(compiled by Brady Hogan)


When I was little and living in the monastery, on New Year's eve I would 
be anxious with anticipation waiting for the New Year to arrive. I could 
barely sleep, perhaps because of the possibilities of new hopes and 
aspirations. So for this New Year, I also have hope and aspiration. It's a 
new hope with the coming of this New Year that I might be able to walk on 
the same soil, the western continent-walk through the same landscape, and 
open the door to this intimacy. That is my hope for the New Year.


Looking back at this past year, we can recall experiences that have been 
painful and difficult. There are also joyful and happy experiences that we 
can recall. Different experiences, be they difficult and challenging or 
joyful and pleasant-they are landscapes, tapestries in our lives-something 
to do with attributes, significance in our lives. It's important to recall 
these joys and sorrows that have marked this last year. The point is, the 
difficulties one has faced, painful experiences, shouldn't be left by 
themselves, put aside, or ignored as too painful. The difficulties and 
challenges should be attributes in molding and shaping the contours of 
one's life and be put to meaningful use.


 Personally, I have faced particular difficulties especially in the 
years1999 and 2000 [his escape from Tibet], as many of you know. The 
difficulties and challenges I have faced have become the adornments of my 
life. Had I not, maybe I would be anonymous-but some kind of recognition 
can be attributed to those times. Every difficulty can be embraced as a 
blessing in disguise. They can adorn one's life. Beneficial results can be 
found. What would be most preferable is to be able to use whatever 
problems one has faced for greater development for the coming year. So 
they become attributes, human dignity, repleteness, fullness-decorated by 
being able to learn. That would be the most precious thing to do. If one 
can't do that, then at least one must put aside, let go. Don't bring a 
trail of baggage into the New Year. Come with new life into the New Year.


 In 2006, I have come through many challenges, in particular having taken 
up the responsibility of steering the Kagyu Monlam. It is quite a lot of 
responsibility, difficulty and considerations. But this eve, all of those 
challenges, however difficult have been worth it because they have been 
done for your sake. So why get stuck with those? So I've left them behind. 
Tonight I come to you crystal fresh. I hope that you too can come 
fresh-decorate and dignify your human life and at least don't bring a 
trail of baggage into the your present life. One needs room, so don't 
bring a trail of baggage from the past. Say good-bye to last year.


 So what we need to consider is that we don't view that "time" is 
controlling us-that custom is controlling us. Time is not going to dictate 
change or custom doesn't have control, but our willingness does. Feel 
inspired, motivated to change. We use the occasion of New Year to 
voluntarily serve as the vehicle of change. We can change anytime we want 
because it's not dictated by time or custom. So the principle purpose of 
Buddhism is to see our conditioned habitual view-fanatical fixation of 
whatever view of reality that we are holding. The teachings of Buddhism 
help us to undo those fixations. Help us to understand fixation, 
rigidity-to not develop another view as we go further on the path-but 
gradually going beyond any view whatsoever.


 When we apply Dharma in our spiritual lives and everyday activities, our 
attitude is free of extreme fixation. When we live our lives, face 
challenges and difficulties, there is enough room for movement, for 
activities to just occur. There's no need to be stuck, rather, beginning 
to see room for hope, for possibility, for confidence.


 So, on this very night it's important for us to know that we're not trying 
to particularly promote this or that view. We already have enough 
opinions. What we need is genuine experience of peace of mind, stability 
of mind, development of depth of capacity for wisdom-not dependent on 
counting how long one has done such and such, but on a daily basis looking 
at what's going on in one's life. What outlook is one developing from day 
to day, week to week, month to month.


 We could use loving kindness, compassion-we can ask what further 
enhancement have we been able to develop? What have we cultivated in our 
daily life for that to occur? One needs two things:

             1) Proper guidance; and
             2) Examples of what is wholesome to adopt and what is 
unwholesome to abandon-recognizing by oneself what is unwholesome and 
giving it up and recognizing what to adopt. Self-help. Help yourself to 
appreciate, help yourself to develop, not by being dependent upon another 
to show you, but by embracing the guidelines that you need to follow. In 
terms of self-help, what do we need to do? We feed ourselves three times a 
day. Three times or not, we still have the notion to take care of the 
body. There is this notion of "I" who owns the body. This lingering 
experience-there is no fixed reference, not a reference to body or entity. 
Yet there's some dependency, perhaps consciousness, mind, alertness that 
we experience. If so, perhaps we need to help that, feed that three times 
a day. Feed the mind in order to be strong, to be confident, to have a 
mature mind, like mental vitamins.
To catch a physical cold is uncomfortable, but a mind-cold is even worse. 
Maybe we should care for our mind more than our body.

In conclusion, I'd like to say that I've heard there are about 1,000 of 
you from abroad. So to me you are like 1,000 Buddhas, 1,000 Bodhisattvas. 
Actually, I don't know what a Buddha looks like, what Buddhas are supposed 
to look like, but this time Buddhas have different shades of hair-blond, 
black, brown-short ones, tall ones. I'm so amazed at all the variety of 
ways that Buddhas can manifest.

 That you've come here and sincerely participated in the Kagyu Monlam-I 
feel strengthened by your presence. I feel invigorated, like I want to do 
something. I must do more. So for this strength, I'd like to thank all of 
you. Thank you.

 It has been in the past that my activities are dependent on others, the 
connection, the gathered strength of others. In the future also, the 
strength, the gathering of others' inseparability, linked. And you're all 
very important to me, a source of benefit to me, and maybe I'm a little 
bit to you. This eve I extend full-hearted good wishes for your well being 
and wishes that we stay connected in the coming years. If experience is 
happy, we'll do it together. If experience is suffering, we'll do it 
together.
With this I wish you the very best. Happy New Year.
                                                                     ~ 
H.H., the 17th Karmapa