Adverse Effects from Practice
I
remember a story of a tibetan buddhist monk whose health collapsed
soon after he swore to do some special practice for 2-3 years. He
couldn't eat, drink, defecate, his hair fell off, lost lots of weight
and was bedridden for over half a hear... but he kept saying the
mantra... to overcome the karma that made him ill and ignorant. This
had happened less than a decade ago in some monastery in Northern
India. These things happen. He regained his health after a long
period of symptoms that would terrify most practitioners and make
them run away from the practice.
I don't think people have a
clue how the whole thing works and how profound the benefits of
mantra practice can be. When unusual illnesses and ailments happen to
dedicated practitioners, the illness is a sign that great benefits
and realizations are coming. This applies to dark nights as well.The
worst thing to do at that point is to quit practice. I'm saying all
this assuming that one is practicing under a professional teacher and
a method that works.
Dudjom Kim, 3.7.2022
