Free The Collected Works of Chögyam Trungpa: Volume 4 by Chögyam Trungpa

sure that the world is part of us. In fact, the question of separation does not come up at all. According to the nontheistic tradition, we do not believe ourselves to be creatures. We are some kind of being—or nonbeing, for that matter—but we were never created, and therefore we are not particularly creatures. Nevertheless, there is a sense of continuity, without hysteria, without panic, without any congratulatory remarks or attempts to smooth things out. The world exists and we exist. We and the world are separate from that point of view—but so what? We could regard the separateness as part of the continuity rather than trying to deny it.
    In the nontheistic approach, there is continuity, openness, and oneness—but in the sense of zeroness rather than even oneness. The nonexistence of a dualistic barrier does not quite mean that we are one, but that we are zero. Nontheism is the basis for understanding that. Tantra is continuity, so the thread of tantra runs through our life from beginning to end. In a sense, the beginning is part of the end, so a complete circle, or mandala, is formed. The beginning is the beginning of the end, and the end is the beginning of the beginning. That continuity is tantra. It is the continuous thread of openness that we could experience throughout our lives. Because of that, whatever sense perceptions or realms of experience come up, we can work through them.
    From this point of view energy is very simple, extremely simple: energy is separate from you; therefore, energy is part of you. Without you separateness cannot exist. That is the dichotomy in Buddhist logic: you have form; therefore you do not have form. You cannot have form if you do not have formlessness, if you do not acknowledge or perceive formlessness. In the same way, you exist because you do not exist. Such riddles are regarded by Buddhists as the truth.
    According to the tantric tradition of nontheism, energy is vital and important. Of course, in this approach we are viewing the world purely as a psychological process: if we do not have mind, we do not exist. The world comes out of our mind; it is created by our mind. From that point of view, working with energy, or developing siddhi, means that we do not have to depend on feedback but that we relate with life as straightforwardly and directly as possible. We relate directly to our domestic world, our enemies, our friends, our relatives, business partners, policemen, the government, or whatever happens in our life. We relate directly with energy as much as possible.
    We are not talking about centralizing energy within ourselves, making ourselves into little atom bombs and then exploding. Working with energy in a tantric sense is a decentralized process. That is a very important point. We are talking about energy as something spreading, opening. Energy becomes all-pervasive. It is all and everywhere. If we centralize energy in ourselves, we are asking for trouble. We will find that we become like baby snakes who are vicious and angry but still very small. Or we may find that we are like extremely passionate, horny little baby peacocks. So it is important to remember that, in Buddhist tantra, energy is openness and all-pervasiveness. It is constantly expanding. It is decentralized energy, a sense of flood, ocean, outer space, the light of the sun and moon.

FIVE
    Transmission
     
    O UR NEXT TOPIC is the transmission of vajrayana teachings from teacher to student. Before we can discuss transmission, however, it seems necessary to go back a step and examine our level of sanity and discipline. We need to examine what we have accomplished in our relationship with the world. If we have not been able to make a relationship with our suffering, frustrations, and neuroses, the feasibility of transmission is remote, extremely remote, for we have not even made a proper relationship with the most basic level of our experience.
    I could say to you, “Forget all that. Forget your pain and