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Not if they want to use ten thousand words to beat the dead donkey!

Whats next? Acupuncture to increase kung fu skills? That'll be the day.

Do what exactly? Are you recommending a do-it-yourself kind of approach to opening up the nadis and bindus? If thats the case, its quite an irresponsible recommendation. If not, then i must have misunderstood your position. If emptiness is relative as you say, then it can neither be true nor false. Nor can be a goal, like as if its a state to acquire. For one, it points to the inter-dependent nature of phenomena, and this definitely is not exclusively dependent on the 'self' for the 'self' is also not distinct from the process. Finally, can you please elaborate what 'getting a taste of emptiness' means?

Or maybe a crumpet?

Its easy enough to spout phrases like "open all channels and realize true emptiness", but to even reach the edge of grasping the immensity of such an alchemical process i'm afraid not many can, nor have the patience to bring this to bear in a fashion that resembles a samurai forger devotedly shaping & honing a perfect katana from a tamahagane. Oh, btw, there really really isn't any such thing as 'true emptiness'.

so true..

Isn't there a saying somewhere proclaiming that the longest way around is often the quickest way home?

yes, mind, not acupuncture.

Authentic Dzogchen masters warn against having such a mindset with regards to the Dzogchen path.

I have trained with and attended teachings from a number of Buddhist teachers from different traditions, and all of these outstanding teachers advocate the virtues of persistent self-observation coupled with patience and determination in applying oneself to correct practice, attending sharply to one's physical and mental gait with as much mindfulness as possible with the aim of first dismantling and then subjugating the obstructions that you mentioned above. In Vajrayana, particularly guru yoga, there is very much the emphasis on developing bodhicitta thru accumulating merit by way of performing hundreds of thousands of mantra repetitions, prostrations, making offerings, and other ritualistic exercises... there are no Vajrayana paths nor masters who would be so bold as to proclaim that such observances can be frivolously put aside in favour of finding short-cuts or by reducing practice time thru seeking external support. External supports have their place in spiritual cultivation, but to expect these to somehow replace the necessity of right effort is to have misplaced one's priorities.

Name one Dzogchen master who asserts that there are shortcuts to enlightenment? In its most ideal condition, practicing Dzogchen may enable the adept to attain enlightenment in one lifetime, as compared to other vehicles which will take many more. Yet, there are no guarantees as the determining factors are simply too complex. The claim that you received transmission which apparently reduced practice time by 5 years makes it sound as if the path to awakening is so 'boom' easy. It may be simple, but never that easy. If it was, fledgling Dzogchenpas need not have to attend numerous long term retreats, and having to undergo arduous training to facilitate stability of mind nature, of which its recognition is only the first step on a long, lonely road.

Acupuncture as a healing modality is superb. I use it too from time to time, and i do not doubt its functions. Call me cynical, but what i have reservations about is its efficaciousness in bringing about causes of enlightenment. Please do not waste energy in speculating/entertaining such an impossible notion. Im not trying to deflate hopes and dampen spirits here, what i am trying to put forth is the truth of right effort on the path of liberation in case people reading this thread begin to get eager by imagining the possibility of fast-tracking their way to 'enlightenment'.

If it were possible, you can bet there'd be scores of acupuncturists enlightening one another. But there aren't. Believing in the theoretical possibilities of such an approach leading to 'enlightenment' can be quite a delusional past-time which many do enjoy. You know why? Because enlightenment is a highly seductive aspiration. Incidentally, those who do achieve it actually do not even concentrate on getting it. Its a fruition of virtuous cultivation, usually a result of years of devotion to perfecting the Paramitas.

Unfortunately there's no acupuncture sessions for which to tame the mind. Haven't been convinced so far that 'enlightenment' can result from having all meridians and channels opened.

Thank you, Aetherous.

Thank you for the welcome back, Rex, much appreciated. Was away for a few days... had a short holiday with partner and my two doggies by the sea, which was very nice, also, had a short time of enforced withdrawal from posting, which was also nice, cos it made me think of hanging up my TTB boots for good when the system failed for some reason to reinstate my posting privileges after the 7-day restriction was over, and then got news that an old friend of mine was one of the crew members on MH 17, which kinda puts things into perspective once again. > > > >

In Mahayana, the supramundane siddhis evolves around the perfection of the Paramitas - everything else is secondary. If a person cannot perfect the Paramitas via practice and experiential insights, then even bringing to fruition all other great & lesser siddhis are moot. Prajna Paramita is the highest realization in Buddhist Mahayana path. Other paths might have a different aim, with various super powers to boot, but then these do not belong to the Great Vehicle, by definition.

so true! when 2 people interact in total honesty, everything becomes so clear, so much so that understanding arise effortlessly, even though all there is is only total silence. All it takes sometimes is a little eye contact. When this happens, yeah, the gratitude is spontaneous and often overwhelmingly perfect in that moment.

