Karma Is Dharma
Karma is the habitual tendencies
which obscure our true reality.
Karma is Dharma
because it shows us these tendencies.
The purpose of life isn’t complicated.
Resting in pure awareness, there is nothing else.
No worries, no blame, empty of contrivances.
We can go through life in the yoga of one taste
– the direct connection with the senses –
doing whatever needs to be done,
and then dropping it, leaving no aftertaste.
😀
Religion Is Mind Control
Religion is mind control.
Spirituality is mind control.
Just to be clear:
Religion is group-think.
Spirituality is uni-think.
We control our mind by noticing that we are distracted.
Just be aware.
Shattered Ego
Ego is a fragile thing, as it’s easily activated through pride. Ego is Mara activity.
To the wise, however, Mara activity is a good sign, as we acknowledge its presence and remain at peace.
In this way, Mara – the creator of confusion – is our teacher.
Is the Universe An Illusion?
It can be said that the universe is an illusion. All matter comes and goes; it’s never constant, and thus, all things are impermanent.
There are only three unchanging factors: infinite space, awareness of that space, and the formula of attraction and repulsion that causes change on inert matter, and our reaction to it.
If we sped up time for a million years to pass in one second, what would remain? Space, awareness of that space, and the formula for re-creation.
This is realised in the stillness of meditation.
The question may arise, “So what?”
To non-practitioners, this is merely an unimportant idea.
To a genuine practitioner, this changes everything we hold dear.
Mara Is The Path
‘Mara’ is the Sanskrit word for demonic activity; it’s the evil-doing that causes confusion, chaos, and conflict because of a belief in a self-image.
As long as we hold on to anything, that is Mara activity. Mara is therefore our teacher; all our reactions are the work of Mara.
Viewed properly, Mara is the path to enlightenment.
🙂
What Was Good Becomes Extreme
Good things always turn into something extreme. This is the work of Mara, the form-maker. In all walks of life, the form of an activity is ‘upgraded’ in order to be more spectacular.
This takes us away from the essence of a simple process.
We Are Different, But Not In Essence
We are all different in our understanding and confusion, but not in essence. Our problem is that we are indoctrinated with words and names, which causes conflict and division – and is meant to. “By whom?” By subtle Mara activity.
This happens in all traditions;
there are followers and there are realisers,
and communication between the two is rare.
If we take the subject of ‘self’ and ‘Self’ – meaning our ordinary self and our higher being – these are both designations. The concept of a higher Self is still an idea; it is time-related, and so remains a duality. We start to think and act as if we have a higher self, but who is ‘we’? Enter: the building blocks of subtle confusion.
It doesn’t matter what we call our original essence, it’s always purely aware, pure consciousness. In this realisation, there are no names and no relating to cling to or defend. It cannot be found, only realised in silent awareness.
Mara’s work is confusion and conflict at a very subtle level.
This is why people cannot truly converse as they are stuck in words and names.
Don’t take anyone’s words for the truth.
The wise just see and drop whatever is seen
= no clinging.
Sharing Being
When we realise what happiness is, and what life is all about,
we want to share it.
This is not a theory;
we are pure awareness.
Others may not agree,
but we still share.
Interaction Is Our Teacher
Our path isn’t about what we know; that is the path of fame and gain. Our path is transforming information into wisdom – genuine experience – otherwise, we are doing Mara’s work.
It is only through our interactions that we can test our realisation. How we react indicates the level at which we’re working – do we want to communicate or just compete?
The person we’re communicating with is our teacher. By avoiding interaction, we want to feel safe, and that is not the path to enlightenment; that is being imprisoned by facts and concepts.
We may be very good at repeating our history books,
but we totally miss the present moment.
The Vicious Cycle Of Boredom
Boredom has two aspects:
All We Need To Know
Pure consciousness is all we need to know.
Dharma is not what we learn; it’s what we are.
We just have to remember this so as not to be misled.
Your Self Is All You Have
This self isn’t a reality. It’s a phantom in the mind that consciousness believes is its reality. It’s the confidence trick which causes confusion. This self is just a collection of ideas and feelings we’ve acquired, and will be with us until the moment of enlightenment.
We all get glimpses of no self in the moment when we come-to-our-senses. Pure consciousness is in that first moment, before ‘recognition’, whether seeing, smelling, tasting, touching or hearing
Enlightenment is just remaining unfettered, in cognisant emptiness.
It’s all we are.
Whatever Is Known Is The Past
Whatever is known is the past.
Knowing is now.
Arrogance is thinking we know.
Wisdom is now.
It’s not what we know;
it’s how we are that matters.
