Well if you're new to our little event here we've been doing it for how many weeks now Randy 40 some weeks already 4141 Yeah, I mean really close to coming into a year. So what we do here is we just hang out. It's like campfire talks, I love them because I don't have to prepare anything. I just show up. Sometimes I'll say something spontaneous. I don't know sometimes I'll just go right to the questions. Oh, we have really nice collection of written questions great ones. And then obviously, the ones that you asked live most most welcome. So I'm going to just a couple of tiny little announcement things. Then I'm going to return right to these questions because there's so many really good ones. And then we'll just see where it goes. We've been out a little bit of this kind of slightly political active social riff on this platform, you know that the working with this notion that if we're not careful with what we're doing, and our meditative spiritual path. Everything can become too precious. We get disconnected spiritual bypassing spiritual materialism, just the whole hornet's nest of of escapist things that we you know we're basically running away from things so I'm going to come back to that in a second. And say just a teeny bit more but in terms of like little upcoming events. My friend Garrett young who is a scientist at the Institute of noetic Sciences. He's doing this thing on Friday, which Andy will post a link to I hung out with him a couple years ago. He gave me he picked me up at the airport San Francisco took me to the center. Outside of Petaluma by Santa Rosa showed me the whole Institute for noetic sciences and he was starting to do back then and now I'm glad to see it's actually happening, some really interesting stuff around lucid dreaming so that's why he reached out to me. And you'll see the link, they're doing some really looks like interesting pilot program studies on exactly the type of dream I think I shared one of my dreams. 234 weeks ago exactly the sort of thing, I shared a dream where I had this experience where you can use lucid dreaming is to affect health. To me it's completely right arena, because you're working with subtle body in the dream, subtle body has a very powerful effect impact on gross outer body. And so I'm really glad to see this study. Hope it's the beginning of many where, again we will substantiate the power of lucid dreaming from a more Western clinical in this case even medical perspective. So I'm quite interested to see what Garrett has to say on Friday, so check out that link. I also almost forgot I'm doing, I was invited to do a presentation tomorrow night for the open center out in New York City, they're a cool group, I did a course for them last year. They have an ongoing what's called integrative planetology program which is really good. They sold out this year in fact they have more than double what they could take. And so I was honored to come in and be asked to give a presentation about the Buddhist view of death. I think they have like a dozen other really cool presenters. So that's tomorrow night and you'll post a link to that. This is a talk that I haven't officially done is similar to some other stuff I've done but I've actually never done a kind of point blank Buddha's view of death presentation so that's tomorrow night, following week, not this weekend but the next weekend is my first teaching gig of the year. This is an introduction to lucid dreaming and dream yoga. This is my kind of entry level program so if you know somebody or you yourself are interested in like the mechanics the basics the nuts and bolts entry level stuff. This program is designed specifically for that, it's hosted by a central Vermont that I've been to many, many times. And it, I think it's going to be a, you know, quite a nice event we already have quite a few people signed up So Andy will probably post a link to that as well. That of course is the other thing I do on these Thursdays is I get to peddle my wares, so to speak. So, so I thought today because I've been doing so much talking that
I would turn to some of the questions right at the outset because we got some good ones. And then, for those of you who are here. You can start to line up your own put them in the chat column raise your hand and we'll, we'll call on you and then let's just jump right in and discuss this stuff. So a lot of it is following up from this narrative that I alluded to earlier two weeks ago after you know this crazy mob attack the capital, what is seen. I actually gave a little presentation which I don't think I've ever done a real presentation on this platform. And we've gotten some really great participation from that. So a lot of these questions comments are coming from that, and some of the preparatory comments that I actually provisionally had in mind are actually completely enveloped within these questions. So I'm just going to read the questions and use them as platforms for some of what I was intending to say anyway so this is from Kenan. Regarding the previous two weeks of current event conversations. I have two contemplations want to hear your thoughts, number one, we often talk about the foundations of reality and how the gross is appearing from the subtler realms, and that the real solutions are at the subtler levels. So I'm just going to run little commentary as I go along. Yeah, that that's actually the overarching view
of
the so called Eastern wisdom traditions that everything arises from literally in Hinduism is called causal consciousness. dharmakaya level and Buddhism. Super subtle body from that arises the subtle body from that arises, the ghost bottle, body, in reality, so everything is fundamentally an epi phenomenal expression of these very foundational realms, which is why I've been kind of arguing over the last month, couple months that you can reduce everything to these very fundamental kind of spiritual principles or tenants because if everything in fact arises from this kind of blueprint or spiritual DNA. There's a tremendous amount of explanatory power by exploring these foundational things. And I really think if you look at the nature of reality very closely. Literally everything, bar none can be fundamentally reduced good healthy spiritual reductionism reductionism, in and of itself is not always a bad thing. It's only one that reduction was reified and becomes kind of dominant reductionism is a form of articulation. And so really you can look at anything, you know, toss out any, any phenomenal expression of the gross level and you'll be able to find a spiritual generative impulse. Because why everything arises from the mind, there is nothing that is not mediated by mind for us, it's meaningless to say otherwise. So everything really arises from mind, and at a very deep level as mind. And so, the wisdom traditions have a lot to say therefore about what's happening in the phenomenal world so this is a great seed comment Kenan for everything we're going to be talking on where the rest of your question and some of these other ones. So back to him as a spiritual aspirant. I want to bring clarity as to what level, our actions should be focused at, and not bypass the process of transformation in favor of gross activism. Are there examples of activism at the subtler level. And are those enough by themselves. They're not enough, but I'll come back to all that tonglen is one example that comes to mind. even quantum mechanically our thoughts intuitions meditations can perhaps have a bigger impact than gross actions. Uh, yeah so let me stop there before I get to your second question, why not use both do both work with gross and subtle and so what immediately comes to mind keen when I, when I hear this is, again, integral approaches why why I'm a big fan of integral approaches. It's why I'm doing this integrative planetology thing. Tomorrow is, is the way they integrate people in the actual integral community in my neighborhood, you know, Ken Wilber saying, which is a pretty big thing these days. They're doing a movie by him by the way it's been on the docket to be released for well over a year now, based on his really wrenching novel, not novel book called grace and grit. The story of his, his life, and the death of his second wife, who actually met when when Ken and Trey are first moved to Boulder 30 years ago he was invited to be on the board at Naropa, and they had a big welcoming party it's the first time I met Ken. And it was just when Trey was diagnosed with this cancer that would eventually take her life. And so that's when I started to hang with him a little bit, and then you know he goes through this incredibly harrowing experience with the death of his wife, which he writes about in this really powerful book, Grace and grit movie coming out. So anyway sidebar there's a big community here. And what I love what they do around this Kenan is this kind of Maxim you know exercise body, mind, and spirit in self, culture, and nature that covers everything. And that I think is really important because otherwise, it's an egoic propensity to fall into I've mentioned this term before, I'm from the sociologists single action bias, thinking that oh my little internal thing will do it all my social activism thing will do at all my whatever we'll do it well, yes and no. It's part of it, but it's not all of it. So I say do all of it, raise your gaze work within and then work without.
