Tibetan nun dared to teach yoga (Chöd)

Machig Labdrön (Tibetan མ་གཅིག་ལབ་སྒྲོན་, sometimes referred to as ཨ་སྒྲོན་ཆོས་སྒྲོན or Ahdrön Chödron་) [1], the "Singular Mother Torch from Lab" (1055–1149) [2].

She was a Tibetan Buddhist nun (ani) believed to be a reincarnation of Yeshe Tsogyal.

Machig Labdrön was the renowned 11th-century Tibetan tantric Buddhist master and yogini who originated several Tibetan lineages of the Vajrayana practice of Chöd (Tibetan གཅོད་).

Buddhist leader Chökyi Drönma

Nyingma scholar Khenchen Palden Sherab Rinpoche states that the Chöd tradition developed by Machig Labdrön is "a radical synthesis of the Prajnaparamita tradition and tantra guru yoga that 'cuts' through the ego" [3].

 

Historical texts portray Machig Labdrön as the originator of the Chöd lineage, which she developed in Tibet.

This was confirmed in her own lifetime by Indian Brahmin priests and others, and Machig Labdron's creation of the Chöd lineage is not doubted by its modern practitioners [4].

• The highest female incarnation in Tibet, the first Samding Dorje Phagmo, Princess Chökyi Drönma (1422–1455), a female tulku (incarnation) lineage of Vajravārāhī, was understood to be an emanation of Machig Labdrön (King of the Empty Plain, Stearns, 2007).

Violent denunciation by Maoists: Samding Dorje Phagmo, parents during Cultural Revolution

.

Vajravarahi mandala

The influences of other practices on Chöd are debated. Some posit Machig Labdron may have come from a Yungdrung Bön [black magic shaman] family, a position that contradicts historical records [5].

According to Namkhai Norbu, Chöd might be interpreted through combining native Tibetan shamanism with the Dzogchen teachings.

Other Buddhist teachers and scholars offer differing interpretations of the origins of Chöd. Not all of them agree that Chöd has Bön shamanistic roots [6]. More

The Tibetan Yoga of Dreaming

Tibetan tantric dream yoga (milam) In the yoga of dreaming (rmi lam), the yogi and yogini learn to remain aware (lucid dream) during the states of dreaming and use this skill to practice yoga in the dream... The Yoga of the Dream State is a suite of advanced tantric daily practices (sadhana) of the entwined Mantrayana (Vajrayana) lineages of Dzogchen (Nyingmapa, Ngagpa, Mahasiddha, Kagyu, and Bönpo). It consists of tantric processes and techniques in the trance bardos [liminal spaces] of dream and sleep or the Six Dharmas of Naropa, the "dream body" and the "bardo body" being identified with the "vision body" (yid lus)...

• Tantric sex (sexual yoga)
• Sex, love, and abuse with Guru "Baba"
• Tibetan tantric practice
• Buddha's Wisdom, July 29, 2026; CC Liu, Amber Larson, Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly Wiki edit

DOUBT as hindrance or a teacher

No one is immune to doubt, not even Jesus Christ, one of the founders of Christianity | UMC

Doubt as hindrance and teacher in Buddhism

(Doug's Dharma) What did the Buddha have to say about "doubt" (vicikiccha), one of the Five Hindrances to meditation and spiritual progress?

Let's look at the ways doubt can be a hindrance to our progress along the path to enlightenment and liberation, as well as a steppingstone to advancement.

Consider that there are ways that doubt can be overcome, noting two key examples of this in the Early Buddhist texts.

Buddhist monk foremost in wisdom

Who was Sariputta/Śariputra? (Life of the Buddha's Chief Disciple)

Chief Male Disciple foremost in wisdom Ven. Śāriputra Mahathero

🧡 Find this material useful? Check out Dr. Smith's Patreon and get fun benefits like exclusive videos, audio-only versions, and extensive show notes: dougsseculardharma.

🧡 Donations may also be made through: paypal.me/dougsdharma. 📙 BOOK: A Handbook of Early Buddhist Wisdom, with a foreword by Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi: books2read.com/buddhisthandbook

☸️ FREE mini-course at the Online Dharma Institute: onlinedharma.org. 🎙 Check out podcast with Jon Aaron, Diggin' the Dharma: digginthedharma.com

✅ Videos recommended:

• Early Buddhist Theory of Knowledge
• The Five Hindrances to Meditation: "Armies of Māra"

✅ Discourses (suttas) mentioned:

• https://suttacentral.net/sn46.55/en/s...
• suttacentral.net/mn23/en/sujato
• https://suttacentral.net/sn22.84/en/s...
• https://suttacentral.net/an3.65/en/su...
• suttacentral.net/mn74/en/sujato
• suttacentral.net/mn26/en/sujato
• Website: dougsdharma.com
• Doug's Dharma, May 5, 2025; Eds., Wisdom Quarterly

Beth Upton: Wildflowers and Wanderings

 

Monthly update: Wildflowers and wanderings

Ayya Anuttara picking wildflowers, Burma

May 4, 2026: Hello, friends! Springtime is in full bloom here in Austin, Texas, as we find ourselves halfway through our third Buddhist meditation retreat.

