authorized teachings

Five Criteria of Authentic Instruction

the path of buddhism consistently includes an examination of any 
 presumed permanent self, organization or society.  with this in mind,
 herein find an expansion on the instruction of Deshung Rinpoche III,
 as quoted by hermes@euronet.nl (David Sullivan) as regards "Buddhism"

|"No matter how good a teaching may sound, no matter how profound or
|eloquent it may be, or how similar to other true teachings it may
|appear, it is wise to have reservations about any doctrine that
|promises to lead to this or that spiritual goal.  Such a teaching
|should be examined carefully before you embark on its path.

this is very profound instruction and lies at the heart of buddhism

|...a doctrine that is worthy of study and practice should be one 
|that was taught by Lord Buddha himself.  

if this is understood to be an historical statement, then we must
 reject it, for from outside a system of knowledge we cannot come
 to discern the past as one may attempt to discern the future with
 fortune-telling

for this reason it is here rephrased so as to become more inclusive:

	a doctrine that is worthy of study and practice should
	be one which is taught by Lord Buddha himself.

this does not carry the necessary historical reference, allowing that
 the dedicated may establish a relationship, through skilfull means
 (_upaya_), with the Buddha directly, or through a lineage which may
 purport to confer these teachings.  in *each case* we must satisfy
 *ourselves* that this connection is sound, and if others may disagree
 with our assessment, their continued skepticism should be encouraged,
 not dissuaded

|Of all teachers, Lord Buddha is the one who attained the highest 
|possible spiritual enlightenment, and through his great compassion 
|taught others the way to that same enlightenment. ...

trash for the converts.  discard this as propaganda

|"...students should make sure that the teachings spoken by Lord
|Buddha are among those that were collected by the great compilers such
|as Vajrapani and Manjushri, the great bodhisattvas who bore the
|responsibility of preserving the direct teachings of Lord Buddha in
|written form.

again, very important advice, and we must first come to know,
 therefore, who these great compilers were, and why there is a 
 focus upon them in the preservation of the Buddha's teachings

unfortunately, this sets up a domino-effect wherein we must then
 discover a means to determine the legitimacy of accounts regarding
 the bodhisattvas, unless we come to establish a direct relationship
 with them  

|"...students should ensure that the teachings in question are
|among those expounded by the great pandits such as Nagarjuna, Asanga,
|and others. ...

here the domino-effect begins, and we see that the intent is to support
 the lineage-system in a manner similar to that of countless other
 mystico-religious schools.  that this tails off in a generalization
 ("great pandits such as..... and others....") is to the writer's
 credit, for the path of awakening is diverse, and the great pandits
 from a variety of cultures, schools, lineages, and religions

|"...the teachings should be among those that were meditated on by
|the great yogis and siddhas of India and Tibet.  

here we enter into the folly of cultural bigotry, though we can see
 why there is such attachment to the instruction of these fine teachers

instead, a more inclusive alternative is here stated:

	the teachings should be among those meditated upon by
	the great yogis and gurus of the world.

|They should also be included among the texts that were translated 
|by the great translators from their original Sanskrit into other 
|languages.

again, this becomes acceptable when we generalize 'Sanskrit' to 'language'

Deshung Rinpoche III wishes to insularize the way of buddhism into a
 religious containment, and with good reason.  however, to do so will
 eventually corrupt the instructions of the Buddha at base, through
 attempting to place into lasting structure that which is a formless
 and empty (sunyata) wisdom

|"...the teachings should be well known among great Buddhist
|scholars.  They should not be recondite teachings of doubtful
|veracity, doubtful origin, or cryptic sense.

in a generalized manner ("buddhist" rather than the named "Buddhist")
 this is quite profound.  beware of those who market the name of the
 Buddha for purposes of promoting social lineage, however.  the wisdom
 of the Buddha comes in many packages, to many doorsteps, through many
 carriers, and no single source guarantees awakening for all people 

|"When you have found teachings that meet all these criteria, you can
|be confident that you have found authentic teachings that are worthy
|of your time, effort and study."

|-- Deshung Rinpoche III, oral translation by Jared Rhoton, "The Three
|Levels of Spiritual Perception" (Wisdom Publications, 1995), pp.6-7.

very discerning and here restated more simply and inclusively:

     bring skepticism to any doctrine which purports to lead to a goal 
     of power (spiritual or no).  such a teaching should be examined 
     carefully before you embark on its path.

	* a doctrine worthy of study and practice should come from the
	  very heart of the source to which it attaches itself (in the
	  case of buddhism, direct from the Buddha)

	* students should make sure that the teachings which derive
	  from this source were collected by individuals who were
	  present at the time of instruction, those who took it upon
	  themselves to collect and redistribute the teachings themselves

	* students should ensure that the teachings in question are
	  among those expounded by the great pandits of the culture
	  from which the teachings themselves derive 
	
	* the teachings should be among those meditated upon by the 
	  great practitioners and teachers of the world.  they should 
	  also be included among the texts that were translated by the 
	  great translators from their original into other languages

	* the teachings should be well known among the community of
	  scholars dedicated to them.  they should not be recondite 
	  teachings of dubious veracity, dubious origin, or cryptic sense

     when you have found teachings that meet all these criteria, you can 
     be confident that you have found authentic instruction that is 
     worthy of your time, effort and study.  beyond this lies danger and
     such confidence is less surely placed