How Buddhist Meditation Unlocks Our Natural Wisdom and Compassion

by 

Sogyal Rinpoche; author, "The Tibetan 

Book of Living and Dying"

Posted: 8/5/11 12:23 PM ET

In the teaching of Buddha, it is said that we are all naturally endowed with boundless wisdom, immeasurable compassion and infinite power or capability. Yet, because we have lost touch with these inner qualities, we rarely scratch beneath the surface of the potential that we possess. When we do come in touch with our true nature, however, we can truly be of service and benefit -- not only to our selves and our own best interests, but also to others and their needs.

So first, in order to truly help others, we must help ourselves. As it is said in the Christian tradition: "Charity begins at home." We can begin, first of all, by getting to know our own mind. In fact, the entire teaching of the Buddha can be summed up in a single line: to tame, transform and conquer this mind of ours.

Mind is the root of everything: the creator of happiness and the creator of suffering; the creator of what we call nirvana, and what we call samsara. Samsara is the cycle of existence, of birth and death, characterized by suffering and determined by our destructive emotions and our harmful actions. Nirvana is, literally, the state beyond suffering and sorrow; it can be said to be the state of buddhahood or enlightenment itself.

As one great master says:

"Samsara is mind turned outwardly, lost in its projections;
Nirvana is mind turned inwardly, recognizing its true nature."

"Mind turned inwardly" does not mean becoming introverted; it means really understanding the mind, in its true nature.

For when we speak about the mind, it has two main aspects: the appearance of mind, and the essence or nature of mind. His Holiness the Dalai Lama often describes these two aspects as "appearance and reality." Most of us think that thoughts and emotions are the mind. But thoughts and emotions are merely the appearance of mind, like the sun's rays, whereas the nature of mind is like the sun itself. When we are lost in the appearance of mind, we have no idea what the essence of mind really is. So the crucial point is the direction in which our mind is turned: whether it is outwardly looking, lost in thoughts and emotions; or inwardly seeing, recognizing its true nature.

If you tame, transform and conquer your mind, then you will transform your own perceptions and your experience. Thereby even circumstances and outer appearances will begin to change and appear differently.

Meditation

One of the best ways to tame our mind is through the unique and profound approach of meditation in the Buddhist tradition of Tibet.

The first and most basic practice of meditation is to allow the mind to settle into a state of "calm abiding," where it will find peace and stability, and can rest in the state of non-distraction, which is what meditation really is. When you first begin to meditate, you may use a support: for example, looking at an object or an image of Buddha, or Christ if you are a Christian practitioner; or lightly, mindfully watching the breath, which is common to many spiritual traditions.

What is very important, the great Buddhist teachers always advise, is not to fixate while practicing the concentration of calm abiding. That's why they recommend you place only 25 percent of your attention on mindfulness of the breath. But then, as you may have noticed, mindfulness alone is not enough. While you are supposed to be watching the breath, after a few minutes you may find yourself playing in a football game or starring in your own movie. So another 25 percent should be devoted to a continuous vigilance or watchful awareness, one that oversees and checks whether you are being mindful of the breath. The remaining 50 percent of your attention is left abiding, spaciously. Of course, the exact percentages are not as important as the fact that all three of these elements -- mindfulness, vigilance and spaciousness -- are present.

Gradually, as you are able to rest your mind naturally in a state of non-distraction, you will not need the support of an image or the breath. Even though you are not particularly focusing on anything, there is still some presence of mind, that may be loosely described as a "center of awareness."

This undistracted presence of mind is the best way of integrating your meditation into everyday life, while you are walking or eating or caring for others -- whatever the situation. When you bring conscious awareness to your activities, distractions and anxieties will gradually disappear, and your mind will become more peaceful. It will also bring you a certain stability within yourself and a certain confidence with which you can face life and the complexity of the world with composure, ease and humour.

Profound Methods For Bringing Forth The Nature Of Mind

Then, on the most profound level, we can say that meditation is using the mind to recognize the mind. Or that it is simply resting in the natural state of your present mind, without manipulating or contriving.

