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Some quarters are looking into the possibility of a cover up, saying that the sudden and abnormal spike in vaping-related illness & deaths that happened in the US back in Sept 2019 could be related to Covid 19. CDC was alerted as early as June last year. (source: mic.com) WSJ:

and yet, who's dancing? seven billion marionettes? a handful of sand...

~ PARAMITO LADAKH ~ When we exercise our personal preferences, it might seem like it's an act of complete freedom, but, if done without wise attention, it's actually an act of continued bondage.

~ PARAMITO LADAKH ~ While all conditions are subject to change, ignorance, in its original and most basic form (self-identification), stubbornly persists.

If thats what it is, wouldn't it yield a better relational understanding to phrase it as the 'I Am Not' consciousness? As in, "I am not my past"? Or, "I am not my baggage"? The I Am paradigm does not align too well with my understanding, therefore my questions could be misconstrued to mean something its not intended to. Im just not confident with the notion that there is a self to find, just as peeling off all the layers of an onion to arrive at its true nature can be quite a shocking process. Its my observation that many who do a lot of work on themselves may experience being let down by their sincere effort and intentions, because ultimately, existence and non-existence, or cause and effect, in itself has the nature of unsatisfactoriness as default.

I think trolls have a grosser nature than viruses. More like poltergeists. Or even numbskulls. Both can be such nuisances.

Its not for me to speculate on the premise of the 'I Am' consciousness since I'm not entirely informed of the nuances therein. However, it is worth noting that a firm basis of the Middle Way is one of positionlessness, extolled above by Gautama: "Where neither water nor yet earth nor fire nor air gain a foothold...." . Perhaps this ties in to the I Am concept you proposed, but at this juncture, I'm not able to make a connection.

This insightful piece resonates well with what you've highlighted. Thank you for the reminder. https://www.thegreatawakening.org/blog/2020/3/22/the-mamos-language-a-short-guide-to-peace-on-earth?fbclid=IwAR1-lNaolreBun-fR1lrDv1I7TsAbCDF8hfTYA688dK2BwhthZRy4X1G4oU

Dear Barbara, There's dharmas, and then there's the Dharma. I sometimes connect dharmas with dramas haha! In some ways, they're quite similar. But a more accurate description could be to say that dharmas are inter-relational, multi-dimensional elements that are present in unique ways to each of us. Not sure if that makes sense. So, in the case of the clip, the way it flows and speaks to you and the way it does to me can be quite different on a number of levels, though its the exact same content exposed to both. "In hearing, only the heard" - this is something i've been reflecting upon for many years now. It has to do with the concept of annata, or Non-self... Emptiness... Sunyata, in which sound is an excellent medium or objectless object to unravel the deeper, experiential meaning of Sunyata. The phrase itself comes from one of the Buddha's discourses known as 'Bahiya Sutta'. An extract below: At the end of the discourse, the Buddha left these words to his disciples: "Where neither water nor yet earth Nor fire nor air gain a foothold, there gleam no stars, no sun sheds light, there shines no moon, yet there no darkness reigns. When a sage, a brahman, has come to know this for himself through his own wisdom, then he is freed from form and formless. Freed from pleasure and from pain."

Squirrels? Birds? Associating these critters' natural reflexes with mindfulness? Thanks for the humour but not too funny actually. Too bad you're not American, or you could run for president, you know.

https://images.app.goo.gl/WmHEP9FN5T6vsuSu6

Speaking of lifelong problems, this sudden awareness of the need to be extra cautious in terms of hand washing, sanitizing every few minutes, wiping down every thing, even shoes after being out... all these will leave an indelible mark. I equate this to a trauma. One that will impact on lowering natural resistance, which in itself is a big cause for concern going forward. So much fear and suspicion generated - even a slight cough while queueing could lead to dire consequences. Not being pessimistic, but as newer infections appear, coinciding with the dissipation of natural defence mechanisms, this could spell the end of humanity as we know it. This covid 19 could well be the appearance of the first horseman of the apocalypse. Already there's unprecedented chaos. I'm dreading the future of mankind.

"If you pursue good with labor, the labor passes away but the good remains; if you pursue evil with pleasure, the pleasure passes away and the evil remains." ~ Cicero

piercing ignorance this mind, unimpeded space an amphitheatre

~ IN HEARING, ONLY THE HEARD ~ THE DHARMA OF SOUND

~ Gampopa ~ NO MIND, NO WORLD The perception of the external world is dependent on the mind. We cannot find a material world that exists totally separately from the mind. The material world is a reflection of the mind rather than an independently existing thing. If your understanding of this leads you to realise the nature of mind, you will automatically realise the nature of the external world. It is not necessary to separately examine the nature of the world. We realise the nature of the external world through realising the nature of mind because of unity in diversity. This is the same as the realisation of non-dual wisdom.

"May the merit accrued from the food and drink Im about to consume be a source of blessing and comfort to all sentient beings. May they be free from the root cause of unhappiness, and may they enjoy auspicious karma always." The aim is to develop a mindset suffused with the paramitas. Watch the intention behind any action, thought and speech. Thats vital.

