meditation practices may 2009 james low

www.simplybeing.co.uk©JamesLow,2009

MeditationPractices

andDevelopingClarity

Developingclaritythroughmeditation.

Theretreatwasorganizedaroundmeditationexplanationsandinstructionstogetherwiththeirbackgroundview,followedbyperiodsofpracticeandquestions.Thefocuswason

experiencingkadag,theprimordialpurityofthemind.

JamesLow

GutensteinRetreat,Austria

15‐17May2009

TranscribedbyJoFéat

EditedbyBarbaraTerris


Excerpts

Responsetoaquestionaboutwhatpracticetodowhen.Forexample,wehavepotatopeelersandtheirfunctionistoremovepotatoskin.Butifyouhavebeautifulsmall,newpotatoesyouwouldn’twanttopeelthem.Nomatterhowbeautifulyourpotatopeeleris,itisuselessinrelationtonewpotatoes.IntheTibetantraditiontheyhaveverymany‘potatopeelers’.

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Practiceisameanstoanend.Itisnotanendinitselfsincewhateverisestablishedwitheffortwillsuccumbtotheforceofchange.

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Egoisconcernedwithmasteryandoneofthefunctionsofpracticeistoexaminetheparadigmofcontrol.Indzogchenwearemovingfromavisionofcontroltowardsavisionofcollaborationandintegration.

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To recognise and exist within and as one’s own buddha‐nature involves leaving the matrix ofcontrolandawakeningintorelaxedspaciousness,withinwhichonecandirectlyseethenatureofwhateverisoccurring.

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Emptinesisrightontheedgeoflanguage.Whenwespeak,wearealwayscreatingpartialtruths–little gestures or hints – but we have to act as if they were the whole story. And so we findourselvesinakindoftheatre,thetheatreof‘asif’.Thetheatrebeginswithsuspendingdisbelief.Whenyougotothetheatreyouknowatonelevelthatthepeoplewhoappearonthestageareactorsandarepaidmoneytopretendtobesomebodyelse.Whentheycomeontothestagewearehappytobelievethattheyarewhoevertheytellustheyare.Wewanttobetakenin;wewanttogetlost.Thisisveryprofound.

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Thisisexactlytheheartofmeditation:nottiltingawayfromthings,nottiltingtowardsthem,butjuststayingpresentwitheverythingasitoccurs.

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Themoreweseehowallphenomenaarearisingandpassing,thentheimmediacyofpresentationandtheimmediacyofself‐liberationstarttocometogether.Fromthisweseehowthequalityofthemirrorispresenteveninthemidstofmultiplereflections.

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Inthemeditation,themorewecanletgothebetteritis,whereasintheworldthemorewecanaccumulate the better. This doesn’t mean that you have to practise renunciation of externalphenomena. Rather, by relaxing into this open state again and again, you come to see thedynamic,impermanentnatureofillusoryforms–bothsubjectandobject–andthatletsusfreelyparticipateintheunfoldingmatrixoftheworldwithouttoomanyhopesandfears.’

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Wesaythemindislikeamirrorandthatit’stheemptinessofthemirrorthatallowseverythingtobe revealed, ‘I, me, myself’ is like the doppelgänger of the mirror. It’s like the mirror’s publicrelationsdepartment!Insteadofjustbeingrelaxedandfullypresentmomentbymomentitfeelsthe need to issue a press release: “This is to announce I amhappy!”… All day long these littlestatementsarebeingissued.Whoistheonewhoisissuingthestatements?Thisemptynatureoftheminditself.


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DayOne:...................................................................................................................... 1

Shamatha,shinéor‘stayingpeacefully’ ....................................................................... 1Learningtobreatheproperly ................................................................................................................................3Findingyourbreathwhenyouareagitated....................................................................................................4

Vipassanameditation:lesseningthepowerofprojection ............................................ 5Exploringembodiedexistence..............................................................................................................................6Vipassanaislikeabstractart–norepresentation .......................................................................................8Establishingemptinessthroughanalysis ...................................................................... 8Emptinessisontheedgeoflanguage .............................................................................................................10Lettinggoofmapsandassumptions...............................................................................................................12Emptinessandcompassion .................................................................................................................................13Sufferingandsamsara ...........................................................................................................................................14Thepointofbalanceisalwaysemptiness.....................................................................................................16

Tonglenpractice ........................................................................................................ 16Whywepracticetonglen ......................................................................................................................................18

DayTwo:.................................................................................................................... 19

Purefromtheverybeginning:kadag ......................................................................... 19Anemptyscreen,amirrorandapainting ....................................................................................................21

Establishingemptinessthroughdirectexperience...................................................... 22Canwetrustourselves? ........................................................................................................................................23Conditioningandidentification.........................................................................................................................24Ourlivedexperiencemomentbymomentisalsoimpermanence.....................................................25

SoundingThreeAas .................................................................................................. 26Beingabsentandbeingpresent ........................................................................................................................27Responsivityandrelationship ...........................................................................................................................28Natureofmindisfreshandnaked ...................................................................................................................29

Meditationpracticesforwhenyouaredistracted...................................................... 31Visualisingtheletter‘A’ ........................................................................................................................................31SoundingPhat! ..........................................................................................................................................................32SoundingHa ...............................................................................................................................................................33Practicingthestruggleoftheasuras ...............................................................................................................33SoundingHung..........................................................................................................................................................34

DayThree: ................................................................................................................. 34

Purityfreeofstain ..................................................................................................... 34Compassionmeansextendingourrepertoireofresponses..................................................................35Hospitalityputstheguestfirst...........................................................................................................................36Wewantthingsonourownterms...................................................................................................................37

DayFour .................................................................................................................... 39

Purityinseparablefrommanifestation:moreonkadag ............................................. 39Wearetoointelligentforourowngood........................................................................................................39

VisualisingAawithrainbowlight ............................................................................... 40Whytheseenquiriesarefundamental............................................................................................................41

QuestionsandResponses .......................................................................................... 43Thereflectionofthemirror,orthemirroritself? .....................................................................................43Integrationisnothomogenisation...................................................................................................................44Potatopeelers............................................................................................................................................................45Don’tslumpbackintotheRealmofSleep.....................................................................................................46


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DayOne:

Fromthepointofviewofdzogchen,itisimportanttounderstandwhatweusedifferentmeditationpracticesfor,sotodaywearegoingtofocusonthefunctionofsomebasicmeditationpractices.Thebasisofdzogchenisthatthereisanaturalstateofperfection,soitmightseemthatthereisapotentialcontradiction.

Practices,inbeingartificial,createastructure,whichexistsonlyaslongastheyaremaintained,sotheyaremethodsforestablishingcertainconditionsthatenableustolookmoreclearly.Ifyouimagineatheatre,youcansitinthefrontstallsclosetothestageoryoucansitattheback.Youcangouptothefirstlevel,andifit’sabigtheatreyouwillhavefurtherlevels.Whereveryouaresittingsomethingsabouttheperformancewillberevealedandsomewillbeconcealed.Ifyouareinthefrontstallsyouwillseetheperformers’facesmoreclearly,andifyouarerightinthebackrowatthetopofthetheatrelookingdown,youwillseethepatternsofmovementmoreclearly.

Thepracticeisamethodofcreatingaparticularview–aparticularpositioning–andthenonehastolookfromthatpositionandrecognisewhatisrevealed.Thepracticeisameanstoanend;itisnotanendinitself,becausewhateverisestablishedwitheffortwillsuccumbtotheforceofchange.Toimaginethatthepracticeisitselfahousethatonerestsin,istoforgetthathousesarequitevulnerablestructures.Earthquakes,floods,fires,collapsingfoundations,leakingroofs;manythingsmakeahousevulnerable.

Shamatha,shinéor‘stayingpeacefully’

Themostbasicpractice,whichissharedwithothertraditions,iscalledshamathaorshinéanditmeans‘stayingpeacefully’.Whoistheonewhoisgoingtostaypeacefully?Iam.The‘I’inthiscaseisourordinaryegoself.Thatistosay,inourordinarylifeweareveryeasilydistractedbythemanythingsthathookourattention,thingsthatmaywellbeimportantforthemaintenanceofourlife.Assoonasweinvolveourselvesinparticularkindsofactivitylikework,familyandsoon,theseactivitiesrequireconstantattentionandrectificationtobemaintained,sincetheyareunstable.Thiskindofalertattention,thereadinesstoidentifychangesintheenvironmentthatareessentialforthemaintenanceoflife,createsastateofvigilance.Thisstateusuallyhasaqualityofanxietyrunningthroughit,becauseweinvestaspectsofourselvesinourlifesituationanddon’twantoursituationtobecomevulnerable.

Thisbasicmeditationpracticeof‘stayingpeacefully’isoneinwhichwerelaxthemovementoutofconsciousnesstowardsanyobjectwhichisarising,andwedothisbyfocusingourattentiononaverysimpleobject.Wecanfocusourattentionthroughthebreath,andtheobjectcanbethemovementofthebreathjustattheendofthenostrils,wheretherearemanynerveendings.

Wecanalsofocusourattentionthroughthegaze,onanexternalobject.Itcanbeanobjectthathasnosymbolicvalue,asimplethingwiththefewesthookstowardsconceptualization.Insometraditionstheyusearoundpebble,orapainteddiscofclaywithconcentriccircles.Oryoucanuseanobjectisinvestedwithvalueforyou,suchasastatueoftheBuddha,sothatthefeelingofdevotionandfaithactsasanextrabondingontothatobject.


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Thensitinarelaxedwaylettingourskeletoncarryourweight,sothatthemusclesrelaxandinparticularthediaphragmcanmoveeasilywithaslowdeepbreathasthebellymovesinandout.Thetraditionaldescriptionisthattheshouldersshouldbeback.Thehandsareplacedinthelapwiththelefthandontopoftheright,withthetipsofthethumbsjusttouching.Thetongueisplacedonthehardpalatebehindtheteeth.Theheadistiltedslightlydownandthegazeisrunningjustalongthelineofthenose.Thefocusofthegazeiseitheronanexternalobjectthatyou’veplacedthere,oryoucanfocusonamarkonthefloorinfrontofyou.

Traditionallytheysaythatitisbesttoputyourlegsinthelotusposition.Thisisforseveralreasons,mainlytobindthepositionofthespinesothatitislesslikelytocollapse.However,sincewesitinchairsmostofthetimethatkindofpostureisoftennoteasy.Thekeythingistofeelhowyourheadisrestingdownthroughthevertebrae,andthatyouarenotstrainingyourselfinanyway.

Insomesystemstheywouldsaythatitisveryimportantnottomoveyourbody.ButaccordingtothetraditionsI’vetrainedinifyouneedtomoveyourbody,thenmoveyourbody.Ifyourkneesbecomesorethenmoveyourleg,andthendon’tstayconcernedwithyourknee,sincethefocusofattentionisnottheknee.Thefocusofattentionisthebreath.Ifyourkneegetsverysorebutyouaretryingtokeepyourattentiononyourbreath,youhavetwocompetingfociforyourattention.Youmaywishtobeadharmaheroandpushrightthrough,butitisalsopossibletocrippleyourselfbynotlisteningtothebody.

Insomepracticestheysayyoushouldkeepyoureyesopenwithoutblinking;thisisveryunkindtotheeyeball.Theeyeballiswetanditneedstoblinktospreadthewateroverthesurface.Wearenotblinkingbecausewehavebadeyes;weareblinkingbecausewehaveclevereyesthatareabletosaywhattheywant.

Whenyoutrytocontrolyourbodythisisthedomainoftheego,becausetheegoisconcernedwithmastery.Maybewetrytocontrolourchildrenandfindthatabitdifficult.Wetrytocontrolourbody,andthat’sdifficulttoo.Whenwetrytocontrolourmindwediscoverthatisalsoprettydifficult.Oneofthefunctionsofpracticeistoreallyexaminetheparadigmofcontrol.Indzogchenwearemovingfromthatvisionofexistencetowardsavisionofcollaborationandintegration.

Butinthisfirstpractice,sittingcomfortably,weadoptthisintention:Iamgoingtokeepmyattentionontheflowofbreath,oronthesimplevisualobjectinfrontofme.Wheneverotherthoughtsorfeelingsarise,withoutbeingcaughtupinthem,Iwillsimplyreturntothefocus.Assoonaswefindthemindwanderinginwhateverway,wejustgentlybringitback.Ifyourbackgetssoreandyouneedtobenditalittle,thenjustbenditwhilekeepingthefocusonthebreathorthevisualobject.

Itisabsolutelycertainthatyouwillgetdistractedsincebeingdistractediswhatwenormallydo.Thereisnopointinblamingourselves,orgettingangryorupsetthatwearedistracted.Justinthemostsimpleneutralway,recognisewhenyouhavegoneoffonajourney,andverygentlycomebacktothefocusyouhavedecidedon.Whereveryougoisnotabadplace;itissimplynotwhatyoushouldbedoingatthistime.


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It’sthesamewhenchildrenhavebeenrunningaroundintheplayground,andthencomeintotheclassroom.Theteachersays,‘OK,nowyouhavetobequiet.Intheplaygroundyourunaroundandmakelotsofnoise,andintheclassroomyouarequietandtrytolearnsomething.It’snotthatrunningaroundandmakinganoiseisbad;wejustdon’tdoitintheclassroom.’It’sthesamewiththemeditation.Thoughtsarenottheenemies.Thesearenotbadthoughtswhichareattackingyou,thesearejustthoughtsdoingwhatthoughtsdo.Thoughtsdon’tknowthedifferencebetweentheplaygroundandtheclassroomsojustbeverynicewiththem.Backtoclass!

OK,shallwetrythis?

[Shinépractice]

Thetraditionalfunctionofthispracticeistoachieveastateofabsorptioninwhichthesenseconsciousnessesareabsorbedintothebasicmentalconsciousness,sothatconsciousnessthenremainsfocusedonthesimpleobject.Withthatabsorptionthepossibilitiesofdistractionstarttorecede.Weknowthisstatefromordinaryexistence.Ifyoufindagoodnovelandyoureallygetimmersedinit,evenifsomebodyspeakstoyou,youmayhardlyhearthembecauseyouaresocompletelycaughtupinthestory.

Ofcourse,whenyouarereadinganovelorwatchingafilm,theobjectofabsorptionischangingallthetimesoyouhavebothfocusedattentionandfascination.Whenyouarewatchingyourbreath,itisnotfascinating.Thismeansthatinsteadofthepowerofthepracticeholdingyouandmakingtheabsorptionpossible,youarehavingtorelymuchmoreontheintention;themovementasaconscioussubjectof‘Iwilldothis’.It’sapullingtogetherofyourself.

Thisisaveryusefulpreparatorypracticeformeditationsthatwewilldolater,becauseitallowsustocreateasituationinwhichtherearefewvariables.Thishelpsusmakeastarttoexaminewhatwewanttoexamine.It’sasifyouwereworkinginascientificlaboratoryandyoudidanexperimentusingmanybeakers,jars,andtubes,andthenyoudidanotherexperimentusingthesameinstrumentsbutwithoutcleaningthem.Youwouldneverbeconfidentintheresultinthesecondexperimentbecausetherewouldbeacontaminationofthetracechemicalsleftinthecontainersfromthefirstexperiment.

Sothispracticeisakindofbasiccleansingwhichallowsustohavesomeconfidencethatwhenthevariousthoughtsandfeelingscome,theydon’tcatchus,theydon’tmarkus,theydon’tcontaminateusandleaveanytraces.Theyarejustcomingandgoingandwemaintainasimpleclarity.

Thedifferencebetweenthisstateofundisturbedconsciousnessandwhatisreferredtoas‘awareness’isthatitismanifestingitselfinrelationtoaparticularobject.Awareness,incontrast,isamorepanoramicstatethatisnotrestingon,norarisinginrelationto,anyparticularobject.

Learningtobreatheproperly

Oneimportantfactoristhenatureofthebreath.Ifwewanttohelpourselvesgenerallyinlife,butalsoinmeditation,thefirstthingtolearnishowtobreatheproperly.Whenour


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organismisrelaxedthebreathisdeepandslow.Youcanseethisifyouwatchacatwhenitisrelaxed.Thecathasafantasticabilitytorelaxitsmusclesandthebreathisjustdeepandslow.Thisisnotacut‐offstatebecauseimmediatelythereisasoundoradisturbancethecatisalert.

Similarlyforus,themorewecanrestdownintothediaphragm,looseningthetensioncontainedinthismuscularwall,themorethebreathcandeepen.Thisprovidesamassagingoftheinternalorgansandinparticulartheareawecallthesolarplexus.Theterm‘solarplexus’clearlyimpliesacentreofenergy,andthisisaconceptyouwillfindinmostAsianculturesaswell.Thecentreoftheenergyofthebodyistwo‐and‐a‐halffingersbelowthenavel.Whenthebreathisslowanddeepthiscentreofenergyismassagedandopened,whichprovidesareceptivitytotheexternalenvironmentaswellashelpingtheboweltorelax.Modernanatomyshowsthatthebowelisincrediblyrichinnerveendings,andsothecommunicationbetweenthebowelandthebrainbecomesrelaxedandeasy.Thesympatheticnervoussystem,anautomaticnervoussystem,isalsorelaxed.Thesympatheticnervoussystemisthewayinwhichthebodyrespondstoacallforalertness.Amessageissentuptothefrontallobesofthebrainviatheneuro‐endocrinesystemtoalertusthatsomethingisgoingon,andthatthenactivatesthefamiliarresponsesoffightandflight,orfreezeandflop.

Findingyourbreathwhenyouareagitated

Modernlifeisfullofagitationandformostofusthesesystemsarecookingonaslowburnerallthetime.InLondon,thecultofthemobilephoneisintense.Whenyouwalkdownthestreetatleastathirdofpeopleseemtobesomewhereelse;theyarenotintheirbodies,andtheyarenotconnectedwiththeenvironment.Youhavetoconstantlythinkaboutwhatthepersoninfrontofyouisgoingtodo.Thepersonwhoislookingattheirtextmessageortalkingontheirphonewhilewalkingalongtheroadisnotattentivetothefactthatotherpeoplearecomingtowardsthem.Theyhavehandedovertootherpeopletheirresponsibilityforsecurity.IfindnowthatwhenIamwalkingdownthestreet,Iamhavingtothinkaboutwhetherthispersoninfrontofmeissuddenlygoingtostopdeadintheirtracks.Theseenvironmentalprovocationscreateastateofmildagitationorhyper‐alertness.

Therefore,ifwedevelopthehabitofjustcheckingourbreathandnoticinghowwearebreathing,thiswillhelpusbeawareofhowmuchtensionwearecarryinginsideourselves.Wecanthenreturntodiaphragmbreathingandrelaxmore.Thisisimportant,notjustsothatwefeelmoreateaseintheworld,butwhenthemovementofthehormoneslikeadrenalineandcortisolareinthefrontallobes,thecapacityforreflectivethoughtisreduced.Thiscanexplainwhypeoplesometimesdon’tdowellinexaminationssinceanxietymakesyoustupid.

Anxietycanalsokeepyousafe.Ifyouarethinkingaboutthemeaningoflifeandalioncomestoeatyou,thenitisveryimportantthatyouareabletodropyourprofoundthoughtandrunveryquickly!However,ifyouareinaschoolexamthereisnowheretorun,sothefunctionoftheanxietyknocksoutthecapacitytobefullythereinrelationtoyourownlearningandthetopic.


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Anxietyalsobringsaparticulartilttohowweembodyoursenses.Acapacitytoregisterdangeroussituationsisimportant,butthatisaselectiveattention:itmeansthatthebroadest,panoramicsenseofthelivedenvironmentisnotbeingrevealedbecausewearenowpro‐activelylookingforsomething.Thismeansthatwedeprivingourselvesofalotofotherinformationthatmightactuallyreassureusthatitisokay,soagain,itisveryimportanttobeabletofindyourbreath.