There's a wonderful saying by the great masters of the past. I remember when I first heard it what a revelation it was, because in these two lines is shown both what the nature of mind is and how to abide by it, which is the practice of meditation on the highest level. In Tibetan it is very beautiful, almost musical:

chu ma nyok na dang,
sem ma chö na de.

It means roughly, "Water, if you don't stir it, will become clear; the mind, left unaltered, will find its own natural peace, well-being, happiness and bliss..." What is so incredible about this instruction is its emphasis on naturalness and on allowing our mind simply to be, unaltered and without changing anything at all.

Yet another profound way of describing meditation is this: allowing yourself to be simply and clearly present in the face of whatever thoughts, sensations or emotions arise.

The secret is where exactly your mind is: whether you are lost in the appearances of mind -- the thoughts and emotions -- or whether you are resting in the essence of mind -- in your real nature, in your true being.

Through meditation, when you reach the state of transcendence, you simply rest, as much as you can, in the nature of mind, this most natural state which is without any reference or concept, hope or fear, yet with a quiet but soaring confidence, the deepest form of well-being imaginable. As the cloudlike thoughts and emotions fade away, the sky-like nature of your true being is revealed, and, shining from it, your true nature, like the sun. And just as both light and warmth blaze from the sun, wisdom and loving compassion radiate out from the mind's innermost nature.

Since you have reached the state of transcendental wisdom, beyond your ego self, it is as if you have reached the summit of the highest mountain, from which you have a view over all, as well as a heartfelt understanding and insight into the needs of others. There comes a great opening of your heart in compassion, infused with a deep and pervasive love.

The more we are able to be in the nature of our mind, therefore, the more we will discover our wisdom, immeasurable compassion and infinite capability, and so develop an inner strength that is deeply nourishing.

As we connect with the purity of our inherent nature through meditation practice, what is revealed is our fundamental goodness, our good heart. Kindness, compassion and love simply exude. And the more we integrate the practice mindfully in our lives, the more we will find that not only are we in touch with ourselves, but completely in touch with others. The barrier between ourself and others dissolves. Negativity is defused, there comes a self-forgiveness, and all the harm in us is removed, so that we become truly useful and able to be of service to others.

If you would like to find out more about meditation, or try it for yourself, you can visit Whatmeditationreallyis.com. The site is part of a program that I have initiated which draws upon the wisdom of the Tibetan Buddhist tradition in order to make the benefits of meditation available to everybody. It offers an introduction to meditation, video advice from different meditation teachers, as well as a blog and forum where you can discuss everything to do with meditation.

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How We Can Inspire People to Care About Social Change and Feel Good About Themselves in the Process | Activism & Vision | AlterNet

If the Wisconsin struggle between the unions and Governor Walker showed us anything, it was that the needs that animate people around progressive causes are not simply needs for money or financial security. The need for community and its accompanying feeling of belonging and the need to connect with something larger than the self, the need for meaning, were every bit as important in (click link for more)

How We Can Inspire People to Care About Social Change and Feel Good About Themselves in the Process | Activism & Vision | AlterNet

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"Raise the Gas Tax!" (seriously?!?!?!?)

Raise the Gas Tax!

— By Kevin Drum

| Thu Aug. 4, 2011 8:42 AM PDT

\

No one in Congress wants to raise the gas tax even though our transportation infrastructure is crumbling and revenue from the tax has been falling. Brad Plumer rounds up some substitute ideas:

One idea is a vehicle-miles traveled tax, which would track driver habits via GPS and charge per mile driven....Another is to charge some sort of congestion fee on overclogged highways....Mica, for his part, has suggested extending the Build America Bonds program....A bipartisan team affiliated with the Carnegie Endowment has proposed an upstream tax on oil combined with a variable gas tax that shrinks when oil prices rise and expands when oil prices plummet.

Uh huh. Or we could, you know, just raise the gas tax. We are ruled by idiots.

Kevin Drum is a political blogger for Mother Jones.

