dharmatalks

The consciousness of love releases the greatest power of all. It is that consciousness that can turn an ordinary meal into Communion with our own organic and indwelling capacity to emerge as the Sacred. Our True Nature is the pure consciousness of love, which is called the Buddhadhuta (Enlightened Nature) or Christ Consciousness.

This consciousness stems from following a spiritual path, which has nothing to do with religion or religious traditions. It arises from the practice of respect for life, dedication to non-violence, awareness of our essential unity, a feeling of equanimity and loving-kindness toward all beings, and the ocean of limitless compassion.

For those students of the Dharma of the Christ, we progress further and deeper into Holy Week, and the narrative of that last celebration of the Paschal meal that Rav Yeshua shared with his disciples, commonly referred to as the Last Supper.

The meal they shared would have been the traditional Passover Seder; but I am unconvinced. You see, there are a number of elements in the biblical narratives that give us clues to what I believe was intended to be seen as yet another aspect of the radically fresh, inclusive and dharma-oriented teaching of the Great Rabbi.

To begin with, scriptures tell us that Jesus instructed his disciples to go into the Holy City and look for the young man carrying water, telling him that the Master wants him to prepare things for the Pesach (Passover celebration). Many of us might think that those directions were vague. How would they know to which guy, carrying a pitcher of water their Teacher wanted them to speak. It might surprise the Fundie McNuggets® to discover that this passage also tells us that Rav Yeshua (Jesus) was not a homophobe, like so many of them; for his instructions would have led the disciples to a particular gay man. That’s presumably why it was unnecessary to describe the guy any further, because you see, no heterosexual male in that ancient society, would have been carrying water (traditionally a woman’s role).

So Jesus has his disciples find the gay dude in town, and entrust that this gay guy would know him as “the Master” and ensure that everything was set up properly.

Then we jump ahead to the meal itself, when the English translation of the Aramaic texts also fails to provide a clear translation and insight into the meaning of that meal.

Here is a more accurate interpretation of the words of that Eucharistic Meal:

“Then the Teacher took bread and said the Passover blessing, broke the bread and gave it to the men and women with whom he shared that meal, saying, ‘Take this, all of you, and eat it. This is my flesh sacrifice… a non-violent and perfect substitution for the violent ritual slaughter of our tradition. Such violence is unnecessary, for simply breaking bread and being grateful is enough!

“When supper ended, the Teacher took the cup, again saying the traditional blessing, and passing it to his disciples, said, ‘Take this and drink, for this is our blood sacrifice… representing a new and life-affirming covenant for all people. No more do we need to superstitiously rely on animal sacrifices to appease imaginary external gods.

“Do this in memory of me.”

And so it was that a new tradition supplanted the ancient Passover tradition, and this new community recognised that they could share a “thanksgiving meal” any time, simply by breaking bread and sharing a cup of wine. Their teacher opened the way for them to experience a “new covenant” – a non-violent, compassionate and equally shared covenant between all beings.

In the Satasáhasriká Prajñapáramitá, we learn that a true Bodhisattva shows his or her compassion by choosing to suffer the pains, torments and passions… even the agony of death, so that he or she might lead all beings to perfect Enlightenment. Such a person, we are told, becomes consumed with grief over the suffering he or she sees among others, and desires to take such suffering upon himself or herself, for the sake of freeing others… literally, saving them, from torment.

According to the biblical legend,  both Rav Yeshua and his Mother (Miriam) willingly surrender themselves to great suffering — both physical and emotional — out of an overwhelming sense of longing to free the world of suffering and death for innumerable æons.

For the Catholic-Buddhist, the story of Good Friday and Easter can be seen through the lens of the ancient mystery traditions, which recognise the stories as a ways to fill in the gaps science leaves with symbolism and myth, for the purpose of illustrating the importance of the gaps themselves — those empty spaces in which ultimate truth (Emptiness) exists.

The apostle wrote that his desire was "to decrease, so that the Christ Consciousness in him could increase". This consciousness of which he speaks is the awareness or awakening that Buddhists call "Enlightenment". It is an awareness of the ineffable, ungraspable, groundless reality, which the primitives called "God", and which the mystics and Desert Fathers knew could never be named or quantified.

Holy Thursday is a particularly important day of contemplation for the Contemplative Monks of the Eightfold Path, because it is the retelling of an ancient myth, which has been told about many characters before it was superimposed on the story of Rav Yeshua…

It is a story of transformative potential. The story of love. And that transformative love is manifest in the gathering of people to share an "intentional meal". We can make every meal an intentional meal, by bringing mindfulness, gratitude and love to the experience. That is what Jesus wanted his disciples to understand.

