Apech

Could you do this by PM instead? Thanks.

Not sure what distinction you are making between thoughts and beliefs here.

I think there may be a divergence of thought on what exactly meditation is.

Unfortunately I read that book. I still like CC's books but no, I don't torture lizards.

Not you presumably.

What's your point?

That's karma for you.

I am, like my bank account empty.

Yep I agree about the sense of religious ick ... but in the end I found that when I practiced this as part of the ngondro those kinds of reservations disappeared. I don't practice Dzogchen so its slightly different but essentially there's a point in meditation where your own efforts are not enough and you draw on 'blessings' to get through. The origin of the blessings in the first sense is your Lama (regarded as a Buddha) but in the end it is your Buddha-nature itself.

How do you meditate?

Would you care to say more?

Since I was mentioned I thought I would reply. I think @Surya you meant 'taught' not 'thought' ... so one of the worst taught subjects out there. Agreed. It is badly taught. My approach is to say that if you do it (and many people including probably most Buddhists don't) then it is the most important thing you do. There are a very large number of techniques for meditation (which I have heard by a great Lama described as 'toys') none of which are anything other than that. Just techniques - which may or may not be useful depending on how applied. Even then those techniques only seek to replicate or encourage processes which naturally happen in your body or your mind. Motivation is the starting point. You want to be relaxed? Ok have a cup of tea and listen to some ambient music ... or go for a walk in the park. You want powers? You'll probably end up with haemorrhoids and myopia. So what do you want? Ask yourself that first. Spend a long time asking yourself. If you have problems you'd like to cure ... why have you got those problems in the first place. Do you have an explanation for that? Did they just drop on you like cosmic bird shit from heaven? Or do they arise from somewhere for some reason? Why would sitting down to meditate have any relevance to that? Maybe you want some kind of relief. A break from stress? Maybe you want your thoughts to stop? Maybe you want better health. All reasonable things to want. But will meditation help you with this? Well maybe but then you will have turned it into your therapy. So no. Meditation is not therapy. It might actually make you feel worse! If you still want to meditate don't start with your mind so much. Just start with your body. Don't worry about thoughts and feelings that come and go. Just settle your body like a cat does. Just sit for a short while. That's a beginning. Expect nothing. You won't be disappointed.

Hello and welcome.

Take the previous post and make it more complicated. I’ll start: button

Complify …. Simplicity

In the human we find the idea of the being who stands with feet on earth and yet has heavenly powers of reason. Its nature is what laws govern the human through its birth. And so whatever flows from it having a human mother and thus a human body and mind. In its conception as human, to its birth, adulthood , old age and death , all this is its nature. A mortal being with immortal scope, between animal and angel. Made by spirit but born of earth.

Are you positing agency for the object over the subject?

The phenomenon you’re describing could be termed “self-referential geometric recursion” or “non-orthodox topological replication”. These terms capture the idea of a topographical continuum where evolutes (curves or surfaces derived from another curve or surface) self-replicate in unconventional patterns, referencing the relational geometry of prior instantiations. This put simply so as not to over complify things.

Hi, don't worry being a youngster is no problem here

V nice thread - thanks everyone

Where did you mean to post it?

De-vice ... remove the evil thereof.

I think the Secret of the Golden Flower gives stages. And just as a point of interest the Ancient Egyptians liked to map out the process (though many would dispute that this is what they were doing). I would question the idea that the goal is the Light in the first place …. I would review how you think about the goal a little I think.

hermeneutical exegesis

Santa fear