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hello everyone I'm new to this.... have a great day
jae
Veteran
Any advice for a beginners journey much appreciated
0
Comments
Im a beginner myself so I'll just link two sites.
(Theravada)
Articles, including basics of Buddhism and additional resources for study
Access to Insight:A good general site for reference & learning.
All the best __/\__
Be kind. Read stuff. Ask questions. Try and listen (that is after all only polite). Be kind . . . even when the dithering repeat themself and above all be kind.
:wave:
awake n missouri
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2012
Sacred
Many of us involved in this practice use words like "sacred" and "spiritual" as a way to point to what we hope to find, how we hope to live and what we find helpful or supportive of our effort to live in a way that contributes to inner and outer harmony, compassion and peacefulness. So I was surprised by the strength of my reaction this month when I came across this in a book review in Tricycle magazine:
"The central message of Jack Kornfield's Bringing
Home the Dharma: Awakening Right Where You
Are is that every part of your life is sacred."
What rose up in me was that this was not true.
As I reflected on this reaction what came to mind was a conversation I had with Ginny Morgan in 1993. We were driving down a hot Kansas highway after attending a retreat in the Colorado mountains with Joseph Goldstein and Sharon Salzberg. Ginny had been talking about "spiritual" off and on throughout the trip. Finally I admitted, with a bit of shame, that although I was quite committed to meditation after about six years of practice, I had no idea what the word "spiritual" meant, what it referred to.
After about another twenty years of practice, and after having used the world "spiritual" many, many times myself —and knowing I will use it many times more— I still have to admit that I really don't have any idea what it means. But there's no longer shame in admitting that. Instead, there's a sense of relief. This is part of what the practice has done for me. Helped me to see that there is not a reality –sacred or spiritual– where we can live our lives in some way separate or distinct and preferable to this one.
There can be a shift in perception or glimpses of something undefinable. If this happens, our perspective on life can change radically.
But this life is the one we have. It may not be the most convenient or the most preferable life. It may not be the one we thought the practice was going to bring to us. But it is our life. It is the one we have.
Our practice isn't to become some kind of superior spiritual being or to attain some special, preferable kind of reality. Our practice is to more fully become a human being living this life, the only life we have, as fully and completely as we can. Our practice is to find a way to be present in, intimate with, the life we have. When we live in this way the mental chatter that keeps us separate simply blows on through and the heart is open and responsive.
But these are just words, creating another idealized reality. The only way to be intimate with our lives, to realize this is to do the work ourselves, to see when we're distracted from this, whether by greed, by aversion, by thoughts that there is some perfection to attain, or maybe even by thoughts that we've arrived, that we've finally got it.
There's no sacred, no profane. There's nothing to attain. And of course, everything.
POSTED BY PHILIP L. JONES AT 11:32 AM 2 COMMENTS:
I suggest checking out the world buddhist directory here - http://www.buddhanet.info/wbd/
from there you can find sanghas(communities) near you. If you have a variety I suggest visiting each and beginning the process of finding a tradition/sect that may be right for you, if any. Regardless it's good to have a well rounded exploration of this new experience called Buddhism.
as far as links, I second EvenThird's link to the accesstoinsight.org website. I would caution you however as much of the website consists of direct ancient pali texts, the suttas, that can be confusing, boring, and annoying to beginners.
I highly highly suggest buddhanet.net. I've yet to find a better general buddhist education website out there, covering all traditions and aspects of this thing we call Buddhism.
also if you are just starting out on the meditation end of things.. I highly suggest this very short 3 minute video that I wish I found at the beginning of my training, would of saved me years of suffering ahah. The Simile of the Cup, Ajahn Brahm.
Upshot: Go forward with patience, courage and doubt. Pay attention and take responsibility. Find a practice and practice it. Use what you find useful. And remember that just because there are nuts in the pie doesn't mean the pie is nuts.
Wisdom is not what you know, it is who you are.
However you choose to take your learning and meditation forward @Jae, remember 3 things - always try and have a sense of humour and compassion for yourself; remember to return to the source of the 4 noble truths frequently as they are the teachings from which buddhist dharma flows; and be mindful in whatever mediation you find helps you return home to your present awareness. Enjoy!
Metta
@anataman -- "Who" or "what" ... get 'er done!
Some of need to be reminded of the benefits of guided meditations. Also as a reminder do not listen to dharma talks whilst mindlessly driving a potential Buddha (even yourself) to distraction. Find the time to be single minded rather than monkey minded like me.
http://www.buddhanet.net/audio-meditation.htm
:thumbsup:
I 'came back' to Buddhism via a secular route, and have just followed the fractal paths that rise up before me in terms of what I do in my practice, it's been very intuitive. I don't worry about what's right or wrong, but on what resonates with plain old every day life. Give yourself permission to explore with an open mind, and trust what intrigues you as a sign to look further.
The Buddha said over and over again that we already have what is necessary to Wake Up within us and around us, right now. Meditation, sincere intention, a Teacher or ten, and a pack of Dharma buddies (the sangha) . . . you are on your way
Gassho
My advice is:
1. Meditate
2. Ask questions
I hope you have a wonderful day!
Entering the room, I did the requisite bows and settled myself before the teacher.
"How are you?" he asked mildly.
"Shitty!" I replied instantly.
"Every day is a good day," he said in imitation of a great Zen teacher who had once used the same words.
And that pissed me off even worse. I wasn't about to sit still for some copycat bullshit.
"Every day is a good day," I snapped, "and some days are SHITTY days!"
And he started to laugh. I mean really laugh. It wasn't some sissy laugh of a CEO who needs to remain in control: He was laughing as if I had told him the best dirty joke in the world.
He laughed and laughed and I sat there flabbergasted. When he finally got control of himself, he looked me straight in the eye and said,
"You're right! Every day is a good day. Some days are shitty days AND ... every day is a good day!"
And he had me by the short hairs. There was nothing I could do but ... laugh.
... Sometimes a life-long practice is a lovely thing to learn and sometimes it really, really isn't lovely at all. Honesty counts in Buddhism.