2009.09.12 01:00 - Into the Cryptic

The Guardian for this meeting was Scathach Rhiadra. The comments are by Scathach Rhiadra.

Pema, Arch, Yakuzza and Fael joined me for this session.....

Pema Pera: Hi Scathach!
Scathach Rhiadra: Hello Pema
Pema Pera: A quiet session, so far :)
Scathach Rhiadra: how are you today?
Pema Pera: oh fine! It's 5 pm, Saturday afternoon, here in Kyoto.
Pema Pera: And how about you?
Scathach Rhiadra: oh fine, still asleep, it is early Saturday morning here
Pema Pera: Thanks for getting up early to keep this slot occupied! It's probably one of the more quiet weekly PaB sessions, usually?
Scathach Rhiadra: oh two or three people usually, very seldm nobody
Scathach Rhiadra: so have you recovered from your retreat:)?
Pema Pera: oh, sure, or perhaps I should say I have covered :-)
Scathach Rhiadra: :)
Pema Pera: after the retreat I spent a week in New York, at home, and then a week in Tokyo, for a rather intense one-week astronomy workshop
Pema Pera: Interestingly, just like the PaB retreat was the first in what will become a series, and thus setting the tone for possibly years to come,
Pema Pera: similarly, the astronomy workshop gave my colleagues and me also a natural chance to outline our international joint research for the next few years.
Pema Pera: So the last three weeks have been quite extraordinary for me
Scathach Rhiadra: with all the teaveling not time to breathe!
Pema Pera: Do you have any questions or suggestions or comments about the RL retreat? Given that we'll have another retreat in Malta in a few months, it is not too late to start thinking about what to do there, and for how long -- any chance you might participate?
Pema Pera: Hi Arch!
Pema Pera: *not too early
Pema Pera: (I'll blame that on lingering jetlag)
Scathach Rhiadra: mmm, very unlikely, I will robably be going to Asia next year, have limited holiday time
Scathach Rhiadra: Hello Arch
Pema Pera: where in Asia?
Scathach Rhiadra: India and Nepal
Pema Pera: how nice! how long?
Scathach Rhiadra: about four weeks
Pema Pera: (Archmage: I read "Extraordinary how Pema" -- did I miss the rest of that sentence?)
Pema Pera is worried about his internet connection
Archmage Atlantis: And Hello Pema & Scathach
Pema Pera: great, Scathach!
Archmage Atlantis: The last 3 weeks, I arrived at the end of that thought
Scathach Rhiadra: well you are early today
--BELL--

a brief discussion on the dialogues between Pema and Stim for the planned PaB books.....

Scathach Rhiadra: I have been reading the dialogues for the Pab book, very interesting
Pema Pera: glad to hear that, Scathach!
Pema Pera: Anything in particular that you found interesting?
Pema Pera: Hi Fael!
Scathach Rhiadra: Hello Fael
Fael Illyar: Hi Pema, Scath, Arch :)
Scathach Rhiadra: they were all interesting!
Pema Pera: :-)
Pema Pera: any aspect of those that you'd like us to talk about here?
Scathach Rhiadra: well I suppose there seems to to a difference in view of Wu-Wei..?
Pema Pera: The difference may be more in view of PaB than in wu-wei itself
Pema Pera: hi Yak!
Scathach Rhiadra: Hello Yakuzza
Archmage Atlantis: Ok, I admit to being uniformed "wu-wel" is ?
Pema Pera: I was using the term wu-wei rather broadly, to describe much of what we are doing in Play as Being
Pema Pera: wu-wei is a Chinese term, meaning literally "not-doing"
Pema Pera: suggesting that the best way to do something is by "not doing" -- it's a Taoist term, and of course it needs quite a discussion to unpack the idea :-)
Archmage Atlantis: Dang, I can't even type or spell in Mandarin
Pema Pera: roughly speaking: don't manipulate, don't force, don't cause friction; act naturally in the context of what is at hand
Archmage Atlantis: Yes, I understood you - much of the world operates by "not doing"
Archmage Atlantis: Still that is like economics
Archmage Atlantis: Things will continue as they always have
Archmage Atlantis: Until they do not
Archmage Atlantis: It is the "time of doing" that is important

Pema suggests an exercise for the 90-second pause coming up.....

