doc benway

I gave up on US mainstream news sources a long time ago and focused on international and independent sources. Even though I don't go looking for news, it still finds me. I'm pretty aware of what's happening in the world. The difference is that I've stopped studying it and looking for it. I still worry about the world and the people in it. That is exactly why I've stopped studying the news. I still support international causes and stay literate - I've been reading Chomsky lately - great stuff. More importantly, I've realized that I've got to focus on my own needs for the time being, then perhaps I will be able to fix the world's problems. Selfish - yes, irresponsible - if you think so, I'll accept that description. Necessary for me right now? Yes. "What kind of a world would it be if we all had that attitude? " I think that if each of us spent more of their time cultivating compassion and exploring their original nature (as I'm actively doing - as opposed to reading newspapers), the world would be a better place. Great work Drew!

I go through definite cycles of outrage, complacency, ambivalence, acceptance, etc... It's very tough to effect change as those in power do a very good job of insulating themselves and protecting their turf. There is so much suffering, abuse, and exploitation in the world. Burma is one small piece in the puzzle, albeit as important as any other - Sudan, Somalia, Baltimore City, the White House, Iraq, nearly every Indian reservation in America, China, North Korea. Where does one start? Someone once taught me to do something tanglible, however small, when I'm feeling especially frustrated. It could be writing a letter, starting a petition, contributing to a charitable cause, etc.. When I'm particularly upset, I find a cause that I think can make a tangible difference in someone's life and make a donation or volunteer some time. It makes me feel a bit better. Another way I deal with the pain is that I no longer follow news. It's selfish but where I need to be right now. I also think the principle of healing yourself before attempting to help others is very important. My favorite charity recently has been an organization that gives support (psychological, economic, medical,...) to refuges who have been victims of torture. It's called Advocates for Survivors of Torture and Trauma - www.astt.org. I've personally met many of their clients and seen the work they do and done a little volunteer work. It makes me feel a bit better about myself. Most of them come from the African continent, particularly Kenya in recent years, but they're from all over. I also support the International Campaign for Tibet. I used to be invovled in Amnesty International but I stopped because I have some issues with their politics... Now deposing the despotic regime in Myanmar is a tougher nut to crack. Particularly when our administration has caused the US to lose all international credibility when it comes to human rights issues... If you can think of something we could do as a group to show our support, I'm in. One thing that I've seen done in the past is to draft a letter to the leadership of the country in question making whatever requests you think are appropriate and have it signed by as many people as possible or, better yet, have a lot of people send a copy of the letter. The letter needs to show due respect (even though none is really deserved) and needs to be sensible and dispassionate. Amnesty International and ICT do this a lot and it sometimes helps, particularly when it comes to trying to find out info about political detainees. I've written several letters to the leadership in China over issues related to Tibet. Letters can also be sent to Congresspersons, the United Nations, Asian political organizations, the White House... You can raise public awareness locally among your friends and coworkers. Print up bumper stickers, buttons, have a rally and sign petitions. There's a lot that can be done but getting up the inertia and figuring out what is best to do with that energy is difficult. I feel for your frustration and even more so for the people of Myanmar.

method after method after method.... Why can't I find what I never lost?

Happy holidays Cam! Take care of yourself.

A few cool things to check out regarding science vs religion: - Any of the collaborative works between Jiddu Krishnamurti and David Bohm are an interesting example of interplay between a philosopher and scientist in discussing the nature of reality - There have been a few books capturing discussions between the Dalai Lama and a variety of scientists - worthwhile reading. - Time's Arrow and Archimedes' Point: New Directions for the Physics of Time by Huw Price - this is a really interesting treatise on the nature of time and how scientists make all sorts of unrecognized assumptions based on their own conditioning when it comes to time's effects on a variety of scientific settings. This results in sometimes inaccurate conclusions. Highly recommended but not easy reading. "So why do people use science to try to explain religious practice?" Scientific evidence or the scientific method is currently the standard against which our knowledge and assertions are judged. People use science or scientific concepts (often incorrectly) in advancing their products or arguments in an effort to lend credibility to what is really nothing more than a gratuitous assertion, much of the time. All regligious doctrines are gratuitous assertions. Daoism and Buddhism attempt to apply philosophical and spiritual principles to the study of the mind and the physical world in a systemitized and rational fashion. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your view), the "stuff" they are dealing with is not measurable or tangible in such a way as to allow correct application of the scientific method.

