Fri, 31 Oct 2008
Naturalism
I'm going away until Wednesdy evening. It's another Buddhist themed vacation. I'll be mumbling mantras along with a small group of fellow practitioners on the mountaintop at TMC. Yes, it's just been two weeks since I got back from seeing Khenpo Karthar Rinpoche at KTD> I'd prefer to schedule these things further apart, but I have to make do with what's offered.
I've been reading rants by scientists and doctors on the web, mostly directed at homeopathy. This is mostly because I keep track of press articles on homeopathy and the Google news alert thinks certain blogs (but not this one) are news. Anyway, the opinion expressed is that science is the only way to certain knowledge and anything outside of science is either opinion or superstition. Thus yoga and homeopathy are cast aside without any need to examine the facts, that is, whether they actually work. It's easy enough to see that this claim leads to problems. Is the claim "science and the scientific method are the only certain route to knowledge" a scientific statement? If it is not, the statement is self-refuting. If it is not, the claim stands in need of validation. It's the equivalent of lifting oneself up by one's bootstraps.
I've learned this claim has a name—it's called naturalism. I have no problem with naturalism as a purely pragmatic program. Let's try to expand the boundaries of knowledge though science and apply it to different areas and see how far we get. But let's not assume the conclusion before the attempt is completed. It seems to me that there are whole areas of human endeavor where science has not much to offer. Despite the calims of sociobiologists, science has contributed little to our understanding of ethics.
More than that, i think the effort to fit all of human experience on the Procrustean bed of science does violence to the human spirit. More than once people have told me they believe no one ever acts except from a selfish motive. Even seemingly altruistic acts are only done to impress others or oneseelf. It seems to me that this opinion is based on a mechanistic view of behavior. The selfish search for gain is the program that the human computer is running. But to htink this way is to lead a loveless life and blunt the human spirit.
Wed, 29 Oct 2008
Koan for Madonna
Here's another koan that's been updated for modern times. For the Zen impaired, the original is called Nansen's Cat. You can find the revised version in People Magazine's Celebrity Koans.
Master Gudo Nishijima caught his students arguing over who owned a Madonna CD. He said, "If any of you can say a turning word, I will give you the CD." No one could and Gudo broke the CD into pieces.
That evening Brad Warner visited Master Gudo Nishijima's dojo and heard what had happened. He put on a cone bra and walked out.
"If you had been here," Gudo declared, "you would have saved the Madonna CD."
Sun, 26 Oct 2008
Tibetan Medicine
A Tibetan doctor give an introductory talk today to our meditation group. Here are my notes from his talk. I hope you find them interesting.
My name is Thubten Tsering. I graduated from the Tibetan Medical Institute in Dharmsala in 1987. I went to work at a clinic in Nepal and gained experience there. Then I went to Europe and got experience in treating Western people. This is my third time teaching in Baltimore. The first was at a conference of different medical systems. The second was at the Towson Dharma House. And now I am here.
Tibetan medicine is based on Buddhist philosophy. The fundamental text is the Four Medical Tantras. It explains how the internal energies function and affect our mind and body. It explains how to consult with patients, make medicines, and expel evil spirits. There are three principle energies (nyepa sum) in the body. If you understand them, no matter what system of healing you practice will benefit. The system of Tibetan medicine started when a Tibetan king invited practitioners of all the systems of traditional medicine to take what was best in each. So it combines teachings from Chinese and Indian medicine. There is a five year course to teach it at the Tibetan Medical Institute. One month of each year we go into the Himalayas to learn to identify medicinal herbs. Medicines are also made from gems and metals.
The three principal energies need to be in balance in order to maintain health. The first energy is rlung, or inner air. The second is rkhris pa, bile, or fire energy. The third is baken, or phlegm, the cold energy. These elements are affected by the corresponding outer elements. Tibetan medicine developed its own system of anatomy based on its understanding of these elements.
The wind energy is light, rough, clear, cold, subtle, and moving. It is responsible for the activity of respiration, the expulsion of urine and feces, menstruation, spitting, burping, speech, gives clarity to the sense organs, and sustains the life energy.
The bile energy is oily, sharp, hot, light, purgative, and fluid. It is responsible for hunger, thirst, digestion, and assimilation. It promotes bodily heat, gives color to the body and provides courage and determination.
