Vajrahridaya

I think it's fun, the natural evolution of conversations. Even arguments.

Conversations have a natural way of transforming from topic to topic as everything is connected and one can bridge any gap in this way. I don't see anything inherently wrong with it. What do we want? Linear and robotic order, or awareness of the secret connections between abstract notions?

You're right... yes, yes. Which is why I explained it as deepening inner awareness. All the techniques of focusing on the aura, or energy around the body I think takes ones awareness away from the true core of the issue, which is within... where our projection of duality arises from.

Yes sure, suggestions and assertions are not awareness, but they can reflect awareness.

For a Buddhist, the universal ground is compassion, or bodhichitta reflective of understanding inter-connectivity. I've had dreams of a flash of bright light, and some sort of change of dimension where all the "good" people come together on Earth... I don't have any nuanced information to give out about this. But, people have so many different ideas of how this common ground manifests. So many think it's just, "reading thought." Like, if you read the thoughts of our group, your in, or something. I find that very egotistical though and just a group psychosis for the most part as ignoring thought is shunned by these groups of people. Reading thought on a constant basis is pretty annoying. So, I like to think of my universal ground as bodhichitta, and that's it. This both transcends thought and embraces it, but doesn't get caught up in it, but rather utilizes it for benefit that is not merely self centered gratification of mutual acceptance, like joining a gang.

This is true, which is why all the Tibetan Masters that I know of operate on a sliding scale, or even allow one to offer some physical labor in place of money in order to support the retreat in some way. Their motto is, "no one is turned away." That's why when prices come up for retreats, they don't say, "the price is", they say, "suggested donation is." I understand, but that's why I said the above, if energy cannot be offered as money, it's offered as work directly associated with the retreat or teaching in order to support the entire affair. No, it doesn't. Yes, but at the same time, this is ones karma. It's said that one should first get ones home life in order, then focus on dharma, otherwise... it's kind of like throwing teachings away when the person getting them does not have any sturdy support in order to build the teachings from. Again, this is not a black and white thing and it's as relative and unique as individual situations. I get your point though.

Yup I'm not clear on where we are going as an increasingly inter-connected human society.

You misunderstood what I meant by karma chip. Karma means action, and through your action in employment or employer, this energy manifests as money. It's more relative than the black and white considering you had of my words. Of course having or not having money is no reflection of a persons inner quality. Wandering mendicants can have far more character, wisdom and realization than a wealthy merchant. Karma also is neither good nor bad, it's just action and it's fruit. But in this sense, what better offering of ones energy? Supporting dharma.

It's not a coincidence.

It's funny, someone as stupid as I was able to see right through Bubbas first book. Once anyone starts saying that, "I am the 1 and super teacher of this time." I run in the other direction and his first book was so filled with ego, and not that enlightened kind of ego either. I think he had some experiences that arose dependent upon his personal pride, which totally confused him. I think Ken suffers from the same ailment, just not to such an extreme degree as Bubba.

