Fall 2011 Shamatha Retreat

In this round, Alan will lay emphasis on the Mahayana approach to the 4 immeasurables. „Why can’t all sentient beings find happiness and the causes of happiness? May all sentient beings find happiness and the causes of happiness. I shall make this happen. By the blessings of the guru and yidam, may I be able to do so.“

Guided meditation (6:33) on envisioning our own flourishing. What is our heart’s desire? What would we like to receive as support? What qualities would we like to be rid of, and what qualities would we like to attain? What would we like to offer?

Alan reviews the process of relinquishing control/agency in the 3 shamatha practices. Given the buddhist assertion that something true should appear truer with increasing scrutiny, the truth of emptiness is now reinforced with insights from modern quantum physics. Yet the insight in modern science does not appear to alter lifestyles and world views, whereas buddhist practice grounded in ethics, concentration, and wisdom do.

Guided meditation (46:20) on projecting awareness up, right, left, down, center, release, and rest. This meditation should be considered a stretching exercise to help us understand that awareness is totally open, without center nor periphery.

Questions (71:13):

Q1) How can we overcome the lion at the gate of „I am the observer“?

Q2) What are other methods to weaken the veils of luminosity in addition to oscillation in awareness of awareness?

Q3) When does the birth process begin?

Q4) What are the Tibetan terms for settling the mind in its natural state and awareness of awareness and their connotations?

Q5) In terms of Hawking’s theory of the past as being in superposition, how is the present different?

Q6) Can you clarify the terms appearance and perception, nangwa and nangyul, within the contexts of mind and space of mind and the 8 consciousnesses?

Equanimity is the final fruition of the path. In the Theravada tradition, equanimity is envisioned as a composure of imperturbability, of not being thrown out of balance by adversity or felicity. In the Mahayana literature, it's also seen as an even open-heartedness and caring for all sentient beings without exception. Three steps to descend to deeper levels of authenticity are outlined, involving ethical restraint, settling the mind in its natural state and uprooting the conceit of 'I am.'

Meditation starts at 21:19

Alan expands upon some of the ideas from physics he dealt with in the previous day’s talk and explains how the Dzogchen view and the Prasangika-Madhyamika view are complementary. He weaves this within a broader explanation of the path of taking the breath, mind and awareness as one’s object. The practice for today (41:14) deals with probing more deeply into the agent. Questions (65:53) raise issues such as the benefits of solitude and the cultivation of the 4 immeasurable in this context, how karmic imprints travel from life to life, the concept of the ‘mere I’, the ineffability of rigpa, how one can view the idea of beginninglessness and the benefits of mantra.

Alan covers the prerequisites for the development of equanimity, which involve one transcending one’s ordinary deluded outlook. He discusses how one may become able to do this: how one may cultivate a sense of contentment, how one may more strongly identify a common ground between self and other and how to then develop an evenness of caring that is founded upon reality based hope and warmth.

Meditation starts at 12:03

Many people have expressed confusion about this practice, probably because of looking for something to happen that isn’t happening. Therefore, they miss what is happening.

The basic practice is something you already know: being aware of being aware. You know when you are aware. Begin there. The oscillation is between being aware of your own awareness and releasing into something brighter, emptier, non-conceptual, and of no objects. You can mount the oscillation on your breath at first and then do it at your own pace. But release the oscillation in the middle. Let it rest in its own place. It is the best approximation of the substrate consciousness.

Meditation starts at 47:35

Q & A (72:32):

Is the dark near attainment before the clear light of death the same as the substrate?

Let's say my girlfriend wants to dance and I don’t. What would be examples of the applications of the Four Immeasurables in this circumstance?

What is dream yoga and what is it for?

We come back to the cultivation of mediate, starting with oneself, but not an immutable self, a dependently arisen self.

Alan again comments on our way of evaluating our practice: "Meditation, what have you given me this week?" No, no, no!

