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Is 'just sitting' a post-enlightment practice?
steve replied to Vajra Fist's topic in Buddhist Discussion
Nowhere in particular, I just sit. š„“ How does one know when or if they are close? Truth be told you are always close, as close as you are to your self. Nothing can promise success and yet it can occur anytime, anywhere, as a result of anything or nothing at all. So why not just sit? Yes, a viable, simple, and accessible path for anyone but it will only be effective if you are fortunate enough to be karmically suited to the approach. The focus on different practices is understandable as we always tend to look outward as opposed to in, but the most important variable is always the practitioner. We all need different things at different times in our lives. Figuring out what that is can be elusive but I feel a quiet mind and open heart can be a more effective guide to what that is than the inner analyst. Anyone can wake up at any time for any or no reason and no one, not even the greatest master, can tell another what is needed in their practice but for that very reason, just sitting is a suitable practice for anyone, even the greenest of beginners. Arguably, the freshness of ābeginnerās mindā could be an advantage for many. For me, the moment of kenshÅ was completely spontaneous and unexpected and did not occur during formal practice. One of the things that came out of the experience was a realization of the contrived and artificial aspect of all practices and an insight into the true meaning and value of ājust sitting.ā Over time, the value of practice once again became meaningful to me and there has been a waxing and waning with respect to feeling a āneedā for practice over time. Practice simply becomes life and life becomes practice. -
Billy Joel - She's Always A Woman (from Old Grey Whistle Test) (youtube.com)
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What's with this Relative and Absolute Reality dichotomy? It is all very confusing...
idiot_stimpy replied to dwai's topic in General Discussion
I think the two truths were needed for more clear discussion about the relative and absolute. Both show different viewpoints from the same place. Just an easier way to discuss things. -
well worth repeating by Zerostao: "If by chance, the elites pull off some bizarre crime against humanity Hey it's not like they haven't done such in the past---- and a HOT CIVIL WAR breaks out amongst us,, STAND DOWN do not buy into it, do not be duped, Of course, you will stand your ground, defend yourself if it encroaches onto you, that is only Natural, and i send energies of success for such. Do not join in the participation of leaving your abode to go on the offensive against your neighbors. They are only co-victims such as yourself in this. It will take great effort from ALL of US to limit the Horror and Terror. City Folk or Country Folk, we are All Folk, and in the same boat. Careful, thoughtful, navigation of stormy waters, and maybe with a little luck, we will get through it. "....the thread is about survival, there are times when surviving becomes more challenging. often, it is your state of mind that will determine your outcome. Stay focused. Stay calm"
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Recently I've been reflecting on the increasing geopolitical tensions and the likelihood for a new global war in our lifetimes. In the Western world, we have perhaps some of the most favorable conditions in history for cultivation. Teachings are everywhere and previously sequestered lineages are accessible from your home. We have no disease, famine, extreme poverty or war. But that could all change. For some reason yesterday I got a Facebook update from a chap called the Khenchen Lama Rinpoche. He prophesied a global nuclear war by 2030, and recommended his followers certain practices to stave off that possibility. I don't know anything about him or if he is a reliable source, but it lit a fire under my arse. I feel like instead of spending the majority of my time on hobbies, entertainment, I should perhaps practice more. Practice as much as I physically can. After all, we don't know when this special period of peace might end.
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Full description of methods for the 4 stages of internal alchemy in book: Internal Alchemy for Everyone
-ź¦„ź¦ź§ ź¦±ź¦ ź¦æź¦¶ź¦Ŗź¦ŗź¦“- replied to Yae's topic in Daoist Discussion
You are very lucky to have found a good system that works, at such a young age. Many people spend their entire lives doing practices that donāt work and achieve nothing. -
What's with this Relative and Absolute Reality dichotomy? It is all very confusing...
