Discovering the Relaxed Mind

An Immersion in a Seven-Step Method for Deepening Meditation Practice 

Taught by Dza Kilung Rinpoche

When Tibetan Buddhist master Dza Kilung Rinpoche arrived in the US, one thing was crystal clear—Westerners face a unique set of obstacles when walking the path of meditation. Our fast-paced, high-pressured lifestyle carries over into the way we approach meditation practice, and we often have difficulty achieving genuine relaxation of body and mind—the very foundation for being able to deepen spiritually.

In this online course, Rinpoche presents the seven-step meditation practice he developed to help his Western students counteract the overwhelming number of distractions of our culture, to develop authentic calm, clarity, and wisdom. His instructions have been concisely and practically adapted from the meditation techniques of three major Buddhist traditions—Theravada, Mahayana, and Vajrayana—which Tibetan Buddhism knits into a seamless whole.

Experienced practitioners, as well as beginning meditators, will benefit from this opportunity to discover what is possible when we release tension on every level—from the physical body, to the heart, to the subtlest energies of the mind.

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This course will help you:

  • Experience relaxed focus with minimal effort
  • Develop clarity, equanimity, and wisdom
  • Recognize the light of your own awareness as the heart of compassion
  • Relax into a deeper sense of harmony with your own mind
  • Release yourself from habits that inhibit joy and well-being
  • Radiate kindness and inspiration for the benefit of others
  • Transcend dualistic fixation to fully enter the flow of existence

What You Will Receive 

This course was designed with your needs in mind and contains all of the following: 

 

  • Seven video talks by Dza Kilung Rinpoche—each about an hour and a half in length—with transcripts and audio versions available
  • Meditation and post-meditation practices to help you integrate the teachings into your daily life
  • Guided reading assignments with downloadable PDFs from the book, The Relaxed Mind by Dza Kilung Rinpoche
  • Unlimited access on your computer, mobile device, or tablet—learn at your own pace wherever and whenever works best for you

Course Curriculum

  Orientation and Support
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  Lesson One: Basic Sitting Meditation
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  Lesson Two: Calm Abiding Meditation
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  Lesson Three: Refined Basic Sitting Meditation
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  Lesson Four: Insight Meditation
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  Lesson Five: Open Heart-Mind Meditation
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  Lesson Six: Pure Mind Meditation
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  Lesson Seven: Nonconceptual Meditation
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  Additional Resources
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What You Will Learn in Each Lesson


Lesson 1

Basic Sitting Meditation

“People sometimes assume that meditation means to reduce thoughts or work with thoughts—maybe by mentally observing the thoughts, by following them or some other object of attention. In such cases the mind may say, ‘Oh, I’m doing fine. I’m not distracted by anything, so I don’t care about the body.’ But there is more to it than that. The mind must be deeply connected with the feelings of the body. They should be resting together in meditation.”—The Relaxed Mind, page 3

Meditation isn’t just for the mind. To begin our meditative journey, we learn how to establish a comfortable meditation posture. We discover how to join physical and mental awareness as we sit. Finally, we practice bringing mind and body together in relaxation as a preparation for calm abiding meditation. 

Lesson 2

Calm Abiding Meditation

“Especially in the twenty-first century, because of our busy lives, we are in the habit of having minds that are busy, involved, and very active. But let’s ask ourselves, Is this the only way my mind can be? And further, Is this the true nature of my mind? The answer is no. We can prove this fact by practicing meditation, by taking some time to connect the mind to calmness.”—The Relaxed Mind, page 23

Now that we’ve practiced relaxing and connecting with our bodies, we learn shamatha, or calm abiding meditation—a practice that exists in many contemplative traditions as a way of cultivating relaxed focus. We use an object of attention to free ourselves from the disturbances of thoughts and to reach a state of calm. 

Lesson 3

Refined Basic Sitting Meditation

“With refined sitting meditation, greater clarity allows our relaxed focus to become more stable and precise. This can be illustrated by the shepherd with his flock, where the animals themselves (our normal thoughts) are in a calm state and unlikely to run off, but still the shepherd must be watchful to guard against wolves (distracting undercurrent thoughts). So here—in order to reduce subtle undercurrent thoughts—there is more relaxation and less worry than previously, and from the support of that relaxation comes stability. We become inspired to remain longer in that meditation state.”—The Relaxed Mind, page 38

As our focus becomes more refined, it also becomes more relaxed. In this lesson, we arrive at clarity. The object of our attention shifts from an external object to single-pointedness itself—the unity between our mind and the environment. As we open our mind further, happiness and inspiration arise naturally. 

