Whether sleeping, driving, working, bathing, talking — in every situation you should maintain the continuity of your Dharma mind.

There are a few points I would like to mention here. Firstly, you will never find sufficient time for Dharma practice. Whatever you do, you will never find sufficient time for Dharma practice. Therefore Dharma practice should not be made into a separate timetable. Whether sleeping, driving, working, bathing, talking — in every situation you should maintain the continuity of your Dharma mind. Here again mindfulness is absolutely important. You may simply be driving down the road being mindful of others, mindful of the insects which cross or fly across the road, mindful of the flying insects which might collide with your windshield, mindfulness of your total surrounding, and keeping a compassionate mind. In this case you are practicing Dharma.

Whether you are talking with your friends or arguing with your employer, keep calm and mindful. So, your lifestyle, your life-conduct, your life itself should be a Dharma practice. Otherwise, if you confine your practice to half an hour in the morning and forty minutes in the evening, and sometimes you are not even able to keep to that timetable, it will not bring you any progress.

You can set aside time for prayer or making offerings or performing some other rituals. You can make a timetable for these things, and even five minutes is enough. But consistent mindful exercise, that should go on day and night, and should be made a part of your life. This is true regular practice. So, this is one thing to bear in mind.

– 5th Samdhong Rinpoche, Lobsang Tenzin

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