For me, the Liturgy of Holy Thursday, in which we strip the altar of its linens, its candles and empty the tabernacle of the sacramental presence that usually resides there, has always been a powerful and emotional symbolism. I’ve always returned, as was the case of the elders (episkopi) in the early Jesus Movement, to sit in silent contemplation in that empty church… and turned my awareness to the profound experience of that emptiness.

The period of time from that Paschal meal that Rav Yeshua would have shared with his disciples and their families… during which his Mother must have been keenly aware that something was troubling Her beloved son… bring a mindfulness that there is a pain inherent in being alive. We read about the "agony in the garden", and find the tremendous sadness and agony Christ experienced, when contemplating the suffering of others, and during which he seems to have resolved to identify solely with that sovereign value in the identification of one’s own suffering with the sufferings of all beings.

This ethic of sacrificial compassion is at the heart of the Bodhisattva ideal. And I find meaning in contemplating not only the staid story of Rav Yeshua and his passion and death, but the frequently overlooked, and equally courageous role of the co-redemptrix, Mary, his Mother… who becomes, by adoption, the Mother of Us All. For a mother to stand by and watch her child suffer must be a terrible thing. I know that when my late partner was dying, who for the last year of his life, was more like my child than my lover, it was one of the most emotionally heartbreaking experiences I had ever known. Yet to compound that experience of watching a loved one die with watching them die a savage and brutal death is even more extreme.

A Mother, barely older than Her Child, stands on the step, watching as Her Son is ridiculed, beaten by a crowd, tortured and hanged upon a tree. These words seem inconceivable, and we imagine that is because they are part of an ancient legend… a sacred myth… and that is why we cannot begin to understand. But those words were not a description of our Blessed Mother at Calvary… they were the words used to describe the experiences of a 23 year old Black woman, in Selma, Alabama, who watched her son being beaten and hanged by a mob of racist terrorists in 1962.

Suddenly, when the context changes, our hearts begin to feel the terror, the agony and the grief.

We reflect on the meanings of the story… on the meaning of Pilate, the representative of the "great civilisation", which was threatened by the radical message of inclusion and equanimity being preached by this revolutionary Rabbi of Love. "What is truth," Civilisation (in the person of Pilate) asks of the Anointed One. In the end, Civilisation washes its hands of the responsibility to uphold social justice.

Then there are the high priests… the ones charged with upholding truth and who became caught up in the literalist interpretation, the ritiualistic practice, and the lust for power and authority that comes in every institutionalisation of spirituality. In the end, they too were threatened by the suggestion that compassion calls us to erase the lines the priests had drawn in the sand, dividing "us" from "them"… "pure" from "ritually unclean".

Afraid that doing the "right thing" might upset the status quo (Rome), the few priests with a conscience, retreated in silence, and let fear and manipulation win, just as we find those dedicated and compassionate priests in the Roman Church often doing, in the shadow of the oppression, injustice and intolerance their institutional dogma puts forward. They know that women, gay and lesbian persons, and people from other faiths are being dogmatically marginalised by their religion, and in their hearts, they do not embrace such intolerant ideas… but they do nothing about it… and like the Pharisees, stand by in silence, and watch the torture unfold.

Now there was, at the time of Rav Yeshua, a tradition during Pesach (Passover), during which every observant Jew would bring a lamb or a goat to the Temple for ritual slaughter. The priests would first bleed out the lamb (poorer families would use a goat), and then offer the first portion sacrificially to their vengeful and punitive god, Yahweh. The families would not be permitted into the Holy of Holies, and would have to stand in a waiting area (actually only the men were even permitted to stand in this section). So a name tag was placed around the necks of the animals to be sacrificed.

As we read the story of the Passion, we find that the Jewish priests were horrified and appear angry, when they looked up at the Cross, and see the sign Pilate had inscribed in Latin, Hebrew and Greek.

Many are familiar with the inscription that is often seen on crucifixes today, with the Roman "INRI" appearing above the head of the Corpus.

This sign would have actually contained the entire message "IESVS NAZARENVS REX IVDAEORVM" — meaning "Jesus the Nazarene, and King of the Jews" (contrary to the misinterpretation of many later scriptural texts, which claim it said "Jesus of Nazareth King of the Jews", since there was no such place as Nazareth at the time of Jesus’ birth. The Nazarenes were a sect of Dharma adherents, who were trained in the healing arts by the Therapeutae — Alexandrian monks, trained as disciples of the Tibetan Buddhists). Back to the story…

The Pharisees subscribed to a metaphysical method of looking at all written words in Hebrew as containing a literal meaning, and then a numerological meaning, followed by a "hidden" Kabbalistic meaning, which was derived from taking the first initial of every word in a passage, and looking for symbolism or words therein.

