Let's look at the ways doubt can be a hindrance to our progress along the path to enlightenment and liberation, as well as a steppingstone to advancement.
Consider that there are ways that doubt can be overcome, noting two key examples of this in the Early Buddhist texts.
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SLC Punk! is an American comedy-drama film written and directed by James Merendino. The film centers around Steven "Stevo" Levy, a college graduate and punk living in Salt Lake City during the mid-1980s. SLC Punk!, which was released in 1998, was chosen as the opening-night feature at the 1999 Sundance Film Festival [2]. Merendino created the film based on his experience growing up in Mormon-heavy Salt Lake City. Although the film is not autobiographical, Merendino has said that many characters were based on people he knew [3]. More
What's so punk about Buddhism? Well, it is anti-authoritarian, into direct experience rather than intermediary priests. It is about questioning and going "against the stream." Just ask punk Buddhist Noah Levine, his Buddhist dad Stephen Levine, or his long-time teacher Jack Kornfield.
[Mormon] Jesus saves? Buddhism is all lies? - Are you envious of lay people, and do you regret?
Western monk explains his choice of Theravada. - How can we know and be sure? Bodhi
Not until I was sure did I claim to know and see.
It is so sad to hear this last man's words. The same accusations were hurled at the Buddha in his day by Brahmins and doubters. While it may sound reasonable to us as we assume, it is completely wrong. The Buddha DID NOT follow his own thinking or take a "best guess" and the meaning of life. It was about awakening to the Truth he could never have imagined. It has so little to do with "thinking" and so much to do with directly experiencing. But he did not stop there. He verified again and again and taught a path of verification and purification. Buddhism is not a belief system, as much as people try to treat it that way or make a "religion" out of it. It is a path-of-practice, a set of instructions. One must practice (walk) the path to verify it for oneself. There is nothing to believe or accept on blind faith. There is everything to investigate and see for oneself. What is the most "punk" sutra? That would have to be the Kalama Sutta, the Buddha's invitation to self-inquiry. "Don't believe anything I say just because I say it -- or even that of your teachers or books or traditions. But you yourselves must know and see" is the gist of what the Buddha is saying to the Kalamas, a group of people who rightly doubted him as "just another teacher about to exalt himself and condemn others." The Buddha shocked them when he didn't do that but still managed to teach them the Dharma.
How can anyone know anything?
The Buddha gives a standard: Start from what you already know to be true from your own experience.
In the Kalama Sutta the Buddha lists the criteria by which any sensible person can decide what to accept as true or not: Do not blindly believe religious teachings, he tells the Kalamas, just because they are claimed to be true, or even through the application of various methods or techniques.
Direct knowledge grounded in one's own experience can be called upon [as the deciding factor]. The Buddha advises that the words of the wise should be heeded and taken into account, but he does not propose passive acceptance.
Rather, the Buddha promotes constant questioning and personal testing to identify truths that verifiably reduce one's own disappointment, suffering, and misery (dukkha) and that of others.
The Kalama Sutta (also called the Kesamutti Sutta) states [3]:
Do not go on what has been acquired by repeated hearing (anussava), nor upon tradition (paramparā), nor upon rumor (itikirā), nor upon what is written in scriptures (piṭaka-sampadāna), nor upon surmising (takka-hetu), nor upon axioms (naya-hetu)... More
(Asangoham) Feb. 14, 2023. Buddhism is a religion and philosophy that originated in ancient India and has since spread across the modern world.
Theravada Buddhism is based on the teachings of the historical Buddha, born Prince Siddhartha Gautama.
The Buddha lived in ancient Gandhara (Central Asia) and traveled east to proto-India in the 5th century BCE.
He was a prince, born into a wealthy and privileged family in the Shakya (Scythian) clan in present-day Central Asia (Scythia, Sakastan, Afghanistan, Pakistan).
However, he became deeply troubled by the unsatisfactoriness, disappointment, and suffering (dukkha)he saw all around him, in luxury and pursuit of sensual pleasures as in old age, sickness, and death.
He made a vow to find a solution to this problem of disappointment.
So he renounced his royal palaces and left his circle of familiars -- parents, wife, child, friends, relatives, royal subjects, and familiar surroundings of his homeland (Shakya Land/Scythia) -- and all his worldly possessions behind and set off on a quest, a search to bring all suffering to an end, enlightenment/awakening, and the source of true and lasting happiness.
