Getting Started

This piece was written in 2004, mostly as email dispatches home from India during a retreat to Dharamsala.  I’ve left it as is (mostly), and not attempted to reconcile the tense and timing of the work or revise it to reflect my current thinking.

This first section is a grounding section - its full of definitions that you might want to skip if you're interested in the travelog vs. the thought behind the travel

Please read this as though it’s been just experienced, for that’s how it was written …

What was I thinking?

For the several years leading up to 2004 I’d become increasingly interested and committed to Buddhism as a personal set of values and system for living my life.  This period also saw me commit to vegetarianism and yoga as ways of life that support my ever growing belief in a non-dualistic universe where we all are one.  As Petra (my wife) puts it so well, I’ve begun to wake up to the world around me - in a way I don’t think I was awake before.

Two years earlier, after reading nothing but Buddhist texts for well over a year, I decided that I wanted to meet two incredible Buddhist leaders based on the impact their writings and recordings have had on me (and the fact that, unlike so many other influential authors, these two are still alive), and to take teachings from them - Thich Naht Hahn, a gentle Vietnamese Buddhist monk, and His Holiness, the Dalai Lama.

In the summer of 2003 I was able to take a 7 day retreat in Colorado with Thich Naht Hahn that left me very clear in my conviction to a Buddhist way of life.  I took refuge with Thay (as he’s known by his students) at the end of the retreat and at that point renounced drinking in addition to my existing commitment to vegetarianism.  Interesting, the only time I feel like taking a drink now is when I’m under extreme pressure or stress – at times I can almost taste a martini or glass of red wine – which goes to show how I must have used alcohol as a stress reliever in the past without even really being aware of it.

For those interested, taking refuge involves accepting the Three Refuges and (in Thay’s tradition) the Five Mindfulness Trainings.  One shouldn’t enter into this lightly, as it should reflect your full understanding and commitment to a way of life and personal conduct.  As His Holiness put it, taking the vows and later breaking them is far worse, karmicly, than never taking them. 

I won’t try to explain them here – I’m certainly not qualified, but I’ll present them as Thich Naht Hahn outlines in his Plum Village Chanting and Recitation book. (pp 63 – 68)

The Three Refuges

I take refuge in the Buddha,

the one who shows me the way in this life.

I take refuge in the Dharma,

the way of understanding and of love.

I take refuge in the Sangha,

the community that lives in harmony and awareness.

The Five Mindfulness Trainings

1) Aware of the suffering caused by the destruction of life, I am committed to cultivating compassion and learning ways to protect the lives of people, animals, plants and minerals.  I am determined not to kill, not to let others kill, and not to support any act of killing in the world, in my thinking, and in my way of life,

2) Aware of the suffering caused by exploitation, social injustice, stealing, and oppression, I am committed to cultivating loving kindness and learning ways to work for the well-being of people, animals, plants and minerals.  I will practice generosity by sharing my time, energy, and material resources with those who are in real need.  I am determined not to steal and not to possess anything that should belong to others.  I will respect the property of others, but I will prevent others from profiting from human suffering or the suffering of other species on Earth.

3) Aware of the suffering caused by sexual misconduct, I am committed to cultivating responsibility and learning ways to protect the safety and integrity of individuals, couples, families, and society.  I am determined not to engage in sexual relations without love and a long-term commitment.  To preserve the happiness of myself and others, I am determined to respect my commitments and the commitments of others.  I will do everything in my power to protect children from sexual abuse and to prevent couples and families from being broken by sexual misconduct.

4) Aware of the suffering caused by unmindful speech and the inability to listen to others, I am committed to cultivating loving speech and deep listening in order to bring joy and happiness to others and relieve others of their suffering.  Knowing that words can create happiness or suffering, I am determined to speak truthfully, with words that inspire self-confidence, joy, and hope.  I will not spread news I do not know to be certain and will not criticize or condemn things of which I am not sure.  I will refrain from uttering words that can cause division or discord, or that can cause the family or community to break.  I am determined to make all efforts to reconcile and resolve all conflicts, however small

5) Aware of the suffering caused by unmindful consumption, I am committed to cultivating good health, both physical and mental, for myself, my family, and my society by practicing mindful eating, drinking, and consuming.  I will ingest only items that preserve peace, well-being, and joy in my body, in my consciousness, and in the collective body and consciousness of my family and society.  I am determined not to use alcohol or any other intoxicant or to ingest foods or other items that contain toxins, such as certain TV programs, magazines, books, films, and conversations.  I am aware that to damage my body or my consciousness with these poisons is to betray my ancestors, my parents, my society, and future generations.  I will work to transform violence, fear, anger, and confusion in myself and society by practicing a diet for myself and for society.  I understand that a proper diet is crucial for self-transformation and for the transformation of society.

A bit on Thay’s teachings (as I understand them), and how they leave me looking for more.  Thich Naht Hahn teaches in a predominantly Zen-Buddhism style, which is minimalist and makes heavy use of analogies to make very powerful points on non-dualism, inter-being, and the basics of Buddhism.  (I’m not going to try to explain Buddhism here – I’m still exploring it myself, however if you’re interested in exploring further I’ve listed some of the more impactful books in my section on Buddhism).  I’ve been struggling with this for a few years now, and am constantly on the lookout for better tools and techniques for mediation and developing awareness.  For a couple of years I’ve been reading writings by Tibetan Buddhists that I’ve found very clear and present what appears to me to be a very clear path to peace and enlightenment.  It’s due to these writers that I sought out his Holiness’ teachings as a means to evaluate a couple of thoughts:

1) is Tibetan Buddhism the “system” (for lack of a better word) that I should focus on in my practice and daily life?  And if so;

2) should I consider relocating myself and family to McLeod Ganj to undertake an emersion approach to my studies – say for 10 years or until my girls are ready for college?

I stumbled across a unique opportunity to evaluate both these questions last fall when a good friend, who is studying with a Tibetan Lama (Sogan Rinpoche) in the Bay Area, invited me to a public teaching.  We had discussed my interests before, and she had mentioned that His Holiness was to give teachings in India in March, but this gave me a chance to see a lama first hand, and to ask him directly if I could accompany his group of students to India and attend the teachings with them.

Sogan Rinpoche is described by his followers as:

Venerable Sogan Rinpoche, Tulku Pema Lodoe, was born in the Golok region of Amdo, Tibet.  As a child, he was recognized by H.H. the XIVth Dalai Lama as the VIth Sogan Rinpoche and was enthroned at Abu Sera Monastery, which was founded by his predecessor in East Kham.  He is also the head lama of Bayan Monastery in Amdo-Golok.  Rinpoche has studied with many great masters in all traditions of Tibetan Buddhism. His principal teacher was Khenpo Munsel, who was one of the greatest Dzogchen masters of the 20th century and a student of Khenpo Ngag Chung.  After many years of study, pilgrimage and solitary retreat, Rinpoche was forced to flee his homeland in 1992.  He is currently teaching in the San Francisco Bay Area, where he is the spiritual director of Tupten Osel Choling, a California-based Dharma Center.

Several months later, I met up with a small group of Rinpoche’s students in the San Francisco airport and flew with them to India to begin a month long exploration of the Tibetan belief system and McLeod Ganj.