I know the majority of posters here are in the West.Padmist wrote: ↑Tue Sep 28, 2021 2:38 amBecause that's where it is being propagated. Obviously, I wouldn't say North Korea.MiphamFan wrote: ↑Tue Sep 28, 2021 2:24 amDon’t get why this implies the “West” doesn’t deserve Vajrayana.Padmist wrote: ↑Mon Sep 27, 2021 8:58 pm
That the West doesn't deserve Vajrayana or is not ready. Maybe for the sake of the Dharma, we should focus more sravakayana/sutrayana/mahayana/boddhisatvayana or everything else minus Vajrayana. Not everyone can be Lama Lena or Malcolm. I'm already dissapointed Lama Surya Das misused Vajrayana for his carnal urges. Heart broken to hear of the news about the Karmapa.
These days, I'm just praying "God, dear God, please, not B Alan Wallace next."
If the OTD affairs are true, actually he did it in Taiwan first at the very least, possibly abetted by other prominent Tully’s.
It’s a problem of the modern world, not just the “West” and it’s not about deserving or undeserving, but about Teachers behaving badly, while being abetted by their friends and students.
Personally yes, these revelations over the last few years also shook my perception of Vajrayana.
“If these high lamas who spent years studying and practising can’t even control these urges in society, and ultimately cause harm to the Dharma, what good is all that study and practice? Even corporate CEOs would have better self control and refrain from abusing their power in this way.” That’s what I thought.
Then I realised too that honestly a lot of these perpetrators never did spend that much time in strict study and practice, especially retreats. Sometimes they are of course abetted and enabled by people who do, who turn a blind eye or rationalise it in terms of samaya.
I have no solution also, I’m just another normal guy.
I am happy with all the Teachers I’ve received tantric teachings from so far, and in particular still really think there’s no one like ChNN. If the traditional Tulku hierarchy took his approach to the modern world rather than Trungpa’s, we would avoid a lot of this mess IMO.
Personally I am Asian, raised in Asia. I don’t like this characterisation of East vs West because 1) the “conservatives” in Asia will latch on to it and say “Westerners” don’t get it 2) it reifies the concept that there is an “East”, a modern day “orientalism” in a way
This stuff doesn’t just happen in the West, it’s happening throughout Asia as well, and it is not okay.
I remember that ChNN said that he suggested back in the pre-cultural revolution days that monasteries should start contributing to the labour economy before the communists came, so they could adapt to the modern world. They accused him of being a communist and ignored his suggestions.
I feel that that same spirit of resisting change and modernity is still very much alive today in the tulku hierarchy.