Vmarco

Yes,...Wilber. http://www.wie.org/j22/gurupandit.asp?page=3&ifr=srch As for you rising or not,...no problem,...except if you are disallowing others to rise. Look at it through the lens of Maslows Hierarchy. Those into "just feelings" or the Conspiracy of Mediocrity, that is, the "practice has become nothing more than a form of therapy where self-acceptance rather than ego-transcendence is the goal,...and "nobody's allowed to be higher because that means someone else is going to be lower"...is like saying that no one is allowed to to be self-actualized, or self-transcendent. V

Tilopa, often recognized as the Second Transmission, founder of Kagyu Buddhism, the fourth stream of mastery, who reached the level of Avadhuta, a state of enlightenment in which the distinctions between good and evil no longer exist, was said to have been an Advaitin. However, I'm not aware of all the nuances of brahman or brahman's,...Tilopa and Naropa were both raised as Brahmans, and both had to let go of their Brahmanism as a prerequisite to awakening,...Naropa's 12 ordeals is a testiment to the difficulty of letting go of beliefs. V V

Interesting,...but I don't consider you to be your aggregated attributes. Thus to speak about you (not the you that you thik you are) would be speaking of noumenon. Do see the point however,...and find it helpful. V

1. Yes,..."picture in your minds eye"...that says it all. 2. I wouldn't mix Shamanisn with Neo Platonic and Abrahamic Mystic book philosophies. As for Shamanism,...they get around to the emancipation of theist beliefs,...like the Bon shamans. Never heard of an Awakened Sufi or Christian,...although their relative wisdom is much embraced by other believers. Anyway,...as I've mentioned,...Light is proof that no god, regardless of dictionary definition, exists. However, until you understand Light, that will merely be my opinion. A good Shaman read: http://bon-encyclopedia.wikispaces.com/file/view/TheFloweringLightTantra.pdf V

Then I assume you haven't read the Mountain Doctrine. V

If you are focused on "hearing silence" then wisdom is all you'll hear,...and therein lies your attachment to coolness. We're talking apples and orange rocks. Wisdom is knowledge accumulated through philosophic or scientific learning. In other words, wisdom points to the highest and most lofty ideas of ego consciousness. Wisdom is to make the best use of knowledge,...yet to realize non-duality, means to let go of all knowledge. Knowledge is acquired through thinking/the Head-mind,...the truth arises from gnowledge/the Heart-Mind Wisdom is not Prajna. Shantideva corretly said: "Relative and absolute, These the two truths are declared to be. The absolute is not within the reach of intellect, For the intellect is grounded in the relative." You patience is a tell that you have little interests in others. For those genuinely interested others,the looking has ceased. The real truth looker does not look for truth, but as Eckhart Tolle said, "we need to draw our attention to what is false in us, for unless we learn to recognize the false as the false, there can be no lasting transformation, and you will always be drawn back into illusion, for that is how the false perpetuates itself" The idea that all that you need is just to be silent and listen to existence,...is a practice, like meditation, for the slow and patient who do not genuinely care about others. It's a cool thing to do. Esther Hicks nailed it, when she said, "We teach meditation, or quieting the mind, because it is really easier to teach you to have no thoughts, than to teach you to have pure, positive thought. We would rather you be in a state of appreciation, than in a state of meditation, because in appreciation you are a vibrational match to your source." How does one go about uncovering the Tao, or source that we are? Listening to silence? Whatever floats your boat. But how long do you have this boat? The Jewel Ornament of Liberation says: Man is to be known in three ways: As inferior, mediocre and excellent. He who by any means whatsoever Provides for the pleasures of Saṃsāra For himself alone, Is called an inferior man. He who turns his back to the pleasures of the world And abstains from evil deeds, But provides only for his own peace, Is called a mediocre man. He who seriously wants to dispel All the misery of others, Because in the stream of his own being he has understood the nature of misery, Is an excellent man. Standing in the boat of the human body, You should cross the great flood of misery. Since later this boat is difficult to get, Do not sleep now, you fool." For me, the coolest days are when the "sounds of wise" like the relative aphorism "the Tao which can be spoken is not the true Tao", are as ended. For as Avalokitesvhara said, Once the hearing is ended, there is nothing to rely on,...and tranquility is revealed. With no sound, there is said to be no hearing. But this does not mean that the hearing-nature is gone. In the absence of sound, the nature is not ended; nor does it arise in the presence of sound. Hearing and sound are of the illusion of duality, an illusion that was never really there. But beyond hearing, sound or silence, untouched by such fixations, an awareness effortlessly unfolds. Anyway,...you obviously have no interests in my posts, and the non-soundbite style. However, wish you the best with you cool practice. V

