Guest guest Posted October 26, 1999 Report Share Posted October 26, 1999 i'm getting an itch again. Its something i've managed to suppress for a few years, but its coming back again. It all started when my zen master in a meeting with him shortly after i met him floored me with the statement 'You would make a great Zen master'. i thought 'yeah right, this is *ME* you are talking about!'. Anyway, he put a bug in my ear. bottom line is i am not sure if i want to be a dharma teacher. if its something that is decided between me & Lama that its a good thing, and if there is lots of good training, maybe. bottom line # 2 is that what can be a better gift to the world than to reveal the way out of suffering. however, i know myself, and there is TONS of work to be done here. On me. so i feel stuck between the impulse to ask for the training, and the impulse that knows how screwy things are upstairs. Problem comes when the impulse to ask starts to override the logical practical part of me that KNOWS i need a lot more training to even begin to persue that path. I will get inspired by a story like one i've heard recently, about Ani Tenzin Palmo (Cave in the Snow by Vicki McKenzie). This lady spent 12 years in meditation, came out, and is teaching now. So i think 'come one jan, you are not her, you're a householder old married lady with a job!'. But all being deserve happiness. I feel i should at least try. i dont know. i feel odd even asking lama about this. will he think im too proud? am i too proud? Who am i to think i can pull this off? But what if there is no one else even willing to try? For that reason, i think i have too. Who knows, maybe i will discover the old married lady method to realization. Stranger things have happened. maitri, --janpa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 26, 1999 Report Share Posted October 26, 1999 Janpa, you are definitely and totally Zen master material! That is what I have thought from the beginning. You can be a married old lady and still be a Zen Master. And you don't have to go into a cave for 12 years. Just stay in your room for a week! And so what if you think things are screwy "upstairs". Hey, that's where all the great Zen Koans come from! There are not too many normal Zen Masters. Dirk and I are rooting for you Janpa! Just do it! says Master Nike Shoes! Harsha Janpa Tsomo [j_tsomo] Tuesday, October 26, 1999 1:05 PM musing in an air of itchy energy "Janpa Tsomo" <j_tsomo i'm getting an itch again. Its something i've managed to suppress for a few years, but its coming back again. It all started when my zen master in a meeting with him shortly after i met him floored me with the statement 'You would make a great Zen master'. i thought 'yeah right, this is *ME* you are talking about!'. Anyway, he put a bug in my ear. bottom line is i am not sure if i want to be a dharma teacher. if its something that is decided between me & Lama that its a good thing, and if there is lots of good training, maybe. bottom line # 2 is that what can be a better gift to the world than to reveal the way out of suffering. however, i know myself, and there is TONS of work to be done here. On me. so i feel stuck between the impulse to ask for the training, and the impulse that knows how screwy things are upstairs. Problem comes when the impulse to ask starts to override the logical practical part of me that KNOWS i need a lot more training to even begin to persue that path. I will get inspired by a story like one i've heard recently, about Ani Tenzin Palmo (Cave in the Snow by Vicki McKenzie). This lady spent 12 years in meditation, came out, and is teaching now. So i think 'come one jan, you are not her, you're a householder old married lady with a job!'. But all being deserve happiness. I feel i should at least try. i dont know. i feel odd even asking lama about this. will he think im too proud? am i too proud? Who am i to think i can pull this off? But what if there is no one else even willing to try? For that reason, i think i have too. Who knows, maybe i will discover the old married lady method to realization. Stranger things have happened. maitri, --janpa All paths go somewhere. No path goes nowhere. Paths, places, sights, perceptions, and indeed all experiences arise from and exist in and subside back into the Space of Awareness. Like waves rising are not different than the ocean, all things arising from Awareness are of the nature of Awareness. Awareness does not come and go but is always Present. It is Home. Home is where the Heart Is. Jnanis know the Heart to be the Finality of Eternal Being. A true devotee relishes in the Truth of Self-Knowledge, spontaneously arising from within into It Self. Welcome all to a. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 26, 1999 Report Share Posted October 26, 1999 At 01:04 PM 10/26/99 , Janpa Tsomo wrote: >i'm getting an itch again. Its something i've managed to suppress for a >few years, but its coming back again. > >It all started when my zen master in a meeting with him shortly after i >met him floored me with the statement 'You would make a great Zen master'. >i thought 'yeah right, this is *ME* you are talking about!'