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- THIS BLOG SHOULD BE SECRET June 17, 2026
- FREEDOM FROM THE CYCLIC EXISTENCE June 17, 2026
- THE SHARED HALLUCINATION June 17, 2026
- WHY THE OBSESSION WITH THE PAST? June 16, 2026
- THE MUD IS JUST A DIRTY LENS June 16, 2026
- STARVING THE MONSTER June 15, 2026
- THE NOVELTY TRAP June 15, 2026
- NO LONGER SATISFYING June 14, 2026
- THE MORE WE REALISE June 13, 2026
- REALITY IS CONTENTMENT June 13, 2026
- THE DANGER OF ADOPTING STORIES June 13, 2026
- WHAT ARE WE A PRODUCT OF? June 13, 2026
- WHAT REINCARNATES? June 12, 2026
- THE HABITUAL LOOP June 11, 2026
- WHY DO PEOPLE ACCEPT LIES SO READILY? June 11, 2026
- THE PARADOX OF RITUALS AND WORDS June 11, 2026
- WHAT DO WE BASE OUR LIFE ON? June 10, 2026
- SPIRITUAL AUTONOMY June 10, 2026
- THINKING THERE MUST BE MORE TO LIFE June 9, 2026
- NOT TOO TIGHT AND NOT TOO LOOSE June 9, 2026
- OUR GREATEST PERSONAL ACHIEVEMENT June 8, 2026
- PRIDE STOPS US EVOLVING June 8, 2026
- THE TINKERBELL EFFECT June 7, 2026
- EVIL IS ANYONE WHO THINKS THEY ARE SUPERIOR June 7, 2026
- FOUR OPIUMS OF THE PEOPLE June 6, 2026
- THE CONSUMER BECOMES CONSUMED June 6, 2026
- ULTIMATE MATURITY June 6, 2026
- THE BUDDHA SAID, “I SEE YOU MARA” June 5, 2026
- THE TWO ASPECTS OF ‘HIDDEN IN PLAIN SIGHT’ June 5, 2026
- SULKY SELF June 4, 2026
- THE COMPLETE PICTURE June 3, 2026
- GIVING UP GUILT June 2, 2026
- TESTING MARA AND GURU June 1, 2026
- THE BUDDHA. JESUS, SOCRATES AND OTHERS WERE REBELS June 1, 2026
- ABSOLUTE TRUTH IS REALISED BY ABSOLUTE TRUTH June 1, 2026
- FINDING WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR May 31, 2026
- WE ALL LIVE IN DIFFERENT ECHO CHAMBERS May 31, 2026
- A HARD LESSON TO LEARN May 31, 2026
- BUDDHIST FORUMS CREATE CONFLICT May 31, 2026
- ONE MIND, OR MANY MINDS? May 30, 2026
- SPIRITUAL AND PHILOSOPHICAL MATERIALISM May 30, 2026
- SPONTANEITY IS THE ONLY REALITY May 29, 2026
- REALITY IS BEYOND WORDS May 28, 2026
- HUMANITY: SEEKING VALIDATION OF A SELF May 28, 2026
- DISPELLING THE GURU May 27, 2026
- EVERY DAY I THINK, “I COULD BE WRONG” May 27, 2026
- THE DARK AND UNSETTLING ASPECT OF EXISTENCE May 26, 2026
- ‘JUDGING’ FROM A DZOGCHEN POINT OF VIEW May 25, 2026
- WE BECOME THE COMPANY WE KEEP May 24, 2026
- WE ARE ALL HYPOCRITES May 24, 2026
Category Archives: Uncategorized
FEELING SMOTHERED WITH OTHER’S FIXATIONS…
Feeling Smothered With Others’ Fixations… This a feeling of being stifled by collective consciousness. We may feel despondent and in low spirit, and it’s important to acknowledge what is going on. People are governed by their karma of fixated ideas. … Continue reading
LIGHT AND ITS REFLECTION
Light And Its Reflection The source of light/clarity is more powerful than the reflection upon which light/clarity shines. We – the light/clarity – are inseparable from the en-light-ened state. So what went wrong? Light/clarity believed more in its reflection than … Continue reading
EUGENICS v ENLIGHTENMENT
Eugenics v Enlightenment Eugenics: the science of improving a population by controlled breeding to increase the occurrence of desirable heritable characteristics. Enlightenment: the wisdom of spiritual insight attained through awareness which frees a person from ignorance of desirable heritable characteristics.
