Ask MysticSang'ha anything (Buddhism, disciple, doctrine, experience, pray)

[YmirGF]

Originally Posted by MysticSang'ha

Can I first point out that these are some really awesome questions?

Well, they help to show you what I have in mind, lol.

Originally Posted by MysticSang'ha

My answer to your first question is that many of my perceptions are still a little fuzzy, but a few things have been quite clear. And, it's been due to a lot of practice. My senses have been a little more refined since beginning practice and concentrating on the more subtle realms.

I understand. It is merely a question of practice.

Originally Posted by MysticSang'ha

I have found myself able to smell and hear things that are absolutely NOT of this gross physical/material world. But the sight thing is pretty radical, I must say.

Indeed it is, it is in deed

Originally Posted by MysticSang'ha

If I must narrow it down to any recurring experience, I would have to say two distinct visions keep popping up: the Tunnel, and the Eye - with the latter vision experienced the most often. When I first saw the Eye staring back at me, I actually jumped up out of my meditation seated position (which I don't usually recommend LOL). After a while, I became quite comfortable with it. Once I attached a to it and saw it as either the Eye of Horus or the Eye of Ra (I could never remember which was which), the shape of the eye changed. It would change to a horse's eye, then a baby's eye, then a cat's eye, and on and on and on.

LOL... sorry I am laughing with you... not AT you, lol. Yep, the eye does have a way of getting one's attention, lol. I love the transitions you are describing. Wonderful. Have you reached the Eye yet, or is it still in the middle of your field of vision? I know it sounds odd, but try to move towards the Eye. An adept surely should know how, but for our “Home” audience (Hehe.) I would say that it is simply in focusing your will. Belief isn't required when one is staring straight at something is it? To make this easier, think of yourself as being a magnet that is positive and the eye is another magnet that is also positive. (We could easily say the opposite, but I hope you *grok* the idea.) The harder you try to enter or get near the eye, the further it will recede. The key to doing this is easier that it sounds but you have to figure out that aspect of the gem yourself. As usual, if you desire to be There, you will not be There. When you no longer desire to be There you will almost be There... that is when you apply your “will” (life-force or whatever you want to call it) and make the “leap”. Does that make any sense at all?

Originally Posted by MysticSang'ha

Now I simply observe it observing me.

When you feel you are ready, begin to “stalk” the eye and make it yours. You will not be disappointed.

Originally Posted by MysticSang'ha

The Tunnel is a whirling, swirling, vivid and colorful thing to travel through. I don't feel that I'm out of my body at that time, but it's like I'm watching a 3-D movie. I guess I simply watch a psychedelic experience unfolding until it's time to come back to the “real world“.

My drawings from yesteryear are full of spirals and double-helixes. I see this as the nuclear self or the self reduced to particle form. Do you ever get to the end of the tunnel or is it simply rotating? Is it rotating at all? Left to right or right to left (as there are two intersecting vortices.)

Originally Posted by MysticSang'ha

Honestly, no. But I have experienced a heightened <i>awareness</i> of all the directions despite not looking in all directions. It is as if all my senses have become 10x more refined, including spatial awareness. Does that make sense?

Yes, of course it makes sense, lol. When you get to the eye... hang tight. “Houston, we are go for main engine start!”

Originally Posted by MysticSang'ha

OK, let's see if I can explain this sensibly in any way whatsoever, since this is getting deeper into Tibetan mysticism.

Well you are a Tibetan Mystic

Originally Posted by MysticSang'ha

Buddha is considered to have three bodies, three forms, three cosmological “functions” These are called 1) Sambhogakaya - the form the enlightened mind appears to benefit highly realized bodhisattvas (also called the “enjoyment body“); 2) Nirmanakaya - the form the enlightened mind appears to benefit ordinary beings (also called “emanation body“)

Originally Posted by MysticSang'ha

*both of these forms are also referred to collectively as rupakaya - which is how we identify the holy body of a Buddha (also called “form body“)*

The dharma-kaya is the form of the enlightened mind that is free of all forms, from my understanding. Here is the FPMT official definition of the term:

That is pretty well bang on, Heather. The thing is, it is both a state of consciousness AND a “place” that is not a place, as we would normally think of the term... but it is a “place” nonetheless.

Originally Posted by MysticSang'ha

I'm not at all familiar with the term “Og-Min“, though. I'm sorry that I can't comment on that.

