The Uprising

The Chöd practitioner is a Demon Whisperer. Someone who invites the dark side, in order to resolve, heal, and cut through fixation on hope and fear. With this kind of approach, it is no surprise that even even talking about “Internet Demons” is likely to unleash a hornet’s nest of one’s personal and karmic obstacles. But these are, ultimately, harbingers of great blessing. That is the very nature of Chöd.

Thus, after my last blog, an acquaintance admonished me about my mistaken views and emailed a lengthy article explaining the nature of Shunyata, Emptiness, and the state of Mahamudra, in relation to Chöd. The implication was that, well, after all, demons are not real, are they? They are just manifestations of the mind. We need to cut through belief in these phantasmagoria and see the empty, luminous, unimpeded nature of the natural state. Whether this was the intended meaning of the enclosed article, that was its interpretation by my friend. But in fact, this same explanation of demons has been offered by a number of Western authors and scholars, and is even found in in the introduction to the translation of MaChik’s own tome, the Namshay Chenmo or The Complete Explanation.

Selective Reality

Mahamudra is an intrinsic part of Chöd, and writings such as Karma Chagmé’s 17th century Prayer to MaChik (translated by the author in 2006) express this relationship with infinite poetry, depth and subtlety. But the point is this: We cannot use Mahamudra or Dzokchen as a “selective” tool, like a hammer to nail this or that preferred object. Indeed Mahamudra (Chakgya Chenpo) means The Great Seal, because it stamps everything with its pervasive truth. Everything. That means that demons are not real, in exactly the same way that we are not real. Demons are no more real than any other phenomena, and no less real. To negate the existence of demons, or any concept we fear or dislike, is dharma in service of ego, rather than dharma that eradicates self-clinging.

Self-Illusion, Self-Illumination

Actually, the Chöd practitioner overcomes demons by dematerializing the illusion of his/her own solid self. It is well known that many Chöpa’s of old were utterly immune to contagion. Was it because they decided that “Bacteria do not exist and can’t hurt me.” Unlikely. But if “I” don’t exist, then the phenomena of contagion has nowhere to land. We could take this to its logical conclusion and state “Karma doesn’t exist. It is just an outer phenomena, a projection of my mind. Therefore I am freed of all my karma.” But as long as “I” am there, karma indeed sticks, whether we “Mahamudra-ize” it our not.

Two Different Truths

In the Ultimate state, the underlying reality from which all phenomena arises, indeed there is no becoming, no ending, no coming nor going, no being, no non-being. No karma, no demons and no “I and thou.” In the Relative world, which is co-emergent, co-arising with the Ultimate, there is a whole heck of a lot of arising and disappearing, busy-ness, impermanence, over-arching karma, disease and, yes, demons.

Being Real

Whether demons are just projections of our psychological fears is a different argument altogether, and the subject of the next part of this article. But for now, we can rest assured that demons are no more real than we are. And not an iota less. And throwing concepts of emptiness at them, and not at the perceiver and the rest of the “good stuff” is itself… demonic.

Coming Events

Remote Healing Chöd

Our first group of DNA identity packets will be heading to Eastern Bhutan in mid-August. We are fortunate in having someone to handy carry these directly from San Francisco to Tsewong Rinpoche’s monastery. There, participants will receive over 60 or more remote Chöd and other tantric healing rituals over a 12 month period. http://www.tibetanchod.com/remote-healing/

Tibetan Land Healing

Our first 2-day Tibetan Land Healing training will take place in early October in Toronto, Canada. Participants will learn the Tibetan shamanic practices of Blessing, Energizing, Enriching and Clearing the environment; This in turn has profound ramifications on all aspects of our life, health, relationships and spiritual development.
www.tibetanlandhealing.com

Tibetan Energy Healing

Balancing the 5 Elements is the key to rapid and deep healing of body and mind. In Level 1 of Tibetan Energy Healing, we will disclose the ancient Tibetan esoteric methods for using light and sound to regenerate the structure of Earth, flow of Water, energy of Fire, motility of Air and integration of the Space element.
www.tibetanenergyhealing.com

Tibetan Healing Chö

Module 1 of the world’s only comprehensive training in the practice of Chöd will take place in Canada this fall. Apart from the empowerment of the Sky Door, students will learn basic meanings and principles behind Chöd and five important beginning practices. Much of the teaching is from original Tibetan sources, never translated before. Audiovisual presentation includes over 120 slides and a CD of all ritual melodies, teachings and PDFs of all practices.
www.tibetancho.com
www.instituteoftraditionalmedicine.com

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