Rating: 
Summary: Can the knife cut itself?
Review: Clearly - this work of Trungpa's has helped a lot of people. It has become - and will remain, a 'classic' among Western Buddhists. Thanks be for the wise things it has to impart.
Be that as it may, don't imagine that everything it touches has turned to gold. In the interest of objectivity - and compassion, it needs to be pointed out that Trungpa's chief successor - Osel Tendzin (Thomas Rich), brought a tragic hiatus to Trungpa's work, after infecting disciples with HIV (AIDS).
When asked why he had behaved so recklessly - he declared that he 'thought his tantric powers would protect him.' We needn't ask whether this was Trungpa's 'crazy wisdom' - it was just plain crazy.
If you doubt the veracity of this sad, folly ridden tale, check the files of Sanfrancisco Chronicle and other leading papers - and web-sites dealing with cult-abuse. This sorry business led to court proceedings and litigation - hardly an edifying example of 'Buddhist wisdom.' Osel Tendzin obviously suffered himself (he died of Aids in 1991). The damage done to people, damaged Buddhism - through bad press. It leaves all Buddhists - regardless of background, in something of a 'double-bind.' At some point - we have to put this behind us. But we can't do that while people remain oblivious of the problem - the danger of unquestioning allegiance to spiritual leaders and religious 'institutions.' Ironically, the ultimate answer lies in the wisdom hinted at in Trungpa's book. If teachers don't practice what they preach, we have a duty to complain. Regrettably, the episode noted is by no means an isolated case. Other 'Tantric' teachers have sub-sequently been sued for using 'tantra' as a pretext to exploit people sexually.Be warned -ANYONE who tries or even suggests anything of this sort is betraying the example of the Buddha and is not fit to teach. It must be confronted, and if necessary, made public, before further damage is done.
Rating:
Summary: It does what it says on the tin
Review: A no-nonsense, firm, but gentle warning note to those of us committed to the so-called path of self-development. Trungpa patiently brings into fresh air the dangerous and destructive method by which we typically approach the notion of spirituality: i.e. as something to be developed, learnt through discipline or otherwise achieved much as we seek to aquire the prizes in our everyday material life. Trungpa's message was ideally suited to that aspect of ourselves - the Eastern mind as much as the Western - which is constantly looking for something external through which we hope to secure our sense of self and make us happy. Exposing this tendency with great skill and clarity, he outlines a more open, direct and yet infinitely more challenging way to experience Mind beyond the self through correct meditation. Even amongst Buddhist literature this is wonderfully refreshing and at once destroys all hope of bettering oneself and yet points to a far brighter fact: that true liberation inevitably involves letting go of the self rather than working to improve it. The often rather painful process of spiritual awakening is made sense of in this book if we begin to see that our emotions and thoughts cloud our direct experience of reality. An apt message befitting an enlightened being who wore his suits 2 sizes too small as a constant reminder of the irritation and dissatisfaction of the samsaric world.
Rating:
Summary: A clear and eloquent transmission of how the mind works
Review: Chogyam Trungpa, often referred to as one of the few oriental, Buddhist lamas who truly understood the Western mind, here transcends East and West by addressing simply and eloquently, the processes of the mind and ego. Trungpa illuminates how some of these processes can undermine an otherwise wholesome relationship to ourselves and our basic goodness (buddha nature) and our relationship with others. These processes can cause our suffering and the suffering of others and disrupt our efforts to be decent and skillful. The non-theistic text, transmitted by this extraordinarily gifted meditation master, is presented freely without prostelytizing and is offered clearly without judgment, blame, guilt, hope or fear. Cutting Through is an important stepping-stone towards developing self-awareness, fearlessness, friendship and loving kindness. A 'must-read' for any diver or warrior of heart and courage. Also recommended are Trungpa's: Shambhala, Path of the Warrior and/or Meditation in Action.
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Summary: Cuts through the modern fake-spiritualism
Review: Do you think you're becoming a better person? Trungpa's book is a reality check for wide-eyed spiritualists, mystics and "believers" of all kinds. He makes a clever back door assualt on the ego and its overwhelming tendency to hijack the spiritual process. While I found some parts rather arcane, it's generally an economical text. I would especially recommend it to anyone with an interest in self-development who is exploring the spiritual path (is that what it's called?). Read it before committing yourself any further to may be just more BS. For me, this book brought years of self-gratifying meditation practice to a sudden halt. Rather like waking from a warm happy dream, and I have not looked back.