THE DILEMMA OF SECRECY
The Dilemma Of Secrecy The Dharma teachings are vast, simple and complex, and all centre around one point; pure compassionate awareness. Some regard the finer aspects of the teachings as secret. In fact, there is a very compassionate reason for … Continue reading
ARE WE LOOKING FOR MORE?
Are We Looking For More? If so, we have gone too far; we need to back up and review what we already know. One of the purposes of this blog is to share experiences of how the mind can work … Continue reading
BE HAPPY WITH YOUR SELF
Being Happy With Your Self This is so important! We are pure awareness. Your self is ordinary awareness’s confused projection. It is by virtue of this confused projection that pure awareness is realised. Gradually, confusion refines and dawns as wisdom. … Continue reading
WE ARE BEINGS COVERED BY WORDS
We Are Beings Covered By Words …!…
TRANQUILITY
Tranquility Words can have a synchronicity and energy. Suddenly, the synapses wire up and we get it! Of course, we first we have to have been looking, which means practising of some sort, asking an inner question. This seems to … Continue reading
MAHAMUDRA OF CONDUCT
Mahamudra of Conduct (In Karma Kagyu, essence is known as ‘Mahamudra. In Nyingma, it is called ‘Rigpa’) If we have a feeling of not making progress in meditation training, it is because we are not applying the result of meditation … Continue reading
TURNING ARROWS INTO FLOWERS
Turning Arrows Into Flowers On the night that the Buddha attained enlightenment, he sat under a tree. While he was sitting there, the forces of Mara shot arrows at him to distract him from becoming enlightened; he merely turned their … Continue reading
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Tagged Buddha and the Evil one, Mara, Turning Arrows Into Flowers
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MATERIAL WEALTH AND SPIRITUAL WEALTH
Material Wealth And Spiritual Wealth We are told that material wealth filters down. It doesn’t; it filters up! It is knowledge that filters down. Unfortunately, knowledge may be used to illuminate or to confuse. When used to benefit self in … Continue reading
“KILL THE BUDDHA”
“If You Meet The Buddha On The Road, Kill Him” This can be so easily misunderstood – and is. It means that if we meet the Buddha (or any deity) on our path of confusion, drop the idea that reality … Continue reading
BE YOUR OWN TEACHER
Be Your Own Teacher …but don’t make up a teaching. The following is taken from Rainbow Painting by Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche: “The great teacher, Atisha, explained four aims: “ Aim your mind at the Dharma. Aim your Dharma practice at … Continue reading
MUNDANE AND SUPRA-MUNDANE
Mundane and Supra-mundane Try counting your breath (exhalations) for 108 times without following thoughts (if you can’t cope with 108, just try 10!). If you get lost, start at one again. This really does focus the mind, and it can … Continue reading
WHAT IS “EMPTINESS OF AWARENESS”?
What Is “Emptiness Of Awareness”? It’s the next step up from “awareness of emptiness”. Logically, we can arrive at awareness of emptiness; emptiness means unadulterated. But the experience of emptiness is beyond logic and description. We need a glimpse that … Continue reading
ADVERSITY = EMPATHY = COMPASSION
Adversity = Empathy = Compassion …or can do, if we don’t claim to be a victim or blame others. Of course we are victims and we can blame others, but that is merely part of path-journey-uncovering. The difference depends on … Continue reading
IT’S A DESTABILISED WORLD
It’s A Destabilised World It’s a destabilised world run by destabilised people destabilising everyone. The antidote is recognition. Knowing destroys not knowing. A single lamp can illuminate a room that has been in darkness for a thousand years.
IS THERE INJUSTICE IN THE WORLD?
