Nonduality Salon Highlights, #1390

Dear Friends,

It may not look like it on the TV news, but a worldwide "Blisskrieg" has been launched, and "all out peace" has been declared. That's right. All those folks who've been cultivating inner peace all these years, they've decided to let it all out, and millions of people worldwide have begun praying together at specific times. And that is good, because if we can't pray together... we don't have a prayer.

April 1st at 11:00 am EST -- there was a worldwide prayer for George Bush to be "struck by enlightening" and become the heart centered leader that America -- and the world -- needs right now. Yes, I know what you're thinking. But the Course in Miracles says that "There is no order of difficulty when it comes to miracles." And if it works -- just think about how impressive it would look on God's resume!

As to how to pray, it's up to you. My beloved Guru, Harry Cohen Baba, was a Jewish guy with a Hindu ashram who also prayed to Buddha and Jesus. I once asked him about it, and he said, "Listen boychick, when it comes to praying, any of them could be right, so why put all your begs in one askit?"

Me, I like the Buddhist form of Tonglen where you breathe in the pain of the world, and breathe out love. It's sort of like the tree taking incarbon dioxide and releasing oxygen. Our prayers can "re-oxygenate" the world and actually improve the atmosphere... supply-side spirituality, I call it.

Tonglen Meditation

You may have read or heard about the so-called positive thinkers of the West. They say just the opposite--they don't know what they are saying. They say, "When you breathe out, throw out all your misery and negativity; and when you breathe in, breathe in joy, positivity, happiness, cheerfulness." Atisha's method is just the opposite: when you breathe in, breathe in all the misery and suffering of all the beings of the world--past, present and future. And when you breathe out, breathe out all the joy that you have, all the blissfulness that you have, all the benediction that you have.

When you breathe in -- listen carefully, it is one of the greatest methods -- when you breathe in, think that you are breathing in all the miseries of all the people in the world. All the darkness, all the negativity, all the hell that exists anywhere, you are breathing it in. And let it be absorbed and dissolved in your heart. [Don't hold onto it.]

Breathe out and pour yourself into existence. This is the method of compassion: drink in all the suffering and pour out all the blessings. And you will be surprised if you do it. The moment you take all the sufferings of the world inside you, they are no longer sufferings. The heart immediately transforms the energy. The heart is a transforming force: drink in misery, and it is transformed into blissfulness... then pour it out. Once you have learned that your heart can do this magic, this miracle, you would like to do it again and again.

more about tonglen -
http://www.shambhala.org/teachers/pema/tonglen.html
http://www.nonduality.com/tonglen.htm

Tired of all the conservative rhetoric on the airwaves? I am. Here are some unconservative listening experiences. If your favorite host isn't listed, or if you want to comment on any of the shows, let me know.--Carolyn Kay, MakeThemAccountable.com

http://www.tatfoundation.org/forum.htm#2

Truth is a Rabbit, by Alfred Pulyan

white rabbit by Durer The truth does not permeate all religions except in such fantastic disguise that its own father wouldn't know it. Suppose truth is a rabbit. This rabbit is in a field -- a large field. Round the field are very high walls -- creeds and dogma! So -- find your damn rabbit!! And remember the rabbit knows your thoughts & so as you resolve to go one way to catch it, it knows & evades you!

Alfred Pulyan was an American Zen master who worked almost exclusively through the mail. This excerpt is from correspondence he had with Richard Rose.

J.P. NDS 01 April 2003

This was my 36th day of fasting for world peace. I just had to do
something.

I have been a breatharian, perched atop my refrigerator - absorbing
prana through my lungs and root chakra.

As a precaution - I wrapped myself in duct tape and plastic sheeting
before climbing to the top of my Amana fridge. The snorkel breathing
apparatus proved cumbersome at first but what do little
inconveniences mean in times like these?

I got a call on my cellphone yeaterday from my brave, gun wielding
buddy Geraldo. He was on the front lines - in grave danger - embedded
in a hot tub with six buxom airline attendants from Kuwaiti Air. He
was very encouraging. He assured me that if I kept fasting - Bruce
Willis, Vin Diesel, Arnold Schwarzennegger and Jet Li would soon be
parachuted into Baghdad and the war would be over lickety-split. He
said that if he could hang on, suck it up and persevere - so could I.

02 April 2003

I am disappointed in myself. I broke my fast today - unable to
survive on prana alone. Prana is okay but it tastes like Q-tips. A
fragrant moss-like substance began growing on my nostril hairs after
12 days of fasting. I resisted as long as I could until I found it to
be delicious with a Kraft Blue Cheese salad dressing dip.

Apparently - my fasting didn't end the war.

It will take more than fasting to get Sadaam, Chemical Ali, Bush,
Rusmfeld, Cheney, Wolfowitz et al to end their messianic carnage and
blood/soul oath to Satan.

And Bruce, Vin, Arnold and Jet's landings have been delayed - thus
adding to my burden of existential guilt and helplessness.

