Sat, 30 Sep 2006
Bodhisattva Remarks
Here are my notes on the comments that Thrangu Rinpoche made before giving the bodhisattva vow/ Thrangu Rinpoche gave the bodhisattva vow last week during the phowa retreat.
I would like to say a few words about the bodhisattva vow. Sometimes people think I can't take the vow because I will get angry and break the vow and be reborn in hell. When you take the precepts, they are vows of renunciation. But the bodhisattva vow is primarily of the mind. There are many thoughts that arise in the mind and ordinary individuals do not have much control over them. That is not a problem, because we do not take the bodhisattva vow to hold it, but to familiarize ourselves with it. This is something where as we practice it it will get better and better. The precepts are like a porcelain cup that you must take care of, so it doesn't shatter. But the bodhisattva vow is like a golden vase that can be repaired if it falls and gets dents. The bodhisattva vow is not something that will be broken, but something that can be improved. So the bodhisattva vow is something that can be done again and again. It is like putting white wash on a stupa, it keeps getting whiter. So this is how all the great practitioners have understood the bodhisattva vow. The motivation you should have is just as the previous buddhas and bodhisattvas have held this motivation so will I. And as they have practiced to benefit all beings, so I will practice. The way to develop the vow is to have joy and excitement in your mind. Think that you are very fortunate. The reason we have not yet attained Buddhahood is that we have not had the mind of enlightenment. So we are fortunate to have given rise to this mind.
Fri, 29 Sep 2006
Kid Kensho
Of all the ideas in Buddhism, probably the most seductive is kensho, the Japanese Zen term for enlightenment. Like most Western Buddhists, I got my first exposure to the concept through Kapleau's book "The Three Pillars of Zen." It sounded pretty amazing: sit down a find the answer to a riddle and wham bam zowie, all your problems are solved. So for a short while I was a convinced Zen Buddhist of the Rinzai persuasion, looking for the face I had before I was born. Then I met Pat, and later Khenpo, and I switched my allegiance from Zen to Tibetan Buddhism. And the funny thing was, Tibetans didn't talk about enlightenment at all, except to say Buddha was enlightened. But they did talk an awful lot about compassion. What's the deal, I wondered. How can kensho be so important in Zen and not mentioned in Tibetan Buddhism? It really wasn't until I read the Aspiration Prayer of Mahamudra that I had any inkling that there was anything similar in Tibetan Buddhism. These two verses from that prayer sum up the Tibetan view of "kensho" quite nicely.
If one says, "This is it," there is nothing to show.
If one says, "This is not it," there is nothing to deny.
The true nature of phenomena,
which transcends conceptual understanding, is unconditioned.
May conviction he gained in the ultimate, perfect truth.Not realizing it, one circles in the ocean of samsara.
If it is realized, buddha is not anything other.
It is completely devoid of any "This is it," or "This is not it."
May this simple secret, this ultimate essence of phenomena,
which is the basis of everything, be realized.
So I went from being kid kensho to being a mahamudra maniac. I wish I could say, so I went home, sat on my zafu, and was enlightened, but life is never so simple. But I'm quite gratified with what I've accomplished so far.
Thu, 28 Sep 2006
Apply Directly to the Forehead
I listen to CNN News in the morning before going to work. Every morning there's an annoying comercial for a product called HeadOn. A woman's voice says three times "HeadOn, Apply directly to the forehead." Very Delphic, because they don't claim it's effective for anything. But also very effective advertising, because they're selling a bunch. A Washington Post article explains that HeadOn is actually a homeopathic combination remedy.
Dan Charron, vice president of sales and marketing for Miralus, said the company used data from the Homeopathic Pharmacopoeia of the United States -- a standard reference for homeopathic practitioners -- to create the product, which was introduced last year. HeadOn, he said, contains highly dilute amounts of white bryony (a type of vine) and potassium dichromate -- said by the Pharmacopoeia to cause headaches.
This article gives a bit more information about the formulation.
There are five different forms of HeadOn, including HeadOn Migraine, Extra Strength, P.M., Children's and Tension Headache, Charron said. Each HeadOn product has different active ingredients. The active ingredients in HeadOn P.M., according to the HeadOn drug facts, are potassium dichromate, for pain relief; sublimed sulfur, a sleeping aid; and White Bryony, another ingredient for pain relief.
