Dear Suresh,
Good!, that you are at home again and safe. I hope all is well.
I mentioned that in Buddhism there is no god or God, and no soul is recognized.
This is the way I practice, so... I must kindly leave aside your mention of
same, with all respect to the practices of Hinduism, and to the
teaching-literature of the illuminated Gita and other Upanishads and Vedas (I
have no right to comment on them, as you refer to them).
Also, I reiterated last time that it does not matter much to me to discuss in
the theoretic sense the issues of Karma and Free Will: It's 35 years too late
for me to be fascinated by such discussions, and energetic in them, any more.
Considerations of them do not enter into my practice at all, nor does a
reverence in the present moment for the historical Buddha, except insofar as
his teaching is of benefit to me and others, especially through the Zen
tradition.
I do not hold the Buddha up as a personal example, and, therefore, I have no
external interference -- nor unsavory bewitchment -- in my practice. I think
this is true also of the majority of other mature Zen practitioners, and I am
not alone in this. ;-)
Again, recall the aphorism of *very* ancient origin in Ch'an and Zen:
"If you meet the Buddha, KILL the Buddha."
It's the right thing to do (for oneself, and for all Beings).
But it happens automatically at Awakening, ...so no need to sharpen any
scimitars.
Now, I make no bones about us all being related and everything being
inter-related. We see eye-to-eye, there.
On sesshin, some note afterwards that we all seem to have the same last name.
I think that's a fine way to express it.
I would say, about Mr. Eckhart Tolle: do not allow him to serve as an authority
to you/for you. There are no such authorities, and any authority they seem to
convey is *NOT* a service to anyone. How did *he* come to his clarity about
what he expresses? He did it by practice (though we do not know if a Zen
teacher would have shoo-ed him out of the Zendo and said, "Practice harder!").
The same is true of the late old Mr. Krishnamurti. We must do the same
(practice..., and truly awaken).
Reading those authors' clear expressions results simply in your trying to
"bank-on" another man's treasure. Don't do it!
Those funds are NOT transferable, and, besides, there is absolutely no Medium
of Exchange! Awakening is experiential, and cannot be handed-over. Awakening
is a transformation, not an understanding. And it is physical.
The river is wide and pure and the water is already yours. Don't let someone
tinkle in it and then try to sell it to you. And in any case, "for God's
sake", don't drink it.
Practice will reveal everything, by transforming you utterly: un-clothing you,
and turning you simply into your true self. It is a real downgrade, a loss of
all sophistication; but then, you can use all tools and techniques freely, and
you will neither stick nor attach to any of them. It is Freedom and Ease of
body and mind.
No inspirational author can make a real difference for you, other than to hold
you back from true practice. Sad, but true.
Take heart, however. You don't need a friend in a book, or a book author. You
can have a Zen teacher, and a sangha. Real people, in real situations, as you
practice with them.
When/where it comes to practice, one "only" needs to begin, and then to
continue.
A Zen teacher and sangha can help you very much with those steps.
Burn this reply. The key thing of value to us is practice.
Wishes!,
--Joe
PS (if no man is an island, what about Man-hattan?) ;-)
> SURESH JAGADEESAN wrote:
>
> Dear Joe,
>
> For last one week I was on tour and on leave for Pongal festival which
> is used to be the festival of Tamil farmers,
>
> Regarding the topic Karma and free will, I did not follow up all your
> mails and today I was rushing through all your mails.
>
> Please note `no man is an island'. It means all human are
> interrelated. I have seen one Guinness book of records, i.e. one huge
> building shape was built by playing cards alone. And the same fellow
> who built it demolish it by triggering the first card near him. i.e
> Just a card was triggered and the whole building was demolished,
> because each card was kept on the support of other cards.
>
> Human life is like that. When America stumbles in economy whole world
> suffered. So no one can state any action of him even taking vows in
> Zen monastery is purely of his own.
> Please note not only human life is interrelated even whole cosmic is
> interrelated.
> There are two things we can see in this universe, i.e 1) space 2) matter
>
> The space is one whole undivided. And all matters are interrelated. If
> you see segmentally instead of wholly there appears space is divided
> by matter, but it is only a narrow view.
>
> If I translate the above words in spirituality spirit or soul seems
> divided by bodies, but that is only a narrow view. In truth the soul
> or when you refer to the whole you may name it as super soul which is
> one `being' undivided or some name it `god'.
> The actions of the matter is not decided by the matter or the space
> that surround it or that individual soul, the actions are determined
> by the whole, which only has power to move matter which alone created
> the matters.
>
> This is the truth for certain. Because my mind and my body is united
> and it has been brought by that soul.
>
> After recent sex act with my wife I felt that body was used and the
> enjoyer was different. It so occurred to me that what Bhagavad gita
> states is certainly true because of this realization. Read Bhagavad
> gita it is clearly mention that body is chariot and ego is the driver
> and soul is the passenger who enjoys and suffers. It was true and I
> felt that I am not the body, but the consciousness.
>
> The act of body does not bring any pleasure, it is just an act, but
> that act makes you to be in the present moment totally, which gives
> happiness. Ramana Maharishi mentions that self alone is happiness.
> People come and go away from self and think he enjoys and suffer, but
> in reality he is ever happy or his natural state is happiness.
>
> Eckhart Tolle mention that you are indivisible from the now.
>
> So my realization is that Karma is real and free will is illusion.
------------------------------------
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