Theeasiestwaytodothisistolieontheground,loosenanythingthatistightaroundyourwaist,andbreatheslowlyanddeeply.Imaginethattheairislikeabottleofwaterthatyouarepouringandit’sgoingintoyouandfillingyoufromthebottomup.Don’tfocusyourattentionontheupperchest,whichiswhereweoftenfeelthebreath;feelitinsteadinthedepthofthelungspushingdownonthediaphragm.Whenyoudothat,thepressureofthedownwardmovementofthediaphragmwillforceyourstomachout.

Asyouliequietlyontheground,justputyourhandonyourstomachandyoushouldfeelitgoingupanddown.Whenyouexhale,youbreatheoutfromthelowerabdomensothatthefinalpartoftheexhalationcomesfromtheupperchest.Themoreyouareabletodothat,themoreyouwillbeabletorecognisewhenyouaremovingawayfromit.Inthisway,itissimilartotheshinémeditationpracticethatweweredoing.

Onceyouhaveabasicconfidenceinthat,whatisalsoveryusefulistorunarounduntilyougetoutofbreath,andthensitdownwhenyouaregaspingforbreath.Youthenrelaxbackintothebreathandbringitbackslowlytoabdominalbreathing.Youcangraduallybegintobuildtheconfidencethatnomatterhowdisturbedandagitatedyourbreathisyoucanre‐centreyourselfinit.

Thisisthebestantidotetopanicattacks,butitisalsovitalforthepracticeofdzogchenbecauseweneedtohaveabasiccalmnessinthemidstofallstates.Themoreyoucanexperiencethemovementofthebreathfromcalmanddeep,tolightandagitated,themoreyoucanstarttoberelaxedandopeninthemidstofstatesofagitationbecauseyouwon’tbefeelingoverwhelmedbythem.

Inmyexperience,themainproblemthatpatientsbringtopsychotherapyisbeingoverwhelmedbystatesofdisappointment,anxiety,depressionandsoon,theincapacitytoinhabitone’sexistenceasitis.Thefeltsenseisthat‘Thisshouldn’tbehappening’,and‘Ican’tcopewiththis’;‘theobjectorsituationiswrong’and‘Idon’thavetheresourcestodealwithit’whichshowthatabadobjectandcrappysubjectcreatealotofgrief.

Ifyouhavethecapacitytoresteasilyinyourbreathyoucomebacktotheoptimalsenseofyourownresources.Youresourceyourselfbyre‐sourcing,bygoingbacktotheverysourceofyourembodiedbeing.Therefore,findingawaytoinhabityourbreathandtobeathomewithitandexperiencehowitmovesisveryhelpful.

Shallwetakeabreakhere?

Vipassanameditation:lesseningthepowerofprojection


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Nowwewilllookatthepracticecalledvipassana,calledlhag‐tonginTibetan.Lhagmeansgoodorbest,andtongmeanslooking.Thebestkindoflookingisthelookingthatletsyouseewhatisthere,soinasenseitisanattempttolessenthepowerofprojection.

Thefocusofattentionisthebody.Weallhaveabody.Thisseemslikeareasonablethingtosaybutitalsoaridiculousthingtosaybecausewedon’texistapartfromourbody.Idon’t‘have’abodyinthewaythatIcanhaveawatch.Clearly,IinhabitabodybutIamalsoinhabitedbymybody.

Thenatureoftheselfandsubjectivityisnotsomethingthatwecanavoidoncewestarttoexamineourembodiedexistence.Thebodyisafieldofexperienceproducingpleasureandpain.Thebodysupportsandisthebasisforouractivity,anditalsolimitsouractivitysincewecanimaginedoingthingsthatourbodyisnotcapableof.Ifwegetsickorwebecomeoldertherearemanythingsthatweusedtodowhichwecannolongerdo;sothementalbodyandthephysicalbodyarenotthesame.Aschildrengrowup,ifyouaskthemtoplayagametheyusedtoplayafewyearsearliertheywillfeelembarrassedandinsulted.Fouryearoldssay,‘I’mnotababyanymore!’Eightyearoldssay,‘I’mnotaninfant!’Teenagerssay,‘I’mnotachild!’Becauseofthattheydeprivethemselvesthepleasureofdoingthesethings.

Inthatway,wecanseehowmentalconstructionsexistinanongoingdialoguewiththepotentialofthisembodiedexistence.However,weoftenapproachourbodyintermsofconceptsandabstractions.Wethinkaboutourbodyintermsofsomekindofframeofreference;thiscouldbeimagesseeninafashionmagazine,ormemoriesofhowweusedtobe.Wehavethoughtsaboutourbodybutperhapslittlesenseofdirectlyexperiencingthedynamicnatureofembodiment.

Exploringembodiedexistence

Invipassanameditationwewanttoexplorethebodyasitrevealsitselfdirectly,totrytoseesimplyandclearlywhatistherewithoutcoveringitupwithournormalinterpretivecategories.Oftenourcategoriesofinterpretationhavebeenlearntinearlychildhood,ortakeninfromthecultureanddon’tfitusverywell.

Webeginthispracticeinthesamewayastheshiné;sittingcomfortablyinthesamepostureandtakingupafocusedattentiononthebreath.Whenyouhavethesenseoffocusedattention,movethatattentionfromthenostrils,thispreviouspointofattention,tothetopofyourhead.Youarenottryingtolookatthetopofyourhead,youarejustfeelingwhatisthere;youaretakinganimprintoramarkofwhatisthere.Youthentakethatattentionmovingitrightdownyourbodytoyourfeetandthenbackupagain.

Allowsensationstoregisterintheirmostraw,directform.Forexample,let’ssaythereissometensioninyourshoulder,whatwenormallymightcall‘pain’.Assoonasyouhavetheconceptofpain,categoriesoflikeanddislikeareimmediatelyapplied.‘IhaveapaininmyshoulderandIdon’tlikeit’,leadsusveryeasilyinto‘WhatwillIdoaboutit?’‘Maybeafriendcanmassagemyshoulder’...Lotsofthoughtsarelikelytoarise.


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Whatwewanttoputintoquestionisthisnotionofpain.Painisaninterpretation.Whatistherawdata–therawinformation–underlyingwhathasbeeninterpretedasbeingpain?Insteadofyourmindactivelygoingtowardswhatisoccurringandmakingsenseofit,westayopentowhatispresentingitselfandjusttrytonameitinthesimplestwordswehave.Youmighthaveafeelingoftearing,orburning,ordullness.Registerasimpledescriptionandthencontinuemovingdown,sothatthebodyisallowedtorevealitselfasitpresentsitselfwithoutyouorganisingtheinformationintoyourfamiliarcategories.Continuetoyourfeetandbackupagain.

Ofcourseifyouhavealreadydevelopedasensethatyourshoulderissore,whenyoucomebackuptoyourshoulderyouaregoingtobelookingtoseehowthepainis,asithasalreadyhookedakindofselectiveattention.Oneoftheadvantagesofnotcreatingthiscompositeimageisthatwhenyoucomebacktoyourshoulder,ifallyouhadwas‘scratching,’thereisnotmuchtobuildonandyoucanbemoreopentowhatisthere.Bringingafreshattentionmomentbymomentisveryimportantformeditation.

Ourlivesarewovenalongthisvectoroftimeanditisasifyouareweavingonethreadacrossanotherthread.Theverticalwarpthreadistimeandacrossitgoesthehorizontalwoofthreadofmovementofevents.Ourweavingisnotjustontwodimensionsbutbecomesmultidimensionalandwhenwedoublebackthepresentmomentgetslinkedwiththepastandwiththefuture.Whatwewanttodoistoavoidthisweaving,thisbuildingupofpicturesofwhatisgoingon.

Ratherthanhavetheegoastheking–theonewhoisincharge–theonewhoistellingthestoryofwhatisgoingon–ourattentionisnowmoreliketheservantjustdoinganinventoryofpossessionsintheroyalpalace.Thesearenotourpossessions;wearenotallowedtotouchthemorchangethem.Wejusthaveourchecklisttickingoffwhatisthereasitis.Thatisouronlyfunction,averysimplifiedattentiontowhatrevealsitself.

Sonowwewilldothepractice.Ifyoufindyourselvesgettingcaughtupinthoughtsjustgobacktothebreathandre‐establishaclarityoffocus,andreturntoslowlyscanningupanddownthroughthebody.Ofcourse,wearenotallthesameandeachofushasourownuniquecapacityandexperienceofbeingourselves,soyouneedtoexploreforyourselfwhatisagoodspeedtomoveat,workingoutwhatistoofastortooslowuntilyoufindawayofdoingitthatsuitsyou.

Anyquestionsbeforewebegin?

Question:Isitimportanttobeginthescreeningfromthetopofthebodyfirst?

James:Whatevertakesyourfancy.

Question:Withthispracticeareweonlyexaminingphysicalsensation,notmentalprocesses?

James:Youmightfindthatamentalafflictionislocatedinthebody.Youmight,forexample,findinyourbellysomeanxietyoragitationorinyourheartsomeworry.Thesameprinciplewouldapplyinnamingitwiththesimplestpossibleterm,theonethathasthefewesthooksforelaborationandinterpretation.


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Question:Isthispracticealsousefulforblockingoutpainlikeatthedentistorthroughtorture?

James:Itwouldn’tbethebestmethod.Ifyouweregoingtothedentistthenstayingpresentwiththepainandexploringitwouldbegoodifyouhavealotofcapacity.Butitwouldbemuchbettertorelaxintothebellychakraandkeeptheenergythererelaxedandopen.Ifyouarelikelytobetorturedwecandiscussabetterway.

OK,let’sdothepractice.

[Vipassanapractice]

Vipassanaislikeabstractart–norepresentation

Ithinkit’saveryhelpfulpracticebecausesomuchofourworldiscaughtupinrepresentations.Inthehistoryofwesternart,untilabout1850artwasmostlycaughtupinattemptsatdirectrepresentation.Ofcoursetherewereformalistic,naturalistic,andotherschools,butnonethelessintheperiodpriortophotographytheattemptwastoshowsomethingofwhatisthere.Thenwiththeimpressioniststheartistsisdepictingtheimpression,theimpactoftheenvironmentonthem.Ithinkwhenwereallygetintoapracticelikevipassanaitislikelivingaqualityofabstractexpressionism.

Thatistosay,youhaveacanvaswithcolours,andthereisnothinginparticularthatthecoloursaresayingexceptthepainterlyqualityofbeingthecolour.Ofcourseyoucanprojectallsortsofinterpretationsontothatbutthecolouritselfstartstosingandresonateifyouspendtimewithit.Youcometoexperiencetheimplicitorderofthatwhichhasnotbeenartificiallyordered.It’snotcomingintoagestalt.It’snotcreatingashapewherebyoneknowsthatthereisakindofdefinitionofsomething.Rather,thereistheimmediacyofanimpactthatisjustitself;itdoesn’timplyanythingelse.Onedoesn’tneedtogoanywherewithitorfindsomemeaninginit,soitoffersthepossibilityofrelaxingordeconstructingthewholeincrediblyinterpretivemechanismthatwehavespentsomanyyearsbuildingup.

Inthesameway,themorewedothispractice,themorewecanseethatthereisnothingtodowiththebodyexceptperhapstoinhabititorofferhospitalitytoitasanungraspable,ceaselessmovementofimpact.Wecometoseethatthereisanaturalokaynessinthis;lifegoeson,eventhoughyouarenotincharge.IfIdon’tholdittogethereverythingisstillokay.Somaybe‘Icouldhaveaholidayfrommyjobasworldemperor’!Fromthatnicepositionofaholiday,lifeissomehowmorevibrantandresponsive.

OK,wewillhaveabreakforlunchnow.

[Break]

Establishingemptinessthroughanalysis

Wewilllooknowatemptiness.TherearenowmanydiscussionsanddescriptionsofemptinessintranslationsavailableinalltheEuropeanlanguages.Therearetwomainstyles,oraspects,ofexplorationofemptiness.Oneisanalytic,theotheristhroughdirectexperiencerevealedinmeditationpractice.


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Intheformerwemight,forexample,takeaphenomenonlikeaglassandthroughexaminationestablishthattheglasshasnoinherentself‐nature.Weseethattheglassstandshoveringinthemidstofacomplexsituation.Thereisthecausalmatrixoutofwhichtheglassarose,meaningnotjustthespecificingredientsoftheglassIamholding,butthattheglassonlycameintoexistencebecausesomebodywantedittobemade.Thereisthedesireoftheowneroftheglassfactory,whichislinkedtothepossibilitiesofthemarket.Youcanseehoweachofthesepointscanspreadoutintomany,manyotherlinesofconnectionanddependence.Itcanembodythehistoryofglass‐making;itisheldinplacebythefactthatthesupportivefactorsthatstopitbeingbrokenaremorepowerfulthanthefactorsthatcouldleadtoitbeingbroken.

Theabsenceofdestructivefactorsisoftentakenforgranted.Recently,therewasabigearthquakeinItalywhereallofasuddentheearthshookandbuildingsfelldown.Buildingsaremaintainedbycertainqualitiesoftheirstructuresuchashowthewallsareinrelationtothelineofgravity,thenatureofthefoundations,thequalityofcementandsoon.Underordinaryconditionsthesefactorsofmaintenancearepowerfulenoughtoresistsmalldisturbances.However,whenanearthquakeoccurs–thevibration–thefactorofdestruction–isgreaterthanthefactorsofmaintenance.

Wetendtounderstanddestructionbythinkingthatsomethingterriblehashappened.Thesegoodpeoplegoingabouttheirordinarylives,orasleepinbed,havehadthisterribleaccidenthappentothem…Partofthatisbecausewewanttobelievethatbuildingsarestable.Wewanttobelievethatthingsstaywhereweputthemsothatwecanmakeaccuratepredictionsabouthowthefuturewillbe.

Butwhatemptinessillustratesisthatwhatappearstobeaseparateentityandthereforeself‐defined,isinfactsomethingatthemercyofmanyotherforces.Theseforcesareinvisiblemostofthetime,buttheyarealwaysinoperation.Theglasslooksstaticbecauseoftherepetitionofcertainrhythmicpatterns.Thefundamentalqualityofthemolecules,theatoms,thesub‐nuclearparticles,arethemselvessimplyvibration.Bytheoperationofthesefactorscomingtogether,theformofastableglassiscreatedandwillendureforawhile.Whenwelookatthisthinginmyhand,weseeaglass.Ifweweren’tabletodothatpeoplewouldsay,‘Oh,thispersonisabitstupid.’

Normally,wethinkitisasignofintelligencetoidentifyanobject,butfromthebuddhistpointofviewit’sakindofstupidity.Itisthestupidityofnotseeingthedynamiceventandthisisthesameforeverything.Howthisroomfeelsdependsontheamountofcloudsinthesky,ontheheating...Peoplewentoutoftheroomforlunchsothetemperaturedropped.Nowthatweareallback,ourbodiesactaslittleheaters;aftersometimethetemperaturewillgoupagain.Althoughwesayit’scold,essentiallythisisonlyhalfasentence;it’scoldatthemoment,giventhetemperatureofmybodyandmyexpectationaboutthetemperatureoftheroom.

Adynamicinterrelatedness

Thebuddhistconceptofemptinessissayingthattheentireuniverseisrelational.Therearenofixedthings;therearenotrueself‐existingentities;everythingisinter‐related,notinastaticway,butinadynamicway.Itisimpossibletoreallytalkaboutthisbecauseeverything


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isrelated.Usingatermlike‘everything’somehowconjuresuptheideathattherearethings.Whatthereare,aremomentsofexperienceandthesemomentsofexperiencecometogethertocreatepatterns.

WhenIholdthisglassup,partofthemomentofexperienceisaperception.Thevisualperceptionofthisisinfluencedbythedirectionoflightintheroomandbythenatureofyourownvision.Maybeyouneedglasses?Inwhichcasewhenyoulookattheglassyoudon’tseeitveryclearly.WhenIhadtogetglassesforreadingitwasaveryhelpfulreminderthateverythingisdependentco‐originationbecauseIalwayshadgoodeyesightandthenIhadnot‐so‐goodeyesight.Sayingmyeyesare‘good’isagainhalfasentence;myeyesaregoodforawhiledependingoncertaincircumstances.

Whenwehavetheideaofmyeyestheyseemtobelongtome,andnotonlythatbuttosomehowbeanexpressionofmyself.Thethinginmyeyesthatisnotsogoodisthemuscle,andtherelaxingofthismusclewithagemeansthatIneedglassestoread.Knowingthatitismymuscledoesn’tdomuchgoodbecauseitisnotthekindofmusclethatyoucandoanythingabout.

Inthatmomentofperception,youhavethelightintheroom,thequalityoftheeye,andwhatisperceived.Butasweweredoinginthevipassanapractice,wecanseethatglassitselfisaconcept:toseetheglassmeanstohaveaconceptof‘glass’readytoprojectontowhateverthisthingthatisinmyhand.Theglass‐nessoftheglassisnotentirelyinthisthinginmyhand,norisitentirelyjustinmyhead,butitisthecomingtogetherofthesedifferentfactors.Itisthesamewitheverythingwesee;itisnotintheobject.Weneverseeobjectsthemselves;whatweexperienceisanaspectofrelatedness.

SylvesterandIaresittinghereandwehavesomerelationship.IspeakinEnglishandthenSylvestertranslatesthatintoGerman.Wecansaythattherearetwopeopleinrelationship,andaswehaveestablished,thatisbothsimpleandstupidbecauseSylvesterisanameandJamesisaname.Thetwonamesmakelifeeasybecauseboth‘James’and‘Sylvester’arechangingallthetime.Thenaminggivesusasenseofsomethingstableandenduring.

Emptinessisontheedgeoflanguage

Thisisoneofthereasonswhyemptinessisdifficulttoreallyunderstandasanexperiencebecauseitisrightontheedgeoflanguage.Languagedealswiththeconstructionofthingsthatcanbereferredtoacrosstime.“YesterdaymorningIwasworkinginLondon.”Ifweunderstandthatsentenceitcreatesanimageofsomething.ThereisaplacecalledLondon,andthereisapersoncalledJames,whoyesterdaywasinLondon.But,ofcourse,LondonisaverybigcityandIwasonlyinaverylittlepartofLondon.MostofLondonIdon’tevenknowalthoughIhavelivedthereaverylongtime.

Inthatway,whenwespeak,wearealwayscreatingpartialtruths–littlegesturesorhints–butwehavetoactasiftheywerethewholestoryandsowefindourselvesinakindoftheatre:thetheatreof‘asif’.Thetheatrebeginswithsuspendingdisbelief.Whenyougotothetheatreyouknowatonelevelthatthepeoplewhoappearonthestageareactorsandtheyarepaidmoneytopretendtobesomebodyelse.Whentheycomeontothestagewe


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arehappytobelievethattheyarewhoevertheytellustheyare.Wewanttobetakenin;wewanttogetlost.Thisisveryprofound.

Childrenunderstandthisverywell.Sometimes,inthemorning,Iseechildrenontheirwaytoalocalschool.Iseealittlegirlagedaboutsixandshehasalovelylittledresswithlotsofchiffonunderlayers,alittletiara,andawand.Forherself,sheisamagicalprincessgoingtoschool,butsheisnotreallyaprincess.Wecouldsaythatsheisalittlegirlpretendingtobeaprincess,orwecansaysheisreallyaprincesswhohasbeencapturedbyanevilwitch,hermother,whokeepstellingherthatsheisjustalittlegirl!Sincethispersonwasbornpeoplehavesaidsheisalittlegirl,andalltheculturalreadingsaboutgenderhavebeenmassagedintohersothatshecomestobelievethatsheisagirlandsheshouldbethewaygirlsare.Thegirl‐nessofthegirlisnotinthegirl;itisintherelationbetweenthecultureandthegirl.Theformthatthegirlisabletomanifestindependsontheenvironmentinwhichsheis.Evenwhenwesay,‘inwhichsheis,’weimaginethatthereisagirlwhocouldbedippedintotheculturethewayshecanbepoppedintothebathattheendoftheday.However,wedon’tgetintoculturethewaywegetintoourpyjamas.Webecomeourselvesthroughtheinteractionwiththeculture.Thereisnot‘agirl’thatyoucanseparatefromtheculture.Evenwiththeriseoffeminismandwomentryingtotakepatriarchyoutofthemselves,theyaresimultaneouslyputtinganewkindofcultureintothemselvesbydevelopingthemselvesinrelationtonewideas,possibilities,consciousnessraisinggroups,andsoon.

