|
This reminds me to pick my mantra practice back up! That's the real advantage of pressing your mind with habit like a big chunk of gray bloody tofu: if it's a habit you won't forget to do it!!
|
#
?
Apr 13, 2024 17:47
|
|
|
|
| # ? Jun 3, 2024 13:25 |
|
|
Outpost22 posted:Today I was fooling around with the dragons tooth sword in Maggie Chow's apartment and accidentally busted up one of the Buddha statues, am I gonna be cursed now? Re-posting this from the Deus Ex thread in games. I sincerely want to know if destroying a Buddha statue in the game will have dire consequences. 
|
|
#
?
Apr 16, 2024 23:55
|
|
|
Outpost22 posted:Re-posting this from the Deus Ex thread in games. You're fine. Just make sure if you meet the Buddha on the road, kill him.
|
|
#
?
Apr 17, 2024 00:12
|
|
|
Cool thanks, I wasn't sure how something like that would be reacted to by Buddha. Would they even know what video games are?
|
|
#
?
Apr 17, 2024 00:19
|
|
|
I sure hope so otherwise idk what we would talk about
|
|
#
?
Apr 17, 2024 00:27
|
|
|
true fact about buddhism: guru rinpoche is really good at euro truck simulator 2. an absolute legend
|
|
#
?
Apr 18, 2024 04:45
|
|
|
Outpost22 posted:Cool thanks, I wasn't sure how something like that would be reacted to by Buddha. Would they even know what video games are?
|
|
#
?
Apr 18, 2024 04:57
|
|
|
Achmed Jones posted:true fact about buddhism: guru rinpoche is really good at euro truck simulator 2. an absolute legend Nessus posted:A Buddha could not have truly limitless compassion unless they will work also to liberate those bound by the karma of blasting ropes to Waluigi hentai. It is a sad but inevitable truth that liberation does mean giving up such attachments as hentai, but compassion and wisdom will see us through.
|
|
#
?
Apr 18, 2024 05:06
|
|
|
Outpost22 posted:Re-posting this from the Deus Ex thread in games. Genuine answer: A Buddha statue possesses no intrinsic value or worth. Buddha statues are methods to remind Buddhist practitioners of the teaching of the Buddha and to demonstrate respect and reverence for the Buddha and his teachings. Destroying a Buddha statue intentionally is bad karma as it demonstrates disrespect for the Buddha and his teachings, the actual act itself though is not the cause of the bad karma but the motivation and intention behind it. Destroying a virtual Buddha statue accidentally demonstrates no disrespect for the Buddha and is therefore karmically meaningless. Destroying a virtual Buddha statue intentionally however would demonstrate disrespect and most likely generate bad karma. How much would depend on whether or not it was streamed as streaming could encourage others to imitate the act or spread disrespectful ideas about Buddhism. Destroying the Buddha statue accidentally however in addition to being karmically neutral has the potential of being turned into a blessing if you take the opportunity to remind yourself of the reasoning behind the statue (to remind people of the teachings) and that the statues destruction demonstrates a core teaching (all things are impermanent)
|
|
#
?
Apr 18, 2024 17:11
|
|
|
Let’s say I get a whole bunch of mantras tattooed around my leg. If I start spinning in a clockwise circle would that make me a living prayer wheel?
|
|
#
?
Apr 19, 2024 18:06
|
|
|
Thirteen Orphans posted:Let’s say I get a whole bunch of mantras tattooed around my leg. If I start spinning in a clockwise circle would that make me a living prayer wheel? Only one way to find out right
|
|
#
?
Apr 19, 2024 19:12
|
|
|
idk that gives you a lot of obligations not to get your leg dirty and all that, sounds like a pain
|
|
#
?
Apr 19, 2024 19:23
|
|
|
Thirteen Orphans posted:Let’s say I get a whole bunch of mantras tattooed around my leg. If I start spinning in a clockwise circle would that make me a living prayer wheel? carve them onto rocks and turn earth into a giant prayer wheel
|
|
#
?