After years of intense study, contemplation, and practice, including many years of severe privations and austerities, the wandering ascetic Siddhartha attained a Great Awakening, glimpsed nirvana, and thus came to be called the Awakened One or the Buddha.
He found what he had been looking for -- the source of true and lasting happiness.
From that moment on, the Buddha devoted himself to sharing this insight and the liberation it leads to with a monastic community of nuns and monks he established and with the many laypeople who gathered to learn from him, including his family back in Scythia.
The Buddha's teachings, known as the Dharma (Pali Dhamma), are centered on The Four Noble (or Ennobling = Enlightening) Truths and The Noble Eightfold Path:
Life is unsatisfactory.
The cause of this unsatisfactoriness is ignorance and craving.
All unsatisfactoriness can be ended.
The way to end unsatisfactoriness (the way to true and lasting happiness) is to practice the Ennobling Eightfold Path.
The Noble Eightfold Path is a set of virtuous, moral, ethical, spiritual practices. They are:
Right understanding
Right intention
Right speech
Right action
Right livelihood
Right effort
Right mindfulness
Right concentration
The Buddha offered the Four Noble Truths (the Noble Eightfold Path being the fourth) as a framework to understand the nature of our predicament (disappointment and suffering) and how to overcome it to awaken to wisdom, bliss, and complete liberation.
Score: Motion Array x Epidemic Music x Original Score
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It produces the serotonin-derivative melatonin, a hormone that affects the modulation of wake/sleep patterns and seasonal functions. Its shape resembles a tiny pine cone (hence its name), and it is located near the center of the brain, between the two hemispheres, tucked in a groove where the two rounded thalamic bodies join.
(Bright Side) Press this point for 60 seconds and see what happens.
Kalama Sutra(Barbara O'Brien, trans., about.com) In most religions, the authority of a God or prophet, as revealed in scripture and interpreted by religious authorities, is the arbiter of what is true.
Buddhism presents a greater challenge: We are the arbiters of what is true. That does not mean that we can choose to believe whatever we like, however.
The Buddha's teachings on judging and assessing truth are found in the Kalama Sutra. It is found in the oldest set of Buddhist scriptures, the Tripitaka (Anguttara Nikaya). It has gained great favor in the West because of its advice to question authority and to rely on oneself.
The discourse or instruction to the Kalamas is justly famous for
its encouragement of free inquiry. The spirit of this sutra signifies a
teaching that is free of dogmatism, fanaticism, bigotry, or
intolerance.
The reasonableness of the Dharma, the "Teaching made known by the Buddha," is evident in its welcoming and careful examination at all stages of the Path
to enlightenment.
Indeed, the whole course of training for compassion and wisdom
culminating in the purity of the accomplished person, the arhat (enlightened person) is
intimately bound up with examination and analysis of internal things:
the eye and visible objects, the ear and sounds, the nose and fragrances,
the tongue and flavors, the body and tactile impressions, the mind and
ideas.
So since all phenomena have to be correctly comprehended in the field
of dharma, insight is operative throughout. In this sutra it is active
in rejecting the unskillful (harmful) and adopting the skillful (beneficial) way. (Continued below.)
Instruction to the Kalamas (AN 65, Tika Nipata, Mahavagga)
"Do like whatever, what you think is good? No. But you can see the truth: look.
.
The Kalamas of Kesaputta go to see the Buddha.
1. Thus have I heard. Once the Blessed One, while wandering in the Kosala
country with a large community of monastics entered a town of the Kalama
people called Kesaputta.
They said:
"Revered Gautama, thewandering ascetic, the son of the Sakyans, has, while
wandering in the Kosala country, entered Kesaputta. The good repute of
the Reverend Gautama has spread in this way:
"Indeed, the Blessed One
is accomplished, fully enlightened, endowed with knowledge and
conduct (practice in accordance with his knowledge), sublime, knower of the worlds, peerless, guide of tamable persons,
teacher of divinities and human beings, which he by himself has through
direct knowledge clearly understood. He set forth the Dharma, which is good in
the beginning, good in the middle, good in the end, possessed of meaning
in spirit and letter, complete in everything [needed for other to attain enlightenment], and he proclaims the supreme
life that is utterly pure. Seeing such accomplished ones is good
indeed."
