C T

Interesting note, Zero! Could you give an example or two of how one can derive satisfaction from life? It could be that the more satisfied one is, the greater the fear of death? After all, many people stuff their lives with all sorts of material things, and spiritual things as well, with the intention of satiating something which they felt was missing, and create cycles of acquisitions, from the grosser physical things to the subtler mental and spiritual things... Some want to live forever, and achieve immortality, you know what i mean? Imagine the impact of finally knowing, at death's door, that one has fallen way short of that? What to do then?

extra sneeze...

I think it wont be that different... just an extra sneeze added, that's all. Or is that supposed to be significant?

I am happy to read of your process and progress, H. Thanks for sharing!! See, its not only Buddhists who get to experience the candies!! :lol: Seriously though, it sounds like you have made some significant in-roads to some place where you are able to connect with certain energies that you need at this stage of your practice, so well done!! Great thing is this is not it, There's more, more, more (Well, actually, there isnt, but it will seem as if there is... ) But then, each person is different, so no worries... As Sun said, this may not be a truth, so roll on! Someday, you will be able to reach into these immense founts of energy at will, and then your being will be lost, you will be filled with bliss, and compassion, and clarity, somedays your heart will be so heavy like a stone, but your being will feel so light like as if you can float, and you might be confused by this ~ and some other days you will feel like totally sad even when you see someone kill an ant, for example, yet inside, where the heart is, there will be warmth, and the sensation of a dancing brook, gurgling ever so gently... so there could be conflicting sensations all coming at once, so i thought i better just let you know in case.... Naturally, its my wish that you will not have to traverse the slightly choppy terrains, but sometimes its good to be in the know. The best to you, H.

Yes, in some ways, it can be read as desensitization, but in the context of the practice of meditation, 'getting used to..' here implies familiarizing oneself over and over with making time for sitting and settling the mind, and then making small attempts at translating the settled mind over to mundane activities, starting with the more routine stuff. At the beginning steps, of course, everything matters. It matters because there happens to be much confusion over this thing about settling the mind. While many seem to think samadhi is the end goal, it is actually useless if one is not able to integrate this 'samadhi' into daily life, which is basically what matters, right? When integration has been effected, then there is no need to keep looking back and forth to see if one is consciously 'doing' the integrating.... so in this sense, it can be taken to mean a sort of process of desensitization has taken place, and is continually being perfected due to the ongoing process of mastery over mindfulness. And how is this mastery achieved? Thru getting used to sitting, with no specific goal, of course. When we set out to consciously want to achieve some state, then this will bring about some level of expectation, which can be a hindrance actually. In my practice, its been taught that its better to get used to doing short sitting sessions of 15 minutes each time, with regular breaks, rather than doing one or two long sessions during the day. In other words, sit 15 minutes, integrate stillness gained into the mundane activity, then sit again, and integrate, and so forth. The thing to bear in mind is that even if stillness is not felt, it does not matter ~ simply allow whatever is there, and take that out of the sitting into activity, and then observe what happens non-judgmentally. It can be fun if we can hang loose and not take the practices too seriously. It always cracks me up to walk into retreats and see all these sombre faces of folks attempting to show their high level of absorptive jhanic mastery, like as if i suddenly entered a funeral parlor... :lol: After a while, (it is hoped that) the integrator and that which needs to be integrated, which at the beginning stages the gap seems quite wide, with enough practice time, the distinguishable differences become less and less discernible, and it will seem as if a merging of sorts is taking place, but actually, there is no merging taking place. It is simply that the settled mind allows the meditator to gradually See that all things are already perfected, hence there is actually no need to work at attempting to merge anything. At that point, it is like one is beginning to get used to seeing beyond the dual nature of existence, and when this seeing becomes stable and unmoving, then distractions cease, and when this happens, even meditation ceases.

