Tibetan_Ice

Hi K Referring to emptiness as the "correct view" is a common Buddhist convention. Within the context of my post, it is being used in this manner, to further describe the Buddhist meaning of emptiness. It is a very useful view to help with the abandonment of grasping and aversion when practising "resting the mind in the natural state". link: http://www.abuddhistlibrary.com/Buddhism/A%20-%20Tibetan%20Buddhism/Authors/Denmo%20Locho%20Rinpoche/Three%20Principal%20Aspects%20of%20the%20Path/Three%20Principal%20Aspects%20of%20the%20Path-the%20Correct%20View%20of%20Emp.htm And this too: link: http://www.scdharma.org/portal/teachings/showstory44.htm TI

Hi Serene, I wouldn't call the 7 point chariot training self-inquiry as much as I would call it a justification for emptiness. The point of examining that the various parts of the chariot is to reveal that the construct of the chariot is wholly a conceptual construct, which is grasped by the conceptual mind and as such is empty. Also, individually, each part can be grasped by the conceptual mind, like a wheel, or a part of wood, but again, these are labels which the conceptual mind has created and attributed to the parts of the chariot. Without the function of the conceptual mind to overlay on top of the chariot and its constituent parts, the Buddhist view is that it is empty. Emptiness, in Buddhism, is a point of view which promotes the correct view that nothing exists separate and apart from the whole. The Emptiness view is applied to thoughts, the mind, the self, everything. Not only is this view beneficial to practices that lead to true realization, but it is the main view that once enlightened, the Buddha held. In my mind, I interpret it to mean that "There is only God". (from as much as a non-conceptual view that I can muster). link: http://www.zensydney.com/sutras.and.readings/prajna.paramita.heart.sutra/ The Heart Sutra and here is a quote from the Hsin hsin ming: link: http://allspirit.co.uk/hsinhsinming.html In most Buddhist books, shamatha practice is the stabilization of the mind, it is the practice of resting the mind in the natural state. The other practice, which I would term closer to self-inquiry is Vipassana, which is the examination of phenomenon (including the mind, thoughts, the body, etc) in order to gain insight. Next, Serene, you quoted this: The second quote you quoted is from Kirtanman, who is a member from AYP, who runs his own "sister AYP site" and pushes Yogani's books (affiliate program for kickbacks? ). Notice his last statement of " as some of us can attest"? Kirtanman is a self-declared enlightened person. He makes it a point to tell everyone that he is enlightened and that AYP enlightened him. Yet, when you question him about being omnipotent, omniscient or omnipresent he denies any of that. I know, I had a lenghty discussion with him on the AYP about that. Basically, he just redefines the term 'enlightenment' to suit his own state. Further, when questioned specifically about which AYP practices led to his supposed enlightment, he does not say. There is never any detail. Kirtanman also has a history of associating with Adyashanti and Kirtanman also claimed that Adyashanti had given shaktipat to someone who then ended up in a mental hospital.. Kirtanman attends AYP retreats and can write pages and pages of nonsense. Upon close examination most of what he says is self-contradictory and shows a definate lack of logic. I suspect that perhaps Kirtanmen is an enlightened ego. Why else would he try to convince everyone that he is enlightened and hold himself up as an example that AYP works? This is the discussion I had with Kirtanman, you can judge for yourself (or not). One warning, Kirtanman is so full of himself that he doesn't know when to quit writing).. http://www.aypsite.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=6652&SearchTerms=omniscient And here is Kirtanman's self-declaration of enlightenment: link: http://www.aypsite.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=8180&SearchTerms=omniscient So, no rainbow body, no walking through walls, no clairvoyance or any minor siddhis, just a ludicrous statement and self-absorbed arrogant attitude, a redefinition of enlightenment and a denial of the classic characteristics of the truly enlightened beings throughout history. . The last quote you quoted is basically correct about Yogani, in my opinion. Anyone who says that "Stillness in action" is a mystery, like Yogani, is not aware that Buddhists have mapped the spectrum of consciousness all the way to enlightenment and they have a clear and concise language for it. This is what Yogani says at the end of the "Liberation" book: In the aformentioned quoted text, Yogani evades the question of what happens after death. He has evidently not become enlightened nor has he read any books about the Buddhist bardo state. Buddhists will even tell you how to become enlightened as you are in the death experience. If you are interested, see http://near-death.com/experiences/buddhism01.html Then, here is another one of Yogani's ignorant statements; he says: "In liberation, life continues to go on in ordinary ways. We may well have our old thoughts, feelings, and reactions in life but they will not pull us out of liberation. Getting rid of thoughts and feelings is not a prerequisite for unity." Let me ask you this. Was Buddha's life ordinary after enlightenment? When he stopped the raging elephant or duplicated himself 1000 time in the sky for all to see, was that ordinary? When enlightened Buddhists or Arahats, upon death, convert their bodies into rainbow bodies leaving behind only hair and nails, is that ordinary? Jesus healed many people and raised a person from the dead. He changed wine into water. He walked on water. Is that ordinary? This is no definition of enlightenment, or liberation! If is was, then why bother? No wonder there are so many people from AYP who think they're enlightened! If you don't have to get rid of thoughts and feelings and it's just ordinary (no siddhis, no powers, no omnipresence omnipotence or omniscience, no miracles) then heck, you too are enlightened! We all are! But seriously, when you have someone who is a clever author but who lacks the proper powers of understanding and discernment, yet persists in trying to push their own brand of yoga and enlightenment, someone should really do something about it. Many people are being misled and are wasting their time by following his erroneous beliefs, customized practices and band of brown-nosers and parrots. If you want to learn more about classic, authentic, historical Buddhist practices, I would recommend the following instead: 1) The Four Immeasurables - Alan Wallace. This book has an excellent section on breath meditation, the stages that one will progress through and is followed up with meditation practices to develop the heart and true compassion 2) Mindfulness, Bliss and Beyond - Ajahn Brahm This is a wonderful book. Not only does it explain Buddhist breath meditation in great detail, it covers the jhanas. It is sprinked with wonderful stories and will help you get an honest understanding of what needs to be done to still the mind and experience your true nature.. Can't say enough about it. 3) Focused and Fearless - Shaila Catherine This is another excellent Buddhist Breath Meditation manual. There are slight differences between Shaila's teachings and Ajahn Brahms and as such, it is an excellent way to gain two different perspectives, each with their own benefits to comprehension. 4) Stilling the Mind - Alan Wallace Not only is shamatha clearly explained, but Dudjom Lingpa's teachings (similar if not exactly the same as "awareness watching awareness") are examined and explained, along with the stages leading to the realization of emptiness. (and the pitfalls). 5) The Attention Revolution - Alan Wallace This book contains some very interesting practices on how to settle the mind using exercises which address the directing attention. You may find that many western meditative practices have their roots in Buddhism. Serene, I know it is very tempting to join AYP because all the lies and brown-nosing parrots are a very powerful force that suck people in. I did an awful lot of homework when I started to examine the crap that AYP was putting out. I've even been studying James H. Austin (M.D.)'s book called "Zen - Brain Reflections". In there, he says that TM (which is AYP's deep meditation) causes it's practitioners to gain a greater sense of self, while, interestingly, Zen meditation creates less of a sense of self.. So who would you go with? Further, it seems to me that this quote also supports the notion that TM is training in laxity, cat napping. It is training in REM sleep. From the same book: TI

