ThePracticalBuddhist.com
  • Home
  • TEACHINGS: Blog
  • Coming Home Video Series
  • The Heart Sutra | A New Translation & Commentary
  • LIFE COACHING
  • BOOKS:
  • How to Find Inner Peace
  • The Self in No Self
  • Making Your Way in Life as a Buddhist
  • Scratching the Itch: Getting to the Root of Our Suffering
  • Raising a Happy Child
  • Dear Buddha | An Advice Column
  • A Buddhist Anthem - There's Nothing Like Today
  • Who Am I?
  • Bio
  • Contact

Why Diets Fail - A Buddhist Perspective

1/27/2013

0 Comments

 
It’s a well-known fact that dieting fails to achieve the desired results for most people ... either they fall off the diet or if they do lose the desired weight after a period they go back to their old eating habits and gain the weight they lost.  This is usually explained as a lack of will-power on the part of people who diet.  Looking at it from a Buddhist perspective, I would put forth a difference reason.

Except for the small number of people who are overweight due to physiological reasons, most people who are overweight simply eat too much, often too much of the wrong food.  They do this either because of learned experience from family or peers, or because they have low self-esteem and are depressed and eating is how they gratify themselves.  When people go on diets it’s for two basic reasons.  Either they want their image to change from “fat,” “obese,” “gross,” to something closer to the cultural ideal of an attractive person, or someone has convinced them that they have to lose weight for health reasons.  

In the former instance, the person is not dieting because they really want to; they are dieting because they are trying to change their image to fit the media messages of our culture.  They are trying to white-knuckle themselves into something other than what they are.  And so when their opposite learned experience or depression gains the upper hand, they either fall off the diet, or if they achieved their goals, gain the weight back again.  It’s an ongoing cycle caused by the conflicting messages in their learned experience.  In the latter case, the person again is not dieting because they want to; someone has convinced them that they should.  And so the same pattern exhibits itself that has just been described.

The problem here is not one of a lack of will-power.  The problem is the learned experiences that they have accumulated and the cravings those experiences engender.  Bottom line, as noted in my previous two posts, they are addicted to over-eating.  That is why will-power has no relevance here.  The only way out is the 12-step process suggested.

Someone walking the path who is overweight should, by following this 12-step process, be able to on the one hand truly accept themselves and their life for what it is right now and at the same time recognize that for health reasons they need to lose weight.  Not because they are “fat” or “obese” or “ugly,” but because it isn’t healthy.  In fact, when someone who previously had low self-esteem truly accepts themselves as they are and loves themselves unconditionally, the reason for their over-eating will in most cases cease and they will naturally start eating less and lose weight.  

But of course, there will be some who, when they accept themselves for who they are and love themselves unconditionally, will be perfectly happy to remain overweight.  And while that may not be healthy, if they are happy and at peace and approach their weight with equanimity, then that’s ok.  Walking the path is about not judging oneself or others; it is living without labels.



Another lesson in practical Buddhism.
0 Comments

Step #1:   Affirmed that what we value most is peace and happiness.  Acknowledged that our cravings cause us suffering and make peace impossible. Admitted that we were powerless over our cravings -- that they were controlling our lives.

1/25/2013

0 Comments

 
When each of us walked through the doors of temple for the first time, or read a book on Buddhism, we did so because we were suffering and we thought the Buddhist path may help us end our suffering.  But while we have learned to lead calmer lives and find more peace through meditation, many of us have not come even close to ending our suffering because we do not accept the fundamental truths of the Buddha dharma.

Foremost among those truths is the Second Noble Truth.  When the Buddha set rolling the wheel of the dharma he said that the cause of our suffering is our craving, or what I refer to as our unskillful desires.  A craving is an obsession regarding anything; it can be for security, love, success, or whatever.   

The Four Noble Truths state a very simple proposition:  the cause of our suffering … which includes frustration, fear, and anxiety … lies in our craving, and the end of our suffering lies in our letting go of those cravings, and thus all the emotions, judgments, and attachments that result from those cravings.


Our suffering is not caused by what happens or happened to us, what we experience.  We suffer because of the way that we react to these events as driven by our cravings and the emotions, judgments, and attachments that flow from our cravings.  Our cravings make peace impossible.

Yet if there is one universal truth about most of us who are trying to walk the Buddhist path ... indeed of all people ... it is that we do not want to give up our cravings, we do not want to accept that our emotions and perspectives are bad for us, are the cause of our suffering.  Our cravings give us hope that we can escape or change what we don’t like in ourselves or our lives.  
 
If we accepted ourselves and our lives as they are, we fear that we would be terribly unhappy and depressed when just the opposite is true.  There are too many things about ourselves and our lives that we don’t like, that we don’t feel good about.  Yes, we perhaps acknowledge that our cravings cause us huge frustration and at times challenge our sanity with overwhelming fear and anxiety, but without those cravings we feel our lives would be terribly empty; that it would remove all hope of our being able to control our future. 

​Yet paradoxically when we are in the grip of our cravings we not only have no control over the future, but we have no control over ourselves.  It is only when we free ourselves from our cravings that we have the ability to take control of our lives; no one can ever control or predict the future, but we can control our lives in so far as it concerns us and how we relate to the world around us.

We also say to ourselves that what we crave is what everyone craves.  It’s totally normal; it’s natural.  It’s not something unhealthy or socially unacceptable like alcoholism or sex addiction; it doesn’t destroy people and families they way those addictions do.  That may be true, but our "normal" cravings and the resulting emotions and actions do destroy individuals and families in more subtle ways; that is the source of the dysfunction we see in families and in society. 

We are totally enmeshed in our ego-mind habit-energies, in our learned experience, holding perceptions and feelings that are at odds with the Buddha dharma.  And so we don’t go deeply into the Buddha dharma, and unfortunately often the teaching we receive doesn’t challenge us to do so.  We simply feel good about the greater calmness that meditation brings to our lives.  We feel that is already a marked improvement in our lives, and indeed that is true.

