THINLEY NORBU RINPOCHE
I have spent the greater part of my life in the East and so have always been involved in Eastern social customs, which are very rigid and restrictive. I have also been involved in the tradition of Dharma, which is also in its own way quite rigorous.
Some of the people I met in the West were involved in Dharma and some were not. I found that a lot of the people not involved in Dharma are simple people with very good minds. I also found that some Westerners practicing Dharma are actually being harmed by it — their minds are deteriorating.
A lot of people I met who are not involved in Dharma are very direct and straightforward, without many thoughts, doubts, or worries.
Many people involved in Dharma, on the other hand, have a lot of doubts and worries and are not exactly straightforward. This made me think that perhaps in some ways it’s better not to practice Dharma.
Buddha Shakyamuni said that the source of all Dharma is directness, and in my experience people who know nothing of Dharma often tend to be very direct. Having learned a great deal about Dharma, people tend to become involved in the artificiality of mental fiction and so become much less direct. The teachings of Dharma have in fact taken them away from Dharma.
*** ECHOES - The Boudhanath Teachings THINLEY NORBU - Translated by William Koblensky - SHAMBHALA Publications Boulder · 2016
**I read this in the 80s but it kept coming up in my mind. Thanks to Lizeta Lozuraityte for bringing this up again.
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