Non-Sectarian Buddhism

I was ordained in 2006 under the International Order of Buddhist Ministers in California at the Rosemead Buddhist Monastery by my primary teacher (Acariya), the Abbot of the monastery, Venerable Chao Chu and my preceptor (Upajjhaya) President of the Buddhist Sangha Council of Southern California, Venerably Walpola Piyananda.

They are, respectively, Mahayana (The greater vehicle) and Theravada (The elder's vehicle).  My Vajrayana (Diamond Vehicle) instructor and advisor became Rinpoche Jigme Dorge, Vajra Master and abbot of the Khawalung monastery in Kathmandu, Nepal.  My Chan (This is a Mahayana, Chinese version and origination of Zen) advisor and teacher is Venerable Bhikkhuni Wei Cheung of the Rosemead Buddhist Monastery, in Rosemead California.  Of course, since then there have been many teachers both Buddhist and non Buddhist.  

That was the point, to have acceptance of the basic teachings of the Buddha among all three main sects of Buddhism.  It was difficult interacting at times with other Buddhists because sometimes they would want to know my lineage in order to evaluate whether or not they would speak to me.  All four of my teaching advisors did not want me to rely on lineage to be 'valid'.  They all insisted I practiced and studied certain books, sutras and related teachings and come up with a useful way I could impart that information to a public that had little or no knowledge of Buddhism or any of the 'vehicles'.  I not only study the basics of Buddhism which I present on my website 'The Centered Path' and Centeredpath.org, but also my YouTube Channel of the same name.  

What is non-sectarian Buddhism?   It is the practice and study of Buddhism in its commonest form for all the traditions; Mahayana, Theravada, Vajrayana and even 'Hinayana' as well as Chan and Zen.  

My travels and the book...

Non-sectarian vs. Secular Buddhism: Recently, there is a movement that has been gaining momentum.  The secular Buddhists.  I would consider Stephen Bachelor as the 'father' of this with a close second of Noah Rasheta.  This developing idea basically takes out myth, ceremony, gods, devas, and magical ideas out of the practice of Buddhism.  Most people that are  into this form of Buddhism are generally born in the West, not in a Buddhist culture and tend to be atheists or agnostics.  I like this idea, but still have to respect the idea of the metaphor lessons, and that even 'gods' and special beings are due their day. (Karma). 

My current approach.  I originally was very attracted to the idea of secular Buddhism.  Getting rid of many of the archaic and 'useless' ideas, procedures and ceremonies seemed attractive because they are time consuming and I did not see the value in them.  Then something changed.  When I saw how the monks I worked with would go through all kinds of ceremonies when someone dies not to appease a god or some deity, or to really give any favor to the dead, but to assuage the suffering of the living. The remaining family.  I saw the value and the importance of that work of the monk to help in the way he found in tradition, that the mourners saw their parents do for elders etc.  Once I saw that I knew, having all those ideas that secular Buddhists deny was important to keep Buddhism available for all people, those that are well read and those that are not.  Those that come to Buddhism not to learn about it and practice the teachings of the cause and cessation of suffering but those in the midst of it. When we forget that, we pare down Buddhism into a stale and heartless study of history and philosophy many times void of even spirituality that brings so many to the practice of Buddhism in the first place.

Why not a specific sect?  

Is non-sectarian blasphemous?  I certainly can be considered that way by some.  This of course depends on our intention and reason for studying and practicing Buddhist (Religion, philosophy, spirituality, practice and tradition).  If we are trying to attain a certain aspect of Buddhism, say, a Poha certification or become a lineage holder then it is best to choose one 'strain' of Buddhism and stick with that.  However if we are wanting to better our understanding of ourselves, the human condition and the cessation of suffering then a basic and general study is helpful.  We can appreciate how things and thoughts are explained in the different forms of Buddhism and apply them where and how we see fit.  

The bad trip in meditation.

Recent articles describe over a quarter of people that practice meditation have bad experiences.

Here's my take.

I have taught meditation for over 15 years now and have practiced for well over 40 years.  I have had bad experiences or bad trips while meditating and because of meditating.  I have had many of my 'students'  (I think of people that practice with me as more of a colleague than a student even though I am going through the steps of how, when, where, why and what to meditate about.) report difficulties, bad trips and unpleasant experiences.  This is how I help people through and past those times. 

