Goals and Goal-orientedness in
Pemako buddhist practice
Every now and then someone sends me a message saying that Pemako practice seems so ”goal-oriented” as if we were aiming for some special experiences. I'll put this into a proper context so that you can understand what goals and goal-orientedness in Pemako means.
In Pemako practice, we have the so called ”bhumi openings” and ”bhumi perfections”. Bhumis (lit. ground) are areas or fields in our mind, i.e. the subtle body made of energy channels and centers, where any kind of awakening/insight/enlightenment experiences happen. The reason we speak of the 13 bhumis in total and purification of the 10 bhumis is because this is a specific way to understand and to apply practices. Because of this knowledge about the subtle body; that there is a chronological continuum from beginning of insight practice (opening of the 1st bhumi), then consecutive openings (openings of 2nd to 13th bhumis), then completion of purification (perfection) of each of these bhumi fields in chronological order from 1 to 10; all this is actually a clear map how it all works. And actually this applies to every type of training system, not only Pemako. So, what we have in the 13 bhumi map is a clear and solid path map from unawakened state to full enlightenment.
As
a teacher and founder of Pemako, I put a lot of emphasis on teaching
my students about the distinction between self-based mind of
confusion and our basic state, or buddhanature. I point this out on
all retreats and the reason for that is that practitioners need to
know what their buddhanature feels and tastes like. They need to have
it pointed out so that they gain confidence quickly. But in our
system pointing out instructions given by the teachers is really just
a safety valve because our practices enable recognition of the basic
state very easily and quickly.
What does all this have to do
with bhumis and goals?
If
you ask me, there is no other practice in buddhist yoga except to
recognise ourselves as fully enlightened, awake and aware beings. In
zen, some masters say the same thing that there is no other practice
but kensho (lit. seeing one's true nature). The way I teach is
that I explain to my students how each technique, be it prayer,
mudra, visualisation or anything else makes this recognition happen,
so that they know how to do their practice correctly. Not knowing
this is, in fact, faulty practice and largely a waste of time.
When
with the help of yogic exercises, purposefully and not accidentally,
we make our buddhanature appear and its recognition takes place, this
is all there is to it in all of buddhist yogas. This moment of the
recognition of the basic state is unlike any other kind of experience
in all of existence, and that is why the recognition of oneself as a
fully awakened buddha has the power to eradicate our self-based
existential confusion.
So,
what bhumi openings and bhumi perfections are, are moments when our
buddhanature shows up and is recognised fully. These bhumi events
are so called cessations, widely discussed by all buddhist
traditions. Cessation of the mind means that the self-construct that
causes confusion and existential pain, ceases to be for some period
of time. Even if it lasts for only just few seconds, it leaves a
permanent mark in the mind, in other words, a notable bit of the
ego-construct becomes untangled and deconstructed. Again, this is
what buddhist yoga is all about. This is how we come to know
ourselves.
So if we do practice correctly, as a sign of
succesful practice, we inevitably have recognitions of the basic
state, recognitions of ourselves as buddhas, that is, bhumi events.
On the other hand, if our practice and view is incorrect this sign is
absent and our basic state remains foreign to us.
So when you hear our sangha members speak about this, they are talking about the signs of correct practice. That's all. This is actually universal not only to all buddhism but to all types of methods. This is because the basic state is the same in all beings, regardless of spiritual or religious denomination or interpretations. You either know yourself or you don't. You are either accumulating first hand experience of your basic state or you aren't.
So on the surface you might think that ”oh those Pemako folks just focus on achieving some momentary goal” but actually we put focus on the correct understanding of practice and then the signs of succesful practice, bhumi events, come automatically.
In us there is perfect purity and freshness, clarity and sobriety. Discover it.
Kim, 9.8.2021
