Different Paths for Different Thinking

One of the most wonderful and yet most difficult parts of beginning a Buddhist Practice is chosing a path. I personally went through many hours of searching, reading, testing and questioning. I think that maybe here in the West, we need a Buddhist clearing center which provides a resource for all of the different primary paths. Unlike other parts of the world, there are just too many choices.

This is a problem for us in the West. In most of the countries where Buddhism is the primary practice, one's family and the community generally dictates where one would recieve Buddha-Dharma training. You did not have to decide.

For me, everything settled down and became quite simple when I finally met a master who took a personal interest in my practice. Khenpo Choga Rinpoche from the Dzogchen Monastery in Tibet provided me a simple starting practice and told me to keep doing this until he told me otherwise. Well, Okay, that's simple enough. Now all I needed to do was to spend the time each day with the practice and see where it lead me.

Interestingly, even within a specific lineage and within even a specific Monastery, there are many paths. It seems that there is a recognition by the Buddhist masters that there are many paths according to the sentiment and disposition of student. Shakyamuni Buddha taught that there were 84,000 different Sutra practices and 6.4 million Tantras all leading to awakening.

As in the case of the Dzogchen Monastery in Kham, Tibet. There are at least three primary practice "paths" emphasizing different Sutra and Tantra practices as one progresses. The Monastery itself has its own specific teaching curriculum ending up at the designation of a master being a Dorje Lhopon. The Dzogchen Shri Singha Shedra (University), it seems, has a more academic curriculum culminating at the designation of Khenpo. The Retreat Centers of Dzogchen has another path of training and study upon which one can be recognized as a Mahayogi or Mahasiddhi.

So there is not fixed and defined path or curriculum that everyone must follow. In fact it ultimately ends up being a very personal path associated with the teacher-student relationship. Once you establish a relationship with a true lineage holding teacher, you just hang on and stick with it.

Each one of us has the opportunity to fully awaken, to attain unchangeable and indestructible happiness, and to help all sentient being attain such happiness. So my suggestion for myself and for all others is to rely on the advice of a lineage holder. Embrace your teachers' guidance and follow with all of your heart.

May all have the opportunity and fortune to meet their teacher and have the discipline to follow their advice.

Many Dharma Blessings,

Geoff