Best Of

@FleaMarket said:

@Dakini said:
Meditating on attachment/grasping, dukha and its sources, on ever-expanding circles of love, on letting go of envy and jealousy, etc., with the goal of achieving an Enlightened state, is not attachment to self. It's guiding the evolution of self in the right direction.

What about the enjoyment of spiritual practice? Such as positive emotions toward the challenges of elements of spiritual practice, the progress the self has made, freedoms from mental bondages, fondness of literature, etc.. Do these fall under flattery of self and an attachment to self? I am the one doing the enjoying of the spiritual practice after all. Is it that the self can enjoy but not be conditioned to seek the enjoyment? I'm not about to eat these strawberries expressionless but I won't long for the sensation of eating them after they are eaten. I will be on to the next thing.

I feel like I've asked this but couldn't find where. Apologies if this has been answered before and thanks in advance for any clarity offered.

Interesting question! I think it's natural to spontaneously enjoy a pleasurable activity. I don't see any attachment there. The joy comes and goes, it arises and falls. You just let it flow through you, you don't cling to it. (Do you?) You say, you'll enjoy the strawberries in the moment, but you won't long for them after they're consumed. That sounds like non-attachment to me.

Similarly, as the Dalai Lama says, when you experience loss, like the death of a loved one, it's natural to experience grief. You let the grief flow through you, you don't hold it back and try to pretend you're above it all, or something. You just let it flow.

It's ok to experience sadness and grief, as long as you don't get stuck in it. It's a human thing to feel sad at the loss of a loved one, and we are human. It's also natural to experience joy. But if we get stuck in grief and can't move on, or if we go around chasing after joy, like OD-ing on chocolate chip cookies or becoming bliss junkies chasing after the bliss state from certain types of meditation, that's attachment. Then one risks having the depression or the bliss-seeking take over one's life. One loses the ability to lead a balanced life and attend to day-to-day obligations and chores.

Remember, nothing is permanent. So there isn't a permanent self; it's always changing. And with dedicated Buddhist practice, it can evolve in a more healthy, positive direction.

The teaching is about not becoming attached to a fixed idea of self, like some people do, patting themselves on the back for being intelligent or generous or however it is they flatter themselves. That's attachment to self. Meditating on attachment/grasping, dukha and its sources, on ever-expanding circles of love, on letting go of envy and jealousy, etc., with the goal of achieving an Enlightened state, is not attachment to self. It's guiding the evolution of self in the right direction.

Once Enlightenment is achieved, one leaves ideas of self behind; they're irrelevant, and are abandoned like a snake shedding its skin.