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 GREETINGS from Sapan Rinpoche ... December 09, 2009 10:37 PM

Just checking in ... thanks for being here now and best wishes to you in your profound PRACTICE & STUDY! Please check out the Vajrayana Pathways Institute Without Walls site and the Phuntsok Choephel Ling Monastery Project (the latter which is all rather messed up with the adoption of the "new" site formats, which I have not had time to clean up as yet). Your feedback, questions, suggestions and checking in, from time to time, is very much appreciated.

Sarva Mangalam,

Sapan Rinpoche

... at Kunga Tenphel Ling Dharma Center in Lyons, Colorado ... "Jewel of the Front Range!"

 [ send green star]
 
GREETINGS INSTI September 23, 2009 11:04 PM

TWO YEARS IS A LONG TIME TO BE AWAY FROM A THREAD ...

Hi! I am so busy these days with my WRITING, that I have little time to properly serve this site alone, as I have for over a year now. And my two good friends, Co-Hosts Zack and Hell-Zen, are also very busy these days, but will stay on if they choose to do so!

IS THERE ANYBODY OUT THERE, A MEMBER OF THIS GROUP, THAT WOULD LIKE TO VENTURE INTO ... um ...

CO-HOSTING on Meditation - Dzogchen - Ati Yoga - Healing Circle?

If so, please email me at my personal email station, SapanRinpoche@sapanrinpoche.com and let me know of your interest. It would be wonderful if a few could help! I generally do not have time to check Care2 messaging so please do not count on that. My personal email is well-filtered so no worries, okay?  Thanks,

Life, Light, Love, Luminosity & Liberation,

Sapan Rinpoche  /  Ven. Lama Ngawang Kunga Thupten Gyaltsen

Lyons, Colorado, USA, North America

 [ send green star]
 
CORRECTION of Keith Dowman URL ... April 13, 2009 5:13 PM

Thanks, Judy C., for the head's up on this! The correct URL is, and it is in fact incorrect also in the frontpiece of the book, opposite the Table of Contents. Here 'tis, corrected URL:

http://www.keithdowman.net/dzogchen/naturalperfection.htm

Sapan Rinpoche

 [ send green star]
 
RADICAL DZOGCHEN ... "Old Man Basking in the Sun" April 09, 2009 12:24 PM

My friend Keith Dowman has contributed the most significant introduction to Radical Dzogchen, for which he is perhaps the most accessible teacher, in OLD MAN BASKING IN THE SUN ... published in 2006 by Vajra Publications in Kathmandu, Nepal.

This work is a new translation of Longchenpa's volume from The Seven Treasuries published as The Prescious Treasury of the Way of Abiding in the Richard Barron (Chokyi Nyima) translation produced by Padma Publishing in 1998.

My recommendation is to work with BOTH volumes, for fresh personal insights. Dowman's 23-page Introduction is a not-to-be-missed contemporary commentary in a timeless vein, indispensible for a glimmer of understanding about the volatility and viability of Radical Dzogchen. E Ma Ho ... Sarva Mangalam!!

Additional textural material relating to Old Man Basking in the Sun can be found at:

http://www.keithdowman.net/dzogchen/naturalperfection/htm

Check it all out! Keep up, with dilligence, your PRACTICE & STUDY! Meditate well and serve the people.

Kindest regards,

Sapan Rinpoche ... April 9, 2009 @ Kunga Tenphel Ling Dharma Center (KTL) in Lyons, CO, USA, North America

 [ send green star]
 
BACK in the Sycamore Samsara Retreat ... unitl ... December 25, 2008 4:02 AM

Hi, unfortunately, due to work loads (with my writing) I am BACK IN my Sycamore Samsara Retreat ... until February 15th. Seasons Greetings to ALL and have a wonderful and productive 2009 with all of your Study & Practice.

Kindest regards,

Sapan Rinpoche

 [ send green star]
 
OH GOOD! March 02, 2008 7:09 PM

Thank you so much for your activity here, HellZen ... great threads!  Well, I am BACK, after my long "Sycamore Samsara Retreat!"  And on a new DSL! So I will work to pick up my beat here ... and I have some new material to present in the coming days and weeks!  Thank you all so much for your patience! Kindest regards, Sapan Rinpoche (02MAR2008)

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Dreaming February 07, 2008 1:02 PM

