- Kahlil Gibran

We can read this in many ways. However, it takes on a specific meaning when read in light of another quote. Read in this way, it is dharma.

The ego-shell in which we live is the hardest thing to outgrow.

- D.T. Suzuki

Ignorantly we cling to our ego-shell as a protector. Safely within lies our understanding, our world view, our meaningful dichotomies that order our experiences. As we experience new situations, as we learn new things – we process these events through the protective shell of our ego- interpreting events (and initiating our responses to them) always from the primary position of protecting our precious ego. We must eye our ego-shell with suspicion – its job is not to allow us to see things are they are – but to see them in a way that causes the least tension with our current understanding.

However, some experiences are such that they are unfathomable to the ego-shell. That is, they cannot be easily or comfortably assimilated through it. It is during these times that (gross) suffering occurs. We do not have to look far for such events; senseless violence, death of a loved one, divorce, estrangement to name a few. However, arguing with a colleague, not getting what one was ‘due’, feeling unappreciated or ignored- these too qualify. Some may simply require a shifting, adding, deleting of certain beliefs – a slight readjustment of the ego-shell before one can continue on as before. But in extreme, the ego-shell cannot bend to the experience but instead shatters and is usually built anew. Such events lie on a continuum, the severity of the response necessary by the ego-shell dictating the level of pain or suffering felt.  This is the process that Gibran is describing. There are times throughout life when our ego-shell is so challenged that are common enough in society that we have named them; we can so classify “teenage angst” and “midlife crisis”. Interpreted in this way, such ‘pain’ seems inevitable to life.

However, in a Buddhist context, we are quick to see that the suffering is caused by the response of the ego-shell. Ironically, this shell creates the dichotomy (‘I’ vs. ‘Other’) which is then used to protect the rich dichotomous understanding of the world that this ‘I’ creates. And it is in this way that we set ourselves up to suffer. Why do we do it? Well as Dr. Suzuki points out, outgrowing the ego-shell is a very difficult thing to do. Buddhism would offer the reason for this difficulty ultimately being the ignorant view of reality that we have. So we must practice to ‘outgrow’ this ego-shell. And perhaps what this means functionally, is to make it less and less useful or necessary. We do this by practicing. It seems to me that whenever we are practicing – whether it be mindfulness, the ten precepts, or the four immeasurables etc. – we are working toward making the ego-shell less necessary.

To those who go in bliss, the dhammakaya they possess, and all their heirs,
To all those worthy of respect, I reverently bow. (1,1)

To the Buddhas, those Thus Gone,
And to the sacred Dhamma, spotless and supremely rare,
And to the Buddha’s offspring, oceans of good qualities,
That I might gain this precious attitude, I make a perfect offering. (2,1)

Until the essence of enlightenment is reached,
I go for refuge to the Buddhas.
Also I take refuge in the Dhamma
And in all the host of Bodhisattvas. (2, 26)

To perfect Buddhas and to Bodhisattvas,
In all directions where they may reside,
To them who are the sovereigns of great mercy,
I press my palms together, praying thus: (2,27)

“In this and all my other lives,
While turning in the round without beginning,
Blindly I have brought forth evil,
And incited others to commit the same. (2,28)

“Deceived and overmastered by my ignorance,
I have taken pleasure in the harm that was done,
And seeing now the blame of it,
O great protectors, I confess it earnestly! (2,29)

Thus, from this day forward I take refuge
In the Buddhas, guardians of beings,
Who labor to protect all wanderers,
Those mighty ones who scatter every fear. (2,47)

And in the Dhamma they have realized in their hearts,
Which drives away the terrors of samsara,
And in all the host of Bodhisattvas
Likewise I will perfectly take refuge. (2,48)

I pray you, guides and guardians of the world,
in taking my negative acts as having been misdeeds, I beseech you:
Since this was not wholesome,
I shall never do them again. (2,65)

With joy I celebrate the virtue that relieves all beings
From the sorrows of the states of loss,
Exulting in the happy states enjoyed
By those who yet are suffering. (3,1)

And so I join my hands and pray
The Buddhas who reside in every quarter:
Kindle now the Dhamma’s light
For those who grope, bewildered, in the dark of pain! (3,5)

