doc benway

What makes you think of nihilism?

I assume you’re criticizing the passage from the 21 Nails. Or my perspective? You weren’t clear. Not everyone has a connection to every wisdom teaching. That’s no reason to attack. Unless, I guess, if you feel the words are bad or evil, or threatening in some way. My teacher once gave me a piece of advice I’ve found very powerful. Take it or leave it as you wish. If I disagree or don’t understand something in the wisdom teachings, always best to be open and patient and allow the possibility it might speak to me at some point. Otherwise I’m closing myself off to so much potential! To me, this passage is a powerful, practical instruction and explication of the entire dzogchen teaching - view, path, and result. A direct way to touch the heart of reality. If it doesn’t speak to you, cool. Disparaging criticism? Totally unnecessary…

My perspective is that good/evil - right/wrong exist, but solely within human judgement. This is captured in passages like those regarding straw dogs in DDJ. In Buddhism, it is related to the 2 Truths. Good/bad is only relevant to the truth of relative existence. It has nothing whatsoever to do with the truth of absolute existence. Like Dao, the Natural State allows for all expressions and manifestations equally and without preference or judgement. From our human perspective, there is clearly judgement and preference, good and evil, right and wrong; although there are few specific examples where all would agree. From the 21 Nails, a dzogchen text from the Bön canon: Self-originated primordial wisdom is the base. The five poisonous mental afflictions are the dynamic energy. Chasing after them is the way you are deluded. Viewing them as deficient is the error. Leaving them as they are is the method. Freeing them into vastness is the path. Non-duality is the realization

Puget Sound

My perspective is that a shrine exists solely to support my realization and growth as a practitioner. It does not exist to support the Buddha, the Dharma, or the Sangha, per se. Consequently, anything that serves to support my spiritual growth and the deepening of my own practice and understanding can serve as a shrine. And the most beautiful and perfect shrine can be a distraction rather than a sacred support. While the "staunch traditionalists," or even the progressive freethinkers, may bring to the table certain rules, definitions, and expectations, none of that has any value beyond serving to support or distract me from my personal practice and understanding. If the 3D shrine app works for you, wonderful! One the other hand, a shrine does not have to cost much... A candle, a stick of incense, a photo or image downloaded from the web, and a small bowl of water are enough. What really counts is our relationship to our shrine far more than its component parts and construction.

Apples and Bananas by Cookies!

I live in a suburban community built on reclaimed farmland. There are many trees and plants of all kinds that have been planted throughout the neighborhood. I sometimes wonder what went into the planning and decision making about which species to plant, how close together they should be, and so forth. I often feel like our landscaping efforts, while pleasing to the human eye, has locked trees and plants into situations where they are in conflict with each other, where they are in forced competition, where they may be toxic to one another. I feel this can create stress which in turn leads to a response that may have negative impacts on us as well - increased allergens perhaps, unsuitable habitats for other life that depends on them, and things we cannot yet understand. I often walk or run through the neighborhood and open my heart and mind to these beautiful and mysterious neighbors of mine, offering my love, my empathy, and being open to developing a deeper connection. I have and continue to learn much from these silent and powerful companions.

@manitou I can relate to your rationale for stepping away from the forum. I am also "tired of my own words," tired of words in general. I delete the vast majority of my posts and replies before ever posting them. Silence nearly always seems more valuable and more significant than words for me. While you don't want this thread to be about you, sorry - your last major post here cannot be about anything or anyone else for me! You are a blessing and a delight, one of my favorite people here. You have demonstrated courage, honesty, warmth, generosity, and insight that is rare among people. You are loved and will be sorely missed around here, the community will be diminished by your absence. With love and deep respect.

@hagar Fair point, most of the writings can get far too theoretical. I think that is related to the fact that the actual “practice” is so simplistic. One very good and practical approach can be found in the book “Awakening the Luminous Mind” by Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche. The first half of the book teaches a practical and accessible approach to dzogchen. The second half teaches a bit more advanced approach. Overall there is very little theory in the book.

