Endless Fascinations of the Ten Thousand Things

[Songtsan]

Are these Ten Thousand Things pulling our energy outwards away from our self? Are we wasting our vital essence? Of course...that's axiomatic...

 

What I want to know is, does hanging out in the Mysterious Female allow one to absorb one's own life essence while seeing things from a distance?

 

That's what I am experiencing now when I hold the intent...A feeling of being removed from reality slightly, and instead of being fully absorbed outwards, getting all excited and generating outward flowing bliss, we send it inwards..

 

This is a 'just checking' post...

[Bearded Dragon]

I kind of feel like that. It's like you're just waiting for things to come to you rather that reaching out for them. The effort required to reach out for things, whether it's visually looking out or whatever, is quite taxing. So the absorption is just conserving the energy that you would otherwise have spent needlessly acting.

[Marblehead]

Somewhere in The Chuang Tzu he tells us to return to the state of Yin so that we can build up reserve energy. (I likely paraphrased that heavily.)

[Songtsan]

I kind of feel like that. It's like you're just waiting for things to come to you rather that reaching out for them. The effort required to reach out for things, whether it's visually looking out or whatever, is quite taxing. So the absorption is just conserving the energy that you would otherwise have spent needlessly acting.

 

I've seen that...it's like a 'mind tentacle' that grasps for something in the perceived present, or the perceived future...its feels like an energy sink.

 

Waiting is exactly it...staying at a center, keeping all energies introverted, yet maintaining outward acts of good virtue to karmically fit the present moment...staying relaxed, keeping to the center....

 

And then there is the rapid shuffling of awareness from internal to external, when it's required, such as when needing to go into absorption on objects to keep safe in the real world, otherwise circulating the energy and healing the organs while keeping tabs on things from a distance...

[Bearded Dragon]

Not quite. Turning the light around isn't about inward energy. There is no direction as such. There is no dualistic concept of inner and outer. You just maintain the awareness going about normal life. It doesn't have to be awareness of what's inside.

[Songtsan]

Not quite. Turning the light around isn't about inward energy. There is no direction as such. There is no dualistic concept of inner and outer. You just maintain the awareness going about normal life. It doesn't have to be awareness of what's inside.

 

hmmm...I must admit I still haven't gotten it then. I always assumed awareness had a central location or point of emanation and that turning the light around meant bringing it back there....

[Mystique Enigma]

One night Hodja was walking by a well when he had a sudden impulse to look inside of it. To his amazement he saw the reflection of the moon in the water and exclaimed:

 

" The moon has fallen into the well! I must save it somehow!"

 

He looked around a found a rope with a hook on the end of it so he threw it in the well and shouted:

"Grab the hook, moon, and hold tight! I'll pull you out!"

 

The rope latched onto a rock inside the well and Hodja pulled back on the rope as hard as he could. Suddenly the hook broke free from the rock and Hodja fell over on his back. Lying there, he noticed the moon high up in the sky above. He heaved a sigh of relief and said:

 

"Well, it wasn't easy, but it's sure a wonderful feeling to know that I've delivered the moon from the well!"

 

[Marblehead]

So many things could be said about that story. Great story though.

[doc benway]

Are these Ten Thousand Things pulling our energy outwards away from our self? Are we wasting our vital essence? Of course...that's axiomatic...

 

What I want to know is, does hanging out in the Mysterious Female allow one to absorb one's own life essence while seeing things from a distance?

 

That's what I am experiencing now when I hold the intent...A feeling of being removed from reality slightly, and instead of being fully absorbed outwards, getting all excited and generating outward flowing bliss, we send it inwards..

 

This is a 'just checking' post...

 

In my current approach, when thinking about something(s) pulling energy away from 'me' and being concerned with 'my' vital essence, I focus on the 'me' and 'my' and how that is separate from those 10,000 things and how that is separate from that energy. When that identity feels less substantial, 'i' feel less separate and less loss of anything.

[Songtsan]

I guess the way I was viewing it was from a combined western/eastern approach. I had viewed the awareness energies as emanating from a specific area, and then going out to the brain areas associated with the sense organs' incoming data...I assumed following the energies of awareness backwards was detaching from those areas (ten thousand things loci) and retreating back to the original seat of consciousness. At this point, I am adhering to the belief that that lies within the heart area....I will continue to look.

[Bearded Dragon]

Whether something comes from the heart area or not the point is that if you focus on the heart area you're focusing on a thing and awareness is not a thing.

 

It's not a thing. It's not no-thing. It's not in between. What is it?

[Marblehead]

Whether something comes from the heart area or not the point is that if you focus on the heart area you're focusing on a thing and awareness is not a thing.

 

It's not a thing. It's not no-thing. It's not in between. What is it?

Very nicely said. Speaking of awareness is about the same as speaking of enlightenment. Neither are "things". These two concepts are of "wu" (Mystery), not "yo" (Manifest).

[doc benway]

Very nicely said. Speaking of awareness is about the same as speaking of enlightenment. Neither are "things". These two concepts are of "wu" (Mystery), not "yo" (Manifest).

 

Is awareness not manifest?

[doc benway]

I guess the way I was viewing it was from a combined western/eastern approach. I had viewed the awareness energies as emanating from a specific area, and then going out to the brain areas associated with the sense organs' incoming data...I assumed following the energies of awareness backwards was detaching from those areas (ten thousand things loci) and retreating back to the original seat of consciousness. At this point, I am adhering to the belief that that lies within the heart area....I will continue to look.

 

Is awareness in you?

Or are you in awareness?

[Marblehead]

Is awareness not manifest?

Fair question.

 

Yes, it is. But only in the mind of those becoming aware. No one else can directly observe the awareness. (Even though others will be able to detect it indirectly.)

[Songtsan]

Is awareness in you?

Or are you in awareness?

 

or is there no 'you' in awareness? Who/what is it that executes functions?

[Bearded Dragon]

Haha give it up.

 

It's like driving a car. You don't think about it but awareness helps otherwise you're dead.

 

The function of the body and brain seems to be more subconscious when you choose to let go of the thinking mind. I see no benefit worrying about the subconscious mind.

 

The thinking mind exists as a tool. A very valid tool, but one that needs to be put in its place merely by watching it. It tends to get a bit self conscious and settles down after that. It's not separate from you but left unattended creates separation.

 

So you could say that you're the one watching the thinking mind. But the thinking mind is still a part of you.

[dust]

So you could say that you're the one watching the thinking mind. But the thinking mind is still a part of you.

 

In Western psychological terms... the id would be the instinct, the superego would be the thinking mind, and the ego would be the watcher?

[dawei]

Are these Ten Thousand Things pulling our energy outwards away from our self? Are we wasting our vital essence? Of course...that's axiomatic...

 

Like gravity-effect, it is shared influence of existence.

 

What I want to know is, does hanging out in the Mysterious Female allow one to absorb one's own life essence while seeing things from a distance?

 

I guess it depends on the mysterious female is... but I'll assume DDJ6. This is the Dao-Spirit...

 

Now... it depends on how far "in" you are hanging "out"...

 

If you are willing to let yourself go from this world [of understanding] to merge back to your origin.... then Yes... every day.

 

That's what I am experiencing now when I hold the intent...A feeling of being removed from reality slightly, and instead of being fully absorbed outwards, getting all excited and generating outward flowing bliss, we send it inwards..

 

This is a 'just checking' post...

 

It seems we have a similar idea of 'in and out'. Just checking too...

[Marblehead]

I guess it depends on the mysterious female is... but I'll assume DDJ6. This is the Dao-Spirit...

 

Now... it depends on how far "in" you are hanging "out"...

Yeah, I saw that.