Here, one needs a practice-oriented approach to their richness. For such practical aims, however, the institutional separation of the teachings into Vinaya, Sutra, Abhidharma and Vajrayana is too remote. With sufficient insight, one can stabilize peoplesвЂ™ development and convey a joyful anticipation of the levels ahead. Even those who prefer working with beings on a case by case basis will see their effectiveness grow vastly when they obtain a view of the whole path and can choose among its wide range of methods. Whether this happens through giving money for Buddhist centers to run, through being a local or a traveling teacher, or an example to society, family and friends, one should know as much Buddhism as possible. Whoever supports BuddhaвЂ™s teachings is a link in an unbroken chain. Modern, self-confident people want experience. Also, philosophy and psychology only have minor pull, since most have been fed these subjects in uninspired ways in school.

Today in the West, with plenty of gifted people and good karma around, many wish to experience the space-clarity of mind while they prefer to leave questions of cause and effect relative (and with the police: whether they manage to catch one or not. Less, apparently, wished to hear about wisdom and compassion, and only a few had the conditions for the pure view of the Diamond Way. Only during holidays does the traditional yogi style manifest outwardly, as many move their tents from one meditation course to the next.Дў550 years ago in India, many people seem to have been attracted to BuddhaвЂ™s advice about cause and effect. In their daily lives they generally hold the Mahamudra, a yogiвЂ™s liberating view, while accomplishing whatever is expected for a productive and meaningful life. My students around the world seem to bridge and unite the best of both ways.

This reduces the distance from the lay people of today, who on their side are so freely backed by a welfare state that they no longer need to establish vast families for looking after them in old age. As there is no need for the former to compete with the red-robed monks and nuns in obtaining the support of the productive population, they also donвЂ™t need the outer props which formerly made them easily distinguishable, like flowing white robes and wild hair styles. In the West, however, the originally separate groups of yogis and lay people are coming very close. The vows of monks and nuns were gathered from BuddhaвЂ™s advice to various followers and groups, and though much looks strange in a modern setting, they cannot be changed to fit new situations. People simply could not make love without having children and family, which restricted their time for study and meditation. Nor did he have a fear of future heirs to contest accumulated wealth like the Catholic church. The reason for men and women to live separately in earlier times was not that Buddha was prudish, or that his teachings were hostile to the body. Since today people in developed countries have the means to decide the number of their offspring, there will be no large Buddhist monasteries. The yogis lived unrestricted by social norms, often in various caves with changing partners and focused their entire lives on spiritual development (one example is the well known yogi, Milarepa). The lay people had families, a normal occupation and tried to put the teachings into their everyday lives. Monks and nuns lived separately in monasteries and nunneries and had strict rules of conduct. In Tibet, there were three possible ways of following Buddhism: one might become a monk, practice as a lay person, or be a yogi.

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