Translation for budding homeopaths: it's a topically applied combination remedy containing Byonia, Kali Bich, and Sulphur. Neither article gives any information about potency, no doubt because the concept was over the reporter's head. In my opinion, will it work? For some people, more likely if they have sinus headaches, which Kali Bich often matches. But combination remedies are always a coin toss.
Leftover Mouth
Once again, there's no time for a dharma post, so you'll have to settle for this comment of mine on Flapping Mouths. It's a response to part of someone else's comment:
The whole point of it--i thought--was to learn a technique or set of techniques that we would then apply in our own lives and determine for ourselves whether they hold value.
Meditation can be taught and used as a technique, but when used in this way has limited value. Let me give you an analogy. Using meditation as a technique is like holding a test tube over a bunsen burner. Zazen--if it's genuine--is like sitting in the test tube getting cooked, Somebody else has to hold the test tube--it can't be you. And you've got to trust them. Otherwise you'll jump out of the test tube before you're cooked enough.
I'm not saying you should trust the first guy in flowing robes with a gleam in his eyes. That would be crazy. But you've got to put your trust in somebody.
Wed, 27 Sep 2006
Only One Thought
I've only got one good thought in my head today, and I've used it already on Flapping Mouth. So please forgive me for posting here what I posted there. My post was a comment on this remark and follows it.
The problem is not the 'pearls of wisdom' in themselves, but rather the thinking that such pearls are so important, at the expense of all other knowledge, and definitely at the expense of critical thinking.
You value critical thinking now because that's all you've got. And critical thinking is a fine tool and I don't mean to disparage it. But thinking rests on some assumptions about how the world is. Critical thinking is linguistic and all languages embody assumptions about the world. For example, the agent-action pattern is fundamental to English. All this makes it extremely difficult to overcome our delusions solely by means of critical thinking.
So we have meditation, zazen, or whatever you wish to call it. And there are teachers, roshis, senseis, and so forth. Now the catch is, since meditation is a tool that doesn't use critical thinking, critical thinking can't be totally conclusive in who is a good teacher. And different teachers will say different things to try to lead their students to understand what can't be expressed in words. What you call dogmatism is really is just the inability to fit what the teacher says into a conceptual scheme. Really, it's nothing different than when your parents told you, "When you grow up, you'll understand." Didn't you always hate that?
I'm not suggesting you suspend critical thinking. Trust shouldn't be given blindly, it's something that grows over a period of time. But some sort of trust in the teacher is necessary, absolutely necessary. Because the truth is simple and obvious and we've heard it all before. But without meditation practice and trust in the teacher you'll pass it right by.
Tue, 26 Sep 2006
Thrangu Retreat Report
When I arrived at the Toronto airport and got through customs, I was met by a Chinese delegation with a large banner saying "Welcome Venerable Thrangu Rinpoche." So I stuck around to see what would happen and ten minutes later Thrangu Rinpoche walked through the door with his attendants. Scarves were offered, pictures were taken, and then Thrangu Rinpoche was whisked away. So it was a pleasant surprise to meet Thrangu Rinpoche at the airport.
I was surprised to meet so many people I know at the retreat. First I met Cathy and Orville from the Columbus KTC. They drove up and kindly drove me around with them. The retreat was not held at the hotel, it was held at a banquet hall a mile away. I walked a few times, but it was certainly nice to have a ride available. In addition to Cathy and Orville, I also met Nathan and Dawn, who also attended the Mahamudra retreat in Crestone last year. They both are students of Thrangu Rinpoche, so maybe it's not too surprising they were there. Reaching way back into the past, I met Richard, who was part of the construction crew for the KTD monastery back in the Eighties. Time either has altered his appearance or my memory, because I didn't recognize him until I saw his name. Richard is now a member of Shambhala and lives in Halifax. And of course, I met Gary, who I shared a room with at the hotel. Gary is a photographer and was hoping to pay for his visit with the sale of some of his Buddhist photographs. He did sell some, but not as many as he had hoped for.
