In the Shambhala Dictionary of Buddhism and Zen the first two definitions of “dharma” are : 1. The cosmic law, the “great norm” underlying our world; above all, the law of karmically determined rebirth. And, 2. The teaching of the — Buddha, who recognized and formulated this “law”; thus the teaching that expresses the universal truth.
As Buddhists we take refuge in the Buddha, the dharma and the sangha, the teacher, the teachings and the community of companions on the path. The dharma is the teaching—both received and given—by the individual practitioner in every second of every day in the normal actions, thoughts and intentions of daily life.
The dharma, the teaching, is continuously both received and given. In the dharma we are all students and teachers, and it is a mistake to become attached to either role. This point, in my view, deserves more consideration, discussion and contemplation than it receives.
The first definition mentioned above includes “karmically determined rebirth.” That is, the circumstances of our lives, according to the dharma, are a result of karma, cause and effect. How we were in the past (not just past lives) determines how and where we are in the present. How and where we are in the present and what we have and have not learned from the past will determine the future. That’s the dharma.
There is no truth or falsehood to the dharma. The dharma is just our everyday, normal lives, and by living within the dharma, “…the teaching that expresses the universal truth” we are able to find out for ourselves what is true and what is false. That is, the cosmic law is not a set of rules which we follow, but, rather, is the never ending dynamics and lessons of each of our everyday lives as we live them every minute of every day. Padmasambhava expressed the dharma this way: “If you want to know your past life, look into your present condition; if you want to know your future life, look at your present actions.”
That’s the dharma.
Look carefully.
No one else and no teaching can tell you what is true and what is false. If a teacher or a teaching indicates that it is good practice to develop a regular practice of meditation every day, that is, in my view, good advice, but the only way in which you can determine whether this is true for you is to practice and to remain open to what is. Is the practice true for you or not? Only you can discover for yourself what is true and what is false. Dr. Richard Davidson, Director of the Laboratory for Affective Neuroscience at the University of Wisconsin and a friend and colleague of HH the Dalai Lama, brought up in a lecture a (to me) surprising premise: for some people, primarily those suffering from bi-polar and schizophrenic disorders, meditation may actually be destructive.
All who are practicing are eager to learn, to hear and follow the teachings and the path, to know what is true and what is false, eager to be certain so that we can relax. But the dharma doesn’t tell us what is true and what is false. That is something we must each do for ourselves in our own lives.
The only certainty is that the circumstances of our present life, each action, thought, breath, intention of that life is the dharma. As such, it is the means, the vehicle, the alarm clock that can wake us up.
There is a Zen admonition to live each moment with the awareness of a warrior in the night behind enemy lines, and, for that warrior, that is the dharma. Or, as Dogen said, “If you can’t find the truth right where you are , where else do you expect to find it?”