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Re: There is no escape from no duality
There seems to be a bit to unpack here. I do think working towards awakening or enlightenment is a noble pursuit deserving of work and commitment but then, I don't think enlightenment is a state of bliss, nor do I think Buddha was in a perpetual state of bliss even if he was perpetually and completely aware. I think once we hit enlightenment, there is still work to be done.
I see duality as an illusion. Nothing is really seperate from anything else and all borders are convention. I don't believe in "nothing" so I figure there was always something going on.
I feel we have conditional will. The Middle way between the extremes of free will and determinism. We are conditional beings so we are conditioned but we also do some conditioning of our own. The Middle Way is the gift from Sujata that woke Buddha up.
I also think it's good to remember that Buddha most certainly did not leave this wife and son. Sidhartha Gautama left his wife and son. Buddha had yet to wake up through Sidhartha when he left. When he did wake up, he could have gone in any direction but he went back and his wife and son joined the Sangha.
We don't need to escape duality. It's illusion we can use.
There is no escape from no duality
I get the impression a lot of people new to Buddhism and even some (seeming) buddhas themselves have the impression that enlightenment is something you want, that it is desirable in some way or deserving of work and commitment.
From my perspective, what neither of these parties seem to fail to realize is that any state of bliss a buddha achieved did not come without either immense work, suffering or both. What goes up must come down and vice versa. That is, they created a duality to a enjoy the state they are in.
Any associated description of eternity or timelessness is, in my opinion, a description of a long lived but ultimately temporary state, or a reference to the eternal nature of consciousness itself.
Duality for me is the true nature of the universe. It explains so much: how something (the universe) exists where nothing should. It is nothing in the end because all energies cancel themselves out. It also explains why roughly (or probably more accurately EXACTLY) half of life sucks overall and why free will is such a big question. Our consciousness is as helpless and bound by laws as the particles that make up the matter of what we (think) we see around us.
The Buddhas teachings seem to be completely in line with this. He never makes any lofty claims about the true nature of the universe, except to seem to say that it is the background in which duality occurs (outside all conceptions, craving, aversion, etc) . He also makes it clear that all things are temporary.
I don't think this stuff is all most people think it's cracked up to be unless you're REALLY at a crossroads in life and are in immense suffering. Even then, I think you will trend to enlightenment if it's your time, regardless. Furthermore, I know the dualities of pain or karma anyone is in would eventually play themselves out, with or without Buddhism/meditation.
This understanding seems to be about as close to enlightenment as I've ever been. I've felt a strong sense of peace with this along with the awareness of the pain and suffering it took to get here and the knowledge that that peace won't last long.
Re: Abortion and Euthynasia- Reality Check
@Angus said:
In this day and age when millions of people are murdered legally every day, isnt it about time that so called Buddhists stood up to be counted? I mean rather than supporting these killings because it is convenient to us should we not oppose them ? I have even heard
so called Buddhists saying that there are is absolute moralty in Buddhism, thereby opening the door to all kind of abuse. The Buddha said No Killing, it is the 1st precept and isnt it about time that western woke buddhists took notice rather than just trying to twist everything to make their lives easier.
If Buddhism were an actual religion with a central organizing structure and a team of strategists and PR specialists, then you might have someone to whom you could direct your request.
But it isn’t anything like that. Buddhism is a mindset, and a large collection of written material that you can access to help with your own enlightenment. If you’re doing this, and through your efforts you have determined that the world is wrong and you are right, then you certainly have the ability to direct your wisdom — and requests — to the relevant legislative entities. If you reside within their jurisdiction then you may perhaps have standing to be heard (if the jurisdiction is a democracy).
Speaking only for myself, I find the issues of both a woman’s right to make her own decisions without the interference of a sanctimonious self-righteous beaurocracy, and access to compassionate care at the end of life, to be self-evidently moral, and I advocate vigorously for both. Neither position confers any convenience on me; I am not choosing a path of making my own life easier, I am choosing a path of making others’ lives (and inevitable deaths) better.
Efforts to vilify abortion and euthanasia will not eliminate abortion and euthanasia. Both preceded and will outlast ephemeral emotional politics.
