Alex wrote: "Buddhist practice is based on the most sophisticated intellectual principles ever invented."
! Rod Scholl -----Original Message----- From: Alex Bunard [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Thursday, January 20, 2005 12:09 AM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: [Zen] Digest Number 978 --- woof puppy <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > It is true that New Age trends have emphasized Lovey > Dovey self-esteem building and in some cases, > they've > provided an excuse for lazy Buddhists to stagnate > outright. But the flaw is not in what these gurus > teach, but what they fail to teach. In my opinion, this is true. I'd just like to add that the real flaw is that they tend to teach things out of context. The context must be reintroduced, even if people are kicking and screaming. Enough of the soft-belly catering already! > There is Buddha potential in all of us, however > dormant, and the goal of Buddhism is to awaken it. > Even saying "We are all already Buddhas" is not a > new > concept. There is a koan that I may not be quoting > verbatim, but essentially goes: "What is Buddha? > Three pounds of Burlap." There's Buddha in > everything, it's just a matter of realizing the > potential. Well, realizing the potential is just the first step. It's like a person who's born deaf, and would like to become a musician. Well, to begin with, he can't. However, if he gets to be cured, and suddenly starts hearing the sounds, he had realized his potential for hearing. However, there will be many years of ardous practice following that realization before that person could become a decent musician. These things don't happen overnight, regardless of what the "I'm okay, you're okay" gurus sell you. > What the New Agers fail to do is instill a sense of > responsibility in people. Trying to love yourself > without any feeling of obligation to improve > yourself > or act compassionately towards others is, > well,...stupid and shallow. Yes, but it sells like hot cakes. > One Zen master (I forgot which one) gathered his > students and told them, "You are all perfect just > the > way you are...and you could use some improvement." > The New Agers neglect the latter, whilst others beat > themselves up and neglect, ignore, or fail to grasp > the former. This is all fine. However, the problem is that the above statement tends to confuse people. "What do you mean, I'm perfect and at the same time I could use some improvement? Make up your mind already -- am I perfect, or do I need to improve?" The above approach won't work that well. People need to be told that they are long ways off before they can manifest their inborn Buddhahood. We're talking years, decades (hey, maybe even lifetimes?) of incredibly strenuous practice. This needs to be sold upfront. We need to be straightforward with aspiring practitioners, and stop treating them like spoiled children. > Either way, the "sit down and shut up" style of > instruction just won't work here. The Japanese are > a > highly disciplined people, and from birth, they are > instructed to be obedient to authority. Americans > are > the polar opposite. Place value judgments on the > difference if you wish, but it's a fact. A purely > Japanese style of instruction simply won't work > here. > Americans are hell bent on Free Will. Absolutely correct as well. As of right now, there are four prominent schools of Buddhist practice in the world: 1. Gradual cultivation/sudden enlightenment 2. Sudden enlightenment/gradual cultivation 3. Sitting only 4. Chanting only The first two are hallmarks of the classical, traditional Buddhist practice (Hinayana/Mahayana). The latter two are the invention of the Japanese national spiritual genius (although Hakuin ridiculed these two schools, comparing their practitioners to frogs, who also tend to sit motionless and chant all day long). It is the latter two that are being sold the most in the West, and that are the hardest to swallow for the Westerners. Especially Americans have huge beef with authoritarian systems. And rightly so. > Either they will use that to make excuses for > themselves and hold back their practice, or they > will > use it drive themselves forward on the Bodhisattva > path, but they will not be whipped forward. At > best, > you can expect them to be gently shoved. That's > just > the way it is. There is another possibility -- explore modern man's intellectual curiosity. Buddhist practice is based on the most sophisticated intellectual principles ever invented. Not all epochs could absorb that brilliance, so some cultures tended to focus more on the visceral/emotional aspect of the Buddhist practice. However, many inhabitiants of the modern Western civilization are well equipped to dive into the heart of the Buddhist teaching. Alex ===== No karma was produced during the composition of this letter __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Take Yahoo! Mail with you! Get it on your mobile phone. http://mobile.yahoo.com/maildemo Noble Eightfold Path: Right View, Right Intention, Right Speech, Right Action, Right Effort, Right Mindfulness, Right Concentration, Right Livelihood Yahoo! Groups Links ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> In low income neighborhoods, 84% do not own computers. 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