MatthewAngby wrote: ↑Tue Jan 30, 2018 4:09 pm
Malcolm wrote: ↑Tue Jan 30, 2018 3:43 pm
PeterC wrote: ↑Tue Jan 30, 2018 2:25 pm
I don’t think we can advise someone to defer studying the dharma when they have genuine interest without endangering our own vows.
However that doesn’t mean that we should advise them to begin immediately with the vajrayana. There are excellent reasons to delay that until the student has met and developed confidence in a qualified guru etc etc and also has the personal maturity to practice strictly according to the guru’s instructions.
Most teenagers would be best served by shamatha and sutras first, blood-drinking four-headed herukas later. Though I can see the futility of trying to persuade them of that.
Ngondro was developed for teens.
Well yeah, I kinda agree with Malcom. Some people have different interests like me, I am perfectly fine with doing ngondro first- but mind me on the next part , I do not wish to speak bad of the dharma. But sutra for me will be very difficult to do , because I have a phobia of reading books
Don’t worry, they don’t bite.
and let me tell you , before I tried TB, I was in Chinese Mahayana tradition. I read sutras and stuff , but that wasn’t for me , because I got very frustrated many times for some reason. So I would say that you see, ngondro would be the best option for me, also four thoughts and lojong. This seems to be pretty good for me.
That’s great - we’ll see you again after you’ve finished the prostrations?
What I’m saying is , I think we don’t need sutras first ( correct me if I am wrong ), though that is one of the ways I think. There are plenty of ways for me to get started , which many have already introduced to me