Autorentext

Born in New Bedford, MA in 1948, Daniel P. Brown was granted scholarships to obtain his Bachelor’s, Masters, and PhD degrees. Ultimately, his expertise spanned the fields of clinical psychology, hypnosis, forensics, and meditation in the Tibetan Buddhist traditions of Mahamudra and Dzogchen. He also authored Pointing Out the Great Way, translated seven seminal texts in the Bon tradition, co-authored The Transformation of Consciousness with Ken Wilber, Hypnotherapy & Hypnoanalysis with Erika Fromm, and Memory, Trauma Treatment and the Law with Cory Hammond and Alan Scheflin, as well as contributed to many professional journals. He also served on the Harvard Medical School faculty for over twenty-four years. His devotion to helping others included testifying at the War Crimes Tribunal in the Hague and defending the veracity of children’s memories of having been abused by clergy across the U.S.

Klappentext

Volume 2 of the Cloudless Mind collection carries readers deeper into Dr. Daniel P. Brown's Wednesday night dialogues, charting the territory where profound meditation realization meets the uncompromising ethics of daily life.

Spanning two transformative years, this volume finds Dr. Brown guiding his students across the threshold from foundational practice to the subtle and sublime—the "crossing over" into the Natural State where emptiness and liveliness co-arise.

Here, the conversation turns to the heart of Buddhist transformation: cultivating empathy and compassion through Common Humanity Practice, understanding karma theory not as dogma but as the mechanics of intention, and developing the "healthy sense of self" that prevents emptiness from collapsing into nihilism. Dr. Brown explores the neurocircuitry of metacognition—how we see our own basis of operation—and examines the background beliefs that shape our experience, offering psychological precision to the process of spiritual unfolding.

This volume introduces advanced Dzogchen teachings rarely accessible to Western students: the Rainbow Body, Dharmadhatu exhaustion, visions in non-meditation, and the Vast Expanse beyond conceptual mind. Yet these lofty topics remain grounded in practical application—working skillfully with physical and emotional pain, processing grief while recognizing the indestructible essence, and maintaining virtue "24/7" amid a culture of greed and selfishness.

Perhaps most poignantly, Volume 2 addresses what Dr. Brown calls "preparing to die"—extensive teachings on phowa (consciousness transference), the stages of change, and cultivating the capacity for a fearless death. Throughout, he warns against the traps of spiritual pride and cognitive dissonance, urging honest practice over premature claims of awakening.

Cloudless Mind, Volume 2 offers an intimate portrait of a master at the height of his powers—equally at home discussing Asanga's Nine Stages of Staying, postformal cognitive development, or the inexhaustible Bodhicitta that invites all beings toward liberation.

Inhalt

VOLUME II 28.October 29, 2014p. # Themes: Mindfulness vs emptiness of “grab”; mixing practice; awake in deep sleep 29.November 19, 2014p. # Themes: Signs of Tulku emanations: Rahob Rinpoche, HH the Dalai Lama, Panchen Lama 30.December 10, 2014p. # Themes: Empathy and compassion; common humanity practice 31.January 14, 2015p. # Themes: Ethics, the need for moral development and conduct 32. January 21, 2015p. # Themes: Mindfulness; awareness; metacognition; neurocircuitry 33.March 11, 2015p. # Themes: Levels of trust and confidence; virtue 34.May 27, 2015p. # Themes: Working with physical and emotional pain; rainbow body 35.June 4, 2015p. # Themes: The natural state; crossing over; recognize the shift; emptiness-liveliness 36.June 10, 2015p. # Themes: Conduct 24/7; karmic memory; flourishing; cracking the eggshell 37.July 8, 2015p. # Themes: Beliefs in the background, negative or positive 38.July 22, 2015p. # Themes: Karma theory; intention matters; compassion & conduct 39.August 26, 2015p. # Themes: Prayer East and West; gift waves of influence 40.September 9, 2015p. # Themes: Self-emptiness and Other-emptiness; levels of awareness 41.December 2, 2015p. # Themes: A violent world; going beyond fear; common humanity practice 42.December 23, 2015p. # Themes: Heart-mind; Dharmadhātu exhaustion; visions; non-meditation 43.January 6, 2016p. # Themes: Metacognition is how you see your basis of operation 44.January 20, 2016p. # Themes: Enlightened mind is an invitation; inexhaustible bodhicitta, set the intention 45.February 3, 2016p. # Themes: Don’t jump ahead; using the gaze; positive qualities 46.February 10, 2016p. # Themes: A healthy sense of self is important; emptiness is not nihilistic 47.May 4, 2016p. # Themes: Constructions of mind; grab; emptiness practice 48.May 11, 2016p. # Themes: The vast expanse; visions; considerateness 49.June 1, 2016p. # Themes: Our culture of greed and selfishness; be honest in your practice 50.June 8, 2016p. # Themes: Processing different kinds of grief; the indestructible essence 51.July 13, 2016p. # Themes: Mixing practice; Asanga’s Nine Stages of Staying 52.July 20, 2016p. # Themes: Awareness beyond concepts; nonduality is not awakening; ultimate compassion 53.August 10, 2016p.# Themes: Postformal cognitive development; interconnectedness