Vulcan Vectors

Vulcan Vectors


There are those among us
Who argue logically while
Suppressing strong feelings.

Yet our choices in wording
Reflect underlying emotions;
Biases and prejudices seep out ...

Spilling between coded lines.
And everyone except the speaker
Catches on to that dishonest drift.

A speech is much more than the mere sum
Of its constituent clauses. True though
They may sound when professing one's point.

Anyone who takes all that's said at face value
Clearly lacks analytical skills and faculties
For critical thinking (what's unsaid matters too).

These are some reasons why Kolinahr makes sense;
Being rather similar to terrestrial Buddhist meditation —
Mindfulness is the key to temper one's temperament.

Otherwise the logical Vulcan mindset breaks down
Degenerating into "Romulan Ruling Passion".
The results of each approach are predictable:

Indulging in notions of an ego-driven honor system
Often leads to conflict with competing egoists
And cyclical violence has a tendency to set in.

Whereas logicians learn to adopt
Even measures of empathy
Vis-a-vis "Mind-Melds"!

Image: Evil Spock reads Bones McCoy's mind in the classic Star Trek episode 'Mirror Mirror'.

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The Heart Sutra (Special Edition w/ Podcast)

The Heart Sutra

When Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva was practicing 
the profound Prajna Paramita,
he investigated and perceived the five Skandhas (heaps)
and saw that they were all non-existent,
thus securing his deliverance from all suffering and difficulty:

"Shariputra, form does not differ from emptiness;
emptiness does not differ from form.
Form itself is emptiness; emptiness itself is form.
So too are feeling, cognition, mental function
and consciousness in relation to emptiness.

Shariputra, all dharmas are
empty of characteristics.
They are not created, not annihilated,
not impure, not pure,
and they neither increase nor decrease.

Therefore, in emptiness there is no form,
feeling, cognition, mental function, or consciousness;
no eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body and mind;
no sights, sounds, smells, taste, touch, and ideas;
no field of the eyes, up to and including
no field of mind-consciousness,
and no ignorance or ending of ignorance,
up to and including no old age and death,
or ending of old age and death.

There are no Four Noble Truths, no wisdom and no gain.
Because nothing is gained, the Bodhisattva,
through reliance on Prajna Paramita,
has no hindrances in his heart.
Because there is no hindrance, he is not afraid,
is free from contrary and delusive ideas
and attains the Final Nirvana.

All Buddhas of the past, present and future
attain enlightenment through reliance on Prajna Paramita.
Therefore, know that Prajna Paramita
is a great spiritual mantra,
a great bright mantra, a supreme mantra,
an unequalled mantra!

It can remove all suffering; it is genuine and not false.
That is why the mantra of Prajna Paramita was first spoken."

Recite it thus:

GATE GATE PARAGATE PARASAMGATE — BODHI SVAHA!

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Echoes of Echoes (by Guest Writer Michael Napiorkowski)

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Editor's Note: This is a prosaic response to Echoes of Emptiness.

Michael Napiorkowski practices Nichiren Buddhism and writes about it here: http://ichinensanzen.ca/

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Echoes of Echoes

Form is Emptiness and Emptiness is Form can also be expressed within the framework of Cause and Effect; Cause IS Effect and Effect IS Cause. 

  

This is one of the profound expressions of the Lotus Sutra: the simultaneity of cause and effect or the co-arising, interdependent relationship of all phenomena being both cause and effect simultaneously in an ever present "now." 

This is equally expressed through the symbolism of the lotus flower blooming and producing its seeds at the same time (which is rare). 

The incredible part of this teaching is that although everything is an expression of "effect," concurrently everything is an initiation of "cause." This is what breaks the determinism trap by showing us that our lax and lazy concept of time as inert billiard balls bouncing off one another is not completely correct. Reality is far more complex than that. There's nothing that's isolated or complete in and of itself. 

Ideas of nouns, objects or things (completed effects) only exist within language. In reality these are simply concrete concepts for a transitory, provisional existence. All reality would be better described as a verb or even more correctly as Emptiness.

Hence the importance of Meditation...

Our tendency is to limit ourselves based on that incorrect understanding of nouns or of our own self-identity as an objective Being. If we approach our lives like this then we end up trapped within the cyclical manifestation of inner tendencies and outward actions (Karma). 