The phlegm energy is oily, cool, heavy, blunt, smooth, firm, and sticky. It is responsible for firmness of body and stability of mind, induces sleep, generates tolerance and lubricates the body.
The seven bodily constituents are nutrition, blood, flesh, tissues, bones, bone marrow, and regenerative fluid. When food is ingested, it is transformed into each of these constituents in turn by separating out the waste products products of urine, feces, and perspiration.
When wind is unbalanced, the person will sigh, have a flighty mind, dizziness, and ringing in the ear. There will be insomnia, yawning, pains in the joints and back, and abdominal gurgling. When bile is unbalanced, there will be bitter eructations, headaches, surface fever, and digestive pain. When phlegm is unbalanced, there will be loss of appetite, the stomach will be full even without eating, vomiting, frequent belching, loss of taste, chills, and discomfort after eating.
Phlegm provides the basic foundation. Most phlegm disorders are digestive. Disorders of the brain or nervous systems are mostly wind disorders. Bile affects the heart or center of the body.
Before consultation the person is advised to avoid strong coffee or tea, other stimulating medicines, and strenuous exercise. These stimulate the wind energy and distorts the reading of the pulse. The person is asked to bring an early morning urine sample in a clear bottle. The doctor observes the person's urine, tongue, teeth, skin, eyes, and weight. The doctor checks the pulse and asks questions about diet, behavior, the cause of recent illness and other symptoms. The pulse is taken one inch below the wrist. Pulses are taken to assess the health of each of the organs.
Treatment can include changes of diet, lifestyle, and habits. When these are not sufficient, herbal medicines are prescribed. Or external therapies such as massage, cupping, moxibustion, needles, and bloodletting. Some illness is caused by evil spirits and past karma and must be treated by spiritual practices such as meditation, reciting mantras, and breathing exercises.
Persons with phlegm disorders often are heavy and don't exercise, I tell them to do prostrations. Persons with bile disorders, shouldn't do them because they will get headaches. Persons with wind disorders shouldn't overdo it, because it will disturb their wind further.
The long term cause of all disease is ignorance. The short term cause is negative emotions. Exciting conditions are the season, spirits, diet, and behavior. Health comes from a balanced body and mind. Developing positive emotions such as loving kindness, compassion, and forgiveness reduce negative emotions. So health ultimately depends on removing these negative emotional patterns. There is a yoga of smiling. What is lacking is happiness.
Sat, 25 Oct 2008
The People Involved
A few last words about last weekend's taching. Khenpo Karthar Rinpoche was very busy. He did interviews from 9:00 to 10:30, then lectured until noon, did question and answer from 3:30 to 5:00, gave refuge vows and a Green Tara empowerment Saturday night and did a wedding Sunday night. That's a lot of work for an eighty four year old man. Chris, who I met at the mahamudra seminar in Crestone, is now the shrine keeper at KTD. Those who know homeopathy will understand what I mean when I say he has a phosphorus personality. Gus, who was working in the bookstore last time I was there, is now cook, and he does a good job of it. Gus is more of an arsenic personality. The weekend was well attended, more people than I expected for October. I think the teaching on Machig Lapdron was a big draw for many women, as there are few women teachers in Tibetan Buddhism.
Fri, 24 Oct 2008
Random Questions
Here's a few more of the questions from the teaching on Machig Lapdron last weekend. Khenpo Karthar Rinpoche always has long question and answer sessions and often it's the most interesting part of the seminar.
Q: I've heard about bliss, clarity, and non-thought. Could you clarify what clarity is?
A: Sometimes when we experience bliss, there is a sleepy, dull quality to it. Clarity is best explained through the analogy of a cloudless sky. It has no form, but is very bright. The greater the clarity, the more insight will arise. The greater the bliss, the more shamatha will arise. But since ultimately they are the same, eventually an experience of the unity of both will arise.
Q: If samadhi increases bliss and insight increases clarity, does their union increase non-thought?
A: Non-thought is a lack of fixation on the previous two. All these three are experiences and not genuine realization.
Q: What does it mean to meet the deity face to face? Is it a metaphor for seeing the nature of your mind?
A: When someone practices a yidam and purifies their obstacles sufficiently to see their own nature, it appears in front of them in the form of a deity, just as you see your own face in a mirror. It is your wisdom nature arising in the form of a yidam.
