Ah... the watching of the watching vs the regulation of the regulation.
I can see why you felt this to be vipassana, more or less.
Thanks, that helps shed a lot of Light on the situation.
:namaste
-
Welcome to Religious Forums, a friendly forum to discuss all religions in a friendly surrounding.
Your voice is missing! You will need to register to get access to the following site features:- Reply to discussions and create your own threads.
- Our modern chat room. No add-ons or extensions required, just login and start chatting!
- Access to private conversations with other members.
We hope to see you as a part of our community soon!
Beyond Breath
- Thread starter Straw Dog
- Start date
Ah... the watching of the watching vs the regulation of the regulation.
I can see why you felt this to be vipassana, more or less.
Thanks, that helps shed a lot of Light on the situation.
:namaste
dyanaprajna2011
Dharmapala
Is that like some Zen teachers teaching that one is to follow the breath to the hara?
It's just something I worked out on my own when I wanted to investigate PMS. My Zen teacher taught me Zen without my even knowing. I think the only actual vocabulary he taught me were the words "koan" and "mu." (He snuck in zazen with the Chi Gung, and the mondos while were were martial arts sparring. I didn't even realize what he was teaching me was zen until years later.) :areyoucra **doh**
dyanaprajna2011
Dharmapala
That reminds me of a part in the new Karate Kid with Jackie Chan and Jayden Smith, where Jackie Chan tells Jayden Smith that "all things are kung-fu." To me, all things are Zen. You can learn as much about Zen in watching a flower blow in the wind as you can in meditation or studying the works of Zen masters.
Hey man... give me a hara and let me know what a 'hara' is....
I imagine it relates to the abdomen... but could you help a Brother out?
dyanaprajna2011
Dharmapala
The hara is a point just below and behind the navel, Taoists know it as the lower dan tien. It's the place where energy (chi) is stored, and where some believe the consciousness is actually located, not in the brain.
Hey, thanks! I learned a new word! Hara is the center of gravity near your abdomen where my Sen Sei told me to direct energy when "centering." (He didn't give me any vocabulary.)
Hello SageTree,
It's awareness of the potential activating for breath. The practice tunes the mind to the level of reality before phenomena arises.
It's awareness of the potential activating for breath. The practice tunes the mind to the level of reality before phenomena arises.
Give it some time.
If it's not initial enlightenment, then I must have just gone mad.
Either way, my mind has never been clearer and my energy level is through the roof. If it is just a distortion, then it must be the most appropriate distortion for aligning my nature.
Last edited:
I'm happy for you!If it's not initial enlightenment, then I must have just gone mad.
Either way, my mind has never been clearer and my energy level is through the roof. If it is just a distortion, then it must be the most appropriate distortion for aligning my nature.
Ok... I know this point from doing Yoga. Thanks.
It's cool to hear a proper label for things that I experience.....
sort of like what you said about your teacher and Zen.
Just like BOOM...
One day you found out you were doing something skillful or were informally well-informed all along. LOL.
That is One of the joys I receive from reading various scripture of many traditions.
You see similar ideas being talked about and approached with different labels.
I won't launch off into some Mystic-Universalist-Syncretic fit though....
**PULLS THE PLUG** :run:
SageTree
Twilight Hue
Twilight, not bright nor dark, good nor bad.
Give it some time.
If it's not initial enlightenment, then I must have just gone mad.
Either way, my mind has never been clearer and my energy level is through the roof. If it is just a distortion, then it must be the most appropriate distortion for aligning my nature.
Thats actually sound advice from crossfire.
Not saying having such an experience isn't valid or it's wrong in any fashion. Theres no such determination really.
Just years down the road and reflection concerning the ah ha moments that manifest time to time. I have no doubt we all get them. Most teachers would likely tell you to forget it each time breakthroughs occur. Insight starts there by getting softly hit with a locomotive. BOoM!!!!!
I think its good all around at any rate because wither the profundity lasts or not still leads to clarity via insight over what continually transpires each time such things happen.
Personally i learned not to put too much thought and analysis into the moments.
Let it play out well.
dyanaprajna2011
Dharmapala
Those momentary flashes of insight, whether kensho or not, as Nowhere Man said, are best left alone after having them. From my own experience, I found out early on, that the harder I try to hold onto and analyze them, the less meaning they have, and the quicker they "go away", so to speak. The point is to keep pressing foward, onto the next step. Otherwise we're just moving backward across a raging river, instead of moving toward Nirvana, we end up heading back to samsara.
I appreciate everyone's advice. If there's been some confusion, I wasn't making any proclamations, but rather just expressing experience naturally. Words ultimately escape it.
I'm not grasping at any single "ah-ha" moment in meditation, but am constantly experiencing the "dark light" in the background and there's a new found joy in my practice. I shouldn't say much more about it. I need further practice for cultivation and refinement.
I'm not grasping at any single "ah-ha" moment in meditation, but am constantly experiencing the "dark light" in the background and there's a new found joy in my practice. I shouldn't say much more about it. I need further practice for cultivation and refinement.