Vajrahridaya

So, the Buddha taught the ways of a cult, and all the Buddhas that ever were, were cult leaders?

Yes of course. What I mean is not having an iota of suffering over something as silly as not being able to get your favorite ice cream today. But, at the same time, there is a state one can access where this type of mourning you are talking about is laced with a bliss, a deep compassion, a transcendent element sort of speak. When the Buddha talks about freedom from psychological suffering, he's talking about being detached from the concept of detachment, rather being free from feeling while feeling, where neuroses don't build up, as well as rigid identities. Like a baby sort of speak, how they feel something fully, but it's gone the next moment, without a trace. As neither does suppressing emotions out of some sort of ideal of perfection lead to true freedom from proliferation. Sure, but you can learn from it in order to just step up and do what's right from the very beginning and avoid the suffering next time. Suffering isn't evil, it's a teaching tool. At the same time, physiological suffering can be unavoidable as we go on in life. At the same time, psychological attachment to passing states creates needless tension and more unhealthy suffering. Like for instance, if I were to identify with the surroundings I grew up in, I would be a gangster. But, detachment from my surroundings allowed my mind to drift into other paradigms of thinking outside of my environmental conditioning. 16 years ago I took the money I made dealing pot on the streets and moved into an Ashram in upstate NY. I haven't been the same ever since. Through detachment, I changed my environment. If I was attached to my senses, I would have kept on with the hot girls that were all over me at the time and the fast money, it was fun, definitely. But, through insight I saw the ephemeral nature of such activities and followed a deeper yearning for spiritual sustenance instead, this took detachment.

Indeed!

Practicing detachment, just means not creating a solidified identity around your sense perceptions that's static and unyielding. The teachings talk about raising awareness of the root of ones experience of joy and identity with the passing and unsteady nature of the senses and it's objects of perception. This solidified identity is what causes friction and the inability to yield to new situations that arise outside of ones comfort zone, regardless if the comfort zone is pleasurable or filled with suffering. It's really just about going deeper into the nature of the senses outside of their appearance. An enlightened being actually enjoys the senses without getting lost in them. There is a whole lot more joy in their experience because they cease to be clouded by so many rigid ideas about attachment and aversion as one has found the root of joy to be beyond appearances but still housed by all appearances. All your examples above are great, yes. But, what about when your loved one dies, or your forest burns down, or all the flowers wither away and don't come back? Where will be your joy then? What about when your body grows old and dull? Or what if you become crippled? If you are not detached from the experience of your senses, having found a subtler foundation for joy within, you will be lost, like a painter without arms. Sure, you can learn to paint with your toes, but it won't be the same, one will have to adjust ones perception of happiness, or inner causes for joy unless one just decides to succumb to bitterness because ones pleasurable comfort zone has been taken away. These are extreme examples, sure. But, think about how in everyday life these changes happen. Your driving and someone cuts you off. Your going shopping for your favorite ice cream and someone reaches into the freezer right before you and takes the last bucket of Ben & Jerry's Wavy Gravy and the next closest store is either closed or miles away and you don't have time. Will you suffer or adjust and go with the flow? Get fruit popsicles instead without an iota of psychological suffering? Anyway, just watch your day and see how many things challenge your attachment to identity intwined with sense perceivable pleasure and comfort zones, and see how you inwardly respond to impermanence.

Yes, Mr. Authority figure. You're so right, I'm so lowly compared to you. Here, I'll be the rug on your floor, how about that?

It's based upon a solidified identity. There's a difference between pride and confidence. As far as how I see the experience the word is pointing to anyway.

Wow Xabir! What a beautiful quote! I would like to clarify this quote above, that he's saying 1 in a million people who become Buddhas, so he's saying that 1 in million Buddhas attained Buddhahood without a living teacher. So, suffice it to say, it's next to impossible to attain full blown Buddhahood without a living guide as there probably aren't even a million full blown Buddhas on planet Earth out of the 7 billion people. Or their might be, maybe 2 million? I couldn't say really. But regardless, it's so rare, it's really just pride that makes people think they don't need a teacher. Otherwise someone who is really that wise wouldn't mind having a teacher anyway, it would be no sweat, there wouldn't be a fight. When enlightened beings go to other enlightened beings to get transmissions and get new techniques, it behooves the unenlightened to do the same. I would think at least.

Yeah, you're so high GIH, you're so great!! We are not worthy!

Good post!

