Sun
Letters
Chronologically listed for June-July-August, 2003
Subject: Re: Date: Wed,
11 Jun 2003 20:57:05 -0700
Dear R.M.: I'm very happy
to hear from you. I must have written to you from your website, as I can't find
a copy of my original letter. So please excuse any repetitions. I find you
suggested exercises very inspirational, and as I probably mentioned there are
ways they intersect with ones I already practice, plus add important new
insights. The 'breath of fire' of course relates to 'bhastrika,' and I checked
Iyengar's book to discover a variant he suggests, where the nostrils are
slightly pinched shut. I tried this and it works very well because the
abdominal muscles have to work harder (a better 'toning') and also the nostrils
seem to receive more prana energy. The second exercise, jalandhara and mulabandha,
also relates to the 'orgasmic reflex' that W. Reich discovered - I'm now going
to order his books, which I have not read in years. I find that uttering
"Ma" with the 'j and m' in a series of exhales duplicates not only
the Reichian reflex but also a reflex I've been working with that is the final
outcome of a prolonged bout of crying by a two-year-old (I'm exploring an early
traumatic episode in my own life when I lost my mother forever at that age). I
see a parallel between moving into higher and higher states of awakening and a
series of regressions back thu childhood, infancy, the embryo, zygote to the
moment of conception. This may all be just metaphor, but I have found it
useful. Also, I must confess, I have recently, after a 22-year entheogen and 'herb'
fast, discovered the goddess La Pastora in Salvia Divinorum. The four or five
times I've encountered her in the past months have been extremely grace-
filled. She totally dissolved me for a few moments of total freedom once, and
then -- well, it's truly indescribable. One foot in the yogas and one in the
Archaic Revival culture I think is the balance point I can work with. Again,
many many thanks, Ramon (Ray) Sender http://www.raysender.com R. M. wrote:
---------------------------------------------------------------------
My Dear Friend and fellow
Traveler,
Thank you for the info and your
insights.
In regards to your recent adventures I
can only say that I have traveled many paths, and I have confirmed at least to
my own satisfaction the truth of an ancient Taoist saying:
"The path from which you can fall -
Is Not The Way."
RM
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Ramon (Ray) Sender wrote:
Yes, that is truth. But I
would only comment that sometimes we can accept the Grace of a temporary
dissolving into THAT while still conscious in order to bring a roadmap back
with us. La Pastora seems to allow that.
Below this note I attach
a rough beginning to a new essay. I would be very grateful for any thoughts you
might have regarding this 'plateau' effect that is so predominant in the human
species.
By the way, many many
thanks for the "eee-vam" mantram. It has been proving very helpful. I
identify it, for my own use, with the name of the primordial feminine
'Eve/Eva,' which also equates harmoniously with La Pastora, the shepherdess
(who is also a garden goddess). It has helped me sort out six levels of the
mulabandha contraction.
Sincerely -- and thank
you for the Taoist quote. I'm a great admirer of the Taoist teachings.
Ramon (Ray) Sender
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
The Problem of The
Eudaemony Plateau Effect (first draft of the opening argument)
’ÄúHow much bliss can you tolerate?’Äù A
young girl always asked this question to newcomers at the commune where I lived
in the mid-sixites. Although at first glance this may seem unanswerable, the
fact is that it uncovers an interesting fact. I think most of us have grown
accustomed to remaining satisfied with some or other level of eudaemony --
well-being -- and when we hit that level, we tend either to fall asleep or
’Äòdrift.’Äô Drifting I would describe as turning to a task or a distraction of
some sort -- switching on the TV or going to the fridge. We reach a plateau of
good feeling that we unconsciously identify as all there is to feel -- a ’Äòglass
ceiling’Äô to potential fulfillment (Of course individual bliss toleration levels
differ.). The most extreme example is when we go to sleep at night. We lie in
bed and wait to 'become sleepy.' What does this phrase actually mean? For me, I
feel a warmth begin in the 'hara' region just below the navel, and this warmth
is very comforting and blissful, so much so that I 'snuggle' up to it as if I
was a bear cub next to big Mama Bear, and lose consciousness. I have reached my
eudaemony tolerance level as a conscious being, and fall asleep. The same can
occur in meditative states, and various paths have evolved various techniques
for keeping the meditator awake, from the Zen master's crack across your
shoulders to the Tibetan technique of tying a strand of your hair to the branch
of a tree above your head -- or some adequate substitute. Recently I've been
trying a different approach, and that it is to duplicate the sounds of deep
sleep while still awake and see if I can 'trick' the body into a sleep state
while remaining conscious.
---------------------------
R.M. wrote:
My Dear Friend,
The Taoist saying I
quoted is like a precursor to the Zen koan. One needs to spend sometime with it
- before it cracks open.
I liked your
essay.However, it is my experience that once one enters The River- The current
then carries you along. RM
Date: Thu, 19 Jun 2003
23:23:33
(sent to three Buddhist
scholars, who did not reply)
I have been for some time
trying to find someone knowledgeable who could answer several questions that I
have regarding the depiction of the Buddha. I notice that quite a few books on
the iconography are listed on the webiste, but other than finding an excellent
library, I thought perhaps you might be in touch with someone who might be able
to answer the following:
One: what are the
significance of the three wrinkles in the Buddha's neck?
Two: sometimes a
pearl-like drop is displayed on the center edge of the Buddha's upper eyelid.
What does this mean?
Three: Occasionally, the
Buddha's mouth seems to be 'pursed' in a manner that makes me wonder if perhaps
he is performing some variant of the Kechari Mudra, where the tongue is
reversed backwards in the mouth.
Four: On one recent
Akshobhya Buddha thangka I have seen reproduced, it seems as if his tongue is
slightly protruding (see attached) which brings to mind the quote from Hermann
Hesse's 'Siddartha':
"Siddartha sat absorbed, his eyes
staring as if directed at a distant goal, the tip of his tongue showing a
little between his teeth."
Sorry to intrude! But
thank you in advance if you can point me to some answers!
Sincerely,
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Fri, 20 Jun 2003
00:44:40 -0700 To: J.H.
Hi, J! Just some recent
stuff that I've been thinking about and doing... Hope all goes well at your end
of the continent. I hear summer has not yet arrived -- how strange!
We went tonight to City Lights to hear
Diana di Prima read, and the crush was so intense that I went downstairs to
browse the books, and found a great book of Tibetan thangkas
"Buddha: Radiant Awakening" (edited by Jackie Menzie and pub'd by
ArtAsia New South Wales. It included one of the Akshobhya Buddha with his
tongue tip protruding between his lips. I'm really stoked, because that's my
original fun meditation exercise upon awakening in the AM! I attach a close-up
of the face, and then a one with redrawn lip lines. Reminds me of that quote in
Hesse's "Siddartha" that I added to my Poohbear essay:
"Siddartha sat absorbed, his eyes
staring as if directed at a distant goal, the tip of his tongue showing a
little between his teeth."
I also attach a diag