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An epiphany I guess.....???

I have been studying and studing buddhism philosophies and teachings. I was even asking myself. "why did I become a Buddhist?" Then I said to myself that I just need to relax, and that this is a temporary state. So I stopped and gave myself a break. Yes a break from trying to understand loving kindess and compassion and everything. When I did, I let my mind go. I then saw a commerical for a new god of war game. I don't really like games, but I did look up the story years back. Basically a man named Kratous decides to follow the greek god of war. The god wanted to strenghten Kratous by tricking him kill his own family. So he does. Then Kratous goes on an oddessy to kill the god of war and become the god of war himself.
It's not the story that is important. Its not the constaint mental studying that will lead to compassion. In the commercial I saw this character see his daughter smiling and happy, then in front of his eyes his daughter turned to sand. Then he had the look of anger, sadness, and vengence. When I wasn't thinking about why I was a buddhist and what everything means; I saw this man lose his daughter again, I instantly felt his pain (though the character is fictional), I felt compassion and thought that if I could have been there to protect him and stop his pain from happening, that this character would be happier and suffering less because he would atleast have the soft fetters of his family in his life.

Im sorry if this is long, I don't mean to sound this way or that way, I am not trying to say I acheived some attainment or some silly notion like that. I just wanted to share a burst of inspiration to anyone who might life this. This is what it makes sense to me. Compassion is not a mental concept that can be understood by reading or vicarious conceptualization alone, to me it is an action and or the desire to do loving kindness and acts of compassion, even if it means sacrifcing myself to stop their pain. That is why I became a buddhist, because I realized that I have an aspiration to do these acts. That means that I have the capablity for bodhicitta one day. Now I got to put in the time and right effort.

I apologize since I sound like I am on clouds, or something. This is temporary and suffering will find me again. but for now take care and good luck. (If I am wrong, then please tell me. I would love to hear your critizism. Though I am only human, thankyou for reading.) I apologize if I offended anyone.
Invincible_summerriverflowlobsterkarastisean

Comments

  • sorry for any typos
    blu3ree
  • Invincible_summerInvincible_summer Heavy Metal Dhamma We(s)t coast, Canada Veteran
    Buddhism is indeed very much about experiencing things for oneself. And when you do... it just "clicks" and it's very satisfying to have all that stuff that you read about finally reify itself.
  • It's not the story that is important. Its not the constaint mental studying that will lead to compassion. In the commercial I saw this character see his daughter smiling and happy, then in front of his eyes his daughter turned to sand. Then he had the look of anger, sadness, and vengence. When I wasn't thinking about why I was a buddhist and what everything means; I saw this man lose his daughter again, I instantly felt his pain (though the character is fictional), I felt compassion and thought that if I could have been there to protect him and stop his pain from happening, that this character would be happier and suffering less because he would atleast have the soft fetters of his family in his life.
    We are all building sandcastles and don't realize it yet the danger in believing that they can last.

    image

    "'A being,' lord. 'A being,' it's said. To what extent is one said to be 'a being'?"

    "Any desire, passion, delight, or craving for form, Radha: when one is caught up[1] there, tied up[2] there, one is said to be 'a being.'[3]

    "Any desire, passion, delight, or craving for feeling... perception... fabrications...

    "Any desire, passion, delight, or craving for consciousness, Radha: when one is caught up there, tied up there, one is said to be 'a being.'

    "Just as when boys or girls are playing with little sand castles:[4] as long as they are not free from passion, desire, love, thirst, fever, & craving for those little sand castles, that's how long they have fun with those sand castles, enjoy them, treasure them, feel possessive of them. But when they become free from passion, desire, love, thirst, fever, & craving for those little sand castles, then they smash them, scatter them, demolish them with their hands or feet and make them unfit for play.

    "In the same way, Radha, you too should smash, scatter, & demolish form, and make it unfit for play. Practice for the ending of craving for form.

    "You should smash, scatter, & demolish feeling, and make it unfit for play. Practice for the ending of craving for feeling.

    "You should smash, scatter, & demolish perception, and make it unfit for play. Practice for the ending of craving for perception.

    "You should smash, scatter, & demolish fabrications, and make them unfit for play. Practice for the ending of craving for fabrications.

    "You should smash, scatter, & demolish consciousness and make it unfit for play. Practice for the ending of craving for consciousness — for the ending of craving, Radha, is Unbinding."


    Satta Sutta
    lobsterkarasti
  • @pegembara. Wait, what did I do wrong? I thought compassion is a big part of it? I don't understand. Of course I don't think compassion is just an empty emotion, love yes, but compassion? I don't understand I am sorry. I have nothing to compare myself too. I just thought it was kind of interesting that I was recipricated to what I was going through in myself. I guess it shows that I am not and enlighten being. I am flawed. I will try harder next time. I took a wild shot in the dark to see how i am supose to act I guess. I am like a child with this still. Thankyou for your lesson though. I have a better grasp.
  • robotrobot Veteran
    If you did anything wrong, and I don't think you did, it was attempting to express your realization. You got a blast of cut and paste sutta for your trouble.
    Invincible_summerkarastiBeej
  • @ordinarybeing - first, don't worry about being right or wrong and do not apologise for your thoughts or being who you are. It is good to reflect on whatever comes our way and to learn from it. It is good also to acknowledge to yourself that such moments are temporary too, rather than clinging to it.

