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http://fpmt.org/education/teachings/audio-teachings/lama-zopa-rinpoche/

Maybe because there are many buddhas. The OP didn't specify Gautama quotes.

I remember a conversation between a fellow student and my teacher some years ago that was related to this subject. The student enquired about the most ideal practice (implying he wanted to know the fastest way to enlightenment ) for raising energy to the crown with the least obstacles... he was informed that for the those who are physically able, the general rule is 5 million prostrations for the state to become permanent, supplemented by other practices as directed. I think he was a little disappointed with that answer haha! Perhaps he was expecting a more elaborate map, thats human nature i guess. After the chap left i followed up on the exchange, and teacher told me that inner transformation can be felt and seen usually after the first 500,000 rounds of preliminaries (ngondro). I think he was right. Its not really complicated at all.

The joyful heart is clear, creative and complete; fresh, fertile and free; awake, attentive and always accessible in the timeless spaciousness of this ineffable moment. ~ Paramito Ladakh

Bliss in its pure form can be generated without even the slightest notion of any sexual feelings or thoughts. Those who clamour for this bliss will mostly try all sorts of lower methods to attain it but will have a difficult time to master the method because the focus is not placed correctly. Its like hoping to arrow an apple by simply aiming in the general direction of an apple tree. Maybe the tree dont even have apples, or the apples are not yet ripe, or they could be of inferior grade, or may not even be an apple tree at all. The only way to reach pure bliss, or bliss without any negative karmic kickback, is to imbue the mind with altruistic thoughts and intentions, and once this has been stabilised, to act on these intentions. Doing this for a (long) period of time bliss will arise naturally and suffuse the whole being with a quality that is a mixture of light and colours. At first this needs some form of mental activity to bring about, but will become habitual and reflexive in time, depending on motivation and discipline. At that point, you can experience orgasmic-like sensations without even the slightest hint of base sexual desires (for eg, no sign of any stirring in the genital area need to occur).

this was just posted on fb. I think it'd be helpful to some http://heatherplett.com/2015/03/hold-space/

locked in hopelessness abandoning all repose nothing left to do

Its merely your imagination, MH... there were no Buddhist overtones in that ramble.

Sometimes when i do a certain practice, there is a goal in mind for doing that specific practice. If i attain that goal, it gives me a sense of achievement and gratification; if i don't, i get cheesed off and this trickles into and affects the rest of my activities and affects the people around me. If i am able to catch myself in time and arrest that potentially harmful spiral before it goes all big and ugly, its good; if not, i usually end up beating myself at the end of that particular episode. Therefore, having a design for attaining certain things, imo, is not ego. Wanting to do well in life is not ego. Desiring peace and fulfilment is not ego. How we deal with the reverberations if we don't get these things, or fall short of the numerous expectations we place around our goals is the determining factor that dictates whether we become victims or victors. This particular pathway is an ego-based process - the problem of confusion arise when one identifies and fixate on the idea of being somehow a maker or doer of that process - then repercussions (karmic follow-ons) become a natural part of this identification. When we cease to identify ourselves as the doer, and merely recognise that there is a whole integrated process occurring, then we can remove the cause of fixation and identification, and thus remove the potential for contractions on the level of body, speech and mind. Removing the cause is exactly the same as creating the result. Where there is no contraction, expansion (which gives rise to joy, equanimity, compassion etc) arise as a natural, effortless outflow of that. But people don't quite get this because mostly their focus (arising from the natural tendency to fixate and cling to things) is on creating result, and not removing the causes. The former would be akin to being a victim of ego; the latter, a victor of it. But in truth, ego is not anything substantial which exists as tangible force unless our cravings get so overwhelmingly powerful that we have no choice but to imagine some entity has been made to come alive and is exerting an immense force that paralyses us into hopelessness. This feeling is what some identify as 'ego'. pardon my afternoon ramble

