Can You Will Something Into Existence?

Hello everyone! I pray all of you had a wonderful holiday season and a Happy New Year. As always.

I’ve been asked this question at least a couple hundred times in the last 10 months. I can’t give a definitive answer because we can’t even prove the Supernatural exists. I feel however, it’s a very good possibility obsessing over something enough it could very well be created by your own obsession. Just like a poltergeist. But on the other side of that coin sometimes I feel if enough people give something enough of the right attention could very well possibly ‘Will’ it to life. I did a lot of researching in addition to just my humble opinion. There isn’t a whole lot of information but I am sharing what I found.

FYI: Another McKamey Blog coming soon. This TORTURE TRAP (as many call it) will never go away. Just switches to a new dump.

Speaking negatively can take a toll on you. You might hear “Oh I'm not as good at work as Susie.” so I should beat myself up because that voice starts messing with you. The human mind is the devils playground. Don’t allow him to drag you down. Take authority In Jesus name. Command them to flee at once. Stand your ground.

When one is for lack of better words having trouble, negative self talk is said to be one's inner thoughts you have with yourself. It’s not healthy either. Any bad thoughts will hinder you through life. that diminishes you and confidence in your ability to do so. Because of this, negative thoughts of yourself just get worse. It’s easier said than done.

Tulpa (Wiki)

“Something related to this subject is called a Tulpa. It’s said an entity created in the mind, acting independently of, and parallel to your own consciousness. They are able to think, and have their own free will, emotions, and memories. In short, a tulpa is like a sentient person living in your head, separate from you. It’s currently unproven whether or not tulpas are truly sentient, but in this community, we treat them as such. It takes time for a tulpa to develop a convincing and complex personality; as they grow older, your attention and their life experiences will shape them into a person with their own hopes, dreams and beliefs.

“You’ll create a tulpa by imagining a person in your head, and treating them as a person. The exact mechanism is unknown, but as you give a tulpa attention, and believe it can be a sentient person, it will grow into one, and act independently of you. At first, you will be narrating to your tulpa—speaking to it, and visualizing it in your mind—and with time, you’ll be able to communicate through various methods, which will be described in the next section. Keep in mind that when a tulpa starts talking, it doesn’t mean that they are complete, or finished by any means. Like any person, a tulpa is never “done”, and you shouldn’t be going for a finished tulpa, when you make one. You should be focused on nurturing and teaching your tulpa, and allowing them to grow as a person with you, while at the same time you learn about yourself, and grow as a person in turn. It takes time and effort to make a tulpa into a self-sufficient and balanced individual, and their independence and personality will grow and flourish over time, like any regular human being’s. Creating a tulpa means committing to raising and living with another person.” I could go further into it but I’ll do another blog on Tulpas. It was very interesting.”

So can we will something into existence? I do not know? I can’t answer that however, nothing would surprise me. I’ve seen a lot in my life so I’m not surprised but it’s too dangerous. We need Jesus. In his name we are safe. Not everyone has bad intentions. Some just don’t realize there is a supernatural world that really exists.

Remember imaginary friends? Some of that has been a bit more to it. Is the law of attraction working in this particular manner? You give something enough attention and you can’t control it will become very dangerous because you just don’t know what is really lurking. There’s nothing Jesus Christ can handle.

Until next time may your days be bright and your thoughts be bright.

Written By Jennifer Auld

The Dalai Lama on Happiness & Responsibility

Happiness and Responsibility
September 20, 2018

Zurich, Switzerland - This morning, leaving the tranquillity of Darmstadt, where the bicycle is a favoured mode of transport, His Holiness the Dalai Lama was driven rapidly to Heidelberg. Reaching this picturesque city on the River Neckar he was taken directly to the City Hall where he was received by Mayor Wolfgang Erichson. After greeting well-wishers gathered on the pavement, His Holiness turned to wave to people watching from surrounding windows.

Inside City Hall His Holiness was given an official welcome and invited to sign the Golden Book inscribed by honoured visitors to the city. This was followed by an exchange of gifts. As His Holiness entered the auditorium and took the stage he received warm applause from the 1500 people in the audience.

In his welcoming speech Mayor Wolfgang Erichson extolled the virtues of the beautiful city of Heidelberg. The University of Heidelberg attracts an open-minded student body and is among the 50 top universities in the world. People from 160 nations live in the city, which sees diversity not as a threat but an asset. The Mayor noted that it is possible to learn how cultivate and achieve happiness and he was pleased to report that at least one pioneering school in the city is teaching just that.

During a short musical interlude a wind and string quintet played a delightful piece by Mozart.

Director of the German American Institute, Jakob Kollhofer told His Holiness it was a great honour to welcome him to Heidelberg, describing him as living reminder of peace and compassion, known for his warm smile. He observed that His Holiness has been a refugee for 60 years during which time his appearance and conduct have been consistent. Welcoming him to a festival of science in what has come to be known as a city of science, Kollhofer invited His Holiness to share his thoughts about happiness and responsibility.

“Good morning, dear brothers and sisters. I make a point of clarifying that the 7 billion human beings living on this planet today are emotionally, mentally and physically the same. We all want to live a happy life and don’t want to suffer. We have a marvellous brain which is very helpful when it comes to analysing and investigating reality. Our intelligence can bring us peace of mind, or it can destroy it. Using our intelligence to understand moral principles we can learn to cultivate warm-heartedness and infinite altruism.

“As scientists have discovered, basic human nature is compassionate. Our mother gave birth to us, then cared for us with maximum affection. If she’d neglected us instead, we would likely have died.

“Anger and fear undermine our immune system, while warm-heartedness brings peace of mind. Therefore, just as we teach children to comply with physical hygiene for the good of their health, we should also counsel them in a kind of hygiene of the emotions. If they are to be both physically and mentally fit, they need to know how to tackle negative emotions and maintain their peace of mind. And to tackle the emotions it’s useful to have something like a map of the emotions, a map of the mind.

“This is something we can learn from research conducted in ancient India through meditative practices to cultivate single-pointed concentration and analysis. The Buddha practised both, and although these practices are described in religious literature, they can be examined and employed in an academic context.

“I am a student of such ancient Indian knowledge as preserved in the Nalanda Tradition, which relies on reason and logic. The great Nalanda scholar Shantarakshita, who was invited to Tibet by the Emperor in the 8th century, established a mode of Buddhist training and practice in which reason and logic play an integral part.

“After I came to India I had opportunities to meet and hold discussions with scientists. I was inspired by the Buddha’s advice not to accept what he taught on the basis of faith alone, but to test and investigate it through reason. Consequently, the dialogue I’ve been conducting with scientists for more than thirty years has been mutually beneficial.”

Kollhofer introduced three scientists to take part in discussions with His Holiness this morning—neurobiologist Dr Hannah Monyer, gerontologist Dr Andreas Kruse, and astrophysicist Dr Matthias Bartelman.

Dr Monyer raised something she sees as a problem. “You emphasise that we are social animals and we are, but we are not so different from rats. Like them human beings naturally prefer to help members of their close family rather than others.”

“We are intelligent,” His Holiness replied, “we have seed of compassion from birth. Using reason and intelligence we can enhance our sense of compassion and come to understand how its opposite, anger, is harmful. Our biological compassionate instincts tend to be coloured by attachment. Such a biased attitude cannot be transformed into great compassion. That’s why we first develop equanimity. We can learn to extend loving kindness to the whole of humanity.

“One thing that needs to be clearly understood is that both compassion and anger are part of the mind, they belong to our mental consciousness. Some consciousnesses depend on our sense organs. In the dream state, the sense organs are dormant. In deep sleep, consciousness is subtler, while the subtlest consciousness manifests at the time of death, unrelated to the brain.”

“That’s a dualistic view,” was Dr Monyer’s response.

“In the early 20th century scientists considered consciousness was entirely dependent on the brain,” reported His Holiness. By the end of the century, neuroplasticity showed that changes in the brain could be attributed to changes in consciousness.”

Dr Matthias Bartelman asked if humility was important in the study of science. His Holiness answered “Yes”, and went on to discuss how we are all dependent on others; we depend on the community in which we live.

Gerontologist Dr Andreas Kruse told His Holiness he had three questions for him. “Do you think that the link between happiness and responsibility is meaning. His Holiness retorted that this sounded like a philosophical question like ‘why are we here?’ he said the religious answer would either be because it’s God’s will or because of karma.

Dr Kruse reported findings that older people derive meaning from being able to take care of younger members of the family. However, when they suffer degenerative conditions, such as dementia, they are excluded from such activities and younger people feel a responsibility to take care of them. Dr Kruse raised the notion of ‘border situations’ first mooted by Karl Jaspers a German-Swiss psychiatrist and philosopher educated at Heidelberg.

His Holiness retorted that it seemed to be a complicated philosophical observation. Everything is relative; nothing has independent existence. He cited the example of time. “Does time exist? Where is the present when it is always moving on?”

Answering questions from the public His Holiness touched on the need to ensure that the 21st century does not repeat the experience of the 20th century, which was overwhelmingly violent. The 21st century should be an era of dialogue. Problems should be solved by talking them over, not through the use of force.

