Best Of
Re: Just for fun: the random, useless announcements thread!
Thanks for the tip @Jeroen
In USA, you just need to dress as a frog, be brown or in a poncho and all mayhem ensues...
Sadly they do not have kindly policing at the mo.
lobster
Why does Buddhism waste so much time on esoteric philosophical speculation?
Here is a question the Buddha was once asked: "Are the images or replicas (pratibimba) which are the object (gocara) of meditative concentration (samadhi) different/separate (bhinna) from the contemplating mind (*citta) or not." I mean, who gives a rat's ass? If you see a homeless person, are you going to lecture him on the merits of duality v. non-duality? Most people don't even know what terms like these mean. It's stuff like this that makes Buddhist sutras unreadable, unlike the Bible or Koran, which are just straight-up stories that anyone can follow. Why can't Buddhists just say "The Buddha loves everyone and wants all people to love and help each other?" Is that so hard?
Re: What happens to the world when everybody attains Buddhahood?
Good question. Thay often said the next Buddha could be a community. In my limited ideal, the real work/fun would begin. Like the Zen parables of rivers and mountains and before and after enlightenment, there would be much water to carry, so to speak. We would all realise our true nature of cooperation and work together.
Re: The way things seem and the way things are
My football team is in the midst of a minor conspiracy theory and it made me think of this old thread.
Our normally reliable kicker, had a bad miss in the London game, it hooked (sliced?) rather than just missing. Later on a different camera angle looked like it hit a wire which knocked it off course. People have been complaining and even the NFL agreed that it hit a wire.
The thing is though, on critical investigation it was just an optical illusion from a camera angle that just happened to line up the hook with the sky cam wire. The YouTuber Isaac Punts did a great breakdown.
The thing that is getting to me, is that even after pointing it out there are so many people that are sticking with their gut reactions. They're stuck with their perceptions of the way things seem rather than investigating to understand how things really are.
person
Re: Some delusions that come from meditation
@Jeroen said:
I think it is interesting that some enlightened beings are said to say that everything that comes from love is justified.
Can you list the enlightened beings who have said that?
Re: Buddhism and the Theatre *raises hand in a dramatic fashion*
I wonder if the role of theatre was not different in Buddha's time than it is today. Maybe something more like clubbing is today: a place for intoxication, sensual desire, and cheap laughs, as the sutta suggests. I assume this is quite possible.
Surely something like "Les Miserables" (which I like very much) is good and wholesome, at least for most of us ordinary non-monk and non-advanced people?
I believe people go to such and similar theatre shows precisely because they "enoble the soul" and can thus be seen as supporting the Dharma.
And sure, there are banal and debased shows. But when I hear the word "theatre" I don't imagine those shows and assume they are in the minority these days.
Sorry Buddha, IMHO, this sutta did not age well! 
marcitko
Re: Some delusions that come from meditation
@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
Lionduck