doc benway

What form do you practice? How long have you been practicing and how solid is your basic understanding of the principles?

I watched a film called Martyrs a few years back. I would not watch it today - it's extremely violent, graphic, and brutal. Nevertheless, it spoke to deep spiritual themes in an intelligent and insightful way, albeit horrific. Some will simply find it gratuitous and offensive. Caveat emptor

For me this doesn't need to be an either/or proposition. I have one foot firmly in the rational/scientific paradigm in my professional life. The other foot is equally firmly in the experiential/empirical paradigm in my meditation/martial arts practices. Both are equally valid and mutually supportive, rather than exclusive. Excluding either would limit my perspective and both are necessary to fully describe and enrich my life experience.

Yungdrung Bön

I suspect that vipassana practice is similar, whether you follow a more traditional Theravadan teacher or a progressive Insight Meditation teacher. I'm sure there is individual variation. I can't answer your more specific questions as I don't follow that tradition although I do believe that Goenke's approach does not embrace Shamatha whereas most Thervadan schools will teach Shamatha prior to Vipassana. PS - from my own experience, shamatha practice is extremely powerful and valuable, and I think it serves to lay a stable foundation for everything else, especially for those of us in the West with our complex and speed of light lives...

Theravada is a sect of Buddhism. Others include Mahayana, Vajrayana, and a variety of Chinese and Japanese schools, including Chan and Zen. Here is one resource that helps explain the different schools - http://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/history/schools.htm. The Vipassana movement is an offshoot of the Theravada school that started in Burma in the 1950's.There are many other resources you could investigate. Vipassana refers to a specific meditative practice and experience, often referred to as insight meditation or 'to see things as they really are.' Most schools, including Theravada schools, first teach shamatha, a technique to quiet and focus the mind, followed by vipassana, a technique to gain insight into the abiding nature of things. Some teach vipassana from the beginning - the so called Vipassana movement that started in Burma and is quite widespread in the US, usually referred to as the Insight Meditation schools. You can find both religious and secular teachers in all branches of Buddhism. The Insight Meditation groups do tend to be quite secular. Those that refer to themselves as Theravadan probably tend to be more ritual/tradition oriented. You can find mantra practice is many of the different schools. I hope that helps.

Did Jesus act out of anger or out of love? Were his actions out of control, a characteristic of anger, or a measured and appropriate response to the situation? Was he consumed by his anger or using it as a thermometer to help adjust his loving and caring response? I think the story gives us a model for our own response. We see something that is unhelpful, unfair, irresponsible - our 'righteous' anger tells us it is not acceptable. We respond with emotional intelligence and love rather than hate and vengeance. Amputating a limb can be a loving action. Rebelling against abuse, injuring a rapist or murderer, these can all be expressions of love. Fascinating to explore these things! Anger is and will always be a part of human experience. We need to be careful not to focus too much on the absolute truth of existence and the relative truth. Both exist side by side. It is our job to find the harmony and balance.

Precisely!

I think we can look at the meaning in different ways. One interpretation is the scripture as an admonition from some authority figure - "you should never get angry or you will go to hell!" That in and of itself is an expression of anger in a way, at least it feels that way to me. Another interpretation is an invitation to look at our anger as it arises and to be mindful enough to be aware of the inherent potential of it's consequences with respect to our health, our relationships, our past and future. For me it is not so much someone saying you should do or not do but rather, be aware. Anger will arise for sure, this is not about suppression. When it does arise, it is an opportunity to recognize that it is not who and what we are. We do not need to fuel it and identify with it. Indulging it generally has toxic consequences. When anger arises, we work with it in different ways depending on the vehicle. The sutric approach is to make use of an antidote to dis-identify and neutralize. The tantric approach, with which I'm least familiar, is to transform it through seeing it is a manifestation of our inherent perfection. The dzogchen approach is to do nothing to block it or push it, to allow it without adding, subtracting, or altering in any way. In that way, we are simply space and awareness and it has no place to take hold or stain us and it naturally liberates itself. I don't mean to be defensive about scripture but my approach has become that when I disagree with scripture, I maintain the possibility that it is not so much that the scripture is mistaken or misleading but that I'm not currently in a place where it I can appreciate it's message or perhaps the message is not currently speaking to or applicable to me. Best then to leave it rather than create a mindset that labels it as wrong. Just my current and imperfect perspective. Feeling much love on this perfect day! _/\_

The state of Buddha is completely connected, It is sometimes a misperception to see it as detached, in the common usage of the word, and I fully understand why it happens. There is a de-attachment if you will but not a disconnection. I think we often see detachment as being disconnected and that can be misleading. I think the objective of this thread as you've just clarified it is essential and foundational. It is integral to the sutric and tantric paths especially, less so on the Dzogchen path which is more a cutting at the root.

