| Topic: |
Religions > Bible |
| User: |
"V" |
| Date: |
05 Jun 2007 11:30:10 AM |
| Object: |
Buddhist Formula for Escaping Samsara (OT) |
Anonymous Writes:
"One thing that's always confused me about Buddhism is that there
seems to be a contradiction between what the central goal is and what
one ends up attaining through enlightenment. Buddhism begins by
offering us a means to alleviate suffering, but the solution is to
simply accept suffering. I'm not a Buddhist, so correct me if I'm
wrong, but isn't the technique to learn to dispense with desire, and
thus to dispense with the urge to rid one's self of pain? This means
just accepting pain and suffering. So far from eliminating it, one has
given up trying to resist it."
*********** REPLY SEPARATOR ***********
V writes:
The short answer (in classical Buddhism as the Buddha taught) is:
To become a renunciate and practice the 4 noble truths
http://www.4truths.com/
and through the perfection of the eightfold path
http://www.thebigview.com/buddhism/eightfoldpath.html
to free oneself from the 10 fetters that bind a person to cyclic
existence
http://buddhism.about.com/od/keyconcepts/a/Fetters.htm
and thus become an arhat and enlightened
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arhat
and through a few lifetimes of such practice to extinguish
reincarnation, leave the cycle of samara
http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/thanissaro/samsara.html
and reach nirvana.
http://www.acay.com.au/~silkroad/buddha/p_nirvana.htm
....that is how the pain of life ceases. (finally, as the story goes)
And when this classical Buddhism became too hard - Mahayana Buddhism
was invented.
When Mahayana Buddhism became too hard - Pure Land Buddhism was
invented
When Pure Land Buddhism became too hard - Won Buddhism was invented.
(just to name a few)
But for the average folks...meaning 99.9% of the Buddhists. Pain is
decreased in proportion to your efforts at perfecting the eightfold
path.
Persoanlly, I draw from many spiritual traditions myself, including
Buddhism and Taoism.
My main focus of my Buddhist practice is concentrated on the 3 pillars
of Buddhism that are common to all schools of Buddhist practice: I've
settled on the essence of Buddhism and that is what I work on and find
much peace with this type of simplified practice.
3 Pillars of Buddhism
1- Practicing mindfulness and meditation to develop peace and self
awareness of our own true nature.
2- Accepting the liberating wisdom of impermanence and practicing non-
clinging and a lessening of craving and desires.
3- The development of compassion for others.
Buddhists are not required to believe or not believe in god, so anyone
can make use of this philosophy irrespective of their religious
beliefs or lack thereof. Buddha was not a god and just a man, so not
need to worship him unless you are a 'Pure Land Buddhist.'
In addition to the 3 pillars, we can use the eightfold path to guide
us.
The Eightfold Path
1. Right View
2. Right Intention
3. Right Speech
4. Right Action
5. Right Livelihood
6. Right Effort
7. Right Mindfulness
8. Right Concentration
How can you differentiate right from wrong?
By peace.
You learn what destroys your peace and the peace of others as well as
what promotes you inner peace and the inner peace of others.
Do you need a teacher for that?
Or the Pope to tell you?
Or just listen to peace as the best teacher?
The 5 precepts are the 'commandments' more or less for Buddhists.
Although you are not commanded to do a thing. If you wish to live at
peace, then proceed the best you can - but it is your choice.
No one to boss you other than you...you alone are in control of your
inner peace.
The Five Precepts
1. Refrain from Killing:
2. Refrain from Stealing:
3. Refrain from Sexual Misconduct:
4. Refrain from False Speech:
5. Refrain from the Use of Intoxicants:
Buddhism provides this tool, which is just one out of the many tools I
use for peace development. For once we have found a contentment within
and with all and are at peace - we are progressing on the road to
enlightenment.
You can also tell when you have "arrived" by your practice telling you
so. Does your practice revolve around actually practicing what you
have learned to generate peace within or are you on a never ending
journey of always looking and never finding?
Once I am at peace, I can share with others about finding peace for
themselves, which is the secondary reason I practice.
I have no interest in practicing Buddhism for extinguishing
reincarnation.
These "fear based" reasons for being a Buddhist are not authentic or
natural - the persons actions are based on fear or negative
consequences otherwise they would not do them.
My actions are based on inner peace and if I stray - there goes my
peace - it is my choice.
I enjoy life and realize that due to natural law, suffering comes
about as part of the process.
The Taoists have a saying for this, "fleas come with the dog."
So, I accept there are growth pains as a fair trade off for the
privilege of living and I would enjoy any reincarnation if given the
chance.
Buddhism helps makes this trade off of life and pain more in my favor
by lending me support to live a life at peace. I do not practice
Buddhism to earn merit for the next life - I practice Buddhism for my
own peace generation in THIS LIFE.
Also see:
http://jesusneverexisted.org/jne/forum/index.php?topic=9.0
http://mystery.vox.com/library/post/esangha-and-control-freaks.html
Good Luck,
V (Male)
Agnostic Freethinker
Practical Philosopher
AA#2
.