I think it's incredibly important to do that because then you remain humble open and active on all these levels you know we, the human condition is a really complex on one level, really complex multifaceted multi factorial systemic affair there's so much going on, and this is completely resonant with Buddhist principles, especially the core, one of the core principles of dependent origination everything arises in dependence on everything else. This is deep ecology, the deepest possible ecology. So integrative approaches are really deep ecological approaches, where you can't just tease anything out, you know, you have to bring in all these other factors to bear. This applies to everything success and lucid dreaming success and success in politics success, everything because everything arises in a vast complex network of or nexus of causes and conditions. Then you know really behooves us to become aware of all those causes and conditions and engage as many of them as we possibly can. So practically speaking, I would you know do both. Exercise body, mind, and spirit and self culture and nature, why not. Second question, at what point in history did we have a perfect civilization. In the recent history a few 1000 years we have had worse pandemics etc with brief periods of respite. Yeah, I mean that's a good point right there respite is actually the unusual thing, right, conflict and wars and upheaval and chaos that's the norm, brief moments of are returned to tranquility, that's the that's the unusual condition. So this this is back to Kenya and this might be related to the perspective of the you guys in Hinduism and how nature, including us itself raises and pushes awareness down.
Ah,
I'm not sure what you mean by that last
statement there Kenan nature raises and pushes awareness down. I'm not quite sure what you mean by that, but in terms of the other part. At what point in history did we have a perfect civilization. Did we ever make one. I mean maybe Shambala, that's a myth right the myth that that's the only one I could think of. The Myth of Shambala that at some point in some mystical landscape you know Shangri La somewhere. It's a great campfire story. You know this population of people achieved perfection and then they all elevated into this celestial realm called Shambala. But I don't know about that. That's an open question for me, that's, that's what the symbolic deep symbolic tradition prior to Trump mpj introduced the Shambala training and his whole riff on this. Prior to that was this larger color chakra level, shamala. So that's the only one that even comes to mind cane and I at one point in history did we have a perfect civilization. I can't think of a single one right i mean if we did pointed out to me. So, yeah, we have to be in my opinion, and I'm not sure this is where you're coming from but this kind of Garden of Eden mentality and I don't think that's where you're coming from, but I'm gonna say it nonetheless that that somehow we were, you know, at some point, either in the sequestered locations, or even more generally we you know we were in this ideal idyllic type of utopia Garden of Eden myth heaven myth, whatever. And then it things became progressively dystopian. That's a pre trans fallacy that's thinking somehow that we you know we've strayed from some primordial, whatever. On one level in terms of the, the spiritual path, there is some truth to that, that within us we've strayed from this, and continue to actively stray from this perfect, but a nature, whatever you want to call it awakening, that's inherent within us, is faith on that so whether that's happened on a societal level that's an open question for me outside of the myth of Shambala, and maybe some scholars out here can see more. I can't think of any. This one's, some of these other ones are closely connected so this is from David. Question number two.
It appears to me that politically people. It seems to me, It appears to me that politically people are thinking America, I suppose you're saying politically oriented people. The politically people are thinking America has awakened from a nightmare. But then in actuality America is confused and overly celebrating just changing from a boiling nightmare, and going into a simmering nightmare. I think there's some truth to that. Absolutely, it's all samsara. And not even complete enough solutions to problems to actually bring sufficient change to avoid catastrophe. Excuse me, especially as a climate emergency epic inequality continuing exhaustion of birth, that's our resources needed for the status quo. What profound changes are needed, and how can we help facilitate those and others and ourselves. I chuckled David because it's like, it's a little bit like what both Obama and Biden had to inherit I remember when Obama was first interviewed right after his election, he was hit with a similar question and he actually started laughing. And I think it was 60 minutes. I can't remember who actually interviewed him and he said, Why are you laughing, he said you know you got to have a little gallows humor with this because you know this report it was citing. I mean at that point. Just another you said another version of the three wing crap show that is samsara. So I chocolate because profound changes and changes are needed like everywhere. So we have to have a little bit of galley. This is what what Obama said he goes a little gallows humor gallows humor, you know can at least help you maintain sanity. In this absolute insane time so closely connected to Kenyans question, I think profound changes my friend are needed across the board. I mean, right. Everywhere changes needed everywhere but what can we do well as Pema children writes so beautifully in a best selling book right start where you are. Start with who you are, start with yourself. Start with what His Holiness the Dalai Lama talks about his inner disarmament that you know we express it again this is this epiphenomenal thesis that we express towards the world. What we express towards ourselves so these rioters. The only way you can do riotous things is if you have a riotous relationship to your own being. That's the only way. And so, what we can take personal responsibility for is in fact the deep recognition that everything we do is fundamentally driven by these developmental issues. This these issues are developmental and people just a lot of people don't want to hear that, because it immediately invokes hierarchy. But we can't, you know, this is this is not fake news this is real news, there is evolution, there is development. And so people do stupid things because they're developmentally retarded. And, you know, sorry that's just the reality. Remember that beautiful quote from summarizing it from Jon Kabat Zinn I just love it. I heard it in an interview he did with Dan Harris, really terrific podcast where he shares something like the following he said you know when you, when you know your mind and I'm going to elaborate when you know your mind and your heart like Socrates says you know above the Academy in ancient Greece. Know thyself. Know thyself. So Jon Kabat Zinn said if you know your mind and your heart, completely thoroughly. You get art, beauty, the Dharma truth. If you don't know your mind and heart you get Donald Trump, you get, he said, Auschwitz. You get this kind of insanity. And these are developmental issues and some people. Because of hierarchical issues don't want to hear that. But it's true. And this is where we have to make this really critical distinction because again hierarchy in and of itself is not inherently problematic. The problem is, what are called Dominator hierarchies, where you get some top dog that then slams everything down on the so called lower spectrum. So, by understanding evolution
in developments, we can bring about what are called actualization hierarchies, not Dominator hierarchies, where, for instance, I admire and look forward to exemplars like His Holiness Dalai Lama Karmapa take not Han. These people are more evolved than me. That doesn't irritate me, that doesn't slow me down that inspires me. That makes me feel like I want to be like that I remember, personal stories so clearly I shared the story a lot because it was so powerful for me when I was interviewing all these high level refugees. For my book preparing to die. I was really struck over and over and over how utterly unflappable fearless they were around the topic of death, and I kept thinking. After like the 10th interview, I was like, I want to be like them. I want to be like these people who are just utterly fearless around death and so this is where developmental issues if they're related to and articulated properly or actualization hierarchies where then you can say I want to be like, the Dalai Lama, I want to be like Christ, I want to be like the Buddha. So I think one of the things we do is we start to work within inner disarmament. We have to understand, education, education, education, everything here. We have to understand developmental issues, be honest where we where we abide and, and again this is a hornet's nest. Because of course you know who wants to admit that they're like, you know, stuck at a very low developmental level. Well, we all are stuck and that's what ego. That's what ego is ego is almost says this, I love his definition. Ego is an arrested form of development, that's what ego is. And so then when you get someone like Trump, who's Rudra anti Buddha, that's just super ego not in