Dear patrons, do not talk too much, But practise the Holy Dharma. Amen!

Because it is possible, and not terribly unusual, for people to have a taste of that "pure egoless compassion" and the state where it rests without reaching some conceptual state of "highest energy" or "permanently operating in the higher energy centres, beyond duality..." We can call it what we want but what we call it is not it. It is real and it is beyond conceptualization. This is different than the type of love that is associated with hate. Those are relative emotions based on conditions. While we may use the same symbol, love, for communication purposes, we are pointing to two very different things. When the ego is liberated, hate cannot find any root but that space is imbued with all perfected qualities.

Dear roger, I genuinely appreciate your loving and courageous contributions to our community. Your question inspired me to deeply consider this question of meaning which led me to compose a poem. I do not propose that this is truth, it is simply something of significance for me where I am on the path. On Meaning I was invited to consider meaning in my life. Meaning is clearly connected with concept, language, and judgement. As such it is imputed by human thought and inherent in our life experience. On the path of liberation, the meaning of life is defined as liberating one's self from ignorance in order to assist all others in liberation from ignorance. The vehicle of Dzogchen achieves this objective through continuously resting in a state of non-conceptual being. In that space, meaning is extinguished as the self is liberated from ignorance. In order to fulfill the objective of life's meaning, the conceptual mind which gives rise to meaning must be dissolved. In that dissolution one comes to a very special place. Self and other no longer occupy opposite sides of any boundary. Creation and destruction no longer enjoy a frame of reference. Your pain and pleasure are experienced as my own. I am simply the vehicle through which the song and dance of life become manifest. Boundless unity gives birth to that which was extinguished. The meaning of life becomes clear and can be expressed in a very simple word - love. Yom Kippur 10/12/16 Overlooking Sarasota Bay

It's certainly a question that can inspire emotion. I entertain it from time to time and then let it go. I personally think technology will be unable to mitigate all of the damage done by it's irresponsible and opportunistic application. Who knows for sure?

Any in depth study will cover material that includes rote memorization and accumulation of knowledge that may or may not seem to have practical application. Much of it is archaic but informs us as to how the field arrived at where it is today. This applies in Western medicine, chess, philosophy, music,... just about anything. No question that some fields are more dogmatic than others, especially those that stick closely to ancient traditions. On the other hand, ancient traditions have generally survived the centuries for a reason. There is some credibility in longevity. Only you can determine if the chosen path is the right one for you. I would caution against dropping out simply because the core material seems too theoretical and tiresome. Having a foundation in the history and basic materials in any tradition allows us to put it in it's proper perspective and, in retrospect, we often see value where none seemed to be as we were wading through it. At least that's been my experience in a number of subjects I've studied. Have you had any clinical experience yet? If not, it may be worthwhile to try and shadow or intern at a clinic and see if the practical side appeals to you. If so, it will be worth toughing it out a bit longer. If not, perhaps it isn't right for you. You could be doing a lot of things, or nothing, over the next few years. If the practical side of TCM appeals to you, you may as well be heading in that direction. Good luck in your journey.

Hi Oak, I have a fairly long relationship with taijiquan. My training heavily emphasized martial training and application. After a relatively long time of being deeply immersed, my concurrent meditation practice led me to a place where I chose to completely disengage from the violence in my life. Even taijiquan was strongly associated with that violence due to my relationship with it. I went for a long time avoiding the taijiquan practice for that reason and after a while missed it dearly. I've been easing my way back to the practices, reclaiming them with a totally different mind and intent. As I do so, I find broader and deeper dimensions that were overlooked with a different, martially focused approach. I tell you all of this because I've learned that It is a rich and flexible tradition and will always be there for you whenever and however you are ready to reconnect. I'm happy to be a taijiquan friend if you'd like. Feel free to PM me anytime if you care to discuss it further one on one. Warm regards and good fortune in your practice!

