A Harmony of Views by Khenchen Thrangu

Author:Khenchen Thrangu [Thrangu, Khenchen]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Shambhala
Published: 2020-08-04T00:00:00+00:00

9

HOW THE MIDDLE WAY FITS WITH OTHER PATHS

Above we discussed how to perceive emptiness directly by first engaging it through understanding, then developing certainty in it, coming to an understanding of the intent of the great texts that reveal emptiness. The next passage discusses how that nature fits compatibly or incompatibly with other views.

Generally, different people have different capabilities, and the true dharma teaches various methods—it is not a single thing. Because sentient beings have various interests, it would not work to teach only a single method. For example, if we went to a restaurant that only sold white bread, could you eat your fill? You could. Would you get something to eat? Of course. However, white bread alone cannot satisfy all the people who go to a restaurant. Diners have different tastes, so a restaurant needs to serve a variety of dishes—some sweet, some sour, some spicy. Some people like spicy food, and some people are afraid of it. Similarly, when we teach the true dharma, teaching various methods instead of just a single one is very beneficial. This is the reason why so many schools appeared in India—the Great Exposition, Sutra, Mind Only, Middle Way, and so forth. The basis for all of them is the three wheels of dharma taught by the Bhagavan Buddha—the wheel of the four noble truths, the wheel of no characteristics, and finally the wheel of perfect differentiation—which give many different methods.

The next verse describes how this view compares with other paths, beginning with how it is incompatible with other paths. It is essentially the same as the passage in Mipham Rinpoche’s Song of the Dzogchen View. The passage reads:

The Exposition, Sutra, Idealist, and the school of the three eastern scholars

Take the form of my mother, a white elephant, to be

The curving patterns of matter, a colorful tiger,

The perceiver, a crazy, brainless monkey,

Or freestanding nonduality, a strong and wild bear.

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