--- In [email protected], Kristy McClain <healthyplay1@...> wrote:
>
> *bows*
> Â
> I can't offer anything useful. But beware behavioral scientists. They
> skew the results. Steve.. you are so wise in so many ways..  As you
> point out at times.. is it, -Â or not, illusory?
> Â
>  What others think isn't that important.
> Â
> Â What you think--- is.. ~ k
> Â
> p.s.  Bill may feel differently.
> Â
>
> Hi Kristy. Oh, this has nothing to do with modern psychology.
This goes back to early Buddhism. It is based on the idea that
people have karmic dispositions toward certain reactive mental
states. This can be verified by simply watching how one reacts
to people, places and things. The ancient literature went so
far as to describe these predispositions in terms of how a person
dressed, worked, ate their food, slept, and walked. For example,
I have noticed that I am what is called a "hate type". It would
be more accurate to say "aversion type" in English, as it is
characterized by a karmic tendancy for a knee-jerk reaction of
aversion to phenomena. I perfectly fit the ancient description:
I walk quickly, with my feet seeming to tear-up the ground. I
tend to stuff food into my mouth without savoring it. I work
quickly, but roughly. I wear my clothes a little too tight. I
throw myself onto the bed at night to sleep, and if awakened,
feel annoyed. I jump right up in the morning. I do not ever look
for long at anything, and have the subtle feeling that I want to
look away. I have a subtle reaction of weariness to phenomena. I
tend to have a negative assesment of phenomena as a first reaction.
Of course, we are not static entities. This refers to a process
of evolution. I am slowly evolving into what is called a wisdom
type. According to the old suttas, hate types evolve into wisdom
types. Hate is like wisdom in that neither clings to phenomena.
Greed types are almost the exact opposite, but this isn't really a
good thing. Whereas hate types are characterized by a subtle feeling
of pushing-away phenomena, greed types are characterized by a subtle
feeling of pulling-in phenomena and trying to cling to them. My
girlfriend is a classic greed-type: She walks gracefully and
carefully. She carefully eats her food, savoring each small bite.
She works carefully, attending to details. She wears her clothes
with an eye to careful fashion. She snuggles into her covers at
night and is slow to awaken, preferring to stay in the comfort
of the bed. She looks at things she regards as pretty for a long
time, and seems to be reluctant to look away. She seems to have
a desire for phenomena, and seems to want to pull everything in.
She is always very taken with The Next New Thing. Whereas I tend
to be unreasonably negative, she tends to be unreasonably positive.
According to the old suttas, greed types evolve into Faith Types
who have a serene trust in life. Greed is like Faith in that both
look for the positive in phenomena. But Faith, unlike Greed, is not
under any illusions about the supposed permanence of things.
In the old literature, hate types are advised to meditate on
compassion. Greed types are advised to meditate on death and
impermanence. If hate types do not learn compassion, it is said
that they go to the Hell of Fighting Devils. If greed types do
not learn that everything comes and goes on the phenomenal plane,
then they become Hungry Ghosts. This, of course, is just metaphor.
Everyone, of course, must learn the 3 Signs of Being: Everything
comes and goes. Nothing has inherent, separate, independant self-
existence. Not understanding the first two leads to suffering, but
seeing deeply into this leads to Nirvana, The Unborn. IMO.
Steve
>
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