notes

 

«All the money they earned went only to their monastery». The monastic rules say that the monks are not allowed to have personal belongings, so any gift must go to the monastery, which then manages for the needs of all the monks. However there are some tolerances, for humanity or common sense reasons. In modern democratic world this rule sometimes arise some concerns about exploitation of the monk's work. Some solutions are indicated in the text.

 

«Traditional sponsoring» Usually to support a person dedicated to spiritual work (monk or yogi) is considered a very virtuous deed, an occasion to create great merits. So it is an ancient and important custom, still lively today, to sponsor monks, retreatants and monasteries.

 

«State support of monasteries and retreat centres» The custom of traditional sponsoring (note) extended to governments of various countries which supported monastic and spiritual communities, for their good and cohesive influence on their society. If it seems less common today, it is only because it is more wisely used.

 

« World Wide Zambu Shedrup Ling International University» I describe this project in my book « General Epistemology »: a network of universities dedicated to the use of General Epistemology in various domains, classical (physics, medicine...) or modern (spirituality, ethics, metaphysics...) When the classical science epistemology is effective only in the material domain, the General Epistemology extends the classical science methods into non-material domains, directly or with some indispensable adaptations.

 

Quantum telescope. This machine is described in «The Missing Planets» and further in this text. It uses a quantum interaction independent of distance, like in the Aspect experiment. It allows for very close views on other planets, like a porthole opening in far space, at only some metres from the observed object.

 

The missing planet affair. This is described in my book «The Missing Planets». Basically the quantum telescope allowed for detailed study of all the planets of the Galaxy and abroad. This study showed that intelligent civilisations existed, but disappeared at a certain stage of their evolution, as they changed from the ordinary material state to an immaterial paradise state.

 

The samsara. The usual state of suffering and illusion, where the consciousness is bound by its psychological defilements. Once free, it obtains the Nirvana, a state free of suffering and obscuration. Usually samsara and Nirvana as understood as places in the universe (such as Earth and Paradise) but well understood these notions point at states of mind, explaining that a defiled mind will not find any relief in «escaping from matter» or that a liberated mind can find satisfaction even under very harsh situations on Earth.

 

Yoga. Any method to liberate our mind, generally based on energy practices. The Hatha Yoga being the first known practice in the West, the idea of Yoga is still associated with that of postures or movements, but most Yogas are pure inner practices.

 

Dharma. In Buddhism, the assembly of doctrines, techniques and explanations about the spiritual path. Some extend this meaning to any efficient liberating method, even in other religions.

 

Plate tectonics. This refers to the geology facts as what the surface of an active planet is made of plates with move, giving the shapes of continents and oceans. This often gives matching coast lines, such as the Western American coast with Africa and Europe. Here the complete absence of matching coasts is a clue for something wrong.

 

Standard deviation. In a statistics we can define the mean, but also a number which defines the discrepancy compared to an expected mean. For instance, for human sizes, one standard deviation from average is considered as a normal variation, while more than two may indicate a problem, for instance about nutrition.

 

Doppler effect. This effect makes that the sound of an approaching car has an higher pitch than of a car moving away. It is a very general effect, which makes shift the frequency of any signal (sound, light, radio...) when the emitter moves.

 

Special quantum interaction. This means that the photons are not absorbed by a detector, but that their presence is detected indirectly by subtle interferometry methods, without transmitting to these photons any information which would destroy their quantum state.

 

Lamrim. Literally «progressive path». The Lamrims are texts or books which are a whole plan of the Tibetan Buddhism, with various steps according to the motivation. The most well known is His Holiness the 14th Dalaï Lama «The Path to Enlightenment», but there are many others. In the Kagyu School this is rather known under the name of «Lo Jong». I several times quote the Lamrim about the meditation of «accepting suffering» or as the «spiritual Judo» which uses the strength of pain and obstacles as a mean to progress, in place of letting them destroy us.

