experiences follow from meditation just as smoke follows fire and shoots follow
the germinating barley seed. When we rest loosely in the wonderful, naturally
occurring pure presence, our awareness of the here and now is not as it was
previously; bliss, clarity, and no-thought arise together with pure presence. If we
do not abandon the identification of naked pure presence with mystical
experience, then pure presence will always arise with attachment to bliss, clarity,
and no-thought, and our meditation will never go beyond the three mundane
worlds.
In the tantra The Source of Sacred Samadhi, it is said,
Meditation may be stable,
But if there is attachment to it,
It is like a child’s enjoyment,
And it will not accomplish nirvana.While we are bound to the mystical experiences of bliss, clarity, and no-thought,
there can be no understanding of naked reality. However, under the influence of
meditation, these experiences of bliss, clarity, and no-thought will gradually and
surely arise. The reason for their arising is that basic intrinsic presence is the
empty essence of the dharmakaya, the natural clarity of the sambhogakaya, and
the all-pervading compassion of the nirmanakaya. Pure presence is our own
natural perfection.
In our ignorance, delusion appears as a stain on the ground of being [alaya], on
the ground consciousness [alaya-vijnana], and on ordinary consciousness [vijnana].
The ground of being holds the karmic propensities of the threefold world; the
ground consciousness generates the six realms of the six classes of beings, (the
world as container and sentient beings who are the elixir therein contained); and
ordinary consciousness fixates on samsara by focusing upon specifics in the arena
of physical enjoyment. During the time of practice, the ground of being veils the
empty essence of the dharmakaya; the ground consciousness veils the clear nature
of the sambhogakaya; and ordinary consciousness veils the all-pervading
compassion of the nirmanakaya. In short, since the ground of being, ground
consciousness, and ordinary consciousness are adulterated, pure presence is
veiled, and the experience of bliss does not arise as intensely as before in mind
and in the flow of consciousness. When the experience of bliss arises with a
comfort that we cannot resist, we become irrevocably attached to it, and we are
flung into the gods’ realm of desire. Likewise the experience of clarity in cognition
arises with brightness and is accompanied by the emergence of some slight
psychic powers. If we become attached to this, we will be cast into the gods’ realm
of form. Likewise, insight can be bewildering—as we experience emptiness with
no-thought like a kind of forgetfulness or unconsciousness, our subtle proclivities
completely inactive, as in deep sleep, we may be propelled into the formless realm
of the gods.
These mystical experiences are thick obstructions that block release from the
threefold world of samsara, so do not fall under their influence for even a
moment. Perceive them as big mistakes. No matter what experiences of bliss,