BUDDHIST GEEKS: A Shikantaza-ish Tibetan Practice

[Jundo]

Hi,

Just had a listen to a mediation teacher from Naropa University describing a Tibetan Practice which struck as resonating Shikantaza ... some beautiful descriptions, perhaps worth a listen ...

There was a 12th century, actually 13th-century, Tibetan teacher named Orgyenpa. ... He goes on to say, “Not searching for a state that is calmly resting, vividly clear and filled with bliss. Bring into your experience whatever arises, without taking it up or discarding it.” It’s that last phrase that’s really important to remember. It’s bringing everything into your experience whatever arises. This does not mean just doing whatever—it’s not just blowing around like a plastic bag in the wind. At the same time there is this continual dawning of experience, a kind of “thisness” of reality. And he is recommending, instructing—and I love that this eight centuries ago at least and it still applies—he is saying bring into your experience whatever arises. Bring it in, without taking it up or discarding it. He is talking about a very specific kind of view of experience.

http://www.buddhistgeeks.com/2010/09/bg ... f-thought/

Gassho, J

[TrevorMcmanis]

Re: BUDDHIST GEEKS: A Shikantaza-ish Tibetan Practice

dzogchen?

[Jinyu]

Re: BUDDHIST GEEKS: A Shikantaza-ish Tibetan Practice

Thank you for sharing Jundo!

dzogchen?

Orgyenpa is part of the Kagyu lineage, but in these times Kagyus and Nyingmas had a lot of interactions (like today). The result has been the integration of some aspect of the practice of Dzogchen in the Mahamudra practices. These great scholars tried to integrate every part of the Dharma they could find in the different schools around them (Vinaya, abidhamma, tantras ...). So it is difficult to tell what is exactly Dzogchen or Mahamudra in their times...

Note that it is true that Dzogchen texts and practices, especially in the simple and beautiful presentation of the Bön tradition, are sometimes surprisingly similar with what we can find in our own tradition.

gassho,
Jinyu

[TrevorMcmanis]

Re: BUDDHIST GEEKS: A Shikantaza-ish Tibetan Practice

thanks.I have studied alot about sakya and kagyu.My former zen teacher practiced with ponlop dzogchen rinpoche and so she often incorporated it into her talks and such very interesting stuff.

[Taylor]

Re: BUDDHIST GEEKS: A Shikantaza-ish Tibetan Practice

Note that it is true that Dzogchen texts and practices, especially in the simple and beautiful presentation of the Bön tradition, are sometimes surprisingly similar with what we can find in our own tradition.

gassho,
Jinyu

I mean when you taste the ice cream you taste the ice cream right? :P

A very hungry guy,
Taylor

[Hans]

Re: BUDDHIST GEEKS: A Shikantaza-ish Tibetan Practice

Hello,

thank you for pointing this one out.

Beautiful Flowers everywhere.

Let us not forget to focus on our own patch first an foremost however, lest we forget to pour water over the fresh and fragile buds that need it the most.

Gassho,

Hans

[Ryumon]

Re: BUDDHIST GEEKS: A Shikantaza-ish Tibetan Practice

What's interesting about dzogchen is that the Tibetans consider this an "advanced" practice, accessible only to experienced meditators, whereas in zen - at least Soto zen - it is considered to be "the" practice, accessible to everyone. But I guess a lot of that has to do with the Tibetan way of creating a hierarchy of practices with numbered requirements to access them.