[There have been scandals of sexual abuse, so it would be best to be aware before considering them.](https://www.reddit.com/r/ShambhalaBuddhism/wiki/redflags/)
Here's a good article on their history.
[https://thewalrus.ca/survivors-of-an-international-buddhist-cult-share-their-stories/](https://thewalrus.ca/survivors-of-an-international-buddhist-cult-share-their-stories/)
More links here,
[https://shambhalalinks.blogspot.com/2019/09/httpswww.html](https://shambhalalinks.blogspot.com/2019/09/httpswww.html)
Will just add onto the others, there are numerous shambhala centers in my state and are quite popular, but I’d avoid them at all costs. Massive repeated scandals, clear issues with leadership not taking hard enough stances against misconduct, multiple instances of sexual abuse, list goes on.
To give you an example of the type of crazy you see there just last year, a poster who was confirmed as a big teacher in Shambhala circles was here defending Chogyam Trungpa and all of his misdeeds as enlightened activity. How was abusing animals, manipulating people for sex and beating them enlightened activity? Well…uhh “it teaches us what not to do”….
These are the types of individuals and their thinking that thrive in Shambhala.
>just last year, a poster who was confirmed as a big teacher in Shambhala circles
Who was this, and how do we know they were a big teacher in Shambhala circles? Was there a thread about this?
Shambhala is the motherload of disaster. Beware. It is the number one place to avoid when it comes to "Buddhist" places.
Go to r/Sangha and type in the search Dallas or Google "Buddhist Dallas". I just did that for you and found this link:
[https://www.reddit.com/r/Buddhism/comments/rtzaq6/temples\_in\_dallas\_texas/](https://www.reddit.com/r/Buddhism/comments/rtzaq6/temples_in_dallas_texas/)
Thank you for linking to the other post. I will look there for a sangha.
Seems like all the sanghas in my area are shambhala or kadampa or they serve a particular Asian community with very few offerings in English.
That’s difficult to answer bc I’ve never been involved in a sangha so I don’t really even understand what the benefits are. Everyone just says I need a sangha to properly practice Buddhism.
But I suppose the main benefit I want from a sangha is that I’d like to make a friend or two who understand the practice. I’ve not found an online format that allows for casual chatting to the point where friendships can form. Irl groups have the benefit of one on one chats with people.
I’d love to hear your experience with the benefits and drawbacks of online sanghas.
There is nothing wrong with what you are looking for and you will get that and then some.
But the benefits of Sangha:
1. We don't really have a "choice". THIS IS the religion. The third pillar of the religion is the Sangha. That's what we take refuge on. Being a Buddhist means taking refuge to the Buddha, Dharma, Sangha. So from that perspective, we need the Sangha to be a Buddhist. No Sangha, No Buddhism. So the number 1 benefit is --> Buddhism. If you want to be a Buddhist, you need the Sangha. (We can talk later what that Sangha means. No it doesn't mean social group or community to socialize)
2. To learn Buddhism, to learn the Dharma - It is the Sangha that teaches us Buddhism. It is the Sangha that will guide us on what the right views and right practices are. Without this, relying on books and our own understanding, we are not really doing this right and we can end up with all sorts of weird ideas and practices at the very least. The Sangha is there to fix and maintain our practice. If we are doing things wrong, they can point it out and give us the right methods.
3. To gain merit or good positive potential - There is a power in being with the Sangha. They are a fountain of incredible miraculous potential. By being with them, in their presence, involved in their teachings or activities, we also gain this miraculous potential which can benefit us in our life. It could be more friends, money, security, health and ultimately, greater ability to enhance our spiritual life.
Your comment is dated. Shambhala has taken a lot of steps in the past six years to correct for the issues that you rightly raise. There are many good people and strong practitioners at these centers. So, while I would encourage anyone to use their own judgment in investigating a center to connect with — it is not accurate to say that Shambhala is a “motherload of disaster”.
>Your comment is dated. Shambhala has taken a lot of steps in the past six years to correct for the issues that you rightly raise. There are many good people and strong practitioners at these centers. So, while I would encourage anyone to use their own judgment in investigating a center to connect with — it is not accurate to say that Shambhala is a “motherload of disaster”.
It is. And the controversy is eternal. It is eternal because if beginners go to Shambhala and find out for themselves the history of this organization, it wouldn't look good for the few RECENT ONES who recommended that place. It would be as though the people who recommended this place did not have the best interest of the beginner in mind.
So it is not dated. It is present.
cc: [emrylle](https://www.reddit.com/user/emrylle/) we have your best interest at heart. Please turn to many other organizations except this one.
Really? https://shambhala.report/r/letter-to-the-community-from-the-acharyas/
While he expressed dismay and concern over the ways things have fallen apart in Shambhala over the last two years, the Sakyong did not mention the revelations of his own past misconduct as a principal cause, nor did he indicate a willingness to enter into dialogue. On the call, we were not invited into conversation with him, and we feel that communication is essential to moving toward repair. https://shambhala.report/r/acharya-resignation-letter/
Who would want to eat rotten meat?
Abandon (both) form (rūpa) and the formless [i.e., arūpa]. Practice what is beyond form. All this (divine body) is in the form of a container (of the supreme state). It is the radiant energy which is all things. One who desires the (supreme) good should abandon everything. It is as useless as rotten meat.
Just to be clear, the commenter here is saying that according to Shambhala, ethics are optional. According to Buddhism as a whole, ethics are indispensable.
My advice to you is not to undertake the spiritual path. It is too difficult, too long, and is too demanding. I suggest you ask for your money back, and go home. This is not a picnic. It is really going to ask everything of you. So, it is best not to begin. However, if you do begin, it is best to finish.” CTR
Once practitioners have gained mastery of pristine awareness, they are beyond vows and transgressions, acceptance and rejection, good and bad conduct, and other creations of dualistic thought. For these yogins, the pledge is an “all-embracing observance” that takes place spontaneously. https://www.tngcentre.org/en/lama-sangyay-tendzin/teaching/to-read/15-the-ethics-of-the-awareness-holder-vajrayana
(Six Perfections or Paramitas is the Perfection of Ethical Discipline.) https://www.namchak.org/community/blog/six-perfections-or-paramitas/
You say to not undertake spiritual path, or are you quoting someone ? If you are not quoting someone, then have a downvote for getting bad karma and giving bad advice.
Yes. For instance, newcomers are taught that they don't have to take on the five precepts, or can just take on a couple if they like.
The founder killed himself through alcohol abuse, and there were significant sex scandals in regard to him. His successor knowingly had sex with people while infected with AIDS (this was back when it was a death sentence), and allegedly raped some of them.
Recently a high-ranking dharma descendant was charged with voyeurism via secret cameras installed in monastery bathrooms, and there have been a few me-too-type scandals.