Meditation allows us to break our attachment to thoughts of a limited self-identity and conclusive opinions of reality as a collection of parts (nouns), and to see instead that everything is an ineffable process (verb) known as "now." 

Rigid identity is just an illusion that we trap ourselves in. By not identifying conclusively with nouns, we break the cycle of Samsara and see clearly that our actions within the world are defining characteristics of how we experience our actual "self". 

We're actually composed by those relationships we temporarily have with everything and everyone else, and vice versa. As such, all can be better understood as the open space between events or processes of interconnectedness. 

If we free ourselves from self-imposed tendencies then our actions will be naturally liberated, and in that sense our "identity" shall follow suit. 

Śūnyatā is thus the great non-identity to identify with - Svaha!

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The Buddha's Four Noble Truths Explained

The Buddha's Four Noble Truths Explained

~ I: Dukkha (Cyclical Suffering) ~

It's self-evident fact for any astute observer that our world is pervaded by suffering. Lasting joy is elusive and most people are caught within vicious cycles of their own creation (via volition; the true meaning of Karma).

~ II: Sumudaya (Suffering's Source) ~

Individuals are each responsible for their own personal battles. This is because desire (in one form or another) lies at the root of all dissatisfaction. Furthermore, the wants of any one individual are often at odds with the needs of many others.

~ III: Nirodha (Suffering's Cessation) ~

It's possible for suffering to cease at both the personal and communal level, although only if its base causes are redressed.

~ IV: Magga (The Path) ~

There's a sure and steady path that leads away from Samsara and toward Nirvana. Said path consists primarily of meditation, which doesn't mean focusing on any particular object, but passive observation of the full body-mind spectrum (including all its contents and any ongoing interactions). As the Buddha himself put it: "Meditate diligently and practice mindfulness to attain thine own salvation!"

 

Image: Cosmic Buddha courtesy of ~lokispace

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Anatomy of Suchness (The Three Buddha Bodies)

Anatomy of Suchness

- i -

Without exception all dhammas arise, abide and are extinguished upon the Svabhavikakaya's reflective surface: tripartite mirror of pluralistic omniscience.

- I -

Truth Body:

Immutable template and causal plane. Bedazzling Dharma-Kaya, mother of myriad appearances. Formless emptiness animating multifarious forms.

- II -

Bliss Body:

Luminous sphere of unimpeded potentials. Irradiant Sambogha-Kaya, overflowing with symbols. Host to ideals, archetypes and imaginary planes.

- III -

Emanation Body:

Visceral matter and coarse thought combined. Sensorial Nirmana-Kaya, a cage for the blind; though it is viewed as a blessing by the Buddhas of all three times.

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Pot-Bellied Buddhas (Mythic May Vol. 5)

Pot-Bellied Buddhas

Buddhism remains relatively new in North America and Europe.

It's also been largely misunderstood and misrepresented by the mainstream media.

For one thing, people have come to confuse Budai with the Buddha.

What's the difference you ask? Well, Budai was a fat Chinese monk whom we're told used to travel the countryside carrying a sack full of sustenance (similar to Santa Claus).

In other words, he wasn't the same as Siddhartha Gautama, the historical Buddha from ancient India.

The causes of this commonplace misconception aren't complicated:

As Christ is an honorary title meaning "Anointed One", so does Buddha mean, "Awakened One". 

Said title has been given to many monks after the original Shakyamuni.

Some believe Budai (Hotei in Japanese) was an incarnation of future Buddha Maitreya. However, that's beside the point, since Siddhartha Gautama preceded him nonetheless.

Therefore, people who rub Budai's belly for good luck are merely indulging in an ignorant superstition that has at best, only a tenuous semantic connection to its source!

 

Images (from top to bottom-right):  Laughing Budai Maitreya — circa 10th Century CE, Gandharan Buddha — circa 1st Century CE & Emaciated Buddha (Sikri Stupa) — circa 1st Century BCE.

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Further Reading: Past Issues of Mythic May

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Echoes of Emptiness

Echoes of Emptiness

"Form is no other than Emptiness and Emptiness is none other than Form." ~ Heart Sutra

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People like to spout the above quote without having the slightest inkling about Madhyamika Buddhism.

