Mad at Trump, an Anger-Eating Demon

My alter ego is the same as my facade -- all fronting, all bluster, all pettiness and, well, ego.

Killing me softly: How deadhead Pres killed funny Tom Tomorrow (thismodernworld.com)

How to feed a demon

(FOX 26 Houston) Trump-Vance vs. Zelenski Meeting: FULL fiery exchange at White House

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I used to be a good Democrat like Ron Reagan

Some demons love anger. They feed on it. Others savor depression, malice, suicide, all kinds of ick. Imagine microbes in the dark underground, taking poop we discard and recycling it into something green and fragrant shining in the sun. This world would not be possible with our friends in the Fungi Kingdom. There are bacteria and all sorts of worms, insects, and creepy crawlies. We depict this lightly in haunted houses full of cobwebs, dark and cold. But it's right under our feet all the time. These hardworking germies love to eat, reduce, and recycle. A nightcrawler worm farm is the best thing for a garden.

They think we're opposites, the stupid SOBs

All we regard as bad, yin, is made good, yang, and the cycle continues. We regard things as "good" or "bad," but those are our labels, our biases, our judgments. In fact, things are such (thanks to suchness), just so, as it is, perfect in their relationship to each other. Nothing is wrong. It just seems like there is. So a sickly demon (imagine a pasty, balding, flatulent fatarse whose face is rotting right on the bone) sits on a throne, and the light beings (devas, angels) are angered at it. And it begins to glow. It likes it, all the attention. Even negative attention is attention. "There's no such thing as negative press," says my PR agent. "All press is good press" because it keeps a face in the news, in the headlines, on the lips of everyone until we don't know what's really going on, but our attention has been captured.

The Dhamma ("Law" or "Norm") may be expressed in the Buddha's words recorded in the Dhammapada (Verse 5):

"Not by hating hatred ceases

In this world of tooth and claw

Love alone from hate releases —

This is an Eternal Law"

(originally translated by Francis Story)

• Support oppositional press — not media-owned by fascist collaborators | (occupy.com)
• The Way of Mindfulness: The Satipatthana Sutta and Its Commentary

Chris Hayes: Trump ‘irreparably destroyed’ world order with Vlad blowup

The Anger-Eating Demon retold from an ancient Buddhist story

Ven. Nyanaponika Thera, edited by Wisdom Quarterly

If you don't shut up right now, I'm going to burst your aura with this finger. - Oh, really?

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The Hatman's hot companion laughs to the bank

Once there lived a demon who had a peculiar diet: He fed on the anger of others. And as his feeding ground was the human world, there was no lack of food for him.

He found it quite easy to provoke a family quarrel, or national and racial hatred. Even to stir up a big war was not very difficult for him.

And whenever he succeeded in causing a war, he could properly gorge himself without much further effort because once a war starts, hate multiplies by its own momentum and affects even normally friendly and peaceful people.

Don't you try to dictate what we're going to feel!

The demon's food supply became so rich that he sometimes had to restrain himself from over-eating, being content with nibbling just a small piece of gnawing resentment from his wife found close by, if the fast food in the fridge was all gone.

But as often happens with successful people, he became overbearing. And one day when feeling bored he thought, "Shouldn't I try it with the gods (devas, lit. the shining ones in space)?"

Afte little reflection he chose the Heaven of the Thirty-Three, ruled by Sakka, King of the Devas. He knew that only a few of these devas had entirely eliminated the fetters of ill-will and aversion [as is brought about by Buddhist practice taught by the Buddha to Sakka and other devas who visited him in a certain watch of the night], though they are generally far above petty and selfish human quarrels.

So by his power he transferred himself to that heavenly realm and was fortunate to arrive at a time when the divine king Sakka was absent: There was no one in the large audience hall.

So without much ado the demon seated himself on Sakka's empty throne, waiting quietly for things to happen, which he hoped would bring him a good meal of surly emotions.

Soon some devas came into the hall. At first they could hardly believe their eyes when they saw that ugly demon sitting on the splendid throne, squat and grinning, a ginger with his red toupee combover. Recovering from their shock, they started to shout and lament:

"Oh, you ugly POS demon! How can you dare to sit on the throne of our reigning monarch? What utter dastardliness! What a crime! You should be cast headlong into hell straight into a cauldron of boiling oil! You should be drawn and quartered alive! Begone! Begone!"

But while the devas grew more and more angry, the demon remained pleased because from moment to moment he grew in size, in strength, and in power.

The anger he absorbed into his system started to ooze from his body as a smoky mist glowing red, like his rosacea, psoriasis, alopecia, and vitiligo. His evil aura kept the devas at a distance as their radiance dimmed.

Suddenly a bright glow appeared at the other end of the hall. It grew into a dazzling light from which Sakka, King of the Devas, emerged. He who had firmly entered the undeflectable stream that leads towards nirvana (a sotapanna), was unshaken by what he saw.

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The smokescreen created by the devas' anger parted when Sakka slowly and politely approached the usurper of his throne and said:

"Welcome, Friend! Please, stay seated. I can grab another chair. May I offer you a drink out of hospitality? Our Amrita [the "nectar of the gods," brew of immortality, the Ambrosia of the ancient Greeks] is good. Or do you prefer a stronger brew, Vedic Soma? Some Sura?"

While Sakka spoke such friendly words, the demon rapidly shrank to a tiny size and finally disappeared, trailing behind a whiff of malodorous smoke that likewise soon dissolved.

• —Based on a sutra from the Samyutta Nikaya, a collection known as the Sakka Samyutta, Number 22.

The gist of this story dates back to the discourses of the Buddha. But even now, over 2,600 years later, our world looks as if large hordes of Anger-Eating Demons are haunting it, kept well-nourished by millions slaving for them all over the face of the earth.

Fires of hate and wide-traveling waves of violence threaten to engulf humankind. The grassroots of society are poisoned by conflict and discord, manifesting as angry thoughts and words and in violent deeds.

Jon Stewart lectured by John Oliver on Imperial America during its Trump

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Shall we buy and burn MAGA hats in protest?

Is it not time to end our self-destructive slavery and our impulses of hate and aggression, which only serve the demonic forces?

This story explains how demons of hate can be exorcised by the power of gentleness and love. If this power of love can be tested and proven, at a grassroots level in our widely spread net of personal relationships, society at large, the world at large, will not benefit.