"The Dzogchen teachings often speak of view, meditation, and conduct. The view means you understand the nature of your mind. You know it the same way that you know your own face when you see it in a mirror —instantly, without any doubt or hesitation. This is called “certainty wisdom.” The next step is meditation. Meditation means maintaining this view by continuously recognizing the nature of your mind as a way of life. Conduct refers to your speech and actions, which are the support for your view and meditation. Whatever you say and do should reflect, support, and strengthen your understanding of the nature of your mind. The essential point of conduct is to not accept or reject the six sensory experiences. If you continue to practice like this, your view, meditation, and conduct will merge into the result: your view will become indestructible, and you will no longer be distracted by thoughts or external events. You will maintain the view perfectly at all times and in all places. This result is not far away — in fact, it’s right here. But you must release your belief in thoughts to see it. For the view, meditation, conduct, and result to manifest properly and fully we need a foundation, and that foundation is two-fold: (1) generating bodhichitta and (2) reflecting on impermanence. This is not only Shigpo Dudtsi’s teaching, but the teaching of all the great Dzogchen masters, from Garab Dorje until now. As we cultivate vast, impartial love, compassion, and wisdom, and develop a deep understanding of both the transience and preciousness of life, we’re crossing the bridge that leads from habitual patterns to absolute freedom. Bodhichitta and impermanence are not only catalysts for realization, but are expressions of the true nature of the mind." ~ Venerable Khenpo Rinpoches The Beauty of Awakened Mind: Dzogchen Lineage of the Great Master Shigpo Dudtsi (pgs 141-142)

As far as i know Rinpoche has yet to return to his official seat. Met my teacher in February where he mentioned this in passing.

Awareness is the basis, or what you might call 'support', of the mind. It is steady and unchanging, like the pole to which ordinary consciousness is is attached. When we recognize and become grounded in awareness of awareness, the “wind” of emotion may still blow. But instead of being carried away by the wind, we turn our attention inward: Oh, this is what I’m feeling, this is what I’m thinking. As we do so, a bit of space opens up within us. With practice, that space — which is the mind’s natural clarity — begins to expand and settle. We can begin to watch our thoughts and emotions without necessarily being affected by them quite as powerfully or vividly as we’re used to. We can still feel our feelings, think our thoughts, but slowly our identity shifts from a person who defines him- or herself as lonely, ashamed, frightened, or hobbled by low self-esteem to a person who can look at loneliness, shame, and low self-esteem as movements of the mind. ~ Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche, “The Aim of Attention”

The term 'view' in the above context was used in relation to 'reality', and not opinions etc.

Human minds each create their unique view of the world. We look outside through our custom-made cameras, and consequently have a strong sense of the difference between inside and outside. This dualistic mode, this inside-outside way of being, is reflected in how we live. We mostly spend our lives in comfortable and convenient shelters, designed to keep nature out, which separate us away from the universe, from our origin. We exist behind screens: walls, roofs, lenses, TV screens, masks; and filters: concepts, classifications, culture, religions, age and gender. We are inside creatures, with secrets and diverse behaviours, often used irresponsibly to get our way. We are mask and costume wearers, often seeking approval and power. We are skilled actors continually separating ourselves from our actions, blaming anything and anyone when things go wrong, and taking all the credit when things succeed. Our arrogance is ironically born of our dependence, but fostered by the social- economic systems designed to keep control of vast numbers of people, giving us no choice but to suppress our true unique nature. We have a tendency to hide things inside, in the darkness, but this darkness inside, this separateness, is an illusion. And why do we need to hide anything, to modify, to interpret incoming information to our own liking? Is it impossible for us to stand in the fast-flowingstream of existence and let it pass through us exactly as it is? Can we resist blocking our true nature, clinging to things that we like, rejecting those we do not? There are no selections in the field reality, no whims, no separation. If the wind blows hard or the waves pound on the beach, we, our energy, our true nature, also blows hard and pounds. Our societies, our communities, have largely chosen this inside life behind screens and filters. We prefer to stay inside and speculate on or observe the weather than to open the door and go outside to feel it directly. Developed people make their exit from the interior life of the womb, and then grow into the womb they create with their intellects, within their communities, within cultures and societies and age-groups, and so on. Always inside, insulated from the universal field of all existence, all awareness. ~ Linden Thorp

Thats your personal take. Not to say its wrong, but if that is how you have chosen to interpret it, then that is a valid choice. The view is one, but choices are many. Its seeming vagueness could be due to the tendency to focus on the choices rather than the view.

The writer said craving release FOR all of existence, not 'from' all of existence. Its quite clear to me what the writer intended to point out.

In my understanding, "Craving for release for all of existence" points to a specific practice where one arouses a strong wish to attain liberation (Bodhicitta in Buddhist parlance) for the benefit of all sentient beings. This accords with the most intrinsic motivation that clarifies the Mahayana path. Sorry but i don't quite understand your final question as it appears to have missed the simplicity of what that specific passage alludes to. If im not mistaken, the writer issued an urgent reminder to gather all available resources to free him- or herself from the bondage of ignorance, and in doing so, there is that semblance of replacing mundane craving with a transcendent equal. How this is related to an inherently indestructible nature is beyond my grasp.