This is the type of fetters that people create and manifest side traditions from that I do not follow. I'm interested in the muscle, not the fat, I'm into the Buddhas, not those that are esteemed without merit, but merely due to family, or birthright, etc. Also, what you may deem fat, another might deem muscle, and both are valid if it evolves the person. Just like Dogen, for a while the answers at one temple played a part, just like with the Buddha. His hindu guru's helped him attain high states of realization, when he saw that they were still limited, though high, he moved on to go deeper. Still, what later was deemed as fat, was necessary for him to advance. It's not so black and white. We are saying the same thing. And, Dogen's realizations became a tradition, which helped people, and maybe some types of people corrupted some of his teachings over time, whatever... I'm not interested in the corrupted versions of any tradition. The word tradition is not a bad word, it is defined by the individuals experience. If one is diligent in self inquiry, which takes true humility, the meat of a tradition will be found. As you've said, meaning comes from within, not without. For instance you have Catholicism, quite a corrupted tradition when it comes to the Papacy and it's politics. None the less, due to a persons inner diligence, like St. Francis of Assisi, St. Theresa of Avila, St. John of the Cross, etc. and even Meister Eckhart who was excommunicated for voicing his transcendence of accepted Catholic dogma, there are some Masters on the side of the tradition which I would find inspiring. You are merely disagreeing due to your personal, as you say, "field of meanings." But, I also do think you are wrong when it comes to certain traditions. You think they are fat and I think they are meat. For me, it's a revelation of your lack of experience and insight. For you... it doesn't matter because you'll never concede to being wrong, as you're too proud, you lack humility in my opinion. Also, you are so sure that you are right. That's fine, I am also sure I am right, but it took humility to get here. I honestly understand how it's compassionate to withhold certain methods from individuals if they are not ready for it. It's all about the intention behind withholding them that gives the act genuine meaning of virtue or corruption. Yup, what is fat became necessary in order for the meat to get passed around and digested by other beings, in order for Dogen's words to ignite an enlightened version of the Buddhist tradition.

The trouble starts when people think that any old perspective will do. This is not so when it comes to liberation. Also, peoples perspectives on liberation differ, as do systems of spiritual traditions, as in, liberation does not mean the same thing in every single tradition. No one is arguing that there aren't many different valid perspectives on life in general, but Buddha himself argues that there is the perspective that liberates, and there are perspectives which do not. There are differences which should be made clear to the spiritual aspirant. Buddhism for me is not a religion in the Western sense, though plenty treat it as such from East to West. But, for me it is a specific system of methods and perspectives used for a specific aim that is not the same as the aims of other traditions. This is very clear. It's unintelligent to think otherwise. It's like saying every type of science is the same because it's all called science. So is it just as under-informed to say that all religion is the same because it's all called religion, or "spiritual tradition", as the truth is in the details, not in the glaze over. If you just want to learn how to eat, or be physically healthy, you don't need Buddhism for that. If you want liberation from unconscious rebirth, both after death and in life, you do need Buddhism for that. If you just want to live a happy and healthy life, there are many ways about that as the meaning of life is different for every single person.

Good post! Of course, most of your posts are good posts, well... all that I've read anyway.

The Rinpoche mentioned in the Wiki link is my Rinpoche actually. Chogyal Namkhai Norbu Rinpoche. He wrote a book and does have Yantra Yoga (trul khor) videos out. Here's a link to it's website. Yantra Yoga site with Chogyal Namkhai Norbu Rinpoche He actually doesn't do it anymore since various surgeries, but on youtube there are videos of him doing it when he was young and fit. This is a video of him explaining it a bit, and showing some of the basic movements. Here is a video of some of the more intense movements. Yes, the path must be holistic, embracing all aspects of life from waking to sleep.

I agree. Even though it's only a good way to enlightenment when coupled with philosophy, psychology, meditation and such things as this. Otherwise it's just healthy and good for protecting yourself on the bad streets.

Not exactly the same but... Yes. From Wiki Link "Tsa lung, Trul khor (lit. "magical movement instrument, channels and inner breath currents") known for brevity as Trul khor (lit. "magical instrument" or "magic circle;" Sanskrit: adhisāra) is a Himalayan tantric discipline which includes breathwork (or pranayama), meditative contemplation (or dhyana) and precise dynamic movements (or Body work) to centre the practitioner and to engender the body-mind precision of a keened instrument. Chögyal Namkai Norbu Rinpoche, a prominent exponent of Trul khor, prefers to use the Sanskrit equivalent term, Yantra Yoga, when writing in English. Trul khor hones the practitioner's faculty and supports the mindstream re-emergence of natural body-mind or primordial awareness or rigpa (cf. Dzogchen). Trul khor traditionally consists of 108 movements, including bodily movements (or dynamic asana), incantations (or mantra), breathwork, and visualizations, all timed to heart rhythms. The flow or vinyasa (Sanskrit) of movements are enlikened to beads on a mala. The body postures (or asanas) of ancient Himalayan yogis are depicted on the walls of the Dalai Lama's summer temple of Lukhang. Trul khor is the fruitful distillation of the confluence of centuries of ancient Bön movements, Indian yogic traditions, and Chinese movement forms (that developed into disciplines such as Tai Chi Chuan). Himalayan physical yogas vary between lineages and the complexity of the practices are not disclosed until a deep level of samaya is realised by the practitioner."

