Does These Teachings Have Any Value On The Path?

[The White Belt]

I went for a talk at my local Buddhism centre. 

I went because it's nice to get these things in person, not just always on YouTube.

The main points that the guy hit on during the talk were about seeing things less in a negative light and more in a positive light. 

He also said our job is to take the happiness we get from meditation and make sure we use it for everything we do, compassionately.

I spoke to the guy after, I told him I read the noble eight-fold path and 'right view' was suggesting that we don't look at things positively or negatively, but exactly as they are, and that even by putting a positive spin on it is still operating under the illusion of thought. He responded with 'It depends how deep you want to go'.

I don't want to go deep, just to go to truth. 

But he did say we shouldn't run away from negative things, just to see it and then to creatively make a positive from it, which is all fine. 

Then I told him if we are meditating for happiness, aren't we just using meditation as a means to something, which is ultimately the cause of our unhappiness to begin with, and I told him that I have read that meditation should be a goal-less practice, to which he responded it's important to know where one is and where one is going.

He seemed slightly perturbed by my questions.

Should I return to this centre? It felt more Tony Robbins that Gautama Buddha. 

Do these basic teachings have value? If I overlook them do I risk 'Zen Devilry'?

 

Thanks.

[Loreena]

Why are you being so skeptical? 

[Martin123]

1 hour ago, BeginnerActualizer said:

Do these basic teachings have value? If I overlook them do I risk 'Zen Devilry'?

 

Thanks.

What the fuck ??

rly dude?

*a kneeling child says*

"If I dont read the bible do I risk going to hell uncle pastor?"

*unzips his pants, pulls it out*

"No, but if you bite you do!"

 

Chill. Yo cant go wrong.

Go with whatever resonates and excites you the most in every single moment. That is the quickest way to your evolution.

It is already set. You wre already free. You cannot escape it. You are here to follow your intuition into heaven.

[Toby]

1 hour ago, BeginnerActualizer said:

Then I told him if we are meditating for happiness, aren't we just using meditation as a means to something, which is ultimately the cause of our unhappiness to begin with..

Most people use meditation that way. But of course it has nothing to do with truth and a buddhist with some experience should know that.

Could you tell what kind of background that center has?

[Natasha]

@BeginnerActualizer He's operating within a belief system, so his teachings are going to reflect that. Belief systems don't reflect reality.

[Gopackgo]

Keep in mind that not everyone who does meditation wants enlightenment. The classes can be tailored to those people. Personally, I think you are on the right track, and actually one of the things that seems off about Buddhism is the "right speech" etc. I think it can be read as a moral code to be adopted. Actually, my dad does this and won't listen to me that belief systems are blinding him, which is fine, he will either learn or not, but it illustrates my point. I think you are right on though. There is no good or bad. Things just happen as they do. There's no control over them, so classifying them with conceptual morals is bound to cause issues. Belief is a prison.

As far as zen devilry, that will also either happen or not. There's no control over it. The main illusion is that there is, and I know people don't like the idea of not having free will, but that IS the illusion. The self is the idea that thoughts can have an effect of whether reality is right or wrong based on whatever concepts are held by the self. That's belief driven. The idea that a self can control what arises or can exert control over what is, is funny. You are a container, not something arising inside of it. So, follow whatever arises. I know you will, because you don't have a choice. Worrying about becoming a zen devil is based on the belief that it is wrong. It will happen or not, but its not happening right now so it doesn't matter because it is a projection of what is which = what is not.

Edited April 29, 2017 by Gopackgo

[Prabhaker]

4 hours ago, BeginnerActualizer said:

He also said our job is to take the happiness we get from meditation and make sure we use it for everything we do, compassionately. / Does These Teachings Have Any Value On The Path?

Meditation is enough to solve your problems, but something is missing in it — compassion. If compassion is also there, then you can help others solve their problems.

It happened in China: When Bodhidharma went to China, a man came to him. He said, "I have followed your teachings: I meditate and then I feel compassion for the whole universe - not only for men, but for animals, for rocks and rivers also. But there is one problem: I cannot feel compassion for my neighbor. No - it is impossible! So you please tell me: can I exclude my neighbor from my compassion? I include the whole existence, known, unknown, but can I exclude my neighbor? - because it is very difficult, impossible. I cannot feel compassion for him."

Bodhidharma said, "Then forget about meditation, because if compassion excludes anybody then it is no more there."

Compassion is all-inclusive - intrinsically all-inclusive. So if you cannot feel compassion for your neighbor~ then forget all about meditation - because it has nothing to do with somebody in particular. It has something to do with your inner state. Be compassion! unconditionally, undirected, unaddressed. Then you become a healing force into this world of misery.

[Gopackgo]

@Prabhaker As a happy medium, Compassion can be generated by meditation. The second that it dawned on me that all people are awareness, and that the only different was beliefs, unconditional compassion arose. Everyone is the same thing: awareness and arisings. When there is no substantive distinction between entities, there is only compassion. That was my experience at least. Or maybe not, maybe if I didn't meditate it still would have come, but there's no way to know. It comes when it comes, or not at all.

[The White Belt]

8 hours ago, Loreena said:

Why are you being so skeptical? 

It was a healthy skepticism. I asked my questions to the speaker politely. It just seemed like a positive thinking workshop, and didn't seem to hold true to the teachings of Buddhism. 

8 hours ago, Martin123 said:

What the fuck ??

rly dude?

*a kneeling child says*

"If I dont read the bible do I risk going to hell uncle pastor?"

*unzips his pants, pulls it out*

"No, but if you bite you do!"

 

Chill. Yo cant go wrong.

Go with whatever resonates and excites you the most in every single moment. That is the quickest way to your evolution.

I'm just looking to not waste my time getting trapped into wishful thinking and dogma. 

6 hours ago, Natasha said:

@BeginnerActualizer He's operating within a belief system, so his teachings are going to reflect that. Belief systems don't reflect reality.

Agreed, but yet like I say, even the Noble eight-fold path seemed to contradict him a little, so where are these beliefs coming from?

(response to below quote, stupid phone)

Thanks. This is one of the things I thought. It was a general public talk, it certainly can be used as a stepping stone. I used to go to these talks regularly actually. It's just now that I learned more did I pose questions. 

6 hours ago, Gopackgo said:

Keep in mind that not everyone who does meditation wants enlightenment. The classes can be tailored to thospeople. Personally, I think you are on the right track

[Martin123]

@BeginnerActualizer that is the fun part. If you go with what resonates, things that are considered dogma wont be nothing.but a quick stepping stone that you extract benefit from.

[Gopackgo]

I've learned from personal experience that people really dont like when you tell them they don't exist. It's so weird.

[SOUL]

Buddhism has dogma., if it doesn't why would anyone question if a teaching fits.

There is even a significant amount of dogma with the ideas about illusion, beliefs, the mind, the self, ego and what or what doesn't exist or is real.

Don't think so? Present a contrary view to the accepted one on any of those and see what happens.

There are people who engage in spirituality just so they can learn a way to enjoy their life and have little interest in adhering to the belief system of 'nothingism'.

Spirituality is subjective and there isn't a right way to do it any more than what works for the individual to accomplish what they seek.

 

[The White Belt]

1 hour ago, Gopackgo said:

I've learned from personal experience that people really dont like when you tell them they don't exist. It's so weird.

Hahaha! 

 

By the way people, this centre was a part of the New Kadampa Tradition. It's very popular.