Q: Why did people have fewer kleshas in the Buddha's time?
A: Because people who encountered Buddhism soon after it was expounded had trained under a previous Buddha and thus were easy to liberate. Those who enter the dharma in the latter period have not trained under a previous Buddha. If they practice sutra, they will be liberated after Maitreya appears, but if they practice tantra, they can be liberated in the period of this Buddha.
Q: Is there more virtue to practice in a degenerate time?
A: That's true. There's more power in a single day of practice today than a whole lifetime of practice in the golden age.
Wed, 22 Oct 2008
The Zen of Britney
Here are two koans from People Magazine's Big Book of Zen.
Justin Timberlake came to visit Britney Spears. Britney asked him where came from.
"From Gstaad," he answered.
"And where did you stay during the ski season?" she asked.
"At the Hotel Rougemont, by the lake."
"And when did you leave there?" Britney asked.
"On the fifteenth of February," Justin replied.
"I should give you a slap," said Britney, "but I'll spare you."
The next day Justin phoned Britney and asked, "Yesterday you said you should slap me. But I do not know why you thought I was wrong."
Britney, rebuking Justin, said, "You good for nothing! Why do you wander from resort to resort!"
On hearing this, Justin Timberlake was enlightened.
Britney Spears asked her ex-husband. Kevin Federline, "I am alone and poor. Will you please support me?"
Kevin responded, "Britnney! You've knocked back a couple of cocktails and you claim your lips aren't yet wet."
Tue, 21 Oct 2008
Dream Experiences
Khenpo Karthar's teaching last weekend was on Machig Lapdron, the woman who started the practice of chod. Khenpo Rinpoche had a few words to sayabout his own wxperiences with chod during the question and answer. This is one of the very few times I've heard him speak of his own experiences.
Chod is a practice to give up self fixation. If someone really practices chod it has a tremendous power. When I was in the Tibetan refugee camp at Buxador I had some dreams. It had previously been an English prison during the colonial period. I dreamt of a ferocious dog howling under the room of a monk. He was missing the top half of his head so that only his lower jaw remained That monk soon died. I wasn't so concerned then, but then it moved under the room of the monk next door and he died as well. This monk was next to my room. I dreamt he came under my room and in the dream. I tied him up in knots and threw him far away. But he kept coming back. Then I offered my body to the dog and he vanished.
I had a similar dream when I was visiting Kentucky. I dreamt an army of evil beings came to eat me. I thought, this is fine and I especially want them to eat my heart. They pressed against the glass window, but couldn't get through, so I took my clog and broke the window. Then they could get in but they couldn't eat me, even though I offered them my body. So I took the glass from the broken window and sliced my arms so they could drink my blood. They all disappeared except for one forlorn being. I held him and tried to let him drink my blood, but it couldn't get past his throat and he vanished. So if you can change your attitude so that you have no fear, this will have a powerful effect.
Mon, 20 Oct 2008
Chojor Radha
I'm back from the weekend at KTD. I'm tired, but still functioning. My main reason for going there was to get an interview with Khenpo Karthar Rinpoche about what practice I should do now that I'm finished ngondro. I got the answer to continue doing the Chenrezig sadhana. I almost didn't get the interview, because the schedule was full. But someone didn't show because they were taken sick. A sad circumstance for them, but I was grateful for the opportunity. I had a small laugh. When I told Khenpo Karthar that I had finished ngondro, he opened his eyes wide and put an astonished look on his face.
During the visit I heard that Chojor Radha, a long time translator ther, had died. He was a very bright and funny man, but with a streak of sadness, probably because of his health problems. Once he was showing photos, including one when he was in school in India and the Dalai Lama came to visit he school. "That was the happiest day of my life!" he exclaimed. That was also when I learned his brother is Chime Rinpoche.
The reason why Khenpo Karthar was at KTD this weekend was to teach on Machig Lapdron. I got a chance to ask one unrelated question during the question and answer period, so for the sake of my vanity, here it is:
Q: I have read that tantra is effective for people of sharp faculties. But I've also heard that it's effective for passionate people and in degenerate times. Aren't these sayings contradictory?
