Test What I Said, verses How High should I Jump?

Lord Buddha said "Test everything I said for yourself, don't just accept it at face value, if it works for you, then use it."

Traditional Tibetan Buddhism teaches "if your lama says "jump!" you should only ask "how high?" as you leap.

Which is the path to truth?

One sounds real to me, the other sounds like a cult. We all have to ask questions of ourselves because we can not give up our spiritual sovereignty, not really.

Giving up spiritual sovereignty is an illusion. We come and go alone depending on the kindness of others always. Wanting things to be easy is the reason fundamentalism exists. It's easy. One knows who is responsible and what all the rules are, or at least who to ask.

Do whatever your lama says is Buddhist fundamentalism, it's old school but not necessarily good school. For those who have taken truly mistaken paths, and can not love nor listen to others, the path of placing the lama first is a good, tried and true path, such as for Milarapa...

But really we do know, we just have to be patient enough to inquire and wait for the answers to appear. A highly qualified guru makes the light and dark spots clearer, and the path quicker.

Any where there is enough great food, the leaders should eat last, not first, so as to make sure everyone is provided for.

Plateau, the higher meaning of the Nirvana song

Many a hand has scaled the grand old face of the plateau
many people have attempted to become enlightened using that old time religion and reached a plateau

Some belonged to strangers, some to folks you know
Some of them were Pratyekabuddhas (don't teach), some were Samyaksambuddhas (do teach)

Holy ghosts and talk show hosts are planted in the sand
over time even the most enlightened subjects tend to disintegrate into meaningless drivel

To beautify the foothills, and shake the many hands
these produce beautiful culture providing a sense of what is possible, and those who are helped by enlightened ones

nothing on the top but a bucket and a mop
in emptiness of enlightenment there is much work remaining to help others clean up karma and deluded thinking, it's normal

And an illustrated book about birds
and the biographies and hagiographies of those who have become enlightened and have gone beyond before you

See a lot up there but don't be scared
there is a lot of information about the various techniques, but don't be frightened of all the paths and choices

Who needs action when you got words?
because you don't need to worry about karma or other forms of action tantra when mantrayana exists

finished with the mop then you can stop
once you have calmed your own mind and cleaned your karma out, you can stop

And look at what you've done
observe the real, observe yourself

The plateau's clean, no dirt to be seen
where you are is perfection itself, pure emptiness

And the work it was fun
self realization is fun but work

nothing on the top but a bucket and a mop
from the highest view there is pure body speech and mind

And an illustrated book about birds
and illusion is obvious, such as greed, hatred, and delusion (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhavacakra)

See a lot up there but don't be scared
there are left handed and right handed paths

Who needs action when you got words
but mantrayana works if you don't choose action tantra or yoga

Many a hands began to scan around for the next plateau
lots of seekers start to look for yet another plateau

Some say it was Greenland, and some say Mexico
thinking it is someplace else they will go north or south, or choose some other path


Others decided it was nowhere except for where they stood
but the wise and realized understand that samsara and nirvana are the same - where they stand now

But those were all just guesses, wouldn't help you if they could
But this is just a story, you have to have the experience yourself

Thanks to Fred, Nathan, and Chris for this idea...

Golfing for Enlightenment

A refreshing view of sports, particularly golf is contained in this short video -
http://ewamchoden.org/golf.html "This movie was part of Timeless Show on ESPN which originally aired on 01/01/2005 ©2005 ESPN-Red Line Films"

The Ven. Lama Kunga, Ngor Thartse Rinpoche, shown golfing is the founder and resident lama of Ewam Choden Tibetan Buddhist Center located in the Berkeley area. Rinpoche was born into the Shuku family in Lhasa in 1935, the son of Tsepon Shukupa, the former Financial Minister of the Dalai Lama's government.

At the age of 7, he was recognized as the reincarnation of Sevan Repa, a Heart Disciple of Milarepa, the great 11th century yogi and poet of Tibet. Rinpoche entered monastic life when he was 8 years old and lived in Western Tibet, primarily at Ngor Monastery, in the Sakya tradition. Before he left Tibet in 1959, Rinpoche served as Vice Abbot of Ngor Monastery.

Materials from the Evam Choden site.
-Sherab Wongmo

Dharma Story from a Friend in Canada

"Trinley Rinpoche came to visit Geshela about a month before his death (which was a bit peculiar because Geshela usually visited him in Seattle.

After our puja we had tea and I asked Rinpoche one of my favourite questions:
"If samsara and nirvana and inseperable, why do we need protectors?"

Trinley Rinpoche replied "Because this IS samsara"
Trinley Rinpoche and Geshela just about fell over, they were laughing so hard.

It doesn't look quite so funny written down, but it was a quitessentially hilarious moment, which causes me to crack up to this day."

I CPU

Your body is in front of a CPU
Your eyes monitor reality
You think and process and send out
Waiting for the pings to strive
You live in a mass of databases
A holodeck of your own device
You prayed for this, remember

There was the book about fitting memory chips to the brain
To create human computers
That could link to the world's net domain
And we thought the android name
Was not too fit
Enough of it

We are the processors of living DNA
Wrapped around in a sylix
To the core of the material frame
The source of time and knowledge
The well of wisdom's flame
There in the many visions
We transform what none can name

Hey!
I saw you a long time ago.
And I wrote the code in the sky
To make your dream a reality
Don't ask me why
The questions of King Malinda
And the Nagarjuna Python Agora train
Bound in the halo of starlight
Off on the midnight train
The wheel will spin
And spin again
There by the gate gate pare gate parasamgate
Of the gates of the places we live

by Christopher Wilkinson