is distinctive as a radical method for intensifying or inducing emotional upheavals and fearful apparitions, so we can observe and sever them.  

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Kyabje Zasep Tulku Rinpoche will be giving the Chöd initiation of Machig Labdron and the 5 Dakinis: Buddha Dakini, Vajra Dakini, Ratna Dakini, Padma Dakini and Karma Dakini on November 20th, 2026 at 6:30pm and teachings on November 21 from 10am-5pm at the Gaden Choling Mahayana Buddhist Meditation Centre in Toronto, Canada. Empowerment and teachings will be available on Zoom. Please make sure you select a ticket for both teaching and empowerment if you are intending to attend both.