 

Karma. After numerous traditions, the karma (accumulation of our past good and bad deeds, speech and thoughts) is what produces our actual state of happiness or suffering. From there the interest of accumulating good karma (through ethics and concentration) and eliminating bad karma (through purification practices, or the dedication of our sufferings and obstacles). Contrarily to a common idea, Buddhism doesn't seek to for good karma, but rather to free us of its rule.

 

Trimpon. Traditionally, the «master of law». In modern Tibet, a judge, here a committing magistrate.

 

Convenience tulku. A tulku is a master who managed to reincarnate again as an human, in place of getting a deserved paradise, with for purpose to help other sentient beings to reach happiness. The tulku recognition is a speciality of Tibetan Buddhism, and Tulkus are kept in higher esteem. A convenience tulku would be an ordinary person falsely recognised as a tulku, for fame or power purposes. A well known example is the false Panchen Lama «chosen» by the Chinese government.

 

FAE. Full Awareness experience. A person's consciousness is projected in a paradise spiritual world, where it gets teachings and a better understanding of life. A FAE is described in details in the first book of the series «The Missing Planets».

 

Fire Puja. A tantric karma purification practice, that individuals can undertake, of which often comes as a ceremony concluding a retreat. It consists at throwing offerings in a fire, while visualising it is our bad karma, which is thus destroyed.

 

Interferometers. Using wave properties of radio or light, it is possible to connect several antennas or telescopes, in order to simulate a larger one, with a far better magnifying power.

 

The four guardians. These are four kings devoted to protection of the religion, which are invoked to protect monasteries and retreat places. For this reason statues or images of them are often present at the entrance of monasteries, temples and especially of retreat places.

 

Death and impermanence. This is a basic concept of Buddhism. Considering and meditating the impermanence of things and situations, together with the death which can come at any moment, leads to detachment of immediate purposes and belongings, and build a better motivation to spiritual practice, the only thing able to bring us a stable happiness and the solution to death.

 

Dordje and bell. Usually Tibetan Buddhism tantric practitioners hold a Vajra (Dordje) and a bell, when meditating. These objects have a symbolic purpose, the Vajra for the Tantric practice, and the bell as a recall of the emptiness (note) of things.

 

Tchuba. The basic male Tibetan cloth, a kind of short and large tunic.

 

Trimpon La. In Tibetan, the term «La» added after a name if a common mark of politeness or deference.

 

«Abstract transition». In The Missing Planets, the advanced civilisations were found to change from the usual material state to a spiritual state, where they experience a perfect happiness.

 

Hate attachment ignorance. These are generally described as the three main «poisons of the mind», or basic psychological defilements, which are the only causes of suffering. Thus the interest to eliminate them, and the stress on this in Buddhism and other traditions.

 

The four forces. The four steps described here are known as «the four forces» and they are the basis of all purification practices. It is a Buddhist concept, but which could easily be adapted to any other religion.

 

Stockholm syndrome. After a very serious hostage taking in Stockholm, in the 1970', it was noticed that persons in high stress situations, such as hostages, completely lose the sense of the situation. In the example, the hostages clearly «felt» that the police «threatened» them, when the bandits «protected» them. This concept is from the French Baron Empain, who was also a victim of a very nasty hostage taking, and who describes and names this feeling.

 

Emptiness (Shunyata). In this very basic Buddhist concept, things appear to the sensory organs while having no ultimate existence. It is a metaphysical conception on the ultimate working of reality, as well as a very practical consideration: why to bother if things are only appearances?

 

Emptiness was often confused with nihilism or atheism. To really understand emptiness requires the mastery of non-dual thought. This explains that dualistic minds, such as the fanatics like this character named Tegal, can only misunderstand Emptiness.

 

Milarepa. A very popular Tibetan Yogi and saint in the 11th century, at the very beginning of Tibetan Buddhism. He dedicated years to solitary retreat in very harsh conditions, and is said to have obtained spiritual powers.