I join my hands beseeching the enlightened ones
Who wish to pass into nibbana:
Do not leave us wandering in blindness,
Stay among us for unnumbered ages! (3,6)

Through these actions now performed
And all the virtues I have gained,
May all the pain of every living being
Be wholly scattered and destroyed! (3,7)

My body, thus, all my goods besides,
All my merits gained and to be gained,
I give them all and do not count the cost,
To bring about the benefit of beings. (3,11)

May I be a guard for those who are protectorless,
A guide for those who journey on the road.
For those who wish to cross the water,
May I be a boat, a raft, a bridge. (3,18)

Just as all the Buddhas of the past
Have brought forth the awakened mind (3,23)

Likewise, for the benefit of beings,
I will bring to birth the awakened mind (3,24)

The appearance of the Buddhas in the world,
True faith and the attainment of a human form,
An aptitude for good: all these are rare.
When will they come to me again? (4,15)

This is why Lord Buddha has declared
That like a turtle that perchance can place
Its head within a yoke adrift upon the mighty sea
This human birth is difficult to find! (4, 20)

And so, according to my promise, I will act attentively. (4,12)
And yet the mighty fiend of my afflictions
Flings me in an instance headlong down (4,31)

Anger, lust, these enemies of mine
Handless, footless, and devoid of other faculties.
They have no bravery, no cleverness;
How then have they reduced me to such slavery? (4,28)

I allow them within my mind
And at their pleasure injure me (4,29)

From this day forth I’ll strive to crush
These foes who very nature is to bring me pain (4, 38)

This shall be my all-consuming passion.
Filled with rancor I will wage my war!
Such emotion, though indeed defilement,
Will destroy defilement, and I will not spurn it. (4,43)

Defilements are not in the object,
Nor within the faculties, nor somewhere in between
…
They are simple mirages, so take heart! (4,47)

Those who wish to keep the trainings
Must with perfect self-possession guard their minds. (5,1)

Wandering where it will, the elephant of the mind,
Will bring us down to torment in the hell of Unrelenting Pain. (5,2)

If, with mindfulness’ rope,
The elephant of mind is tethered all around,
Our fears will come to nothing,
Every virtue drop into our hands. (5,3)

For all anxiety and fear,
And pain in boundless quantity,
Their source and wellspring is the mind itself,
As He who spoke the truth declared. (5,6)

By simple binding of this mind alone,
All these things are likewise bound.
By simple taming of this mind alone,
All these things are likewise tamed. (5,5)

But let me just restrain my mind,
And what is left to be restrained? (5,14)

All those who fail to understand
The secret of the mind, the greatest of all things,
Although they wish for joy and sorrow’s end,
Will wander to no purpose, uselessly. (5,17)

Therefore I will take in hand
And well protect this mind of mine. (5,18)

When the urge arises in your mind
To feelings of desire or angry hate
Do not act! Do not speak!
And like a log of wood be sure to stay. (5,48)

Examining again and yet again
The state and actions of your body and your mind-
This alone defines in brief
The maintenance of watchful introspection. (5,108)

But all this must be acted out in truth,
For what is to be gained by mouthing syllables?
What invalid was ever helped
By merely reading in the doctor’s treatises? (5,109)

Perhaps more relevant questions can be asked of the relatively exorbitant prices charged to attend meditation sessions and talks by western “gurus” who prominently display their bona fides, ironically, as marketing tool alongside the ubiquitous  ‘paypal’ button offering you quick access not only to their talks but their books and associated merchandise; as well as of the ethical quagmire of framing such transactions as dana. Compound this with the number of less prominent individuals and groups charging money for sitting, talking and discussing Dharma. One can argue for the economic necessity of this approach in cultures devoid of secular or popular support for such spaces- however, when framed in a Western context – it will invite questions of intention and authenticity given the diametrically opposed values that are coming into harsh contact.

Inauthentic System or Inauthentic Practice?

So one must decide whether such actions are seen as ‘inauthentic’ perhaps even unskillful or unwholesome. If they are, then one should ask whether such inauthentic actions were caused by an ideology best classified as (1) ‘Western Buddhism’ or instead was (2) the action (practice) of a Westerner not propelled by ideology unique or necessary to a ‘Western Buddhism’ . It follows then that (1) requires the existence of a ‘Western Buddhism’ while (2) does not.

