The four Thoughts

[RigdzinTrinley]

I would like to start a discussion fo the four thoughts, and their importance in the tantric and dzogchen systems of view, meditation, action

 

Primarely to remind myself what they are, following my teachers advice I do chant the ngondro liturgy everyday so I have them memorized, but I didn't contemplate them for some time - whoever would like to join the Contemplation - welcome

 

the first thought is the preciousness of human life and this body that we have

 

this body is very precious in itself for sure, and most humans treasure their body more then anything else in the world - but this first thought (of the four thoughts that turn the mind from samsara) has not much to do with this kind of preciousness and self-cherishing attitude. This ordinary cherishing of our body and the rather strange idea that we could be content through providing this body with all the matter it wants is what is ruining our planet (if you ask me)

 

in the buddhist teachings, our body is only precious if we use it to advance spiritually for the sake of all life - it is not precious in and of itself

 

in and of itself it is just a heap of bones, blood and other impure substances (from a hinayana and partly mahayan POV - the vajrayana and dzogchen POV can be discussed somewhere else)

 

the human body that is not used for spiritual evolution (lets just say the essential evolution in the 21th century) is called "merely a human body" or "ordinary human body" etc. - again nothing fancy in itself

 

thats the intro

 

now for the particulars: there are 8 freedoms and 10 riches as wella s 16 circumstantial obstructions (as thought by longchenpa)

 

the 8 freedoms are:

not being born either a

1) hell being or

2) a hungry ghost or

3) animal or

4) long-lifed god (these first four have to do with non human bodies that we are "free" of)

as well as not being born a

5) barbarian (later more) or

6) someone with wrong views or

7) in a place where no buddha appeared

8) or with impaired senses and intellctual faculties that make it impossible to study and practice dharma

(these later 4 are connected with circumstances that obstruct dharma practice even though we attained a human rebirth)

 

lets stay with these eight for now, if somebody has time and inspiration to comment and explore those 8 states that are not fit for dharma practice that would be greatly appreciated.

[Michael Sternbach]

I would like to start a discussion fo the four thoughts, and their importance in the tantric and dzogchen systems of view, meditation, action

Primarely to remind myself what they are, following my teachers advice I do chant the ngondro liturgy everyday so I have them memorized, but I didn't contemplate them for some time - whoever would like to join the Contemplation - welcome

the first thought is the preciousness of human life and this body that we have

this body is very precious in itself for sure, and most humans treasure their body more then anything else in the world - but this first thought (of the four thoughts that turn the mind from samsara) has not much to do with this kind of preciousness and self-cherishing attitude. This ordinary cherishing of our body and the rather strange idea that we could be content through providing this body with all the matter it wants is what is ruining our planet (if you ask me)

in the buddhist teachings, our body is only precious if we use it to advance spiritually for the sake of all life - it is not precious in and of itself

in and of itself it is just a heap of bones, blood and other impure substances (from a hinayana and partly mahayan POV - the vajrayana and dzogchen POV can be discussed somewhere else)

the human body that is not used for spiritual evolution (lets just say the essential evolution in the 21th century) is called "merely a human body" or "ordinary human body" etc. - again nothing fancy in itself

thats the intro

That suggests a dichotomy between the physical and the spiritual. The greatness of the soul versus the corruption of the body, blah blah blah... I much prefer the view that the body IS the expression of the soul in the physical dimension.

 

Mind you, I turned your perspective upside down.

 

now for the particulars: there are 8 freedoms and 10 riches as wella s 16 circumstantial obstructions (as thought by longchenpa)

the 8 freedoms are:

not being born either a

1) hell being or

2) a hungry ghost or

3) animal or

I hope that my dogs won't read this! But, said confidentially, yes, I prefer to be a human being all in all - even though an animal's life is far less complicated.

 

4) long-lifed god

Oh, sour grapes... Yeah, I know the arguments against it... Nevertheless, it sounds pretty cool to me to be (or become) one. (Unconscious memories perhaps? Hmm...)

 

(these first four have to do with non human bodies that we are "free" of)

as well as not being born a

5) barbarian (later more) or

6) someone with wrong views or

5) and especially 6) include pretty much everybody though (except a Buddha - at least that's the theory).

 

7) in a place where no buddha appeared

Someone has to make a start though.

 

8) or with impaired senses and intellctual faculties that make it impossible to study and practice dharma

I am not sure why impaired senses would necessarily be an obstacle. Isn't there the recommendation to cut off the five skandhas anyway? And what about blind master Po?

 

As an aside, my dogs think that my sense of smell as well as my hearing are tragically impaired.

 

(these later 4 are connected with circumstances that obstruct dharma practice even though we attained a human rebirth)

lets stay with these eight for now, if somebody has time and inspiration to comment and explore those 8 states that are not fit for dharma practice that would be greatly appreciated.

You are most welcome!

 

I hope that this thread will help clarifying a few things that I couldn't agree on with some other Buddhists I met before.

[RigdzinTrinley]

That suggests a dichotomy between the physical and the spiritual. The greatness of the soul versus the corruption of the body, blah blah blah... I much prefer the view that the body IS the expression of the soul in the physical dimension.

Mind you, I turned your perspective upside down.

 

I hope that my dogs won't read this! But, said confidentially, yes, I prefer to be a human being all in all - even though an animal's life is far less complicated.

 

Oh, sour grapes... Yeah, I know the arguments against it... Nevertheless, it sounds pretty cool to me to be (or become) one. (Unconscious memories perhaps? Hmm...)

 

5) and especially 6) include pretty much everybody though (except a Buddha - at least that's the theory).

 

Someone has to make a start though.

 

I am not sure why impaired senses would necessarily be an obstacle. Isn't there the recommendation to cut off the five skandhas anyway? And what about blind master Po?

As an aside, my dogs think that my sense of smell as well as my hearing are tragically impaired.

 

You are most welcome!

I hope that this thread will help clarifying a few things that I couldn't agree on with some other Buddhists I met before.

I dont know how to cut the quotes in pieces, so anyway I will just answer like that.

 

First I would like to remind you that these are basically a method to give rise to what is called "a genuine heart of sadness" - now why would you want that? and what does that mean? This genuine heart means that you see what is going on inside and outside of yourself - one starts to face it, face samsara as it is. IN order to do that there are these four contemplations - they are method not wisdom, I think we discussed wisdom alot and from the POV of non-dual wisdom you can't say the body expresses the soul, or the soul expresses the body or there is no connection between body and soul or there is a connection between body and soul etc. nor can you say the body is "impure", or it is the from skandha appearing as one of the five Buddha families in other words the body appears "pure" etc. etc.

 

the experience of "body" from the pov of non dual wisdom is ungraspeable, unthinkable etc. the actual abiding nature of "body" is beyond conceptual elaboration, a more poetic rendering of that statement is phenomena are like space

 

now what we want from these contemplations is not wisdom per se, they aid us in focusing on actualizing wisdom in our life. What they aim at is a house cleaning of our minds and bodies. We need some space to see phenomena as space

 

so there is alot of baggage that is keeping the spiritual journey from unfolding faster, and we get rid of that baggage while working with these thoughts.

