Something I thought might interest some of you guys, and maybe help move us back towards topics of practice and experience. I posted before about Tibetan Buddhist Chod practice in the context of Tibetan Yogi I met, and have been working with it lately to resolve some personal issues.

Buddhism says there is only one absolute mind, but when taken in by the delusion of a separately existing independent self impinged on by external realities (ego) we lose touch with this reality. We routinely conceive of physical external realities as being wholly separate from us - against which we have to fight or compete to get our share of the goodies. e.g. other people, families, companies, countries and so on.

Grasping (to avoid that we fear, and to get  what we want) is the price of believing that this imagined 'self' (the result of what's termed 'ignorance') is separate and can be destroyed. We do this by creating external entities to be desired (gods) or feared. (demons) Gods might include the search for fame, riches, a big house, a trophy wife or whatever. Demons might include illness, poverty, divorce, feared behaviours and so on.

Don't get hung up on the words gods and demons - it's a very different usage to Christianity. Call then heart felt fears and desires or something instead if you prefer.

In the Buddhist way of looking at this these gods and demons are bits of mind we've by our attitude to them given separate existence, or made into entities. These can in fact be self created entities, or much more powerful entities like the traditional Christian devil/independently existing evil created by the combined power of collective mind. ( keeps it simple, and rolls it all into one - but it's fairly clear from this perspective why Buddhism is not keen on the idea of an independently existing devil - it's the best way imaginable to bring that particular reality into existence, especially if we're going to through our fear pour energy into it)

The problem is that these entities (both demons and gods) are (a) a part of ourselves if we are to realise as whole beings and (b) they start to draw energy from us or to cause other problems like dictating behaviours by virtue of their need to be sustained as separate entities.

Chod involves visualising the god or demon (giving it a form in our mind), engaging with it in meditation to ascertain what it's needs really are (usually a second or third level issue - an illness for example may manifest as a result of a need for life energy or in the case of cancers as an attempt by a separated part to survive by growing using this energy), then from a view outside of our body offering it our body and love (traditionally reduced to the form of a nectar that satisfies all needs) which it feeds on. This both satisfies its need, and reunites us with it.

The process is repeated, if necessary over years until the required result is obtained. Multiple topics may be addressed, although insight will sometimes show that they are aspects of the same core issue.

The insight that enabled us to visualise the entity and to ascertain its needs amounts to our using insight meditation (vipassana) to get in contact with deeper aspects of mind so that we realise what the problem is - so that going forward  we can draw on this information to help us deal better with it in future.

An example of  a demon might be a fear of following our heart/intuition, leading to a loss of motivation. Another demon might be the sense of victimhood, caused by a fear that this might happen but fed into becoming a life dominating monster by many years of pouring energy into it. A god might be a deeply felt hang up about needing a beautiful boy/girlfriend causing us to ignore the plainer man/lady who has the potential to make us very happy.

Chod can be done for a third party too once one has some idea of what the issue is (it is commonly done as a means of healing by Tibetan Yogis and Rinpoches) , but requires considerable skill to avoid the risk of taking on other's ills. A prerequisite is some degree of mental stability  - the result of meditation practice. We otherwise won't be able to stay on the subject well enough.

Chod-like practices exist in shamanic traditions all over the world it seems, and may make use of substances rather than meditative skills to help with insight. The traditional Tibetan version of Chod is pretty scarifying involving as it does skull cups, thigh bone trumpets and the like.

It can of course probably be cast in differing philosophical contexts depending on the tradition - it's ultimately about reuniting separated aspects of mind through love, (our society conditions us to fear and fight what are seen as external threats - thus pouring in ever more energy and worsening the separation) and using the wisdom and knowledge that enabled this to avoid the same mistake in future. There's parallels in here too with spiritual healing approached that I've been exposed to. (in respect of my thyroid cancer for example)

There have apparently been some pretty amazing outcomes with cancer and aids according to the lady below.

My experience so far is that it's effective - i can feel definite effects in respect of my own chosen issue. Which has turned out to link with my previous illness and some past life inputs in unexpected ways too.

A good simple source of guidance on Chod is a CD by a Buddhist nun named Tsultrim Allione titled 'Cutting Through Fear' from Sounds True. http://store.soundstrue.com/aw00461d.html

I found this partial clip of an article and sharing about "a smile." 

