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You asked about Dzogchen texts - The Secret of the Golden Flower is a Taoist manual.

The relevant texts also say not to openly discuss the higher Dzogchen practices because it achieves nothing, not only that, but it could cause unnecessary harm if these practices are attempted solo, without the proper guidance and grounding. Proper guidance from a qualified teacher ensures maximum benefit with minimal chance of mishap.

Perhaps there is an equal emphasis in generating not only the wish for others to be happy, but to also connect with an actual understanding of the causes of (true) happiness, which leads to permanent freedom from sorrow and the causes of sorrow. Therefore, if anyone wishes to tap into this aspect of practice (Metta Bhavana) i think it is good if they make the effort to understand what the real and assumed causes of true happiness are, and also what the real and assumed causes of sorrow are, rather than the mere understanding of what constitutes 'buddhist' happiness. (Ref: The Kalama Sutta) For example, if a practitioner wishes for more peace, then he or she have to make the effort to create the right causes for more peace to enter, and not just dwell on wishful thinking or day-dreaming of peace. The Noble Eightfold Path is the pillar which supports conscientiousness and a joyful disposition as one progresses in cultivating the Paramitas, which is the supreme teaching in this respect (of creating right causes). The sequence of beginning the practice with the right motivation, followed in the middle by gaining the true meaning of the practice, and finally, ending the practice with the right state of mind through the dedication of merit is crucial -- this helps to prevent any 'leakage' of any positive seeds one has generated from each session.

Its not my understanding, it is what is written in the relevant texts.

The senses are compounded and dependently originated.

The tathagatagarbha (buddha nature) is not a concrete component. It is not some storehouse of power which one can plug into to draw energy for enlightenment.

The closest definition of Heart-mind from a Vajrayana standpoint is Bodhicitta, which some masters have translated into English as the heart of enlightened mind, although a more acute translation would be Enlightened (Bodhi) Aspiration (Citta) , meaning, a mind that is unwaveringly turned in the direction of enlightenment.

I agree, but im suggesting to get the terms right for each tradition. For example, its not clear that there is such a term as 'primordial spirit' to be found in any of the Dzogchen texts i have read. Not saying i have read a lot of texts, but it would be interesting if you could provide sources where you have come across this term being used (in relation to Dzogchen, that is).

Primordial spirit is a Dzogchen term? And it means Buddha nature? This is the first time i have heard of it.

No flattering intentions behind what was said, Brian. My Teacher said anyone who listens or reads Dharma teachings and find meaning in what they hear/read, and are able to assimilate the deeper aspects behind the words have buddha eyes, buddha ears and buddha heart. I was merely trying to deflect his happy nature to you when i read that comment

"Based on his own experience, Gotsangpa gave six pieces of advice about retreat practice that are useful to practitioners on all levels: (1) The external retreat is to stay in the hermitage. (2) The internal retreat is to sit in your hut or cave. (3) The secret retreat is to sit on your cushion. (4) The most secret retreat is to abide in the nondual state of mind, beyond conceptions, which is the Dzogchen state. (5) Maintain that state without distractions by using mindfulness a support. (6) Stabilize your conduct by being without attachment and craving. Patrul Rinpoche continues by saying that there are two ways meditation develops. The first way is that you have to grab meditation. The second way is that meditation grabs you. In the beginning, you have to grab meditation because your mind is not stable. To grab meditation you need mindfulness. Mindfulness is also important when you are intellectually analyzing the view, and when you are performing beneficial activities in the world. It is a special wisdom that guides and supports you in all the activities of your life. In particular, when you apply mindfulness to meditation, it means you do not allow yourself to be distracted from the view. If you keep grabbing meditation in this way, you will gradually discover that meditation is grabbing you. This means that meditation is becoming increasingly natural and effortless. Before too long, you will find that you are always in the meditation state. At that point, whatever comes and goes is part of the display of the true nature. You will no longer distinguish between meditation and non-meditation. When meditation grabs you, every thought becomes meditation. How does this happen? When a thought comes and you do not grasp and cling to it, it dissolves. This means that thoughts continue to occur, but since there is freedom from grasping and clinging, they self-liberate and do not disturb you. It is said, “Even if the meditator lets go of meditation, meditation does not let go of the meditator.” You have become the meditation." Venerable Khenpo Rinpoches Pointing Out the Nature of Mind (courtesy of Pema Dragpa - thank you!)

