Respect that is limited to holy people, just points out how little respect we have for everyone else.
As long as teachers allow students to simply swap gross attachments for more refined versions of the same, suffering for both teachers & students, will be inevitable.
Hello everyone!
I'm Flavia and I was introduced to Buddhism and the concept of karma a little while ago, so I'm trying to reconcile this idea with my life experience.
I had a particularly violent upbringing and, according to the laws of karma, the terrifying childhood I experienced, full of violence, verbal abuse, and the extreme rejection and neglect that came from my mother was deserved because it was my karma. I grew up to be a self-destructive, self-hating individual who strongly believes that no good thing can come out of me... I grew up extremely depressed and suffered from an array of mental health issues that I didn't even know I had. However, since that's my karma, I believe I should have a better mindset, stop "acting out" and accept that. But practically, that makes me feel even more dreadful... How can one receive so much suffering to the point you wish suffering on yourself and move on? I don't want to do anything... It took me days to finally write this. I don't want to talk to anyone, I just isolate and try to make ends meet. It's interfering with my ability to provide for myself, my health, everything. I've been listening to some mantras and all, but that's not helping me so much. I really don't want to do all this anymore because I'm super tired.
Anyway, I don't want to make this long, I just would like to ask your advice on how I can accept my karma and have a better attitude about it.
Thanks to anyone who has the patience to read it and respond to it. I really appreciate it.
Hi friends, been a minute since I checked in. How are you all?
I just approved a bunch of new members (I'd forgotten to check for a few months), so I hope they all filter in. Do reach out if I accidentally allowed any spammers in, hard to tell sometimes and I'd rather let a couple spammers by than block any legitimate folks.
We don't have a formal rules doc (which we should, but that's another discussion) so I wanted to pop in and set an expectation about using LLMs ("large language models" like ChatGPT and its kin, often called "AI") here:
Please do not use an LLM to generate text that you post to NewBuddhist as your own. If you want to post a small section of LLM output for discussion, kindly delineate it clearly with a formatted blockquote or quotation marks. If you post LLM output as your own text and are discovered, you may be banned without warning. We are a community for humans, not word blender bots.
Thanks all!
In fact, many companies search for a guaranteed model of generating income. This ranges from social engineering like Facebook to the taste of hamburgers by McDonalds to the gambling mechanisms of Las Vegas casinos to the opioid medications created by Purdue Pharmaceuticals. Anything which addicts or habituates people can be used to extract money and effort from them.
All of it works to fuel the fires of samsara, your desires in particular, but the media also works on your aversions and delusions. While Buddhism works to bring these fires under control, modern Western society works to fan the flames in order to get you to consume more. The influence of these companies does not bring you closer to peace and nirvana.
I think it is a pity that Buddhist countries in Asia are now also moving towards capitalist models, because the ultimate expression of these capitalist ventures is the exploitation of unconsciousness and unbridled desire.
To help shield myself from these things I am really careful with bringing certain influences into my life.
The things I enjoy are satsang (“meeting in truth”), music, podcasts, forums. There are still places where wholesome influences can be found, and these I try to contribute to with time and attention.
Twitter is for the birdbrains...TiKTok is a ticking mindbomb...Instagram I've no idea what that is...
I only use fb and Whatapp to stay in touch with my family and friends who live miles away, eg overseas ....I have a YouTube account for posting short videos on here and to family and friends I also watch docos, old films and some news sites...
The most time I spend on the internet during my days off is on here...
Accessing the internet has become part of my daily life, but not to such extent that it becomes disruptive...In other words I still have a life...
I have cushion time twice a day, and check in on the mind's flow throughout the day off the cushion..
Everything in moderation...including moderation...
The easiest way to measure the degree to which one is attached or addicted to social media is to just impose and stick to set limits of your use of it.
Here, I expect a thousand different reasons why each person can not do this in today's world.
If one ever really becomes serious about freeing oneself from its attendant sufferings, it helps when one can finally accept that our social media indulgences are simply the face of the Mara of our times.
My solution has been to try to limit my daily screen time from any electronic source to not exceed whatever time within that same day that I formally meditate. At least with this plan, I spend no more time indulging in this cause of suffering than I spend in freeing myself from it.
What was formally my pimp, can then become a half way decent meditation instructor.
Challenges beyond this though are how to not just switch from one form of Mara worship to another.
There is no such thing as a 'JUST' war.
A big, tough samurai once went to see a little monk. “Monk,” he said, in a voice accustomed to instant obedience, “teach me about Heaven and Hell!”
The monk looked up at this mighty warrior and replied calmly, but with utter disdain, “Teach you about Heaven and Hell? I couldn’t teach you anything! You're pompous! You're loud! You’re dirty, and you smell! And do you call that a sword?! Your blade is rusty! You’re a disgrace, an embarrassment to the Samurai class! Pah!! Get out of my sight, I can’t stand even to look at you!!”
The samurai was furious. He shook, grew red in the face, and was speechless with rage. He pulled out his sword and raised it above him, preparing to slay the monk.
Without flinching, the Monk softly said, “That, is Hell”.
The samurai was stopped in his tracks, and froze in mid movement. The calm, benign compassion and surrender of this little man who knelt quietly before him, unmoved and serene, was a thing he had never before encountered. He dropped his sword, knelt with gratitude, and was suddenly peaceful.
“And that - is Heaven,” smiled the monk softly.
~Zen
All it takes, is for one side to just stop.
Just stop.
THAT - is Just.