There is really only one activity on the spiritual path:  cultivate an ever closer relationship with the Spiritual Guide, in all of his forms.  How do we do this?  First, we come in contact with his teachings and start to put them into practice (Dharma).  Then, we start to develop friendships and personal relationships with others who are also practicing his teachings (Sangha).  Eventually we start to cultivate relationships with the different Buddhas, such as Je Tsongkhapa, Dorje Shugden and Heruka or Vajrayogini.  Then we receive empowerments into these deities, and train to become just like them.  Then, we start to understand how each of these deities is actually an emanation of the Spiritual Guide.  We then mix ourselves closer and closer with the Spiritual Guide, first at the level of self-generation, then at the level of mixing with his body mandala, then with his completely pure subtle body.  The nada at the middle of the subtle body is like the final conventional portal into the Dharmakaya, or his Truth Body.  A Buddha’s Truth Body is the ultimate nature of all things. The Spiritual Guide, from a practical point of view, is a portal through which all of the Buddhas express themselves in this world.  So it is perfectly correct to view all phenomena as by nature the Spiritual Guide.  Finally we realize that all of the different things we have been creating karma with, from the first teaching to the final meditations, are all by nature his emanations.  We realize every moment of every day is part of his emanations. 

The Spiritual Guide assumes countless forms according to the karmic dispositions of living beings.  Each one of these forms functions to prevent us from sinking deeper into samsara and tries to send us in the direction of enlightenment.  Every single moment of our life, every single thing that appears internally and externally is one of these forms.  Our problem is we do not realize this.  By becoming aware of this, these forms become empowered to accomplish their function.  The emanations of the spiritual guide become activated by our becoming aware of them and developing a mind of wonder at his infinite skill.

The Spiritual Guide operates on many different levels.  Functionally, there are four main levels:  the world of our normal life, the world of generation stage, the world of completion stage and the completely pure world of the Dharmakaya.  Each level is increasingly refined.  Traveling through these different stages is the path.  We get t the next level by learning how to be completely balanced with the flow of change at the previous level.  Absent that balance, we get swept away and pulled in. 

There is no relationship in the universe more important to maintain and cultivate than that with the Spiritual Guide.  The real fruit of a marriage comes from cultivating an ever deeper relationship with somebody.  Doing so requires tremendous inner work.  In exactly the same way, but at a much deeper level, the spiritual path is primarily traveled through cultivating an ever deeper relationship with the spiritual guide.  It is hard work to draw ever closer to him because it requires us to shed all that is impure and out of alignment with the way things really are and function.  But that is the whole point and that is why it works.

Since I  no longer have regular physical access to Sangha, for me this blog and my virtual spiritual activities are my main ways of creating karma with sangha.  Looking forward, it seems clear that a new world is being created, a digital world, and more and more beings will be spending more and more time in this world interacting with others in this digital world.  So just as we need to bring the Dharma into the physical world, so too we need to bring it into the digital world and learn how to practice in that world.  This blog exists on the cloud of this virtual world, and is like my digital reliquary (for whatever it is worth…  :)).

I have not been very interested in venturing onto Facebook, but I am starting to reconsider.  If the world we are moving into is a digital one.  If used correctly, Facebook is a powerful way of keeping in contact with and cultivating relationships with the people who have been important in my life.  In particular, my sangha.  I am thinking of making a “Kadam Ryan” Facebook page as a means of keeping in contact with my sangha.  Since I do not have physical access to them, I can still maintain their relationship in my life through Facebook.  In this new digital world, at least for now, Facebook is how people stay in contact with each other and how they hang out.  Just as the most important relationship to cultivate is the one with the Spiritual Guide, so too with the Sangha.  The Sangha are those other beings who are clustered around the spiritual guide.  By drawing close to them, we anchor ourselves in the karmic orbit of the guru, not only for this life but through life after life.