 

thats the Intro again

 

now for specifics:

 

your first remark I think I did answer a little, I will add one personal experience and one traditional example to explain how the Hinayana and Mahayana is approaching the body respectively

 

I was in Sri Lanka on a Lagoon, maybe you remember my espresso addiciton and how it ruined samadhi for me? anyway on that meditators island in hte middle of the lagoon there was also a glass-box, in that glass box there was another glass box filled with earth and two human corpses on top, one was already more or less a sceleton the other was falling to pieces, full of interesting creatures and if you dare approach preeeeeettty smelly

 

that box is placed on hte entrance to the temple - before you even sit down to meditate or meet the Banthe to have a chat on buddha dharma you meet death and what this body essentially is " a walking corpse" - there are many teachings on htis and also contemplations to do, one of my favourites is looking in the mirror and just remembering "I am already a corpse, just animated for a little time through causes and conditions - when those causes and conditions are exhausted, I will be just like those two friends in the glass box" (that is by the way part of the second thought that turns the mind away from samsara: "impermanence and death")

 

I feel that there are two places where one can learn almost all of dharma without needing a human guru: !) the charnel ground 2)underneath a banyan tree or Bodhi tree

 

that approach to the body is more related with the hinayana system, in mahayana this is still used as a starting point but then you use certain contemplations to transform this body, and in the bodhisattvacharyavatara we can find a beautiful example: the philosophers stone

 

this philosophers stone is Bodhicitta, the mind of awakening that wishes to attain enlightenment for the benefit of all life and stay with all sentient beings in samsara to guide them and work for their benefit

 

with this philosophers stone we can transform the base metal (of our impure body) into gold (the rupakaya or form bodies of a buddha)

 

and it is on this nexus of teachings that this contemplation of the preciousness of hte human body is functioning.

 

Interlude: in the scriptures it is said that to attain a human body is very rare, the example given is that of a blind turtle living in the depths of the ocean (the whole earth is covered by ocean in this example), now on the surface of this ocean is a yoke being tossed around from east to west and north to south etc. never stannding still for a second - now this blind turtle only surfaces once in every 100 years.The Buddha said the possibility that this blind turtle will stick his head through the yoke when surfacing is still higher then attaining a human rebrith, also remember the blind turtle has no wish to stick his head through the yoke - nor does the yoke have a concept or freedom to move towards the turtle.

 

the ocean symbolizes the depthless depths and shoreless ocean of samsara

the blind turtle is our consciousness, blindness is our ignorance of our true condition beyond ordinary consciousness

the yoke is the human embodiment

the wind and waves tossing the yoke from left to right is our karma (showing that we are not in control as much as we might want to think)

 

that example is also part of contemplating how rare it is to be human amongst all classes of beings...

 

so in this contemplation, our body is seen as the base metal from the example above, and our effort to listen, contemplate and meditate on the dharma will produce the philosophers stone (Bodhicitta) so that we can manifest the gold of full enlightenement for the benefit of all life. It serves to wake us up from slumbering and wasting time with too many projects and aims and goals that have no lasting benefit - to what is most important in life, psycho-spiritual growth

 

without using our body for this end - again it is just called an ordinary body, a compounded phenomenon that will disintegrate and become like our two friends from the glass box, all the projects, all the possesions that we worked for so hard, all the relationships that we had with our loved ones are gone with this embodiment, the only thing that lingers is our karma - in the sense of how far did we awaken to our true human potential? because that will determin if we can continue on our spiritual evolution in a relatively unhindered way or if we need to take a detour in some strange existence without hermetic knowledge of any kind, no living lineage holders of any kind, and no time to practice dharma of any kind because we either suffer sooo much that there is no space for contemplation or there are again simply no teachings available (no information on what to do with our mind). Or in the sense of an animal-like rebirth: a mind not evovled enough to understand dharmic teachings and that there is the potential to evolve infinitely - because the union of emptiness and appearance also means infinite potentiality to manifest enlightened qualities (one at the time - takes longer then most beings want )

 

ok I stop here for now, because I think this might already explain some of the other points, but if there is still some contention or misunderstandings left please let me know

 

I also hope that steve, apech etc. join the discussion and share some experience and knowledge.

Edited April 8, 2016 by RigdzinTrinley

[doc benway]

I have very little time right now and I haven't read the last post yet but I'll add a brief personal perspective.

I don't spend much time looking at these classes of beings from a literal approach.

I look at how each of these "realms" and "beings" is an aspect of myself that creates difficulties in my life and how the practices allow me to identify, work with, and transcend each of these limitations. 

Looking forward to reading more and hopefully I'll have something of value to offer.

Thanks for being part of this community RT!

[Michael Sternbach]

I dont know how to cut the quotes in pieces, so anyway I will just answer like that.

Oh, just use your universal Swiss pocket knife, there is nothing it can't cut...

 

 

First I would like to remind you that these are basically a method to give rise to what is called "a genuine heart of sadness" - now why would you want that? and what does that mean?

For that, I simply listen to Leonard Cohen.

 

 

This genuine heart means that you see what is going on inside and outside of yourself - one starts to face it, face samsara as it is. IN order to do that there are these four contemplations - they are method not wisdom, I think we discussed wisdom alot and from the POV of non-dual wisdom you can't say the body expresses the soul, or the soul expresses the body or there is no connection between body and soul or there is a connection between body and soul etc. nor can you say the body is "impure", or it is the from skandha appearing as one of the five Buddha families in other words the body appears "pure" etc. etc.

You could also think of the whole of your existence as a continuous spectrum, ranging from the heights of the spirit all the way down to the physical. The way I see it, the question is how to best express the spirit in the flesh. And that will at once make the flesh more spiritual.

 

the experience of "body" from the pov of non dual wisdom is ungraspeable, unthinkable etc. the actual abiding nature of "body" is beyond conceptual elaboration, a more poetic rendering of that statement is phenomena are like space

Interesting that you should bring this up. First off, we must differentiate between the objective body (the subject of anatomy etc) and the subjective body (the German "Leib"; I couldn't find a direct English equivalent for this). The latter is the beginning of our perception of space. There is much to meditate about here...

 

now what we want from these contemplations is not wisdom per se, they aid us in focusing on actualizing wisdom in our life. What they aim at is a house cleaning of our minds and bodies. We need some space to see phenomena as space

I feel that you are cutting an awful lot of corners here, my friend.

 

so there is alot of baggage that is keeping the spiritual journey from unfolding faster, and we get rid of that baggage while working with these thoughts.

Sometimes it's best to stop and enjoy taking long and deep looks at the environment. What are you going to see? Spirit everywhere!!!

 

thats the Intro again

 

now for specifics:

 

your first remark I think I did answer a little, I will add one personal experience and one traditional example to explain how the Hinayana and Mahayana is approaching the body respectively

 

I was in Sri Lanka on a Lagoon, maybe you remember my espresso addiciton and how it ruined samadhi for me? anyway on that meditators island in hte middle of the lagoon there was also a glass-box, in that glass box there was another glass box filled with earth and two human corpses on top, one was already more or less a sceleton the other was falling to pieces, full of interesting creatures and if you dare approach preeeeeettty smelly

Yuck! I would need something a lot stronger than an espresso in preparation for this!

 

that box is placed on hte entrance to the temple - before you even sit down to meditate or meet the Banthe to have a chat on buddha dharma you meet death and what this body essentially is " a walking corpse" - there are many teachings on htis and also contemplations to do, one of my favourites is looking in the mirror and just remembering "I am already a corpse, just animated for a little time through causes and conditions - when those causes and conditions are exhausted, I will be just like those two friends in the glass box" (that is by the way part of the second thought that turns the mind away from samsara: "impermanence and death")

The objective body may be considered a corpse, but not the subjective body ("Leib") that you experience.