If (2) no ‘Western Buddhism’ is to be found then what must this say about the ‘authenticity’ of Western practice? Nothing. It may point to individuals who intentionally seek profit from their standing in the community or from appropriated labels – but this is not unique to Buddhism, the West or modern times nor would all Western Buddhists’ practice, qua Western Buddhists, necessarily have to exhibit this practice.

A more sophisticated attack on Western “authenticity” that seems to reduce to the same questions is represented in this quote by Slavoj Zizek:

The “Western Buddhist” meditative stance is arguably the most efficient way for us to fully participate in the capitalist economy while retaining the appearance of sanity.

Again, if one finds truth in this position, we must ask whether such inauthenticity derives from ideology necessary to (1) a Western Buddhism or (2) Westerner’s practice of Buddhism.

In either case, the potential criticism is of value. However, it is less problematic if the culprit is (2). First, certainly there are Westerners that may consider themselves Buddhist who are guilty of the charade proposed by Zizek; perhaps on some level they are aware of this balancing act they are engaged in. However, being a ‘Western Buddhist’ does not require one to participate in this “meditative stance” and one could argue whether it is valid to call this person Buddhist (as it would depend on how unwholesome these acts are considered to be). Second, assuming a sincere practitioner,  Buddhist practice continually involves checking our behavior and our motivations and such checking by himself or herself or teacher, would lead to the proper corrections/antidotes. This is especially true if we rephrase Zizek’s accusation to simply mean that we are quite susceptible to remaining attached to the world in subtle ways, conditioned by the world we participate in, that may be outside of our awareness or contrary to our intention.

Is there a system that can be considered ‘Western Buddhism’?

This leaves the question of (1) whether there is a ‘Western Buddhism’ that fundamentally results in Zizek’s ‘Western Buddhist meditative stance’ (which could comfortably subsume the actions of the “western gurus” described above and more).

I think it is premature to answer this given the relative infancy of Buddhism in the West. That is, I do not think one could identify a ‘Western Buddhism’ that would satisfactorily categorize all Western practice. However, I do think there is reason for concern. Certainly I have come across material that, in my very limited understanding, seems to be contrary to dhamma. Much of this literature does seem to, intentionally or not, attempt to reconcile a naturalistic, capitalistic culture with Buddhism. This is problematic to the degree that it works against dhamma. This is found in various forms- the most extreme of which is a sanitization or at least a playing down of fundamental concepts or practice that may be deemed uncomfortable to the West, concepts like karma, rebirth and cyclic existence. Relatedly, other approaches begin with what is already considered “good” (read desirable) by Western culture and then reads Buddhism in light of this; essentially making it less Other-like while retaining the Exotism that was the basis of attraction to begin with. This could be a post in itself.

Essentially, this question requires us to ask what is dhamma? Or, what is fundamental to Buddhism and what is not? That is, how different can the symbols of convention be (linguistic and otherwise)- given differences in the time and space they are being used to express dhamma- and still be dhamma? This is a slippery slope to go down, and one which I will not attempt.

However, I imagine the same questions being asked as Buddhism left its cradle and came to touch other secular and religious cultures (sometimes more uncomfortably than others). There is a strong vein of syncretism in the history of Buddhism. On the other hand, such questions are not new, unique to Buddhism in the West, or religion in general for that matter. But ultimately I think this is where the question of ‘authenticity’ takes us- and so it is an important one.

Therefore, the question should be asked at some point by some people.

Pitfalls for Practice

However, a continual questioning presents pitfalls when asked by an individual in practice. On a very gross level if, while engaged in practice, we continually ask ourselves “Is this authentic practice? Am I meditating correctly?” etc.  We are no longer meditating or practicing but merely thinking about meditating and practicing. More subtle, even a sincere questioning and seeking of ”Authenticity’ is,  in the end, setting up such ‘Authenticity’ as an object we desire. And so we are caught chasing and grasping after a desire.

The Dharma is not an object. He who pursues objects is not interested in the Dharma but is interested in objects. The Dharma is without acceptance or rejection. He who holds on to things or lets go of things is not interested in the Dharma but is interested in holding and letting go. The Dharma is not a secure refuge. He who enjoys a secure refuge is not interested in the Dharma but is interested in a secure refuge. The Dharma is without sign. He whose consciousness pursues signs is not interested in the Dharma but is interested in signs. The Dharma is not a society. He who seeks to associate with the Dharma is not interested in the Dharma but is interested in association. The Dharma is not a sight, a sound, a category, or an idea. He who is involved in sights, sounds, categories, and ideas is not interested in the Dharma but is interested in sights, sounds, categories, and ideas.