I think the first obstacle is desire. Second is fear. And third is grasping after sensations and experiences. Thru repetitive sessions of simply sitting, there will come a gradual realization that the natural state of being which remains after discursive thoughts subside is the state of rest, or of abiding in calm, which is basically a 'state of meditative contemplation' ~ composed, watching, observing, remaining pervasively aware, mindful of the arising and cessation of emotions and thoughts without being perturbed, being fully attentive to what is at hand, remaining open and flexible, awake and blissfully okay when things are a bit rough inside and out thru realizing impermanence and change, allowing for occasional indulgences without self-loathing commentaries after, yet in full knowledge of how much is too much ~ these are some of the fruits of a person who has peeled away the layers of conditioned and habitual tendencies. Resting in complete equipoise, the causes that give rise to the 3 obstacles will not arise. When causes are absent, one does not need to 'do' anything to bring about results. Without resultant effects, the causes for discriminative and comparative thoughts do not arise, hence the causes for anxiety are prevented. When causes for anxiety are prevented, there will be no resultant tension from wanting to achieve some higher states, or of becoming envious of others, or of searching for meaning, or of being frightful of failure. Then there will be no thoughts of measuring what one wants to achieve, for there is a complete realization that there is no state to achieve, only to uncover, and thereafter practice means getting used to the new discovery of how easeful the being can be when all agitative emotions are allowed to come and go without being habitually stoked by mental analysis and neurotic tendencies. Simply sitting still, aimlessly, carefree and concept-free... then one is no different from the highest buddhas! The only difference is the length of time one can remain without losing the natural abiding... buddhas are simply those whose minds no longer fluctuate between clarity and distraction, awakeness and stupor. Just practice sitting, without being overly concerned with this, that and the other, like posture, breath, watching thoughts etc. The longer you can sit aimlessly and be okay with this, the faster a natural subsiding of discursiveness will occur. Maybe if one begins right now, this very moment, the calm may last for two minutes, tomorrow, maybe 20 minutes, in a month of daily practice, maybe an hour, and so forth. The only real obstacle is our own self thinking about the obstacles. Good to bear in mind the Nike slogan: Just do it. Then get used to it. In Tibet, there is no word for meditation. The closest word they have to it is 'Gom'. Gom means 'getting used to...' . I think i may have said too much...

A 6-minute talk by Chogyal Namkhai Norbu Rinpoche to re-emphasize what Dilgo Khyentse said - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1e_DijCSRvM&feature=related ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hi Josh, Yes, i agree... without the big words and exotic references, beneath the veneer of discerning high and low, advanced or mediocre, we simply allow the coming and going of awakened and sleep consciousness. Just different windows. Lends flavor, the different views. Yet, that which experiences the different views is but one empty source. In daytime, we see and feel the sun's light and heat, the clouds, and sometimes, with rain and light, rainbows appear... in the coolness of the night, we see the moon, the stars, the iridescent quality of glowing planets reflecting light, yet, when we sit back in ease, without forceful and directed thoughts on all the luminous appearances of these various displays, they are all present, at all times. Day and night, light and dark, this and that, is nothing but ungraspable consciousness at play, or at rest... Ease of mind in each and every arising and allowing for cessations, seeing nakedly into the empty ground where all thoughts manifest, and learning to rest there habitually... no practice higher than simply this.