Thisisthenatureofemptiness.Ourexistenceprovidesnothingtoclearlygraspsuchas‘thisiswhoIam’or‘thisiswhatIam’.Rather,weexistasthismovementofenergywithinafieldofenergy,inwhichwehavecontactwithpeoplewhocauseinsomecasesexpansionandinothercasescontraction.Wecantalkaboutthatintermsof‘Ilikethisperson’,or‘Idon’tlikethatperson’.Butgenerallythesereactionsarepriortolanguage,beingenergeticresonancesthataredependentontheparticularconstellationsofourkarmaorhistoryasitmanifestsmomentbymoment.

Whenweattendtotheimmediacyoftheexperienceofbeingwithourbody,andalsobeingwithothers,wefindpulsations.Thesepulsationsdon’tlastverylong;theyariseandpass.Theyareimpermanentandtheyarealsoself‐liberating;theygobythemselves.Amomentisthereandthenthatmomentisover.Ifconditionsareright,themomentcanberepeated,butweneverknowifamomentcanberepeatedbecausewe,asanegoself,arenotthecreatoroftheconditions.However,ontopofthat,anotherintersectinglineofemergenceisourlinguisticlevelonwhichwecansay‘IlikethatthereforeIwantmoreofit’,or‘Idon’tlikethatthereforeIwantlessofit’.

Whenweseesomethingthatwelikewesay‘Itisgood’.Thisisareallyimportantlinguisticmovethatwemake,becauseifIweretosay,‘Ilikethisglass,’Iwouldbespeakingofarelationshipwherethereissomethingimmediate,direct,andconnectedbetweenmeandtheglass.Iwouldbetalkingthenaboutme,sothestatusofmystatementrelatesjusttomeandtheglass,‘Ilikethisglass’.Fromthatthereisnobasisforsaying,‘…andsoyoushouldlikeittoo’.ButifIsay,’Thisisagoodglass’,thefeeling‐tonethatwasinsidemeisnowputintotheglassandseemstobesittingtherebyitself.SinceIhaveestablishedthatthisisa‘good’glasstheremustbesomethingwrongwithyouifyoudon’tagree!Thisisbecausethegoodnessoftheglassisnowde‐contextualisedandexistsoutsideoftimeandspace,sothisisa‘good’glassforeverandever...Nobodycandoubtitsgoodness.


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Thisisthedifferencebetweensamsaraandnirvana.Samsaraisthestateinwhichwecutoffthedynamic,energetic,ongoingrelatednessofwhatwecall‘allphenomena’.Wefindourselvesinaworldofseparatethings,internallydefined,andseeminglyenduringinthatway.Clearlythisisnotwhatweexperience.Evenifwedon’tspendmuchtimedeeplyobservingourexperienceweknowthatthisisnothowtheworldis.

Lettinggoofmapsandassumptions

ThecityIlivedinasaschoolboywasattackedbyademonforceofarchitectsinthe1960s.Thesewereaparticularlyterriblekindofarchitectswhomakehousesforotherpeoplethattheywouldnevereverliveinthemselves!Wholevastareasofthecitybuiltofbeautifuloldsandstoneweredemolished,andthepeopleweremovedfromtheirhomestonewhousingestatesmadeofcementontheoutskirtsofthecity.Theserapidlybecameveryterrible.

Mymotheralwaysusedtosay,‘Oh,they’vespoiltthecity.They’veruinedGlasgow.’Thiswastruefromanemotionalpointofview,butwhereisthecitytheyhavedestroyed?Shehadamentalimageinherheadofthecitythatsheknewfromherchildhoodandthatcityremainedherbasicmap.Althoughallkindsofone‐waysystems,flyovers,androundaboutswerebuilt,mymothercontinuedtogivepeopledirectionsintermsofthebusroutesastheyhadoperatedfortyyearsearlier,becausethatwashercity!

Thisisaproblemintakingthingsasstronglyreal.Assoonasweestablishsomething,theimpermanentnatureofallphenomenaisimmediatelyautomaticallyoperating.Weliveinthisconstantdisjunctivedialoguebetweentheworldthatweexperiencethroughoursensesandthemapsweformulateinourhead.Themorewecancomeoutofthemapandbewiththeworldasitpresentsitselfmomentbymoment,themorewehavethepossibilityofbeingmorealiveandmoreresponsive.

However,thiscomesatsomecost.Thecostisthatyoucan’trelyonyourautomaticpilot–thatmapofassumptionsandpredictionsthatwillallowyoutooperatewithoutreallyattendingtowhat’sgoingon.

WhenIwasayoungmanIusedtowalkalotinthehillsofScotland.Therewasoftenmistcomingdownoverthehills.Ifyouhaveadetailedcontourmap,whenthemistclears,youcanworkoutwhereyouare.Ifyoudon’thaveamapitcanbequitedifficultsinceallthehillslookthesameandifthemististhickitisdifficulttoworkoutyourdirection.

Inthesameway,weusethemapsthatwehaveinsideourselvestomakesenseofthesituation.Allofushavearangeofmaps.Wehavemapsfromourmother,ourfather,fromtelevision,fromschool,andfromfriends.Onceyoustartgivingupthesemaps,howwillyoubehave?Whatwillyoudo?

Whenwestarttodropourassumptions,anxietyarises,becauseoneofthefunctionsofmapsistotellyouinadvancewhatyoucanexpect.Whenyoumeetsomeoneforthefirsttimeyoudon’tknowwhattodo.Ifyoustarttogetclosertothemit’sevenmoredifficultbecauseyouthink,‘HowwillIbehave?WhatdoIwant?Whatdotheywant?’Itisdifficulttoknow.Usuallywehavesomemapsthattellus,someinterpretivematrixwehaveinourhead.Ifthesituationisintensewemightredrawourmapalittlebitsoitwillfit.Ifthe


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situationislesscertainwemaygobacktoourmapandsay,‘Eh,whatisthepointofthis?Itdoesn’tfitmymap.’

Alotofmeditationpracticeisaboutdissolving,de‐constructing,andlettinggoofmaps.Becauseofthatnewkindsofanxietycanariseespeciallyaroundthetopicof‘HowwillIknowifwhatIdoisrightorwrong?’Generallyspeaking,theworldwilltellus.Ifyoudrivedownastreetandyouaregoingthewrongwaysomebodyisgoingtotoottheirhorn.Thetruthofasituationdoesn’tlieineitherpolarity,butliesinthemeetingpointofthepolarity.

Imagineaninfinitysymbollikeafigureofeightonitsside∞;eachendpointislikeSylvesterandmeandwherewemeetisthiscrossingover,thishookinginthemiddle.Weactuallyonlymeetinthismiddlepoint.Whateverkindofconnectionwecanhavearisesbythemovingtogetherofthisqualityofenergythatopensandclosesaccordingtodifferentfactors.Thequalityofthatisdeterminedbytheopennessinthetwopolarpoints.

Forexample,ifIamtalkingwithSylvesterandenjoyingtheconversationthenifthephoneringsandSylvestergoestoanswerit,Imayfeelverywounded.Imaythinkhedoesn’tlikememuchorthatsomeoneelseismoreimportantthanme.Thiskindofnarcissisticwoundingisverypopularinlovestories:’IthoughtIwasthewholeworldtoyou...Ifyoureallylovedme,youwouldneverleaveme’.Inthisway,theclosingdown–thefixationaroundtheself‐referential,self‐reassuringneedofoneegopoint–collapsesthepossibilityofopencommunication.

Emptinessandcompassion

Tantradescribesthisastheinseparabilityofemptinessandcompassion:themoreweexperiencethelackofafixed,sustainable,definedidentityinbothourselvesandtheother,themorewecanmoveawayfromtryingtocontroltheotherpersonintoconfirmingwhowethinkweare.Wecanthenbecomefreetorespondintothesituationasitactuallyis.

WhenwesaywewanttotaketheBodhisattvaVow,saying‘Iwanttodevotethislifeandallmyfuturelivestothebenefitofallsentientbeings’,isveryeasytodoasageneralstatement.Savingallsentientbeingsisveryeasy.Tryingtosavetheonepersonthatisinfrontofyouismuchmoredifficultbecauseallsentientbeingswanttobesaved.

Wesitinmeditationandsendoutraysoflight,andtheseraysoflightdissolveintoallsentientbeings;alltheirsinsandlimitationsareremovedandtheyfeelhappy,relaxed,andsmiling.Likeaflockofbirdstheyflyupintothepurebuddhaland.Thisiscalledpractice.However,whenyoufinishyourpracticeandyoucomeoutandmeetarealpersonwhodoesn’tflyawayordoesn’twanttoabsorbyourbeautifulwords,ratherevenwantstopointoutyourmistakes,thenyouhavetherealbasisofcompassion.

Thethreecircles:emptinessofself,ofother,andoftherelationshipbetween

Fromadharmapointofviewthethingwethenhavetodoistoactivatewhatarecalledthethreecircles,whichistheemptinessofself,other,andoftherelationshipbetween.


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Thisisacentralpartofpractice.Therearetwolevelstoknowingyourlimitations.Thereisknowingyourlimitationsinprivateinwhichyoumightsitinyourpracticeorbeintherapy…Therapyisakindofprivatesituationwhereyoumighttalkaboutwhatiswrongwithyouandhowyouarelimitedandyoucanbequitehonestandopenaboutwhoyouactuallyare.

Thenthereisthesecondlevelinwhichotherpeopletellyouwhatiswrongwithyou,especiallywhentheyareangry.Thisismuchmoredifficulttoaccept,becauseinthemomentwhensomeonetellsyouthatyouarebeinglazyorselfishwhatisbeingpresentedisadescriptionofyourbehaviour.Youmightknowthattheyaredescribingyourbehaviouraccuratelybutsomehowthedescriptionseemstogorightintoyourheartandyoufeelanontologicalattack:‘Myverybeingintheworldisbeingpinned’.

Thisiswherewecanunderstandhowfarwearefromintegratingemptinessandcompassion.Thisiswhy,particularlyindzogchen,thefocusisnotsomuchondoinglongretreatsunderstablecircumstancesbutisaboutdoingareasonableamountofpracticeandtakingitintotheworld,becausetheenvironmentwillalwaysbepushingyouonthepointswhereyoureact.

Wecantakeafewminutestoreflectonwhatarethepointsaroundwhichwemostquicklyclosedown,orgetknottedordefensive,andthentrytotalkabitaboutthatwiththepersonsittingnexttoyou.

Thatmightseemlikeaveryintimatethingtodosincethesemaybethingsthatyoufeelabitembarrassedorashamedabout.ButtheBuddhahasexplainedthatallbeingshavethefivepoisons:stupidity,mentaldullness,assumptivethinking;desire,attachment,longing;aversion;anger;pride,narcissism,habitualself‐reference;jealousy,andthehabitofcomparingandcontrasting.Itismostlikelythatwhateveryoufindoutaboutyourselfwillfitintooneofthesefivepoints.Whateverfeelsmostpersonal,mostprivate,mostshamefulaboutourselvesisprobablysharedwitheveryoneelse.Becauseweallkeepithiddenitlookslikewearetheonlyonethathasitandthereforewewouldneverwanttoshowit!

Wehavetorememberthattheentryticketintothisworldis,tobeprettyfuckedup.Weareallhere,soIguessweallhadtheticket!

Wewilldothisforaboutfifteenminutes.

[Reflectivesharing]

Sufferingandsamsara

Oneoftherealgiftsofdharmaisthatitbeginswiththetruthofsuffering.Noneedtogetlostinfantasiesabouthowyourlifeis;ifyoureallylookyoustarttofeeltheanxietythatisattheheartofit.Therootofallsuffering,andtheattachmentwithwhichwetrytoprotectourselvesagainstanxiety,isignorance.Weforgetourownground,weforgetourownnature,andinnotknowingwhoweare,webecomeanxious.

Therearetwoaspects:thepersonalandthestructural.Itispersonalbecauseitishappeningtoyouandisyourstory,butthestructureisnotpersonal.Thestructureisthestructureofsamsara.Becauseofignorancethereisattachment,becauseofattachmentthereis


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confusedbehaviour,andbecauseofconfusedbehaviouryouhavesuffering.Yoursufferingisnotapunishment,neitherisitasignthatyouareabadperson.

Ifyoustickyourfingerinacandleflameitwillburnandpainwillarisefromthat.Justasweseethepoormothtryingagainandagaintoburnitselftodeath,sotheBuddhalooksdownandseeshumanbeingsflyingwithattachmenttowardsthethingsthatburnthemup.Themorewecanbeawareoftheimpersonalnatureofthecausalmatrix,themorewecantakeresponsibilityforourpart,whichistoremoveourselvesfromtheentrammelment–beingwrappedintotheconsequencesofthecausalmatrix.

Thisstructureisrecognized,onasmallerscaleinpsychotherapy.Peopleoftenentertherapythinking,‘Iamaterribleperson.Imakemistakesallthetime,andIseemtoupsetotherpeople.’Byhearingaboutthestructureoftheirchildhoodwecanunderstandhowpatternsbecameestablished.Thefactthatthesepatternshavebecomeestablishedisnottheperson’sfault,becauseatthetimewhentheywereverysmallandlivinginthatfamilysystemwhichputsuchapressureonthem,theyhadnochoice.Thatwasthelimitoftheirwholeworld.Weusethisdescriptionofthedevelopmentofneurosisthroughtimetofreethepersonfromthebeliefthattheyaretrulyandintrinsicallybad.Atthesametime,theymayhavealotofhabitswhichcausetroubleforthemselvesandothersandtheyhavetoworkonthesepatterns.

Itisthesameinrelationtosamsara.Duetothefunctioningofignorance,attachment,andalongaccumulationofkarma–karmageneratedinrebirthafterrebirthinwhichwemouldedandadaptedourselvestotheenvironmentwecameoutinto–wefindourselveshavingallthesetendencies:selfishness,pride,confusionandsoon.Thecauseofthisissimplythestructuralmovementofwhathappenswhenignorancearises.Inthatsenseitisnotourfault,becauseattheverybeginningtherewasn’tan‘us’toberesponsible.

However,whereweareresponsible,isthatwearenowinasituationwherewehaveaccesstomanydharmamethodsthatwecanlearnandapply.Wehavethischanceanditisuptoustouseitornot.Thisisveryimportant.

Whatwewanttodoistodevelopaverydelicatecuriosityabouthowwefunction.HowdoIcomeintoexistenceinthisparticularway?Themoreweunderstandhowwefunction,themorewecanmakedelicateadjustmentsinordertobelessidentifiedwiththesepatternsofarising,sinceitistheidentificationwithwhateverisarisingthatleadsusintothesituation.

Forexample,youcouldspendalldayinabigtrainstationlookingatthetrains;trainscomeandgobutyouarestillinthestation.That’sprettygoodandiseventhegoalofmeditation–nottotravelaroundsomuch!Italsohelpsglobalwarming.Youcutyourkarmicfootprintandyourcarbonfootprintatthesametime!Everytimethoughts,feelings,andhabitsariseinusandweareinit,theyaddalibidinalinjectionoranenergeticreinforcementtothestatusofthehabitualthought.

Ifyousmokecigarettes,everycigaretteyousmokereinforcesthetendencytosmokeandalsotheidentityof‘Iamasmoker’.Ifyoueventuallystopsmokingthatwon’tstopotherpeoplesmoking.Youmightbesittingoutsideinacaféandsomebodylightsacigarettenexttoyou.Thesmokefloatsbyandinsidethissmokearelittlehooksthatareclawingatyour


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brain.Youremindmyselfthatyouarenotasmokeranditgoesby,butifyoustillwanttosmoke,thenyoumighthaveacigarette.

Thisistheproblemwithtryingtorenouncetheworldbysayingyouwon’tdothisorthat.Evenifwearenotdoingit,someonewilldosomethingsimilarclosetous,andthatvibrationcaneasilysetoffthetendencyinourselvesagain.

Thepointofbalanceisalwaysemptiness

Thepracticeisnotaboutgettingridofthingsoroffusingintothembutofstayingveryclosesothatyoucanseehowthingsare,andthenmovingtowardsthemoutofafreegestureofresponse.It’saboutexperiencinginthemeditationpracticehowtobeascloseaspossibletowhateverisarisingandtodevelopperfectbalance.

SomeyearsagotherewasadocumentaryaboutaFrenchmanwhosetupahighwirebetweentheTwinTowersinNewYork.Thesetowerswerequitefarapartandhewastightropewalkingfromthetopofonetowertotheother.Hewascompletelyunprotected,havingnosafetynet,buthedidhaveanexquisitesenseofbalance.Thisisexactlytheheartofmeditation:nottiltingawayfromthings,nottiltingtowardsthem,butjuststayingpresentwitheverythingasitoccurs.Whenhewaswalkingacrossthislittlewirebetweenthesetwohighbuildingsthewindwasalsomovingandthewirewasresponsivetoeachstep,sohewaswalkinginadynamicworld.

Ithinkthisisaveryhelpfulexamplefornotblamingcircumstances.InEngland,intheautumn,thetrainsareoftendelayedandtherailwaysannouncethatitisduetothewrongkindsofleavesonthetrack!Thismentality,toalwaysblamesomethingelse,isalsowhatwebringintomeditation.Wecanblameourselves,wecanblamethethoughts,wecanblamethepracticeandwecanblametheteacher.Blamingisawasteoftime,ameaninglessmentalagitation.

Thekeythingistodevelopaclearphenomenologicalattentiontoseepreciselyhowyourowntendencyisandtoreturnagainandagaintothepointofbalance.Inthehighertantricteachingsandindzogchen,thepointofbalanceisalwaysemptiness.Thisemptinessoropennessmeansastatethatisungraspable.

Imagineyouareclimbingatreeandthenwanttowalkalongabranch;youcanseethereareotherbranchesaboveyousoifyoustarttowobble,youcanreachupandholdontoanotherbranch.Butwhenyouarewalkingalongthishighwire,therearenobranches,andsothecentralthingisnottogotoonesidetoholdontosomethingtopushyouback.Thatistosay,nottotakerefugeintheobject.Notthinkingthatmorethinkingaboutsomethingisgoingtohelpyou,butfindingawaytorestinspaceitself–toawakentotheinfinitespaciousnessofone’sownnature.Wheneveryoufeelyouaregoingoutofbalance,immediatelyrelaxbackintothatspaciousnessandthenyouarepresentjustwhereyouneedtobe.

Tonglenpractice

Wewilldoapracticenowwhichsomeofyouknowasaversionoftonglen.‘Tong’meanstogiveout,and‘len’meanstotakeinortohold.Thisisageneralmahayanapracticeinwhich


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weofferallthegoodthings,allourmerit,wisdom,virtue,andsoontoothers,andwetakeinfromallsentientbeingsallthatisdifficultandproblematicintheirexistence.

Imagineallsentientbeings–frogs,dogs,people,anykindsofbeings–andoutofyourheartimagineraysoflightspreadingoutandtakingallyourmeritandvirtueintothesebeingsandremovingalltheirimpediments.Thenimaginethatfromthesebeingscomealltheirlimitations,problems,confusions,andallthatbindstheminsamsara.Thismeltsintoourheartintheformofcloudsofdarkness,poison,sharpweaponsandsoon.

