Guided Nondual Meditation by Michael Taft
Meditation
Now we’ll be sitting actually, actually nonetheless for an hour. I shall be transferring to typically have a drink as a result of I’ve to speak, however aside from that I’ll attempt to be as nonetheless as attainable. So ensure that if attainable, your hips are sort of rolled simply ever so barely ahead. We normally do this by having our hip joints simply above our knee joints just a little bit, in order that our pelvis rotates ahead only a tiny bit. It will get that good curve in your decrease again and that’ll simply make your backbone simply raise upward. The very, very tip high of your head the topmost high level ought to really feel prefer it’s simply being virtually like pulled upward with an invisible thread to the ceiling.
And you may transfer round just a bit bit together with your backbone however you’ll discover there’s simply this one good spot the place the completely least quantity of effort is required to maintain the again upright. In actual fact, it virtually simply feels prefer it’s floating upright and appears like all of you have got your chin tucked which is sweet. We don’t wish to get right into a state of affairs the place our chin’s declaring like that and even too tucked. Just a bit bit in order that it retains that backbone feeling good. After which your palms both like this or like this or this. All good.
Now as standard I’d such as you to only examine in with your self. How’s it going or as I say, what’s it wish to be me proper now? The ideas, the feelings, your common, simply how’s your physique really feel? How’s your life going? Simply the entire thing. Simply check-in. Take the temperature or the climate report. But it surely’s essential that as you do that that it doesn’t matter what the climate is, it’s good. Okay, even for those who’re upset and in a bunch of ache and all that for now, for the meditation, that’s simply the best way it’s and that’s good. Okay so we’re not judging our state, we’re simply checking in with how we’re doing. So let’s simply do this for some time. How is it going? What’s it wish to be you proper now?
Good, and subsequent I’d such as you to only tune into a way of spaciousness, a way of openness, a way of ease. And from that house of open ease, simply start to note the rising and falling breath. So we’re not specializing in it, we’re not narrowing consideration. Consideration may be very broad, it’s huge and open, however into that consciousness, we’re noticing that the sense of the breath seems rising after which seems falling with none effort. We don’t must deal with it, we’re simply conscious of it.
We’re being completely nonetheless. And simply discover how consciousness is already conscious. We don’t must do something to make ourselves conscious. We’re not flipping on some particular consciousness button, we’re not additional efforting or if we’re, it’s not serving to. That doesn’t do something. Consciousness is already there. It’s already there. And into that consciousness, we’re noticing that the sense of the breath rising and falling is simply occurring. So let’s do this collectively now for a short while.
Very gently, simply staying with the breath. Once more, not focusing laborious, not making an attempt too laborious, simply very gently noticing the physique sensations of respiratory seem in consciousness and staying with that. Primarily merely resting as spacious consciousness, already present straightforward open free consciousness.
Now I would like you to just be sure you’re conscious of each second of that breath. Once more, not specializing in it laborious, however merely conscious of it all through its whole cycle. Discover the arising of the in-breath and the motion of the in-breath, after which the top of the in-breath. After which typically there’s a pause there. After which discover the start of the out-breath and during every second of the out-breath, after which the top of the out-breath. After which usually, there’s a pause there as nicely. So despite the fact that we’re not narrowly specializing in it, we’re simply conscious of each second of it with out lacking even a millisecond.
Good. Now usually in right here, we do varied sorts of visualizations. Normally, I go away it just a little open. You may get sort of inventive with your personal course of, however tonight we’re going to do a really particular visualization of the bodhisattva named Avalokiteshvara, the bodhisattva of compassion. Avalokitesvara has a thousand arms and every of those arms is symbolic of reaching out to assist relieve the struggling of some beings. So the bodhisattva has metaphorically infinite arms performing infinite acts of compassion for infinite beings. And the mantra of this bodhisattva is the very well-known mantra om mani padme hum.