What is there to search for? Its already present. Open your heart, open your eyes and see, and listen. One mind, many windows. Depending on where you are in a house, the view is different. If everyone crowds into your room at your behest, to see the view from your window, you will either get suffocated or worse, get trampled to pulp. True samadhi is when you can be at peace wherever you find yourself. When you can be at peace with this imperfect vessel called 'self', and then see non-identification with this limited imperfect self, that is what true samadhi means... even the saints and the highest attained yogis, even Buddha for that matter, cannot achieve more than this. The difference is where one strives to find perfection, the other already sees the essence of the perfected nature in all things. Read this and take it to heart - - "The everyday practice of Dzogchen is simply to develop a complete carefree acceptance, an openness to all situations without limit. We can try to realize openness as the playground of our emotions and relate to people without artificiality, manipulation, or strategy. We can try to experience everything totally, never withdrawing into ourselves as a marmot hides in its hole. This practice releases tremendous energy which is usually constricted by the process of maintaining fixed reference points. Referentiality is the process by which we retreat from the direct experience of everyday life. Being present in the moment may initially trigger fear. But by welcoming the sensation of fear with complete openness, we cut through the barriers created by habitual emotional patterns. When we engage in the practice of discovering space, we should develop the feeling of opening ourselves out completely to the entire universe. We should open ourselves with absolute simplicity and nakedness of mind. This is the powerful and ordinary practice of dropping the mask of self-protection. We should realize that the purpose of contemplation is not to go 'deeply into ourselves', or withdraw from the world. Practice should be free and non-conceptual, unconstrained by introspection and concentration. Vast unoriginated self-luminous wisdom space is the ground of being ~ the beginning and the end of confusion. The presence of awareness in the primordial state has no bias toward enlightenment or non-enlightenment. This ground of being which is known as pure or original mind is the source from which all phenomena arise. It is known as the great mother, the womb of potentiality in which all things arise and dissolve in natural self-perfectedness and absolute spontaneity. All aspects of phenomena are completely clear and lucid. The whole universe is open and unobstructed ~ everything is mutually interpenetrating. Seeing all things as naked, clear and free from obscurations, there is nothing to attain or realize. The nature of phenomena appears naturally and is naturally present in time-transcending awareness. Everything is naturally perfect just as they are. All phenomena appear in their uniqueness as part of the continually changing pattern. These patterns are vibrant with meaning and significance at every moment; yet there is no significance to attach to such meanings beyond the moment in which they present themselves. This is the dance of the 5 elements in which matter is a symbol of energy and energy a symbol of emptiness. We are a symbol of our own enlightened state. With no effort or practice whatsoever, liberation or enlightenment is already here. The everyday practice of Dzogchen is just everyday life itself. Since the undeveloped state does not exist, there is no need to behave in any special way or attempt to attain anything above and beyond what you actually are. There should be no feeling of striving to reach some amazing goal or 'advanced state'. To strive for such a state is a neurosis which only conditions us and serves to obstruct the free flow of Mind. We should also avoid thinking of ourselves as worthless persons ~ we are naturally free and unconditioned. We are intrinsically enlightened and lack nothing. When engaging in meditation practice, we should feel it to be as natural as eating, breathing and defecating. It should not become a specialized or formal event, bloated with seriousness and solemnity. We should realize that meditation transcends effort, practice, aims, goals and the duality of liberation and non-liberation. Meditation is always ideal; there is no need to correct anything. Since everything that arises is simply the play of mind as such, there is no unsatisfactory meditation and no need to judge thoughts as good or bad. Therefore we should simply sit. Simply stay in your own place, in your own condition just as it is. Forgetting self-conscious feelings, we do not have to think, 'I am meditating'. If we have interesting experiences either during or after meditation, we should avoid making anything special of them. To spend time thinking about experiences is simply a distraction and an attempt to become unnatural. These experiences are simply signs of practice and should be regarded as transient events. We should not attempt to re-experience them because to do so only serves to distort the natural spontaneity of mind. All phenomena are completely new and fresh, absolutely unique and entirely free from all concepts of past, present and future. They are experienced in timelessness. The continual stream of new discovery, revelation and inspiration which arises at every moment is the manifestation of our clarity. We should learn to see everyday life as mandala ~ the luminous fringes of experience which radiate spontaneously from the empty nature of our mind. The aspects of our mandala are the day-to-day objects of our life experience moving in the dance or play of the universe. By this symbolism the inner teacher reveals the profound and ultimate significance of being. Therefore we should be natural and spontaneous, accepting and learning from everything. This enables us to see the ironic and amusing side of events that usually irritate us. In meditation, we can see through the illusions of past, present and future ~ our experience becomes the continuity of nowness. The past is only an unreliable memory held in the present. The future is only a projection of our present conceptions. The present itself vanishes as soon as we try to grasp it. So why bother with attempting to establish or maintain the illusion of solid ground? We should free ourselves from past memories and preconceptions of meditation. Each moment of meditation is completely unique and full of potentiality. In such moments, we will be incapable of judging our meditative efforts in terms of past experience, dry theory or hollow rhetoric. Simply plunging directly into meditation in the moment now, with our whole being, free from hesitation, boredom or excitement, is enlightenment." (Words of Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, taken from 'Dzogchen Practice in Everyday Life') I do hope you know who Dilgo Khyentse is?

Mandrake, for your attn - http://www.cureeczema.net/eczema-natural-remedy.html

Its good that you have mentioned it, Riverflow. Many here know this concept very well, as it has been discussed quite a bit over the years. Yet, its always nice to hear a new voice lending a fresh perspective to a timeless, efficacious subject. and btw, a warm welcome to TTB!

Each breath we take, we already partake in an exchange with the rising and abating of the Void. First recognizing, then practice to stabilize recognition. Its not that complex. As your practice begin to deepen and you become less distracted, the ego's contracting nature, like a scab, will 'heal', and thus fall off by itself, naturally, without you having to work at it. You could force a premature peeling off of the scab, but then that would create another scar, and another scab, and so forth. Eventually, the wound still dries up and heals, but the process would have been made less strife-filled if right at the start you had decided not to tamper with it and simply let it be, without being overly concerned or irritated by its presence. After all, its not something that remains permanently, but if you keep working at it and working at it, you will notice that even after the scab falls off, the skin will leave a sort of imprint of what went on prior. Mind works the same way - Think energetic scabs. Trying too hard to dissolve the ego is similar in principle. Also, i think adding more intellectual analyses to try and achieve the Void is null and void. Its like trying to grow an extra head next to the one that is already present. This creates more of a hindrance than a help. Find a practice that suits you, and keep at it. Try not to distract yourself with too many discursive imaginings. One day, you will feel lighter, airier, and less argumentative. By then, thru no direct action (like peeling off the scab before its time) you will have the fruit of your practice, revealed in all its splendor.