 

I feel that there are two places where one can learn almost all of dharma without needing a human guru: !) the charnel ground 2)underneath a banyan tree or Bodhi tree

There is actually a third one...

 

that approach to the body is more related with the hinayana system, in mahayana this is still used as a starting point but then you use certain contemplations to transform this body, and in the bodhisattvacharyavatara we can find a beautiful example: the philosophers stone

Okay, now you really got me startled. The alchemical Philosopher's Stone as a Buddhist concept?! Seriously?!

 

this philosophers stone is Bodhicitta, the mind of awakening that wishes to attain enlightenment for the benefit of all life and stay with all sentient beings in samsara to guide them and work for their benefit

 

with this philosophers stone we can transform the base metal (of our impure body) into gold (the rupakaya or form bodies of a buddha)

Transforming the Buddha body, yes, that's something I can relate to. Tis also the aim of certain Yoga and Qigong/Neidan practices.

 

and it is on this nexus of teachings that this contemplation of the preciousness of hte human body is functioning.

 

Interlude: in the scriptures it is said that to attain a human body is very rare, the example given is that of a blind turtle living in the depths of the ocean (the whole earth is covered by ocean in this example), now on the surface of this ocean is a yoke being tossed around from east to west and north to south etc. never stannding still for a second - now this blind turtle only surfaces once in every 100 years.The Buddha said the possibility that this blind turtle will stick his head through the yoke when surfacing is still higher then attaining a human rebrith, also remember the blind turtle has no wish to stick his head through the yoke - nor does the yoke have a concept or freedom to move towards the turtle.

 

the ocean symbolizes the depthless depths and shoreless ocean of samsara

the blind turtle is our consciousness, blindness is our ignorance of our true condition beyond ordinary consciousness

the yoke is the human embodiment

the wind and waves tossing the yoke from left to right is our karma (showing that we are not in control as much as we might want to think)

 

that example is also part of contemplating how rare it is to be human amongst all classes of beings...

Oh boy, I already once had an argument about that with my sister (who is into Tibetan Buddhism). I think that a human incarnation is followed by another one pretty quick (in terms of Earth time, anyway). And mind you, humans aren't exactly a rarity, especially in our time.

 

I think such statements are just there to spur the believers into more devotion to their practice. I once pissed off a Buddhist teacher at a public speech by saying that I'm in no particular hurry to be done with this world.

 

Then again, if my existence was full of suffering, poverty, illness etc, such a prospect would possibly be more attractive.

 

so in this contemplation, our body is seen as the base metal from the example above, and our effort to listen, contemplate and meditate on the dharma will produce the philosophers stone (Bodhicitta) so that we can manifest the gold of full enlightenement for the benefit of all life.

For this, you deserve a golden smilie.

 

It serves to wake us up from slumbering and wasting time with too many projects and aims and goals that have no lasting benefit - to what is most important in life, psycho-spiritual growth

Why do our projects and goals have no lasting benefit? Their benefit may go far beyond our physical life-time, in fact.

 

You see, once again, your philosophy is one of leaving this world behind. While I teach embracing and transforming it.

 

without using our body for this end - again it is just called an ordinary body, a compounded phenomenon that will disintegrate and become like our two friends from the glass box, all the projects, all the possesions that we worked for so hard, all the relationships that we had with our loved ones are gone with this embodiment, the only thing that lingers is our karma - in the sense of how far did we awaken to our true human potential?

Yes, but our karma, and the awakening of our human potential, has a lot to do with our projects and relationships.

 

because that will determin if we can continue on our spiritual evolution in a relatively unhindered way or if we need to take a detour in some strange existence without hermetic knowledge of any kind, no living lineage holders of any kind, and no time to practice dharma of any kind because we either suffer sooo much that there is no space for contemplation or there are again simply no teachings available (no information on what to do with our mind). Or in the sense of an animal-like rebirth: a mind not evovled enough to understand dharmic teachings and that there is the potential to evolve infinitely - because the union of emptiness and appearance also means infinite potentiality to manifest enlightened qualities (one at the time - takes longer then most beings want )

There are guides and inner knowledge available wherever your spirit goes.

 

ok I stop here for now, because I think this might already explain some of the other points, but if there is still some contention or misunderstandings left please let me know

You can count on that.

 

I also hope that steve, apech etc. join the discussion and share some experience and knowledge.

Okay, I will try to invoke another maniac from the Hermetic TDB Order.

 

Nungali, appear before us!

[doc benway]

One of the things I find that I cultivate with contemplation of the rarity and preciousness of human existence is gratitude.

Gratitude can transform our lives. It can provide some of the fuel needed to keep us going in trying times.

It can change a life of durdgery (is that a word?) into one of enjoyment and appreciation.

When we see how much people suffer and how fortunate we are with where we are in our lives, it is powerful motivation to do something valuable with our time rather than constantly satisfy desire and fear.

[doc benway]

RT - you can cut up quotes by putting your cursor where you want it and hitting return a few times.

Sometimes I then have to bring the cursor up a few spaces and hit return again - a little trial and error...

[RigdzinTrinley]

Dear Micheal,

 

 

these contemplations serve a specific purpose, they are not the final wisdom of the buddhas and vidyadaras. Also not in how to work with and approach our embodied existence

 

In the system I follow, you work on many levels - or yanas, without loosing sight of whats the essential point (non-dual wisdom), usually you have nine yanas to work with, and the teachings say that those nine yanas do not exist anywhere outside of your own spiritual development, you enter tantra once you are fit for tantra - before that you can only outwardly practice a certain method that looks like tantra and thats what most beings who call themselves dzogchenpas or tantrikas are doing (me not excluded)

 

"the meditation and action follow the view"

 

if you see the one taste of all phenomena beyond pure and impure, beyond delicious apple pie and not so delicious dog shit in short when both substances are equally tasty - then yes your meditation will be pretty powerful and your action free of probably any sort of social, paternal, or cosmic law and order... and then you really do practice the higher tantras (sounds weird, but yes vajrayana and dzogchen is out of the ordinary a little)

 

now an accomplished tantric master, probably doesn't eat dog shit for lunch, but there is no limitations and if there is a necessity to display such crazy behaviour to wake up a disciple from their dualistic dream that sees good and bad

 

..... I jump around a lot

 

the teachings of the 4 thoughts that turn the mind from samsara are more connected with renunciation and giving up distraction, or the teachings of the first three yanas - later more on distraction

 

as I am reading the complete magical system of the G.D. and the mystical Quabalah atm, I do see similar patterns also within this tradition - even if you would like to jump you can't jump certain parts of the path - I somehow feel that the grades of initiation and working through the 9yanas are similar in approach, there is also a hierophant (the vajramaster) bestowing initiation/empowerment on certain cardinal points of the path. Ok back to the biscuits now maybe in the western esoteric tradition renunciation is not so much emphasized but in buddhism there is an emphasis on it.