Freudian sense of super ego but just super ego ik Rudra. That is a colossal developmental retardation, of which you get these colossal retarded actions and correlative destruction in the world. So, you know, this is this is a very difficult complex issue and again I. This is why I'm such a big fan of integral approaches because you have not just the issue of waking up vertical actually horizontal enlightenment that's what Eastern traditions specialize in. Then you have growing up, developmental vertical development and evolution, great contribution of the West, hundreds and hundreds of very smart sophisticated people using methods that the East have no clue about the East cannot see these things, talks about human psychological development and evolution critically important so waking up, growing up, showing up cleaning up all these aspects of integral theory I think are super important to bring an honest approach assessment and application to the complexity of what's happening in the world today. So these are fantastic questions so here we go. Yeah. From ham. Let me see if there's any other kind of political things. Oh good, none yet. Okay, so I'm going to go to these other questions so shipping shifting gears a little bit from Pam, you state in your lucid dreaming workbook. chapter eight. Thank you for buying that Western nighttime induction techniques that the herbal supplement galantamine is used to enhance memory and delay onset of memory disorders. Yeah, they use it in prescription strength. Excuse me, to work with Alzheimer's and dementia. You can use galantamine over the counter allegedly it's what's called a nootropic, and O TR o p ik a cognitive enhancer and allegedly, it was used as far back as the deceased in Greek history to improve memory, and studies have shown that it does that, that's why in prescription strength they use it so also helps to induce dream lucidity well it helps to induce dream clarity, not lucidity unless you're talking about lucidity in the sense of clarity galantamine does not increase lucid dreams, per se, what it does is it like you mentioned here it inhibits the breakdown of a neurotransmitter ethical Coleen Esther Ace,
that is in high esteem calling is a neurotransmitter that's in high concentration when you dream. So galantamine breaks down the enzyme that breaks down the neurotransmitter that keeps acetylcholine in high supply, so then it doesn't, it just makes your dreams. For many people, not all clearer longer. And then that gives you a better chance to become lucid. Studies have shown this my new bud, not my new but I've known him for years but Benjamin Baird and Stephen laberge, Crystal lamarca recently published another study, proving this or substantiating it just came out I think last year, I was involved in the study so since galantamine has these two functions enhanced memory and dreams. I'm curious if taking it in the morning on a daily basis to help with memory would be a problem. I'm asking since you also suggest not taking it more than twice a week to prevent tolerance. I think this may be, this may only apply to the nighttime dosage to increase dream states. We're taking it daily from memory enhancement build tolerance for that purpose. Maybe it's, these are idiosyncratic. I'll come back to them. Would it make sense to take a daily for memory and only twice a week for pre dawn to enhance dreams make sense. So you're female and want to do what I can to enhance memory. Also, is there a brand new recommend. I'll start with the end. I. Not really. I use, Atlanta mind. There's also just a generic galantamine here's the deal with this stuff it's an unregulated industry. You never know what you're getting. I mean, no kidding. They've done studies sometimes because it is unregulated and this is one reason regulations are good. They've done studies on these sorts of things I can't speak specifically to galantamine but generally they've done studies on these sorts of, you know, over the counter supplements. Sometimes you get like 10% of what they advertise. Sometimes you get like 500% of what they're advertising, so it's all over the bloody map. And so therefore I'm very cautious in recommending anything along those lines I can only tell you what I have used the Atlanta mind. And then there's another just kind of generic like Jimmy's I don't have a personal favorite. I also have zero stock in any of this so whatever it works for you. Um, in terms of. Let's talk a little bit about memory enhancement period. What I would do and this is actually what I do, again, kind of an integral approach. There are some classic things you can do that are proven, and I hear studies, all the time coming out continuing to substantiate this on one level is intuitive. And some people like to hear this others don't because it puts it the onus of the responsibility onto you so that it, and again I'm not saying this is where you are pan but it's very easy, because of the monolithic power of the pharmaceutical industry, and its lobbying efforts and as marketing efforts. I am so anti drug these days I can't tell you. I am really anti pharmaceutical industry I mean what what Look what they did with the opioid. And again I I see this on the IMA Doc, I see these people coming into my office, they take me out for lunch they buy me things. That's why I caught that out because I still like getting shows you how involved I am I still like getting their free toys, but I don't push their drugs. I'm pretty anti drug these days, not 100%, because they're absolutely positively there's a place for these agents, this is the neuro of the neuro phenomenology part, there are kind of, you know, chemical biochemical pharmaceutical components to any experience. But the big problem there is look like what I was talking about earlier Oh put all your eggs in the pharmaceutical industry. No, don't do that, it'll kill you. So, I'll get off that soapbox. I would recommend very strongly really diet, your food you know if your food is medicine. Your food is medicine, eat all this I don't need to go through a whole, whole death thing you know, eat healthy. Stay away from you know all this stuff, the trans fats the complex decart you know stay away from that stuff.
You use the diets that the intelligent people were referring to exercise, exercise, exercise, colossally important to have tons, cognitive and physical decline, hugely important. And then also study, keep your mind active stretched, you know, exercise, again it's this integral thing. Exercise body, mind, spirit exercise these different aspects literally. And so I'm very remiss, and this is why I don't riff a ton about these sorts of things because they're they're a blessing and a curse galantamine definitely has a place for some people it's it's rocket fuel for lucidity for me it really works for other people, it does nothing. And so I'm going to pass on most of your questions here Pam because for one. I'm not an ultimate authority on the specificities of, you know, modifying this type of usage, I don't distribute galantamine in this way. I use it only in the ways that I've suggested, so I don't know and if there are studies I mean I could ask my friend Ben. The neuroscientist if he's done studies on this topic I'm sure somebody probably has, have they done this in relation to lucid dreaming I don't know I haven't seen it, and I'm pretty on top of this sort of thing. But I'm scheduled to be with them again soon. And I can point blank, ask him this question, but with your permission Pam I'm gonna pass on the rest of it because it's kind of not my thing for the reasons I mentioned. So, you know, maybe you can look online there I know there's like galantamine chat rooms and some of these other platforms. I do endorse it cautiously. But I don't tout it, and that's why the rest of this doesn't really. I don't think I'm the person to ask. So, fencing I still have some fear of becoming lucid in my dreams. I'm afraid it will interfere with the rest I need logically I know it's not true.
Yeah,
well, actually Francine it won't. It won't interfere. Your brain when you dream is as active or more than when your brain is awake. So you get most of your restorative aspects and non REM sleep REM sleep restores different aspects of your body mind complex. It's designed to work with, again, the literature here is is is huge, read Matthew Walker is why we sleep he has a ton of information there about why we dream. So, when you're dreaming your brain is as active or more than it is when you're awake. And so if you're engaging in lucid dreaming, somewhat properly. It will not affect it won't interfere. So if that's what you're afraid of that that fear is a little bit unfounded. Especially if you have the opportunity to luxuriate sleeping in the morning a little bit you can always make up for any sleep that you think you may have lost, but that dimension of being afraid of lucidity, like you say logically, I know it's not true. Well, can you rely on that logic. I can just reinstate that what you're saying is in fact true. It will not interfere with your rest if it's done properly. Same with lucid sleep yoga if you do that properly, but that's a different beast and that's where you can interrupt sleep and get interrupt rest but that's not what you're asking. So I would just you know take refuge in your logical mind here, and realize that when you're in REM sleep. It's a different type of restoration that's taking place, that really won't affect your rest Anisha.