Fortunatelybeforewedothis,wehavealookatthestateofourheart.Fromtheverybeginningtheheartispure,open,andempty.Ifweimaginetheheartasthecentreofourbeing–thesiteofI,me,myself–thenwhoisthisself?ThereisaverybeautifulsongfromTheSoundofMusicconnectedwiththehillsnotfarfromwherewearehereinAustria.WhenMariaisteachingthechildrenaboutmusicalscales,shesings,‘Me,anameIcallmyself.’Thisispuredharma.WhowouldhavethoughtJulieAndrewswascapableofthat?!Becausewhatis‘me’?Aword.Thewordsitsasakindofstickaroundwhichmanythingscanbegathered.However,beneathit–becauseinthecourseofourliveswehavecalledourselvessomanydifferentthings–thereisnodeep,essential,definedpointofI,me,myself.

Wehavebeenabletobesomanypeoplebecausewehaveneverbeenjustonething;thatistosay,theheartisanopenpotential.It’stheveryemptinessofourpersonalidentitythatallowsustobesocreativeandadaptiveandtobecomewhateverisrequired.

Whenweimagineallthisnegativitycominganddissolvingintous,itisnotcomingintothenarrowpotoftheego;otherwisewewouldrapidlyfeeloverwhelmed.Rather,it’stheinfiniteemptinessoftheminditself.Althoughweexperienceourcentreashereinthemiddleofourbeing,itsnatureisinseparablefromthesky.Aswegathertogetherallthemiseryofallbeingsanditmeltsagainandagainintous,itjustdissolvesoutintonothing.

WesupportourselvesindoingthisbymakingthecontinuoussoundofAa.Aaisthesoundofemptiness,anditrelatestothebasicvowelthatrunsthroughalltheconsonantsintheSanskritandTibetanalphabets.Aaisjustabsolutepotential.AllsoundsarisefromAa,fromsomevariationoftheopen‐throatednoise.WhenwereciteAaitmeanswecandissolveallthebasisofsemanticelaborationwherebywereifytheevanescent,ungraspableformsintothisandthat.BecausethisAaistheunderlyingpotentialofallthings,itdeconstructsthembackintotheopen,emptygroundandsothesemioticwebwhichfixeseachthinginitsownplace,dissolvesintonaturalspaciousness.Thatiswhyeverythingcandissolveintoemptiness.Byrestinginthestateofemptinesseverythingcandissolvewithoutleavinganytraces.

Let’sdothispracticestandingup.Westartatfirstbyofferingthelightouttoallbeings.Youcandoitwithyoureyesopenorclosed.Youjustbringyourhandsoutlikethis[Jamesdemonstrates]andmakethesoundofAa.Itisveryopenandexpansiveandyoufeelthechestmovingwhilecompletelyofferingeverything.Andthen,aftersometime,youcanturnitaroundtopullallthenegativityofallbeingsintoyoucontinuingwiththesoundofAa.Ifyoufindyourselfbecomingagitatedbythissecondstage,thensimplydothepositive


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sharing.Itisimportanttoendonthepositivesharing.Thenjuststandquietlyforashortwhile.

Sostandupandfindenoughspace,soyoudon’thityourneighbourwhilesavingallbeings!

[Tonglenpractice]

TonglenpracticeisusedinalltheschoolsofTibetanBuddhismandisdoneinslightlydifferentways,andisunderstoodindifferentways.

Whywepracticetonglen

Onagenerallevel,wesaytonglenisdonetoreducethesenseofseparationofselfandotherandthatbyputtingotherpeoplefirstweantidoteourtendencytohaveourego‐selvesasthecentreofourconcern.Onadeeperlevelitexpressesthenon‐duality–theinseparability–ofsubjectandobject:thatwedonotexistapartfromtheworld,whichmeansapartfromotherbeings.Thewelfareofothersisourwelfare,becauseotherpeoplearewhatweencounter.

Aroundheretherearedogs,chickens,horses…andhowtheyareaffectsus.Ifweseeahorselimpingwehaveaconcern.Wedon’tusuallyhavetothinkaboutthat,wearejustconcerned.Thatisbecausethehorseisus;itisourexistence.Ourexistenceisnotcontainedinsidethisskinstructure.Ourexistenceisturningaroundthepointofspacebetweenusandbeings.

Themeetingpointbetweenselfandothersisungraspable;wecanneverfindnorcontrolitbutitisalwaysthereandalwaysmoving.Themoreweopentoothers,themoretheywillimpactus,andthemoretheyimpactus,themoreourlifeismovedoffthepathwethoughtitwouldgoon.Wethenfindourselvesinhabitingourexistenceasitpresentsitselfratherthantryingtoprotectwhatwehavealreadyestablishedasourselvesandourconcerns.

Ifweweretrulyafixedentity,tobeaffectedbyotherswouldbeatragedy.Becauseourexistenceisnotathing–itisnotsomethingalreadyfixedbutisaceaselesspotentialthatmovesintomanifestationinaccordancewithcircumstances–thenthemovementsthatwehaveinresponsetoothersbecomemovementswhichhelpustoloosenupmoreandmore,sothattheconstraintsofprediction,definition,blame,hunger,emptinessandsooncanstarttofalloff.Thesequalitiesofdesirehunger,longing,andprediction,whichhavebeengivingusasenseofdefinitionandpurposeinourlifestarttoloosenandfallaway.Themeaningofourlifeisnotthensomethinginsideus,notsomesecretselfthatneedstobeuncovered,butisrevealedtousintheinfinitediversewaysinwhichwemanifest.

Ortoputthatinanotherlanguage,themind’snaturefromtheverybeginninghasbeenopenandempty.Itisnotathingthatcanbemeasuredorquantifiedinanywayandsoonewillneverknowoneself.Youcanbeyourselfbyrelaxingintothestateofopenness,butyoucan’tknowitasathingbecauseitisnotathing.Fromthisopenstate,momentbymoment,ourenergymanifestsaspartoftheworldbecausethegroundofourselfisthegroundoftheworld.


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Thisisnotamad,narcissisticinflation.Wearenotsayingthateverythingissimplyafantasyinourmind,butrathertherelaxedopenstateofawarenessrevealsselfandotherarisingtogether.WhatIcall,I,me,myself,istheenergyofthenaturalcondition.Thatenergywillflowmoreeasilyandconnectivelyinallsituationsif,insteadoftryingtosecureitsterritory,whichaswe’veseenisanimpossibletaskbecauseithasnoterritory,itrecognisesandrelaxesintoitsownground.Westarttosee,that‘Iamemptyenergy’,andtheenergytakestheformofthesituation.

Inregardtothestill,opennature,lessismore.Thereisnothingtobebusyabout.Wedon’thavetotrytoimproveit,tocorrectit,ormakeitfunctionproperly.Itisnaturallyperfect,andtherestisenergy.

Sinceyouwerebornyou’vebeenchangingmomentbymomentandthechangesyoumadewerenotcomingoutofyou.Rememberyourfirstdayatschool.Perhapsyourmotherleftyouatthegateand,likeme,youhadlittletearscomingoutofyoureyes?Butthatiswhatmothershavetodoandlifegoeson.Youfindyourselfatschoolandyoubecomewhoyoubecomethroughthatinteraction.

So,theessentialpointsfromtoday’steachingarereallytoseethemoment‐by‐momentdynamicnatureofwhatwetaketobeourordinaryidentity.Wearenotathingbutaninfiniteresponsivenesswhosemainsupportistorestintheopenstate.Whenweforgetthisopenstatewestillneedsupport,butthenwehavetolooktoobjects,tootherpeople,andtocircumstancestotrytosupportus.Howeverbecausetheyalsoaresimplyformsofenergy,theyhavenofixeddefinitiontohelpusmaintainwhatwearetryingtomaintain.

Theheartofthisis:don’ttrytochangetheunchangingnature.Thatisawasteoftime.Anddon’ttrytostabiliseyourenergybecausethatisawasteoftimetoo.Energyisalwaysmoving.Ourlifeisalwaysmoving.Weareatthemercyofcircumstances.

Sittingintherestaurantatlunchtimetoday,Iwasatasmalltablewherethefoodcamevery,veryslowly.AfterawhileIwaslookingatmywatchand,ofcourse,manythoughtsandfeelingsarosewiththis.It’snotthatIshouldn’thavethesethoughts.It’snot,‘Oh,mymindshouldbesopeaceful.Ishouldn’tbedisturbedbyanything,’butenergyismoving.Thepeopleinthekitchenwereworkinghard.Thewaitresswasonherownandrathertired,sothefoodcomesasitcomes,andthathasconsequences.Thisishowourlifeis:energyismovingwithenergy.Ourfate,ourcapacitytodirectthings,isalwaysatthemercyofothers.

Nowweareatthemercyoftheendoftheday!Forthosewholike,tomorrowmorningatnineo’clockwewillhavesomequietsittingforforty‐fiveminutes,andthenwestartthemainprogrammeatteno’clock.

Seeyoutomorrow,ornot?Whoknows?

DayTwo:

Purefromtheverybeginning:kadag

Hereweare–anotherday–stillalive!Thefocusfortodayisonthistopicofkadag,whichisaTibetanwordmeaningpurefromtheverybeginning.Thisreferstoourownnatureandto


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thenatureofallthings.Wecanapproachthisfromvariouspointsofviewincludingdifferentmeditations.

Seeinghowlostandconfusedwecanbecome,acentralquestionforusisabouttherelationbetweenourpotentialandourobscuration?Sometimesweseemtobemainlyobscuration.Wemayfindlittleroomformaneuverandfeelasifwearetheobscuration.Thatsortofexperiencecanmakethethoughtofanyformofclarityseemsimplytantalising,becauseifIamsomessedupandconfusedhowcouldIgofromheretothere?

Inthegeneralbuddhisttradition,therearemanymethodsofpurificationbasedontheprinciplethatunlesswegetridofthisobscurationwewon’tbeabletoseeclearly.Thatisdescribedasaview,aviewbeingwhatarisesfromaparticularviewpoint:ifIamcaughtupinalotofmentalturbulenceandemotionalimpulsivity,thenthearisingsthatIidentifywithstandbetweenmeandthepossibilityofopenness,sotheyhavetoberemoved.Thatseemsfairlystraightforward.

Youmaywanttoeatbutyou’vebeenabitlazyandalltheplatesaredirty,soifyouwantacleanplateyouhavetocleanthedirtoff.Whenthedirtisoffyouwillhaveacleanplate,butifyoudon’ttakethedirtoffyouwillhaveadirtyplate.Itisobviousthatadirtyplateandacleanplatearenotthesamething.Youputyourfoodontheplateandyouthink,‘Oh,thisisdirty,’howeverbecauseofsomeactionofthehandandsomewater,thedirtcancomeofftheplate.

Thenatureofthisplateisalwayscleannomatterhowmuchdirtthereisonit.Iftheplatewerereallydirty,forexample,ifitwasapaperplateandyouputsomethingwithalotofoilonitandtheoilsoakedintothepaper,thenitwouldbeimpossibletoclean.Soalthoughweareconcernedwiththedirtontheplate,thepossibilityoftheplatebeingcleanispresentevenwhenitiscoveredindirt.

Therearetwothingshappeningatthesametime:thenaturalpurityorcleanlinessoftheplate,andthecontingentoradventitiousdirtthathascomeontoit.Thedirtwasnotalwaysthere.Itaroseduetocausesandconditionsandbecauseofthat,becauseitcameintoexistence,itcanalsopassoutofexistence.

WhentheBuddhagavehisfirstteachinghesaidthereissuffering:thereisacauseofsuffering;thereisthewayoutofsuffering,andthereisamethod,whichistheeightfoldnoblepath.Theeightfoldnoblepathiseightdifferentkindsofdetergentwithwhichyoucanwashyourplate.

Whatisimportantinthatwilldependinmanywaysonourowncharacter.Sometimesweresonatewiththeideaofthedirt,theobscuration,andtheconfusion,andwemightbecomeveryinterestedinhowthemindgetstiedinknots.Thatfascinationcantakeuscloserandclosertothedirtasadefinitionofourselves.ThenwhenwehearaboutthegoodqualitiesoftheBuddha,theBuddhaseemsfurtherandfurtherawayfromus.

Howeverwecanalsobeinterestedintheideaofthepath;ofthethingsthatwecandotocreatethepurity.Wecanlearnallkindsofmethodsandprepareforaverylongjourney.Or,wecanlistentothefactthatbasicallytheplateisclean:thereasonthatsufferingcanendisbecauseitisnottherealnature.


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Inthetraditionofdzogchenweareconcernedwithprimordialpurity–thenaturalpuritythatistherefromtheverybeginning.Ofcourse,foodcomesandgoesonplates;theplateisempty,theplatehassomethingonit,thentheplatehasthedriedupremainsofthemeal…Thisislikeourmind.Somethingarisesandwebecomecaughtupinit.Itstartstomoveawaybutweareleftwithsomekindoftrace,andthenthetraceisgone.Butifwebecomecaughtupinthetraceandthenlookforthenextthought,feeling,orsensationthatcomes,thenweneverseetheplateitself.

Formostofusourmindislikeaverybusyrestaurant;thereisalwayssomethingonourplate.Assoonasyouwakeupinthemorning–plop!Youspendthewholedayeatingandcleaningthenyoufallasleeptiredandwakeupthenextmorning–plop!Wedon’tactuallyexperiencetheplateitself.Wemayimagine,‘Oh,ifonlymymindwasclearfromthoughts.IfonlyIdidn’thaveallthisagitationthenIwouldbeabletoseewhatitis.’

Anemptyscreen,amirrorandapainting

Ifyougotothecinematheyhaveabigwhitescreenandthemovieisprojectedontothatscreen.Whilethemovieisrunningyoudon’tseethewhitescreen.Whenthemoviefinishesyoucanseethescreenbutyoudon’thaveamovie.Youwouldn’tpaymoneyandgooutonaFridaynighttositandlookatawhitescreen!Inthesameway,althoughthemindisemptyitisalsoalwaysfull.Youcoulddevelopafantasythatyoucouldturnoffthemovie.Youcouldmakeeverythingstopandthenyouwouldjusthavethiswhitescreen,butthishappensveryrarely.

However,inthecinema,whenthefilmisrunning,thefilmthatweseeandwebecomesoinvolvedin,isinseparablefromthewhitescreen.Withoutthewhitescreenwewouldn’thavethefilm.Ifweunderstandthat,withoutswitchingoffthefilm,wecanknowthatthewhitescreenisthere.Thewhitescreenisthebasisforthemanifestingofthepotentialofthefilm.Ifthisbackgroundwasn’tclear,forexampleifafilmwasalreadybeingprojectedontoabigtelevisionscreenthatwasshowingsomethingelse,theimagewouldn’tbeclear.

Whatweseeinourmindsmomentbymomentisthatnewsituationsariseandthesesituationscanonlyrevealthemselvesbecauseoftheopenpotentialofthesiteofthemanifesting.Thatpotentialisourownnature.Thetraditionalexampleforthisisamirror.Themirrorshowsreflectionsandwhateverisheldinfrontofit,itwillgiveareflectionof;thebasisforthiscapacityisthatthemirrorisitselfdevoidofanycontent.

Ifyoulookatapainting,andtherearemanyaroundhere,youwon’tseeyourownreflectionbecausepaintingsdon’treflect.Thepaintingisfullofthepainting.Butbecausethemirrorhasnocontentitshowswhatisinfrontofit.Themirrorisalwayspure,oruncontaminated,oropen;itdoesn’tcarrythetraceofapreviousreflection.

Weoftendon’texperienceourmindsinthisway.Whenwedon’thaveadirectexperienceofthisopenqualityofthemirror,wetrytomakesenseofwhatisgoingonandareverybusywithallthethoughtsthatwehave.Weaskourthoughts,feelings,andsensationstoexplainthemeaningofourlife.Weaskquestionslike:‘Whydidthishappentome?’‘Whycan’tIdothat?’‘Whyisthissortofthingsodifficultforme?’Wethinklikethisaboutourpastexperiencesandourpresentsituationandthenwethinkabouthowwecouldtrytomakeitdifferentinthefuture.Thisrequiresalotofactivity.


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Establishingemptinessthroughdirectexperience

Returningtotheexampleofthemirror,thismeansthatwelookforthemeaningofourexistenceintermsofthepatternofthereflection.Butreflectionsareveryunreliable.Thedzogchenviewistodirectlyexperiencethestateofthemirror.Youcanexperienceitthroughrelaxation,andthen,withtheconfidencethataccompaniesthat,youcanexperienceitthroughthenatureofmanifestation.

Forexample,inthestoryofPrinceSiddharthawhobecametheBuddhaofourtime,hegrewupasaveryprotectedyoungmaninasmallpalaceofasmallNorthIndianstate.Whenhewentoutsidethepalacehesawasickperson,anoldperson,andacorpse.Hecametoreflectthatalthoughhisownlifewasveryeasy,protected,andsurroundedbyonlybeautifulhealthypeople;itwasn’tthewholestory,andoldageanddeathwouldcometohim.

Onenightatapartyhesawpeopleinthepalacebeingdrunk,fallingasleep,andlyingaroundinstatesofdisarray.Theideaofagoodtimedoesn’tchangemuchintwothousandfivehundredyears!Hethought,‘Whatisthis?Theydon’tlooksoprettynow’,sohedecidedtoleavethepalace.Forsixyearshepractisedwithyogisandmeditatorslearningandapplyingmanydifferentkindsofmeditationtechniquesandasceticritualsbut,afterapoint,herealiseditwasn’tgettinghimanywhere.

Hestoppeddoingthesepracticesandsittingunderatree,hestoppeddoinganything.Hesaid,‘I’lljustsithere’.Inthatstate,bynotdevelopingnewideasabouthowhecouldgofromheretothere,bynotbeingdistractedintofurtherthoughtconstructionsoremotionalresponses,accordingtothetraditionvariouskindsofdemonsbothfrighteninganderoticcametodisturbhimandwithouttryingtoblockthemheallowedthemtobeastheyare.

IntraditionalTibetanpaintingssomeofthedemonsarethrowingspearsandfiringarrows,andasthesegetclosetotheBuddhatheyturnintoflowers.Thissymbolisesthatwhenweareinmeditationandfindourselvespersecutedbydifficultthoughtsandfeelings,bynottryingtopushtheseawayordefendingourselvesagainstthem,theyrevealthemselvesasnotasdangerousastheyappeared.Thatistosay,itistheresistance,thesenseof‘Thisisintolerable’,or‘Ican’tbearthis’,or‘Thisisverydangerous’thatcreatesmostoftheproblems.Inthatway,theBuddharecognisedthathisminditselfwasseparatefromeverythingthatwasarising,andyetalsoinseparablefromallthatwasarising.

Justaswithamirror:thereflectionisinthemirror–it’sintimatelypartofthemirrorwhenwelookatit–andyetthemirrorisnotconditionedbythereflection.Mostofthetimewedon’texperienceourselvestobelikethis.Wefeelmorelikealumpofclay,andthatwhatevertouchesusleavesamarkandshapesussowebecomeconditionedbyourenvironment.Someconditionsweexperienceaspleasantandsomewetaketobeunpleasant,sowewantmoreofthepleasantandlessoftheunpleasant.

Howeverwearenotinchargeofthesupplychainandsowehavetoreactallthetimetodifferentsituations.Fromthepointofviewofdzogchen,itisimportanttostaywithourownexperience.Wecanthink,‘OK,Ifeelmyselftobeconditionedbyevents.Ihaveahopeoraplanandwhentheplanisnotfulfilled,orwhenthesituationdoesn’tmanifestthewayIwantitto,Ifeelfrustrated,andfromthatsadnessandangercanarise.’Whatisthenatureofthis


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thought?Whatisthebasisformebelievingthatmyownthoughtisanaccurateguidetowhatisactuallyhappening?

Forexample,wehaveahopetoeatoutsideinthegardenthisevening,sowehavetokeepcheckingthesky!Weheardifferentweatherreports.Inthatway,assoonaswehaveanideaoranimaginationwearehostagetofortune.Clearly,thereisnothingwrongwiththeideaofsittingoutsidetogetherinthelovelyeveninglightdrinkingwineandeatingtogether.Butwedon’tpersonallyhavethepowertoensurethattheideacanlandonthisearth,andsotheconflictbetweenwhatwecanimagineandwhatactuallymanifestsgivesrisetogrief.