 

and somehow you work on that level for some time - or for a long time depending on your mind and karmic patterns. In the tibetan tradition big lamas with big money and an empire of monasteries and dharma centers are not unusual but if you ask the tibetans themselves - they have more faith and recpect for the simple yogis who spend their time in retreat and as wandering mendicants

 

like patrul rinpoche would say: the cloth of the yogi is mountain mist and not brocade

 

and many many teachings and teachers emphasize times of retreat - and for that you need renunciation, otherwise why be away from life and focus on spiritual development? there is much more interesting stuff going on.

 

these four thoughts are in the context of making space and time for retreat - they put some fire underneath the adepts ass to get moving fast - where? move where? to enlightenment for the benefit of all life

 

the good qualities of solitude are praised in many important sutras and shastras, and for the beginner retreat is very important to go deeper into the teachings and discover how this path is working and how ones own mind is working (or well not-working, an even more important discovery)

for going deeper into these teachings one needs to be as littel distracted as possible...

 

distraction is not in what is happening around us of course but in our minds - so a great yogi can be in the middle of the market and never loose sight of the essential point, do you remember the analogy of the different animals and how they relate to the adept? It is like in that analogy, there is a time of beeing a deer - away from the busyness of life, and there is a time for the lion, and madman

 

there seems to be a transformation on the relative level of the mind, the mind gets more and more pure - so also phenomena become more and more pure and appear in their natural luminosity (mirroring the natural luminosity of mind). at that point phenomena are not a distraction but food for meditation, but as long as there is ceaseless habitual mental chatter and only rare glimpses of natural mindfulness - some time in retreat to focus on tantric practice might be not a bad idea after all.

 

but here we discuss the entrance door to tantra, not so much tantra and tantric practice itself.

 

so you know if you talk about the adeptus minor and the magus then those two beings are different and do different things - yet the magus can't just through away the knowledge that he or she unlocked in the lower grades - because they are not "lower", but foundational

Edited April 8, 2016 by RigdzinTrinley

[Apech]

 

 

I also hope that steve, apech etc. join the discussion and share some experience and knowledge.

 

When you call my name it's like a little prayer

I'm down on my knees, I wanna take you there

In the midnight hour I can feel your power

Just like a prayer you know I'll take you there

 

[Apech]

Some years ago I spent a lot of time on the Four Thoughts and found it beneficial - but it is very much a Buddhist primer for getting your practice going and later keeping you on the right path.  I don't think they should be read as a kind of complete view or indeed as very significant ontologically - for instance the Precious Human Birth is nothing to do with a kind of anthropocentric world view - that kind of view is more Biblical.

 

The reason that human birth is thought of as precious is that it is thought as the best condition for achieving Buddhahood.  The Buddhists essentially took on whole scale what was the traditional Indian world view of there being either 5 or 6 possible types of beings - depending on whether you distinguish between gods and demi gods on not.  Having got this world view Buddhism then looked at the six possible incarnations and said human is best for practicing dharma.  This is specific.  Its not saying human's are better than animals or ghosts or gods but that being human is the ideal condition for doing practice.

 

Being in hell is considered to horrible and nasty for you be able to get anywhere dharmically, being a hungry ghost is seen as a perpetual chasing after an unquechable thirst or appetite leaving you no opportunity either, animals lack the intellectual capacity to formulate for themselves what they need to do, demi-gods who are in the frustrating position of being very powerful but not the most powerful beings in the universe spend their time jealously trying to supplant the gods and the gods who enjoy seemingly endless capacities for amusement of enjoyment have no reason to seek liberation (save that according to the Buddhist view their long lives are not eternal and thus they do eventually fall down to the the hell levels through pride).

 

So the best thing to be is human - and given the countlessly huge numbers of non-human beings (think bacteria, insects and so on) its a very rare and precious thing too.  So the conclusion is - don't twat about and waste your life on nonsense but get on with your cultivation since you've been lucky enough to be born this way.

 

Buddhists also recognise that even being born human some people are born into very difficult circumstances or in places where there is no dharma and so even having achieved a human birth - if you also encounter teachings then you are even more fortunate and should stop moaning about this and that and get on with it (your practice).

 

Because human beings are thought to suffer - but nothing like the suffering of hell beings - but perhaps a taste of it - and are also thought to have brilliant creative abilities a bit like gods - we are in the mid point.  What the mid point allows us to see is that there are beings that suffer and there are beings caught up in endless pleasure seeking - like chains of gold if you like - and because of this perspective it is easier for feelings of compassion to arise.  That is you can relate to all the other beings and see the dukkha.  This is the cause for bodhicitta which is in the first place the wish for everyone to get happy and enlightened.  This feeling sparks inner contemplation which can lead to the realisation of the nature of the mind - ultimate bodhicitta - that's when you really start to 'get it'.  The metaphor for this which is drawn from Indian mythology is the 'Wish Fulfilling Gem' - which is a magic object which grants wishes - a bit like Aladins lamp or similar.  I think this might be where the 'Philosopher's Stone' comes from as a trope for 'that which we all seek for'.  Though it is possible that vajrayana yoga practices do include a unification and balancing of the elements in an alchemical sense - I think when most people say the Wish Fulfilling Gem they just mean that it is your own mind which is the source of your own creative energy, happiness and liberation.

Edited April 8, 2016 by Apech

[RigdzinTrinley]

Signs that the Common Preliminary Practices Have Penetrated the Mind

 

If you can devote your body unstintingly to the practice,

That is a sign of taking to heart the preciousness of the freedoms and advantages.

 

If you can view gold and dirt with equanimity and see them as equal,

That is a sign of having realized the illusory nature of transient things.

 

If you can regard the phenomena of samsara as your enemies,

That is a sign of crossing over the ocean of suffering.

 

If you can pay meticulous attention to your actions and their effects, adopting virtue and abandoning non-virtue,

That is a sign of finding the swift path that ascends the staircase to liberation.

 

If you can purify the negativity, defilements and habitual tendencies of your body, speech and mind,

That is a sign of closing the door to rebirth in samsara’s lower realms.

 

If you can keep the Three Jewels in your mind, so that they are never separate from it,

That is a sign of being hooked by the compassion of the supreme refuge.

 

If you know how to integrate emptiness and compassion in your mindstream,

That is a sign of bringing phenomena into the essence of awakening.

 

If you can meditate on how all beings have been your parents,

That is a sign of the arising of the sun and moon of the great vehicle.

 

If you can dispel the obscurations of the darkness of ignorance,

That is a sign of the dawning of clear light within immaculate space.

 

If you can carry the two accumulations onto the path continuously,

That is a sign of the maturing of the fruition of kāyas and wisdoms.

 

If you can see all that appears and exists arising in total purity as the lama,

That is a sign of reaching the pinnacle of Dzogchen yoga.

 

If you can recognize the vajra kāya of all-penetrating pure awareness,

That is a sign of transference into the timeless space of primordial purity.

 

If you can recognize the unity of the three kāyas in pure awareness,

That is a sign of the ripening of the fruition, which is Samantabhadra.

 

This brief summary of the signs showing that the common preliminary practices have penetrated the mind

Was written in response to repeated requests from the assembly of my students,

By the old beggar called Dündul.

Through this merit may all beings be matured and liberated!

 

| Translated by Adam Pearcey, Rigpa Translations, 2005.

