This month (February 2005) we talk to Kelsang Zogden.

Zogden is originally from Boston where he worked as a social worker for the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health for 15 years. He lived for several years in California and in 2002 moved to Fort Lauderdale where he now works as a substitute school teacher for Broward County. He is also a student in The Teacher Training Program.

When were you first attracted to Buddhism?

In 1993 I moved to Cape Cod and had several long cold winters with nothing to do but read. For what seemed like forever I had been reading all kinds of books on psychology, philosophy and religion looking for some understanding of happiness and of our baffling human predicament but never found anything that really answered all my questions. Fortunately one cold day in the dead of a very dreary winter I picked up a good book on Buddhism and after that I couldn't get enough. Finally after years of searching I found something that really made sense to me. What a huge relief that was.

What made you come to this Buddhist Center?

I had read many books on Buddhism and they all agreed on one thing, the importance of the Three Jewels, The Buddha Jewel, enlightened beings, The Dharma Jewel, their teachings and The Shanga Jewel, a community of Buddhist practitioners. I knew reading Dharma and trying to meditate on my own just wasn't going to cut it. I definitely needed all Three Jewels. I needed to find a Sangha if I was ever going to make any progress on the path and really make this work. I went to a Chinese Buddhist Center in San Diego for awhile but they all spoke Chinese and that didn't help me very much . I also tried a Zen center but at that time sitting quietly for hours facing a wall sure wasn't going to work for me. Then I found an NKT center in San Diego which just seemed perfect . It was friendly, warm and welcoming. My resident teacher there asked me straight away if I was ready to walk in the footprints of the Buddha. When I said I was, she gave me a big smile and I knew right then and there I was home free. So when I moved to Fort lauderdale I was looking for a NKT center.

Were you apprehensive about coming? What did you expect?

I was somewhat apprehensive about coming to the center. I guess I expected everyone to be very serious, meditating and praying all the time, not talking or smiling much, sort of like the nuns I had all through grade school. Also after years of strict nuns and a religious upbringing that was somewhat frightening one tends to be a tad apprehensive of anything that even looks like organized religion.

What were your first impressions when you arrived?

Just the opposite of what I expected. The center was warm and inviting. The meditating room was peaceful and full of beautiful Buddhas. My mind seemed to settle into a calm meditative state just by being in there. After my first meditation class everyone including the nuns were talking, smiling and even laughing. Everyone seemed pretty happy and content. I knew I had found my Sangha and that I had to hang around here and find out what they all were up to.

What do you like best about coming here?

What I like best about coming here is that all the meditations and chanted prayers practiced here are meant to be joyful. I had tried to meditate on my own for years but wasn't really enjoying it and couldn't sustain a practice. I had just about giving up on meditation thinking it wasn't for me. I initially came here just to hear Buddha's teachings and wasn't very hopeful about being able to learn to meditate. Boy was I pleasantly surprised. Right from the beginning I was told that I wasn't a hopeless case and that even I could learn to meditate and enjoy it. I instantly loved the teachings and because the Sangha were so kind, patient and inspiring I soon fell in love with meditating.

How would you explain the benefits of meditation to someone new?

Meditating is with out a doubt the best tool there is to train, clam and change your mind. It's very nice to be able to train and control your mind even if it is just for a short time. To train your mind to go where you want it go as oppose to where it habitually goes on it's own. It is so wonderful to have some control over your mind and to be able to take it to a peaceful joyful place.

How has what you have learned here made a difference in your everyday work and home life?

What I have learned here has made a huge difference in my everyday life. I have learned to see and react to every situation at home and work in an entirely different way. My old ways of reacting just made me angry, anxious, frustrated and depressed. I'm so much more content and feel more in control in all situations now, even very unpleasant ones. I'm now better able to use unpleasant experiences as opportunities to cultivate greater states of love, compassion and wisdom. It sure doesn't get much better than that. Also recently I had a major heart attack and I know I would have been in a sheer state of panic if I did not have my Buddhist practice to rely on. As I drove myself to the hospital emergency room I recited my tantra mantra and was able to remain in control and calm. Just as I got to the emergency room I went into cardiac arrest and passed out but all I remember is being in a very blissful place. Who would have imagined that because of my Buddhist practice I could actually have a happy heart attack.

What do you feel that Buddhism can offer to the world today?

Buddhism can offer the world the knowledge that suffering and misery can be eliminated, that permanent states of love, peace, and joy exist, and that Buddha taught fool-proof methods for everyone to attain these happy states of mind. If we all had loving peaceful states of mind world peace would be a done deal.

What is your favorite Kadampa Buddhist quotation?

"There is no heat, no cold, no lower, no higher, no here, no there, no self, no other, no samsara - everything is equal in the peace of emptiness".

               From Transform Your Life by Geshe Kelsang Gyatso

What is your favorite Dharma movie?

Total Recall with Arnold Schwarzenegger. It was the first movie that I saw that made me realize that the way I see and experience reality may have nothing to do with the way it really is. The best part of the movie is that even at the end you never really know what was "real".

What is you favorite book by Geshe Kelsang?

Because of the title I've always been attracted to Clear Light of Bliss. I've read it several times and still find it incredibly challenging. But I love that Geshe Kelsang with all his wisdom and compassion believes in us and is willing to guide us down the quick path to great bliss.

With which historical Buddhist practitioner do you most identify, and why?

Milarepa is the most inspiring to me. If Milapepa with all his delusions and non-virtuous actions could change his evil ways and become enlightened in one life time there certainly is hope for me and for all living beings.

What aspect of the Bodhisattva's way of life most inspires you?

Most recently it has been the practice of the perfection of patience. It's amazing how all of the stages of the path to enlightenment are contained within this one practice. Practicing the perfection of patience makes my day better, my week better, my life better and most importantly the lives of all the people around me better. I know this practice will lead me straight on to enlightenment where I can really begin to help all living beings achieve a permanent state of true happiness.

What's the first thing you're going to do when you become a Buddha?

Fade Away And Radiate.