When the words "IESVS NAZARENVS REX IVDAEORVM" are translated into Hebrew, the first initials of the words would have been "YHVH".

There, before the eyes of those who were charged with the responsibility to protect the truth, was a sacrificial lamb… above whose head was his "family name" the name of their mythical god, Yahweh, whose name in Hebrew is "YHVH".

On a deeper level, there were other more ancient assignations, dating back to the crucifixion myths that pre-date the plagiarised version found in the Bible, in which those letters mean, "IGNE NATVRA RENOVATVR INTEGRA" — "By fire is restored purity."

Thus we see in the story of Good Friday the Bodhisattva Path — which represents the inner fire of the spirit, regenerates and resurrects Love and Life… much like the sun regenerates the earth.

Regardless of your personal spiritual path, I invite you to consider and contemplate this exemplary story of the Bodhisattva Christ (Aviloketesvara) … and the Bodhisattva Mary (Kuan Yin).

Consider a love so great, that after becoming incarnate, was moved so deeply by the suffering of this world and others, that he gave his life in exchange (the Tibetan practice of tonglen) for the freedom of others. Each day, we too have an opportunity to take on the suffering of others, symbolically and in small ways, to alleviate the suffering they experience in some meaningful way.

We can let the desire for that pack of cigarettes die in us, so that the $5 can feed that homeless woman we pass on our way home from work. We can let the habit of Happy Hour with our friends die so that we can spend those couple hours visiting those in the country home or cancer ward.

We can allow the need to be right die, and simply say, "I’m sorry", next time our wife or husband is bitching about something stupid.

And I’ll promise you this, my friends… three days later, you will discover that there has been something in you that is indeed "raised up"… restored to life… reinvigorated. And by the fires of daily life, may your hearts be made pure!

Namasté

khenpo gurudas sunyatananda

_____________________________________________

“Chenrezig, Treasure of Objectless Compassion;
Manjushri, Lord of Stainless Wisdom;
Vajrapani, Destroyer of all adversarial forces;
O Je Tsong Khapa – Losang Drakpa —
Crown Jewel of the Sages of the Land of Snows,
Humbly at Your Lotus Feet I ask your blessing.”

_____________________________________________

Drawing on the essential teachings of the great spiritual teachers, philosophers and freethinkers throughout time, Khenpo Gurudas Śunyatananda (retired Archbishop Francis-Maria Salvato, O.C.) has been regarded as a provocative, revolutionary “voice of reason” within the field of religion and spirituality, since 1983. Having the distinction of being one of the few openly non-theistic, openly-gay and post-denominational thinkers ever to serve as Bishop-Exarch and spiritual leader of the autocephalic Eastern Catholic Franciscans in North America, Gurudas is the author of more than 600 articles, eight books and currently serves as the spiritual advisor for a non-theistic, intentional spiritual community, The Spiritus Project. He can be reached at: http://dharmadudeunplugged.com

Copyright ©2008, Khenpo Gurudas Sunyatananda (The Most Reverend Dr. F. Francis-Maria G. Salvato, M.Sc., O.C.). All rights reserved. This material may be reproduced, blogged, quoted or distributed, provided the entire copyright including contact information remain intact. It may NOT be altered in any way, without express written permission.

David Pearson writes: “Dharmacharya, could you explain where your teaching fits in overall in the Buddhist world? From what lineage and tradition are your monks associated? And have you not been expelled from that lineage, since your approach to the vinaya is ‘non-traditional’ at best? I mean no disrespect, but find it troubling that you are referred to by so many as a lama and Buddhist monk, yet your path seems to break with Buddhist tradition.”

Thank you for your patience, in waiting for a response, David. (David’s question was received in early December, but I asked him if he would kindly wait until January 18th for my response, and he was kind enough to oblige.)

One of my teachers said that I would know when the time was right to freely discuss my path, and told me that I should wait until I had served for thirty years as a Buddhist contemplative, and at least five years as the shepherd of the progressive Catholic contemplatives entrusted to my pastoral care.

Today marks six years since I was consecrated as a successor to the apostles, and is a White Tara Day in the Tibetan tradition. Since I took my vows as a Buddhist monk on a White Tara Day as well, over 30 years ago, I have chosen this auspicious day to answer David’s question, because I believe it is a question many have wanted to know about for some time.

There have been critics, as many know, from various camps, concerning the teaching, the tradition of our intentional community and our way of life. These critics have, from the very start, struggled to understand where we “fit in” in the overall scheme of things. And for thirty years now, there have been those who questioned whether or not I was suited to teach the path I have shared.

I don’t expect any of that to change.