Rating:
Summary: Good Book From a Controversial Teacher
Review: Don't worry about where or how other minds meditate, then you already understand "not too loose, not too tight" my friend in Wyckoff, NJ. It simply indicates non clinging and non preference. Nothing special. Chogyam Trungpa had often been referred to as a womanizer and a drunk, yet in this book his mind appears to be completely clear. Like many things in our lives, often we look for things to acquire or possess; in Buddhism, it's some sort of attainment. Always searching and looking, buying and obtaining while all too often not seeing the truth of the Buddha that is us. We hear this teaching, say we understand this teaching, and then our minds still wander away in search of the "right teacher and right attainment." Never satisfied, not often that is, with life as it is. There is nothing wrong with aspiration in practice, but if we aspire with a notion of self then we will never aspire and attain anything; it is just not the way of the Buddha. Some have criticized Trungpa over the years for using the Guru/ Truth thing as a mind control technique over his students, and actually it's a somewhat sounds argument. He was known to ask followers to strip naked before him, a humiliating experience for many; all while he said it was to cut through their hiding and closed mindedness. One woman was stripped against her will. I don't say this to discredit Chogyam Trungpa and his followers, for people like Pema Chodron are very compassionate and clear teachers. I just think that like all of us, sometimes what he said and what he did were two different things. Nothing too out of the ordinary. The Guru (Truth) is a human being, and it's a wakeup call, a dose of reality. All in all this was a good book, and although I have disagreed with Trungpa's often grandiose lifestyle and teachings, I nevertheless give this work a great review. It's full of good and sound advice. Enjoy it!
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Summary: The Demise of the Lord of Form!
Review: I read the book in college, and then again last year. I just reread the introduction and recieved the answer I've been looking for the last 3 years. The blockage is the creation of the form. This of course is the idea of he imageless (read formless) creator. That's all you need epending on where you are. This is similar to the Ashlagian idea of 'Mati v'lo Mati' (to reach and not to reach) or as Trungpa says "not too tight, not too loose. To loose, we don't get anywhere (no desire) to tight, we create a form ( an idol). I know buddhists meditate in fornt of a form, but you should ask them about that!
Rating:
Summary: "There is a blackout, and then..."
Review: There's trouble. H. V. Guenther wraps words around it nicely: "There are many kinds of problems which confront man in his meaning-seeking activities, but hte major and disquieting one is that he himself is intrinsically problematic, not only for others, but above all for himself. This disturbing fact, more often than not, causes man to evate facing up to his problematic nature by seeking refuge in a variety of easy 'solutions,' which, of course, solve nothing, because the basic questions concerning man's problematic nature have not been squarely addressed" (Matrix of Mystery p. 15, sorry for the sexist language).
Addressing this "problematic nature" is the task Chogyam Trungpa set for himself in Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism. He succeeds brilliantly.
I've revisited this text again recently, and now I find myself quoting it to my frends again and again. it's uncanny in its accuracy of diagnosis and prescription, in its deliberate and punchy prose (it's a collection of transcribed lectures), and in its capacity to constantly surprise the reader. This is a book virtually anyone with honest intentions can learn from. (If this Bozo can learn from it, any Bozo can.) And it's a short, quick read, with pictures even.
Trungpa Rinpoche covers a lot of ground here at a very fast pace, creating in the process an effective primer on Buddhist practice. I particularly like the explication and analysis of the Heart Sutra, and the quick comments on good ol' American materialism.
Yes, this is recommended for all readers, especially those who...well, nevermind. The "problem situation" Guenther discusses in Matrix of Mystery doesn't have to remain a problem; that's my point. Trungpa Rinpoche lays a solid foundation for practice that can render the problem unproblematic. Nice work, nice work.
(Incidentally, if any of you good people can explain to me why Avalokiteshvara has a goat under his gown in the line drawing on p. 166, I'd appreciate it. Email me.)
Rating:
Summary: Essential Reading
Review: This book should be one of the first to buy for anyone involved in any form of meditation, self developement, or spiritual exploration.
Trungpa shatters the naive illusion of the New Age instant enlightenment scam. This is an essential antidote to the confusion created by the Aquarian Conspiracy and its unfulfilled promises.
In the process, he exposes the ego driven "Gurus", and shows us how to avoid being duped by the many spiritual megalomanics out there.
Rating:
Summary: Exposes the myth of self-improvement.
Review: This book strips the varnish right off of the concept that enlightenment can be viewed as another form of self improvement. The first two chapters of this book will literally have you scratching your head and wondering how anyone could ever escape the ever complex and ultimately entangling web created by a mind that approaches spiritual development as a means to an end. Only in later chapters does one begin to understand that the process of trying to better oneself is exactly the same process that has created all of our uneasiness and dissatisfaction in the first place.
This book is one of my favorites and I highly recommend it to anyone that is seriously interested in spiritual pursuits, whether they are Buddhist, Christian or any other. Another Trungpa volume, The Myth of Freedom, is an excellent sequel, though not for the faint of heart that would be best read after this book.
Rating:
Summary: A must-read for meditators
Review: This is a classic of American Buddhism, by one of the most influential Tibetan Buddhist teachers in the West. Some of the stuff about relating to a guru may be justifiably off-putting to many Western readers, but don't let that keep you from seeing all the wonderful teaching in this book. I've read parts of it again and again over the past decade (especially the introduction and the first chapter) as the simple but elusive point has finally started to sink in that spiritual practice is not about getting anywhere or achieving anything.
This book is best for readers who are already involved in Buddhist practice. I also highly recommend Trungpa's "The Myth of Freedom," which is a better place to start if you're new to Buddhist practice.
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