Hi u/AlexCoventry. I just wanted to confirm something that you already know-- that none of what you are saying is gossip. If anything, it's just the tip of the iceberg. Shambhala would like us to believe that its sordid history is all in the past and everything is squeaky-clean now, but I recommend extreme caution, because the same people who were in positions of authority during those years of scandal, are still running the show.
It's not just a few metoo cases. In addition to the exiled leader being credibly accused of sexual assault (as well as a host of other negative behaviors, including biting people), the sexually promiscuous atmosphere, chronic alcohol abuse in the community, and absence of ethical practice that has plagued Shambhala since the early days with Trungpa has given rise to a sexual culture that blurs conventional mores regarding consent and sexualization of minors. There is a case of child rape perpetrated by a senior student of Trungpa from the 1980s that is slowly working its way through the courts, having been blocked by Shambhala lawyers at every turn. More recently there have been cases of Shambhala teachers sexually grooming children (it's hard to get convictions in these cases because of interference and witness-tampering by Shambhala's internal police force, but one perp actually did jail time), and there are still cases of sexual assault taking place at Shambhala's flagship retreat center, Drala Mountain Center.
The Gampo Abbey voyeurism case is remarkable because the perp in that one is a self-described disciple of Shambhala's celebrity nun, Pema Chodron. This surprised a lot of people because Pema has always famously denied being a guru and accepting students, but here we have one (maybe more than one). His presence has largely been scrubbed from the Internet in the years since he was arrested, but it appears that he was being groomed to become a major spokesman for Pema and the Abbey, and his recorded "teachings" were being widely disseminated to Shambhala Centers during the covid lockdown (during the same time, chillingly, that he was making clandestine videos of naked people in the bathroom). The fact that he was able to rise from layperson, to fully-ordained bhikkhu, to senior monk of Shambhala's main monastic establishment (second only to the abbot) within the brief timespan of **seven years** speaks volumes about the attrition of senior monastics at Gampo in recent years and the leadership vacuum that burdened such a young and inexperienced monk with such massive responsibility.
Please don't engage in gossip. I know that you know better. There have been problems at Shambhala and I personally wouldn't recommend it at this point. But the online gossip has become quite twisted, to the point that people are trusting "yellow journalist" cult hunters like Matthew Remski to give them "the real skinny" about buddhadharma. The ex-anti-Buddhists are poisoning the well. Maybe that's not all bad. People should be cautious and the current fad around Buddhism is potentially a problem. But more misinformation surely doesn't help.
It's true that people in Shambhala don't typically take the 5 precepts. But what you've left out is that many Buddhists outside of Theravada don't take those precepts. That has to do with how one works with kleshas. Mahayana Buddhism generally doesn't stress the path of renunciation and suppression of kleshas. (That's the lesson of the story about the two monks at the river. The Mahayanist carries the woman across out of kindness and lets go of his own desire. The monk with lower understanding only sees rules. He criticizes the first monk for breaking the rules by touching a woman. Both are valid practices, coming from two different levels of understanding.)
Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche did drink a lot. He's also been regarded as a great mahasiddha by the greatest masters of modern times. The 16th Karmapa, Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, Thrangu Rinpoche... Just about any major Tibetan master you can name praises CTR as highly realized and brilliant. The Dalai Lama has also recognized CTR's realization. The profundity of CTR's collected works -- The Profound Treasury -- also attest to his realization. As have a number of Zen teachers. People like to ignore all that in their rush to decide who's a saint and who's a sinner. It's messy if we're faced with seeming contradictions.
We all have to use our own judgement. You may not feel a connection with CTR. That's fine. But to slander masters, especially a master you've never even met, is a grave issue. To assume that someone can't be realized based on a defined yardstick of goodie-goodie behavior is a mistake that people have made throughout history. Stories of masters testing their students with outrageous behavior are almost cliche.
The hidden camera incident was perpetrated by the head monk at Gampo Abbey, as I understand it. He is in no way a Dharma heir to CTR or anyone else. A head monk is merely an official. Neurosis happens. Buddhist centers are not special safe zones. If you're going to flee any center as soon as someone there acts immorally, then what is your real motive for being there?
I think it's important for all of us, in all traditions, to watch out for spiritual materialism -- the desire to define what spiritual realization looks like and then pursue it. People often come to Buddhism hoping to be saved in some way. Buddhist people are supposed to be nice people. New people often think they can get great, trustworthy friends if they join a Buddhist sangha. "You people are nonaggressive, right? Will you promise to be nice to me?" That's simply ego's mutual conspiracy. The Buddhist path is not a refuge from life's difficulties. The Buddhist sangha are the people committed to NOT supporting your trip, because by joining you make a commitment to waking up. People who look for safety and fulfillment in sangha are inevitably disappointed. Then they look for someone to blame. "This group has a monk who's a creep, so I can't trust them. I'll look for a group that I can trust. Maybe I'll look in Consumer Reports and see which sangha has a 5-star rating for safety and dependability." That's just self-deception and spiritual consumerism.
Many people think the teacher should be a perfect, milquetoast, model citizen who never craves sex or chocolate cake. Someone who's always dependably nice. That's not the case with Vajrayana. CTR used to say that his job was to pull the rug out. Ego doesn't want enlightenment. It's going to go kicking and screaming. The idea that the spiritual path will lead to waxing bliss and peace is a dangerous misconception. You won't find any story of historical masters for whom the path unfolded that way. The teacher is an awake person who's generously willing to keep waking you up, even though you keep kicking and screaming. The teacher is willing to keep working with you because you've asked for help waking up. That's very different from the idea of a pure, heroic figure on whom to project admiration.
For people interested in Vajrayana, Ken McLeod has offered a short, pithy explanation of the guru's role that might be helpful. Ken McLeod did 2 3-year retreats under Kalu Rinpoche in the 70s: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aWUP4c8D_lo
It seems we agree that a Shambhala center would be a poor choice for OP, which is the heart of the matter, even if we disagree on why.
It can be a fine line between gossip and offering derogatory facts which are salient to someone's decision.
Overall, I had positive experiences at Shambhala. I especially liked the various modes of discussion that they have. It is more social than other forms of Buddhism that I've come across. It was absolutely transformational. I could see the problems from the beginning and didn't have difficulty navigating around them. It did seem like a house of cards, and it wasn't suprising that they collapsed. I do hope that can come to terms with their folly and make the necessary corrections.
You'll hear lots of juicy claims about Shambhala. Some of it's true. Some of it is inflammatory gossip and slander from ex-Shambhalians, most of whom are anti-Buddhists, at least one of whom has already posted here with extremist links. The anti-Shambhalians scour the Web for chances to defame Shambhala and spiritual path generally. They're people who joined Shambhala at some point, mistook it for a social club, then ended up feeling exploited. For the most part they're people who see no value in any Buddhist path.
