Equanimity and the Taste of Purification - Part 1 of 2

Now, another thing that you find all over the world.

And, which also goes back to our show monic tribal ancestors.

Is the notion?

That you can purify consciousness by exposing yourself, too harsh ordeals.

And that practice is called asceticism.

We have the remnants of western asceticism embedded in the English language in certain idioms that we use.

For example, to wear a hair shirt.

Or to flagellate yourself, you've all heard these expressions.

Well, these are actual practices that were, and actually harder still done within the Christian contemplative tradition.

That's called asceticism ascetical practices.

The idea being but that by exposing yourself to this discomfort that in some way this will purify away. Your sinfulness or reduce your original sin and therefore it get you closer to God.

Similar practices.

Exist in tribal cultures.

And, yes, there's a notion that they can be purification.

I suspect that the notion that these are purifications.

Came about secondarily can't know for sure, but my conjecture would be that.

Our ancestors.

Originally expose themselves to these physical ordeals.

Primarily in order to enter the realms of power where they would encounter spirits where they would attain healing powers, they would have visions OK, you can take workshops in shamanism.

And it's like.

You draw where you do these different things and it's like a 2. Two weekends and you did a seminar in shamanism and that's sort of like now. I know what shamanism's about when you do shamanism in traditional cultures. It usually involves hair, raising physical ordeals.

That you know, most of you know about because we have connection with the native community here. You have to put yourself through things that you wouldn't think.

Any I mean like?

Throwing a little cold water over your body's is a joke compared to a Sundance.

It was probably the case that People expose themselves to these.

Ordeals in order to enter altered states enter the spirit realms and then I'm guessing they discovered that as they were doing this.

They were changing as a person something about them was getting better.

So our paradigm asceticism evolved.

Where it's like OK? It's not just that exposing ourselves to these harsh sensations thrust us into the spirit realm. But it also purify czar consciousness all around the world, you can find ascetical practice is if you read.

The standard histories of Buddhism, they will usually say that the produc rejected asceticism.

However.

I wouldn't exactly, say that.

I would say rather than the put out refined asceticism.

Conceptually and practically.

Conceptually.

In essence, he replaced the notion of.

The more it hurts them or in purify's.

With the notion of the more you bring equanimity to an experience.

The more purification curves if it's an unpleasant experience that will purify consciousness in one way.

If it's a pleasant experience, and you bring equanimity to it that will purify consciousness in another way.

Related way but from a slightly different angle and if it's a neutral experience that you bring equanimity to it. That also purify's consciousness, even though it's a non valenced experience So what is equanimity.

We can think of it as training our sense gates.

Not to fight with themselves so if for example, just to give a specific example.

If a sensation wants to arise and some point, the body may fight with its own sensation.

But you can gradually train the body not to fight with its own sensations.

As they arise.

If the sensation is about to pass the body make hold on inappropriately long.

You can, but you can train the body not to hold an inappropriately long to the sensations. It produces and the same is true for the other sensory.

Modalities it's easiest to see in the body. But the same principles hold in visual experiences image site and an auditory experiences sound am Top.

Internal Tom.

You can think of equanimity as training, the sensory circuits to get out of their own way to not.

Inappropriate to not fight against their own productions, but also to not.

Inappropriately hold on to their own productions.

So one way it's a little bit of an esoteric metaphor. But one way to think about equanimity is that it's a training of the sensory circuits.

Out of their usual habit which is to be real pectic as soon as they start to move they coagulate.

Training out of that happen into behaving like thixotropic substance is where the more you stir it the thinner. It gets and therefore the less resistance. It presents to change.

As we bring equanimity to an uncomfortable experience number one that experience.

Doesn't cause this much suffering and #2 that experience delivers a flavor of purification?

So that it's possible to get something positive of taste of purification even inside discomfort.

Now, what about the pleasant experiences more you bring equanimity to a pleasant experience, the more that experience.

Produces a quality called fulfillment.

Which is not the same as mere pleasure?

Fulfillment is what we really want pleasures what we think we will.

So as you bring equanimity to a pleasant experience, it delivers more fulfillment.

And also.

It delivers the same flavor of purification.

So you can get the sense that you are purifying consciousness by bringing the equanimity, too pleasant or unpleasant.