It is an incredible pleasure to spend the month with an American group this strong — a testament to the dedication we have all put in over the past years, both in meditation and in service to the Sangha, the spiritual community.

• VIDEO: Disenchantment with the mundane world: Beth Upton as a Buddhist nun for ten years

As the wildflowers come out to play and our retreat deepens, I am left feeling surprisingly hopeful for the future of our growing community.

Like wildflowers: You must allow

yourself to grow in all the places

people thought you never would.

— E.V. Rogina

🌼 "Like wildflowers" E.V. Rogina (pinterest)

For those who are keen to join a retreat with me before the end of the year (and before I take a year off), the last opportunity will be a short retreat that I will be leading in Uruguay in October 2026.

Registration is open through May, and places will be distributed on a lottery basis with half of the places reserved for students from Uruguay. REGISTER.

For those patiently waiting for appointments with our wonderful team of teaching assistants, four out of five of them remain on retreat with me for the next two weeks. Please be patient as they enjoy some precious time to deepen their own practice. They will be back online towards the end of the month.

Good news! Eva will be back leading online Dhamma Circles with me through the first two weeks of May and the whole of June, 2026. We look forward to seeing everyone there to deepen our skills in this powerful work.

Book Dhamma Circles along with all of my online groups here. I will be spending the second half of May mostly offline as I travel from this beautiful mini-Burma here in Austin to Spain, London, and then to Hungary for the start of our June retreat. So be sure to get all of the instruction you need from me in the first half of the month.

Where will wildflowers wander?

Last month, you may remember, I did a session with the team at Sangha Live. The session was on deepening our relationships in practice. It was a joy to meet the group. If unable to join the session at the time, a recording is now available. WATCH.

 

On Thursday May 14th I will be hosting the next Ask Me Anything group call. This call is open to everyone. It is a chance to ask all the questions you’ve always wanted to ask. Come along in the spirit of the Dhamma. Ask me anything, and I will answer almost anything. Book a place on the call HERE.

Sacred stupa (reliquary mound) in Burma

Our next Service Team Call will be on Wednesday, May 20th, 2026 — a chance for our Service Team to catch up and regroup after this season of service at Sitagu to learn and grow more deeply in our service to the Dhamma [the historical Buddha's Doctrine as preserved in the Pali canon]. If interested in joining the Service Team, find out more HERE.

Full Moon Gatherings

Full Moon Gatherings with Beth Upton

On Sunday, May 31st, 2026, Beth Upton will be hosting our next Full Moon Gathering. This month’s topic will be on the much requested subject of food — something we all need to deal with every day. Come share struggles and wisdom as we support one another through this tasty topic. Book a spot at the gathering HERE. As always, our Sangha Support groups are open to everyone and are here to keep everyone resourced and motivated in the Dhamma.

Join Josipa, Ricardo, Iva, Jonathan, Laura, Ayya Ahimsa, Joe, and Isabelle for online group sittings, Dhamma study, accountability, and parts work. If interested in leading a Sangha Support group, APPLY HERE.

E. V. Rogina on setting fire to her work

Last but not least, my one-on-one availability has now been updated through May 2026. These appointments are made available ONLY through the newsletter and tend to book up very quickly, so if interested, get on it without delay.

Because my one-on-one time is very limited, out of consideration for the community as a whole, please use this time only for things that cannot be easily addressed in a group setting. Book an appointment.

All of my work is given on a donation (dana) basis, which means that all of this is only possible because of generous voluntary support. Support this work.

With metta and gratitude, Beth Upton

• Beth Upton (Monthly updates: Wildflowers and Wanderings by Beth Upton), edited by Dhr. Seven, Wisdom Quarterly, Pa Auk Sayadaw students

50 years for female teachers: sex with boys

(WISN 12 News) Female former school aide, 34, gets 50.5 years for child sex crimes with four young boys. Meanwhile, rich white men, many of them Jews and Zionists, get not so much as an investigation from the FBI, CIA, the Trump administration, AG Pam Bondi, the Biden administration, or anyone else. Double standard?