YeS!

Whats the maximum number of eggs you will allow yourself to eat in one day, Mike? Just curious.

HH Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche details here the process by which delusion arises, remains, is reinforced, and also, how it can be cut at the root. (courtesy of L. Thundrup) "The most primary basis for clinging to the notion of self is the aggregate of form—that is, the body. When this body undergoes various experiences, we perceive some things as pleasant and desire them. Other things are perceived as unpleasant, and we want to get rid of them. This corresponds to the second aggregate, feeling. The third aggregate is discrimination. We start to discriminate between what is pleasant and what is unpleasant. The fourth aggregate is impulse. Once we have identified something as being pleasant, desire for it arises. At the same time, we want to get rid of whatever is unpleasant and try to accomplish this in various ways. What actually experiences the ensuing feelings of satisfaction or misery is consciousness, the fifth aggregate. Consciousness itself has five aspects, related to sight, hearing, smell, touch, and taste. Prior to these five aspects and underlying them at all times, there is a basic, undetermined ground consciousness, which corresponds to a vague perception of the outer world and of existence, an awareness that “there is a world out there.” It is to all these aggregates coming together that we attach the notion of a self. As a result the aggregates become intimately linked with suffering. However, when we try to investigate these different elements, one by one, they cannot withstand analysis. They have no shape, no color, no location. We cannot determine where they come from, where they remain, and where they go. In no way do they constitute autonomous entities. In truth, the notion of self we attach to the aggregates is a mere mental fabrication, a label put on something that does not exist. People who wear tinted glasses or suffer from a visual impairment would see a white conch as yellow, even though the conch has never been anything but white. In the same way, our deluded minds attribute reality to something that is utterly non-existent. This is what we call ignorance: not recognising the void nature of phenomena and assuming that phenomena possess the attribute of true existence although in fact they are devoid of it. With ignorance comes attachment to all that is pleasant to the ego as well as hatred and repulsion for all that is unpleasant. In that way the three poisons—ignorance, attachment, and hatred—come into being. Under the influence of these three poisons, the mind becomes like a servant running here and there. This is how the suffering of samsara is built up. It all derives from a lack of discernment and a distorted perception of the nature of phenomena. Because of this distortion, some people perceive samsara as quite a happy place. They don’t realise that it is pervaded with suffering. They imagine that the body is something exceedingly beautiful and desirable. They don’t see that when investigated, it is found to be composed of rather foul substances. In this erroneous ways of seeing things, we take suffering for happiness and perceive the impermanent world as permanent. We thus labour under four main misconceptions: believing that phenomena are pure when they are not; misconstruing suffering for happiness; considering phenomena to be permanent when they are transitory; and imagining that there is a self abiding in the midst of all this, when there is none to be found. These are the roots of afflictive mental states, the kleshas. To counteract them, we have to establish clearly the empty nature of the eight consciousnesses [the all-ground consciousness, the defiled mental consciousness, the mental cognition, and the five cognitions of sight, sound, scent, taste, and touch], the five aggregates [the physical and mental constituents of a sentient being: form, feeling, discrimination, impulse, and consciousness], the five elements [earth, air, water, fire, and space], and all phenomena, so that we correctly perceive their true nature, which is devoid of intrinsic existence. There are different ways to come to such a conclusion and experience it directly. We may undertake a whole course of study, reflection, and meditation, which gives rise to a clear understanding of the relative and absolute truth. Or we may apprehend it directly through contemplative practice, and recognize through our own experience the dream-like nature of phenomena, which is the way of the yogis. These teachings help us to progress in both ways, through a logical investigation of mind and through experiencing and integrating the result of this investigation through meditation. Let’s now examine this object. If we begin by examining a human body to which we are attached, we acknowledge that it is made up of the five aggregates (skandhas) of form, feeling, discrimination, impulse, and consciousness. The first one, the aggregate of form, is the foundation for the other four, just as the earth is the supporting ground for all the mountains, forests, and lakes upon it. There are several aspects of this aggregate of form, but here we will investigate the one related to the human body. It is because we cling to the entity of a body that even a tiny prick from a thorn makes us miserable. When there is warm sunshine outside, we feel comfortable and the body is pleased. We are constantly preoccupied with the comfort and attractiveness of our body and treat it like the most precious thing. Clinging to the body