I have a question about calling out to meet our teachers and dreams and then after this I'll open it up for questions. I have a question about calling out to meet our teachers and dreams, in order to seek advice. I have done this once in a lucid dream. And then beginning to wonder if this is appropriate. I wonder if I could be intruding just willing them to present themselves. Suddenly, well you could but I kind of doubt it, if I'm understanding what you're asking with the first part this is a long question so I'm going to break it up. I do both. I mean I I actively incubate for guidance in my dreams, and sometimes I just wait for these things to arise serendipitously. But I wonder if I could, if I could be intruding just willing them to present themselves Suddenly, I don't think so. But what I would do. Again, this is what I do is I would play with both approaches
incubate
seek advice and guidance supplicate whatever works for you. And then other times just, you know, maybe let that perfume, your nighttime. And then just don't actively do it, and then relate to both experiences or relate allow the serendipitous nature of these arisings that take place, if I'm understanding you properly in Asia and other times actively do this and see what happens I do both. It could you explain a bit what may be going on here when we asked to meet and talk to our teachers and dreams. How do we know that it's more than just a projection of our mind. Well, we often don't. On one level also it doesn't really matter. You know, is it the message, or the messenger that's important. So, one way that I can suss this out is, is just the intuitive affective component so in other words by this, what I mean is, I think it's I think both tracks are entirely reasonable feasible and likely on one level by this one I mean. On one level or teacher or rising in the dream can indeed be your own inner guru, that's the ultimate guru, the teacher within that can be your own inner teacher manifesting in an anthropomorphic form in this case a dream form as a way to communicate with yourself. I think that's entirely possible and I'm quite sure I certainly had dreams of that ilk I also have had dreams where, again this is the affective component of the feeling tone, where I've had dreams where I there's again there's just this knowing this sense of like that incoming for me. I've had a number of those in fact some of them are so on unequivocal like there's no way, there's no effing way that came from me. And so I think it's also entirely possible for sure and the literature is replete with these that these outside so called outside agents agencies energetics, whatever you want to call them can infiltrate your mind stream and communicate with you that way, no doubt whatsoever. And in fact it's, you know, I can give you some very personal experiences here in waking life I have been. I'll share one story in particular, there are many where I was in a very small group, maybe six of us in an audience with one of my main teachers Cambodian vj. And I had already kind of pestered him with a number of questions over this period of time and I felt I said I'm not going to ask anymore because I want to let other people ask a question, but I had this burning question, but I was just getting biting my lip. And, you know, after this moment of silence. He was looking around he looked right at me. He said, You can ask your question, the guy with the dude was totally reading my mind I mean like no doubt, no doubt. And so, if he can read my mind that you know people like that can enter your mind. This is one way, you know, kind of the magic of transmission takes place empowerment and things that happen at that level. So, in my experience absolutely no question, 100% certainty that these agencies can infiltrate mind because again it's not your mind, your mind is not limited to this stupid bowling ball up here. You know gross mind yeah amplified by brain but mine does not equal brain mind is actually distributed, you know, throughout the body. By the way, literally, you have neural peptides almost on 50 trillion cells in your body. Virtually neural receptors on every cell, you have 50 trillion brains in your body, each one of those which is like a little mind I mean that's a really interesting image right. And then you have mind as it permeates outside of the matrix of body itself so back to the question, it can be both. Okay, I'm also this is back to her I'm also thinking back to when someone said last hangout I think that they plan to call out to their teacher at the time of death or even times of difficult circumstance. Yes, I completely agree with doing that. Absolutely, part of their job description to appear to you by the way, really.
So they can find the courage to keep an open heart when they're dying or in difficult circumstances it occurs to me that this may be good practice to strengthen one's connection with a teacher who can maybe in turn help us with dream yoga. Oh, absolutely 100% 100%. So, one little comment here that's important. This is a big difference by the way what I'm about to say, between lucid dreaming and dream yoga dream Yoga is spiritual it's a it's a practice it's a meditative technology. And it comes from vaiana comes from the Tantra, and from in a tantric Buddhism devotion is everything devotion is the jet fuel in the vegetariana devotion devotion bhakti yoga guru yoga, it's everything. So for people who really, and this is a little bit more prescription strength deep diver believer kind of person. You really want to, you know, rock it with your dream yoga, establish a relationship to devotion, cry out for your teacher whatever works for you if it doesn't work for you. Don't worry about it you can you can still do lucid dreaming, you can still do dream yoga. Totally. But if you want to really amp up your practice. Use the most powerful force in the universe which is love. And that's what devotion is love harnessed for purposes of transformation. And so, this is a big deal. Literally in the nocturnal dream and also the dream at the end of time IE death. So if this speaks to you again if it doesn't really, I'm not being smart LP here Don't worry about this. But if it does speak to you, and totally speaks to me, so I mean I work with this all the time. It's what I call magic induction in my books, compassion and devotion cultivating a relationship with the teacher can absolutely help you with your dream Yoga 100%. Okay. There's another one or two questions here but I will come back because I want to the handle some of the live ones so please we can open it up
to questions today.
First we'll bring in the rain, and then Maryanne. Hi there.
Hi,
can you hear me okay.
Thanks Hi, I'm timing myself because I got a little upset about something and so I okay. I'm feeling a bit emotional and I don't know if I'll be able to sort of make sense.
Laurie let me say one thing, right at the outset, let's take, let's do this together. Let's both of us take a one breath meditation. And if you feel that that energy is, you know, really kind of getting the better of you. I give you a complete permission and also invite you to feel hit the pause button, and take a one breath meditation. Now this doesn't mean in any way that your your emotions should somehow be dismissed it's a matter of harnessing it.
And with all i can i thank thank you so much can I just stop you there for me. Really appreciate what you said, I've got quite a bit of experience with this type of thing that this type of thing I totally get what you're saying it I really appreciate it. As soon as soon as I open my mouth like calm down. I know it sounds. I can control it I'm just it's a good. It's a good. It's a passion, it's not a, it's to do with, is to do with Tibet, I watched a documentary late last night, I hadn't been sleeping, which is why I was careful to come on only when I sort of felt able to, you know, be succinct and I will now time myself so but thank you very much I appreciate where you're fit there. But I just want to say, I watched a documentary and I wanted to just tie in with everything you've just said, and I'll make it brief so I can keep it together and wisdom traditions are talked about so much in this space you that you then touched on gross activism subtle activism and I just made notes because it just made so much sense in in the light of what I wanted to say, then, then I thought about keyboard warriors you know and I like into maybe what is a book reading warrior and what is a book writing warrior. It all makes sense at the end so I'll try and bring it together and then you spoke about single, single action bias. Raising your gaze and social activism it's all sort of coming it all made perfect sense then for me to be able to speak for this stuff. I then what I wanted to say that I in the documentary what stirred me so much, not just obviously the increasing self image emulating this happening in Tibet now. I post documentary about 10 minutes for coming into this meeting I looked up the website, did a research to see what's actually happening at the moment in Tibet, you know, currently, free tibet.org. And, you know, it just, I just made me think about everything you've just said I'm giving myself just another two minutes max here because I want to, I want to I want to stay succinct. So you know talking about waking up growing up showing up clearing up. And so much of the conversation is about the Dalai Lama you know if we could give money to Tibet every time we mentioned his name. It'd be something, they asked him for profits on this site they're, you know, talking about. I just came to mind you know that we're saying we want to be Christ and the Buddha would do we want to be Christ as he approaches across, you know, really do we want you know and like I feel like passionate after looking at documentary because I looked up basically free tibet.org is saying that the people that are talking to them are getting killed for talking to them. It's so precarious and I was like okay so we're taking from them wisdom traditions. Here we're taking from them. And are we protecting the source, you know, are we killing the goose to get the golden egg, are we, you know, like as a community here could we raise money, can we get proceeds from everybody that's made a book that you've mentioned that you've recommended Can we do something from this community because I'm sitting in Italy, and I feel like I've been so depressed in my life at points I thought I might take my life and I was thinking you know what the great thing about considering taking your life which I've not thought about for 25 years is that I realized, if I was gonna lose my life I might as well effing lose it for something. And what I'm saying is here is that nobody is doing anything. And yet we will using the wisdom tradition, so I'll stop there because I appreciate so much how succinct you are and I certainly am not good at that. But thank you for letting me share so passionately.
