Atisa’s Slogans, in Context
Developed for the Tikkun planned for Shavuot 2022, where Shirat HaNefesh joins Tifereth Israel and Fabrangen, and where David Balto agreed to present about Pirke Avot
The proposed title for this session is:
“Righty tighty, lefty-loosey: Sayings and ethics of many of our forefathers, including Pirke Avot from the Jewish tradition, and Atisa’s slogans from the buddhist tradition”
What inspired the title?
In circumstances where you want to understand right action…it has developed that sometimes….it is helpful to reflect on a saying, that somehow directs you.
And, the saying: righty-tighty, lefty loosey, is one such saying…that might help you know how to screw in a screw correctly.
Likewise, Pirke Avot, as a system of thought, developed in the Jewish tradition, and has been thought to represent an important ethical system.
Recently, reading from Rabbi Rachel Barenblat, also author of the Velveteen Hagaddah, where she reflected from her recent study of Pirkei Avot: “
“”Give others the benefit of the doubt” (Pirkei Avot 1:4) — what does that mean in practice? “Don’t separate yourself from the community (2:4) — how do we live that?”
Somehow, that phrasing made me reflect on another system of sayings, called Atisa’s Slogans, and it occurred to me that, with this now Shavuot teaching situation, it might be a swell opportunity to share reflections of how these two systems of sayings, both, can provide help to prayers and practitioners.
David will discuss Pirkei Avot, and I’ll intend to share something about Atisa’s Slogans….also and sometimes referred to as a system for training the mind….also including tonglen, which is somewhat more widely known.
More background for where Atisa’s slogans fits into the buddhist framework may be helpful.
Generally, these slogans are a part of the Tibetan tradition in Buddhism.
Buddhism, like Judaism, from some points of view, is known as a middle way
And, in some systems of Buddhism, a focus is sitting meditation….and I would say that is definitely common to all traditions of Buddhism.
Generally, though, Tibetan Buddhism sees the process of awakening as going through a series of stages, called yanas…of which there are 3…being Hinayana, Mahayana, and Vajrayana.
The hinayana is most closely associated with sitting meditation.
The practice we’re going to talk about tonight, slogans practice, or training the mind, is right in the middle of the middle way…and is associated, along with paramita practice, as part of the Mahayayana practices. And then, both of these yanas are seen, in some sense, to being preparatory to the 3rd yana, called Vajrayana…..in which the practitioner engages especially in both visualization practice….and then dissolving.
What we’re doing tonight is a little bit of comparison. Not straight on….system of slogans, one for the other. But, the general idea is that one good idea might throw a positive clarifying light on another.
Since Atisa’s slogans, and this approach to mind training, are designed to prepare you to visualize and dissolve in the Vajrayana….let me just talk about this for a minute.
There’s a lot of dissolving practice in Buddhism. In a sense…that’s the heart of basic sitting practice…you be willing to let your thoughts and concepts dissolve.
In comparing Judaism and Buddhism, you would be reasonable to either praise or blame the focus on dissolving in Buddhism.
On the one hand, there may be a useful function on relaxing….from holding too tightly.
On the other hand, the buddhists frequentyly fail to get a tikkun olam committee off the ground, typically, training in compassion, but not showing a good pattern of practice of actually helping others.
But, remember…there are 2 focuses in the Vajrayana….and they are…. first visualization, and then….dissolving.
A real focus of training in the buddhist tradition is visualizing the images engendered in the texts that is practiced in Tibetan Buddhism.
Although there are many attempts to integrate meditation into Jewish practice, aka consistent with the Hinayana tradition of buddhist practice, sitting meditation practice is fundamentally…..primarily complementary….allowing you to prepare for davening.
But, the use of texts in Tibetan Buddhism is, to my mind….an on par match with Jewish practice.
Both traditions use texts to engage the practice.
But, where in Tibetan Buddhism, there is a focus on visualizing the text….we don’t have that so much as our minhag….our emphasis….in the Jewish tradition.
The idea of….what is in our mind…..as we daven, at the time we say the words…has had somewhat less of a focus, and I think we could do better there. Just my two cents.
Now, with that background, we’ll talk about the specific, and parallel….tradition of Atisa’s slogans, which came specifically from Atisa in 982 CE.
In contrast, I believe we understand that Pirke Avot was written more than a thousand years earlier….in about 200 BCE.