Emptiness is the highest truth in Madhyamika (middle-way) Buddhism but it doesn't mean nothingness as nihilists might think; its meaning connotes Interdependence.

Emptiness / Interdependence has various definitions. Basically, nothing can be said to arise alone or exist solely from its own side. As for eternal essences? None can be observed anywhere, at any time!

An instance of Emptiness: sight does not occur without something to see, just as the existence of perceivable objects is affirmed only when they are seen.  Neither comes first since they arise mutually.

Madhyamika points to a conciliatory middle-path between opposite extremes that are normally thought of as mutually exclusive.  Polarized thinking is dualistic and hence probably mistaken.

Many Buddhists consider a proper understanding of Sunyata (Void / Emptiness) to be the highest realization attainable, equivalent to enlightenment itself.

Emptiness is known as Mayavadi (Voidist) philosophy by various Hindu schools of thought that reject it as Atheism. Their adherents require a personal deity to latch onto and often cannot intuit the merits of Sunyata.

This is partly due to a purely intellectual understanding of the concept, which is hardly enough.  Without regular meditative practice, Sunyata cannot actually be experienced and so fails as mere theory.

Contrary to common belief, Buddhist Sutras on Emptiness do not assert that the universe is an illusion.  That is another type of dualism reconciled by the doctrine of Two Truths.

These Two Truths are flip-sides of a coin.  On the one hand, material manifestation is regarded as 'provisional' or constantly shifting.  However, this does not imply that physical laws have no actual bearing.

On the other hand, Ultimate Reality is transcendental to the first, yet includes and encompasses it.  Form is Emptiness and Emptiness is Form, remember?  Neither is more important nor real.

Indeed as Arya Nagarjuna noted: "There is not the slightest difference between Samsara and Nirvana."  Why? Because cyclic existence and Emptiness ARE each other!

Those who think that the universe is an illusion are in the same boat as those that view God as being outside of creation and not within it.

It's not our universe that is illusory but the scummy perceptive lenses that we view it through. Even though it fluctuates, physical reality is quite sacred in character.

No doubt perception molds reality to a great extent but the fundamental matter / energy thereby molded is itself real or better said: Ethereal.

From holy visions to hallowed sounds — running the gamut from psyche to senses — these are all echoes resounding in Emptiness!

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Doctrine of Anatta (No-Self)

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Author's Note: For an encyclopedic explanation of "Anatman", refer to: Britannica   

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Doctrine of Anatta (No-Self)

- I -

What is the Self?
Where is the Self to be found?
Who is that Self we seek?
Is it dry (this Self)?

Never. Always. It is and yet isn't.
Clever. Foolish. Absolute but relative.
Simultaneous with thought, though not present even once. 

As elusive to one's mind as evasive to our senses.
Dare not pretend to know anything concrete about it.
Don't stand upon authority; assume no final stance.

Dive back into Atlantis. Sink down beneath thy Self...

Flex effort, effort, effort
Lather ~ rinse ~ wash off those stains!
Yes only effort, threefold effort
Can really clean off what remains.

- II -

Hey now, who's that?
Living, going, gone!
Playing hide and go seek
Can't quite put a finger on —

Who's escaping past perception?
Who's perceiving an escape?
Never the same twice for anyone to call it constant.
Dead or dying, Being reborn

During every moment (Bardo gaps).
Hollow and impermanent; still we try to hold on tight.
Hands of haze sweeping the tides 

Unable to clutch a single drop.

So just flow dear Comatose
Like, with, and as the ocean.
Quit pretending at forevers
Void all ego, then just ≈ flow ≈

Image: Bond of Union by M.C. Escher

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Qualified Non-Dualism

Qualified Non-Dualism

Everything comes together  
Folding back in on itself
When objective observance collapses then
Subjective lucidity dawns in the dreamer's sky
Bathing sense faculties with absolute clarity
 
The edges of perception are defined by limited awareness
But now basic consciousness reasserts its boundlessness
Attention engulfs whole body-mind spectrum
Stretching out among forms from amorphous fullness
As ardor burns brightly in ascending and descending evolutionary currents

Breath ignites blood to animate pneuma 
Poised at that perfect equilibrium
Where all waves weave cognitive patterns
While an integral system properly interprets
Glimmering movements through either implicit or explicit orders of Being

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Bodhisattva Curse

Author's Note: Some hard-liners may take this Anti-Poem's message / title a little too seriously, but it's rather tongue-in-cheek, since Bodhisattvas are higher beings who give everyone else inexhaustible compassion and are therefore incapable of pronouncing such curses. However, true Tantrikas can balance on either edge of truth's sword.