Challenged to say why he had not intervened in the Rohingya crisis in Burma, he replied that he is an outsider to that conflict. He reported having spoken and written to Aung San Suu Kyi, who could have done more. He counselled Burmese Buddhists when moved by anger to recall the face of the Buddha.

Kollhofer brought the session to an end telling His Holiness that everyone listening had been inspired by what he told them. He thanked him once again for coming to Heidelberg. His Holiness responded, “To bring about a happier, more peaceful world, we have to start on an individual level. Change begins with individuals and spreads out into the community.”

His Holiness was invited to lunch in the vaulted foyer of the City Hall at the end of which he drove to Mannheim from where he flew to Zurich. Tibetans had mounted a traditional welcome outside the hotel, whose driveway was lined with Tibetan flags. There were Tashi Shölpa dancers and Tibetan youngsters offering the ‘Chema Changpu’.

His Holiness interacted with all who had come to greet him, happily spotting several old friends among them. In the lobby he was greeted by the Abbot, President, and Director of the Tibet Institute Rikon as well as other monks and Lamas.

Original link & photos: https://www.dalailama.com/news/2018/happiness-and-responsibility

Dalai Lama Discusses Ancient Indian Knowledge in Contemporary India

The Relevance of Ancient Indian Knowledge in Contemporary India

Bambolim, Goa, India - This morning, His Holiness the Dalai Lama left his hotel at the sea’s edge to drive 35kms inland to the Goa Institute of Management (GIM) in Sanquelim. The Institute, rated one of the leading business schools in the country has 672 full-time and 90 part-time students, 42% of whom are women,and is celebrating its 25th anniversary.

The skies were heavy with monsoon clouds, the fields and trees were vivid green, but the roads were remarkably clear due to efficient police traffic management. His Holiness was welcomed on arrival by Director, Ajit Parulekar and the Chairman of the Board, Ashok Chandra, who escorted him through the hall to the stage. When he stepped out onto it an affectionate cheer went up. As is customary, he participated in lighting the inaugural lamp.

Chairman Ashok Chandra, on behalf of the Institute told His Holiness that it was a matter of great pride that he had honoured them by accepting their invitation. He also welcomed Father Romuald d’Souza, who set up the Institute 25 years ago, noting that without the founders’ support there would be no GIM today. He said he liked to believe GIM was special because, like a human being, it asks itself, who am I? what are my values? Ethics and human values are important to GIM, which tries to live by them and inculcate them into its students.

Director Ajit Parulekar spoke enthusiastically of a new partnership between GIM and the Dalai Lama Center for Ethics and Transformative Values (DLC) at MIT, which is intended to enhance the learning of ethics in the institute. He mentioned that Ven Tenzin Priyadarshi of DLC regretted being unable to attend today’s function. The partnership aims to set new standards for training in ethics and empathy in order that they permeate all of aspects of civic society. In an uncertain and volatile world this will require the emergence of responsible leadership, to which GIM can make an effective contribution. The Director also mentioned that GIM will oversee the introduction in Goan schools of DLC’s Transformative Teachers program, which has ethics, emotional learning and meaning-making as core components.

Father Romuald d’Souza told His Holiness that GIM has included ethics in its business courses from the beginning, taking a rational approach. He added that by encouraging compassion, forgiveness and mercy the institute aims to educate the heart as well as the brain.

Right at the start of his talk, His Holiness asked Father d’Souza how old he was and was impressed to hear he was 93. He conceded that he was 10 years younger, which he acknowledged in his introduction:

“Respected elder brother, and the rest of you brothers and sisters, I’m extremely happy to be here to share some of my thoughts with you.”

Taking his cue from a slogan on the wall of the hall, ‘the learning never stops at GIM’, he mentioned a Tibetan scholar who famously advised that even if you will die tomorrow, it’s worth studying and learning something today because of the positive impact it can have on the mind.

“We may be conscious on a sensory level, but learning takes place on a mental level,” he continued, “which is why it’s important to pay attention to our mental consciousness. We need to examine our consciousness at a deeper level than our waking state, dominated as it is by sensory experience. Consciousness is subtler when we dream and there are no external sensory distractions. In deep sleep it is even subtler, but the subtlest consciousness manifests at the time of death. Indeed there are some people who are able to access this level of consciousness and their bodies remain fresh for a time after clinical death has taken place. Scientists are investigating this phenomenon to understand what is going on.

“On a sensory level consciousness is related to pleasing sights, sounds, smells, tastes and aspects of touch, including sex. But anger and loving kindness are not sensory experiences. They take place on the level of the mind. Modern education tends to pay more attention to material goals and sensory experience. Although all religious traditions teach about love, tolerance and so forth, in India the longstanding practices for developing a calmly abiding mind (shamatha) and analytical insight (vipashyana) have given rise to a thorough understanding of the workings of the mind and emotions.

“In today’s world, which is facing an emotional crisis, such knowledge is not only relevant, it’s valuable. Scientists tell us they have evidence that basic human nature is compassionate. This is borne out by our common experience of our mother’s care and affection in our infancy, without which we would not survive. Scientists have also observed that constant anger, fear and suspicion undermine our immune system, whereas a compassionate attitude sustains it.

“We are social animals. Altruism attracts friends and brings people together; anger drives them apart.

“Until about 200 years ago, education was the province of religious institutions, which were responsible for instilling a sense of moral principles in their followers. Since education and religious establishments parted company this responsibility has lapsed. We all need moral principles for our own peace of mind, so they should be part of our education. I believe that only in India can modern education be combined with ancient Indian knowledge of the mind and emotions.”

His Holiness observed that although such knowledge developed in India, in the course of time interest in it deteriorated. However, in upholding the Nalanda Tradition, Tibetans kept it alive and have brought it back to the land of its birth. He suggested that reviving ancient Indian understanding of the mind and emotions, reason and logic, in India, is a contribution Tibetans can make. He mentioned that in the re-established Monastic Universities, mostly in Karnataka, there are 10,000 monks and nuns trained and equipped to teach. Many of them today are capable of communicating in English, Hindi, and Kannada, in addition to Tibetan.

He spoke of encouraging Indians settled abroad to invite others to share festivals like Diwali and to discuss longstanding Indian traditions like ahimsa or non-violence. He also contended that as the world’s most populous democratic country, India should show the world that it is possible for religious traditions to live together in harmony.

“We can achieve peace of mind if we tackle our destructive emotions, so the goal of making the 21st century an era of peace and compassion is feasible. It will involve finding solutions to problems in dialogue, not the use of force. Therefore, demilitarization becomes another goal, as does the planned elimination of nuclear weapons. But for any of these goals to be fulfilled, they must be founded first of all on a sense of inner disarmament.”

His Holiness invited questions from the audience and the first questioner wanted to know how to apply ancient Indian knowledge in day to day life. He advised her that it would involve studying the mind and emotions in a rational logical way. He referred to a couple of American cities, one that has declared itself a city of compassion and the other that has redefined itself as a city of kindness. Because of the focus on kindness and compassion and programs associated with them, students in both cities have become noticeably less violent and more ready to help others.

Asked how to find peace of mind, His Holiness recommended taking a more holistic view of problems you face. If you look at them only from one angle, they may seem overwhelming, while from a wider perspective they seem more manageable. He quoted the 8th century Indian master Shantideva who counseled analyzing a challenging situation to discover if it could be overcome. If it could, there’d be no need to worry. Instead you should act. If it couldn’t be overcome, worrying about it wouldn’t help.

His Holiness was invited to talk about a time when he was afraid and he referred to the night of 17th March 1959 when he escaped from Lhasa. His efforts to mediate with the Chinese communist forces had broken down and there seemed no option but to leave. But that involved passing the Chinese military camp in the dark and crossing a large river. He was afraid inasmuch as he didn’t know if he would see the dawn of the following day. Once over the first pass his fear began to subside.

“Chinese communists work on the basis that power comes from the barrel of a gun, from military force. But Tibetans’ strength lies in the truth. The power of the gun is temporarily decisive, but in the long run it is the power of truth that is the longer lasting.” The audience applauded.

“We raised the question of Tibet at the UN to little effect. Nehru told me that the USA would not go to war with China over Tibet and that sooner or later we would have to enter into discussions with the Chinese. Since 1974 we have not sought independence. This has no bearing on what is past. Chinese historical records show that in 7th, 8th and 9th centuries Chinese, Mongolian and Tibetan empires flourished. Today, I admire the spirit of the European Union whose members place the common interest before national sovereignty. In such a spirit, if we secured the rights granted us under the Chinese constitution, there could be benefit in our remaining with the PRC.”

To counter the possibility of taking wrong decisions under the influence of negative emotions, His Holiness once again commended taking a more holistic view of the situation. The important thing, His Holiness said, is that responsibility for taking decisions is on your own shoulders. You should reach your decision after careful consideration, then stick to it and follow it through.

He explained that destructive emotions arise out of ignorance, specifically mistaking how things appear for reality. Despite their appearing to have independent or intrinsic existence, when we understand that phenomena arise in dependence on other factors, our tendency to give in to negative emotions becomes thinner.

A final questioner asked what His Holiness thought when he was recognised as the Dalai Lama. He reported that his mother told him that on the day the search party from the Tibetan Government reached his house, he had been especially excited. He ran towards them and recognised several of them—presumably the result of some previous memory.

