Teaching, Writing, Travel, and Dialogue

Abstract

Chapter 4 examines the mid-career activities of this minority Bönpo living beyond the framework of an institutionally based monastic life. These developments include his emergence as a sought-after teacher; his contemplative approach to the writing process; his myriad experiences and responsibilities as an itinerant lama; his burgeoning relationships with influential patrons; and his connections with cosmopolitan figures beyond the Bön tradition. During his journeys Shardza typically presided over rituals, offered and occasionally received teachings and initiations, attracted students and patrons, and raised funds for religious purposes. He also engaged in in-depth conversations with other respected teachers he encountered, both Bönpo and Buddhist, often on the basis of his written works. Tenpé Gyaltsen reports that these ecumenical relations attest to his broadmindedness and freedom from narrow sectarian bias.