A: There is no contradiction. The different sayings describe different situations where people can benefit from tantra. Tantra is still effective during this degenerate time, but only for those who have the commitment to practice it. What is meant by sharp faculties is not intelligence, but a wisdom that is within everyone and can be developed through the practice of tantra. There are four classes of tantra. Kriya was meant for the royal caste, charya for the brahmin caste, yoga for the noble catse, and anuttara for the common people. During this age of degeneration, the first three classes of tantra are no longer effective and only the extreme methods of the anuttara tantra are effective.
Wed, 15 Oct 2008
Wayward Son
I'll be visiting Karma Triyana Dharmachakra this weekend. This probably will be my last post before the visit, as I'll be busy getting ready tomorrow night. I've haven't been there in over two years. Partly it's been because I had some unpleasant interactions with some of the staff there. And partly it's because I've become much more involved with the Drikung Kagyu sangha in the area. I finished my ngondro (preliminary) practices a while ago and I had to decide whether to stick with the Karma Kagyu lineage or go over to the Drikung. As usual when faced with an important decision, I wavered. Some days I would feel one way and some days another. But it seems I have some kind of connection with the Karma Kagyu and especially with Khenpo Karthar Rinpoche, so I'll be going back to KTD and hopefully getting an interview with Khenpo Karthar to talk about my practice.
Sun, 12 Oct 2008
Hidden Yogi
Here are a few links. My notes from Lama Gursam's mahamudra seminar. I had a few problems with my computer, so there are some gaps in the notes. I also left out the meditations, because a blank page may be profound, it is not especially helpful. Also, KTD publications has excerpts from their forthcoming tribute to Khenpo Karthar Rinpoche that was written by his nephew and attendant, Lama Drodul.
This holy being is a hidden yogin of the true meaning. Even if I declared this with my head held high in a gathering of hundreds or thousands of people, I wouldn't feel a sesame seed's worth of embarrassment, and I say this not because he is my uncle, but in order to express my devotion.
Wherever Rinpoche is staying, he works constantly. He rolls dharanis, fills statues with them, sews the brocade frames for paintings, and makes and affixes drumheads for drums and damarus. He loves to work with his hands.
He treats every disciple he meets with courtesy and affection, touching heads in greeting and so forth. He continually extols the single path trod by all victors and their children: the practice of bodhichitta and mahamudra.
Fri, 10 Oct 2008
Insomnia
Last Monday I gave a talk on homeopathy and the treatment of insomnia to our study group. Here's the handout I prepared for the talk. Maybe someone who reads this weblog will find it useful.
Sleeping problems are an indication of a disordered mind and body. Before trying to solve them homeopathically, we should first look at our way of life and look for the cause of the disorder. We should only try homeopathy after removing the cause or if there is no apparent cause. This is consistent with what Hahnemann say in the Organon. Check for:
- Overuse of stimulants. Caffeine, tobacco, alcohol, and over the counter cold or sinus medications can cause insomnia. Prescription drugs can also cause insomnia. Ask your doctor and check online.
- A change of schedule caused by job or travel. Try to keep a regular sleep schedule, even on weekends. Melatonin may help if your schedule is suddenly disrupted.
- Stress or anxiety often causes insomnia. Exercise, relaxation techniques, and meditation can help. Do not exercise before sleep.
- Sleep apnea is often helped by losing weight.
Homeopathic treatment can be used in either acute or chronic insomnia. Insomnia is acute if it has lasted for a two weeks or less and has a clear cause. The most common causes are:
- Fright. Consider aconite if the person has been mugged, in a car accident, or in a natural disaster.
- Overexcitement. Consider coffea if the person is overexcited from good news.
- Grief. Consider ignatia if the person has recently suffered a loss.
- Drug hangover. Consider nux vomica if the person is sleepless after recently quitting drugs or alcohol.
If the problem is chronic, it should be treated constitutionally by an experienced homeopathic practitioner. Here are a few of the useful rubrics in Kent's Repertory:
- If the person is awakened by nightmares, use "Sleep, dreams, frightful" on page 1240.
- If the person cannot remain still, use "Sleep, restless" on page 1247.
- Use the rubrics under "Sleep, sleeplessness" on page 1251 if the person has trouble falling asleep.
- Use the rubrics "Sleep waking" on page 1255 if the person wakes in the night and cannot return to sleep.
The generalities and concomitants are also important in deciding the best constitutional remedy.