Yeah, so
let me let me make sure I understand, you know some of the underlying questions impetus and so forth. I mean I first of all I very much appreciate your passion, that's what leads to in really engaged. Spirituality activism, which really fundamentally that's the ultimate point is, Yes, we work on ourselves. But fundamentally, we work on ourselves to the point that we realize there is no difference between self and other. And so therefore, at that point of realization and awakening, we're no longer working for ourselves because there isn't one. We realize that and then we work. indefatigably for the benefit of others. That's the only game in town. And so, until we get to that point that's what's called fruition oh that's that's real bodhisatta activity. At this point we are all aspirational police officers, we, we kind of fake it till we make it, we try we do the best we can. And what the best we can means that's not such a simple thing because we're all different right we all have our faculties and our foibles we have our strengths or weaknesses. And therefore, it's a little bit tricky to categorically say, you know, you should do this you should do that well. We, it would behoove us to be active to get off our meditative questions our little elite spiritualities and engage. How we do that is the question. And therefore, that's an open question you know a lot of that is empowering to find your own way, you know, how can you make a contribution based on your faculties your, your abilities. Each of us has to find that out, I really did appreciate what you said about and I agree with you, which is why you know more and more of my programs I'm now starting with this little kind of gut check in slight critique that you know we're dealing with very precious teachings here. But the near enemy is is everything can itself become too precious in a pejorative sense where we it's escapist it's the leaders it's bypassed. So I liked what you said about, could we get together somehow and do something collectively like raise money for causes. I mean that's a very interesting point is this in fact the platform for that. Maybe I'm open to that. I think maybe the best thing would be to perhaps create opportunities for that. Where people you know kind of a soft invitation, where people can then collectively arise or not depending on their own. Inspiration so that we don't become a little bit. What's the word just to political maybe. So I mean, somewhere in there I super appreciate what you're saying I love your passion, that's what's gonna drive you know appropriate activism. And then how we actually do that it's really up to us, I might recommend if you haven't read it. I'm recommending this book a lot these days, my dear friend David Loy his latest book called eco Dharma Buddha's teachings for the ecological crisis. It's brilliant. And in the last chapters he talks about exactly this how to, how to do things what to do. And always doing it with a proper motivation that even if nothing happens you still do it because it's the right thing to do, irrespective of the fruition in fact there's a slogan in my training slogan that says don't expect applause, that you do it, no matter what. Even if you don't think it's having any effect you do it, because it's doing the right thing. And if you're still looking for some result that means there's ego involved. And so we look at that. So, just for the purposes of time. If you haven't read David's book, I really recommend it, he's a he's an amazing thinker and the amount of data he covers in this book, and the practical applications at the end, are bloody brilliant. Also it I interviewed him on my club site and we got into this in quite some detail, especially towards the end of our conversation so if you're a nightclub member you can listen to that, but get David's book, he is a rock star in this worlds and so for purposes of time. With your permission, I'm going to fly down to that next question that's always a challenge with really deep important and passionate issues like this but just I think you understand to let other people speak. If it's okay. Yeah, most welcome. All right, so bring in Marianne and then Tony.
Hey,
I.
First of all, thank you so much for what you're doing here and also the book club I mean I'm with the recorded session number nine and well very, very it takes me a long time. So my question is regarding two images that come to us during the day, or why we are awake. My son, he's four and a half he calls this like my television and then he sometimes says like okay I'm seeing in my television, this and that. And I also know it, like from my own life, and from also working with my clients, but sometimes, even during the day, they seem to come images, and sometimes it's also when I sit down for meditation, that kind of archetypal images are coming up, and they don't seem to come from myself, or sometimes they are so fast I can't even grasp them. Right. Yeah. In my case, they are often like ancient images from ancient cultures, and sometimes it's even I've no idea I can see like Buddhists with different mudras or like South American cultures Egyptian cultures and sometimes afterwards I start to Google, and I find these images, and I'm like, Wow How could my How can my mind produce that. And my question is where do these images come from and should I engage with them, and also should I teach my son to engage with his television, or should he just watch and observe.
Yeah, great question. So I'm just writing one or two notes here. Yeah, beautiful question. Are you a therapist then is that is that your work, or
yeah I'm
a coach, yeah. Wonderful. Okay.