Note: I must advise my dermatologist that upon removal of the duct
tape - I discovered that the chemical composition of the adhesive
cleared up the severe excema and acne on my back and genitals - and
helped restore a youthful, glowing elasticity to my skin.

The Highest Practice Daily Dharma Dears:
i know this is a long quote, but the story demonstrates compassion in
such a fine way, i hope you will take the time to read it, and hopefully
benefit from it. love to all,
dg

"...(As a young man) Asanga went to Kukkapata Mountain where he started
to do the practice of Buddha Maitreya in the hopes he might have a
vision of him and ask for instructions. Six years passed, and although
he meditated hard, he did not have as much as one auspicious dream.

'Now it looks like i will never succeed,' he thought, and departed,
feeling discouraged. Along the way, he came upon a man rubbing an
enormous iron bar with a soft cotton cloth.

'What are you trying to do, rubbing like that?'

The man replied, 'I need a needle, so I'm rubbing away at this bar.'

Asanga thought, 'He'll never make a needle rubbing that iron bar with
that soft cloth. Even if it could be done in a hundred years, where will
he be by then? If ordinary people make such efforts for little reason, I
can see I have never practiced the Dharma with persistence.'

So, he went back to his practice, and practiced for six more years,
still with no sign.

'This time I am quite certain that I will never succeed,' and he took to
the road again. He came to a rock so high it seemed to reach the
heavens. At its foot, a man was stroking it with a feather dipped in
water.

When Asanga asked the man what he was doing, the man replied, 'This rock
is too tall, I don't get any sun on my house, which is to the west of
it. So, I'm going to wear it away until it disappears.'

Asanga, with the same thoughts as three years before, went back and
practiced for another three years, still without as much as a single
good dream.

Utterly discouraged, he said, 'Now, there's truly no way I can ever
succeed,' and set off again.

Along the road, he came across a bitch with two crippled rear legs, her
entire hindquarters crawling in maggots. Nevertheless, she was still
full of aggression, and tried to bite him as she dragged herself along
on her forelegs. Asanga was swept by deep, unbearable compassion.
Cutting off a piece of his own flesh, he gave it to the bitch to eat.
Then he decided he had to rid her of the maggots on her hindquarters.
Fearing that he might kill them if he removed them with his fingers, he
realized that the only way to do it was with his tongue. But whenever he
looked at the whole of the creature's body, so rotten and full of pus,
he could not bring himself to do it. So, he shut his eyes and stretched
out his tongue...

Instead of touching the body of the bitch, his tongue touched the
ground.

He opened his eyes and found that the bitch had disappeared. In its
place stood the Lord Maitreya, surrounded by a halo of light.

'How unkind you are,' Asanga cried, 'not to have shown me your face all
this time!'

'It is not that I have not shown myself. You and I have never been
separate. But your own negative actions and obscurations were too
intense for you to be able to see me. Because your twelve years of
practice have refined them a little, you were able to see the bitch.
Just now, because of your great compassion, your obscurations have been
completely purified, and you can see me with your own eyes. If you do
not believe me, carry me on your shoulder and show me to everyone
around!'

So, Asanga placed Maitreya on his shoulder and went to the market where
he asked everyone, 'What do you see on my shoulder?'

Everyone replied there was nothing on his shoulder - all except one old
woman whose perception was slightly less clouded by habitual tendencies.
She said, 'You are carrying the rotting corpse of a dog''

~~Patrul Rinpoche

From the book, "Words Of My Perfect Teacher," published by Harper
Collins.

Geraldo: As part of the Coalition of the Willing, you are all serving
your country and the cause of freedom with valor - kinda like me.
Your views are far more articulate than the statements we are hearing
from Donald Rumsfeld and Ari Fleisher. Please tell America and the
world what you think.

Sargeant Salty Sealion: Aurrrf, auurff, slap-slap!

Private Pistachio Pidgeon: Coo-coo, coo, splat!

Colonel Chuck "Cocky" Chicken: Cluck-cluck, cluck, scratch, flap!

Lt. Takoma Dolphin: Click-click-click, click-EEEEEEEEEEE!

PETA's letter to Sec. Rumsfeld follows.

April 1, 2003

The Honorable Donald H. Rumsfeld
Secretary of Defense
1000 Defense Pentagon
Washington, DC 20301-1000

Dear Mr. Secretary:

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is a nonprofit
organization with more than 750,000 members and supporters worldwide
dedicated to animal protection. The Pentagon recently announced that
the Navy is using dolphins and sea lions to intercept terrorists and
mines in the Persian Gulf, and the Army and the Marines are using
chickens and pigeons to detect the presence of biological and
chemical weapons and dogs to detect weapons and rescue troops. Many
of the chickens and pigeons have already suffered and died from
stress and exposure. Now the dolphin Takoma goes AWOL for an extended
period. We support our troops and believe that they deserve the best
defense that money can buy, but using animals is cruel and may cost
lives rather than saving them. On behalf of our many members and
supporters, we respectfully request that you order the military to
stop using animals.

