The Five Skandas of Buddhism and Meditative Clarity
In Buddhism, a model for understanding the evolution of the egoic mind’s reactive thinking process is referred to as the five skandhas or “heaps.” They are as follows.
1. Form/Ignorance-Birth of “I”.
Initially, there is open space/open mind. Then a blackout (trance) occurs, a disruption, causing identification to arise, the shock of birth. We wake up perceiving form, not recognizing that we have created it. We ignore our position as creator. “Ignore-ance” is not stupidityit is very intelligent, but reactive. The perceiver wants to possess the space, the openness is now perceived through trance as form, as possessable. Since space is really just space, at the root, this whole endeavor is futile (therefore, suffering is unavoidable). There are three aspects of ignorance, which are simultaneous and inseparable. (1) Separateness/birth;
(2) A sense of always so, the idea that this is the real state of affairs (positive hallucination), therefore the perceiver must maintain it. This brings about the birth of a sense of awkwardness.
(3) Self-observing ignorance. The perceiver sees the self as other, thereby beginning a relationship with an external world.
2. Feeling.
As perceivers we wonder about our relationship to form. Space is not bare space; it is full of color and energy. Since we’re ignoring the openness of space, these qualities are a tremendous threat to our trance. We are trying to fix, to capture the color and energy of space, to make it solid and manageable. Because such fixation is an illusion, there is a great sense of insecurity about the reality of form. Feeling is a very efficient antidote to that insecurity: it feels real, therefore it is. We ignore evidence to the contrary.
3. Perception/Impulse (P/I).
Perception = receiving information. Impulse = responding to information. This is a rudimentary sorting process of perceived forms. After deciding whether an object is positive (+), negative (-), or neutral (0), the perceiver reacts accordingly. There are only three choices: move toward (desire), move away from (threat/hatred), or remain neutral (stupid/dull).
4. Concept.
The perceiver categorizes the objects of perception as positive (+), negative (-), or neutral (0).
Now the perceiver develops names, rules, and evaluation mechanisms (past/present/future). Perception/Impulse is an automatic reaction to intuitive feeling, but it doesn’t defend well enough our ignorance and insecurity. The intellect is needed to do a good job: it provides the ability to name and categorize. Egoic minding now goes beyond mere reaction and becomes more sophisticated; intellectual speculation arises. The intellect creates ‘I’ and ‘I am’ to encompass all the stuff of the first 3 skandas into a solid mass, an apparently solid self. It confirms and interprets the self. It puts the self into logical situations with a natural tendency toward body identification and survival to affirm the perceiver’s existence (i.e., his ignorance).
5. Consciousness.
The intuitive intelligence of the second skandha, the energy of the third, and the intellect of the fourth, combine to produce thoughts and emotions. A hallucinatory quality arises as we project our version of reality on to the world. Skandhas 1-4 develop very simply and predictably. The fifth skandha is wild and irregular. It creates unpredictable thought patterns. These are our normal state.
Concepts mix with impulse energy to create fully developed emotions, which are a mixture of energy and conceptual storyline (vivid trance!). Since the real world doesn’t fit our storylines, our stories and energies are constantly thrown into conflict with themselves and worldly events. This engenders confusion. Rambling thought arises, as we attempt to maintain the validity of our trance, even when we’re alone. Therefore, we’re always alone with ourselves. Reading things into the world, we become completely immersed in our trance.
The power of the hallucination has a life of its ownit is called the Wheel of Life, the Six Realms of Existence. These realms, with their primary emotional character, can be summarized as follows.
1. Heaven/God Realm. Full of (conditional) goodness, beauty, and freedom. Pride predominates.
2. Jealous God Realm. Having tasted or imagined heaven, you must defend it. (The quivers of fear begin, the intimations of insubstantiality). Jealousy and envy arise.
3. Human Realm. Jealousy makes things get heavier, earthbound. Instead of alternating between jealousy and pride (too intense), there is a more solid, homey feeling. Regular, ordinary, mundane life which satisfies mundane desires. Desire predominates.
4. Animal Realm. Pursuing desire makes you get duller, heavier, more stupid, lazier. You just crawl around and moo or bark, rather than making the effort to enjoy the pleasure of pride or envy. Ignorance predominates.