Hi Anamatva Thanks for your explanations. Yes, it is the conceptual mind that keeps getting in the way. But I think there is a distinction there. I've experienced gaps between thoughts or listening to the silence after a word is sounded and disappears and I don't think that that is the same as the 'satori' moments type of experience. The gaps between thoughts are like being in the eye of a hurricane. Yes, it is silent and seemingly spacey, but all around the mind is still churning away. The type of experience with the 'satori' effect, is that the whole conceptual mind, which appears towards the back of the perceptive spectrum, is taken as a whole, as the whole hurricane. If you can keep the whole hurricane away, that is the effect.. The hurricane comes from the back. It is like consciousness is a spectrum from the outer world and manifestations of forms which progresses towards the inner world of thoughts and sensations/smells/emotions to the "I". But, right in the middle of the spectrum lies the satori effect, it is between the outer and the inner. I call it the satori effect; it is a state of great bliss, silence, clarity and luminosity. Your comments about joy have caused me to further examine the pita and sukkha aspect of breath meditation. In "The Four Immeasurables" by Alan Wallace is says that "Instead, the Buddha says: "And through the samatha practice, joy arises, and from the joy, then insight arises..." And I've also found an article about nimittas that refers to the joy that Ajahn Brahm speaks about: link: http://dharmafarer.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/19.7-Nimitta-piya.pdf Anyway, have a great weekend, enjoy your trees! TI

Hi Anamatva Thank you for sharing your knowledge and perspectives. I did have one question. How does one generate significant gaps in the thoughtstream, as you mention above? Also, here is a quote from "Stilling the Mind" - Alan Wallace.. TI

Hi Anamatva Sorry to hear about your legs. You know, I sit in meditation about 2 to 3 hours per day and my legs started to hurt a while back. So, I invented a meditation bench which sits about 8 inches above the ground. My legs, in easy posture do not touch, there is no longer any pressure on my heels or feet, because they rest under the seat. I can sit for hours, with a perfectly straight back and I get no pain. It is wonderful. Wasn't a bad experience, just not for me. I also went to some lectures with Shamar Rinpoche in the big city but after the first day I decided to leave. He seems like a very nice person but I couldn't understand most of what he was saying... his English is not so good. I bought the book, though. His meditation is kind of interesting. Not modifying the breath in any way, on the inhale, you trace a bright chord of light from the nose, around the brain and then down to the navel. On the exhale, you trace that chord of light from the nose, downwards to the ground. How do shamatha and vipassana connect? According to what I've learned, shamatha practice stills the mind, makes it pliable and useable. It becomes like a supermind. (I've experienced this a few times. All of sudden the mind actually listens to you, becomes very clear and bright and runs like greased lightning. ) When the mind is in that state, or immediately after, it is the best time to gain insight (vipassana). So, you then focus on something (like previous lives as Ajahn Brahm talks about) and you get answers. In other terminology, first you prep the mind and then you do self-inquiry. There is some discussion about how shamatha is unnecessary since vipassana practice will also still the mind at the same time. Alan Wallace says that this is the reason why shamatha is much neglected nowadays, but he still maintains that shamatha is a necessary step, being able to rest the mind in it's natural state, otherwise you cannot hold onto the rarified states for long when you hit them. Yes, I have about 50 or so mp3's and a book by Mark Griffin and I spent allot of time listening to them. He has allot of power. Did you ever see the video that he made about the Wizard of OZ? It was a triple screen video, which played the Wizard of Oz in the middle and had a video of Mark in samadhi (apparently) on either sides. It lasted for over an hour or two. It was his experimental effort to still the viewer's mind. As some points in the videos, Mark alters his appearance and even looks demonic in some cases.. I'm sure there is no 'evil' there and perhaps the grotesque imagery was used to further shock and still the mind, but I did get the idea that maybe Mark was using his students as guinea pigs for his creative experiments.. which in my mind, is not a good thing. When my girlfriend (at the time) saw the video for the first time when I was checking it out, she did not understand the purpose, she freaked out and nearly screamed at me just to stay away from it. I can't seem to find that video on his site anymore, maybe he removed it.. TI

Hi Anamatva ngondro? I learned about that. I went to a local Diamond Way Buddhist meeting and their main practices were ngondro and guru meditation. 100,000 repetitions of the mantra. 100,000 prostrations! I can't imagine doing that. I spent 4 1/2 years doing mantra repetition (and incorrectly to boot) so basically I just walked away from the Diamond Way. Good idea. Technically, shamatha is the state of resting the mind without distraction, obscuration or defilement. According to Alan Wallace, breath meditation is one of the practices, but he also has other techniques suach as "awareness watching awareness", the moving of awareness around, watching thoughts without grasping or averting, watching thoughts and flicking them away.. etc which are all shamatha practices. Anapanasati is Buddha's teaching of using the breath to sense the body, calm the body, experience rapture, calm the mind, still the mind, experience joy ... actually, the Pali says it better than me: http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/mn/mn.118.than.html In my simple interpretation, you use the breath to focus on the particular event or state that you are working on and you progress from coarse to finer. It is the breath that empowers the intent. A good talk on Shamatha by Alan Wallace is found here (really, though, most of his talks are excellent): http://podcasts.sbinstitute.com/spring2012/2012/05/83-awareness-of-awareness/ Which talk were you listening to by Mark Griffin? Is it a podcast? TI

i don't think he's mentioned that yet, where i am in the book. Hi Anamatva No, that is not Ajahn Brahm, that is from one of Alan Wallace's podcasts. There are actually two good sources for anapanasati and the jhanas, one is Ajahn Brahm and the other is Shaila Catherine - her book called "Focused and Fearless". Their approaches differ slightly; Shaila's breath awareness is to fix the attention on the nostrils while Ajahn's says it is not necessary to fix the attention of the breath at any point. But, both are excellent books. The third resource is Alan Wallace. I think he is so wonderful. I had actually posted some info about these topics in another thread, because I thought you were also interested in Dzogchen and rigpa.. I think you might have missed them.. Here is that link: http://thetaobums.com/topic/24409-meaning-clear-light/#entry356966 TI

Hi If you are interested in getting a peak at some of the underlying principles of magic (if you can call it that), I would suggest that you read the book called "The Secret Science Behind Miracles" by Max F. Long. This is from the Polynesian Huna tradition. http://sun-gazing.com/pdf/shamanism/The-Secret-Science-Behind-Miracles.pdf In this book, the Huna raise the dead, take over dead bodies, mend broken bones and perform all sorts of wonderous and mystical feats. The basic understanding is that the middle self has to go through the lower self in order to get the higher self to do anything. I think this is very similar to programming the subconscious. And how to get out of all of this hocus pocus? This is what Dudjom Lingpa said about dissolving demons: -from "Stilling the Mind" - Alan Wallace End of story. TI

