Enjoyed most your mom's comment (particularly the first line):

"And perhaps it has always been true that only a few in each Buddhist culture went deep enough to realize the true nature of mind, but the incredible blessing of the Vidyadhara was that he gave us all the teachings usually reserved for tulkus. In Tibet it was rare for even nuns to receive more than second turning of the wheel of dharma. So I feel it is important not to waste this vajra gift."

Maybe you and your mother could do a short dialogue on the subject. (I am reminded of The Monk and The Philosopher by Mattieu Ricard.)

Perhaps the most outrageous thing I could say would be that the Buddha Shakymuni is not retired. The original sangha is alive and well. And though there have been moments of darkness, I believe Trungpa's comment (If the buddhas of the three times and the great teachers were to comment, they would surely express their disappointment.) is accurate, it is not final. It reflected a particular condition at a particular time — and that has passed.

Trungpa used to chide me for being overly serious; his approach of the merry trickster was more useful, more effective, but he was under-recognized for his wisdom.

The discussion of other religious traditions is worth noting — one does not always recognize bodhisattvas and the work they do as they are not restricted to wearing special clothes or insignias or speaking only in certain languages or traditions.

Anyway, though I understand your pessimism, I agree with Mom. The gifts should not be overlooked.

In terms of this being a draft, perhaps you might consider a stronger more declarative conclusion? I had to hunt for it.

Dear Waylon,
Even though snow-bound, or perhaps because of being snow-bound and just doing a modest in-house retreat, I have time to do things like read your bit in the January Shambhala Sun before it is February! I found it good if slightly cynical.
I too think monasticism is beside the point of the buddhadharma taking root in the West. It is up to lay people to take it to heart or not.
And perhaps it has always been true that only a few in each Buddhist culture went deep enough to realize the true nature of mind, but the incredible blessing of the Vidyadhara was that he gave us all the teachings usually reserved for tulkus. In Tibet it was rare for even nuns to receive more than second turning of the wheel of dharma. So I feel it is important not to waste this vajra gift.
In many ways Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche has made the Shambhala path even easier and more acessible and perhaps people will appreciate getting to the profundity faster, or perhaps they will miss it for just not having sat enough to be open to it. That remains to be seen.
It was great you quoted VCTR’s S o MM and that bit from the opening of Naropa.
You words will provoke contemplation and make the curious think about their priorities.
Love to you,
xxxooo
mom

Great comment. Great thoughts. I’d only remind you that ritual at its root isn’t about nostalgia, or emotion even—but rather connection. In Judeo Christian Muslim religions—connection with a higher power. In Buddhism, connection with the present moment. Pema Chodron talks about the meaning of ritual here…well I can’t find it, but here’s a different one: “In his own way, Trungpa Rinpoche devised such a course for his students. He’d have us memorize certain chants, and a few months after most of us knew them, he’d change the wording. He’d teach us specific rituals and be extremely precise about how they should be done. Just about the time we began criticizing people who did them wrong, he’d teach the rituals in a completely different way. We would print up nice manuals with all the correct procedures, but usually they were outdated before they came off the press. After years of this sort of training, one begins to relax one’s grip. If today the instruction is to put everything on the right, one does that as impeccably as one can. When tomorrow the instruction is to put everything on the left, one does that with one’s whole heart. The idea of one right way sort of dissolves into the mist. ”

In any case I did grow up in Buddhism, and the ritual—while powerful, fun, sweet, boring…isn’t at all why I’m connected to Buddhism. I’m connected to Buddhism, simply, because of meditation, and the glimpse it gives me into a clear, open, actually wakeful and changeable mind. The notion that I can actually wake up still blows me away to this day, much as it did during one Shambhala Training meditation weekend at Karme Choling back in 1989 or something. My mind isn’t solid. My thoughts aren’t real. I can pop them, like bubbles. My depression is fragile. My aggression isn’t a genetic disposition. My mind is, as they say in the Buddhist tradition, like the sky–clouds may cover my wakefulness, but the sun is fundamental.

And so while I love the Christmas tree, and red sweaters with reindeer on them, and wreaths and reindeer and caroling and dinner parties and presents and love and peace on earth, having been brought up with them by my ex-Christian Scientist Buddhist mommy, I love those rituals for the peace and love and familial warmth they point to, not for any religions they are or are not associated with (as we know the Tree came from Pagan traditions predating Christianity).

My point? Meditate. Develop compassion, no matter what religion you are. And raise your children, if you choose to have them, in a way that honors the tradition of wakefulness, discipline and generosity to self and others. Whether you call those traditions Christianity or Buddhism, for yourself and your family—isn’t half as important as whether you practice meditation, in my view.