ON, A, HUM &/or A, OM, HUM

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climb-up
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ON, A, HUM &/or A, OM, HUM

Post by climb-up »

Hello fine people,

I have been working lately with Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche's book "Awakening the Luminous Mind" and just today learned the tsa lung practices from his "Awakening the Sacred Body." These are amazing books, and fit perfectly with my regular practice, but I have a question about the practices in his book "Tibetan Sounds Healing:"

It seems that in the Bon tradition they use the syllables as White A at the head, red OM at the throat & blue HUM at the heart.
In the Buddhist practices, of course, the colors and locations stay the same, but the A and OM are reversed and I use these attributions daily.

Does anyone have experience working with both Buddhist and Bon traditions?
Is there any conflict in switching the OM and A based on the practice?

Thank you for any responses.
"Death's second name is 'omnipresent.' On the relative truth it seems we become separate. But on the absolute there is no separation." Lama Dawa
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Lingpupa
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Re: ON, A, HUM &/or A, OM, HUM

Post by Lingpupa »

There is, of course, a question I have to acknowledge about the benefits, risks etc. of attempting tsalung out of a book. Having rung that bell, I leave the issue to others.

I've practiced in Kagyu and Nyingma for well over 40 years, but a couple or three years ago I met a Bon teacher who gave me a very positive impression. I tried some of his practices, and found it impossible to "change horses in midstream". One of the things that tripped me up again and again was saying and visualizing A OM HUM instead of OM AH HUM. Almost trivial, you might say, but it reminded me again and again that this was a different stream of teaching.

Funnily enough, this spring I met a delightful Brazilian Bon practitioner in the Friendship Cafe in Baudha, who told me that she'd tried to change to mainstream Buddhism, but kept tripping up over saying OM AH HUM after all that previous A OM HUM.

It's such a basic formulation, it's very tricky if you have to think about it instead of just feeling it.

One thing is probably clear to you already - you can't arbitrarily change the details of one practice just because you are comfortable with a different way. If your text says X-Y-Z you must say X-Y-Z. If you feel uncomfortable, do a different practice, but don't change it to Y-X-Z. But you probably knew that.
All best wishes

"The profundity of your devotion to your lama is not measured by your ability to turn a blind eye."
mutsuk
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Re: ON, A, HUM &/or A, OM, HUM

Post by mutsuk »

climb-up wrote:Does anyone have experience working with both Buddhist and Bon traditions?
Yes. It's exactly the same principle.
Is there any conflict in switching the OM and A based on the practice?
No conflict at all. In some New Bon (bon-gsar) teachings, you will even find indifferently Om-A-Hum or A-Om-Hum, used without differences at all.
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kalden yungdrung
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Re: ON, A, HUM &/or A, OM, HUM

Post by kalden yungdrung »

climb-up wrote:Hello fine people,

It seems that in the Bon tradition they use the syllables as White A at the head, red OM at the throat & blue HUM at the heart.
In the Buddhist practices, of course, the colors and locations stay the same, but the A and OM are reversed and I use these attributions daily.

Does anyone have experience working with both Buddhist and Bon traditions?
Is there any conflict in switching the OM and A based on the practice?

Thank you for any responses.

Tashi delek CU,

That the result is indifferent regarding practice that is clear.

But why Bön replaced OM in A that is the final question here.
I have asked several Bönpo Geshes for the answer, but untill now nobody could give me a satisfying answer.

Before i entered Bön , OM AH HUNG was there . Om at the start of the Mantra and ended mostly with Hung.
In the beginning, of my Bön career, i made always a mistake with this A and OM but that is now finished.

Bön also do Kora or counter- clockwise circumambulation and not like in Dorje Thekpa a clockwise going round a holy object of veneration. Also here there is an answer possible.

There are many similarities between Bön and Dorje Thekpa, but they are not similar.

KY.
The best meditation is no meditation
mutsuk
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Re: ON, A, HUM &/or A, OM, HUM

Post by mutsuk »

kalden yungdrung wrote:There are many similarities between Bön and Dorje Thekpa, but they are not similar.
Of course they are similar, similarities and correspondances between both Bon and Buddhist Paths are the subject of several Bon works from masters such as dBra-ston pandita and others.
For the sake of readers' understanding, you should stop isolating "Dorje Thekpa" as if it is something existing by itself outside of Buddhism. Traditional comparisons between Bon and Buddhism do not isolate "Dorje Thekpa" as an entity separated from Buddhism. Bonpos have their own tantric path. When you say "Bon and Dorje Thekpa" you are comparing Bon to Tantras. Bon has Tantras (most copied or inspired from Buddhism anyway)...
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kalden yungdrung
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Re: ON, A, HUM &/or A, OM, HUM

Post by kalden yungdrung »

mutsuk wrote:
kalden yungdrung wrote:There are many similarities between Bön and Dorje Thekpa, but they are not similar.
Bon has Tantras (most copied or inspired from Buddhism anyway)...
Tell this to Lopon Tenzin Namdak , he would like it !
:rolling:
The best meditation is no meditation
mutsuk
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Re: ON, A, HUM &/or A, OM, HUM

Post by mutsuk »

Oh he of course knows. Lopon has read and studied so many buddhist scriptures (Nyingma Tantras, Sarma ones, Longchenpa, Mipham, and so forth), he is well-aware of the borrowings. He even discussed entire borrowings from Zhi-khro cycles made by Bonpos from Kagyu texts. So he definitely knows all this.
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kalden yungdrung
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Re: ON, A, HUM &/or A, OM, HUM

Post by kalden yungdrung »

mutsuk wrote:Oh he of course knows. Lopon has read and studied so many buddhist scriptures (Nyingma Tantras, Sarma ones, Longchenpa, Mipham, and so forth), he is well-aware of the borrowings. He even discussed entire borrowings from Zhi-khro cycles made by Bonpos from Kagyu texts. So he definitely knows all this.
If possible i will ask this Lopon La and how this mix has to be explained, guess he knows this all better to explain in the right context, than your present opinion. I cannot trust your opinions and explanations. ;)
The best meditation is no meditation
mutsuk
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Re: ON, A, HUM &/or A, OM, HUM

Post by mutsuk »

kalden yungdrung wrote:If possible i will ask this Lopon La
If possible ? I don't think Lopon knows you...
and how this mix has to be explained,
He has explained that already, several times. The borrowings come from Kagyu texts that were copied by Bonpos. You have an idea of Bon which is totally far from reality.
I cannot trust your opinions and explanations.
I can return the compliment about your flooding on DW...
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