Our formal sitting practice consists of two basic elements:
- Resting in the spacious awareness of the Void Body
- Recognizing that we have dropped out of this awareness and returning to it
Recognizing that we are lost in the conceptual mind and emotions—and no longer anchored in awareness—is mindfulness. We are no longer present to what is in our immediate sensate experience. Consequently, we are removed from the state of being that is closest to the reality of pure awareness.
The minds of even the most experienced meditators wander. As the great Tibetan Yogi Milarepa exclaimed, “It is impossible to keep our thoughts in a box.” Although thoughts are suspended for various periods of time in samadhi states, and these states serve to burn through obscurations of all kinds, sooner or later thoughts will return. Instead of judging oneself to be a poor meditator for the “sin” of mind wandering, this is an opportunity to work on not chasing thoughts. “Let them come and go without serving them tea,” as one Dzogchen master puts it. In fact, the Dzogchen masters have come up with semdzins, mind stops or holds to help us with mindfulness.
In the classic Dzogchen texts, there are 21 semdzins, but I will discuss only a few that continue to be the most effective for me. These semdzins can be performed in formal meditation and at other times; perhaps the most important aspect of our practice is our ability to change channels in the midst of our busy everyday lives.
First, however, we have to realize that we are lost in thoughts or emotions. I have found that when meditation deepens during sitting practice, it is easier to notice that we are straying from awareness and bring our attention back. Outside formal meditation, it can be more challenging. During the course of his day the contemporary Zen master Ezra Bayda periodically asks himself “What is this?” as a way of gauging his internal weather. This is not usually done in the advanced stages of formal meditation as it tends to perpetuate thinking, but it is useful in the daily struggle for mindfulness. Although it is sometimes important to act on a thought or emotion, Bayda fully understands that passing thoughts are often not facts, simply judgments or reactions to sensory experience—unnecessary and transitory fabrications than can lead to suffering. Mindfulness makes it possible to have veto power over thoughts and emotions, returning to the sensory experience close to pure awareness. Perhaps, this is the only juncture in our lives where we have free will, if we are able to exercise it! We can go from the unconscious suffering of being lost in thoughts to conscious suffering, to the spacious awareness that is beyond suffering.
Here we turn to semdzins for assistance, beginning with the auditory ones. These sounds can be uttered silently but for best results it is necessary to feel the reverberation inside the body. Experiment to find the right one or ones that work best for you.Utter the sound phat explosively. Repeat as necessary. This sound or this sound repeated can erase thoughts. It is the auditory equivalent to the vajra that is wielded by the Wrathful Deities in the Tibetan pantheon. Originally the vajra was the thunderbolt of Indra, the Hindu deity of thunder and lightning, so it carries a powerful charge. Rudi used this sacred object in Tantric rituals to remove blockages in the subtle bodies of his students.
- Vocalize hung during a long slow exhale. The body will vibrate and the heart/mind center of awareness will now be activated along with the heart chakra. The slow exhale will also trigger the parasympathetic nervous system to create a relaxation response.
- Vocalize ha. Repeat 1, 2 or 5 times This sound is associated with laughter of the Heruka or Tibetan Wrathful Deities. Their penetrating laughter may seem malevolent because it is a threat to our egos, but it helps us to wake up from the entrapments of the conceptual mind and emotions.
- Vocalize ah in a long slow exhale. Visualize thoughts dissolving into clear light while being present with this sound.
- A variation of the ah is to visualize a white luminous A at the tip of your nose and then gradually expand the A into space with each exhalation. Withdraw the A to your nose tip with the inhalation. “A” is the symbolic letter of clear light in Tibetan Buddhism and it becomes the reality of clear light as the body relaxes into it.
We have already used the 360-degree panorama of non-focused sight to move into the infinite space of awareness, but it can be accomplished with the other senses as well:
Sound
Listen to sounds in all dimensions and directions. Don’t focus on a single sound or let a sound capture your attention. As Angela Holm has reminded me, the composer Pauline Oliveros was a pioneer of this kind of deep listening. In the words of one of her students, “…it requires the temporary suspension of judgment, and a willingness to receive new information – whether pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral.” Indeed, the raison d’etre of awareness practices is to become more open to the world than before. Now you are tuning into a reality beyond the little self.
Touch
Feel all physical sensations as you gradually move into the Void body, noticing the increasing subtlety of the vibratory frequencies as you approach the Void. Is there an eventual cessation of sensation? If a contraction is experienced in a specific location, dissolve into whole body awareness. This is a very good technique for working with physical pain.
Taste
The overall sensation of taste is the hardest sense to tune into, especially when you are not eating, because only residues of gustatory delectation remain. Yet, as the awareness of awareness in its penultimate state approaches flavorlessness, this can be a very excellent semdzin for practice.
Smell
Here again you don’t want to focus on a specific scent, but on the overall panorama of scents as they slowly come through your nostrils during inhalation and exhalation. This semdzin will also provide a relaxation response from the activation of the parasympathetic nervous ssytem.
Have fun with these semdzins. Perhaps you can create your own semdzin to share on this blog! This is Professor Levy’s homework assignment for the next month. ha ha!