That's a nice antidote if your spirituality is caught up in conceptualizations and trying to be some sort of outer ideal. But, for the vast majority of beings who haven't even started the path, that wouldn't be a good idea to tell them that. Generally selves need lots of work before they can practice the letting go of "spiritual ideals" phase of the program. I know that you are on the path though, so... I'm not talking about you. Most people need to know how the self exists in the first place, they need to contemplate and meditate on the nature of their own personal self, it's energy and it's reactions and responses. They need a path with genuine methods of self inquiry and opening awareness. I know there are plenty of Taoist lineages that incorporate both Buddhist philosophy with genuine martial arts paths and energy work programs, as well as food and herbal awareness.

Dzogchen

What I mean to say is when ones awareness through practice, becomes free from all the faces it puts on due to the flow of phenomena. It's not a substratum of some sort, just a potential due to being sentient. I'm saying when your awareness has been deconditioned. This is why it was said after the comment you quoted and commented on above this second commentary. I think it answers what you are talking about, as it's free from reification of cause and effect while seeing it directly. As in, your awareness free from conditions of cause and effect as well as itself, sees through all of it while it's happening. You're like a duck in water. Nothing ever sticks, you have spontaneous presence! Right, I would say for a Buddha, this reactive energy is liberated, allowing one to transmute the condition of negative habit into compassionate action in every moment. Instant presence! So, as a Buddha continues living, having a body made of these past impressions put there prier to enlightenment, in every moment, the neurosis arises in the brain as a reaction, but self liberates into energetic inspiration for compassionate response due to immersion in Rigpa. So... the bound person would just go along with the habit pattern and "react" while one in Rigpa will be subtle enough in each moment to self liberate the energy upon contact with the conditions in the moment that bid the inner habit pattern to manifest. Thus, in a sense, one in Rigpa is basically transforming bondage to liberation in every successive moment on a continuous basis until death. Thus, they are not bound by their bodies anymore, they are not victims of it's make up of negative neurotic patterns in the brain or the physical cells, and thus don't make anyone else victims of it either... ideally that is. People can have the tendency to play the role of victim no matter what. Those that are to be reborn, like a Tulku, actually consciously take on the karmic baggage of the family and region they are born into, as this baggage is what makes it possible to have a body. Like the Dalai Lama, he has been liberated long, long, ago, but keeps projectioning compassionate action through karmic baggages over and over again to fulfill the purpose of positive influence as a Tulku. This is hard to put into words, this process has to be realized directly to make sense of a level faster than thought. But, this is how it is for such beings as people say all the time. "If they were enlightened, why'd they come back?" Well basically they didn't, they just appear to. The state of mind of these yogi's is so far beyond the appearance that they are manifesting through. This is not just a Buddhist thing either, Hinduism has this concept as well, with Avatars. The famous Nityananda of Ganeshpuri was one such being. Anyway... do you see? In a sense, the state of Rigpa does the work. My explanation is all over simplified of course. One could write volumes on the details of this. I think beings have as well? Great beings are aware of their physical environment when they're sleeping, as if they aren't sleeping, as they do not have a subconscious or unconscious anymore. I've had awareness that sees like it has eyes, even while the eyes are closed. Which would make a scientist just flip their wig and want to put me away! Also, when they dream, they don't dream through their impressions, they have visions or travel to help their disciples through the disciples subconscious, or they meet other great beings in another dimension and get transmissions. They don't sleep like regular people. But, I understand what you're saying and I agree. You mentioning what you did just inspired me to say something more on the subject of sleep when you asked about the differences between a Buddhas awareness and a Samsarin's awareness. Right. The Buddha awareness is just like a mirror and it can see all separate things all connected as things are in the reflection of a mirror. Yes, you are flipping your beginningless conditions for bondage into endless conditions for liberated and compassionate action. Samsara is beginnigless and Nirvana is endless. A Buddha has beginningless conditions as fuel to keep going, there is never non-existence. It's just that they stop being self serving and start being universally serving. So, those that translate Nirvana as going into non-existence don't understand it from a greater perspective. I mean, it's true, the you that was bound goes into non-existence in a sense but the stream of manifesting keeps on going, just now as free from self clinging even if there appears to be clinging to a self, it's just an appearance for a Buddha and not a concrete reality.

Nice Matt, a practice of the 4 Immeasurables.