Nungali replied to dwai's topic in General Discussion
Why is it confusing ? I dont understand that at all . " If one is true, the other must be false, right? " No, wrong . Why are you setting up this either / or thing ? I do not understand the statement 'if one is true the other must be false ' ... why ? You actually stated and set up at the beginning " which is beyond all " . You didnt state and set up ' this is the reality ' about either realities . You first made a distinction between them , then claimed confusion by saying how can they have a distinction . Now, THAT ^ is confusing ! UNLESS there is some doctrine I dont know of that states ; absolute or relative , there must be one or the other . " ' -
Ahhhh ... but this isnt 'an act' . Its about being . Not acting . Many men , in this new age of ( moving towards ) equality know how to act . And they can act however they want in more liberal societies that are more open and inclusive than Texas ( what do you like about it by the way ? You are still there , although it must have been difficult for a long time ) . But, the old 'act like a man ' and being told to 'man up ' and what that meant and implied ... well, a lot of that has been tossed out now . If I had asked those questions to my parents generation it would be easy answers ; "Of course I know what it means to be a man ! To be the bread winner of the family and work , to fight and defend my country, if need be . To be master of my emotions, while women stay at home and do the cleaning and childminding . ... and so on . Nowadays ? Many men aint so sure ... even in places like the opposite of Texas . You would not turn an eye here Maddie . But still this is where I find male identity confused or unknown . They threw the SNAG thing out some time back . There are 'New Age' type of workshops about it ... but OMG ! The stuff they are putting out ! . Nothing is out there that seems to be adopted as an overall model . If I ask women the same questions , I get an immediate response ... they are on 'the up' (a bit ) in our society , some are even enthusiastic in their descriptions of what it means and where they are going . I am nearly tempted to ask you ..... what does it mean 'to be a woman ' , to you Maddie ?
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I have , of course I am sure you have read my views on initiation and 'coming into manhood' ... and how the western system of it has virtually become extinct . So I could put my hand up on each of those questions . My definition is on 7 levels; a man should have '7 heads' . But I won't go into that here ..... off topic . I will say however that in some of these systems , what 'makes you a man' might be considered effeminate in some western views . Eg . in the Samurai tradition , you are not a 'real man' unless you can arrange a nice bunch of flowers (ikibana ) , appreciate nature and beauty , write beautiful and meaningful poetry , and in a beautiful calligraphic style and spend some time on your hairdo and facial make up ..... and there is the killing people with swords and stuff . In my tradition , the 'consciousness of a poet ' and of a 'certain type of woman ' is also required . One must be a warrior as well . And this path is also open to women ; Artemisia I - historically famous for her valour at the Battle of Salamis toward the end of Xerxes I's invasion of Greece in 480 BCE. ... or these 'girls ' ; YPJ - Kurdish women's army defending and liberating women and children from IS capture .
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celebrating spring i watched bees pollinating wild blackberries
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What's with this Relative and Absolute Reality dichotomy? It is all very confusing...
forestofemptiness replied to dwai's topic in General Discussion
I was listening to Nonduality by David Loy and this interesting passage from the Zhuangzi popped out: -
The far right people are always losing their minds over something. It's like they want to be angry. Ah, to be back in the sweet, innocent days of Jade Helm.
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Is 'just sitting' a post-enlightment practice?
stirling replied to Vajra Fist's topic in Buddhist Discussion
And here. -
Is 'just sitting' a post-enlightment practice?
stirling replied to Vajra Fist's topic in Buddhist Discussion
The lenses we are using are different. I agree that is important not to confuse them. There are some events that aren't likely to generate insight in a novice student, which is why every good dharma teacher has a list of counselors and psychiatrists for referring such cases. Agreed. Different people will require different modalities. Buddhism isn't about self-improvement, it is about seeing through the delusion of the self. We will have to agree to disagree here. - Yesterday
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For many years, i would stare loosely and unfocused at a blank wall in my practice area while playing qi gong, sitting zazen or zhan zhuang. Then one afternoon, Visions began to fill the space of the wall, incredibly vivid detailed snippets of (i assume) other's lives, moving snapshots of life would play out in full cinematic detail. One upon another. Entire scenes of seemingly random home life/work life. Never considered they may have been from my own past until reading this exchange... This persisted each time I engaged the wall with loosely focused eyes. It was as surprising as it was unsought and... in the end unwelcome. While charming and intriguing it was in the end mostrously distracting. So distracting because of course my western mind was pondering how these visuals could be arising with no input but a blank white wall. Also distracting because the storyteller wanted to continue the tales, or try to glean meaning from them. I traced the visuals back to a void practice I'd been compelled toward by my inner voice. Sitting in pitch black, eyes open for an extended period each day over many months, gave rise to intense open eyed visuals, but usually only geometric, never story based and never cinematic quality detailed scenes with context. This was wholly different and occuring in broad daylit rooms. The visions were never turbid, nor particularly alluring. They seemed precisely neutral and random looking back on it, never drama involved in them. A porch swing swaying in a breeze that ruffled the leaves of a bush. Hands drying dishes while looking out the window at children playing near a corn field... that kind of thing. I painted a large picture and hung it in that place and broke off the void work as it was unwelcome at the time. Perhaps it's time to revisit, something in this exchange rekindles an interest.
