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 […]
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 »
Yesterday I started to catch a cold. My mind was very cloudy indeed, and I felt like I was floating in a cloud. It was really hard to focus on anything and retain that focus as I tended to drift off into blankness. Mentally, it was real hard to apply myself to work, and thoughts
The last few days (whilst ill) I’ve been reflecting on how painful it is watching other people suffer. And how hard it is to help them to see the causes of their suffering. So often when we suffer we can see what is going on, where the attachment is, where the resistance to how things
The Compassion Gap Read Post »
After a particularly strong meditation experience this weekend, I was reflecting on one aspect of Zen and Tibetan Buddhism. In meditation, my sense of all dharmas being Empty was clearer than is often the case. There was nothing I could latch onto, nothing that I could hold in my mind which didn’t melt away as
Big Doubt and Groundlessness Read Post »
Ah, fortunate sons and disciples gathered here, This body of ours is impermanent like a feather on a high mountain pass, This mind of ours is empty and clear like the depth of space. Relax in that natural state, free of fabrication. When mind is without any support, that is Mahamudra. Becoming familiar with this,
Machig Labdron – That is Buddhahood Read Post »
Response to a question on a List: How do you access your mind. Thoughts are like waves and the mind is like the ocean. How do you access the ocean? Looking at your question, I will respond in three parts: – How do you access your mind? – Thoughts are like waves and the mind
The Ocean and Waves of Mind Read Post »
In response to a scenario on a List, where a person was confused as to how it is said that mind has no qualities, and yet it is said to have compassion, fearlessness, in-destruction etc. There are a couple of layers in response to this. As a Shentongpa, I cannot help responding from a Kagyu
Qualities of Mind – Shentong and Rangtong Read Post »
A question asking that: Christians will get to Eden because that is what their mind knows. So does that mean that I can visit Eden too if I meditate on it? To address your question indirectly – when ***** says: Because the only world we know is what the mind knows. There’s really nothing out
Eden, Mind and Karma Read Post »
From an online discussion forum: Hi, can I take issue with you in the way you’ve described relative and ultimate reality? You seem to say that our bodies are at the level of relative reality and our minds are at the level of ultimate reality, if I’ve understood your implication correctly? Mantras provide a deep
Mantras, Relative and Ultimate Truth Read Post »