Hi Turtle Shell. Yes, that is kundalini. The moment she sees a good strong nimitta, or for that matter, any very bright light in the head, she makes a leap for it. I have experienced this many times. It is so annoying. Once, I just sat down in perfect posture, took one deep breath and notice a perfectly round moon above my forehead. Within two seconds, kundalini woke up and charged right for it. I became very hot, flames were enveloping me and I began sweating profusely. I had to stop. All this happened within 2 minutes. Scary. I thought I was going to instant-combust. After that I did the kundalini meditation found at the crystal links website, took kundalini up to the crown twice and became more familiar with it. The good news is that, after having quit all forms of spinal breathing and bandhas (root lock, perineum lock, sambhavi etc) for a while( over six months), kundalini for the most part lies sleeping now. I can see the nimittas without waking her. But, if I do intense concentration, she always starts to comes back to life. The key is relaxed concentration, simple placing of awareness and working on perfecting that. Then she doesn't bother me. So, it does go away or at least lets me get into the jhanas without disruption now. And yes, "Intense Awareness"!! Vividness! That thing you can cultivate. You got a pretty good taste of it. You hit the jackpot! You'll have to get over it, perhaps work on the sushumna (central channel) and strengthen and purify the path out the top of your head so kundalini can have her voyage and let you get back to exploring the mind (or lack of it). And no, jhana is not like that. The greatest disruption that I've hit so far is what they call the Arising and Passing (if I am correct in my assesment). It is when thoughts quickly arise and then quickly dissolve. It is like watching a thousand tv screens go whizzing past, coming from nowhere, going nowhere.. These are signs of progress but it is kind of disturbing watching that. Aside from that the jhanas are so wonderful, peaceful and energizing that you will be amazed what you have been missing. Just don't get too attached.. Good luck to you. TI

Hi Anatmava You're welcome! It is so wonderful that this is working for you. I have to wonder, because of your description of the color of your nimitta. There is a phenonmenon which occurs when one is fairly relaxed and that is the appearance of purple and green light which appears in pulses. The purple light appears, grows and then disappears, then the green light appears grows larger and then disappears. If you sit and watch calmly, the pattern repeats itself. Although this is an extremely good sign because it indicates that you are very relaxed, it is not a nimitta. It is related to what I believe is the sacral-cranial pulse. The pulse produces pressure on the optic nerves and optical fluid in the eyes and produces those signature colors. A good way to test it out is this. When you see the nimitta, or light, move your eyes's focus to another direction (look to the right). If the purple and green lights move too, then this is not a nimitta. The nimitta is seen through the third eye. It has nothing to do with the physical eyes. Most of the time I will see the purple and green light and that just lets me know I'm getting closer to the relaxed state that produces the nimittas. It also lets me know that my forehead and face are not relaxed enough. So, I put in more attention at relaxing the forehead/face and eyes and go back to watching the breath and letting go on the out-breaths. That said, I have read that nimittas can appear in numerous shapes and forms, some looking like spider webs, cotton balls, even geometric patterns. I have see a moon, spider webs and geometric patterns but mostly the nimitta looks like a very bright star or the end of a lightning bolt. I've also seen bright unworldly blue and red nimittas. They are so beaultiful that you fall in love with them! Sounds kind of crazy doesn't it? Ajahn Brahm does a good job of describing the different kinds of nimittas. And, he is right. The first time you see one you get so excited that it doesn't last very long. And then if you go looking for it, the looking for it prevents you from settling the mind. When I've succeeded in remaining non-reactive and almost ignored the nimittas, they get brighter and more pronounced. Then, when you get a good one, you enter it or it envelops you and then you find yourself in strange new wonderful places or states. Once, after I went through a bright white lightning bolt type of nimitta, when I came back, I looked down at my body and saw (what I believe is the lower tan tien) this long horn-like structure coming out from below my navel. It was bright white light and it sparkled. I started to play with it with my breath, by pushing my abdomen straight out. When I did that, it released a shower of twinkling little stars that came up my front to the top of my head and showered down around me. It was like being in fairy land. Coming back from the jhanas is the best time to do self-inquiry. We are really mysterious wonderful creatures. So, you can see the value in Buddha's instructions of cultivating neither aversion nor grasping. Also, I know Ajahn Brahm says to cultivate the beautiful breath, that there is joy in just breathing. I have tried that but it just doesn't work for me. But it hasn't stopped me from producing nimittas. I just cultivate one-pointed focus, Vitakka and Vicara, (directed attention and sustained attention) on the breath, the breath turns into a mind-object, everything else disappears and then the nimitta appears.. Another thing that helped me was when I read that the in-breath is one consciousness, the out-breath is another concsciousness and the one part that sees the nimitta is another consciousness. It is like trying to get all three balanced and operational at the same time.. Anyway, I'm very glad that you are succeeding. Good for you! TI

