Guest guest Posted November 22, 1999 Report Share Posted November 22, 1999 from the web site Tibetan Buddhism: What is the experience of emptiness like? At the beginning level of physical body and mind, emptiness means that one does not identify with any experience whatsoever. Any sight, sound, or other sense is recognized and honored for what it is, but it is not clung to. Similarly, all thoughts and feelings are also taken in this way--as being real and valuable, but not as being in one's possession so that one does not cling to the experience of them. It is as if all experiences, whether external (in the world "out there") or internal (inner thoughts, hopes, feelings, and desires), are viewed as clouds passing by. The reality is the sky which the clouds float by in. And if the sky is noticed, it too is taken as just another cloud wafting by. The result of this amazing relation to one's experience is an enormous sense of relief, peace, and clarity. At first it seems that one will die if one doesn't cling to experience, but after awhile it becomes apparent that one continues to live on anyway. We are more than just the experiences that we engage in. The same process applies at progressively more subtle levels of experience. The contents of experience become more and more amazing and wonderful (to our normal way of thinking) but the most skillful way of relating to them still remains the practice of mindfulness (emptiness meditation). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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