Ourhabitualconditioninggivesusparticularshapingssothatweviewtheworldaccordingtoourownprivateagenda.Insideourprivateworld,wedevelopunderstandingsofhowthingsareandwetakethattobeanaccuratedescriptionoftheworldoutside.

Thatisthebasicstructureofwhatiscalledaneurosis:somethingisarisinginourselvesanditseemstotellusabouthowthingsare.Somebodywhodevelopsaconditionlikeagoraphobiahasagreatanxietyaboutleavingtheirhouse.Thisanxietyfeelslikeanaccuratepredictorthatiftheygooutoftheirhousesomethingterriblewillhappentothem.Apartofthemmightevenknowthatthisfeelingisridiculous,andyetinthemomentofgoingtowardsthedoortheanxietyarisesanditfeelsimpossible.

Inthatway,wecaneasilyidentifywithastatethatseemstotellthetruthbut,infact,isquitedeludedandmisrepresentsthepotentialofthesituation.Iamsureweallknowthisinourselves:wehavebelievedthingsthatarenottrue,andwethoughtthatifwebelievedthemstronglyenoughthentheywouldbecometrue.Buttheintensityofthebeliefdoesn’tmakeitthecase.

Canwetrustourselves?

Partofawakening,whetheritisinpsychotherapyorinbuddhism,istorecognisethatwecan’ttrustourselves.Thethoughtsthatariseinsideus–thoughtsthatseemtotellthetruth–areoftenquitedeceptive.Thisisquitescary.WhatwillItrustifIcan’ttrustmythoughts?

Childrenaresenttoschoolyear,afteryear,afteryear.Theylearnreading,writing,arithmetic,historyandgeography,butwhattheyarenevertaughtisthattheyarequitemad!Theschoolsyllabusisbasedonrationalprinciples.Ifyoulearnthisthenyouwillgetthroughyourexam,soyoulearntowriteanessayandorganiseyourthoughtsinacoherentpattern.Essentially,whatthisdoesistocreateapersona;afalseself,inwhichwefeelinchargeoftheworldandthatweknowwhatwearedoing.Twoandtwoequalsfour.Ireallyexist.TonightIamgoingtoeatpizzainthegarden!…Thiskindofthinkingalllinkstogether.

Actually,reallifeisexperiencedmoreintheplayground,whereyouencounterthebullies,whereyoufindoutthatyourbestfriendisn’tyourbestfriendanymore,whereyouarenotallowedtoplayfootball,oryounevergettousetheskipping‐rope.Thatistosay,youencounterthediscrepancybetweenyourdesireandwhatyouget.However,whatweteachchildrenisthattheyjusthavetolearntosurvivethat;thatwhattheyneedissomeegostrengthtohelpthembecomeresilientandrobust.


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That’showwemissagreatopportunitytorecognisehowmadeverythingis;thattheconstructsthatwedevelop,andwhatactuallyarises,aresooftennotincontact.Infact,ifweattendedmoretotheactualityofsituations,andlesstothedevelopmentofrefinedconcepts,ourlivesmightmoveinabetterfashion.

Conditioningandidentification

Conditioningisnotthatsomebadpersonisdoingsomethingterribletoyou.Fromabuddhistpointofview,conditioningisalsoanaspectoftheEuropeanenlightenmentproject.Webelievetherearehumanrightsandthatthereshouldbeequalitybetweenwomenandmenandsoon,butthisisalsoakindofcondition;thisisasetofculturalconcepts.Wecometobelievethatitistrue,andnowwithgreatgenerosityandkindnessweareextendingthistothepeopleofAfghanistan.WehaveRousseaubombsandVoltairemachinegunstoshowthemthesuperiorityofourintellectualunderstanding!ThisisenormouslyimportanttounderstandbecauseinEuropeandinAmericapeoplearesoconvincedtherational,democratic,humanisticfocusistherealtruth.

Asafirststepincomingtounderstandthedzogchennatureofthemind,it’simportanttolookattheculturalconceptsthatweareidentifiedwith.Becausetheyaresofamiliartousandwehavebeensoeducatedinthem,wetakethemtobetrueandself‐existingbutofcoursetheyhavearisenhistoricallyduetocausesandcircumstances,andtheyalsoariseonthebasisofpropositions.

Forexample,inAmericatherewasacivilwar,andterribleslaughteroccurred.Attheendofthecivilwartherewasabigbannersaying‘Justicehasprevailed’.InBritainwereferto‘ourgloriousdead’.BritainisfightinginAfghanistanandeveryweeksomesoldierscomebackdead.‘Ourbravesoldiers.Theydiedforfreedomanddemocracy’,wesay.

Isaythisnotasociologycritiquebuttohelpuslookathowwebelieveallthesestoriesthatarenottrue.Ifwecanseeexternallyandinterpersonallyhoweasilywefallintoillusion,thenthatprovidesabasisforstartingtoseeinourmeditationhoweasilywearecaughtbyillusions.Wesaythemindispurefromtheverybeginning.Thatmeansourawarenessisopen–notrestingonanything–andyetwefindourselvesidentifyingwiththethoughtsthatarise.

Itisthatqualityofidentificationwhichcreatestheseemingtruthandvalidityofthethingswebelievein.Clearly,whenwelookaroundintheworldtherearemanydifferentcultures.Somepeopleputtattoosontheirbody;othersputlittlesilverringsthroughtheirgenitals.Peoplefindallsortsofwaysofsaying,‘HereIam!Thisisme!’Wecouldthenthink,‘Oh,weareallhuman.WhyshouldIbelievethatmywayisanybetterthantheirs?’

Traditionally,thisiswhatiscalled‘theunderstandingofrelativeorconventionaltruth’.Allthethingsthatwebelieveinaresocialconventions.Eventhesideoftheroadthatyoudriveonisaconvention.

Thisisthebuddhistteachingofdependentco‐origination:everythingarisesinamatrixofcausesandconditions.Nomanifestationisstronglyreal.Thebeliefsthatwehavearevalidasbeliefs,buttheydon’ttellusthetruthaboutanythingexceptthefactthatwebelievethem.


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Thinkonthekindsofconflictyouhaveinyourlife,orthethingsthatannoyyou.Isuggestthattheyareoftenbasedonbeliefs.Althoughwemayfindithardtobelievethatotherpeoplecanbelievewhattheybelieve,thatdoesn’tmakeusquestionourownbelief.Ourbeliefsgiveuscontroloveracircledrawnaroundourfeet;itdoesn’texpandanyfurtherthanthat.Otherpeoplehavedifferentbeliefs,conditioning,andpatterns.

Moreover,wearealsounreliable,becausewedon’thaveafixedsetofbeliefsbutratherwehaveawiderepertoireofthem.Thesebeliefsarepulledoutoftherepertoireandmanifestaccordingtosituations.Sometimesthatfeelslikeaproactive,intentionalthing,andsometimesit’sjustconstellatedbythestateoftheother.

Forinstance,someonemightmakesomeremarkaboutpoliticsandyousuddenlythink,‘Oh,thatcan’tberight’.Youmighthavehadnoconsciousawarenessthatyoubelievedwhatyounowsuddenlyknowyoubelieve;ithasbeenbroughtintomomentarymanifestationbytheparticularshapingoftheconversation.Thepointofthisistoseethatintermsofouregoselfalthoughweoftenfeelwehaveapanoramicclarityandunderstandthingsveryclearly,actually,allweeverhaveistheviewfromhere,and‘here’ischangingmomentbymoment.

Whatwearelookingatisalsochangingmomentbymoment.Aswediscussedyesterday,thisisthequalityofenergy,manifestingforusastemporaryconstellationsandtemporarypatternswhichinthemomentoftheirmanifestingappeartobethetruth.

Wemayfeeltiredandsay,‘Iamtired’.Ifyoureallyidentifywiththatfeelingasyousayit,itseemstodefinewhoyouare.Itistrue,butit’slikeareflectioninthemirror;ithasnoinherentstatus.Wearetiredduetocausesandconditions.Ifwegetsomerestthenwewillceasetobetired.Partofthepracticeistostartlisteningtoourselvesaswespeakandtobesuspiciousoftheintensityandcommitmentthatwebringtoourstatements,becauseallwecansayis‘Thisiswhatishappeningformenow’.Wedon’tknowifthiswillbethecaseafewminuteslater.

Whenwestarttoobserveourselvesinamorephenomenologicalmanner,notrestingonassumptionbutjustobservinghowwecomeintobeing,wefindit’smoreandmoredifficulttomakedefinitestatementsbecauseourexistenceisacomplexsystem.Foranysystemtostayaliveithastohavecommunicationoutsideitself,andtheporousmembranearoundourselveshastobequiteopeninordertoallowtheworldinandourselvesout.

Ourlivedexperiencemomentbymomentisalsoimpermanence

Thekeypointtoextractfromourdiscussionisfirstlyimpermanence,oneofthemostbasicteachingsinBuddhismandwhichyoufindinalltheschools.Impermanencedescribesnotonlythegeneralfeatureslikechangesintheseasons,changesinageandsoon,butitdescribesverypreciselyourlivedexperiencemomentbymoment.

Wehaveexaminedtheco‐emergenceoftwodomains:theimmediacyoftheever‐changingmatrixthatwearepartof;andtheheuristicinterpretivenarrativethatweavesacrossit.Yesterday,aftervipassanameditationpeoplereportedexamplesofdirectexperiences.Momentswhichwerejustthereandthengonebutwhichcanbeorganisedintoforexample,‘apaininmyshoulder’.Youmighttellsomeoneaboutthepaininyourshoulder.


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Laterontheymightask,‘Howisyourpain?’andyoureply,‘Ohyes,it’sstillthere,’butyouhadn’tbeenawareofitforanhourmaybe.

Theconceptitselfseemstohavetakenonanindependentvalidity.Thecontinuityofouregoidentityisbasedonpatterningsofsuchabstractconcepts.Theyarenotfalse:theyhavebeenabstractedfromaparticularsituation,butthentheytakeonalifeoftheirown.Forexample,farmersgrowgraininthefields.Whenthegrainisgrowingitisdirectlylinkedtothesoil.Atharvesttimetheycutthegrainandthreshtheheadsofgrainfromthestalk.Thegrainistakentothestoreandthenitgoestothebakerwhowouldmillitdownandthenstarttobake.

Oncetheharvestistakenin,thegrainhasalifeofitsown.Whenthegrainwasgrowingitwasstuckinthefieldanditcouldn’tmovebutonceyoucutitfromitsrootyoude‐contextualiseit.Ittravelseverywhereandendsupasbreadinthebakery.Wheredoesbreadcomefrom?Thebaker’sshop.Formanychildreninthecitythatistheabsolutetruth;theydon’tknowaboutthefield.Thatisapracticalexampleofthenatureofanabstraction.

Thereisnothingwronginanyofthesestages,butifwelosethememoryofthefirststageofthingsgrowingfromtheground,thentheyseemtomovearoundandtakeonalifeoftheirown.Indzogchen,thegroundorthesource,whichistheunbornnatureofthemindisveryimportant.Allthoughts,feelings,andsensationsarisefromthesameground,aswewillsee.

However,whenwedon’trecognisethat,thenwordsandconceptsseemtobeexistinginthemselvesandwerelyonthemtomakesenseofourworld.Thismeansthatweareconditioningtheenvironmentbyouruseoftheseabstractionsandwe,inturn,arebeingconditionedbyallthemessagescomingtousfromtheenvironment.

Wewilltakeabreaknowandcomebackanddosomemeditation,whichwillhopefullyilluminatethis.

[Break]

SoundingThreeAas

Thisisapracticeofrelaxingintothenaturalstate.Manymeditationpracticesaimtoconstructsomething.Howeverthispracticeisaboutrelaxingtheenergetictendencytobeactiveandtorelaxintoastateofopenawarenesswhich,likethemirror,offershospitalitytowhateverispresented,butisnotactivelyseekinganythinginparticular,norisfearfulofanythinginparticular.

Intermsofourearlieranalogyoftheplatewithalltheconditioningontop–alltheold,dried‐upfood–inthispracticewerelaxthroughtheconditioningdowntotheplateitself.Itdoesn’tmatterhowmuchrubbishisontheplatenorwhatthoughtsandfeelingsyouhave;thekeythingistoknowthedifferencebetweenthemirrorandthereflection.

Althoughthoughtsoftenconveytheimpressionthattheyarepermanentandrefertothingsthatarepermanent,lookforyourselfandseeifthisisactuallytrue.Themoreweseehowallphenomenaarearisingandpassing,thentheimmediacyofpresentationandthe


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immediacyofself‐liberationstarttocometogether,andfromthisthequalityofthemirrorispresenteveninthemidstofmultiplereflections.

Wesimplysitinarelaxed,erectplace.Thechinisslightlyraised,andtheeyesareopenrestinginthespaceaboutanarm‐and‐a‐half’slengthinfront.Weareawareofwhatisintheroombutwearenotlookingatitintermsofthespecificitem.Together,wemakethesoundAathreetimes.Aaisthesoundofemptinessandthemothersoundofallphenomena.Assuch,allthemanifestations,allthevariousprocessesthatgiverisetoourexperienceofthisroombeinglikethisorthatorourselvesbeinglikethisorthat,canjustdissolvebackintotheopenspaciousness.

Therearedifferentpermutationsofthismethod,butnowwewilldoitinitssimplestform.AswesayAa,thereisjustthisfeelingofreleasingintospaceanyidentificationwiththebody,withthepath,andwiththoughts;andthenwerestintegratedinthespaceinfrontofus.Whatevercomes,wejustletitcome;whatevergoes,justletitgo,andremainrelaxed.

Ifyoufindyourselfgettingcaughtupinthoughts,justbringyourattentionbrieflytoalongexhalationandrelaxbackintothespace.

[ThreeAapractice]

Ifyouarepractisingthisonyourownthereisnoclearlydefinedendtothemeditation,thereisjustincreasinglycomplexphenomenatokeepintegrating.Bystayingwiththemomentaryflowofexperienceandexperiencingthatabstractconceptsastheymanifestarepartofthemomentaryflow,alltheouterformsoflifecancontinuejustasbefore.Whatwecall‘subject’andwhatwecall‘object’areincreasinglyallowedtoarisetogether,andsoweapproachourexperiencenotbythinkingaboutit,butbybeingwithit.

Beingabsentandbeingpresent

Clearly,inordinarylifethereisatendencytogetlostinhabitualprojections,sotheadviceoftenistotakesometimeandtothinkaboutitandthengobacktothesituation.That’snotabadsolution;itisjustabitslowanditdoesrelyononeabstractingoneselffromthesituation.

However,indzogchen,whatwewanttodoistofinddirectlyhowwearenotthere–togettoknowhowwecheatourselvesandcheatothersbybeingabsentinsomeway.Whenwearefullypresentinthemomentwiththeother,withoutapre‐formedagendaandinarelaxedstate,thenwhateverneedstoarisecancomethroughus.

Restinginthisstateofnon‐dualityandfeelingfullyincontactwiththesituation,wetrustthatwhateverisrequiredwillarisebecauseinthisview,selfandother,selfandenvironment,arenottwoseparatethings.IamnothavingtositinmyseparateegobubblethinkingaboutwhatIwillsaytoyou.Byactuallyfeelingtheenergeticconnectionwithotherpeople,thewordsariseinaco‐emergenceinthecentreofthefieldandIfindmyselfspeaking.

Ifyouaresittinginacaféwithafriendhavinganinterestingconversation,youdon’thavetothinkaboutwhatyouwillsay.Youfindyourselfspeakingandresponding.Theconversation


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isco‐createdbybothpartiesactualpresencetogether.Whatisitthatmakesthatqualityofconversationnotpossibleinothersituations?

Responsivityandrelationship

Traditionallyitcanbeexplainedintermsofchakras,whicharecentresofcommunication;theycommunicatebetweeneachotherandalsooutintotheworld.Insomewaystheyaresimilartothemoremodernconceptofmultipleintelligence.Nowadayswedon’tjusthaveacognitiveintelligence,wecanhaveanemotionalintelligence,akinestheticintelligenceandsoon.Ifwearegroundedinourselveswefeelthingsinourbellyaboutwhowemeet.Wefeelthingsinourgenitals,ourthroats,andourheads,andveryoftenwedon’tlistentowhatthesedifferentcentresaresaying.Inchildhoodweoftenlearntooverridethisfieldexperienceinthenameoftobeinga‘goodperson’,orofpleasingotherpeople.

WhenwecomeoutoftheThreeAapracticeandrelaxourfocusinthespace,wecomemoreincontactwiththewiderenvironment.Wearecalledintoaresponsivity;theworldwilltelluswhatweneedtodo.Partoftheworldisyourbody,andyourbodymightsayitistimetomove,timeforapee,timeforacupoftea…Youregointellectdoesn’ttellyouthatyouaregoingtohaveacupoftea,butthebodytellsyou.Sensationarises;weareawareofthesensation;wemobilise;wemovetoactivityandcontactinthefamiliargestaltcycle.Theworldasoutsideandtheworldasinsidecreateamovement,whichisrevealedtoawareness.Awarenessisnotinside,it’snotoutside;youcannotlocateit.

Whenwesaythemindispurefromtheverybeginningitmeansitisemptyinnature,likethesky.Thecloudsthatfilltheskywilldisperse,andtheskywillberevealedwithouttheclouds.Theskyhasnotbeenchangedinitselfbythepresenceoftheclouds.Theskyisnotspoiledbyclouds,andit’snotimprovedbytheabsenceofclouds.We,withouregoconcerns,mightthinkwewantthesunshineandnottherain,buttheskyitself,whenitoffershospitalitytotheclouds,isnotcontorted,notconditioned,noralteredinanyway.Thisimageoranalogyisveryimportant.

WhenwesitanddotheThreeAapracticevariousformsarise;sometimestheyseemlikedarkclouds,sometimeslightandradiant.Oneisnotbetterthantheother.Ifyoufeelverytired,ifyoufeeldepressed,ifyoufeelbored,ifyoufeelstupidandfeelyoucan’tmeditate,thesestatesarenotworsethanfeelinghappy,light,andfullofconfidence.Allthesestatesarearisingandpassing.

Whenahappymomentarisesyoufeelradiant,andyouthink,‘Oh,nowIamgettingsomewhere’,butthatwillnotlastsoit’snotsoimportant.Whenyoufeeldullandstupidthatwon’tlasteither.Byremainingrelaxedandofferinghospitality,maintainastateofequanimity,ofindifference.Thisnaturalstaterequiresnothingfromanyofthesearisings.

Whorequiressomethingfromthesearisings?‘I,me,myself’.‘I’wanttohaveahappymind.‘I’wanttobeagoodboy.Whoistheonewhoiswantingthis?Whatisthestatusoftheself?Whenathoughtariseslike‘Iambored’,whoistheonewhoishavingthisthought?Ifyoufallintothethought,thethoughtseemstobeself‐proving.‘Whoisbored?’‘Iambored.’‘WhoamI?’‘Theonewhoisbored.‘Inthatwayyougoround,andround,andround.


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Thisnotionofanindividualsubjectivityislikemistletoe,whichhasasymbioticrelationshipwiththetreeitgrowsfrom.The‘I’relatestowhateveriscoming.‘I’willsayanythingaboutitself:Iamhappy,Iamsad,IamgoingtoLondon,Iamgoingtohavelunch.‘I’cansayanythingatallaboutitself,andthereasonitcansaythisisbecauseitdoesn’texistassomething.Thisisreallythecentralpoint.

‘I,me,myself’islikethedoppelgängerofthemirror

Whenwesaythemindislikeamirrorandthatit’stheemptinessofthemirrorthatallowseverythingtoberevealed,‘I,me,myself’islikethedoppelgängerofthemirror.It’slikethemirror’spublicrelationsdepartment!Insteadofjustbeingrelaxedandbeingfullypresentmomentbymomentitfeelstheneedtoissueapressrelease:thisistoannounceIamhappy!Andsoalldaylongtheselittlestatementsarebeingissued.Whoistheonewhoisissuingthestatements?Thisemptynatureoftheminditself.

