Prajna Paramita Heart Sutra

[LightAngels]

A good way to learn the teachings is to learn the life of Buddha ,as he said'' The ones who sees me ,sees the teaching ,and the one who sees the teaching ,sees me''.

Eyes ,ears ,tongue ,nose ,skin ,all the senses burn with desire. The Buddhist struggle to throw off this burning world ,this is the only desire that has to remain in our heart.

I am personally experiencing the ''fevers'' of desire every day. Buddhism had a huge impact on my life in the last five years. What I have learned is that is not enough to learn theory .You have to be able to practice it. It is a way of life.

Personally I face a great difficulty in practicing it in my every day life .I have never been physically to Tibet ,but I heard they use the traditional drawings of the wheel of life to teach people from all levels of education the teachings. Mentally, I am probably experiencing at least one ''poison'' every day ,sometimes I even experience the all three ,which , I find useful to mention ,are Ignorance ,Attachment and Aversion.

I can't say for sure that I am a perfect practitioner of the teachings in my every day life .I can't say I live a perfectly Buddhist life. What do you think? Is it possible to live such a life whilst in the middle of a chaotic society? For example ,in the capital of a rather developed country? Had Buddha not have to leave into wilderness in order to attain the supreme enlightenment ? Had he not have to abandon everything ,leave everything behind ,before he started living for truth?

I find that learning about Buddhism and practicing it as a way of life can be very different. I find this a lovely forum .I think the fact that we are all humans ,and we go through the same struggles ,more or less ,can strengthen the bonds between one another. Have you ever got the feeling that you want to just get away from it all and live into wilderness too? To fall asleep with the only roof above your head being the great universe?

Another failed day ,failed to control the poisons of the mind .Ever felt that you are on the right path and yet you have to find your way through the very confusing maze?

Has anyone ever had a strong powerful experience with a mantra such as the one above? Have you ever tried to listen to it so much that it becomes your second nature? Ever felt that ,through listening such mantra ,you truthfully experience the teachings? That although you cannot understand the language ,the essence still penetrates your heart?

I find this forum very interesting already and feel as if I have found like-minded people with similar interests as me. I felt a weird person for a long time ,because the outside world is so...worldly..to put it like this.People don't have time for you anymore ,yet they waste a lot of their time . I like the idea of a place where people can connect through out the world ,and what connects them are the very things that make their lives worth living! Out of love for Buddhism and all that is ultimately good I hope to attract friends and perhaps provoke great discussions .

[jonesboy]

Hi LightAngels and welcome.

Do you meditate? Maybe focus on the breath?

If you do meditate do you notice how you focus, get lost in thoughts, notice you are lost and then return back to the breath.

Maybe at first you are lost more than focused on the breath. Over time though silence starts to take hold and one can get to a point where as soon as they close their eyes they are in strong silence.

Life is just like that. You are trying to apply your practices, you get caught up, go back to applying your practice again. Over and over again.

Real change isn't quick, but if you stick with it, it is like trying to move a big rock. Sometimes just getting it to move is the hardest part and then once it starts...

Mantras are very powerful, listening is good, doing them yourself is even better. Mantras are a means of clearing obstructions, of focusing the mind.

Very cool and nice to meet you :)

[LightAngels]

Hi Jonesboy and thank you!

I live very close to a great river and I feel very lucky because whenever I go there I can relax .You could say it's in the heart of nature. I usually go there for jogging but sometimes I go quite near the shore and as I sit in a somewhat relaxing position ,I feel the need to close my eyes and just relax.

I found meditation to be quite difficult ,but I feel like I have neglected it.I think my problem is that I wanted results to show right away, while as you said ,it takes time.

