94 replies to this topic

[lrco]

[ms95]

buddhism is all about removing desires as they're the source of unhappiness but if you have no desires, whats the point of living? ergo, buddhism is nonsensical.

[lrco]

buddhism is all about removing desires as they're the source of unhappiness but if you have no desires, whats the point of living? ergo, buddhism is nonsensical.

Read:

There are different schools that differ in their methods of practice (ex, the focus on zen is zazen (meditation), while in other schools the recitation of lessons aloud, is also an important practice). Schools are like different vehicles for different people, but essentially lead to the same place, all schools teach the same four noble truths and the same teachings on emptiness and and non-duality...

That said, you should understand what the Buddha taught to different people, to both believers, non-believers, rich, poor, uneducated or educated. There is no opposition to belief in Buddhism, since that belief benefit someone.

For example, in the early levels of the dharma teaching are taught the four noble truths, meditation and antidotes for emotions etc.. In this scenario the teacher is not worried if the person just do good things to be a good person and it will be reborn as a god or something, or that this person thinks he will be a good person to earn good karma.. This is not important in this first lesson. The first wheel of dharma, the important thing is to discover the causes of suffering and the cure for it (dukkha).

The word dukkha means that the shaft is out of plumb, that is out of alignment. Imagine the plight of a person sitting in that wagon, the force that the buffalo should do and instead follow smoothly from the wagon, it is off-axis alignment.

So Buddha talks about life - the life of all of us - using the example of the wagon which has its axis out of alignment. He says that our lives are out of balance. It is this imbalance that leads to suffering.

In the second and third level of teachings, are taught concepts of emptiness. Concepts are emphasized in all schools, but more emphasized in schools such as Zen and Dzogchen are schools'' worshiped'' by western people that loves to say to everyone that they are skeptics and they support a skeptical ego lol. At this level of teaching, the existence of a creator is not even a possibility,'' rebirth'' is explained exactly how it is: energy conservation, ie, theres no ''i''' or ''me'' that born again.. it is simply some energy which remains, translating: dna. Ie karma in this context, are habits, habits that you inherited either from their parents or some conditioning in childhood.


Emptiness is not complete nothingness; it doesn't mean that nothing exists at all. This would be a nihilistic view contrary to common sense. What it does mean is that things do not exist the way our grasping self supposes they do. As Dalai Lama says, emptiness is "the true nature of things and events," but in the same passage he warns us "to avoid the misapprehension that emptiness is an absolute reality or an independent truth." In other words, emptiness is not some kind of heaven or separate realm apart from this world and its woes.

The Heart Sutra says, "all phenomena in their own-being are empty." It doesn't say "all phenomena are empty." This distinction is vital. "Own-being" means separate independent existence. The passage means that nothing we see or hear (or are) stands alone; everything is a tentative expression of one seamless, ever-changing landscape. So though no individual person or thing has any permanent, fixed identity, everything taken together is what Thich Nhat Hanh calls "interbeing." This term embraces the positive aspect of emptiness as it is lived and acted by a person of wisdom -- with its sense of connection, compassion and love.

The first meaning of emptiness is called "emptiness of essence," which means that phenomena [that we experience] have no inherent nature by themselves." The second is called "emptiness in the context of Buddha Nature," which sees emptiness as endowed with qualities of awakened mind like wisdom, bliss, compassion, clarity, and courage. Ultimate reality is the union of both emptinesses.

Ultimately we suffer because we grasp after things thinking they are fixed, substantial, real and capable of being possessed by ego. It is only when we can see through this illusion and open ourselves, "to the reality of flux and fluidity that is ultimately ungraspable and inconceivable" that we can relax into clarity, compassion and courage. That lofty goal is what makes the effort to understand emptiness so worthwhile.
But now, going back to the 4 nouble truths.. The Second Noble Truth refers to the purpose of life be so, and it is usually translated as desire. But we would have a very odd life if we did not desire. Is not what the Buddha said. The word was that the Buddha used trishna and means "thirst". In the words of the Buddha himself described it: "It's like a man wandering in the desert for many days, thirsty for water." It is also the headquarters of the "I want" and "I do not want," and that's why we all suffer.

What is this "I want" and "I do not want"? What does this indicate? Means that we are not satisfied with this moment "now". Because if we were "here", there wouldnt be no "want" or "do not want". Simply would be this moment, now. The Buddha, using this example, was saying: "Be in this moment." The moment you want or do not want is the moment you leave the now, the present moment, and then, then it leads to suffering.
So we have this imbalance causes're never at the moment and not being at the moment, this leads to suffering. It's very simple. Now you can examine your own life from these words.