If the topic interests you, this book may as well. It is full of pith instructions from khandoma of the Bön lineage.

The other thing I'd recommend for the spine is baguazhang. That is a major endeavor, however, and requires expert instruction.

Swimming Dragon Qigong - a relatively simple qigong set that focuses on the spine. This video is a montage of photos from the above book - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fC3KvMVs45U

volatile

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The Bön religion is formally referred to as Yungdrung Bön. Bön means something like truth, it is basically the same as Dharma. Yungdrung refers to indestructible or eternal. Where are you located? There are several sanghas in Europe and the US. Here are some web resources: http://shenten.org/ http://www.olmoling.org/ http://doortobon.org/ http://www.bonshenling.org/ http://gyalshen.org/ http://www.ligmincha.org/index.php/en/

Tibetan medicine and healing are based on the five elements as you describe them. They view the balance of the elements as the fundamental ingredient for mental and physical health. Each element has characteristics that help one assess balance. I have gradually studied, cultivated, and experienced the five element paradigm in my daily practices and life. They provide a very insightful view of our life experience and are very effective in achieving and maintaining mental and physical balance. A succinct introduction: http://www.lujong.org/medicine/elements/ Here are a few videos that touch on the Tibetan approach: Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche from a free 6 month online course he led in 2015. This is part two. I believe all parts are available online for free - it presents a beautiful and simple lifelong practice for health. This part focuses on the elemental nature of the 'soul' in the Tibetan paradigm and how soul retrieval achieved through balancing the elements. Rinpoche presents a progressive approach to this practice which is very accessible. Here is the guided meditation practice extracted from the above presentation. Elsewhere we can find more traditional presentations including the dakinis (goddesses), mudras, mantras, and other "religious" aspects. Geshe YongDong presenting a traditional approach of chanting mantra and offering mudra. Dmitry Ermakov presents a discourse on traditional Tibeatan view of the soul and its elemental nature.

The OP's question brought up a memory I'd like to share. I was once preparing to help someone in my professional life and their son asked me if I believed in God. It was an interesting place to be for me as my relationship with the whole concept of God is a very complicated one and at that time I was in the midst of deeply investigating myself and my beliefs (I guess I still am). I knew that saying 'no' would potentially undermine this person's confidence in me and would make them even more insecure and uncomfortable. On the other hand, I felt (and feel) very deeply that it is inaccurate, foolish, and disrespectful to assert that I can conceive of the creator or nature of reality, let alone capture it in a meaningless label like God. Then I thought, how can I possibly begin to have a conversation like this with someone who is simply afraid and concerned for his mother's well being and looking for some degree of reassurance and support? All this went through my head and just looked into his eyes for a few moments... In the end I answered - "yes, although I'm not certain my idea of God is similar to yours" - he assumed I was referring to his perceived differences in our religions (he is Christian and I was born into a Jewish family) but he felt better and seemed to be satisfied. I guess I'm saying all this to point out the fact that most people like to label concepts and that gives them a certain degree of security, however false that may be. There are times when it may be useful to challenge those assumptions and other times when it is best to let them hold onto their security blankets.

No point at all and yet it needs to come out, it is continuing to work on you, and us, and it is beautiful! Thank you for sharing that. Peter Fenner summarizes this point well when he says something like - 'if I didn't do what I didn't need to do I wouldn't know I didn't need to do it.' What is the point of even saying that? None, other than it can be helpful to others who are ready or need to hear it. The whole process is fascinating. To the extent it results in our lives being more free and open and allows us to connect with our inner resource of creativity, joy, and contentment, it is wonderful. To the extent that it leads us to nihilism or frustration, it can be very difficult and unproductive. That transition is generally associated with some degree of uncertainty and pain - it ain't easy. Some people recognize that things as they are at a given point in their lives are unsatisfactory. That seems to be what puts our feet on the path. Then we walk that path for as long as we need to until we are ready to let it go. What matters for me is that staying on the path supports me in living in a way that is consistent with my core values - integrity and helping others. For me the main difference between the mountains before and after, is awareness and the personal changes associated with going through the process.