- Look at the time modalities in the Sleep rubrics and the Generalities section
- Check for temperature sensitivities and whether the person want the windows open or closed and why.
- Ask about physical problems such as aches and pains that may prevent sleep.
- Ask about any persistent thoughts or worries and repertorize them.
- Check the subrubrics of "Mind, anxiety" on page 6 if the person is anxious.
- Check the subrubrics of "Mind sadness" on page 75 if the insomnia is associated with depression.
- Use the rubric "Mind, starting, sleep" on page 83 if appropriate.
- Use the rubric "Mind, weeping" on page 92 if the person weeps before sleep or after waking.
Tue, 07 Oct 2008
Root and Refuge
Someone asked if there is a difference between a root and refuge lama, and whether one has a permanent connection with the refuge lama. The refuge lama performs the ceremony where you take refuge with the Three Jewels, as the name suggests. The root lama is the lama who introduces you to the nature of mind. If you haven't gotten that introduction, you don't have a root lama. In that case it's suitable to meditate on one of the lineage holders as your root lama. For the Karma Kagyu, the Karmapa would be most suitable.
I don't see in the Jewel Ornament of Liberation any mention of a specific duty owed to your refuge lama. The Jewel Ornament does say you should have a spiritual teacher who will guide your practice and discusses the proper way to pay respect to your teacher. That teacher may very well be your refuge lama, but it doesn't have to be. The Jewel Ornament of Liberation is a little difficult to follow without an explanation, but it has the answer to many questions like this that you might have, so it's worth having as a reference.
Sun, 05 Oct 2008
Advice on Mahamudra
I've been editing my notes from Lama Gursam's mahamudra seminar. At the end of the seminar, he gave some personal words of advice. Here they are:
For mahamudra we should combine, guru yoga, calm abiding meditation, and meditation of loving kindness and compassion. When a thought arises during meditation, just touch it. Normally we hold onto our thoughts, judge them, and then follow them with more. It is like a hundred or thousand of beads on a mala.This way of handling thoughts binds us. But if we recognize the thought as it arises, then it is released. When thoughts are not recognized as awareness, they bind us. It takes some time to be able to do this. When a thought reoccurs, it's because at some level there is grasping. The best thing to do is to observe it without judgement. If this is done, the thought will disappear. But this takes time and practice. I myself am still working on this. But I am better than I was ten or twelve years ago.
When you can meditate outside, looking at the moon or the mountains, it can be very powerful. Sometimes meditating inside can make you a little tense.
All mahamudra is talking about awareness. One should realize that awareness at all times. We should recollect this awareness again and again. We should practice guru yoga and loving kindness and compassion for all sentient beings. If we practice according to the relative level the understanding of the ultimate level will arise. We all depend each other. My practice depends on how my friends and family support me. So we all are interdependent.
Fri, 03 Oct 2008
Lama Gursam's Family
Lama Gursam gave a talk on happiness a week ago. I'm not sure what I'll do with my notes. But here is an excerpt where he talks about his family.
For two or three years after fleeing India in 1959 my parents lived in a tent. But through the blessing of the Dalai Lama and the government of India, we received a small house. My parents lived in a house with seven children, one bedroom, a kitchen, and no bathroom. That was the situation until five years ago, when my brothers sent money to buy a new house. So the happiness that comes from external circumstances is temporary and can be lost any time. My mother told me that whatever money they had was used for their children's education. They realized how temporary external happiness was, because they lost everything in Tibet. My mother was from a rich family, but she lost everything completely. They only could save their own lives.
It seems like there are some people in Shambhala International that are unhappy with the way the Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche is running things. The rallying cry is back to how Trungpa Rinpoche did things. Richard, who worked on the monastery construction at KTD and who I met again at Thranu Rinpoche's phowa empowerment, felt this way. It looks like they've set up their own website, Radio Free Shamhala, to voice their opinions. I think this stems from a little uncertainty on Shambhala's place in Western Tibetan Buddhism. When they started, they were the only game in town. Now they're outnumbered by other, more traditional groups. Also, Shambhala grew too fast, which means that Trungpa Rinpoche's vision was diluted. Who today can honestly claim to have inherited that vision? So some Shambhalians are uncertain about where they stand and uncertain about where they're going, and it shows.
