Best Of
Re: Purity and Nuance
Interesting. I find that much of my understanding is devoted to boiling nuanced concepts down into simple-yet-deep principles that are easy to grasp. I appreciate purity and as the ai says ‘foundational values’ as things that I hold in high esteem. I don’t like thinking in opposites or contradictory pairs, it seems to me to create a lot of friction in the mind if you do that.
From a Buddhist standpoint I feel purity is a core value, something important to the path. The whole idea of the Eightfold Path is based on purity in view (right view), livelihood (right livelihood), and so on. Letting go, renouncing is the other side of purity, to get rid of stuff you don’t need.
Jeroen
Re: Some delusions that come from meditation
I think this is more an opinion about spirituality than fact. Like more a belief of how we should be in the world rather than a delusion.
- An excessive love of peace and quiet, to the point of no longer being able to function around ordinary people.
Speaking for myself, my experience is that people have a hard time being around me more than I do them because I don't fit the mold. Occasionally I'll find myself at a party and get in a conversation, everyone is in an excited sort of mood and then the vibe settles down and it gets weird.
- An unwillingness to engage in society, to the point of refusing to work together for political issues, doing charitable work, or, being a useful member of the community.
Sure, yeah we are always tied in with society and its important to give back. During Buddha's time he had his monks go to society to collect alms and offer teachings.
- A belief in the ultimate metaphysical importance of “spiritual things”: for example, believing that simply meditating for long periods of time makes the world a better place all by itself.
"All by itself" does a lot of work here. Doing spiritual work is like filling the cup, creating a place from which to operate. Not sure how many people have been to a monastery that radiates peace, where the feeling is palpable? My view is that these sorts of places are important to spread the value of spirituality.
- Becoming obsessed with teaching what you have learned through meditation to other people,
- whether or not they are capable of, or even interested in, learning it.
Yep, its important to meet people where they are. I think about planting seeds or offering information that may help move someone one inch closer to a healthy life than convincing them right now to drop everything and become a monk. To walk a spiritual path people need to come to it of their own accord through understanding or hope. By letting our own light shine we give others permission to do the same. And social effects transfer not only to people we directly interact with, studies of this effect show it passes as much as twice more, three degrees of separation. By offering our own drop and through the collective effort of others walking a spiritual path an impact is made.
- Becoming addicted to altered states of consciousness and losing the ability to function in the world of ordinary people.
Addicted, what does that mean in this scenario? Is a hermit addicted to spirituality? It doesn't seem like enlightenment is a thing in the author's world. A difference in metaphysical world view about what is and how it all works. Like a monastery radiating peace, I've met spiritual teachers who do the same. These sorts of beings impact the world in a positive way that the kind person working at a food shelter doesn't.
person
Re: Some delusions that come from meditation
@Lionduck said:
@Vastmind:
You are correct. Life is balance or more often, the attempts to create and maintain balance. I find myself in not so much an altered state as an enhanced state. A "Heightened Awareness" without being firmly grounded is delusion. Thus does an altered state, become illusion. When meditation become escape, it is no longer purposeful. It becomes the goal, the purpose for it's own sake. That leads to delusion,arrogance false awareness, frustration, and burnout.
Approach any endeavor the must be approached with a fresh, open mind. No matter the form of meditation , be it silent, walking or chanting . Instead of "Clearing our minds of thought or desires", we should endeavor clear our minds of clutter, or at least mute them. The random thoughts and monkey mind will come and go. The focus should remain on the purpose, the reason of our activity. And give ourselves grace. No one is perfect. Everyone, even the "Masters" slip from time to time. When we slip, step off the path fall down, we get back up, get back on the path and take the next step. Remember, when you fall, you are still advancing - falling forward.Peace to all
This made me think of how I thought about arhats vs bodhisattvas when I got into the path and was forming my views. The arhat turns away from the world while the bodhisattva turns towards the world. They both pursue liberation, the path of the Buddha takes so much longer because they encompass the whole world within their spirituality.
person
Daoism book review
Digging Your Own Well: Daoism as a Practical Philosophy
Written by Cloudwalking Owl (Bill Hulet)….AKA…Bill, from Substack…..if you know, you know. 
So I ordered the paperback. It’s about 95 pages and the first 10 or so pages are his background and credentials, along with a few disclaimers concerning Chinese language and kind of a set up for why/how he presents and spells some things.
Then the good stuff starts. I found it very easy to read and very palatable. He gives practical stories and observations about applying Daoism in daily life and how to move and the different Dao meditations. I found him relatable.He connected some thoughts and concepts to Buddhist terms too, which made it easier for me, sprinkled with a few science examples also. I chuckled a few times too…extra points for being down to earth and what he calls ‘groovy’, hahaha.
I enjoyed the teachings on Hard vs Soft, and the universal problems with meditation as far as the delusions that can come from it. I think I’m going to apply the “Sitting and Forgetting” approach that he describes. The Daoist concept of doing without doing appealed to me as well.
From pg 29
There is something about Western society that encourages people to look at the world as being composed of “things”.
In significant ways, Daoism is different—-it teaches us to look at the world as a “process”.
Amen Brother Bill…I needed to hear that! Anyway, nice little read and I definitely took some things away from it and some things I’ll continue to think over.
Vastmind
Re: Rebirth as an animal
The traditional view in Buddhism is that a human life offers the best conditions for enlightenment.
I basically agree with @Jeroen, the animal world is difficult and filled with suffering. A constant search for food, always on the lookout to not be food yourself. Being a human offers opportunities to change the way your mind operates, it allows for art and science and a relief from the vicissitudes and stress of an animalistic world.
If you're someone who suffers a lot from negative rumination I can see how the sort of ignorance of animals would be a kind of bliss though.
person
Re: Buddhism and the Theatre *raises hand in a dramatic fashion*
I was just reading about meditative concentration from the 6 paramitas of Mahayana Buddhism. In the section about meditative concentration they talk about the virtue of a monastery compared to the householders life. A monastery was defined as 500 armspans away from a town (an earshot). I think that theatre could be spoken of as a negative if they are keeping someone away from having a very peaceful life where it's easy to reach meditative concentration. So the problem of theatre might be that it's one of the things in the householders life that keeps them away from a monastery life. I also read that even walking 7 footsteps (symbolic or literal?) towards a monastery was a very virtuous offering to the Buddhas, even more virtuous than making extensive offerings of food, drink, flowers, and so forth.
From my reading (translation of the Jewel Ornament of Liberation):
The Good Qualities of Solitude. Escaping from agitation and staying in monasteries for the sake of enlightenment and of sentient beings has many good qualities:
a) It is an excellent offering to all the Buddhas,
b) one will renounce samsara, will be free from the eight worldly concerns, and will not encourage the afflicting emotions
c) meditative concentration will arise
Jeffrey
Re: The AI tsunami
I just watched this docu about companion AIs, it seems like quite a few people are vulnerable to this. It’s basically emotional manipulation as a business model.
Jeroen