2. Then the Kalamas of Kesaputta went to where
the Blessed One was. On arriving there some paid respect to him and sat
down on one side; some exchanged greetings with him and after the courteous talk, sat down to one side; some saluted him
raising their joined palms then sat down to one side; some announced
their name and family name then sat down to one side; some without speaking sat to one side.
The Kalamas ask the Buddha for guidance
Why should we believe YOU? Many come through here telling us their philosophies.
3. The Kalamas sitting to one side
said to the Blessed One: "There are some wandering ascetics and temple priests (Brahmins), venerable
sir, who visit Kesaputta. They expound and explain only their own
doctrines; the doctrines of others they revile, despise, and pull to
pieces. Some others too, venerable sir, come to
Kesaputta. They also expound and explain only their own doctrines; the
doctrines of others they revile, despise, and pull to pieces. Venerable
sir, there is doubt, there is uncertainty in us concerning this. Which
of these revered wandering ascetics and Brahmins spoke the truth and which
falsehood?"
The criteria for rejection
What is good, what bad, what true?
4. "Kalamas, it is proper for you to doubt, to be uncertain. Uncertainty has arisen about what is doubtful. Come, Kalamas, do
not go upon what has been acquired by repeated hearing, nor upon
mere tradition, nor upon rumor, nor upon what is written in scriptures, nor on
surmise, nor on axioms, nor on specious reasoning, nor on bias
towards an idea that has been pondered over, nor on another's
seeming ability, nor on the consideration, 'The monastic is our teacher.'
"But, Kalamas, when you yourselves know: 'These things are detrimental (bad, harmful, unprofitable, injurious), these things
are blameworthy, these things are censured by the wise, when undertaken and
observed, they things lead to harm and suffering,' abandon them.
5. "What do you think, Kalamas? Does greed [lobha, lust, craving, clinging] appear in a person for
one's benefit or harm?" — "For one's harm, venerable sir."
"Kalamas, being
given to greed, overwhelmed by greed,
a person takes life, takes what is not given, engages in sexual misconduct, commits perjury, and prompts others to do likewise. Will that be long for that person's harm and
ill?" — "Yes, venerable sir."
6. "What do you think, Kalamas? Does hatred [dosa, aversion, anger/fear, resentment, wrath] appear in a person for one's benefit or harm?" — "For one's harm, venerable sir."
"Kalamas, being
given to hate, overwhelmed by hatred, a person takes life, takes what is not given, engages in sexual misconduct, commits perjury, and
prompts another to do likewise. Will that be long for one's harm and suffering?"
— "Yes, venerable sir."
7. "What do you think, Kalamas? Does delusion appear in a person for one's
benefit or harm?"
— "For one's harm, venerable sir."
"Kalamas, being
given to delusion, overwhelmed by
delusion, a person takes life, takes what is not given, engages in sexual misconduct, commits perjury, and
prompts another to do likewise. Will that be long for one's harm and suffering?"
— "Yes, venerable sir."
8. "What do you think, Kalamas? Are these things skillful or unskillful?"
—
"Unskillful, venerable sir"
"Blameworthy or not unblameworthy?"
— "Blameworthy,
venerable sir."
"Censured or praised by the wise?"
— "Censured,
venerable sir."
"When undertaken and observed, do these things lead to harm
and suffering, or not, or how does it strike you?"
— "When undertaken and
observed, these things lead to harm and suffering, or so it seems to us."
9. "Therefore did we say, Kalamas, what was said: 'Come
Kalamas, do not go on what has been acquired by repeated hearing, nor on mere tradition, nor on rumor, nor on what is written in scripture, nor on surmise, nor on axioms, nor on specious reasoning, nor on a
bias towards a view that has been pondered over, nor on another's
seeming ability, nor on the consideration, "The monastic is our teacher."
"But, Kalamas, when you yourselves know: "These things are harmful, these things
are blameworthy, these things are censured by the wise, when undertaken and
observed, these things lead to harm and suffering" then abandon them.'
The criteria for acceptance
10. "Come, Kalamas, do not go on what has been acquired by repeated
hearing, nor on tradition, nor on rumor, nor on what is written in scripture, nor on surmise...But, Kalamas, when you yourselves know: 'These things
are skillful (beneficial, good, profitable), these things are praiseworthy, these things are indeed praised by the
wise, when undertaken and observed, these things lead to benefit and
happiness' then enter on and abide in them.
Free from greed, hatred, and delusion
Ahh, peace of mind, peace of mind!
11. "What do you think, Kalamas? Does nongreed appear in a person for one's benefit or harm?"
