Howdy, Stranger!

It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!

Sign In Register
Examples: Monday, today, last week, Mar 26, 3/26/04
Welcome home! Please contact lincoln@icrontic.com if you have any difficulty logging in or using the site. New registrations must be manually approved which may take several days. Can't log in? Try clearing your browser's cookies.

reviewing your footsteps

genkakugenkaku Northampton, Mass. U.S.A. Veteran
in General Banter

Did you ever stop to review your steps in Buddhism -- just look back at one aspect or another and compare what you thought and felt then with what you think and feel now? Sometimes, what was once deeply important and profound hardly registers on today's importance scale or registers in a whole new way... or anyway that's my experience. Precepts, Four Noble Truths, Eightfold Path, meditation ... vast importance dwindles or minor importance swells.

The takeaway for me is to ease up a little when something profoundly important or moving or enlightening. Yes, "this too will change," but the impact of that line seems to vary with whose ox is being gored at the moment.

Truth to tell, I'm not sure if I can remember what I once thought of Buddhism ... but it's a pretty good guess that I took it seeeeeeriously. :)

How about you?

Earthninjakarastirohit

Comments

  • howhow Veteran Veteran

    @genkaku

    Yes and...
    I find that reducing my practice down to the acceptance of the contents of this one moment, reveals the practitioner to be just a fluid collection of loosely connected energies.

    Here, identity simply lounges around as the karmic denial of this fluidity.

    Endless reformings of an "I" brushing up against endless representations of the Buddha Dharma's call to "wake up".

  • lobsterlobster Crusty Veteran

    Tee hee B)

    It's a problem taking Buddhism seriously :3 However I know that serious effort, study, meditation etc is required to get to total indifference [oh dear, the truth is sometimes too much]

    The situation is a bit like like the old cliche of a raft to the far shore. What do you do when you find that the sea, shore, samsara and samadhi are the same?

    Personally I keep paddling. Must be about time to lounge ... or kick off some of the swimmers.

    The near shore has more fun deckchairs ... can hardly wait to get there ... oh wait ... here we are ... B) Sun glasses on ...

    Earthninja
  • EarthninjaEarthninja Wanderer West Australia Veteran

    The whole way I look at the path has changed, and still changing. Like every experience.
    I can see the mere striving to reach the far shore is perpetuating the illusion. The conundrum is that the conceptual mind cannot see through it's self made illusion.
    What a bind.
    I look back and I can only admire life for taking me to where I am now. All I can really do is watch now.
    I'm pretty much cornered. Which is good. Let's see what happens.

  • lobsterlobster Crusty Veteran

    @genkaku said:
    Truth to tell, I'm not sure if I can remember what I once thought of Buddhism ... but it's a pretty good guess that I took it seeeeeeriously. :)

    Hinayana only takes us into the serious need for the Mahayana. When you reach George Carlin level dharma, time to be reborn without dying. May be time to be a muppet again ...

    Iz my plan

  • nakazcidnakazcid Somewhere in Dixie, y'all Veteran

    Being hypervigilant about the Five Precepts and frequent readings of Buddhist texts has given way to practice, practice, practice.

    lobster
Sign In or Register to comment.