So I would like you to image the bodhisattva of compassion Avalokiteshvara. Image a meditating buddha-like determine, however with a thousand arms in a circle round them, in a position to take infinite motion on behalf of all beings. And if you wish to you may even silently, in your thoughts recite the mantra om mani padme hum if that appeals to you. Both manner, I would like you to see the eyes of Avalokiteshvara opening. Together with the third eye opening and gazing into your being. And because the eyes of Avalokiteshvara open and gaze into you, you are feeling that profound sense of each knowledge, the knowledge of vacancy, the knowledge of readability, and naturally additionally the great coronary heart of kindness, of caring, of pleasure and compassion.
What’s compassion? Compassion is that feeling that you simply truly care and wish to do one thing to assist. It’s motivational. It’s not merely a sense. It’s a lot deeper than that. Typically we combine it up with empathy. It’s totally different than empathy. Empathy means you’re having the identical feeling because the individual you’re desirous about. Compassion is about wanting to assist. Caring deeply and wanting to assist. So really feel that great sense of being thought to be a being who issues. Feeling liked, feeling cared for, feeling kindness, feeling pleasure, feeling actually met in all of your sorrows and all of your difficulties by this loving radiant bodhisattva. And truly, see a beam of pure compassion coming from the center of Avalokiteshvara into your coronary heart and really feel it filling up your being. And I’ll simply recite the mantra right here just a little bit. You’ll be able to simply do it silently if you want, only a few instances.
om mani padme hum
om mani padme hum
om mani padme hum
om mani padme hum
om mani padme hum
om mani padme hum
om mani padme hum
Persevering with to really feel that radiant compassion flowing into your being. Filling your being. Loving and therapeutic your being.
Good. Now inhaling, take the picture of Avalokiteshvara into your coronary heart. Breathe Avalokiteshvara immediately into your personal coronary heart the place the picture plugs in and begins to radiate powerfully from your personal coronary heart. In order that the power and knowledge and compassion of Avalokiteshvara, which interprets because the one who hears the cries of the world, begins beaming out out of your being.
I would like you to image this power radiating out. And I would like you to very clearly image it serving to everybody it touches, bringing kindness, bringing gentleness, bringing caring, bringing pleasure, therapeutic, love, connection to each being it touches. See and really feel that very clearly. See the happiness, the love, the enjoyment on the faces of all of the beings it touches, or if it’s non-human beings see their tails wagging or them leaping round or no matter they do once they really feel pleasure and love and being cared for and peace. Actually really feel that power radiating out powerfully, powerfully in all instructions, and see it clearly affecting all beings. Producing countless pleasure, countless compassion, countless kindness, and caring. There isn’t a restrict. It simply retains pouring by means of.
Remaining completely nonetheless.
Good, now we’re going to flip it round and as a substitute of bringing pleasure and kindness and caring and compassion, I would like you to soak up all of the sufferings into ourselves. We’re taking in all of the ache, all of the sorrow, all of the struggling of each being within the universe. And we’re feeling it. Each overwhelmed and abused little one, each mistreated animal. All of the struggling of all of the beings in all places, not simply on earth, however in all places. Convey it into your self. Take it on in order that they don’t must really feel it. We take their ache, we take their struggling into ourselves and really feel it deeply.
Seeing it as empty, seeing it as handleable due to our huge spacious consciousness. There’s greater than sufficient room to take it on with out it changing into an issue. However neither will we attempt to keep away from it, we totally really feel it. Let it break your coronary heart. Let it break your coronary heart huge open. If it’s not breaking your coronary heart, think about just a little extra clearly what’s actually happening on the market.
With every in-breath we soak up increasingly more and extra of the sorrows of the world. Burns it away, burns it away with no the rest, burns it away with no ashes. We really feel it deeply. Don’t maintain again, let your self actually really feel it. The love and knowledge of Avalokiteshvara in our personal coronary heart burning all of it away.