The 6 Biggest Lies About the U.S. Debt | | AlterNet

There is one simple truth about the discussion of the looming U.S. debt crisis: it is largely a compendium of half-truths, distortions, myths and outright lies.

For example, is it true that the U.S. debt is unsustainable, which is spurring the budget-cutting fever? Far from it. While U.S. debt is at one of its highest levels ever in terms of gross domestic product, the estimated interest payments for all of 2011 on the $14.3 trillion public debt will be a mere $430 billion. This is only 18 percent more than the $364 billion paid way back in 1998, while the U.S. economy has grown nearly 30 percent since then.

For full report, click link:

The 6 Biggest Lies About the U.S. Debt | | AlterNet

8 Reasons Young Americans Don't Fight Back: How the US Crushed Youth Resistance | | AlterNet

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Teenagers: God’s Answer to Psychological Oppression By Dr Stuart Jeanne Bramhall

Posted on August 3, 2011 by Jean

August 2, 2011 1987 Intifada by France24 (this is the first of two articles on the role of adolescents in mass uprisings) Much has been made of the role of youth in sparking the so-called “Arab Spring” revolutions in the Middle East and North Africa. The historical significance of the mass insurrections in Tunisia, Egypt, Bahrain and Syria is yet to be determined — given their failure to bring about genuine political reform. Even Egypt, which received the most media attention, remains under the firm control of the Egyptian military, which has banned strikes and continues to shoot, arrest and torture protestors. Nevertheless, the willingness of Arab citizens to engage in public protest against some of the most oppressive regimes in the world is a new and significant phenomenon. It highlights the distinction between political and psychological oppression. Psychological repression is a state of wholesale resignation. A population makes no attempt to resist, owing to their belief they will be utterly crushed. Although the Arab populations in the Middle East and North Africa remain politically oppressed, they have made giant strides in overcoming their psychological oppression. The Role of Youth in Sparking Revolutions Youth are nearly always the engine behind any movement to throw off psychological oppression. Marxist psychiatrist Wilhelm Reich relates this to the absence of “biological rigidity” that sets in as people age. Older people have an overwhelming drive for “business as usual,” which Austrian-born child psychologist Bruno Bettelheim credits for the failure of European Jews to resist the Nazi campaign to enslave and exterminate them (seehttp://stuartbramhall.aegauthorblogs.com/2011/04/27/pacifism-as-pathology-book-review). Based on my own clinical experience, I would pin it more on the illusion of immortality in children and adolescents — their inability to grasp the finality of death. It’s an inability to fully comprehend this concept that leads to adolescents’ reckless disregard for personal safety in their driving, gang banging and other risk taking activities. The population demographics of the Arab world have special significance in this respect. At present, North Africa and Egypt currently have the highest proportion of young people in the world. Sixty-one percent of the Egyptian population is under 25 (in the US 35% are under 25). This relates mainly to Egypt’s low life expectancy (70.3 years, in contrast to 78.7 years in the US) and low numbers in the upper age brackets. Moreover the high rate of unemployment among Egyptians under 25 (25% overall and 30% among collage grads) is credited for an extremely high level of anger and frustration among Egyptian young people. Lessons from History: Soweto and the Intifada I have always been fascinated by two other major political movements initiated by teenagers — the 1976 Soweto uprising in South Africa and the first Palestinian Intifada in 1987. Both were influenced by circumstances I consider even more important than demographics or high youth unemployment. The factor characterizing both the Soweto uprising and the first Intifada is the widespread breakdown of parental authority, which is quite common during periods of social upheaval. This, in turn, leads to precocious development of personal autonomy in teenagers. I believe both the Soweto uprising and the first Intifada have important implications for political change in the US, given present trends in American families. Over the past two decades, declining earning power has forced most parents (men and women) to work extremely long hours, leaving