doc benway

I would imagine dragons can only be ridden by invitation and such an invitation would be a precious gift. I’m no dragon but y’all are welcome to ride me when I’m gone.

My answer fwiw, through the action of a mind which feels itself to be separate due to conditions associated with human birth. Interesting that this is expressed in terms of past and future tense as if birthing and returning are limited in time/space. A mother never loses connection with their child nor the Dao with its myriad expressions. The separation was never there to begin with. I am happy to deny the existence of any such steps in the relationship among phenomena and their ultimate source. Steps are an artificial overlay created by the mind to try and apprehend something that can only be appreciated without its own interference.

Don’t you think that’s up to the dragon? Starjumper and Marblehad most likely had quite a bit of interaction here over the years. I don’t recall their relationship but I hope at this point there would be no obstacles to love.

What I've come to appreciate with regards to this question of progressive achievement versus instantaneous enlightenment or 'simply being' is the critical importance of seeing clearly where we are in our understanding and needs at any given moment and the ability to be honest with ourselves about that. When approaching spiritual teachings, especially the highly esoteric teachings of dzogchen, I think there is a tendency to get wrapped up in our ideas, assumptions, projections, and desires to the point that we are blind to what is really happening in our lives and minds. We are then likely to spin our wheels and get frustrated or have an unrealistic view of ourselves due to spiritual bypassing. I am also a student of Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche and have found his ability to show me the practical and accessible life lessons in the most esoteric of Bön teachings to be priceless. In addition, the Bön teachers I've met have been firmly grounded in reality and practicality when it comes to an honest and open appraisal of their own relationship to practice and fruition. This is one of the profound benefits of having a personal relationship with "one who has gone before." One thing I've learned is that it is valuable to have a tool box, not just a single tool. When I am able to simply abide and self liberation occurs effortlessly nothing more is needed. This is the ultimate level of practice (according to dzogchen) but for most of us this is not our consistent and continuous experience. When this is not happening, I need to be aware and it is beneficial to have other tools to work with. These tools help us to connect with and loosen those things that are preventing us from allowing the ebb and flow of unobstructed and unfabricated experience. When it comes to the effortless approach of resting in the nature of mind versus a progressive, goal driven approach Tenzin Rinpoche offers the following advice - As far as abiding is concerned of course there is no practice. If there is somebody there that is not abiding, then there is practice. That is a decision you have to make. Just recognize. ~ Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche In terms of practices for navigating a chronic illness, it can be helpful to talk with a medical specialist from whichever tradition you feel a deep connection to and intend to practice. I have found the following approach to be very supportive for me. From Bön, I practice the nine breathings of purification which help me open to and liberate the effects of the three poisons and their contribution to illness. I also practice the five tsa lung exercises which help to identify and clear obstacles to balancing the five subtle winds that support health and well being. In addition, I often engage in Daoist practices of zhan zhuang, qigong, and taijiquan which I find to be wonderful adjuncts. Finally, the most important practice for me is connecting to inner refuge (the nature of mind) through the three doors of body speech and mind. This is not only a formal practice on the cushion but an informal practice, progressively integrated into all aspects of life. The inner refuge is often referred to as the true source of healing which is not coincidentally the title of one of Tenzin Rinpoche's books.

@liminal_luke When I pass, if you learn of the joyous news, I hope you will write me a death limerick and post it here - balls to the wall!

Anthony Demello put it this way - pleasant experiences make life delightful, painful experiences are opportunities for growth.

Snakes in Tibetan iconography often represent nagas, a long-lived class of being capable of enlightenment and also capable of causing lots of trouble for humans. Important Bönpo rituals are regularly practiced to appease nagas, who are respected residents of bodies of water and the lowlands, caves, canyons etc... A very famous lineage holder in the earliest days of Bön dzogchen was said to be a naga.

The two figures are referred to as yab-yum (father mother). The father is the tutelary deity (yidam) and represents method or compassion. The mother is a dakini and represents wisdom, the realization and embodiment of emptiness. Their union represents enlightenment, the pure and perfect nature of mind. The dakini is holding a skull cup filled with blood which often symbolizes immortality and a curved knife which is used to cut through the illusion of samsara. The mala of severed heads usually symbolizes overcoming appearances - seeing the truth behind the appearance, or subduing the ego, something like that. Mind you, I’m no expert but wanted to try and help. I suspect others could give more detailed explanations.

@Delta_Wave Can you share where you heard this information? Is it confirmed? thank you

Hi Karin, Welcome! Yes, you are certainly welcome to post your map of the energy body here. There are people here with a wide variety of interests and backgrounds.

A friend of mine had a hip replacement and his doc gave him a scrip for oxycodone. He came back to see doc a week later and gave him the full bottle of oxy. Doc says, how did you deal with the pain? Mike says -

I recall a formerly active member mocking me for suggesting that we should value kindness over information exchange here. We can access unlimited information on any subject instantaneously these days but genuine kindness remains far more rare and valuable. You and Luke are two of a handful of reasons why this is a worthwhile place to visit, IMO.