Good. Now let’s swap again. We’ve taken in all of the ache, taken in all of the struggling. Now having burned that every one away solely with none the rest however knowledge, mild, the compassion, the compassionate heat of Avalokiteshvara beams out with pleasure and kindness and caring bringing reduction to the sorrow. Bringing kindness, the kindest most useful contact, heat, caring, compassion to all beings in all places.
Everybody’s scared and unhappy and trapped and alone and with none assist feels instantly this contact of kindness, this ray of heat and caring. The caring that comes from a very damaged open coronary heart that feels so deeply. Radiating out in all instructions. Actually really feel it, pleasure kindness, caring, knowledge, compassion, love.
Good, now enable the picture of Avalokiteshvara within the coronary heart to only dissolve into house. Let all ideas dissolve into house. Let all sense of the physique dissolve into house. Let emotion dissolve into house. Let all conceptual fabrication dissolve into house and easily relaxation within the open consciousness of the good perfection.
Free from all doing. Free from all distraction. Free from all ideas. Merely resting as the attention that’s at all times current. It’s at all times there. There’s nothing to do besides enable consciousness to be itself.
In case you discover your self getting caught up in thought, simply let go and fall again into open consciousness. In case you get caught up in thought, once more, simply loosen up once more. Let it go. Drop again into easy consciousness, spacious open consciousness.
Even when the thoughts kickstarts into thought a thousand instances, simply let return into open house a thousand and one.
Letting go of all sense of doing. Letting go of any want to vary something. Letting go of any arising thought simply permitting it to turn into house. Not hanging on to it. So we come again to our personal huge, spacious consciousness which is already current, which is primordially current. It’s at all times been there. Simply come again to that and relaxation. Unsleeping, crisp, clear, unfabricated, completely pristine, open, full, awake.
Good. Now once more, enable inside this huge spacious consciousness, the imaginative and prescient of the bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara to come up with thousand arms of compassionate helpfulness and as soon as once more radiate out this love and pleasure and kindness and caring in all instructions. And really feel it for your self too. You’re a being too. Don’t skimp, don’t go away your self out. Avalokiteshvara has knowledge and kindness for all. Pleasure and kindness and love and caring filling you up and radiating out in all instructions, touching the center of all beings in all places.
Om mani padme hum. Om mani padme hum. Om mani padme hum.
Good. Let’s finish the meditation there. Be happy to maneuver and stretch. Be happy to maintain feeling the compassionate coronary heart of bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara for so long as you need. That’s at all times obtainable.
Dharma Discuss, Q&A
In different languages, Avalokiteshvara is also called Guanyin or Kannon, the Bodhisattva of Compassion, Chenrezig.
I speak so much about vacancy, we discover the vacancy of issues. We discover an enormous house, any specific look, any spontaneous look of something tends to or can have a tendency to only dissolve into house, or be seen as house. And that is–this understanding of vacancy and the power to actually discover it–is the knowledge element of your personal already present bodhisattva nature.
All of us have a bodhisattva nature that’s already there. It’s already full. It’s already totally awake in its personal proper. And its knowledge element is that it sees the vacancy of all issues. That doesn’t imply they’re not there. That doesn’t imply they’re nothing. It signifies that they haven’t any inherent nature of their look within the fullest sense of that time period, however they don’t have a floor. And in order that’s the knowledge a part of our knowledge nature. That’s our deepest knowledge, this understanding of vacancy.
However what’s humorous is individuals are likely to lean into simply that, like that’s it and there will be this sense that consciousness itself, huge spacious consciousness, this clear consciousness is someway sort of impartial or form of sterile or form of chilly. Or once we say it’s empty, that may really feel prefer it’s sort of vacuous in form of an uncaring manner. And that it has some sort of supreme neutrality to it. However that’s not the case. Bodhichitta, the woke up thoughts of your already present buddha nature, has that knowledge element of vacancy, but it surely additionally has the compassion element which is simply as deep and simply as necessary. It’s completely not impartial. It’s completely variety and completely caring and heat. Now that doesn’t imply it at all times appears like overwhelming gushy–it may be, you realize, sturdy or weak or have totally different flavors, however it’s primarily caring. It’s primarily variety and heat and the 2 issues come collectively. They go collectively. You’ll be able to’t have one with out the opposite.