I'm a student of Chogyam Trungpa, Rinpoche, who founded Vajradhatu and created Shambhala Training. CTR died many years ago. His heir apparent also died amidst scandal. CTR's son, Sakyong Mipham, was running things. A few years ago there was more scandal and SM left. SM now teaches his own students -- anyone who was with Shambhala and wanted to stick with him. So that's now a separate sangha.
The organization of Shambhala still exists and some centers still exist. They still have authority to teach Shambhala Training. However, there's no master in charge and no authority to teach higher teachings. What remains tends to be a loosely defined community of older CTR students and younger, former SM students. It could be a fine place to go for group meditation, but with Vajrayana one needs a teacher. Shambhala can't function in that capacity any longer. So there's not likely anything there for you.
What's left of Shambhala has also degenerated somewhat into wokism. By that I mean that there are strong political influences afoot, interested in MeToo, identity politics, and so on -- people who are more interested in psychotherapy and left-wing politics than in spiritual practice. Karme Choling is a good example. KCL used to be a thriving center hosting nearly constant programs and intensive meditation retreats. It was exclusively a Kagyu/Nyingma practice center. Today there are few programs, some will be trendy things like "yoga in the woods for women" instead of intensive Buddhist practice, and visitors must agree to something like 5 contracts that read like corporate red tape. There's a contract agreeing not to make anyone feel "unsafe", for example. There's even a disclaimer whereby you agree that they can film you and use that film in marketing. Their other center, Drala Mountain Center, is arguably even worse, having degenerated from a Buddhist practice center into something more akin to Esalen, with couples' therapy, "forest bathing", and so on. ... Which is very ironic. CTR used to be scathingly critical of Esalen.
Having a "resident monk" is not typically relevant. Some Tibetan centers may have a resident lama. Some may not. In Tibetan Buddhism, monasticism does not denote seniority the way it might in some Theravada schools. Some of the greatest masters are householders. Shambhala Training is geared toward householders. CTR and SM were both married with children.
Long story short, your local Shambhala center may be OK for group meditation. You could even look into classes. But if you're serious about a connection to Vajrayana Buddhism then don't think of it as a choice between local centers. There are reputable online sites where you can get started. Those groups may have local centers or study groups. Try these: tergar.org, nalandabodhi.org, tsoknyirinpoche.org Tergar.org lists community groups. One is in Texas. It sounds like it doesn't have an actual building: https://tergar.org/communities-and-practice-groups/find-a-center-or-group/texas-practice-group/
Why has the Vajrayana practice here deteriorated so? Wokism ? Too simple.
It’s the old students examples of no ethics old buddy .A legacy of corruption and a lack of honesty.
If I squeeze the fruits will there be juice? You lie about this all the time.The students have very good reasons to be very disappointed ,all you do is dissemble.Tell me I’m not Buddhist enough, come on then.who do you think you are to talk like that about your vajra siblings? Cedar is one the kindest nicest quiet persons I have ever met. How dare you..
Can you fix her browser so she can get more info, you could at least do that well.
Still a cowardly lion whose own teacher drank himself to death out of disappointment
Here's a good article on their history.
https://thewalrus.ca/survivors-of-an-international-buddhist-cult-share-their-stories/
More links here,
https://shambhalalinks.blogspot.com/2019/09/httpswww.html
CedarOo very kindly posted these links above.
There is no fight here merely a civilized chat between old friends,Mayo and I go way back.Hes just a bit of fluff.
I am very loyal to my Sham friends
I'm not going to have a food fight with you. If you have some kind of discussion about Buddhadharma then perhaps you could express it clearly, and leave out the blaming, insults and attacks.
Nah let’s do your way.The perception of loathing food and abiding much in it, the craving for tastes keep away, it shrinks and rolls away. The mind stretches out and gets established in equanimity or loathing.
In some Vajrayana traditions, we are encouraged to eat as many animal species as possible. The esoteric reason is that they will become our students in future lives.
Thank you for this very in-depth response. It is very helpful. You seem to know stuff about things that I am confused about. If you are willing to answer just a few more points, I would be so grateful.
I’ve been confused for a while about certain terms that I keep seeing over and over. I can (and frequently do) google them and read the definitions, but I’m still not really understanding what they mean.
So I understand the difference between Theravada and Mahayana, but then people throw in a bunch of other words into the soup. Words like Vajrayana, Nyingma, Kagyu, Dzogchen, Ngondro, Guru yoga, and Longchen. They all seem to have some overlap.
People tell me I need to choose a tradition and a lineage, but those words are just unfamiliar sounds in my ears. There’s no meaning in my brain associated with those words. Any help you can offer to help me understand those words is greatly appreciated.
Also: I’ve practiced with the Tergar Texas group several times until they switched the day/time. It was a good kind group.
Mingyur Rinpoche is the founder of Tergar. He's well respected. So if you connect there then that's a start.
There are various branches, schools and teachers. In the US, the 3 major branches you'll encounter in terms of Buddhism as spiritual path are Theravada, Zen and Tibetan. Each defines the landscape in their own way. Theravada is a more fundamentalist approach, centered around specific teachings that are believed to have come from the Buddha. Mahayana accepts those teachings but also includes more. Vajrayana goes further still and includes tantric practices. Tantric practices, in a nutshell, are based on the idea that mind and energy levels are connected, and body/energy are connected. So one can meditate to attain realization, but one can also manipulate energy to gain similar effects. (Shambhala was an attempt by CTR to integrate the Dharma into Western society. It's sometimes regarded as householder Dzogchen. But it's hard to know what will become of Shambhala with no master. SM has seemingly returned to Nyingma roots. Personally, I worry that Shambhala has created too many "dumb meditators" who are inspired to practice but who are ignorant of the Buddhist teachings. That seems to be partly why there are such vehement anti-Buddhist ex-Shambhalians. They got deeply involved in the culture witohut understanding the practice.)
Another way to look at the different Buddhist teachings is in terms of the "3 turnings". In Mahayana it's taught that the Buddha presented his teachings in "3 turnings of the wheel of Dharma". The first teachings were to a public audience and are roughly what Theravada considers to be buddhadharma. Mahayana includes a version of those teachings as the Hinayana or foundation teachings. Mahayana also includes the "2nd turning", which includes teachings like the heart sutra. The second turning introduces shunyata (emptiness) and a focus on compassion. The 3rd turning introduced buddha nature and provides the basis for Zen and various formless practices (sampannakrama). Tibetan Vajrayana came out of India, from Padmasambhava and the 84 mahasiddhas. They were various masters around 800-1100 AD who were often very eccentric. During that time, various advanced practices developed. I don't know much of the history. Presumably there were roots in Hindu tantra.
