MuMuWu's Practice Journal

'The most dangerous man in the world is the contemplative who is guided by nobody. He trusts his own visions. He obeys the attractions of an interior voice but will not listen to other men. He identifies the will of God with anything that makes him feel, within his own heart, a big, warm, sweet interior glow. The sweeter and the warmer the feeling is the more he is convinced of his own infallibility. And if the sheer force of his own self-confidence communicates itself to other people and gives them the impression that he is really a saint, such a man can wreck a whole city or a religious order or even a nation: and the world is covered with scars that have been left in its flesh by visionaries like these.'
-Thomas Merton
Seeds of Contemplation,
New York, 1949, (p 111-112)

'˜Why is it that one seems to have less PCEs in Virtual Freedom than at the beginning of the discovery journey?"

"During the first year on the path to Actual Freedom I could clearly distinguish when a PCE started and when it ended. It was like a chandelier had been switched on in a very dim room, and suddenly everything was stunningly clear and obvious, the emotional problems from minutes before suddenly disappeared and '“ if I wanted to '“ I could also determine which problem and belief to tackle next.
In Virtual Freedom the situation is a bit different. The size of the '˜grey arrows' diminished and the '˜green arrows' '“ '˜what I am' '“ becomes more and more prevalent and apparent. The days are filled with delight, hardly any emotions interfere with my happiness and life itself becomes more and more obvious, there are neither problems to solve nor insights to achieve. I simply know that every belief is wrong just because it is a belief '“ it is only a question of '˜where' or '˜how' this belief is false. At this stage, the instincts can be clearly seen for what they are '“ chemical surges of the dying entity. When the '˜who I think and feel I am' becomes so weak and transparent, a pure consciousness experience is not as outstanding and not as sought after as in the beginning.
But PCEs are not my main concern now. My main concern is the ending of '˜me'. My main concern is sitting it out and enjoying the final jerks of the dying identity as much as possible, with as little emotional worry or fear as possible. Life is fantastic as it is, I know my direction as clearly as I can see the moon in a cloudless sky. Now there is no question of going off-track, which had been one of my biggest worries, and now there is no question about the inevitability of success. All the '˜grey arrows' only point in one direction and that is towards the '˜pop'"

- Vineeto
actualfreedom.com.au/actualism/vineeto/l...alan-d.htm#26.9.1999

"Thankfully I'm pursuing a third alternative, which is the total elimination of my '˜self' in total '“ the whole of the amygdala's instinctual programming that gives rise to the animal passions. The startle, quick-scan function of the amygdala still operates as a physical safety function but the chemical surges that give rise to the emotions of fear, anger, nurture and desire have almost ceased to be of influence. I am left with a lot of shifting sensations in the head, neck, heart and belly that tell me something chemically is still happening but these very rarely translate into emotions or reactions."

"I remember in the first few weeks of coming across Actual Freedom and realizing that to become actually free of the Human Condition would not only mean the ending of '˜me' but also it would mean being a traitor to Humanity. To live without malice '“ to have no '˜me' to defend and therefore no need to attack, no need to struggle to survive, achieve, be somebody '“ was to cop-out of the struggle. To live without sorrow '“ to not be sad, to not commiserate with others, to not seek consolation, to not wallow in self-pity or to pity others, to not play the game of '˜Oh what a miserable existence being a human being is' '“ would be to be judged heart-less. And yet, here I am doing it and riding out the chemical surges that warn me '“ don't do this, or else...! The thing that I have discovered is that there is no '˜or else...!' As long as I don't goad a fanatic, and I obey the laws of the land and sensibly avoid trouble, the world as-it-is is an eminently safe place '“ chock full of sensuous pleasure, delight. A life of consummate ease is readily and freely evident when one's fears are seen for what they are."