We Became Recording Machines
Our ultimate reality is the uncontaminated essence of mind – pure consciousness – just like this blank page before anything is written.
What we imprint on our mind is due to desire. When we know our true essence, we realise that, when we’re listening to others, we’re we listening to a playback machine.
Believing we are this recording machine has an effect on our brain, fixing our neural pathways. This creates a disorder, exposing our habitual and predictable patterns of behaviour.
Becoming dependent on belief changes our brain, and cause dis-ease. When we’re dependent, we’re addicted to ideas.
We have to deal with everyday life and with one another, but when this activity is ‘souped up’, we’re modified to increase power, efficiency, and impressiveness.
Once we become fixated, we will suffer from dis-ease.
A Sense Of Purpose
A sense of purpose isn’t something made-up or something to believe in,
but a genuine understanding of function.
We could start with,
“May all sentient beings realise the natural happiness within,
and the fixations that obscure this happiness.”
Naysayers will say there is no purpose to life,
and that’s their choice, along the consequences that follow.
Happiness: a state of realisation of our true being,
and the relief of not giving power to others’ negativity and indifference.
🙂
Surrounded By Mara Activity
The news, media, people’s everyday comments … when was the last time you heard something worthwhile? Humans can create beautiful and clever things, but there comes a time in life when we have to make a decision about whether to follow the crowd, or go in another direction.
When we choose to step out of Mara activity, life changes, and we see things differently. What we saw as trivia now becomes a teaching.
Mara activity: “Trust me, I know”.
Realising this is a blessing.
What We Say Makes No Difference
What we say makes no difference.
How we are makes the difference.
🙂
Only A Few In Heaven?
What if there are only a few beings in heaven?
So where are the rest?
Here, swapping philosophies.
🙂
Hell is ignoring heaven, the pure state of mind.
The Path Of No Hardship
Being aware is what we all do, but we are unaware of awareness itself. We are aware of things ‘out there’, and thoughts about things ‘out there’, but we’re rarely aware of awareness. This awareness is what we are.
That’s not difficult to realise, is it? Now, when we sit in silence, just being aware, we notice that there is nothing else. That is pure awareness – pure consciousness. That is what we are. Thoughts may distract us, but all the while, pure consciousness is present.
If, however, we give no value to this reality, then pure consciousness just becomes another fantasy, and we go looking for something more interesting to engage us.
And we are back into conflict and hardship.
The Only Thing That Is New …
Information from others is not new.
What is always new is pure perception.
Unbiased understanding is noting the reaction to information in the mind,
which is the middle way.
This unbiased state of wisdom
is the freedom to see all possibilities.
Being Inspired
We (consciousness) can be inspired by positivity. At a deeper level, we (consciousness) can also be inspired by negativity. It all depends on our understanding and capacity.
When we’re in exoteric mode – seeker mode – we look for good things to up lift us.
When we’re in esoteric mode – finder mode – we already know what’s good, and see negative things as a great reminder that the reactions in our mind are merely illusions, acknowledged by the essence of mind – pure consciousness.
Only looking for good things is the trap of clinging.
Everything is ‘grist for the mill’, meaning it’s potentially useful;
life is a test to see if we are working properly.
‘Grist for the mill’ originates from the practice of farmers taking their grain to the mill to have the miller grind it into flour.
Life Is A Test
Life is a test to see if we’re working properly.
The test:
Do we function in clarity, or in pride and fear?
The Denial Of Corruption
Corruption: showing a willingness to act dishonestly in return for personal gain.
Denial: to deliberately refuse to accept the truth about something unpleasant by pretending that it does not exist.
There are two aspects to every situation: the essence, and the form it takes. If we become more attracted to the form, we lose the essence, and if we want only the essence, we become unreliable. It’s like the difference between craft and art – one is understanding the limitations of the materials, while the other is the spirit of execution.
The Dharma is not only text. It is the spirit of execution – actual empathetic compassion.
If we cannot be empathetic towards the person in front of us, we are corrupted. This is the effect of groupthink in religion – and we see it all too often.
Dharma Without Questions Isn’t Dharma
Something that makes us a little uncomfortable is needed, so that we can question our reactions. We can’t do this in a religion as they’re made to feel comfy, and nobody asks real questions – we just have to accept.
The Dharma without questions isn’t Dharma;
it’s intellectualisation and belief.
It’s entertainment.
If we only want to hear ‘special’ words that we can repeat, then those special words are meaningless, and we have no empathetic understanding. Dharma is our reality now, beyond words.
If we’re just collecting answers/words, we are merely boosting ego, using Dharma for personal gain and fame. When we try to fool others, we are only fooling ourselves.