My lineage is derived from as diverse a tapestry of beloved teachers as the tradition itself. My lineage includes transmission of the Advaita Vedanta and Buddha Dharma from Swami Abishiktananda (Father Henri LeSaux, OSB) of Santivinam (Saccidananda Ashram) in Tamil Nadu (Madras), India.  The transmission of Japanese Zen in the Omoto-kyo lineage was given by Robert Danza Sensei, who received transmission directly from Morehei Ueshiba-san and his Master Onisaburu Deguchi-san. While I have been fortunate to receive Kalachakra empowerment from His Holiness the Fourteenth Dalai Lama, I must consider my Root Guru to be Ma Jaya Sati Bhagavati (who was named Tenzin Yangchen by the Dalai Lama), whose lineage is derived from our Satguru Sri Neem Karoli Baba, Swami Muktananda, Swami Nityananda and Ramana Maharishi. And my apostolic lineage can be directly traced, in unbroken succession to the original disciples, James, John, Judas-the-Twin (Mar Thoma of India), Thaddeus and Bartholomew.

A Word About Lineages

There are frequent discussions online about lineage, and often, it is suggested that one ensure the pedigree of one’s guru or teacher, based on “approved” lineages, as an alleged means of ensuring that one is receiving the Dharma accurately. This type of approach is particularly espoused by some of the Tibetan traditions, and frequently results in students engaging in somewhat questionable banter about how “qualified” this teacher or that is, based on lineage.

Now I understand that recognising a particular lineage can serve as something of a superficial assurance, when seeking a potential teacher or sectarian affiliation, but it is never anything more than that – a superficial assurance.

The Buddha did not tell students to seek out a pure lineage or superior lineage, but rather to test and question everything they were taught, using reasoning, logic and the internal compass as a guide.

When my Root Guru was unable to teach me certain Tibetan and Bon practices, I sought permission to be released to study with other teachers, qualified and adept in such aspects of the Dharma. And I am grateful for having received the permission to study elsewhere, as much as I am to those teachers who taught (and some who continue to teach) me.

But I would never condescend by arrogantly bandying about that I hold this lineage or that. I hold nothing but a desire to alleviate suffering. If a student is looking to accumulate prestigious lineages, I will tell them that I cannot give that to them, despite the fact that many would consider the lineages of transmission I hold to be admirable or “qualified” by their temporal standards.  I am not in the business of lineage brokerage. I am a Dharma teacher.

But What About the Purity of the Tradition?

I am troubled by the sectarianism that I see in Buddhism. While it is natural and beautiful for the Dharma to have developed such diversity throughout the East, in no small part, due to the efforts of Guru Rinpoche and the Great Lama Je Tsongkhapa, Milarepa and Nagarjuna; it saddens me when I find practitioners becoming so attached to the traditions, sadhanas and interpretations of texts that they begin to have disdain for those from other traditions. Such attitudes are the attitudes of religion, and Buddha surely did not come to start a religion.

I draw deeply from the Tibetan tradition, because there is an affinity for Je Tsongkhapa which arose in me at a very early age, for reasons I cannot explain. And therefore, certain sadhanas have become part of my practice and path. But my path is most influenced by the Dzogchen tradition, not because I believe it is superior to any other, but because it organically felt like a continuation of the work I came here to complete.

Similarly, my tradition as a teacher of the Christ Dharma is influenced by Zen and Dzogchen, because these paths express the life the Master led, and can be found in the dharma transmission of Mar Thoma of India (the brother and disciple of Rav Yeshua/Jesus). Again, I feel no compulsion toward a particular religion, because I do not believe Yeshua, like Buddha, wished to start a religion in any way; nor do I subscribe to the legends and errant notions that any of his apostles set out to do so either.

Traditions were not intended to be pure, but rather to be celebrated. And a celebration is dynamic, living, changing. Therefore I dismiss the idea of preserving the “purity” of a tradition, because such things are ego-driven pursuits, which have distracted even the greatest of Dharma masters and throne holders throughout time.

Labels… Labels… Labels…

Labels can be useful for helping us to communicate. But they are no substitution for understanding.

I can speak to you of “fire”, but unless you’ve experienced fire, you only hold a rough conceptual idea of it. I must first define fire for you, and then offer some sort of demonstration to affirm that what I suggest is physically “real”.  Then you can comprehend more fully what fire is.

Our understanding of the Dharma is no different. We must begin with what we call pramana in Sanskrit, or valid cognition. We learn the qualities and function of the Buddha and the Buddha Mind, just as we learn the qualities and functions of fire. And once we’ve attained this valid cognition, we can begin to build upon that so that understanding gives rise to wisdom and integration, and wisdom gives rise to realisation.

So how do I label myself and my community?