 

 

I will comment on some of this soon, but it shows that renunciation goes all the way

 

And thanks for answering my call dear sir, very nice post - good to remember these teachings and get another perspective on them

Edited April 8, 2016 by RigdzinTrinley

[RigdzinTrinley]

Signs that the Common Preliminary Practices Have Penetrated the Mind

If you can devote your body unstintingly to the practice,

That is a sign of taking to heart the preciousness of the freedoms and advantages.

If you can view gold and dirt with equanimity and see them as equal,

That is a sign of having realized the illusory nature of transient things.

If you can regard the phenomena of samsara as your enemies,

That is a sign of crossing over the ocean of suffering.

If you can pay meticulous attention to your actions and their effects, adopting virtue and abandoning non-virtue,

That is a sign of finding the swift path that ascends the staircase to liberation.

If you can purify the negativity, defilements and habitual tendencies of your body, speech and mind,

That is a sign of closing the door to rebirth in samsara’s lower realms.

If you can keep the Three Jewels in your mind, so that they are never separate from it,

That is a sign of being hooked by the compassion of the supreme refuge.

If you know how to integrate emptiness and compassion in your mindstream,

That is a sign of bringing phenomena into the essence of awakening.

If you can meditate on how all beings have been your parents,

That is a sign of the arising of the sun and moon of the great vehicle.

If you can dispel the obscurations of the darkness of ignorance,

That is a sign of the dawning of clear light within immaculate space.

If you can carry the two accumulations onto the path continuously,

That is a sign of the maturing of the fruition of kāyas and wisdoms.

If you can see all that appears and exists arising in total purity as the lama,

That is a sign of reaching the pinnacle of Dzogchen yoga.

If you can recognize the vajra kāya of all-penetrating pure awareness,

That is a sign of transference into the timeless space of primordial purity.

If you can recognize the unity of the three kāyas in pure awareness,

That is a sign of the ripening of the fruition, which is Samantabhadra.

This brief summary of the signs showing that the common preliminary practices have penetrated the mind

Was written in response to repeated requests from the assembly of my students,

By the old beggar called Dündul.

Through this merit may all beings be matured and liberated!

| Translated by Adam Pearcey, Rigpa Translations, 2005.

 

I just write some personal thoughts here, this might or might not be part of the teachings, anyhow I found it helpful for my practice and understanding - so take it or leave it as you please

 

renunciation seems to be a dreaded thing in the west - I even found it written in some western esoteric books, how we are notment to renounce but to conquer the manifest world... how we demand more life not less life etc. I think these are more or less the words of Dion Fortune. That statement is maybe true or maybe not true, personally I think its maybe her specific kind of colored glasses, and that mayhabs the great buddhist masters had another set of glasses on

 

we don't want to renounce life, I guess we want it all: enlightenment plus chocolate icecream and so on - well why not actually? I think here is how renunciation gets confused for some sort of strange world denying ego trip.

 

renunciation in the buddhist sense, is not a partial renounciation (but that is how it usually starts) - it is impartial and doesn't fall into any extremes

 

the analogy is to be found in the Bodhisattvacharyavatara by Shantideva (I think I quote that text more then anything here) - I can't remember the exact quote but the meaning is something like that:

 

there is a person having a beautiful dream - the dream reality is seemingly endless, years and years of bliss and happiness - and then the person wakes up

 

there is another person having a horrific dream - the dream reality is seemingly endless, years and years of suffering and depression - and then the person wakes up

 

this moment of waking up is the essential point - because in that moment both persons understand it was just a dream, also in that moment where are all this years of suffering and happiness? It is as if they never existed

 

and in buddhism renunciation comes from realizing the union or appearance and emptiness - and it ment to lead back to that realisation

 

if this dance of immaterial phenomena is just like a dream, then trying to be free of suffering and trying to be always happy makes not much sense - momentary happiness or momentary suffering are equally deceiving and just our ordinary dualistic vision

 

to renounce only suffering or think somehow renounciation means to give up icecream is a very limited approach

 

renounciation might mean to don't run around and do all sorts of things - but not because they are inherently negative or evil - just because there is no point in either samsaric happiness or samsaric suffering

 

better to actualize non dual wisdom, and with that realisation then I think one will also "renounce" samsaric happiness and suffering once and for all - so we could call this great renunciation to contrast it with the small renounciation that is induced through contemplating these four thoughts

 

now the small renounciation that we try to give rise to through contemplating the four thoughts, are like the door that will allow us to actually enter the teachings and finally actualize great renunciation - primordial wisdom or jnana or gnosis however you wanna translate or name it

 

maybe that helps in putting buddhist renunciation into a better light?

 

 

 

 

[Seeker of Wisdom]

For me renunciation means not being caught up in stuff. So you fancy an ice cream - OK, why not? But you don't think that the ice cream will give you some kind of ultimate satisfaction, you don't see yourself as a self with an ice cream shaped hole in it, and if it turns out that you can't get ice cream at that time, you don't have some full-on tantrum over it.

 

Renunciation isn't a matter of what you have, it's a matter of what you grasp for. Living in a cave with nothing when you actually crave all sorts of stuff is avoidance, while living a normal life but unfettered (lovely gold chains not wrapped around you) is renunciation. Living in a cave with nothing can just be a useful tool to help loosen it up.

[doc benway]

now for the particulars: there are 8 freedoms and 10 riches as wella s 16 circumstantial obstructions (as thought by longchenpa)

 

the 8 freedoms are:

not being born either a

1) hell being or

2) a hungry ghost or

3) animal or

4) long-lifed god (these first four have to do with non human bodies that we are "free" of)

as well as not being born a

5) barbarian (later more) or

6) someone with wrong views or

7) in a place where no buddha appeared

8) or with impaired senses and intellctual faculties that make it impossible to study and practice dharma

(these later 4 are connected with circumstances that obstruct dharma practice even though we attained a human rebirth)

 

lets stay with these eight for now, if somebody has time and inspiration to comment and explore those 8 states that are not fit for dharma practice that would be greatly appreciated.

 

I have a bit more time and would be happy to share some personal perspectives.

Living in the West, many of the concepts and particulars related to these practices are very foreign and strange.

The teachings often point to extremes and this can also have the effect of distancing us as individual practitioners from the inner meaning. As a householder, I recognize a need to address my suffering and that of my loved ones, and see the enormous potential in embracing these teachings. And yet, as pointed to earlier about the extremes, when I face the challenges and contemplate the extreme measures we are asked to adopt to be successful, it can be daunting and discouraging.

 

I am very fortunate to have a teacher who lives in the West and has come to know and understand the limitations, opportunities, and needs of practitioners like myself. One of the primary messages I get from his approach is that to expect these teachings to touch and enrich our lives they must make sense to us. They must be realistically within our grasp. It is simply not realistic at this point in my life to abandon my family and career and go on a 2 year retreat or lead a monastic life. While that clearly is at odds with a superficial reading of the intent of the teachings, it's important to remember that the teachings come from a place of bodhicitta - the authors sincerely want to help all of us to liberate ourselves from ignorance. Hoping that we will achieve complete liberation in this lifetime, they are intelligent enough to know that the vast majority of us will not be successful and yet every one of us can benefit enormously by doing what we can, when and how we can with these methods. 

 

All this is to say that for me the teachings can be very off-putting on the surface. When I feel like I cannot put in the degree of time and focus asked for, I can choose to get discouraged and quite, or I can choose to recognize that it is good for me to do what I can and that is enough - it is my karma. When I begin to directly experience the benefits of the the teachings, even in limited amounts, based on what I can put in to the practice, it becomes easier and easier to commit more and more deeply - it is a positive feedback loop. 