Apr 19, 2024 19:54
|
|
|
Achmed Jones posted:idk that gives you a lot of obligations not to get your leg dirty and all that, sounds like a pain I have an outdoor statue of Budai in my yard and I noticed a bird had poo poo on his head. I suddenly felt guilty, letting a bird poo poo on Maitreya like that, but then thought of those massive holy statues like the Buddha of Leshan and remembered that just comes with the territory.
|
|
#
?
Apr 19, 2024 21:35
|
|
|
Birds have Buddha nature and their poo poo falls where it may
|
|
#
?
Apr 19, 2024 21:45
|
|
|
Reminds me of the moss Buddha I saw in Osaka, even if it was kind of too late to see it well.
|
|
#
?
Apr 19, 2024 21:50
|
|
|
Birds just making sure Budai’s head doesn’t burn in the sun
|
|
#
?
Apr 19, 2024 21:52
|
|
|
My book the Little Zen Companion has a section listing some masters' answers to the question "What is Buddha?" I think about it a lot when questions like this come up.quote:"Three pounds of flax." -Tung-Shan
|
|
#
?
Apr 19, 2024 21:55
|
|
|
Does the bird poo poo have Buddha nature? (not entirely a shitpost despite the literal poo poo content, I had wondered if this is qualitatively identical between living beings such as the bird, and non-living objects, such as the bird poo poo.)
|
|
#
?
Apr 19, 2024 22:11
|
|
|
Honestly if there are statues of me hanging around thousands of years in the future, having poo poo on my head seems like a fair price
|
|
#
?
Apr 19, 2024 22:11
|
|
|
Nessus posted:Does the bird poo poo have Buddha nature? I'd say so. No matter what is in the universe at this moment, it can't be any other way, that's Buddha nature. I would say something could only not have Buddha nature if it were completely non-existent, not even in the form of thought. That's just my understanding of it though
|
|
#
?
Apr 19, 2024 22:14
|
|
|
Nessus posted:Does the bird poo poo have Buddha nature? That being said though, it can be an enjoyable and meditative ritual to clean something like a Buddha statue. Not that they need to be "clean", but more that the effort and appreciation can focus us even better onto the path.
|
|
#
?
Apr 19, 2024 22:20
|
|
|
I found another Little Zen quote that fits the earlier question, lol: that stone Buddha deserves all the birdshit it gets I wave my skinny arms like a tall flower in the wind -Ikkyu
|
|
#
?
Apr 24, 2024 20:12
|
|
|
Just wanted to do a quick sanity check: I did my first cross-leg meditation session (I would just sit in a chair before), and sure enough, my feet/lower legs feel asleep. My concern was how long they took to get feeling/circulation back. So is this pretty standard, no danger, and my body will just get used to it, yes?
|
|
#
?
May 3, 2024 22:18
|
|
|
FouRPlaY posted:Just wanted to do a quick sanity check: I did my first cross-leg meditation session (I would just sit in a chair before), and sure enough, my feet/lower legs feel asleep. My concern was how long they took to get feeling/circulation back. So is this pretty standard, no danger, and my body will just get used to it, yes? Personally I wouldn't play around with that. There's nothing uniquely special about sitting cross-legged, so finding what works best for your body is what I would encourage you to do. I get uncomfortable in both chairs and with cross-legged seating positions, but then I bought a folding bench with a pad to put underneath my knees that is both comfortable and encouraging towards a straight posture. Best of luck figuring out what works for you
|
|
#
?
May 3, 2024 23:57
|
|
|
It probably is all down to habituation. I've been sitting cross-legged at random my entire life and it's completely comfortable to me (if perhaps to the detriment of my aging ligaments) so I do that a lot; but if that's not you, don't force it. Though it is good to try different angles now and again, of course!
|
|
#
?
