Don’t Let Your Body Hinder the Enlightenment of Your Mind

Don’t Let Your Body Hinder the Enlightenment of Your Mind

Cultivation of the body is the foundation of that of the mind. Unless your nadi ties are opened, the perception of emptiness you have acquired is not thorough and it gets lost easily. Though your mind has become wise, as your body is still capable of bringing you afflictions, the body remains a hindrance to the mind. When you get sick, you still feel pain and have afflictions. When you see a beautiful girl, your heart still follows her. When you see lots of money, you are still greedy. So your body and mind aren’t unimpeded.

Some practitioners can’t open nadi ties in their bodies, thus bringing them lots of afflictions. As a saying of Chinese medicine goes, “If it is not obstructed, it is not painful; if it is obstructed, it is painful.” For example, many people know smoking isn’t a good habit, but they can’t quit it. The reason is that they can’t control their bodies.

I used to be a heavy smoker. Cigarettes could no longer satisfy me; I had to smoke Mo He tobacco, also known as tobacco dregs. Whenever I wrote something long, there was a cigarette between my fingers. As long as I wrote, I smoked. Once I stopped smoking, I couldn’t go on writing. I felt I would die of smoking. Afterwards, when I had entered into Mahamudra, I quitted it easily, without any pain. Why did I quit it so easily? Because my meditative practice must have effected some changes in my body. So when the thought of quitting smoking arose, my body would act accordingly. With an enlightened mind only and without any changes in the body, the body wouldn’t listen to me and it would continue to give the signal of wanting to smoke. You see, practice of the body is very important. The state of enlightenment won’t be consolidated until you are able to unite and master your body and mind.

I am in the habit of getting rid of anything that I find I can’t live without. More often than not, an idea that comes across my mind is materialized in the end, because my body listens to me.

One of my disciples had been a heavy smoker before he met me. He had wanted to quit smoking but couldn’t. Then, he met me. I wanted him to quit smoking, and he made it after a strange vomiting. He didn’t experience any suffering afterwards, and he felt as if he had never smoked. The reason is that his body listened to him. Besides his meditative practice, perhaps it was also due to an external power which we call “blessings.”

Human body is under the control of the nervous system, which in turn is controlled by the speech system. When you reach a certain level with your practice, your commands in such a form as auto suggestion can make your body obey.

It’s the same with habituated tendencies. Although a person knows that such and such tendencies are not good, he simply can’t get rid of it. It shows that his body hasn’t improved with his practice. That is to say, his mind is enlightened but his body isn’t. The most important thing at the moment is self-cultivation, that is, the cultivation of qi, nadis and bright dots, which aims to rejuvenate something inherent in one’s life.

Cultivation of the body is the foundation of that of the mind. Unless your nadi ties are opened, the perception of emptiness you have acquired is not thorough and it gets lost easily. Though your mind has become wise, as your body is still capable of bringing you afflictions, the body remains a hindrance to the mind. When you get sick, you still feel pain and have afflictions. When you see a beautiful girl, your heart still follows her. When you see lots of money, you are still greedy. So your body and mind aren’t unimpeded. If your mind is free but your qi isn’t, then the unfreedom of the qi will eventually affect the freedom of the mind. Therefore, understanding in principle is not enough, you need to understand it in phenomenon. Not understanding in phenomenon is largely due to problems in the body. Some people are unable to live up to the principles they know. Smokers know smoking isn’t good for their health, but they can’t quit it. Some people know life or death is a matter of a few breaths, but they always sleep late. Knowledge doesn’t necessarily give them the power to put it into practice, because sometimes their bodies don’t listen to them.

Of all the practices of qi, nadis and bright dots, my favorites are treasure bottle qi and tummo (inner fire).

Strictly speaking, tummo practice belongs to life science. Some priests from the West who went to India to practice yoga practiced tummo, and successfully. It seems that tummo is a sort of life energy.

Tummo practice also exists in Taoism, only with a different name. Taoist priests sometimes achieve warmth and pleasure during Taoist practice, but their purpose is to train vital essence into energy. If you direct the qi inside you according to their training methods, you will get warmth and pleasure as well. However, that is not their main purpose. I stress this point because I want you to see that achieving inner fire itself is not the goal. The ultimate purpose is to burn afflictions with the inner fire of wisdom.

The inner fire of wisdom refers to the discovery of the brightness of one’s own nature, which requires the instructions of a truly reliable teacher.

If you can’t concentrate on practicing tummo in retreat, you need to practice visualization of it in various forms in your daily life. Always keep your lower abdomen in mind. It is where, according to Taoism, dantian (pellet field) is located, or where, in terms of the three nadis and five chakras, the sacral chakra and the base chakra are located. There is supposed to be fire in your lower abdomen, fire as red as boiling iron water. Your chest and abdomen should be the furnace. Learn to practice treasure bottle qi first and visualize fire flames at the joint of the three nadis. The finer the flames are, the better. At first, you may make the flames coarser, but in the end you should make them as fine as fox fur. On the coldest days of winter, the fox fur looks as red as fire. When it shakes, your body will itch. You need to visualize the flames flickering at the base chakra, as if it were tickled by fox fur.

