Hey,
I've been looking into information about Vajrayana practices of Deity Yoga. The last post led me to this site:
http://dechenlingpress.org/ which has some very interesting looking material. Their store allows one to buy all kinds of "secret instructions" for various tantras. However, they specifically ask the people not purchase some of the books unless they have received official transmission from a tantric master. For example, the page for the book
The Extremely Secret Dakini of Naropa says, "The material in this book is restricted. This book may be read only by those who have received a Highest Yoga Tantra empowerment."
I am less concerned about the superstitious aspect of the whole thing; the idea that somehow just reading the book could harm me if I don't have the okay from a lama. However, I am concerned about the ethics of taking sacred information through a means that is lacking in integrity. I don't want to feel as if I'm violating another spiritual tradition's practices. I'm not even planning to practice the specific tantras, but simply to read the instructions in order to get ideas for developing my own eclectic practice.
Also, I can't help but feel that the site is being a little cagey about the whole thing. If the writings were actually so secret, they would presumably not be making them available online for just whoever wanted to order them. Even putting "Extremely Secret" in the title has the air of a marketing pitch meant to generate interest. So I'm not sure how seriously to take the whole thing.
The other perspective is that for too long these traditions have been cloaked in secrecy. Daniel's book revealed many things about Theravada that are considered secrets in the traditional Buddhist world, and I believe it has done great good. Maybe it's time for Vajrayana to undergo a similar opening of the doors.
Any thoughts?