I read four different articles from four different sources that turn out to be the same article, lightly massaged to appear different and had different titles. This seemed to become a big topic around 2018 or so.  Now there are even associations that can help you if you have had bad experiences with mediation.  Here are the links to those articles.

https://www.dailysabah.com/…/study-meditation-might-lead-to…

https://www.newscientist.com/…/2202323-a-quarter-of-people…/

https://cosmosmagazine.com/…/meditation-is-a-bad-trip-for-2…

https://www.newsweek.com/meditation-good-you-25-have-unplea…

In the training and practice that I do, meditation is a part of daily life. So it only makes sense that 25% of meditation and life is going to have unpleasant experiences. Meditation is designed to help us effectively deal with 'bad trips', unpleasantness, and... you guessed it... suffering. This is the whole idea of the Buddha dharma or the teachings and truth of Buddhism itself.  The idea of practice is to get ready for something. No one goes to practice thinking it is the real deal, the end of suffering. You need plenty of coaching, guidance, re-dos and discussion to really get the process. You cannot just sit down for 20 minutes and expect your mind to do what you want it to. You have spent your whole life training to be reactionary.  It is going to take practice, effort, time and patience to just see it IS reactionary much less train it to not be reactionary. 

QUICK FIX

The problem with meditation as it is taught currently by some is that it is somehow taught as a destination rather than a journey. We all want a quick fix without putting in any real work.  Time and time again I hear people say to me 'I need to start meditating' , they may show up a couple times and then say they cannot practice for what ever reason.  We seem to want a quick and intensive training to get years of practice into just a couple days.  Look at how many seminars and workshops offer weekend transformational 'life changing' techniques.   Occasionally some find huge benefit from them and it does indeed change their lives but the vast majority just go back to the rut of their 'normal lives' within a few days of the retreat. 

Regular meditation

One of the articles even specifically mentioned 'regular meditators' which was a good distinction from those that are just starting out or those that occasionally 'try' meditation. However, many that are regular meditators are not really even meditating, they are ruminating.   I had a "Meetup" group for over five years, with over a thousand 'members'.  Most never showed up.  Less than five percent became regular at their meditation and of those only about one percent of the thousand progressed to at least notice when they were ruminating.  

Ruminating is re-chewing something over and over. Cows are called ruminants because they 'chew their cud'. They belch up stomach contents to re-chew it for digestive purposes. Many people do the same thing, running it over and over in the mind, trying to find another answer, or simply just attempting to think the problem to death. This is what I see many do in their minds when they stop to meditate. They sit and think over everything that the day was about, all the stuff they need to do and all kinds of junk they are worrying about. Here is the main problem with this- They are practicing worry. They are training their minds to ruminate, to worry, to fret, to be agitated. Sooner or later, they will be very adept at it.

I had a client come in for some work and we discussed meditation, he said he had been practicing TM for over 30 years and had to stop because it stopped working for him. With a little prodding it came clear. This guy was a high end executive and had a very stressful work life. When he would get stressed he would sequester himself away for 20 minutes and chant his mantra, he would meditate. The only problem was, he would only meditate when he was stressed so he started to link and anchor stress to his time meditating and also linked in his body mind his mantra to stress. No wonder it didn't work for him.

Being good at it

So here is the problem. You will become good at what you practice. Practice happiness you will become happy, practice gratitude, you will be more thankful. Your mind will look for ways to continue that feeling if it is beneficial.   If you practice meditation or mindfulness at the right time, place etc.  You will get better at it.  But we have to ask, better at what?  That depends on your intention or reason for meditating in the first place.  We have to decide what our 

I teach people to have as many anchors as they can when they meditate, I also tell them to find a specific time to meditate. What is an anchor you ask?  A meditation anchor is anything you purposefully use routinely in a meditation where over time, this becomes part of the meditation and helps you to get to a place of your intent.  These can be place, time, a color, sound, smell or any sensory aspect of your meditation.  This way, when they have many specific links to relaxation, or even the intent of focus on calm, that is what you will do, focus on calm then they will become good at it. So when a stressful event occurs their set point is better, they see the stress coming and can choose to act differently. This takes time, study, discussion and practice. Without any discussion or study, you are merely sitting there in your own cesspool mind, practicing exactly what you are thinking... stress, clinging, worry, agitation...

When you have a place to meditate that is away from your regular stressors, with scents, colors, items, pictures, statues and even routine that is only used when you are setting your mind and body for meditation and calm, then you can really get the essence of the art of mediation, that it is a practice for when stuff comes up OFF the meditation cushion. That is when the rubber hits the road. You cannot check the air pressure, brakes and tread in the middle of a hard skidding stop. That should have been done before. That is why we call it PRACTICE.

This is probably the main reason I am not fond of the mindfulness movement. It has taken Buddhist meditation practice and secularized it, thinking that if they took out the moral training and study it would somehow make it less 'religious'. It doesn't work. S.N. Goenka did it with Vipassana, and it works lovely. There is hardly a mention of the Buddha. Instead, in my opinion, he was able to teach it as the Buddha intended. Approachable and doable by all, not just those that paid homage to him. No ceremony, no dogma, just insight meditation.

I was taught in the Buddhist Chan and Theravada traditions, so there is plenty of dogma and ceremony. I found it useful for me at times, other times, I did not so I let it go. I was able to see how my study of psychology and mental well being really meshed with that training and I have been able to transmogrify Buddhist (Eastern thought) into a more palatable form for Westerners.