The dharma center which hosted Thrangu Rinpoche's visit, KTZL, mostly has Chinese students. This may be because it is located in a largely Chinese section of the Toronto suburbs. I was surprised at how large the Chinese presence was, not only at the center, but throughout the area. It seems that KTZL runs on the energy of a group of older Chinese women, the most formidable source of energy known in the universe. The center was in full fundraising mode, as they had recently bought a new and larger center, having outgrown the old one.
All the lamas from KTZL were at the retreat. The chief guy, Lama Tashi, looks to be a very fine lama, very open and clear. In addition there are Lamas Sonam and Dawa, who also seem to be fine lamas. The big surprise is that Khenpo Karthar Rinpoche visited for the last weekend. He was in a very good mood and sparkled with joy. Karma Lodro and Michelle drove up with him and I heard that the Dalai Lama's visit to KTD went very well. I'm sure a lot of hard work went into preparing for the visit and I'm glad it paid off.
Sun, 17 Sep 2006
Mind to Mind
I've been rereading Hasegawa's novel, Mind to Mind. I've mentioned before that the book is atrociously written, but there are some nuggets of gold if you're willing to sift through the dirt. It's an autobiographical novel that describes how the author grew up as the son of a Buddhist priest and then studied at the famous Zen monastery Shogenji. (The book calls in Soshinji.) There are several interesting features to the novel. First, every so often the author will throw in his translation of a Zen poem or koan. At one point he translates a Confucian critique of Zen. I find the translations quirky, but interesting. The author's account of what goes on behind the scenes of a Zen monastery is also interesting. He is clearly unhappy with much of the politics and the usual sort of bad behavior (chasing after money and skirts.) He also did not get along well with the abbot of the monastery. Partly this seems a conflict of personalities. The author was more literary and artistic, while the abbot was more extroverted and a bit of an empire builder. Despite his problems at the monastery, he made rapid progress with his koan practice, completing all two hundred by his early twenties. Which is pretty damn amazing, from where I sit. Anyway, I put the book aside after I bought it, because it's nearly unreadable, but now I'm persevering because i'm finding something useful in it.
This will be my last post for a week, because I'm leaving for the phowa retreat tomorrow. You can keep yourself busy while I'm away by reading these other fine weblogs. Byte Sized Buddha is a surprisingly good blog by Sean, who appears to be a Kagyu Buddhist. Lately it's mostly his poems. The oddly titled Dreaming Of Danzan Ravjaa is by a Western monk who's now living in Mongolia and who writes of his experiences. Maybe no more holy than Yonkers, New York, but certainly more exotic. And Big Red Buddha is a Buddhist huor weblog, in the vein of The Onion. But it's just a week old and new weblogs have a way of disappearing.
Sat, 16 Sep 2006
Be Patient
The Tibetan Meditation Center has a nice teaching by Khenchen in their latest newsletter that I liked and thought was worth posting. Hope they don't send their lawyers after me for quoting from it. Hmmm... I don't see any copyright notice.
Meditation is the principal method to train our mind in wisdom and compassion. There is no other way, so we need determination and dedication. If mind were a machine, you could push a button and it would do what you demand of it. But mind does not operate that way; it does not react instantly. Meditation is the only "button" we can push to effect mental transformation.
We are so habituated in this modern time to think that the whole world functions as a machine. Everywhere we go, in the office, on the road, in the house, we push a button and things work. Because of that conditioning, we mistakenly think that meditation should work the same way. If we don't get results in one session, we get discouraged and say it doesn't work. So, we have to understand that meditation takes a long time. Mind is not a machine, so we must apply perseverance and patience.
With proper patience we can practice without resentment and hatred. We joyfully and fearlessly put in our time and energy--that is the true meaning of patience. Keep going every day, no matter how long it takes to accustom yourself. This is not something to finish in a couple of years. It may take ten years or a lifetime.