But that is not what Buddhism is about, and that is not what brought us to Buddhism.  No, the only way to end our suffering, to walk the path, is to free ourselves from the known, from our ego-mind habit-energies. 


And the first step on that journey is to affirm that what is most important to us, what we value most, is peace and happiness.  More than any craving we have, regardless how important or noble it seems, our peace and happiness is more important. 

This can't be lip service.  It must come from your heart, your gut.  If those words don't come naturally, ask yourself what you do value most, and then ask "why?"  Continue asking "why?" regarding each answer you receive.  Even if you initially answer something like "money" or "security," eventually you will arrive at the core, which is the yearning for peace and happiness.  Until you can affirm this, you will not go far on the path because your cravings and emotions will continue to dominate you.


Next, we accept that our cravings, our unskillful desires are the cause of our suffering, that they harm us, they make peace and happiness impossible, and that we are powerless over them to such an extent that they control our lives.  In short, we are addicted to our cravings.

How did this come to be?  How did man manage to take perfectly harmless and indeed natural activities, even acts totally consistent with the Five Precepts, and turn them into the cravings that rule and distort our lives and cause us such suffering.?  The answer, simply put, is that we were taught ... taught by our families, our peers, and by the society we live in.  All of our cravings are learned experience; that’s why they seem so normal, so natural.

The problem is not so much that we were taught to want something ... friends,  good grades, a good job, a new car, whatever ... the problem is that we learned that if we didn’t have certain attributes (often ones we didn’t have) or if we didn’t achieve certain things or have certain things (again, often things we didn’t have), we were not valued by our family, our peers, or our culture.  We learned that if we were lacking we would be viewed as failures and we learned to fear failure.  At the core our learned experience made us feel insecure and our ego-mind developed cravings to obtain the things that would make us feel secure.   


We were not taught that peace and happiness is most important.  We were not taught that we were perfect as we were, that we have everything we need inside ourselves to be at peace and happy.  That if we desired something more, to say, “If it happens, great.  But if it doesn’t happen, that’s ok too.  All will be well.”  We were not taught equanimity.​

Most cravings are unskillful desires not because of the nature of the desires themselves but because of their origination in our lack of equanimity.  We are dissatisfied with ourselves and our lives and are unable to love ourselves unconditionally and have compassion for ourselves.  Why?  Because we felt as we grew up and matured that we were not loved or respected unconditionally.  For most of us, that is our learned experience.  

Even for those who received positive feedback because they were talented, smart, or attractive, for example, they were aware that their status in their group’s pecking order depended on those attributes and should they lose them or slip, their status would be lost as well.  And so we find that those at the top, who have what appear to be the biggest egos, are in fact the most insecure because they know how much they have to lose if they should slip.  That is why successful managers, titans, divas, and stars are so often imperious towards others; it is a mask that hides their insecurity by putting others down.

But the work we have before us is not to remake our families, our culture, or the world.  It is the way it is.  We cannot control it.  All we can do is change the way we relate to ourselves and to others ... the thoughts we think, the words we speak, the actions we take.  


Our sole task is to free our lives from suffering; to find peace, contentment, and joy.  And the first step in that process is to both affirm the primary importance to us of peace and contentment and acknowledge the suffering caused by our cravings and our powerlessness over our them.

Ah, you may say, “I get it.  But I don’t believe that we are powerless over our cravings.”  And so we try to bargain with ourselves, with our ego-mind habit-energy, regarding our cravings.  We tell ourselves that we accept our lives, but that is self-deception; we don’t really accept our lives.  

And so time and again, our cravings continue to cause terrible frustration and pain when they are not satisfied.  And when they are we find ourselves, after a short period, wanting more and we face a new cycle of frustration.  Finally, whether after months or years, we come to a point where our suffering is so intense that we are ready to accept our powerlessness and begin the process of freeing ourselves from our suffering,

When we have reached that point, we ask ourselves what we value most, what is most important to us. The answer that comes forth spontaneously and unambiguously is, "peace and happiness."  Now we are ready to work the steps. This become our touchstone against which we view all our actions and thoughts.  We are not playing games with ourselves any more; this is for real.

Mind you, though, even at this point, even as you recite the first step with conviction, your ego is hardly down for the count.  Progress on the path is never smooth.  There will be times when your ego-mind habit-energies rise up despite all your work.  But the second step will provide you with the grounding that allows you to withstand these tests and continue to progress on the path.


0 Comments

12 Steps on the Buddhist Path

1/22/2013

1 Comment

 
In my writing I have noted often that our cravings are really addictions, in that they are things we feel we really need to have in order to be happy; they become compulsions, obsessions.  We have no control over our cravings; trying to use our willpower to control them is futile.  If we are unsuccessful at satisfying them, we feel terribly frustrated.  And if we do satisfy them, not too much time passes before we want more which sets us up for more frustration.

While our craving addictions generally don’t cause the kind of harmful effects that alcohol or sex addiction do, nor are they social taboos, they do take a serious toll on our sanity by causing overwhelming frustration, fear, and anxiety, and so impact our opportunity to experience peace and contentment ... they are the core of our samsara.  This is not just harmful to us, but without question has a negative impact on all those around us, whether family, friends, or colleagues.

When we think, in our more rational moments, about freeing ourselves from our cravings by accepting ourselves and the world around us as just being the way things are, and loving ourselves unconditionally and with compassion, we quickly push back against the idea of acceptance because we don’t want to accept.  We want our cravings!   And our habit-energies usually win out.

We don’t accept that our cravings are bad for us.  We know that they are, because we know the agony that they put us through, but we don’t accept that they are unhealthy.  Our cravings are normal, we say.  Everyone has them.  There’s nothing socially unacceptable or shameful about our cravings.  If they harm us because we can't fulfill them, we feel it’s because of something that we’re doing wrong; it’s our fault.  Or we feel victimized.  And we certainly don’t accept that we have no control over them.