Yes, but not in the sense that it can be divorced from the entirety of Buddhism and there is a reason for that. It's an independent vehicle just like hinayana is and mahayana is and vajrayana is except it cuts right to the liberated experience from the very beginning even with the style of dialectic in the semsde cycle. But, there is a reason why he teaches it deeply soaked with mahayana and vajrayana. Have you received transmission from ChNNR? Have you done his Termas? They are very Mahayana (bodhichitta)/Vajrayana (transformation) with the focus on Dzogchen (instant presence) view as experience, which is no different really from just understanding the intention of all the vehicles, and there is even progressive integration taught in it for the sake of those that don't get it immediately, which is going to be 99.9 percent of all people. For instance... From Wiki: "The essence of the Dzogchen teaching is the direct transmission of knowledge from master to disciple. Garab Dorje epitomized the Dzogchen teaching in three principles, known as the Three Statements of Garab Dorje (Tsik Sum Né Dek): 1. Direct introduction to one's own nature (Tib. ngo rang thog tu sprod pa) 2. Not remaining in doubt concerning this unique state (Tib. thag gcig thog tu bcad pa) 3. Continuing to remain in this state (Tib. gdeng grol thog tu bca' pa) In accordance with these three statements, Garab Dorje's direct disciple Manjushrimitra (Tib. 'jam dpal bshes gnyen) classified all the Dzogchen teachings transmitted by his master into three series: 1. Semde (Wylie: sems sde; Skt: cittavarga), the series of Mind, that focuses on the introduction to one's own primordial state; 2. Longde (Wylie: klong sde; Skt: abhyantaravarga), the series of Space, that focuses on developing the capacity to gain familiarity with the state and remove doubts; and 3. Menngagde (Wylie: man ngag sde, Skt: upadeshavarga), the series of secret Oral Instructions, focusing on the practices in which one engages after gaining confidence in knowledge of the state." (what can result in Jalus or Rainbow Body/Body of Light) And ChNNR teaches these 3 cycles in progression, especially these days. You have to qualify to receive Longde and the same with Menngagde. Certain texts are not available to you if you have not received these transmissions as well. Experiencing Rigpa clarifies the view of all the vehicles of Buddhism into a seamless whole, experientially... allowing for the goal of all vehicles to manifest through as Nirmanakaya. ChNNR has said this as well. He said that this was his experience when getting transmission from his main root guru. He said that the intention of all the teachings he had received previously all of a sudden became clear on an intuitive level. Dzogchen is not different from the first statement of Shakyamuni, nor is it different from the intention of all the vehicles in essence, it's only different in it's approach. But every teacher supports it with Mahayana and Vajrayana.

I didn't read every word and mostly just sped through it, but I got that money is energy and it's value is relative to ones understanding of everything. That it can be used for good. In the sense of dharma teaching, supporting it's possibility of dissemination through this energy is a blessed event that is beneficial for all involved and this is relative too.

Yes, and I think he apologizes for that in the past somewhere? He's definitely not a Buddha in my non-Buddhahood opinion, but I think he's smart enough to read and get something from.

I didn't read every word, cuz I just don't have time right now. But, at first I was like..."Oh, that's dualistic... " but then I read on and realized, "Oh.. that's his point... ok yes, my thoughts too." Money is just energy, and we get the value of what it's spent on. Money is basically like Karma chips, or karma notes.

Experientially it is, and it can be explained conceptually. They certainly are, otherwise Chogyal Namkhai Norbu Rinpoche would not teach them in his Precious Vase. The article explains it, and I think you might need to deepen your understanding of his words and read the implications or ramifications. Have you read the Kunjed Gyalpo? Sure, they are explained differently leading to the exact same experience, though manifested differently dependent upon the individual capacity. Still... Buddahood is awake is Buddhahood. It's the same experientially in the end, no matter how the Nirmanakaya enacts that Dharmakaya dependent upon the vehicle.

I was actually thinking of this today, and I agree. You're right that freedom from the fear of death does not necessarily lead to compete Buddhahood in the sense that it is defined in Buddhism. It does lead to Jivanmukti though which is liberated while living, which is not even the last stage in Shaivite Tantra. So yes. I agree.

You've never heard anything I've said from the very beginning. I wrote what I wrote for the sake of others reading as I've found you to be like a brick wall anyway. You could have taken it entirely without that ego you hold so tightly to, but you of course, as predicted, did not. I do wish you health, happiness and inner opening.

Detached happiness and self confidence is the best remedy for that. Mine used to be really bad, and I even had to take medication for the sake of sanity, I was bombarded on a constant basis and couldn't even sleep at night. But the medication made me really depressed, so I stopped about 7 years ago, I only took the medication for a few months. Then something just switched, as I went deeper inside, I just stopped being scared of it all and went even deeper inside through mantra and practice, and just found a deeper place of happiness and confidence. The more confident I am, the happier I am and vice versa. All that enters is burnt, or transformed into this happiness and confidence.

Actually, the personal mind stream will still manifest itself in other dimensions beyond this Earth plane, even if you are enlightened and especially if you are enlightened, you will have lucid awareness of this process. But yes, as you are defining ego... I would also say, transformation. The term "ego" is somewhat ominous and it's definition seems to change from psychology to psychology. Some just call it, the sense of I, and others call it, the sense of I am this. I feel an enlightened being both sees through his/her I and I am this-ness, yet embraces it at the same time, from an expanded sense of reference rather than a contracted sense of "I am limited by what seems to be me."