One of my absolute favorites since childhood! I have fond memories of my face and hands being covered in the astringent juice...

Paw paw is a fruit bearing tree native to North America. It's in the custard apple family and is the largest edible fruit endemic to North America. The technical name Asimina triloba comes from the Powhatan word Assimina which was their name for the fruit. The word pawpaw probably comes from early Spanish or Portuguese explorers likening the fruit to papaya. They are rarely seen for sale commercially due to short half life which makes storage and shipping problematic. The fruit has a custardy texture with a flavor profile that can range from banana to cantaloupe to mango, even a bit like pineapple.

I think we often misunderstand the message here, or maybe focus on a limited aspect that’s frightening. I don’t feel like I am being told I must suffer, or that there is no hope. I am being reminded that they are suffering. The people I come into contact, and particularly into conflict with, are suffering. And btw if we’re honest with ourselves we all suffer at times, so there is truth in that… This gives us an opportunity to feel empathy, to connect and to help each other. This is our best hope to not suffer. It’s all about perspective.

Bad experience in school perhaps?

Any time you see a warning about offensive posts and can’t find the posts it’s a good bet they’ve been hidden. I don’t always have time to explain in the moment so your patience is appreciated.

Moderator Warning @Invisible Acropolis Your posts targeting @liminal_luke are offensive and unacceptable. An apology is in order and you need to cease and desist. If you would like to post here, please show everyone respect. Thank you Steve for the mod team

🤣 Truth is I have felt anger and frustration from loved ones on occasion when I’m not angry or sad enough to meet their expectations. The flip side is the stabilizing effect one can have in trying circumstances and the appreciation and open heartedness I can feel from others as a result. Try it! But read the room…

You’re probably right but I don’t generally get to choose how I feel,. My experience is that the feeling is just there, like thoughts - I don’t choose what thought comes up if I watch closely, but I can choose not to feed it or suppress it or I can be so identified with it that I lose my shit completely, completely unaware, and that is the response. The emotion comes before the response and for me it is not destructive if the response is appropriate. Yes, the key for me is in the “without harboring” which is a part of not identifying. I do think all of the trainings we do lessen our tendency to get swept up in thought and emotion, making the emotion less destructive but not necessarily less powerful; and deeper insights into the nature of our mind can profoundly affect how we experience what positivity and negativity mean. Unconditioned compassion is like the sun and shines on all equally but don’t imagine it is so naive as to not know hatred. It subsumes and pervades all of it. Hatred exists in this world, it is “hard wired” in our karma, as do love and lust and as a human it is as it is. It’s OK to think and feel and allow it to guide but not by getting swept up unaware, better to express the fuller context in action. When I’m enlightened I’ll pay careful attention to see what emotions are there and try to report back. 😘

I used to date a bird well oliver 180 and yes, she could be quite aggressive! Big claws and awesome speed!

My comments were genuine but I’d say more like responsive thoughts in the moment than a fixed position. 😄 You’d have to ask them, not sure they’d tell me the truth… What I can say is that my relationships with my family are far more meaningful, open and direct than ever before, much closer and less judgmental, less reactive. I don’t see the emotions or thoughts themselves as destructive, they are intangible and transient experiences. When seen for what they are they can be allowed to come and go. Of course emotions are linked to karma but karma means action, quite literally, and in the presence of thought and emotion we have, or can cultivate, the ability to choose our actions independent of the transient thoughts and feelings, no? I can be furious and murder someone or I can be furious, pause to reflect on the consequences of my actions, and let it pass. These things happen. It is not the emotion but our choices that are destructive IMO. Wonderful questions that are very fertile until stifled with intellectual answers. This is the fuel on the path. For myself I have experienced that reducing my identification with passing feelings, thoughts, roles, and circumstances has allowed me to be more loving, more open, and kinder. As such changes have occurred in my life and relationships my faith in my path has grown.

If by authentic you mean unconditional, then I would say positive and negative do not apply as unconditional compassion is beyond judgement and discrimination. If you do not mean unconditional then I would say that conditional compassion is not inherently positive, there is often a self-serving component to it. Hatred for slavery can be constructive, as can hatred for corrupt leaders, environmental destruction, and abusers of the vulnerable, and the list goes on.

I disagree with both the aim and premise, with all due respect to you and Venerable Chöje Lama Phuntsok. Emotions are not inherently destructive or constructive, they are simply transient flows of energy. It is our relationship to emotion and the associated actions that can be destructive or constructive. And "destructive" and "constructive" need to be defined, either can be functional or dysfunctional. In my view, the aim of practice is not to eradicate emotions, even "destructive emotions," but to reduce and ultimately eradicate the over-identification with emotion that results in dysfunctional reactivity. This is why the central focus of understanding and practice are related to the nature and experience of self.