Hi Serene, I stand by everything that I've said and I believe you are getting the right interpretation about mantra repetition ala TM or DM. That is excellent that you are reading "The Attention Revolution". If you look at the bottom of page 77, you will see this part: So you see, Serene, there is a need to be able to assess your state of attention and apply a remedy in order to keep a balance between excitation and laxity. I too had the same problem as you. I was passing into the sleep cycle, the dream world would open up before the third eye and then I would fight with myself to not being drawn into the dreams. I did discover that I could hold the 'entering of the dream" at bay by not breathing out into the dream, but that only works until you hear a sound in the dream and then you are sucked right in. It had never occured to me that I should have been cultivating vividness at the same time as relaxing the body. The solution is that these functions are already built into the breath, as I have learned by studying Alan Wallace's writings and podcasts. Basically, by focusing on the out-breath and even the pause at the end of the out-breath, it calms the body and removes thoughts. If you focus on the in-breath, vividness is enhanced. By putting attentional emphasis on one or the other, you combat either excitation or laxity. When I first started doing breath meditation practices as Alan Wallace has written about, there was a thick layer of mind that I had to get through. I was intrigued by the idea that there should be vividness as I always thought you had to shut off consciousness. However, after getting to the point where the breath becomes a mind object, I discovered that it is true, that you can make your perception of thoughts and visions way more vivid by adding interest during the in-breath and at the top of the in-breath. Keep in mind that there is no controlling of the breath while you do this, you do not control the breath in any way, you simply watch where it is in the cycle and then put more emphasis on which part you want to enhance. Lately I've increased the vividness to the point where thoughts are just as bright and luminous as if I were looking at object through my regular eyes. I still have to get used to that and I'm still digesting the concept.. So, my practice is this. I assess my current state, place my awareness in the body and take a census of my level of excitement (how many roudy thoughts I am having). If there are many, then I focus my attention on the out-breaths and the bottoms of the out-breaths while letting go and calming the body. As my mind calms, that is, each out-breath expels thoughts and the light of my conciousness becomes brighter (you see more white light and fewer thoughts, everything brightens up). At that point I focus on the breath until it becomes a mental object. It appears as a moving attentional point which is somewhat luminous. I just keep focusing on that until the stimulus from the five senses dissolves away and then the nimitta appears at the third eye. Last night I discovered that I do have the ability to rest my awareness at the top of the breath's mind object. I didn't know that was possible, but it is. It is like plopping your attention down like a sack of flour and the attention just stays there.. We will see where this will lead to.. Also, placement of the eyes plays a role in excitement and laxity. In some of the teachings it is recommended to fix the eyes pointing downwards, away from the brow. Not only does this then permit you totally relax your forehead and face but it keeps your attention away from the third eye. It is very important to relax the forehead and face and eyes. When I first learned about that I didn't want to do it because all the visions and action happen at the third eye. But later, after trying it out for a while, I saw the advantages and actually discovered that once your senses are shut off, it doesn't make any difference anyway, the visions and lights still appear at the third eye. But, to begin with, it is a great aid to focus the eyes downwards and totally relax the forehead and face. Another suggestion is to keep the eyes partially open. This also helps to quell thoughts. You know, Alan Wallace has so many good suggestions. Like, for example, if the mind is very coarse and excited, you focus on the lower tan tien ( below the navel) to monitor your breath. Then, the motions are very easy to detect and easy to focus on. If your mind is not so coarse, you can focus on the finer sensations at the nostrils. As your state of mind refines and becomes more subtle, you change your object of attention to match the level of subtlety of the mind.. and perhaps do practices such as watching thoughts with equanimity until they diminish and the conscious mind dissolves into the substrate consciousness. Awareness watching Awareness, Dzogchen, and watching thoughts are very effective practices. What is the purpose of the mantra? In practices like TM and DM, the mantra is just a hypnogogic tool that elicits the laxity response and allows one to cat nap, dip into deep sleep or beyond. It is like bobbing in the ocean. It is refreshing from a sleep perspective and may have physical health benefits, although I have read that cat-napping during the day may not be such a good thing to do. The mantra in this case, is a meaningless sound, or may have meaning but the meaning is not used or focused on. In practices such as regular or conventional mantra repetition, the meaning of the mantra plays a key role, whether it be to call a deity, pray a prayer, or affect your own subconscious in order to precipitate a desired energy event. The meaning here is key as the meaning helps you involve your intent and will. In any mantra repetition, you will notice that the lower tan tien starts the process. Any mantra first comes from the lower tan tien. If you don't believe me, just sit in a meditative posture and then go to start the mantra and then stop. Even before the sound starts, you will notice that the lower tan tien clasps up, however slightly. Then, the seed of the mantra rises up to the medulla and the parts of the brain stem that control breathing and speech. The two are intimately tied together. By repeating a mantra physically, mentally or sublimally, you are causing the whole mechanism to kick in (LTT, medulla, throat chakra). The motion that this process causes is referred to as a wind in Buddism, a movement of energy. Yes, movements of energy can calm the mind, and are a wonderful method of communication and manifestation of thoughts. But, if stillness is sought, you can't keep stirring the winds! The breath is a good thing to focus on because you can do so without stirring any wind. If you choose a mantra to still the mind, you have to keep producing the mantra. There is also another part of mantra repetition which most people have yet to realize. By repeating a mantra, silent or otherwise, it sends energy to the medulla, breath and speech parts of the brain. Eventually, if you stimulate this area too much, the body/brain has a natural mechanism that will try to shut off the stimulus, because it is not natural. That is why, occaisionally during mantra repetition the practitioner will experience states of no-breath. It is the brain trying to shut off the repetitive agrevating stimulus. This accounts for the "bobbing" effect of mantra repetition like TM and DM and the fact that the episodes of breath stoppage are only momentary and recur frequently. According to James H. Austin, MD, : The difference between TM/DM and other forms of conventional dharana/dhyana meditation are the fact of a continuity of awareness throughout the meditation, even during states of no-mind. This awareness has to be cultivated by increasing vividness and sustaining awareness (vicara). After doing so, the more esoteric states of mind (including the breathless ones) can be held onto indefinately. This is something that TM/DM style meditative techniques do not teach nor realize the value. This is the value of mindfulness, anapanasati and the Buddhist approach. Anyway, Serene, I hope this helps. TI

Hi, There is a post on AYP where Shanti begs for books reviews on Amazon about Yogani's latest book called "Liberation". I felt that this was not right, because everyone on the forum at AYP is naturally biased, (dissentors and combatants having been removed due to heavy handed moderation) and some AYP members even have sister sites and sell Yogani's books. How is that fair? Doesn't that lead to biased reviews? So I wrote a review on "Liberation" by Yogani on Amazon. I wrote my honest opinion. You can see it here: 1 star Mysteriously, someone made some nasty comments about my review, to which I replied. After a few comments back and forth, because of the arrogance of the comments and general writing style, the attacking of my practices and competency (which is what Yogani eventually did to me), I started to suspect that the person commenting, named "bv" was either Yogani himself or someone from the forum. In his last comment, he posted the line "So AYP did not work for you", which was so similar to what Yogani had posted to me on the AYP forum that I got curious. So, I examined the profile for 'bv'. I found two book reviews, one for Jed Mckenna's book (which contained derogatory comments about spiritual teachers) and another about a book of mass marketing yoga to the masses. The comments were written in Yogani's slick subdued style.. Yup. This was Yogani. Commenting on other author's books. Coming to the defense of his book by trying to discredit me, rather than addressing the issues. So I responded and called him by name, the person behind the nasty comments.. Well, I was right. It was Yogani. He deleted all his comments and his two book reviews! Intuitively, I knew that he might do that so I saved the last comment that he had written and then pasted it back into my comments. (bolded below) It is a valuable piece of text because of what Yogani says. It put things into perspective. Here it is: Now I ask you, is that what enlightened people do? Write comments about other books on Amazon? Attack their ex-forum-members personally and spiritually? Boast about potential of their yogic creations, when they are unproven? I certainly hope not! So the next time some brown-nosing parrot from AYP tells you that AYP will get you there, think again. Learn to use your own mind. It is your only friend. TI