— "For one's benefit, venerable sir."
"Kalamas, being given to nongreed and no longer overwhelmed by greed, a person refrains from taking life, from taking what is not given, from engaging in sexual misconduct, from committing perjury, and prompts others to do likewise. Will that be long for one's benefit and
happiness?"
— "Yes, venerable sir."
12. "What do you think, Kalamas? Does nonhatred appear in a person
for one's benefit or harm?"
— "For one's benefit, venerable sir."
"Kalamas, being given to nonhatred and no longer overwhelmed by hatred, one refrains from taking life, from taking what is not given, from sexual misconduct, from committing perjury, and prompts others to do likewise. Will that be long for one's benefit and
happiness?"
— "Yes, venerable sir."
13. "What do you think, Kalamas? Does nondelusion appear in a
person for one's benefit or harm?"
— "For one's benefit, venerable sir."
"Kalamas, being given to nondelusion and no longer overwhelmed by delusion, one refrains from taking life, from taking what is not given, from sexual misconduct, from committing perjury, and prompts others to do likewise. Will that be long for one's benefit and
happiness?"
— "Yes, venerable sir."
14. "What do you think, Kalamas? Are these things skillful or unskillful?"
—
"Skillful, venerable sir."
"Blameworthy or praiseworthy?"
— "Praiseworthy,
venerable sir."
"Censured or praised by the wise?"
— "Praised,
venerable sir."
"When undertaken and observed, do these things lead to
benefit and happiness, or not, or how does it strike you?"
— "When undertaken
and observed, these things lead to benefit and happiness, or so it seems to us."
15. "Therefore, did we say, Kalamas, what was said: 'Come
Kalamas, do not go on what has been acquired by repeated hearing, nor on tradition, nor upon rumor, nor upon what is written in scripture, nor on surmise...
"But, Kalamas, when you yourselves know: "These things are skillful, these things
are praiseworthy, these things are indeed praised by the wise, when undertaken and
observed, these things lead to benefit and happiness" then enter on and
abide in them.'
The Four Exalted States
16. "The disciple of the noble ones, Kalamas, who in this way is
devoid of greed (lust, craving, clinging), devoid of aversion, undeluded, clearly comprehending
and mindful, dwells, having pervaded with loving kindness one
quarter, likewise the second, likewise the third, likewise the fourth,
so above (zenith), below (nadir), and across, one dwells, having pervaded all of those directions because of the
existence of all living beings everywhere, the entire world, with
great, exalted, boundless loving kindness freed of hatred and
malice.
"One lives having pervaded with compassion one
quarter, likewise the second, likewise the third, likewise the fourth, so above, below, and across, one dwells having pervaded all of those directions because of the
existence of all living beings everywhere, the entire world, with great, exalted, boundless compassion that is freed of
hate and malice.
"One lives having pervaded with joy/gladness (mudita, happiness in the success of others, joy in their joy) one
quarter, likewise the second, likewise the third, likewise the fourth, so above, below, and across, one dwells having pervaded because of the
existence of all living beings everywhere, the entire world, with great, exalted, boundless joy/gladness freed of hate and malice.
"One lives having pervaded with equanimity one
quarter, likewise the second, likewise the third, likewise the fourth,
so above, below, and across, one dwells, having pervaded because of the
existence of all living beings everywhere, the entire world, with great, exalted, boundless equanimity that is freed of
hate and malice.
17. "The disciple of the noble ones, Kalamas, who has such a
hate-free mind/heart, such a malice-free mind/heart, such an undefiled mind/heart, and
such a purified mind/heart, is one by whom Four Solaces are found here and
now.
"'Suppose there is a hereafter and there is a fruit, result, of karma (deeds)
done well or ill. Then it is possible that at the dissolution of the
body after death, I shall arise in the heavenly world(s), which is
possessed of the state of bliss.' This is the first solace found by such a [skillful] person.
"'Suppose there is no hereafter and there is no fruit, no result, of
karma done well or ill. Yet in this world, here and now, free from
hatred, free from malice, safe, sound, and happy I keep myself.'
This is the second solace found by such a person.
"'Suppose harmful (results) befall a doer-of-harm. I, however, think of
doing harm to no one. Then, how can harmful (results) affect me who dos no
harmful karma (deed)?' This is the third solace found by such a [wise] person.
"'Suppose harmful (results) do not befall a doer-of-harm. Then I see
myself purified in any case.' This is the fourth solace found by such a person.