And Marianne right so it really it's a difficult question to say with any authority Marianne. You know, for they it can come from a number of places, just like dreams can come from a number of places so this is all part of understanding the spectrum dimensions of our own mind, heart being and how it connects to how individuality connects the universality In other words, one of the things that came to mind when you were saying that was something quite beautiful that Joseph Campbell once said, where he said that dreams are private myths and myths are public dreams. That's a really powerful statement. And so a couple of things come to mind in terms of avenues for exploration along these ways I really, if you haven't read some of Joseph Campbell's stuff along these lines, it's pretty compelling. The other thing to think two other things one is, and I mentioned this last night if you were there. I think it was last night, you know the the role of the unconscious mind that, that a lot of these images come from the unconscious mind. And as you know, as I mentioned last night What we know is conscious awareness is just 5%, you know, 95% of our experience is dictated by these unconscious processes, you know what, there's massive Berg iceberg below the surface of awareness. So one thing I might refer you to if you're into reading is I mentioned this yesterday. Ken Wilber has a really penetrating chapter in his book II, and something like, I don't remember the exact title something like development, the unconscious and meditation. It's a spectacular chapter where he talks about six different domains, or types of unconscious processes unconscious minds, from which these things can emerge. And some of these are the reason I mentioned this is some of these are no longer our unconscious mind. In other words, they come from transpersonal or pre personal dimensions archetypal dimensions. And so, you know, I might direct you for a deeper dive to look at that material because then you will see, oh, some of this could become coming from what's called the emergent unconscious. Some of this could be coming from the submerged repressed unconscious, some of it could be coming from the archaic unconscious, I can't tell you. That's one thing. The other thing is that once we especially for intuitive sensitives psychics meditators as we become more transparent to ourselves through meditation, we become more porous and transparent to others and to everything. This is where psychic power comes from, I mean psychic power relative city is really, we think it's this kind of amazing thing but it's actually very ordinary, if you're really open the psychic abilities, this, this, this, this degree of receptivity is brought about by your degree of openness and the more open you are the more you're going to receive this kind of stuff. I mean sometimes to astounding degrees so here's just one example there's hundreds of these types of stories. You know the karmapas allegedly have a kind of
thing, that when someone dies there there's a, they will come to visit the Karmapa before they kind of exit out of the Bardot's and there's this outrageous story that Campbell Carter shares, where you know he was with his holiness 16th Karmapa in Tibet Karmapa was teaching this event in in the middle of the event in front of like 1000 people he stopped. He was just like open mouth, looking and then he burst out laughing. And then came back to teaching, and in kempo remedy asked him later like what the heck was that right and come up with just said completely Matter of fact, he goes oh you know I was in the middle of this presentation in this little boy. All across Tibet had fallen into the ocean, it was falling into the stream. It was being swept away and he called out to me come up again Oh come up again Oh come up the kendo, which is a guru devotion that says come up I think of me. So they come up, picked up on that. He paused and then he put it, I did something about it. He basically saved this kid across the bed the kids came out of the out of the water. Basically slapped his naked butt and said Thank you Your Holiness did that effect and that's why they come up with burst out laughing. Where's that coming from, it's coming from a mind that is so open that you start to just pick up on all this stuff I mean, look at, I don't know the exact data but you know the visual spectrum is is just an absolute infinitesimal amount of the information that exists, along the electromagnetic spectrum. Right. And so the more you know, the bigger your radio dome The bigger your receiver. The more you pick up. And so, women are more in tune with that why because they're more in tune with their bodies because of their cycles. And so that's why most psychics, not all tend to be women, because they have this more receptive open approach and so the more you open your mind and heart to yourself. The more you become translucent transparent to the cosmos at large. And therefore, you'll start to notice this stuff, you know like, Where did that come from that didn't come from me. You know, I will be teaching I do supplications every day to Manjushri I do the sanity that deity. And I will be teaching, and I will be getting insights, they're not coming from me. That doesn't make me special I'm they're coming from luxury, or avalokiteshvara or Chen razie or any of these archetypal dimensions of mind being that are trans human non human intelligences. So I can also, if you can send me your email I can send you an absolutely outrageous article that blew my mind, that is beyond the scope of what I can talk about here, I want to actually interview this guy that can go even further and deeper into this sort of thing. But the bottom line is, it's it's something that can be treasured honored and most importantly can be cultivated, where it comes from, specifically, I can't answer that, but I can just tell you, there is a whole lot of opportunities out there. You just have to be open to them as far as your child. I would just see how it his age I would probably just let him run the show. Let him teach you again in the in the invitation of openness, really tune in to where he is with it. If it's if it's enjoyable. If it's kind of fun and entertaining I would nurture it. If it becomes somewhat unsettling or disconcerting and that generally does not happen until adults start to impose their limited views on it. I would let that childlike intuitive wisdom just run on its own. Let him do his thing. And then just be a good dancer let him lead that dance respond to what he brings to you don't, I don't think there's any need for adult supervision on this one, maybe the best thing to do is just let him express his little genius and then just see where it takes them. Something like that.
Well thank you so much. Yeah, thank you so much and if you have any tip for me, how to actually where to go to to. I mean, because when I see people, I, when I was a child I always saw them like suffering, I saw them at the same time I looked them in their eyes I could see them like being in horrible situations which was when I was a child really horrible for me because I couldn't stand to be like in bigger groups because I could feel the energy of anybody and then I kind of shut down this I can kind of switch it on, but I didn't ever work on that because I didn't know what to do and I didn't know how could it How could that benefit anybody so I just stopped there, and now I want to support people and now I don't know where to go to, with whom I should talk, you know,
you need to cultivate the sort of thing. That's a big question. Yeah, boy.
Let me think about that.
You know some of the some of these answers that are posed I can riff pretty quick rapid fire answers to some just take a little bit of reflection like you know who can you go to that you can trust. Yes, I can tell you where you can go. But some of these places I you know, I, my bs meter starts to come up. So, do me a little favor and send Andy a little note or put it put it in that submitted as a written question and I can just reflect a little bit more on it and get back to you on that. Because they're absolutely positively ways that you can cultivate what you're interested in more generically through bodywork through meditation through some of the things I'm talking about. But finding like a community, a teacher, not just in Buddhism I'm actually thinking outside, you know, some of the other peeps I know that work in different domains, you know like, like shamans and the like. I just need to reflect and subtle a little bit on what might pop up along that because there's some, like melanoma so maybe there's some really incredible shamans totally 100% legit. I'm just not sure what they're doing in terms of working with people, so I'd have to do a little checking on that but he's the one that comes to mind most directly Do you know his work.
No, no,
yeah, Amala DOMA soulmate melanoma soulmate his book of water and spirit, you might want to look at that. He's a really brilliant human being in totally the real deal. I also another person just came to my seal so what happens when I sell with it. There is a gal who I'm connected is actually the partner of Tammy Simon. She does this type of training. I could ask Tammy, so let me just do a little bit work as I settle into it more names will start to pop up but I do know now, you know she's that person in the neighborhood I do know her, completely forgot about her she's completely legit. I just need to think about it and get back to you with some recommendations like that but melanoma so a and then. Tammy Simon's partner I can't remember her name. She actually does kind of a really extensive deep dive. She Andy might know her. The Andy Do you know her name. Tonight,
not coming to me.
Yeah, I can get I can dig it up and get back to you but just send me, or send an Eastern one of us a way to get in contact with you. I can be a little bit more specific once I have attempt to settle with this a little bit. Okay.
Thank you so much. Yeah, I sent my email to Andy. Thank you.
Bye bye.
All right, next we can bring in Tony.
Hi, Andrew. Hey, buddy. Great to be here. Thank you for all the great stuff you do nice night and day. Almost 24 hours a day it's awesome. To think quick things. First, first of all, a very quick comment on the comeback to the political situation. Am I N and my, my only comment is, how could it be otherwise.
How could it be otherwise.
Yes. How would you get given everything that we've done on the planet. All right. Collectively for 250,000 or 400,000, years. What, what could we expect to have really a reason to shake.
Yeah, exactly. Yeah we deserve it. Yeah,
We've worked hard for it. Yeah. Well said.
Well said. I completely agree with you. Yeah. But yeah, but again then Tony, you know, it's basically more people coming to that actual realization that you know really garbage in, garbage out right yeah anyway well. We've been working very, very hard. We're reaping the fruits of our efforts. Exactly.
So, like, I'm. The second thing. I'm. I'm. is around a common thread that you made a short while ago. Okay. About the body and many minds. Right. Yeah. Yeah. And, you know, like like my, my, my personal view, which started, which comes out of personal experience is I, and I don't really like to use the term but but it's all I have is my nomally. Okay. And I'm to two things in meditation and also in contemplation, in meditation, go into a second Cosmo with you, which is my practice and essentially that's Shama doggy posture. Um, that's what that's how I experience it for our goal because I think something, passionate, is, is a better universal description now. She can cause. Because that's so crazily broad. In that, indeed. In, she can tell us on it. It's all mine. There is neither outside, nor inside, no conflict in, in, in, in meditation. and what seems to be happening is when I go into contemplation. The mind only aspect is leaking leaking into contemplation leaking. Okay. Entering, and sometimes even permeating the contemplation. Okay, which is making the content, and at least it seems to me and I really need some guidance with a witness. At least it seems to me that my contemplations because of the meditation, becoming much more lucid. Right. That. Oh,
is that is that is there a problem with that.