Excellent answers Heather. To my understanding, although limited of course due to physical constraints, Og-Min signifies a legendary “Realm of the Densely-Packed. You could call it reality as viewed from the photon's perspective.
Here is a source from the Bardo Thodol,; For more discussion of “the Central Realm of the Densely-Packed,” see Evans-Wentz (1960, P.107).
The experience of Og-Min is transforming to say the least and words do not describe it well. It is almost a sub-atomic reality where micro and macro are One. It is hard to think of much else to say other than it is very bright indeed. Take some sunblock and sunglasses. J/K. I do remember the Dharma-Kaya as being like a cloudless sky that certainly seemed infinite. It was a magnificent crystal clear blue/aquamarine that took my “breath” away. Considering that I was out of my body, that is saying a lot. <grin>
I knew what I was seeing/perceiving was the Dharma-kaya and only later after I borrowed a copy of the Evans-Wentz “Tibetan Book of the Dead” from the library did I see my exact descriptions written there in plain view. It's hard to put in meaningful terms, but even then I KNEW what I was doing and what I was perceiving, I just didn't have the appreciation for what it all meant. (That probably sounds like a contradiction but I will assure you that it is not.) It took me decades to distill the meaning. I guess I am just thicker than most. PS: The Hare Krsna's refer to the Dharma-Kaya as being the “Spiritual Sky“... and is somewhat literal and somewhat metaphorical.

[Ozzie]

Are you worried that if the Chinese get their way and install a successor to the DL that conforms to their liking, that Groupthink will obliterate Tibetan Buddhism?

[MysticSang'ha]

Originally Posted by YmirGF

LOL... sorry I am laughing with you... not AT you, lol. Yep, the eye does have a way of getting one's attention, lol. I love the transitions you are describing. Wonderful. Have you reached the Eye yet, or is it still in the middle of your field of vision? I know it sounds odd, but try to move towards the Eye. An adept surely should know how, but for our “Home” audience (Hehe.) I would say that it is simply in focusing your will. Belief isn't required when one is staring straight at something is it? To make this easier, think of yourself as being a magnet that is positive and the eye is another magnet that is also positive. (We could easily say the opposite, but I hope you *grok* the idea.) The harder you try to enter or get near the eye, the further it will recede. The key to doing this is easier that it sounds but you have to figure out that aspect of the gem yourself. As usual, if you desire to be There, you will not be There. When you no longer desire to be There you will almost be There... that is when you apply your “will” (life-force or whatever you want to call it) and make the “leap”. Does that make any sense at all?

It makes perfect sense in a Right-Brain sort of way.

Originally Posted by Paul

My drawings from yesteryear are full of spirals and double-helixes. I see this as the nuclear self or the self reduced to particle form. Do you ever get to the end of the tunnel or is it simply rotating? Is it rotating at all? Left to right or right to left (as there are two intersecting vortices.)

It's nearly always rotating "clockwise", but I do vaguely remember feeling like I was stretching myself toward the end of the Tunnel once, looking past it, and finding another Tunnel rotating "counter-clockwise." Since at the time it felt like I was trying too hard toward some arbitrary goal, I just relaxed my focus and simply observed.

Originally Posted by Paul

That is pretty well bang on, Heather. The thing is, it is both a state of consciousness AND a “place” that is not a place, as we would normally think of the term... but it is a “place” nonetheless.

It's a very paradoxical view that doesn't make any rational or physical sense. From the mystic's POV, though, it makes perfect sense.

Originally Posted by Paul

Excellent answers Heather. To my understanding, although limited of course due to physical constraints, Og-Min signifies a legendary “Realm of the Densely-Packed. You could call it reality as viewed from the photon's perspective.

Originally Posted by Paul

Here is a source from the Bardo Thodol,; For more discussion of “the Central Realm of the Densely-Packed,” see Evans-Wentz (1960, P.107).
The experience of Og-Min is transforming to say the least and words do not describe it well. It is almost a sub-atomic reality where micro and macro are One. It is hard to think of much else to say other than it is very bright indeed. Take some sunblock and sunglasses. J/K. I do remember the Dharma-Kaya as being like a cloudless sky that certainly seemed infinite. It was a magnificent crystal clear blue/aquamarine that took my “breath” away. Considering that I was out of my body, that is saying a lot. <grin>
I knew what I was seeing/perceiving was the Dharma-kaya and only later after I borrowed a copy of the Evans-Wentz “Tibetan Book of the Dead” from the library did I see my exact descriptions written there in plain view. It's hard to put in meaningful terms, but even then I KNEW what I was doing and what I was perceiving, I just didn't have the appreciation for what it all meant. (That probably sounds like a contradiction but I will assure you that it is not.) It took me decades to distill the meaning. I guess I am just thicker than most. PS: The Hare Krsna's refer to the Dharma-Kaya as being the “Spiritual Sky“... and is somewhat literal and somewhat metaphorical.