- Vimalakirti Nirdesa Sutra (trans. Robert Thurman)

Ultimately we are left with this -

Thereupon, reverend Sariputra, if you are interested in the Dharma, you should take no interest in anything.

And these chastisements urge me to end here.

To cling to Buddhahood is to be in the Mara realm;
to forget Mara is to be in the Buddha-realm.

- Muso

There is a tremendous amount of Buddhist literature available in English today across the Theravada and Mahayana traditions. We should be so grateful for this- as it wasn’t always so. However, choice is often a double-edged sword; as choice increases, it seems our responsibility increases as well. The decision what to read (and conversely, what not to read) seems to become a heavy one. What if I am missing something? Am I on the right path? Is this what all Buddhism teaches? Would I be better off reading something else? How does one navigate the available literature without feeling overwhelmed?

As a beginner, I have spent time asking this question and searching out answers. I feel that I now have an answer that worked well for me and thought I would share this in the hope that it may provide some guidance to others if they find it helpful. The approach I take here is to assume the reader is interested in the practice and theory of Buddhism as opposed to its historical development. Also, I assume that the reader values technical accuracy above all else and not simply ease of comprehension; although any reasonable being would welcome both at the same time.

Where should one start?

I found great benefit in reading the classic Western introductory text What The Buddha Taught by the Theravadan scholar monk Walpola Rahula. This book can easily be found on-line used or new. This text lays out fundamental ideas of Buddhism in a clear and incisive way. While the Theravadan interpretation differs from Mahayana in key places – I feel one should not be occupied with these differences at this time (as it might foster ‘narrow-mindedness’- that grave error of partiality to a particular school or tradition- which fosters pride and is a tremendous obstacle along the path). From this work, one gains a firm beginner’s understanding of such key concepts as the Four Noble Truths, Eightfold Path, dukkha (often translated as suffering), tanha (thirst or craving), conditioned genesis (i.e. dependent-arising), anatta and mindfulness.

A large portion of the text is occupied with exposition on the Four Noble Truths.

It is said that the Buddha

… took a few leaves in his hand, and asked his disciples: ‘What do you think? O bhikkhus? Which is more? These few leaves in my hand or the leaves in the forest over here?’
‘Sir, very few are the leaves in the hand of the Blessed One, but indeed the leaves in the Simsapa forest over here are very much more abundant.’
‘Even so, Bhikkhus, of what I have known I have told you only a little, what I have not told you is very much more. And why have I not told you (those things)? Because that is not useful… not leading to Nirvana. That is why I have not told you those things’.

(Simsapa Sutta- SN 56.31)

and also

Therefore, Malunkyaputta, bear in mind what I have explained as explained, and what I have not explained as unexplained. What are the things that I have not explained?

Then, what, Malunkyaputta, have I explained? I have explained dukkha, the arising of dukkha, the cessation of dukkha, and the way leading to the cessation of dukkha. Why, Malunkyaputta, have I explained them? Because it is useful, is fundamentally connected with the spiritual holy life, is conducive to aversion, detachment, cessation, tranquility, deep penetration, full realization, Nirvana. Therefore I have explained them.

(Cula-Malunkyovada Sutta- MN 63)

These quotes show how central to your daily practice the Four Noble Truths will be. In fact, as I have mentioned elsewhere, Geshe Sopa, in his wonderful Steps on the Path to Enlightenment remarks

Everything the Buddha taught unerringly presents the four noble truths…

And this brings me to my second recommendation. My gross understanding of the Four Noble Truths has been furthered significantly by the first volume of Geshe Tsering’s wonderful Foundation of Buddhist Thought series titled The Four Noble Truths (the other volumes, in order, are: Relative Truth, Ultimate Truth; Buddhist Psychology; The Awakening Mind; Emptiness; and Tantra).  It is not only the level of analysis, but the clarity of prose by which this analysis is presented that I feel makes this a wonderful place to begin one’s journey. What is very nice about this text is that Geshe Tsering often draws attention to interpretative differences across the Mahayana and Theravada traditions and asks us to decide for ourselves. Of course, as a child cannot appreciate or decide on theories of metaphysics, so a beginner should not delude themselves into thinking they can decide “this is the right thinking” or “this understanding is better than that one”.