As to the future of the institution of Dalai Lamas, His Holiness has made it clear since 1969 that whether or not there is a 15th Dalai Lama will be up to the Tibetan people to decide.

“My responsibility now is to see that my day to day life is meaningful. I am guided by the following prayer:

For as long as space endures

And for as long as living beings remain,

Until then may I too abide

To dispel the misery of the world.

“I am determined to follow that through. An individual can make a differene. As human beings, you all want to live a happy life. If you’ve found anything I said interesting, share it with your friends—that’s how ideas are spread. If what I said was of little interest, please feel free to forget it. Thank you.”

The hall was again filled with sustained and warm applause.

The Director thanked everyone who had contributed to making the event a success. His Holiness then joined invited guests for lunch, following which he returned to his hotel. Tomorrow he will travel to Bengaluru.

Original link & photos https://www.dalailama.com/news/2018/the-relevance-of-ancient-indian-knowledge-in-contemporary-india

Dalai Lama & the Practice of Patience

Teachings at Shewatsel

Leh, Ladakh, J&K, India - The sun was already bright and warm when His Holiness the Dalai Lama left his residence at the Shewatsel Phodrang to walk to the teaching pavilion on the adjacent teaching ground. Thiksey Rinpoche and LBA President Tsewang Thinles walked with him. All along the way members of the public pressed against the fence in hope of getting closer to His Holiness. Here and there he stopped to pat a child’s cheek or place his hand on the head of an older man or woman.

In his efforts to be as inclusive as possible His Holiness walked to the furthest corners of the front of the stage to wave to people nearby as well as those in distant parts of the crowd of an estimated 20,000. Meanwhile, nuns from the Central Institute of Buddhist Studies engaged in a dynamic debate in front of the stage. They were followed by students from Ladakh Public School.

After taking his seat on the throne, His Holiness remarked that he was tickled to see that the debating school students included an enthusiastic Sikh boy. He noted how important debate can be in sharpening understanding of the topic under study and thanked the schoolchildren for their contribution. Introductory prayers included the ‘Three Continuums’, which praises the qualities of the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha, and the ‘Heart Sutra’.

“Last year we read up to the end of Chapter 6 of the ‘Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life’,” His Holiness explained, “so we’ll go on from there. Shantideva is reported to have composed this text in the 8th century. It draws on the teachings of the extensive path lineage which Maitreya passed to Asanga and the profound view lineage that comes from Nagarjuna, sometimes referred to as the second Buddha. This teaching can be referred to as representing the great conduct lineage.

“Maitreya’s ‘Ornament for Clear Realization’ explains the implicit content of the perfection of wisdom teachings; Nagarjuna clarifies the explicit content, which is the theory of emptiness. Maitreya’s ‘Sublime Continuum’ explains Buddha nature, while his five treatises as a whole outline the bodhisattva path.”

Alluding to the various schools of Buddhist philosophy, His Holiness observed that the Vaibhashikas (Particularists) and Sautrantikas (Sutra Followers) teach the selflessness of persons, whereas the Chittamatrins (Mind Only School) and Madhyamakas (Middle Way School) teach the selflessness of phenomena as well. While asserting the true existence of consciousness, Chittamatrins deny the external existence of things, which they say are the result of imprints on our minds. His Holiness added that there are quantum physicists who suggest that the conviction that nothing exists objectively tempers emotional response such as attachment.

The Madhyamaka School is primarily divided into the Svatantrika (Autonomist) and the Prasangika (Consequentialist) Schools, although there is a branch of the former which incorporates Yogachara (Practitioners of Yogic Conduct) ideas. Where the Svatantrikas allow some kind of objective existence, the Prasangikas refute any objective or independent existence of things or experiences.

Turning back to the ‘Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life’, His Holiness told the crowd, “I received transmission and explanation of this work from Khunu Lama Rinpoche, Tenzin Gyaltsen. He was a dedicated practitioner of what it has to say. At one time, as he cultivated practice of the awakening mind of bodhichitta, he would compose an appreciative verse every day. These verses were eventually compiled as the ‘Jewel Lamp’ and it was transmission of this that I sought first. I received the ‘Guide’ afterwards. Because he felt the practice of the awakening mind is so helpful, Khunu Lama Rinpoche asked me to teach it as much as I could.

“‘Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life’ can be summarized into three parts—conduct by which you enter into the practice; the actual practice and accomplishment of the practice. It deals with the path leading to enlightenment rooted in the development of wisdom, on the basis of which you cultivate the conduct of a bodhisattva.”

His Holiness reviewed the titles and contents of the chapters of the book in relation to practice of the six perfections. He observed that there is no chapter dedicated to generosity, but the fact that the whole work deals with giving body, resources and virtues makes up for it.

“Of the ten chapters, the most important are Chapter 6 dealing with patience and Chapter 8 entitled meditation,” His Holiness continued. “If we are to cherish others more than ourselves, we need to overcome anger, and patience is the anti-dote to it. Chapter 8 shows that cherishing self alone leads to our ruin. What it primarily teaches is the practice of equalizing and exchanging self with others.”

After reading the first lines of Chapter 7, ‘Having patience I should develop enthusiasm, for awakening will dwell only in those who exert themselves,’ His Holiness mentioned that progress on the path doesn’t depend only on bodhichitta, wisdom is necessary too. The moment you have a genuine experience of bodhichitta, you enter the bodhisattva path, but you still need to train further. After the path of accumulation, the path of preparation involves the combination of a calmly abiding mind and insight focussing on emptiness. You progress to the path of seeing, where you realize emptiness directly and eliminate mental afflictions.

After developing the path of seeing and achieving cessation, you enter into the path of meditation and progress from the second bodhisattva ground to the tenth. Finally, you develop the path of no more learning that is the antidote to the residual stains left by mental afflictions. When all these defilements, including the imprints of negative emotions are cleared, you attain Buddhahood. This five tiered path is reflected in the mantra from the ‘Heart Sutra’.

When the Buddha says, “Tadyata gateh gateh paragateh parasamgateh bodhi svaha” (“It is thus: Proceed, proceed, proceed beyond, thoroughly proceed beyond, be founded in enlightenment”), he is telling his followers to proceed through the five paths:

gateh—the path of accumulation;

gateh—the path of preparation;

paragateh—the path of seeing;

parasamgateh—the path of meditation;

bodhi svaha—the path of no more learning.

“To follow the path requires enthusiasm and effort, but you need to understand the advantages of these qualities. Their opponents are, for example, laziness and low self-esteem. Until you understand that laziness is an obstacle, you won’t be motivated to overcome it.

“Reflecting on impermanence is helpful, as the early verses of Chapter 7 indicate. We are healthy and happy here now, but whether we will all meet again tomorrow isn’t guaranteed. Should death come, fame and wealth, friends and family will be of no help. Our only support will be the positive imprints of the virtuous actions we’ve done.

“Today, there are 7 billion human beings in the world and most of them think only of material gain. Very few think about the inner world of the mind. Many of us who look to the Buddha for inspiration neglect to consider that whether we make progress in the path depends on whether we make the effort. We also tend to think of our opponents as outside us, whereas the real enemy is within. The second kind of laziness is attraction to wrong-doing, while the third is low self-esteem, defeatism, thinking, ‘I can’t really do it’. Coming to understand the equality of self and others generates enthusiasm for the path.

“So, having mounted the horse of the awakening mind

That dispels all discouragement and weariness,

Who, when they know of this mind that proceeds from joy to joy,

Would ever lapse into despondency?”

As he read on, His Holiness pointed out that verses 43 & 44 indicate the results of virtue and wrong-doing. He explained that the mention of Vajradhvaja relates to a chapter in the ‘Array of Stalks’ or Avatamsaka Sutra. Shantideva’s advice to dispel despondency is to recall the advice in the chapter on conscientiousness and then joyfully rise to the task.

Having completed his reading of Chapter 7, His Holiness went straight on to Chapter 8, which begins by discussing how to develop concentration and how to surmount what obstructs it. He read briskly up to verse 89 & 90 which is where instruction on developing the awakening mind of bodhichitta and meditating on the equality between self and others begins.

I should protect all beings as I do myself

Because we are all equal in (wanting) pleasure and (not wanting) pain.

The discussion of the advantages of developing and putting compassion into practice and the disadvantages of not doing so culminate at verse 104 with the question----‘But since this compassion will bring me much misery, why should I exert myself to develop it?’—The retort is, ‘Should you contemplate the suffering of living creatures, how could the misery of compassion be more?’

Highlighting the advice that if you’re selfish, you’ll never be happy, His Holiness noted the powerful impact of verse 130.

If I do not actually exchange my happiness

For the, sufferings of others,

I shall not attain the state of Buddhahood

And even in cyclic existence shall have no joy.

Verse 140 begins an exercise in exchanging self and others involving reflection on envy, competitiveness and self importance. You are jealous of someone higher than you thinking---he’s honoured, but I am not. You are competitive and wish to excel someone who is your equal and look forward to humiliating someone inferior to you. From verse 155 the faults of self-cherishing are explained.