"The disciple of the noble ones, Kalamas, who has such a hate-free
mind, such a malice-free mind, such an undefiled mind, and such a
purified mind, is one by whom, here and now, these Four Solaces are
found."
"So it is, Blessed One! So it is, Sublime One! The disciple of the noble ones, venerable sir, who has such a hate-free mind, such a
malice-free mind, such an undefiled mind, and such a purified mind, is
one by whom, here and now, Four Solaces are found!
"'Suppose there is a hereafter and there is a fruit, result, of karma
done well or ill. Then it is possible that at the dissolution of the
body after death, I shall arise [be reborn] in a heavenly world, which is
possessed of the state of bliss.' This is the first solace found.
"'Suppose there is no hereafter and there is no fruit, no result, of
karma done well or ill. Yet in this world, here and now, free from
hatred, free from malice, safe, sound, and happy I keep myself.'
This is the second solace found.
"'Suppose harmful (results) befall a doer-of-harm. I, however, think of
doing harm to no one. Then, how can harmful (results) affect me who does no
harmful deed?' This is the third solace found.
"'Suppose harmful (results) do not befall a doer-of-harm. Then I see
myself purified in any case.' This is the fourth solace found.
"The disciple of the noble ones, venerable sir, who has such a
hate-free mind, such a malice-free mind, such an undefiled mind, and
such a purified mind, is one by whom, here and now, these Four Solaces
are found.
Reaction of the Kalamas
Hooray! Let's celebrate. We finally found a teacher who makes sense and arouses faith!
.
"Marvelous, venerable sir, marvelous! Venerable
sir, it is as if a person were to turn face upwards what is upside down, or to
uncover the concealed, or to point the way to one who is lost, or to
carry a lamp into the darkness, thinking, 'Those who have eyes will be able to see
visible objects.' So has the Dharma been set forth in many ways by the
Blessed One.
"Venerable sir, we go to the Blessed One for guidance, to the
Dharma for guidance, and to the Community of [Enlightened] Disciples for guidance.
Venerable sir, may the Blessed One regard [and remember] us as lay followers who have
gone for guidance for life from today onwards."
The extracts given
below are to clarify knowledge of conditionality (the dependent origination of all things) and
arhatship (enlightenment and liberation from all rebirth and suffering). The methods of examination in
the Kalama Sutra and the extracts cited here have sprung from the
knowledge of things as they truly are. The tenor of these methods is implied in all direct experience. Further,
as penetration and
comprehension, the constituents of wisdom are the result of such
understanding, the place of critical examination and analysis in the
development of right view is obvious. Where is the wisdom or view
that can descend, all of a sudden, untouched and uninfluenced by right
understanding? The Kalama Sutra, which sets forth the principles that should be
followed by a seeker of truth and that contains a standard by which things are
judged by, belongs to a framework of the Dharma. The Four Solaces taught
in the sutra point out the extent to which the Buddha permits suspense
of judgment in matters beyond normal cognition. The solaces show that
the reason for a virtuous life does not necessarily depend on belief in
rebirth or karmic consequences, but on mental well-being acquired through the
overcoming of greed, hatred, and delusion. More than 50 years ago, Moncure D. Conway, the author of My
Pilgrimage to the Wise Men of the East, visited Colombo, Sri Lanka. He was a
friend of Ponnambalam Ramanathan (then solicitor general of Sri Lanka), and
together with him Conway went to the Vidyodaya Pirivena to learn
something of the Buddha's teaching from Ven. Hikkaduve Siri Sumangala Nayaka
Thera, the founder of the institution.
The latter explained to
them the principles contained in the Kalama Sutra and at the end of the
conversation Ramanathan whispered to Conway: "Is it not strange that you
and I, who come from far different religions and regions, should
together listen to a sermon from the Buddha in favor of that free
thought, that independence of traditional and fashionable doctrines,
which is still the vital principle of human development?" — Conway:
"Yes, and we with the (Kalama) princes pronounce his doctrines good."
Supplementary texts
"Friend Savittha, apart from confidence (faith, conviction, saddha), apart from liking something, apart from repeated hearing, apart from specious
reasoning, apart from a bias towards a view that has been pondered,
I know this, I see this: 'Decay and death are due to [re]birth.'"
"Here a meditator, having seen an object with the eye, knows when
greed, hatred, and delusion [passion, aversion, confusion] are within, 'Greed, hatred, and delusion are in
me.'