Lesson 4

Insight Meditation

“The direct translation of the Tibetan word lhag-tong is useful for understanding insight meditation. Lhag means ‘something extra,’ and tong is ‘seeing’ or ‘clear’ or ‘view.’ Translated as ‘insight,’ ‘extra-seeing,’ and ‘clear-seeing,’ the term means ‘to see one’s inner nature, inner being, or absolute nature.’ It points to seeing beyond the surface. Here we get a 360-degree view, unblocked by any corners.”—The Relaxed Mind, page 50

As we go beyond the urge to manipulate our experience, using less and less effort in our meditation, we begin to see beneath the surface to our inner nature—the nature of all phenomena. As our insight develops, we can rest in the clarity and inspiration of our innate wisdom, without dullness or agitation. 

Lesson 5

Open Heart-Mind Meditation

“This meditation has the Mahayana view—the openness of a vast and spacious heart and mind, a state of great rest and of loving-kindness and compassion for all beings. Everything around us in our environment is simply as it is. We are part of it, and there is nothing good and nothing bad within this vast meditational view. This view lessens the partiality that could produce conduct that is harmful to self and others—something we must be mindful of and careful to avoid. We find more receptivity to and contentment with our environment and with beings—that is openness.”—The Relaxed Mind, page 82

In this lesson, we begin to view our internal and external worlds more widely, which creates a foundation for the experience of unbiased compassion. Where we usually grasp at the duality of self and other, we instead practice cultivating boundless equanimity. This leads to the wide-open experience of spacious mind.

Lesson 6

Pure Mind Meditation

“What we need most is trust—trust in the mind’s ability to cultivate this really deep connection. The purity we are seeking is not in the nature of ‘pure’ versus ‘impure.’ If those opposites arise in our minds, we relax with them both rather than hoping for and trying to grab the ‘pure,’ and fearing and trying to push away the ‘impure.’ We relax and let that duality, that labeling, calm down. Then we discover a new experience—one of natural purity arising from the release of dualistic opposites. With pure mind meditation, we calm down, relax, and leave subject and object, good and bad, alone—the pressure’s off.”—The Relaxed Mind, page 93

The true nature of mind is vast and uncontrived, free of thoughts and worries. As we deepen in this sixth meditation, we practice opening further to the space between dualities. We transcend our habitual patterns and achieve a deeper state of resting wakefulness.

Lesson 7

Nonconceptual Meditation

“At times people are afraid of entering fully into nonconceptual meditation. When we open up completely to let whatever is in our minds manifest freely, we may be wary that something scary or destructive could appear. We might fear that we could lose our personality. But if we allow everything to arise and pass through without judgment, labeling, or commentary, we have nothing to fear. Fear arises from dualistic fixation, and once that tension is released, the fear also dissolves. This experience is like walking down a crowded street with all of its noise and activity. We’re just watching, completely unengaged. It’s fine, whatever arises. Then at some point the mind will become satisfied and happy with this experience. In fact, on a subtle level, we are receiving energy and teachings on the wisdom heart-mind through nonconceptual meditation.”—The Relaxed Mind, page 109

In this final lesson, we are introduced to Dzogchen. We allow the mind to rest effortlessly: beyond fixation, beyond manipulation, in the completely natural state. This is transcendent knowledge: primordial purity.

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100% SATISFACTION GUARANTEE

If for any reason you are not completely satisfied, please e-mail us within 30 days, and we will promptly refund your purchase price.

Praise for Dza Kilung Rinpoche


The Relaxed Mind is a treasure on the indispensible stages of Buddhist trainings on the mind. It takes us from the beginning steps on the meditation journey all the way to final realization, the perfection of the enlightened nature of the mind…There is no need to look for other trainings.”—Tulku Thondup, author of The Healing Power of Mind and The Heart of Unconditional Love

“Refreshingly clear and simple instructions of the Tibetan path. From beginning meditations to more advanced stages, The Relaxed Mind offers straightforward and wise guidance that is both nourishing and liberating.”—Jack Kornfield, author of Bringing Home the Dharma and A Path with Heart

“Kilung Rinpoche elucidates the entire spectrum of meditation practices from the basic to highest level along with many precious insights applicable to everyday life.”—Anam Thubten, author of The Magic of Awareness and No Self, No Problem

“A modern meditation masterpiece. Brilliant, accessible, and humorous, if you follow the instructions of this profound teacher you will indeed relax into your innate wisdom.”—Lodro Rinzler, author of Sit Like a Buddha and The Buddha Walks into a Bar 

About the Instructor


H.E. Dza Kilung Tulku Jigme Rinpoche was born in 1970 and is head of Kilung Monastery in the Dzachuka District of Kham, Tibet, which he has been working to reestablish as a center of learning and practice since he was a teenager. He has been teaching in the West since 1998 and regularly accepts invitations to teach in Boston, Beijing, Denmark, Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, Brazil, and Argentina. His home in the West is on Whidbey Island near Seattle, Washington, and he divides his time among Washington, his community in Tibet, and his students worldwide.