Evonne,

I think maybe you misunderstood, there has been considerable use of divination in Buddhism without question. And the Tibetan culture like so many others have and do use it, although I would say that not all Tibetans are Buddhist. The Buddhist mindset that I was speaking of was not that it is not used, but more of what value it has regarding the ultimate goal of the Buddhist path. Buddhist healing is another example of this, Reiki is a Buddhist Healing technique, but it was determined long ago that the advantages, though they are considerable, are not conducive to the end product of enlightenment and only stray the practitioner from concentration on the true and final goal by focusing on studies that do not pertain to the practitioners enlightenment.

I would also mention that the Tibetan people, are in general, very superstitious and as a people many practices they may perform such as divination are deep rooted in their culture and do not all share the roots of Buddhist belief. when Buddhism was introduced into Tibet many of the native practices where incorporated into this system much in the same way as when Buddhism was brought to Japan, Shintoism was the national religion and even to this day there are many Shinto ‘carry overs�?to be found in Japanese Buddhist practices.

I do not deny that validity of divination or its use by many different religions. What I personally question is its value in seeing truth, and more so the possible miss-guidance in providing possibilities that may be inaccurate or all together false, and in so doing providing further suffering for the user due to these predicted possibilities not materializing. And from a purely Buddhist perspective its usefulness in enlightenment itself.

~Mykkyo

Buddha’s as prophets…well it was said that Siddhartha did predict the coming of Nagarjuna and said he would be the Buddha that would breath new life into the Buddhist belief system. As far as being the A-typical prophet even Siddhartha denied that he was anything more then a man, and as such insisted that he not be worshipped in any way. Buddhism does not deny the possible abilities of metaphysical powers, in fact Tantric Buddhism warns of these as side effects of the practice itself but also teaches the uselessness of these ‘powers�?in the True path. Take them for what they are, distractions, nothing more then that. The ability to prophesize or divinate maybe a neat trick, but of what use will it be in knowing your own mind or the attainment of enlightenment.

~Mykkyo

It is a great benefit in everything you learn to have another point of view, whether that person is a friend, teacher, or an acquaintance the insights they may give can help you think outside of the box each of us find ourselves in at times. So much of the time I think that I have a clear understanding of a given teaching, and then like magic, the next layer of the onion is peeled away. Many people disagree with the benefits of having a teacher, especially when it comes to spiritual matters, but for myself I am very appreciative of having a teacher who walks the talk J

I will ask my priest if those names or documents are available, Yoga has been speaking with him about the subject as well. Will see what we can come up with. I’m not sure of much of the Tibetan connection at this point, my knowledge is limited on this subject, but I will ask and see. Healing is not taught as part of the priesthood, although it maybe used for medicinal purposes by the priests it is not a commonly taught or applied discipline.

My paperback Buddhist statement was not directed completely at you, nor was it meant in a bad way, I personally use it to describe the Buddhologists and wanna be Buddhist who may have great knowledge but do not practice Buddhism formally, so hopefully, you or anyone else, where not offended. Debating religion itself may not be beneficial but debating philosophy can be at times, many realizations can be made from this practice, it has been common practice for hundreds of years for different Buddhist sects to debate there understandings, and I find it a useful tool as well. I’m not enlightened nor do I have all the answers, so debates help be to learn and grow in my own understanding as well.

There is a fairly well known Daoist saying that "walking with an enlightened being is like walking in the mist, your clothes are bound to get wet" I do think that enlightenment comes at different speeds for everyone, and I suppose having a fully enlightened teacher would expedite ones own enlightenment. I believe in many ways you are right about the pure land, it is here and in the here after and in fact there is no were that it is not.

The 13^th Dalai Lama once said " the Bodhisattva is like the mightiest of warriors, though his fight is not with the common enemies of flesh and blood. His fight is with the inner delusions of self craving and cherishing." So even Buddhism see things with somewhat of a warriors view, and unfortunate but true, history has shown the need to protect the lives of innocents in pursuit of religious freedoms all over the world.

There are obvious benefits from healing and being healed, the fact that being sick is as much, if not more, of a distraction then the healing itself, could be a great motivator for the individual who would wish to be a healer. For me what is important is not attaching to the notion of the healing so much as what the purpose of being healthy is.

Stories can be great vehicles for understanding, the Buddha employed many stories that would be considered fiction as a means to help the un-educated understand the principals of his teachings. Most the stories I have read are defiantly far fetched, but as Kellog has put it, they are Bunkai…a teaching within a teaching.

~Mykkyo