Could Xabir's use of "second hand" language be as humble,...thus suggesting that it's not that analytical, except for those who perhaps cannot grasp abstract dialogue,...like conservatives. Surely not implying that anyone here is a conservative,...just that it has been shown that conservatives generally see the world as a dark and forbidding place, express greater disgust and fear, have little tolerance for ambiguity, etc. Conservatism is a hinderance to non-dual understanding,...as those with Downs syndrome have congenital heart problems, hearing impairment, sleep apnea, etc., which is a hinderance to various life pursuits. Xabir has obviously accessed Maslow's levels of self-actualization and self-transcendance,...but, as Buddha discovered something profound and luminous beyond all concepts, and for the most part was unable to communicate that something, except to a few (self-actualized) who had the capacity to understood,...how is Xabir going to communicate something to those who don't share a similiar ground? Thus Xabir presents the "ground" upon which the flashing occurred,...painting a much larger picture for those with similiar ground,...but always rejected or misunderstood by those unfamiliar, or incapable of understanding the ground from which flash occurred. Enlightenment or Unborn Awareness is not for the empirical minded. V

That's awesome,...so nice to hear of the uncovering of the impermanent self. "those desiring speedily to be A refuge for themselves and other beings, Should interchange the terms of I and Other, And thus embrace a sacred mystery." Shantideva 8.120 As when a flash of lightening rends the night, And in its glare shows all the dark black clouds had hid, Likewise rarely, through the buddhas' power, Virtuous thoughts rise, brief and transient, in the world. Shantideva 1.5 Keep Flashing!

The BS you shared is quite enjoyable. It is amazing how people arrive at various beliefs to make their illusions more palatable. This idea of theism (which Seth broached in the top post) is wholly bizarre for those who take a look at it. It is indisputable that the Abrahamic god, from whom the majority on the planet get their belief from, is clearly a murderous, pro-slavery, vacillant, petty, racist, conditional god. And amazingly, a god who is so insecure, that it demands to be worshiped, obeyed and prayed to. In the Bible, it only suggests the idea that their God is love at the very end, in the late 2nd Century apology 1John. And as for their definition of love,...it's insane. Their Great Love Chapter of Christendom, Corinthians 13; for example, "love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things", 1 Cor 13:7, has nothing to do with love (or compassion). Although this form of love, that is, bearing, believing, hoping and enduring is more commitment orientated then fleeting, it isn't Unconditional Love, but the submission, devotion, expectation and suffering to the conditions of their religions brewed beliefs. Buddhism is fully contrary to bearing, believing, hoping, and enduring. Tilopa said, that to transcend the mind's dualities all hope must die. "the highest goal is being devoid of hope and fear." But Christianity advocates hope and fear (of their Lord). Some may ask, why did the Buddha object to hope. Simply look up the word. hope n. from ME. hopa, an expectation. 1. expectation of something desired; anticipation of some future event. 2. a guess or belief. 3. that which gives hope; a substance or object hoped for; an expected payoff. Is there a more dishonest, perniciousness word than hope? No matter what level we wish to view it from, hope is false. Hope is an anticipation of the future; thus it must arise from a predisposition, a belief, and attachment to the past. Hope implies lack,...how else could we possibly define it? Hope is for something we think we don't possess. How could hope ever be expressed through an Open-Mind or Open-Heart ? The belief of hope is a barrier that obscures the present. The Heart of our Essence would not express lack or need, nor see positive or negative as good or evil, beauty or blight. Someone, perhaps a Buddhist said, "I contend that we are both atheists. I just believe in one fewer god than you do. When you understand why you dismiss all the other possible gods, you will understand why I dismiss yours." V