Well, the fact is that for the past thirty years, we felt no need to consider ourselves as anything other than monks. Some would call themselves Buddhist-Catholic monks, others would say Catholic-Buddhist monks.

But beginning in 2001, when we formally severed our ties with the Roman Catholic Church, and then again in 2006, when we severed our ties with institutional religion and sectarianism altogether, some significant distinctions arose, which I believe may have unintentionally caused discomfort for members of the Buddhist and Catholic contemplative communities at-large.

Our monks take refuge vows, like any other Buddhist practitioner, upon entering the Order. They commit to living according to our Rule of Life, and according to the precepts of the Order. The Rule of Life our monks live by can be found on the web here: http://www.orderofcompassion.com/rule_of_life.html and the precepts can be found on the Order’s website as well, by first going here and choosing the various links: http://www.orderofcompassion.com/about_the_dharma_of_compassion.html.

What? No celibacy?

That is correct. Notably absent from the lives of our monks is a prescription for or against celibacy. We recognise that attachments can arise due to sexual intimacy, but that they can also arise as a result of vowing to avoid sexual intimacy. Therefore, we chose to work a little harder, and more diligently, to become mindful of attachments, rather than seeking the “quick fix” that had become the custom in both the Buddhist and Catholic monastic environments. We also recognise that primitive attitudes toward sexuality in the ancient times influenced such prescriptions, and that a healthier attitude toward sexuality need not present barriers or obstacles to one’s path.

Now, given that important distinction, along with the fact that in the West, it is less acceptable for monks to beg for their food, shelter and sustenance, we developed an intentional community that operates from a postmodern, culturally relevant perspective, without diluting the essential message of the Dharma – that is, the Four Noble Truths, the Noble Eightfold Path, the Eight Verses of Mind Training, etc.

Which brings us to the question of whether or not we’ve unintentionally caused our sisters and brothers in the Sangha discomfort, anxiety or even anger.

And because it is clear to me that we have, I am asking all members of our Order, from this point forward, to stop referring to themselves as Buddhist monks or Catholic monks and nuns. Instead, we will identify ourselves as “contemplatives, drawing deeply from the Buddhist, Franciscan, Benedictine and Quaker traditions”. It would be acceptable, I think, to still refer to oneself as a Buddhist contemplative, or Buddhist-Catholic contemplative, etc. but to omit the use of the word monk, when prefacing it with Buddhist or Catholic.

I am not saying that we are no longer monks, because like it or not, with or without the approval of any particular sect, we are monks. Period. We are postmodern monks… non-sectarian monks… emergent monks. And no one has a right to take that from us.

What About Liturgy?

Every contemplative is free to express their spirituality in ways that they personally find appropriate, sacred and “right”. This may or may not include drawing from the wealth of Tibetan, Zen, Catholic, Celtic, Hindu or Bon traditions, or any other spiritual path, so long as those practices do not conflict with the essential nature, understanding and pursuit of the Dharma.

When a group gathers for darshan or Dharma instruction, we do not follow a strict “prescribed liturgy”. The type of liturgy we enjoy depends on the group itself, on the focus of that particular teaching, and on being present in the moment.

Isn’t that Syncretism?

Perhaps it can be called syncretism, for all spirituality has been influenced by various degrees of syncretism throughout human history.

Our tradition freely draws on other traditions, because we choose not to see the imaginary lines drawn in the sand separating one from another. We recognise and celebrate the truths of the great Teachers and Holy Ones, the Heroes and Heroines, both from this life and realm, and those from other realms. We recognise that some of these great ones have been perceived as “gods” and “goddesses” by other traditions, and have no qualms with that. Whether such beings are “real” or metaphors makes no difference either, since the ultimate reality of all phenomena is inherent emptiness.

We do not recognise nor affirm the existence of a “creator” or supreme god or goddess, since the purpose of our spiritual practice is to alleviate suffering, and such notions do nothing to alleviate suffering or realise enlightenment. We do not feel compelled to argue for or against the existence of such beings, simply finding such notions to be less than useful for our own personal spiritual journeys. Since everything is created in our minds, it is possible that some being could create an entire universe in their minds, and trapped by ego and delusion, imagine that they are “in charge” of the entire cosmos. Such possibilities are not our concern. (we have our hands full with gaining control over our own delusions and ego-minds!)

We’re Simply Not Evangelical…

Our purpose as an intentional spiritual community is to provide a safe space in which like-minded people can come together to work toward eliminating suffering for all sentient beings. We have no recruitment agendas. Therefore, we don’t go trying to make converts, because we fundamentally have no use for religion itself. Therefore, there is nothing to convert to!

If someone is part of a particular religious tradition, and wishes to be part of our intentional community, they are welcome to do so. We don’t ask that they give up any religious affiliations. We simply require that no one ever try to convert, persuade or influence anyone else to join, leave or otherwise become part of any religion or religious group.