The purpose of this blog is to share my experience of practicing the Kadampa instructions in the context of my formal Dharma practice, my personal life and my professional life in the hopes that it may prove helpful to others seeking to transform their modern lives into the path to enlightenment.  At a personal level, doing this blog helps me crystalize my own thoughts about the Dharma by putting it into writing and it helps me bring my bodhichitta (the wish to become a Buddha for the sake of all) alive.  How so?  At a practical level, the bodhisattva path is the improving of oneself for the benefit of others, in particular the process of gaining Dharma realizations so that we can help others do the same.  By doing this blog, I can view each moment of my normal modern life as an opportunity to gain spiritual realizations which I can then share with those who read this blog.  It gives purpose to each moment of my life:  I must learn how to transform each moment so that I can help others in similar situations do the same. 

The starting point of transforming every moment of our life into the path is to have a unifying narrative that binds every aspect of our life together into a common purpose, or more specifically, project.  In this way, everything we do is directed at and contributes to this singular purpose/project.  If we can accomplish this, then not a single moment of our life will be wasted.  For me, this singular project is “to build my pure land.”  At a very profound level, the project is to transform myself into my pure land.  What is a pure land?  A pure land is a realm emanated by a Buddha within which living beings can take rebirth and enter, progress along and complete the path to enlightenment.  Quite simply, it can be thought of as a bodhisattva’s training camp.  For maximum benefit, this pure land must pervade the entire universe and function to lead all beings from the deepest hell to the highest enlightenment. 

The two characteristics of a pure land is there is no manifest suffering and everything functions as a cause of one’s enlightenment.  Suffering is ultimately a state of mind that is dispelled by the wisdom knowing how to accept and use painful experiences for our spiritual advancement.  Thus, the difference between living in samsara, or a world of suffering, and living in a pure land is our knowing how to use every experience, painful or otherwise, for spiritual development.  With such wisdom, we will be able to enjoy every experience as fuel pushing us towards enlightenment, and from an experiential point of view, it will be as if we are in a pure land.

A modern Kadampa life has three main spheres:  our formal Dharma practice, our personal life and our professional life.  This is true for all Kadampas, not just those who are lay practitioners.  A Resident Teacher living in a center, for example, still has their own family and many friendships and engages in all sorts of professional activities in the running of a center.  If the unifying project of our life is to build our pure land, how then do we accomplish this project in these three spheres?  In our formal Dharma practice, we strive to transform ourselves into the Yidam.  In our personal life, we strive to transform ourselves into the Guru.  And in our professional life, we strive to transform ourselves into the Protector.  In this context, the Yidam, or personal deity, is the supreme spiritual doctor who heals the suble body, speech and mind of all living beings.  The Guru is the supreme spiritual father (or mother as the case may be) and friend of all living beings who leads all living beings from the deepest hell to the highest enlightenment.  The Protector is the supreme spiritual servant-king who forever and always arranges all the outer and inner conditions so that everything is perfect for the swiftest possible enlightenment of everyone.  Practically speaking, this means in our formal Dhama practice, we strive to develop within ourselves the qualities and engage in the actions of a supreme spiritual doctor.  In our personal lives, we strive to develop within ourselves the qualities and engage in the actions of a supreme spirutal father and friend.  And in our professional lives, we strive to develop within ourselves the qualities and engage in the actions of a supreme spiritual servant-king.  If we can do this, then our entire life will be integrated into our spiritual path, bringing both meaning to every moment and unwavering progress towards the final goal.  Over time, these three spheres will merge into one and we will become the embodiment of guru, Yidam and protector liberating all beings in our pure land.  We will have completed the path.

Some people mistakenly believe that certain life contexts, such as being ordained in a center doing formal Dharma activities all of the time, are more conducive to enlightenment than other life contexts.  As a result of this ignorance, they either become dissatisfied with the life that they have or they judge others who are pursuing a way of life different than their own.  The reality is all situations are equally empty, in other words created by mind, and so all situations are equally transformable into the quick path to enlightenment.  This blog will attempt to share my personal expereince of being a Kadampa Working Dad as my quick path to enlightenment.  Hopefully the lessons learned will prove beneficial to all Kadampas, working parents or otherwise.  It is my hope that through sharing this experience others can learn from my mistakes and that I can live up to my bodhichitta wishes.  Enjoy!