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Self-righteous hypocrisy
techie
India Veteran
We can't sit quietly in a room for twenty minutes. We become restless, we panic. We check the phone messages, watch tv, read a book, chat with friends. We can't even find peace with ourselves.
Yet we want world peace.
We become the judge and jury, and declare that certain individuals (or nations, religions) are destroying the world. Were it not for them, life would be beautiful. Or so we think. Hypocrisy? Certainly.
Worse yet, it is born of a self-righteous attitude - that one is better than the rest.
Less judging, more understanding.
What we need is humility, not the arrogance of a self-righteous mind.
This too is Buddhism.
4
Comments
You're preaching to the choir, bud.
The mind is a curious thing, you need to do certain basics before focussing on stilling it. That resolving of inner conflicts, releasing of needs and desires, allows you to get to a point of beneficial coherence and peace.
I believe it is only after you reach that real point, of pruning the mind, that the stilling and the process of marshalling concentration and meditation becomes truely fruitful.
Everyone is in a different place. Someone who isn't capable of understanding what you even mean isn't yet capable of putting it into action. Don't you ever wonder why it seems like we seem to be almost different species for the ways we view the world? What makes us all so different? Our experiences in life, for sure, but I think "causes and conditions" also includes our previous rebirths. This is the only thing that makes sense to me to explain why some people simply do not understand things different ways while others are able to see many different perspectives. I don't think it is solely a choice. I think some people just are not capable of doing so.
Why do some people always believe what they are told and others don't believe anything they are told? Why when you read through all the threads here, do you see so many common comments, themes, attitudes etc but they exist relatively few in many areas of the Western world? We might think everyone would benefit from Buddhism yet there are those who simply cannot comprehend the teachings no matter how much you try to explain it. Does every single person, right now in this life time, have the same ability to break through that? I am not so sure they do. They have the potential, yes. I don't think it is always a matter of refusing to do so. I think there are a lot of people who simply can't do it yet. A broad perspective of the world requires a lot of complex issues. When someone's perspective is "God is good and everything else is evil" they aren't interested in the bigger picture. There is a reason they can't answer the confusing questions we often demand of them. And then we simply label them as stupid for being unable to do so (like so many Trump voters). It's not a matter of intelligence but I think the causes and conditions to our station and beliefs about life goes a lot farther than just where we live, how we were raised, etc.
Anyhow, my point is that I think we waste a lot of time trying to figure out why people are the way they are.
When it comes to improvements, I think one that stands near, if not at, the front of the line is, "Stop using the word "we." It is both smarmy and presumptuous and diverts attention from MY very real problems. Group-think may be sweet and cuddly and camouflaging, but its effectiveness is questionable.
First of all, I don't identify with some parts of the speech.
Second, I know many people who don't fit that description either.
Third, this is as much Buddhism as it could be anything else.
Fourth.... oh yes, we are human: ongoing works in progress and deserving of compassion.
Thank you for the reminder
I'll join
Who is the judge in Dharma?
Me.
Which can be a little humbling.
However with sufficient understanding, the verdict is always, 'Innocent even if guilty'.
This is too Buddhist?