Steve_B
Re: Abortion and Euthynasia- Reality Check
@Angus said:
In this day and age when millions of people are murdered legally every day, isn't it about time that so called Buddhists stood up to be counted?
In the ultimate Buddhist sense "karma & rebirth" plays a key role in how one's life
unfolds...
Karma and Rebirth are inter-relative, one depends on the other...
Thus have I heard ... the conception of a human being depends on three important factors.
1) The coming together of the male and female elements (conception can take place either in a test tube or in the womb) 2) The proper time, during the fertile period of the mother. And 3) A being which is ready to be born (if for whatever reason a embryo/foetus is aborted it's possible the karmic conditions were not quite right for that being).
Where possible Do no harm and if you find that difficult to do, then do the least harm possible under the present circumstances...
We all come across moral dilemmas in which we have to make moral choices, some more difficult than others...
There are millions of Buddhists and not all Buddhists sing from the same hymn sheet...
Remember: Buddhist precepts are not commandments which must be obeyed , they are just guidelines/a formula for the Buddhists (lay and monastics) in how to train the mind along with other Dharma practices and in doing so, suffering all around will gradually decrease...
And ... practice makes perfect and perfect practice makes perfect practice...
Shoshin1
Re: Abortion and Euthynasia- Reality Check
On euthanasia, death is inevitable. If a person is suffering needlessly and will die anyway, why not send them to their rest in peace and comfort? My stepfather suffered from an obstructed bowel and would have died within two or three weeks in terrible pain without any treatment, instead he received morphine and died in a week. Seems compassion to me.
Jeroen
Re: Abortion and Euthynasia- Reality Check
@Angus said:
In this day and age when millions of people are murdered legally every day, isnt it about time that so called Buddhists stood up to be counted? I mean rather than supporting these killings because it is convenient to us should we not oppose them ? I have even heard
so called Buddhists saying that there are is absolute moralty in Buddhism, thereby opening the door to all kind of abuse. The Buddha said No Killing, it is the 1st precept and isnt it about time that western woke buddhists took notice rather than just trying to twist everything to make their lives easier.
Your take is very simplistic and assumes a lot about when life starts and when abortion or euthanasia count ethically as murder. It also considers no balance on the life and well being of the mother or terminally ill person. Its a very judgmental stance based on beliefs that can't be proven to others.
person
Re: Abortion and Euthynasia- Reality Check
Reality cheque in the post.
Maybe not all Buddhists add up to your reality? Buddhas say all sorts of things...
lobster
Re: Abortion and Euthynasia- Reality Check
No. It’s none of your business. You’re.not the morality police, if you don’t want to have an abortion or don’t need to bec your life is at risk….then don’t . It’s that simple. I haven’t asked you for a list of your “sins” so we all can stand in judgement of you…show the same respect.
Vastmind
Re: Letting go of games
The gendered aspect of gaming is an interesting one. It is male dominated, but my D&D groups have two women and one trans woman and when I played WoW my guild consisted largely of older people with families and couples who played together. As a generality, the women do have a different emphasis in their play style, preferring character and story over mechanics and combat. To be clear, since such topics can fall into stereotyping pretty quickly, pretty much everyone I find myself playing with enjoys all those things, its more about emphasis. I tend to like them both and having women in a group makes my experience much more enjoyable. The mechanics driven number crunching gets stale pretty quickly.
person
Re: Letting go of games
@how said:
I was just suggesting that there are simple temporary experiential means for determining how much of our game usage results in suffering's cause or how much does not.
The thing is, I find gaming a very pleasant experience initially and it only switches to unpleasant after a good long while of intense play, when I get sick of it and underlying issues begin to surface.
Craving also goes up and down. Initially there is a little, just some caused by an enthusiasm. Then I get further into it and there is some draw, a yearning to play regularly. Then I get sick of it and there is a revulsion.
I just distrust our mentality alone with its habituated tweaking for stimulation, to be a reliable arbiter in determining whether a game's play is harmful or harmless.
I think you’re right. My brain gets suckered into feeling enthusiastic, when deep down I know it is unreal, illusionary, not of benefit and it will show itself after some play.
Jeroen