. > >Anyway, he put a bug in my ear. > >bottom line is i am not sure if i want to be a dharma teacher. if its >something that is decided between me & Lama that its a good thing, and if >there is lots of good training, maybe. > >bottom line # 2 is that what can be a better gift to the world than to >reveal the way out of suffering. One way to look at this is from a a viewpoint of non-duality shaded with psychology. "While there really seems to be someone there wanting to be a teacher or deciding to be a teacher, it is not the true teacher." In other words, this is encouraging one to teach out of spontaneity, not out of personal desire. But there's another way to look at this, a bit more down-to-earth. Understanding is one thing, and teaching it to others is quite another thing. One of the best teachers I know studied for 15 years with his teacher on how this teaching is skillfully done - this was after he had "understood." So in this way of looking at it, you *do* think about the enterprise of teaching. >however, i know myself, and there is TONS of work to be done here. On me. > >so i feel stuck between the impulse to ask for the training, and the >impulse that knows how screwy things are upstairs. Is there a decision or fork in the road coming up in your future? Can you just train and train, then decide later? Much of it comes down to motive, honesty, humility and integrity. We can teach only what we have experienced/mastered. Anything beyond that will not resonate with the students, and if they ask us questions on it, we will confuse them. If we are open to our own motives, including the possibility that there might be egocentric motives involved in wanting to teach, then we can hold off till this is no longer the case. One of my friends really likes the power trip he feels in teaching, and though he'd do a pretty good job, he's holding off till he doesn't feel that desire to get the teacher's power-high. >Problem comes when the impulse to ask starts to override the logical >practical part of me that KNOWS i need a lot more training to even begin >to persue that path. I will get inspired by a story like one i've heard >recently, about Ani Tenzin Palmo (Cave in the Snow by Vicki McKenzie). >This lady spent 12 years in meditation, came out, and is teaching now. So >i think 'come one jan, you are not her, you're a householder old married >lady with a job!'. But all being deserve happiness. I feel i should at >least try. > >i dont know. i feel odd even asking lama about this. will he think im too >proud? am i too proud? Who am i to think i can pull this off? I think you'd be a good teacher. If you are teaching in the Tibetan tradition, you'd almost certainly have to go through your teacher for authorization/training at some point, wouldn't you? You can't start teaching without it, could you? Some teachers/ schools emphasize the transmission of lineage or authorization to teach. Others don't. I'd say if it's something you are thinking a lot about, ask the lama. In the least, you'll get encouragement or clarification. I know one lineage where if you *want* to teach, they'll make sure you don't get authorized.. Other lineages are such that you have to really want it, or else you'll never get trained to teach! >But what if there is no one else even willing to try? For that reason, i >think i have too. Who knows, maybe i will discover the old married lady >method to realization. Stranger things have happened. Yes, the l.o.l. method! Experience can be brought to help teach, at any time! With love, --Greg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 26, 1999 Report Share Posted October 26, 1999 Greg Goode wrote: > > At 01:04 PM 10/26/99 , Janpa Tsomo wrote: > > > i'm getting an itch again. Its something i've managed to suppress > > for a few years, but its coming back again. Maybe its because you believe that there are still moments in your life where you do not teach? Thus one may come to believe the he or she teaches more in some moments than others... The cable boy that will take is retreat when wires between people will be replaced by this invisible medium of "communication" floating in air. Antoine << Bottom line is i am not sure if i want to be a dharma teacher. if its something that is decided between me & Lama that its a good thing, and if there is lots of good training, maybe. >> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 26, 1999 Report Share Posted October 26, 1999 < "Janpa Tsomo" <j_tsomo wrote: > > > i'm getting an itch again. Its something i've managed to suppress for a few > years, but its coming back again. > > It all started when my zen master in a meeting with him shortly after i met > him floored me with the statement 'You would make a great Zen master'. i > thought 'yeah right, this is *ME* you are talking about!'