[Buddha-l] Good resource site shut down

[Joy Vriens]

Hi Chris,

I am convinced he is a nice man with the best intentions. A fair amount 
of literalism and orthodoxy have helped Tibetan Buddhism survive, but 
perhaps other qualities are required now. I recently read about the Thai 
"awakening" during the 19/20th century, with figures as Buddhadasa and 
regretted how none such thing seem to have happened for Tibetan 
Buddhism, or rather too discretely, with some exceptions like Gendun 
Chöphel. Other lamas adopted a certain openness publicly towards a 
Western public, while actually remaining very traditional and 
literalistic. But things seem to be changing now fortunately. It is not 
an option anymore. Tibetan Buddhism has to, not only for the sake of 
"convert" Buddhists, but also for its own youth. There seem to be lamas 
with a genuin wide interest, who perhaps don't exactly welcome critical 
thinking yet but don't shy away from it.

In the past bodhisattvas would purposely go to hell to make themselves 
useful there. Nowadays they seem to want to create merit in order to 
avoid being reborn in starving countries. Bourgois Buddhism must be 
spreading fast. As an alternative to creating merit, something could 
perhaps directly be done about the situation in "Africa". If the 
situation is improved globally, it doesn't matter where one will be 
reborn, in "Africa", another continent or in Buckingham Palace (which 
may seem appealing but it does come with Windsor genes).  I am sure we 
could amend the law of Karma to make that into a case of merit creation. ;-)

Joy

---
Though Thrangu Rinpoche is a nice man, some of the stuff he teaches to a 
supposedly educated western audience is shocking - and it is even more 
shocking that this audience rarely challenge his views. Fortunately not 
all Tibetan Lamas are so literalistic. - (Recently I read a transcript 
of one of Thrangu Rinpoche's teachings - when asked a question about how 
something he had said related to something Longchenpa had written - he 
told the questioner that he had never read the works of Longchenpa. And 
this man is supposed to be one of the foremost Tibetan scholars!) . For 
saying this I've probably lost whatever merit I have accumulated and now 
I'll be reborn as one of those starving children in Africa.