dharmapunx NYC

As many of us begin our meditation practice and spiritual journeys, we may start out with an agenda of silencing our thoughts, muting all our inner chatter, if only for a little peace and quiet. Naturally, such an attempt fails, as thoughts are an inevitable product of language and communication skills; indeed, they provide us with key tools that insure our survival, both individually and as a species. Without thoughts, our moment by moment experience would be overwhelming, confusing and impossible to learn from or share with others. And so thoughts are a necessary function of the mind, and its not surprising that they continue to jabber away, creating a distracting stream of content during those moments we've set a side for tranquility. This, of course, can lead to periods of frustration and disappointment for the new practitioner. Yet such a reaction is a needless detour on the path, as eliminating thoughts is not only impossible, its far removed from the goal of spiritual en...

The Thought and the Felt There are several levels of awareness from which one can experience life. One level is the domain of conceptual awareness, wherein everything we experience is translated into words and images, which in turn can be stored and used in narrative thought sequences—academically referred to as declarative memory. Words and visuals provide us the ability to represent and store the events of our lives, they are the building blocks of "The Autobiographical Self," the narrative the provides a thematic unity to our experiences. Language additionally allows us to derive meanings from the various ideas we store; its what we rely on for understanding the mysteries of life, from the greatest of tragedies to the most mundane of set backs and successes. As we think conceptually, given the emphasis on visuals and words, we tend to situate a sense of awareness being situated behind the eyes and between the years, as if we exist within our heads, but not our bodie...

The social emphasis upon the unique individual is one of the central developments of, and requirements for, capitalism. It rests upon the idea that each of us has unique skills and vision, that we are free to pursue activities and livelihoods to which we're best suited.* In theory, individuals compete to attain productive roles on an even playing field; our value or role isn't predetermined as it was under feudalism, but derived solely from our individual skills and creativity. All of this mirrors the ideology of "free" market relationships, in which businesses—supposedly—connect independently, and deals are made based on the value and quality of services and goods provided, not arranged by favoritism, bribery, extortion, etc. Of course, the freedom and equality of the individual in this model is, to a great degree, a fiction, as individuals arise in the competitive arena with unequal advantages; some are born into privilege, provided with the means for education ...

I ts interesting that so many people I know are given to regular, if not daily, exercise routines, often putting in a couple of hours at the gym without a blink. If asked why, they invariably mention the numerous benefits of maintaining stre ngth, flexibility and cardio performance for “it's the only body I've got.” Some explain that they love exercise in general, however many do it principally for the long term benefits, understanding the results are worth the time and effort it requires. Yet so many admit they fail to practice meditation on a daily basis, even in the briefest of 5 - 10 minute intervals, explaining that “I have too much going on,” or “I can't sit still.” Some try to claim that their morning coffee and news reading, or their jogging is “meditative,” which would be like claiming “my television watching is how I exercise.” This is hardly a wise choice: increasing evidence via research shows that spending a life without training the mind is as detrimental ...

The voice-over is a familiar technique of delivering information during film, documentaries, marketing videos and commercials; it's the addition of a disembodied voice over the top of the visuals, guiding the audience's understanding or 'reading' of the film. While the actor who speaks isn't visible, the words they say are crucial to our interpretation of the film, etc, for they provide us with a translation of onscreen events that otherwise could have a myriad of possible explanations, much like the headline in a print ad provides the artwork with a message. Without a narrative or voiceover, a series of disjointed filmed events could be an interesting film, but it would be a demanding cinematic experience as well, as the accumulation of inconclusive, often unconnected elements could easily overwhelm the viewer. The voiceover is, of course, modeled on the role our thoughts, or running inner commentary, plays in life. Inner speech provides us with an explanato...

From our earliest relational experiences in life, in bonding encounters with caretakers and family members, continuing via the trials of navigating childhood and young adult institutions, we develop emotional and physical armoring to help us survive the inevitable difficult experiences. Even the most secure of attachment styles between infant and caretaker have disruptive breaks and discontinuities that create anxious emotional reactions before a secure bond is restored. Infancies spent amidst insecure attachments can result in frequent feelings of being imperiled (after all, we are dependent on others to survive until well into our teens, at the very least). By the time we arrive in the challenging dramas of workplaces, social and romantic encounters, we can find ourselves quite defensive, vigilant, armored. The role of armoring is to shield us from re-experiencing some of the woundings that resulted in childhood, via our interactions with stressed or narcissistic caretakers, bu...