Actually Kate, Buddhists would say that this fear arises from your primal attachment to limited self reference. There is no ceasing to exist in Buddhism. You never "cease" to exist as there is no such thing as non-existence, there is only transmutation, or transformation, expansion or contraction. Your contraction, or "fear" arises dependent upon a subtle obscuration in your psyche that say's, "I am Kate and that's all that I am." Even if you don't believe this philosophically, the psychological attachment runs very, very deep. I know, because I've run into that fear plenty of times during my spiritual studies and meditations. Buddhism in it's philosophy of dependent origination/emptiness reveals how deeply flawed this attachment to limited self reference is, and this is the fear that is arising inside you, as it's fighting for it's own survival, when it never truly existed to begin with. You were never limited, never small, never going to die, because you were never born. There has always been existence and you have always been a part of it, even before you were seemingly born as Kate, throughout many, many lives. Basically Kate, your objection to Buddhism is arising dependent upon your misunderstanding of the source of fear inside your mind/body complex. This fear, is basically fighting for it's life by objecting to the fear killing teachings of Buddhism. If you want a definition of the ego... one could say it's "fear." Fear itself is the ego. Once fear is gone, no more limited self reference, no more blocked love, no more lack of compassion, no more lack of insight, no more contracted response habit patterns on this board or in life situations. More of the quote on the bottom of this post...

I think it's more about transformation, or liberating the ego from itself, or turning it into an agent of the greater good for all, rather than it's own personal cravings that arise out of the suffering inherent in the experience of separation from everything. It all depends upon how you define ego. If you consider it a concept referencing limited self identity, then yes... that does die when one attains enlightenment. The death of the ego is explained by many mystics as a direct experience that happens in meditation. That you actually experience your own death in meditation and might even release your bowels and bladder contents, and then come back to life, now free from the fear of death, as the ego or limited self reference ceases to exist in one's own psyche.

Kate has a view of Buddhism that is completely her own. She's been at it for a while, no matter how many times her wrong view has been corrected through scriptural reference and the shared understanding of Buddhists, she doesn't let go of her Nihilistic view of Buddhist teaching, of which there is no reference for within the Buddhist Cannon. Buddhism teaches the transformation of the self, from being locked in personal encaged reference to referencing the all, which is self inclusive. Buddhism teaches the relativity of the self, and the lack of ultimate, static nature, revealing that you, yourself are completely malleable and able to change and transform, from bound to free. There is no Nihilism inherent in the teachings of the Buddha, and he in fact eschewed Nihilism and called it an extreme view that has no business in Buddhist philosophy or psychology. But, most Eternalists, who are deeply conditioned by Eternalism, or the notion of a permanent self out of fear, will initially project Nihilism onto Buddhism when they first come across the teaching. Of course, this is done out of a complete misunderstanding of the teaching. I used to do this myself. I used to project Nihilism onto Buddhism, as I was deeply conditioned by Theism before I took refuge in the 3 jewels. It took some direct intuitive experiences of the meaning of dependent origination/emptiness to reveal where in my subconscious I was projecting this mis-assumption of Nihilism onto the Buddhadharma. It took a number of years.

But the prices are insane! Is there a sliding scale?

Is there a native american word and experience for the chakras? As charka is a sanskrit word meaning wheel. It's applied to the spiritual experience first in Buddhist Tantra, then in Hindu Tantra. Of course, lots of New Agers like to take little tidbits here and there from different Western traditions where 7 seals are mentioned, this and that and say that this is referencing the chakras. Which it could very well be. Then again, it's also speculation too. You might know more than me on this. Are there actual ancient depictions of the chakras in any of the old Western traditions and did they name them, find their sounds, etc.? So, this practice sounds like a blend of Native American and Hindu Tantra in a sense. Which is just this persons personal experience and karma manifesting, which could be just that, a mixed bag between Native American and Indian conditioning through lifetimes. Anyway... just wondering if there was a Native American experience and term for the same, or Celtic... whatever.