 

Lidar. It is the equivalent of a radar, but using a laser beam for emission, and a small telescope for reception. It is unnoticeable through radio means, and it is impossible to become stealth to a lidar. At least it is what believed the conspirers...

 

Texture. In cosmology, a region of space which does not have the same physical properties as others. It looks like ordinary space, but, for instance, particles such as the electron do not have the same mass, leading to very different behaviours of matter. I speak of textures in the part on physics of my book « General Epistemology ».

 

Baryonic number. This number appears in the equations of physics, as being equal to one for certain particles (proton, neutron, and their family, all called baryons) and zero for the others. (Or -1 for the anti-proton, anti-neutron...) In a nuclear interaction, the total baryonic number cannot change, meaning that if there is for instance one baryon, one must also remain at the end of the reaction, even if it is of a different type. The baryonic number of an object, such as a planet, would be the total number of baryons constituting it. In the example here, the texture gives the baryons a very weak mass (the extra mass-energy being dissipated) but these baryons are still the same number: an «object» must remain, whatever it is.

 

God Realm in the samsara wheel. Samsara (note) is basically a state of consciousness in which the consciousness is bound to undergo various pleasant or unpleasant experiences, in an endless cycle. From this the interest of being liberated of this state, to have only pleasant experiences. This idea of a cycle leads the tradition to represent the samsara in a wheel, which sectors represent the various types of experiences samsaric beings must pass through. In bottom there is the hell (as in Christian or Moslem religion, generated by hate and anger). While climbing, we find the animal realm (marked by ignorance, inability to understand things), the hungry ghost realm (generated by desire, where the consciousness experiences frustration). Still higher, we find the Human Realm (our usual experience, where we have to struggle for an impermanent happiness) the Titan Realm (generated by jealousy or paranoia. We also find Titans or jealous gods in India and in more western traditions such as the Greek Titans, Scandinavian Jotuns or the biblical «giants»). At the top there is the «God Realm» (God must be understood here in the Indian meaning of a powerful character, but not in the Christian or Moslem meaning of an absolute cause to the universe) where beings experience a great happiness, beauty, intellectual refinement... but the lack on hindsight or concentration leads samsaric gods to fall sooner or later in the lower realms, where they experience a terrible frustration about their new conditions. So the state of samsaric god is not a good deal, it is just like resorting to a bad borrowing.

 

Container houses. This idea is not to convert an industrial transportation container into a poor house, but rather of a mobile home, with all the features of a comfortable house, in the format of the railway containers for easy transportation.

 

Mani cairns. A common custom in ancient Tibet was to pile up stones engraved with mantras, especially in places as mountain passes, to thank gods to allow for a safe travel.

 

Painted rocks. A common custom in ancient Tibet was to paint rocks with mantras or large images of tantric deities.

 

Tirtikha (Sanskrit). (Mutigpa in Tibetan) Spreader of false spiritual teachings, what we call the false guru of a sect (note).

 

Sect. I always use this word in the meaning of «false or dangerous religious group». But it is still used by some (or in texts written before 1975) to point at religious groups in general, good or bad.

 

Note 49: Kuyper belt. The second asteroid belt of the solar system, composed of icy asteroids away from Neptune.

 

Note 50: Oort cloud. A spherical cloud of small icy asteroids surrounding the solar system at a great distance, where the comets come from.

 

Note 51: Lyman Alpha wavelength. When excited by fluorescence, chemical bodies respond with emitting light at precise wavelength. The hydrogen gives a set of wavelengths, which most intense is into the ultraviolet, the Lyman Alpha wavelength. In stars, hydrogen absorbs much of the light on this wavelength, and are thus far less luminous, allowing for observations which are not possible with the full spectrum of wavelengths.

 

Note 52: 100m European OWL telescope. This project emerged in 1999 from the harsh competition between astronomers, and especially with the US large (8m) space telescope project, which would beat any ground telescope. The idea was to build a ground telescope so large (100m!) that no space telescope could match it before many years.