D. Tarmel

I was a guest for our discussion at Tarmel Udimo's lovely house in the coastal regions. We noted that our meeeting took place simultanneously on different days for us. It was great to sit down with Tarmel who is one of a group of guardians to join us late in 2008. These guardians have added so much to the group. I started with my usual question but quickly realized that Being had taken over our discussion and I just sat back and listened.

Adams Rubble: How did you find your way into PaB?
Tarmel Udimo: I learned about it at a Buddhist sim, it may have even been Moon that I ran into but whoever it was gave me a notecard about PaB.
Tarmel Udimo: I had been in SL around July 07, but my computer wasn't fast enough... and I found no people or places that I could resonate with, so stoped visiting. Eventually I logged on again and almost instantly found PaB
Adams Rubble: I understand that although I came in later so there was just a few months gap :)
Adams Rubble: So you just came to a meeting by yourself?
Tarmel Udimo: Yes... rather scary, its such a wide open space,  and I wasn't very good at even 'sitting' or knew how to IM,
Tarmel Udimo: It was dear Wol who is so good with 'newbies' who said come in, sit down, join us
Tarmel Udimo: and then that was it... I knew I was 'home'.

I then asked Tarmel about her "practice" before PaB

Tarmel Udimo: yes I did have a 'practice' but it is really a hodpodge of practises. I have been searching since I was a teenager, but was more interested in Western mysticism, eventually moving on to Vedanta...
Tarmel Udimo: then Buddism - Tibetan, Zen & Vipassana (my teacher taught both:) and then moved on to studying Western approaches to Buddishm, people like Jack Kornfield and Charlotte Joko Beck.
Tarmel Udimo: but I am a bit of a rebel or someone who needs to find my own path, as much as i always thought ahhh this is my teacher and stay for a few years and then, ahhhh no, this one must be my teacher and another few years would pass, and so on...
Adams Rubble emphathies with the rebel part:)
Tarmel Udimo: yes?
Adams Rubble: I just put a note into the session I posted today about how I rebel against spiritual leaders...but mostly the arrogant ones. hehe
Tarmel Udimo: hehehe
Tarmel Udimo: well its also about finding one's own spiritual voice for a better word
Adams Rubble nods
Tarmel Udimo: that's what's wonderful about PaB and also so very smart and clever of Pema - 'Being' leaves room for everyone's point of view... 'Being' becomes the teacher
Adams Rubble: yes
Tarmel Udimo: PaB allows us to drop all the assumptions, all the learning, all the embedded filters and just get to the 'heart' of it all...
Adams Rubble: You are leading into my next question, how did you feel about the nine second stops?
Tarmel Udimo: well, they are again a very smart approach and humane:-)
Adams Rubble likes "humane"
Tarmel Udimo: it worked for me almost instantly, it gave room for breath and the 'arising' to take place
Tarmel Udimo: yes humane and gentle
Tarmel Udimo: its a key i think and in a way if we stick to it as an approach and really surrender to it, it provides a direct window into Being. Now I am not sure how this is for those who have not had contact with these ideas embedded in the Being concept, but I suspect it works for them too. Perhaps they question more, but eventually if they drop all the mental constructs around what is or isn't supposed to be talking place then bingo-
Tarmel Udimo: 'reality' opens up and reveals itself.
Adams Rubble: Thank you Tarmel :) Some of us have been exploring without a clear sense of Being
Adams Rubble: Do you care to say a bit more about Being?
Tarmel Udimo: nods
Tarmel Udimo: thinking...
Tarmel Udimo: what I like about the word is that it implies passive-activity. One has only to 'Be' fully where ever one is or whatever one is doing and Being is present...
Tarmel Udimo: I realise that alot of us, me including, struggle with the larger concept of Being...
Adams Rubble: "Be fully" is a lovely phrase
Tarmel Udimo: great:)
Adams Rubble: I would take that to mean an openess. Is that correct?
Tarmel Udimo: yes
Tarmel Udimo: a simple way to say it would be 'to Be present' but then this causes friction for some..:)
Tarmel Udimo: Being is the fabric of the universe and all that exists within it
Adams Rubble: live in the moment?
Tarmel Udimo: yes but there is a subtle difference between Being in the moment and living in the moment. Being implies an openess to not only what is happening, but the potential of what is taking place
Tarmel Udimo: it is an active and yet passive 'feeling' state
Tarmel Udimo: and this Being which is not only 'within' and 'without' all things, connects together - so really it is just 'Being talking to Being', 'Being seeing Being' as there is nothing else:-)

I asked Tarmel whether she drew on some of the traditions for her understanding of Being. How she came to her view of Being

Tarmel Udimo: yes I must have, as all the learning is embedded. Buddhism talks about this alot, (there are are many traditions that do but Buddha I think can speak to a modern understanding)
Tarmel Udimo: but really its Piet/Pema :) who brought this understanding together for me. His direct approach of going to the heart of the matter without tradition did it. He's very clear about this-
Adams Rubble listens intently
Tarmel Udimo: relentlessly consistant as to what 'Being' is - that we ARE Being and I am grateful and appreciative of his efforts
Tarmel Udimo: its been life altering

I mention that PaB has been life altering for many of us, but that Tarmel seems to have caught on to a sense of Being very quickly while Pema has been talking to some of us for months and we are still scratching our heads

Tarmel Udimo: ahhh
Tarmel Udimo: yes well this is a very good question - can the 9-seconds work if no one has had any previous training or contact with other ways of viewing reality outisde of the narrow framework of what humans call reality
Adams Rubble: That one I can answer because I am that person :)
Adams Rubble: YES!
Tarmel Udimo:  well there you go, that's lovely... and thank goodness you won't have to do all the poking around us 'oldies' have had to do:-)
Adams Rubble: hehe.

Here I had a little trouble phrasing the next question about Being. I noted that a clear sense of Being was eluding me. I was edging closer but not there yet. Finally I asked...

Can you say you are making use of Being as a resource as Pema phrases it?
Tarmel Udimo: hummm thinking...
Tarmel Udimo: Are you asking how does one intergrate this understanding of Being into daily life?
Adams Rubble: That would be great if you can answer that but I guess I was asking IF you do
Tarmel Udimo: Well as Pema says, its playing as if one is already doing that. There are many moments of unconnection to Being (except Pema would say one can't be unconnected when one IS Being)
Tarmel Udimo: that I 'wake' up from and go hummm asleep again.. so there is a kind of gentle vigilance that one is always participating in
Adams Rubble nods
Tarmel Udimo: observing what is actually taking place
Tarmel Udimo: and when events happens one has a choice to see it framed within Being or not
Tarmel Udimo: this means developing the muscles of Being to withstand the wear and tear of normal reality-seeing that has been pounded into us from birth and the accepted norm for the majority of humans on the planet
Tarmel Udimo: Eventually I think this space opens up until we are living and breathing Being and we have the energy needed to maintain this level of awareness
Adams Rubble: what nice thoughts :)
Tarmel Udimo: ty
Tarmel Udimo: thank Pema:)