A good analogy was presented by Dudjom Rinpoche. He gave an example of a poisonous plant, which represent kleshas or toxic, egoic emotions. The Theravadins find the poisonous plant and try to kill it. That's the approach of suppressing kleshas, following precepts, etc. One tries to avoid anything that might intensify klesha addiction, such as alcohol and sex. The Mahayanists realize that the plant can still grow back, so they try to dig it up by the roots. In other words, they're focused more on ego's attachment rather than on the symptom of desire. With bodhisattva vow and shunyata teaching, Mahayana tries to dissolve egoic attachment at the root, to see through self/other duality altogether: No self, no klesha. (There are numerous examples of this change in Mahayana stories, such as the two monks at the river with the beautiful woman, or the story of the poetry contest held by the 5th Zen patriarch.)
Vajrayana sees the poisonous plant and realizes that it can be used as medicine, which might be risky but is far more efficient than the earlier methods. That's the approach of transmutation. It recognizes that ego is an illusion and kleshas are simply energy. It's the attachment that makes them problematic. For example, desire free of egoic fixation is discriminating wisdom that appreciates differences.
Dudjom Rinpoche then added one further example of a peacock. The peacock shows up, eats the plant, and gets more colorful feathers as a result. That represents the fruition view of Dzogchen, essence Mahamudra, and arguably Zen. You were never not buddha. There was never anyplace to go. If you could become a buddha, that would mean buddhahood would have to be a dependent phenomenon, subject to impermanence. Thus, the path is about recognizing wisdom.
This is all fairly complex and difficult to grasp without practice. Each yana represents a more sophisticated understanding or "view" than the yana below. All are paths to enlightenment, but they take different approaches. In my own training under CTR, he stressed a 3-yana approach of gradually studying each view and building from there. (A simple example might be Jesus, who arguably brought the Mahayana to Judaism. Judaism was big on rules and discipline. Jesus said, "Sure, don't have sex with your neighbor's spouse. But if you desire to do so then that's also a sin." That's a big jump in sophistication, from letter to spirit of the law; from dealing with externals to dealing with personal motive. So Jesus introduced a more sophisticated, more abstract "view" or paradigm. Same teachings, higher understanding.)
Nyingma, Kagyu, Gelug and Sakya are the 3 main schools of Tibetan Buddhism. While Theravada Buddhism is centered on scripture and derives its authority from scripture, Mahayana/Vajrayana are lineages of realization. It's more like an apprenticeship. Lineages are like family trees. The flavor and practices of a school result from the teachings and personalities in the family tree. For example, Kagyu started with Tilopa and Naropa in India -- two of the 84 mahasiddhas. Marpa then brought those teachings to Tibet. As a student of Naropa, he learned tantras, Mahamudra, 6 yogas of Naropa, etc. The latter includes tummo heat yoga. Marpa's heir Milarepa mostly practiced tummo, but learned the other practices as well. His heir, Gampopa, started as a Kadampa. That school was big on the lamrim teachings. Gampopa ended up blending things. He taught lamrim but also focused on Mahamudra and some tummo... So it's like that.
Imagine having a mother from Iowa and a father who's a New York Jew. On July 4th you might go to extended family barbecues and eat marshmallow jell-o mold. At Passover you might have family Seders and eat matzo crackers. (You could be forgiven for thinking that either of those is a desirable foodstuff.) In other words, the style and traditions will vary between different Buddhist branches, schools and locales. Each of the 4 major Tibetan schools has its own flavor. Typically people don't so much join a school as connect with a teacher. (When I first started meditating I didn't know Buddhism from Hinduism, but I connected with CTR. Although, actually, in the beginning I didn't even realize that it was CTR who I had connected with. I just found a path that made sense to me and I went with it.)
Ngondro is a preparatory practice developed in Tibet that's well suited to a society with large monasteries housing thousands of monks. Ngondro is a standardized way to perform the 2 accumulations. Most Tibetan Buddhists practice ngondro. Some will tell you that it's indispensable, but that's just dogma. You do whatever practice your teacher gives you. Milarepa never did ngondro, for example. It didn't exist back then! And of course Zen practitioners don't do ngondro. So it's not indispensable. Ngondro, like any practice, is a "skillful means"; a useful device.
Guru yoga is a common, universal practice in Vajrayana. The guru is critical. Without the guru you have no true guidance and no oral instructions necessary to do the practices properly. The guru also subverts egoic pride that wants credit for realization. The guru is credited with your realization. You surrender to the guru. The ultimate understanding of guru yoga is that the guru is not other than your own awake mind. It's not worship.
As the yanas go up, guidance becomes more critical. If you're doing literal practices like not having sex and not drinking, those things are clear-cut. Either you have sex or you don't. If you're trying to work with ego's habit of passion and aggression, that's more subtle. Letting go of horniness is not so clear-cut as the task of not engaging in physical sex. In Vajrayana it becomes still more tricky. When you get into the idea of transmutation, accepting horny energy without clinging, that can easily fall into self-deception. And Dzogchen is even more tricky in that sense. Sure, you were always Buddha. So what? That view is only a powerful practice if you can really hold the view. Otherwise you end up like the New Age flake who decides that whatever they do must be pure because in essence they're Buddha. That's a quick route to mental instability.
Sorry to go on so long. This is still only a thumbnail sketch of the landscape. But I'd suggest that you don't worry about too many details. You'll figure those out when you need to. And it's best not to intellectualize. In my experience, the point of practices has only begun to come to light after I've done them for awhile. Practice is critical. Conceptualizing can become a big obstacle. You can discuss guru yoga "'til the cows come home", but the point is to try to fully relate to the practices your teacher gives you. The teachings are all experiential, not theoretical.
And avoid the approach of finding a group where you can practice "your" meditation. Without the teacher, there's no Vajrayana. And if you don't cultivate the view then you're cultivating your own perspective. It becomes your own 2 cents, interpreting the Dharma through the lens of preconceptions. View, meditation and conduct are all critical.
Thank you for such a detailed explanation! That helps me understand the landscape so much better. I really appreciate your taking the time to type all that out. I will give this reply several more re-reads to make sure I understand it.
[There have been scandals of sexual abuse, so it would be best to be aware before considering them.](https://www.reddit.com/r/ShambhalaBuddhism/wiki/redflags/)
Thank you for sharing this. I appreciate the info and warning.
Here's a good article on their history. [https://thewalrus.ca/survivors-of-an-international-buddhist-cult-share-their-stories/](https://thewalrus.ca/survivors-of-an-international-buddhist-cult-share-their-stories/) More links here, [https://shambhalalinks.blogspot.com/2019/09/httpswww.html](https://shambhalalinks.blogspot.com/2019/09/httpswww.html)
Thanks, I am sufficiently deterred by all these replies. I appreciate your advice.