A similar volume also titled The Four Noble Truths from a Theravadan perspective is by Ajahn Sumedho available through Amaravati Press (and can also be downloaded here).

If one is interested in the Mahayana, then an additional text here would be one that outlines The Way of the Bodhisattva since the purpose of Enlightenment is to free all sentient beings from suffering, not just oneself.

Just as all the Buddhas of the past
Have brought forth the awakened mind (3,23)
Likewise, for the benefit of beings,
I will bring to birth the awakened mind (3,24)

For all those ailing in the world,
Until their every sickness has been healed,
May I myself become for them
The doctor, nurse, the medicine itself. (3,8)

(The Way of the Bodhisattva, Shantideva)

Compassion and generousity, alongside knowledge, therefore become central to our practice- an oft used metaphor is likening wisdom (knowledge) and compassion to the wings of a bird. While the original text by Shantideva should be read -one may get more out of it if read via a commentary on the text such as the Dalai Lama’s A Flash of Lightning in the Dark of Night: A Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life.

Buddhism, at core, is not simply knowledge to be accumulated, but knowledge that forms the basis for action. Knowledge of anything is valuable only insofar as it can be transformed into action. In fact, we are transformed by this knowledge. How does this occur? Knowledge is to be considered, analyzed and meditated on until it becomes internalized as part of one’s mindstream . This is the purpose of knowledge- to be put into practice- to effect a change in us. Theory and Practice are therefore one. This is one way in which to appreciate Buddha’s remarks in the Simsapa Sutra above. “And why have I not told you (those things)? Because that is not useful” and “Why… have I explained them? Because it is useful”.

What is useful knowledge? That which propels us further along the path.

How does knowledge propel us along the path? By considering it, analyzing it, meditating on it until it becomes part of one’s mindstream, thereby changing the mindstream.

How does one do this? What knowledge is appropriate at various stages of progression? Where does one start?

This can be daunting and therefore put off. However, this would be quite detrimental. Luckily, we have centuries of tradition that synthesized and structured the teachings into what could be called ‘manuals’ or ‘paths’. One highly prized ‘path’ in the Tibetan Mahayana tradition is Tsong khapa’s Lamrim Chenmo (Great Treatise On the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment)- itself an elaboration of an earlier work by Atisa. However, the text is 3 volumes and difficult to fully understand at times. It would be beneficial to read a commentary on the material (either in lieu of or along with Tsong khapa’s text) in order to glean the most out of it as a beginner. Here I have to mention Steps on the Path to Enlightenment – a wonderful 5 volume commentary by Geshe Lhundub Sopa. However, there are numerous single volume commentaries that most probably would be better introductions to the Lamrim Chenmo. For instance, Practicing the Path: A Commentary on the Lamrim Chenmo by Yangsi Rinpoche. The Lamrim Chenmo structures the Buddha’s teachings into a cohesive manual for practice- as such, it is indispensable.

Finally, I would suggest a book on meditation. There are a tremendous number of possibilities here and the right one will depend on the person- just as there are different types of meditation- ‘calm abiding’ and ‘insight’ meditation to name two categories you may have come across. There is also a lot of information available on the internet concerning the types and foundations of meditation that will hopefully guide you. I will recommend Guided Meditations on the Stages of the Path by  Thubten Chodron as one book (along with 14 hours of mp3 files) in the Mahayana tradition that introduces both aforementioned categories of meditation in the context of the Lamrim Chenmo.  Her website is also very informative and full of useful knowledge. Another useful lamrim meditation guide is Lam Rim Outlines: Extended Beginners’ Meditation Guide compiled by Karin Valham which can be ordered online from the Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition webshop and also available to download in pdf here.