The other morning while meditating, I thought about these issues while reflecting on my experience in a 12-step program.  And I had an epiphany.  I realized that the reason why, even with good teaching, so many Buddhists find it hard to get beyond a certain feel-good point in their practice, why they are unable to free themselves from their suffering, is their inability or refusal to change their relationship with their addictive cravings ... to accept that they are harmful and that we are powerless over them.

Well, if one is a Buddhist and continues to hold such feelings then one is playing games with oneself.  One is trying to have your cake and eat it too.  And that just isn’t possible.

If I think about the temples I’ve attended and the dharma talks I’ve heard, there is very little mention of any of this.  Even the very powerful teaching I received that “scratched the itch,” ignored this whole issue by going directly to an understanding of the illusory nature of our perceptions and the impermanence of all things.  But even with that understanding, even after it was internalized, surrendering the ego to my true Buddha nature was another ballgame.  And it all comes back to the power of our cravings and our ego.

As the Buddha said as he set rolling the wheel of the dharma, the origin of suffering is craving.  This acknowledgment is the lynchpin of the Four Noble Truths.  Without accepting this fact, there can be no real progress on the path.

And so I propose to set forth a new approach to the Buddha dharma ... 12 Steps on the Buddhist Path, an expanded take on the Four Noble Truths and on the Fourfold Path to Freedom which I have presented in my books.  (NOTE:  Others have used the term, “12 step Buddhism,” but in the context of Buddhism as an adjunct to a traditional 12-step addiction recovery program - for example alcohol or sex.  What I am proposing is totally independent of any of the traditionally recognized addictions.)  


1.  Affirmed that what we value most is peace and happiness.  Acknowledged that our cravings cause us suffering and make peace impossible. Admitted that we were powerless over our cravings -- that they were controlling our lives.

2. Came to believe that our true Buddha nature could restore us to peace and end our suffering, and created a platform of serenity through belief in the Buddha dharma, focusing on the good things in our lives, and starting to walk the path of acceptance.

3. Committed ourselves to the path by practicing the Five Precepts and the Six Paramitas

4.
Came to believe that all our feelings and perceptions are learned, that they are just a product of our ego-mind.  And that our ego-mind is not our true self.  Instead we knew that our true self is our heart.

5. Were ready and willing, and made a decision to surrender our ego and turn our will and our lives over to the care of our true Buddha nature, opening up our heart to embrace all aspects of our being and experience, past, present, and future.

​6. Came to believe that we have everything we need inside ourselves to be at peace and happy.  And formed the intent to not allow anything to disturb our peace and happiness.

​7. Came to free ourselves from our cravings and all emotions, judgments, and attachments.

​
8. Were entirely ready to love ourselves unconditionally and have compassion for ourselves, and to accept ourselves and the world around us as being the way they are because it's just the way it is.

9. Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all.  Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.

10. Continued to be mindful of the arising of cravings and desires, and when they arose, stopped, did not attach to them or engage them, rejected their guidance as not being good for us, and allowed them to subside.

11. Sought through meditation to constantly improve our conscious contact with our true Buddha nature, returning to our self-nature, observing things without the intervention of thought,  following the Noble Eightfold Path, and practicing the Six Paramitas.

12. Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to others who were suffering from their cravings and to practice these principles in all our affairs.



1 Comment

The Power of Affirmations - Use Carefully

1/16/2013

0 Comments

 
In Making Your Way in Life as a Buddhist, I wrote about the power of affirmations to displace our negative learned feelings and labels about ourselves with positive ones that reflect our inner being, our true Buddha nature.  But the very fact that one needs to recite affirmations, at least in the beginning, indicates that part of us doesn’t really believe them. 

In order not to get caught in a trap ... that is, affirming what you don’t believe and thus perversely reinforcing that disbelief ... it is of critical importance that part of you does believe what you are affirming.  That part of you can honestly say, “yes,” to your affirmation and that you vocalize them with conviction.  So any affirmation you say needs to be crafted very carefully.  If you see a list of suggested affirmations in a book, make sure that they pass this test as they apply to you.

Recently, a friend told me that he had been reciting affirmations from a book, and that one of them was an affirmation that he is powerful.  The book defines power as personal power, or the development of will ... one example given is the power to “fake it until you make it.”

I was horrified to find this in a spiritual book by a learned author.  Yes, we have power in the sense that we have the ability to free ourselves from samsara.  And that does require awareness and the exercise of discipline.

But to use loaded words like “powerful” and “will” which have very definite meanings in our culture and to which the writer subscribes within the sphere that he is describing ... one’s personal growth ... is I think putting the reader at risk of a negative experience.  For we are not powerful in the sense that that word is normally used in our culture.  

Indeed, most 12-step programs start off with the recognition that we are powerless over our addictions, and as I have written, our cravings are indeed addictions and we are powerless over them.  We cannot free ourselves from our cravings by white-knuckling them, we cannot exercise our power over them.  There is a common saying in 12-step programs that addiction is “self-will run riot.”  

So if someone recites this affirmation about one’s being powerful, knowing that one isn’t powerful, what will most likely happen is not that the person will say this affirmation is crap and try a different approach.  Instead the person will have faith in the affirmation because it is in a worthy book, and so the person will say to him- or herself, “If I’m not powerful, it’s because of something I’ve done or haven’t done, I have failed, I need to do more.”  Indeed, this particular book says that if you don’t claim your power, if you don’t exercise your will, you have only yourself to blame.   They have been trapped by an affirmation that is inherently false and has no place in a spiritual life, certainly not a Buddhist life.

Instead what we must do is affirm the good inside us.  We must affirm our unconditional love and compassion for ourselves ... that is if at least some part of you feels that.  If not, my books suggest ways of developing that unconditional love and compassion.  

Beyond those affirmations, we must accept ourselves and the world around us as being that way it is.  And we must surrender our ego and turn our will and our life over to the care of our true Buddha nature.  We must seek to become one with our true Buddha nature, for its breath to be our breath, its senses our senses, its eyes our eyes.  That is the Buddhist path to freeing ourselves from our cravings and samsara.