Hi DC9 The quickest way to bliss is through understanding. First, an anatomy lesson about the bliss layer. The bliss layer is something that you will meet as you progress deeper into the anatomy of the layers of the Self. http://www.swamij.com/koshas.htm There are many other structures too, such as "physical, etheric, astral, mental, causal.. " but it has been my experience that there is a definite layer of bliss, beyond the energetic experience of kundalini, which to me is an energetic event. It is important to realize this, because many teachings think that kundalini is the end-all-be-all, when most buddhists view it as a temporary energetic event.. See, from the diagram, that the bliss layer is closer to the self than the energetic layer? To me, kundalini is what happens when you store and build up you sexual energy, and at the same time cultivate and strengthen the current carrying capacities of the nerves that connect the olfactory bulb to the perineum. The same nerves that the human nose uses to process the stimulation of pheromones resulting in sexual arousal.. Sure, you can cultivate this nervous connection until it overloads and stays turned on for extended amounts of time. It's a rush. But after a few years of this, the ecstasy and sexual tension is a real pain in the ass. I do not enjoy being on the verge of orgasm for hours and hours at a time. At first it was interesting and overwhelming, but after a while you realize, that there is not much to learn and you have to abandon the attachment in order to progress deeper. Now, I'm not saying that you should not cultivate kundalini, I'm saying that one should, but one should do it safely (with the supervision of a guru) and one should learn to overcome it and drop it (although it never seems to go away.. I will see if I can write this whole post without having an eruption.. right now my hands and face are hot, my perineum is pulsing and the central channel is calling me). Further, if you get into deep meditation practices, kundalini will become aroused and you will be very distracted. I am so grateful that my kundalini has learned to sleep once again so that I can get deeper into the bliss levels. Levels of Bliss and how to access them. I don't know if anyone else can do this, but ever since I discovered the lower tan tien (I don't think it is the sacral chakra because it is just below my navel and it looks like a trumpet horn of sparkly light that extends about 6 inches out from the surface skin below the navel) I have found that I can sweep my fingers through it and have an orgasm (without the usual fluidic discharge or physical arousal). What I do is point my fingers towards the body, then sweep with one hand starting from below the navel and bring it up to the neck, while visualizing the flow continuing and shooting out of the top of my head. Then I follow through with the other hand. Kind of like sweeping smoke up the front of the body. The sensation that is produced is just like an orgasm and becomes a full body orgasm with repeated applications. I can do this any time I like, as many times as I'd like and the energetic display is very consistent. My understanding is that the lower tan tien is connected very closely to the self and has access to the bliss layer. That's how I perceive it anyway.. (If you can do this too, I wouldn't mind knowing about it.) Third Eye bliss Another method of accessing the bliss, but is tied very closely to the perineum and the energetic/kundalini component is by focusing on the third eye (the place about 1 inch inside the head behind the center of the eyebrows. Constant, uninterupted attention on that location for more than 15 minutes not only stimulates kundalini (throbbing perineum) but produces great amounts of bliss and ecstasy. This is a tricky practice because the kundalini/energetic aspect overshadows the bliss, is much coarser and easier to sense. Also, this could be a dangerous practice because it also produces heat and greatly stimulates the energy flows. If you all of a sudden get very hot, burst into etheric flames and start sweating profusely, shut it down! Cave of Brahmin Bliss Behind the third eye, close to the center of your head, in between your ears and slightly below and behind, there is a cave or mental space. If you focus on that area and keep your attention fixed there, you will get a similar reaction to the effects from just focusing on the third eye, but you will get more bliss and a little less kundalini action. To find this area, think of a word and watch where it appears from. If you keep internally looking at the word until it dissolves, you will see that there is a space there. If you keep your attention in that space, you will find mild bliss. Medulla Bliss If you look straight ahead and then turn your attention straight back around and focus on whom is watching, the feeling of "I", and keep at it for a few months, you will eventually break through the levels and also come to a place of greater bliss, similar to the Cave Of Brahman bliss. After a while, it only takes a few minutes of focusing there and you will find the bliss. Also, don't go too far back with your attention because you end up going out through the back of your head, or, you end up in what I can only describe as a vast plane of light and light-forms.. The idea is to keep your attention centered in the medulla area, as close to the 'feeling of I' as you can get. Heart Bliss The heart is a very powerful producer of bliss. If you can keep you undivided relaxed attention on the center of the chest, next to the heart, a little to the right of the heart, it will eventually erupt in waves of tingles and bliss. It is important to stay relaxed and not inflict too much tension during this practice because you could literally cause heart congestion and more serious complications. Love is always a good thing to send to the heart and from the heart. The heart is where the indestructible drop lives (Buddhist). The heart is also the magical tool that Richard Bartlett discovered and talks about in his "Matrix Energetics". The Heart, it is said, also contains a wishing well.. but that is another topic. By now, you are seeing a common theme in all these practices. The common theme is using concentration and attention in order to dig down deeper through the layers (or koshas) to reach the bliss. Directed attention (Vitakka) and sustained attention (Vicara) are key. If you are going to develop the ability to drill down into your bliss layer, you need to develop Vitakka and Vicara. You need to train the mind and do it while relaxing and letting go of the body, sensations, other thoughts. It's a balancing act between focus and letting go. Kunlun Bliss What would a commentary on bliss without mentioning Kunlun bliss? The practice of Kunlun is a unique method of producing bliss, the bliss feels magnetic, like pulsing waves of coolness or water. It is also very powerful and will open up psychic channels very quickly. The technique of the Red Phoenix (level one) is a method that stimulates the third eye, and when I do this practice, it produces much the same effect and type of stimulation as the third eye focusing practice I described earlier. So, I don't know if that is because my kundalini is active or just what is going on there, but, if I need a dose of ecstasy/bliss with a lingering effect, then I do the Red Phoenix. Deeper into the Bliss Layer You can also find bliss in pranayama practices such as Kriya Pranayama and any practice that takes prana or a mixture of prana/apana/prana vaya and sends it up the central channel. Usually this mixture is experienced as heat, is very pleasant and has other uses. Tummo. Again, these could be dangerous practices and they should be done under the supervision of an experienced authentic guru. (I didn't, but then I have a few gurus in the astral planes looking out for me.. ) The effect from these types of practices are that a stream of ecstasy is produced, either going up the central channel -sushumna, or going down, if you take the light down from the crown). However, I would call the effects more ecstatic than bliss. The streams also look internally (third eye sight) like streams of white light. The bliss, the deeper everwhelming joyous loving peaceful bliss is found through practices of directed and sustained concentration (while relaxing). If you can visualize an object in your mind's eye (third eye) and hold it there, steadily, without distraction, calmly, determinedly, eventually the object and the subject (you attention) will fuse together, everything will get very very clear and bright and you will experience great bliss. Great Bliss. So much bliss and joy that you will be distracted. You will wonder how you could ever sustain such an experience. The answer is simple, just stay there in that layer, so close to the self. In practice, it has to be approached methodically, as in spending many hours sitting, training the mind, calming the body, letting go, building vividness, not absconding to laxity and dullness. Knowing the proper techinique, having good instructions and understanding what is required is part of the path. Dedication and perseverence also play a key role (unless you are one of the lucky ones). Enter the Jhanas. If anyone is familiar with anapanasati, Ajahn Brahm (Mindfulness, Bliss and Beyond), Shaila Catherine (Focused and Fearless) or Alan Wallace (The Four Immeasurables, Stilling the Mind, Mind in the Balance) or the term jhana, and have put any of the practices to the test, one will discover bliss. Bliss is the perhaps the first jhana, or maybe it is the second jhana. In laymen's terms, when you focus on the breath with vitakka and vicara successfully for an extended amount of time, your body dissolves, the senses turn off, everything becomes very bright and clear and you are propelled into one of the jhanas. I'm so grateful for having learned these practices because I have had good success with them. The first concept that really surprised me was learning how to turn up vividness and clarity. I've discovered, thanks to Alan Wallace, that clarity/vividness can be intensified on the in-breath, while bodily relaxation and letting go can be cultivated on the out-breath. While you are meditating on the breath and monitoring your progress, you can fine tune the balance between dullness/laxity and vividness. It really works. What happens is that, after finding the right balance, the body and senses shut off, you see more and more light like the breath has become a moving column of light and then the nimitta (mental air sign) appears (bright shining light that you eventually penetrate and reach great bliss or joy, or happiness). Final Comment Finally, I was reading a book called "Experience and Philosophy" by Francis Merrell-Wolff and I read a part where it said that enlightenment is so simple that if you look for it you will have missed it. So, I lifted my head and tried to be as mentally simple as I could, no thought, no conceptual mind, just so simple. Well, a clear waterous shining light appeared before my eyes. It glistened and shone. It was filled with joy, peace, love, bliss. The conceptual mind kept trying to kick in and produce a volume of thoughts that were threatening to veil the clear pool of bliss and I fought hard to push it back. I managed to stay with the clear light for about ten seconds or so, but I would have loved to have spent the rest of my life in it! So perhaps the fastest method of finding the really deep bliss is to stop your conceptual mind and be so simple you would put the three stooges to shame. In summation, it really doesn't matter what practice you do, just so long as it is one that helps your realize the different layers and penetrate down to the core. Since everyone is different, has varying karmas, history, culture, beliefs etc, not all methods are going to work for everyone. It is up to you find find your path with heart, the one that resonates and works for you. And you know, Ajahn Brahm is right when he says that sexual ecstasy pales in comparison to the bliss from the jhanas. TI P.S. Thanks Anamatva, for throwing that in. Yes, AYP is not a good place to be. Just got another complaint from someone else whose post was rejected because it did not conform to the AYP beliefs (as erroneous as they are).. Lately I'm wondering if carefully pruning posts to present a specific point of view is akin to being a cult.