“The practice of exchanging self and others brings home to us the disadvantages of cherishing yourself instead of others. If you cherish others more than yourself in this life and the next, great benefits will accrue.”

His Holiness looked at his watch and announced, “It’s time for lunch. See you tomorrow.” Waving to the crowd as he left, he drove back to the Phodrang.

original link & photos: https://www.dalailama.com/news/2018/teachings-at-shewatsel

Dalai Lama Celebrates the Day of Miracles

Celebrating the Day of Miracles

Thekchen Chöling, Dharamsala, HP, India - The courtyard of the Tsuglagkhang, the Main Tibetan Temple in Dharamsala, was packed with people, Tibetans and others, who had gathered to listen to His Holiness the Dalai Lama this morning. He was escorted from his residence to the throne set up beneath the Temple under the shade of a huge ceremonial umbrella, to the stirring accompaniment of chanting monks. After His Holiness had taken his seat, the Heart Sutra was recited while tea and sweet rice were served.

After reciting a verse calling on gods, demigods and others to listen to the teaching, His Holiness also repeated Nagarjuna’s verse,

Homage to Gautama
Who, through compassion,
Taught the exalted Dharma,
Which leads to the relinquishing of all views.

“Today,” he began, “is the Day of Miracles, celebrated as part of the Great Prayer Festival that has been held in Lhasa for almost 600 years. It commemorates an occasion during the Buddha’s life when he defeated other ascetics in a display of miraculous feats.

“Gods or human beings, we all want to be happy and the root of happiness is in the mind. Liberation may take some time, but we can all find peace of mind if we pay attention to it here and now. Even animals, when they are not in danger, remain relaxed and at peace. What makes us upset is anger, fear and suspicion. It’s the unruliness of our minds that makes us unhappy. The ancient Indian traditions saw dealing with mental afflictions as more important than cultivating sensory pleasure. The Buddhas don’t wash away misdeeds and mental afflictions with water, they show us how to understand reality as it really is—that is how we can overcome them.

“We tend to see things as existing independently on their own part, and when they are attractive we become attached to them. When somehow our access to them is disrupted we get angry. American psychologist Aaron Beck explained to me that in observing people, who he described as prisoners of anger, he saw that they viewed the object of their anger as totally negative. However, he judged that 90% of this response was their own mental projection. Nagarjuna stated similarly that the elimination of karma and mental afflictions, which arise due to our conceptual exaggerations, leads to liberation. Ignorance is a combination of misconception and exaggeration. And it’s because of insights, such as dependent orignation, that today scientists are taking interest in what the Buddha had to say about the mind.”

His Holiness explained that the Buddha did not teach immediately after his enlightenment because he reflected that no one would understand what he had realized. In due course, however, he taught the nature, function and results of the Four Noble Truths.

We cling to the appearance that things exist independently, he said, a distorted view that the Buddha countered by use of reason. Human nature is compassionate, rooted in the love our mothers show us, without which we would not survive. And yet the world is rife with conflict and problems, which occur when we are overwhelmed by anger and attachment. Secular education based on universal values can help us better understand the flaws in this. On the other hand, the Buddha taught that we can put an end to karma and mental afflictions by challenging our view of true existence through meditation on emptiness.

“We need to know who the Buddha is,” His Holiness continued, “which doesn’t mean being able to identify the major and minor marks of his body, but coming to understand his teaching. The more we familiarize ourselves with his teaching, the more we appreciate how scientific it is.

“The Buddha taught different things to different groups of people at different times. He first explained the Four Noble Truths. In the second turning of the wheel of Dharma he explained the perfection of wisdom, and in the third turning he taught about Buddha nature. The Four Noble Truths included a rough account of selflessness, which the perfection of wisdom explains more subtly. In the ‘Unravelling of Thought Sutra’, part of the third turning of the wheel, he clarified that he taught according to his listeners’ different mental disposition.

“Essentially the Buddha taught how to transform the mind, which involves the use of logic and reason. By seeing through our distorted views we can penetrate our mental afflictions. Just as we preserve our health by following a code of physical hygiene, we need to adopt a sense of mental hygiene to achieve and preserve our peace of mind, here and now.”

Noting that the tradition for commemorating the Buddha on this day includes reading one of the Jataka Tales, the stories of the Buddha’s previous lives, His Holiness observed that the collection was compiled by Aryasura, also known as Ashvaghosha, a student of Aryadeva who was the disciple of Nagarjuna. Today’s story concerned a noble, selfless hare, who lived in the forest where he led other animals, an otter, a jackal and a monkey in particular, along the path of virtue.

After reading the opening of the Jataka Tale, His Holiness annnounced that he would also like to read Je Tsongkhapa’s ‘In Praise of Dependent Origination’, transmission of which he received from the Kinnauri Lama, Rigzin Tempa. It begins with a verse of homage to the Conqueror who saw dependent origination and taught it. It is on the basis of this that we can overcome our distorted view of reality that is the root of our mental afflictions. These mental afflictions, His Holiness stressed, are not of the nature of the mind. He remarked that the perfection of wisdom teachings of the second turning of the wheel deal with the emptiness that is the object clear light, while the third turning of the wheel refers to the subjective clear light, the subtle mind that is used to realize emptiness. This mind of clarity and awareness is the basis of the practice of tantra. All Tibetan Buddhist traditions stress the importance of understanding the nature of the mind.

As His Holiness read through the verses he paused to clarify and observe. Understanding dependent origination helps us overcome ignorance, the first of the twelve links of dependent origination, which can involve not understanding the law of causality, or ignorance of how things are. He observed that ‘dependence’ counters the extreme view of eternalism, while ‘origination’ counters nihilism. We know things exist because they affect us, but they only exist by way of designation. In clarifying dependent origination His Holiness mentioned that a result exists in dependence on its cause, but we can also say that something is only a cause because it has a result. There is a similar relation between a whole and its parts.

“The study of logic prevailed in India and we have continued that tradition in Tibet,” His Holiness observed as he was nearing the end of his reading of the text. “The great texts of Indian Buddhist literature were translated into Tibetan, thereby enriching the Tibetan language, which is now the language in which Buddhist ideas can be most accurately expressed. The Buddhist tradition we have kept alive in Tibet is something like a treasure for the world; it’s something for us to be proud of.

“Even after the political fragmentation of Tibet, the Kangyur and Tengyur collections were a source of unity and harmony. They were found and revered in all three provinces of Tibet, as well as adjacent lands like Mongolia and Ladakh. Although I am not very highly educated, I can appreciate that there is knowledge in this literature that can contribute to a wider conversation. For example, the quantum physics view that things have no objective existence resonates with the views of the Mind Only School. The difference may be that in our tradition we try to use our understanding of how things are to transform the mind, which quantum physicists may not do.

“Je Tsongkhapa applied what he learned in practice. We too have to integrate what we have learned into our own minds. We need to study and reflect so that our faith is based on reason. In the past, Namgyal Monastery, the two tantric colleges of Gyutö and Gyumé and nunneries didn’t peruse the philosophical treatises, but at my urging they have taken up their study to good effect. These monks and nuns have set a bright example for the generations to come.”

Dedication prayers were recited as His Holiness descended from the throne. He then walked back to his residence, greeting friends and well-wishers in the smiling crowd on the way.

Original link & photos: https://www.dalailama.com/news/2018/celebrating-the-day-of-miracles

Dalai Lama on 'The Nature of Consciousness’ — Dialogue Between Russian & Buddhist Scholars

New Delhi, India, 8/7/17 - His Holiness the Dalai Lama greeted several old friends when he reached the hall in which Russian scientists and thinkers were meeting Buddhist scholars. He then examined an exhibition dedicated to Agvan Dorjiev with some interest. This Buryat monk first entered Tibet with his teacher in 1873. He went on to study at Drepung Gomang Monastery, where he earned a Geshe Lharampa degree. His appointment as a debating assistant to the Thirteenth Dalai Lama was the start of a close relationship that extended into far-reaching connections between Tibet and Russia.

In his introduction to the first session of this dialogue, Prof Konstantin Anokhin explained that many participants had been interested to attend the meeting because of a sense that Russia and Russian science occupies a position both culturally and geographically between eastern and western science. The aim, he said, was to discuss the nature of consciousness to better understand ourselves and to relieve suffering. He added that Russian participants came from a range of disciplines. They were joined by a dozen monks who are not only well-qualified Buddhist scholars, but have also acquired extensive experience of science.

When asked if he had any opening remarks to make, His Holiness explained that his childhood interest in technology and his drive to understand how mechanical things worked matured into an interest in science.

“I’ve had useful discussions with scientists for more than 30 years with two purposes in mind. The first is to extend our knowledge. Until the late 20th century scientists mostly investigated external phenomena, including the brain. These were things they could measure and which a third person could agree about. However, in the late 20th century and early 21st century more and more scientists have begun to find evidence that such experiences as meditation and mind training affect our brains in previously unforeseen ways—this is called neuroplasticity.

“The second purpose relates to the sad reality that although we are sitting together peaceably here, enjoying each others’ company, elsewhere people are being killed, the gap between rich and poor continues to grow and children in places like Yemen are dying of starvation. Organized violence—war—including the civil wars in Russia and China, took up a lot of the 20th century. Historians claim that 200 million died violently as a consequence. If a happier and more peaceful world had been created as a result, someone might say it was worthwhile, but that is not the case. In search of a solution to a disagreement, people resort to the use of force. The consequent violence just fosters further violence.