There are levels of understanding the same statement, and something that may be useful to one may be detrimental to another, and vice versa. As an example: the negative emotions are considered to be poisons and most of us cover them up, while for others, they are seen as wisdom.
We need to be clear receptors. We each have a personal path to enlightenment – our ultimate reality – and that path is our individual set of confusions/questions that we have to resolve. Learning about someone else’s path – even that of a Buddha – is not our path.
The sooner find our path, the sooner we arrive.
Any questions?
🙂
This doesn’t mean there is an answer.
It’s the gap in the question that is the answer.
What If We See The World Differently?
Is that anti-social?
The Buddha saw that life has meaning.
Introverts look inwards; extroverts look out.
Are introverts anti-social?
We live in confused times.
How Do We Know When We’re Right?
We are the only ones to know rightness, not intellectually, but in actuality. We can’t rely on anyone else to say, “You’re right.” They can only say, “I found that also.”
The indication of rightness is the gap of clarity. We know rightness in the pause that follows the question, “Am I right?” It is we who have to realise the truth of that empty space, never obtainable from a book.
Truth which never changes is reading the words. What we then do or say is down to our experience.
The Constant Battle Of Good And Evil
Good and evil have been with humanity for thousands of years. It is a battle between clarity and confusion. Actually, there is neither battle nor confusion when clarity is present. Confusion is an illusion – a conjurer’s deception – which governs us, and causes chaos.
Evilness is Mara activity.
Goodness is Enlightened activity.
What’s in-between is ignorance.
Evil hates clarity, so it causes chaos and confusion to maintain and abuse power. At this moment in human history, evil is prevailing digitally, obscuring clarity and confusing people.
To remain in clarity,
we become aware of how we are manipulated and governed.
Clarity means divine splendour: pure consciousness.
Confusion: from Latin confundere,‘to mingle together’.
Every Experience Points Back To Pure Consciousness
Every experience points back to pure consciousness.
That’s ‘it’.
It isn’t the experience that is ultimate truth;
that which experiences is the ultimate truth.
No Words, No Conflict
Of course, we need a few words to get through life,
– the same as we need a little ego –
but using words to promote ego only leads to conflict.
Addiction to words = addiction to conflict.
Meditation promotes loving kindness … or it should.
🙂
Intellectualisation Never Finds Inner Peace
Intellectualisation never finds inner peace, only conflict. We become a type – armchair philosophers dwelling in the fabric of the mind. If we don’t practise and experience, we’re in danger of mixing metaphors. This causes us to flex our mental muscles at others.
The Buddha said, “Do not take my words for the truth; test them for yourself” for this very reason.
Spread the love, not the words. 🙂
Don’t Assess Your Worth By Others’ Standards
We are all at different stages in the evolution of understanding our true reality. There is no one to impress, as most people are either book-learnt or just follow others.
This is especially so when it comes to ‘spiritual’ groups. We may not feel the same way as them. The hallmark of anyone’s worth is whether they can listen. When we realise that they can’t listen and we don’t mind, we know our worth.
What Does One Do When One Is Right?
That isn’t to say that others are wrong. Things are just right for an individual, and their set of questions. This isn’t ego as we feel confident in the experience of pure awareness, where there is nothing to hold onto. All we know is that pure awareness is always present, and that is what we are.
So what do we do now? Try to share if we can, and learn from whatever karma brings our way, or doesn’t bring our way. For some of us, nothing much happens. If others aren’t listening, that is their path, and this serves to strengthen our path – if we have empathy.
We cannot expect any conclusion from others;
peace begins when expectation ends.
Fifty Years Of Idiot Meditation
I spent fifty years of practising without knowing what meditation is really about because it had been coloured by culture. So I dropped the culture and, for the past 11 years, have had freedom from all dogma. And the light dawned.
I was meditating to be aware,
when meditation is being aware that
awareness is always present.
There is no I, just awareness.
That’s what we are – pure awareness.
We Are Individual Pure Consciousness
“We?”
“Individual?”
This is our conundrum 🙂
We only have to remember one thing: that every sentient being is individual pure consciousness that hasn’t changed throughout life. It is our constant reality, like space and formula. Once we realise our true reality, we know what isn’t reality, but just a temporary illusion of being caught up in space and the formula of attraction, repulsion and inertia which drives all phenomena.
It is because of this understanding that we can now empathise with individual confusion and collective confusion.
We cannot say that we are ‘all one’ and that’s it; this is what we’ve been led to believe, and it shows a lack of understanding. Some might say that we are all one in God, but that’s misguided because this belief has only led to division.