I have always felt connected to nature. Those times I tried meditating ,if I had to choose one word, was wonderful. I would sit near the rocks and I try to move my attention from thoughts to sounds. I'd try for example to concentrate on the waves.It would relax my mind

This is one method I've found relaxing while meditating ,focusing on sounds of nature. Another series of experiences I've had I like to call visual bliss.I would take at least 5 minutes a day, go outside my balcony and focus my eyes on the linden tree I have in front of my place. So I close my eyes,and again ,from all the labyrinthine thoughts ,I focus on the sounds of wind ( In the first case ,the waves hit the rocks at the shore ,in this one , the leaves are being touched by the wind and I focus on hearing it all - the connection and relationship of one element of nature to another) .
I usually get lost in the sounds for a couple of minutes ,after which I open my eyes to the surprise that colors are somehow changed from their apparent color to a strange light blueish color. I would use the word fluorescent to express the looks ,but very pleasant to the eyes. In those moments I very much feel in the here and now.


I appreciate you took the time to write .It feels great to share these experiences to like-minded people. Have you ever been through experiences similar to mine , regarding meditating? I can't say my ''practices'' would give me some sort of continuously extending wisdom ,but it just relaxes my mind.

Nice to meet you too !

[sky]

Originally Posted by LightAngels

A good way to learn the teachings is to learn the life of Buddha ,as he said'' The ones who sees me ,sees the teaching ,and the one who sees the teaching ,sees me''.

Eyes ,ears ,tongue ,nose ,skin ,all the senses burn with desire. The Buddhist struggle to throw off this burning world ,this is the only desire that has to remain in our heart.

I am personally experiencing the ''fevers'' of desire every day. Buddhism had a huge impact on my life in the last five years. What I have learned is that is not enough to learn theory .You have to be able to practice it. It is a way of life.

Personally I face a great difficulty in practicing it in my every day life .I have never been physically to Tibet ,but I heard they use the traditional drawings of the wheel of life to teach people from all levels of education the teachings. Mentally, I am probably experiencing at least one ''poison'' every day ,sometimes I even experience the all three ,which , I find useful to mention ,are Ignorance ,Attachment and Aversion.

I can't say for sure that I am a perfect practitioner of the teachings in my every day life .I can't say I live a perfectly Buddhist life. What do you think? Is it possible to live such a life whilst in the middle of a chaotic society? For example ,in the capital of a rather developed country? Had Buddha not have to leave into wilderness in order to attain the supreme enlightenment ? Had he not have to abandon everything ,leave everything behind ,before he started living for truth?

I find that learning about Buddhism and practicing it as a way of life can be very different. I find this a lovely forum .I think the fact that we are all humans ,and we go through the same struggles ,more or less ,can strengthen the bonds between one another. Have you ever got the feeling that you want to just get away from it all and live into wilderness too? To fall asleep with the only roof above your head being the great universe?

Another failed day ,failed to control the poisons of the mind .Ever felt that you are on the right path and yet you have to find your way through the very confusing maze?

Has anyone ever had a strong powerful experience with a mantra such as the one above? Have you ever tried to listen to it so much that it becomes your second nature? Ever felt that ,through listening such mantra ,you truthfully experience the teachings? That although you cannot understand the language ,the essence still penetrates your heart?

I find this forum very interesting already and feel as if I have found like-minded people with similar interests as me. I felt a weird person for a long time ,because the outside world is so...worldly..to put it like this.People don't have time for you anymore ,yet they waste a lot of their time . I like the idea of a place where people can connect through out the world ,and what connects them are the very things that make their lives worth living! Out of love for Buddhism and all that is ultimately good I hope to attract friends and perhaps provoke great discussions .

' Another failed day ,failed to control the poisons of the mind '


Failure is what we're all running from, we're always running toward success with failure at our back, lots to learn from our mistakes

[Samana]

Regarding the Heart Sutra, I highly recommend reading "Essence of the Heart Sutra - The Dalai Lama's Heart of Wisdom Teachings" - translated and edited by Geshe Thubten Jinpa.



_/|\_


.

[jonesboy]

Originally Posted by LightAngels

Hi Jonesboy and thank you!

I live very close to a great river and I feel very lucky because whenever I go there I can relax .You could say it's in the heart of nature. I usually go there for jogging but sometimes I go quite near the shore and as I sit in a somewhat relaxing position ,I feel the need to close my eyes and just relax.