So maybe we’re Buddhist in your opinion. Maybe not. Maybe we’re Catholic in your opinion. Maybe not.

From my perspective, none of it matters. I am a contemplative monk. And my spiritual path is guided by the teachings of the Buddha and the Christ. But I choose no labels… no distinctions… no titles.

When my students were arguing for the right to refer to me as their lama, I cleverly suggested that they simply call me Khenpo (abbot) or Dharmacharya. The reason was that Dharmacharya, when written in Sanskrit can either mean “teacher of the Dharma” (Dharma Acharya) or “one who lives according to the Dharma” (Dharma charya). At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter… because if you do one, you do the other.

Taking my lead from my Spiritual Father, His Holiness, the Fourteenth Dalai Lama, and from my Satguru Sri Neem Karoli Baba Santa Maharaj, I profess no religion but compassion… I recognise no god but love… and I follow no path but service to others.

Namasté

dharmacharya gurudas sunyatananda

_____________________________________________

“Chenrezig, Treasure of Objectless Compassion;
Manjushri, Lord of Stainless Wisdom;
Vajrapani, Destroyer of all adversarial forces;
O Je Tsong Khapa – Losang Drakpa —
Crown Jewel of the Sages of the Land of Snows,
Humbly at Your Lotus Feet I ask your blessing.”

_____________________________________________

Drawing on the essential teachings of the great spiritual teachers, philosophers and freethinkers throughout time, Dharmacharya Gurudas Śunyatananda (retired Archbishop Francis-Maria Salvato, O.C.) has been regarded as a provocative, revolutionary “voice of reason” within the field of religion and spirituality, since 1983. Having the distinction of being one of the few openly non-theistic, openly-gay and post-denominational thinkers ever to serve as Bishop-Exarch and spiritual leader of the autocephalic Eastern Catholic Franciscans in North America, Gurudas is the author of more than 600 articles, eight books and currently serves as the spiritual advisor for a non-theistic, intentional spiritual community, The Spiritus Project. He can be reached at: http://dharmadudeunplugged.com

Copyright ©2008, His Eminence Dharmacharya Gurudas Sunyatananda (The Most Reverend Dr. F. Francis-Maria G. Salvato, M.Sc., O.C.). All rights reserved. This material may be reproduced, blogged, quoted or distributed, provided the entire copyright including contact information remain intact. It may NOT be altered in any way, without express written permission.

With the shifting of our perspective, all things appear differently. If one were to look at the sky during a clear night, one might perceive all things being basked in the light of the moon. Highlights reflecting on the water, the leaves of the trees, and the earth itself, would delight us with the interplay between shadow and light.

In our minds, we may see that experience as different from our view of the same landscape during the middle of the day, when everything seems to be illuminated by the sun’s bright light.

This is but one small example of our dualistic mind, and the way it distorts ultimate reality, shaping our mistaken perceptions.

What we see at night is not at all separate from the light we

see during the day. In fact, the moon has no light of its own, reflecting only the light from the same sun that shines during the day.

So it is with our perceptions about many things in life… including our spirituality.

One of my spiritual brothers, Jayanata Paquette observed this morning:

Devotion is a direct route to gratitude, the most healing of emotions. People forego the subjective experience of devotion in favor of fighting over the various objects of devotion (i.e., religions).

Only when we cultivate this realisation of unity (yoga in Sanskrit), bringing together the inward and outward, will we begin to see with a clarity of mind that frees us from all mistaken notions and delusions. This awakened state, which we find in the stories of the lives of Buddha Sakyamuni and Rabbi Jesus, in the lives of Kuan Yin and Mary the Christotokos, and in the stories of countless illuminated teachers, saints, mystics and guides, brings with it inward and a restful heart.

From this place of pure devotion… a devotion which celebrates, honours and bows in reverence to all that exists, all that has existed and all that will one day exist, recognising the common nature of all phenomena as outward expressions – mirror images of our interior state… we draw together the subtle body of unified spirit, the physical body and all its senses, culminating in a simple unity of inward and outward powers, enclosed in the envelope of compassion and wisdom.

The Catholic mystic, Teresa d’Avila observed, “The spiritual marriage may also be compared to water running from the sky into a river or stream, where the waters are united, and it would no longer be possible to divide them, or to separate the water of the river from that which has fallen from the heavens.”

Just as the Indian mythos of the water of the sacred Ganga flows from Siva’s hair, and goes out to become part of the waters of the world… and as the Buddhist story of the great Lama Tsongkhapa’s spiritual union with Vajrayogini made it possible to restore the expedient path of liberation, we each have our own stories.