Hi C T You have experienced this state too? Is it permanent? How did you arrive at it? Is it rigpa? Do you practice Dzogchen? TI

Hi Xabir Thank you so much for your post. When I first read what you have written, I had a very big rush which lasted a few hours. I don't know what non-dualism is because I have never made an association with a practical experience to the term. Maybe it is non-dualism, if non-dualism means that it 'feels' like you are everything. When I was looking at the leg and the bathtub, it felt like I was the leg and bathtub, and the tiles and the soap dish. Normally that feeling of "me" sits behind my eyes, somewhere in the center of my head, but in this case, that "me" had expanded to encompass the whole scene. There was no separation. There was no watcher, it was as if the watcher was everything, if that makes sense. I felt like I had become the whole scene. There was a flavor of "me" that was very distinct and it was permeating everything. And yes, as soon as the mind or conceptual mind came back in, the state was lost. The strange thing about it is that the conceptual mind seems to be located behind the event of 'oneness' (if I can call that state that), and I've tried to push it back but with no success. It comes forwards and then the clarity, the luminescence, the silence all vanish. It appears to me that the conceptual mind is a very potent veil which hides this phenomenon. Xabir, do you live in that state of luminescence all of the time? Does it come and go or have you stabilized in it? It is such a wonderful state, I wish I could spend more time in it and get to know it better. I wish I knew how to turn it on and keep it on!! For you, did it 'turn on and stay on" the first time you discovered it or did it turn on and off remittantly? As you've said, how does one "turn the light around"? I do many meditations of turning my attention back around towards the sense or feeling of "I" behind my eyes, somewhere in the center of my head. My practice is "if I can see, hear or feel something, to turn the attention to whatever is doing the apprehending. Abiding in the "I". Is that what you mean by turning the light around? If that state is what Eckart Tolle refers to as "presence", I can see why it is such a big deal. If I could remain in that state I think I too would sit on a park bench with a very big smile on my face for a few years like he did. TI

