"Heaven, Hell and the Middle Way": New BG interview w' Kenneth
15 years 8 months ago #58938
by Mark_VanWhy
Replied by Mark_VanWhy on topic RE: "Heaven, Hell and the Middle Way": New BG interview w' Kenneth
Another great interview JG and KF. There should be some good discussion arising from that "This is Freedom | Numinous Nonsense" comment me thinks. 
15 years 8 months ago #58942
by awouldbehipster
Replied by awouldbehipster on topic RE: "Heaven, Hell and the Middle Way": New BG interview w' Kenneth
"Thanks for the kind words guys. I'm afraid I'm pretty ignorant about this stuff, so thanks for putting up with my simplistic questions.
Yeah, Vince's essay is great! I just read it.
It's funny--I'm way into First Gear right now, having started out as what Adyashanti calls a "non-dual fundamentalist" (I repeated "the observer is the observed, the thinker is the thought" like some kind of mantra for a number of years) and so I keep steering Kenneth into the noting territory. This is what I'm interested in these days: "pressure, warmth, coolness, unpleasant, tingling," etc. I'm all about Burma, Mahasi Sayadaw, etc.
Vince, on the other hand, began practice with the Theravada and now seems to be moving more and more toward a balanced approach that honors Third Gear.
Guys, please don't let me go to the opposite extreme and become a hardcore, conservative Burmese Theravadin! LOL! "
First of all, your questions were perfect. They are just the kind of questions that people really need answered.
Second, I can't tell you how often my practice preference vacillates between 1st, 2nd, and 3rd gear. It's all about whatever method is appropriate at the moment. It's easy to make the mistake of singling one of the methods out as THE method, but it just isn't so. So keep doing what works for you. You'll find that there are times when the other methods might be more appropriate.
It's all about the Three Speeds, man
~Jackson
Yeah, Vince's essay is great! I just read it.
It's funny--I'm way into First Gear right now, having started out as what Adyashanti calls a "non-dual fundamentalist" (I repeated "the observer is the observed, the thinker is the thought" like some kind of mantra for a number of years) and so I keep steering Kenneth into the noting territory. This is what I'm interested in these days: "pressure, warmth, coolness, unpleasant, tingling," etc. I'm all about Burma, Mahasi Sayadaw, etc.
Vince, on the other hand, began practice with the Theravada and now seems to be moving more and more toward a balanced approach that honors Third Gear.
Guys, please don't let me go to the opposite extreme and become a hardcore, conservative Burmese Theravadin! LOL! "
First of all, your questions were perfect. They are just the kind of questions that people really need answered.
Second, I can't tell you how often my practice preference vacillates between 1st, 2nd, and 3rd gear. It's all about whatever method is appropriate at the moment. It's easy to make the mistake of singling one of the methods out as THE method, but it just isn't so. So keep doing what works for you. You'll find that there are times when the other methods might be more appropriate.
It's all about the Three Speeds, man
~Jackson
15 years 8 months ago #58944
by NikolaiStephenHalay
Replied by NikolaiStephenHalay on topic RE: "Heaven, Hell and the Middle Way": New BG interview w' Kenneth
"First of all, your questions were perfect. They are just the kind of questions that people really need answered.
Second, I can't tell you how often my practice preference vacillates between 1st, 2nd, and 3rd gear. It's all about whatever method is appropriate at the moment. It's easy to make the mistake of singling one of the methods out as THE method, but it just isn't so. So keep doing what works for you. You'll find that there are times when the other methods might be more appropriate.
It's all about the Three Speeds, man
~Jackson"
So true!
I really am getting used to downshifting and upshifting. I love having my yogi toolbox at hand. I'll be hooning it along the highway in 2nd gear (3rd gear is still too fast for my car, still waiting for the Witness to hide it's head and let me see past it) and suddenly the dark night kangaroo (I'm an Aussie) will jump out in front of the car and I'll quickly shift down into 1st gear as I swerve and break, swerve and break(noting), then when I get past the wombats, wallabies and the occasional rabbit, I'll shift back up to 2nd gear and see if I can't get up to 3rd.....still trying. Vrrrrrrrooooooooom!
Second, I can't tell you how often my practice preference vacillates between 1st, 2nd, and 3rd gear. It's all about whatever method is appropriate at the moment. It's easy to make the mistake of singling one of the methods out as THE method, but it just isn't so. So keep doing what works for you. You'll find that there are times when the other methods might be more appropriate.
It's all about the Three Speeds, man
~Jackson"
So true!
I really am getting used to downshifting and upshifting. I love having my yogi toolbox at hand. I'll be hooning it along the highway in 2nd gear (3rd gear is still too fast for my car, still waiting for the Witness to hide it's head and let me see past it) and suddenly the dark night kangaroo (I'm an Aussie) will jump out in front of the car and I'll quickly shift down into 1st gear as I swerve and break, swerve and break(noting), then when I get past the wombats, wallabies and the occasional rabbit, I'll shift back up to 2nd gear and see if I can't get up to 3rd.....still trying. Vrrrrrrrooooooooom!