As this week unfolds, bringing with it still more tales of light and unity, passed down and adapted from legends that have been part of the human story for thousands upon thousands of years, let us not focus on our differences – on the “objects of devotion” that Jayanta spoke of, but instead on the act of devotion itself.

Whether your personal story is about a child, born in humble obscurity, who was the incarnation of Sacred Love, or the story of the Miracle of Lights… whether you’re celebrating the lengthening of daylight and coming of Spring, or the increase of the divinity among us, which enables us each to realise our own divine potential… let your celebration be full!

Take time to consider what you can do to positively and powerfully impact the world around you at this time. What can you do to alleviate the suffering of someone less fortunate? What can you do to ensure that someone is no longer hurting, no longer alone, no longer afraid?

Seize the opportunity to write new stories! Take time to listen to the stories of others! Let the coming weeks unfold with the potential of all that you are… where the light of the sun and the light of the moon merge to become simply light… and where you recognise the truth about your Emergent Nature.

Let there be peace on earth… especially in your heart!

Namasté

dharmacharya gurudas sunyatananda

_____________________________________________

“Chenrezig, Treasure of Objectless Compassion;
Manjushri, Lord of Stainless Wisdom;
Vajrapani, Destroyer of all adversarial forces;
O Je Tsong Khapa – Losang Drakpa —
Crown Jewel of the Sages of the Land of Snows,
Humbly at Your Lotus Feet I ask your blessing.”

_____________________________________________

Drawing on the essential teachings of the great spiritual teachers, philosophers and freethinkers throughout time, Dharmacharya Gurudas Śunyatananda (retired Archbishop Francis-Maria Salvato, O.C.) has been regarded as a provocative, revolutionary “voice of reason” within the field of religion and spirituality, since 1983. Having the distinction of being one of the few openly non-theistic, openly-gay and post-denominational thinkers ever to serve as Bishop-Exarch and spiritual leader of the autocephalic Eastern Catholic Franciscans in North America, Gurudas is the author of more than 600 articles, eight books and currently serves as the spiritual advisor for a non-theistic, intentional spiritual community, The Spiritus Project. He can be reached at: http://dharmadudeunplugged.com

Copyright ©2008, His Eminence Dharmacharya Gurudas Sunyatananda (The Most Reverend Dr. F. Francis-Maria G. Salvato, M.Sc., O.C.). All rights reserved. This material may be reproduced, blogged, quoted or distributed, provided the entire copyright including contact information remain intact. It may NOT be altered in any way, without express written permission.

For the members of the Contemplative Order of Compassion, there are two primary paths available, from which one can develop the qualities necessary to realise Enlightenment. These two paths are the Path of Transformation (Tantra) and the Path of the Great Perfection(Dzogchen). Most contemplatives will choose one or the other path, and while a select few may actually master both paths, more often than not, they will choose one of the two paths as their principal practice.

The Path of Transformation

The Path of Transformation recognises that if we become skilful, rather than rejecting the afflictive emotions that obscure our innate Enlightened Nature, we can use them as fuel, and in so doing, achieve transformation of mind.

For the practitioner of this Tantric Path, there are what we call the “Lower” and “Higher” Tantras. One receives the empowerments (initiation instructions) to practice these Tantras from a qualified Tantric Master or Guru.

The focus of the Lower Tantras includes the process of visualising oneself as merging with the various yidam deities, until one transforms oneself into that yidam deity. This realisation of the One Buddha Nature transforms everything we experience – every sound, every smell, every taste, touch and sight – so that it is recognised as perfect and pure: as seen through the eyes of Clear Wisdom and Light.

This path involves what we call the “Three Beings”: the symbolic being, the knowledge being and the action being.

The symbolic being is mastered by bringing all phenomena into our awareness through the use of a Mandala or mantra, or imagery of the yidam deity.

The knowledge being encompasses all of the pure and positive qualities of the yidam deity or Buddha, which we recognise as our own inherent qualities and nature.

When we actualise the merging of the symbolic and knowledge being, so that we become the embodiment of those qualities, we become the action being. We then realise the embodiment of Great Bodhicitta, and the Immeasurables, for these are indeed our inherent Nature.

Within the Higher Tantra, the essence of the practice focuses on the unification of Emptiness and bliss (sunyatananda). This Higher Tantra is viewed in two stages: the Generation Stage and the Completion Stage.

In the Generation Stage, we build up the visualisations, learning to apply skilful means to transform bliss without attachment and to merge that with the ultimate reality of Emptiness.

In this part of the practice, we learn the skills to perceive feeling of any kind, blissful or chaotic, without allowing it to mix with desire, grasping or attachment. When we practice, our feeling or perception must be free from afflicted thoughts. This can only be accomplished by allowing our feelings to be mixed with the realisation of Emptiness, so that it becomes transformed into a skilful means of overcoming suffering and attachment.

