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Internet surfing a bad habit?
Hanzze
Veteran
Thought of there are so less discussions about habits: What do you think, is spending much time in front of the PC and surfing around the world an alteration worthy habit? *smile*
0
Comments
impossible to say. guess we'll find out.
Also, yes we could fill our time with more skilful things with regards to cultivting the mind and compassion, but that all depends on the individual. If you are extreme with buddhism, I guess the net would just be a tool that one would not become attached to and that one uses for compassionate and skilful means.
If we are talking about your avergae lay buddhist, then I am pretty sure the vast majority surf the net with many different intentions. Some may surf looking mostly for buddhist material or knowledge on the world around us, some may surf looking at funny videos, some may enter chat rooms pretending to be a muslim or a rabbi (sorry mindgate, I hate to
You could probably be doing something more productive or skilful than surfing the net at any given moment, but who is going to make you do anything at all? Nobody, so it probably comes down to your own judgement and willpower.
One thought regarding meritorious deeds:
Dhammasavana (Listening To The Dhamma)
Dhammasavana means listening to the Dhamma of the Enlightened One. The fivse benefits of dhammasavana are (a) getting fresh knowledge; (b) understanding known facts more clearly; (c) resolving of skepticism and doubt (d) acquiring right belief and (e) enhancing your wisdom and faith.
False Method of Listening to Dhamma
Listening to the Dhamma with a view to getting the five benefits is true dhammasavana. Some attend Dhamma discourses because they are friendly with the preacher; some for the jokes and humorous anecdotes; some for the fear of accusation as being too lazy; some to access the ability of the preacher. One can get no benefit from listening to the Dhamma with such ignoble intentions. Once a China man was crossing a river in a rowboat when the boatman warned him that the boat leaked a bit. The China man thought that this meant the water from inside the boat leaked and oozed into the river. So there were no cause worry. In a while, he noticed the seat of his pants becoming wet. He was alarmed and exclaimed, "This boat does not leak; it only lets in water!" The true aim of listening to the Dhamma is to let our evil thoughts to ooze out. We should be very careful lest we let in more evil into our consciousness.
The Benefits of Reading
Today, there are many books which can give us wisdom and knowledge. In Myanmar, being a Buddhist country, hundreds of Buddhist treatises appear in bookstands. By reading these books you get the same benefit as listening to the Dhamma. Therefore reading such books is far more advantageous than listening to contemporary discourses. Even if you cannot read, you can ask someone to read aloud for you. This amounts to listening to the Dhamma.
from http://www.dharmaweb.org/index.php/Abhidhamma_In_Daily_Life_By_Ashin_Janakabhivamsa