No, no I mean I like I'm. You're all I have to talk to you about it. So I came to you. I like I trust you and I and, you know, you know that. But I, because this is relatively new, where the mind only facility of mine, only has ended calm and abrasion. Um, I just needed somebody to check with I guess I yeah and and I'm sorry to do but,
yeah, again, you know, you're a pretty smart savvy guy, um, I can only confirm you know I'm not hearing anything here that that causes me throws up any red flags, or whenever I think this you know this kind of cross pollination between meditation contemplation. That's actually a really healthy good thing that you know these these dimensions of inquiry experience whether it's you know just sitting formlessness of shikantaza, maybe a little bit more formed as in contemplation. Again, these are boundaries that are, that are somewhat impose that are helpful for teaching purposes and the like. But fundamentally, you know, no boundary that these these, these dimensions just trans pollinate cross pollinate permeate. And so you can get insights flowing in all these different directions and so we don't have to necessarily slam the door shut on either
end I really can't. I really can't. Yeah. There are no doors. Yeah, exactly. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Thank you. This is just, just to check in, I knew Yeah, yeah.
Intuition go with what you're feeling and that I'm not hearing anything because there's any interest or concern is just like you.
You really didn't really have not concern me in any way. It's always good. With this kind of thing to have some that you can bounce this
off, I agree with you because it's very good. Yeah, I agree with you, because it's very easiest one reason it's helpful to have community guides, because it's very easy to kid ourselves to fool ourselves to get stuck. And so like you, it's always helpful to see if there's something that's happening that may be slipping you a little bit off, but you know for what it's worth, and again, who am I to say but I'm not, I'm not picking up any weirdness here so great thank you continue on amigo. Take it.
Thank you, Andy.
Thank you. We got time for a couple more. If there is anybody. Yeah,
go ahead. Um, we've got Katie and then Erica.
Oh, I. Hey, um, three things and. Okay. Following Lorraine's lead I'd like to be succinct I'll do my best. Okay, so the first is to just say how off the chart, your finest hour was last night, and that was me like I'm believable. I mean, I often feel a sense of liberation after you speak I mean you know it's just a momentary, you know, connecting with your mind I get a glimpse but I mean like last night was just like, you know i decapitated myself with that guillotine exercise, it's just like it's kind of carried on, you know, I have to say, when I read in that book that you wanted me to put my head in the guillotine I thought no You gotta be kidding. But, you know, I went ahead and did it, and I have to say it's been really profound, you know.
Yeah, that's a big deal practice that headless practice is really powerful. Yeah,
it really is. Yeah, anyway so anyway so I don't know what else to say except like wow, I went to bed last night just so happy happy happy and you know in the middle of this, you know, god awful thing we're going through is it's quite a contrast you know it's like, so thank you. And it's, you know, and thank you, you know, just like I say all the time you helped me through this tough time so much so anyway. Just wanted to come and about that and then I wanted to share something with you that I thought you might appreciate. And I, you know, I've had this to say to you for the last month but I never get my hand up in time because I have to kind of summon the courage, before I can do it but anyway. So I was listening to john O'Donoghue. I know you're familiar with him.
vaguely Yeah, remind me that names really.
He's like a philosopher, a theologian Irish. He's dead did a lot on beauty and Ireland and the beauty of the Celtic tradition and. Yeah, so his you know I think he's really known for omkara.
Yes. Yeah, and also his that's where that's where you know his work. Yep.
And also you It seems to me and I want them I'm any expert but it just seems like whenever I hear about him he's focusing on beauty, sort of like that that's his thing. So,
it's a good thing.
It was really good, you know, because even though we're in these lockdowns and so much horrible stuff is happening, there's always beauty, just look out the window I mean like today with the snow and the sparkles and everything so anyway, so I wanted to share this with you because you frequently mentioned your love of language and it's obvious in how you conduct yourself as well. and then also. You talk a lot about white, you know, but basically that's what's going on here is frozen light, and I assume you have some love of that you certainly like to play with it the idea okay so here's what he said and I said oh I got to tell this to Angel. He said he said color is the language of light.
That's beautiful. Yeah. Love it.
Yeah, I thought you might, you know, that's like the prism, you know. Exactly.
That's immediately what came to mind.
Yeah. And I have to say that one of my most profound experiences in my wife was in junior year in high school in chemistry class where the chemistry teacher was showing the prison thing, and it was really on the level of transmission is all I can say, Oh yeah, okay, cool. So, okay, so, so I wanted to share that. And then the other thing is kind of along the lines of what Tony just went through it's like, I just want to share with you what goes on in my mind a little bit. I don't know maybe there's a question maybe it's like wanting to run it by to make sure I'm not totally off base but Okay, um, let me preface this by saying that my first conscious thought when I was about three is like why is there so much suffering. That's the first time I was aware of thinking reflection. So I've always been about trying to understand what is going on. right, and where I was raised, there was not a lot of clarity. Okay. So, anyway, there's three books that have changed my life one is Young's book dreams memories and reflections.
Oh yeah,
autobiography,
I had to read it, beautiful book yeah
changed my life because it was validating. Yeah, and then reading Trungpa mytho freedom, again, changed my life. And then now I don't have so many books that you just alluded to have water in the spirit. So, you know, if I look back like what are the, the ones that changed my life and I'm not saying I haven't read a lot of amazing books that have changed my life but those are the three. So anyway, I thought I would share that just to give you a clue about who I am and I'm all about like what you did last night like trying to get things down to the fundamental like what the fuck is going on here, you know, and you do such a beautiful job. So anyway, so here's, here's the commentary that, you know, and I brought up this issue of synchronicity you know frequently like from the beginning of our little forays into study. And so, um, what I've been thinking about. Well, a lot is a somebody I don't know who said it but I picked it up somewhere along the line that somebody said, Everybody always knows everything all the time anyway. And I thought, you know that has really stuck with me because you talked about openness, you know, you remember, you know, it's kind of like if we're open enough, we kind of have to be like the Buddha, we already know, and I think that that's what synchronicity is in a way if you see what I'm trying to say it's just kind of like the truth is always there, you know, and we get these little things. And then I'm today talking about the archetypes and everything. It's kind of like, based on what you said last night like getting down to the nitty gritty the fundamental of what is going on here, and the human experience. Well, I guess with all certainty and beings experience that archetypes are just like another level above that in terms of the human experience. Like the story, a way of explaining or understanding.
Yeah, yeah,
I think you can look at that one of two ways you can look at that as above or below right you know i mean if you're looking at archetype is template, then I think I think I understand what you're saying yeah
yeah so so anyways that's what I wanted to share because you will will like Marianne, you know, very much like Marianne, you know, lots of. I'm super open like to open my issue is trying to have boundaries and I work on it I'm still working on it at 66 so you know, and meditation is really helped but still that's my sort of proclivity like overly open. So, anyway, so I'm just saying like her I have all these images you know I might do a DA tune and mudras start to happen it's like where do those come from, you know, I'm like, 23, years old doing boutrous, you know, nice Jewish girl from Indianapolis No, what does not happen right so anyway, I'm just trying to say that I so enjoy this kind of engagement because it's exactly where my head is at and I love all these people like where do you come from, I can't even believe you exist I there's hundreds of people who are here and I don't know, it really helps to feel so alone, and to feel like I'm not crazy. You know,
well you're crazy but so are we.
