Jeff

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Everything posted by Jeff

  1. Awakening versus enlightenment

    Jeff replied to Bindi's topic in General Discussion

    Percieved extinction is itself just another layer, as the Zen koan of the mountain above points out. Form = Emptiness and also Emptiness = Form. From the Avatamsaka Sutra... Great bodhisattvas have no attachment to Buddha and do not develop attachments; they have no attachment to the teachings and do not develop attachments; they have no attachment to lands and do not develop attachments; they have no attachments to sentient beings and do not develop attachments. They do not see that there are sentient beings, yet they carry on educational activity, civilizing and teaching ways of liberation; they do not give up the practices of bodhisattvas with great compassion and great commitment. Seeing buddhas and hearing their teachings, they act accordingly; trusting the buddhas they plant roots of goodness, ceaselessly honoring and serving them. They are able to shake infinite worlds in the ten directions by spiritual powers; their minds are broad, being equal to the cosmos. They know various explanations of truth, they know how many sentient beings there are, they know the differences among sentient beings, they know the birth of suffering, they know the extinction of suffering; while knowing all acts are like reflected images, they carry out the deeds of bodhisattvas. They sever the root of all subjection to birth. They carry out practices of bodhisattvas for the sole purpose of saving sentient beings and yet do not practice anything. Conforming to the essential nature of all buddhas, they develop a mind like an immense mountain. They know all falsehood and delusion, and enter the door of omniscience. Their knowledge and wisdom are broad and vast and unshakable, due to the attainment of true enlightenment. This is the insight of practical knowledge of equally saving all sentient beings in the ocean of birth and death.
  2. Remove your own impurities Little by little. Or as iron is corroded by rust Your own mischief will consume you. Neglected, the sacred verses rust. For beauty rusts without use And unrepaired the house falls into ruin, And the watch, without vigilance, fails. In this world and the next There is impurity and impurity: When a woman lacks dignity, When a man lacks generosity. But the greatest impurity is ignorance. Free yourself from it. -From the Dhammapada

  3. Happy bowel movement

    Jeff replied to 3bob's topic in General Discussion

    Coffee keeps things flowing...
  4. Hi Spotless, I apologize if I have offended you in some way. I believe that you have had a real and sustained shift of self. And as I have stated earlier, I agree that what you have experienced (and described) is the definition of awakening in many traditions. Our only disagreement is in your position that it is sort of an universal bar for all traditions. My point is that is not simply a matter of different variations of apples, but rather that there are apples and oranges. Best, Jeff
  5. Hi Spotless. Rather than simply disagreeing with Dwai, consider that you may be mapping what you currently experience onto the words of others. As I tried to point out with the specific chakra opening situations that can give rise to the words you (and the batgap group) like to use, the words may not really mean the same level of ongoing realization. Even with those that you personally consider enlightened/awakened, try moving beyond just the intellectual words that they use and just directly feel them in your heart. I am confident that you will easily begin to notice a meaningful difference between comparing people such as even Tolle and Adyashanti. Best, Jeff

  6. Did Buddha consider the Kundalini bad?

    Jeff replied to MooNiNite's topic in Buddhist Discussion

    So are you stating that you believe that kundalini is a form of possssion? Or just that if your being is pervaded by a divine being, then one experiences kundalini? Those are two completely different things. Also, can you say who this scholar-practioner is? Or quote his text? Thanks.