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| User: "raven1" |
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| Title: Re: Buddhist Formula for Escaping Samsara (OT) |
07 Jun 2007 02:35:22 PM |
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On Tue, 05 Jun 2007 16:30:10 -0000, V <vfr44@aol.com> wrote:
But for the average folks...meaning 99.9% of the Buddhists. Pain is
decreased in proportion to your efforts at perfecting the eightfold
path.
Then why are you such a pain in the *****?
--
"O Sybilli, si ergo
Fortibus es in ero
O Nobili! Themis trux
Sivat sinem? Causen Dux"
.
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| User: "Mark K. Bilbo" |
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| Title: Re: Buddhist Formula for Escaping Samsara (OT) |
07 Jun 2007 11:57:20 PM |
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On Tue, 05 Jun 2007 17:30:10 +0000, V wrote:
"One thing that's always confused me about Buddhism is how it produces
self-centered assholes. Like V."
--
Mark K. Bilbo a.a. #1423
EAC Department of Linguistic Subversion
------------------------------------------------------------
"The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace
alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by menacing
it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary."
- H. L. Mencken
.
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| User: "raven1" |
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| Title: Re: Buddhist Formula for Escaping Samsara (OT) |
08 Jun 2007 03:04:48 PM |
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On Thu, 07 Jun 2007 23:57:20 -0500, "Mark K. Bilbo"
<gmail@com.mkbilbo> wrote:
On Tue, 05 Jun 2007 17:30:10 +0000, V wrote:
"One thing that's always confused me about Buddhism is how it produces
self-centered assholes. Like V."
Apparently he intends to annihilate his ego by swelling it to such a
huge size that it bursts.
--
"O Sybilli, si ergo
Fortibus es in ero
O Nobili! Themis trux
Sivat sinem? Causen Dux"
.
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| User: "Mark K. Bilbo" |
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| Title: Re: Buddhist Formula for Escaping Samsara (OT) |
08 Jun 2007 05:48:43 PM |
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On Fri, 08 Jun 2007 17:04:48 -0400, raven1 wrote:
On Thu, 07 Jun 2007 23:57:20 -0500, "Mark K. Bilbo"
<gmail@com.mkbilbo> wrote:
On Tue, 05 Jun 2007 17:30:10 +0000, V wrote:
"One thing that's always confused me about Buddhism is how it produces
self-centered assholes. Like V."
Apparently he intends to annihilate his ego by swelling it to such a
huge size that it bursts.
Problem being, if it gets any much larger than it is, it's going to
collapse into a black hole and devour the planet...
--
Mark K. Bilbo a.a. #1423
EAC Department of Linguistic Subversion
------------------------------------------------------------
"What the hell is an aluminum Falcon?"
.
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| User: "Michelle Malkin" |
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| Title: Re: Buddhist Formula for Escaping Samsara (OT) |
08 Jun 2007 08:27:44 PM |
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"Mark K. Bilbo" <gmail@com.mkbilbo> wrote in message
news:pan.2007.06.08.22.48.42.868444@com.mkbilbo...
On Fri, 08 Jun 2007 17:04:48 -0400, raven1 wrote:
On Thu, 07 Jun 2007 23:57:20 -0500, "Mark K. Bilbo"
<gmail@com.mkbilbo> wrote:
On Tue, 05 Jun 2007 17:30:10 +0000, V wrote:
"One thing that's always confused me about Buddhism is how it produces
self-centered assholes. Like V."
No one ever said that he was a GOOD Buddhist.
Apparently he intends to annihilate his ego by swelling it to such a
huge size that it bursts.
Problem being, if it gets any much larger than it is, it's going to
collapse into a black hole and devour the planet...
--
Mark K. Bilbo a.a. #1423
EAC Department of Linguistic Subversion
------------------------------------------------------------
"What the hell is an aluminum Falcon?"
.
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| User: "Mark K. Bilbo" |
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| Title: Re: Buddhist Formula for Escaping Samsara (OT) |
08 Jun 2007 09:58:20 PM |
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On Fri, 08 Jun 2007 22:27:44 -0400, Michelle Malkin wrote:
"Mark K. Bilbo" <gmail@com.mkbilbo> wrote in message
news:pan.2007.06.08.22.48.42.868444@com.mkbilbo...
On Fri, 08 Jun 2007 17:04:48 -0400, raven1 wrote:
On Thu, 07 Jun 2007 23:57:20 -0500, "Mark K. Bilbo"
<gmail@com.mkbilbo> wrote:
On Tue, 05 Jun 2007 17:30:10 +0000, V wrote:
"One thing that's always confused me about Buddhism is how it produces
self-centered assholes. Like V."
No one ever said that he was a GOOD Buddhist.
Particularly not the people in the Buddhist ngs...
--
Mark K. Bilbo a.a. #1423
EAC Department of Linguistic Subversion
------------------------------------------------------------
"What the hell is an aluminum Falcon?"
.
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