 

Once the benefits of these practices manifest in my life I begin to see the true meaning behind this first most excellent thought. Having been born human, having the capacity to understand the teachings, having access to the teachings and the support of a lineage master, seeing the benefits it can bring to myself, my family and friends, my patients - as I contemplate that in the context of actually feeling the benefits, and feeling the love and compassion behind it all, it literally makes my heart sing and brings a tear to my eye. This depth of feeling may come easily for some but took a long time for me to discover. Once we tap in to this reservoir of support, the strength and devotion to continue to practice grows and grows. This further reinforces the gratitude to be where I am and have the opportunities I have and it goes round and round. 

 

While I may never achieve certain lofty goals due to my current circumstances, the benefits of being connected with these teachings is undeniable and very valuable. And the thought that I can't reach any particular goal is just a thought. And the goal itself is just a thought. We are chock full of thoughts of all types. The majority are rooted in the three poisons of fear, hope, and ignorance. Here we are being presented with a thought (many actually) that have proven over time and through the trial and error of many masters to take us in a more productive direction. These thoughts can take us closer to wisdom, closer to compassion, closer to a better life for ourselves and those around us. Thought is a bit like breathing. There are voluntary and involuntary components. I can choose a thought and focus on it but the vast majority of thoughts just arise. Just like controlling our breathing can be very healthy in meditation, qigong, exercise, whatever... Controlling our thoughts is similarly healthy. Many of us want to jump right to the finish line and practice tantra and dzogchen, and some have that capability, but most of wrestle with a very unruly mind and life and these foundational practices are invaluable. 

 

My approach to the 8 freedoms is to not look at them as abstractions (hell, hungry ghosts, and so forth) but to see them as reality. How fortunate am I to not be a murderer, a rapist, a pedophile? How lucky to not be totally obsessed with possessions? I see people like this all around us. These conditions would make it impossible for me to focus on dharma and improving myself. On the other hand, I do deal with anger and sometimes don't control it well. I do deal with desire and can be obsessed with the material world. And so I see these things in myself and I know that the teachings will give me tools to work on them. These realms are not elsewhere (well, maybe they are but I don't currently see them in that way), they are right here and now. I can see them with my eyes. That sort of connection brings the teachings to life for me. It allows me to make sense of them and work with them directly. 

 

I won't get in to the specifics because I think RT and Apech have done a much better job at that than I can. I see that RT has posted again while I've been writing and I look forward to see what that covers. This is a wonderful thread, thanks RT!

[RigdzinTrinley]

thanks for the encouraging words steve,

 

it is also very beneficial for me to go over these thoughts again and get some imput from other practicioners - my root lama is very much emphasising "the words of my perfect teacher" as the backbones of it all so to speak and once in a while will see if I actually remember the four thoughts in the correct order and can explain them - so I try not to get into trouble on some level (fear based level?)

 

anyway I liked what you wrote very much as well, and it is true and good to remember that I am RT and not Jetsun Milarepa - if i try to be Milarepa probably within three months I have such a horrible Lung-disorder that the rest of the year I need to be a vegetable forgotten on the beach

 

anyhow these teachings are very profound, more profound then they sound and look. They really do transform the mind - maybe not in a nice and pleasant way for some (for me it was a bit hard at the beginning for sure).

 

I feel that psycho-spiritual growth is painful sometimes, but worth the effort. Now how that process is started and unfolds might be disimilar in different systems, but in essence transformation is challenging - and as far as I know, no heros without challenges

 

lets continue with the 10 riches

 

they are further seperated into two sets of five

 

the first five are called something like "the five individual riches"

 

1) being born a human

2) with all senses intact (means so that there is a possibility to study and practice the dharma, being blind is not a problem, but maybe blind, deaf and mute simultaniously, unless past karma does the trick - and the being just remembers it all and is a natural meditative genius)

3) being born in a central land

4) gaining my lifelyhood in accord with the dharma - or not following wrong livelihood

5) having faith in the teachings

 

the second pair is called "the five circumstancial riches"

 

1) a buddha appeared

2) thought the dharma

3) his teachings are still existing

4) there are followers who uphold the teachings

5) spiritual masters are guiding students

 

I just explain randomly some of those 10 riches

 

from the first five no.3 is interesting - being born in a central land, that means in a land where the buddhas teachings are present in both scriptural form and as realisation in the minds of practicioners

 

also maybe no.4 needs some attention - not following wrong livelihood, in short a way of earning money that is not harming or exploiting other beings. Now without harm is impossible, thats one of the marks of existence - Dukkha, suffering and within that I think of the all pervasive suffering of compounded phenomena.

 

the example that comes to mind is selling tea as a lifelihood: on first glimpse nothing negative and in accord with the dharma, but only on the first glimpse - because in order to sell tea one is partly responsible for the death of many insects, if it is imported from far away then that means certain negative effects on our planet, and probably some human beings get exploited along the way too

 

so even selling tea is producing negative karma, and basically everything we do unless our motivation and mind is very pure

 

I remember the first time I got a glimpse of what this means, I was in Nepal close to the great white Stupa in Boudhanath (Yarung Kashor in tibetan). I was contemplating those four thoughts daily for 30 minutes at least and I also did postrations either at home or next to the stupa. I had a pretty hard time with these four thoughts and accumulating prostrations, all of it in this strange alien land, and Kathmandu is one dirty polluted city, that didn't help either

 

anyway I was listening to teachings of Tai Situ Rinpoche on the four thoughts, and Rinpoche explained this point of all pervasive suffering, that no matter what you do some negative karma slips in - it opened some sort of understanding (I read and thought about it daily for many months already, but sometimes it takes time to click on a deeper level)

 

anyway that night I a had a dream of ordering a salat in one of the restaurants around the stupa - and I got the salat but when I looked closer I saw it was full of dead worms and insetcs, that didn't really shock me in the dream. I just accepted that this is part of this all pervasive suffering and indirectly I kill insects by ordering salat...

 

since that time this part of the teachings is very easy to remember

 

sounds all pretty dark and depressing, but actually it really was a big house cleaning - I know that now after looking back to those first years of practicing the preliminaries. I also remember that Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche said that reading the words of my perfect teacher and working with the material in there should make you depressed at the beginning otherwise its not doing its job

 

now I am inspired by these thoughts, but yes thinking back on the beginning of working with them.... I was rather grumpy

Edited April 9, 2016 by RigdzinTrinley

[doc benway]

I'll also share an example of how the preliminaries can have a powerful impact. 

 

I work as a doctor and the healthcare system in the US has really changed during my career. 

It has created a very contentious atmosphere between doctors and patients, due to the insurance companies calling the shots regarding healthcare but the doctor is always the one that gets the brunt of the negativity from the frustrated patient. Then there is the fact that the cost of doing business is always climbing and the reimbursements are always falling. This leads us to try and find other ways of making money, most of which take us into area where we are not really providing patient care but being businessmen. 

 

I won't get too deeply into it but suffice it to say that the system leads to most doctors I know becoming extremely frustrated and bitter. Some respond by quitting. Some respond by becoming increasingly distant from the patient and dehumanizing the patient. This type of person can become predatory, making decisions based on money rather than what's good for the patient. Some get more into research and that's a whole other can of worms. Others, like myself, stick with it but become angry and frustrated and manifest this through illness, failed relationships, and dissatisfaction.

