doc benway

whistling a bit of shrapnel shatters stone and bone memory denied

Laozi says When a wise person hears of the Way He devotes himself fully. When an average person hears of the Way He tries to understand but doubts. When a fool hears of the Way He laughs out loud! Ha! When I first heard of the way I laughed, But when I saw it with my bones, I laughed even louder! In the first case I laughed at the simplicity of it all. How could it be so obvious? Ha! In the second, I laughed at the simplicity of it all. How could I have been so oblivious? Ah… ha… ha.. ha! I continue to laugh Not at the Way, but At the effort of the wise At the doubt of the middlings And most of all at “My” “Self"

There's a two-fold meaning to that line for me - When hearing a description of the Way, it sounds so ridiculously simple as to be a cause for laughter. When actually having a direct experience, it is so ridiculously simple and obvious as to be a cause for laughter. The former laughter is incredulous and easily shrugged off, the latter is joyous and exuberant and, to some degree, lasts a lifetime.

Thanks are owed to Dwai, Liminal Luke, and his partner José who have been working on this in the background for a few weeks. Thank you all! I have been having great difficulties accessing the site of late and this has reminded me how much our little community of strange and wonderful bums means to me. May the year of the Wood Snake be a year of growth and good fortune for all!

I think this is an important topic and I've stumbled across what I think are several reasons why over the past decade. One was explored a bit in the recent thread on Integration vs Transcendence. Dzogchen, being a very direct approach, can lead to profound insight and realization in a short time, sometimes without very much in the way of preparation and purification. This can result in the misguided impression that one is enlightened. This is problematic because it leads to spiritual bypassing. People talking the talk but causing damage around them. I think this is one of the reasons why we see so many "crazy wisdom" yogis engaging in sexual impropriety and abuse. A cautionary pith instruction in Bön is that 'the view is as expansive as the sky but the conduct as fine as barley flour.' Even after profound realization has altered our perception and relationship to reality, we can still generate negative karma and must be mindful of how our words and actions affect others. Another reason for secrecy is the precision required in cementing the correct view. Miss by a mm and you miss by a km. It is extremely easy to convince yourself that you have the correct view, meditation, and behavior and go for months or years down a detour. The mind offers so many layers of identification that become ever more subtle and easy to miss, and even the best teacher on Earth cannot guarantee or be absolutely certain that you've got it right. Each practitioner must recognize and develop certainty for themselves. Consequently, this type of method has been traditionally taught in very small groups, often one on one, making it possible to only offer teachings to those considered most well-prepared and ripe. The karmic consequences of causing harm through offering the teachings to unsuitable candidates are considered very severe among traditionalists, so teachers have been reticent to offer them easily or on a large-scale basis. Having attended quite a few retreats, I've seen the reactivity that often occurs when people try to process ramifications of the direct teachings. For example, one thing that generally comes up at some point is that one can generate no negative karma while resting in the nature of mind. So incredulous participants who have not yet fully grasped the view dream up all sorts of heinous acts and can get quite upset trying to wrestle with the idea of what it means to engage in various activities from the view. This leads to anger, frustration, disappointment, even abandoning of the teachings altogether, a terrible karmic consequence for teacher and student alike. Another problem I've seen is the zeal that often arises with a taste of the view and fruition. People want to share this amazing gift with others. One problem is that while they may have some degree of direct experience, they really have not stabilized or familiarized themselves enough to guide others properly. Even if they do help others to get a taste, they don't have the tools to deal with the obstacles and aberrations that can arise, both in themselves and others. One recent and prominent example of this is Michael Singer's own encounter with a health crisis which undermined his confidence in his path for a time. Hobbyists and non-dual teachers without the background and support of lineage may not have the tools to deal with crises. More on that can be found in this thread. One frequent negative consequence of these types of non-dual practice is the nihilistic crisis. A big part of the process is dis-identifying with everything we have considered to be our "self." This can leave us adrift and unsupported. It's something that can lead to the occasional psychotic break, major depression, or depersonalization disorder, even suicide. These are some of the reasons for secrecy that occur to me now. I believe there have been others that I can't access at the moment.

Fight the good fight buddy!

Certainly it does, if you are open to a new way of looking and are willing to put some calluses on your bottom. Idealism and reality can and do coexist. One can hold fast to ideals and allow them to guide one's life and still do what is necessary, even if it is in conflict with those ideals, when it is the best choice given the circumstances. No one is perfect. They cut through your own obstacles and obscurations. They destroy your own delusion of being an independently existing self. Of course, to the uninitiated they can seem to be dealing with external forces but the practitioner knows it is all about their own mind. Daoism doesn't really teach that there are external evil forces in the world, does it? It is more about misguided human action leading to imbalance and impeding the Way. The sage recognizes this and finds the balance between good and evil in their actions. Fighting when necessary and appropriate does not mean that one cannot wish, pray, dedicate, and work for the benefit of all living beings. Sometimes fighting is the best and only option. Sometimes a limb has to be cut off to treat a cancer or gangrene. The Tibetan Dob-dobs were fierce warriors, as were the Sohei of Japan, Sikhs of Punjab, Shaolin monks, etc... Nowhere in the OP or linked page does it advocate for absolute non-violence. The messages here go much deeper than that.

If you aren't willing to read the context he already provided, your criticism doesn't merit a reply... The best reply to unwarranted criticism is often none, allowing space to host the critic's words so they can be felt and heard. Sometimes the critic will recognize the inappropriate or unnecessary nature of their comments. Sometimes not. You don't need to click on the link, you could simply search or type into your browser. It's actually a nice discussion, worth a few minutes of your time if you have interest in the subject. In case you aren't willing to exert the effort, I've copied the page for you below.

The link he shared gives plenty of context.