• From The Elimination of Anger: With Two Stories Retold from the Buddhist Texts
• The Demons of Defilement (Kilesa Mara)
• Jon Stewart on whether Democrats' "Trump is a Fascist" accusations are warranted | The Daily Show

• Trump supporters begin burning hats because they are so sad emoji face about Trump's DACA deal
• Trump Cartoon: Our Story So Far (Daily Kos)
• Ven. Nyanaponika, Story Retold from Buddhist Text; Tom Tomorrow (thismodernworld.com); Dhr. Seven, Ananda (Dharma Buddhist Meditation), Amber Larson, Ashley Wells (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

God, no God? Do Buddhists pray? (video)

I pray you, please let us stay in the garden, Dad! - Get the hell out of here!

This post seeks to do far too much, explaining God and talking about prayer in observance of the National Day of Prayer and whether or not Buddhists "pray" since there is no necessity of believing in God if one is a Buddhist and there is no command to pray even if one does believe in God or gods. These two will eventually be parsed into two different articles. Enjoy the draft while they are interwoven.

(Buddha's Wisdom) Why Buddhists Don't Believe in GOD? | April 29, 2024: 🤔 Ever wonder why Buddhists don't seem to believe in a Creator-God? The answer might surprise you – and it's been sparking heated debates for centuries! 🔥 In this thought-provoking video, BW dives deep into the heart of Buddhist philosophy to explore one of the most controversial questions in religious history. 🧘‍♂️💭 Here's the thing – this isn't about convincing anyone to abandon any belief. Buddhism is all about free inquiry, questioning everything, even its own Teachings (the Dharma)! 🌈🔍 [This is why there is a Kalama Sutra, the invitation to free inquiry.] Whether one is a devout believer, skeptic, or just curious, this video challenges assumptions and opens minds to new possibilities. 🙏 Stay curious, stay compassionate, and remember – the truth is waiting to be discovered within you [so get wise]. Namaste, friends! 🌼 #Buddhism #God #Spirituality #Philosophy #Enlightenment #Wisdom #Meditation #Mindfulness #PersonalGrowth #Inspiration

Buddhism and the God-Idea

Half the things said in this video are incorrect, but the whole of it is trending towards correct. Of course, many Buddhists believe in God. Which God? There are more than one. The One all-consuming GOD is Brahman, a Vedic, Brahminical, and Hindu concept, the impersonal reality behind all of the illusory (maya). The Buddha and Buddhists frequently talked about a creator god, whose name is Maha Brahma (the "Great Supremo"), who is neither male nor female, as the brahmas have transcended sexual dimorphism and are both and neither, just like the Abrahamic God (whom some scholars suggest is not related to Abraham but is A-Brahmanic, meaning "not related to Brahma or Brahman"). There are many gods in Buddhism, and one favorite deity (deva) is Sakka, King of the Gods, a favorite Zeus/Indra-type sky god of the Sakas of Scythia, popular among the horseback warrior princes of Scythia and Sakastan. There are countless other devas and brahmas, "light beings" (lit. "shining ones") in all directions of space and on earth. The more down-to-earth devas, even though the others visit the planet, are woodland fairies, nature spirits, spaceship (vimana) traveling godlings and deities that love to sport about, vain, beautiful, petty, obsessed with pleasure and beauty, exactly like the ancient Greek and Roman gods, well understood throughout ancient India and proto-India as well born fortunate beings with long lives, subtle senses, much delight, and often too distracted by the good times to seek for their enlightenment and release from rebirth. There is not a Buddhist God in the sense that all of the brahmas are, although very long-lived, impermanent as are all beings. Maha Brahma is special in that this deva (because all brahmas are a higher order of deva) is the first born at the renewal of another world cycle, at the big recurring bang in the endless cycles of time known as kalpas or aeons.

Today is also the National Day of Reason, not just the National Day of Prayer.

• It often sounds to Western ears as if the Buddha did not know so remained silent. This is completely mistaken, an understandable misunderstanding. Often when the Buddha remained silent and someone stormed off dissatisfied with his response, Ananda would turn to the Buddha and ask him why he didn't answer. And the Buddha would explain. The most common reason was because whatever answer was given would lead to a misunderstanding in the questioner's mind. People often came to the Buddha holding wrong views, certain about their position. They were in no mood to learn what the Buddha knew and saw and taught. Not being answers sometimes chastened them to return and be more open. In this way when the Buddha spoke, they would understand, shed their wrong views (or give up clinging to their opinions, preferences, and pet theories), and become open to directly seeing what Truth is. One does not need the Buddha for that. The Buddha (this one and any other) points the way. It is for us to practice, cleanse our hearts and minds to prepare for directly seeing without a mediator. Foremost in this regard is the case of the obstinate monk Ven. Malunkyaputta. He had a lot of philosophical questions which the Buddha left unanswered. But he figured since he was a monk in this Doctrine and Discipline, he deserved answers from the Buddha about these very basic and ancient points of controversy: Is the world finite or infinite, does the fully enlightened person continue to exist or cease to exist when passing away, does rebirth go on forever or does it end, and so on and so on. Such questions never end. The Buddha dismissed these questions and left many things undeclared exactly as the video above suggests -- because they are not conducive to dispassion, disillusionment, and awakening to the unbelievable Truth. Why ask all that and demand answers before practicing to directly see for yourself without any teacher as your authority? The Buddha provides the path-and-practice, the Middle Way, that leads to direct knowledge, vision, and wisdom. In most religions, we hope it's true but only find out if we were wrong when we die. In Buddhism, it is not that way at all. Enlightenment, awakening, spiritual knowledge-and-vision are for this life, here and now. When we pass away, we will already know if we are liberated, on the right track, following a path-and-practice that does indeed lead to complete liberation. There is no need to wait. The time is now.
• Famously, Ven. Malunkyaputta asked his questions anyway, and more foolishly demanded the Buddha answer him or he would quit being a monastic and quit practicing altogether.
• He didn't like the Buddha's answer. The Buddha told him it was fine to quit, fine to not practice, fine to not accept that there was a good reason for those answers to remain undeclared. But he did Malunkyaputta a favor. He gave him a powerful simile to illustrate what he was doing by asking and insisting on an answer before proceeding towards Truth himself.
• That simile, which is useful for all of us with a questioning and skeptical nature, lacking faith and confidence (saddha) in the Teacher, the Teaching, and the successfully Taught (the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha), runs like this:
• Imagine a man shot by a poison arrow. A master physician offers to remove the arrow, stem the bleeding, and give an antidote to the fast acting poison, but that man -- wishing to know, wishing to understand, insisting someone explain to him -- will not accept the doctor's services, the cure, the antidote unless and until these questions are answered: Who shot me? Why did he shoot me? With what did he shoot me? What kind of wood was used for the shaft of the arrow? What kind of feather was used at the end of it? What kind of poison was dabbed on the tip? And so on and so forth. Any such person would much sooner die than any of those questions could be answered to his full satisfaction. Therefore, why not remain alive by accepting the master physician's advice to set them aside, get well, and pursue the answers himself. He would neither believe nor understand what answers he was given anyway.
• Sister Tina Turner leads us in prayer (of the devotional Sokka Gakai branch of Japanese faith-based Nichiren Buddhism, which came into being long after the historical Buddha and in many ways is very unBuddhist if what the historical Buddha taught is any measure):