We first have to realise our ultimate individual reality of pure consciousness. Once that happens, we recognise that pure consciousness is the reality of all sentient beings. This realisation is the cause of the arising of true compassion because most beings are unaware of their reality as they’re caught up in the formula of attraction, repulsion and inertia.
All this is clarified in the clear light of simple meditation.
Pure Consciousness Is Inconceivable
Inconceivable: not capable of being imagined or grasped mentally; unbelievable.
To conceive – to form an idea in the mind – is a process that takes time.
Pure consciousness is not an intellectual exercise; it is inconceivable in its spontaneity.
We cannot know pure consciousness as it’s what we are.
There is just realisation of the presence of knowingness, before anything is known.
That is our true reality.
This is why belief is an anathema to knowingness, as it obscures the natural process of just being aware.
Anathema: early 16th century, from Greek anathema ‘thing dedicated’: Later -‘thing devoted to evil’.
Bored And Dissatisfied?
Bored and dissatisfied?
Good.
What is presented as ‘life’ is futile diligence.
Religion ties us up in a neat package,
and we no longer face the rawness of life.
We become lazy.
Reality is direct sensory perception without concepts.
People Like Me Shouldn’t Know
We assume that people who look the part are special,
and if we believe, we can be special too.
The true route to enlightenment isn’t through belief,
it is realising why we are in
the mess and confusion we are in.
Enlightenment isn’t being special, it’s being ordinary
with no special or distinctive features.
Suddenly it’s glaringly obvious.
In Love With The Guru
When we fall in love with the guru – a person – we accept everything they say, endowing them with special qualities. By association, we think we have those same qualities, so we’re covering up our faults. People are people. 🙂
It is these very faults and misguided ideas that cause us suffering. That is our path. It’s what we have to work with. Merely chanting, “Guru bless me, guru bless me”, doesn’t cut through our obsessions. When we either assume or justify our actions, we prolong the path. In fact, we enjoy our path – so what are we actually working with?
We can only enjoy the path when we have the courage to face our hopes and fears with wisdom. Every time we become aware of acting a part, we clarify our potential as our path is our own confusion and not some else’s lifestyle.
No one became enlightened by meditating and chanting; they became enlightened by dropping the meditation and chanting.
Q. Why are Buddhist temples so ornate?
The usual answer is that they render a religious atmosphere. Making images of the Buddha creates merit as, when people see them, they’re mindful of the Buddha. It’s said that a single thought plants a karmic affinity with the Dharma, which will eventually ripen, and is the cause of enlightenment.
But don’t all religions claim do this?
The real guru and temple is our own mind as that’s with us all the time,
showing us that whatever we’re holding onto distracts consciousness.
Enlightenment?
Everything crumbles to dust …
Buddha & Mara
We are both Buddha and Mara: clarity and confusion.
Some more, some less.
We dwell in a form and mind in keeping with our levels of realisation and delusion.
Our Mara side thinks it’s here to entertain itself – even the Dharma can be an entertainment.
Our enlightened side knows it’s here to stabilise realisation – knowing that the Dharma can be an entertainment.
Mara occupies the mind.
The final stage of Mara is endarkenment: an enlightened ego.
Buddha nature is free of mind.
The final stage of realisation is enlightenment: absence of ego.
How Realisation Works
Realisation is an evolving process, while belief is static; it’s at the end before we even start. When we let go of belief, we are in no-man’s-land, and that is the beginning of realising our true potential.
When we realise the Buddha’s words, “Do not take my words for the truth; test them for yourself”, we are in no-man’s-land, no-word-land. Words are not the actual truth; they are a simulation to give us direction, but they’re not actual experience. If we don’t let go of intellectualisation, we remain in a constant fixture in the mind, rather than in the wisdom of actual liberation, where we don’t fear contact with any situation.
Wisdom is realising that, no matter what happens, pure perception is ever-present, and therefore distractions which obscure pure perception are recognised as illusions. We can now smell Mara at work – the art of deception, with unwitting participants.
As solitary practitioners, we do not waste time on formal texts or hearsay, as these are incomplete truth. If we want to give more power to this observation … an incomplete truth is a lie. This recognition maintains our path.
Do we think that enlightenment is a guessing game?
One Day, The Right Words Will Come Along
One day,
the right words
at the right time
and in the right order
will come along – and we’ll get it.
The right words are …
“Don’t believe the words.”
It doesn’t matter what people say;
the reality is just pure observation,
which is beyond words.
It’s what did it for me.
May all sentient beings get it.
🙂
Do We Have To Learn ‘The Dharma’?
The Dharma is all about our true reality right now; it’s not about where we came from, and it’s not someone else’s history. We merely have to recognise our true reality of pure consciousness through silent meditation.