"Everyone carries a shadow, and the less it is known consciously, the blacker and denser it is… Beneath the surface we are suffering from a deadly boredom that makes everything seem meaningless and empty… to find renewal means to descend into one's darkness." —quotes from Carl Jung There was a man who was so disturbed by his own shadow that he was determined to lose it for good. So he got up and ran. But his shadow kept up with him, and so he ran faster and faster until the exertion took its toll and he dropped dead. If he had simply stepped into the shade, sat down and stayed still [meditated], his shadow would have vanished.   —Chuang Tzu, The Way  Each individual has a reservoir of behaviors, desires and experiences—the shadow—that are rejected and disavowed during the hunt for acceptance and approval from others, for we humans are essentially pack animals, built to socialize, interact, seek and establish security from each other, just as fish are built to ...

The water of a river moves in a current; there is a constant flow of material; sometimes the tide is high, rough and muddied, filled with debris, leaves, branches, other times it is lower, smooth and clear. So too the stream of content that  moves through the mind; there are times when thoughts litter the mind, other times dark or agitated moods and, naturally, times of clarity and ease. What's of utmost importance is to not damn up the movement, to resist or grab at the material passing through. The mind should be kept spacious, deep and wide if it is to settle again. Permitting the flow of mental events—plans, events, obligations, images, memories, sensations, feelings, external perceptions—is the role of mindfulness, which develops peace and ease. If awareness is allowed to narrow, contracting around and against the stream, the mind will flood, stress, anxiety, fear, expectations will build up and overwhelm us; we won't be able to contain all the demands that life places ...

Establishing Ground Rules for Settling Inner Disputes If a Buddhist community cannot resolve a dispute by establishing consent amongst those who disagree, the community should locate outside help, wherein practitioners from other centers are sought to provide help and resolution. The neutral practitioners should determine how the disagreement arose, by hearing the differing views. Having heard the history of the conflict, the new practitioners will take charge of the matter and reach a decision.               — Buddhist monastic code, chapter 11 In the middle of the nineteenth century, formative soccer games—or what the rest of the world now calls football fixtures—were originally adjudicated by the captains of the two competing teams who, in the spirit of sportsmanship and camaraderie, were assigned the additional task of calmly discussing and settling contested events on the field. Alas, this optimistic arrangement didn’t l...

There are times in life when it becomes difficult to swallow our anger, frustration or disappointment that have resulted from loss and abandonment. Opening to feelings we've attempted to suppress will become necessary, which is by no means easy. Disagreeable feelings are sensed as physical discomfort, along with a secondary layer of obsessive, repetitive memories or fears. The urge will be strong to seek external distractions, such as social networking, shopping, food, tv, etc. Another avoidance tendency is repeating unhealthy experiences or patterns from earlier life  in adult relationships, attempting to "rewrite" the drama: neglected children seek narcissistic or uncaring partners, trying to change the outcome and 'win' the love they didn't receive when it was crucial. Unfortunately, this trap always leads to disappointment: if the replacement does start to provide care or attention, the old disappointment still lingers, and the endeavor will be abandon...

The mind can be radiant, but it is often dim and further darkened by all that it takes in. The commonplace individual isn't aware this is the case, and doesn't evolve the mind.   The mind can be radiant, and it can be liberated from that which makes it dark.  The learned spiritual practitioner is aware of this and evolves the mind. (Pabhassara Sutta : Radiant mind) When a new laptop is brought home from the store and removed from its packaging, the computer will operate using its default, out-of-the-box settings. The system is oriented to implement basic tasks for the garden-variety user. Over time the surrounding digital landscape changes, bringing about new demands, such as new file formats or bug s, and at this junctur e, the machine requires simple updates or patches to continue performing well. Eventually , however, changes to the computing environment are so great that an entire system upgrade will be required to keep the laptop work...