The‘I’islikethemaskofJanus:onesidesmiling,onesidesad.Onesidelookstoopennessinitselfsoitissmilingallthetime,andtheothersidelookssadbecauseitisconstantlytryingtobethebossofwhatisoccurring.Thoughts,feelings,sensationsarise,andtheyare‘me’andtheyare‘notme’.Theyare‘me’becauseIexperiencethem,buttheyare‘notme’becausetheegoisnotthesourceofthem,andassoonasIbecomeawareofthemtheyarealreadyvanishing.Seeingtheemptinessof‘I’,integrate‘I’intothestateofthemirror.‘

OK,wewilldotheThreeAapracticeagain.

[ThreeAapractice]

Natureofmindisfreshandnaked

Thatisapracticeyoucandoagainandagain.Itisbestnottodoitforverylongatfirstbecausethekeypointsarenotstrainingtoachievesomethingandallowingyourselftoseethecomingandgoingofeverythingwhicharisesandpasses.

Thenatureofthemindisdescribedasbeingfresh.Althoughinthetraditiontheysaywehavebeenbornmany,manythousandsoflifetimes,theminditselfnevergetstired;itisalwaysfresh.Freshmeansit’smadeexactly,asitwere,inthismomentsinceitisnotexistinginthechainofpast,present,andfuture.Everytimeyouenterintothatstateitisjustthere–open.Itisnotbuiltonanything;itisnotdependentonanaccumulationofknowledgeandexperiencenorisitboundintotime.

Thenatureofmindisalsodescribedasbeingnaked.Inmanyofthepaintingsyouseedeitiesinastateofnakednessandthisrepresents‘notrequiringanyclothing’.Theegoalwaysneedsclothesbecausetheegohasnoself‐substanceandsoitisalwayspretendingthatitsclothesareitself.Wesay,‘Iamtired.’‘Iamcold.’‘Iamhungry.’‘Iamhappy.’Eachofthesestatementsislikeagarmentthattheegowrapsarounditself.Ifwetaketheclothesoffwearejustleftwith,‘Iam.’“Yes,butwhatareyou”“Iam.”“Oh.”Assoonasyoustarttosaysomethingyouareintoclothes;youareintoaproposition,aphilosophicalview,andsoon.

Goodthoughtsdonotimproveit;badthoughtsdonotdamageitWhenwesaythisnatureisnaked,thisreferstotheexperiencethatwhenthesemanifestations,evanescences,thoughts,andfeelingsarise,wedon’tneedtograbonto


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themasiftheyaregoingtogiveussomethingweneed.Noneofthesethoughtswillimproveus.Ofcourse,fromtheleveloftheego,itisverynicetolearnlittlestoriesandtheseimproveoursocialvalue.Beingintheworldwithothersisaqualityofmanifestationandthereforeknowledge,information,skills,alloftheseaccumulationsareuseful,buttheydon’timproveorharmthenaturalstate.

Thisisoneoftheshiftsthatmakesthemeditationdifficult.Wearesousedtoconstructingourselvesoutofthoughts,thatwhenagoodthoughtgoesbyduringthemeditationit’sverydifficultnottograbitbecausewefeelaneedtohaveit.Theonewhofeelsaneedforthethoughtisnotthenatureitself;itisanotherthought,thethoughtof‘I,me,myself’.Butthis‘I,me,myself’,doesn’twanttobeathought,itwantstobetheowner,themaster,thesourceofthoughts:‘Iamthethinkerofthoughts’.Thatitselfisathought,sothethoughtisalwaysinthisfalseconsciousness;thisbadfaithrelationshipwithitself.

Becomingnakedinthemeditationisjusttotrustrelaxingagainandagain,totrustythatawarenessitselfissufficient.Weshouldallowwhateverisarisingtobelikeawaterfall.Whenyoulookatawaterfallthewaterisplungingoveranditsomehowseemstohavepatterns,butithasnorealpatternasitmovesaround.

Threeaspects:open,immediateandparticipatingTherearethreeaspectsofmind.Oneistheopenspaciousaspect,thesecondaspectistheimmediacyofthingsjustinthismoment,andthethirdaspectisourparticipationintheflow.

Fromthefirstaspect–theopenspaciousness–howthingsarearisinginthemindisirrelevant.Thisistheheartofthepractice:nottryingtoimproveourmind,notbeingupsetiflongpatchesofdisturbedthinkingordepressionarise,butjustremainingrelaxedandopen.

Thesecondaspectistobecompletelypresentwiththepanoramicnatureoftheimmediacyofwhatarrives.Thatistosay,nottobeconcernedwithfigure‐groundcontrast.Byselectingaparticularfocusforattentionthisputstherestintothebackground,soinsteadgiveequalvaluetoeverythingonthebasisthatitisalljustreflection,amanifestationwhichisimmediatelypresentinthismoment.InTibetanthisiscalledlhundrup,whichmeansnotlookingathistoricalchainsofconstructionbutexperiencingthegivenness,momentbymoment.

Thethirdaspectistheparticipationinwhichweexperienceourselvesbeingintheworldwithothers.Itisjustthismoment,likeinthemannerofadream.Theparticipationarisesbutitisinseparablefromthesecondlevelofthereflection,andthereflectionisinseparablefromthemirror.Sotheopenground,theimmediacy,andtheparticipationareintegratedtogether.

BeingpresentinthemomentWedomeditationandthenwearetalkingtopeople;inthatstatewetrytoholdthewholefieldatthesametime.Ifsomeonespeakstouswerespond,butbybeingpresentinthemomentyoucanexperiencethearisingandthenthepassingofthis,andthenthereissomethingelse,andsomethingelse…Noneofthesemomentsarestronglyreal.Noneof


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thesemomentsdefinewhoyouare.Ifyouaredoingsomethinganditgoesbadly,thenyoumayrecognisewhatyoucandotomakeadifference,butblaming,shaming,objectification,andreificationarecompletelyunhelpful,neverthelessbeingthemselvesonlymomentsofarising.

Thisisthecentralpointintheviewofnon‐duality:nothingiscomingfromanywhereelse.Thereisnodevilpumpingbadthoughtsintoyourhead.Everythingwhicharisesisemptybynature,evenshamingandblaming.Ifyouseetheirgroundasemptythiscanbeaskilfulmeansofrelatingincertainmoments.Nothingispoisonous,butthingscanbecomequitepoisonousiftheybecomeapositioningwhichisimposedonasituationwithoutregardtoitsactualdynamicnature.

Wearegoingtotakeabreaknowandduringthebreakjustobserveyourselfwalking,talking,stretching,andeating.Don’tobserveyourselfasapolicemanwould;youarenotinvestigatingyourself,butratherjustbeingcuriousaboutyourselfinthewayasmallchildofthreeyearsorsowouldbecurious.Themorewecanobservehowweoperate,theeasieritbecomestorelaxbackintotheflow.

[Break]

Meditationpracticesforwhenyouaredistracted

Wewilldosomedifferentmeditationsnowdesignedtodealwithdistraction.Distractionoccurswhenourcapacityforawarenessgetscaughtupintheintensityofwhatisarising,anditseemsthatenergyisspeakingtoenergy.

Visualisingtheletter‘A’

Thesepracticesareinagroupcalledsem‐dzininTibetan,whichmeansawayofholdingorfocusingthemind.Weuseanobjectoffixationinordertocutthroughthemovementofdistraction,andthenwhenwestopdoingthepractice,wejustrelaxandareopen.

Inthefirstofthesepracticesweimaginethatonthetipofournoseisasmall,whiteletter‘A’.YoucanusetheTibetanletterifyouknowwhatthatlookslike,oryoucanjustimagineacapital‘A’.Asyoubreatheoutyouimaginethatthisletterisgoingawayfromyou,andasyoubreatheinitiscomingbacktowardsthetipofyournose.Youco‐ordinatethiswithyourbreathing,andyoufocusonthisgoinginandoutforaboutfiveminutesorasitsuitsyou.Thenjustsitandobservewhatimpactthishasonyou.

Wedon’tmakeanysoundwhilewedothis,wejusthaveourmovement,andthebreathwearefocusingonisthebreathcomingoutofthenostrils.

Whenyouendthiskindofpracticeyoujustwanttositquietlyandobserveifthereisanyimpactonyourownstate.Thisisapracticeyoucandoanywherereally.Ifyouareatworkandyoufeelstuckinaboringmeeting,orifyouarewaitingatanairportandtheflightisdelayed,itcangiveyouameaningfulfocus.

Oneofthefunctionsoflearningdifferentpracticesissothatyouwillneverbeinasituationwhereyouarejuststuckwaitingforsomethingtohappen.Thereisabigdifferencebetween


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beingatthemercyofcircumstancesandbeingopentowhateverarises.Intheformercasewearelikelytobecomeconditionedbywhatoccurs,soitismuchbettertoapplyameditationmethod.

SoundingPhat!

ThesecondofthesepracticesistomakethesoundofPhat!

Weusethispracticeifwearefeelingcaughtupinthoughtsoremotions.Itisparticularlyusefulformoods,becausewhenyouhaveanemotionithasakindofshapetoit.Youmightfeelangry,oryoumightfeeljealous,andtheseemotionstendtohaveaparticularfocus.Howeveramoodlikesadnessordepressionisverypervasive,likeamist,andthispracticeisverygoodforcuttingthroughthat.

Thesoundshouldbeshortandsharp.Youwanttoimagineitcomingupfromthecentreofenergybelowthediaphragm,two‐and‐a‐halffingersbelowthenavel,andcomingstraightoutthetopofyourheadsothatitcutsconnectionbetweensubjectandobjectandcreatesastateofdisorientation.

Ourtendencyisalwaystore‐orientourselves:tofindouridentityandourdirectionbycomparingandcontrasting,bylocatingourselvesinrelationtoobjects.InthispracticewekeepmakingthissoundPhat!againandagainuntilwedon’tknowwhereweare,andthenwestopandjustrestinthatstate.Youwillstillbesomewhere.Wherewillyoube?Ifyoucanseethatdirectly,thatisalreadythebeginningofthestateofcalmnessandclarity.

InmakingthesoundPhat!youwantittocomestraightupandoutofthetopofyourhead.Atfirstitmaybebettertodoitwithyoureyesclosedsothatyoucanjustgetintothisstate.Ifthesoundsthatotherpeoplemakestarttomakeyoufeelagitatedoramused,justkeepsayingitandgobackintothesoundagainandagain.WhenIsayOK,justsitquietlyandobserveyourownstate.

Ifyourownstatefeelsparticularlyfragilethenitmaybebetternottodoitsincethisisapracticefordis‐orienting,.Aswithallthesepracticesyouhavetobeawareofyourownparticularcondition.Theendresultistobeopenandaware–notlost.

Wewillstartnowanddothisforsometime.

[Phat!practice]

Youcanalsodothispracticeoutsideonyourownratherthanalltogetherinthisroom.Youwillbeabletogetintoitmoredeeplyifyouarenothearingotherpeople.Attheendwhenyoustopmakingthesound,youopenintoastateinwhichthereisnoconnectionwiththought.

Whenyoufirstdothispracticeyoumightbemoreawareoftheabsenceofsomething,becausethoughtshavebeenourconstantfriendsforalongtime.Butifyoujuststaywithoutagitation–relaxedandopen–youbecomeawareofthepresenceofaqualityofclarity.Youarepresent,butnotpresentasathoughtorasaconstruction,thereisjusttheclarityofanon‐conceptualexistence.Justthis.


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SoundingHa

WewillnowdoanotherpracticeandthisinvolvesthesoundHa.Onceagain,wemakethissoundshort,sharp,andquitequickly.Thisisanothermethodfordealingwithdistractionbecausemakingthesesoundsthemselvesareaformofmovement.Itisasifalltheaspectsofmovementthatcouldbetakingushereandthereinourdiscursivemeanderingsareconcentratedintothissound.Thereisnothingtothinkabout,toelaborateonortoconsider;wejustfullyfocusintothesounditself.ThenwhenIsayOK,wewilljustsitintheafter‐effect.

Makethesoundsharpandhard,andwithasmuchenergyaspossible.Sometimesyoucanfeelalittleembarrassedorself‐consciousinmakingnoise,butnoiseisanimportantthingbecauseithelpstoholdourfocusedattention.Byfixingonasound,itissomethingthatisverystronglythereandyetcompletelyungraspable.Makingsomevolumeishelpfulbecauseitisalsoblockingalltheothersenses,soyoufeelyourselfjustinthisworldofsound,andthenwhenweendthereisopensilence.

[HaPractice]

Thisisalsoapracticethatisgoodtodoonyourownforaslongasyoucan.Themostimportantpartofitiswhathappenswhenyoustopmakingthesound;thatyoufindyourselfexistinginastatewithfewerthoughts,astatewhichinmanywaysyoucan’tsayanythingabout.Themoreyoubecomefamiliarwiththisstate,themoreitsqualitystartstorevealitself.

Aswewerelookingatbeforeitisopen;nothingisclosingit.Ithasnolimitinspaceortime,andit’snotcovereduporrestingonanythoughts.Insomewayitlookslikenothingatall,andyetthereyouareinthemidstofit.Youarepresentbutnotpresentasyourordinaryself,notbasedonmemories,thoughts,hopes,fears,andsoon.Forthatreason,itisaveryusefulpractice.

Practicingthestruggleoftheasuras

Thenextpracticedoesnotinvolveanysound.Wesitwithourfeetflatonthegroundandourarmsaroundourknees,pullingourkneesinastightlyaspossible.Droppingourheadwerollitvery,veryslowlyandgentlyroundtotheleftandthentotheright.

Thispracticeiscalledthestruggleoftheasuras.Theasurasarejealousgodswhoarealwaysfightingwithothergodsandwhoalwayslose.Oftenwhentheylosetheygettiedupbuttheystillremainveryangry,sotheyarestrugglingtogetfree.Whentheheadgoesaroundyoucanmoveyourbodyalittlebit.

Wefocusourattentionfullyintothephysicalsensation.Youhavegottheattentionofholdingyourlegs,andthisveryslowandgentlemovementofthehead.It’sakindofhopelessstrugglebecauseyouarenotgoingtogetfree,sothereisnoneedtodoitinahurrybutyouaretooproudtostropstruggling!

Youcandoitforaverylongtime.Allthefocusisjustuponthissensationasitarisesuntilthereisnothingbutthearisingandpassingofsensation,andthatisthefixation.Westopaftersometime.


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Pleaserememberthattheneckisaveryvulnerableareaofthebody,andifyouhaveanyneckorbackproblemstakeagreatdealofcare.Wearenotactingagainstthebodyinanyofthesepractices.Wearealwayscollaboratingwithourownconditionandourownnature.

[Struggleoftheasuraspractice]

Maybeyoucanseeadifferencebetweenthesepracticesandtheoneweusedatthebeginningoftheday.

Whenweusethegeneralshamathacalmingpractice,wekeeptheattentionfocusedonanexternalpointoronthebreathandweareobservingwhatishappening.However,becauseintheseotherpracticesthemovementisoneofparticipationintheaction–wearenotstandingoutsideit–itmeansthatwehaveafixationintoonepoint,whichisanalignmentwiththeactivityasitoccurs.Formanypeoplethatismorepowerfulanduseful.

Themainthingwithallthesepracticesistodothemandfindyourownrelationshipwithyourself;whatworksandwhatdoesn’tworkforyou.

SoundingHung

Thisisamorerelaxedpractice.WemakethesoundofHungquitegentlythroughthemouthandthenose,soithasaslightnasalqualitytakingthesoundoutonthefullbreath.Hung.Hereagain,thefixationisintothesound,lettingyourwholeattentiongointothesounduntilthereisnothingbutthesound,andstayingwiththatuntilwestop.

[Hungpractice]

DayThree:

Purityfreeofstain

Linkedwiththisprimordialpuritythereisanotheraspectcalleddri‐meddag‐painTibetanwhichmeanspurityfreeofstains.Thispurityisrevealedwhenwerecognisethatourownnaturecannotbestained.

Asmanyofyouwillknow,PadmasambhavawasagreatsaintandyogifromOdiyana,whowenttoTibettohelpsecurethedevelopmentoftantricbuddhism.Itissaidthatoneofthefirstthingshedidwastocontrolallthelocalgodsanddemons.Hedidthisbyforcingthemtoshowtheirownseedsyllable.Manyofthemtooktheformofoldsoldierswithakindofbreastplatewhichwaslikeabig,brassdisc‐likemirror.Withthepowerofhismeditation,heforcedthemtoshowthisbasicseedsyllableontheirbreastplates.Hethencreatedamantraincorporatingtheseedsyllablesothatanybodywhorecitedthemantrawouldhavecontroloverthatlocalgodordemon.

Seedsyllablesasvibrationwithresonanceintheworld

Allthedeitieshaveaparticularseedsyllable:aparticularsoundoutofwhichtheirmandalaandtheirformarise.WehavebeenlookingatAaasthebasicmother‐soundoutofwhicheverythingarises.Thereistheideathattheuniverseisbasedonresonanceandaparticular


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energeticqualitythatispresentinallthingsandallbeings.Wedon’thaveonesimpleseedsyllable,wehaveverymanybecauseweareveryfragmented.

Perhaps,whenyouwereyoung,youhadbrothersorsisterswhowouldteaseyou.Usually,whenyouareyoungsomeoneworksoutwhatyourbuttonsareanddelightsinpressingthem.InEnglish,wewouldsaythattheyhave‘gotyournumber’,becauseallofusaredoinganumber.Wehaveparticularpatternsandproceduresthatwerepeat,andifsomebodyunderstandsthat,theycanuseittotheiradvantageortoouradvantage.

TheRussianthinker,MikhailBakhtinwasaliterarycriticandwrotealotabouthowhumanbeingsareconstructedoutofvoices:thatwhenwespeakwealwayshaveadialogicintention;wearespeakingtosomeone.Thepersonwearespeakingtomaynotbetheoneinfrontofus;inpsychoanalyticlanguagethatiscalledtransference.

ThekeythingregardingBakhtin’snotionisthatweareconstitutedoutofthesevoices;thatwhenwearesmallwehearpeoplespeaking,andweinternalisethesesitesorpositionsofspeechandemulatetheirvoice.Thesevoicestendtotakeonparticularlystructuredpatterns,sosomepeoplepresentthemselvesasthejoker,somepeoplepresentasthequietintellectual,somepeoplepresentprimarilyasthenice,friendlypersonandsoon.Eachofthesepositionsisawayofevokingakindofresponsefromtheotherperson.

Whenitiscomingfromus,andweseemtobesettinguptheenvironmenttoresonateaccordingtoourwish,andthatcanmakeusfeelquitepowerful.Butthatdialogicstructurealsomeansthatotherpeoplecanpositionthemselves,whichevokessomethinginuspriortoourconceptualawarenessofit.Thisisquiteahelpfulwayofthinkingaboutconditioning.

InTibetan,conditioningisdescribedinTibetanasdu‐je,whichmeanstogathertogetherorassemble,anditalsomeanstodo.Itreferstothefactthatpositionsgetconstructedoutoftheavailableresources.Whenapatternissetupitseekstofindaresonanceintheenvironmentbecausewecanonlyfullymanifestourparticularresonancesorpatternswithpeoplewhoknowhowtomakethecounter‐move.Peoplewhohaveparticularinterestsneedtobeabletoquicklyidentifyotherpeoplewhohavetheseinterests.Weidentifypeoplewhowillbringthecorrespondingaspectofourposition.

WhenPadmasambhavacametothesedemonshecalledtheirenergyintooneplace,andhefixeditandgavethemacleartask.Throughbringingoutthisbijatheycameintoaparticularform.Howeverifyouthinkofyourselfinthecourseofadayyouhavemany,manydifferentwaysyoumanifest.Perhapstravelingonpublictransport,goingintoshops,goingintowork,beingwithfriends,beingwithfamily,andineachofthesesituationsyouareconstitutedslightlydifferently.