"One knows when greed, hatred, and delusion are not within, 'Greed,
hatred, and delusion are not in me.' Meditators, do these things have to be
experienced through confidence (faith, conviction), liking, repeated
hearing, specious reasoning, or bias towards a view that has been
pondered?"
— "No, venerable sir"
"Meditators, this is the way
by which a meditator -- apart from faith, liking something,
repeated hearing, specious reasoning, or bias towards a view that
has been pondered -- declares realization of direct knowledge: I know [directly]
that [re]birth has been exhausted, the supreme life has been lived, that what had to be done has been done, and that there is no more of this [rebirth and suffering] to come."
This is a perennial question. It's tough to answer because it borders on telling Buddhists what to do and what not to do.
Morality is good, morality is great, but imposed morality is offensive and a problem. Who can tell us what to do? It's our karma! They can advise. They can opine.
But we will rebel and reject being told what is right and wrong, what has to be done, what has to be left undone.
One way to make the right decision is by gaining experience, and one way to gain experience is by making the wrong decision.
Even in the Kalama Sutra, the invitation to free inquiry, the Buddha doesn't really tell the Kalamas what to do or what to believe.
Is sex bad? Is it wrong? Is it allowed?
Instead, he asks them -- from your experience -- are greed, hatred, and delusion to a person's advantage or detriment, a community's advantage or detriment? From their own experience they realize that they are both to a person's detriment as well as a community's.
So the Buddha goes on to say, should these things be done or left undone? Left undone, they say. How about nongreed, nonhatred, and nondelusion -- advantageous or detrimental? Advantageous, they say. That being the case, starting from that point, the Buddha teaches them the Dharma, and they are delighted and grateful because he did not say it was one way or the other.
He did not ask them to believe anything. He did not denigrate any other teachers. He did not exalt himself. He merely taught them from a point they could agree on, finding common ground, and developed the thread all the way to showing how the Dharma is of great advantage and leads to liberation.
There's a bliss (piti) beyond and better than sensuality!
So in the same way, if we are "preached" to, sermonized, admonished, ridiculed, shamed, condescended to, we quickly grow resentful and do not -- will not -- listen. We're like Cartman that time he was on the Maury Povich Show: "I do what I want."
Before long, porn will ruin one's sexual ability.
Does greed (lobha -- lust, craving, pining, obsession, grasping, clinging) arise to someone's advantage or disadvantage?
Well, here's the twist: In our normal way of thinking, as in a recent Wisdom Quarterly translation from the past few days, sensual pleasure is the only escape or temporary relief we can imagine from our suffering (dukkha -- disappointment, frustration, lack of fulfillment, unsatisfactoriness, pain). So anyone or anything that stands in our way of indulgence becomes a source of anger (dosa -- hatred, aversion, animosity, annoyance). Why?
We are steeped in delusion (moha -- wrong views, ignorance, confusion, misinterpretation) about what "suffering" is and what the actual escape from suffering is. So in our limited way of thinking, pleasure is good. Pleasure is great. Pleasure is release. We are junior hedonists; only it doesn't work. Hedonism is not a viable philosophy. Try it. We'll wait. See you back here in 50 years?
When you're shaking with palsy and decrepitude and claiming you lived a life of wine, women, and song...and are no closer to release than ever, except that you're now an addict and can't stop. The spirit is willing, but the body is failing. Your overcome by craving and sadness and frustration, hoping there's rebirth and future lives, fearing that there may be karma for how you got all your good times by wrong means. Trust us: hedonism does not work as a life philosophy.
What do you think, Kalamas?
That doesn't mean you can't have a good time. Have a good time. Have a great time. Enjoy. Indulge. Live a little bit. But riddle us this: Does lust, craving, and clinging arise in a person to that person's detriment or advantage? We can all think of times when it seems like an advantage. But, overall, how is it? Does it burn to crave? Is it hard to obsess? Is it pathetic to cling?
Now, getting back to masturbation. Is it good, is it bad, is it neutral? Is it wholesome and skillful or unwholesome and unskillful? Does it accrue good karma (merit) or bad karma (demerit)? Is it something to be proud of or neutral about? It's certainly not something to be ashamed of, as "religion" inculcates in us.
When hormones rage in our youth, when TV and media provoke and incite (excite) us, when we're molested in this society, when we think "Everybody's getting some but me!" it's common to think we "have to" have it (sex in one form or another).