Q: Do Buddhists pray?

Yes, some. Some Buddhists pray, but not in the way the West does, not petitionary prayers to "Buddha" nor to the many deities recognized in Buddhism which, after all, is nontheistic but is not atheistic.

Buddhism could well be said to be polytheistic (except that, ultimately, just as the "self" is unreal so, too, are the gods). There is an impersonal force at play called Karma, and it seems to us that so much of what is said about the Christian, Muslim, Jewish God is really being said about Karma, as if God is doing it all, judging everybody, meting out rewards and punishments, being begged and giving in, being mocked and smiting the infidels and unbelievers. This omniscient creator god view is wrong in so many ways, but it is a reasonable simplification of how things work.

It's just like when a child asks, "Where does rain come from?" and, wishing to shut the kid up, the loving parent thinks he or she is doing the child a favor by offering an untrue but age-appropriate explanation wrapped around a moral lesson: "It's God crying because you didn't clean your room and respect your elders." "Oh, no!" the child thinks and feels much fear, nervousness, and develops no good view of God. But this is what we tell kids. This is level of nonsense we accept from our religions most of the time.

Were we wiser, wishing to know, we might be receptive to a social-scientifical answer: "Um, well, you see, Hun, when Mr. Cloud drinks too much, he's like Uncle Jerry going to the bathroom and flooding the commode, which spills over and ruins the party." "Oh, I get it."

Worshipping at the altar of Scientism, which is the only acceptable source of answers nowadays (even if they're wrong, at least they sound reasonable). This becomes the only source of answers we'll accept, just the facts, Ma'am, no metaphor, no simile, no mythology:

"When the barometric pressure rises in inverse proportion to aridity, humidity predominates and clusters of hydrogen molecules with two oxygen molecules attached, form and fall out of a gaseous state, condensing into soluble moisture, pooling in droplets that precipitate pooling on the ground with other attendant meteorological phenomena." "Huh, Professor? Maybe I should ask Mary Ann."

Nontheism means one is not obsessed with gods, God, or GOD (brahmas, Maha Brahma, and Brahman) because one's enlightenment (awakening to the ultimate truth) and even one's rebirth in any of the many heavens within the Three Spheres (Sensual, Fine Material, and Immaterial) does not depend on the gods.

One does not need to worry about the powers, lifestyles, or knowledge of God and gods (and there are many, no matter who the Abrahamic faiths have twisted their ancient polytheism into a monotheism in name only). As wise and psychic as gods may be, they are not enlightened, do not know the Dharma, do not practice the Dharma, and do not teach a path of liberation from rebirth. They are stuck in rebirth, in a good position, in an office, a station. And this is important because, the individual will fall from that, but the office will remain. How?

• How? The universe very big, very very big. In it are many (countless) world-systems, and each has a God (a Maha Brahma), each has a Sakka (a kind of Archangel Michael, Maghavā or Magha of Macalagama when he was a human), Jesus in heaven figure, who tosses an Asura, a Lucifer character, out of heaven, leading to a war in the heavens, as those Titans or Asuras seek revenge and try to burn down that world of the devas they were thrown out of. Where were they thrown? The answer is the same as in the Abrahamic faiths, only no one in those seems to read their sacred texts to know that the answer is not "hell." It is earth. They were thrown out of that lowly heaven, two planes up, down to this platform at the base of the Axis Mundi, Mount Sumeru, a kind of Mt. Olympus). Moreover, there are many many devas, brahmas, and more devas above Maha Brahma. They are mapped in Buddhism on a chart called the 31 Planes of Existence, which mentions the karma that leads to rebirth in those worlds. So to become a god or God, follow that karma. The lifespans are enormous, the sensual and supersensual delights are delectable, and it feels like forever and ever until it ends. It might be possible to live 80,000 aeons in such rarefied worlds. But any amount of time less than infinity -- and remember, time is different everywhere, so what for us is a year is nothing for them -- means one is soon back, reaping the results of all their karma, good and bad, grinding on, treading the Wheel of Rebirth and Death such beings never actually got free from. The heavens may seem eternal, particularly the immaterial (arupa) ones, but they are not. If lifetimes there never came to an end, they would still be impermanent. How is that possible? It is possible because things, all things, are radically impermanent. That is, it is not that they will one day end but rather that from moment to moment they are always ending. This is the liberating vision of anicca, one of the Three Marks or Characteristics of Existence.

It depends on us (our intentional actions, which are based and motivated by the extent of our right view or confidence/faith in a teacher or the Teachings of the Buddha himself) and more importantly on our karma (our deeds of mind, word, and body).

Of course, there are two Buddhisms (Mahayana and Theravada) and they should not be confused because they are very different. The larger of the two, or 90% percent of Buddhists in the world, follows a kind of Hinduism and is called Mahayana or "Great Vehicle." The other much smaller school is a back-to-basics movement that is devoted to the historical Buddha. Mahayana worships "Cosmic Buddhas" and gives little attention to the founder of the Dharma in the world today, opting instead for a reformed approach and syncretism with Hinduism, Vedic Brahmanism, Taoism, Bon, Confucianism, and Shinto, which are hard to distinguish from the original teachings of Shakyamuni, the "Sage of the Scythians."