Hi, Since that episode, I have had a few more experiences. I have tried to recreate the 'clear light' experience but have not been successful. However, because of learning that eyes-open meditation is a way to connect the inner consciousness with the outer, I was focusing on the third eye, with eyes partially closed, while walking around during a break at work one day. The next day, in the morning while I was taking a shower, I bent over to soap my left foot and all of a sudden every thing became crystal clear. My visual field was luminescent. Every detail in my visual field sparkled and shone. I was amazed. I also noticed that there was not a single thought in my head. I also noticed that the whole visual field felt like 'me', like I had superimposed the sense of me-ness over the scene of the leg, the bathtub and walls etc.. I stood up straight and the phenomenon went away. I thought, "Wow"! Then I proceeded to bend over in order to soap down my left foot again. The same state happened again! If I had to say what caused it, I would say that it was almost like a clear waterous awareness came out from the front of my face and made the scene crystal clear, sparkly and dead silent. Haven't been able to recreate that but I take it as a good sign, similar to satori moments I've had before. I've also been listening to many podcasts by B. Alan Wallace and re-reading his books. It has been very helpful. A while ago I clued into 'vividness'. Then, after listening to the Spring 2010 podcasts of Alan Wallace's retreats I finally understood that consciousness is luminous. Yesterday, I was sitting in my car by the river. I had just finished listening to a most excellent podcast by Alan Wallace about rigpa. I had done the meditation at the start of the podcast and came upon the realization that the luminosity of the mind is true. It shines. It radiates. As I sat there a strange phenomenon occured. The inside of my head started to brighten up to the point where I could see thoughts as bright as if I were looking through normal vision. What a rush! The thoughts that I saw were very clear, bright and distinct, like streams of video floating by. Then, struck down by the amazement and excitement, the effect went away. Then, today, I listened to a podcast from Alan Wallace about "Integrated Vipashyana", and in it he mentions that the luminosity of the mind can become so bright that it appears with the same clarity and vividness as normal reality! Wow! I think I'm on the right track. Here is the podcast page for the "Integrated Vipashyana" : http://podcasts.sbin...ring2011/?p=206 You know, I can't say enough about Alan Wallace. He is certainly extremely intelligent, has a vocabulary that blows me away and is very clear in his concepts and instructions. His fluency in Tibetan and English is a great boon to anyone whom wishes to get very clear instruction and understanding of the Buddhist teachings. This talk about rigpa is so dense and enlightening that I am very grateful to have discovered it. The first 25 minutes of this podcast is a meditation. The discussion follows after that.. http://podcasts.sbin...ring2011/?p=204 This is the main page for the podcasts. I have downloaded all retreats from 2012 to 2010 on to my iphone and ipod and have been listening to them for weeks now. http://podcasts.sbinstitute.com/ This is a good talk about some of the practices, like flicking thoughts away, or letting them dissolve. Awareness of awareness.. http://podcasts.sbin...of-awareness-4/ I own 5 or 6 of Alan Wallace's books. The one I am rereading now is called "Stilling the Mind -Shamtha Teachings from Dudjom Lingpa's Vajra Essence. This is an excellent book. Can't say enough about it! Close to the end of the book, Alan explains the Dzogchen practice of "resting the mind in the natural state, without distraction, without grasping. He explains about rigpa vs the substrate conscoiusness, how the mind arises and dissolves back into the substrate. How, as the mind calms the substrate consciousness will release experiences and mental states. He even has a section called "Signs of Progress" wherein he list the various experiences that a practitioner may encounter. Most of them sound like schizophrenic/psychotic episodes...! Here is the first sign of progress: His book called "The Four Immeasurables" has an excellent step-by-step instruction on achieving Shamatha. His book called "Mind in The Balance" is also an excellent book. It contains exercises to help the mind rest in the natural state. In one exercise, you move your attention/awareness around, around the body, around the location you are sitting in. I've incorporated this practice into my regular meditation sessions. I've been meditating 2 to 3 hours per day for a while now. First I visualize that I can see right through my eyes and right through walls and solid objects. Then I move that visual field around the body, pretending I can see the back alley, the street outside, the houses, the pavement etc. I go around from left, around my back and then to the right. Then I reverse the rotation. Then I move my attention to the eastern horizon and expand it so my attention is in space. Then I move it upwards and around, to the top (seeing all the stars and universes), and then around the earth and back. Then I move my attention in close circles around the body, like a fly that is buzzing around. By the time I have finished moving my attention around like that, not only is the mind and body so calm and peaceful, but the state is highly ecstatic and blissful too. Then I go on to Anapanasati practice.. What I have discovered is that it is highly pleasurable to move the attention around the body, on the tips of the chakras, sort of like a very quick MC Orbit, but staying about 7 inches outside of the body and without the breathing part. Also, just a point if you want to try the "moving of attention around" practice, you have to keep moving the attention quick enough so that the mind doesn't have time to grasp anything. If you sit too long in one spot, the conceptual mind kicks in and interferes. If you move onto a different location or point of attention every second, that seems to be fast enough to prevent my mind from conceptualizing. Or, just keep moving your attention, doesn't matter how quickly, just don't stop. I am very grateful for Alan Wallace's books and podcasts. Perhaps you may find some use too. Anamatva, (I know you are going to read this) , have you ever heard of Alan Wallace? Comments? Have you experienced the luminosity of the mind? TI Oh WOW! They have just released the Fall 2012 podcasts from the retreat! http://podcasts.sbinstitute.com/fall2012/ Oh WOW! One of the questions in the 08 podcast is: "Q2. Is the experience of prana (lelung) upon achieving shamatha the same as kundalini?
 " Haven't listened to it yet, just finishing downloading now..

Hi Aaron, Thank you for your response. I must admit, I are more inclined to read the map before going on a journey, rather than set out driving with no goal in mind. However, I do have one question. In your instructions you said: For the first part of your instructions you say to breathe in slowly. That is, you are controlling your breathing, slowing it down by elongating the breaths. Then you say to "breathe in through your nose slowly and then out through your nose". There is no mention of dropping control of the breathing, so I am assuming that you continue to breath in and out slowly (volitional control) while concentrating on breathing in and out. Is that correct? Or, while concentrating, do you release control of the breathing and let it assume it's natural rhythm? And one last question, is the practice to have pauses in between the in-breath and out-breath, or none? Is this practice referred to as the "One Breath"? Thanks. TI

Hi Aaron, I have some questions, if you don't mind. What are the benefits of practicing this form of meditation? I've read in so many places that just sitting in emptiness is not a good thing to do as it does not cultivate insight. How is this practice different from that? Do you go through the four form jhanas (bliss, joy, happiness, equanimity) and the four formless jhanas: infinity of space, infinity of consciousness, No-thingness, Neither perception nor non-perception and finally Cessation? I'm thinking that your definition of 'emptiness' is not the classic interpretation of Buddhist Emptiness. Stillness is not the realization of emptiness. In my interpretation of the realization of the Buddhist 'emptiness', the realization of emptiness is the same as when you realize that you are in a dream, that you can fly, walk through walls, create objects or do anything you can think of or desire. The realization of emptiness in real-life is exactly the same. What are the effects on your regular daily life? Do you have satori moments afterwards? Have you gained any siddhis or powers? After you discovered that emptiness is not true emptiness because there is the "I" that is watching, have you ever turned your attention around and tried to dwell in the "I"? For that is the only way to not have an "I". If 'you' are watching something, then it is still dualistic. And if you did reverse the flow of attention backwards to the "I", does the journey which brings you closer to the "I" bring you through the heat sheath, the bliss layer, the golden light, the nonconceptual stage and finally the infinite expanse that is the "I" which seems solid as a rock? Just curious.. TI

Hi OldGreen If you don't mind me asking, what type of meditation are you doing? The reason I ask is because, according to several sources (Ajhan Brahm, Shaila Catherine and Alan Wallace), entering the jhanas is so blissfull and enticing that one can effortlessly remain in those states for hours and hours. From my experience, when I enter a jhana, the body can be in pain, but the whole body and the pain are so far away, almost like they don't exist, that you don't feel the pain at all. You have to focus directly on it. Then the pain is like a teeny little thought that comes up and then dissolves away. The mind says, "Wow, I think that was my painful left calf." And then you submerge once again in the bliss.. This is from the book called Focused and Fearless - A Meditator's Guide to States of Deep Joy, Calm and Clarity by Shaila Catherine (Buddhist breath/jhana meditation manual) And here is a bit from the Visddhimagga: link: http://www.urbandhar...urification.pdf TI

Hi Probably one of the best books you will find on the anapanasati is his book called "Mindfulness, Bliss and beyond". Not only does it explain the stages of anapanasati (breath meditation) and when to switch to meditating on the nimitta (mental signs or mirror of the still mind) but he also explains the jhanas and the stages on the way to enlightenment. I highly recommend this book to the serious meditator. It is such a good book that I have read it four times. It's definitely one of the best... TI

Hi thetaobums does not work from my home pc 404 errors and "Tao Bums currently unavailable," But it does work from my iPhone I've tried deleting history and clearing the cache . No luck Thnks