If we would see an elderly woman slip and fall, many, out of relative compassion, would extend some kindness for her situation. Absolute compassion is aware of the roots of suffering, and thus the extension of kindness is quite different. An example of Absolute Compassion could be seen in the 12 ordeals of Naropa. Was Tilopa a cruel master? How is an enlightened being a cruel master? Or did Tilopa simply supply a mirror so that Naropa could see his own reflections? As Trungpa Rinpoche said, real compassion does not avoid shining light upon a pile of shit. Real compassion is Righteously Intolerant of anything that steps between a sentient being and their direct experience,...in as a respectful way as possible,...but to a sentient being clinging to their beliefs for their identity, it would be seen as an attack. As for conservatives,...their fears, clingingness of traditions, and inability to have abstact thought, is a hinderance to the self-actualization and self-transcendance necessary to understand emptiness, and thus absolute compassion. Let me repeat,..."Buddhist teachings on compassion are grounded in the direct realization of Emptiness; without which, compassion is impossible." Robert Thurman My personal or impersonal experiences on compassion are irrelevant,...however, if you wish to realize Emptiness, the post pointed to sufficient information to get you there. If you are a conservative, there was information to help one of that persuasion to surrender those characteristics. Surrender is a large part of recognizing Emptiness. Those who have experienced self-actualization, and are inclined towards self-transcendance, already let go of many of the barriers built against the recognition of Emptiness. For myself, although already initiated into Kagyu practice, recognition came by way of light,...to be specific,...Undivided Light. Undivided Light is not a merger of Divided Light or Duality,...Duality can NEVER enter Undivided Light. As mention in a post above,....Wholeness is beyond the sum of opposites. And yet, as with Dharmakaya, we can and we do, express that Wholeness within time (5 Aggregates). Wholeness is as the fulcrum upon which a playground seesaw (duality) effects its motion. The question is, where is your awareness upon that lever? The manifest Buddha stands on the lever over the fulcrum. Most of us, although on some in-motion position on the lever (but only aware of the positive or Form side) and are nevertheless still connected to the fulcrum,...without the fulcrum, duality would not exist,...however, the fulcrum does not need duality,...nor does the lever ever merge with the fulcum. If the lever ceased moving, the lever would instantaneously dissolve. "Relate with what will never leave you, and from which you can never leave" People are not their beliefs,...although they believe they are. V

That's correct,...Buddhists authorities or the sutras, are merely pointers. For Avalokiteshvara, her inquiry through hearing showed the validity of the Shakyamuni's instructions. Today, in my opinion, the utilization of light/relativity/quantum cosmology as part of the ground, accelerates the inquiry,...although from my observations, this would be most difficult for a conservative type person, such as: http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Society/Conservatives_Deconstruct.html It appears rather unlikely that a conservative, as described in the link, could access Maslow's level of Self Actualization, to surrender and transcend to the level of awareness where Empty can be realized. Maslow's Self-Transcendance has been discounted by most modern psychologists,...just as that link on conservatives is discounted by most conservatives. All part of the "Conspiracy of Mediocrity" There are many "Transformational Triggers", which I've mentioned in other posts in detail, like the Just Because Club activities, which can help with the shift from skandha consciousness. Except for numerous rebuttals, most all my posts on this forum are pointing to transformational triggers. I have 37 years experience on the subject,...from Yogaville in Buckingham, to McKenna's ethnobotany seminars in Palenque,...I am fully dedicated to the liberation of sentient beings (from all their delusions). For those honest enough, I'm an admirable friend,...for those who are not, I'm perceived as an enemy of their hopes and dreams. As a Canadian said: "Waking up is not necessarily pleasant; you get to see why all this time, you chose to sleep. When you wake up the first thing you will see is Reality does not exist for you, you exist for it. Shocking as it is when you let it in, there is rest. You do not have to labor anymore to hold together a reality that does not exist; forcing something to be real that is not real. You and this life you have been living are not real ... In letting it in, even through the shock... pain... shattering, there is rest. Reality is when all you want to know is what is true ...just so that you can let it in and be true. Reality is not a safe place for you - the you that you have created. It is the only place where you would die; where there is no room for your hopes, your dreams. Once you have let it in, once you begin to re-awaken; to let Reality wake you up, nothing can get it out. That is the beginning of your end. Waking up can be much more painful than the agony of your dream, but waking up is real." V

There is no Present in Time,...thus, engaging in the perceived present is surely the bane of any sincere interest in the inquiry of non-duality. V