-Peter
actualfreedom.com.au/actualism/peter/lis...ichard.htm#30.9.1999

RICHARD: Yes, although you may recall, upon reflection, that in a PCE one is the universe enjoying and appreciating itself as '˜the magnificent sense organs' and not '˜through the magnificent sense organs' ... and the difference in perception is startling in its intimacy, to say the least. This direct perception (the senses are the brain on stalks as it were) is known as apperception. I am this body; I am these sense organs: this seeing is me, this hearing is me, this tasting is me, this touching is me, this smelling is me, and this thinking is me. Whereas '˜I', the psychological and/or psychic entity, am inside the body: looking out through '˜my' eyes as if looking out through a window, listening through '˜my' ears as if they were microphones, tasting through '˜my' tongue, touching through '˜my' skin, smelling through '˜my' nose, and thinking through '˜my' brain. Of course '˜I' must feel isolated, alienated, alone and lonely, for '˜I' am cut off from the immediacy of the actual world '“ the world as-it-is '“ and the propinquity of '˜my' fellow human being '“ people as-they-are '“ by '˜my' very presence.

I am this brain being aware of itself '“ consciousness being conscious of being consciousness '“ instead of '˜I' being conscious of '˜me' being consciousness.

actualfreedom.com.au/richard/listafcorre...tafalanb.htm#13Dec99

"My experience is that sufficient time is needed living and experiencing a state of virtual freedom such that the fuses don't blow when the whole '˜signalling' system collapses or atrophies. In practical terms, this is a period of virtually no '˜signalling' from the amygdala and virtually no personal '˜self'-centred thoughts. When one checks out by asking '˜how am I experiencing this moment of being alive?' and there is no '˜signalling', no sadness, no being peeved, no boredom, etc. and no mental worries or anxieties and no desire to go looking for them, then one simply '˜cruises and grooves'. Just a note that I am talking here of the latter stages of the process '“ in the early days one's life is so full of discoveries, investigations and insights into the Human Condition and how one functions that one can barely catch breath with the often tumultuous excitement and pace of events.
This latter period of '˜nothingness' can be daunting at first but gradually an existence devoid of any '˜real' world and '˜spiritual' world meanings and values becomes delightfully delicious and sensually rich, not as a feeling but as a magnificent and overwhelming actuality. This '˜nothingness' can be seen as a milder version of Richard's angst or mental anguish period when all '˜signalling' had ceased."

actualfreedom.com.au/actualism/peter/lis...alan-c.htm#04.1.2000

VINEETO: So whenever fear hits me I '˜hold on to the mast and let the storm pass', not make any decisions because of fear but sit it out. It always passes.

actualfreedom.com.au/actualism/vineeto/l...orr16a.htm#29.1.2000

jaysonbyrne: owen remember kanica samadhi?
jaysonbyrne: well, anyhow, it seems like sensuousness can be approached in a similar way
jaysonbyrne: I found if I got fairly deep into direct mode
jaysonbyrne: by first investigating the feelings and such
jaysonbyrne: if I notice thing visually
jaysonbyrne: especially neat looking things
jaysonbyrne: and just do that over and over
jaysonbyrne: it builds momentum and clarity and inclusiveness

Owen Becker: yep

jaysonbyrne: it really pulls you in
jaysonbyrne: is it the same thing?
jaysonbyrne: kanica samadhi?

Owen Becker: mindfulness rocks

jaysonbyrne: yeah
jaysonbyrne: I think that's the bit I was missing in the last little while

Owen Becker: sensiousness is just an odd word for "right midfulness"

jaysonbyrne: I was much more focused on sussing out being and working with it and investigating
jaysonbyrne: now it seems that right mindfulness has extra power
jaysonbyrne: c'est bon!

jaysonbyrne: Kenneth described it to me before like direct mode = push
jaysonbyrne: seeing like an artist = pull
jaysonbyrne: but the bit about looking around noticing
jaysonbyrne: noticing
jaysonbyrne: noticing was left out
jaysonbyrne: and I was trying to see everything at once
jaysonbyrne: however, doing the noticing thing eventually gets inclusive
jaysonbyrne: as mindfulness builds
jaysonbyrne: lol - my office is amazing right now
jaysonbyrne: acid office