Compassionmeansextendingourrepertoireofresponses

Weoftenobserveotherpeoplebehavinginwaysthatwecouldn’timaginedoingourselves.Somehowtheyfindawaytospeakandactinwayswecouldn’t.Theyhavetwoarms,twolegs,andoneheadandsodowe,butweacceptsomehowthattheyarefundamentallydifferent.Wedon’tthink,‘Oh,ifthey’rehumanandI’mhuman,Icouldalsodowhattheydo’.Itisatthispointthatwecanseetherestrictionoftherepertoireofourresonances,


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voices,ormoves,andthisisveryimportantifwewanttodevelopacapacityforcompassion.

Compassionmeansthatwehavetomanifestwhattheotherneedsorwhatthesituationneeds,whichmeanswehavetobebigger,broader,anddeeperthanwewouldbeordinarily.Inbuddhism,partofthebasisofrespectistoseethatallbeingshavebuddha‐natureand,ifthatisthecase,thenwhateverpatternorhabittheyhaveisnotthecoredefinitionofthemand,similarly,itisnotthedefinitionofus.

Hospitalityputstheguestfirst

Somepeoplebecomevegetarianorvegan,andifsomeonecametotheirhousetheywouldn’twanttocookanymeatforthem.Althoughinvitingsomeonetotheirhousetheyensurethattheotherpersonunderstandsitistheirhouse.Thisisthehospitalityofenteringmyworldonmyterms.

IhavespokenelsewhereaboutthestoryoftheoldGreek,Procrustes,wholivedinalittlehouseoutinthemiddleofabroadplain.Everyeveninghewouldlookoutfortravelers,andifhemetsomeonehewouldinvitethemtohishomeandofferthemabed.Hewouldgivethemsomefood,andtheywouldtalkandlaugh,andthenhewouldshowthemtothebed.Hisrulewasthattheyhadtofithisbedexactly.Iftheirbodyweretoolonghewouldcutoffabit,andiftheirbodywastooshorthewouldrackthemoutsothattheycouldstretchtofitthebedproperly.

Thisisaverygoodsymbolofalotofwhatwecall‘hospitality’.Arealhospitalityputstheguestfirst;thehostistheservantoftheguest.Thismeansthatifyoutakethebodhisattvavowandallbeingsareyourguests,youhavetolearnmanydifferentwaysofbeinginordertomakeeachofthesefeelathome.

Thisrelatestothesenseofhavingarepertoireofmovesandvoicesthatconfirmtoourselvesandtoothersthatwearewhowethinkandfeelweare.Ifyouwanttobereallyhospitableit’snothelpfultoknowwhoyouare;it’smoreimportanttoknowwhotheguestis.Themoreyouknowwhoyouare,themoreyoudefineyourpositionandyourpossibilities,andthespaceofwelcomeisalreadyforeclosed.

Thiscomesbacktopurityfreeofstains;thestainisamark,andthemarklimitsthepotential.Ifyouhaveablankpieceofpaperanythingispossible.Youcanwritealetter;youcandoacharcoalsketch;youcanworkwithacrylics,butassoonasyoumakeamarkonthepapertheinfinitepotentialoftheblankspaceisnowlimited.Andsoinordertoremainblank,therefore,ofinfinitepotential,wehavetoobserveandtrackthevariouswaysinwhichwearemarked.

Allsortsofmarksareonus:marksoffear,anxiety,pride,aneedtocontrol,aneedtobecontrolled,shyness,avoidance,narcissism,andtheimpositionofoneselfonsituations...Whenwegoaboutourdailybusinessitisimportanttoobservehowwearepositionedinsituationsandhowourpositionconstrainsotherpeopleintheirfreedomtobethemselves.Thiscanbedifficulttodo.


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WhenFreudwasdevelopinghismethod,heestablishedtheruleofabstinence.Hesaidtheanalystshouldrevealaslittleaspossibleaboutthemselvesandshouldnot,asfaraspossible,engageintheordinarysignifiersofsocialconvention.Thatistosay,theyshoulddonothingthatcouldbetakentoconfirmthatwhatisgoingtohappenisanego‐to‐egotransaction.Thenon‐confirmationofthisgeneratesananxiety,andtheanxietyopensapathtounconsciousorhiddenphenomena.Manypeopledonotwanttoworkinthisway.Theyfeelthatitiscoldandthattheanalystisnotinterestedinthemasaperson.It’strue;theanalystisnotveryinterestedinthemasaperson.Thefactthatpeoplehavebeeninterestedinthemasapersonisthebasisofalltheirtroubles!

Thisistoodifficultformostpeople.Theypreferamother’sloveandtheconfirmationthattheyareactuallygoodpeopletryinghardunderdifficultcircumstances.Thatistosay,thepatientdemandstheonethingtheanalystshouldn’tgivethem,whichisreassurance.Ifthepatientcanacceptthehardfactthattheyarecompletelyaloneinarealmtheydon’tunderstand,thenthereisthepossibilityofawakeningtoaprofoundexistentialunderstanding–ade‐centringoftheego.

Itissimilarinbuddhism.TheBuddhasayseverythingisempty.TheBuddhasayseverythingisanillusion.Thatisnotverypolitebecausepeopletrytheirbest.Somebodywenttothemarketandboughtflowerstogive.TheyareanillusionYoucouldthenask,‘Well,whybother?’Itisdifficulttofindabalance.TheBuddha’steachingisthemiddleway,betweentheextremes.Emptinessisnotnihilism.Thefactthattheflowersareimpermanentandillusoryoffersusachancetoenjoythembeforetheyvanish.Thisalsooffersusachancetoenjoyandmeeteachotherheretoday.Tomorrow,wevanish,andwhetherornotwewillmeetagain,wedon’tknow.Whilewearehere,arewereallyincontactwitheachotherornot?Beingopentotheillusoryandungraspablenatureofthingsisveryhard.

Question: WhyshouldIbeopentosomeoneiftheyaregoingtoleaveme?

James: Whynot?Everyoneisgoingtoleaveussoonerorlater...maybeinfiftyyears...maybeintenyears...maybeinoneday.

Question: ButIonlywanttoinvestmyselfinaplacethatIknowissecure.

James:Thisisthelogicofthemarketplace:fairexchangeisnorobbery.Marketingandworkingoutwhatisthereturnonmyinvestmentisaprimewayofmaintainingconditioning.Wetakephenomenaasstronglyrealandthenwetrytoensurethatitmanifestsintheformthatisbestforus.

TheBuddha’steachingisthatallphenomenaareimpermanentandillusory,andyou,theonewhoislookingforbenefit,arealsoimpermanentandillusory.That’sveryhard.Allofourlifeisbuiltintheotherdirection.Wewanttokeepourjob,wewanttokeepourfriends,wewantpeopletolikeus…Weputalotoftimeandenergyintodevelopingourselvesinparticularwaysthatwethinkwillbesociallyacceptable.

Wewantthingsonourownterms

Basically,asFreudindicated,thisisbecausewearelookingforreassurance.Wewanttobelovedbutwewanttobelovedonourterms,asweare,thatistosay:loveme–lovemy


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condition.ButwhentheBuddhalovespeople,helovestheirbuddha‐natureandheisnotveryinterestedintheircondition.Veryoftenthethingwhichforusismostfascinatingaboutourselvesisexactlythatwhichgetsinthewayofanykindofawakening:thevariousstructuresandritualsofourlives,thefamiliarhabits,resonances,voices,inclinationsandsoon.

Weneedtostarttoobservewhatisthelimitofmyself?WhydoIturnawayfromthis?Sometimesweturnawayfromthingsbecauseitdoesn’thelptheother.Insuchasituation,wehavetoreflectonthepurityofourmotive?Wasourintentionprimarilyforourselves;thatwewanttosaysomethingorestablishsomethinginordertomakethesituationthewaywewantit.

Againandagain,wehavetoobserve,whyisitsoimportantformethatlifeisstructuredinthisway?WhowouldIbeifmylifewerenolongerstructuredinthisway?Aswediscussedearlier,thetraditionaldescriptionofourtruenatureis‘purefromtheverybeginning,notrestingonanything,notrequiringanycoveringorsupport’.Whenwelookatourordinarysenseofselfweseeitisonehundredandeightydegreestheopposite–quiteclosedin,fragile,andneedingendlesssupportandmaintenance.

Themoreweseethefaultsandlimitationsofidentifyingwithtransient,impermanentsituations,themoreweareableinthemeditation,whenthoughtsandfeelingsarise,justtoletthembethere.Wedon’tneedthem.Theegoneedsthembecausetheegoisathoughtandthoughtsgetlonely,whichiswhytheyalwaysgooutingroups.Butwhoistheonewhoisexperiencingthethought?Relaxintothatstate:thisistheminditself;itisnotathought,notafeeling,notasensation.Themindisnotcreatedbytheseanditdoesn’tneedthem.

Inthemeditationthemorewecanletgooffthebetteritis;whereasintheworldthemorewecanaccumulate,learn,andknowhowtouse,thebetterourmindbecomes.Thisdoesn’tmeanthatyouhavetopractiserenouncingexternalphenomena.Rather,byrelaxingintothisopenstateagainandagainyoucometoseethedynamic,impermanentnatureofillusoryforms,ofsubjectandobject.Doingthatletsusfreelyparticipateintheunfoldingmatrixoftheworldwithouttoomanyhopesandfears.

Ifyouasktheworldtogiveyouheaven,that’saverybigmistake.Theworldwillgiveyoutheworld.Youeatalovelydinnerandthenextdayyouhaveagoodpooh;thatiswhathappensintheworld.Thedeliciousfoodwasvanishingasyouateit.Ifyoudidn’teatit,itwouldbeofnobenefitforyou;yetassoonasyouputitinyourmouthithasvanished.Theaestheticqualityofourexistenceisrevealedthroughaparticipation,whichaltersthefieldofexperience.

Inthatway,bynotaskingimpermanentchangingphenomenatobestable,weclingtothemless.Havinglessexpectationofthem,wedon’tspendourtimeconditioningtheenvironmentandbeingconditionedbyit.Thismanifestsasthesecondformofpurity:thepurityfreeofstain.

OK,sonowwewilldoonefinalThreeAapractice.Ifyouwanttogoout,youcandomoremeditationintheforestbyyourself.WedotheThreeAapracticeandjustrestintheopenspace.


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[ThreeAapractice]

DayFour

Purityinseparablefrommanifestation:moreonkadag

Wecometothelastpartofourtimetogether,andwewillcontinuewiththeworkofstabilisingthesenseofkadag.Thisisnotathingthatyoufindonceandthenhave;itismoreamodeofbeing,astateofawakening,andsomethingtoreturntoagainandagain.

Yesterdayweexaminedthenatureofconditioningandourhabitsofidentificationwithenergy,asiftheywereaseriesoftrueentities.Eachtimewecomeintothisidentificationwithathought,afeeling,orasensation,thereisthereaffirmationofthetrueexistenceofourselfandsimultaneouslythelimitationofbeingcutofffromawarenessoftheground.Acentralpointhereisourwillingnesstoidentifywithalimitasifitwasthetotalityofone’sexistence.Attachmentisnotastablestate;it’sthismoment‐by‐momentfusingintotheenergythat’sarising,whereenergyclingsontoenergyandcreatesthesenseofaunique,precise,fixed,enduringentity.Aswelookedyesterday,thesenseof‘I’facesintwodirections.Itisboththelinkwiththeinfinitegroundandthepointofentryintoidentificationwithmomentaryphenomena,soitalwaysstandsatthecrossroadsofsamsaraandnirvana.

Thereisatraditionalsayingintheviewofdzogchenthat‘thereisonegroundandtwopaths’.Everythinghasthesamebasicground,whichisthisopendimension;themirrorlikestate,whichisourownnature.Thetwopathsarethepathofintegrationofthereflectionwiththeground,or,thepathofintoxicationwiththereflection.Thisintoxicatedstatehasthesamegroundastheawakenedstatebutitdoesn’ttakeyouanywhereelse,anditdoesn’tcreateanythingtrulyself‐existing.Butwhileweareinit,itisasifweareindeedinthislimitedconditionedstatemovingthroughtimeonthebasisofcauseandeffects,karmaandsoon.

Itisveryimportanttohaveadirectexperienceofyourowninfinitenaturesothatwhentheexperienceof‘I’arisesyouobservehowitisthemovementofthemind;itisnottheminditself;it’snotthetrueidentity.

Wewilldosomepracticetoinvestigatethis,butinvestigatingitinaveryrelaxed,openway,byseeingratherthanlooking,becausewearenotlookingforsomething.Wearenotlikeabirdwatcherintheforesttryingtoseeararebird,butratherinarelaxed,openwayjustseeingwhatisoccurringandstayingwithwhatyouseesothatitrevealsitself.

Wearetoointelligentforourowngood

Onceagain,wehavetoseethatwearealltoointelligentforourowngood.Ourmindsgosoquickly,thatassoonaswegetasenseofwhatsomethingis,weleapontothenextthing.Wetendtorestonanideaandcometoaconclusionasiftheideawouldtellusthetruth.Wedon’thavetobesoactive.LikethegreatinterrogatorinDostoevsky’s,Crimeand


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Punishment,hesimplywaits,andRaskolnikovcomesthroughthespaceofferedtohim,intotherevelationofhisowncomplicity.

Inthesameway,withouttryingtoprosecutethefalsityofyourmind,remainrelaxedandopenandobserveverypreciselyhowthoughtsarise,howyouaretemptedtorestonthem,andhowthethoughtthenleaves.Wakeuptothedeceitfulnatureofthoughts;theyalwaysoffermorethantheycandeliver.

VisualisingAawithrainbowlight

WewillstartinasimplewaywiththeThreeAapractice.However,thistime,inthespaceinfrontofus,wecanimagineasmall,whiteletter‘A’surroundedbyrainbowlightaboutanarmandahalf’slengthinfrontofyou.

Sittingintheusualway,lettheweightrestthroughtheskeletonsothatthemusclescanrelax.Theheadisslightlyraisedandthegazeisopenintothespace.Somepeoplecanvisualiseveryeasilyandforothersitismoredifficult.Forourpurposes,thefeelingtoneismoreimportantthantheprecisevisualisation.

TheAaasemptinessrepresentstheawakenedmindofallthelineages.Itisthequalityofallourteachers,sothatwhateverpracticesyouhavedone,inwhateverlineage,cancometogetherinthissimplepoint.WereciteAathreetimes,andintegratethestateofourspaciousheartwiththespaceinfrontofusintheformoftheAa.ThenlettheAadissolve.Restinspace,andjustgentlyasabackgroundinterestholdthequestion:wheredoesthemindrest?

Wheneveryoufindasolutiontothis,orwheneveryouseemtofindastablesite.thenjuststaywiththat,notidentifying,notpushingitaway,justremainwithitandseewhathappens.Continuedoingthatwithwhateverseemstoofferyoutheplaceorsitefromwhichyouoperateasastateofawareness.

[ThreeAapractice]

Aswehavelookedbefore,itisbettertodothatkindofpracticeforashortperiodoftimesothatyouarenotgettingintostrainingormakingeffortand,againandagain,observethesiteoftheself.Whenyourecogniseitsimpermanence:thefactthatallthatmanifestsinthemindisself‐liberating,thentheegofunctionisrevealedverydirectlytoyouasjustamomentofenergy.Itisnotwrongorbad–youdon’thavetogetridofit–it’sjustnotwhatitappearstobe.Ifyoutakeitatfacevalue,athowitpresentsitself,thenyouwillbeenmeshedinthefantasyofstableentities.

Themoreweobserve,themorewefindthateverythingthatcouldbeus,vanishesandyetwearestillhere!Whatisthatqualityofstillbeinghere?Thisistheclarityofawareness:thecapacityofthemindtoilluminatethefieldofexperience,yettheonethingitcanneverilluminateisitselfasanentity.Theclaritywhichshowseverything,cannotbeshownitselfbecauseitisnotathingwhichenterstheworldofobjects.


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Again,weseetheindestructibleprimordialpurityofthemindexistingnotassomethingapartfrommanifestationbutinseparablefrommanifestation.Itispervasive.Everyexperience,goodorbad,isjustanaspectofthisgroundclarity,andyetitnevercoversnorcontaminatesthegroundclarity.

Sonowlet’sgobackintothepracticeandthistimewewillfocusparticularlyonwhatistheshapeofthemind?Thisiswhyitisarealadvantagetodothepracticewithyoureyesopenbecause,asyouknow,ourtendencyistoseeourselvesaslivinginsideourbody.Whenyouaresittinghereyouhearthenoiseofthetraffic,sometimesbirdsaresinging,peoplearemoving,andinourordinaryunderstandingwewouldthinkthattheseareeventshappeningoutsideourmindcomingintous.

Relaxingintotheopenstate,justobserveinaverycalmwaywhatisarisingandwhereyouareyouinrelationtoit.Thenstaywithwhateverconclusionyoucometoandseewhathappenstothat.Haveyouestablishedanythingthatcanendurethroughtime,oristhatjustanotherconceptualelaboration?

Againandagain,recognisethenatureofthefalsesolution;wedon’thavetoremoveit,weobserveitgoingfreebyitselfandthisbringsustothestateofthepurityfreeofstains.Whenwealloweachofthesepropositionstocomeandgobyitselfyoufindthattheyleavenotrace.Andwhentheyleavenotrace,manifestationandtheopenpurityofthemindareinseparableasthenaturalradiance

WewilldotheThreeAapracticeagainlookingforthedimension,theheight,thewidth,whatisoutside,andwhatisinside.Lookagainandagainatwhateverconclusionyoucometoandwhenyoufindtheseconclusions;justseewhattheyactuallyare.Theywillshowthemselvesdirectlytobereliableorunreliable.Youdon’tneedtocheckoutyourconclusionthroughreadingsomebook.Ifyoustayrelaxedandopen,themindwillshowitself.

[ThreeAapractice]

Whytheseenquiriesarefundamental

Ifyouarenotusedtodoingthiskindofpracticeitcanbequitedifficult,becausetheobjectsweareattendingtoareverysubtle.However,theyarefundamentalenquiriesforvariousreasons.

Thefirstreasonisthatinlearningtolookinthiswaywedevelopacalmopennesswhichallowswhateverisarisingtobethereandrevealitself.Thisislinkedwiththequalityknownasdang,whichisthecapacityofthemindtoexhibitwhateverarises.

Traditionally,itiscomparedtoacrystalballbeingplacedonapieceofcolouredcloth.Theballinitselfhasnocolour,butithasthequalityofallowingitselftobesuffusedwiththecolourthatitisplacednextto.

Whenwerelaxandopenandasoundarises,ononelevelitappearstobe,forexample,amotorbike,andifyoustarttothinkaboutityoucanevenseethedirectionthemotorbikeisgoing.Ifyouknowaboutmotorbikesyoucanimaginethesizeoftheengine.Howniceitwouldbeonasunnydaytobeonamotorbikeinthemountains.Youmightthenrecognise


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thatmeditationisawasteoftimeanddevoteyourlifetoholidays!Thisisthepathofconceptualelaboration.

However,ifwestaywiththesounditselfasitarisesand,withthebackgroundtrainingthatwehavebeendoinginvipassana–notstronglybuildingonthenatureofsound,nothavingtodefineitasthisorthat–itthenmovesoutofthespace.Likethecrystalball,weofferfullhospitalitytothisarising,andthenitgoes;itdoesn’tleaveanytraceanditdoesn’tneedtobemanaged,edited,orreactedto.

Westarttoseethatthecolouriswithinthecrystalball,andthesoundisarisingwithinthemind.Ifamotorbikesound,whichfromaconceptualpointofunderstandingismaybetwokilometresaway,seemssimultaneouslytobeinsidethemind,thenwhatisthedimensionofthemind?Bystayinginthepractice,theexperienceofbeingintheworldwillilluminatethenatureoftheworld.

