Day to day Buddhism

Brian

Day to day Buddhism

I've been reading through the various posts which got me thinking...



Now, mind you, I'm not judging anyone - so don't think that, I'm just thinking.



I've seen a lot of Christians in my day that really liked being a Christian. They liked all the people that attended church, the social activities, being a "part" of something, the pot lucks, etc.

But!, when it came right down to it - when the "rubber hit the road" many of these people fell into the depths of despair. Now, granted, something like a death in the family or medical tragedy is a very difficult situation to find your way through - but so many people lose their faith and feel that they've been "forsaken" by their god. It seems that many are fair-weather believers.



So, I know some people here have been going through some tough issues. I've got tough issues of my own. I've got issues that can cause me a lot of anger, restlessness, pain and suffering. I find myself at various times going through past scenarios, replaying life scenes, conversations, betrayals, etc.



And then - the Buddha pops to mind. His teachings come into play. I find that I can focus and there is an instant change. I find a calm and a peace realizing that much of my pain is my own doing. I find a refuge that clears my focus immediately.

I can't change someone else. I know that what I seek or what I desire is an attachment I've formed. I hate the pain of the past and wish I could change it or that it wasn't there. But I can't change the past. And why am I dwelling in the past anyway? The past should be a lesson to me in impermanence - from the teachings of Buddha.



I'm just was wondering how other people incorporate Buddha's teachings in real life situations that they may want to share with others.



-bf

Brian

PS: This was actually BuddhaFoot's post.... for some reason the newspanel attributed it to me

KBuck

One of the ways that I (try, at least) to put the buddha's teachings into play is to remember that when people do things that really piss me off they usually have a very good reason, in their own mind at least. The teachings on co-dependent arising have helped me to realize that the things people do that cause me to suffer are just a "ripple effect" of their own suffering.

On the occasions I'm able to remember this, I try to see the root cause of thier behavior and sympathize. Often this stops many disputes before they get rolling out of control.

Also, if you married, a piece of Thich Nhat Hanh's best advice I try to remember always is to never think of your spouse as an adversary in any situation.

Just some of my experiences...

buddhafoot

KBuck wrote:

Also, if you married, a piece of Thich Nhat Hanh's best advice I try to remember always is to never think of your spouse as an adversary in any situation.

You know, that's a very interesting quote, KBuck. I know, in my experience, I have been in a relationship where my spouse was my adversary. Very scary.

And in situations like that, it's very difficult (at least for me) to be Buddhist - not when violence is thrust upon you and your options are to get hurt or flee.

-bf