In time we calm down, learn restraint, self-control, sublimation. People, even avowed hedonists, don't do everything they want when they want (except for Cartman).
Monkeys in cages in zoos are not models of human behavior. They're not even models of monkey behavior in the wild. Their obsession is an aberration brought on by being locked up in an impoverished environment. Rats in cages prefer drugs. Rats in enriched, naturalistic environments might like drugs but they don't obsess and cling. They don't become addicts.
Monkey mind: Don't think about sex.
Sex addiction is an actual thing, even if it's unusual. You are probably not a sex addict, but it's normal to wonder if anybody is -- and if they are, "I must be!" we think.
Canadian addiction treatment specialist Dr. Gabor Mate explains that addictions to sex or drugs or anything are due to being set up by early childhood trauma and subsequent stress and exposure to some distracting stimulation.
Any dysfunctional source of stimulationcan become an "addiction" or pernicious habit [masturbating, watching porn, texting, acting out, drugs, alcohol, sugar, shopping, etc.] even if the thing in and of itself is not addictive (because if it were, everyone exposed to it would become addicted, and they clearly do not).
Epic History of Masturbation Around the World: I (Josh O'Connor)remember being a 12-year-old Catholic schoolboy, cloistered in a dark confessional, admitting the sin of masturbation to a priest who I saw every day and who knew my voice. Thank God for the code words “impure thoughts” and “impure acts.” Father Joe -- who’d sat through the confessions of every other boy in my class in the past half hour -- let me off with three Hail Marys.
The Buddha said it best in the Kalama Sutra inviting us to freely inquire and investigate.
"I never paint dreams or nightmares. I paint my own reality." - artist, icon Frida Kahlo
"Mind is the forerunner" - the Buddha
1.Mind precedes all mental states. Mind is their chief; they are mind-made. If with an impure mind a person speaks or acts, unhappiness follows like the wheel that follows the foot of the draft ox
2. Mind precedes all mental states. Mind is their chief; they are mind-made. If with a pure mind a person speaks or acts, happiness follows like one's never-departing shadow. - The Dhammapada
Inspiration means "to breathe life into." Inspirational words breathe life into things we do. JD has created a collection of some of the most inspirational quotes of all time. Everyone’s here, the Buddha, Lao-Tzu, Emerson, Plato, Socrates, Aristotle, Twain, Franklin, Churchill, and more. That’s a powerful bunch to have in our corner. Use their words of wisdom for a lift as we “stand on the shoulders of giants.”
Be Inspired
You'll look back and see change. Eat Pray Love
“Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, ‘I will try again tomorrow.’” — Mary Anne Radmacher
“Do not follow where the path may lead. Go, instead, where there is no path and leave a trail.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson
“I want to be all used up when I die.” — George Bernard Shaw
“If you cannot do great things, do small things in a great way.” — Napoleon Hill
“It is never too late to be who you might have been.” — George Eliot
“Let him who would move the world, first move himself.” — Socrates
“Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.” — Maya Angelou
“Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.” — George Bernard Shaw
“Smile, breathe and go slowly.” — Buddhist monk and Nobel Peace Prize nominee Thich Nhat Hanh
“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson More
Amber Larson, Dhr. Seven, Nate W., Ashley Wells (ed.), Wisdom Quarterly; Empire of the Sun
Dreamy, whip-creamy scene from "Varsity Blues" has one thing better to offer (MTV).
But most Buddhists have sex! It's just the monastics who are celibate. Ask anyone.
This song inspired me to be a Buddhist for a day, something I always wanted to try anyway. Imagine me a Zen Master, a Shaolin kung fu drop kicker, a night marketeer with all the cool outfits. And there's probably something to learn, but let's not let that get in the way of the fun to be had.
What does it take to be a "Buddhist"?
Between East and West: Scythian Buddha
What does it take even for a minute? There are the Five Precepts, saying "om" a lot or listening to the sound of one hand clapping to have an insight into the dependently-originated nature of all things, and there's going for guidance to the Three Jewels.
Now what are these jewels or gems, guides, or sources of deepest wisdom?
(1) There's the Buddha, of course. His name is Shakyamuni, "Prince Siddhartha Gautama of the Shakya/Scythian Clan" at birth.
(2) There's what he taught, which gets called the Dharma, and (3) there's the Community of beings (the Arya-Sangha) who have become enlightened following the Dharma rediscovered and made known by the Buddha, the Awakened One.
