Dorje Shugden Part II

So, it has begun…

The Dalai Lama will face protests from the Western Shugden Society at all of his talking events in the UK. The reason is for the perceived persecution and ostracization of Dorje Shugden practitioners in the Tibetan communities in exile and in the Buddhist community at large. I have researched extensivly into this, there is much propaganda and noise from all sides in the debate, but the voices that we must pay attention to are those of HH Dalai Lama, HH Kyabje Trijang Rinpoche and Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso.

The conclusion I have reached is the following: the Dalai Lama cannot enter into debate with the people holding opposing views about this matter. The reason as I see it is that either view of Dorje Shugden is difficult to prove conclusively, and students need to rely upon their teachers – it is fundamentally a matter of faith. Therefore, there is no valid reason to impose a ban on this practice. Its very difficult to deny that there is not persecution of Dorje Shugden practitioners happening, one only needs to check the videos on youtube.com to see what is happening. Furthermore, it seems that all letters and petitions to the government in exile have been completely ignored, if ever there were a time for open dialogue, this is it, I have read my full quota of negative comments written by people trying to discredit Geshe Kelsang Gyatso and the Dalai Lama. The way I see it, the ball is very much in the Dalai Lama's court, and its up to him to make some changes. My fear is that he is simply going to wait for Geshe Kelsang to pass away…

Dorje Shugden

There is going to be a lot of noise regarding this issue in the next few months. My question: if the Dalai Lama's is a Buddha, how can he be harmed by a worldly spirit? If he is a Bodhisattva, how can he be harmed by a worldly spirit? Both propositions contradict Buddha's teachings that Bodhichitta protects a practitioner from harm. If he is neither a Buddha nor Bodhisattva, why should I listen to his opinion about Dorje Shugden? Moreover, even if he feels that he doesn't want to do the practice, what reason is that for people to be kicked out of monasteries?

I hope that this can be resolved soon.

A choice right now, between fear and love...

Impermanence

“It’s absurd really. It’s only now that I have cancer that, for the first time ever, I really want to live,” Roswitha told me on one of my visits, a few weeks after she had been admitted to the hospice. “They’re really good people here,” she said. “I enjoy every day that I’m still here. Before this my life wasn’t a happy one”

Life before death at the welcome collection - guardian.co.uk

Hmm, might try and make it to this

Shut Down

I was moved to meditation by this exhibition and essay at the Leopold museum in Vienna.

In a few years many of these structures will have disappeared – torn down, carted away or simply collapsed. What will be left then? A few walls, some rubble and iron skeletons – an elegiac memento mori. They compel us to reflect on the essence of things, on our own mortality. “My occupation: ruins builder. My mission: ruins architect. My sin: ruins voyeur. Don’t ask me about forgotten places”, wrote the Romanian poet Mircea Cărtărescu. “Gather around me, open my skull and look at my brain: before your very eyes it will crumble like plaster. And its dust will be mixed indistinguishably with the dust of the ruins among which I have lived my entire life, as a lover of a harem of ruins.”

Shut the door...

…close the curtains, then groove your ass off to this:

What do you think?

if you pass your night
and merge it with dawn
for the sake of heart
what do you think will happen?

if the entire world
is covered with the blossoms
you have labored to plant
what do you think will happen?

if the elixir of life
that has been hidden in the dark
fills the desert and towns
what do you think will happen?

if because of
your generosity and love
a few humans find their lives
what do you think will happen?

if you pour an entire jar
filled with joyous wine
on the head of those already drunk
what do you think will happen?

go my friend
bestow your love
even on your enemies
if you touch their hearts
what do you think will happen?

- Rumi