them have little time or energy for their kids. In many families teenagers are essentially raising themselves — which has very important implications for generation Z activism. Lessons from Soweto The 1976 Soweto uprising in South Africa is widely credited as heralding the start of mass popular resistance to apartheid. While various scholars dispute its significance relative to other resistance activities, the courage and resolve of black teenagers played a pivotal role in inspiring a critical mass of black adults to throw off their psychological oppression and actively resist the brutal apartheid regime. The uprising has always interested me owing to the social conditions — namely a breakdown in family structure in the black townships — that made it possible. Marxist psychiatrist Wilhelm Reich wasn’t the first — or the last — to study the conservatizing influence of the traditional family, especially in authoritarian societies. The breakdown of that influence is often linked to revolutionary political change. The students involved in the initial Soweto and Alexandria uprisings were, in essence, a generation that raised themselves. Owing to the strict pass laws implemented in the 1950s, many black residents were forced to give up to their homes and property in South African cities and move to black-only townships or Bantustans, where there was no work. The only work open to black men was in remote work camps associated with the gold and diamond mines. While Soweto women worked as domestics and nannies for white families in Johannesburg and only returned to their own children on their days off. In 1976 Soweto teenagers had a lot in common with homeless teens, third world street children and “young carers” (children who care for parents with physical or mental disabilities or drug and alcohol problems). Forced to look after themselves from an early age, it’s typical for these teenagers to mature emotionally at a very early age. Conditions that Politicized Bantu Schools The event the triggered the June 16, 1976 Soweto uprising was a decree requiring that all Bantu schools teach their subjects in Afrikaans (the language of the original Dutch settlers of South Africa), rather than English. Unlike their parents, students in Soweto and the other townships were already highly politicized, owing to the atrocious conditions in the Bantu schools. While education in which schools was free, black parents were charged 51 rand a year (a half month’s salary) The Bantu schools were also incredibly overcrowded, with sixty or more students per class and teachers who often had no education qualifications. In 1968, students in the black townships formed the African Students Movement to address these atrocious conditions. In 1972, they affiliated with the South African Students Organization (which arose out of the Black Consciousness movement at black universities). The prelude to the June 16 uprising was a classroom boycott in early June of seventh and eight graders at Orlando West Primary School. Seven other Soweto schools immediately joined the boycott. Students at Naledi High School demanded to speak to the regional director of education. Instead the government sent out the Police Special Branch, who were forced to lock themselves in the principal’s office while the students rioted and overturned their cars. On Sunday June 13th, 400 students met in Orland (hard to imagine without cellphones Facebook or Twitter) to call for a mass boycott and demonstration June 16th. They also made a pact not to inform their parents, who they believed would try to stop them. On June 16, fifteen to twenty thousand students age 10-20 in school uniform met at Orlando West Secondary school to march to the stadium. The police formed a line in front of them. When the students refused to disperse, even after the police fired tear gas and set dogs on them, the police opened fire, killing several students. The other students went wild, throwing rocks and bottles at the police and setting fire to all symbols of apartheid — government buildings, liquor stores, beer halls and trucks, buses and cars belonging to white businesses. Where Deadly Police Force Fails The next morning rioting spread to Alexandria township. After three days, the South African government shut down the Soweto and Alexandria schools, as rioting spread to other townships and to Pretoria, Durban and Capetown with “colored” (mixed race) and Indian students also joining the rebellion. The police were totally unable to quell the rioters, even with force, owing to the students’ greater numbers and their total disregard for their own safety. When