I would also add that a study of the basic practice of dzogchen from the Bön or Buddhist traditions will be an excellent resource as the essence of the practice is very similar. Nice to see you @hagar

Whether we intend to leave a legacy is somewhat irrelevant. We WILL leave a legacy and the legacy we leave will be far more dependent on others' perspectives of us than on our own desires, plans, or expectations. We will be gone and the consequences of our presence and actions while we are here, our effects on those around us, the values of our descendants, our impact on our environment and relationships; all of that and more will be our legacy. Allowing that fact to inform our daily lives, our choices, and our focus has profound value, IMO. I'm no authority on Laozi and can't know his intentions, assuming he was even a historic person, but certainly there was intent in the creation, preservation, and communication of the profound messages of the Daodejing. To the extent that we understand and live in accordance with Daoist principles like wu wei and de, our legacy is likely to reflect the purity, beauty, and spontaneity of our true Nature. To the extent we live our lives from a place of conditioning that obstructs the natural flow of the Way, our legacy is likely to reflect that as well. To your question, Laozi's legacy is a consequence of both intention and the natural flow of the Way as the two converge as we interfere less and less with the purity and spontaneity of reality. I have no idea if this has anything to do with what Mr. Covey speaks to in his book but it is what occurred to me as I read your post. Congratulations on the new job. I hope it works out well for you.

Wim Hof and Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche will be discussing Tummo online... https://cybersangha.net/inner-heat-practices/

Enchanting glimpse into the hearts and minds of the Beatles in 1969.

holy

It is nothing you do…

I get that. I also get a sense of the repetitive, sometimes abstract, deferential, or tedious activity causing a bit of a conflict with the identity that has other things to do or the one who doesn’t really identify with this foreign cultural indulgence… The one who rebels, the busy and important person, all these different personas come out to complain, to argue, and I begin to see how arbitrary, hollow, fragmented, and unimportant they, I, all seem to be. The central sense of an individual loosens. Hard to express it well…

I think there is another reason with which you may not agree... Ngondro makes use of the ego to weaken the ego, or at least to help put it in its proper perspective, reduce its dominance, and to prepare for a purer perception of reality.

Says the guy with 15,536 posts!

“For me, trees have always been the most penetrating preachers. I revere them when they live in tribes and families, in forests and groves. And even more I revere them when they stand alone... In their highest boughs the world rustles, their roots rest in infinity; but they do not lose themselves there, they struggle with all the force of their lives for one thing only: to fulfil themselves according to their own laws, to build up their own form, to represent themselves. Nothing is holier, nothing is more exemplary than a beautiful, strong tree... Trees are sanctuaries. Whoever knows how to speak to them, whoever knows how to listen to them, can learn the truth. They do not preach learning and precepts, they preach, undeterred by particulars, the ancient law of life." ~Herman Hesse

The three most difficult things for a human being are not physical feats or intellectual achievements. They are, first, returning love for hate; second, including the excluded; third, admitting that you are wrong. Anthony de Mello

Greetings Bums, I've made the decision to step back from moderating. I feel a need to prioritize other commitments in my personal and professional life. To be clear, this has nothing to do with the recent changes related to Covid discussion and PPD's. I support Trunk and his compassionate efforts to balance freedom and social responsibility here. I know that he is listening to all points of view and has pure intentions. I'm proud and grateful for the work of the current and recent moderators and admin to foster a civil and supportive forum. I deeply appreciate the support I've received from so many of you including @Trunk and @sean. It was a privilege and a pleasure to work with @Apech, @thelerner, @ilumairen, @liminal_luke, @Bindi, @zerostao, and @dwai over the past 16 months. Stepping back is bittersweet but necessary for me right now. Like it or not, I do plan to continue hanging around...

To me, words and the feelings of others count. Nothing to do with political correctness in my mind, that's simply a blanket excuse for a lack of empathy and civility. I'm not personally offended by your comments but I have this protective instinct that often leads me to engage when I feel others are being targeted, especially vulnerable groups - in this case women and the LGBTQ community. This forum was filled with misogynistic loud-mouths with over-inflated spiritual egos for a long time who made it an unpleasant place to share and interact with people. I think this is why I'm a bit reactive to a few of your recent posts. I joined the mod team a year and a half ago to change the tenor here and I think we did a good job. It may be slow and quiet, echoey even... but I think there are those here who value a safe space to share intimate and profound feelings and experiences on their spiritual path. For me that is a worthwhile trade off. Whether you stay or go is of little consequence to me really but I'll respond as I see fit.

No interest in change or growth?

Not meant to be insults, not even veiled, just direct pointing out of your offensive, misogynistic comments. I don’t appreciate them and want to let you and the community know that. Already living in the promised land… Thanks for the advice.