Lived Experience Forum

[lostit]

"During the Age of Strife [our present era], it seems as though people are seldom amiable; rather, they are always trying to outdo one another. This fundamental competitiveness has given rise to the name Age of Strife. But this is exactly the reason that Vajrayana is so applicable to the present era. The stronger and more forceful the disturbing emotions are, the greater the potential for recognizing our original wakefulness...It is a fact that at the very moment we are caught up in thought forms or in the surging waves of an emotion, of anger for instance, it is much easier to recognise the naked state of awareness. This of course is not the case when one has trained in a very tranquil, placid state of meditation where there are no thoughts and negative emotions. Then, due to what is called the "soft pleasure," it is actually much more difficult to recognize the true state of nondual mind...Conversely, experiencing great despair, great fear, and intense worry can be a much stronger support for practice." Tulku Urgyen

[MoonGal]

HI @lostit this is an interesting quotation. Do you practice meditation?

I try to be mindful when I can, but siting practice (or even laying down) practice is all wrong for me, I go into a trance so easily and get lost in this cavernous mind of mine. So I try to just capture moments of being present ,now, now, now. and observe the thoughts but  let them float on by. I tend to not be able to do this when I am in melancholia or hypo-mania though, so I have small windows of opportunity to practice, but the more I do the better I am. Do you find meditation helpful? What kind do you practice?

I do agree that our social systems and particulalry the internet seems rife with strife. News is a huge impactor of my mental health too. I wrote about Paris (and the month long melancholia, I came up and out of just last week) here

Glad to see you here on the forums, hope you find people and content that resonate with you.

[lostit]

Thanks @MoonGal. I'm not even sure I'm supposed to share that with you. But it's a beautiful meditation with a female buddha. They told me not to let anyone else see it so...But it's been a few days now. Used to do it 4 times a day. Don't know why I'm not doing it, it's the only time I'm any good to myself 

[MoonGal]

Morning, @lostit - discretionary disclosure is healthy. So I don't care that you shared that passage here. I am glad you did. Community is sharing, and teachers who say 'do not tell anyone' may be practicing a form of control.  I found it interesting, and I like to see what others are doing to calm the mind and come to grips with life. It is helpful too to relate how something helps in a general way, and what we do with it ourselves, which generally is probably a good idea if sharing quotes or passages though (or in the context of an overall discussion) - otherwise it might be seen as proselytising.

I have been pointed a couple of times by moderators to the community guidelines after posting where I have been outside of the 'rules' - they are here and always good to know.