Dedication of merit need not be recipient-specific. One can simply hold an aspiration that whatever merit comes from the action (or speech/thought) be dedicated to the well being and happiness of all sentient beings in the 6 realms. If you don't align with notions about the 6 realms, then just leave that out. Simply being mindful of the practice is itself a merit, so yes, the consideration of pre-dedicating merit has to do with virtuous intent, and that is a good thing. Such mindfulness, ideally, should seep into one's awareness as naturally as possible, until such point that it arises spontaneously when all the obstacles to selfless action are dismantled. Every thought, deed and word generates benefit to others - in Vajrayana, the mindfulness of keeping this aspiration central is known as the cultivation of bodhicitta, and one that is realised by bodhisattvas.

It can be done before, during or after - doesn't make any difference. Merit means the good that follows any action, any word, any thought. These three activities can generate either positive, neutral or negative karma. When you sit down for a meal with a kind understanding that you are being blessed by the food/drink you are consuming, then it can be said to have positive karmic merit. In Buddhism, such merit will multiply when one selflessly offer that goodness away to other beings in the six realms. This is a practice that generates greater appreciation for all that sustains you, so that in return, you may have the great virtue to be able to sustain others. A big tree is spacious, generous and can shade many types of beings. This tree does not just rely on its own tree nature to grow - many other non-tree factors are essential in the growth process from seedling to maturity. Similarly, you are not able to self-sustain, so your sustenance is dependent on the gathering of many other external and internal factors coming together so that you are able to feed properly. Offering merit means you understand the truth of interdependence. In this understanding, you will naturally generate a level of gratefulness, empathetic joy, humility, etc, in addition to the physical nourishment aspect of the process. The arising of those pleasant states of mind is..... merit. Neutral karma basically means the continuation of a certain distractive habit of engaging with an activity but without any awareness of the above. Without such awareness, then the activity yields zero merit. There is no consciousness of interdependence. The act of eating is conducted mindlessly, or in a robotic fashion. Even after the meal, one have no recollection of what went before, due to the mind being distracted by lack of attention to what's in the moment. This is the common position of most people, those who are constantly preoccupied by distractions during meal times. Such a habit neither generates nor reduces merit. Negative karma related to eating/drinking means one indulges in the activity under the influence of 'poisonous' mind states. For example, greed, selfishness, gluttony, pride, craving, addiction etc can be associated habits that actually decreases the merit of eating and drinking. Not only one gains no benefit from the activity, but it actually causes a chain of unpleasant outcomes that impinge on one's health, and compounding other secondary sufferings. Such unawareness can be likened to loss of merit. One's basic awareness and goodness erodes as a result of ignoring the fact that such actions are detrimental to well being of self and others.

Every conscious action we take thats non-harming/beneficial generates merit. This merit loses meaning and virtue if not offered. The greater the awareness, the more merit is accrued through one's actions. Even compassionate and kind thoughts and words are imbued with merit.

I don't offer thanks before a meal. Instead, I dedicate whatever little or much merit accrued from the sustenance that such may help benefit all sentient beings directly or indirectly. At the end of the dedication prayer, I would blow softly on the food/drink. This habit aids awareness, and also heightens conscious eating/drinking. Over time, secondary qualities like gratitude, empathetic joy, simplicity & loving kindness.... these arise quite effortlessly as a natural response to the cultivated mindfulness of merit-offerings. This practice of offering merit can extend to nourish many other sustainable activities besides the consumption of food and drink. One can even dedicate the merit at the end of a good practice session (whatever one practices) to the happiness and welfare of all sentient beings. It is said that doing so seals the benefits thereby enhancing efficacious results and realizations. In my walks, i sometimes come across beasts of burden, unloved animals, injured insects etc... I'd recite a mantra, basically wishing them an auspicious rebirth, followed by merit dedication, and blowing on their heads if close up enough. If not, the simple gesture of blowing into space will suffice.

You'd be chuffed to know not only would Fauci agree with you, but so would a whole bunch of senior (actually ex-senior) WH aides who had either resigned out of exasperation, or sacked, or simply gave up, due to their perceived over-competence. If only you'd do a bit of research before your habitual reflex of shooting yourself in the foot, thereby unconsciously provoking the usual guttural/gutteral reactions, typical pattern of those who have already had their bollocks permanently shrunk or removed. How else to explain your intimate knowledge about what chopping off one's balls imply. No need to feel disheartened though, since its common knowledge how all things & events & stuff are impermanent, and, who knows... with a bit of patient practice... hey presto! New balls!!

Thats the thing though with Buddha nature - it is positionless - cannot say its nothing, and can't say its something. One can only infer and make approximations. One such inference made relates to questioning the possibility of grasping at the wetness of water, or heat, or sound, or other sensual contacts for that matter. Same with aversiveness - even in the absence of unpleasant experiences, or stimulus, one can still agonise and suffer due to misapprehending the nature of reality. This misapprehension occurs as a result of a habitual reliance on memory as a forlorn method to map experiences. Hence the often provocative feelings of unsatisfactoriness some of us are subjected to. Some could be very subtle, thats why meditations that aid the dissipation of erratic mind fluctuations is helpful in the dissipation of subtle traces of agitation. Such agitations are often the cause of making us forget our non-dual essence.

Michael, Do you happen to have a link regarding this new step undertaken by the Dutch gov? Cheers. Tried googling "Holland relaxes covid 19 restrictions" and the first result that popped up was "Netherlands closes sex shops, cannabis cafes". So there appears to be no official announcement regarding this claim. In fact, there does not seem to be any updates from Holland since the 17th. Which is quite odd. No mention of it here either https://nltimes.nl/

Convenience. People argue and defend and deflect because its convenient.