I hope my suggestions are of benefit to some – I think that together they provide a firm grounding in the important concepts of Buddhism across traditions, offer a glimpse into the profound implications of the Four Noble Truths and provide one with the tools necessary to put knowledge into practice and thereby effect changes within ourselves- steps along the path to freedom.

see

Alagaddûpama Sutta (MN 22)

I have been doing some difficult reading  – difficult because I am not formally trained in philosophy, more difficult because it is non-western (Tibetan and Robert Thurman makes you work for every sentence). Anyhow- it is interesting to see just how different schools of Buddhism have been in their understanding of emptiness – it pretty much runs the gamut. The implications however are huge- including the idea that Buddha taught nothing. That is, in the end he absolutely negated anything that he had said that may have been taken as ‘True’ and therefore set him up as an authority expounding some sort of dogma. It is captured most succinctly by Yuan Wu

“Old Shakyamuni appeared in this world and in forty-nine years never said a single word“

and mirrored by Nagarjuna

“No doctrine at all was ever taught by any Buddha to anyone“.

This is relevant to my reflections on the 4 Noble Truths because it suggests an approach to how to view them – not as ultimate unmovable ‘Truths’ (i.e. dogma) but something else. Interestingly, an email from a friend about Stephen Batchelor’s book ‘Buddhism Without Beliefs’ could not have been more timely because Batchelor argues for an approach to the truths as ‘ennobling’ as opposed to ‘noble’ – thereby suggesting an approach that treats them as ‘calls to action’ as opposed to ‘propositions to be believed’ (hence one aspect of ‘Buddhism without Belief’). Regardless of what I think of Batchelor’s attempt to ”westernize” Buddhism and strip it of its cultural and religious heritage-or whether this distinction is ultimately tenable (can one act without beliefs?), in this respect I think the emphasis ‘on doing’ as opposed to ‘on believing’ is justifiable. Of course, besides outsider views of Buddhism, I am not sure how ‘lost’ such a distinction really is traditionally . Perhaps for Westerners approaching Buddhism, there would be the propensity to view the 4 Truths as beliefs and neglect the implications for practice. Nonetheless, Buddha made it clear that the ’4 Truths’ were ‘things’ that you acted in respect to, namely that:

the noble truth of suffering is to be understood
the noble truth of the origin of suffering is to be abandoned
the noble truth of the cessation of suffering is to be realized
the noble truth of the path leading to the cessation of suffering is to be developed

Buddha taught how to escape suffering and illusion. But one cannot come to ‘merely know’ how to escape suffering and illusion – one must realize it. Realization is experiential.

To bring this back to Batchelor’s book (because it may be attractive to those who, not steeped, in the tradition from which Buddhism arose)- it seems he argues for a raft but no shore (see also Venerable Bhikkhu Bodhi’s review of Batchelor’s book for a similar conclusion). This is ultimately the danger of such enterprises that “modernize” traditional systems by cherry-picking or drastically redefining aspects of a system while leaving behind other aspects that do not agree with one’s culture or outlook. Ultimately we transform or ‘cleanse’ it into something less Other, less foreign, less daunting, less difficult. But we have to face the prospect that in doing so, we have made it sterile or ineffectual- we have accepted the truth of the raft, but reject the truth of the shore for which it had originally been built.

There are two aspects to the Buddha’s teaching:
The very essence of the scriptures and of realization.
One should hold these in mind, speak about them,
And practice them. Do only that.

- Vasubhandu

I came across this while reading volume I of Geshe Sopa’s commentary (Steps on the Path to Enlightenment) on Lama Tsongkhapa’s Lamrim Chenmo. On pp. 45 Geshe Sopa says “Everything the Buddha taught unerringly presents the four noble truths…”.  And “the purpose of practicing the lamrim method is to help you quickly and easily comprehend the true meaning of the scriptures” (pp. 59). Also, “… all the scriptures are important special instructions” (pp. 56) and so as Dromtonpa said “If, after studying a great deal of Dharma, you feel you need to seek out another set of teachings for practice,  then you have got it all wrong” (quoted on pp. 57).

So perhaps not as extreme as my statement that “all there is are the 4 Noble Truths” (since Geshe Sopa’s quote says that all scripture presents the four noble truths but it does not say that it only presents the 4 Noble truths), but it certainly calls attention to the centrality of these Truths to all of Buddha’s teachings. That being said, and pulling from the other quotes, I come to see the lamrim as the method for quickly (relatively speaking) coming to realize the 4 Noble truths in practice.

Not very uniquely insightful, but helpful for me.