Returningtothisonegroundandtwopaths…Ononepathweallowphenomenatoshowthemselves,andontheotherpathwetellphenomenawhattheyare,accordingtotheknowledgeandconditioningthatwehave.Onthefirstpathweexperiencedirectlythemanifestingandself‐liberatingofeverykindofphenomena,andonthesecondpathwearecondemnedtoalwaysbeingbusytryingtomakesenseofwhatisgoingon.Wehavebeendoingthelatterpathformanylifetimes,soforthepurposeofpracticeweneedtotilttowardstheformerpath.

Howeverthegoalisintegrationbecausethatisthequalityofthenaturalcondition:theconceptualunderstandingisalsopartofthemanifestationoftheground.Ifwerecognisethis,thereisnolimittoobscuration!Thekeythingistogobackintothepracticeagainandagainuntilyouhaveyourowndirectexperience.

Wewilldothepracticeagainnow.

[ThreeAapractice]

Thatparticularareaofexaminationisveryhelpfulforbeingabletoseparatethemindfromwhatarisesinthemind,andtoawakentothenatureofthetimelessstate.

Aslongasouridentityislinkedintotheprocessofthoughts,feelings,andsensations,orisconcernedwithcauseandeffect,thenwecanseetheparticularlinesthroughwhichthepatternsofouridentitycomeintobeing.Buttheminditself–awareness–doesn’tcomefromanyplaceanddoesn’tgotoanyplace,butratheristhefieldwithinwhichallthismovementoccurs,amovementwhichitselfdoesn’tcomefromanywhereorgotoanywhere.

Thisisthebasisfortheawakeningofnon‐duality,sospendingtimewiththissimpleareaofenquiryisveryhelpful.Ifyoufindthisconfusingthenit’simportantnottostruggle,becausewhatistherewillnotrevealitselfthroughstruggleoreffort.Itisbettertogoforawalk,saysomeprayers,andcomebackintoastatewhereyouhavemoreopennessandconfidence.Then,verygently,takeuptheenquiryagain.

Wewillhaveabreaknow,andthenwewillhavesometimeforquestionsandthoughtsbeforeweend.


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[Break]

QuestionsandResponses

Thereflectionofthemirror,orthemirroritself?

Question:Inthismeditation,istheonewhoiswatchingorinvestigatingthethoughtsthereflectionofthemirror,orthemirroritself?

James:That’saveryinterestingquestion.Atfirst,ofcourse,it’sjustthereflection,becausewestartthepracticeandthenwemaybegetabitdistractedandthenweremember,‘Oh,Ishouldkeepaneyeonthis’.

Gradually,however,themorewedoit,thenaturalclarityofthestateofthemirroritselfistheonethatisilluminatingwhatisthere.Inordertofacilitatethatmovementacross,wewanttodothepracticeinastenderandgentleawayaspossible.Mostofushavequiteatendencytocriticism,blaming,judgingandsoon,aswellastendenciessometimesofambitionandaneedtogetthingsright.Allthesesubtletendenciesorflavourscancometoinflecthowweaskthequestion,sothatthereisakindofoverintensityoraccelerationinsideit.

Imagineagymnastwhoisleapingoverahighhorseanddoingatwirlintheair.Whentheyland,theyhavetolandstablywithoutwobblingormovingforward.Theyhavetohaveabeautifulperfectioninthemovementthroughspacesothatthelandingisjustaneasefularriving.

Inasimilarway,withpractice,welearnhowtoholdthesequestionsasifweweretuningastringedinstrumentlikeaguitar–neithertootightnortooloose.

Inmeditationtherearetwomainproblematicdirections.Oneiscalled‘sinking’,inwhichourclaritystartstofuseintowhateverisoccurring.Theotherisexcitementoragitation,inwhichmanyideasaremanufacturedveryquickly.Itcreatesasensethatsomethingishappening,butactuallyitisadistractionandittakesusfurtheraway.Atfirstwehavetobeabitactiveotherwisewewillforgetwhattodo,butgraduallytheclarityofopenreceptivitystartstobeongoingandthatisthebasisfromwhichitismucheasiertoseewhatisgoingon.

Weliveinaculturewhichhasbeendominatedbya‘willtopower’–the‘cando’attitude–butjustbecauseyoucandosomethingdoesn’tmeanyoushoulddoit,andpartofwhatwehavetopracticeisbeinguseless.Allthethoughts,alltheelaborations,alltheinsightswecoulddevelop,wedon’tneedtodevelop.Wedon’thavetobuildourbuddha‐nature;it’snotcreatedoutofourthoughts,nomatterhowwonderfulandshiningthesethoughtsmaybe.Thisisthereallysubtlerenunciation:tofreelyacceptthatenergywilltellusaboutenergy.Itwillnottellusaboutthegroundofenergyandsopatternsofthoughtsthemselveswillneverbeabletodescribeorilluminatewhatisthere.

Inthetradition,wehaveninelevelsoftransmission.Theseareoftencondensedintothreelevels.ThereisthedirecttransmissionoftheBuddha’smind;thesymbolictransmissionofthevidyadharasorthosewhoareawake;andthespokentransmissionforordinarypeople.Asyoucomeintothisthirdleveloftransmission,whichiswoveninwithlanguage,allthe


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complexitiesofsemioticelaborationcomeclosetothedharmateaching.Everywordwesayevokesmanyotherconstellationsofassociationandpossiblemeaning.Therefore,thetransmissionoccursthroughwords,symbols,anddirectlyinthemeditationpractice.

Ourgoalinpracticeistomovefromlanguage,whichispartofmovement,towardsstillnessandsilence,andthenbackagainasanintegratingforce.But,firstofall,wehavetoletgoofourattachmenttoturbulence.

Anyotherthoughtsorquestions?

Integrationisnothomogenisation

Question:Whenyouaskedustolooktoseewhereisthemind,itwascleartomethatmymindwashighupaboveme.IknowthatthisisconnectedtomychildhoodwhenIhadsometraumaticexperienceandIlearnedtogotoahigherlevel.

Nowit’sadoubleexperience;itcanbeverynicetobeupsohighaboveandinthisstateofmindyoucanseealot,buttheotherthingisthatyouarenotconnectedwiththebody.Whatisthebestwaytodealwiththis?

James:Whatyouaredescribingisakindofdissociative,protectivesplittingfromtheimpactofsomekindoftrauma.Ofcourseoneofthefantasiesthatweoftencarryisthatweexistinasimpleway–thatwearejustonething–buteverybodyhasmultipleaspectstothemselves.Weareincoherent.Ifweweremorecoherenttheworldwouldbepersecutory.Forinstance,attheendofthisvillageyouwillseethatsomebodyhasbuiltaverybighouseandtheyhaveputalargemetalfenceallthewayaroundit.Theydon’tlivethere;thisisasymboloftheirsuccess.Havingestablishedwhotheyare,theynowhavetoprotectit,andthebestwaytoprotectitistokeepeveryoneout.Ifwewanttorelatetootherpeople,partofthatistoacceptthatwearecalledintobeingindifferentways.

Fromthatpointofview,itisnotthatthesetwoaspectsneedtosomehowcomeintobeingone.DuetocausesandconditionsIfindmyselflikethis,andduetoothercausesandconditionsIfindmyselflikethat.Whoistheonewhoisawarethat‘NowIamlikethis’,and‘NowIamlikethat’?Themoresubtleattentiononecanpaytothesestateswithoutjudgingthem,thentheonewhoisofferingthatsubtleattentionisthesiteofintegration.

Integrationisnothomogenisation;itisnotlikeputtingeverythingtogetherinablenderandmakingonetaste.Evenasordinarypeople,wecanneverknowwhowearebecausewearealwaysbecomingaccordingtocausesandcircumstances.However,beingathomeinthatco‐emergentbecomingcanhelpustofeelathomeintheworld,sincethetraumathatcausesthedissociationisonewhichcannotbeworkedwith.

Whenweareyoungwedon’thavethecognitiveskills,thesocialsupportandsoon,butgraduallywecanstarttoofferhospitalitytoallthepartsofourselves.Tohavethecapacitytohaveanoverviewisveryuseful.Whenthesubmarineisunderthewateritcanputuptheperiscopeandhavealookaround.

Soyouhaveapersonalperiscope!Atleastyougotsomethingoutofwhatwasprobablyaprettyshittyexperience!Alotofwhatweareconcernedwithishowtomakefriendswiththedifferentaspectsofourselves.

Asyoucanseefromthethangkapaintingonthewall,Padmasambhavahaseightmainmanifestations.Padmasambhavaisalwaysrepresentedasverypowerfulandableto


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manageanysituation,buthedidn’tholdontoafixedsenseofhisidentityandtrytoestablishhimselfinthesamewayinallcircumstances.Heshowscompletelydifferentforms.

Whentraumacausesustotakeondifferentformsitisterriblethatsomeforcewedidn’twanttohappenmadethathappenforus,butthepositivesideisthatitshowsusthecreativityandthepotentialformultiplewaysofmanifesting.

Fromtimetotime,onanordinarylevel,wegetsick.Whenwearesickwearenotwell.Wecanthink,‘Oh,Idon’twanttobesick,Iwanttobewell.’Butit’samazingtobesick!Whenyouhaveacold,waterdribblesoutofyournose–thisisamazing!Thebodymightshiveralittlebit,andifyoustaywiththeexperience,thisiswhoyouare.

Tobeathomehoweveryouareisthebestpreparationfordeath.Inthecourseofadaymanydifferentthingshappentousandimpactus.However,veryoftenthesethingsaredeniedbecausewehavethenarrativeofthecontinuityof‘I,me,myself’asIknowmyselftobe.Thisnarrativegivesusasensethatwearemorecoherentthanweactuallyare,andbecauseofthatwefeelwehavesomethingfixedwhichwecancontain.Whenpeopleareinthatsituation,movingtowardsdeathisdifficult.

Somepeopledieinsuddenaccidents,orillnessesofvariouskinds.Somewaysofdyingwilltakeyouintothegentlecareofdoctors,whichisnotnecessarilythebestenvironmenttodiefromadharmapointofview.Thatistosay,ifwearesurprisedinourdailylifewearegoingtobeahellofalotmoresurprisedwhenwedie.

Experiencingthesestatesinyourselfandbecomingmoreawareofthedifferentstates,youcanstarttoseehowonestatestartstoblossomoutanddissolves,andthensomeotherstatecomesalong.Thisisgoodpreparationforthedeathprocesswherewefindourselvesbecomingsomethingwedon’trecognise:‘IamnotwhoIwas’.Atthatpointwecanask,‘Whyisthishappeningtome?Thisshouldn’tbehappeningtome’,butthisisnotveryhelpfulsinceitishappeningtous,andit’sirreversible.

Themoreyoucanobservehowyourlivedday‐by‐dayexistenceissomethingmovableandchanging,onestatetoanother…onceyoumoveintothedeathprocessitwillbethesame.Andwitheachtransformation...hereIam...hereIam...hereIam...

Anyotherquestions?

Potatopeelers

Question: YesterdaywedidsomepracticesusingthesoundsHungandHa.IamwonderinginwhatcontextIwouldusethesedifferentpractices,andwheredoesthisleadme?

James:Accordingtothetradition,therearesomegeneralguidelinesonwhentouseeachofthepractices,butwehavetorememberthateachofthesepracticesisamethod.

Forexample,wehavepotatopeelersandtheirfunctionistoremovepotatoskin.Butifyouhavebeautifulsmall,newpotatoesyouwouldn’twanttopeelthem.Nomatterhowbeautifulyourpotatopeeleris,itisuselessinrelationtonewpotatoes.IntheTibetantraditiontheyhaveverymany‘potatopeelers’,andthegeneralopinionofmanyTibetanteachersisthatallwesternpeopleareoldpotatoeswithverythickskins!Sotheyofferthespecialngondropotatopeelerwhicheveryoneshoulduse.


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IdidaretreatinTsoPemaanddidmanykindsofdifferentpracticesincludingprostrations.AttheendoftheretreatItoldmyteacherwhatIhaddoneincludingtheprostrations,andheasked,‘Whydidyoubother?Isaid,‘IthoughtIhadto.’Andhesaid,‘Ohyes,youthoughtyouhadto.’Ireplied,‘Itsaysinthetextthatwehavetodothat.’Hesaid,‘Butdidyouaskyourselfifitwasdoingyouanygood?Whatisthepointofmeteachingyoudzogchenifyouwanttobestupid?’

So,intheenditisuptoyou.Allthemethodsaregoodbutonlyyouliveinyourskin.Nomatterhowmuchknowledge,experience,andintuitionsomeoneelsehastheyarealwaysworkingwithageneralpictureofhowtheotherpersonis.

Howeverwhatwehavebeenlookingatalotatovertheselastfewdaysisthedynamicnatureofourexperience;itischangingmomentbymoment.Thekeythingistotryallthepracticesandgetasenseofhowtheyfunctioningeneral,andthenapplytheminyourownrangeofstatesandfindoutforyourselfiftheyarehelpfulornot.

Partoftheproblemisthatwewantsomeonetotellushowtodothings;thisisthepositionofthechildinrelationtotheparent.Manydharmatextstalkoftheguruortheteacherasthefather,butwhenyougettothedoorofenlightenmentithasasignonthetopthatsays:“Adultsonly”!

Anyotherthoughtsorquestions?

Comment:Inanswertothequestionwhatdoesthemindreston,Icametotheconclusionthatitissilence.Butaswellassilencethereissound,sothereistheconnectionbetweensoundandsilence.

James:Thekeythingisthatwhenyouhaveasenseofthemindassilence,itishoveringonakindoffulcrum.Itcouldmoveintobeingaconcept:‘Itissilence’and‘NowIknowthatitissilence’,oryoucantiltitbacktobeingtheexperienceandjustbethesilence.

Themoreyoucanrestinthatstateitself,themoreitisimpossibletosayanythingaboutit.Thenyouwillexperiencethatallsoundiscomingoutofthatstateofsilence,andthatyouarethesourceofallsound,butthisyouisnotsomethingthatcanbegrasped.Beingisnotanentity.

Ithinkthekeythingisgointotheexperience.Butthoughtisathief;itisalwaystryingtostealsomething;italwayswantstohavesomethingtotakeaway.Ifyourestinthesilencethereisnothingtotakeaway.

Don’tslumpbackintotheRealmofSleep

Iwilljustsayalittlemoreinrelationtothegroundespeciallyinrelationtocompassion.Wewillsoonbedispersingfromthisplaceandgoingondifferentkindsofjourneysintodifferentkindsofenvironments,butmostprobablytheseenvironmentsarenotparticularlysupportiveofpractice.Howarewegoingtomaintainthevalueandtheusefulnessofwhatwehavebeenexploringheretogether?

Themostimportantthingistoexplorethenatureofenergy.Whatwehavehadhereissharedexperience.Yourjourneyisanexperience.Whenyougethomethatisalsoanexperience.Ifyouimagineputtingyourkeyinthefrontdoorandyouthenarriveinafamiliarspace.


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ThisistheRealmofSleepbecauseeverythinginyourhousewilltrytopullyoubacktotheassumptionsyouhaveaboutyourself.Itcanbequitecomfortingtobeamongfamiliarobjectsandpeople,eveniftheyareannoying.Iftheyareannoyingwhenyougetback,theywereprobablyannoyingbefore,andthat’salsopartofyourworld,sowedon’tneedtochangetheexternalcircumstances.Wearejusttryingtoseethingswithfresheyes,bringingthisqualityofopennessandgenerosity.

Whenyougointothekitchen,youturnonthetapandwatercomesout.Thisisamazing.Yoursofthandtouchesapieceofmetalandwatercomesout.Youopenthefridgeandalightcomeson,andthislightshowsyouthingsthatyoucaneat–amazing–wonderful!

Theworldweliveinisincredible.Therearetreesandinthetreestherearelittleanimalswithfeathers,andtheygo,‘tweet,tweet,tweet.’Whydotheydothat?Wedon’tknow,andwealsodon’tbelieveMr.Darwineither.WhytheyarehereissomethingtodowiththeBuddhaandnottodowithevolution.Materialismisthedeathofdharmaandit’saverybigdisease:itexplainseverythingbyremovingthevaluefromeverything.

Comingbacktothefreshnessofthesituation,youopenadrawertogetoutyourclothesforworkandyouseesomethingred;youcanjustbewiththered.Whatisred?It’sanexperience.[Althoughofcourseweneedtouselanguagetomediateourpassageintheworld,wewanttoredirectittotheplaceofbeingasupport,becauseformanyofusitbecomesthedirector.]

Languageidentifies,explains,andilluminates,butthisisonlyhalfthestory,becauseitisalsoobscuringandtheobscurationisveryimportant.Ifwenolongerfeeltheimpactoftherednessofthered,orareamazedthatcarswork,thenthevitalityofbeingaliveasaparticipantintheworldcollapsesandwebecomesomebodywhoismanagingourlife.Thishasakindofpowertoit,butalsoquitealotofdullness.

TheBuddha’sbasicteachingsonimpermanenceareaninvitationtobeconnectedinafreshandvitalwaywithourexistencemomentbymoment.Whenweseethateverythingischangingitalsobecomeseasierforustochange.Ifalorryorbusisstuckonaflatroadyouwouldneedmanypeopletopushitinorderforittomove,butifit’sonaslopeandit’salreadystartingtomove,it’smucheasier.

Thisisexactlythesamequestionasinpsychotherapy;neurosisgivestheimpressionofstasis,sothestateseemstobethesamebutactuallyit’sdynamicandrepeating.Themorewecanseethatwearedoingourneurosis–thatit’snotsomethingwhichimprisonsusbutsomethingthatweareco‐creatorsof–thenitbecomesmucheasiertochangeit.

YouwillfindthatthefirstteachingsoftheBuddhaanddzogchengointhesamedirection:‘Allthedharmamethodsarehelpfulbutourlivesareshort.Wedon’thavemuchtime,sothekeythingistofindpracticesthatworkforyou.Youcanonlydothatbygettingtoknowyourself.Therefore,thekeypointistoobserveyourselfandnotlimityourselfbyassumptionsaboutyourself.’

Thedifferencebetweenbuddhasandordinarybeingsisthatbuddhasknowtheyarebuddhasandhumanbeingsdon’tknowtheyarebuddhas.Wedon’tknowwearebuddhasbecausewethinkwearesomethingelse,sowehavetoenquireintothatprocessofthinking‘Whydowethink,andhowdowethink,wearewhatwetakeourselvestobe?’

OK,ifwedoafinalThreeAapractice,andattheendofitwededicatethemerit.


‐48‐

[PracticeandDedicationofMerit]

I’dliketothankSylvesterforhistranslationintoGerman,andofcourseSylvesterandLifortheorganization,whichisahugeamountofwork.[Applause].Maintaininganenvironmentlikethisistrulyagiftbecausethisisaveryunusualkindofplace.EverytimeIarrivehereIcertainlyfeelveryateaseandathome,andthat’saverysweetofferingoutintotheworld.

Iwouldalsoliketothankyouallforcomingandengaginginthepracticebecauseitrequiresalotoffocusedattention.Thethingswetalkaboutarequitedifficult.Theyaredifficultintellectually,butalsoemotionally,becausetheyputintoquestionmanyofthebeliefswehaveaboutourselves.Ithinkit’sveryhelpfulthatwemeettogetherandwecanatleastknowthereareafewotherpeopleintheworldconcernedwiththesequestions.

Personally,Iamnotveryintocentresandformalisationsbecausetheyoftentendtobeplacesofpoliticsandsoon.Butoneofthepossibilitiesforthefutureistohavemoresenseofaninformalsangha.Ifpeopleliveneareachothertheycanmeetfromtimetotimeanddosomepractice,shareameal,andhaveasenseofnotbeingaloneinthisdeepproject.

IbelieveIamcomingbackagainnextyearsoImayseesomeofyouthen,whenwewillhavesunshineeveryday!

Sylvester:Iwouldliketotakethisopportunitytothankyougreatlyinallofournamesforbringingusonceagainsuchagreatbundleofraysthatilluminatealotoftheviewsandpossibilitiestobepresent.[Applause]

James:Thankyou.

meditation practices may 2009 james low

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