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Bodhisattva Curse

Itinerant little automatons,
rolled fresh off an assembly line
with a billion more behind:

You will wander all six Bardos until this universe collapses
and be amongst the last sentients to cross the ocean of conditioned existence
unto supreme Parinirvana.

Dream lives of untold shame and sorrow
Final memory at birth, first one following tomorrow...

• Déjà vu
• Eternal Recurrence
• False Awakenings
• Moebius
• Ouroboros
• Tabula Rasa

Death and Rebirth everlasting.

Reverberate toward Stillness — or you simply won't stand a chance!

Image: Yamantaka Yidam (signifying the victory of wisdom over death, evil and suffering).

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The Dharma Heruka

The Dharma Heruka

According to Buddha-Dharma there are six realms of incarnation within Dukkha-Samsara:

1. Naraka-Gati: Infernal suffering ad infinitum.
2. Preta-Gati: Eternal famine of the hungry ghosts.
3. Tiryagyoni-Gati: Animalistic existence; both domestic and wild.
4. Manusya-Gati: Human condition; Nirvana nearby yet elusive.
5. Ashura-Gati: Jealous demigods locked in perpetual combat.
6. Deva-Gati: Heavenly beings lost within blissful self-absorption.

Ideally, Humans should be able to break this whole vicious cycle of reincarnation. But since these realms are literal as well as allegorical, it would appear that our world borrows most heavily from Ashura-Gati (although all six realms are definitely found here on Earth).

In Tibetan Buddhism the Tantric Guru Padmasambhava is reputed to have pacified many such demons and enlisted their aid as fearsome defenders of the Dharma.

Consequently, current circumstances call for a rare breed of spiritual warriors whom can transcend the Devas themselves while lifting humanity upon their selfless shoulders.

Seek ye out and meditate on The Dharma Heruka...

Image:  Samvara Yidam

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The Great Matter

The Great Matter

When the one who wrote this is gone, shall our species have gotten much further along?

We are each a brief candle, which no recounting can rekindle.

Within austere walls of Zendo (meditation halls), one question above all:

What means the Great Matter of life and death for those caught in the middle?

Who has ears for the Bards of yesteryear other than those Poets now here?

Why such aversion to departure when presence itself can be torture?

Where does a soul dream if its body leaves behind mundane stream?

Will we receive otherworldly consolation or face eternal damnation?

Were scriptures reliable then perhaps planning would be viable.

Without that however, each of us takes a lonesome dive into forever . . .

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Midnight Kensho & Makyo TV (Mythic May Vol. 2)

Kensho: A Zen term indicating insight into the nature of one's own being———sometimes contrasted with permanent absorption into Satori (enlightenment).

Makyo: Hallucinations that arise naturally during the course of meditative practice.

Mudra: Ritual hand-gestures employed in Buddhist Tantra and Yoga. They also relate directly to dancing.

Madya: Ceremonial intoxicants such as Bhang (cannabis) or Soma wine consumed as adjuncts to Tantric practice.

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Midnight Kensho & Makyo TV

Some Mudra  to go with your Madya?

From here we bend past dead ends———

The Sphinx hast run out of riddles

Whilst we follow hollow trends

Sublunar prophets of carnal salvation

May this mammal surpass Mythos

A reptilian agenda is fulfilled when

An Ouroboros stretches throughout our Nous.

Seek thee out that Tithy Tove

Misspelled by Jabberwocky rules.

Iconic Cheshire grin bespoke:

Trust tricksters, not wry fools!

There is no subtle substitute

For physical movement at present

So tune into inaudible music

And flip on your light fluorescent

The dead of night comes to enliven

A lurid lapse amid introspection

As patterns dissolve blissfully

Alike silver screen projection

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Afterthought: A Sigil is syllogistic on purpose in pretension; prying third-eye open via syllabic implication...

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