But the Buddha did not stop there. He gave us a cure for this "not being in the moment", this suffering. This healing is the Third Noble Truth, the truth is that most misunderstood of all.


He speaks of Nirvana or Nibbana, which is a word that is used in all languages ​​these days, but nobody knows what it means. The word is very simple. Means expire, clear - like blowing a candle. Very simple! The Buddha just wore simple words, yet they were totally misunderstood because it is usually translated as extinction of desire. Correct? Not in any way mean that.

In Buddha's time, the word nirvana, clear, meant simply this: clear. But there was a big difference. According to the science and philosophy of Vedanta, when you delete a flame, like a candle or an oil lamp, you say that the flame became free. When you light a candle, you capture the flame, as if to stand in a cage. Then, in "our" idea extinguish a candle we say "extinguish" or "kill", but at the time of the Buddha, delete a flame meant freeing her.

Then the Buddha never said something like killing your wishes, he spoke of liberation or freedom from this attachment to the "I want" or "I do not want." When you drop it, then your life goes into balance. Here, then, you are completely free. This is a wonderful teaching because it is convenient and you can see it in your own life.

If you're always on time, you can not suffer, you are free to go to the next moment, free to go to the next moment, always totally free, without being stuck in the "I want" or "I do not want." And this is what the Buddha taught. He then gave us the Eightfold Path as a way to achieve this. Just as people say today: "How can I bring this practice to my life?", The Buddha gave us the answer. Is the Eightfold Path: The Right Understanding, Right Thought, Right Speech to the Right Action, the Right Livelihood, Right Effort, Right Surveillance, Right Concentration. But be careful with the word "right", because "correct" implies that there is a "wrong", and the Buddha did not use the word in this way, the Buddha did not speak from a point of view dualistic.

A better word than "right" is "appropriate." Appropriate Language, Thought Appropriate, Appropriate Understanding, etc.. Let us then examine only one of these factors, using the word "appropriate" rather than "right." Appropriate language means not speak ill of another person, do not use words to show, do not use words to suggest something that is not correct. There are many examples in their lives. Simply talking too much is a bad language. We can talk to read too much is also a bad language, or watch too much television would also be inappropriate language.


What the Buddha wanted to do when teaching about these various inappropriate actions was to give us a tool to examine our own lives. What is "appropriate" in terms of our life? Means Language, Thought and Action to help us get rid of our imbalance of our dukkha.

The Eightfold Path used properly will help us put our lives in balance. This is not some esoteric teaching, or what often happens in teaching misunderstood about what the Buddha taught.

The Four Noble Truths are very practical, based on real life. It is a teaching on how to live your life. And I can assure you that if you read any teaching of the Buddha that seem far removed from your life now, it is a bad translation. Because the Buddha was a practical man and intelligent, he looked deeply into what we do with us. From there, he offered us a way out of this.

Again, you shoud all read the book ''what makes you not a buddhist''. its fantastic.

[Gramson]

The proof of the pudding, is a religion that works. If you pray or chant for something, it should occur. I have tried all religions, including being pretty high up in the Norse religion of Asatru many years ago. I have been Native American and done the peyote... you name it, I have done it. I had a Near Death Experience many years ago (1989) where I was open to all things and events. The archetypes that appeared were many, but the main ones were from Hinduism and Buddhism. Being that Buddhism derived from Hinduism, this makes sense. The main link between the two was the Upanishads and the Lotus Sutra, linking Hindu to the Buddhist, in particular Nichiren ( Japanese) Buddhis That part of the Creator in us, and all things.m. Nichiren Buddhism can be linked directly to Quantum mechanics and psychology. The Buddha is " The void, which as it moves, creates".... which is the Higgs Boson particle. That being said, as I said in the beginning, the proof is in the pudding. I have seen and experienced what some would consider miraculous happenings in coming to an understanding of the Lotus Sutra, and just doing a simple chant. The understanding is that ALL life is holy, including planets, stars trees etc. All can be Buddhas in their own class.... such as a Buddha for dogs, etc. Or, another way..... the life force that all things have , IS the "God " energy. I chanted, disbelieving, the first time with a group, I was told my wish, whatever it was, would happen. It did,Several times. ( we have many desires.) The last time I wanted an old girl friend to find me, as I had lost her phone number. The phone rang at the end of the chant, it was her. So, as I say, the proof is in the pudding. But I think the main thing is to understand the basic truth of the universe, that we are all one, linked with the Creator. Sort of like an All Permeating wave length, that links all things. The chant is in an ancient Indian language... which I think would link most people anyway ( Indo European) I won't go further, do your own research.

[Sciencyst]

This thread is a perfect example of the vast misconceptions Westerners have of Buddhism.