The difference between Stillness and Emptiness.

This is not easy to comprehend unless one meditates, and possibly one may not accept that there are many consciousnesses. This will depend on what tradition you follow. In some traditions and cultures, Consciousness will mean Awareness, or even higher Awareness, and so, for them, the word Consciousness is very important. In Tibetan Buddhism, it is meant as a conceptual state.

Words can really get us into trouble!

As mentioned before, there are eight consciousnesses; five of the senses and three of the mind. The 6^th is perception, the 7^th is judgement and the 8^th is the storehouse of memories. It’s the 8^th we are concerned with here. This has two aspects to it (as in hardware and software), called Alaya and Alaya vijnana.

The 6^th 7^th 8^th consciousnesses are in the conceptual realm. It is possible, when meditating, that we arrive, or rest, in a state of stillness, in the feeling of now. We are aware of non thought. And that is the point: ‘We are aware of stillness’! There is still a duality, this state is not to be belittled, as it is a profound state. It’s like trying to hit a gong, and just missing it.

At this point, merely be aware of that which is aware of this stillness, and let be. That moment is Emptiness. It may only last a moment, but there is a glimpse, before we go back into stillness again. No matter. It is good to practise short moments many times. This was the teaching of Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche.

Emptiness is sometimes called the 9^th consciousness, and encompasses stillness – stillness within emptiness. If we become stuck in stillness, we sometimes feel we have to have a perfect place in which to rest – and it’s limiting. Emptiness can be experienced while moving around, talking, living – because everything is allowed to arise with emptiness.

Interestingly, feelings are stored in the ‘subtle body’, but we will come back to that.