. > > Anyway, he put a bug in my ear. > > bottom line is i am not sure if i want to be a dharma teacher. if its > something that is decided between me & Lama that its a good thing, and if > there is lots of good training, maybe. > > bottom line # 2 is that what can be a better gift to the world than to > reveal the way out of suffering. > > however, i know myself, and there is TONS of work to be done here. On me. > > so i feel stuck between the impulse to ask for the training, and the impulse > that knows how screwy things are upstairs. > > Problem comes when the impulse to ask starts to override the logical > practical part of me that KNOWS i need a lot more training to even begin to > persue that path. I will get inspired by a story like one i've heard > recently, about Ani Tenzin Palmo (Cave in the Snow by Vicki McKenzie). This > lady spent 12 years in meditation, came out, and is teaching now. So i > think 'come one jan, you are not her, you're a householder old married lady > with a job!'. But all being deserve happiness. I feel i should at least try. > > i dont know. i feel odd even asking lama about this. will he think im too > proud? am i too proud? Who am i to think i can pull this off? > > But what if there is no one else even willing to try? For that reason, i > think i have too. Who knows, maybe i will discover the old married lady > method to realization. Stranger things have happened. Thank you, Janpa, for being so open regarding taking on a possible responsibility as a teacher, and your doubts about its feasibility for you. Though 'you' will never be a teacher, (for the student already is the same one as the teacher), relatively speaking there may be a need for the student to understand this for himself. I think you would make a loving and helpful guide in that sense, and your willingness to be wrong about your aspirations as a teacher, reveals that you have the best interest of the student at heart. I don't think that whether or not you will be effective as a teacher will only depend on your training. This may depend on other factors like circumstances and the openness of the student too. Nevertheless a formal training, can be very helpful, if given to you by someone you trust as being qualified to do so. And don't worry about your ability to pull this off. If the ability is there, if circumstances are there, if need is there.... 'you' will not even be necessary to pull it off. Love to you, Mira *Mirror* http://welcome.to/mirror Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 26, 1999 Report Share Posted October 26, 1999 >Antoine <carrea > > >Re: musing in an air of itchy energy >Tue, 26 Oct 1999 13:53:24 -0400 > >Maybe its because you believe that there are still moments in your life >where you do not teach? > >Thus one may come to believe the he or she teaches more in some moments >than others... > this reminds me of when Lama Zopa Rinpoche asked and answered the question "Why do we take vows? Why not just be nice people? Why vow to actually cultivate bodhicitta etc" what i got from his answer: Basically, its a seal. Taking the position and taking the seat mean that in a relative vein, that this action is slightly more formal than just being a nice person. So for me, this action of formally going for it means its sealed to me karmically. i create the karma that supports the position. Like taking the bodhisattva vows seal that into your mindstream. Burn it into the wetware. Of course our reburnable wetware can always abandon these things. but it can help really seal it in and make it beneficial for all beings. So from absolute view, maybe what you are saying is true, we are all teachers, as we are all buddhas, but from relative mindset, there are things to do and places to see --jt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 26, 1999 Report Share Posted October 26, 1999 Janpa Tsomo <j_tsomo < > Tuesday, October 26, 1999 2:34 PM Re: musing in an air of itchy energy >"Janpa Tsomo" <j_tsomo > >>Antoine <carrea >> >> >>Re: musing in an air of itchy energy >>Tue, 26 Oct 1999 13:53:24 -0400 >> >>Maybe its because you believe that there are still moments in your life >>where you do not teach? >> >>Thus one may come to believe the he or she teaches more in some moments >>than others... >> > >this reminds me of when Lama Zopa Rinpoche asked and answered the question >"Why do we take vows? Why not just be nice people? Why vow to actually >cultivate bodhicitta etc" > >what i got from his answer: > >Basically, its a seal. Taking the position and taking the seat mean that in >a relative vein, that this action is slightly more formal than just being a >nice person. So for me, this action of formally going for it means its >sealed to me karmically. i create the karma that supports the position. Like >taking the bodhisattva vows seal that into your mindstream. Burn it into the >wetware. Of course our reburnable wetware can always abandon these things. >but it can help really seal it in and make it beneficial for all beings. > >So from absolute view, maybe what you are saying is true, we are all >teachers, as we are all buddhas, but from relative mindset, there are things >to do and places to see > >--jt > dear janpa, It sounds like the Kalachakra(sp?) initiation actually "took" and your desire to serve does arise out of true Bodhisattva motives. Since you are in a Tibetan tradition which does not as much recognize "sudden