The other form of Buddhism is called Theravada, the "Teaching of the Elders," the theras being the enlightened immediate disciples of the historical Buddha Gautama. While neither tradition may pray in the sense of petitioning a deity very much (though asking things of the Goddess Kwan Yin, the Taras, Amitabha, Ksitigarbha, and other manifestations of what, for all intents and purposes, seems to be the same old Brahman (the Absolute or Ultimate Reality behind all Illusion or Maya) idea. Now, rather than personifying the Vedic and Indian gods like Hinduism does, Mahayana Buddhists imagine countless buddhas with all kinds of specialties, like Catholic saints. There's Medicine Buddha, the Goddess of Compassion who hears the cries of the world (Kwan Yin or Guanyin, a Mother Mary figure), and many others as needed. Mahayana Buddhism is mainly devoted to the worship of Amitabha, a Cosmic Buddha they see as a savior who will save all who call upon him. That calling could be imagined as a kind of prayer.

However, the real purpose of prayer beads, mantras ("thought instruments"), bowing, and chanting is to make the mind pliable so that one rules it rather than being ruled by it. The Isaiah Effect would be an excellent way to pray for Buddhists, full of gratitude for what they have and giving thanks in confidence of what they already have for having been grateful with all their body and emotions, as Braden explains.

There are devotional schools of Buddhism that arose long after the historical Buddha. They seem to ignore what the Buddha taught, opting instead for easy answers and instant solutions to life's problems. Foremost among these must be the Japanese devotional schools, explained by Westerner Alan Watts as being self-powered vs. other-powered (jiriki versus tariki).

• We know that we cannot do it on our own, so many in recovery and the 12 steps rely on a "higher power," any higher power. And that is good, very good. The way the historical Buddha originally taught will sound very self-empowering, very jiriki, based on one's own strength. It is actually not because that does not tend to work. But it sounds like that's what he's saying: His final words, after all, were "Be a lamp/island (dipa) unto yourselves and work out your own salvation (liberation, awakening) with diligence." Elsewhere, however, he famously points something out to good Ananda, who is always questioning things for his benefit and the benefit of all of us who wish we had had the chance to ask the Buddha these sorts of things: One day Ananda realizes that having good friends in the Dharma and Discipline (Dhamma-Vinaya), in this path-of-practice, is a very good thing, very useful for one's enlightenment. Realizing this, he seeks out the Buddha for his validation. To his shock, the Buddha does not validate him. He tells him not to say such a thing. All Ananda said was that he thought that "noble friendship" (kalyanamittata) was half the path. The Buddha corrects him and points out that it is 100% of the path. Without noble friendship, people would not hear the Dharma, would not have a model of the practice, would not find encouragement, would not be corrected and set right when one strays, and ultimately would become enlightened anytime soon. That does not sound like "one's own power," does it? We must put forward our effort but never lose sight how much we're actually standing on the shoulders of giants, depending on a historical lineage of others who came before us, and serving as a bridge to the future from what we contribute to keeping the Dharma alive and making known the practice. There are Three Jewels in the world, not just one. The first is the Buddha who realized the Truth and made known the path to that same realization so that any ordinary person could strive to realize it and achieve it in this very life, depending on one's karma. The second is the Dharma, the Teaching he left behind in his stead; he did not elect another leader after him because the Dharma itself is what leads. The third is the one closest to us, the Community of Those Successfully Taught, the Noble Sangha. (Many people think this means anyone wearing robes, but that is very mistaken and harmful because many people in robes are not enlightened, not successful students, and many people not in robes are enlightened though they may not be able to teach others. So monastics should be seen as quite valuable, maintaining this tradition, but they are not one of the jewels, or in any case, they are a symbolic part of the actual jewel, the aryans, the noble ones, those who are stream-enterers, once returners, nonreturners, and arhats, and possibly two other kinds of people who will not pass away until they gain a "change of lineage" or gotrabhu and reach the first stage of awakening, but information on these two types is scarce. See Bhikkhu Bodhi).
• Faith (confidence) in Buddhism
• Buddhist devotion (puja, inspiration)

We can either make progress by our own efforts (not likely) or by depending on a powerful other to do it for us. Having fallen so far away from the Teachings of the Buddha which produce calm and insight, Mahayana started to go astray and invent "new" ways to try to get enlightened. Great teachers arose, founders of schools, claiming to reveal esoteric secrets of the path. Let's read these words aloud and be sure to get into Amitabha's Western Paradise heaven and then make efforts for enlightenment there, and it'll be easy! This is one example of the kind of thinking that took over Mahayana Buddhism, pushing it in an increasingly devotional direction. Prayer makes sense in a devotional religion full of ritual.

It makes much less sense in a path-of-practice where one must depend on oneself to make the effort to overcome ignorance through mental calm (samatha and samadhi) and systematic mindfulness of four things (satipatthana and vipassana).

Another very beautiful and super popular form of Buddhism arose in Japan as well as part of this devotional deviation from the Buddha's Dharma, and that is the Nichiren Shoshu (Sokka Gakai) movement who say there is one prayer better than all others to get all you want (as in The Secret's Law of Attraction and teaching of Abraham-Hicks): Nam Myoho Renge Kyo

Kickstart a devotional Nichiren practice with two hours of Tina Turner

You'll to buy a box: Nichiren Buddhism gohonzon scroll

Ho ho ho, it's magic/ Never believe it's not so: Essential Buddhism Meditations e Mindfulness with Daimoku: Reduce Stress with Nam Myoho Renge Kyo, Improve Mental Health and Find Peace in the Everyday (Audible Audio Edition) (Jacob Salomon)

• Buddha's Wisdom; Larry King with guest Buddhist chanter Tina Turner; Dhr. Seven, Amber Larson, Ashley Wells, Wisdom Quarterly

It's cold in Buddhist Siberia: Yakutia (video)

Kiun B, YouTube, Jan. 21, 2023; Amber Larson and Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Living alone in the wild Siberian forest for 20 years (-71°C, -96°F) Yakutia

(Kiun B) SAKHA REPUBLIC, Siberia - There's Buddhist Kalmykia, and there's Yakutia. This is a story of Samuil. For the past 20 years, Samuil has chosen to live far away from civilization, together with bears and wolves, in one of the harshest environments on Earth.