So for instance, as a result of vacancy reveals us the nonduality of self and different, there’s no actual boundary between self and different. That’s the knowledge of vacancy displaying the nonduality of this obvious boundary as a result of that boundary is empty, everybody else is us and we’re them. And in order that makes that speedy kindness, that speedy caring, and speedy compassion completely pure. It’s not one thing we’ve to generate, it’s simply immediately there.
And in the identical manner the compassion because it arises once you actually see the struggling of others and it breaks your coronary heart open. That damaged coronary heart will present you the vacancy, will present you the nondual nature of every part. The truth that there’s no actual boundary and that any sense of a boundary is a sort of a short lived and contingent fiction that we’re utilizing to only transfer by means of the world extra simply. However that shattered open coronary heart of whole compassion will simply reveal the vacancy of that instantly. And the form of speedy and intimate and direct caring for others is the moment end result.
That doesn’t must make us silly. There’s such a factor as fool compassion, proper, the place I suppose within the west we’d name it one thing like enabling the place somebody is killing themselves with whiskey and so they simply wish to drink. Your compassion doesn’t trigger you to present them one other bottle of whiskey to alleviate their want for extra. That’s fool compassion, that’s not serving to anyone. We’d name that enabling so we are able to nonetheless be smart. It’s not someway essential to virtually injure ourselves or others to attempt to assist. That’s virtually an oxymoron. So there’s nonetheless a knowledge element in there.
There’s additionally the thought of fierce compassion that may be extra just like the anti-enabling. Like with a view to assist somebody you might need to have a stern speak with them or an intervention or one thing. Typically the kindest factor you are able to do is be very sharp
so it doesn’t at all times seem like, you realize, “it’s good to be good” it may well have some extra nuance than that, much more nuance than that. And in the identical manner, vacancy is nuanced. It’s not merely that issues aren’t there or one thing. All the things dissolves into house and that’s the top of the story as a result of it’s not the top of the story. All the things that seems is itself radiant, awake house.
Even conceptual fabrication, the alternative of vacancy is empty and is simply radiant awake house. It may appear to be once we’re letting go of thought or letting thought dissolve again into awakeness, that we’re someway in opposition to thought or anti-thought, which we’re not as a result of once more the core of every thought is itself radiant awakeness. It’s, itself, completely enlightened. We simply wish to acknowledge that, quite than solely form of being misplaced within the jumble of thought.
So what we did tonight is form of a sluggish tonglen. Usually for those who do the observe referred to as giving and receiving tonglen you do it on the in-breath and the out-breath every time, however we simply did a extremely sluggish model of it. There’s a very long time of giving compassion to the world and a very long time of taking within the sorrows. So we’d name this observe sluggish tonglen. It simply provides you extra time to sort of get into every a part of it.
However once more, it’s humorous as a result of individuals will are likely to assume {that a} observe like tonglen is someway lower than, you realize, this tremendous intense focus observe or this tremendous sturdy sharp vacancy observe. However that’s completely not the case as a result of once more, bodhicitta has each the knowledge of vacancy and the ability of compassion. And getting that actual sense of compassion going can drop us into awake consciousness simply as powerfully or much more powerfully than some sort of sharp vacancy observe.
And if you wish to examine how your compassion and vacancy are doing simply discover the resistance to taking up the struggling. You actually begin doing that observe if there’s you realize, “oh I wish to cowl it and conceal it, I don’t actually need it to the touch me,” and that sort of factor. There’s your edge. To that extent, we are able to look extra deeply into vacancy. Whereas, when it simply breaks you open and also you don’t maintain again, then we’re beginning to actually really feel the depth of it, the ability of it.
Questions or feedback or stories. Sure, please communicate up.