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Is 'just sitting' a post-enlightment practice?
Mark Foote replied to Vajra Fist's topic in Buddhist Discussion
I used to enjoy the comments and discussion on Brad Warner's posts, back in the time when he left the discussion open. Long ago. Mike also studied with Gudo. I haven't read their translation of Shobogenzo, but I did appreciate one part of their translation of Genjo Koan, to set up that one part, here's a piece of the translation by Paul Jaffe: When fish swim in the water, no matter how much they swim the water does not come to an end. When birds fly in the sky, no matter how much they fly, the sky does not come to an end. However, though fish and birds have never been apart from the water and the air, when the need is great the function is great; when the need is small the function is small. Likewise, it is not that at every moment they are not acting fully, not that they do not turn and move freely everywhere, but if a bird leaves the air, immediately it dies; if a fish leaves the water, immediately it dies. ... So, if there were a bird or fish that wanted to go through the sky or the water only after thoroughly investigating its limits, he would not attain his way nor find his place in the water or in the sky. If one attains this place, these daily activities manifest absolute reality. If one attains this Way, these daily activities are manifest absolute reality. (āGenjo Koanā, Dogen; tr. Paul Jaffe (1996), in Yasutani, Flowers Fall (Boston: Shambhala), 101-107) My comment on that, in my piece about Genjo Koan, was: I like the phrase āit is not that at every moment they are not acting fully, not that they do not turn and move freely everywhereā; Gudo Nishijima goes so far as to translate this as āeach one realizes its limitations at every moment and each one somersaults [in complete freedom] at every placeā (āGenjo Koanā, Dogen; tr. Gudo Wafu Nishijima, from āUnderstanding the Shobogenzoā, Windbell Publications 1992). One-pointedness, when attention is placed as a function of the movement of breath and can take place anywhere in the body--"somersaults [in complete freedom] at every place". As (one) abides in body contemplating body, either some bodily object arises, or bodily discomfort or drowsiness of mind scatters (oneās) thoughts abroad to externals. Thereuponā¦ (oneās) attention should be directed to some pleasurable object of thought. As (one) thus directs it to some pleasurable object of thought, delight springs up in (oneās being). In (one), thus delighted, arises zest. Full of zest (oneās) body is calmed down. With body so calmed (one) experiences ease. The mind of one at ease is concentrated. (One) thus reflects: The aim on which I set my mind I have attained. Come, let me withdraw my mind [from pleasurable object of thought]. So (one) withdraws (oneās) mind therefrom, and neither starts nor carries on thought-process. Thus (one) is fully conscious: I am without thought initial or sustained. I am inwardly mindful. I am at ease. (Gautama repeats the above for āAs (one) contemplates feelings in feelingsā¦ā, āā¦ mind in mindā¦ā, āā¦ mind-states in mind-states, either some mental object arises, orā¦ā) Such is the practice for the direction of mind. And whatā¦ is the practice for the non-direction of mind? (First,) by not directing (oneās) mind to externals, (one) is fully aware: My mind is not directed to externals. Then (one) is fully aware: My mind is not concentrated either on what is before or on what is behind, but it is set free, it is undirected. Then (one) is fully aware: In body contemplating body I abide, ardent, composed and mindful. I am at ease. And (one) does the same with regard to feelingsā¦ to mindā¦ and mind-states. Thus (one) is fully aware: In mind-states contemplating mind-states I abide, ardent, composed and mindful. I am at ease. This is the practice for the non-direction of mind. (SN V 154-157, Pali Text Society SN V p 135-136) When I wrote about my approach, I was basically writing about my experience of the four arisings of mindfulness, the actionable elements of the thought applied and sustained by Gautama in the first concentration (marked by one-pointedness of mind): I begin with making the surrender of volition in activity related to the movement of breath the object of thought. For me, that necessitates thought applied and sustained with regard to relaxation of the activity of the body, with regard to the exercise of calm in the stretch of ligaments, with regard to the detachment of mind, and with regard to the presence of mind. I find that a presence of mind from one breath to the next can precipitate āone-pointedness of mindā, but laying hold of āone-pointedness of mindā requires a surrender of willful activity in the body much like falling