Owen Becker: try this
Owen Becker: you know how in high e your attention is pretty panoramic?
Owen Becker: make it bigger
Owen Becker: much, much bigger

jaysonbyrne: like space
jaysonbyrne: but keep going with it

Owen Becker: keep going
Owen Becker: keep going until you forget about how big it is

jaysonbyrne: yes
jaysonbyrne: this is neat

Owen Becker: bigger
Owen Becker: more expansive

jaysonbyrne: mindfulness of expansiveness
jaysonbyrne: yeah I got to the point where I forgot what I was doing

Owen Becker: so, notice how there are bits that aren't expansive

jaysonbyrne: yes

Owen Becker: selfing?

jaysonbyrne: right
jaysonbyrne: the more I do it, the less of those bits
jaysonbyrne: and the more thinned out I feel
jaysonbyrne: until I hit a point where I wasn't doing anything anymore

Owen Becker: do that with thoughts

jaysonbyrne: the expansion thing?

Owen Becker: notice the thoughts as contraction

jaysonbyrne: yes I can see how to think I need to move down to about the size of my head
Owen Becker: notice how some thoughts have a "charge"
Owen Becker: that makes awareness contract around them

jaysonbyrne: yes - I'll definitley have a look
jaysonbyrne: I'm guessing it gets clearer once you set up the expansiveness
jaysonbyrne: and then watch for contractions

Owen Becker: that contraction is the selfing I think
Owen Becker: notice how desire and aversion cause awareness to contract around one object to the exclusion of others
Owen Becker: if you can do that with thoughts of self, it gets fun

jaysonbyrne: yes - in the end it is probably a fear of becoming to thinned out or dissapearing entirely. It's somewhat unconscious
jaysonbyrne: as I think I want it to happen

Owen Becker: why is it unconscious?

jaysonbyrne: because I assume I want non-existence but when I get nearer to it there is fear
jaysonbyrne: as a matter of fact there is always fear in me
jaysonbyrne: as long as I am here there is fear

Owen Becker: why would you want non existence?

jaysonbyrne: to end the fear

Owen Becker: you are afraid of fear?

jaysonbyrne: I'm not sure - it manifests as a tension I seem absolutely compelled to look at
jaysonbyrne: but I would say fear of fear may be a good way to put it

Owen Becker: are you afraid of your fear of fear?

jaysonbyrne: yes - it is an infinite regress - like two mirrors

Owen Becker: so what's the fear feel like in your body?

jaysonbyrne: it feels like points of tension usually

Owen Becker: what about right now?

jaysonbyrne: yes tension in the body

Owen Becker: can you surrender to that tension?
Owen Becker: sit without doing anything about it, even having a story

jaysonbyrne: yes - however there's a fear that in doing so, I might be missing something

Owen Becker: what does "might be mssing something" feel like in the body?

jaysonbyrne: the same

Owen Becker: so can you surrender to that?

jaysonbyrne: yes

Owen Becker: when you do, is there a problem?

jaysonbyrne: no - as a matter of fact it has taken on a twinge of happiness
jaysonbyrne: and has dissipated substantially

Owen Becker: keep with it

This is an extremely helpful conversation I had yesterday with Owen.

jaysonbyrne: is this correct? something that came to me yesterday
jaysonbyrne: emotional energy = the imaginary version of real physical sensations in the same way that mental images are the imaginary version of real physical sights

Owen Becker: hmm
Owen Becker: I'll answer by asking a question
Owen Becker: what's the difference between the pain and the nerves?

jaysonbyrne: well, I'm seeing that there's a physical sensation which has a tension. The tension can seemingly vanish entirely
jaysonbyrne: when I examine it closely it is ghostly and amorphous
jaysonbyrne: to answer your question
jaysonbyrne: the nerves carry a signal regarding the pain to the brain
jaysonbyrne: and then it is given a tone

Owen Becker: so what's the problem?

jaysonbyrne: no problem

Owen Becker: more fundamental, what's THE problem?
Owen Becker: what's happening that's creating your suffering?

jaysonbyrne: I believe certain sensations are me on some level, they are being invested with an importance they don't require
jaysonbyrne: knowing this, and being mindful, I am beginning to discern that process in action

Owen Becker: what is "importance"?

jaysonbyrne: not sure, I feel compelled to attend to things
jaysonbyrne: it's like holding your breath
jaysonbyrne: eventually I feel "I" need to do something

Owen Becker: what is that need?

jaysonbyrne: it is a belief that the tension is too bad perhaps or dangerous on some level

Owen Becker: fear?

jaysonbyrne: yes, in the end
jaysonbyrne: fear

Owen Becker: you don't want something to happen?

