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My Don'ts And Dos
IdleChater
USA Veteran
What I don't do:
- I don't, through personal effort, try to follow the 8FP
- I don't, though personal effort, try to keep Precepts
What I do:
- Meditate. Shamatha, to be precise.
From discussion with senior students, mentors, and respected teachers, I've come to believe:
- to make a personal effort to do these things, introduces an element of self that is counterproductive to realization
- The Buddha, according to tradition, didn't "keep" precepts or the 8 elements of the path. He meditated.
- Shamatha has been taught to me as a "complete practice", and will lead to enlightenment.
- As enlightenment approaches, the 8FP and Precepts will fall into line and manifest as a result, naturally, and not by any personal effort on my part.
- Enlightenment and Buddhahood is the result of meditation.
Your mileage may differ and I respect that. This is just what I do and don't do
5
Comments
From what I gather, practicing the Dharma is a 24/7/365 thing which permeates every aspect of one's life....On and off the cushion....
A teacher once said ( I can't remember who) "The real meditation begins when you leave the cushion"...
In a sense, time spent on the cushion can be likened to priming one's mind to deal with things to come off the cushion .... putting it in go with the flow mode, so to speak...
That seems like a fair approach to the Dhamma, I heard it said once that all of the Buddhas teachings could be found from just one.
I don't worry about formality.
While I do take life seriously, I don't take myself all that seriously
I do allow the world to do whatever it will do
I do recognize (a) I am the center of my world and (b) I am not the center of the world
I do get comfortable
I do let the lesser (monkey) mind go where it will
I don't pay attention to the monkey mind
I do give myself permission to laugh at myself and be happy
HOORAY!
I does that shouting. 🤓
Great OP (original post) and comments 😌🙏🦞
I very much value continual strain-less meditation that @Shoshin1 mentions.
I totally appreciate the value of personal do and do more of (rather than any daunts/don'ts)
I am never comfortable, until everyone is. I must be one of them their Boddhisattvians …
I take refuge/protection/inspiration in the three jewels: Me, myself and I and I
Or as they are sometimes known: Buddha, dharma and sangha … 🥳🤫🫠
"I am never comfortable, until everyone is. I must be one of them their Boddhisattvians."
Bodhissatvas are quite comfortable in their being.
Bodhissatvas are are quite uncomfortable as unnecessary suffdering exists in the world.
that said, be most comfortably uncomfortable.
Peace to all