5. Hungry Ghost Realm. The heaviness gets oppressive, you remember the God Realm and want to get back, but you don’t know how. This generates great hunger and thirstunquenchable/claustrophobicand it builds. Greed predominates.
6. Hell Realm. Continuing frustration results in loss of faith, great doubt, hopelessness, and violent reaction arise. You experience hatred for this nightmare and for yourself. Hatred predominates.
(My eternal gratitude to my teacher, Chogyam Trungpa, Rinpoche, for presenting this material in a vivid, loving, and humorous way.)
©Copyright Jack Elias, 2006, All Rights Reserved. Excerpt from Finding True Magic: Transpersonal Hypnosis and Hypnotherapy/NLP by Jack Elias. Contact jack@FindingTrueMagic.com , www.FindingTrueMagic.com
Annual Forecasts & Fengshui Remedies for 2006 : Year of Yang Red Fire Dog - for Ox Sign
The ancient Chinese Astrology is not only fascinating but also quite accurate. It’s Zodiac is based on 12 signs, a cycle of 12 years and are named after 12 symbolic animals : Rat (or Mouse), Ox (or Buffalo or Bull or Cow), Tiger, Rabbit (or Hare or Cat), Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat (or Sheep or Ram), Monkey, Rooster (or Hen or Cock or Chicken or Phoenix), Dog and Pig (or Boar or Hog).
Your Chinese Astrological Zodiac Animal Sign is based on your Chinese Lunar Year of Birth. The Chinese New Year is movable and could start anywhere between 21st January and 20th February, depending upon the year.
If your Date of Birth falls into any of these below listed Chinese Lunar Years, then, because you are born in the Year of the Ox (or Buffalo or Bull or Cow), you are symbolically identified as a “Ox (or Buffalo or Bull or Cow)” :
From 19 Feb 1901 to 07 Feb 1902
From 06 Feb 1913 to 25 Jan 1914
From 25 Jan 1925 to 12 Feb 1926
From 11 Feb 1937 to 30 Jan 1938
From 29 Jan 1949 to 16 Feb 1950
From 15 Feb 1961 to 04 Feb 1962
From 03 Feb 1973 to 22 Jan 1974
From 20 Feb 1985 to 08 Feb 1986
From 07 Feb 1997 to 27 Jan 1998
In Chinese Hsia Calender, 2006 is the 4703rd year and is also the third year of the New Fengshui Land Luck Period 8. The new Chinese Lunar Year is from 29.01.2006 to 17.02.2007. Here are the Annual Forecasts and suggested Fengshui & Crystal Remedies that you may need for the coming “New Year 2006 : Bing Xu, the Year of the Yang Red Fire Dog” :
CAREER :
If you work hard without excessive ambitions, you could gain more power and eventually a better status. But your income may not that proportionate. The upward swing in career would be quite reasonable, if you continue to remain courteous and refused to get involved over annoying gossips that keep poking at you. Your subordinates and colleagues might form an effective coalition against you; your superiors may turn against you. Avoid immersing in internal politics at office. Always work behind the scene and avoid the forefronts. Refrain from signing documents in a haste and when you do sign, make sure that you have fully read between the lines. Your well knit social network will come to your rescue, when you need to be rescued. Opportunities and fortune will decline in the second half but you will get unexpected help from the opposite sex, to get through. All the same, this is a fit case for displaying an image or icon of Green Tara, to tide over the obstacles. Be careful when you delegate work to your subordinates. Chances of wrong decisions there could undermine your efforts and earn you a bad reputation. Handling issues and people will take up a lot of your time and you will be judged by others instantly. Be wary of so called friends, who will be out to malign you. There could be a lot of unresolved issues continuously pouncing on you. Possibilities of back-stabbing exist. Some of you might face situational blackmailing because of unresolved financial disputes. Females will have a better year than males. Wearing a single or double termianted Amethyst Pendant will ease you out of many problems. Light up a red bulb in the center of your home. You can also install the icon of Kuan Kung to get guided and protected. If you are a clerk or government official or in creative field, you will do much better than others.
You are in punishment formation with the Tai Sui this year, so display the statue of a Three Generations Dragon Head Turtle alongwith a photograph of the presiding Year Authority of 2006 in the North West, to minimise the negativities of gossips and scandals. You should also personally wear a Fengshui Rabbit Pendant or place the statue of a Rabbit in the East. (The position of Tai Sui corresponds to North West this year. Tai Sui is also popularly called as Grand Duke of Jupiter and is an intangible energy body of war-like nature that should not be disturbed.)