May 4, 2024 00:24
|
|
|
FouRPlaY posted:Just wanted to do a quick sanity check: I did my first cross-leg meditation session (I would just sit in a chair before), and sure enough, my feet/lower legs feel asleep. My concern was how long they took to get feeling/circulation back. So is this pretty standard, no danger, and my body will just get used to it, yes? yeah that's normal and not dangerous provided you're sitting for normal amounts of time. finding something that works well for you as a seat/cushion can make it somewhat better, though personally my legs never stopped falling asleep
|
|
#
?
May 4, 2024 10:11
|
|
|
Ah, so no easy consensus then for me to just adopt. Drat. Thanks for the replies, gang. I'll try some alterations in positions, and give things a few more shots. And if it doesn't work, I won't stay married to it, and go back to meditating on my chair
|
|
#
?
May 4, 2024 22:17
|
|
|
From someone who's basically the Buddhist equivalent of an Easter Catholic: Happy Wesak Day everyone.
|
|
#
?
May 22, 2024 01:11
|
|
|
Ibblebibble posted:Happy Wesak Day everyone. Thank you, happy Vesak to you and all as well! I got this ad on the social media and uhhhhh  
|
|
#
?
May 23, 2024 22:05
|
|
|
I quit smoking weed this past November after taking on the precepts as part of a ceremony at my locals Zen center. The 5th precept has been a big focus in my own practice because I used it for so long as a means of escape whenever my chronic pain or mental health was overwhelming me, and I found what was once a pleasure was a coping mechanism with diminishing returns. I've had moments of temptation, but my pain is getting me to the point where I barely do anything besides lie in bed. I find it difficult to sit in meditation without giving all my attention to the pain and mentally fighting with it. It's times like this that I find it so difficult to maintain my commitment and resist heedlessness as a means of escaping my situation and feelings for a short while. My body hurts and it can't be any other way. I still feel as if intoxication is a lateral move That only breeds desire and dependence in myself, but my mind will probably always find some level want that solution rather than the work of acceptance. I guess all of this is to say that some days I want to call in sick when it comes to the path
|
|
#
?
May 27, 2024 21:40
|
|
|
talk to your teacher. only you, your doctor, and your teacher can figure out if it's medicine or if it's an intoxicant. I can't think of any teachers who would say not to take tylenol. i can't think of many who would say not to take codeine after surgery. it seems pretty cut and dry to me that if, for whatever reason, that's the only painkiller you can tolerate, that's what you need. you and your teacher and your doctor have to work out whether the antecedent is true though.
|
|
#
?
May 28, 2024 16:17
|
|
|
it's a medical question not a religious matter so it's really just between them and their doctor, but otherwise yeah
|
|
#
?
May 28, 2024 17:47
|
|
|
Herstory Begins Now posted:it's a medical question not a religious matter so it's really just between them and their doctor, but otherwise yeah those are not as inherently separate as you're implying. For an extreme example, consider the Jehovah'a Witnesses, who refuse blood transfusion for religious reasons, not medical ones.
|
|
#
?
May 28, 2024 18:09
|
|
|
?? this is the buddhism thread not the jehovas witness thread. buddhism does not really approach the subject of health care unless you want to talk about treating all ailments with ox urine as the historical buddha suggested as the primary treatment for medical ailments, which is utter nonsense, so barring that yes it is 100% something they should discuss with their doctor and not with a religious figure. if anything their teacher should probably be assuaging their concerns about whether or not the precept against intoxication is referring to needed medicine (which it, with zero ambiguity, is not referring to) btw I say this even as someone who tends to skew on the more dogmatic side of 'people should be avoiding all intoxicants,' but if it is actual medicine for a condition people need to take whatever they need to take. similarly if people are effectively self medicating with something, doing that precept justice doesn't just mean throwing your life into chaos by just cold turkey stopping whatever was at least partially working, it requires actually figuring out some other way of effectively treating whatever the self-medication was doing. Herstory Begins Now fucked around with this message at 19:40 on May 28, 2024 |
|
#
?