Owen Becker: try thinking about it this way
Owen Becker: this moment is a chance to express the enlightenment that's already there
Owen Becker: before the project started
Owen Becker: you can't wake up if you are already awake

jaysonbyrne: so it's a call off the search sort of thing
jaysonbyrne: somewhat like the move from 3rd to 4th path

Owen Becker: well, I'd say it's chainging the nature of the project. instead of a construction project it's more like performance art

jaysonbyrne: now that's something...

Owen Becker: the question is how you express enlightenment that's already there
Owen Becker: if you are totally expressing awake, you can't suffer

jaysonbyrne: right "Don't Know" just keep moving

Owen Becker: well
Owen Becker: you know what's right in front of you now, right?

jaysonbyrne: yes YES!!! (I had a huge aha moment here - followed by one of the best evenings I've ever had)

Owen Becker: what else is there?

jaysonbyrne: nothing

Owen Becker: can you keep doing that?

jaysonbyrne: yes
jaysonbyrne: I can
jaysonbyrne: lol
jaysonbyrne: actually laughing here

Owen Becker: so if what's in front of you right now is fear and resistance, can you know that?

jaysonbyrne: sure I can

Owen Becker: but know it without adding anything else

jaysonbyrne: this is quite helpful Owen - I'm going to take off now (work ended 12 mins ago). Do you mind if I post to the old practice journal ?

Owen Becker: no problem
Owen Becker: take care man

jaysonbyrne: thanks again - this was very helpful

jaysonbyrne: yeah - there's so many methods and discussions going about that doubt creeps in regarding practice
jaysonbyrne: but I see how this could actually work with the doubt

Owen Becker: are you trying to understand or control?
Owen Becker: or rather
Owen Becker: are you attempting to understand in order to control

jaysonbyrne: I would say in general trying to control
jaysonbyrne: however, often trying to understand

Owen Becker: why are you trying to understand?

jaysonbyrne: because I dislike pain
jaysonbyrne: and I dislike being a jerk

Owen Becker: what if you didn't dislike those things?

jaysonbyrne: well that's something I'd have to check out. I'm not sure how to come to like something
jaysonbyrne: or if it's possible to like pain
jaysonbyrne: but I know it is
jaysonbyrne: S&M and all that

Owen Becker: what if it wasn't pain?
Owen Becker: what if chasing the end of suffering is the suffering?

jaysonbyrne: this is quite possible
jaysonbyrne: probably true
jaysonbyrne: it seems like merely a belief that it is pain
jaysonbyrne: I've been playing with that
jaysonbyrne: pain can very easily change to rapture

Owen Becker: well, do you suffer when you try to stop suffering?

jaysonbyrne: yes
jaysonbyrne: always

Owen Becker: so what's your other option?
jaysonbyrne: to stop suffering is to be intimate with what's happneing

Owen Becker: but if you are trying to be intimate with what's happening to stop your suffering, you are trying not to suffer

jaysonbyrne: hmmm..
jaysonbyrne: this is tricky

jaysonbyrne: oh - by the way - some sort of shift happened yesterday

Owen Becker: yeah?

jaysonbyrne: yeah - it's much easier to be with what's going on and I am acting way more spontaneously and authentically
jaysonbyrne: yesterday was a beautiful day
jaysonbyrne: feels like the mind is far less inclined to turn in on itself

Owen Becker: excellent

jaysonbyrne: yeah - we were getting groceries and something as silly as putting all the items in the cart was this fun and interesting thing. And I was very smoothly putting the items in there and it was like playing with blocks as a little kid or something