MONEY :
Cashflow would be reasonably good, though not consistent. The year is full of unexpected expenses and it would be difficult to retain the incoming money. Not a good year for making large or long term investments. Do not gamble or indulge yourself in financial speculation, though some of you do have good lottery luck this year. Vigilance is needed as the chances of money loss through theft or an affair is a reality too. Keep a set of PaKua Horoscope Coins in your pocket and a set of Dragon & Phoenix Coins at your home.
HEALTH :
The urge to eat more food and good food will be on the increase. Be careful with what you eat. You are forewarned of problems linked to digestion, diarrhea, abdomenal and gastrointestinal infections. Common headaches, sneezing, cold, flu, viral infections and some allergies also are indicated. Drink and smoke less. Some of you might get problems related to throat and trachea. Exercise and meditate. If any of your old illness resurfaces, go in for medical treatment immediately. Hang a large sized original Chinese Sacred Fruit called the Wou-Lou or Hoo-Loo in your dining room, from the ceiling.
LOVE :
Normal love luck, if you keep it that way. To keep it that way, you have to resist temptations to be irresponsible. Active social life may bring in gossips that can hurt you rather badly. It would be a good idea to keep a Rooster figure in the South West of your bedroom. Singles need to take a lot of initiatives to get their life partners.
Beneficial Crystal : Turquoise, for 2006
Good Relationship with : Rat, Rabbit & Monkey, for 2006
Conflict with : Horse, Dragon & Goat, for 2006
Yin/Yang : Yin
A NOTE ABOUT REMEDIES : The above analysis has suggested some remedies/cures for reducing the impact of negative energy and has recommended certain enhancers for increasing and improving upon the beneficial energy. For the remedies/enhancers to be effective, they should be cleansed, energised, blessed and programmed not only for the particular individual/family but also for the specific purpose/problem. They should also be placed in the indicated location. Any or all of these remedies can be reused for the coming new years, the only thing is that some of them may have to be repositioned according to the specific new year.
This is copyrighted work. Permission is granted to republish (both in electronic media as well as print media) the article in it’s entirety only, including the full bio of the author and his links. All links should be “clickable” hyperlinks. An acknowledgement mail from Republishers will be appreciated.
The Author of this article Sri Janarrdhana Guptha is an Energy Consultant, Vaastu & Fengshui Researcher, Crystal Master and a Clairvoyant Karma Reader. His speciality is in permanent, life-time Remedial Solutions, especially Crystal Energy Fields. His wife Srimathi Kalpana Guptha is also a Psychic Reader. The Energy Couple can be reached through crystalvaastu@yahoo.com
or either of their websites:
http://www.newage-kabbalah-numerology.com or
http://www.crystal-vaastu.com/home.htm.
Janarrdhana Guptha has authored the book titled “Guide to Fengshui Good Luck Symbols”. He writes regularly in leading English & Tamil Magazines from India. More of his articles can be read at his blog : http://www.spaces.msn.com/members/crystal-vaastu/.
A Fine Line between Heaven, Hell and Astrology - Angelic Governors of the Zodiac
Have you ever wondered which Angel governs your sign? And did you know that all Angels are not exlusively deriven from Heaven? With regards to your personality, each of these entities play a role in your individuality.
{Rf. from “A Dictionary of Angels” by Gustav Davidson}
The Angel, Machidiel, (meaning “fullness of God”), governs the month of March and is also the ruler of Aries.
Asmodel, the Angel of April, rules the Zodiacal sign of Taurus. He is widely known as the “demon of punishment.”
May’s Angel, Ambriel governs Gemini and is the chief officer of the 12th hour of night. On an Oriental, Hebrew charm, Ambriel’s name is inscribed to ward off evil.
Then we have Muriel, the Angel of June and the ruler of Cancer. Muriel is interesting in that not only is he the chief officer of the 3rd hour of the day but if “invoked” from the South is believed to procure a magic carpet.
The Angel of July, Verchiel, ruler of Leo. Not only is Verchiel one of the rulers of the order of powers, but he also governs the Sun.
Hamaliel, Angel of August, a ruler of Virgo is also one of the rulers of the “orders of virtue.”