On the meditation seat, you should visualize the fox fur while practicing treasure bottle qi. Whether on the seat or off the seat, try to keep calm and imagine your chest and abdomen as a furnace and your three nadis as red-hot iron bars. But always keep in mind that all these are empty in nature rather than substantial, such as a rainbow or a plantain stalk, which is hollow. Imagine that inside the stalk there are flames flickering. It’s the same with the left nadi and the right nadi. In the five chakras, the Yidam is in sexual union with his consort, and nectar spurts from where they join. The nectar looks like petrol and it is also like a flame thrower that shoots flames into the five wheels.

Keep visualizing like this. When on the meditation seat, envision the fox-fur-like flames blazing inside the three nadis and five chakras. In the course of time, warmth and happiness will arise in your base chakra.

Of course, methods may differ in different lineages. Traditionally, the arising of warmth and happiness, again, depends entirely on the blessing power of the fundamental guru in a lineage. It is analogous to the relationship between a bulb and the electric current.

When you walk, you can visualize a pervasive fire as if the whole world were on fire. When you are on the bus, imagine that the bus is filled with fire, the cushion you are sitting on is on fire, and everything around you is on fire. Keep on visualizing like that. Although external fire can’t generate warmth and happiness, as long as you keep that feel, you will be able to retain that perception. You need to be able to perceive that big fire in the enlightened state of Mahamudra. In the course of time, warmth and happiness will arise in your base and sacral chakras. At that time, let the flames rise slowly, say, a centimeter or an inch every day. Let the flames rise slowly from the base chakra to the sacral chakra, and then you can practice fierce treasure bottle qi.

Tummo is a practice of life energy. It is said that it is a means of transforming sexual energy into heat. As long as the practitioner is in good health, practices diligently, and has full confidence, inner fire certainly will arise. Some practitioners have made it even during the first sitting. On the other hand, without confidence, inner fire won’t arise even with years of practice. Whether inner fire can arise quickly depends on one’s confidence and diligence.

Notice

Translated by non-professional volunteers, there would be some inaccuracies in the translation. You are welcome to offer us some advice for emendation. Please feel free to contact us.We also look forward to you joining our voluntary translation team.

Please contact us at 985140751@qq.com, thank you.

第四辑：再送几条锦囊妙计

别让身体影响心灵的明白

修身是修心的基础，要是没打开脉结，你修成的那种空性觉受是不彻底的，而且容易丢失。因为你的心虽然有了智慧，但你的身体仍会给你造成烦恼，这样，身体反倒成了心灵的障碍。你生了病，仍会有疼痛烦恼；看到漂亮女孩，你的心仍会被她牵走；看到许多金钱，你仍然会生起贪念。你的身心仍得不到自在。

有些人身体之中的脉结打不开，就会出现许多烦恼。这跟中医所说的“通则不痛，不通则痛”是同一个道理。我们举个例子，很多人都知道抽烟不好，但就是改不掉这种恶习，原因就在于他们控制不住自己的身体。

我早年抽烟也很凶，一般纸烟已经不能满足我的需要，我必须抽莫合烟――也就是旱烟渣子。当我写一部长篇文章时，那手中的烟总是离不了。写多久，就必须抽多久。抽不了时，也就写不成了。我都觉得自己要抽死了。可后来，我契入大手印后，想戒烟，也就戒了，而且轻而易举，没有任何痛苦。为什么我戒起烟来这么轻松？因为我的修炼，肯定使我的身体也起了变化。所以，心产生了戒烟之念，我的身体就会配合。要是我只有心的明白，没有身的变化，那身子就会不听我的话，继续给我发出想抽烟的信号。可见修身是很重要的。当你修到身心合一，心气自在时，你的悟境才能坚固。

我有个习惯，当我离不开啥时，便一定要戒掉啥。许多时候，我的念头一动，事总能办成。因为我的身体听我的话。

我有个弟子，遇到我之前，也是个烟鬼。他一直想戒，却一直戒不了。后来，见到我，我想叫他戒烟，他便在一次奇怪的呕吐之后，戒了烟。戒烟之后，他同样没有任何难受的感觉，而且觉得自己好像本来就没有抽过烟。其原因，也是因为身体听他的话了。当然，除了自己的修行之外，也许还有一种外力的作用。我们称之为“加持”。

人的身体受制于神经系统，而神经系统受制于语言系统。当你的修炼达到某种境界时，你的自我暗示之类的命令，是能够叫身体听话的。

人的习气也是如此，自己明明知道这个习气不好，那个习气也不好，但就是改不了。出现这种情况时，就说明身体修得不好。也就是说，心明白了但身体没有真正地明白，在这种时候最主要的就是修身，所谓修身就是修“气脉明点”，让自己生命中本有的东西恢复一种活力。