• VIDEO: Surviving in the coldest village on earth
• Buddhism in Russia/USSR?
• Tibetan Buddhism in Siberia
• Buddhist Buryatia, Far East Russia

Website: kiunb.com shares some personal stories of Yakutia 🥶. To buy local handmade crafts from Yakutia, order here: kiunb.com/shop. 📩 For business inquiries: pr.kiunb@gmail.com 😇 Support on: patreon.com/kiunb 📸 Follow on Instagram: instagram.com/kiun.b 💙 Thanks for watching. Subscribe for next videos.

LIVE: Blood Moon total eclipse: Rahu (11/7)

Doyle Rice, USA TODAY, 11/7/22; G Park; Pat Macpherson, Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Is it really dripping blood or just eerily glowing red due to Rahu's bite/atmospheric conditions?

Total Lunar Eclipse: LIVE from Hollywood

(Griffith Observatory) Scheduled for midnight, Nov. 8, 2022. This program is made possible in part by Griffith Observatory Foundation. Join in support of Griffith Observatory and its programs. Become a member: GOFoundationJOIN. Donate: GOFoundationDonate. Newsletter sign up: GOFoundationSignUp. "All Space Considered" is Griffith Observatory’s live science program that is free and open to the public, held the first Friday of every month.

The Buddha and his half-brother Nanda visit the Heaven of the Thirty-Three, Gandhara.

A total lunar eclipse is coming Tuesday: What to know and best times to see the 'blood' moon

Super blood full moon (Peter Komka/EPA-EFE)

Sick of politics on Election Day? Well, there is an astronomical spectacle coming Tuesday morning that we can all enjoy. A total lunar eclipse will occur across the USA early Tuesday, which is Election Day.

It's the first Election Day total lunar eclipse in U.S. history, according to EarthSky.org.

Rahu is an Asura or Titan.

The next Election Day lunar eclipse won't occur for another 372 years, long after the country is a smoking ember in the ruins of the Apocalypse, when no one will know that it is Nov. 8, 2394.

And there won't be another total lunar eclipse visible in the U.S. until March 2025, NASA claimed.

A total lunar eclipse occurs when the moon and the sun are on exact opposite sides of Earth, according to NASA.

• [According to Hindu and Buddhist cosmology, it happens when the Planet Rahu swallows the Moon Soma/Chandra. Until it lets it go, there is darkness. Eclipses are a fearful portent in India, as well as other parts of the world.  Modern Ayurvedic Doctor Kumar (ashwinayurveda.com) explained to Wisdom Quarterly that Rahu is not a planet but a node or point on its elliptic orbit when the eclipse occurs, one heavenly body blocking another in the play of sun (Sol or Surya), Earth (Bhumi), and moon (Soma or Chandra).]

When this happens, NASA continues, Earth blocks the sunlight that normally reaches the moon. Instead of that sunlight hitting the moon’s surface, Earth's shadow falls on it.

Where and when can one see the eclipse? Lunar eclipses can be visible from everywhere on the night side of Earth, if the sky is clear, TimeandDate.com said. "From some places the entire eclipse will be visible, while in other areas the moon will rise or set during the eclipse."

According to EarthSky's Bruce McClure, if one lives in the U.S., or elsewhere in North America, one can see the eclipse in the wee hours before sunrise Tuesday. More

Who is the Titan (Asura) Rahu?

.

Mt. Sumeru is the mythical axis mundi.

(Wiki) The world of the Asuras ("Titans") is the space at the foot of Mount Sumeru (Pali Mt. Sineru), much of which is a deep ocean. It is not the Asuras' original home, but the place they found themselves after they were cast out, drunk on sura (heavenly "beer"), from the Heaven of the Thirty-Three (Trāyastriṃśa) where they had formerly lived alongside the devas there. The Asuras are always fighting to regain their lost home in that lowly heavenly kingdom on top of Mt. Sumeru, but they are unable to break the guard of the Four Great Sky Kings (Regents) that were tasked with protecting that world by Sakka, Chief of the Devas. The Asuras are divided into many groups and have no single chief or ruler, but among their leaders are Vemacitrin (वेमचित्री or Pāli Vepacitti, वेपचित्ती) and Rāhu. In later texts, the Asura realm as one of the four unhappy states of rebirth. However, the Nikāya evidence does not show that the Asura realm was regarded as a state of suffering. More

Bible study with Barnabas (video)

Barnabas Nagy, April 3, 2019; Pat Macpherson, Seth Auberon (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

 

Fake Bible: Virgin Mary Hoax, No Prophecy Fulfilled, Christianity Lie

The biblical prophecy Isaiah 7:14 is not about Jesus (Iisoús, Anglicized Greek form of "Zeus," Ἰησοῦς). Here we see  the proof. This is "Caesar 's Messiah," not a Hebrew ישוע‎. The Bible is fake containing more than 400,000 manuscript variants and errors. Rome constructed a "Christian Agenda" to calm Jewish riots inside the expanding Roman Empire (now the Holy Roman Catholic Empire).

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Extraterrestrials: The Great Assembly (sutra)

Ven. Piyadassi Thera (trans.) Mahasamaya Sutra (DN 20), The Book of Protection; edited by Amber Larson, Dhr. Seven, CC Liu, Crystal Quintero, Pat Macpherson, Wisdom Quarterly

Most devas live in space, in the sky (akasha), some on Earth as "fairies" (David Sereda).

The great diversity of "devas" (fairies) as envisioned and represented by fairies by Sir Joseph Noel Paton "The Quarrel of Oberon and Titania" (wiki/Google Art Project)

A Cantina where a cross section of odd space aliens assemble as they fly about (Star Wars).

 
The Great Assembly

Devas love big gatherings!

Thus have I heard: On one occasion the [Buddha] was living in the Great Wood (Maha-Vana) near the city of Kapilavastu [Bamiyan, Afghanistan] in the province of [the Buddha's family] the Sakyans [Scythians] together with a great retinue of monastics, all of them fully enlightened beings (arhats), a great multitude.

• SUMMARY: The Great Assembly Discourse that takes place in the Great Wood a virgin forest near reached from the edge of Kapilavastu (in what is now Afghanistan, where the Buddha grew up) to the Himālaya (a portion of the range called the Hindu Kush) on one side and to the sea on the other (MA.i.298, 449). In this wood was preached the Great Assembly Sutra and the Madhupindika Sutta.