Hi Epilogue For clarity's sake, when I mentioned that Kunlun blew open my third eye, I did not mean the Red Phoenix blew open my third eye. I didn't even know about the Red Phoenix at that point. Just doing the chi gathering and bouncing the legs did it. That along with the transmission from the book and tapping into Max (invited). Kevin: you said: You are mistaken. I am not your friend. You are not my friend. If you had added yourself as a friend, I would have removed you. If you have ever noticed, I did not post anything to you at AYP. From reading your posts at AYP I decided that you were much too unstable and wreckless with your misguided concepts to even merit any comments. And you had such a disrepectful and bad attitude that I'm surprised that you did not get banned. I did not appreciate your toilet humour and you did offend people on the forum. Then you came back and appear to have turned into a brown nosing AYP parrot. So be it. And look what you've done here in your comment. A 15 year old male is not a child. He is a teenager. And I have no intention of harming anyone. I find your lack of perspicacity and discernment disheartening and irritating. DNB: That picture is exactly what I saw after the meditation, later that night, and the next day too. After a while I could even see the tunnel that leads to you. Thank you for confirming. And you? Can you tell me what I look like? OldGreen: Experimentation without proper guidance, understanding and knowledge of the effects can lead to experiences that are not unlike schizophrenia or psychosis. But then, so does acid, meth, mushrooms, speed, MDA, alcohol and all the other things that teenagers will try. I think I'd rather have them try third eye meditation. At least they won't be killing brain cells and putting holes in their sheaths.. You know, I've been trying to open the third eye since I was 12 yrs old, gazing, mirror gazing, gazing at people. It really isn't that easy to fully open the third eye considering that it took me over 40 years. And it is even harder to keep it open. The 3rd Eye cannot ignore the rest of the body for it encompasses all. Anything that happens anywhere in the bodies (physical, etheric, astral, mental, causal, bliss sheath, atman) also happens in the third eye. Don't forget, the third eye is just not the hole in front of the brows, or the screen for dreams, or the entrance for the channel to the heart, or the vision center, or the cave of brahma or the place where ida and pingala can collapse into the sushumna. It is also the medulla, where the point of consciousness contacts the smaller self and the ego. And most of the time their testifying is from a base of ignorance, misplaced blame and the desire for attention. There is no such thing as a natural practice. Any practice is an act of will exerting itself upon the world of forms. Even non-practice is a form of practice. The only thing that is natural in my definition, is beyond both. Did you not read the Saraswati quote? His argument for working on the third eye first? It is the only chakra which develops the witness and establishes distance between the phenomenon and that which perceives. The witness. You know, saying a "good balanced approach" sounds really nice and all. But think about this. First you gain understanding and proper technique. At that time you don't have much chi to send to the third eye so if anything happens, it is not that intense. If you store up lots of gasoline (chi) and get your energies/shakti built up, it's eventually going to erupt and get into the third eye. If you can't control your third eye, and remain a calm detached witness, that's when the problems start. If you don't activate Shiva first, Shakti is going to be very unhappy when she wakes. This makes sense to me. Perhaps it doesn't make sense to you. That is fine. I know there are very many different practices out there, and I think many of them are invalid and misunderstood. But people fall for them and waste their time or have bad experiences. But lots of people have good experiences too! May you all be so lucky. TI

Hi DNB Just one last question. Towards the end of my afternoon meditation a man appeared to me in a vision, fairly fit, about 34 years of age and completely bald (or head was shaved). The eyes were dark. Of particular note was that this person had a small elongated orb of golden light above the head. Was that you? TI

Hi DNB You know there is an old expression: "Never wrestle with a pig. You both get dirty and the pig loves it". So let's get down and stinky, shall we? You don't seem to be acknowledging that age is not a barrier. I've said what I said about it. Let me help you out with this: In that post, you said: You know, there is another old expression. "Those who know, do. Those who don't, teach." This of course does not apply to authentic gurus/lamas/Buddhists/Taoists. Not only do you seem like a travelling salesman for siddhis, but you seem to have the mistaken notion that you can convert the astral body into a golden body or a diamond body. You know, I've never heard of that and I've read many many books. About the healing, you are either an authentic healer, in which case, instead of talking about it you would have healed Mike (the ibogaine notion) after healing yourself, or you are a feeble mind trying to convince yourself and others that these things are possible through developing the astral body. Although all the things you've mentioned are some of the minor siddhis realized by most competent Buddhist practioners, they are a side-effect from a true path. They serve to convince the mind that it is progressing and also to help separate the authentic teachers from the wanna-be's. I get your point about teaching dangerous practices. To me, ignorance is dangerous. Red Phoenix is not a third eye practice. It is a third eye and crown practice, very much similar to kriya spinal breathing or targetted bhastrika. And yes, you would be responsible. An authentic guru or lama takes responsibility for his/her students. But that implies certain abilities which apparently you don't have or have mysteriously forgotten about which is exemplified in how you behave. When I first learned Kunlun, during one meditation, I saw a vision of a land of water (one big ocean) with a red sun in the sky. As I attempted to 'go there', I saw Max standing there waving his finger at me, saying "You are not ready to go there yet". So I pursued my practices and eventually did get to that planet. When I did 10 days of Buhta Shuddi mantra (108 recitations which took 2 1/2 hours), my guru manifested a red rose for me in the astral plane as a sign that I had completed my initiation and shaktipat. The point is, an authentic teacher/guru will meet you on the astral planes and guide you. It is something to experience. If you are as advanced as you seem to be by your writings, you should have no trouble taking care of your students from the astral planes. Yet, you balk at the idea and spread fear and confusion. Just hold on a minute. I'm not selling irresponsible teaching or practices. The sources I quote are not occult nor are they flying by the seat of the pants. The references are from valid teachers and teachings, with authentic teachers/gurus who stand behind their practices. You are trying to make is seem like my links are dangerous when they are not. Proper practice with correct understanding from an authentic teacher is the key... So wouldn't you have the intelligence to make your students sign a waiver too if you couldn't attend to their needs remotely through astral travel? What? Not quite there yet? I too signed the waiver. It was quite theatrical, wasn't it? Perhaps you could tell us more about him, since you have developed your astral body into a golden body and are capable of discerning his karma, his past lives, his present life and future ones.. If you are going to talk the talk, then you better be prepared to walk the walk.. Prove it to us. I am familiar with Mike's case. You are just spreading more fear here. Mike didn't arrive at kundalini through spiritual practices at all. And, in Mike's case, spiritual practices aren't going to help much because 1) his state precludes him from performing practices to the required level of efficay and 2) Mike isn't interested in spirituality, and 3) I think that Mike doesn't believe any of this stuff and is very reluctant to let anyone inside his psyche, like an authentic healer. Mike needs an authentic healer/guru/lama to ground his kundalini and give him a hand. Perhaps you could? There are a few people here who seem to talk big but do nothing. I pray for Mike, that's what I do. Don't put words in my mouth. I never said 'force'. If you can't understand my point of view, the need for proper instruction from authentic teachers and teachings, there is not much point in even talking to you. No, this thread is now about your bullshit. Your spreading of fear and ignorance. Your propping your ego up on a pedestal so that others innocents and unknowers can stroke your ego and give you some sense of meaning, belonging and authority. When in reality, if you were capable of doing everything that you have implied in your other posts on this forum, your approach would be entirely different. Just so you know I mean you no harm, I only hope that you examine your mind and see how it is functioning. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miracles_of_Gautama_Buddha Now that is something to strive for. Isn't it? Be well. TI