“We have to learn from experience and enter into dialogue, remembering that others are our human brothers and sisters. We have to live together. The global economy and the effects of climate change are not limited by national borders. It’s the idea of ‘us’ and ‘them’ we have to restrain, because it so easily becomes the basis for violence. We have to educate people to understand that we are all part of humanity.

“Fear and suspicion won’t help us live together. We have to cultivate warm-heartedness. So the other purpose is to draw attention to the importance of peace of mind and the fact that we can’t build peace on the basis of anger.”

His Holiness also acknowledged that it’s useful that Russia recognises Buddhism, which is followed particularly in Buryat, Kalmykia and Tuva, as a national religion. His Holiness took up the question of consciousness and mentioned the Buddhist view that there are different levels—the sensory consciousness of ordinary wakefulness, the subtler consciousness when we dream and the subtlest consciousness that manifests at the time of death.

Moderator Tatyana Chernigovskaya invited Prof Konstantin Anokhin, of the PK Anokhin Institute of Normal Physiology, Moscow, to begin his presentation on the ‘Unity of Mind-Brain: Holistic Approaches from the Russian Neuroscience of Higher Brain Functions’. He described the Main project that involves M(ind & Br)AIN, seeking to incorporate mind from a first person perspective (M1), mind from a third person perspective (M3) and brain from a third person perspective (B3). He concluded that mind is a structure and consciousness is a process within it.

When His Holiness asked about the beginning of mind and whether he believed in one big bang or several, Anokhin answered that mind appeared when life appeared. As to whether we can say that beings with minds are only found here, he answered that we cannot, but beings elsewhere may not be like us. One of the Buddhist scholars asked whether machines with artificial intelligence have emotions.

Yuri I Alexandrov of the Institute of Psychology, Moscow, began his presentation entitled ‘Non-Disjunctive Approach to Consciousness and Emotion: a Culture-Specific View’, by explaining that although we are all human beings and similar in that respect, we are also different.

He drew attention to a series of culture-specific differences between Russian and American approaches. The one is reactive, the other active. For one certain things are forbidden, for the other they are obligatory, where one takes an analytical stance, the other is more holistic. It was even suggested that given three images—of a cow, a chicken and grass, an American would associate the cow and the chicken as animals, whereas the Russian would associate the cow with grass. His conclusion was that these differences do not represent right and wrong approaches. Instead, because they are complementary, they are helpful and to be appreciated.

The gathering broke for lunch. His Holiness ate with the presenters and kept up conversation throughout the meal.

Resuming his presentation about consciousness and emotions Prof Alexandrov showed video clips of a mouse building a nest and a person watching a video including scenes of the Simpsons that indicated the ability to track the firing of neurons in connection with familiar and favoured situations.

Tatyana Chernigovskaya of St Petersburg State University spoke entertainingly about the ‘Cheshire Grin of Schrödinger’s Cat: Language and Mind’. From Nils Bohr noting that ‘the observer is a participant in the quantum world’ to Einstein’s remark that ‘body and soul are not two different things, but two different ways of perceiving the same thing’, she quoted from Kant to Wittgenstein. She discussed language and time in terms of what they can tell us about the mind.

His Holiness took from the mention of there only being an observed object so long as there is an observer a reference to interdependence and an echo of the Buddhist thought that things exist by way of designation. He recalled Wolf Singer, a German neurophysiologist Chernigovskaya had mentioned, indicating a brain and observing that its having no central authority reflects the Buddhist notion of there being no independent self.

While discussions between scientists and Buddhist scholars went on into the late afternoon, His Holiness retired for the day, saying he looked forward to listening to their conversation again tomorrow.

Original link & photos: https://www.dalailama.com/news/2017/the-nature-of-consciousness-dialogue-between-russian-and-buddhist-scholars

The Dalai Lama on Practicing Love

The following is an excerpt from chapter 11 of Buddhism: One Teacher, Many Traditions by the Dalai Lama and Thubten Chodron. The authors introduce this chapter with the following overview: “The four immeasurables or ‘boundless states’—love, compassion, joy, and equanimity—are widely taught and practiced in both the Pāli and Sanskrit traditions. They are called ‘immeasurable’ because they are directed toward immeasurable sentient beings with a mind free from partiality and because they are states of jhāna that are not limited by the five hindrances of the desire-realm mind. They are also called the brahmavihāras after the brahmā worlds of the first jhāna, where beings’ minds are gentle. Brahma also implies ‘pure,’ for these four are free from attachment, anger, and apathy. They are called vihāras, or ‘abodes,’ because they are peaceful resting places for our mind.” Below is the section on love.

Since hostility is the opposite of love and prevents its development, we begin by reflecting on the disadvantages of hostility and the benefits of fortitude. Hostility crushes trust and tears apart valued relationships; it destroys our merit and compels us to act in ways we later regret. Fortitude, or patience, is like a soothing balm. It attracts others to us and protects our virtue.

At the beginning, it is important to cultivate love toward specific people in a definite order. Do not begin the cultivation of any of the four immeasurables toward someone to whom you are or could be sexually attracted. The people should be alive because we don’t know what form the deceased are in now.

When cultivating love, begin by using yourself as an example. Contemplate repeatedly, “May I be happy and free from suffering. May I be free from hostility, affliction, and anxiety and live happily.” Generating love toward ourselves isn’t selfish because the goal is to generate love toward all beings, which includes ourselves. We, too, are worthy of love and kindness. This meditation counteracts self-hatred, freeing us to develop our potential.

Then contemplate, “Just as I want to be happy, so too do other beings.” Cultivate love for someone you respect and hold in high regard, such as your spiritual mentor or another teacher. If we begin by cultivating love for a dear one, attachment may easily arise under the guise of love; however, this will not happen toward someone you respect. Recalling the help you have received from this person, contemplate, “May he be happy and free from suffering. May he be free from hostility, affliction, and anxiety and live happily.”

Then extend your love more broadly, first to a dear friend, thinking in the same way as above. When the mind is malleable, generate love for a neutral person, seeing her as a very dear friend. When you can do this, cultivate love for an enemy, seeing her as neutral. “Enemy” means someone you are hostile or critical toward. The person does not have to be one who reciprocates those disturbing emotions.

This step can be difficult because anger or the wish for revenge may arise toward those who have harmed you. If you cannot get past these disturbing emotions, return to meditating on love toward one of the previous persons, and when the mind is drenched in that feeling, again generate love for the enemy.

If hostility persists, apply an antidote, such as the ones offered below. If one doesn’t release the anger, try another. Begin by remembering the disadvantages of hostility. The Buddha details seven disadvantages of anger (AN 7:64): While an enemy may wish us to be ugly, experience pain, lack prosperity, wealth, a good reputation, harmonious relationships, and have an unfortunate rebirth, we bring all these upon ourselves through our own anger. Letting our mind dwell in animosity destroys our virtue and inhibits our spiritual progress.

Hearing others’ disturbing speech often triggers anger in the mind. Here the Buddha counsels us (MN 21:11):

…you should train thus: “Our minds will remain unaffected, and we shall utter no evil words; we shall abide compassionate for their welfare, with a mind of love, without inner hate. We shall abide pervading that person with a mind imbued with love, and starting with him, we shall abide pervading the all encompassing world with a mind imbued with love, abundant, exalted, immeasurable, without hostility and without malice.”

This is love in the state of jhāna (Vism 9:44). Such love will carry over when we leave the jhāna state and return to an everyday state of mind. Even if we have not attained jhāna, training our mind to approach all beings with a loving attitude will overwhelm our discomfort, suspicion, and malice and imbue us with ease and affection for all.

Reflecting on the person’s good qualities when he is in a congenial situation enables us to dispel our critical attitude. We can then recall this when he creates trouble. If it is difficult to see any good qualities in the person, generate compassion for him, thinking of the destructive kamma he is creating and the suffering he will experience as a result. There is no use wishing harm to someone who is bringing harm upon himself. It is better to generate compassion for him.

Thinking of the Buddha’s responses to aggression in his previous lives as a bodhisatta can inspire us to forgive others for their faults. The Jātaka collection tells many stories of the bodhisatta’s previous lives in which he responded to aggressors with compassion.

Reflecting that all sentient beings have been our mother, father, siblings, and children, we see that they have all benefited us in the past and that it is therefore unfitting to harbor enmity for them. Our affection and gratitude for others then overpowers any resentment.

We can also ask ourselves, “Who am I angry at? Among the five aggregates in dependence on which this person is called so-and-so, what aggregate am I angry with?” Searching for the real person who is the source of our anger becomes like painting in space.

Another suggestion is to give the person a gift. Others’ hostility toward us and ours toward them subsides when a gift is given and received earnestly.

Once the anger and resentment have dissipated, cultivate love toward the enemy just as you did toward the others.

Reciting the formula “May you be happy and free from suffering! May you be free from hostility, affliction, and anxiety and live happily!” is a tool to help us generate the mental state those words indicate. If the recitation becomes mechanical, express the meaning in your own words. Alternatively, think in more detail about the types of happiness you wish someone to have and imagine her having them. Make the meditation more personal. Slowly your love will arise and gain momentum. After a while the meditation will carry on by itself without need to use the formula.

