[Buddha-l] Sense and sensibility was: American Mahayana/British Theravada?

[Joy Vriens]

Richard P. Hayes wrote:

> Wearing name tags and announcing to the whole world how much your gave
> to the temple are clearly designed to help you deepen your spiritual
> practice and attain powerful experiential familiarity with non-dualism.

The place I used to stay in the centre of France had a "Himalayan 
temple" built, whih is said to have been inspired by the model of the 
first temple (Samye ling) in Tibet. They had the idea to build what they 
called a "Lotus wall", on which lotuses would be painted with the name 
of benefactors written on them. The lamas encountered the idea on a trip 
to Malaysia, if I am not mistaken.

> It has long seemed to me that Western Buddhist practitioners need
> incentives to achieve higher stages of the path. I am thinking of
> something like merit badges that Boy Scouts wear.

Think no longer, it has been done by Lord HAMSAH MANARAH (Gilbert 
Bourdain), founder of the order of Aumist knight-monks 
(Aum-ists)/Knights of the Golden Lotus. It is one of the few 
spiritualistish centers in France where one can straight away spot the 
spriritual level and realisation of the sect members, thanks to their 
funny hats and capes. No confusion possible. The levels are available 
equally to men and women. And the only way to know whether you were male 
or female was through a particular interest by and services rendered to 
the guru. He was an oldfashioned guru, not knowing that androgyny was 
essential to genuin non-dualism. He was perhaps also too busy fighting 
all the extraterrestrial demons that were threatening to distroy the 
world. In 1977 he received a visit by the 16th Karmapa, who performed a 
Black hat ceremony in his center.

http://www.cesnur.org/press/Manarah.htm
http://www.reporter-photographe.com/mandarom.html (where you can admire 
the huge statue of the cosmoplanetarian messiah of synthesis, Gilles 
Bourdin himself, which had to be pulled down by municipal decision)
http://www.aumisme.org/gb/shm.htm

> When someone attains
> stream entry, for example, why not sew a colourful badge on the sleeve
> of their meditation garment (ever noticed how Western Buddhists can't
> meditate unless they have the right attire?).

Oh, is that what it is. I felt something was missing.

> Your suggestion that one get a badge for closing doors on sages is a
> good one, Joy. In fact, I think one should get a hat for that. In fact,
> though I hate to boast of my achievements (or would hate to boast of
> them if I had any), I can't resist pointing out that the hat in the
> photograph you say is my official sage-door-closing hat. 

You don't do sage-door-closing-hat ceremonies yet though? I expect there 
could be a small market niche for that, as as a sort of exorcism. But 
definitely a smaller niche than for black or red hat ceremonies.

> If you meditate robelessly, you will be wanting the sash (or the badge-
> festooned loin cloth) for sure. Otherwise, how will anyone know which
> level of insight you have attained?

There is a person's aura of course, but not everybody seems to be able 
to see it I have been told.

Joy