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Re: Do Buddhists believe in angels?

@Bunks said:

@Jeffrey said:
You just have to avoid the thinking bias known as: the Barnum effect. Which is when you see personal specifics in vague statements by filling in the gaps.

To think critically see how things could be interpreted to apply to anyone and not just you.

Not saying @federica story was an example of Barnum effect, rather I am just enjoying my deck of Critical Thinking Cards from School of Thought org that arrived recently that were a present to myself and they have 24 biases cards and 24 logical fallacy cards.

Yes, balance is a good thing.

When I first started seriously practicing nianfo (Chanting the Buddha's name) last year I had two interesting experiences that could either be interpreted as signs or as mere coincidence.

1) I was chanting "Namo Guan Shi Yin Pusa" (basically asking Avalokitesvara to help me and all beings) I had the thought that it would be nice to get a little card or picture of her to sit in my altar while chanting. Around about an hour later I was buying a coffee at the local cafe and I rummaged through my wallet to see if I had one of those "Buy 10 get one free" cards for this cafe and what should I find? A credit card sized picture of Avalokitesvara sitting in my wallet! Now it's no mystery that it was there. I vaguely recalled purchasing it a couple of years before. But I hadn't seen it for so long it just seemed quite freaky.

2) I was driving in my car about six months ago with mindless talk back playing on the radio. I thought I should turn it off and do some nianfo practice. The exact moment I switched it off I heard "Namo Amituofo, Namo Amituofo, Namo Amituofo...." playing in the car? I thought I must have switched stations or put a CD but I checked and the audio system in the car was off. Then I realised a YouTube video in my pocket of a nianfo video I had been watching earlier had started again at the exact moment I switched the car radio off.

Coincidences? Perhaps....but they both made me think.

Yesterday my nianfo machine switched on in my back pack and started chanting. Quite freaky!

Bunks

2

Re: Funny Stuff

Shoshin1

5

Re: Just for fun: the random, useless announcements thread!

Well on my jolk this morning, I made a loo stop half way,(not number two) anyhow as I went to flush the loo, I happened to look inside and spotted a longhorn beetle trying to climb out...

(just incase you're wondering, the photo is not of the longhorn beetle I fished out the loo, 😱 I got it off the internet)
I managed to fished it out using toilet paper, put it on the ground and flushed the loo and when I went to find it, to rinse it off with clear water, it had disappeared...The morning dew was quite heavy, hopefully it wandered out over the wet greens...So my first good deed of the day 😇...When I got home I made myself a vitamin drink, only to knock the glass over spilling it on the carpet... s#it happens 💩

Shoshin1

1

Re: Understanding and Realisation

I remember reading about a Zen master who use to do the finger pointing experiment with his students...

It's an interesting experience of form being emptiness and
vice versa....

I tried the finger pointing experiment and...

Shoshin1

2

Understanding and Realisation

It seems to me that many Buddhists spend a lot of time trying to understand the Buddha by reading sutra’s. They learn Pali terms for different energies and emotions, to try to get closer to the original meaning of what was said 2,500 years ago. What they don’t realise is that that is a path to understanding realisation, rather than achieving it.

Ajahn Chah says that rather than burying your nose in books, one should study ones own heart. It is likely to get one closer, by growing ones connection to the heart and training you to look at it closely, but I think it is still a path of understanding.

Where do we go for a path of realisation? Well, the traditional Buddhist answer would be practice. But the last few days I have been looking at Douglas Harding and his headless way, and there are some interesting experiments on his website which confront us with the fact that our reality is not exactly as it at first appears.

The interviews on the website are worthwhile too, such gentle people and what a breath of freedom.