Owen Becker: was there any resistance to what was happening?

jaysonbyrne: well, occasionally it would arise - very slightly
jaysonbyrne: then I would just feel it
jaysonbyrne: and get back to what's going on in front of my face
jaysonbyrne: but when it was really going, it felt impossible to go "in"
jaysonbyrne: too much effort required or something

Owen Becker: in?

jaysonbyrne: inner world
jaysonbyrne: like mindspace

Owen Becker: ahh
Owen Becker: ok
Owen Becker: want to try something fun?

jaysonbyrne: yeah

Owen Becker: look around for a minute
Owen Becker: now, do it again but with the assumption that what you are percieving is "in"

jaysonbyrne: it's doing something weird
jaysonbyrne: finding it very hard to use the mind at all now

Owen Becker: where did what was previously "in" go?

jaysonbyrne: lol - I'm not sure
jaysonbyrne: seeing the world as in made it sort of impossible to go to the other in
jaysonbyrne: if that makes sense

Owen Becker: you can't hold both ideas of "in" at the same time?

jaysonbyrne: I don't think I can
jaysonbyrne: let me try
jaysonbyrne: no I can't

Owen Becker: so, what would happen if the idea of the personal "in" went away?

jaysonbyrne: it would cease to exist lol - that's what I was touching yesterday too I think

Owen Becker: so here is something important
Owen Becker: you just noticed "in"
Owen Becker: and you noticed that "in" doesn't have to be personal

jaysonbyrne: the usualy in involves a certain eye focus, some sort of focus on space
jaysonbyrne: etc.

Owen Becker: what is it like _before_ the idea of "in" arises?

jaysonbyrne: I see yes
jaysonbyrne: in is a concept kept alive by belief
jaysonbyrne: there's no division at all

Owen Becker: so do you see how you are built yet?

jaysonbyrne: lol - I think so

Owen Becker: that idea, that there is a personal "in" space

jaysonbyrne: I just keep craving and recreating myself

Owen Becker: that's the wrong view that starts the flow of becoming

jaysonbyrne: yes
jaysonbyrne: a pocket of ignorance
jaysonbyrne: in which I can live

Owen Becker: a loop
Owen Becker: not only live
Owen Becker: but that's where you escape to

jaysonbyrne: I can also see how persistant body sensations have been marked off as self and how affect anchors onto those points

Owen Becker: when you quit trying to escape, the need for that space goes away

jaysonbyrne: yes
jaysonbyrne: it does
jaysonbyrne: when I am really smelling my coffe that space is not there

jaysonbyrne: lol - it's the same thing
jaysonbyrne: no suffering for a moment - check to see if this is real - suffering

Owen Becker: "you" is want to control

jaysonbyrne: yes
jaysonbyrne: like "I better not forget to get a shave in 3 hours"
jaysonbyrne: as if me now is better at remembering

Owen Becker: could it be... clinging?

jaysonbyrne: yes
jaysonbyrne: it is clinging

Owen Becker: that leads to suffering
Owen Becker: if you can see how that works, you stop doing that
Owen Becker: because it simply makes sense

jaysonbyrne: yes it definitley makes sense and is much clearer now

Owen Becker: if you can't see how that works, you keep doing it

jaysonbyrne: it's like balancing on a razors edge

Owen Becker: no ****
Owen Becker: but you learn how to balance eventually
Owen Becker: that's the developmental enlightenment part

jaysonbyrne: I am able to get the bike up straight here now and go a few feet before it topples

Owen Becker: when that becomes the default, it's pretty nice

Owen Becker: ok, what can you be aware of?

jaysonbyrne: my senses

Owen Becker: can you sense a thought?

jaysonbyrne: yeah - I'm including that
jaysonbyrne: in senses

Owen Becker: then find the thought that splits you in two

jaysonbyrne: I still believe in myself

Owen Becker: so you assume a thought is true?
Owen Becker: the thought of "me"

jaysonbyrne: right

Owen Becker: stop that

jaysonbyrne: and the turning in is evidence of that
jaysonbyrne: is it a matter of allowing that to become evident?
jaysonbyrne: that I don't exist?

