Guru Yoga - Weird Religious Anachronism, or Essential for Realization?

[Robin]

As the title says.

 

One of my Dzogchen teachers recently told me explicitly that Guru Yoga is essential for practising Trekcho. She also said that she suspects I am confused abut the meaning of Guru Yoga. She may well be right.

 

What's the deal? It kind of gives me religious ick vibes, and I know there are modern interpretations (e.g. Candice Rinpoche, I think) who dispense with the cultural embellishments.

 

How do you relate to Guru Yoga? What role does it play in your practice? (None, a pre-meditation ritual, something else?)

If I can't swallow the Guru Yoga pill, should I look elsewhere for similar teaching relating to resting in open awareness (e.g. some Advaita stuff, or contemporary mindfulness methods)?

Curious to hear your thoughts. Thanks in advance.

[BigSkyDiamond]

i would like to hear from @steve on this.  He is my go-to person on this forum for questions about Dzogchen practice.

i have never heard of Guru Yoga but am curious to hear more.  

I do practice stillness silence spaciousness, as laid out in the book "Awakening the Luminous Mind" by Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche.

 

Good topic for thread, i look forward to hearing more.

 

 

 

 

[Robin]

16 minutes ago, BigSkyDiamond said:

I do practice stillness silence spaciousness, as laid out in the book "Awakening the Luminous Mind" by Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche

I love that guy. I did a retreat with him on the Sacred Warrior Seed Syllables. We started each session with guru yoga, and for some reason it didn't bother me much. If I was to practice devotion to a human guru, he'd be a strong candidate.

Thinking on, he seems to offer both approaches. Some of his online teachings just focus on the inner refuge via the three door which you mention.

I've heard Lama Lena say guru yoga is a combination of generating bodhicitta and taking refuge. 

Personally I'd like to just get on with meditation, with an internal attitude of goodwill to all beings and gratitude to my teachers. Perhaps that's enough. It may even qualify as guru yoga.

 

Colour me confused.

Edited 3 hours ago by Robin
elaboration

[Apech]

1 hour ago, Robin said:

As the title says.

 

One of my Dzogchen teachers recently told me explicitly that Guru Yoga is essential for practising Trekcho. She also said that she suspects I am confused abut the meaning of Guru Yoga. She may well be right.

 

What's the deal? It kind of gives me religious ick vibes, and I know there are modern interpretations (e.g. Candice Rinpoche, I think) who dispense with the cultural embellishments.

 

How do you relate to Guru Yoga? What role does it play in your practice? (None, a pre-meditation ritual, something else?)

If I can't swallow the Guru Yoga pill, should I look elsewhere for similar teaching relating to resting in open awareness (e.g. some Advaita stuff, or contemporary mindfulness methods)?

Curious to hear your thoughts. Thanks in advance.

 

Yep I agree about the sense of religious ick ... but in the end I found that when I practiced this as part of the ngondro those kinds of reservations disappeared.  I don't practice Dzogchen so its slightly different but essentially there's a point in meditation where your own efforts are not enough and you draw on 'blessings' to get through.  The origin of the blessings in the first sense is your Lama (regarded as a Buddha) but in the end it is your Buddha-nature itself.