修身是修心的基础，要是没打开脉结，你修成的那种空性觉受是不彻底的，而且容易丢失。因为你的心虽然有了智慧，但你的身体仍会给你造成烦恼，这样，身体反倒成了心灵的障碍。你生了病，仍会有疼痛烦恼；看到漂亮女孩，你的心仍会被她牵走；看到许多金钱，你仍然会生起贪念。你的身心仍得不到自在。你的心虽然自在，但气不自在，这样，气的不自在就会影响心的自在。所以，单纯在理上的明白是不够的，一定要在事上也明白。事上不明白的原因，多由身体在作怪。他明白好多道理，但他做不到。烟客们都知道抽烟不好，可他们就是戒不了烟；有些人知道生命只在呼吸之间，却总是睡懒觉。心的明白，并不代表他们在事上也能做到。因为有时候，他们的身体是不听话的。

在诸多的气脉明点修炼法门中，我最喜欢的就是宝瓶气和拙火法。

严格地说，拙火修炼属于一种生命科学。西方的一些神父，在印度专门修瑜伽的，好多人都修过拙火，也都修成了。看起来，拙火是属于生命能量的东西。

拙火在道家的修炼里面也有，只是名称不同。一些道人在修的时候也会生起暖乐，但它是为了练精化气，按他们的方式运气，训练有素之后，也会生起暖乐。不过，他们不是以生起暖乐为主要目的的。我为什么要强调这一点？就是希望你明白，生起拙火本身不是目的，最终目的是让你用智慧的拙火烧去很多烦恼。

这智慧的拙火，便是发现自性的光明。这需要真正的善知识的开示。

如果你现在不能专门闭关修拙火，那么平时你就要用多种形式来观修它。你要始终记住小腹、下腹——就是道家的丹田部位，也即我们所说的三脉五轮中的脐轮与密轮处——经常要有火，火就像烧红的铁水一样。你的胸部和腹部像炼钢炉的炉碳一样。先要学会持宝瓶气，在三脉交汇之处，要观想出火焰。这个火焰越细越好。刚开始的时候，你可以观粗一些，后来要像狐狸的毛一样细。三九天狐狸的毛是火红火红的，它摇动的时候，你的身上会有一种发痒的感觉。你就要观想密轮处的火焰燃烧着，摇动着，就像狐狸的毛在骚动的感觉。

平时在座上的时候，你就要观想那个狐狸毛，并始终持着宝瓶气。无论在座上座下，尽量能保持安然，想象你的胸部和腹部是炼钢炉的炉膛，你的三脉就好像烧红的铁棍一样，但它们是空性的。你始终记住，不要有什么实质性的东西，它始终是空性的，像彩虹一样，好像芭蕉杆子一样，是空的。想象它里面窜动火焰，火红火红的，左脉右脉都那样。然后五个轮子里的本尊在双运，他们在相交之处喷出甘露，这个甘露，流出来的时候像汽油一样，也像火焰喷射器，往五个轮子里溅射着火焰。

要一直这样观着。座上的时候，要想象三脉五轮中间的那团像狐狸毛一样的火焰，在密轮那个部位，久而久之，就可能生起暖乐。

当然，传承不同，方法也可能有些差异。按传统的说法，暖乐的生起，也全靠根本师传承的加持。其性质，同样像灯泡与电流的关系。

平时你走路的时候，还可以观想任何地方都充满大火，世界如火焚。坐车的时候，汽车充满大火，坐垫也充满大火，你周围的一切都充满大火。始终要这样观修。外大火虽然生不起暖乐，但只要那个火的感觉存在，你的觉受就能够保任。你要能在大手印悟境中观照那个大火。修到一定程度，你的密轮和脐轮就会生起一种暖乐了。生起暖乐的时候，慢慢那个火焰上升，上升的时候不要快了，慢慢让它上升。比如我举个例子，每天上升一公分，或一寸。从密轮上升到脐轮，就这样慢慢上升，这时候就可以持刚猛宝瓶气。

这个拙火的修法是一种生命能量的修法，有人说它是将性能量转化为热能。只要身体健康，精进观修，信心俱足，都会生起拙火。有的人甚至第一座就能生起拙火。不过，如果没有信心的话，修炼好多年都生不起拙火。信心和精进程度决定着能不能尽快生起拙火。

声明：本文系文化志愿者试译，非专业人才翻译，错误定然不少，如出现疏漏及错误，敬请读者见谅。如有任何翻译上的建议及修正意见，欢迎及时与我们取得联系，我们会加以校对、修改，并希望有专业才能的朋友也能加入我们志愿者群体中来。

邮箱地址：985140751@qq.com