Another lesson in practical Buddhism.

0 Comments

The Path from Peace to Joy - Beyond the Last Barrier

1/12/2013

0 Comments

 
I wrote in an earlier post (“Taking Joy in Each Moment?”, 11/2/12) that regardless whether I was in repose or engaged in an activity I love, I did not experience joy.  Even though I was engaged in these activities from a state of equanimity, with no hopeful outcome in mind, with no negative emotion motivating the activity, without any agitation, not driven by ego, in touch with my true Buddha nature, my spirit remained burdened by my past.  It was a barrier to my experiencing joy in most moments. 

I should for clarity restate how I defined “joy” in that earlier posting, for it is not the dictionary definition.  I said that for me, joy is “a lightness of spirit, feeling nurtured, experiencing something that brings a smile to my face ... whether it’s the beauty of nature, watching a small child, listening to a good piece of music, crawling into bed, or the companionship of a friend.”

I felt good, positive, satisfied when I did what I judged to be good work, but joy was a feeling that with rare exception was not present.  That raised the question, why does my spirit remain weighted down by the past.  After a few months of further meditation I can answer that question.  

I began by going deep within myself during meditation.  I visualized going down deep into my interior on an elevator, like in a mine ... past my thoughts, past my learned experience, past my ego, to finally reach the core, my true Buddha nature.  

And when I was embraced by my smiling true Buddha nature, I realized that while at one level I knew that my experience of the past was an illusion caused by a variety of factors and that the labels that were applied to me and which I then applied to myself were illusory, I had not literally relived my past in my mind.  I had not revisited the past through the eyes of my true Buddha nature, seeing it as it really was, and so the burden of past suffering was still with me.  I had not replaced the old image with my new understanding of reality.

By happy coincidence, around this time, I turned my will and my life over to the care of my true Buddha nature. (I wrote about this in another posting,)  Several years ago I had surrendered my ego to my true Buddha nature, but I had not turned my life over to the care of it; that may seem like a distinction without a difference, but that is not the case.  When I finally did that, its body became my body, its breath became my breath, its senses became my senses, its eyes became my eyes.

And it was through those eyes and senses that I was now able to revisit my past, especially my childhood, and see it for what it really was.  I saw my father as being the unconditionally loving and compassionate father that he was, rather than the father whose love I had lost through various faults of mine.  I saw his admonitions to me as being an expression of his love, of his wanting the best for me ... it was his way based on his upbringing and culture, even though in my child’s eyes it seemed that he was angry with me and did not love me; that he thought I was faulty.  And I saw the countless unmistakable expressions of his love and compassion for me which at the time did not break through the barrier of my pain.



Again, I had come to this realization many years ago.  The difference now was that I was actually reliving the past through the eyes and senses of my true Buddha nature.  I witnessed the various things he did and I saw what they truly meant, not what I had thought they meant.

I then went through the key high and low points in my life and saw with the eyes of my true Buddha nature that I was frequently the recipient of much love and respect throughout my life, and that when I was “low,” I was acting on learned negative habit energies, not in control of my actions, and I had compassion for the pain that I inflicted on myself and others.

This process continued for several weeks.  Little by little as the weeks went by, I could tell that throughout the day I was smiling more, that I was taking more joy in little things.  At the end of perhaps a month, between having turned my will and my life over to the care of my true Buddha nature and having relived my past and seen the truth, most importantly that I was loved unconditionally and with compassion by my father at all times, I now feel a lightness of spirit and am able to experience joy on a regular basis.

This is not to say that I go around 24/7 with a smile on my face.  There is still much pain in the world, both immediate and distant, that pains me, just as others’ joy is my joy.  But as a general matter, I do now take joy when I am engaged in activities or am just in repose.

Another lesson in practical Buddhism.

0 Comments

The Middle Way - A Way Back from the Breach

1/4/2013

0 Comments

 
Most of mankind has never heard the Buddha’s teaching on the intrinsic emptiness, the dependent origination of all things.  Nor have they heard Aristotle’s idea of the golden mean whereby every virtue is a mean between two extremes, each of which is a vice.  Would that they had and that they understood.

But although the founding fathers of our democracy were not schooled in the Middle Way, they understood the danger of extremes and came up with their own practical concepts for controlling the tendency of man to crave absolute power and for transcending opposing views.  Our democracy and the right of free speech is based on the value the founding fathers placed on differing opinions.  It is by the airing of differing opinions that people are either  persuaded or not, or a compromise is found which while not giving either side everything it wanted provides a way for each side to feel good about the outcome.  But ultimately, of course, the majority rules, which means that there will in most political matters be a large percentage of people and their elected representatives who are not happy with the result.  Such is life in a democracy.

For such a system to work, for our democracy and representative government to function, it is of critical importance that even though people and their representatives may disagree with others as to a whole raft of issues, that, as lawyers say, “people agree to disagree,” that they understand that “reasonable minds may differ.”  Which is to say that each side respects that the other side came to its opinions honestly and with reason ... they just don’t agree. 

When, however, people become so convinced of the rightness of their opinions that they become self-righteous and ideological in their approach to issues ... that is they feel that they are not just right and the other side wrong but that the other side is somehow evil or harmful ... then there can be no compromise, there can be no reasoned discussion, there can be no art of persuasion and the process of our democratic government breaks down.  And that is the state in which we have found ourselves these past few years.

How have we come to this point?  Why has a system that has operated for more than 200 years, with the exception of the Civil War, with widely divergent points of view and often hot tempers reached the current impasse?  Really, what we are seeing now in the posture of the two opposing sides is most akin to that which our country experienced over the issue of slavery and to a certain extent the civil rights movement.  And that’s disturbing.

On the issue of slavery and civil rights, those in the south felt that their whole way of life, their whole world would cease to be if African-Americans were given their freedom and the same rights as white people.  And they were right.  Their world did change.  But life went on, and white southerners changed too; they adapted to the new reality.  And they found once they got over themselves that much about their world did not change.