The next step is to “break down the barriers” by seeing the five individuals—yourself, the respected person, the friend, the neutral person, and the enemy—as equal and generate love for them equally. When the barriers between the five people have been broken down and you are able to extend love equally to all five, simultaneously the counterpart sign appears and access concentration is attained. Repeatedly practicing the counterpart sign, you will attain the full concentration of the first jhāna. With this, the five hindrances have been suppressed, the five absorption factors are present, and the liberation of mind by love (mettācetovimutti) is attained. It is so called because in that absorption the mind is liberated from anger and hostility. This is also called “love as a divine abode.”

Only upon gaining the first jhāna, a meditator (MN 43:31):

…abides pervading one quarter with a mind imbued with loving-kindness, likewise the second, likewise the third, likewise the fourth; so above, below, around, and everywhere, and to all as to himself, he abides pervading the entire world with a mind imbued with loving-kindness, abundant, exalted, immeasurable, without hostility and without malice.

To gain this further development of love, extend love to one direction—the east—so that it pervades all sentient beings there. When doing this, begin small, thinking of one dwelling and extending love to everyone there. Then expand love to two dwellings and, gradually, to the town, state, and so forth in one direction. When that meditation is firm, gradually add the beings in the other three cardinal directions, the four intermediate directions, and up and down—radiating love in each place, one by one.

Then extend love everywhere without specifying a particular direction, realm of existence, social status, race, ethnicity, religion, gender, and so on. Unmarred by negative feelings, grief, or suffering, this immeasurable love is pure, impartial, and unconditional.

Together with extending the range of your love, intensify it by remembering that in our beginningless rebirths we have all been each other’s mothers. This helps to break down feelings of separateness and open our hearts to love all beings as if they were our children. The Mettā Sutta says, “As a mother would, with all her life, protect her only child, so one should develop a boundless heart toward all beings.”

Practicing love as a divine abode entails practicing it at all times when you are awake and in all postures—sitting, standing, lying down, and walking. As meditation continues, the second and third jhānas in the fourfold schema will be gained.

In the early stages of cultivating love, thought and imagination are necessary. But once love is aroused and becomes strong and stable, these are unnecessary. The mind becomes absorbed in the experience of love, and radiating love takes on a momentum of its own.

The liberation of mind by love is practiced with universal pervasion by extending it to all beings, then all breathing things, all creatures, all persons, and all those with a personality. While these five terms are synonymous, meditating on them individually gives us different perspectives on the object of our love. The liberation of mind by love is practiced with specific pervasion by extending love to groups of women, men, ariyas, ordinary beings, devas, human beings, and those born in unfortunate realms.

The liberation of mind by love is cultivated to pervade the ten directions in ten ways, by thinking as above toward all beings in the ten directions and then thinking of the twelve types of beings—the five unspecific and the seven specific—in each of the directions. In addition, each of the phrases in the formula—“be free from hostility,” “be free from affliction,” “be free from anxiety,” and “live happily”—is one meditative absorption, so when combined there are quite a number.

The Buddha said that practitioners of the liberation of mind through love will experience eleven benefits (AN 11:15):

You sleep well; you awaken happily; you do not have bad dreams; you are pleasing to human beings; you are pleasing to spirits; deities protect you; fire, poison, and weapons do not injure you; your mind quickly becomes concentrated; your facial complexion is serene; you die unconfused; and if you do not penetrate further, you fare on to the brahmā world.

Using the liberation of mind by love as the basis for developing insight, you can attain arahantship. This is done by meditating in a jhāna, then leaving that state and analyzing its components. Through doing this, you see that even this blissful state of concentration is impermanent, unsatisfactory, and selfless. Such insight into the three characteristics will lead to the realization of nibbāna and the eradication of all fetters.

original link: http://www.wisdompubs.org/blog/201507/dalai-lama-practicing-love

Dalai Lama: Body, Mind, Science at University of Strasbourg

Strasbourg, France, 16 September 2016 - The sky was overcast this morning as His Holiness the Dalai Lama drove across the city to the University of Strasbourg to take part in a dialogue with the scientific community, at the interface of modern science, engagement, and meditation. He was welcomed to the University by Theologist Michel Deneken, who just yesterday was promoted to become the University’s new President, Dean of the Medical School, Jean Sibilia and Rheumatologist Jean-Gérard Bloch. They escorted him directly to the small auditorium where an audience of just over 140 staff members were gathered, although another 1300 students and staff were watching elsewhere in the building via a live webcast.

Michel Deneken opened proceedings by asking how His Holiness preferred to be addressed, noting that he had recently told an interviewer that he would be happy to be called ‘brother’. His Holiness said he’d love that. Deneken introduced the University as one of the great Universities of Europe established on both sides of the Rhine, being Catholic and Protestant, French and German, and with a reputation for openness. He concluded by telling His Holiness how delighted he was by his presence.

The first session, Neurosciences, set out to examine the regulation of attention and emotions by mindfulness meditation, and was moderated by Michel de Mathelin. Wolf Singer a distinguished neuroscientist interested in the relation between the material and spiritual asked how meditation acts on the mental substrate and how insight influences the brain. His Holiness responded by looking back 3-4000 years in India to the emergence of the practice of shamatha meditation in which the mind is focussed on a single object. Subsequently, vipashyana or special insight meditation emerged which was more investigative. Through concentration and analysis these practices became the basis for coming to understand the workings of the mind.

He mentioned the sensory consciousnesses that are very much related to the brain and mental consciousness.

“Ordinary mental consciousness is quite coarse,” he explained, “but during sleep, when the senses are shut down, consciousness is a little subtler. When there is no dreaming it’s subtler still and when we faint even subtler. My friend Richie Davidson is now investigating the subtlest consciousness that manifests at the time of death. There are cases, and there have been maybe 40 since 1959, when the heart has stopped, the brain has died, but the body remains fresh. My own tutor remained in this state for 13 days after clinical death.”

Antoine Lutz spoke about work he and Gaël Chételat have been doing to investigate the impact of mindfulness meditation among several strategies for tackling ageing and Alzheimer’s disease in particular. He mentioned its successful role in relieving depression which is a problem associated with ageing.

In the second session, Clinical Aspects, Jean-Gérard Bloch and Gilles Bertschy, with Cornelius Weiller moderating, spoke further about the impact of mindfulness meditation on depression and pain. Depression is a public health issue that Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) is 30% effective in dealing with. MBCT seems to help when there are difficult issues to cope with.

Bloch asked His Holiness whether language was needed to meditate, prompting His Holiness to speak briefly about the difference between conceptual and non-conceptual thought. He confirmed, however, that simply on the basis of conveying meditation instructions language was required. He also remarked that this is an area in which the Tibetan language is the most accurate medium of communication.

Bloch also asked His Holiness if there is a difference between pain and suffering and he told him that pain is related to physical experience, whereas suffering has more of a mental character. Regarding meditation, His Holiness clarified:

“I’ve already distinguished between concentrative and analytical meditation. The difference lies in how the mind engages with the object. From a traditional point of view the four mindfulnesses are understood as follows. Mindfulness of the body relates to understanding the nature of suffering; mindfulness of feelings relates to understanding the origin of suffering; mindfulness of the mind relates to cessation; while mindfulness of the way things are corresponds to understanding the path.”

After a break for lunch, in a third session, Tania Singer and Ven Matthieu Ricard discussed empathy and compassion, with Michel Deneken moderating. On the one hand Tania Singer’s research is examining the impact steady training in meditation on empathy and compassion has on the brain, but on the other is also seeking to find training and practice to offset the empathy burn out frequently encountered in the medical and other caring professions. She defines empathy as feeling or identifying with others’ pain, whereas compassion is feeling for their suffering—and doing something about it.

His Holiness distinguished between a basic biological sense of compassion that tends to be biased and partisan and a genuine compassion based on reasoning such as the argument that others want to live a happy life and don’t want suffering, just as I do. Ricard pointed out the degree of courage involved in cultivating great compassion. He also observed that co-operation is far more effective than competition.

The fourth and final session, Consciousness, was moderated by B Alan Wallace. He introduced Steven Laureys a neurologist who studies coma and Michel Bitbol a polymath who functions as a philosopher. Laureys, who had brought a brain with him to illustrate what he had to say, declared that he wants to know, “What happens when matter becomes mind?” His Holiness remarked, “I really doubt that it does.” And Laureys retorted, “Can you be conscious without your brain?” He made his approach clearer when asserting that the scientific proof of life after death involves organ donation.

Speaking in Tibetan, which Alan Wallace translated, His Holiness said:

“It’s difficult to explain consciousness if you only take a materialist approach. What we can do is to employ shamatha or concentration focussed on our own consciousness. This reveals its clarity of awareness and knowing.”

He explained that there are further stages of investigation related to employing techniques from the tantras. He observed that Hindu and Buddhist tantras overlap and share features in common. What distinguishes them is the Buddhist view of emptiness of intrinsic existence.