Dream Yoga... hmmm. Perhaps it would be most helpful to offer what I can in a direct manner. The answer appears to have three parts. 1) Interpretation. 2)Dream Lucidity 3)Dream Yoga/Meditation (the first two are a bit off-topic): 1) Dream symbols/images/messages. My best results come from thinking it over then running it past somebody who knows me well. They usually pick up connections I miss. There are various schools of thought that attribute "meanings" to things people might see in their dreams. From what I can tell, dream imagery for most folks is personally symbolic. Some images are culturally conditioned. I have seen attempts to create a cheat sheet of images but feel many of the assigned meanings are derived in an unclear manner. There are lots of references, including buddhist ones, that will tell you that a cat seen in your dreams means thus-and-such. Since I fail to see how this information could possibly be determined and validated, I am not able to recommend one list over another. 2) Dream Yoga/Lucid Dream/OBE etc There are two approaches, besides cast-iron mindfulness that I am aware of to the actual mechanics of achieving control of the dreamstate. This has different results than the case where you remember your dreams ---For me.. the first is best explained by the writings of Donald DeGracia. Try this: http://www.med.wayne.edu/degracialab/metaphysics/do_obe.pdf. Steve LaBerge and Robert Bruce are in line with the usual suspects. In brief, the best time to do this is when the mind/body is rested AND the dreamstate is still accessible. This is most easily done by: a) Go to bed early when you don't have to do anything the next day. b) set the clock or get up about 2 hours before you would normally have your full dose of sleep. c) get up quickly and go to the bathroom or whatever and go back to bed without fully shaking off the sleepiness. d) go back to bed. Many people find it helpful to prop themselves up slightly while laying flat on the back. This helps to maintain alertness without excessive arousal of the discursive mental activity. e) breathe evenly if it helps you relax and watch the mind/body settle. At some point the dreamstate will begin WHILE YOU ARE WATCHING - so you will be aware you are not awake. This can be accompanied by the experience of "sleep paralysis" or the the experience of being separated from the body. Whatever happens, don't worry about it - you won't be harmed. What happens to most people is that they have a remarkable experience that results in eventual distraction into the normal dreamstate before waking up normally. ---The second is to develop the habit of taking a "reality check" break at frequent random intervals during the day. You will find at some point that it will leak into your dreamstate and allow you to become self-aware. At this point you can take control for whatever activity you wish to pursue. 3) Dream Yoga - in a strict sense. Many Buddhist practitioners and others view the dreamstate as just another mode of awareness where it is necessary to practice. These people already have a good dedication to formal practice and ideally some accomplishment in the area of *stability* and *clarity*. These folks recognize that the dreamstate is just another realm of illusion and does not lead to liberation or any significant benefit in and of itself. By whatever means, when they find themselves able to take control in the dreamstate they merely plop down and resume their sadhana practice. The difference is that sensory and somatic input to the mind is largely shutdown - so any images come almost 100% from the mind. Of course, it is easier to create vivid visualizations and such, but this is where the basic stability of mind is important. In the same manner as the normal waking meditation practice, clarity arises naturally from a short but significant period of stability. What these practitioners experience is purified perception in the context of their practice as opposed to the personal situational symbolic images. In the old days, I gather lots of practitioners had a little cubby where they were propped up do do their practice. They wouldn't curl up in bed at nights like we normally do. A reference you might try for this "Meditation, Transformation, and Dream Yoga Rin Gyatrul Rinpoche" Dream Yoga and the practice of Natural Light - Namkhai Norbu.  [ send green star]
 
anonymous La L Dream Yoga et.cetera... February 01, 2008 9:00 AM

What do you do in Dream Yoga to help understand the symbolic messages in dreams? Ive tried journals,but Dream Yoga in Dzogchen could be more effective. Will you advise us  or recommend a book about it,or perhaps Sampam could write a bit about it?  [report anonymous abuse]  [ accepted]
 
anonymous  January 30, 2008 5:20 AM

thank you Hell

 [report anonymous abuse]  [ accepted]
 
Losar Coming Up.... January 29, 2008 1:15 PM

It has been busy around by me for awhile.  I hope there are still some around here.

Losar is a traditional time where practitioners take stock and renew their efforts.  A place to start might be developing a good heart. The classical teachings present this as indispensable, referring to it as bodhichitta, sometimes translated as "heart of the enlightened mind".  In The Guide to the Words of My Perfect Teacher pp113, it states

  If the intention is good, the levels and paths are good.
  If the intention is bad, the levels and paths are bad.

The work to develop this is divided into two broad sections, bodhichitta of aspiration and bodhichitta of action. Sapan Rinpoche has earlier pointed out a wonderful resource on this: Compassionate Action - Kyabje Chatral Rinpoche. Psst... >> there is a website that gives more information about Kyabje Chatral Sangye Dorje Rinpoche containing some inspiring goodies:

  • bio
  • Video or Rinpoche ransoming animals from the the fish market in Calcutta.
  • Exerpts from the book - Chapt-II , Chapt-III that give an insight into Rinpoche's character.  Warning: strong stuff for non-vegans.

It all goes to show that there is much work to do. For myself, I have nowhere to start besides where I am now. Many of us are not ready to become overnight vegans. For us, another perhaps equally valid approach is to realize that much of the western lifestyle is based on actions that cause suffering that we never see directly.  There are lots of thoughtful little things we can do that can make a BIG difference!

Like to see some suggestions?  Check these out.