A Lineage is made up of individuals and their realizations. Those who are ready to go for it with their entire being, are successful, in whatever good spiritual tradition of whatever goal. Of course this is a process, and it's so complex, to think in black and white dichotomies like you are doing will merely reveal your lack of insight. As an individual, I focus on what is successful for me and those who came to success. In Buddhism, luckily, there are endless examples, because the tradition and the teaching is pretty exhaustive already, simply due to the amount of Buddhas that have come since Gotama in order to comment and clarify. Pompous B.S. My teachers put you to shame. Genuinely.

This is true, suffice it to say they practice the 4 immeasurables of whatever description. 4 Immeasurables "The brahmavihāras (sublime attitudes, lit. ‘abodes of brahma’) are a series of four Buddhist virtues and the meditation practices made to cultivate them. They are also known as the four immeasurables (Sanskrit: apramāṇa, Pāli: appamaññā). According to the Metta Sutta, Shākyamuni Buddha held that cultivation of the four immeasurables has the power to cause the practitioner to be re-born into a Brahma realm (Pāli: Brahmaloka). The meditator is instructed to radiate out to all beings in all directions the mental states of: 1) loving-kindness or benevolence, 2) compassion, 3) sympathetic joy, and, 4) equanimity. The four immeasurables are also found in Patañjali's Yoga Sutras (1.33), a text composed long after the beginning of Buddhism and substantially influenced by Buddhism. These virtues are also highly regarded by Buddhists as powerful antidotes to negative mental states (non-virtues) such as avarice, anger and pride." Virtually all paths cultivate these virtues to one degree or another. As the Buddha said, they do not lead to Buddhahood, but they do lead to perfection of virtue. Of course, but which philosophies actually enunciate that? Not many, and Buddhism is the only one with exhaustive detail concerning that concept, Hinduism is second. As far as explanation goes at least. The other traditions you have to read into based upon what has been influenced by other traditions or outlooks, namely Buddhism and Hinduism. I know during early Christianity there were ideas thrown around about reincarnation as left over from Pythagoreanism and Plato, but the earliest Christian theologians seemed to throw that idea out the window. Indeed! As far as your attainment goes though, I don't know. But effort bares fruit, it can't do otherwise.

You'll have to find out for yourself, arguing concepts just won't do I'm afraid, not for someone like you. You're clever enough to read into whatever the heck I say conceptually on a level that might just be contrary to my intention in using them. LOL!!! As they too are empty, inter-dependent, and subjectively defined.

This is good, and I appreciate your inward turned humility. You should start studying some Dzogchen texts, like the Kunjed Gyalpo or I don't know, get Rigpa transmission. Anyway... good job! Here's a site that might be of interest... http://www.zangthal.co.uk/files.html

Ok, this is what's wrong with your comparison. Corporations are dealing with mundane levels of profiteering. Spiritual traditions do not, but have to succumb to the financial system of support in place either locally or globally in order to maintain the dissemination of information. This can corrupt any religion as well as support it's truth and positive essence of intention. When you have realization based upon the sincere and humble longing for truth, including questioning ones own projections, both conscious and subconscious, you come to sift through the surface, and see the underlying intention within a tradition. In Buddhism, there are so many beautifully endowed C.E.O's and plenty of them had great students. Plenty of them also had students of varying degrees of potential, but lots of money, or familial power. These are the ones that corrupted the teachings given by whatever C.E.O. after the initial progenitor, and created traditions that are superfluous compared to the essence of the enlightened traditions intention. Of course, these side tracks may have both good and bad fruit, dependent upon the person receiving it and their stage in personal evolution, which is so personally nuanced that one cannot judge it from outside. None the less, if these traditions became dogma due to the amount of people that believed in it, due to a majority lack of potential to see through it, which is general here on Earth, this mistake in interpretation might become staple through a certain strand of believers. Of course, then there are those that are really interested with a burning passion to get to the essence of the teaching and see through the dross to the heat of it all. Buddhism has a long line of incredible exemplifiers that manifested and evolved a tradition that is quite perfect in meaning, though conceptually and methodologically adequate to the degree that if you are sincere in your self questioning and clearing of sight, the true meaning will be ascertained directly through it's presentation. Anyway, to explain this will be so nuanced, if you don't get it by now... well. There is always Eternity, and lifetimes worth of cultivation. GIH, you are so proud my dude. You really think you know, but you don't know what you don't know.

Wow!! More of this seems necessary... The flaw in your logic is so clear to me, it's almost idiotic. It's also nuanced though, as you are clearly speaking from a lack of experience, and the particular level of experience I am talking about necessitates having really had living lineage, not merely an imaginary one. Armchair pundits with no credentials. Or like ralis, could have had them, but threw them away due to pride and arrogance.