this whole area

true face

2006-09-21T15:54:00.003-04:00

Letter to a friend and dialogue

2006-09-21T14:02:00.000-04:00

You ask how can we escape from the river of thoughts inside
our mind? That is a crucial question!

It may be that it is not escape,
but awareness that replaces these thoughts!

Awareness that these are thoughts only, unreal and unnecessary, if unwanted.

By coming into contact with "the actual"...
the sensations, sounds, physical feelings etc,
that are what is actually happening right now.

It is In the contact with the living present, that these thoughts "the whole stream" are replaced.

K calls this "true meditation".
But for us mortals you must be willing to go through the "untrue" meditation to discover the true, patiently.
This way we let go of the "not now", "not real", or delusions as they are called.
This is learning, and the mind learns to recognize, after an entire lifetime, a history of identifying with "our own" thoughts. In fact they are not.

There is no way around, no alternative to this learning process,
this earnest looking, inwardly, but... IT DOES ITSELF!
YOU do not have to do anything but make a time each day (about a half hour) to sit still and watch.
It takes earnest, patient "practice", to replace mechanical thinking with attentiveness, but it does brings relief and results immediately.

Trungpa on discipline and letting go

2006-09-16T18:39:00.000-04:00

"When discipline begins to be natural, a part of you, it is very important to learn to let go. For the warrior, letting go is connected with relaxing within discipline, in order to experience freedom. Freedom here does not mean being wild or sloppy; rather it is letting yourself go so that you fully experience your existence as a human being. Letting go is completely conquering the idea that discipline is a punishment for a mistake or a bad deed that you have committed, or might like to commit. You have to completely conquer the feeling that there is something fundamentally wrong with your human nature and that therefore you need discipline to correct your behavior. As long as you feel that discipline comes from outside, there is still a lingering feeling that something is lacking in you. So letting go is connected with letting go of any vestiges of doubt or hesitation or embarrassment about being you as you are. You have to relax with yourself in order to fully realize that discipline is simply the expression of your basic goodness. You have to appreciate yourself, respect yourself, and let go of your doubt and embarrassment so that you can proclaim your goodness and basic sanity for the benefit of others."

- Chogyam Trungpa

Experiment 2

2006-09-16T18:34:00.001-04:00

nothing to be afraid of
you will not forget your name or what you have to do today
the brain is perfectly capable of taking care of all that, effortlessly

give it a break for a few minutes
experiment

let the brain relax and stop directing
let it obey our wish to be completely here,
awake and alive, just resting for the moment
stepping outside
idea and memory, because we can when we contact the breath and the body!
everything mental will still be there when you need it

simplicity
...an experiment
an opportunity to contact:

total sufficiency

...self existing, whole and complete
nothing outside of you

drop the idea we have of this this planet,
this life, this mind being limited, difficult or impossible
assume for the moment
whatever we need
is within our reach :) entirely possible

not the hunger for things, power or temporary satisfactions
but fulfill ourselves right here and now

full participation

no separation no desire no dreaming no wishing
put aside the fears, the lists, the pressures

dropping mind created limitations,
ideas that have prevented this feeling and actuality

a brief gift of intact being
that glows from the feet and legs,
flowing from the seat and belly,
all connected inside the heart and empty mind...

nothing separate

a big stillness that allows everything in
sounds, air, sensations, what is
real and quietly growing... a body of light
awareness . is not just a word . it is

breathing and resting in the moment . presence

enjoy your awesome power to let go . enjoy the quietness
whatever it takes inside . this is all yours
freedom
in this moment it has been here all along

being that has been, up until now a dream,
not forceful or difficult or far away
it is glowing in the belly, expanding
enveloping and embracing all that has been denied

available to us
who are sincerely asking and wondering, . at it .
with it

inside one actual now
space for everything
nothing lacking

simple
It's yours