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Wonder and you shall learn
Hi,
I don't usually post threads but here i am. I think myself as a buddhist intellectual but you may disagree. The point is...If you follow the scriptures you will become wise but not as wise as if you searched in your heart for the true principles of Buddhism and if you actually want to learn about him.
Please reply with your views.
May you find peace and happiness in the teachings of Lord Buddha.
(or God,Allah etc.)
Mahayana man
I don't usually post threads but here i am. I think myself as a buddhist intellectual but you may disagree. The point is...If you follow the scriptures you will become wise but not as wise as if you searched in your heart for the true principles of Buddhism and if you actually want to learn about him.
Please reply with your views.
May you find peace and happiness in the teachings of Lord Buddha.
(or God,Allah etc.)
Mahayana man
0
Comments
I'm just correcting myself. We must read the scriptures to understand but we must also
find what is right in our hearts.
May you find peace in the teachings of Lord Buddha
Mahayana man
I can certainly relate to the feeling of warmth and enthusiasm that an arise when the practice works but I think we need to be very careful of it. It can be a 'glamour', a trap. We can get hooked on bliss. But this is not the point of the Dharma. Every teacher with whom I have worked and every treatise on meditation warns against revelling in the good feelings because that is what they are: feelings. They are no better or worse, no more or less important in themselves: they are products of mind and to be examined as such. Once we have deconstructed them we find them all empty.
If a feeling, however pleasant, becomes the objective, we have stopped the process. We need a solid, regular practice and there will be days, months and even, sometimes, years of 'desert' feeling. This is not 'failur'. It is just the desert. Bliss is only an occasional oasis.
i like reading your postings, you seem to have a good amount wisdom on all aspects of the dharma.
I think I am experiencing what you called 'the desert' in the last couple of weeks I don't necessarily feel good, I even have depression every now and then and feel very overwhelmed. is this normal for someone beginning down the path?
This is not only normal, it would be extrtemely worrying if it were not to happen.
I see an inquiry into intellectual knowledge vs. experience. I also see an understanding that intent or will is the catalyst to learning.
As I see it, one can get very caught up in the fact that there is much information that can be discerned. To me it comes down to as my quote below suggests, "Am I going to sit around and read the menu, or am I going to enjoy the banquet?"
Words that are written may give one knowledge. Knowledge becomes wisdom when it is embued with emotion. This can't be done by sitting around thinking about doing.
I say, " I do as I do, and I allow others to do as they do. "
Personally, it frees me from placing expactations on myself or others.
do these feelings pass? they seem have to become less frequent in the past two weeks, but they are still there nonetheless. Does this always happen or does one learn to manage these feelings better as your wisdom increases?
Thank's for all the replys . Please keep them coming in. I find everyone's views interesting.
May you find peace in the teachings of Lord Buddha
Mahayana man
I think Dkode..that the feelings do come and go but I cannot answer your second question about wisdom. For I am not wise enough. Keep up with the replies, I do enjoy reading them.
May you find peace in the teachings of Lord Buddha
Mahayana man
dkode,
I had those feelings as well when I first started studying Buddhism. I think mine were from the fact that I was more aware of the world I live in, and just started to notice a lot more things that made me sad about this world. It still happens, but instead of getting really down and depressed, I try to think about what I can do to make this world even a little bit better.
At first I thought it was just me, but then I came across another posting here and thought I would inquire and it makes me feel alot better that I am not alone in this area.
After the worst of the feelings passed, I feel more open to new things now, I am definately feeling alot more compassion then I have before, although I still think I have a long way to go, but a journey cannot begin without the first step.
thank you again for your comments. they are greatly appreciated.
i posted it because i have pictures from when i was very young making the same exact face. I don't even know I'm making it half the time, this was one instance that someone took a picture recently in which I was doing it again
i think that was new years eve and I had alot of friends at my house that I have not seen in awhile and I was quite happy
I agree . That picture is very nice!
May you find peace in the teachings of Lord Buddha
Mahayana man
The feelings may pass. They often do.In some cases, among the 'great souls' particularly, they may last for years.
I don't say this to depress you - on the contrary. 'Dry' or 'desert' experiences are only some of the obstacles you may expect to meet. I have to tell you that my own pilgrimage has had far more desert than oasis!
If you read some of the spiritual classics, like Saint John of the Cross, you will also come across the "dark night of the soul", which can be a very scary time. In my own experience, I 'hear' a difference between the oasis, the desert and the dark night as they begin. When I am in an oasis, the quality of sounds is like a claer spring morning. The desert is almost echo-less with all sounds slightly dulled. As the night begins, sounds begin to jangle. This is how I describe the experiences because, having been almost blind until I was 7 or 8, I sort experiences by sound. You will find youyr own sensory clues.
Once again, I can't give you any clear answer about 'managing' these experiences. I don't think we ever do. What happens is that we notice them, and the discomfort or comfort that accompanies them, all the while remaining cool and balanced. We watch them arise and flow away, without any sort of judgment or criticism. The more I watch, the more I notice the quality of my attention and the more it turns to compassion.
"How do I get to Carnegie Hall?" the tourist asked a small child.
"Practise, practise, practise!" the child replies.
If you think of your spiritual practice like learning a musical instrument. A good teacher will give the beginner a tune they can play quickly, in order to encourage them. As we learn harder techniques and pieces, the work gets harder. There will be days or months while we work on a new song or sonata. It is hard and we are daily tempted to chuck in the towel.
In addition, as we begin the process of stilling the mind, there arises a reaction within the construct that we call "ego" or "I". But that's a kettle of a different colour.
Remembere the times of peace and refreshment, dear brother. They encourage us when the living water seems nothing more than a far-off self-deception. There will always be oases. They may just be rather far apart!
I need to stress that I do not pretend to have all the answers, and that many of my notions and opinions are far from 'orthodox' Buddhism or Christianity. All I can share are my own experience and some of the authors whom I have been lucky enough to study. There are many here who have made far more commitment to the study and practice of a single path, whereas I am a butterfly, an Autolycus.
What's an Autolycus? Or is it too complicated to put into a post? If it is just tell me and I'll look it up.
everyone is so helpful here.
And he is in Shakespeare:
Don't you think his story would make the most wonderful 'sword and sandals' epic? The half-divine thief, the joker in the pack.
I don't have all the answers, either, but I think that feeling a bit depressed is probably normal right now - not so much because you are starting down a new path, but rather because you may be leaving an old one (however much that one may or may not have helped you). While I am an atheist and Buddhist, I was raised Catholic and between the two paths I have crossed others searching. While I can only believe what I believe, losing faith in things like God and heaven is a little upsetting at times. Then again, I cried for days when I found out that Santa Claus was made-up. We all mourn what we have lost.
Palzang
Modern day useage is a thief.