Devas (fairies, godlings, angelic spirits) from 10,000 world-systems frequently assembled for the purpose of seeing the Blessed One and the monastic community (ordained Sangha).
 
Then to four devas from the Pure Abodes (Suddhavasa) of the Brahma World, this thought occurred: "The Blessed One is living in the Great Wood near the city of Kapilavastu [the Buddha's hometown] in the province of the Sakyans with a great retinue of monastics, all of them fully enlightened beings, a great multitude.

• This is an extraordinary back story because it is said that the Pure Abodes are worlds for "nonreturners," reborn in five unique worlds in space or another dimension of some kind. Technically "returning" means rebirth, which is to say one no longer takes rebirth in any lower world. But it is generally believed that while no one but nonreturners and arhats reside in those rarefied worlds, no one leaves. But here these fortunate devas beings elect to leave to visit a buddha and an assembly of fully enlightened disciples (arhats).

Deva goddess (devi), nymph, dryad (Emilie Johnson)

Devas are frequently assembling there for the purpose of seeing the Blessed One and the ordained community. It is well if we were also to repair to the place where the Blessed One is and each of us recite a stanza in his presence."

Then those devas, as quickly as a strong person might stretch out an arm or bend an outstretched arm, vanished from the Pure Abodes and appeared before the Blessed One. They saluted him and stood respectfully to one side. Standing in his presence one of the devas recited this stanza:

1. "There is a great assembly in the forest.

A host of devas [army of angels] has assembled.

We have come to this Dharma-assembly

To see the invincible Sangha [Note 1] ."

 
Then another deva recited this stanza in the presence of the Blessed One:
 

2. "The monastics in this (assembly [2])

Have collected their thoughts

and made their minds upright.

The wise guard their senses

just as a charioteer holds the reins."

More deva than human: Amber Heard

Then another deva recited this stanza in the presence of the Blessed One:

3. "Having cut off the stake,

Having dug up the cross-bar (of lust, hate, and delusion),

Freed of craving, they go their way,

Pure, stainless, with vision clear;

And well tamed, these young arhats

Move about like elephants" [3].

Then another deva recited this stanza in the presence of the Blessed One:
 

4. "They who go for guidance to the Buddha

Shall not go to harmful states of existence

But will drop the human body

And swell the ranks of the devas."

 
The Buddha names the "others"

The Buddha addresses the assembled arhat nuns and monks.

The Blessed One then addressed the assembled monastics:

"Often, disciples, devas from the ten world-systems foregather to see the Tathagata (the Wayfarer, the Buddha) and the monastic community. Devas have assembled before the consummate (arhat), supreme buddhas of the past. Devas will appear before the consummate, supreme buddhas of the future as they assemble now before me.

"I will tell you, disciples, the names of the host of devas; I will reveal the names of the host of devas. Listen, pay attention, and I will speak." "Yes, venerable sir," replied the assembled disciples by way of assent. Then the Blessed One said [4]:
 

The Buddha and arhat disicples assembled.

5-6. "In measured speech [5] I will give utterance. The terrestrial (earth-dwelling) devas remain in their realm. And those bent on meditation frequently visit rocky clefts. Well composed they (the arhats) live like solitary lions overcoming the fear that causes hair to stand on end, with immaculate minds, pure, serene, and freed of defilements [of which there are various lists]."

7. Knowing that there were in the forest, near the city of Kapilavastu (Pali Kapilavatthu), a great multitude of disciples, delighted in the word of the Buddha, the Master thereupon addressed them:
 
8. "Disciples, hosts of devas have assembled. Do know them well." And they (the disciples) hearing the word (the dispensation or sasanam) of the Buddha, strove ardently (to know-and-see them).
 
9. There arose in them knowledge of [psychically] perceiving the non-humans. Some saw 100, some 1,000 non-humans (devas and brahmas), and others 70,000 non-humans.
 
10. Some saw one 100,000 non-humans; others saw countless numbers, every quarter being filled with them.

Does the Galactic Federation have Nazi-like "Stormtroopers" to fight good rebels?

  
11. Thereupon the [All] Seeing One (the Buddha) knowing all things through super-knowledge [superhuman faculty developed to the highest degree], addressed the disciples [as they] delighted in the word of the Buddha:
 
12. "Disciples, host of devas have assembled. I will announce them to you in words and in due order. Know them.
 
13. "Seven-thousand terrestrial yakkhas [6] of Kapilavastu possessed of  supernormal powers (iddhi), radiant, comely, and followed by a retinue of attendants [7], have come rejoicing to the forest to see [8] the assembly of (arhat) disciples.

A celestial yakha (yaksha, "ogre" or "demon"), Alavaka, is tamed by the Buddha.

   
14. "Six-thousand yakkhas from the Himalayan mountains, diverse in hue, possessed of supernormal power, radiant, comely, and followed by a retinue of attendants, have come rejoicing to this forest to see the assembly of disciples.
 
15. "Three thousand yakkhas from Sata's Mountain (Satagira), diverse in hue, possessed of supernormal power, radiant, comely, and followed by a retinue of attendants, have come rejoicing to the forest to see the assembly of disciples.
 
16. "Thus 16,000 yakkhas, diverse in hue, possessed of supernormal power, radiant, comely, and followed by a retinue of attendants, have come rejoicing to the forest to see the assembly of disciples.
 
17. "Five-hundred yakkhas from Vessamitta's Mountain, diverse in hue, possessed of supernormal power, radiant, comely, and followed by a retinue of attendants, have come rejoicing to the forest to see the assembly of disciples.
 
18. "Kumbhira of Rajagala town, having his dwelling on Vepulla's Mountain, with more than a 100,000 yakkhas in his train, has come to the forest to see the assembly of disciples.
 
The "angels" all around

Earth has a diversity of beings in form and thinking unlike most conformist worlds (Stories).

 

Angelic deva (Sophie Anderson)

19-20. "Dhatarattha, King of the East, overseer of the Eastern Quarter [of Space is a regent answering to Sakka, King of the Gods/Devas, with each of these Four Great Kings overseeing a class of celestial beings], and Chief of the Gandhabbas [attendant-angels, heavenly musicians, lowly celestials, beautiful spirits], followed by a retinue of attendants, and with his many mighty offspring-of-gods (devaputtas, lit. "sons of gods," i.e., living beings now reborn among devas), Inda their names, possessed of supernormal power, radiant, comely, and with a retinue, has come rejoicing to the forest to see the assembly of disciples.