 

Several years ago I was in a very negative place with this. I began working with the preliminaries and while reading the words - it's good to have a livelihood where we are helping people, the words just weren't having an effect. While I knew I was helping on one level, I also could see that I was simultaneously doing some harm on other levels. I had a meeting with my current teacher and we talked about it for a very short time. At one point he looked me in the eye, he was also holding my hand at the time, and he said something like: you are a doctor, you have the opportunity to devote your life to helping people, you are so fortunate, you have something that very few people have... And over the next few days these words began to really work on me. And not just the words, the warmth and genuine concern that I felt in our physical contact and in his actions. And the warmth grew in me and a renewed sense of gratitude and devotion took root. It really took me back to when I first started working in the field. It was like starting all over again.

 

The frustrations are still there. And I can be OK with them. The opportunities seem far more important and I get so much out of just connecting with people with genuine warmth and concern, just as my teacher did with me. It is not just about the words and the concepts. Union with the guru is about tapping into that source that the guru has tapped into where the real concern for others comes from. This is so much of the importance of the teacher for me - someone who gives us a clue as to how to behave, not so much what to think. 

 

So now I really try to take advantage of the opportunities my job provides, knowing that I can't help everyone, knowing that sometimes I make mistakes, and it's just so much easier and so much more rewarding. And that is reflected in my relationships and so much more throughout other aspects of my life. 

 

I think we can talk about this sort of experience in every one of the examples in the teachings. And we can also talk about how we have good and bad times, we fall back into ignorance at times, and then our practice of mindfulness allows us to keep coming back to the light, more and more frequently and consistently. 

 

Anyway, I feel like I'm rambling a bit and I'll take a break here...

 

My love and support go out to all of you reading this.

You all inspire me to try and do better, thank you for that!

[RigdzinTrinley]

Yes very strong stuff those "preliminaries" - I resonate very much with what you wrote steve, the ngondro somehow can channel a dark night of the soul, it happened to me and many of my friends as well while working with the preliminaries - these meditations don't ask you if you would like to transform and grow or not - you do it or you go a little cuckoo.

 

I think this dark night can manifest because when you start working with those contemplations and from the inner preliminaries specially the Prostrations + Varjasattva, you can't look away any longer, you have to face your own suffering, and without doing that first, saying to oneself I will not only face the suffering of all sentient beings of all world systems, but also liberate them from it - is pretty hypocritical

 

I receive teachings on hte 37 practices of the bodhisattva since two days and today Rinpoche went all over the different Yanas, how you work with sense pleasure in sutra, the different tantric systems and dzogchen etc.

 

the verse was, something like:

 

sense pleasures are like salt water,

the more you indulge, the more thirsty you get

when grasping at sense objects arises

to immidiately drop grasping is the practice of a bodhisattva

 

after dancing through the four states of bliss and the union of bliss emptiness, or how sense pleasures are the ornament of pristine awareness when you see your true face nakedly - rinpoche ended the teachings with talking about the four thoughts and how they are the root of the doctrine, and how without them one can't blossom into healthy flowers - the practice of hte higher tantras can become very sticky and strange without these foundational meditations, and they also have to do their work on waking mind and dreaming mind.

 

Next we can discuss impermanence but for this I need to get my copy of the "words of my perfect teacher" because unfortunately I dont remember the correct order of those contemplations - I will post little later

Edited April 10, 2016 by RigdzinTrinley

[doc benway]

Looking forward to that discussion.

[Apech]

As a slow struggler through the ngondro - currently on the vajrasattva mantras (about half way through) - I would say that despite the name 'preliminary' they are very deep and profound practices and embody the whole path in their own way.  I am getting a lot of benefits although at times its not easy and the very number of them makes it seem like an almost endless task.

 

I just wanted to mention about renunciation.  A short while ago it really clocked with me what a powerful energy practice giving up the eight worldly dharmas is.  I don't see it as having anything to do with giving up the world in the sense of becoming a hermit - but simply making the basic decisions that your values are spiritual values and not wealth, fame and so on.  Again its easy to say the words.  But to do it is another matter.  But what I observed - given the level to which I have been able to do this - is an immediate restorative effect on the subtle body.  It made me realise that these things about conduct - right living and so on - are all about cultivation and ultimately cultivation of energy.  This is one of profundities of the Buddhist path that from the very beginning - with taking refuge you are making an impact on your energy body.  Its not that you have to do these things first and then later can do yoga, candali or whatever - they are all one in a complete path.

 

I hope this makes sense

Edited April 10, 2016 by Apech

[doc benway]

Yes, it makes a lot of sense. 

I'm also working on ngöndro along with other practices.

 

I can relate to your experience and find your discussion of a realignment of values and energetics spot on.

[RigdzinTrinley]

yes Apech makes a lot of sense, I try to tell fellow travellers on this path that in ngondro they allready practice all nine yanas - and that it is complete, a complete path to enlightenment, you can't go wrong with it really.

It is a nice way of putting it though, because people love them nadis, pranas and bindus

 

 

 

 

[RigdzinTrinley]

Ok lets move on to the second contemplation: Death and Imnpermanence

 

in the words of my perfect teacher this is contemplated in seven steps, I write shortly about the first three:

 

1)The impermanence of the outer "container" universe we are living in

2)The impermanence of the "contained" beings inhabiting this universe

3)The impermanence of holy beings

 

I'll stay more or less traditional but if you like you can continue to add your experiences and personal approach of working with those contemplations, I would really appreciate this.

 

1) the impermanence of the outer "container" universe

 

this world is said to last for one kalpa, which in human years is more or less incomprehensible. How it appears is based on the collective karmic vision of the 6 types of sentient beings - means it is not actually something "out there"

 

one famous example of disperate karmic vision is that of a glass of water - your ordinary human being will perceive it as water, a hell being as molten iron, a hungry ghost as pus and blood, a naga (representing animals) as a palace, a demigod as weapons, and a god as amrita

 

those appearnces are said to be dreamlike and insubstantial, but through the force of past habituation it appears to be solid, truly established (real) and also it appears as if there is this seperation between perceiver and perceived

 

so when we talk about how the universe "appears" - in philosophical lingo it's "mode of appearance" instead of its "abiding mode" we also have to talk about how everything compounded is impermanent

 

in traditional teachings the destruction or death of this universe is meditated upon in 7 stages of fire and 7 of water (Michael + Apech, I hope you still read along here because - I found this to be somehow connected with the three hebrew syllabels Aleph, Mem and Shin... maybe you can share some western hermetic wisdom here?)

 

one after another seven suns are said to appear and destroy first small water bodies - and then dry up the ocean, trees are burning, and at the end even the mountains and earth is being consumed in flames - so this human realm (+the humans) and other realms by this point are no more

 

then 7 times massive rain clouds are forming in the higher form realms and wash everything away

 

at the end when almost nothing is remaining - the crossed vajra of wind at the base of the universe rises up and destroys the remaining formless realms of the gods

 

here now we have this strange correspondance of Aleph = the root of wind; Mem = the root of water; and Shin = the root of fire as having something to do with the manifestation of this universe from a qabalistic POV, could anyone of the hermetic order of TDB relate those a little bit more then the limited correspondance I saw there?

