Labels

comicallyinsane

I have been reading about the way people put lavbels on their Buddhism. For example them calling themselves Buddhists. I don't understand why this would matter either way. Isn't the enlightenment still acheivable whether the person calls themself a Buddhist or not? I can call myself a "person". Does that make me any less of a "person" because I label myself as one? Aren't my beleifs the same either way?

federica

Labels are essential for the human condition.... why call yourself 'comicallyinsane"? Why have a name at all? why don't you try living for just one day, not being being the profession you practise, not being anyone's "husband" or "father" or "son"....? These labels define what we do, but not who we are..... Of course you can still practise Buddhism.... of course you can reach enlightenment - but you'd have to be studying and following Buddhism to fully comprehend the attainment of enlightenment.... which of course is just another label in itself....

comicallyinsane

So you are saying there is nothing wrong with labels?

wolfscalissi

we have to "name things" to understand eachother on a mind to mind level. It is each of our jobs tho not to label the other. when we apply labels we stop seeing the human being. that said it is kind of silly to call ourselves Buddhists. Buddhism is mereley the vehicle in which we ride we learn to monitor the guages and when to accelerate and brake. but we must be carefull not to "worship " the vehicle. I drive a jeep but wouldnt you think me silly for calling myself so? call it what you want just dont think that that is all it is.

Gate. Gate. Paragate. Parasumgate! bodhi! svaha!

^gassho^

Brian

My father was over yesterday. My kids were playing with their friend across the street and then they got invited to go swimming over there. So my wife got them their swimsuits and towels while I was sitting at the kitchen table talking with my dad.

My dad looked outside and kind of stopped. And then he said, "You've got BLACK neighbors?" in a very surprised sort of way.

I said "Dad, you have WHITE neighbors?" in the same incredulous tone, to prove a point.

Challenge the labels that people assign to things. It's good for all of us

Maria22

Labeling is essentially how the mind classifies information and creates order out of the world, without the use of labels; our minds would be in complete chaos. They're necessary for communicating thoughts and Ideas on a nonverbal level, but become dangerous when you fail to see the person or thing underneath the label. Most of the time, labels are attached to stereotypes, leading to a plethora of misconceptions about the person themselves.

In defining yourself with a label or title, in many ways you must be willing to accept all the assumptions that come along with it. For this reason I chose not to label myself or "tell people" that I am a Buddhist. Although I'm aware of my beliefs, I don't feel like I have met the requirements that the "label" Buddhist implies. I'm still fairly new to it, so I have a lot to learn and there are many things that need to change about my lifestyle, before I feel comfortable calling myself a Buddhist.

comicallyinsane

wolfscalissi wrote:

we have to "name things" to understand eachother on a mind to mind level. It is each of our jobs tho not to label the other. when we apply labels we stop seeing the human being. that said it is kind of silly to call ourselves Buddhists. Buddhism is mereley the vehicle in which we ride we learn to monitor the guages and when to accelerate and brake. but we must be carefull not to "worship " the vehicle. I drive a jeep but wouldnt you think me silly for calling myself so? call it what you want just dont think that that is all it is.

Gate. Gate. Paragate. Parasumgate! bodhi! svaha!

^gassho^

Tat makes sense even though I still don't understand completely. My brain is still trying to comprehend. Thank you for the input.

comicallyinsane

Brian wrote:

My father was over yesterday. My kids were playing with their friend across the street and then they got invited to go swimming over there. So my wife got them their swimsuits and towels while I was sitting at the kitchen table talking with my dad.

My dad looked outside and kind of stopped. And then he said, "You've got BLACK neighbors?" in a very surprised sort of way.

I said "Dad, you have WHITE neighbors?" in the same incredulous tone, to prove a point.

Challenge the labels that people assign to things. It's good for all of us

My neighbors are Mexican. LOL. No point. I just figured "why not?" LOL

DharmaKitten

Brian wrote:

My father was over yesterday. My kids were playing with their friend across the street and then they got invited to go swimming over there. So my wife got them their swimsuits and towels while I was sitting at the kitchen table talking with my dad.

My dad looked outside and kind of stopped. And then he said, "You've got BLACK neighbors?" in a very surprised sort of way.

I said "Dad, you have WHITE neighbors?" in the same incredulous tone, to prove a point.

Challenge the labels that people assign to things. It's good for all of us

Reminds me of house hunting a couple years ago. Anyplace we'd show my mom she'd find some black person in the neighborhood. Now, I've never known my mom to be racist and she certainly doesn't think she is. So, I'm still in shock about how quickly a nice neighborhood turned into a bad one in her mind the moment she saw a black face. Of course, where she lives she doesn't have many neighbors of any colors and she moved there before much of desegregation had taken place. She didn't meet a black person until she was well into her teens, let alone get to know one. Still, she had over her life had a few black friends and coworkers. Anyways, my point is that (if I can find one here) she and I come from very different generations (I hope) and it still astonishes me how things were and still are for some people.

thebatman

Maria, you are a buddhist and a buddha. So is Donald Trump and Paris Hilton. Being buddha is not something "out there" which you need to "bring here". It's more about what you don't do than it is about what you do. Buddha is nothingness. How could you possibly NOT contain nothingness? Call yourself whatever you wish. It all means the same no matter what the title is. If I call myself a "High Priest of Gotham" but the value I have assigned to it is identical to buddhist teachings then what's the difference except to my ego?
Titles are simply convenient packaging of ideas. If you feel any sort of shame, or especially pride, when telling someone of your buddhist practice then it is a warning sign that your practice has something unnecessary and impure piggybacking on it.

comicallyinsane

I wqas just reminded of my grandmother when I was a kid. I remember we had a dirty garage and we had the door open. My grandmother felt shame and she always said to me as a kid, "Look at that mess. The mexicans don't even have garage's that look that bad". I always asked he ris she was racist and she always said no. Then I asked her what the mexicans had to do with our garage. I never got a straight answer.