Right. Yeah, that's a good way to look at it like I've found my group of crazies that will shake their head and go oh yeah right
yeah we're all the Cuckoo's Nest together.
That's right, there you go. So thank you to you and thanks for magnetizing all this wonderful
very generous of you to share that. Yeah. Thank you very much. Take care.
Cool. Katie. All right, next one bring in Erica.
Can you hear me.
Yeah. Hi.
Oh great, great. I'm on an island so my bandwidth is a little wonky oh well we're Exactly. A, there's a. It's called a Shelter Island way into Long Island forks, not far from Plum Island, which is that biohazard aid they decommissioned it, but it's called Plum Island, but it's in another part of the, the ocean. So anyway bandwidth bandwidth so anyway thanks so much Andrew. I so enjoy that. The thin place in your plant going into another realm. I'm always heated up.
I do that just to make let people know that you know things are not as real and solid as you think.
Yes, I continue to appreciate that. Though I heard this, this great thing it's sort of you know whatever we. It's a twist on whatever we, you know, resist process but it dreams are like postcards, that are frequently unread. That's right, and discarded. You know, basically address unknown. Return to Sender
exactly that's Yeah,
I just sort of like that, that way because, you know, because there's this sort of perfunctory perfunctory way when you get a postcard it's like oh, you just glance at it and then put it aside. So, anyway, with with dreams, I guess what I wanted to say is, in my practice for many years ago. In preparation for, you know, in empowerment, my meditation teacher suggested that we try the hollow body, meditation, okay. Yeah, and I would love to get your your your take on it because I think I need to get it out of the cobwebs, just to help me on a very sort of basic level, you know with insomnia and, you know, just sort of attachment to to the, to the eye and body and so I just love to hear what you say what you have to say about the hollow body meditation,
it's it's you know it's really powerful. Um, I too have, you know, done that practice it's it's it's recommended as part of the traditional training in Tibetan Buddhism. And it's, it's very powerful you know anything that can dislodge. Our exclusive identification with reified form and therefore, what Sonia mbca talks about is the reified eye. And so, the hollowbody practice is in fact a way to help dislodge that by superimposing, or you could say on one level it's a superposition but on another level it's just actually a recognition. And it's actually it's very it's quite interesting. If you're not sure if you're attending the Tuesday night book group but this is where we're going to be going in the next couple of weeks, is this notion of hollow body actually has real traction even in the physics community where we're literally where, where 99 point, you know, nine times. 23 9% space. So we may think we're solid right now, the hollow body in practice in Buddhism is just a way to substantiate even what scientists have been saying for over 100 years that were actually fundamentally just made of space energy. So what it does you know it does a number of things I'm not quite sure how we can relate to insomnia. That wasn't clear to me. But the most important thing is, you know, kind of overthrowing the tyranny of appearance as Lama usually puts it, that hollow body can help just dislodge exclusive identification with form because that's again, that's what ego is. And so anything again and someone in the theme of today with Marianne statement and the other ones about this kind of fundamental narrative of openness, transparency translucency, that, that, that is, you know, that is the nature of things read, are you student of of Shambala Buddhism, do you remember shakeups take our path of the warrior. You remember that by any chance. Yeah, so, um, again if I had my book I could pull it out to you in two seconds. There's that staggering quote in that book where you know Rinpoche talks about how we're, you know when we put on our clothes in the morning we're beautifying space. When we put on our cosmetics where we're beautifying space that fundamentally again this is a, you read this and it could be a physicist, talking about this. So, that's trunkline vj talking about you know this notion of hollow body that fundamentally this openness is actually who we are. Period. And so therefore hollow body is a way to work with a narrative of openness emptiness. And so it's super powerful it's it's a really effective practice. I'm not sure what else I can say outside of that outside of, you know, if you have a connection to it absolutely positively run with that connection, so it seems
sort of a bit married to the Heart Sutra in a in a in a. It seems like a happy bedfellow to that, you know, as.
Totally. Yeah, go ahead.
It was the last thing I just heard that it's such a big topic. But moving on from there I am. You know it's in, sometimes like daytime practices. Oh, you know, sort of is preparatory practices for, you know, lucid dreaming and whatnot. What's been presented to me a lot. I've been it become in contact with all kinds of insects and animals that are unusual. I've been having these extremely unusual encounters and, you know, with praying mantis I mean it. I've looked all these different insects and animals up, you know, including a cricket, and then unusual extraordinary things happened after peace encounters. But the point being is. I sort of appreciate being awake enough to see the unusual. Yeah, in, in, in that. For example, a cricket was in the house, and they never revealed themselves you know you want to, you know, you think well how can I get rid of this thing. And then I said, Oh, the hell with it it's here to stay. And then after I was on a. I had a transmission from a it was a zoom meditation from a very high Lama, the cricket appeared on my handbag. And I swear it was waving at me, and we connected, and I got a plastic box, where am I, where, where I saw my cookies and I put the cricket in there. I punched some holes. And I actually saw how the cricket makes its makes it sound
robbing yeah
yeah and then I, and then I released it because it's, it's very bad karma to have a cricket die on your watch. That's right. No, I've been having all of these, you know I get these visitations in my waking life, and it's quite wonderful and. So, I don't know I guess I just wanted to say, you know, a tense you're against
it and actually you know that the universe is full of magic ordinary magic, it's it so to speak, it's not in it, sending messages all the time. And so, I do the same sort of thing, whether it's, whether it's just the unusual appearance of like an insect or something just a little bit out of the ordinary almost like a dream sign can very often be a clue to some, some metaphoric symbolic you know symbolic guru, that there is some synchronicity some coincidence some tendrils some magic message being brought to bear And so again, these sorts of things happen all the time. This little bit like Mary Ann's question comment that these sorts of experiences are happening all the time, as we become increasingly open to ourselves and others we just invite them more, and we become more attuned to them and the world just becomes more and more magical. And you know these really wondrous events just become commonplace. So, I mean Bravo for you. I did find that quote I knew I could find it quickly let me, let me share this quote from the vidyadhar from Trump remedy okay relating to the ordinary conditions of your life, you might make a shocking discovery, while drinking your cup of tea you might discover that you are drinking tea in a vacuum. In fact, you are not even drinking the tea. The hollowness of space is drinking tea. When you put on your pants or your skirt you might find that you are dressing up space. When you put on your makeup, you might discover that you're putting cosmetics on space. You are beautifying space, pure nothingness. There you go.
I love that.
Yeah. He's
the best. That's great. Terrific. Well thanks everybody hard soft for me at the hour and a half Mark guess where we are back again next week I'm on the road. So hang with us on the date, I'm not sure when I'm actually flying back. It could I could be back on Friday so hang with us on that at this point, we're still shooting for Thursday, but I can't guarantee it. So we'll send you a notice like we did today with the sudden change thanks for your flexibility, the questions that I didn't get to that. There are two questions that were repeats from people, David and Nisha, those are now the top of lists for next week. Amy's question I'll get next week. Until then, stay, stay healthy, happy wear two masks not just one and pleasant dreams. Ciao.