  7. Awakening versus enlightenment

    Jeff replied to Bindi's topic in General Discussion

    There is obviously a wide variation in the meaning of the terms depending upon the traditions, but... Awakening is the realization of emptiness, Enlightenment is the realization of the clear light of God... Buddhahood/Christhood is the knowing/being that the two are really the same thing (just different sides of the coin/spectrum). Best wishes.
  8. Hi Spotless, I apologize that I have distracted from your thread and your sharing of your perspective on awakening/enlightening. As stated earlier, I was only trying to point out that some traditions have a different "bar" and we simply seem to disagree on the topic. I do not wish to get into any debate on who I believe is awakened or not. It is not my place to make such judgements. Best, Jeff
  9. I apologize if I have created any confusion with that one line. I had meant Yidam to be broader and only differentiate Dzogchen with the guru part. I obviously mistyped using the small screen of my phone. More broadly, do you see the "going blank" as described by the many examples as the same as awakening into emptiness (or the primordial state)?
  10. I agree that it does not go with the Buddhist concept of awakening (or realizing emptiness). In #196, I stated per nicholai's request... Spotless then stated that the above was the same as he had been describing with his previous descriptions and examples of awakened individuals and asked for specific individuals, which I did not see as helpful (as described in my earlier post), so I tried to explain how things like the "quiet mind" happen in simple terms. As I have stated from the beginning, I am simply trying to point out that not all traditions have the same definition/concept on awakening. What Spotless defines fits very well with the Hindu/yoga concept, but as stated above it is not awakening in some other tradition terms (like Buddhism). Quiet mind is not the realization of emptiness (or the primordial state). That is why tantric Buddhism has completion stage practices and Dzogchen has guru/Yidam practices.
  11. I was not describing awakening with the above. On the awakening definitional difference, see the earlier post - #196.
  12. 2. Jesus said, "Those who seek should not stop seeking until they find. When they find, they will be disturbed. When they are disturbed, they will marvel, and will reign over all. [And after they have reigned they will rest.]" (Gospel of Thomas)
  13. Happy to hear that you are in "buoyant waters". Enjoy. Also, I do not see how picking some person would be helpful as people have different impressions (attachments/aversions) to the individuals. But, maybe it would be helpful to explain what happens at the mind and chakra levels to better describe the difference. Each chakra is sort of like a layer in the mind. When a chakra is open, that layer of mind is part of the conscious mind, when not, it is still part of the subconscious mind. When there is some major mental crisis, it is common that can be a step to opening a new layer or chakra level. When such a new level on consciousness is opened, it is kind of like going into a higher altitude and one does not yet have the oxygen (or mental energy) to support those higher levels. The mind needs to continue to clear away issues and obstructions at that layer, but since the activity is still subconscious for the person, at the mind level it appears to be dead/quiet. As the person get used to the level, they can begin to regain discernment, but some instead choose to both mentally and sometimes literally stay in a cave, because they prefer the silence to the previous mental suffering. This hanging in bliss/quiet is the cessation that Buddha warns about. This type of thing can often happen at both the opening of the 4th and 7th chakras (Hindu 7 chakra framework). The opening of the 4th because there is now a much larger heart space after moving consciousness from the 3rd and one's strong sense of self. The 7th because now one has more directly connected to the "divine" and has dramatically higher flows streaming into the conscious mind and the energy can easily overwhelm the local mind processes for a while.
  14. In the Dzogchen teachings the primordial state of the base is not defined only as being void, but is explained as having three aspects or characteristics, called the "three primordial wisdoms": essence, nature, and energy. (Dzogchen: The Self-Perfected State). In the Heart Sutra, this is also why it is described as the realization of emptiness is when one knows that both Form = Emptiness and also Emptiness = Form, and that both are the same thing. The "quiet mind" state is the Form increasingly going into emptiness, or the Dzogchen concept of "essence". In simple terms, it is saying that the primordial state is not simply the space between two thoughts. It is over this point that Buddha described something different than the classical Hindu/yoga position with the "cessation" concept. In traditions like Kashmir Shivaism, it is described like this... In Saivism, purusa is not a realized soul. Purusa tattva is bound and limited just as ahamkara tattva is. The only difference between purusa and ahamkara is that purusa is connected with subjectivity and ahamkara is connected with objectivity. And this purusa is entangled and bound in five ways, which are the five kancukas: niyati, kala, raga, vidya, and kala. (The Secret Supreme) Best wishes.
  15. While TI and I have disagreed on many issues, he raises a very good point. Many traditions (like Buddhism) see awakening/enlightenment differently as what you have described. Best wishes.

  16. Hello

    Jeff replied to Astral's topic in Welcome

    Welcome!
  17. You some it up well and simply with the Tolle example. While this again may sound rude, he would not be considered awakened in many traditions. Best wishes, Jeff
  18. Hi Spotless, Thank you for sharing. I do not mean to be rude, but what you are describing as awakening, is not what all eastern traditions consider awakening. It definitely describes going deeper in consciousness, but as an example, it would not be considered awakening in a tradition like Buddhism or Kashmir Shivaism. Best wishes, Jeff

  19. The Father and Son of Taoist Philosophy

    Jeff replied to Marblehead's topic in Daoist Discussion

    Excellent. Very profound. Thank you.

  20. Did Buddha consider the Kundalini bad?

    Jeff replied to MooNiNite's topic in Buddhist Discussion

    That would depend on how one would define Kundalini, but essentially yes.

  21. Did Buddha consider the Kundalini bad?

    Jeff replied to MooNiNite's topic in Buddhist Discussion

    Some words for thought on surrender (and it's effect) in the West... “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.” ‭‭Romans‬ ‭12:1-3‬ ‭KJV‬‬ “In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.” ‭‭John‬ ‭7:37-38‬ ‭KJV‬‬ Flowing rivers of living water remind anyone of anything? Best wishes.

  22. Did Buddha consider the Kundalini bad?

    Jeff replied to MooNiNite's topic in Buddhist Discussion

    No, as I stated earlier in this thread, with Buddhism such practices tend to be much later in the process. Unless, one has the capacity. Then cannot the Buddhist guru just directly show...

  23. Did Buddha consider the Kundalini bad?

    Jeff replied to MooNiNite's topic in Buddhist Discussion

    Without such practices, the development of dharana would be limited (or much slower).

  24. Did Buddha consider the Kundalini bad?

    Jeff replied to MooNiNite's topic in Buddhist Discussion

    Buddhists just tend to do energy (tantric) practices later than some other traditions. With greater mental clarity, there are less bumps on the road, but the trip may take longer to have such a smooth road. In the end, as the Heart Sutra says, one must realize that Emptiness = Form and Form = Emptiness. And form is nothing buy energy... Best wishes.
  25. Hi Kiwi Ninja, I think it is important to realize that people can have vast differences in what they consider awakening. Additionally, with energy movement there are big differences and often some like to consider some simple energy flow as a major kundalini experience. Using similar words, does not necessarily mean the same level of realization. Best, Jeff