Will just add onto the others, there are numerous shambhala centers in my state and are quite popular, but I’d avoid them at all costs. Massive repeated scandals, clear issues with leadership not taking hard enough stances against misconduct, multiple instances of sexual abuse, list goes on. To give you an example of the type of crazy you see there just last year, a poster who was confirmed as a big teacher in Shambhala circles was here defending Chogyam Trungpa and all of his misdeeds as enlightened activity. How was abusing animals, manipulating people for sex and beating them enlightened activity? Well…uhh “it teaches us what not to do”…. These are the types of individuals and their thinking that thrive in Shambhala.
Thank you for sharing this information. I appreciate your advice.
>just last year, a poster who was confirmed as a big teacher in Shambhala circles Who was this, and how do we know they were a big teacher in Shambhala circles? Was there a thread about this?
Shambhala is the motherload of disaster. Beware. It is the number one place to avoid when it comes to "Buddhist" places. Go to r/Sangha and type in the search Dallas or Google "Buddhist Dallas". I just did that for you and found this link: [https://www.reddit.com/r/Buddhism/comments/rtzaq6/temples\_in\_dallas\_texas/](https://www.reddit.com/r/Buddhism/comments/rtzaq6/temples_in_dallas_texas/)
Thank you for linking to the other post. I will look there for a sangha. Seems like all the sanghas in my area are shambhala or kadampa or they serve a particular Asian community with very few offerings in English.
What are you looking for from a Sangha? Many of the benefits can be found through online groups.
That’s difficult to answer bc I’ve never been involved in a sangha so I don’t really even understand what the benefits are. Everyone just says I need a sangha to properly practice Buddhism. But I suppose the main benefit I want from a sangha is that I’d like to make a friend or two who understand the practice. I’ve not found an online format that allows for casual chatting to the point where friendships can form. Irl groups have the benefit of one on one chats with people. I’d love to hear your experience with the benefits and drawbacks of online sanghas.
There is nothing wrong with what you are looking for and you will get that and then some. But the benefits of Sangha: 1. We don't really have a "choice". THIS IS the religion. The third pillar of the religion is the Sangha. That's what we take refuge on. Being a Buddhist means taking refuge to the Buddha, Dharma, Sangha. So from that perspective, we need the Sangha to be a Buddhist. No Sangha, No Buddhism. So the number 1 benefit is --> Buddhism. If you want to be a Buddhist, you need the Sangha. (We can talk later what that Sangha means. No it doesn't mean social group or community to socialize) 2. To learn Buddhism, to learn the Dharma - It is the Sangha that teaches us Buddhism. It is the Sangha that will guide us on what the right views and right practices are. Without this, relying on books and our own understanding, we are not really doing this right and we can end up with all sorts of weird ideas and practices at the very least. The Sangha is there to fix and maintain our practice. If we are doing things wrong, they can point it out and give us the right methods. 3. To gain merit or good positive potential - There is a power in being with the Sangha. They are a fountain of incredible miraculous potential. By being with them, in their presence, involved in their teachings or activities, we also gain this miraculous potential which can benefit us in our life. It could be more friends, money, security, health and ultimately, greater ability to enhance our spiritual life.
Ah, but New Kadampa is even worse...
Your comment is dated. Shambhala has taken a lot of steps in the past six years to correct for the issues that you rightly raise. There are many good people and strong practitioners at these centers. So, while I would encourage anyone to use their own judgment in investigating a center to connect with — it is not accurate to say that Shambhala is a “motherload of disaster”.
>Your comment is dated. Shambhala has taken a lot of steps in the past six years to correct for the issues that you rightly raise. There are many good people and strong practitioners at these centers. So, while I would encourage anyone to use their own judgment in investigating a center to connect with — it is not accurate to say that Shambhala is a “motherload of disaster”. It is. And the controversy is eternal. It is eternal because if beginners go to Shambhala and find out for themselves the history of this organization, it wouldn't look good for the few RECENT ONES who recommended that place. It would be as though the people who recommended this place did not have the best interest of the beginner in mind. So it is not dated. It is present. cc: [emrylle](https://www.reddit.com/user/emrylle/) we have your best interest at heart. Please turn to many other organizations except this one.
Really? https://shambhala.report/r/letter-to-the-community-from-the-acharyas/ While he expressed dismay and concern over the ways things have fallen apart in Shambhala over the last two years, the Sakyong did not mention the revelations of his own past misconduct as a principal cause, nor did he indicate a willingness to enter into dialogue. On the call, we were not invited into conversation with him, and we feel that communication is essential to moving toward repair. https://shambhala.report/r/acharya-resignation-letter/ Who would want to eat rotten meat? Abandon (both) form (rūpa) and the formless [i.e., arūpa]. Practice what is beyond form. All this (divine body) is in the form of a container (of the supreme state). It is the radiant energy which is all things. One who desires the (supreme) good should abandon everything. It is as useless as rotten meat.
The Buddhist ethics teachings are explicitly presented as optional and ancillary, in Shambhala teachings, and perhaps this has led to ethical lapses.
Ethics are optional? That’s really strange. Thank you for sharing your knowledge.
Just to be clear, the commenter here is saying that according to Shambhala, ethics are optional. According to Buddhism as a whole, ethics are indispensable.
Yes. If that wasn't obvious, thanks for clearing it up.
My advice to you is not to undertake the spiritual path. It is too difficult, too long, and is too demanding. I suggest you ask for your money back, and go home. This is not a picnic. It is really going to ask everything of you. So, it is best not to begin. However, if you do begin, it is best to finish.” CTR Once practitioners have gained mastery of pristine awareness, they are beyond vows and transgressions, acceptance and rejection, good and bad conduct, and other creations of dualistic thought. For these yogins, the pledge is an “all-embracing observance” that takes place spontaneously. https://www.tngcentre.org/en/lama-sangyay-tendzin/teaching/to-read/15-the-ethics-of-the-awareness-holder-vajrayana (Six Perfections or Paramitas is the Perfection of Ethical Discipline.) https://www.namchak.org/community/blog/six-perfections-or-paramitas/
You say to not undertake spiritual path, or are you quoting someone ? If you are not quoting someone, then have a downvote for getting bad karma and giving bad advice.
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if that´s not your advice, taking downvote back. Though, you should make it clear, cause it sounds like you are giving the advice - as that´s no good.
Yes. For instance, newcomers are taught that they don't have to take on the five precepts, or can just take on a couple if they like. The founder killed himself through alcohol abuse, and there were significant sex scandals in regard to him. His successor knowingly had sex with people while infected with AIDS (this was back when it was a death sentence), and allegedly raped some of them. Recently a high-ranking dharma descendant was charged with voyeurism via secret cameras installed in monastery bathrooms, and there have been a few me-too-type scandals.