"The reason that our conceptual constructions happened in the first place is because of the kunzhi or alayavijnana, which is also called the storehouse consciousness, or just the alaya. The alaya is the source of all of our conceptions. When we repeat different experiences over a long period of time, we accumulate traces and dispositions, or habitual patterns called bachak [bag chags] in Tibetan. The more these habits are accumulated, the more we see things in a certain manner. We construct the way that we wish to see things rather than seeing things as they are. These habitual patterns are related to three conditions. (1) There are habits that are accumulated in relation to a place we have been in, (2) habits related to our body, and (3) habits constructed through our perception of the world from all the information we collect through our five senses. Habitual patterns related to place happen because as human beings we believe we are located in a certain space, during a certain time, and in a particular world. Habitual patterns related to the body happen because of the particular bodies that we have. For example, since human beings do not have two horns, we do not behave in certain ways animals do. Habitual patterns related to sensory objects have to do with the information we accumulate through our five sense organs of the eyes, ears, nose, tongue, and body. Based on these three types of habitual patterns, we become so rigid and patterned in the way we experience the world that we begin to see things as being real and static. We forget that our mind greatly influences how we perceive and interpret the world." ~ Ven. Khenchen Palden Sherab Rinpoche Turning the Wisdom Wheel of the Nine Golden Chariots (pgs 88-89)

Guanyin? Or other? look deep behind the image listen with the eyes

Think of it this way: What are the qualities we wish to embody on the spiritual path? How are these qualities made to manifest? Do certain aspects of our past selves change as we work at refining our practice(s)? We may notice that our physical form take on a more refined hue as we gradually enjoy better physical health, a sweeter and kinder way of speaking, we listen deeper, our sleep becomes more restful, we might gradually feel calmer and more peaceful, our heart becomes more open and as that happens, we become more attuned to loving kindness as we let go of aggression and other self-defeating patterns - these and more can only manifest when old patterns and negative habits are replaced. The process in which this takes effect is basically what is known as burning off karma, or purification of karma. Some would like to think that it is imperative to suffer for old patterns to be shifted and descaled, but in the Buddhist view, this approach is only adopted by those of lower capabilities, like those who have not yet fully understood the 3 marks of existence. Once this concept is fully captured, then out of that idea of suffering we will begin to see many blessings and opportunities to gain even deeper insights and fulfilment on the path we are on, regardless which one we have chosen. edit: Further reading on the 3 Marks - http://secularbuddhism.org/2013/04/17/what-are-the-three-marks-of-existence/

Interesting! The method we use for purifying karma is to recite one round of the 100 syllable mantra for every prostration - after the first 1000 rounds, the practitioner is encouraged to get a sense of the form of Vajrasattva sitting on a lotus at the crown of one's head, while reciting the mantra and doing the prostrations all in one seamless go. From hereon in it can get even more complex but interesting and beneficial. One is reminded to try and remain 'playful' with this. Do not get overly serious and contrived, and dont over-exert. Always try to maintain comfort and ease - thats the priority.

Until our craving mind is captured, the focus of our attention is constantly shifting. When the craving mind is captured – the difference between inner and outer disappears – this is the realization of Bodhichitta. Bodhichitta releases from craving the mundane mind, by even stronger craving. Bodhichitta is the greatest of all cravings, craving of release for all existence, it embraces the whole world with this craving – the craving of Dharma. ~ Tara Songs

Its more useful to full-lotus the mind than it is the body. Plenty of people can get into and maintain the physical posture with ease, but training the mind thereon in is entirely independent of that posture. Those who make extensive claims of the overriding benefits of the FL are simply stuck on that level. A good meditator finds ease in any mental and physical space. A great meditator would have learnt to let go even that, sometimes by simply contemplating what 'ease' means, in reality - perhaps by deeper reflections on what remains in the absence of all mental picturing of dis-ease.

Although we may speak of the three principal paths - renunciation, compassion, and understanding - as though each one were quite separate of the others, in truth, and in practice also, all three are inseparable: Genuine renunciation arises through compassion and understanding; genuine compassion arises through renunciation and understanding; genuine understanding arises through renunciation and compassion. ~ Paramito Ladakh