Owen Becker: selfing is a process
Owen Becker: it hurts
Owen Becker: stop

jaysonbyrne: full stop

Owen Becker: suffering isn't something inherent in the universe, it's something we are doing because we don't see it correctly
Owen Becker: the selfing is the process of suffering
Owen Becker: can you see how to stop it?

jaysonbyrne: to stop it is to simply stop it it seems
jaysonbyrne: this is like quitting smoking!

Owen Becker: which side of your face are you really?

jaysonbyrne: that's having the same odd effect on my mind as the in/out exercise

Owen Becker: when in/out stops, does the suffering?

jaysonbyrne: yes

Owen Becker: so what's that tell you?

jaysonbyrne: it is only when I notice that I am not suffering and check to see if I still am that the suffering again becomes apparent

Owen Becker: so why check?

jaysonbyrne: like "Dr. every time I bend my knee this way it hurts" - "stop bending it like that"

Owen Becker: grin

Owen Becker: and when you don't have a need for that space, you don't have a need for "you"
Owen Becker: that's where the fear comes from

jaysonbyrne: please clarify where it comes from
jaysonbyrne: that I am not needed?

Owen Becker: so if you don't like reality, what do you do?
Owen Becker: (before practice anyway)

jaysonbyrne: you make your own

Owen Becker: own?

jaysonbyrne: yeah you make a reality that is distorted

Owen Becker: who's reality?

jaysonbyrne: well the mind gives things it's own meaning
jaysonbyrne: which is not necessarily true

Owen Becker: try from a different angle, who just made the space into which "you" escaped?

jaysonbyrne: I'm not sure exactly
jaysonbyrne: it seems that they appear at the same time

Owen Becker: what caused it?

jaysonbyrne: oh - probably a belief
jaysonbyrne: like water running into a channel

Owen Becker: what triggered that belief?

jaysonbyrne: cause and effect?
jaysonbyrne: conditioning maybe

Owen Becker: might be good to investigate that
Owen Becker: if there is something "out there" that can create an "in there" where do you draw the line that you call "you"?

jaysonbyrne: I think I get what you are saying
jaysonbyrne: something out there is causing the fear response when it contacts my mind
jaysonbyrne: so it isn't personal really
jaysonbyrne: the environment is doing me just as much as my brain is

I'm basically practicing along the lines of this sutta: www.vipassana.com/canon/majjhima/mn119.php

It's the Mindfulness Immersed in the Body sutta.

I'm seeing some of the effects it mentions for sure. These most specifically

"[1] He conquers displeasure & delight, and displeasure does not conquer him. He remains victorious over any displeasure that has arisen.

"[2] He conquers fear & dread, and fear & dread do not conquer him. He remains victorious over any fear & dread that have arisen.

"[3] He is resistant to cold, heat, hunger, thirst, the touch of gadflies & mosquitoes, wind & sun & creeping things; to abusive, hurtful language; he is the sort that can endure bodily feelings that, when they arise, are painful, sharp, stabbing, fierce, distasteful, disagreeable, deadly.

"[4] He can attain at will, without trouble or difficulty, the four jhanas -- heightened mental states providing a pleasant abiding in the here & now.

""Monks, for one in whom mindfulness immersed in the body is cultivated, developed, pursued, given a means of transport, given a grounding, steadied, consolidated, & well-undertaken, these ten benefits can be expected."

I don't see a difference really between this and what we've been calling grounding. In fact the Buddha says that it gives one a "grounding".

"I don't see a difference really between this and what we've been calling grounding. In fact the Buddha says that it gives one a "grounding"."

Hi Mu,
I really like this. Myself I can see no difference between (focused) mindfulness of the body and grounding the emotions in the body. The first gives the second, and second cant be done by me without the first.

This kinda made my jaw drop:

"a pocket of ignorance
in which I can live"

Wow, good stuff!

Saying, "Good, friend," the bhikkhus delighted and rejoiced in the Venerable Sariputta's words. Then they asked him a further question: "But, friend, might there be another way in which a noble disciple is one of right view... and has arrived at this true Dhamma?" '” "There might be, friends.

