DHARMA TEACHER KUMGANG

Kumgang's background

Kumgang Poep Sa Nim has studied music at the School of Music (both at the University and the National schools) in Rosario City, as well as with many private teachers, in the fields of the classical guitar, harmony, piano, composition and chamber music.

Among his teachers there are: Carlos Castro (aural perception), Tito Grande Castelli (jazz guitar, guitar harmony), Claudio Zemp (classical guitar), Inés P. de Zemp (classical guitar), Alicia Correa (chamber ensemble), Víctor Rodríguez (classical guitar), Marta Varela (aural perception).

He composed incidental music for plays, and he performed as a guitar player in many popular music bands, and played the lute in the Ancient Music ensemble (Pablo Casals Choral).

He worked also as a professional free lance photographer and in many other areas during many years. Later he started to study Chinese and Eastern healing arts, particularly Taijiquan, Qigong, Chin Na, shiatsu, moxibustion, cupping, auriculotherapy and Reiki, with teachers both Chinese and Argentinian. These teachers were: Yuan Jun Min, Yang Jwing Ming, Augusto Alcalde, Juan Borges, Dr. Chung, Dr. José López Ontiveros, Dr. Kim.

In this field, Kumgang has taught Chinese martial arts in Buenos Aires, Necochea, Miramar, and Neuquén. And he treat patients mainly in Buenos Aires.

Kumgang has studied and practice Buddhism since the early 80's, in the Japanese, Chinese and Korean traditions. He was a member of the Sangha Vimalakirti from 1994 to 1997. In 2002 he received the ordination as a Lay Dharma Teacher (Poep Sa Nim), from Kyung Hyun Sunim and So Mok Sunim.

Kumgang Poep Sa Nim have been working in the translation of many Buddhist texts which were unavailable in Spanish until now, including works of Korean Zen Masters, and many Sutras, under the supervision of So Mok Sunim, who encouraged him to keep translating.

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Some words on Buddhist practice by Kumgang Poep Sa Nim

Buddhism is a path leading to the end of suffering. Some people call it a religion, some other people call it a philosophy. I like to think of Buddhism as a Path, a deep and beautiful path that contains many lanes, like a highway.

Traditionally we say that the main lanes are:

• Sila: the precepts (not to kill, not to steal, not to lie, not to misuse the sex, and not to take toxic substances).
• Samadhi: meditation.
• Prajña: wisdom.

All the three are interconnected, because if we begin to practice it means that we've got enough wisdom to know that we need tools for a better life. Then we practice meditation in order to settle down our monkey minds, and meditation+wisdom help us to practice the precepts...but the whole triad can start in any of the three points, as a chord in music, where you can place any of the three components in any order and that still would sound like the same chord.

Meditation is often seen as a tool for becoming quieter and more calm and relaxed. In Zen Buddhism we have to go further: meditation is the key to open our True Nature door. In our everyday life we are making judgements all day long: this is good, that is bad, this is long, that is short...we don't stop thinking that way, and that is a problem itself.

When we focus our minds on a single object we can see the things as they really are: ever changing and not lasting. It allows us to understand some of the problems we experience, like greed, anger and ignorance. As we begin to understand how the things really are, we can change our habitual patterns which make us feel sorry and troubled, seeing that anything that disturbs us will change finally. There isn't anything permanent.

So, we can deepen our wisdom and our practice of the precepts ad infinitum, until we get liberated.

That's the goal of Buddhist meditation.

Hope you enjoy this wonderful Path.

May all beings be free from suffering. May all beings live in peace.