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Following Pema Chodron but doing Shikantaza instead

I have been practicing/searching for about a year, mostly Zen. I have recently discovered Pema Chodron and find that her teachings resonate with me very strongly and speak directly to the places where I find myself stuck. I am very attracted to the practice of Tonglen and the idea of confronting unpleasant feelings head-on. I find her manner of speaking to be very simple, direct, profound, practical, etc. I truly value the path that she presents and I would like to commit to it.

However, the meditation technique of Shikantaza had really begun to resonate with me prior to my discovery of Pema. It "makes sense" to me, and I find that I'm basically able to take that awareness off of the cushion and out into the "real world" (I mean I'm not good at it, but I see how on/off the cushion are essentially the same thing). Chogyam Trungpa's Shamatha-Vipashyana technique that Pema teaches doesn't resonate with me quite as strongly.

I'm asking for some advice. Would it be "ok" to devote myself to the path that Pema Chodron presents, including Tonglen meditation, while practicing Shikantaza instead of the Shamatha-Vipashyana technique, or will I be missing something? I understand that there is special insight to be experienced in the dissolving of your self along with your outbreath, but is this an insight that Shikantaza will not provide?

submitted by /u/voltzart
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