Harvard's Larry Summers: May I retire with a golden parachute?

Microsoft's Bill Gates forced to apologize to his massive staff

(HLN) Twisted: Female gym teacher has threesome with her school age football players

(The Sun) The sick contents of Epstein's secret storage lockers revealed

What about Predator Trump?

(Roland S. Martin) Lifelong gangster, sexual predator, felon, pastor on Trump

(The Young Turks) Peter Attia's ties with predator Epstein exposed

Short Attn Span Theater: EPSTEIN LIST

Massie set to “go nuclear” on Trump DOJ, Bill Maher apologizes to QAnon, [chemtrails contaminated environment, even organic baby foods, with heavy metals, and our body temperatures have dropped a degree due to immune system depression] with Matthew Cormier

• The Jimmy Dore Show on Rumble.com

(Times of India) "Pure Satanism" - Lavrov unloads on West over Epstein

ties; UK Prince Andrew, Elon Musk ready to sue, Norway princess named

Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk at 2015 secret meeting of elites

(The Young Turks) Epstein Files EXPOSE world's elite like Bill Gates

Actor "Jeff Bridges" (Mike MacRae) calls in to talk to Jimmy Dore

Jeff Bezos' Amazon owns Ring Camera, used in mass surveillance through linking (TJDS)

• NEW GIRLS (@newsgirls.reports) has more reporting: Every single billionaire in the new Epstein Files drop
• There are still 3.5 million files being withheld, using the excuse that they are "duplicates" or "too sensitive" [aka might get rich important people in trouble or detail Trump's child sex and financial crimes]
• HealthUncensored.com (Matt Cormier Substack facts)

Prostitution is fun and profitable(?)

(Offbeat) Prostitute gives tour of Red-Light District (It's crazy!)

• At 13, she falls into drugs and prostitution because of school bullying
• California's young homeless girls surviving by every means necessary
• (True Crime News) Iowa teacher fired for sex with student turns to stripping, pornography: The Story of Mary Beth Haglin
• Scandal at Washington High School (Cedar Rapids, Iowa)

Poor lovelorn teacher Mary Beth Haglin, Iowa

(Real Life TV) Oct. 23, 2025: California has young homeless females who are surviving by any means necessary, including prostitution, trafficking, and dealing in drugs. Abbreviated Homeless Interviews. See the full interviews @dredre9947

Prison prostitution as female guards exploit male prisoners

(KING 5 Seattle) Prison employees record sex tapes with inmates

Prison employees record sex tapes with inmates

(KING 5 Seattle) Oct. 20, 2025: KING 5 Investigators reveal at least two employees engaged in sexual relationships with inmates, recording their encounters on video. More: king5.com/article/news/in...

Buddhist teacher Beth Upton on vacation

Monthly update: a month offline. Please rejoice!

I was a British Buddhist nun in Burma

Hello, friends. Those who have been on retreat with me will know that love this part of the Vitakkasanthana Sutta (MN20):

“Just as a person walking quickly might consider, 'Why am I walking quickly? Why don’t I walk slowly?’ And that person would walk slowly. Then one might consider, 'Why am I walking slowly? What if I were to stand still?’ And one would stand still. Then one might consider, 'Why am I standing still? What if I were to sit down?’ And one would sit down. Then one might consider, 'Why am I sitting? Why don’t I lie down?’ And one would lie down.”

Buddhist meditation teacher Beth Upton 2025

This is me this summer. If August has been me slowing down, then September is me stopping. For the first time in a very long time, I do not have a single online commitment for the entire month. Please rejoice!

I will be using the time to meditate and nourish myself in the Dhamma, the Buddha's Teachings, and my sincere wish is that as I deepen my own practice, so do others.

Sangha Support Group (bethupton.com)

While I am offline, please make good use of our Sangha (Spiritual Community) support groups and our wonderful Team of Teaching Assistants to keep nourished and supported in Buddhist practice.

If anyone really misses me, then remember, I also have a YouTube channel. 😁

This week’s video is about a topic very dear to my heart: science and what I would like scientists to know about the Dhamma. So watch the video, spread the word, and let’s see if we can make some cross-cultural magic happen! WATCH:

Consciousness and science

• Meditation and Daily Life – Guided by Beth Upton

In addition, Kerem will kindly be leading September’s Full Moon Gathering. This month it lands on Sunday, Sept. 7th, and will be on the juicy topic of the third Noble Truth: Nirvana (Nibbana).