• The Four Great Kings: Dhatarattha, Virulha, Virupakkha, Kuvera

"Ballsy" pot-bellied beings

21-22. "Virulha, King of the South, overseer of the Southern Quarter [of Space], and Chief of the Kumbhandas [duendes, leprechauns, pot-bellied munchkin beings, gnomes, trolls, dwarfs], followed by a retinue of attendants, and with his many mighty offspring [those reborn as devas in his realm of devas], Inda their names, possessed of supernormal power, radiant, comely, and with a retinue of attendants, has come rejoicing to the forest to see the assembly of disciples.

Real life literal kumbanda, "goblin," or duende caught red handed in Africa after stirring up trouble for locals (thewatchtowers.com via sott.net).

 
23-24. "Virupakkha, King of the West, overseer of the Western Quarter, and Chief of the Nagas [great creatures, in some cases reptilians, dragons, serpents], followed by a retinue of attendants, and with his many mighty offspring, Inda their names, possessed of supernormal power, radiant, comely, and with a retinue of attendants, has come rejoicing to the forest to see the assembly of disciples.
 
25-26. "Kuvera, King of the North, overseer of the Northern Quarter, and Chief of the Yakkhas [space ogres, Chewbacca-style, Almas, Big Foot, Sasquatch, demons, rakshasas, a broad class of nature spirits], followed by a retinue of attendants, and with his many mighty offspring, Inda their names, possessed of supernormal power, radiant, comely, and with a retinue of attendants, has come rejoicing to the forest to see the assembly of disciples.

Southeast Asia bas relief: Sakka King of the Devas stirs the milky galaxy, vies with titans

   
27-28. "Dhatarattha over the East, to the South Virulhaka, Westward Virupakkha, Kuvera over the North -- these Four Great Kings stood illuminating the four quarters of the forest in the vicinity of Kapilavastu.
 
29. "With them came their crafty, deceitful, cunning slaves (servants): enticing Kutendu, Vetendu, Vitucca, and Vituda.
 

The deva hosts, aliens and UFOs represented in Catholicism as a "Legion of Mary"

 

30. "And (also the slaves/servants) Candana, Kamasettha, Kinnughandu, and Nighandu. There also came Panada and Opamanna and Matali, the Charioteer of the Devas [or at least of Sakka, King of the Devas].
 
31. "Citta and Sena, the gandhabbas, Nala (Kara), Janesabha (Janavasabha) and Pañcasikha, the devas, Timbaru, the gandhabba, and Suriyavaccasa (the daughter of Timbaru) also came.
 
32. "Along with these (gandhabba) kings, other gandhabba kings too, have come rejoicing with each other to the forest to see the assembly of disciples.
 
33. "Then came the (divine) nagas of the (Lake Nabhasa), those of the naga realm Visali together with the nagas named Tacchaka. There also came nagas of Kambala and Assatara and Payaga accompanied by their relatives.
 

I'm modeled after the 14th Dalai Lama. - And we're modeled after Nazi Stormtroopers and all-white US police departments who train to deal with civilians in the US Imperial Military.

  
34. "Nagas from Yamuna, and those of the race of Dhatarattha came with their retinue of attendants, and Eravana, the great naga too, came to the forest to see the assembly of disciples.
 

Ancient avians hunt for serpents by the sea.

35. "Those avians (garudas, suparnas, harpies, hybrid human-birds) who carry away nagas (serpents) by force, endowed with divine power, and twice born [9], with clear eyes (keen of sight), have flown into the middle of the forest from the sky -- Citra and Supanna are their names.
 
36. "At that time the naga king (with other nagas) were free from fear. The Buddha vouchsafed his protection to the dragons (nagas) from the harpies (suppana). Entreating one another with gentle words, the nagas and suppanas sought guidance from the Buddha.
 

This world is so amazing with so many kinds of beings and visitors that no one believes our history, labeling it "mythology" and dismissing it as nonsense (Evs in Nz/flickr.com).

.

Asuras or titans once lived in Sakka's world.

37. "The asuras (titans, fallen devas cast out of space onto Earth) dwelling in the ocean were defeated by Vajirahattha (Sakka, King of the Devas). They are relatives [in laws] of Vasavassa (Sakka) [10] possessed of supernormal power and are followed by a retinue of attendants.
 
38. "The terrible Kalakanjas, the Danaveghasas, Vepacitti, Sucitti, and Paharada -- all asuras have also come with Namuci (the Vasavatti Mara, the 'Evil One,' a kind of Cupid).

The titans (asuras) still live where this sutra took place, shown here as the founder of Zoroastrianism and Central Asian giants with a tiny ~6 foot Westerner for comparison (Zartosht/wiki; see more real life examples from Steve Quayle).

 
39. "Hundreds of the offspring of Bali, all of them named after Veroca (their uncle Rahu), with an armed host of warriors, approached Rahu (Asurendra, a lord of asuras), and said: 'Lord, it is time to go to the forest to see the assembly of disciples.'
 
40. "The devas Apo and Pathavi, Tejo, and Vayo [11] have also come to the forest and the devas Varuna, Varuna, and Soma with Yasa.
 
41-42. "There also came the devas Metta-kayika and Karunakayika [12] followed by their attendants. These ten groups of devas of diverse hue, possessed of supernormal power, radiant, comely, and with a retinue of attendants, have come rejoicing to the forest to see the assembly of disciples.
 
43. "The devas Venhu, Sahali, Asama, the two Yama(ka), and those who attend on the Moon god (deva) came preceded by him.
 

Catholic Sakka: St. Michael, Archangel

44. "Those devas attending on the Sun god (deva) too, came preceded by him. Those devas attending the planets came preceded by them. The devas of the rain clouds [who can control the weather] also came.
 
45. "Also came Sakka, the Chief of Devas, who is also called Vasava and Purindada. Also those ten groups of devas of diverse hue, possessed of supernormal power, radiant, comely, and with a retinue of attendants, have come rejoicing to the forest to see the assembly of disciples.
 