Love of Self. Without a connection to an unconditional acceptance of the larger Self, which connects us to All That Is, there will be limitations on the interplay between people. You cannot communicate intricacies about something you have contempt for – you can only denigrate it, which is to say offer reasons for not looking at it. With Love of Self, all communication is tinged with it, and the depth of interaction increases exponentially. It is said that Buddha's smile conveyed such detail about the nature of the universe that this was enough for some monks to reach higher understanding.

I think conflict is what suffering is. the other day I was in conflict and I was watching my thoughts feed the conflict. it was like a long train going by  I finally just said to self, what are u doing now? lol. I do this a lot like its normal or something.

while I was reading Blink I just remembered she does some kind of counseling, then I thought amazing all we don't know about each other and still manage to have a conversation

Nice summary, Vajra, You've presented an angle on chod that had never come to my mind before. thanks
- dave

Alysia:

You sure do have a way of making things sound humorous. "A long train going by"   I like your usage of "floaters" on other threads.

LaffingRain wrote on Jan 4^th, 2008 at 1:11pm:

good topic, my motor is humming and the train is gone by at last.

The Chod reminds me of an exercise as explained in Bruce's books where one engages the conflict, by talking to it. another example is engaging dialogue with one's own higher self.
Heres as best I recall, the exercise or a facsimile.
I'll use my runaway train thing.
first make the belief an entity or see the higher self as an entity who answers correctly.
Make yourself the one in charge of things  or better yet, make the higher self be you.
I'll call myself householder higher self or HHS.

HHS: theres a train in my living room making a rukus; hello? Train belief thought form entity what are you doing running thru my peaceful house?

Entity in charge of driving trains using my gasoline we shall call him BS.

BS: I am a fear based locomotive which is attached to a belief system; would u like me to blow my horn?

HHS: not really  but can you answer my questions?

BS: Yes, I am at your service.

HHS: how is it that you say you are serving me?

BS: I provide a ride for you; as well I try to protect you, you yourself placed me in service.

HHS: I know about the ride part, but we never arrive anywhere, like to a conclusion.
but how do you think you are protecting me?

BS: I serve you by allowing you to feel right and in control of your life.

HHS: I truly thank you for serving me and making me feel in control, now I would like to focus on another belief which says I do not need to feel right or control anything, because I am loved just as I am right now and where love is, fear does not have room in the household to be rumbling by.

BS: As you wish, so it is.

the most important part is to accept the entity/belief, not to deny its existence with irritation, so you thank it, because it was only doing its job, what it thought you wanted.
I think Ian mentioned something along this lines with Chod.

Once I remember a spirit message. a good friend was working with me in the astral. I find out later he studied Reiki and he had an intuitive sense what needed to be done in my case, and had prepared me by telling of his guides had asked him to assist me, because my higher self had asked for help to the universe. this asking I had done, for help, it was subconscious. however I grew frightened and in conflict during the night while the healing was coming about. the vibrations were in the first, 2nd, and 3rd chakras mostly, I don't believe they went to the heart or crown. I found out later some others were with him and they were sending love to me as they listened to my singing voice on a tape I had sent him.

It was exhausting me, the love and frightening me so after awhile I asked for it to stop and it did. too much of a good thing! lol.

then after that we continued a bit to email and communicate and I told him what had happened but not how much I was blown away and frightened that I had had to ask for it to stop. I think it was so powerful because there were maybe 6 people sending love.
at any rate, working with this Reiki master, powerful emotions would rise up; I got very angry at him once for some silly reason, and I knew it was my belief system, but it was another one of those runaway trains. I saw a past life images during this time and connected it to my friend, but I'm not really sure if I knew him then.
what my guides message was to alleviate the upheaval, was one of those messages i sometimes get while just waking up. "offer gentle nonresistance" thats all that was given, so when the emotions would come overwhelming me, like fear, I was to let it pass by without  resisting the fear and it would flow on out of me.

they were trying to tell me that resistance caused fear to get bigger.

after this period I listened to my singing voice with my friend's ears. I heard what he heard in other words, I had thought it was not good at all. He had given me an entirely different perspective causing love of myself. he said I was a fast learner, bless his heart.

Blink that joy exercise I really got into a visualization with that. communication with one another thru the eyes is so much quicker. I have many stories about the eyes, but will spare you all for the moment!

love, alysia

Hey thanks Vajra (and all others...)

I'm working on integrating afterLife discoveries(beliefs?) to tibetan buddhism technology
and those ideas sure come in handy