asleep. (Response) The difficulty is in doing nothing, while simultaneously relaxing, calming, detaching, and "presenting". Gautama spoke of feelings of zest and ease that are simultaneous with one-pointedness--increasingly I find that I must attend to ease, in order to arrive at a moment when one-pointedness "somersaults [in complete freedom] at every place". I wrote recently about the "scales" I'm practicing these days, and I touched on how I arrive at a feeling of ease: Gautama spoke of suffusing the body with āzest and easeā in the first concentration: āā¦ (a person) steeps, drenches, fills, and suffuses this body with zest and ease, born of solitude, so that there is not one particle of the body that is not pervaded by this lone-born zest and ease.ā (AN III 25-28, Pali Text Society Vol. III p 18-19; see also MN III 92-93, PTS p 132-1342) Words like āsteepsā and ādrenchesā convey a sense of gravity, while the phrase ānot one particle of the body that is not pervadedā speaks to the āone-pointednessā of attention, even as the body is suffused. If I can find a way to experience gravity in the placement of attention as the source of activity in my posture, and particular ligaments as the source of the reciprocity in that activity, then I have an ease. ("To Enjoy Our Life") Necessity is the mother of invention, but I find the Gautamid an invaluable resource. Guo Gu, amazing teacher. One thing I didn't say about finding ease (in the piece I quote from above) is that the sensation is like the feeling in the body coming out of sleep. That kind of ease. But ease gives way as the activity of the body comes out of the location of awareness alone, a one-pointed location that can shift and move--just sitting. -
heck! when I do sitting and forgetting I have āmemoriesā which are not my own. Quite vivid and elaborate scenes and people which I realize I have never known or seen before. Itās quite weird.
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in the past I have experienced so many side effects. Since it digs up bad karma usually what happened was every unpleasant emotion and memory that I was trying to deny came rushing to the surface. If someone has never purged their karma before all I can say is that its not for the faint of heart and probably relates to what some people describe as the dark night of the soul. Also I would have to go to the bathroom constantly, and the more I did the mantra the more constant it was. It got to a point when I was doing a 2 week long Zhunti retreat (nothing but Zhunti mantra all day every day) that I literally had to sit on the toilet and do the mantra because it was a not stop thing. I have also experienced weird skin blisters on the ends of my heart and lung meridians. I also become extremely sensitive to other peoples emotions and intentions. I also start having really odd "memories" of events that never happened in my life time. Also I would have a long string of bad luck when doing it in the past.
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One of the first area of relief I noticed when I acknowledged that I was trans was the relief that I could stop trying to act "manly". It was always so much work to act "manly" enough in Texas to not arouse suspicion.
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what are the side effects?
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Wait ..... doesnt 'the anti-Christ' come first
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Well, in my experience ,, gender is a line with male one end female the other , VERY few people are on the extreme points. But in some cultures and societies , they seem obsessed with extremes ; you are either one or the other , on many levels . So if your 'natural state ' is in conflict with supposed ideologies then those that hold to those ideologies, or have been brain washed by them , may feel threatened . Or they might feel threatened by you ..... upsetting the apple cart , so to speak . Then, there is all this .... I am sorry .... BULLSHIT about 'being a man ' and what that means to some and how that is threatened in a similar process . " You say I aint been a man ! ? ... thems duelin' words ! and I will add that concept is really suffering and failing ! I went to a men's workshop and after listening dumbfounded for half an hour I had to ask ' Who thinks they have been through a process or even that made them a man , or some transition in life where you thought now I am a man - purely under your own definitions' . Less than half the hands of the group went up . I asked the others 'do you know what it means or what the term is describing 'to be man ' , again, less than half . So near 1/4 of the men present did not even have a definition of what it means . ... even to them !
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