is the reason we experience such reactions to the pleasant and the unpleasant. To eradicate this clinging, we have to examine what the body is really made of. Let’s imagine that like a surgeon, we cut a body open and separate all its major constituents—the blood, the flesh, the bones, the fat, the five main internal organs, the four limbs. If we consider these components separately, not a single one looks clean or pure. Taken one by one, each of the components does not seem at all appealing. The whole body is just a collection of rather disgusting parts, formed of the five elements. The flesh corresponds to the earth element, the blood and the other fluids correspond to the water element, the breath corresponds to the wind element, our body warmth corresponds to the fire element, and the cavities within the body correspond to the space element. One of the main ways to decrease or eliminate our attachment to the body is to examine the various parts of the body one by one. When we conduct such an examination of a human body, where has the object of our attachment gone? What is left for us to be attached to? We should keep examining each part more and more minutely until we reach the point where we cannot find the object of our attachment. At that point, the attachment itself just vanishes. Unavoidably we come to the conclusion that the body does not truly exist. We have then recognised the void nature of our body and of all forms. When this state of understanding is reached, we simply rest for a while in the equanimity of this recognition. When a thought arises within this state, we repeat the same investigation. Once it has been fully grasped that this “body” is empty of true existence, we can easily understand that it is the same with our “name” and with the “mind” made up of the thoughts that go through our consciousness. In investigating the nature of phenomena, there are Four Seals or main points we should understand: (1) All things are compounded; that is, they are an assemblage of multiple elements instead of being unitary entities. (2) They are therefore impermanent and (3) are linked with suffering. (4) They are devoid of self-identity. As for impermanence, we have a very strong feeling that our body, our mind, our name, and our ego are all permanent. This leads to strong clinging. So to gain certainty in the realisation that all phenomena are utterly transitory is very important. It is like when a thief is unmasked and everyone learns his identity: he then becomes completely powerless to fool anyone, since all are aware of his mischievous nature. The thief can no longer harm anyone. In the same way, if we recognise that everything is impermanent—the universe as well as our thoughts—then naturally we will turn our backs on the objects of our grasping and embrace the dharma as the only thing that can really benefit us. Regarding the truth of suffering, we need to recognise that suffering is the condition of all phenomena pertaining to relative truth. Whatever is linked to the five aggregates is intimately connected with suffering. This is because grasping at the aggregates leads to the arising of the five mental poisons (kleshas)— hatred, desire, delusion, pride, and jealousy—which themselves are the causes of nothing but suffering. Even though we may enjoy some kind of temporary happiness in samsara, close inspection reveals that we have often achieved this happiness at the expense of others, or even through harming others, by cheating, stealing, and the like. In behaving like this, although we experience a fleeting happiness, at the same time we are creating causes for our future misery. It is like eating plants that are tasty but poisonous. We may savor them for a few moments, but soon afterward we will die. It is the same for all enjoyments that are linked with negative actions. Once we realise this, we no longer take pleasure in samsaric life, and our desire for it is completely exhausted. This leads to a strong wish to renounce our attachment to worldly affairs and our addiction to the causes of suffering. The final one of the four points is about the negative consequence of clinging to the self and the recognition that phenomena are devoid of self-identity. All of the first three points boil down to grasping at self, the main cause of suffering in samsara. Once we latch onto the concepts of “I” and “mine,” anything that seems to threaten that “self”—or an extension of it, such as friends and relatives—is identified as an “enemy.” This leads to craving, hatred, and lack of discernment, the basic causes of samsara. How did this happen at all? It happened because of our mental process, the chain of thoughts. For instance, the thought comes to your mind, “I shall leave my retreat and go into town,” and you follow it. You go into town and perform all kinds of actions there, accumulating a great deal of karma. If, at the moment the thought first arose, it had occurred to you, “There is no point in going to town,” the sequence of thoughts would have been interrupted and all the impulses that followed would have never have occurred. Nothing will happen at all. The cause of delusion is the linking of thoughts, one thought leading to the other and forming a garland of thoughts. We need to free ourselves from these automatic processes. This is the reason for these teachings, which are like a spinning wheel of lucid investigation of the nature of discursive thoughts and the ego. After paying attention to the teacher’s words, we should also put them into practice and investigate thoroughly our thoughts and our psychophysical