Sunday, August 12, 2007

Surrendering Insanity

Marpa the Translator was a great teacher in my lineage of Tibetan Buddhism. Discussing Marpa's life is discussing surrendering insanity, which is a barter, an exchange in which we get sanity back instead. Surrendering insanity also means surrendering the habitual patterns of our state of mind, neurotic patterns of all kinds, and the things we're used to indulging ourselves in. We have to give up all of them. We might have to give up reading Time magazine before we go to bed or novels when we get bored. We might have to give up anything. Personal indulgence has to be given up. That seems to be the starting point and seems to be the problem at the same time. From "Marpa," in SELECTED TALKS ON LINEAGE AND DEVOTION, pages 21 to 22. Out of print sourcebook.
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