All that comes up is a maturation of our karma

From the lo jong (mind training) teachings: everything that comes up, transmute it into fuel for the path.

"This happened. Others see it as poor you. I take it as a lesson to deepen my practice and wisdom."

Become the alchemist of your life.

From the perspective of rigpa: with deep intuitive faith seeing all experiences arising as coming from Buddhas to help us become enlightened - we can have an ongoing flow of gratitude for this!

The one taste of felicity and adversity

Meditation starts at 14:21

Alan started the session of this afternoon explaining why among the immense variety ofmethods to achieve shamatha, he presents these three, and how they are fit for modernity.

Then he enlightened us with a global parallel between each of these practices with one of the three yanas: starting from the roles of mindfulness and introspection in each of these three until the different lifestyles of the shravaka, the bodhisattva and the tantric or dzogchen practitioner. Also he covered how each practice deals with the coarse, subtle and very subtle minds.

After this he connected this presentation with the practice of settling the mind in its natural state practice that followed up (42:17).

Finally, the questions (67:04) addressed the topics about the connection between body and mental feelings and how to focus only into the mental for the practice of settling the mind; reincarnation and Christianity; what does it mean “ola so” (I thought it was Spanglish); and how to consider those that seem that go in an opposite direction than genuine happiness.

As usual… inspiring…don’t miss it.

Dharma talk on Compassion

Suffering relates to the “conceit of ‘I am’” – the delusion that there is an “I” that exists outside of conceptual constructs.

There is a current trend among some people that one must develop a strong sense of “I am” before one can meditate. However, it is important to develop confidence rather than ego. Confidence and humility along with a sense of gratitude for one’s teachers can be developed simultaneously. Rather than a strong ego, one must have a realistic sense of who you are.

A dream sign to develop (regarding lucid dreaming) is the psychological impulse of “I am.” Develop this in your so-called “waking state.” Observe your reaction when you are either blamed or praised, not given enough respect. There is a surge of emotion. When you experience anger, resentment, fear, anxiety, self-loathing, pride, do a “reality check” (or as is done in developing lucid dreaming, a “state check”). Ask “Is there really somebody here or is it just a thought?”

Meditation (16:00) on all three types of suffering: blatant suffering, the suffering of change, and the suffering that arises due to our vulnerability because of our vision of who we are.

Carrying practice: Throughout the day, when you have a sense of “I am,” do a reality/state check. Just jumping up and down won’t be enough. Go deep into your awareness that is obscured by mental afflictions but is never contaminated by them.

Alan starts by explaining the concept of rang dröl (self-liberation or natural liberation) in the context of shamatha practice. He then talks about the 5 obscurations and its antidotes, which are:

The five factors of stabilization remove the five obscurations

1. The factor of coarse examination removes the obscurations of laxity and dullness.

2. The factor of precise investigation removes the obscuration of uncertainty.

3. The factor of well-being removes the obscuration of malice.

4. The factor of bliss removes the obscurations of excitation and anxiety

5. The factor of single-pointed attention removes the obscuration of sensual craving.

Water similes of the five obscurations

1. Sensual craving is like water mixed with various colors.

2. Malice is like boiling water.

3. Laxity and dullness are like water covered over by moss.

4. Excitation and anxiety are like agitated water whipped by the wind.

5. Uncertainty is like turbid, muddy water.

Today we continue with the practice of settling the mind in its natural state, now focusing on both the objective as well as the subjective aspects of the foreground

Meditation starts at 44:33

Questions (69:17):

1) What does it mean to achieve shamatha in the water, air, earth, etc elements?

2) How does the physical world map to the model of the 3 levels of consciousness, as related to this morning's talk?

3) Advice on what to do when one experiences waves of energy and a sense of "buzz" while practicing loving kindness

4) If one who has achieved shamatha but didn't have time to proceed along the mundane or supramande paths...what should this person do in order to avoid losing it in his/her future lives?