Nicely said.

I like what Dp has forwarded. Shows experiential depth and good understanding. Cat Pillar - If you combine the material that Sunya gave you, and the series of videos on the Mahamudra teachings, which is very clear, simple, and precise btw, i believe you will be able to lift your meditation to yet another level. I think your seriousness in this investigation will get you the kind of results you are aiming for soon enough, just keep digging!! You are on the right track. One thing i want to say is that the goal in this is not to reach a Mind that is blank or empty of thoughts. This is a false route, and tend to lead the practitioner into false expectations, and hence, false results. For me, it is to keep returning to the space where i can remain 'struggle free', in that i am able to catch glimpses of my self not having to chase after any thoughts which i happen to find desirable, or to avoid the unpleasant ones, and also, to be comfortable enough if once in a while, i say to myself that its okay too if i indulge my desires (like popping out when i get the whimsical need to satisfy my inflamed body with a tub of soothing Haagen Dazs ice-cream, for example ) .... the idea is not to beat oneself up at all, if possible. This is all very clearly explained by the Tai Situ, the teacher in that series of videos i linked you with. He relates effectively with much humor and humility. All the best!

First of all, its good to know what 'Mind' is, its real nature. Some useful insight into this -

Teenage son... well, that makes two of us. Mine got himself a sweetheart recently, so that's a bit of buzz for me. The joys of being reminded starkly what the good old days were like. Its my feeling that we all go through cycles. Somehow, as we age, these cycles seem to revolve faster, and also, become more prominent, in that we tend to notice the down-swings more, and identify with them, whereas in days of youthful zestiness/zealousness and excitement, the tendency would be to remain focussed on the upswing cycle. I went thru a period (episodes) of being in the doldrums a few years ago, where everything seemed to bug me, even very insignificant things. And it was not a pleasant time. Lost appetite, lost sleep, lost friends, you name it. I was without a partner then, so conveniently i became a recluse, and refused to see the bright side of life. The only thing that kept pumping a bit of joy into my veins was my passion for badminton, which were the only times when i made small attempts to get out and about and be among people. And so i kept it going, or rather, it kept me going, and because it was such a passion for me, it sparked me to want to push myself further in terms of setting out to win some competitive events and with that came a sense of elation, which was helpful in the end towards healing. Not that it was the prime factor, but it helped greatly to kick myself out of the rut. It was something i found useful and easy as a means to gain the motivation for dispatching the fogginess, and eventually i succeeded, albeit it was a slow process. Probably this is not exactly how you are feeling right now, but i am simply sharing something almost relative to your current mood. I do wish you well, though, and hope your mojo will return soon enough.

Not to dampen your spirits, Twinner, but look at what he said (refer post #22 above) when Mythmaker, one of the most stable voices of this community, attempted to interact in a decent conversation with him. Has he no sense of tactfulness at all? This is just one example out of at least a dozen others which i do not have the time nor the inclination to go search for. He talks down to everyone who sincerely wanted to welcome him here, and ironically, he is the one who drones on about 'Welcome'. What a laugh i got from it. This is not an academic board, its a general discussion platform, and if his goal is not to get to know folks here better, and if he returns and continues with his monotonous, one dimensional lectures, then good luck in trying to squeeze some juice outta him. I am all for the pursuit of knowledge and wisdom, and if you think you can (hope to) learn something useful in future from Vmarco, then i wish you the very best. I am not lynching him, as some people seem to think. I just find his repetitions, going over the same words and quotes over and over and over, dragging on a bit. Will he adapt? I hope so. Will he actually attempt to make an effort? I dont think he knows how. And with this, i am done speaking about Vmarco. late edit

Pessimist (peter's principle) - someday all shit will hit the big fan in the sky. Optimist - Great! How else could more shit go around?

I am pushing 52, Rich. I can totally relate to this. Just to let you know you are not alone For me, i try to absorb myself in the simple things in life. Of course, first, there is the learning process of uncovering what we are passionate about. What would your passions be, i wonder? If you dont mind telling that is...

