Tagged: meditation Toggle Comment Threads | Keyboard Shortcuts
-
hardie karges
-
hardie karges
The Buddhist Middle Path Between Bliss and Industry
The most difficult attachments are to (our) selves and (our) lives, which almost goes without saying, because what could be more logical and apparently natural? But it’s probably worth the effort to say it, because it may not be natural at all, maybe just the opposite, in fact. Because the only thing connecting it all is consciousness, and that hardly implies attachment, only awareness. This is a core principle of Buddhism, and nothing is more important.
Because once you’ve become attached to yourself, then you will certainly become attached to your wife and your children and your job, as if nothing could be more natural. But there is something almost more natural, and that’s non-attachment. Imagine the bliss that becomes possible by simply being alive without transacting, becoming blissfully wet when it rains and playfully engaged when it dries? So, why don’t animals do that, then, as we imagine they do?
But they don’t, or not totally. Jesus has already been busted for claiming that birds don’t build barns, when in fact they clearly do. In the English language we call them nests. In fact, these birds are a full step ahead of those imaginary ‘present moment’ Buddhists, as they are more like Middle Path Buddhists, splitting the difference between bliss and industry, very much in the moment, but with an eye to the future, too. We humans were once like that, planting seeds but also practicing crafts. Cities should be unnecessary with the advent of high tech. Maybe we should try that.
-
hardie karges
-
Dr B
Bought the book, really enjoying it 🙏🕉️
-
hardie karges
Thank you! I appreciate the feedback…
-
-
-
hardie karges
It doesn’t matter what language the Buddha spoke…
Dharma is the same in any language. It only matters that you speak the truth, as best you know it. Because there is more than one kind of truth, and intent is primary. On the one hand there is mere propositional truth, in which a statement is either true or false based on the definitions inherent to the observable facts. On the other hand, there are opinions which may be subject to interpretation. Whether something is red or not can generally be agreed upon quite easily, subject to shifting shades and tones.
But whether the weather is cold or not might be heavily determined by what you are accustomed to. Then there is the kind of truth that relies on deep contemplation. This is the kind of truth—and thought—that philosophers like the Buddha specialized in. And here extra care is necessary. Because this kind of thought was largely pre-scientific and so avoided much of the rigor that scientific thought was subject to, albeit often only in the final testing.
Because deep thought is still invaluable in the conceptual phase of scientific thought, as Einstein himself recounts when remembering some of his happiest moments. But their truth can only be ascertained by thorough testing, which Plato’s Allegory of the Cave will never be subjected to, nor will Buddha’s Four Noble Truths. Because this is a different kind of truth, not a truth of the agreement of propositions in a logical syllogism. Thus, these are largely subjective truths which can only be agreed upon by consent or inspiration. And these may be the best kind of truths, because they become personal and must be assimilated.
-
hardie karges
-
hardie karges
-
hardie karges
-
hardie karges
Buddhism and the Parable of the Poisoned Arrow
First the Parable of the Prejudicial Porpoise: If it looks like a fish, and acts like a fish, it still might be a mammal, or a shark. Now I don’t spend a lot of time composing parables, or sutras, but if the shoe fits, then I’ll wear it. The point is that things are not always what they seem, and the wise man with limited funds might help himself a bit by defining his circumstances carefully.
The Buddha once said, of course, that the important thing is not whether the criminal was a man or a woman, nor what he or she was wearing, but stopping the flow of blood in the wound, so that the victim can resume a normal life as soon as possible. But sometimes all that extra knowledge can pay off, such as what kind of poisons are involved, the age of the victim, or the exact location of any projectile or sharp-edged object.
So, with all due respect to the Parable of the Poisoned Arrow, Gulamalukya Sutta, and its prohibitions warning again abstract metaphysical abstractions, there is no prohibition against useful knowledge. In this respect Buddhism is in perfect sync with Science and unforgiving to sometimes useless metaphysics.
As always the Middle Path pays off, that Goldilocks ‘sweet spot’ that sometimes defies categorization, and that is at least part of the point. Precise definitions are inherent to Science but sometimes useless to logic. Can’t decide? Split the difference. Make the big decisions later. The important thing is to do something Now, even if it seems almost like nothing…
-
Dr B
My personal view of the poisoned arrow teaching can be summed up with a diagnosis I knew was coming, that I had cancer! But I refused to shoot myself with extra arrows: can it be cured, what’s the treatment, will I die, how long have I got, will it be painful blah blah all in my head. Natural questions maybe, but not before the diagnosis I knew was coming!
-
hardie karges
Yes, cancer is a difficult experience, given all the hype around it. I was there myself some fifteen years ago, borderline stage 3 with the prostate, and here I am now, almost feeling guilty that I didn’t suffer more, like so many do. TBH I usually default to Science, but that wasn’t a good option 2500 years ago. Cheers…
-
-
hardie karges
-
Dr B
Just bought the book🙏 I hope it’s good!
-
-
hardie karges
hardie karges and 
streaming consciousness... 
Reply