  • Revise your consumption. See this! We can do a lot of good by being less wasteful. 
  • Reduce Electricity waste with energy saving Lightbulbs.  However the things contain Mercury, so be sure to follow safe disposal methods.  Maybe we could start asking large sellers, to help provide disposal opportunities!
  • Give Blood. Step up America - open a Vein!.  We are importing blood from Europe - we can turn it around!  I was not fond of needles and would pass out from bloodsamples, dental work, even the sight of blood..  Then my office mate told be that his sister was dying from leukemia and asked me to come with him to the company blood drive.  I got a little dizzy, but with his help, I didn't pass out.  I now donate platelets or plasma on a monthly basis. A little compassion erased my problem and allows me the great joy of delivering benefit to those in distress.  Maybe it can work for others as well.

That's it for now!
Love to all
hellZen

 [ send green star]
 
dream yoga... September 18, 2007 8:35 AM

Hi all.
Astounded I was, when finding this group on C2. Hello everyone!
Around 10 years ago (maybe a bit more) I found my life being transformed/changed. Syncronicities, revelations, dreams,  energies of love/light (God - Love - Light - Energy - All the same)

Well, I thought. Either I am going totally mad, or the All is conversating with me.

10 years and a lot of both wonderful and hard experiences later, I found myself so much more humble, than I used to be (humility was not a treat of mine). I was changed, to the bottom of my soul. It had become natural to me, to get messages in dreams, meaningful messages sometimes and sometimes messages difficult to interpret (at least to me). I still got messages via syncronicities, also.

Now, I found this technique introduced, a technique used in Dzogchen, which would enable You to go into Your own dreams, still keeping some control of Your being. Using this technique, Dzogchen practitioners were said to able to 'maneuvre' their 'beings', when dreaming.

So I ask; is anyone (all?) in this group familiar with this type of 'dream yoga'?

lol/LaL


 [ send green star]  [ accepted]
 
BLESSINGS TO SANDE AND ALL FROM OZ ... September 13, 2007 9:57 PM

As the WATTLE begin to come out [in Spring?, right?] and Australia breaks into Spring, many blessings to you Sande and all from OZ as you enter the joys of the Spring Season and we here in the Northern Hemisphere move into the next seven joyous weeks of the Fall before the Wintry weather takes hold. This is, overall, my favorite time of year in the Northern Hemisphere. And of course SPRING is always a very refreshing and re-birthing time. Voila!  Kindest regards, Sapan R.

 [ send green star]

 
 September 13, 2007 9:56 PM

Where I live, in Australia, we are just getting out of winter and entering spring. I am looking forward to extending my yoga sessions and performing asanas without wearing a coat, hat and boots, which can be somewhat restrictive. (We chose not to have a heating system) I am also looking forward to taking some longer hikes, along the coast and up the local mountain - relaxing, contemplating, meditating... I have a lot of things going on right now - and will benefit from these time-outs in which to sort things out. I have to work on assisting my sinus problems, finding the right depth I am prepared to take concerning Buddhism, changing my diet, helping my teenage son get his first job, and some major life decisions - such as whether i should return to the UK to care for my aging father or maybe send my son to him, start up a childcare service in addition to my writing career, or/& vacation in USA to meet some of the friends i have not yet met... Spring can help me sort these things thru!  [ send green star]  [ accepted]
 
Anybody talking about anything these days? September 11, 2007 8:33 AM

Hmmmmmmm ... I certainly am enjoying the return of some decent FALL weather, my FAVORITE SEASON, at this time. My MIND is coming back to me, a bit. My SPEECH hasn't changed too much ... of course I may, from time-to-time, talk funny, but I DO NOT STUTTER. My BODY feels a whole bunch better, especially since I got of the Rat Poison (Coumadin, Warfarin) BLOOD THINNERS awhile back, and can wade into K-Vitamins, Ginseng, Ginkgo Biloba 27/7, Licorice, and all sorts of other things again. Had a blood clot discovered behind my right knee, in early September a year ago, down in Taos at the Neem Karoli Baba Ashram Annual Retreat, and ... it is so great ... I will be going down there again this year with my friend, the incredible Mountain Yogi, Swami Paramananda Saraswatti. Be FOREWARNED ... one of the reasons that I got the blood clot is that I have had the habit (now assuaged) of sitting at the computer for long, long hours [like a 20-hour Transcontinental Air Flight!) and not getting any real exercise. Do not do that ... exercise with considerable aplomb, when you are computing for long streaches or anything else like that! AMEN =sapan=  [ send green star]
 
ONGOING GROUP TALKING STICK August 16, 2007 7:17 PM

Hmmm ... I just realized that this group could use a good ONGOING GROUP TALKING STICK, for our time-to-time edification and squalor. Please weigh in about whatever you want to, whenever your way (and "weigh") is open. It is blue-pinned in the discussion list because there is not room at the TOP! [WHICH SEE, for your Buddha Nature's sake!] May all beings be happy and free from suffering!!! Kindest regards and WELCOME ...

 [ send green star]

 
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