enlightenment" as the Zen master tradition does, there is indeed more emphasis on study and learning. However, the biggest challenge for Buddhism to thrive in America is that it needs to adapt to become less monastic and more available as a practice adapted to householders like yourself. So, I would wonder and ask just what do you want to teach and what do you already know? Perhaps a beginning meditation class for working mothers? I agree with Antoine and Harsha that you are already a teacher here and in your life. You are very good at asking questions that make people think and look in new ways at any issue. You are artistic and poetic. The main nun teaching with Thich Nhat Hanh was turned down several times by others as having an "unsuitable personality" until she met him. He told her there is no such thing as unsuitable, no need to give up being herself to cultivate compassion, love, and peace. I would actually see your everyday, ordinariness as an advantage in many ways. Do the lamas know what you know about trying to incorporate Buddhist practices into an already full and busy life? I understand your wish to bring to others those specific teachings of Buddhism as well. We all here wish you well with whatever might bring more light to others. Love, Glo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 26, 1999 Report Share Posted October 26, 1999 Dear Janpa, When you write you come across with clarity and truth. I have no doubt that you would serve well as a teacher. Is there a doubt that you are worthy? Few of us are ever fully ready. It is the need of the time that calls so many to this role. The great force of compassion lets us share with those we meet along the way what we have learned about the path. If you have a younger brother you can remember what it is like to come home from school and offer your great learning. "This is 'a', this is 'b'". Maybe you only know a few letters in the alphabet, but you are able to share with your brother that little bit. Now you know many more things and there are more people that need to know these things than ever before for us all to fulfill our destiny. There is another aspect to being a teacher that I would remind you of: the teacher always gains more than the student. When you are in this service and you become part of the linage of teacher then knowledge flows from you that you might not remember owning. Ideas will be drawn out of you like those beautiful poems and shower the blessings of the Buddha. Then you might need to learn humility all over again :-) Good wishes in your choosing. Namaste, Dirk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 26, 1999 Report Share Posted October 26, 1999 It is a question of dharma - the right path or action for you in this incarnation. We are all gurus and chelas (teachers and students), but some have a special gift/responsibility to bring the teachings to a wider audience. I am new to this list, and don't know you well, but your posts have the hallmarks of one who would make a great teacher. If your zen master sees that in you then it may be that this is your dharma. Listen to your heart and see what it tells you. OM Shanti Michele Janpa Tsomo wrote: > > "Janpa Tsomo" <j_tsomo > > >Antoine <carrea > > > > > >Re: musing in an air of itchy energy > >Tue, 26 Oct 1999 13:53:24 -0400 > > > >Maybe its because you believe that there are still moments in your life > >where you do not teach? > > > >Thus one may come to believe the he or she teaches more in some moments > >than others... > > > > this reminds me of when Lama Zopa Rinpoche asked and answered the question > "Why do we take vows? Why not just be nice people? Why vow to actually > cultivate bodhicitta etc" > > what i got from his answer: > > Basically, its a seal. Taking the position and taking the seat mean that in > a relative vein, that this action is slightly more formal than just being a > nice person. So for me, this action of formally going for it means its > sealed to me karmically. i create the karma that supports the position. Like > taking the bodhisattva vows seal that into your mindstream. Burn it into the > wetware. Of course our reburnable wetware can always abandon these things. > but it can help really seal it in and make it beneficial for all beings. > > So from absolute view, maybe what you are saying is true, we are all > teachers, as we are all buddhas, but from relative mindset, there are things > to do and places to see > > --jt > > > All paths go somewhere. No path goes nowhere. Paths, places, sights, perceptions, and indeed all experiences arise from and exist in and subside back into the Space of Awareness. Like waves rising are not different than the ocean, all things arising from Awareness are of the nature of Awareness. Awareness does not come and go but is always Present. It is Home. Home is where the Heart Is. Jnanis know the Heart to be the Finality of Eternal Being. A true devotee relishes in the Truth of Self-Knowledge, spontaneously arising from within into It Self. Welcome all to a. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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