Laureys stated: “Consciousness exists. I try to understand it.” He repeated his question asking whether His Holiness thought there was consciousness without a brain. As time ran out Michel Bitbol spoke about how Edmund Husserl whose work on phenomenology influenced foremost 20th century philosophers like Sartre and Heidegger.  The later Francisco Varela, old friend of His Holiness and founder member of Mind & Life found inspiration in what Husserl had to say about ‘consciousness in the first person.’

Winding up a stimulating day of discussion, Michel Deneken thanked His Holiness for coming and contributing to the conversation. His Holiness replied, “I came because you invited me.” Tomorrow, elsewhere in Strasbourg, he will begin to teach Nagarjuna’s ‘Commentary on Bodhichitta.’

original link with photos http://dalailama.com/news/post/1455-body-mind-science-at-university-of-strasbourg

Do Not Act On Emotions That Affect Our Mind, The Enemy Is Counting On It

We need to be enlightened by the Holy Spirit dwelling on it. Our feelings cannot be counted on especially when we are going to something or if you're mad or angry or depressed or worried. If you're not enjoying your life then you're missing God's best for you. The pressure and problems of every day life is enough to defeat us. I know what I'm saying is much easier said than done believe me I know more than you think I do. Like I said whenever there is a holiday that glorifies Christ (Easter for example) satan hates it with a passion, he cannot stand it. Personally in my life right now I have two very sick relatives very close to me and one who died recently. All of this so close together thrown upon my sister and I. I know what hurt is. I know what pain is. I know what it's like to want to die but I'm here to tell you that Jesus Christ does not want that for us. Ignore these tormenting emotions they are demonic in every way. As I said, Every time there's a holiday that glorifies Christ satan absolute without a doubt cannot stand it. You may know as a Christian or a believer sometimes more negative things seem to happen on holidays that glorify Christ which it could be a coincidence...I'm simply relaying what I've been told by people over the years and from my personal research. We must resist the Devil. He only comes to steal, and destroy.

Satan is the original liar. He is the “father” of lies. Satan told the first lie in recorded history to Eve, in the Garden of Eden. After planting seeds of doubt in Eve’s mind with a question (Genesis 3:1) he directly contradicts God’s Word by telling her, “You will not certainly die” (Genesis 3:4). With that lie, Satan led Eve to her death; Adam followed, and so have we all.

The many accounts of evil spirits in Scripture affirm the reality of powerful spiritual forces of wickedness. Evil spirits (also known as demons or devils) are depraved and quite familiar with human weaknesses and desires. They know it very well. Some are more vile than others. Spirits speak to all of us to inject ungodly beliefs into us. These are thoughts that steer us away from our identity in Jesus Christ. For some people these supernatural voices are far more destructive and can cause harm to the individual hearing them. For some individuals, hearing these thoughts can be just utter torment trying to convince them to commit suicide or to kill another. Oppression and Depression mimic each other in many ways. At times many are written off as highly depressed, now that evil can stay for life with no fear of being casted out.

When God tells us to forgive our enemies, it is not to do them a favor it is to do us a favor. We give that person free rent in our mind by allowing what they did to us constantly stay with us and torment us and I am one that has trouble with this myself. I can forgive but I can't forget which really means I haven't forgiven. Having bitterness and anger in your heart once again that negativity can attract unwanted spirits. I've once heard someone say "if we keep what God tells us to give the devil is going to take it." As long as we stay insecure and not move past we will only live with turmoil. No confidence at all. Our emotions will surely take over. Demons are attracted to this and will target you quicker than you can imagine. Our mind is the enemies battlefield friends. It's our weakness they go after. We must not let the past or what anybody has done to us continue to linger in us in a bad way. God will deal with them God will deal with everyone of us for the things that we've done that we know better. And I personally believe some people get dealt with while they're still on earth.

I've said many times satan goes after our mind. It's our number one weakness at times in my humble opinion. One way Satan gains control of the mind is when we place our trust in what many Christians mistakenly call the Holy Spirit. What I mean is  "God told me to do this. . ." However, what God told them to do is completely contrary to God’s word. Jesus said in John 8:47 "He who is of God hears the words of God." God never, ever, ever leads us contrary to the Word of God. So when we receive anything we think is the Holy Spirit, the first question we must ask is "Does God’s word agree with what I believe is the Holy Spirit speaking to me?" Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 11:14 "And no wonder for Satan transforms himself into an angel of light." We should start each day by saying to God "We cannot do anything without you Lord, please be with us and guide us through every decision and choice we make." There are many demons assigned to torment us by satan just as Jesus assigns angels to look after us . We have demons running amok trying to destroy all humans before the appointed time. Yes they know very well the second coming of Jesus Christ will in fact take place. They already know they are defeated but they will still try to drag as many souls to hell with them or make our life hell in hopes we may take our own life or just live so miserable and depressed we end up making ourselves sick. They hate our guts and want nothing but death for us.  And when we are not in control of our emotions and we make certain decisions and choices this is what the enemy is counting on.

We know that we are made up of body, soul and spirit. Again the soul in itself is made up of mind, will and emotions. Becoming a believer means we must have surrendered our will to the Lordship of Jesus Christ our savior. But the mind and emotions, we might not have fully surrendered to our Lord. In these circumstances either knowingly or unknowingly we are allowing the devil room to come into our lives and our homes and have a field day! Torment beyond imagining.

Many people are fooled by "familiar spirits" that come in the form of a dead love one or maybe someone who passed away for lived in that particular home at a time. That way they never truly get dealt with because people think it is a ghost a human spirit that has not yet crossed over. The Bible is full of information about familiar spirits. This allows us to study their wiles in the Bible and find out how they work. They may appear under different names; but their works, manifestations, and their deceptive ways are found both in the Old and New Testaments. We must, therefore, be alert and be prepared because Scripture warns us that these deceiving spirits and false manifestations will be found among God’s people in the last days. Familiar spirits operate under their master, Satan. They influence people to create hate and hurt. Basically raise hell and torment us relentlessly. They spew lies and make a person believe such horrible things of others and ourselves. To knowingly open oneself to the work of demons is an evil act: "Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery." To knowingly open yourself up to these demons and their tasks is considered a sin.

Written By Jennifer Lori Auld

What Is Pareidolia? Or Demons?

Hello my para beauties. I hope everyone had a fabulous weekend and enjoying you Sunday. The Lords Day.

According to Wiki Pareidolia (/pærɨˈdoʊliə/ parr-i-doh-lee-ə) is a psychological phenomenon involving a vague and random stimulus (often an image or sound) being perceived as significant, a form of apophenia. Common examples include seeing images of animals or faces in clouds, the man in the moon or the Moon rabbit, and hearing hidden messages on records when played in reverse.

 The word comes from the Greek words para (παρά, "beside, alongside, instead") in this context meaning something faulty, wrong, instead of; and the noun eidōlon (εἴδωλον "image, form, shape") the diminutive of eidos. Pareidolia is a type of apophenia, seeing patterns in random data.

This subject has been discussed many times and it is just one of those things where nobody knows for sure. Again we have been unable to prove anything exists to begin with however, there are way too many people that are just so quick to call something a demon pic when it is simply Pareidolia. The mind can really play tricks on us when we really want something to be there. The power of suggestion can be very strong. We really need to be very careful and look for any possible natural reason and most of the pictures I have seen even me and untrained professional can look at these photos and tell it is trick of the eye.

I have viewed countless images that were deemed evidence and come to find out they were nothing more than Pareidolia. Example: you know how clouds in the sky can look like a "bunny" in form but we know it's not a actual bunny? That's another example I can offer because sometimes some people have trouble understanding exactly what this means.

In 1971, Konstantin Raudive wrote Breakthrough, detailing what he believed was the discovery of electronic voice phenomenon (EVP). EVP has been described as auditory pareidolia. The allegations of backmasking in popular music have also been described as Pareidolia.

Ghost Boxes and the related prove to be Pareidolia. The device is a receiver that scans, or cycles, through the radio spectrum. Since it is constantly scanning the airwaves, it generates white noise that is infused with AM and FM stations. Many believe any ghost or demon could then manipulate the spoken words and through the white noise, communicate with the living. The device has dials and other trinkets that help the user hear the sounds more clear to the other side. That’s it. Ones mind can play tricks especially if we really want to hear a demon. When your mind is in that mode it's so easy to hear what we want. Mind over matter type of situation. The power of suggestion is very much a contributing factor as well.

There is also a phenomenon known as hypnogongia. This happens either when we are just falling asleep or just waking up. During this time, many people have very real visual and auditory hallucinations. Again, if someone already strongly believes in the supernatural, they might intrepret these experiences as supernatural in origin.

Have you ever heard of The Rorschach Test? The Rorschach test was developed in 1921 by Herman Rorschach. The Rorschach test is a series of ten ink blots of varying patterns and colors. It is believed by many psychologists to be the key to unlocking someone’s psyche. The answers a person gives to the different blobs is supposed to be indicative of their personality. The concept is much akin to palm or tarot card reading. In fact the accuracy of such a test is narrow at best.