aggregates, until we gain a true certainty about their nature. Until now, we had the strong conviction that the self exists as a separate entity. With the help of these teachings, we can now achieve a strong and firm conviction that the ego has no true existence. This will lead to the gradual disappearance of afflictive emotions and thoughts. In turn, this will lead to mastering the mind. In our ordinary condition, when a thought of hatred arises, we have no idea how to deal with it. We let that thought grow and become stronger. This could eventually lead us to seize a weapon and go to war. It all began with a thought, nothing more. Look at the succession of thoughts that lead to full-blown hatred: The past thoughts are dead and gone. The present thoughts will soon vanish. There is nothing graspable in either of them. So if we examine the thoughts in depth, we cannot find anything truly existing in them. Under scrutiny, they vanish like a big heap of grass set ablaze. Nothing will be left of it. We really must verify for ourselves that whatever thought comes into our mind has never acquired any true existence: thoughts are never born, they never dwell as something truly existing, and they have nowhere to go when they disappear from our mind. Unless we come to a clear understanding of this, why talk about things like the “primordial purity of the Great Perfection” or the “innate wisdom of the Mahamudra”? None of these will help, so long as we perceive phenomena in a deluded way. We have spoken of the main ways in which we distort reality: by assuming that conditioned phenomena are endowed with true existence; that fleeting phenomena are permanent; that samsara is generally imbued with happiness despite the pervasiveness of suffering; and that there could ever be such a thing as an autonomous, truly existing self. Now we have to replace these distorted perceptions with accurate ways of thinking. Instead of being convinced that there is a self-entity, we realise that self is a mere concept. We should get used to this and impress it on our minds. To achieve this, we must investigate with determined effort the nonexistence of the self until we have covered every aspect of the analysis. Then, like someone who has finally completed an exhausting journey after painstakingly walking over a long distance, we can completely relax in the natural, open state of mind. Without entertaining any thoughts, we simply rest in equanimity for a while. After we have recovered our mental strength, thoughts will return. Instead of falling under their influence, apply the same investigation over again, and remain clearly mindful of the nonexistence of the self. This will result in a genuine and powerful realisation of the absence of a truly existing self. There are two aspects of mindfulness: first, to remember what causes suffering and needs to be avoided, and what brings happiness and needs to be accomplished; and second, to be constantly vigilant lest we fall under the power of delusion. If we mechanically follow our wandering thoughts instead of remembering to investigate our mind, afflictive emotions such as craving and hatred will rise up strongly. Whenever these assail your mind, you should react just as if you had seen an enemy coming at you: Lift the weapon of mindfulness and resume your investigation of the mind. Simply by turning on the light, you can instantly destroy the darkness. Likewise, even a rather simple analysis of ego-clinging and afflictive emotions can make them collapse. By suppression we may temporarily subdue our afflictive emotions, but only an investigation of their true nature will completely eradicate them. The Measure of Progress Once this is accomplished, a great happiness will settle in the mind. As soon as we notice deluded thoughts arising in relation to conditioned phenomena, generating the scorching heat of samsara, we will recognise the unsurpassable, supreme, unconditioned nature of nirvana, which bestows a cooling, pacifying shade. Following our analysis, we should check whether or not the practice has taken birth within us. Having pursued this investigation over and over again, we naturally arrive at a genuine understanding that all our aggregates, like all phenomena, are molded by numberless fleeting causes and conditions. They are compounded things, so that if we take them apart there is nothing left such as a “body” or any of the other entities whose existence we are so convinced of. We will know without doubt that there are no permanent phenomena, since everything changes at every moment. We will also know that all phenomena are linked with suffering, and that various ways of assuming the existence of a “self” are all groundless. Thus we will have thoroughly integrated these Four Seals of the Buddha’s teaching into our understanding. From then on, our mindfulness will come naturally and we won’t have to exert so much effort to maintain it. This achievement comes from the power of gaining confidence in the fact that phenomena are devoid of true, inherent existence. A great master once declared that the solidity of the phenomenal world will start to collapse even if one simply begins to doubt that phenomena truly exist and merely glimpses the fact that emptiness is the nature of all phenomena and appearances. When we begin to win the struggle to free ourselves from the waves of afflictive emotions, the mind will become like a calm and vast lake. This peaceful state, the natural tranquility of mind, will lead to deep samadhi [concentration], which is the pacification of wandering, deluded thoughts."