rioting was suppressed in one area, it flared up in another. It took sixteen months for the student riots to die down, in October 1977. The Soweto riots heralded in the start of mass popular resistance to apartheid. Prior to 1976, resistance was limited to sporadic acts of sabotage by the African National Congress (the ANC had operated along strictly non-violent principles prior to the 1960 Sharpeville massacre). The Aftermath The Soweto uprising won major concessions from the South African government: Bantu school principles were allowed to choose the language of instruction; Pretoria opened more schools and teacher training colleges in the townships; urban black were given permanent status as city dwellers; and the law was repealed that banned blacks from owning business in the townships. Despite these concessions, thousands of students who participated in the riots left school and went into exile in neighboring countries, where they obtained military training. They eventually filtered back into South Africa to working for the African National Congress committing acts of sabotage. Teenagers in the First Intifada Like the 1976 Soweto uprising, the teenagers who sparked the first Palestinian Intifada in 1987 were influenced by a similar breakdown in parental authority, though for different reasons. From 1967, when Israel first seized the Gaza strip from Egypt, until the 1987 Intifada, Gaza, which has always been much poorer than the West Bank, was little more than a cluster of refugee camps. This meant there was no central authority, other than the soldiers from the Israel Defense Force (IDF), who maintained order. According to a recent study by EuroMed Youth  (http://www.euromedyouth.net/IMG/pdf/07-EuroMedJeunesse-Etude_PALESTINE.pdf), the lack of central authority laid the groundwork for the breakdown of parental authority. Because civil society broke down following Gaza’s separation from Egypt, it was up to young people, who freely intermingled in schools, universities and the streets to create the social/political arena in which intellectual debate could occur. In 1987, Yasar Arafat and the other Palestinian resistance leaders in the PLO — who would later assume this role — were still in exile. Children Supporting Their Families Other factors contributed to the strong sense of autonomy Palestinian teenagers felt from their families. Witnessing the routine humiliation of their parents by Israeli soldiers was a major factor in undermining their authority. Although some Palestinians were allowed to cross into Israel to work, their wages were extremely low. Many families depended on the income of children and teenagers, working as street vendors. In some cases young people were the sole source of income. Demographic factors also played a major role in the empowerment of Palestinian youth in the late eighties. Approximately 65% of Palestinians were under 25 (due to low life expectancy, older age groups are underrepresented). In 1987, this group had a 37% unemployment rate. Children take on the Israel Defense ForceThe first Palestinian Intifada started spontaneously when Palestinian children, teenagers and college students rioted in response to the killing of six Palestinian students by the IDF. Initially Palestinian youth battled Israeli solders armed only with rocks, bottles and slingshots. The movement quickly spread to the West Bank and was joined by underground Palestinian resistance organizations, such as Fatah, Hamas and the Islamic Jihad, who taught the youths how to make Molotov cocktails and sophisticated tactics, such as burning tires or constructing barricades to protect themselves from retaliation. The response by the IDF was massive brutality, with random killings, arbitrary detention and torture of Palestinian children and teenagers. By 1989 13,000 Palestinian teenagers were in Israeli jails. Israel Forced to Establish the Palestinian Authority The first Intifada didn’t end until 1993, when under the Oslo agreement, Israel agreed to establish the Palestinian Authority, and Yasar Arafat and other PLO members returned from exile to run it. Author’s Bio: I am a 63 year old American child and adolescent psychiatrist and political refugee in New Zealand. I have just published a young adult novel THE BATTLE FOR TOMORROW about a 16 year old girl who participates in the blockade and occupation of the US Capitol. In 2010 I published a memoir, THE MOST REVOLUTIONARY ACT: MEMOIR OF AN AMERICAN REFUGEE describing the circumstances that led me to leave the US 8 1/2 years ago to start a new life in the South Pacific. I blog at www.stuartbramhall.com