"When, friends, a noble disciple understands feeling, the origin of feeling, the cessation of feeling, and the way leading to the cessation of feeling, in that way he is one of right view... and has arrived at this true Dhamma.

"And what is feeling, what is the origin of feeling, what is the cessation of feeling, what is the way leading to the cessation of feeling? There are these six classes of feeling: feeling born of eye-contact, feeling born of ear-contact, feeling born of nose-contact, feeling born of tongue-contact, feeling born of body-contact, feeling born of mind-contact. With the arising of contact there is the arising of feeling. With the cessation of contact there is the cessation of feeling. The way leading to the cessation of feeling is just this Noble Eightfold Path; that is, right view... right concentration.

"When a noble disciple has thus understood feeling, the origin of feeling, the cessation of feeling, and the way leading to the cessation of feeling... he here and now makes an end of suffering. In that way too a noble disciple is one of right view... and has arrived at this true Dhamma."
www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/mn/mn.009.ntbb.html#vedana

"On seeing a form with the eye, he isn't infatuated with pleasing forms, and doesn't get upset over unpleasing forms. He dwells with body-mindfulness established,[11] with unlimited awareness. He discerns, as it has come to be, the awareness-release & discernment-release where those evil, unskillful qualities cease without remainder. Having thus abandoned compliance & opposition, he doesn't relish any feeling he feels '” pleasure, pain, neither-pleasure-nor-pain '” doesn't welcome it, doesn't remain fastened to it. As he doesn't relish that feeling, doesn't welcome it, & doesn't remain fastened to it, delight doesn't arise. From the cessation of his delight comes the cessation of clinging/sustenance. From the cessation of clinging/sustenance comes the cessation of becoming. From the cessation of becoming comes the cessation of birth. From the cessation of birth, then aging-&-death, sorrow, lamentation, pain, distress, & despair all cease. Such is the cessation of this entire mass of stress & suffering. (cont.)

"On hearing a sound with the ear...

"On smelling an aroma with the nose

"On tasting a flavor with the tongue...

"On sensing a tactile sensation with the body...

"On cognizing an idea with the intellect, he isn't infatuated with pleasing ideas, and doesn't get upset over unpleasing ideas. He dwells with body-mindfulness established, with unlimited awareness. He discerns, as it has come to be, the awareness-release & discernment-release where those evil, unskillful qualities cease without remainder. Having thus abandoned compliance & opposition, he doesn't relish any feeling he feels '” pleasure, pain, neither-pleasure-nor-pain '” doesn't welcome it, doesn't remain fastened to it. As he doesn't relish that feeling, doesn't welcome it, & doesn't remain fastened to it, delight doesn't arise. From the cessation of his delight comes the cessation of clinging/sustenance. From the cessation of clinging/sustenance comes the cessation of becoming. From the cessation of becoming comes the cessation of birth. From the cessation of birth, then aging-&-death, sorrow, lamentation, pain, distress, & despair all cease. Such is the cessation of this entire mass of stress & suffering.

www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/mn/mn.038.than.html

Interesting little practice I came up with.

"Place the pointer of attention in the middle of the brain. Leave it there"

I found myself doing a practice this weekend which is oriented around dependent origination and some of the suttas I've been reading lately.

Essentially one starts by paying attention to thoughts ( thehamiltonproject.blogspot.com/2011/10/...pes-of-thoughts.html would be a good way to do this). One then pays attention to the mind-state. I notice that in doing this thought ceases to arise. I eventually shift to feeling the vedana underlying the mindstate. From here I am seeing what feels like a physical tension only and it isn't being read as a mindstate. Next I would focus on the senses and notice the vedana fade and eventually drop off leaving me in PCE territory.

Of course you can just do the last step (pay attention to the senses) but somehow in doing the above exercise, the mind sees how stress arises and the steps involved and it gets convinced to stay with the senses to a greater degree.

Also - This is essentially direct mode (tollbooth - > hand on switch -> seeing as an artist).