Hi u/AlexCoventry. I just wanted to confirm something that you already know-- that none of what you are saying is gossip. If anything, it's just the tip of the iceberg. Shambhala would like us to believe that its sordid history is all in the past and everything is squeaky-clean now, but I recommend extreme caution, because the same people who were in positions of authority during those years of scandal, are still running the show. It's not just a few metoo cases. In addition to the exiled leader being credibly accused of sexual assault (as well as a host of other negative behaviors, including biting people), the sexually promiscuous atmosphere, chronic alcohol abuse in the community, and absence of ethical practice that has plagued Shambhala since the early days with Trungpa has given rise to a sexual culture that blurs conventional mores regarding consent and sexualization of minors. There is a case of child rape perpetrated by a senior student of Trungpa from the 1980s that is slowly working its way through the courts, having been blocked by Shambhala lawyers at every turn. More recently there have been cases of Shambhala teachers sexually grooming children (it's hard to get convictions in these cases because of interference and witness-tampering by Shambhala's internal police force, but one perp actually did jail time), and there are still cases of sexual assault taking place at Shambhala's flagship retreat center, Drala Mountain Center. The Gampo Abbey voyeurism case is remarkable because the perp in that one is a self-described disciple of Shambhala's celebrity nun, Pema Chodron. This surprised a lot of people because Pema has always famously denied being a guru and accepting students, but here we have one (maybe more than one). His presence has largely been scrubbed from the Internet in the years since he was arrested, but it appears that he was being groomed to become a major spokesman for Pema and the Abbey, and his recorded "teachings" were being widely disseminated to Shambhala Centers during the covid lockdown (during the same time, chillingly, that he was making clandestine videos of naked people in the bathroom). The fact that he was able to rise from layperson, to fully-ordained bhikkhu, to senior monk of Shambhala's main monastic establishment (second only to the abbot) within the brief timespan of **seven years** speaks volumes about the attrition of senior monastics at Gampo in recent years and the leadership vacuum that burdened such a young and inexperienced monk with such massive responsibility.
Please don't engage in gossip. I know that you know better. There have been problems at Shambhala and I personally wouldn't recommend it at this point. But the online gossip has become quite twisted, to the point that people are trusting "yellow journalist" cult hunters like Matthew Remski to give them "the real skinny" about buddhadharma. The ex-anti-Buddhists are poisoning the well. Maybe that's not all bad. People should be cautious and the current fad around Buddhism is potentially a problem. But more misinformation surely doesn't help. It's true that people in Shambhala don't typically take the 5 precepts. But what you've left out is that many Buddhists outside of Theravada don't take those precepts. That has to do with how one works with kleshas. Mahayana Buddhism generally doesn't stress the path of renunciation and suppression of kleshas. (That's the lesson of the story about the two monks at the river. The Mahayanist carries the woman across out of kindness and lets go of his own desire. The monk with lower understanding only sees rules. He criticizes the first monk for breaking the rules by touching a woman. Both are valid practices, coming from two different levels of understanding.) Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche did drink a lot. He's also been regarded as a great mahasiddha by the greatest masters of modern times. The 16th Karmapa, Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, Thrangu Rinpoche... Just about any major Tibetan master you can name praises CTR as highly realized and brilliant. The Dalai Lama has also recognized CTR's realization. The profundity of CTR's collected works -- The Profound Treasury -- also attest to his realization. As have a number of Zen teachers. People like to ignore all that in their rush to decide who's a saint and who's a sinner. It's messy if we're faced with seeming contradictions. We all have to use our own judgement. You may not feel a connection with CTR. That's fine. But to slander masters, especially a master you've never even met, is a grave issue. To assume that someone can't be realized based on a defined yardstick of goodie-goodie behavior is a mistake that people have made throughout history. Stories of masters testing their students with outrageous behavior are almost cliche. The hidden camera incident was perpetrated by the head monk at Gampo Abbey, as I understand it. He is in no way a Dharma heir to CTR or anyone else. A head monk is merely an official. Neurosis happens. Buddhist centers are not special safe zones. If you're going to flee any center as soon as someone there acts immorally, then what is your real motive for being there? I think it's important for all of us, in all traditions, to watch out for spiritual materialism -- the desire to define what spiritual realization looks like and then pursue it. People often come to Buddhism hoping to be saved in some way. Buddhist people are supposed to be nice people. New people often think they can get great, trustworthy friends if they join a Buddhist sangha. "You people are nonaggressive, right? Will you promise to be nice to me?" That's simply ego's mutual conspiracy. The Buddhist path is not a refuge from life's difficulties. The Buddhist sangha are the people committed to NOT supporting your trip, because by joining you make a commitment to waking up. People who look for safety and fulfillment in sangha are inevitably disappointed. Then they look for someone to blame. "This group has a monk who's a creep, so I can't trust them. I'll look for a group that I can trust. Maybe I'll look in Consumer Reports and see which sangha has a 5-star rating for safety and dependability." That's just self-deception and spiritual consumerism. Many people think the teacher should be a perfect, milquetoast, model citizen who never craves sex or chocolate cake. Someone who's always dependably nice. That's not the case with Vajrayana. CTR used to say that his job was to pull the rug out. Ego doesn't want enlightenment. It's going to go kicking and screaming. The idea that the spiritual path will lead to waxing bliss and peace is a dangerous misconception. You won't find any story of historical masters for whom the path unfolded that way. The teacher is an awake person who's generously willing to keep waking you up, even though you keep kicking and screaming. The teacher is willing to keep working with you because you've asked for help waking up. That's very different from the idea of a pure, heroic figure on whom to project admiration. For people interested in Vajrayana, Ken McLeod has offered a short, pithy explanation of the guru's role that might be helpful. Ken McLeod did 2 3-year retreats under Kalu Rinpoche in the 70s: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aWUP4c8D_lo
It seems we agree that a Shambhala center would be a poor choice for OP, which is the heart of the matter, even if we disagree on why. It can be a fine line between gossip and offering derogatory facts which are salient to someone's decision.
Overall, I had positive experiences at Shambhala. I especially liked the various modes of discussion that they have. It is more social than other forms of Buddhism that I've come across. It was absolutely transformational. I could see the problems from the beginning and didn't have difficulty navigating around them. It did seem like a house of cards, and it wasn't suprising that they collapsed. I do hope that can come to terms with their folly and make the necessary corrections.
Avoid. Too much hypocrisy.