Once I believe I got a glance at this very sky you're talking about. I fell asleep once practicing Dream Yoga with the intention of finding a dream "guru", and I found myself immediately perceiving a group of monks in front of me with bright lights emanating from their throats and chanting OM endlessly. Behind them was this crystal clear sky. The experience lasted only a minute or so, but the impact was profound. Every time I hear chanting in the guttural "Hoomi" singing (although that's a Mongolian term), I get goosebumps and sent back to that dream experience several years ago.




Peace,
Mystic

[MysticSang'ha]

Originally Posted by Ozzie

Are you worried that if the Chinese get their way and install a successor to the DL that conforms to their liking, that Groupthink will obliterate Tibetan Buddhism?

I think what we know as the Geluk school will be gone since the Dalai Lama not only is considered a spiritual leader, but the temporal leader of the Tibetan people. With the crap that has gone on with the Panchen Lama fiasco (which is so depressing), I can only imagine the repercussions the Chinese government will cause by choosing it's own DL after Tenzin Gyatso passes.

I do think that Tibet is seeing the twilight of it's existence, so I'm not that worried since we've seen the tradition expand around the world. I think that Tibetan Buddhism will remain for a long while even if Tibetan Buddhism is snuffed out by the Chinese. Does that make sense?




Peace,
Mystic

[Don Penguinoini]

Why do some buddhists eat meat? Even when BUddha said not to, or am i mistaken. I heard the dalai lama does too..

[MysticSang'ha]

Originally Posted by penguino

Why do some buddhists eat meat? Even when BUddha said not to, or am i mistaken. I heard the dalai lama does too..

Well, ideally, animal flesh ought not to be a nutritional provision for humans. Because of this compassion for sentient beings (animals), a number of Buddhists take it upon themselves to refrain from eating meat.

However, ideally, insects, worms, critters, or anything else ought not to be harmed or killed in order to till the soil to plant the vegetables that would replace meat food for humans, too.

Also, consider the environment that most Tibetans live in. The climate is soooo not conducive to producing acres of crops, so they mostly rely on the yaks they raise for their sustenance.

I often times play devil's advocate, too, with vegans who are A-OK with human abortion rights............these are people who think that eating eggs are eating a "potential life" of a chicken and consider it a crime, but also will not have the same protective attitude toward a "potential human life."

It's not that one's right and another is wrong. It's just a challenge for all of us to brutal and honest self-examination on how we define our boundaries and our morals. For a lot of people, right vs. wrong results in a whole lot of "arbitrary." And our perpsectives on animals are no different.

So sure, we shouldn't eat animals. We also shouldn't lie, gossip, speak harshly, take what isn't ours, or kill insects, either. But these negative karmic actions are not meant to be evident for us to feel a sense of punishment or not...........we are here to examine our karmic actions and habits that keep us in the cycle of samsara.

It's a very worthy question, penguino. I hope you don't mind that I used your question to address a broader picture.

When it comes to the Dalai Lama, he is by his own definition, a simple monk. Buddhist monks are to eat what is offered to them, so if the laity gives a bhikku or a bhikkuni some meat in their offering bowl, they must eat it.

The DL has also been advised by his doctor to eat meat because of his Hepatitis infection he got some years ago.

I currently eat meat, but my family and I have been discussing recently how to transition to a more compassionate and healthy diet.




Peace,
Mystic

[Ozzie]

[quote]

Originally Posted by MysticSang'ha

I think what we know as the Geluk school will be gone since the Dalai Lama not only is considered a spiritual leader, but the temporal leader of the Tibetan people. With the crap that has gone on with the Panchen Lama fiasco (which is so depressing), I can only imagine the repercussions the Chinese government will cause by choosing it's own DL after Tenzin Gyatso passes.

I do think that Tibet is seeing the twilight of it's existence, so I'm not that worried since we've seen the tradition expand around the world. I think that Tibetan Buddhism will remain for a long while even if Tibetan Buddhism is snuffed out by the Chinese. Does that make sense?

Actually I think that is a very helpful, hopeful and accurate observation to make given the Chinese boot in the mouth strategy to control Tibetan Buddhism. And I think the DL would say that himself.