You have buddha eyes and buddha heart, so you are able to appreciate the words of these precious teachers! Thank you for expressing this appreciation for the Dharma. _()_

O yes, some dream of being pies too.

Almost everyone at some point in their lives dream of being a hero, or a saviour of some form or other. Its a sort of on-off complex, isn't it, and not exactly one based on realistic premises. Sometimes the feelings, boosted by external events, can get very charged, and people read all sorts of things into these feelings, but only a special breed of people can actively & effectively engage their inner resources to mobilise something tangible in themselves that will contribute positively and significantly towards making a difference in the world. Its easy to shout slogans and proclaim one's vision, but to be resolutely focussed on a primary objective with unwavering commitment and patiently setting the stage right, and holding the same values for 20 or 30 years with no guarantee of any progress is no easy task. Altruistic, authentic Change masters are few and far between - however, vessels of sound, these are easily shaped, used and then discarded like paper cups. What these sound carriers call heavy, the Masters would call 'opportunity'.

Most people dont even understand themselves reasonably, so asking them to Do something means little. They'll just give you a blank stare in return. If a person is shaky in his or her own development, maybe its even risky for such persons to do something in case they mess up things even more - this is fairly evident, ever so obvious even here on TTB. Just do a count and see how many members come on board simply because they screwed up badly sincerely trying to Do Something.

Upset? Not at all. Curious, maybe.

I did, thats why i commented thus.

Ya? Great. Is that why there is always that sense of anger and frustration in your words?

See Dawei's question (#14) above Your best bet is to work on your own transformation, Skydog. The state of the world, or the state of anything external, can only be transformed thru individuals transforming their own mental in-look. Here's one useful pointer from Margaret Meloni: "Where would I possibly find enough leather with which to cover the surface of the earth? But (just) leather on the soles of my shoes, is equivalent to covering the earth with it...." - Shantideva. "What does that mean, to try to cover the surface of the earth with leather? And who would do that anyway? Well rest assured that this is not my attempt to sell you a new pair of shoes. Here's a thought, you can spend your time trying to coat the earth with good strong leather. Then you would be able to walk barefoot anywhere and everywhere and never cut your feet. Wouldn't that be amazing? Wouldn't you like to walk around knowing that you had full protection all of the time? Sorry, but you can't. Of course this is wildly impractical. You can't cover the earth with leather and protect your feet at all times. You can protect the soles of your feet so that no matter where you walk, you are prepared and you are protected. There is a much larger message within this discussion of leather and feet and the surface of the earth. You can try to spend your life controlling the people and situations around you so that you never get hurt. In fact you know people who do just that. You recognize them because you call them control freaks. Or perhaps you recognize them because you see that they are afraid of new situations or new places or new people or new food. Trying to control all of the people and experiences around you is as useless as trying to cover the earth with leather. Why not use your time and energy to strengthen yourself? Prepare yourself for the inevitable life challenge. Build up your skill at dealing with difficult people; be prepared to meet that tough day, head on. How? You can start by recognizing that the only thing you can control in any situation is yourself. You control your thoughts and your actions and your perceptions. Once you accept this and you strengthen your responses to the challenges in your life; it will be as-if you have placed strong leather on the soles of your feet. You will be protected no matter where you step."