I read the first 4 books as they were published way back when... I had a lot of perception altering stuff in my system in those days. I recenlty started from the beginning and read through Castaneda's entire ouevre again and loved it. Some things I take with a grain of salt but I found the series to be very valuable and entertaining. Maybe I'll read the witches' works next...

Where did you find that? It was never supposed to be published!!! My therapist told me it was just an exercise!!!

Random thoughts on death.... Lately I'm looking at death as just the flip side of life. Life is all action, involvement, engagement, attachment, effort, intensity. Death is the opportunity to let out a long satisfied sigh... AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH and just melt away and let go and be (or not be) everything that is the opposite of living. If you've ever seen someone die, they tend to let out this unbelievably long breath that's reminiscent of the word nirvana which can be translated sort of like to let out the breath. While alive, our organism develops this "I" sense as a consequence of our thought process and memories which is a useful, though misleading thing. When we die that "thought function" that gives the impression of a separate "self" from the big "Self" just goes away as the organic organism quits functioning. The real "Self" doesn't change. It's the only thing that is constant simply because it includes everything so change is meaningless at that level. People seem hung up on "where do we go?" when we die. We don't go anywhere. "We" is always here. It's simply the thought "I" that takes a breather for a bit, but don't worry, it'll be back! Everything we experience in the universe is based on waves or oscillations as energy is fundamental to everything and is present in the form of a wave. For every peak there's a trough. For every flash of light there is a similar period of absence of light. Same with sound. All of our senses require pulses of stimulus to perceive. Some waves are fast (short periods) like light, sound, matter.... Some have much slower waves (longer periods), like sleep cycle, eating/shitting, days, years, star life cycles... Death is the flip side of the "life" wave. That's it. It's the trough to life's peak. It's the absence of life for a temporary period until the new life begins and the wave cycle continues. The Hindus believe the entire realm of existence, the universe, the total Self also cycles ~ every 4 million years. Cool stuff to think about. I wouldn't take the 4 million number too seriously though, I think it's probably more illustrative than scientific. We're currently in the Kali Yuga which is one of the cycles, and has been going on I think for a few hundred thousand years and still has a ways to go... I look at death as an opportunity to let go and rest for a while... I'll be back. I believe that death should be honored, revered, celebrated. It's the flip side of birth. There was a time when birth was considered illness, unnatural. Unfortunately, we still consider death that way. We fight it. We hide from it. We deny it and lie to our loved ones about it - for what? We can't possibly ever avoid it! I'm not looking for a premature ending nor would I advocate taking life. But when the cycle is over, I'd like to think we could have the courage and sensibility to celebrate the natural course of our existence. Just think... no more work, taxes, headaches, stress, fear, preachers, politicians ... and you get to find out the real truth! What could be better? PS I don't know whether or not my ideas qualify as Daoist but it's all I've got to share...

Nice post.

Wonderful insight. There are wars going on within our bodies. Cancer, illness of any sort, infection, ulcers, bruises, lacerations.... We make value judgements on behavior, due to our conditioning, at our level. We cannot really make such connections at a cellular level. Similarly, does the earth really care when a person dies? Aren't we supposed to? It's simply that our sense of individuality makes us mourn each other as we fear our own disintegration.

The new Journal of Asian Martial Arts (Volume 16, #4) has a scholarly article in it by Douglas Wile titled, Taijiquan and Taoism from Religion to Martial Art and Martial Art to Religion. Just bought, haven't read it yet but I'm looking forward to it!

This is one of my favorite charities. They do amazing work with amazing people. I've seen some of what they do. http://www.astt.org/

If he's doing only one East Coast seminar, I'd suggest somewhere in the mid-Atlantic region to capture New England, NY, Philly, Baltimore, DC, VA, NC... I think Georgia is a bit far South. There are lots of smallish cities in this area. Baltimore might not be bad - there are lots of decent places outside of Baltimore city less than an hour from the airport...

The bench you describe tends to be fairly stable for most people. I've tried a variety of postures and the one that suits me best is sitting on a padded piano bench! I would keep practicing, try just to be with the feelings you're noticing without concern or alarm and see what happens in a week or two.