Questioner 1: Okay, I’ve two questions. I’ll simply do one first. I’m sorry if it’s annoying. I’m simply actually curious what it’s important to say, you mentioned that everybody has a compassionate nature. I’m simply questioning what about individuals who do quite a lot of unhealthy issues, how do we all know in addition they have that?
Michael: How do we all know that unhealthy individuals have a compassionate nature? Even Putin has his youngsters and takes care of them, his personal youngsters. There’s just a little tiny ember seen of that compassionate nature. Folks do get misplaced in delusion, get misplaced of their hatred, their greed, their worry, their disgust, their disappointment. They get misplaced in that, but when we may dig out all that muck, beneath there’s a pure radiant bodhisattva of compassion.
That’s similar to for those who think about this million-year-old diamond statue of a buddha that’s lit up from inside, but it surely’s simply on the backside of a thousand-mile-deep sewer, but it surely’s nonetheless good in there. And if we convey it up and rinse it off, it’s completely untouched. And in order that’s the thought. Each human being is essentially sane, essentially variety, essentially stunning, essentially smart, however that may get actually misplaced and coated up, particularly after a lifetime of simply piling on the delusion.
However at a sure level, you simply begin seeing that about individuals. You see their very own buddha nature even when they don’t see it and that’s the weirdest factor is that typically you may see it and so they don’t. But it surely’s there. And so little by little by means of our personal work, by means of our personal meditation, by means of our personal serving to of others and all that, that helps to disclose that in others. Or helps them to see it about themselves. However it may be humorous once you see it and so they don’t. It may be sort of a humorous second–odd humorous, not ha ha humorous. Does that make sense? Good thanks to your query.
Questioner 2: Do you have got a narrative or an anecdote or a time during which you noticed it and so they didn’t? I feel that may be a extremely fascinating problem to drag that out.
Michael: Yeah, it’s not a really satisfying story, however I bear in mind after I first actually began seeing that clearly, I’d simply speak to somebody’s buddha nature. Like okay, nicely clearly you perceive this, that, and the opposite. And or act as if they have to understand it. And the humorous factor is, and that is an odd solution to speak, however their buddha nature does understand it.
However by means of all of the layers of ignorance, it’s not reaching sort of their regular thoughts and so there was a pal of mine that I labored with, and I’d see this, and he was very depressed. And we have been tremendous good associates and he was fairly depressed and at first, I used to actually speak to his buddha nature and thought that between me and speaking to his buddha nature he may simply sort of see what was happening with him and work it out. So I labored actually actually laborious for years to sort of immediately do this and I lastly obtained it. It took a very long time for me to understand he doesn’t see that a part of himself. That’s why this isn’t working. He doesn’t see it in any respect and if I speak about it he thinks I’m insane. And so I discovered you can’t drive that on someone and you may’t count on them to see that. Not a really satisfying story, however after some time, it turns into the story of every single day.
And that is one other place the place you’ll discover the compassion arising. You’ll be able to see everybody’s buddha nature and so they can’t see it about themselves and it’s very unhappy. And so that you wish to assist. Then again, you may’t drive that serving to on anyone so that you simply silently really feel compassion. That might sound boastful or paternal or one thing, but it surely’s extra like having your coronary heart damaged repeatedly. Does it sound like enjoyable to have your coronary heart damaged repeatedly? Most individuals assume that appears like hell, however bear in mind, the buddha nature is pure compassion and in order your coronary heart is damaged it drops you again into your personal deepest knowledge, your personal most basic okayness. So we don’t resist that damaged coronary heart. We let it break additional and additional as a result of on the very furthest final brokenness, we see its completely pure awakening, pure vibrant, clear wakefulness.
What else? Different questions or feedback? You bought one other query? Certain.
Questioner 1: The opposite query is once you mentioned think about all of the beings being touched by this mild of compassion and feeling pleasure.
Micheal: Sure.