I found meditation to be quite difficult ,but I feel like I have neglected it.I think my problem is that I wanted results to show right away, while as you said ,it takes time.

I have always felt connected to nature. Those times I tried meditating ,if I had to choose one word, was wonderful. I would sit near the rocks and I try to move my attention from thoughts to sounds. I'd try for example to concentrate on the waves.It would relax my mind

This is one method I've found relaxing while meditating ,focusing on sounds of nature. Another series of experiences I've had I like to call visual bliss.I would take at least 5 minutes a day, go outside my balcony and focus my eyes on the linden tree I have in front of my place. So I close my eyes,and again ,from all the labyrinthine thoughts ,I focus on the sounds of wind ( In the first case ,the waves hit the rocks at the shore ,in this one , the leaves are being touched by the wind and I focus on hearing it all - the connection and relationship of one element of nature to another) .
I usually get lost in the sounds for a couple of minutes ,after which I open my eyes to the surprise that colors are somehow changed from their apparent color to a strange light blueish color. I would use the word fluorescent to express the looks ,but very pleasant to the eyes. In those moments I very much feel in the here and now.


I appreciate you took the time to write .It feels great to share these experiences to like-minded people. Have you ever been through experiences similar to mine , regarding meditating? I can't say my ''practices'' would give me some sort of continuously extending wisdom ,but it just relaxes my mind.

Nice to meet you too !

Beautiful experiences for sure.

If you don't mind me saying, I think you are trying very difficult means of meditation. More the focus that you are using is helping you stay present. Which is a very good thing :)

Have you noticed that different areas/locations may have a stronger effect on you? Much like you being the mantra, feeling the energy of it?

[sky]

Originally Posted by Samana

Regarding the Heart Sutra, I highly recommend reading "Essence of the Heart Sutra - The Dalai Lama's Heart of Wisdom Teachings" - translated and edited by Geshe Thubten Jinpa.



_/|\_


.

Thanks .......

[LightAngels]

Originally Posted by jonesboy

Beautiful experiences for sure.

If you don't mind me saying, I think you are trying very difficult means of meditation. More the focus that you are using is helping you stay present. Which is a very good thing :)

Have you noticed that different areas/locations may have a stronger effect on you? Much like you being the mantra, feeling the energy of it?

Of course ,I had felt some differences. I believe that that area close to the river is filled with very positive energies .

To comment on what I said, I think one of the things you begin with in Buddhism is detachment from the world ,at least once a day. By that I mean go back to our roots ,to nature. Modern times made it so that it's actually a challenge now days to find a quiet place in nature.

How to detach it's a hard question. I think first you have to see through the smoke of illusion .Nothing is what it seems. What we see at first as pleasure can very well turn into it's opposite later on,which is suffering..
As you walk the road towards Truth you start to find it all less and less interesting,the mundane things. Then you start paying more attention to how people feel,rather than how you feel. Detachment can be thought as sacrificing the world and all it's illusory pleasures ,and once we learn how important is sacrifice,we learn to sacrifice ourselves for others. Not in a silly irrational way ,but in a healthy way that somehow is decided by someone or something else.

We don't have much control of the outside world, so all we can do is gain control of the inside world, which is ourselves.

[LightAngels]

Originally Posted by Samana

Regarding the Heart Sutra, I highly recommend reading "Essence of the Heart Sutra - The Dalai Lama's Heart of Wisdom Teachings" - translated and edited by Geshe Thubten Jinpa.



_/|\_


.

How kind of you! Thank you for sharing that!

Dalai Lama is one of my favorite .His words are so simple and yet so strong.

[LightAngels]

Originally Posted by sky123

' Another failed day ,failed to control the poisons of the mind '


Failure is what we're all running from, we're always running toward success with failure at our back, lots to learn from our mistakes

Perhaps we should start running towards failure then! Maybe success will get all curious and follow!

I think failure will always be there .I think we just have to learn to accept it .Perhaps the lesson we have to learn from failure is that we are all humans and so we make mistakes.

Let's not forget that even the Buddha was a human being.