The same kind of reality check is needed in the current situation in order to progress from the current Congressional gridlock.  Both sides ... which is to say the liberal left and the far right ... need to understand that life will go on, that the country will prosper, that they and their constituents will be ok, even if their view of government does not totally win the day.  This is surely an instance where there is merit on both sides.  

For example, as staunchly liberal as I am, I get upset when I get emails and petitions, or read articles, in which liberal groups refuse to give an inch on entitlement (Social Security and Medicare) spending.  I’m sorry, but the nation’s debt and deficit are real problems and we just do not have sufficient revenue to continue past policies unaltered as our age demographics change.  

There are ways to cut spending without harming those who are truly dependent on these benefits, and that’s what Democrats must make sure of.  As for the starting age of Medicare, that used to be of critical importance because of the cost of medical insurance.  Now with the new Health Care Law, insurance available through the insurance exchanges for those of limited means will probably not be much more than what one currently pays out of Social Security for Plan B.  So it should not be the critical issue it once was.  There’s also a painless opportunity to raise revenues for SS by ending the salary cap regarding the application of the SS tax.

But how do we get both the public and their representatives to get down from these barricades they’ve erected?  How do we get them to go back to the day when each side respected the other side?

As a Buddhist, I find the answer in the teaching of the Buddha that all things are empty of intrinsic existence, that they are of dependent origination.  That understanding is at the core of the Middle Way.  Thus every thought we have, every opinion we hold, all our perspectives are a function of our learned experience, whether within our family, our peer group, or the larger culture.   

As a proposed statement of fact, this statement is unassailable.  And when one truly accepts that fact, even though one may still hold ones opinions, there is no way that one can say any more with certitude that I am right and the others are wrong.  Even if one is Born Again, your opinions are based on the teachings of your peer group, your minister, and they in turn were learned from someone else.  They are as dependent as the opinions of a secular humanist atheist.  And if anyone has the hubris to say that God has spoken to them and this is what God says, beware!

There should be only a few universal rules in coming to a compromise on issues.  First, approach all issues with as open, unbiased a mind as one can.  Second, do unto others as you would have them do unto you; love and respect your neighbor as you do yourself.  Third, do no harm to those who are vulnerable and need the protection of the state.  Fourth, the social contract must be honored by all citizens, part of which entails that those who are better off have a social responsibility as citizens to help those who are not well off ... that’s what progressive taxation is all about.  Finally, there can be no sacred cows ... neither military spending nor entitlements.

Application of these rules would arrive at numerous ways to cut the deficit and slow the growth of the national debt through a combination of raised revenues and reduced spending without harming either individuals in need, the strength of the economy, or our national security.  

This political process is obviously not an example of the Middle Way, which is not to be understood as the art of compromise or political horse-trading, but the core understanding of the Middle Way informs the approach.  I believe in all matters spiritual that progress on the path is incremental for most people and it is better to move forward on the path, incorporating the Buddha dharma as one attains the understanding, than not undertaking the path at all.


Another lesson in practical Buddhism.



0 Comments

    Archives

    May 2025
    April 2025
    March 2025
    February 2025
    January 2025
    November 2024
    October 2024
    August 2024
    July 2024
    June 2024
    May 2024
    April 2024
    March 2024
    February 2024
    January 2024
    December 2023
    November 2023
    October 2023
    September 2023
    August 2023
    July 2023
    June 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012

     