The hard part is to slow people down with meditation and mindfulness. They want too much too fast. It was not designed to be that w

ay and is in no way a panacea.

So, let go. Just sit. Comfortably... breathe. You can do this. If you can decide to sit you can decide to change the way you react to your mind.

See you on the mat.

Dr. Rev. Sean H. Thompson (Dhammajivaka)

http://www.thecenteredpath.org

To think, it is NOW everywhere.

In the meditation process we are attempting to really look at things as they are... now.  It is one of the most difficult things one can do without practice.  However, that is exactly why we practice. We spend some time see-ing things as they are in the present moment.  Soon we realize that we are all in THIS now moment.  We can stop thinking about yesterday and tomorrow, all the 'shoulds' and 'woulds' and get to what is going on now.  Are we satisfied?  Dissatisfied?  Uncomfortable?
As we learn to sit, we become still.  It is in that stillness that we can become aware of ourselves and what is going on around us.  Without judgement, commentary or even flashbacks or flash-forwards to events we mull about at other times.

Once we have sat for a while, become still and start to see things for the way they are, we can start to realize our suffering and the suffering of others.  Not suffering like being ill or something but it can mean that.  I am talking about that general 'angst' that we all feel when things are not quite going the way we want.  Time is too slow, too fast, it is too cold or hot, etc.

How can we get to that point in time when everything seems to stop?  By stopping of course.  LOL.
In order to meditate we just have to sit and do it, even if only for a few moments at first.  Soon you will start to like it because it feels good not to be rushing all over the place or thinking too much.  But that is only the beginning.  Later we feel the need to breathe.  It comes naturally usually yes, but it is something that fortunately we can control.  Something we can slow or speed up with a mere thought.  We soon realize it is thoughts that control breathing and breathing can control (influence at least) thoughts.

Think for example of how you breathe when you are angry?  They are not deep breaths that are flowing and smooth.  Our breathing is faster, heavier and higher in the chest.  Think about it.  In fact, just  try to breathe that way for few breaths.  Many times you will automatically start thinking of things that have made you angry in the past.  What suffering!  All just because of a pattern.    If we spend a lot of time thinking angry thoughts our breathing habits will change and it will be easier and easier to lose our tempers.  With the first step of sitting and becoming still we can start to see this occur and realize that our mood is really influenced by our breath.  Spend some time contemplating that?  Do you do that?  Do you know someone that does?

Now think of something sad, notice the body and the breath.  Totally different isn't it?  It is with that subtle stillness we can 'calmly abide' and see it.  Then we notice it for what it is, a thought.  A totally non-substantial thought.  Now, when I says non-substantial I am taking it as the word indicates.  Without substance.  It has no weight, no mass, no power except that which we have decided to give it.
Think of this quote:  'What the caterpillar calls the end of the world, the master calls a butterfly."  How sad to be that caterpillar!  The end is there, all is done, all for naught!  But wait a little bit... notice the conditions that are present and you will soon see a butterfly.

Well, back to now.

When we really try and stay with the breath as it happens we find that we start to notice things we have never noticed before.  We feel movement in the body, or we feel air at our nostrils or at our lips.  This is a great progress point!   Start to watch your own breathing as if you were a scientist.  Just observe it, don't try and make it faster or slower or try to guide it in any way.  Just watch your breath, experience it.  It seems really futile and stupid at first, but you will catch on, I promise.

Next we can start to notice where you feel the breath in the body.  Is it all in your chest?  Are there other sensations you feel?

Now that you have contacted the breath, the next thing is to just realize this moment for what it is.  All THIS is happening now... Think now out side this space you occupy.  No matter how far away you can imagine.  Even a distant galaxy.  It is now.  Yes it may take years for that light to get to us, but now is now, soon you may realize that is all there IS...

About Dhammajivaka and The Centered Path.

Reverend Sean Hugh Thompson was fully ordained as a Buddhist Minister in 2006 under both the Mahayana and Theravada traditions.  He practices, studies and teaches based on the Chan style of Buddhism, the precursor to Zen and Sohn practices.  Reverend Sean was given the Dharma name of ‘Dhammajivaka’ after not only the meaning of the word ‘Good son of the Dhamma’ but also after Jivaka, the physician of the Buddha.  Since Rev. Sean is a holistic health provider, chiropractor and acupuncturist, he is able to apply and teach concepts of Buddhism in his holistic healthcare practice for his patients.   Rev. Sean also teaches contemplative, calming and insight meditation weekly.

The Centered Path is a church organization, registered as a 501c3 non-profit organization with the purpose of diminishing suffering for all beings as best we can.  Each week, Rev. Sean of the Centered Path presents topics like this in his Sunday morning class.  If you are in the Parker Colorado area on a Sunday, feel free to stop by.  Mediation and discussion are always free. 

You can, however, donate to help this project develop and continue.  Please contact me directly at thebasicbuddhist@gmail.com

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