An old, but meaningful, Christmas message from the late Lama Yeshe (courtesy of Ms. L. Lestari - thank you so much for sharing) "Some of you might think, "Oh, I want to have nothing to do with Jesus, nothing to do with the Bible." This is a very angry, emotional attitude to have towards Christianity. If you really understood, you would recognise that what Jesus taught was, "Love!" It is as simple and as profound as that. If you had true love within you, I am sure you would feel much more peaceful than you do now." These teachings came from Silent Mind, Holy Mind, a collection of talks given by Lama Yeshe at Kopan Monastery at the end of one of the month-long Kopan Meditation Courses. Western students had gathered on Christmas Eve, feeling a little out of place and unsure of what to do with their feelings of "missing out on Christmas". Lama, sensing their confused feelings, had them gather in the meditation hall where he gave these talks about Christmas and Buddhist practice. When we see each other again on Christmas Eve for the celebration of Holy Jesus' birth, let us do so in peace and with a good vibration and a happy mind. I think it would be wonderful. To attend the celebration with an angry disposition would be so sad. Come instead with a beautiful motivation and much love. Have no discrimination, but see everything as a golden flower, even your worst enemy. Then Christmas, which so often produces an agitated mind, will become so beautiful. When you change your mental attitude, the external vision also changes. This is a true turning of the mind. There is no doubt about this. I am not special, but I have had experience of doing this, and it works. You people are so intelligent, so you can understand how the mind has this ability to change itself and its environment. There is no reason why this change cannot be for the better. Some of you might think, "Oh, I want to have nothing to do with Jesus, nothing to do with the Bible." This is a very angry, emotional attitude to have towards Christianity. If you really understood, you would recognise that what Jesus taught was, "Love!" It is as simple and as profound as that. If you had true love within you, I am sure you would feel much more peaceful than you do now. How do you normally think of love? Be honest. It is always involved with discriminations, isn't it? Just look around this room and see if anyone here is an object of your love. Why do you discriminate so sharply between friend and enemy? Why do you see such a big difference between yourself and others? In the Buddhist teaching, this falsely discriminating attitude is called dualism. Jesus said that such an attitude is the opposite of true love. Therefore, is there any one of us who has the pure love that Jesus was talking about? If we do not, we should not criticise his teachings or feel they are irrelevant to us. We are the ones who have misunderstood, perhaps knowing the words of his teachings, but never acting upon them. There are so many beautiful sentences in the Bible, but I do not recall reading that Jesus ever said that without your doing anything whatsoever—without preparing yourself in some way—the Holy Spirit would descend upon you, whoosh! If you do not act the way He said you should act, there is no Holy Spirit existent anywhere for you. What I have read in the Bible has the same connotation as the Buddhist teachings on equilibrium, compassion and changing one's ego-attachment into love for others. It may not be immediately obvious how to train your mind to develop these attitudes, but it is certainly possible to do so. Only our selfishness and closed-mindedness prevent us. With true realisations, the mind is no longer egotistically concerned with its own salvation. With true love, one no longer behaves dualistically; feeling very attached to some people, distant from others and totally indifferent to the rest. It is so simple. In the ordinary personality, the mind is always divided against itself, always fighting and disturbing its own peace. The teachings on love are very practical. Do not put religion somewhere up in the sky and feel you are stuck down here on earth. If the actions of body, speech and mind are in accordance with loving kindness, you automatically become a truly religious person. To be religious does not mean that you attend certain teachings. If you listen to teachings and misinterpret them, you are in fact, the opposite of religious. And it is only because you do not understand a certain teaching that you abuse religion. Lack of deep understanding leads to partisanship. The ego feels, "I am a Buddhist, therefore Christianity must be all wrong." This is very harmful to true religious feeling. You do not destroy a religion with bombs, but with hatred. More importantly, you destroy the peacefulness of your own mind. It does not matter if you express your hatred with words or not. The mere thoughts of hatred automatically destroys your peace. Similarly, true love does not depend on physical expression. You should realise this. True love is a feeling deep within you. It is not just a matter of wearing a smile on your face and looking happy. Rather, it arises from a heartfelt understanding of every other being's suffering and radiates out to them indiscriminately. It does not favour a chosen few to the exclusion of everyone else. Furthermore, if someone hits you and you react with anger or great alarm, crying, "What has happened to me?" this also has nothing to do with a mind knowing the meaning of true love. It is just the ignorant preoccupation of the ego with its own welfare. How much wiser it is to realise, "Being hit does not really harm me. My delusion of hatred is an enemy that harms me much more than this." Reflecting like this allows true love to grow.

You're too kind and generous, Bubbles. I am not even at that crooked frog level yet, you know? Still striving slowly but with some determination to find what most others here are also seeking, each in their own special way.

Maybe this 'anyone' simply has more fire than some others and expressing an inner truth to the world too - have you considered this?