If we adhere to words (sorry to say), we lack empathy because we’re still judgemental. We can spend a lifetime studying a subject, and never actually realise it. All we can do is quote and theorise.
The Dharma is realising what’s reading those words; be aware of being distracted by them.
Mara likes words as words are beliefs,
and beliefs make us sentimental.
We learn through the silence of meditation.
Our reality has no words.
There Is Nothing New
We will never hear anything new about our true reality of pure consciousness; there can only be a new understanding for each individual. We all live in layers of mental fixations and confusion which have to be cut through, and whatever we think is never the answer to achieving satisfaction.
Mental gymnastics only create more conflict and suffering.
The question of our ultimate reality is a question with no answer, as pure observation is the ultimate answer that clarifies all confusion. It’s the pure observation that is the answer. Frankly, few of us get this as our minds are so indoctrinated with muddled stories that even hearing the truth of our reality can’t get through. All we hear, when people speak, is repeated stories.
When we see, hear or read something, instead of resting in an open mind, we refer to memories that cloud any further investigation or anything we then hear. This is why most of us cannot see the truth. How often do we say something, and the listener replies, “Oh, I heard it was …” and then go on to quote a story?
Our path is not about repeating this and that, which merely maintains confusion, the hall mark of which is being defensive, and rationalising. Our path is undoing our confusion.
The truth has always been within.
There is no Buddha out there.
There is no God out there.
We will never find the Buddha out there.
We will never find God out there.
These are illusions that make us look in the opposite direction.
Ultimate reality has always been within,
but is obscured by words and names.
The truth is beyond any words and names.
A Stranger Resides Within Our Mind
The ‘stranger’ that resides in our mind is a construct that we’ve adopted from birth in order to conform, and it’s caused us inner conflict and suffering ever since. When it’s recognised, this stranger, this self is our personal path to enlightenment. Evil exists all around us; it wants us to do anything but recognise this stranger, the illusory programme of a self. This is evil’s weakness, because you can’t fool everyone all the time.
What is enlightenment? It is recognition of this artificial imposition, and negating its effects. Wisdom is recognition; that which is aware of this stranger is what we are. It has no name, and giving it one creates duality, separation and conflict with others.
Our stupidity is being unaware of intercessors planting ideas in the mind. Never underestimate both the power and the weakness of stupidity.
The right path dissolves confusion and conflict.
If confusion and conflict aren’t being dissolved,
we’re not on the right path.
Is The Influence Of Buddha Maitreya Being Felt?
Is the influence of Buddha Maitreya being felt
more than that of Buddha Gautama?
Maitreya is the future Buddha
who will come when there’s a need.
Maitreya’s teachings will be focused around re-establishing the Dharma on Earth. According to scriptures, Maitreya’s teachings will be similar to those of Gautama (Śākyamuni). The arrival of Maitreya is prophesied to occur during an era of decline when the teachings of Gautama Buddha have been disregarded or obliterated.
Recognising the future Buddha of loving kindness starts with each individual’s ability to empathise when things don’t feel right, which gives rise to the feeling of necessity.
Empathy
Empathy is the ability to understand
and share the feelings of another.
Empathy is not about sharing ideas.
A feeling is an emotional state
attached to an idea.
We all have ideas,
but being stuck in an idea causes stress.
We can all empathise with stress.
Interaction Is The Path
The real Dharma is without formalities.
It is pure experience.
Interaction tests our mind.
Is it still reactive?
No progress is made without testing.
Opening up is the process of clarity.
Truth is the natural wisdom of empathy.
Communication is the path.
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. 
WHY THIS SITE ISN’T PUBLICISED
Why This Site Isn’t Publicised
This site isn’t published or promoted as it’s not of general interest. Society is made up of individuals who are fixated on ideas, blurting them out and running away. They are wannabes – they want to be special. This is what happens with all media.
The ultimate truth of our reality is everyone’s birthright, but only a few are willing to look. Most of us want to just read about it, and regurgitate without careful consideration. 🙂
Having said that, comments are welcome as they help with correcting direction for all parties. Truth isn’t a set of precepts; truth is the essence of mind which is pure consciousness for, without that, nothing could be known. Truth is beyond religion. The Buddha wasn’t a Buddhist.
That’s what it’s all about – being aware of the awareness that is aware of what is driving us.
Unless an individual is willing to see that their thoughts and attitudes are an acquired programme, true peace and freedom will never be available to them.
Ultimate truth is so simple – it’s pure awareness. Once this is recognised through meditation, all thoughts are mere distractions. In advanced practice, these distractions become our guide to remind us of our original reality.