Apophenia is a form called pareidolia, people pull shapes or sounds out of meaningless data. The most well known example of pareidolia is probably cloud-gazing, in which people see shapes in the forms of clouds in the sky. Many people also obtain pareidolia when they pull meaningful sounds from static in the radio, and it can sometimes be extremely frustrating, as other people will not recognize those sounds or patterns. Apophenia is an example of what is known in statistics as a type I error, or a false positive. Most people do not bring on apophenia by conscious choice; they simply draw connections where there are none out of a sense of false sensitivity. The behavior of someone with severe apophenia can veer into the absurd, as someone may go to elaborate lengths to support the connections he or she makes, or to avoid particular circumstances.

 Written By Jennifer L Auld

Change Your Mind, Change the World - Discussion to Make the World a Healthier, Happier Place

Madison, Wisconsin, USA, 15 May 2013 - Inspiration for convening this discussion of well-being in relation to global health and happiness arose when Richard Davidson, Chair of the Center for Investigating Healthy Minds and Jonathan Patz, Director of the Global Health Institute, both at the University Wisconsin-Madison, were visiting His Holiness the Dalai Lama in India. He showed great interest in participating in such a conversation.

Once His Holiness and the panellists had taken their seats on the stage of the Overture Center for the Arts, which was filled to capacity, proceedings both in the morning and afternoon opened with a musical-poetic performance by Logan Phillips, Molly Sturges and Aaron Stern of the Academy for the Love of Learning, who presented musical and poetic notions of a happier world, such as ‘we are a beautifully sung song.’

Richie Davidson introduced his old friend Dan Goleman, moderator of the morning’s session, who began by making clear that the discussions aimed to talk about being well in every sense; exploring different ways in which we can flourish. Richie referred to findings that changes in the body can be attributed to stress, but that there is new work to show that happiness and well-being have positive effects on the body too. His Holiness asked how you measure well-being and Richie said they rely on self-report. His Holiness was asked if he had advice on how to make well-being more widespread.

“I think you already know what I think.” he replied, “But these people in the audience may not have heard it before. At this point everyone here feels at ease, but if I think of you as somehow different from me, if I think that I’m Tibetan, I’m Buddhist, an Easterner, I’m a monk or even something grand like His Holiness the Dalai Lama, this kind of thinking automatically creates a gap between us. It results in a sense of unease. On the other hand, if I consider you as another human being, just like me, then that source of anxiety disappears.

“I’m very happy and encouraged to be here. Some scientists don’t even accept the existence of mind, they think there’s only the brain. If that were the case we ought to be able change the way we live through surgery. However, the proper way to train the mind is by using the mind itself, not in connection with the next life or anything like that, but focussing on a healthy society and a happier humanity here and now. Everybody wants a happy life and a peaceful mind, but we have to produce peace of mind through our own practice.

“Modern science’s interest in mind or consciousness is new, and so is the public interest in mind and emotional training. Have I spoken for too long?”

Jonathan Patz noted the news that for the first time the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has reached 400 parts per million. He said scientists are very concerned that if this continues and reaches 450ppm it will be very dangerous. He recalled that last time he and His Holiness met, they talked about global climate change and he had explained that it would bring heat-waves, hunger and drought. His Holiness had responded:

“If we have the knowledge we have to act.”

He talked about work he has done concerning the peregrine falcon, which is an endangered species. It was only when the focus shifted to habitat and the context of the falcons’ lives that they began to be effective.

“Consequently,” Patz said, “when we think of prospects for our own species, we need to see ourselves in the context a healthy environment, which means a healthy planet.”

His Holiness remarked that this is clear evidence of the need to focus on long term interests, of our need for moral principles and a sense of responsibility.

Don Berwick talked about developments in health care noting that when he began his career all children with leukemia died, but now they don’t. However, health costs continue to increase, which means that spending on education, for example, has dropped. He mentioned three mistakes with regard to health care: the belief that more is better; the belief that the way to health is through technological solutions rather than looking at what we eat and how we live; and the belief that we can treat the body but not the mind. He said that when he explains that sometimes less is more, people feel they are being deceived.

His Holiness agreed that new findings are sometimes not easy to accept, which is why the public needs to hear more from experts like those on the panel. This is a role which the media can play; they should give such experts more exposure. People need to understand that if they want to live long and be comfortable, they may have to change some of the things they are used to.

Ilona Kickbusch began with the observation that she was both happy and unhappy to be the only woman on the panel. She said that great strides have been taken in relation to global health, but that we are reaching the limits of this particular model, the ‘vertical disease model’. Consequently, there is a need to rethink what health is, to combine a drive for equity and health care reform.

Last time His Holiness and Richard Layard met, he told him about Action for Happiness, which His Holiness asked to join. He explained that the movement has since been successfully launched and has attracted 30,000 members. What’s more, some governments have begun to adopt some of its objectives regarding well-being, among them Bhutan and the UK. Meanwhile the OECD, the club of developed nations, has drawn up codes to measure well-being rather than depending only on economic indicators; this is a major revolution.

Less encouraging was his report that within the context of general well-being, mental health is not taken sufficiently seriously, which amounts to discrimination. He said there is treatment and good prospects for recovery, but overall mental health is not regarded as seriously as physical health. He asked His Holiness how he interprets this finding.

“Knowledge of the mind is limited.” His Holiness said, “People have only a superficial view of what mind is, which is a cultural issue. I agree that the brain is complex and sophisticated, but the mind and emotions are also sophisticated and complex. Maybe it’s due to a fundamental misunderstanding that it’s the physical that you have to fix. We need to view these things in a different way. Because we take physical health seriously we have codes of physical hygiene, I’m proposing that equally important are codes of mental and emotional hygiene.”

Richard Layard concluded with two facts: every human being wants to be happy and every human being is equally important. If we acknowledge these, we can work to increase the spread of happiness. His Holiness responded that if we can let people know that adopting this or that measure will improve their peace of mind and improve their physical health, it will lead to a more attractive solution.

Moderator for the afternoon was Arianna Huffington, who began with the observation that our world has become unmanageable. She also remarked that while we all have a place of inner strength within us, most of us are not there most of the time and we need to ask how we can get there more often.

Richie Davidson offered five facts about well-being for consideration. 1. Well-being is a skill, 2. Well-being seems to be universally related to the mind’s well-being. He referred to a study that asked people: what are you doing? is your mind focussed? and are you happy? The response showed that people’s well-being is higher when they are focussed, but also that their minds wander a good deal. When the mind wanders performance suffers. It is a source of suffering; people are not happy living this way. His Holiness recognised Richie’s description of the wandering mind, saying he is familiar with it too.

Richie continued to explain the facts about well-being. 3. Well-being is associated with patterns of both mind and body. 4. Well-being has three aspects - returning to calm after a stressful event; mindfulness and generosity. 5. There is an innate disposition towards well-being, demonstrated by findings that young babies show a preference for altruistic behaviour.

Arianna asked what we can do to ensure that such well-being becomes more widespread. His Holiness replied:

“I mentioned this morning - education, in schools but also through our various media. We need to see reports of positive as well as negative news. Basic human nature is gentle. We are born from our mothers, who show us affection. We are social animals and depend on each other to survive. People who receive more affection from their mothers are happier and more secure. The basic gentle nature we are born with tends to become dormant as we grow up, we need training and education from an early age to ensure that it remains fresh instead. This is an example of using our human intelligence for the well-being of ourselves and society.”

Jonathan Patz said that his theme for the afternoon was interdependence. Without awareness of interdependence we won’t understand that our energy consumption is affecting the world’s climate. We need to be mindful of that, just as we need to be mindful of our consumption. His Holiness commented:

“We must address these problems like global climate change and the global economy as one community. We can’t expect our population of 7 billion human beings to live the life of a hermit. When the world population was smaller each country was self-sufficient, but today’s reality is that everyone is interdependent; the old way doesn’t work anymore. For example, you spend a huge amount of money and resources on developing and maintaining nuclear weapons, and yet, because, quite rightly, no one dares use them, the money is in effect wasted. We must find ways to change the way things have been done until now.”

Matthieu Ricard suggested that we have so far underestimated the power of mental health, but expressed confidence that this can change. Arianna wanted to know if His Holiness feels we have reached a tipping point. He replied:

“If we make consistent effort, based on proper education, we can change the world. We are selfish, that’s natural, but we need to be wisely selfish, not foolishly selfish. We have to concern ourselves more with others’ well-being, that’s the way to be wisely selfish. We have the ability to take the long-term benefit into account. I think it is possible to make real change in this century.

“Education is the best way to train ourselves that we will secure our own well-being by concerning ourselves with others. It is possible to create a better world, a more compassionate, more peaceful world, which is not only in everyone’s interest, but is everyone’s responsibility to achieve.”

His Holiness offered each member of the panel a kata, a white silk scarf, and then standing hand in hand with them at the front of the stage, energetically appealed to the audience.

“Great changes start with individuals; the basis of world peace is inner peace in the hearts of individuals. This is something we can all work for. If what you’ve heard here interests you, if you think it’s something you can act on, share it with others. If there are a thousand people here and each of you shares this with ten friends, ten thousand people will hear about it, and so on. That’s the way we can change our minds and change the world. Thank you.”

original link with photos http://www.dalailama.com/news/post/947-change-your-mind-change-the-world---discussion-to-make-the-world-a-healthier-happier-place