Sunday, April 01, 2007

The Tao/Da (There) of Truth--Trungpa

While I'm still unconvinced of a strong coherence between Eastern thought and Heideggerian phenomenology, I thought this quote from Chögyam Trungpa's Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism is good food for thought:
If we really want to learn and see the experience of truth, we have to be where we are. (70)
Where else can truth appear than from my being-here, Da-sein?

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2 Comments:

Blogger Jonathan Erdman said...

I'd be interested in your thoughts on Heidegger and the Eastern thought connection.

9:16 AM  
Blogger Unknown said...

I've just started reading Heidegger, but have been a student of Buddhist thought for some time and have read some of Chogyam Trungpa's works. I'd agree that there doesn't seem to be any overt links between Buddhist thought and Heidegger - meaning I don't see evidence that Heidegger's thought has been influenced directly by Buddhist thought. This being said, I find it interesting that seekers of truth come to similar conclusions simply through experience and observation.

My understanding is that Buddhism is an "applied" philosophy (Buddhism is to philosophy what engineering is to science). It seems Trungpa is saying here that our ability to observe the true "presence" of any "being" is difficult unless we learn how to firmly ground ourselves in the moment, the present, in a fluid continuity and without interruption.

If you liked Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism, I'd recommend Shambhala: Sacred Path of the Warrior.

7:16 PM  

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