    All
    1. The Goal Of Buddhism
    1. The Goal Of Buddhism - Clarified
    2. End Of Suffering Cheat Sheet
    3. 12 Steps On The Buddhist Path
    4. The Choice Is Yours
    5. You Have A Self But It's Not The Ego
    6. The Mind - Understanding Its Facets
    A Buddhist Trinity - Amended
    A Buddhist Trinity - Further Support
    A Buddhist Trinity - The Core Path To Peace And Happiness.
    A Carefree Day And Life
    Acceptance Is The Answer
    Accepting The Life Of Those Around You
    Acknowledgement Of The Cause Of Suffering Is Key
    Allow Nothing To Disturb Your Peace And Happiness
    An Open Letter To President-elect Trump And All Americans
    Antagonist Or Challenge?
    A Path To Compassion And Loving Kindness
    Approaching The Other Shore
    A Prayer For America On This Election Day
    Are You Reading And Willing To Let Your Cravings Go?
    As A Buddhist How Do You Plan - Revisited Again - Relying On Your Buddha Nature
    As A Buddhist How Do You Think About The Future?
    As A Buddhist … Revisited Again - Do We Need To Know Where We’re Headed?
    As A Buddhist ... Revisited - Planning Without Thinking
    As A Buddhist … Revisited Yet Again - How Do You Implement Moving Forward Without Having A Destination Point?
    A Simpler Path To Experiencing Joy
    Attachment To Self
    Avatars - Their Usefulness
    Back To Basics
    Be A Light Unto Yourself And Others
    Be Aware When Reading - Yearn To Please Or To Offer Joy?
    Be Careful The Monk/Teacher You Choose
    Befriend Yourself
    Being Aware Of Abundance
    Being Good To Yourself
    Being - Not Being
    Being One With Your True Buddha Self
    Being Present Is Being Flexible
    Being Present Is The Key To Peace And Contentment
    Being Present - No What If’s Or Imagining The Future
    Being Present - Part 2
    Being Present Requires Faith
    Being There For Someone
    Belief In You Buddha Nature - The Beginning And The End
    Believe In Yourself
    Be One With Your Divine Essence
    Be Sustained By The Love Of Buddha Within You
    Be The Eye Of The Hurricane
    Beware Complacency
    Beyond Acceptance
    Beyond Awareness
    Beyond Dispassion - The Next Step
    Boredom
    Boundaries
    Buddha Mind - Child Mind
    Buddha Mind Free Of Thought
    Buddha Nature Gentle And Serene
    Buddhism And The Divine
    Burying Your Old Identity
    Burying Your Old Identity - II - Separating Yourself From Your Old Identity
    Can't Find Your Buddha Nature - Look In The Mirror
    Change Your Life By Changing The Direction Of Its Energy Flow
    Changing The Direction Of Your Energy Flow - II - Manifesting
    Changing Your Reactions
    Chicken Or Egg ?
    Cleansed
    Co-existence Of Buddha Nature And Ego-Mind
    Compassion
    Control
    Control Your Reality
    Craving "Survival" Condemns You To Suffering
    Crying - An Understanding
    Darkness Before Light
    Darkness V Light
    Death And Life
    Death And Life - Part 2
    Death Heaven And Hell
    Deflating The Ego
    Dependence
    Desire - The Gerbil Trap
    Desperate For Love And Acknowledgment?
    Discipline - It’s Essential
    Dislike - An Insidious Obstruction
    Dispassion Does Not Mean Wtihout Feeling
    Dispassion - Enter The State Of By Becoming Aware Of The Emptiness Of Our Ego-mind
    Dispassion - Obstacles And Options To Achieve It
    Dispassion - Unlocking The Doors
    Don't Just Negate Specifics - Replace Your Total Frame Of Reference
    Don't Just Say No To Your Mind
    Don’t Speak/Help Unless Asked
    Don’t Waste A Moment
    Don’t Waste A Moment
    Do We Suffer Or Not? - The Choice Is Ours
    Do You Really Want To Be At Peace And Content
    Ego - Changing Your Relationship With It
    Embrace The Moment Not Merely Accept
    Emptiness - What Does It Mean?
    Emptying Myself Of Myself - The Divine's Will Not Mine
    Enter Your Buddha Mind
    Equanimity But Feel Someone’s Pain
    Everything That Disturbs Us Is A Product Of Suffering
    Everything You Need To Be Happy
    Everything You Need To Be Happy- II
    Evil - How Should A Buddhist Respond?
    Expectations? - Not If You Want To End Suffering
    Experiencing The Fullness Of The Present
    Facing My Insecurity
    Faith And Mind Not Separate
    Faith And Mind Not Separate - 2
    Faith And Mind - Take III
    Faith And Reason
    Faith Even When You Are Dependent On Others
    Faith: The Essential Element Of Spiritual Practice
    Faith: What Is It And Why Is It Essential?
    Fear And Anxiety - There's More
    Fear Anxiety And Craving - Chicken Or Egg #2
    Fear Arises From Our Desire To Control
    Fearlessness
    Fear's Destructive Impact
    Fear V Common Sense
    Fear V Faith
    Feeling Lack - A Most Insidious Perception
    Feeling Off? - Adjust Your Attitude
    Finding Happiness In Each Moment
    Focus On Eternity
    Forgiveness - A Different Take
    Freedom From The Future
    Freedom From The Known
    Freedom - What Does It Mean?
    Freeing Yourself From Anger And Resentment
    Freeing Yourself From Attachments
    Freeing Yourself From Fear
    Freeing Yourself From Fear II
    Freeing Yourself From Fear - III
    Freeing Yourself From Suffering - The Prerequisite Step
    Freeing Your Soul
    Freeing Your Soul - II
    Freeing Your Soul - III
    Free Of Thought - Important Clarification
    Frustration ... Our Canary In The Mine
    Get Over Yourself
    Getting To Know Your True Buddha Self
    Give Yourself A Choice
    Going Through Life With Blinders - The Obstruction Of Labels
    Good Guys Finish Last?
    Go Slow
    Grateful For Being Alive
    Guilt
    Guilt And The Defensive Beast
    Half Measures Don't Work
    Happenstance
    Happenstance - Part II - You Your Buddha Nature And The Universe
    Happiness Is Elusive
    Happiness - What You Need To Be Happy
    Happy New Year 2017?
    Have Directions Not Goals
    Have Faith In The Process
    Have You Heard Of Narcs - The Final Answer To Why I Was Frowning
    Healing Your Inner Child - Healing Your Wounded Heart
    Healing Your Inner Child - Update
    Hell Is Just Resistance To Life
    How I Failed Myself
    How The Ego-Mind Tries To Destroy Faith
    How To Desire Yet Not Crave?
    How To Find Faith?
    How To Find Your True Self Your Heart
    How To Free Yourself From The Control Of Your Ego-Mind