Questioner 1: And on the retreat final weekend you mentioned a more durable model of that which is like think about all of the beings which are struggling and tortured additionally obtain this pleasure. I discovered that extraordinarily laborious, particularly compared to later you mentioned think about all of the struggling, I discovered that half very easy. Simply yeah, there are such a lot of instances and the primary half is admittedly laborious. I think about others really feel the identical.
Michael: Sure, sure elements of it are actually laborious, and after I say actually laborious, I imply heartbreaking. Proper, it’s so unhappy.
Questioner 1: I discovered the unhappy half extra actual however in all places seeing pleasure, even for many who are struggling, I discovered it laborious to think about that.
Michael: Hold making an attempt. It’s not about whether or not you may actually make that occur on the earth. I imply, after all, we attempt to actually make it occur on the earth, but it surely’s not about some logical rational mechanism, it’s about seeing it anyway, imagining it anyway. So it’s heart-based. We’re coming again to our coronary heart, not seeing how we are able to probably make that occur in all instances. In case you’re going there you’re misplaced in ideas. And in order that’s we simply let go of the idea and are available again to that pure want that for those who have been within the room with that individual being tortured you’ll wish to assist them really feel higher. You’d wish to do one thing and also you need them to really feel that and you’ll do something you could possibly. That’s what you’re beaming out to them.
Questioner 1: So is it alright to think about particular issues that I may do after which…
Michael: Completely. Completely.
Questioner 3: Sure, perhaps I observe up on that, once you give these directions which have concerned making contact not directly with all beings, of giving one thing and receiving from all beings, I form of really feel like I can see two methods of approaching this and I’m questioning if one among them is form of..
Michael: Which one makes you are feeling probably the most compassion?
Questioner 3: I really feel like I can begin to get there both manner. I’m undecided. Yeah, I’m undecided I can fairly get I feel I fairly really feel utterly open… Do I begin with a chicken’s eye view, making an attempt to form of take a look at every part without delay after which make that really feel extra concrete or form of visualizing form of faces one after the other beginning…?
Michael: Most individuals discover particular person, beginning particular person is far more highly effective as a result of you may relate. Yeah, that’s normally, you realize, 1,000,000 individuals is a statistic proper, however one individual you may actually relate to. So we wish to preserve it on the relational degree and preserve it in a manner that we truly really feel the compassion arising.
Sure
Questioner 4: I’ve a report. Yeah, thanks a lot
Michael: Thanks.
Two hours in the past I had a extremely traumatic factor and I simply went right into a shock state. And two of my associates right here held a extremely nice house for me. I used to be like just a little little one. I used to be like I’m unhealthy, I’m unhealthy, I’m gonna die, I wish to die. And yeah, I felt such a, like an enormous weight that I needed to only not face it.
Michael: Sure.
Questioner 4: Coming right here I felt like I obtained quite a lot of reduction, significantly with the spaciousness after which the tonglen observe was, wow, that basically broke my coronary heart open, particularly since I used to be feeling my very own struggling after which imagining the struggling of all of those totally different individuals and the way a lot worse they’ve obtained it. I actually felt with struggling every single day and it’s so much simpler for me to have compassion for individuals than to love decide, or to love attempt to survive or no matter it was. Additionally having the center of Guanyin, receiving that first, after which receiving that once more, and being it. I felt prefer it helped convey me out of my collapsed state… into extra of an okay, yeah, compassion I can obtain and provides.
Michael: That’s proper, that’s what that sort of visualization does. It’s a useful resource, proper? We understand we’ve quite a lot of useful resource obtainable. And so, even when we’re, you realize, all crushed from feeling all of the struggling of the world and even simply our personal struggling we faucet into that useful resource, and guess what? It’s proper there. Proper, you think about it and it’ll begin instantly serving to.
Questioner 4: And the fascinating factor about it was that, what began serving to me, was imagining the struggling of all the opposite individuals. That someway took it out of that took me out of my very own spiral.
Michael: That’s proper, that’s proper completely.
Thanks. Good.
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