Pema Pera: Scathach, would you be interested in doing a brief exploration/exercise/practice, during the next 90 seconds break, so that we can then talk about it, afterwards, as we have done in the RL retreat?
Pema Pera: given that you're the guardian-on-call, I thought I'd ask you first :-)
Scathach Rhiadra: sure
Scathach Rhiadra: :)
Pema Pera: any preference for a direction?
Scathach Rhiadra: not at all
Pema Pera: anybody else a preference?
Archmage Atlantis: Yet things flow
Archmage Atlantis: Let
Pema Pera: that may be a bit too unspecific . . . in general, we found in the RL retreat that a bit more specificity helped to get deeper into an exercise, according to those I taked with
Scathach Rhiadra nods
Pema Pera: how about "appreciating the presence of appearance", our old friend?
--BELL--
Archmage Atlantis: Or the 9/11 remembrance
Pema Pera: I found it very refreshing, even though I've done this particular exploration many times by now . . . I became keenly aware of all the noise around me here in the coffeeshop where I'm sitting, and I was surprised by the beauty in what also could be judged as a cacophony of odd sounds.
Scathach Rhiadra: :)
Pema Pera: sounds of machines, outside traffic, shouts and laughter, musis in the background
Pema Pera: *music
Archmage Atlantis: Pema, what coffee shop is open at this time?
Pema Pera: and I also wondered to what extend I would be able to focus on this kind of exploration under great stress or duress of any kind
Pema Pera: -- of course, I won't know until that happens
Pema Pera: but potentially this sentence could be a great resource, if one has become familiar enough with it during more normal situations
Pema Pera: How about anyone else, how did the exploration go?
Archmage Atlantis: For the exploration in a Dunkin Doughnuts is not the same as a Starbucks
Archmage Atlantis: And the ability to explore is a lesson that leads to lessons
Scathach Rhiadra: I just use a breathing exercise to focus attention on the moment and include whatever is present, the sounds around me
Scathach Rhiadra: I don't tend to use sentences or words or try to investigate anything, just be
Pema Pera: Do you use those breathing exercises in particular situations at home, or also while being out on the street or in a work situation, etc?
Scathach Rhiadra: yes, as much as possible, all the time, (when I remember.....:))

Arch introduces a somewhat 'cryptic' note to the conversation.....

Archmage Atlantis: Scatach, Pema is more used to this than I.......I live in a dying body
Scathach Rhiadra: one could say we all do Arch:)
Archmage Atlantis: I fell urgency in passing the information
Archmage Atlantis: *feel
--BELL--
Archmage Atlantis: I find if it is not desired by the other entity, it does not exist
Pema Pera: sorry, Arch, I don't understand -- do you have a chronic disease?
Archmage Atlantis: Yes
Pema Pera: may I ask what kind of disease?
Archmage Atlantis: No
Archmage Atlantis: For it matters not
Archmage Atlantis: It is suffering
Archmage Atlantis: All have it
Pema Pera: You mean you are healthy but you are going to die like all of us?
Archmage Atlantis: You still inquire, you do not accept
Scathach Rhiadra: mmm, anyone else have anything to sy about the exercise?
Fael Illyar: Pema, Arch doesn't want you to understand his disease.
Pema Pera: Fael, I have no idea whether Arch is talking metaphorically about suffering as a universal disease, or whether he has an actual disease -- but if he does not want to clarify, that is fine of course. But in that case, I wonder why he brought it up.
Fael Illyar: True, that is kind of conflicting messages.
Scathach Rhiadra: so, will there be more dialogues soon Pema?
Pema Pera: as soon as Stim and I can find time to meet, Schathach
Scathach Rhiadra nods
Pema Pera: with me in Japan and he in California, we are hard pressed to meet regularly
Pema Pera: perhaps in one or two weeks again
--BELL--
Fael Illyar: Yes, it can be difficult with the time zones.

time for goodbyes.....

Pema Pera: well, I have to go.
Pema Pera: Bye everybody!
Fael Illyar: See you later Pema :)
Archmage Atlantis: Say Hello to Moon, Pema
Scathach Rhiadra: goodbye Pema, have a great evening, it was good to see you:)
Scathach Rhiadra: I must go too, goodbye all, thank you:)
Archmage Atlantis: Well, inspiration, not presperation
Fael Illyar smiles.
Archmage Atlantis: Let us dance again FAel
Archmage Atlantis: Can we do it here?
Archmage Atlantis: And you Yak
Archmage Atlantis: You are strangly silent
Fael Illyar: No dance balls here... we'd have to move.
Fael Illyar: Yak is usually silent. It's very rare I see him speak.
Archmage Atlantis: He always speaks
Archmage Atlantis: I hear him think
Fael Illyar: ah, now you don't?
Fael Illyar: maybe he's afk then.
Archmage Atlantis: Take me to the dance hall
Fael Illyar: allright :)
Archmage Atlantis: Offer Yak a tp
Fael Illyar: Sure :)
Fael Illyar: here's a landmark so you can find it yourself too later, but I'll tp as it's quite a walk