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What is "the here and now" in the context of consciousness?
Maybe this is slightly un-Buddhist to start a new discussion on a previous one so that I have my voice heard, but I wished to expand the topic on the use of cannabis prior to meditation. The thread got me thinking more deeply on exactly what the here and now is.
In my younger years, I was quite heavily involved in the underground techno/dance music scene. A major part of that was using such intoxicants as ecstasy lsd, amphetamine blahh blahh blahhh. Looking back on these days, I can only take positives from them in that I felt the music at a much deeper, almost transcendental level. Conversations with friends post clubbing were at a very deep level and as a result, we got to know each other much better. We experienced love and community in our group. Many of us are still in contact after 20 years, having moved on to have families and serious careers. We still have that deep understanding and love for each other.
At the start, many of those involved in the scene had previously been "football casuals" (gang warfare based on soccer team affiliation) but opposing sides had come together and become friends because they no longer saw each other as a threat. Memory fades the negative sides.
These experiences occurred because of an altered perception of the here and now for those involved. I once discussed the topic with an old hippie from the original Haight-Ashbury gang. He had "explored" consciousness on so many levels and had concluded that there was no such thing as a definable reality or a "here and now". It was wholly to do with our own perceptions, how our mind responded to its environment and its stimulus/stimuli. Life is what we make it.
What am I trying to say....?? Well, maybe we should view what we do as a journey. It is a very long journey though and often the path of least resistance is the lessor path to follow. Reflecting on when we cause harm probably makes us less likely to cause harm in the future. Altered perception, caused by substances which are viewed by many as intoxicants, may have long term positive effects.
My journey has brought me to the teachings of Buddha and to meditation. Now, I feel like the path has been a game of snakes and ladders, many snakes low down on the path but many more ladders now. Meditation for me is now is easier because I understand many of the feelings of true metta and self because I previously experienced similar feelings with the help of intoxicants. Now though, I prefer a healthy life and I'm the better for it.
There are many contradictions in Buddhism and many different ways to follow Buddha's path. Some paths may lead to a dead end, but we can always turn around and look for a better one......as long as deep down we have an awareness of where we want the path to take us
In my younger years, I was quite heavily involved in the underground techno/dance music scene. A major part of that was using such intoxicants as ecstasy lsd, amphetamine blahh blahh blahhh. Looking back on these days, I can only take positives from them in that I felt the music at a much deeper, almost transcendental level. Conversations with friends post clubbing were at a very deep level and as a result, we got to know each other much better. We experienced love and community in our group. Many of us are still in contact after 20 years, having moved on to have families and serious careers. We still have that deep understanding and love for each other.
At the start, many of those involved in the scene had previously been "football casuals" (gang warfare based on soccer team affiliation) but opposing sides had come together and become friends because they no longer saw each other as a threat. Memory fades the negative sides.
These experiences occurred because of an altered perception of the here and now for those involved. I once discussed the topic with an old hippie from the original Haight-Ashbury gang. He had "explored" consciousness on so many levels and had concluded that there was no such thing as a definable reality or a "here and now". It was wholly to do with our own perceptions, how our mind responded to its environment and its stimulus/stimuli. Life is what we make it.
What am I trying to say....?? Well, maybe we should view what we do as a journey. It is a very long journey though and often the path of least resistance is the lessor path to follow. Reflecting on when we cause harm probably makes us less likely to cause harm in the future. Altered perception, caused by substances which are viewed by many as intoxicants, may have long term positive effects.
My journey has brought me to the teachings of Buddha and to meditation. Now, I feel like the path has been a game of snakes and ladders, many snakes low down on the path but many more ladders now. Meditation for me is now is easier because I understand many of the feelings of true metta and self because I previously experienced similar feelings with the help of intoxicants. Now though, I prefer a healthy life and I'm the better for it.
There are many contradictions in Buddhism and many different ways to follow Buddha's path. Some paths may lead to a dead end, but we can always turn around and look for a better one......as long as deep down we have an awareness of where we want the path to take us
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Comments
The use or non-use of psychedelic or mind-altering substances has been discussed many times, and quite recently, as you know, and it is my perception that no real conclusion is ever reached. IMHO, those discussions just go on and on and round and round to the extent that IMHO it's just a matter of personal preference. These things never seem to get resolved here.
To practise the spiritual path well depends on our underlying spiritual faculties or pre-disposition.
In my experience, often we attribute our spiritual growth to positive drug experiences. I recall doing this once. However, over time, I have come to develop a contrary view.
My contrary view is it was not drugs that caused the development of our spiritual faculties. Instead, it was our underlying spiritual faculties or pre-dispositions that caused our positive drug experiences.
For those with addictive pre-dispositions, drugs develop into addiction. For others, drugs 'awaken' an underlying psychosis. Their minds develop mental illness. For others, drugs awaken their latent spiritual faculties.
Just my opinion
Kind regards
So many drug topics haha.
First,
"And what is consciousness? These six are classes of consciousness: eye-consciousness, ear-consciousness, nose-consciousness, tongue-consciousness, body-consciousness, intellect-consciousness. This is called consciousness.
What is "the here and now" in the context of consciousness?:
The here and now its a continuous cognition of what is happening in/throw the six sense gates in the present.
Now, in practical terms, it means dedicated attention of what u are doing,
and in practical terms, the mind breaks this continuos attention because craving make it jump to some topic so strongly that the present its out, and u get lost in thoughts, and break into a speach, sticking to it. "in the past i was a hippie, in the present now i am this, this is who i will be from now on, etc"
----
About drugs:
U can get "insights", learn, get joyfull states, bonding,etc..even killing a person. Doesnt mean killing its correct right?.
Why it is incorrect?, because it has much more bad sides that good ones.
Just that.
The drug stimulates the mind - so watch it - it is just another here and now that will be here and gone. What difference does it make to explore this - why would one wish to continually sit under the influence - this suggests a preference - a manifestation of egoic mind - a like or dislike. We seek to observe mind equanimously through sitting - so once the experiment is concluded - return to breath - here and now.
Why it is incorrect?, because it has much more bad sides that good ones.
Just that.
Hmmm, not sure if such statements are based on actuallity or perception.
Its based on logic, or a practical approach
Its like with sensual pleasure..the buddha never said there was no pleasure in sensuallity, he said that it had so many bad sides, that in the end it wasnt really something good.