Re: Re: Widening The Circle of Compassion

[Guest guest]

New material is interspersed xx Material in chronological order xx

12/12/01 1:37 PM Brita44@... wrote:

>Was just rereading this on the Pema Chodrin website

Could you be more specific please. Several come up when I do a search

through Google on " Pema Chodrin. "

Thank you,

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[Guest guest]

Toni

I slightly overstated my case (on purpose). What I mean is that none of these

things

*on their own* is 'the cure' (*TC*) - that, in fact, there IS no cure in the

sense of

some pre-established whossname you just apply when feeling a bit choked up, etc.

A

cure, if it exists, is sensitivity to the situation to the best of one's ability

(and one's

ability is *always* in need of *some* improvement, wouldn't you say?).

Annette speaks of forging the other and yes - of course - this too, but that's

still not it.

Still not it until one actually really does know that there's no difference

between self

and other at all, that 'selfs' and 'others' reified are actually only a point of

view inside

we're stuck, and that what we expect them to be and do never seems to be what

they actually are, what they actually DO do.

It's like looking at one side of painted drum and then holding forth on what's

on the

rest of it - 'projecting the cube from seeing one corner of it', as the Zen

people say.

Bullshit.

> I do agree there is no cure for being human.

*This is not the point. The point is that there *IS* a cure from being LESS than

human (which would make a nice change, don't you think?)

> But, somehow that doesn't seem like a

> constant struggle between suffering and happiness , at least if one is

somewhat

> conscious. There are plateaus when life is just life, good and not so good

mixed

> together.

> Sometimes, I who do not really understand Buddhism, thinks what I read make

> it all seem so hopeless.

*The Buddhist view on suffering is that it is of three different sorts. First is

the

suffering of suffering: You stand up too quickly in a restricted space and bash

your

head on beam. The second is the suffering of compounded suffering: The reason

you leapt up and bashed your head was that you'd just smashed your thumb with a

hammer because you were thinking about the fact that your spouse is cheating on

you and how it might've been better if you'd at least set up some kind of

security but

now you know the whole thing is on the rocks and you're not sure where you're

next

meal is coming from if you leave and don't want to stay because it's just too

sore,

etc., ad nauseam infinitumque... The third is called the suffering of insecurity

whereby all situation, no matter how apparently good at the outset, will change

-

generally be degenerating - very often bringing anger, disappointment and

recrimination with them.

They also suggest that one should come to understand the all-encompassing nature

of this suffering - In one's own body and one's own mind.

Duhkha, the Sanskrit term rather inadequately translated as 'suffering' (nyön

mong in

Tibetan), actually stretches to include all forms of unwanted experience. Of

course

we all want happiness and pleasure; we're not stupid. But the big problem is

that

don't seem to be able to actually stabilise it; it's always shifting off and

turning into

something else. It's this 'suffering' that Buddhism seeks a cure to. And it

contends

that the 'reason' for this suffering - its cause - is wanting things to be what

they never

can be - misplaced desire.

The point - at least as far as Buddhists is concerned - is that, if there's a

cause and

what one doesn't want is the direct effect of that cause, then all you need to

do to

remove the effect is get rid of the cause. This, they say, is achieved by coming

to a

correct understanding of what's going on - of how you're projecting first good

and

then ill on any and every 'thing' (including your 'self') that you come across,

trying to

force it to be what you want or don't want it to be.

The Buddhist teachings take place on various levels, some of them very simple:

You

don't want that sore thumb? Be careful with that axe, Eugene... It doesn't mean

you

don't use a hammer; it means you keep your wits about you.

'Not to do evil, always to do what is good, and to tame one's own mind - This is

the

teaching of the Buddha.' Easy to say! I'm now fairly well into my fifty-fifth

year of

being mike dickman and still pretty wobbly although I spend a good part of my

time

trying to feel out how not to be...

So... what I mean is: there's suffering and suffering...

> Yet the Buddhists I know or whose books I read are always full

> of joy. I would like to understand if this is not the same state for all

spiritual

> people everywhere who find their right place in the universe.

*I think it is. And I also VERY firmly believe that this is our real birthright.

> Maybe I need some of your tea?

*Sure. I generally drink absolute crap - Twinings tea bags (Ceylon or

Darjeeling).

Don't know what got into it the other day!

Hope this year's better than the last for all of us.

Lots of love,

m