Its quite fun to realize that when i walk into a forest, i see trees of all shapes and sizes, some are straight, some are bent, some tall, some short, they all have different colours and different ways of trying to get light, some are just born, and some are in the process of dying... strangely enough, i don't discriminate them in this way when i am in the presence of trees. I think it would be kookoo to start discriminating each tree when i am in the forest. There is simply an allowing for the trees to be the way their nature intends them to be. And yet, i found it hard to maintain the same gaze when in the presence of humans. So now i try to view humans with the same non-discriminative attitude as i view the trees in the forest, appreciating their essence both, and to understand that its only my conditioned mind that sets me up for a fall each time i see others in a conflictive sort of way. I realize now the source of the conflict, and when i am attentive of this, there is clarity. Of course i still have a long way to go -- I still react to things people say in very negative ways at times, but boy, i am so thankful this here is such a wonderful ground to enhance my practice. So, in summary, there are trees of all shapes and sizes, but i dont go thinking that certain shapes and certain sizes are more right than others. That would be utterly bizarre if it were to happen. How come its not as bewildering when it comes to viewing humans? Odd, but its getting less so each time i come upon threads like these. I know this may get across as arrogant and even patronizing to one or two people here, but actually, im not intending it this way. Its got nothing whatsoever to do with any of you, unless you allow these words to affect you badly. Otherwise, please just see this as my feeble attempt of trying to be mindful of catching any unaware moments when they do occur.

Not sure if this documentary has been posted before as it was made in '03. Just watched it, found it to be quite inspiring, especially towards the last few minutes of the video. Enjoy! And please share. thank you. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dRjSi9ELD9I

What a disastrous result. I backed Germany to win, but not to such an extent! The bookmakers are having the last laugh.

You are not alone. Im like this almost all the time too. The only difference is that i have learnt to enjoy it, and why not... every aspect of life, from the professional to the personal, has been exceeeedingly amazing because when something demands my attention, there is nothing there to obstruct me giving a 110% of it. And when its over, its over -- no loose ends anywhere. The only thing i can suggest is to change the way you are responding to this, and to learn how to snap out of this non-state when you have to. For example, when you are with your girlfriend, BE with her fully... try not to go all hazy on her... there are other more appropriate moments for that. If you cannot do this, then it becomes an obstacle. If you can, then it becomes a blessing. When you are walking, let the walk be everything With the right attitude, you will master yourself and learn how to switch on and switch off at will. Its really fantastic cos after you put this into practice, gradually your worries will fade away, you can fall asleep within seconds while others usually struggle with it, you can be present, aware and alert, whatever you will be doing you will notice a heightened attentiveness, and last but not least, you will get to drop that sense of self-absorbed, spaced-out, over-indulgent concept of who and what you are by way of directing attention out towards whatever your senses happen to tap into. For example, when you are eating, or when its warm, or perhaps when you are being drawn away from being aware, be present to all of that, and so on. Its an exercise to draw attention and focus back from 'there' back to 'here'. Actually, 'here' and 'there' has no separation at all, but if we confound ourselves with imaginings, then the separation becomes real, and we find ourselves thinking that we are screwed. Happily, that is a flawed premise built by the ego. Nothing is ever flawed nor not flawed -- until we learn to put a stop to our conditioned mind performing juggling acts all the time, it will be quite a task to see this clearly.

Some years back, i attended a day's teaching given by a visiting lama. He was quite old, late 70s. He's been teaching for over 50 years. A few hours into the day, we noticed that he would nod off occasionally for a couple of minutes during the sessions, and sometimes we could even hear faint snoring , but what was truly astounding was how he could always continue the topic seamlessly upon stirring! Later on, during Q & A, someone asked this teacher how he managed that feat, and he jokingly said he is usually wide awake all the time, even when he's dozing, and its us who can't tell that we are asleep even though our eyes are open.

Thats all just scholarly bs.