Working with spiritual delusions

how

Does anyone else find themselves spending time on the Dharma line when there are other things needing to be done.
I mean it always starts out with good intentions for exploring the Dharma or helping others but somewhere along the line it develops into a stimulation hunger/ identity feeding /equanimity loss. Mostly it's a twisting of values, where the "puter" engagement rules to the detriment of my freedom.
Just one more posting before i go to work kind of thing. Oh look, I'm late. How did that happen again? I had a list of things that needed to be done but somehow my computer time became more important.

I guess it's a question of how to pay attention to when that which I consider to be spiritually helpful, starts to manifest as an attachment.

I'm going on retreat for the month of Jan and computerless, so perhaps I'll have some advise to check out upon my return.

Blessings to all NewBuddhists for your help in 2012.
Love
Howard

Rodrigo

Perhaps it would be helpful if you could dissipate this dichotomy between "the Dharma" and "other things" and see the Dharma in the other things, such as work.

Blessings to you as well

lotuspadma

Thank you, Howard. May you have a great 2013 and a great retreat. Now on to your question. Look, I'll try my best, I'm only crawling on this path and my opinion might not be entirely correct. This is what I think: the way we know if activities are wholesome or unwholesome is by realizing the intention behind them. For instance, talking about the Dhamma is neither wholesome nor unwholesome per se. However if I go and tell a friend a nice Dhamma story to uplift them, that is wholesome. That intention colored the action with wholesome colors. On the other hand if I tell them about the Dhamma to be seen as highly spiritual individual (to feed my ego), to judge them or with concealed anger, then that's unwholesome.
So I think you should look not at your actions, but at your intentions. You need to be very attentive. But don't expect to always have wholesome intentions, only arahants do. Still, carry on meditating and you'll be able to clearly see your intentions before they become actions and therefore stop a deed that will be unwholesome.
Ultimately though, this is your sense of self trying to cling to anything it can find and to identify itself with. These kind of bumps along the path seem natural to me. We are shifting our time and attention to the Dhamma. But the attachment and sense of self are still present, so they hold on to it. Simply knowing that that is not the end, that you need to practice more and actually practicing will suffice. This bumps will disappear and all that will be left is the Dhamma that is evident in your actions.
Metta.

Tosh

how said:

I mean it always starts out with good intentions for exploring the Dharma or helping others but somewhere along the line it develops into a stimulation hunger/ identity feeding /equanimity loss. Mostly it's a twisting of values, where the "puter" engagement rules to the detriment of my freedom.

Yes, it's a well recognised phenomenon in A.A.. We call it 'hiding behind other people's problems', or 'hiding out at meetings'.

Of course practising compassion is vital, but practising compassion to hide from the stuff we don't want to be doing, but should be doing, isn't good.

Intention is everything; we have a 'To Thine Self Be True' moto on our sobriety chips.

Jeffrey

Go full force. Own your choices and live undivided. Either go on the forum or do something else, but don't leave yourself an out that you woulda shoulda coulda do something else. When we are divided we beat up on ourself which only disempowers all of our activity.

DaltheJigsaw

What an awesome thread!:) I hope it gets a lot of replies!

JohnG

It's the usual human thing; easy and fun will always take up our time. While the search goes on the hard path. Have a safe and wonderous 2013 How.

Vastmind

Don't do anything thats to your 'detriment'.

You clearly see that attachment is effecting your
behavior...therefore....retreat time.

Sounds pretty normal for a Buddhist. haha
I gave you a long loving good-bye last time..(cave retreat).
.... I'll keep it
shorter this time...

Blessings to, as well.
Come back when you can.

Wisdom23

The dharma is like a butterfly if you hold it too close you will crush it and reck the joy that can be found within. hold it too loose and it will fly away.

I also think if u are spiritually minded u will naturally be drawn to these type of thoughts and activities without having to think about it.

Nice post and i hope this helps
happy new year

Zero

If Dharma applies to everything then you're left simply to balance the tasks against the hours available to you - stop reading this and put the laundry on - job done.

misecmisc1

this dilemma i am also facing - seeing others enjoying the world, then thinking why not i am enjoying too, then somehow some statement about Dhamma comes up, which i have read somewhere, then start to think - what is better - samsara or dhamma. then sometimes the mind gets convinced dhamma is more important, othertimes i have to deliberately force the mind to believe dhamma is more important.

but the real problem comes - when i find my meditation going nowhere - no stillness - then the dilemma reaches to a great height and i think - if there is no rebirth and there does not seem any situation of even Stream-entry the way meditation is going without any stillness in it, then what is the use of abstaining from sensual pleasures. i do not have any answer to this question and so i believe that whatever is said in spirituality may be true and so may be the answer shall be there in inner journey and so do the meditation the next day too.