    How To Live In Our World
    How To Love Yourself
    How To Maintain Joy Regardless What
    How To Observe Through The Eyes Of Your True Buddha Self
    How To Offer Others Joy
    How To Process The Election
    How To Protect Yourself Against Psychic Attack
    How To Respond To Acts Of Aggression
    How To Spiritually Respond To The Election?
    How To Start The Day
    How To Surrender Your Ego Or Turn Your Will And Your Life Over To The Care Of Your True Buddha Nature
    Humbling Myself
    Humility
    Humility - How To Gain It?
    Humility - The Price Of The Lack Of Humility
    Humility: The Truth About "My" Good Accomplishments
    I Am Being Reborn
    I Am Therefore I Am
    If Nothing Offends All Internal Struggle Ceases
    If This Is Practical Buddhism Why The Pastoral Setting
    "If You Love Someone You Will Suffer"
    Imagining In Meditation
    I'm Back
    I’m Grateful To Be A Jubu
    Inner Happiness - Outer Happiness
    Innocence Or Ignorance?
    Insecurity - Nurture Not Nature
    Instead Of Forgiveness Show Compassion
    It Doesn’t Have To Be
    It's All About Survival - Or Is It?
    It's A Sin -The Harm We Inflict On Ourselves
    It’s Just The Way It Is
    It’s Just The Way It Is And It’s All OK
    It's Just The Way It Is - Take III
    It’s No Crime To Think About Oneself!
    Joy - A Hopefully Final Take
    Joy - At Last Real Understanding
    Joy - Experience It Now
    Joyful Dispassion - Excited Non-attachment
    Joyful Dispassion - Update
    Joy/Happiness - A Choice We Make
    Joy - One More Take
    Joy - The Final Take - Taking Joy In Each Moment Is Only Possible When You Radiate Light
    Joy - Yet Another Take
    Knowing Best?
    Know The Greatness Within You
    Know Thyself - The Power Of Awareness
    Know Who You Are - Be Who You Are
    Lack V Abundance
    Learning From Falling Off The Spiritual Wagon
    Let Go - Let God
    Letting Go
    Letting Others Go Their Way
    Liberate Yourself From Thinking
    Likes And Dislikes - A Potential Trap Examined
    Listening To Others
    Listening - Why Is It So Difficult?
    Looking For Your Treasure
    Love At First Sight - NOT
    Love/Loving-Kindness - Defined In The Buddhist Context
    Love Yourself Unconditionally
    Make It Your Own - An Extension Of “The Heart’s Embrace”
    Making Lists - Objectifying Your Fears The Things That Push Your Buttons
    Making Peace With The Outside; Making Peace With The Inside
    Making Sense Of Being Tested
    Making The Most Of Every Day
    Manifestation - DANGER DANGER!
    Manifesting
    Manifesting In The Moment
    Meditation - Coming Home Releasing And Being At Peace
    Meditation - The Importance Of Daily Practice
    Memory - Don’t Trust It
    Mental Obstructions
    Mind Resting Undisturbed
    Mirror Mirror On The Wall - A Revelation
    Mirror Time
    Money And Spirituality
    My Daily Task
    My Daily Task - 2
    My Ego's Sneak Attack
    My Life - A Being Dichotomized
    My Meditation Isn't Working!
    My Mind Trapped Me
    My Road To Peace
    My True Buddha Self And Me
    Nature Of Mind Revealed - A Transformation
    Never Stop Going Deeper
    Newly Discovered Trauma
    Nirvana - It's Right Before Your Eyes
    No Expectations No Hope?
    No One’s Life Is Ordinary
    No Reason To Be Defensive
    No Self - Not!
    No Spiritual Force Can Protect You From Yourself Your Mind
    Not Engaging Your Thoughts
    Nothing To Prove
    Not Me - Peeling Off The Layers Of Our Ego-Mind
    Observe
    Offering Others Joy - From The Heart
    Offer Joy Experience Joy
    Offer Myself Joy!
    Oneness Does Not Mean Sameness
    Opening The Door To Being Present
    Our Over-sexed Culture And Lives
    Pain - A Cry For Help
    Paradise Lost
    Peace And Happiness Is Your Birthright
    Peace - What It Is And How To Achieve It
    Personal Boundaries As Part Of A Buddhist Life
    Preparing A Child For Life
    Pride Is A Function Of The Devil
    Problem - NOT!
    Proof Of The Nature Of Mind - Fear Ego And Buddha Mind
    Prosperity And Abundance
    Protecting Yourself From The Elements
    Psychiatry Needs To Incorporate Buddhist Teaching
    Putting Spirituality Into Practice 24/7
    Que Sera Sera - Whatever Will Be Will Be
    Real Clarity V The Delusion Of Clarity
    Reality Is Not What We Experience
    Receiving The Love Of Your Buddha Nature
    Reciting Affirmations
    Reclaiming The Narrative Of My Life - II
    Reclaiming The “Story” Of Your Life
    Reflecting On 75 Years
    Reincarnation - An Unorthodox Take
    Rejoice And Be Happy
    Rejoice And Be Happy - II
    Releasing All Desire
    Releasing All Desire - II
    Releasing Negative Energy
    Renouncing What You Have Always Depended On
    Replacing Weakness With Strength
    Reprogram Your Mind To End Your Suffering
    Returning Home - Returning To Your True Buddha Nature
    Right Attitude
    Ritual Burning Of The Past
    Safety Defined
    Saying Grace
    Saying “No” To Negative Thought
    Seeing The Light
    Seeing Through The Eyes Of Your True Buddha Self
    Seek And You Shall Find
    Seeking Guidance From Buddha Mind Not Ego Mind
    Seeking Guidance From The Buddha/God/the Universe - II
    Seeking Guidance From The Buddha/God/the Universe - III
    Seeking Guidance From The Buddha/God/the Universe - IV
    See Things Through Your Heart Not Your Mind
    See Yourslef And The World Through Different Eyes
    Self Re-examined
    Self-Responsibility During The Pandemic
    Sex - Misused And Abused - A Different Perspective
    Shall We Dance? - An Invitation To The Dance Of Death
    Shame
    Soul’s Yearning Distorted By The Ego-Mind
    Soul -True Self - And Ego-Mind
    Speaking The Truth
    Speaking To Your Buddha Nature/Divinity/Heart
    Speak The Truth But Beware
    Starving The Ego
    Step #10: Continued To Be Mindful Of The Arising Of Cravings And Desires And When They Arose Did Not Attach To Them And Allowed Them To Subside.
    Step #11: Sought Through Meditation To Constantly Improve Our Conscious Contact With Our True Buddha Nature
    Step #1: Admitted Our Cravings Cause Us Suffering And That We Are Powerless Over Them
    Step #2: Came To Believe That Our True Buddha Nature Could Restore Us To Peace And Created A Platform Of Serenity