 

back to the buiscuits: destruction through 7 times fire, 7 times water, 1 time wind and after that only space is remaining

 

Patrul Rinpoche ends this chapter like this: "reflect deeply and sincerely - if every one of the billion universes which constitute the cosmos, each with its own mount meru, four continents and heavenly realms, is destroyed simulteniously in such a way, leaving only space behind, however could this human bodies of ours, which are like flies at the end of the season, have any stability or permanence?"

 

straight to the heart like usual

 

2) the impermanence of beings inhabiting the universe:

 

all those different karmic visions of beings that constitute their respective realms - all those illusion like appearances of life that they suffer and enjoy will end

 

everything that is born is bound to die

 

from the latter of consolation:

 

have you ever, on earth or in the heavens,

Seen a being born who will not die?

Or heard that such a thing had happened?

Or suspected that it might?

 

there is no certainty when we will die, how we will die and where we will die - the only certainty is that we will

 

Again I like the meditations from the Bodhisattvacharyavatara and other lojong text where you see yourself as a walking corpse and once in a while visualize your own death and disintegration - I like to look into the mirror and try to think of me as already dead

 

I also do a short daily chöd practice, and there you visualize how you become the deity and cut your ordinary body (that which changes and dies finally) into pieces and boil it down to nice wishfullfilling amrita, that one then offers to the buddhas and bodhisattvas as well as the 6types of beings - the instruction is to see how you boil, how the skin is falling of your face etc. see your intestines, muscles, bones etc melt into nectar

 

its a great way to remind myself that what does all the walking, sitting, pissing, shitting chatting etc is just here now because of karmic connections, it is fickle like "flies at the end of the season" or like a "bubble in a mountain stream"

 

Now most people of course will say - "it is obvious that I am going to die, so why meditate on it? It is depressing, and I rather meditate on the deathless so I can feel a bit less depressed" or something like that

 

the teachings say that meditation on death, is actually the fastest and fail save way to arrive at the deathless - so no problem, also usually we don't live our life like it is our last day on earth, we still plan this and that, and are busy with many things that seem pretty shallow in comparison with manifesting enlightenment for the benefit of all life... so from the 4 thought, this is my absolute favourite one and for me the most powerful one as well, so I am sorry we will stay here a bit longer

 

Let's live in cities of walking dead corpses for a day or two and see what that does to our consciousness and "self-image"

 

3) the impermanence of holy beings

 

The Buddhas of the past are no more, the Siddhas of the past are no more, great Yogis and Adepts of many traditions are no more, (we can argue that there are beings who manifested a body of light and still live with us and teach and benefit us, but again these meditations serve a certain purpose and are not meant as the "final word" on all matters)

 

the arhats of old, the yogis who could fly like milarepa, or manifest things that are "not existent" and dematerialize things that are "existent" - in short beings with siddhis that don't really fit our usual mindset have exsited (and still do as far as I am concerned), but those powers and attainment didn't save them from suffering physical death

(not that they suffer - they have a grand old time dying, because they spend their lifes working on realizing the true nature of "death")

 

anyway they are no more, only their stories are with us

 

now when I look at my self, and how much effort I put into practice and study of the wisdom traditions, how much I actually use of my time to become an accomplished adept or siddha, well in short - that ain't going to do it R.T.

 

I don't feel insignificant because of that, I don't compare myself in terms of good and bad - I just try to be realistic

 

I remember all the people who come to india for a short time - get inspired and tell me how they are going to manifest rainbow body in this life, or how they want to be wandering chö yogis and yogninis, I either stay quiet or wish them good luck with that.

 

I think the beings that have the capacity to manifest rainbowbody are not in my immidiate social strata - lets say it like that

 

it is a truly beautiful ideal and wish to have - for sure

 

I rather meditate on my own death (and yes I probably will die shitting my pants, rather then disappearing in a cloud of light) then conceptualize how and where I will go into retreat to attain rainbowbody, while in actuality nothing much in terms of practice or retreat is happening

 

Edited some major funky sentences

Edited April 12, 2016 by RigdzinTrinley

[Apech]

Don't worry about impermanence - nothing lasts forever.  Yes, the old jokes are the best ones.

 

I have to admit I didn't devote a lot of time to Indian cosmology, kalpas and the like - because I thought it mostly cultural.  And the idea that everything is impermanent is practically universal - from Heraclitus to the I Ching.  But I did read Word of my Perfect teacher and also studied Gampopa so the description of the suns and rains and wotnot is familiar.

 

I remember when I studied this in a group that most people found impermanence as a challenge but to me I just felt relief.  Oh nothing last forever - thank goodness!  Also from having studied physics I knew that it fitted perfectly with the understanding of quantum mechanics etc. that we are not dealing with a universe which is solid in the way it appears - even mountains crumble eventually.  Though of course, change within a world and the end of the world are different things.

 

Death too - inevitable and unpredictable.  Two years ago a very great Lama the Sharmarpa died suddenly with a heart attack - which was a great shock to everyone including me as he had only just come on to my Buddha-radar.  Even though I had never met him or received teachings from him - the news of his death was almost overwhelming and I had repeated images of him in my mind - smiling and giving gifts to me and everyone.  Only once before have I felt such an impact from someone's death.  I can only assume that the impact on me was because he taught the lineage that I practice.

 

When I was about eight or nine years old we went on holiday in Wales and stayed in a farmhouse.  My bedroom was in the attic and there was a roof light.  As I lay in bed I could look up and see the stars.  For some reason the inky darkness between the stars (the skies were very clear there) made me realise very strikingly that I too would one day die.  Realising my mortality at 9 years old was a strange thing I think.  It was just that that image somehow sparked off the thought.  It was a little frightening because the thought was so strong.  But not morbid - and yet a fundamental and inescapable truth.  I realised that we mostly spend our lives pretending we are immortal.  But it would be far better to hold the fact of death in our minds.  If we want to be properly alive and alert - and not half asleep.  Obviously I did not maintain this moment of clarity but I often remember it.

 

Later I read in Castaneda's books (if his name may be mentioned here without cries of fraud, fake etc.) of Death as an Advisor ... that your death is like an entity which stalks you through your life and the awareness of his strategies is good training for a 'warrior'.  This also is a helpful thought to me - provided I don't start getting melodramatic about it.

 

I live in an area where there is an ageing population - and at certain times of year you hear about deaths of people you know or have met.  Last years I think there were about seven funerals in a quick succession of people from this village and the next one.  I went to some of the funerals.  The people here are very family oriented and there is a great deal of overt weeping and wailing - mostly genuine (though occasionally a little fake from some guilt and so on).  It can be very moving - and also I feel can open up links to a deeper reality -  occasionally bringing 'visions' and other strange things.  I think experiences around the death of loved ones is probably the origin of much that is in religion.  I know that grave goods are found in the earliest periods among hominids for instance neanderthal and not just homo sapiens.

 

Sorry if this is a bit rambling.

[Junko]

When you call my name it's like a little prayer

I'm down on my knees, I wanna take you there

In the midnight hour I can feel your power

Just like a prayer you know I'll take you there

 

Life is a mystery,everyone must stand alone〜theses are song text from Madonna.Right?

 

[Apech]

Life is a mystery,everyone must stand alone〜theses are song text from Madonna.Right?

 

Yes.