Conscious Relationships: Stop Abusing Your Partner with Negativity

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Daily Kos: POTUS Has Our Backs!!! from Steve Beckow

Daily Kos: POTUS Has Our Back Kat: I’ve noticed recently a trickle  of support from unlikely places forming beneath the din of opposition against the President. The Daily Kos has not been known for their support of President Obama and they’re part of a growing tide, from what I observe, acknowledging the outstanding tactical skills of this president. POTUS Has Our Back airforceblue, Daily Kos, July 31, 2011 http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/07/31/1001258/-POTUS-Has-Our-Back Many of you are rushing too quickly to judgment on the deal that appears to be coming together between GOP congressional leadership and the White House. President Obama actually got us a very strong deal (especially under the circumstances) and it will serve the country, and his re-election campaign well, even if he has to take some political flack in the short term. The vast majority of Kossaks believe that the President “caved”. It appears that people feel the main cave is that there isn’t revenue raises in the bill. But keep in mind the one thing the tea party wanted–a default. For them, this was not a hostage negotiation, they wanted to kill the hostage. In this they failed–totally. And in fact if you read between the lines, I think you’ll see that this deal is far more advantageous to us in the longer game for other reasons. I’ll explain why below the fold. To begin with, let’s go over exactly what is in the deal. 1. $2.4 trillion in cuts up front; mainly from reduced spending on the wars and decreased interest on the debt, the so-called “accounting gimmicks” the GOP hates so much. 2. A 12 member bi-partisan fiscal commission to determine another $1.5 trillion (approximately) of cuts. 3. Self executing extension of the debt ceiling through the end of 2012. 4. Triggers; automatic cuts, 50% to defense, 50% to other domestic programs including to medicare providers as a fraction of that pie, but Social Security is exempted totally. 5. House GOP gets another crack at a balanced budget amendment. (Good luck). You can see full details about the deal, from a Republican perspective, from the Speaker’s slides, which are available here: http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/… Now, what do Obama, and you, gain from this: First and foremost, you gain a long-term debt ceiling extension.  For fiscal stability, our credit rating, and economic growth in the future, this had to happen, and it had to be in a bi-partisan way.  I know many of you cowboys on Daily Kos wanted POTUS to go the constitutional route; I did too. But it’s a bad idea because it would merely be trading a constitutional crisis from an economic crisis and, most critically, would not restore investors confidence in U.S. credit.  This is a far better outcome. Second, Obama was able to define the terms of the debate going forward. While he may not have been able to convince a majority of Republicans in congress that taxes have to be raised, he won in the court of public opinion.  Americans get that we need to raise taxes, particularly on the wealthy and big business, in a way they never have before, and a majority favor it (including even a few Republicans). Imagine you are Obama’s eventual opponent in the Presidential.  You have to take a position on the commission’s findings and the nation’s choices going forward.  You probably have to continue advocating for tax cuts and budget cuts.  Meanwhile, Obama and the Democrats still have their social program talking points, because Obama did not meaningfully concede on those programs.  The majority of Americans have made clear that they prefer the latter approach. It’s a good position for a Democratic candidate to be in. Third, the GOP has been shown up for what it is, an extremist party out of step with the majority of Americans.  We all benefit from the comparison. Fourth, this plan does contain revenue enhancements, just by another name.  Here’s why: (a) the commission will realistically have to consider them, if it is going to have any credibility and reach a result that can pass both houses of Congress; (b) the sequestration is itself a revenue enhancement.  As a former military member, I can tell you from personal experience that the military industrial complex, from the bombers made by Boeing and Lockheed Martin to the Burger Kings on and around the bases is huge.  It is as much an “entitlement” program for those associated with the military as Social Security and Medicare are to everyone else. If these cuts occur, a major GOP constituency will be in a world of hurt, but the funds will be freed up for other programs. Same with the Medicare cuts.  Notice that they are cuts to providers, not beneficiaries. I know many people think this is not a meaningful difference, but it is, because Medicare is the providers’ bread and butter, and there is a limit to the degree to which they can pass those savings along.  Again, it’s revenue that is mostly fattening up an industry, and cutting it means it can be used elsewhere more efficiently and; (c) the expiration of the Bush tax cuts are themselves revenue enhancements, Obama gets the final vote on whether this occurs.  It’s not in the deal. If you go to Redstate, you will see that they do not like this deal any more than you do, and for all of the reasons outlined above.  They feel as though they have lost, and they are right.  They wanted to instigate a default, and they did not do that. They wanted to cut Social Security, and they did not do that, they wanted another opportunity to fight this battle, and they did not get that. What they did get is that major GOP constituencies (defense and corporate health providers) have been put in jeopardy of major cuts, and from our perspective this is a good thing.  What they also got is a damocles hanging over their head in the form of the soon to expire Bush tax cuts, which Obama can blackmail them with just as they did all of us with the debt ceiling.