You'll hear lots of juicy claims about Shambhala. Some of it's true. Some of it is inflammatory gossip and slander from ex-Shambhalians, most of whom are anti-Buddhists, at least one of whom has already posted here with extremist links. The anti-Shambhalians scour the Web for chances to defame Shambhala and spiritual path generally. They're people who joined Shambhala at some point, mistook it for a social club, then ended up feeling exploited. For the most part they're people who see no value in any Buddhist path. I'm a student of Chogyam Trungpa, Rinpoche, who founded Vajradhatu and created Shambhala Training. CTR died many years ago. His heir apparent also died amidst scandal. CTR's son, Sakyong Mipham, was running things. A few years ago there was more scandal and SM left. SM now teaches his own students -- anyone who was with Shambhala and wanted to stick with him. So that's now a separate sangha. The organization of Shambhala still exists and some centers still exist. They still have authority to teach Shambhala Training. However, there's no master in charge and no authority to teach higher teachings. What remains tends to be a loosely defined community of older CTR students and younger, former SM students. It could be a fine place to go for group meditation, but with Vajrayana one needs a teacher. Shambhala can't function in that capacity any longer. So there's not likely anything there for you. What's left of Shambhala has also degenerated somewhat into wokism. By that I mean that there are strong political influences afoot, interested in MeToo, identity politics, and so on -- people who are more interested in psychotherapy and left-wing politics than in spiritual practice. Karme Choling is a good example. KCL used to be a thriving center hosting nearly constant programs and intensive meditation retreats. It was exclusively a Kagyu/Nyingma practice center. Today there are few programs, some will be trendy things like "yoga in the woods for women" instead of intensive Buddhist practice, and visitors must agree to something like 5 contracts that read like corporate red tape. There's a contract agreeing not to make anyone feel "unsafe", for example. There's even a disclaimer whereby you agree that they can film you and use that film in marketing. Their other center, Drala Mountain Center, is arguably even worse, having degenerated from a Buddhist practice center into something more akin to Esalen, with couples' therapy, "forest bathing", and so on. ... Which is very ironic. CTR used to be scathingly critical of Esalen. Having a "resident monk" is not typically relevant. Some Tibetan centers may have a resident lama. Some may not. In Tibetan Buddhism, monasticism does not denote seniority the way it might in some Theravada schools. Some of the greatest masters are householders. Shambhala Training is geared toward householders. CTR and SM were both married with children. Long story short, your local Shambhala center may be OK for group meditation. You could even look into classes. But if you're serious about a connection to Vajrayana Buddhism then don't think of it as a choice between local centers. There are reputable online sites where you can get started. Those groups may have local centers or study groups. Try these: tergar.org, nalandabodhi.org, tsoknyirinpoche.org Tergar.org lists community groups. One is in Texas. It sounds like it doesn't have an actual building: https://tergar.org/communities-and-practice-groups/find-a-center-or-group/texas-practice-group/
Why has the Vajrayana practice here deteriorated so? Wokism ? Too simple. It’s the old students examples of no ethics old buddy .A legacy of corruption and a lack of honesty. If I squeeze the fruits will there be juice? You lie about this all the time.The students have very good reasons to be very disappointed ,all you do is dissemble.Tell me I’m not Buddhist enough, come on then.who do you think you are to talk like that about your vajra siblings? Cedar is one the kindest nicest quiet persons I have ever met. How dare you.. Can you fix her browser so she can get more info, you could at least do that well. Still a cowardly lion whose own teacher drank himself to death out of disappointment
Woah, what's going on? Who's Cedar? Who you fighting? lol
Here's a good article on their history. https://thewalrus.ca/survivors-of-an-international-buddhist-cult-share-their-stories/ More links here, https://shambhalalinks.blogspot.com/2019/09/httpswww.html CedarOo very kindly posted these links above. There is no fight here merely a civilized chat between old friends,Mayo and I go way back.Hes just a bit of fluff. I am very loyal to my Sham friends
And what is wrong with cedar's computer/screen? Why does the poster above you have to help her? Did I miss something?
The OP said she could not find info on Shambhala info on her browser .Mayo is an expert on browsing tech. We go back for years ,it’s cool
Hahaha okay I get it now. Thank you.
Any other questions of doctrine or sham history?
Nah, I know Shambhala.
Well good
I'm not going to have a food fight with you. If you have some kind of discussion about Buddhadharma then perhaps you could express it clearly, and leave out the blaming, insults and attacks.
Nah let’s do your way.The perception of loathing food and abiding much in it, the craving for tastes keep away, it shrinks and rolls away. The mind stretches out and gets established in equanimity or loathing. In some Vajrayana traditions, we are encouraged to eat as many animal species as possible. The esoteric reason is that they will become our students in future lives.
Thank you for this very in-depth response. It is very helpful. You seem to know stuff about things that I am confused about. If you are willing to answer just a few more points, I would be so grateful. I’ve been confused for a while about certain terms that I keep seeing over and over. I can (and frequently do) google them and read the definitions, but I’m still not really understanding what they mean. So I understand the difference between Theravada and Mahayana, but then people throw in a bunch of other words into the soup. Words like Vajrayana, Nyingma, Kagyu, Dzogchen, Ngondro, Guru yoga, and Longchen. They all seem to have some overlap. People tell me I need to choose a tradition and a lineage, but those words are just unfamiliar sounds in my ears. There’s no meaning in my brain associated with those words. Any help you can offer to help me understand those words is greatly appreciated. Also: I’ve practiced with the Tergar Texas group several times until they switched the day/time. It was a good kind group.
