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#2908 - Wednesday, August 22, 2007 - Editor: Gloria Lee
Nondual Highlights
Nothing matters so much that we should throw
ourselves into a state of panic about it. No
happening is so important that we should let
ourselves be exiled from inner peace and mental
calm for its sake.
-
Paul Brunton posted to AlongTheWay
Susan: I looked at the flower -
geranium -
and it means "stupidity, folly".
"It's said,
'When you learn to be a big idiot,
then you start to have some skill;
Studying until you are as if stupid
is the beginning of real insight.'
If you can learn to be as if stupid, then no matter what Dharma
door
you cultivate you will attain samadhi and gain some realization.
It's just because you are unable to be stupid that you cannot
properly enter into samadhi and don't get any response from your
cultivation."
~The Shurangama Mantra--
The Efficacious Language of Heaven and Earth
Lectures by the Venerable Master Hsuan Hua
http://www.pbase.com/1heart/image/73766825
~ ~ ~
"Be asleep even in the wakeful state"
~Ramana
Maybe there is a lot of stuff arising in mind, maybe not much. In
any case, isn't the whole bother not unlike tee vee commercials,
all
vying for the random bit of identification attention? So here's a
thought -- to be as if stupid, or asleep in the wakeful state, is
to
not even be concerned about the program itself, much less any
words
from the sponsors.
This is the renunciate practice, but it is more difficult to
assume
this posture in the day-to-day life, given the need to
discriminate
in the realm of objective reality. Let's face it, we're generally
busy, so there are a lot of situations we seem to enter in and
out
of during the course of consciousness. The one who seems to enter
in
and out of this and that is a good subject for observation and
inquiry. What is it exactly? Is it even anything?
Well, if attention is always wandering, it may take quite a while
to
find out. Attention has to turn around and go in an opposite
direction, and this rubs against the grain of self, so to speak,
because this sense of self depends on re-confirming itself over
and
over again with every little breeze. It's in a romance with the
breeze, and doesn't want this great lover affair to end.
Mind loves phenomena, and so the chase. Running after or
running
from -- no matter, and no matter how many times one hears this,
it
mostly just bounces off, like words tend to do. Holy words,
sacred
scriptures, the morning news, yackety yack. One has to actually
turn
the attention around -- that's it. No way around it. That's the
first step.
This is what attention actually wants to do anyway. It wants to
come
to rest. Cessation. Struggle is stressful, consciousness itself
is
stressful. If we don't realize it to be so, it's because we still
enjoy the game. That's fine. We just keep paying attention, and
we
notice something interesting about the game.
What we notice is simultaneously true about any game, regardless
if
it's the god game, the fame game, the wealth game, the health
game,
the spiritual seeker game, you name it, you play it. What fun!
It's
all the consciousness game, and apparently quite engrossing. Why
else keep playing? So engrossing, in fact, that it receives our
ever-
devoted attention.
When it is unquestionably realized to be suffering, regardless of
its nominal mask, attention is momentarily free. This free
attention
is "stupid", also known as "not knowing", as
the space between
thoughts, the bliss of ignorance, asleep in the waking state,
mind
fallen into the heart, peace. As mentioned, a good first step.
LoveAlways Bob O'Hearn, posted to GardenMystics
"...and one's mind remains in total
rest without any concept, "
Zurchung Sherab Trakpa
Jax: Here again and again we see the indication of a
State that is free of concepts. So you see this is not just
the view of Chan or Zen... it is a core teaching of Dzogchen.
Where the mistake is made is in thinking that we
"create" this state through various practices that
include such actions as "becoming free of
concepts". This is not the point at all.
The State of Awareness has nothing to do with
concepts. Just like the sun has nothing to do with the
clouds. The clouds are 93 million miles from the sun.
Likewise concepts do not exist as a fundamental aspect of the
State of Awareness in its essential Nature. Yet Awareness
is that which experiences those thoughts and concepts.
Imagine for a moment that you have two aspects of
consciousness in existence.
1. Primal Awareness that always "is" as it
is. It is the default awareness that is always
present. Like when we open our eyes we "see"
without anything we need to do to make "seeing"
happen. Or when we hear sounds, there is nothing we do to
make "listening" happen. Both of these
perceptual aspects are there by default. This State of
Awareness is also just there. No practice or preliminaries
can make this default awareness be more present than it already
is. It requires no purification or maintenance.
2. Thinking or discriminating consciousness (sem).
This is another level of awareness through the energy of thought
and concept. A conceptual subject is thought of as well as
an objective world.
We don't have to change the lower mind in order to experience the
State of Awareness as the State is already present and is who you
are by default. To Be is to be Aware. It is our
original Being Awareness that we relax into... it is already
fully present.
We shift to the mode of just Being this Awareness. It does
not have to practice "letting things be". It
already lets everything be. We don't have to practice
becoming free of attachment as our Awareness has never been
attached to anything and can't be attached by default...
like space has never been attached to any form.
Our Awareness does not have to become free of concepts as it has
never been influenced by any concept or thought.
Our Awareness does not have to become free of ego as it has
never had an ego or any thought of subjectivity.
Our Awareness does not have to become free of desire or negative
emotions as our Awareness has never had a desire or a
negative emotion.
Our Awareness does not have to become free of samsara as it has
never known such a state as samsara.
Our Awareness doesn't not have to become free of suffering as our
Awareness has never suffered.
If all this is true... how do we experience this Awareness?
I would say, how can we not help but experience this
Awareness in each moment? Remember, it is our default
condition. It is always on the "on"
position. And it is fully on right now.
You say: "Why don't I notice it?" Let me
clarify a bit: Can you hear any sounds where you are
now? If so, that awareness of the sounds happening is
It. Its that simple, super simple, super super simple... its
an intangible Presence that is aware of
all that is.
When you awaken in the morning and you open your eyes and
look around your bedroom... are you aware of the room? What
is aware of the room? That Awareness is this
State. When you dream at night... and there is an awareness
in the dream that is experiencing the dream... that awareness is
Awareness. It is always your default awareness of
everything you experience. Its not some
special level of omniscient consciousness... its just a very
naked Clear Light Awareness... the pure noticing of all that
is. Now how can you say you can't find it? By simply
existing at the default level of being aware of whatever
experience that arises... you are in that State.
As Patrul Rinpoche said to his disciple
(paraphrased) "Can you hear that dog barking in the
village?" "That naked hearing or awareness of the
barking dog is It!" It's just that simple!
Nothing to read. No one needed to teach you any
techniques. No practices necessary. It's already
present by default! Notice this default Awareness in each moment
and everything will fall into place... all the rest of the
energies will align naturally and organically without any need
for further practice.
This is the real message of Dzogchen and why they say no
practices are necessary. It likes trying to create space by
effort or trying to grasp space with your hands. You are
already Aware aren't you? If not, how could you be reading
this?
Who is aware of these words and the ideas your mind is generating
at reading this? That awareness is Awareness and it has
nothing to do with or without mind's activities. When you
have a bad feeling... are you aware of that feeling?
That awareness of that feeling is Awareness. When you have
a depressed thought or feeling, are you aware of that
uncomfortable feeling? That awareness of that feeling, no
matter what it is, is Awareness. When you feel confused,
that awareness of "feeling confused" is It,
Awareness. It's Aware of everything without preference or
concern... its just pure and perfect Awareness... and everything
is its ornament or display non-dualistically.
Jax, posted on DzogchenPractice