Fri, 15 Sep 2006
Sanskrit Diacritics
Buuddhist texts are filled with Sanskrit terms. This is natural enough, as Budhism came from India and its texts were written in Sanskrits or related languages. Putting Sanskrit terms on the web can be a challenge, because diacritical marks are required to make distinctions between some of the letters. For example, the Buddhist word for wisdom is usually written without diacrits as prajna, but it really ought to be written as prajñā. You can write letters with diacrits using the entity code for the Unicode code point. These can be hard to come by, but this Irish bulletin board post has already done all the hard work for you. I've reformatted the information in the table below.
| HTML | Diacrit | Name |
|---|---|---|
| Ā | Ā | A macron |
| ā | ā | a macron |
| Ḍ | Ḍ | D dotbelow |
| ḍ | ḍ | d dotbelow |
| Ē | Ē | E macron |
| ē | ē | e macron |
| Ḥ | Ḥ | H dotbelow (visarga) |
| ḥ | ḥ | h dotbelow (visarga) |
| Ī | Ī | I macron |
| ī | ī | i macron |
| Ḷ | Ḷ | L dotbelow |
| ḷ | ḷ | l dotbelow |
| Ḹ | Ḹ | L dotbelow macron |
| ḹ | ḹ | l dotbelow macron |
| Ṃ | Ṃ | M dotbelow (anusvāra) |
| ṃ | ṃ | m dotbelow (anusvāra) |
| Ṅ | Ṅ | N dotabove |
| ṅ | ṅ | n dotabove |
| Ñ | Ñ | N tilde (Latin 1 „ works too) |
| ñ | ñ | n tilde (Latin 1 – works too) |
| Ṇ | Ṇ | N dotbelow |
| ṇ | ṇ | n dotbelow |
| Ō | Ō | O macron |
| ō | ō | o macron |
| Ṛ | Ṛ | R dotbelow |
| ṛ | ṛ | r dotbelow |
| Ṝ | Ṝ | R dotbelow macron |
| ṝ | ṝ | r dotbelow macron |
| Ś | Ś | S acute |
| ś | ś | s acute |
| Ṣ | Ṣ | S dotbelow |
| ṣ | ṣ | s dotbelow |
| Ṭ | Ṭ | T dotbelow |
| ṭ | ṭ | t dotbelow |
| Ū | Ū | U macron |
| ū | ū | u macron |
Thu, 14 Sep 2006
Phowa Retreat
Next week I go off to get the phowa empowerment and teaching in Toronto. So you will have to amuse yourselves while I am away. Phowa is a practice that is done at the time of death to ensure a better rebirth. More than that, I can't tell you, because it's a secret practice, and you couldn't pull it out of me even if you stuffed crazed gerbils in my pants. Mr. Gordo has more to say on phowa.
In the Vajrayana, the Phowa practice is the most direct and the quickest path for one to achieve enlightenment. It is said that even the heaviest of sinners has a chance for enlightenment through the practice of the Phowa. "There are teachings for one to become enlightened, but I have a teaching (Phowa) that offers enlightenment without meditation", said Marpa, the great translator and the father of the Kagyu Lineage.
Toronto is a nice place to visit. I was there last year for the Perl Conference. My biggest concern is the damage I'll be doing to my credit card. The Dalai Lama will be at KTD during the same week, but since Kheno Karthar suggested I do the phowa, that's where I'll be instead. He led a phowa retreat himself last June, but I missed it because I was concentrating on my guru yoga practice. I guess he wants all his students to get on the phowa bus.
Wed, 13 Sep 2006
KTD Watch Out
The Dalai Lam is scheduled to visit KTD next week to give a Chenrezig empowerment. But a Christian newsletter warns of the trail of destruction the Dalai Lama leaves in his wake.
If you are following the news, it's apparent that everywhere the Dalai Lama goes, the visited areas are followed by a period of severe calamity, devastation and destruction (weather, economics, etc.). This has been documented by several Christian ministries in the U.S. and elsewhere. This is due to the activities he and his followers commit in those areas.
I wonder if KTD knows the danger they're in. Its sounds like they better get the roof on the addition to the monastery quick. :-o
Hrtbeat7, the pseudonym of a long time practitioner on the Zen forum of E-Sangha wrote something so nice that I'm quoting it here.