    Just as my suffering is bound up and inseparable from the suffering of all others, so 'my enlightenment' is not really 'mine' -- 'my' enlightenment is inseparable from the enlightenment of all beings. And so to begin the path by focusing not on 'what is in it for me' or just 'my' own suffering is the bodhisattva way.

    I keep a small statue of Avalokiteshvara (with countless arms and hands) on my altar-- she symbolises this selfless compassion, and as such, she embodies the inseparability of wisdom and compassion. The gradual cultivation of the wisdom of no-self and cultivation of limitless compassion are mutually supportive. Deeper compassion leads to deeper wisdom, and deeper wisdom leads to deeper compassion-- and on and on ad infinitum.

    I think this is what we are all here learning in our own imperfect ways. I would say you are off to an excellent start.

    Sheng Yen says in Song of Mind:

    "As practitioners we wish to cultivate compassionate minds, to become more accepting of ourselves and of others. We may not have the limitless capacities of the Buddha and bodhisattvas, but we can at least work in that direction. In doing so, our minds and hearts will expand while compassion and wisdom will grow. Everyone can become a buddha, but right now we are still ordinary sentient beings. If we cannot learn to become kind and considerate to people around us, practicing meditation is pointless. Buddhism is not interested in debating whether some people are goodor bad, or whether the nature of humans is good or evil. Buddhadharma desires to improve the human character through practice. The Buddha is not an alien being; he is a model among human beings, something we can all aspire to. That is why we practice."
    lobster
  • lobsterlobster Crusty Veteran
    @ordinarybeing

    :clap:

    “Cling to the One who clings to nothing;
    And so clinging, cease to cling.”
    ― Tamil Holy Kural (pre Buddhist)

    or to put it another way
    throw sand in the air
    but don't try and catch every grain
    riverflowInvincible_summer
  • chelachela Veteran
    There are two truths: one is relative, and one is absolute. In the relative truth, we are the wave, with a begin time and an end time, a lifespan. In the absolute truth, we are the ocean, with no begin and no end, and nothing making one drop separate from the next drop.

    We help each other knowing the relative truth of things. We help each other knowing that we all suffer and we are impermanent. When we can see glimpses of the absolute truth of the universe, we are seeing with our Buddha eyes.
    riverflow
  • karastikarasti Breathing Minnesota Moderator
    it's fun to hear how different things come to different people! :) Thank you for sharing. I know the story, I have the God of War games, and yes, even though it's just a game it's a tragic story. Sometimes it's surprising what corners our compassion arises from.
  • Suffering does not happen, one participates in suffering. Whether or not you suffer again is wholly dependent on you.
  • blu3reeblu3ree Veteran
    edited March 2013
    Screw video games they drained so much of my time and left me with a huge amount of delusion. I remember when I first started sitting the only things going through my mind were when I played video games. I would phantasize about fighting someone and my consciousness would get sucked into a vortex of thought then I'd would get angry because I couldn't just be happy.

    I pity the makers of video games now for they must be the ones who truly suffer the most.
  • Invincible_summerInvincible_summer Heavy Metal Dhamma We(s)t coast, Canada Veteran
    @blu3ree - I'm not so sure... sometimes the people who, according to Buddhism or other philosophical traditions, are very "ignorant" or "not awake" are so into their "ignorance" or "non-awokenness" (if that's a word) that they are fine with it.

    "Ignorance is bliss."

    I think sometimes the experience of suffering occurs only when one sees a glimpse of the cessation of suffering.
  • @ summer and that's the role of the bodhisattva to spark their flame of consciousness.
  • BeejBeej Human Being Veteran
    edited March 2013
    @blu3ree- whoa. ....First: not all video games are violent. .... Second: pity is an absolutely useless emotion and should be abandoned immediately for compassion .... Third: whoa again.
    Invincible_summer
  • swaydamswaydam Veteran
    edited March 2013
    Videogaming is a better addiction than TV, or overeating, or drugs or sex. Still an addiction though.
  • @pegembara. Wait, what did I do wrong? I thought compassion is a big part of it? I don't understand. Of course I don't think compassion is just an empty emotion, love yes, but compassion? I don't understand I am sorry. I have nothing to compare myself too. I just thought it was kind of interesting that I was recipricated to what I was going through in myself. I guess it shows that I am not and enlighten being. I am flawed. I will try harder next time. I took a wild shot in the dark to see how i am supose to act I guess. I am like a child with this still. Thankyou for your lesson though. I have a better grasp.

    You didn't do anything wrong and compassion is a BIG part. Read my post again and realize that actually it is out of pure compassion that the Buddha advised us to "smash" our "castles" (ie. delusion). This is the way out of the predicament that all unenlightened beings have. The Buddha had deep compassion for those who has no idea that they were playing with sandcastles for he too was doing the same before he became awake.

    In a way we are all videogaming as per Matrix all the time.

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