Sounds good because they should have something to say about life, the universe, and everything. Too bad Douglas Adams is no longer here to ask them.
The Five Precepts
Refrain for the sake of ourselves and others from taking the life of living beings or getting anyone else to take it.
Refrain from taking what is not given or encouraging anyone else to take it.
Refrain from sexual misconduct (engaging in intercourse with the 10 "off-limits" persons) or prompting anyone else into misconduct.
Refrain from consuming intoxicants that occasion heedlessness (in other words, getting so high that one breaks any of the previous four precepts) or contributing to anyone else's delinquency in this regard.
Siddhartha, Bimba get married.
Is that really them? I already refrain from those, well, from most of those. But I don't like violating any of them. Ah, if only a life of quiet meditation, ecstatic states, and profound calm could release me of ever even bending those guidelines for a good life!
What else? What about a special ceremony or hazing? Not necessary. But Westerners love an induction. If so, ask a local monastic to perform something. They'll do it, and they may even throw in a special certificate with your new Dharma name, like "Ananda," "Khema," or "Grasshopper." Whatever inspires you.
What to wear? Buddhist closets
Only one thing remains, the outfit. Now, it turns out both Buddhist monks and nuns say anyone can practice Buddhism in street clothes. Pshaw! What's the fun in that. I need a robe or a toga, a batik sarong, at least a hat or a t-shirt or one of those saffron-colored little vest. Oh-yeah, that will be so cool! One time "Dawson" (James Van Der Beek) of Dawson's Creek tried to go from TV to the big screen in some Texas high school football movie ("Varsity Blues").
Li'l bro "Varsity Blues"
He was all right, nothing great, not nearly so interesting without that Katie Holmes-Cruise girl chasing him all the time (but a better blonde replaces Katie). But his little brother in it IS great: he's always searching for a better religion, trying them all on for size. In one scene, he goes Malcolm X-syle Muslim and is asked about sex. Blasphemy, but funny. This brother was a side gag, but the movie would have been much more interesting if it were just about him or if they had made a sequel.
What are Empire of the Sun even talking about in this song with an accompanying video shot in Chinatown?
But what about meditation? (Jason Headley) Have trouble sitting in silence? This might help. Might not. But it's a start. After all, "zen" (Japanese for jhana) means "deeply absorbed meditative state." WARNING: Profanity!
The "Scythian" (Shakyian) Clan of Afghanistan on the Silk Road built the world's largest Buddhist statues in honor of their prince who renounced and became the Buddha (LR).
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LYRICS: "Walking On A Dream"
Walking on a dream
How can I explain
Talking to myself
Will I see again
We are always running for the thrill of it, thrill of it
Always pushing up the hill searching for the thrill of it
On and on and on we are calling out and out again
Never looking down I'm just in awe of what's in front of me
Is it real now
When two people become one
I can feel it
When two people become one
Thought I'd never see
The love you found in me
Now it's changing all the time
Living in a rhythm where the minutes [are] working overtime
We are always running for the thrill of it, thrill of it
Always pushing up the hill searching for the thrill of it
On and on and on we are calling out and out again
Never looking down I'm just in awe of what's in front of me
Is it real now
When two people become one
I can feel it
When two people become one
Is it real now
When two people become one
I can feel it
When two people become one
Catch me I'm falling down
Catch me I'm falling down
Don't stop just keep going on
I'm your shoulder [to] lean upon
So come on deliver from inside
All we got is tonight that is right 'till first light...
(Lissie) Cover of Kid Cudi's all-American search for elusive happiness
There's one more question to answer before one embarks on the Buddhist path to complete freedom: Why? Well, if complete freedom isn't enough of a reason, then the best reason to pursue it is the pursuit of happiness -- real, lasting happiness that does not disappoint like hedonism, anger, and delusion.
Sex, guns, football can wait till tomorrow.
The "Buddha" was not born a buddha, a supremely awakened teacher, but a man, a rich prince. He indulged for years in refinement, luxuries, and sensuality. Before he knew ANY spiritual thing, he knew this: sensual craving and desire is fraught with disappointments, distress, and a lack of any lasting sense of fulfillment, but it is full of many negatives. It enslaves us, leads us down roads of bad karma to pay in consequences later, and drives us in all the things we do not like... That's a very good reason to pursue being a Buddhist for a day.
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