Whatever comes up [in meditation], it's just to be thrown away. Really, it's all garbage, not to be picked through, there's nothing there. Whatever it is, just throw it away, nothing that we can think, feel, or believe is real. If it has no place to nest, it will eventually become discouraged and wither off. All of it -- just mush. Our fascination with any of it only holds us back. Zazen is a sword, not a fork.
And I found some nice Zen stories on a jujitsu site. My favorite is The Assembly of the Cats. Here's the punchline to the story.
Because, Kuroi-san, although your skill is indeed great, and you have both spiritual and physical power you are not without desire. When you faced the rat you had an object in your mind, you did not have mushin. The rat sensed this, and his intuition was better than yours. Because you did not have mushin you were unable to harmonise your strength, your technique and you consciousness. I was able to use all these three elements naturally and unconsciously to defeat the rat. This is why I was successful.
But I know of another cat, in a village not far from here. His fur is snow white with age, and he's not very strong looking. He doesn't eat meat, but lives on vegetables and rice gruel, although he is known to take a little sake occasionally. He hasn't caught a rat in years because the rats are all terrified of him! As soon as he walks into a house all the rats leave at once. Even in his sleep he chases away rats! We must all learn to be like him, beyond violence, beyond technique, beyond even the desire for skill.
Tue, 12 Sep 2006
Desire or Not
One criticism about Buddhism I hear a lot is that it contradictory to say all desire is wrong, because then the desire to be without desire would also be wrong. I think I've discussed this before, so please forgive me if I repeat myself. The English word desire covers more than what Buddhism intends to cover by the term. Wishes and aspirations are covered as well as the most degraded lusts. Buddhism obviously does not mean to criticize everything that's included under such a broad definition of desire. Otherwise one would come to a complete halt upon becoming enlightened, unable to wish to do anything. When Buddhism says desire is the cause of suffering, what's meant by desire is craving. What's the difference? A craving is not satisfied after achieving its object, but must seek it again. For example, we crave praise, because however much praise we get, we would always like more. It should be pretty obvious how craving leads to suffering: the world is not and cannot be designed to satisfy all our cravings all the time. The desire to be without desire is pretty obviously not a craving, because once it is achieved, there is no need or wish to attain it again. So there is no contradiction when Buddhism says desire leads to suffering.
Just for fun and not edification: Bodhidharma: Action Philosopher.
Sun, 10 Sep 2006
Three Stooges Zen
This story is taken from Seikan Hasegawa's book "Mind to Mind."
When he was fifty, Kanzan Egen heard of National Teacher Daito and travelled to his monastery to become his student. After three years he had completed his koan study and Daito advised him to conceal himself and perfect his training. So he built a hermitage in the mountains and cultivated a small field to support himself. He was not a farmer and asked his neighbors for advice. When he asked how much manure to apply to the soil, one replied, lick the soil and if it's sweet, it'll do. He continued his practice until one day the Emperor asked Daito who should teach him after Daito's death. Daito said he had one dharma successor, Kanzen Egen. The Emperor sent a minster to search for him and when he found Egen, offered him one of his palaces for his monastery. The neighbors were amazed to find the threadbare hermit was a Zen master and one couple tearfully asked him how they should live their life. Egen asked them to draw near and he knocked their heads together. "Never forget what you have just experienced," he said and left for Kyoto.
I've got Drupon's Labor Day talk online. It's on generating the deity in tantric practice.
Fri, 08 Sep 2006
Service Interruption
I was offline this week because of Internet service problems. I was going to bite the bullet and reconfigure everything from scratch, but suddenly things started working again. I was surprised to be online again, so I don't have much to write about. But I wanted everyone to know that I wasn't hit by a truck and I didn't run off to become a hermit. So until tomorrow, let me leave you with this recipe for Yak and Mushroom Macaroni.
Yak and Mushroom Macaroni
Rehydrate dried yak meat, onions and mushrooms boil macaroni for 15 minutes (at 15,000 feet)
Fry rehydrated items with garlic, ginger, and vegetables
Add cumin, coriander, red pepper, black pepper, and salt, continue to fry
In a separate cup, mix boiled water (from the macaroni) powdered butter and powdered milk
Add cream mix along with macaroni to pan, stir for awhile.
Enjoy!
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