I do understand your views, and (in part) where they are coming from, and i respect you taking your time to voice such. My post was made without much attachment to emotions. It was Simp Rules' intention to rile some folks up, and to elevate his own position in the process - this is my evaluation, take it however anyone sees fit. I merely responded in kind. Could i have responded differently? I do not know for certain, but i am sure observers will make their own call anyway, so what is the point of justifying or attempting to redress the post to make it more acceptable? You said you like me, not sure why, since we do not really see eye to eye on a few matters relating to spiritual paths, yet i have always found your thoughts, all of them in fact, stimulating and informative, and i do respect that we do not all have to be on the same page in the above regard. But i trust that at some stage you will see the malicious intent of this poster (Simp Rules) some day, and learn something from it. Even if you tried and yet cannot see any maliciousness in his words, that too is a lesson to take with you. I am quite certain he will be back to shoot from the hip again, so, like you, i shall await, what exactly, we will find out soon enough. To the Mods and everyone else who took offense, my apologies for the crass labels. If this was directed at me without any particular reason, i too will be offended, as is 5ET for having to read such. Mods can take whatever action they deem necessary to remove the post and/or poster and quell the storm if they think one has brewed or is about to brew. A word of thanks to H.E. for lending his voice to the matter. Am glad you are able to see this clearly.

:lol:

Hi Michael, There is nothing hypocritical in being direct. Have i wrongly attacked or aggrieved him for no reason? Thats up to the individual to form whatever opinion they wish to. I said what i felt needed to be said. I am more than prepared to be handed a suspension. Naturally, its to be expected that more judgements will take root from this, but lets see how really noble and virtuous people really are. I gave my reasons for agreeing to Vmarco's suspension. He was not respectful of others wanting to engage him in ways comprehensible not only to himself. Hence, if one is not able to make headway in achieving some sort of mutual, sensible dialog going, what does this imply? Moreover, I did not report him secretively. Every thought i wanted to express i said it openly and with as much sensitivity as i could muster. Its not my style to be confrontational, and never felt it was needed until this point - but the odd time one has to speak one's mind just to clear up the air a bit.

Yeah, he certainly created and got his 5 minutes of fame. Its amazing how some individuals are able to twist things with the slimy intent to rile people up? It beggars belief. In your time here, have you seen anyone from his group of imagined buddhist gang purposefully enter threads simply to rouse ill-feelings among other practitioners? Yes, disagreements of course, but to stir trouble intentionally? I havent seen this in all my years here (not many tho) - yet here is a guy who joined in April of this year, and he is doing exactly that which he is vehemently admonishing others about. What do you call that in your book?!! Well, he succeeded with his evil intention on me anyway, so well done to him. It takes some imagination to come up with half the things he thinks is happening within this 'buddhist gang', as if we secretly convey with each other how to subvert and indoctrinate people with what he wants to think as the 'wrong' type of buddhist teaching. Its insinuated in every hate post he makes. The cheek to pass judgement when they have not even once engaged this Vmarco fellow to try and elicit some meaning from what he writes is beyond my limited understanding. I think you have a big heart to actually remain cool and took your time previously to give him (Simp Rules) a chance by explaining your points politely. Unfortunately, i did not have the patience for this individual. Love you, Seth. And thanks for being so kind to share all your experiences with us. Wish you and everyone the very best! (will pm you later)

How did you forget the New Agers, Stig? Nouvelle shitz, perhaps? And Vmarco? Undivided shit? :lol:

Its funny, the likes of Simplicity Rules havent even attempted one single dialog with Vmarco yet has no compunction to pop up once in a while to judge his imagined, so-called 'buddhist gang' of what? thugs? I dont know what agenda you have, buddy, but i think you are a nothing but a dipstick for attempting to stir shit here. You demonstrate lowly behavior and i have no respect for you. Anyone with good sight can see what kind of game you are playing, so my advice is to quit this nonsense now while the going is still good. Either you put up or shut up. 30 years of Vajrayana practice? Come on, why dont you put your experience to the test in debate? What is it about those whom you speak against, who have made assertions, which you found to be not in line with what you yourself have learnt in your 30 years of practice? Is the philosophy behind your practice similar to that being dished out by Vmarco? Tell the truth if you have the balls. Btw, Whatever happened to your threat to report to your mighty superiors about your findings and enlightened observations of buddhist behavior on this forum? Didnt you ask to be given a few weeks to organize someone of authority to come on and admonish the so-labelled detractors for their heretical slants? Well, you seem to have an idea of what is not heretical, and here is a self-confessed heretic in Vmarco, yet you somehow found it okay to twist the situation in your favor so that you can continue to take swipes at those whom you project to be buddhist pretenders? Guess what? I think you are nothing but a shit-stirrer and ass-licker who is attempting to create a schism between certain members of this forum. You have evil intent. Prime example of an agent of disinformation, and agent provocateur. I dislike your kind, for i think you have no backbone. I have said what was needed. Looking forward to taking a holiday from the forum. Might not be back after, so see y'all. *** Moderator Message for info *** The language used in this post violates the 'no insult' policy' and this issue has been taken up with the poster. Apech for Mod Team *** Mod Message ends ***

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