    Step #3: Committed Ourselves To The Path By Practicing The Five Precepts And The Six Paramitas
    Step #4 Came To Believe That All Our Perceptions Are Learned - That They Are Just A Product Of Our Ego-mind - And That Our Ego-mind Is Not Our True Self - Instead We Knew That Our True Self Is Our Heart.
    Step #5: Were Ready And Willing And Made A Decision To Surrender Our Ego And Turn Our Will And Our Lives Over To The Care Of Our True Buddha Nature Opening Our Heart To Embrace All Aspects Of Our Being.
    Step #6: Came To Believe That We Have Everything We Need Within Ourselves To Be At Peace And Happy
    Step #7: Came To Be Free Of Our Cravings
    Step #8: Were Entirely Ready To Love Ourselves Unconditionally And Have Compassion For Ourselves And To Accept Ourselves And The World Around Us As Being The Way They Are Because It's Just The Way It Is.
    Step #9: Made A List Of Persons We Had Harmed And Made Amends To Them
    Stopping Self-Sabotage
    Strength Not Courage
    Suffering Is Universal - But Why?
    Survival - The Force That Controls Our Life
    Taking Pleasure In Each Passing Moment
    Taking Refuge In Yourself
    Taking Responsibility Is Not Blame
    Teaching Only Points The Way
    Test The Wisdom Of What You’re Doing Or Thinking Of Doing
    The 3-legged Stool Of Spirituality
    The Art Of Self-Nurturing
    The Challenge Of Staying Aware
    The Coexistence Of Ego And Buddha Nature
    The Conceit "I Am"
    The Devil Is Alive And Well
    The Distinction Between Pain And Suffering
    The Divine And Man
    The Ego As Saboteur
    The Emptiness Of Intrinsic Existence And Its Relevance To Global Warming
    The Felt Need For Acknowledgment
    The Five Precepts
    The Four Bodhisattva Vows
    The Fourfold Path To Freedom
    The Four Noble Truths
    The Fragility Of Man
    The Freedom Of Focusing On Someone Or Something Outside Yourself
    The Heart/Mind Divide
    The Heart’s Embrace - More On Freeing Ourselves
    The Heart's Embrace - Updated
    The Hurt Of Rejection - Its Enduring Impact
    The Illusion Of Control
    The Imperative Of Self-Preservation
    The Lessons Of Siddhartha
    The Light Within You
    The Limits Of Rational Thought
    The Lord's Role In Your Work
    The Meaning And Power Of Selflessness
    The Middle Way - A Way Back From The Breach
    The Mind And The Wounded Inner Child
    The Mind And Your Inner Child - II
    The Mind Is Sneaky - Surrender It
    The Mind's Deep State
    The Mind - Suffering Connection
    The Miracle That Is You
    The Misleading Teaching Of No Self
    The Missing Noble Truth
    The Myanmar Situation
    The Mystery Of The Ego - An Answer
    The New Me - I Not I
    The Noble Eightfold Path
    The Original Trauma - Birth
    The Parable Of The Raft
    The Path As Tightrope
    The Path From Peace To Joy
    The Path Is Never-Ending
    The Power Of Affirmations - Use Carefully
    The Power Of Giving Voice To Thoughts
    The Power Of Prayer
    The Present Beyond Us
    The Purpose Of Life
    The Purpose Of Meditation
    The Push/Pull Of Ego-Mind
    The Question Is Not Whether The Glass Is Half Empty Or Half Full
    There Are No Bad Persons
    There Is Nothing Wrong With You
    The Remnants Of The Ego
    The Serenity Prayer
    The Serenity Prayer - II
    The Soul’s Yearning And How Best To Fulfill It
    The Source Of Equanimity And Peace
    The Stages Of Acceptance
    The Stages Of Man’s Spirit
    The Subconscious
    The Sun Is Always Shining/ There's No Such Thing As Bad Weather
    The Three Stages Of Embrace
    The Truth – Seeing It And Speaking It
    The Unaware Consumer
    The Wisdom Of Chickens
    The Wisdom Of Now
    This Is Not Me This Is Not My Self
    Thought Objects
    To Free Yourself From Cravings You Must Free Yourself Of Fear
    To Love Unconditionally = Loving-Kindness
    Tonglen - How To Approach Its Practice
    To Observe Free Of Mind - To Experience Joy
    To See Opportunity You Must Be Free Of Fear
    To Thine Own Self Be True
    Trauma
    Trauma Begets Trauma
    Trauma Denied No Longer
    Trauma - Healing It Is Critical
    Trauma - It’s Release
    Turning Your Will Over To Your True Buddha Nature
    Waking Up
    Walking Away From Modernity
    Walking On The Beach
    Walking The Path - It’s A Lot Of Work But It’s Well Worth It
    Wandering Until ?
    Wealth Poverty And Buddhism
    We Are All One
    We Are Not Meant To Suffer
    We Have Everything We Need To Be At Peace And Happy Inside Ourselves
    We Have Lost Our Sense Of Place
    We Make Our Own Mental Environment
    We Never Stop Healing
    What Activates The Ego-Mind?
    What Are We Celebrating On July 4th?
    What Blocks Me From Being Truly Present And Radiating My Inner Energy 24/7?
    What Drives Us Mad?
    What If The Present Is Bad?
    What Is Joy? What Is Happiness?
    What Is Life Without Emotion?
    What Is Most Important To You?
    What Is Your Task In Life?
    What Lies Behind Our Good Deeds?
    What Nourishes My Soul?
    What Price Peace And Happiness?
    What's In A Name?
    What's Real And What’s Not Real?
    What’s The Real Challenge - Life Or The Ego?
    What To Do When You Lose Faith?
    What Use Fame Power Fortune?
    What You Can’t Will And What You Can
    When A Heart’s Desire Is Commandeered By The Ego
    When Joy Is Not Joy
    When Love Is Not Love ...
    When Nothing Offends
    When Really Bad Things Happen
    When Smiling Toddlers Cry
    When The Mind Intervenes
    When Things Are Not The Way We Want Them To Be
    Who Am I?
    Who Are You?
    Who/What Is Your True Self?
    Why Diets Fail - A Buddhist Perspective
    Why Do We Crave?
    Why Is Being Grateful Such A Challenge?
    Why Is It So Hard To Be Free Of Your Ego?
    Why Is Mankind Trapped In A Box?
    Why Point The Compass Towards Tomorrow?
    Why We Take Offense
    Wisdom - What Is It?
    Wounded Our Ego-Mind Becomes The Devil
    Yes Virginia There Is A True Buddha Nature
    Yet Another Past Attachment
    You Are Not Alone
    You As Observer
    You Can Be In Control
    You Cannot Radiate Light If You Are Filled With Fear
    You Don't Need To Be Liked
    Your True Self And The Irrelevance Of The Min
    Your Will Not My Mind's - II
    Your Will Not My Mind's - III

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.