Is There Injustice In The World? Yes! From a Dharma point of view, whatever happens just is, according to our karma – our past actions. This will include actions and reactions from previous incarnations. This concept isn’t easy for everyone … Continue reading
NOT FORGETTING OUR TRUE NATURE
Not Forgetting Our True Nature When pure awareness is forgotten, we are like ordinary people. We forget when awareness relates to ‘something’. When awareness is captured by ‘something’, this is a relating reality; absolute reality relating to something outside itself. … Continue reading
THE DHARMA IS NOT OVER THERE
The Dharma Is Not Over There It is funny how, during practice, some insight may occur, usually as a subtle change in understanding. Take the words Ground, Path and Fruition. They are referred to as: Ground = our true nature … Continue reading
I AM NOT GOOD ENOUGH
I Am Not Good Enough In trying to be perfect, we create obstacles to understanding perfection that already exists. We are already perfect. In ordinary life, this perfection is obscured. Forgotten. When we engage on a spiritual path, we wish … Continue reading
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Tagged I Am Not Good Enough, Spiritual Nappy Rash, Spiritual Perfection
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DO WHAT IS MEANINGFUL TO YOU
Do What Is Meaningful To You Spiritual paths are full of helpful symbolism. However, the symbols must mean something to us. If they do not, then the symbols work as an illusory crutch to which we adhere and become reliant, … Continue reading
A REAL FRIEND
A Real Friend A real friend talks about real things. A spiritual friend talks about the non-reality of ‘real things’. A super-duper spiritual friend talks about what is real within the non-reality of things.
WHAT IS THE MAGIC IN SPONTANEOUS PRESENCE?
What Is The Magic In Spontaneous Presence? It’s in trust! Trust is acceptance of the truth of a statement, without evidence or investigation. Through a thorough understanding of theory and implied inferences, we can freely take the leap into the … Continue reading
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Tagged Eureka moments, The Magic In Spontaneous Presence, Trust
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GAINING CERTAINTY IN SPIRITUALITY
Gaining Certainty In Spirituality What is spirituality? It is pure-awareness. Pure-awareness is timeless spontaneous presence. There is nothing else; that is non duality. When pure awareness turns its attention outward, it is relating to things and ideas; this ‘relating’ is … Continue reading
REGRET
Regret Something we all experience, all the time 🙂 Regret: sadness, disappointment, dismay, dejection, sorrow, guilt. The opposite to regret is happiness. So, we are talking about unhappiness = suffering. Regret is recognising that we are suffering, which is the … Continue reading
DEVOTION IS COMPASSION
Devotion Is Compassion On could say that compassion’s an expression of devotion, but it sometimes feels like it is spontaneous. When we understand, we become confident, and can therefore be compassionate; this understanding and confidence comes from a deep appreciation … Continue reading
NOT REINFORCING KARMA = PURIFICATION
Not Reinforcing Karma = Purification Actions and reactions stem from a karmic seed bank in the mind. ‘Karma’ is a word used to indicate the result of causes and effects, which germinate under pre-programmed conditions. We just have to hear … Continue reading
DEVOTIONAL INFLUENCES
Devotional Influences This is a thorny subject for modern people, and must be understood on an individual basis. Many of us find it difficult to trust, and there are spiritual teachers who expect us to trust them because they call … Continue reading
FROM SHAMATA TO SHUNYATA
From Shamata to Shunyata Mind-full-ness to Mind-emptiness A psychiatrist will scream, “You are stripping personality!” …No more fees… A yogi will whisper, “Gone, gone, gone beyond.” …It’s free…
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Tagged From Shamata to Shunyata, Mind-full-ness to Mind-emptiness
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MEDITATION – THE PATH TO SANITY
Meditation – The Path To Sanity We cannot know everything in the universe, but we can know the true nature of every thing in the universe. Every thing is made out of parts, causes and conditions: they are created, dwell … Continue reading
POSITIVE FEELINGS
Positive Feelings The depth of our experience depends on honesty, and that can be very challenging. Sometimes, texts are written in a beautifully poetical ways and so we have beautiful, positive feelings, or the teacher has beautiful charisma, and we … Continue reading
UNDERSTANDING OUTER DEMONS
Understanding Outer Demons We can misunderstand, and be confused about the concept of outer demons within our culture, and therefore either dismiss it, or move into a realm of fantasy. Tibetans call demons, Mara. They believe in outer mara as … Continue reading
STILLNESS OF MIND AND STILLNESS OF RIGPA
Stillness Of Mind And Stillness Of Rigpa Stillness in the mind is a temporary event. In shamata practice, we block thoughts coming out of our memory storehouse in order to remain in stillness; to be in the now*. But this … Continue reading
SATISFACTION IN A UNSATISFACTORY WORLD
Satisfaction In A Unsatisfactory World Is ignorance bliss? 🙂 Satisfaction can describe either a state of ignorance or of wakefulness. ‘Ignorance’ is not knowing (a lack of awareness or knowledge): it is confusion about reality (confusion: to mingle together). In … Continue reading
LETTING GO…?
