If both the moving and the calm aspects of the mind are the same, then why should we meditate and learn to reach the calm aspect? Responses on a Dharma list In an important sense, both aspects are not the same. From the relative point of view, are they the same? Do they both appear […]
Mind Moving and Mind Still Read Post »
At night, deep in the mountains I sit in zazen. The affairs of men never reach me here. In the stillness I sit on a cushion across from the empty window. The incense has been swallowed up by the endless night; My robe has become a garment of white dew. Unable to sleep, I walk
Reflections on Ryokan – At Night, Deep in the Mountains Read Post »
Do not lose the view in the conduct; If you lose the view in the conduct, you will neverhave the chance to be liberated. Do not lose the conduct in the view; If you lose the conduct in the view, you stray into black diffusion. Padmasambhava This seems to be an ongoing theme for me,
Reflections on Padmasambhava – View and Conduct Read Post »
Outside of meditation, reflecting now, 2 days later … did those thoughts arise at all? Where are they? … Are they any different in nature from the dream I had last night? Where has that gone? They both had a sense of ‘realness’ at the time, but what substance remains of either? Both resonate, and
Where do thoughts come from? This last evening, I’ve been watching seemingly endless thoughts appearing in mind, anger and revenge mostly, as in the midst of a family crisis, my ex-wife decided to pitch in with the ‘blame game’. It’s funny this expression – pushing the buttons. The common expression is .. ‘she knows how
Where Do Thoughts Come From? Read Post »
Since things neither exist nor don’t exist, are neither real nor unreal, are utterly beyond adopting and rejecting – one might as well burst out laughing. Longchenpa Rabjampa Tenzin Chodron’s post to the Kagyu Online Study Group reminded me of this wonderful quote from the 14th Century Nyingma master, Longchenpa Rabjampa. So often recently I’ve
Reflections on Longchenpa – The Middle Path Read Post »
I used to imagine that the Buddha was so very far away. Enlightenment was so inconceivably difficult to attain, and the path there so very long. With my swirling emotions and obscurations, how long the journey seemed, and how very hard I had to strive in order to reach the state of perfect Awakening. When
Dharmakaya, Sambhogakaya, Nirmanakaya Read Post »
Things appear to change. Things appear to go through phases. I say ‘appear to’ as I’m not at all sure that they do. They appear to, but do they really? How do we know? We have memory of what was. How do we know how accurate our memory is of what was? Accessing a memory
Taking Mahamudra as the Path Read Post »
Don’t do anything whatsoever with the mind — Abide in an authentic, natural state. One’s own mind, unwavering, is reality. The key is to meditate like this without wavering; Experience the Great [reality] beyond extremes. In a pellucid ocean, Bubbles arise and dissolve again. Just so, thoughts are no different from ultimate reality. So don’t
Niguma: Mahamudra as Spontaneous Liberation Read Post »
We experience endlessly, and on top of the flow of seeing, hearing, touching, smelling, tasting, and thinking we project and add a fictional ‘experiencer’, a one, a self who is doing this experiencing. And yet, there isn’t anyone there to do this. so who or what is experiencing the experiences? ….. the experience itself is
The Experience is the Experiencer Read Post »
