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Dec 26, 2009, 4:27am

Licchavi Vimalakirti came to the foot of that tree and said to me, ’Reverend Sariputra, this is not the way to absorb yourself in contemplation. You should absorb yourself in contemplation so that neither body nor mind appear anywhere in the triple world. You should absorb yourself in contemplation in such a way that you can manifest all ordinary behavior without forsaking cessation. You should absorb yourself in contemplation in such a way that you can manifest the nature of an ordinary person without abandoning your cultivated spiritual nature.

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Topic: Overcoming Barriers (Read 26 times)

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Overcoming Barriers
« Thread Started on Oct 29, 2009, 5:35pm »

At the end of your article on Overcoming Barriers that you kindly emailed to us (I thank you) shidado, you wrote:

"Seeing the transparency of all states appears the only real salvation. Together with the understanding of the nature of that which 'sees'."

I heard myself saying out loud, "Brilliant!"...

...not without some relief, I must add. :grin: I have read much of what you have sent via email and follow it closely...for I am woefully ignorant in such things.

Yet, at the same time, I have always felt that there comes a time when all learning stops...everything just hangs...hangs there in ridiculous cessation...

...nothing left to do, say or think...but just hang.

I sense that this can happen at any time...to any of us...no matter what our path. It seems to me, that we cannot know when or by what means it will occur. It's pure grace.

Then...then...there is that which cannot be described at all...that which is unlike anything that we can know or word-up....

...a free fall in timeless spaciousness...that generous, ever present, total still impulse of beingness. Feels to me almost like a blanket of creeping, silent, discrete mist...imbuing, birthing, being everything...

...so everything is us.

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shidadao
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Richard Hunn (Upasaka Wen Shu) sat to the right (taken 2004).

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Re: Overcoming Barriers
« Reply #1 on Nov 1, 2009, 10:24pm »

Exactly. When lookiing at it all, I have seen, and been part of a number of human organisational patterns. This patterns, although apparently external, actually originate within the mind. We create the patterns internally, and often get lost in our own projections - as if they really are 'external' to our minds.

In a very real way, we follow the patterns of our minds, and attribute them to all sorts of varying originations - external to ourselves. The various societies we live in, are our mind patterns unfolding. Usually, in my experience, we often start our spiritual journey by embracing the exact opposite to where we are at in our minds, at the beginning of our journey.

We follow, explore, commit, convert, doubt, embrace, distinguish, re-arrange, turn around, develop, regress, pick ourselves up, help some, ignore others, and go about our day. We move 'this' from 'here', to 'there'. For many, and certainly for myself, this has been the model. The varying twists and turns all ways 'spiritualised', to give them a meaning beyond their material limitation. Eventually however, a crisis is reached. We either give-up the endless circles and see the barriers dissolve, or just carrying on the same, without direction or hope.

The good news is that compassion and thoughts toward our fellow beings, as well as ourselves, is the essence.

Thank you o

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Om Mani Padme Hum

In striving to perform one's religious duty, the first thing is to observe the rules of discipline. For discipline is the fundamental of the Supreme Bodhi; discipline begets immutability abd immutability begets wisdom. Master Xu Yun. Click Here To Make This Board Ad-Free

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