Letting go..? We use this phrase quite a lot, but in Dzogchen there is no ‘letting go’ of thoughts. In recognition, thoughts naturally dissolve. We don’t have to do anything. When rigpa is present, grasping isn’t. When grasping is present, … Continue reading
RIGPA: THE ALL SUFFICIENT KING
Rigpa: The All Sufficient King In Rigpa – which is pure awareness/emptiness – thoughts will still arise, because the alaya (the karmic bank) is not empty yet. We do not block thoughts, as that would be doing something to something … Continue reading
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Tagged journey without a goal, rigpa all sufficient king, Trungpa
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BY NOT PRACTISING, WE ARE PRACTISING
By Not Practising, We Are Practising Once we ‘get’ pure awareness, there is nothing upon which to meditate. The only thing we do is maintain that clarity, by noting when awareness drifts away from emptiness. If the mind is sleepy … Continue reading
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Tagged By Not Practising, Spiritual practise, We Are Practising
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THE MIND INTERPRETS EVERYTHING
The Mind Interprets Everything …while empty essence merely notes experience with one taste Depending on how the mind is set-up (programmed), it will interpret things in a certain way, which will then be seen as its norm. By this, it … Continue reading
WHAT DO I DO, SPIRITUALLY?
What Do I Do, Spiritually? The whole point is whether your practice clarifies your understanding. All spiritual activities are about remembering to recognise awareness – the awareness of awareness – the emptiness of awareness – resting in that pure awareness. … Continue reading
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Tagged Nyoshul Khen Rinpoche, OUR TRUE NATURE, Spiritually?, What Do I Do
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THE REASON WE ARE NOT ENLIGHTENED
The Reason We Are Not Enlightened – we miss the obvious When awareness is obsessed, the view of pure awareness is clouded. It misses the obvious – its self. This pure awareness is empty essence. When awareness relaxes, so does … Continue reading
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Tagged Awareness, Memories in the subtle body, The Reason We Are Not Enlightened, Trauma
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STANDING BACK FROM ONE’S REACTIONS = WISDOM!!!
Standing Back From One’s Reactions = Wisdom!!! If we can stand back from our (the mind’s) reactions, then we deserve a slice of divine pride 😉 We have just stepped out of karma’s programming; ours and everyone else’s. If anger … Continue reading
WAKE-FULL-NESS: BETWEEN AWAKE AND ASLEEP
Wake-ful-ness : Between Awake And Asleep Our mind has to become as subtle as the thing it is investigating, which is mind essence. Our current consciousness is not subtle enough for this, as it consists merely of circling concepts. The … Continue reading
EVERY DAY ‘IT’ IS SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT
Every Day ‘It’ Is Slightly Different If we practise and study, then every day ‘it’ (clarity) is slightly different. A better word would be refined. So, it’s not just repetition…hooray! To be more precise; the more we practise, the more … Continue reading
PURIFICATION IS NO BIG DEAL
Purification Is No Big Deal ‘Purification’ sounds as if we have to have all the badness burnt out of us – boiled in oil, lashed till our skin falls off, crushed, humiliated and submit to the will of … 😉 … Continue reading
DO I HAVE TO BE AWARE? ALL THE TIME?
Do I Have To Be Aware? All The Time? This is up to you. Awareness is always present; we don’t have to ‘act’ aware. We are just awareness – pure awareness. However, awareness can get caught and held by external … Continue reading
BUDDHA IN THE MUD is a blog - a living book based on the Dzogchen teachings. Our teacher is life, and life is karma. We are all Buddhas in the mud of concepts. 