When we actualise this, we manifest the Completion Stage of Higher Tantra. Emptiness becomes the object of our meditation, while bliss becomes the subject who is meditating. We lose the sense of “me”, and are thus freed of the root causes and conditions of suffering.

Without proper formation and training, the Tantric Path should not be undertaken, since it possesses inherent dangers of attachment, and addiction for those who attempt is without the support, skill and protection of a Vajra master.

Dzogchen

In this world, with our perceptions clouded by the field of illusions and forgetfulness, we tend to obscure our awareness that every being has the inherent potential to be a Buddha/Christ. Because we are no longer aware of this potential, we fail to manifest it in our lives.

Dzogchen is a path which turns us back toward the ultimate truth, by practicing to face each moment with mindful awareness, and without fear or judgment. We do this by awakening compassion, loving-kindness, wisdom and altruistic joy within us.

Dzogchen is the Path of Open Presence. Openness reveals the true nature of Emptiness, and the interdependent nature of all beings and phenomena. Presence reveals the true nature of awareness. The practice of Dzogchen becomes more than a simple ideology or philosophy by our actualisation of the concepts, and integration of it’s foundational ideas with our experience of the world outside and inside of us. When we do this, we become a Dzogpachenpo.

When we practice Dzogchen, we manifest this unified nature of Emptiness and awareness within the continuum of each moment. Emptiness and awareness are not separate, but one. Only our discussion of them imposes the illusory labels that might seem separate. When we practice Dzogchen, we manifest its essence by living in the present moment.

The Dzogpachenpo recognises that when we lose contact with our innate wisdom and our capacity to be non-judgmental, we lose contact with our innate qualities of acceptance, forgiveness, love, and compassion.

The Dzogchen practitioner realises that we must not become attached to the idea of the relative world or absolute world – for again, they are not two, but one. The practice of Dzogchen helps us not to fall into the extremes of both the relative world and the absolute world, of both heaven and earth. Dzogchen practice is to realise the absolute nature within the relative.

Due to our conditioning we tend to interrupt everything before it can manifest its true Nature. It is that very interruption that obscures our wisdom and our compassionate heart from reaching out to others. The practice of Dzogchen empowers us to leave the things as they are. When we leave things as they are, we are providing a space for them to manifest their true Nature.

For the Dzogpachenpo, our wisdom manifests in the form of clarity, allowing us to be aware of any situation without distraction. Our compassion keeps us stable, and allows us to reach out with equanimity so that we are at ease, no matter how things manifest.

When we feel clear and secure, our energy becomes calm. Our ability to leave things as they are reduces our subconscious attachment to the conditioning that judges or manipulates our emotions. Everything falls into the field of awareness, and this protects us from further unskillful reactions.

By noticing the situation with the quality of Open Presence and perfect awareness, we can face the situation more skilfully. By learning to harness the healing wisdom, which is our primordial potential to heal ourselves, to free ourselves from suffering, we are empowered to reduce the suffering of all beings, and redouble our commitment to return through countless lifetimes as a Bodhisattva, until suffering exists no more.

This is Dzogchen, the Great Perfection.

Namasté

dharmacharya gurudas sunyatananda

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“Chenrezig, Treasure of Objectless Compassion;
Manjushri, Lord of Stainless Wisdom;
Vajrapani, Destroyer of all adversarial forces;
O Je Tsong Khapa – Losang Drakpa —
Crown Jewel of the Sages of the Land of Snows,
Humbly at Your Lotus Feet I ask your blessing.”

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Drawing on the essential teachings of the great spiritual teachers, philosophers and freethinkers throughout time, Dharmacharya Gurudas Śunyatananda (retired Archbishop Francis-Maria Salvato, O.C.) has been regarded as a provocative, revolutionary “voice of reason” within the field of religion and spirituality, since 1983. Having the distinction of being one of the few openly non-theistic, openly-gay and post-denominational thinkers ever to serve as Bishop-Exarch and spiritual leader of the autocephalic Eastern Catholic Franciscans in North America, Gurudas is the author of more than 600 articles, eight books and currently serves as the spiritual advisor for a non-theistic, intentional spiritual community, The Spiritus Project. He can be reached at: http://dharmadudeunplugged.com

Copyright ©2008, His Eminence Dharmacharya Gurudas Sunyatananda (The Most Reverend Dr. F. Francis-Maria G. Salvato, M.Sc., O.C.). All rights reserved. This material may be reproduced, blogged, quoted or distributed, provided the entire copyright including contact information remain intact. It may NOT be altered in any way, without express written permission.