47. "Then too, came the deva Sahabhu, shining like a brilliant flame, the devas Aritthaka, Roja, and Ummapupphanibha.
 
48-49. "There came also the devas Varuna Sahadhamma, Accuta and Anojaka, Suleyya, Rucira, and Vasavanesi. All those ten groups of devas of diverse hue, possessed of supernormal power, radiant, comely, and with a retinue of attendants, have come rejoicing to the forest to see the assembly of disciples.
 

Yoga came from Vedas, which came from space

50. "The devas Samana, Mahasamana, Manusa, Manusuttama, Khiddapadusika, and Manopadusika all have come.
 
51. "Then came the devas Hari, those of Lohita, Paraga, and Maha-Paraga with their retinue of attendants.
 
52. "All those ten groups of devas of diverse hue, possessed of supernormal power, radiant, comely, and with a retinue of attendants, have come rejoicing to the forest to see the assembly of disciples.
 
53. "There also came the devas Sukha, Karumha, Aruna with Veghanasa. The deva Odatagayha, Pamokkha, and Vicakkhana also came.
 

Yakkhas are titans, giants (flickr)

54. "Sadamatta, Haragaja, mighty Missaka and Pajjuna, who causes rain to pour in every direction, came thundering.
 
55. "All these ten groups of devas of diverse hue, possessed of supernormal power, radiant, comely, and with a retinue of attendants, have come rejoicing to the forest to see the assembly of disciples.
 
56. "The devas Khemiya, Tusita, Yama, the mighty Katthaka, Lambhitaka, Lamasettha, Joti, and Asava also came.
 
57-58. "There also came the devas Nimmanarati, and Paranimmita (Vasavatthi). All these ten groups of devas of diverse hue, possessed of supernormal power, radiant, comely, and with a retinue of attendants, have come rejoicing to the forest to see the assembly of disciples.

Mary as "Queen of Heaven" like Avalokitesvara, Kwan Yin, and European Pagan idols before

 
59. "These 60 (six of ten groups, indicated in the order of Apo deva, etc.) devas of diverse hue, according to their name and class, have come with others (similar in name and class).
 
60. (These devas came saying:) "'Let us see (the Sangha, the fully enlightened disciples), who have outlived birth, who have removed the stakes (of lust, hate, and delusion), who have crossed the four currents or streams (of sense-pleasures, becoming, wrong views, and ignorance) [13], free from taints (asavas). (Let us also see the Buddha) who has crossed the streams, who is called naga (in the sense of one who does not harm) [14], and shines like the unclouded moon.'
 
61. "The brahmas Subrahma and Paramatta, came (with other brahmas) who are possessed of supernormal power, and offspring (disciples of the Buddha). The brahmas Sanankumara and Tissa also came to the forest (to see the assembly of disciples).
 

Christians say no to Star Wars and the Force

62-63. "There is born a Great Brahma (a Maha Brahma for every brahma world) excelling other brahmas, mighty in power, with a formidable stature, and of great glory. Among them, ten chief brahmas, lords over their retinues have come, and in the midst of them with all his attendants came brahma Harita.
 
64. "When all of the devas headed by Inda (Sakka) and all of the brahmas headed by Haritta had come, there came the army of Mara. Lo! The folly of Mara, the Murky One (Kanha) [15].
 

Mara is more Cupid than Satan, greedy not angry

65. "'Come on, seize them, bind them, let them all be bound by lust, surrounded on every side, suffer not anybody to escape' (thus did Vasavatti Mara give order).
 
66-67. "Mara, striking the Earth with his palm and thereby producing a dreadful sound as when a storm cloud thunders and causes lightning during rainy season, sent his black army into the midst of the devas. Nevertheless, unable to bring the devas under his sway, he filled with anger. He recoiled.
 
68. "Then the All Seeing One (the Buddha), knowing perfectly well what had transpired, addressed his disciples who take delight in the word of the Buddha.
 
69. "Disciples, the army of Mara have come (and gone). Know them (beware of them).' And they (non-enlightened) hearing the word of the Buddha, strove (to gain enlightenment and liberation) from their defilements. (From the passion-free arhats) the army of Mara has departed; even so much as a hair in them (arhats) was not affected.
 
70. "All of those disciples are victors in the war of passions; they are freed from fear, glorious, and renowned among humankind. They live rejoicing with noble (arya) disciples." (Praising thus Mara departed).

NOTES 

• 1. Aparajita, because they are arahants, the Consummate Ones, who have overcome all defilements. 
• 2. Tatra in the text means "there," but the preceding stanza has imam "this (assembly)," and the devas are already in the presence of the Blessed One; so the rendering "in this." 
• 3. The word naga admits of dual meaning. It can mean a very large creature, such as an elephant or python, or it can mean an arhat (a fully enlightened being). An elephant is physically steadfast, whereas an arhat can be referred to as one who is mentally steadfast. Faultless: does no intentional harm. Na hi agum karoti so vide Theragatha, No. 692, cf. Sutta-Nipata, Stanza 522. 
• 4. In most of the protective chant (paritta) books the numbering of stanzas is not consecutive. But I have adopted a consecutive method. 
• 5. Akkhara pada niyamitam vacanam (Commentary) 
• 6. Yakkha here used in the sense of devas. 
• 7. Parivara sampanna (Commentary). 
• 8. Bhikkhu das anatthaya agata, (Commentary). This meaning is clear from the words dakkhitaya ("to see") Stanza No.1, dakkhema ("shall see") No. 60. 
• 9. Twice-born is a reference to birds since they first come out as an egg, which when hatched is born again as a complete bird. 
• 10. Vajirahattha and Vasavassa are other names for Sakka, the Chief of Devas. 
• 11. The devas born in brahma-world by practicing the kasina, disk devices used for concentration, namely: the water (apo) disk (kasina), the earth (pathavi) disk, the fire (tejo) disk, and the air (vayo) disk. 
• 12. The devas who have developed mental absorption (jhana) by practicing loving-kindness and compassion (metta and karuna, two of the Four Sublime States (Brahma-viharas). 
• 13. Four floods or inundations: kama-ogha, bhava-ogha, ditthi-ogha, avijja-ogha (flood of sensuality, flood of becoming, flood of views, flood of ignorance).
• 14. See Note 3. 
• 15. Kanha is another a name for Mara.

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