Unfortunately, I can't make that weekend. My son turns 21 on the 17th! Have a wonderful time, everyone. If a change in date becomes necessary, I'll certainly try to join you.

Most strange feelings during meditation, particularly in the begining are simply a consequence of become aware of your physical self at a level you've probably not experienced before. Rarely does anything need to be done beyond simply being with the feeling. Most things pass. I often find that "leaning into" the feeling from an experiential point of view (not physically) helps it to dissipate. Resistance tends to make it stronger. That said, how are you sitting physically?

I see the human organism as being infinitely complex, extremely delicate, yet miraculously resilient at the same time. Whether through age, virus, toxins, trauma, or whatever mechanism, various systems eventually malfunction. In dementia, it is the brain and most remarkably the function of short term memory. Much of cultivation focuses on the effects of thought and memory in maintaing the sense of dualism or individuality. In that sense I find myself sometimes looking at memory as a "bad" thing. Dementia helps to teach us the importance of functional memory in normal social and survival function. As to the 'why' and notions of reason or purpose, I think 'why' questions are generally a consequence of our dualistic mindset. We tend to project our human thought process and question the reason or meaning behind things as if there is someone or something outside of us "doing" the universe to us... Why do we tend to expect any reason or explanation. And if there is one, why would we expect to understand it? I often ask myself why not? That is, I find it amazing that we don't manifest more illness, aberrations, break down sooner or more frequently, etc... Dementia is a horrible thing to face in a loved one. My sympathies go out to you, Eric, and anyone else dealing with it.

You know, I've reconsidered what I said and I think that you are 100% correct. Thank you - I feel much better now.

There were some good reading suggestions in this thread: http://www.thetaobums.com/index.php?showtopic=3966&hl= I found the classics to be very difficult to understand when I first started exploring them, particularly Dao De Jing. I just didn't get that much out of it in the beginning. The first significant thing that opened my mind to what I understand as the meaning of Daoism was reading "When the Shoe Fits - Commentaries on the Taoist Mystic Chuang Tzu" by Osho. That's what stimulated me to become a Dao disciple and practice cultivation. Now the classics speak to me differently. They are such that you can keep coming back year after year and discover new things. The key is to avoid becoming put off in the beginning. I'd recommend some initial readings by some of the more contemporary, Western writers, as they are more straightforward and can give a bit of an introduction. The classics are undergraduate and graduate level. It's nice to start with some elementary and prep school material, IMO. There's a wonderful comic series out of Japan, I believe, that includes illustrations and excerpts from Dao De Jing and Zhuangzi. If I can find the name, I'll post it.

Taijiquan is the supreme ultimate - how can you get any better than that?

In meditation training I was always advised not to discuss experiences much with other students. I think in part that it can color or influence their experience thereby compromising their training. It's very easy to have a seed planted in your mind early in the training that can be very distracting and set you up with expectations that are unrealistic. On the other hand, it is sometimes valuable to me to read the experiences or advise of others. That's why I hang out here. It was particularly nice to read cloud recluse's recent experience with waking up as it was so similar to an experience I once had. For some reason, seeing others have similar experience on this path can be comforting

Agreed - just hang out on EmptyFlower for a day... I did not intend to start one nor should I have risen to the bait to perpetuate one... You and me both!

Give it a try and let us know how you fare... having a feeling is easy. Why aren't those guys from China (or Taiwan, Singapore, or Japan) showing up and walking away with the prize money? When they do show up, they tend to get beat... You can make as many gratuitous assertions as you'd like - it doesn't make them true.

I totally agree -- perhaps there are those out there who can wake up without a teacher or method from the very begining (someone had to) but most of us need guidance of some sort in the begining - I sure did. Much of my guidance came from books, some from teachers, most from practice. At some point, however, I think it's critical to recognize the trap - that whatever method one is using or whatever teacher one is following simply reinforces the sense of individuality that we are trying to lose... there is really no exception to that. To follow a method or a teacher, someone needs to be following and someone needs to be followed. The funny thing is - they are one and the same - both are an illusion, so it has to go away.... at that point, the only teacher can be the Self (in the Vedanta sense)