May 28, 2024 19:31
|
|
|
I appreciate everyone's input and listening to my venting. It has given me The impetus to start strategizing with the chronic pain thread so that I can pursue diagnosis again and explore my options, after having been previously disheartened by the runaround and giving up. I agree with what you're saying about dogma, and how the precepts are not absolute rules, meaning that the issue is heedlessness and the bypassing of experience, not the actual intoxicants themselves as one mightnif they were applying a learned framing of sin from a Catholic youth such as mine. So I think what I'm going to do is have another go at communicating with doctors, localizing what is wrong with me (would be a relief after 5 years!) and see what's available to me either pharmaceutically or in terms of surgery. Once I've done my due diligence there, I can start working with mindfully applying THC in a medicinal capacity rather than a "I feel bad" emergency button like I have in the past.
|
|
#
?
May 28, 2024 19:52
|
|
|
I think that's a good approach. I'm sorry that you're struggling with chronic pain. And yeah, the religious/medical question is not separate at all imo. If you're trying to calm and clarify things in the body and mind in practice, what's in your body and how certain nerve pathways operate have big implications, as does taking precepts seriously. Small amounts of cannabis have helped me a lot at times. Some of the most necessary stuff that I've touched on in practice has been with some cannabis in my system, in order to relax some of my defensive reactivity while doing something hard. Like I'm caught on something hanging me up like a neuromusclar habit, and I try to breathe into it, around it, top to bottom, forceful concentration, light concentration, yoga, metta, whatever for weeks, and if anything I have just made it worse. And then I have a little cannabis and I can see around it perfectly, like it talks to more of my brain or certain aspects of my awareness are highlighted. It has also been a big hindrance.
|
|
#
?
May 28, 2024 20:02
|
|
|
the whole point of talking with a teacher is that they can see things as they are, without* the self-delusion that we bring when describing ourselves and our actions to ourselves (and other forums posters). i can't tell you whether the self-delusion is on the "i'm so into the precepts that i'm going to unskillfully not take medicine/use beneficial tools" side or the "i'm so into weed that i'm going to unskillfully but unintentionally convince myself of pain-relief/meditation-tool narratives." or maybe there is no self-delusion, and all the posters itt have clearsighted self-analytical capabilities. if it were reasonably possible to figure out which of those is correct, the right answer is incredibly obvious. but it isn't, so we should be a bit careful of advice given, and we should be a bit careful of the advice taken. * well they're human, but they're gonna be better at it than we are
|
|
#
?
May 28, 2024 20:13
|
|
|
Achmed Jones posted:the whole point of talking with a teacher is that they can see things as they are, without* the self-delusion that we bring when describing ourselves and our actions to ourselves (and other forums posters). i can't tell you whether the self-delusion is on the "i'm so into the precepts that i'm going to unskillfully not take medicine/use beneficial tools" side or the "i'm so into weed that i'm going to unskillfully but unintentionally convince myself of pain-relief/meditation-tool narratives." Yeah this is basically what I'm concerned about. The mind is especially good at tricking itself so at the moment following the precept feels like the safe bet until I've done more examination and feel confident in my ability to deviate skillfully
|
|
#
?
May 28, 2024 20:19
|
|
|
|
| # ? Jun 3, 2024 13:25 |
|
|
That's what I personally find helpful about the precepts as guidelines, because when I find them difficult to follow that's an opportunity for looking at myself and my justifications closely and honestly rather than just flippantly following whatever narrative comes up. Back when I used to get really drunk at parties The justification I told to myself was that I needed it to be social, but then I wouldn't consider if I was really making any deep connections at all, or the embarrassing behavior I would exhibit. Nowadays the clearer answer to me seems to move out of environments where that's necessary; I can just be sober and hang out with people to play board games, or spend time with members of my sangha at the coffee shop. Both my pain and my habitual pot smoking have a more complicated and powerful influence on me though, so I'm still doing the work.
|
|
#
?
May 28, 2024 20:26
|
|