And for those of you wanting to deepen a sense of global Sangha, Jon Krop of Sit Heads Meditation Club is valiantly organizing an international “meditate-a-thon” in support for humanitarian aid for the children of Gaza. He welcomes all to join the global sitting on Sept. 6th, 2025, or sponsor a meditator, or both. Register to join the sitting here. And sponsor a meditator here. It would be great to see a lot of support for this, so please do join in if you can.

Urgent Gaza relief [from Israel's famine, genocide, extermination] needed (pcrf.net)

.

We can all support each other and rest.

The plan is for me to be back online in October 2025 with the usual array of online groups and offerings to be announced in my October newsletter.

Lastly, thanks! Retreat time is only possible for me because of generous voluntary support. I will be sharing merits with all who have contributed to making this month happen. Support my work.

With much metta and gratitude,

Beth Upton

• Beth Upton, bethupton.com, Sept. 1, 2025; Dhr. Seven (ed.), Wisdom Quarterly

LGBT shooter hits Catholic school, MN

(CNN) School shooter named after attack videos emerge | Who's Robin (Robert) Westman? | N18G

Transgender Robin (fmr. Robert) Westman identified as Minneapolis Catholic school shooter

LIVE: Updates on school shooting in Minneapolis, Minnesota

Himanshu on X: "The suspected Minneapolis church shooter, Robin Westman, had a now-deleted YouTube channel with videos showing guns, a manifesto in Russian and English, and a church map

• AP (Associated Press, American propaganda channel), Wednesday, August 27, 2025

• REASON FOR THE SHOOTING: Minneapolis Catholic school shooter Robin Westman confessed he was 'tired of being trans' [and regrets having "brain-washed" himself]
• Minneapolis school shooter Robin [Robert] Westman's mother Mary Grace [who previously worked there] not cooperating with cops
• Who was the perpetrator of the Annunciation Catholic Church shooting?
• VIDEO: Shooter shows of graffitied weapons cache on X
• Minneapolis shooting live updates: Latest on Catholic school active scene
• Parody: JAKEGTV on X: "Try watching the news in America but the news anchors are BIASED

Trump's Kash Patel is hard at work.

Where was God as the shooter fired through stained glass windows, hitting kids and the elderly? Shock jock Tom Leykis used to have a weekly segment called something like "This Week in God" talking about how frequently church and Godly activities were the subjects of disaster, suggesting there was no such God overlooking and protecting His worshippers.

• A dozen coincidences? There has been a string of intentional false alarms ("swattings") across the country reporting school shootings, reports Gary Hoffman (KFI). This started last Thursday, first at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, and then within minutes and hours another at Villanova and soon hoaxes at ten other schools: U of Arkansas; U of Colorado, Boulder; Louisianna State of Alexandria; Iowa State; Kansas State; U of New Hampshire; Northern Arizona; U of South Carolina; U of Tennessee; West Virginia U; and then Villanova got another threat.
• Watch live: Mass school shooting reported at Minneapolis Catholic church
• Exclusive | Minneapolis Catholic school shooter ID'd as trans woman Robin Westman— manifesto shows obsession with mass shooters (NY Post)
• How soon before RENSE.COM shows evidence of false flag?
• Mom of Minneapolis mass shooter Robin [Robert] Westman worked at Catholic school where he opened fire, killing 2 kids: police

This would never happen if I were president.

A mass school shooting occurred during the first week of classes at a Minneapolis Catholic school, the Minnesota governor [failed Democratic candidate Tim Walz?] said. There was no immediate information on any injuries, but later it was found two children, 8 and 10, were murdered and 17 19 others (15 of them children) injured. A transsexual American, Robin, 23, then unalived herself in line with her programming. Police Chief Brian O'Hara is distraught by his department's failure in this matter. Read more watered-down coverage: bit.ly/46h6rWP #minnesota #minneapolis #live

NY Post Exclusive | Minneapolis Catholic school shooter ID'd as trans woman Robin Westman

Was shooter mad at the Abrahamic God?

Himanshu (@H_Singh1708) The suspected Minneapolis church shooter, Robin M. Westman, had a now-deleted YouTube channel with videos showing guns, a manifesto in Russian and English, and a church map. His content displayed extreme views, including pro-Russian, pro-trans, pro-communist, and anti-Trump, anti-Christian, anti-Semitic, and anti-Indian messages, mixing controversial topics and online memes.

• Minneapolis school shooter who killed kids as they prayed in Mass pictured (MSN)
• Minneapolis crime is spiraling out of control with 475 car break-ins over the past month alone
• How Minneapolis turned into Somalia
• Emmanuel Haro's father admitted to killing missing baby and dumping him in trash can
• JAKEGTV on X: "POV: You try watching the news in America, but the news anchors are BIASED