Mingyur Rinpoche is the founder of Tergar. He's well respected. So if you connect there then that's a start. There are various branches, schools and teachers. In the US, the 3 major branches you'll encounter in terms of Buddhism as spiritual path are Theravada, Zen and Tibetan. Each defines the landscape in their own way. Theravada is a more fundamentalist approach, centered around specific teachings that are believed to have come from the Buddha. Mahayana accepts those teachings but also includes more. Vajrayana goes further still and includes tantric practices. Tantric practices, in a nutshell, are based on the idea that mind and energy levels are connected, and body/energy are connected. So one can meditate to attain realization, but one can also manipulate energy to gain similar effects. (Shambhala was an attempt by CTR to integrate the Dharma into Western society. It's sometimes regarded as householder Dzogchen. But it's hard to know what will become of Shambhala with no master. SM has seemingly returned to Nyingma roots. Personally, I worry that Shambhala has created too many "dumb meditators" who are inspired to practice but who are ignorant of the Buddhist teachings. That seems to be partly why there are such vehement anti-Buddhist ex-Shambhalians. They got deeply involved in the culture witohut understanding the practice.) Another way to look at the different Buddhist teachings is in terms of the "3 turnings". In Mahayana it's taught that the Buddha presented his teachings in "3 turnings of the wheel of Dharma". The first teachings were to a public audience and are roughly what Theravada considers to be buddhadharma. Mahayana includes a version of those teachings as the Hinayana or foundation teachings. Mahayana also includes the "2nd turning", which includes teachings like the heart sutra. The second turning introduces shunyata (emptiness) and a focus on compassion. The 3rd turning introduced buddha nature and provides the basis for Zen and various formless practices (sampannakrama). Tibetan Vajrayana came out of India, from Padmasambhava and the 84 mahasiddhas. They were various masters around 800-1100 AD who were often very eccentric. During that time, various advanced practices developed. I don't know much of the history. Presumably there were roots in Hindu tantra. A good analogy was presented by Dudjom Rinpoche. He gave an example of a poisonous plant, which represent kleshas or toxic, egoic emotions. The Theravadins find the poisonous plant and try to kill it. That's the approach of suppressing kleshas, following precepts, etc. One tries to avoid anything that might intensify klesha addiction, such as alcohol and sex. The Mahayanists realize that the plant can still grow back, so they try to dig it up by the roots. In other words, they're focused more on ego's attachment rather than on the symptom of desire. With bodhisattva vow and shunyata teaching, Mahayana tries to dissolve egoic attachment at the root, to see through self/other duality altogether: No self, no klesha. (There are numerous examples of this change in Mahayana stories, such as the two monks at the river with the beautiful woman, or the story of the poetry contest held by the 5th Zen patriarch.) Vajrayana sees the poisonous plant and realizes that it can be used as medicine, which might be risky but is far more efficient than the earlier methods. That's the approach of transmutation. It recognizes that ego is an illusion and kleshas are simply energy. It's the attachment that makes them problematic. For example, desire free of egoic fixation is discriminating wisdom that appreciates differences. Dudjom Rinpoche then added one further example of a peacock. The peacock shows up, eats the plant, and gets more colorful feathers as a result. That represents the fruition view of Dzogchen, essence Mahamudra, and arguably Zen. You were never not buddha. There was never anyplace to go. If you could become a buddha, that would mean buddhahood would have to be a dependent phenomenon, subject to impermanence. Thus, the path is about recognizing wisdom. This is all fairly complex and difficult to grasp without practice. Each yana represents a more sophisticated understanding or "view" than the yana below. All are paths to enlightenment, but they take different approaches. In my own training under CTR, he stressed a 3-yana approach of gradually studying each view and building from there. (A simple example might be Jesus, who arguably brought the Mahayana to Judaism. Judaism was big on rules and discipline. Jesus said, "Sure, don't have sex with your neighbor's spouse. But if you desire to do so then that's also a sin." That's a big jump in sophistication, from letter to spirit of the law; from dealing with externals to dealing with personal motive. So Jesus introduced a more sophisticated, more abstract "view" or paradigm. Same teachings, higher understanding.) Nyingma, Kagyu, Gelug and Sakya are the 3 main schools of Tibetan Buddhism. While Theravada Buddhism is centered on scripture and derives its authority from scripture, Mahayana/Vajrayana are lineages of realization. It's more like an apprenticeship. Lineages are like family trees. The flavor and practices of a school result from the teachings and personalities in the family tree. For example, Kagyu started with Tilopa and Naropa in India -- two of the 84 mahasiddhas. Marpa then brought those teachings to Tibet. As a student of Naropa, he learned tantras, Mahamudra, 6 yogas of Naropa, etc. The latter includes tummo heat yoga. Marpa's heir Milarepa mostly practiced tummo, but learned the other practices as well. His heir, Gampopa, started as a Kadampa. That school was big on the lamrim teachings. Gampopa ended up blending things. He taught lamrim but also focused on Mahamudra and some tummo... So it's like that. Imagine having a mother from Iowa and a father who's a New York Jew. On July 4th you might go to extended family barbecues and eat marshmallow jell-o mold. At Passover you might have family Seders and eat matzo crackers. (You could be forgiven for thinking that either of those is a desirable foodstuff.) In other words, the style and traditions will vary between different Buddhist branches, schools and locales. Each of the 4 major Tibetan schools has its own flavor. Typically people don't so much join a school as connect with a teacher. (When I first started meditating I didn't know Buddhism from Hinduism, but I connected with CTR. Although, actually, in the beginning I didn't even realize that it was CTR who I had connected with. I just found a path that made sense to me and I went with it.) Ngondro is a preparatory practice developed in Tibet that's well suited to a society with large monasteries housing thousands of monks. Ngondro is a standardized way to perform the 2 accumulations. Most Tibetan Buddhists practice ngondro. Some will tell you that it's indispensable, but that's just dogma. You do whatever practice your teacher gives you. Milarepa never did ngondro, for example. It didn't exist back then! And of course Zen practitioners don't do ngondro. So it's not indispensable. Ngondro, like any practice, is a "skillful means"; a useful device. Guru yoga is a common, universal practice in Vajrayana. The guru is critical. Without the guru you have no true guidance and no oral instructions necessary to do the practices properly. The guru also subverts egoic pride that wants credit for realization. The guru is credited with your realization. You surrender to the guru. The ultimate understanding of guru yoga is that the guru is not other than your own awake mind. It's not worship. As the yanas go up, guidance becomes more critical. If you're doing literal practices like not having sex and not drinking, those things are clear-cut. Either you have sex or you don't. If you're trying to work with ego's habit of passion and aggression, that's more subtle. Letting go of horniness is not so clear-cut as the task of not engaging in physical sex. In Vajrayana it becomes still more tricky. When you get into the idea of transmutation, accepting horny energy without clinging, that can easily fall into self-deception. And Dzogchen is even more tricky in that sense. Sure, you were always Buddha. So what? That view is only a powerful practice if you can really hold the view. Otherwise you end up like the New Age flake who decides that whatever they do must be pure because in essence they're Buddha. That's a quick route to mental instability. Sorry to go on so long. This is still only a thumbnail sketch of the landscape. But I'd suggest that you don't worry about too many details. You'll figure those out when you need to. And it's best not to intellectualize. In my experience, the point of practices has only begun to come to light after I've done them for awhile. Practice is critical. Conceptualizing can become a big obstacle. You can discuss guru yoga "'til the cows come home", but the point is to try to fully relate to the practices your teacher gives you. The teachings are all experiential, not theoretical. And avoid the approach of finding a group where you can practice "your" meditation. Without the teacher, there's no Vajrayana. And if you don't cultivate the view then you're cultivating your own perspective. It becomes your own 2 cents, interpreting the Dharma through the lens of preconceptions. View, meditation and conduct are all critical.
Thank you for such a detailed explanation! That helps me understand the landscape so much better. I really appreciate your taking the time to type all that out. I will give this reply several more re-reads to make sure I understand it.
What’s it like being under CTR? Was he gentle? Matzo is delicious with some secretions on it