We understand that equipment for Australian divers was "bumped" off a
flight in order to bring in another dolphin to replace Takoma,
prompting the divers to question the effectiveness of the Navy's
dolphin program. While we understand that Takoma has since returned,
his 48-hour disappearance proves that dolphins and sea lions cannot
offer a reliable defense or surveillance for our troops.

These are intelligent animals who have minds of their own, but they
have no idea that lives will be lost if they fail to properly perform
tasks, yet the military wants to rely on the actions of these animals
in order to protect our troops. In an article from the Contra Costa
Times, 2nd Lt. Paula Rood, a former trainer of the dolphin Makai,
said that dolphins often become distracted by other animals in the
area or will just take off and not be seen for hours. She said, "If
they're not interested, they're like a 3-year-old who loses
interest quickly and they're just not going to play anymore."

Wars are human endeavors. While a person, a political party, or a
nation may decide that war is necessary, the animals never do. Like
civilians, they often become the victims of war, but now, the U.S.
military is deliberately putting animals in harm's way. These
animals never enlisted. They know nothing of Iraq or Saddam Hussein,
and there is also no guarantee that these animals will save human
lives.

In fact, they may cause the loss of lives. Certainly, our troops
deserve the very best in surveillance and chemical-weapons detection,
and using animals is obviously not the best way to protect our
servicemembers.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Sincerely yours,

Stephanie Boyles, Wildlife Biologist
Research & Investigations Department

Democracy By Telepathy had its beginnings in 1995 while I was
working in Sarajevo at the end of the Bosnian war. Earlier, while
living and teaching in Holland, I met a number of Catholic monks
and nuns, Buddhist monks and nuns, Orthodox Priest, Jewish Rabbis,
Muslims, and people from many other groups concerned with Peace
work. These groups of people were part of an interreligious
organization that put on prayer events. Many had gone to the
interreligious conferences and were put off by the lecturing and
giant ego’s posturing for secret dominance. One of my tasks in
Sarajevo was to see about the possibility of putting on a 40 day
around the clock, non-stop prayer event, inviting people of all
groups to participate. Because killing on the roadways was still
going on, the NATO people wouldn’t let the event happen. But I
ended up staying for eight months and became part of many smaller
groups that were doing the same thing, but on a smaller scale. We
used the sound “AH” to chant together, because “AH” is the root
sound of all names for God. G(ah)d……Br(ah)mah…..All(ah)….. the
American Indians say… W(ah)kan T(ah)nka………you are making love and
you hear the sound (AH)…..So it is an ecstasy we are speaking of,
an experience-- beyond theology. We threw down the gauntlet to the
religious establishments, as we do now.

"In the middle of WW II, a group of men were put together in
isolation. They had the talent of being able to concentrate for
long periods of time. They spoke the common language of
mathematics. They had nothing but an un-proven theory to start work
with. What they created was the atomic bomb.

If we can not come together with the same focus and dedication to
create Peace, then we will leave our planet to those bound on the
wheel of death and destruction”.

This group that came together over a period of months in Sarajevo,
created an invention rarely seen in the world…a group telepathy,
which saw all events in the area, before they happened, and through
focused mind, had the ability to alter them. We also created a link
with many other groups like this, and latter when I came back to
California, I participated with one group that had many advanced
prayer practioners. When we chose a world event to focus on, it
never failed, the headlines would change within 3 days.

The next world event that influenced the creation of DBT was the
2000 presidential election. For 36 days the world held it’s breath
over the Gore/Bush debacle. At this time I was hiking to a favorite
mountaintop everyday, and would sit in meditation feeling the
forces in play in history at this time. It was an exquisite balance
of energies. To anyone trained enough to feel this, it was a
dynamic tension that actually created calmness in the psychic
world. I was constantly asking guidance for which side of the fence
I should throw my prayers and energy into. To some this may seem
silly, but I am a person who over the past 30 years has seen that
every thing I have prayed for has happened. When one looks back and
comes to accept this awesome realization, it implies a
responsibility to the world to use this realization carefully. But
I received no answer, so I remained neutral.

Then finally on the last day an answer came….. “It doesn’t matter
who is elected….the destiny of America is, and has always been
under Divine Providence….and all elected officials will do the will
of any citizen who stays aligned with Divine Providence.”

As long as we stay aligned…they work for us--those who want to
participate in the destiny of this country and the world. Even if
some of the statesmen have forgotten this…IT DOESN’T MATTER…AS LONG
AS YOU REMEMBER………..in other words…………

223. The realization of one's identity with Brahman is the cause of
liberation from the bonds of Samsara, by the means of which the
wise man attains Brahman, the One without the second, the Bliss
Absolute.

224. Once having realized Brahman, one no longer returns to the
realm of transmigration. Therefore one must fully realize one's
identity with Brahmin.

225. Brahman is Existence, Knowledge, Infinity, Pure, Supreme,
Self-existent, Eternal, and Indivisible Bliss, not different from
the individual soul, and devoid of interior or exterior.