Libra’s ruler, Uriel, (translating “Fire of God”), governor of September, is also known as the Archangel of salvation and is renowned globally from the infamous painting - Dryden’s “The State of Innocence,” depicted descending from heaven in a chariot drawn by white horses. He is also likened to divine vengeance and Justice ~ thus the “scales of Libra.”
Barbiel, ruler of Scorpio and the Angel of October is one of the 28 angels of the 28 mansions of the Moon. Barbiel also serves as one of the seven Electors in the underworld.
The Angel of November and ruler of Sagittarius is Adnachiel. He and Phaleg-referred to as the “Warlord,” alternate as ruling Angels of the Order of Angels.
Haniel, Angel of December and ruler of Capricorn meaning “Glory or grace of God,” is known as the chief of innocents. He is invoked as an amulet against evil.
Aquarian ruler, Gabriel (”God is my strength”) and Angel of January is one of the two highest-ranking angels in Judaeo-Christian and Mohammedan religion. He stands for annunciation, resurrection, mercy, vengeance, death and revelation. He presides over Paradise and is the ruling prince of the 1st Heaven. He is also said to sit on the left-hand side of God and known as the spirit of truth. Gabriel was the Angel who inspired Joan of Arc to go the succor of the King of France.
Barchiel, the Angel of February and the ruler of Pisces, (”Lightening of God”) is one of the 7 archangels, and is also known to be the ruler of Jupiter
It is evident, Astrologically speaking, the Zodiac closely mirrors the Heaven that we know and the Angels therein. So, the words, “It is written in the Stars” truly exhibits our predestination of life and all that lies within. How we use our knowledge, experience and Angelical Governors of the Zodiac is up to us.
© A Fine Line between Heaven, Hell and Astrology - Angelic Governors of the Zodiac
All Rights Reserved
by C. Bailey-Lloyd/LadyCamelot
C. Bailey-Lloyd/LadyCamelot is the Public Relations’ Director &
Writer for Holistic Junction — Your source of information for Holistic Practitioners, Massage Therapy Schools, Healing Arts Schools, Alternative Health Education, Insightful Literature and so much more!!
Body Calling: Eye Sight Cured Naturally
Lorenzo C. an inspiring young teenager who fell to the inevitable statistics of a major automobile accident. A victim in the back seat of his family’s car that had been involved in an accident and their car lost control and hit a tree, crushing down on Lorenzo’s side of the vehicle and on Lorenzo. Rushed to emergency care Lorenzo survived but suffered severe eye damage. After many months in cosmetic reconstruction and surgery doctor’s final diagnosis was poor, if not null and void. Lorenzo’s father went to all levels of research and help to restore his son’s eyesight, to no avail. Then one day the father ran into an old friend, Professional Golfer, Justin Morris, who suggested Lorenzo take vitamin nutritionals and supplementations and one specifically referred to as Visionex. Lorenzo began taking them with his meals daily as a regular course of action, pretty much auto-pilot.
After several months and doctor visits had gone by, Lorenzo’s eye sight and loss of eye movement due to major eye and nerve damage began to show signs of improvement! The doctor began asking questions to his dedicated father “What has Lorenzo been taking?” “Or what have you been doing differently?” The father replies, “Nothing really out of the ordinary. His grandmother and I take good care of him and do everything we can for Lorenzo.” A few months go by and the Doctor is absolutely astonished. Lorenzo’s has regained almost 100% of his eysight and movement. The Doctor is serioulsy flabbergasted and tells his father “There must be something you are doing or taking for this incredible improvement to occur?” It finally dawned on his father, like most of us, vitamins have always been a given, but he then realized and mentioned to their doctor: “Maybe it’s the vitamin nutritionals and the Visionex all natural supplements.”
The Doctor researched it further and was revolutionized by the miraculaous results. His practice now promotes the benefits of vitamin nutritionals and supplementations.
To make a long story short… Parents will never give up hope for their children. This is a perfect example of how wonderfully our bodies can heal itself with the proper nutrition, supplementation and education.
Gina Bucci is good friends with Lorenzo’s Father, Larry Caramar. For more valuable insight and to obtain top quality nutritional supplements visit my website: http://www.olivegrapes.usana.com and take the Free Health assessment. Also do a product search for Visionex- This comprehensive formula is designed to maintain long-term eye health with two of the most powerful free-radical fighting antioxidants; lutein and zeaxanthin.
