Uncovering Some Kind of Sanity

Ocean of Dharma Quotes of the Week
from the works of Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche

NOT STUCK WITH SICKNESS

"When patients come into a treatment situation, they may have a sense of anxiety, a sense of hope, or a sense of complete negativity. It is a very sensitive matter to bring them into the right situation and work with them. The main point is that they are not stuck with their sickness. If a person regards sickness as an enemy, then his body has no working basis to be well. He thinks his body is invaded by enemies, and he goes to the doctor to get rid of these foreigners occupying his castle. And once that's taken care of, it's all over. So no relationship is established. There is another problem which goes back even further -- the concept of death as the archenemy, where we try to avoid death every minute, every second. There has to be more emphasis on creating an atmosphere of help. Sickness is a message, and it can be cured if the right situation is created....Mind reflects body, and body is affected by the atmosphere. The idea is recovering rather than being cured of a particular disease. This approach could also be used with older people who are dying. In the process of dying, they are uncovering some kind of sanity. So they approach their death peacefully."

From "Intrinsic Health," in THE SANITY WE ARE BORN WITH: A BUDDHIST APPROACH TO PSYCHOLOGY, pages 163- 164.

Ocean of Dharma Quotes of the Week: teachings by Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche.
Taken from works published by Shambhala Publications, the Archive of his unpublished work in the Shambhala Archives, plus other published sources. Subscribe here.