Brother Gilbert Gutierrez, the sole American Dharma heir of the Great Chan Master Sheng Yen, visited Ann Arbor and Perry Michigan last month to give a lecture and one day retreat.
During his lecture on the history of Chan Buddhism, I learned A LOT about Chan; history, philosophy, abstract theory, etc. A slight sense of smug ego projected on to Theravadins by Chan and intolerance of one another. Still, the history was nice and served a general framework as to how Buddhism split and grew into another notable and very strong tradition.
As for his retreat, I enjoyed his matter of fact explanations of the Dharma. Many extremely abstract ideas were brought down to earth with similes and such. On the other hand, Brother Gilbert expected us to have such and extensive understanding of the Dharma it was a bit intimidating although appreciated. This retreat was definitely not for beginners, as he demonstrated very slight indications of frustration with many of the audience’s lack of keeping up. For example, he would ask a decently profound question and expect us to answer clearly. Not a bad expectation per se, but it made me hesitate in my answers slightly.
Many attendees mentioned Brother Gilbert really shines when he is not in the lecturer’s role, and more in a personable situation, like dinner or such. Unfortunately, I didn’t have the time to stick around to meet Brother Gilbert on such a personal level. However, I intend on making an effort to do so upon his next visit from California to Michigan.
All in all, it was once again an appreciated chance to meet and learn from a distinguished teacher of Dharma.