Western Vajrayana?

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Towards envisioning a dynamic understanding of Tantric Buddhist Spiritual Formation and Meaning Making within the Western Cultural Milieu

Lama Justin Von Bujdoss (Repa Dorje Odzer)

-Brian Eno

“But if you study the logistics and heuristics of the mystics, you will find that their mind rarely moves in a line.”

Spreading Dharma, Thinking Differently

• Transmigration of Dharma: Transmigration as transitive verb: to cause to go from one state of existence or place to another.
• Phase Change: relying upon Robert Boyle’s Gas Law as a way of describing how ice changes to water and steam based on various applications of heat – in this context what is the causality of the phase change of dharma from one setting with all of its unique cultural complexities to another?
• Re-Membering: a process of putting back together, or the process of spiritual formation –  described by David Germano with respect to the way that Vajrayana dharma reshapes itself based upon the cultural locations and related intersections unique to those who are inspired by its praxis.

Mind itself is a vast expanse, the realm of unchanging space.

Its indeterminate display is the expanse of the magical expression of its responsiveness.

Everything is the adornment of basic space and nothing else.

Outwardly and inwardly, things proliferating and resolving are the dynamic energy of awakened mind.

Because this is nothing whatsoever yet arises as anything at all, it is a marvelous and magical expression, amazing and superb.

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Throughout the entire universe, all beings and all that manifests as form

are adornments of basic space, arising as the ongoing principle of enlightened form. What is audible, all sounds and voices without exception, as many as there may be, are adornments of basic space, arising as the ongoing principle of enlightened speech. All consciousness and all stirring and proliferation of thoughts, as well as the inconceivable range of nonconceptual states, are adornments of basic space, arising as the ongoing principle of enlightened mind.

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Longchenpa, Chöying Dzöd, Trans. Chokyi Nyima (Richard Barron)

Hey! Wearing matted locks, grasping at self-and agent,

Brahmins, Jains, hedonists,

Materialists accepting a real basis for things

Claim omniscience but don’t know themselves.

They are deluded and far from the path of liberation.

Vaibhāsikas and Sautrāntikas,

Yogācārins and Mādhyamikas, etc.

Criticize each other and argue;

Ignorant of the space-like quality of appearance and emptiness itself,

They turn their backs on the innate.

Body, speech and mind are resplendent like cotton and oil in a lamp,

Endowed with just that, they are radiant like a lamp that is self-illuminating.

Because illuminating reflexive awareness pervades all beings

Indivisibly, that is the unborn nature.

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Saraha, Trans. Lara Braitstein

Thinking Differently: Tilopa’s Six Nails as a way of approaching the transmigration of Vajrayana

Don’t Recall; let go of what has passed

Don’t Imagine; let go of what may come

Don’t Think; let go of what is happening now

Don’t Examine; don’t try to figure anything out

Don’t Control; don’t try to make anything happen

Rest; relax, right now and rest

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Trans. Ken McLeod

Thinking Differently: Complexities in need of Addressing

• Layered Colonialism(s): East West
• Layered Traumas: Tibetan and Western
• Global Impact of Capitalism and ideas regarding Time and Production within the context of how practice occurs
• Homegrown Buddhism(s) VS Hybrid Buddhism(s)
• Under-represented voices in Vajrayana - impacts of unexamined conceptual reliance on ‘whiteness’

Thinking Differently: Present Developments

• The dynamic impact of chaplaincy in weaving Vajrayana approaches to end-if-life spiritual care into Western conceptions of death, dying and grief
• Reliance upon Buddha Nature, the View and a return to Vajrayana approaches to community development as a way of addressing pluralism, systemic oppressions involving gender, race, ablity, class, sexual orientation/sexual identity
• Inculturation: the process of the change in appearance of religious praxis in ways that are relevant for the host culture - seen in art, text, and the style in which practice occurs.

Thinking Differently: The Skillful means of Inclusivity

• Given the very basic concept of Buddha Nature and the nature of the tantric samayas, in an pluralistic society Vajrayana buddhism must address sexism, racism, homophobia, ablism and other forms of bias that are out is sync with contemporary Western values.
• A re-examination of Vajrayana ethics must include addressing issues around abuse of power - the risk of not doing so is to risk the credibility of the tradition in cultures that value transparency and accountability within sangha (and Mahasangha).

Possibile Future Arisings

• New forms of practice arising through practitioners as a need to address what impedes liberation within multiple cultural contexts: Dharma is not created by culture, yet culture plays a direct role in how dharma is made manifest in a way that we can all experience it. It is worth bearing in mind that although dharma has no limitations, culture does.
• Breathing life into mahasiddha practice: reviving this tradition through empowering practitioners to take refuge in direct experience of innate awakening no matter the form and implication.

The Mara of Hope and Fear

• Confirmation Bias
• Spiritual Bypassing
• Spiritual Materialism
• Rigidity/Dogmatism

A Bright Path

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The dynamic ability to meet the needs of sentient beings is one of the many powerful characteristics of Vajrayana.

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As it continues to spread across the world and through the mind streams and activities of people in diverse cultures, there is no end to the benefit that can be created.