ABSTRACT
Half way through the author's Zen training with the White Plum Sangha, an international organization founded by Taizan Maezumi Roshi, the author's own teacher at the time, Genpo Merzel, started devising a method that brought together elements of Zen with the self-help technique voice dialogue. Mindful contemplation alone is not enough. It does not fundamentally alter the causes of suffering. The initial phase of Vajrayana in the west was welcomed by the chaotic ethos of the 1960s which, however chronically befuddled, provided an atmosphere of freedom and open-mindedness. In Vajrayana Buddhism, the affiliation with the teacher is crucial and often not very dissimilar from the relationship between guru and disciple. The voluntary undertaking known as the third Buddhist precept is a vow to abstain from sexual misconduct. Classical Buddhism limited itself to an explanation of circumstances by which sexual intercourse was considered suitable, and highlighted the principle of non-harm, i.e. avoiding hurting partners and third parties.
