What does Buddhism say about success?

Help required with personal difficulties.
odysseus
Posts: 1125
Joined: Tue Apr 17, 2012 11:50 pm

Re: What does Buddhism say about success?

Post by odysseus »

Gwenn Dana wrote:
Hm, if there´s only looking and looking, there´s no left... It´s success! :)
When there is looking, there is looking, not success.
Mara made you say something on it, it´s success... :namaste:
Agnikan
Posts: 98
Joined: Wed Jan 04, 2017 5:22 pm

Re: What does Buddhism say about success?

Post by Agnikan »

dzogchungpa wrote:Swami V was alright. You can find that quote in this book:
https://archive.org/details/inspiredtalks00viverich
....
Or Volume 7 of The Complete Works.
User avatar
Kaccāni
Posts: 1083
Joined: Tue Mar 25, 2014 1:03 pm
Location: Germany
Contact:

Re: What does Buddhism say about success?

Post by Kaccāni »

odysseus wrote:
Gwenn Dana wrote:
Hm, if there´s only looking and looking, there´s no left... It´s success! :)
When there is looking, there is looking, not success.
Mara made you say something on it, it´s success... :namaste:
You're entitled to illude anything into success. Show me one person who has seen "success".
Shush! I'm doing nose-picking practice!
emaho
Posts: 917
Joined: Sun May 06, 2012 8:33 pm

Re: What does Buddhism say about success?

Post by emaho »

Motova wrote:women are expensive
:shock:
"I struggled with some demons, They were middle class and tame..." L. Cohen
Agnikan
Posts: 98
Joined: Wed Jan 04, 2017 5:22 pm

Re: What does Buddhism say about success?

Post by Agnikan »

ReasonAndRhyme wrote:
Motova wrote:women are expensive
:shock:
That's what coupons are for.
User avatar
Luke
Posts: 1999
Joined: Mon Apr 06, 2009 9:04 pm
Location: Europe

Re: What does Buddhism say about success?

Post by Luke »

odysseus wrote: I´m asking this because my successful life has gone down the drain. I had a good job, a nice girlfriend and many friends a few years ago.

Now I´m 40 years old and I have nothing. No job, no girlfriend or children. I don´t meet any friends much. I drink beer everyday and smoke hashish. I see my friends on Facebook having jobs, kids, many friends and all of that and I feel outside. I don´t feel very successful, except that I try to live with Buddhist principles as best as I can. It´s like I feel I should not feel down because of this, but sometimes Buddhism can be a lonely path. Maybe I´m just vain.
.
For most of us, our joys and sorrows are highly influenced by our relations with other people. This is natural. Most of us can't be happy as islands to ourselves up in some cave meditating alone! It is also very challenging to follow the Buddhist path alone--that's why there is the third jewel: the sangha! :D

Whether you move far away or not, I would suggest moving somewhere where you are near a Buddhist sangha which you enjoy attending. It could be such a positive center of both spiritual and social things in your life. I also realized this more deeply when I met with a Zen sangha after I had not been to any Buddhist center for over a year. The change was quite extraordinary! I can get information and emotional things from Buddhist teachers and fellow Buddhist sangha members which I could not get from myself.

Different human communities have different definitions of "success": for one community, "success" is simply having a regular job; for another community, "success" is having a summer home in the Hamptons; and in a Buddhist community, "success" is usually being able to get through meditation retreats without much trouble and being knowledgeable about the Dharma. So ultimately, I guess what Buddhism has to say about "success" is that it is empty: it can be defined in infinitely different ways by different people. It is not any one fixed, absolute thing, and one person's "success" can be another person's "failure."

So please don't remain somewhere where you are always sad and lonely! Move somewhere where you are near positive Buddhists who will support your less-materialistic goals. I wish you good luck. :anjali:
odysseus
Posts: 1125
Joined: Tue Apr 17, 2012 11:50 pm

Re: What does Buddhism say about success?

Post by odysseus »

Motova wrote: remember your suffering is nothing compared to the vast majority of samsaric beings.
What the sh*t do you know about my suffering, really? It´s too much pain, but how can you see others´ suffering unless you´re an Arhat?

:sage:
User avatar
Kaccāni
Posts: 1083
Joined: Tue Mar 25, 2014 1:03 pm
Location: Germany
Contact:

Re: What does Buddhism say about success?

Post by Kaccāni »

Luke wrote: and in a Buddhist community, "success" is usually being able to get through meditation retreats without much trouble ...
If they´re such a pain, then why do them? :-)
Shush! I'm doing nose-picking practice!
philji
Posts: 881
Joined: Mon May 09, 2011 2:26 pm

Re: What does Buddhism say about success?

Post by philji »

It says rejoice in another's. Great merit and in so doing you too will be successful...perhaps at what really matters..
User avatar
Kaccāni
Posts: 1083
Joined: Tue Mar 25, 2014 1:03 pm
Location: Germany
Contact:

Re: What does Buddhism say about success?

Post by Kaccāni »

Me still thinks success is overrated.
Shush! I'm doing nose-picking practice!
User avatar
Luke
Posts: 1999
Joined: Mon Apr 06, 2009 9:04 pm
Location: Europe

Re: What does Buddhism say about success?

Post by Luke »

Gwenn Dana wrote:
Luke wrote: and in a Buddhist community, "success" is usually being able to get through meditation retreats without much trouble ...
If they´re such a pain, then why do them? :-)
Because they help lots of people improve their meditation and deepen their insight. Of course, they are not for everyone. There are many other ways to practice Buddhism, too.

I just mentioned them, because completing lots of them is usually part of a Buddhist community's definition of "success"--but whether this is a good or bad thing depends on one's perspective.
User avatar
Kaccāni
Posts: 1083
Joined: Tue Mar 25, 2014 1:03 pm
Location: Germany
Contact:

Re: What does Buddhism say about success?

Post by Kaccāni »

I'm afraid I didn't make that point clear enough. I have nothing against retreats.

I was just pondering why people would make them who view them as something to "get through without much trouble", and whether in that attitude doing something else might not be more useful anyway.
Shush! I'm doing nose-picking practice!
User avatar
Luke
Posts: 1999
Joined: Mon Apr 06, 2009 9:04 pm
Location: Europe

Re: What does Buddhism say about success?

Post by Luke »

Gwenn Dana wrote: I was just pondering why people would make them who view them as something to "get through without much trouble", and whether in that attitude doing something else might not be more useful anyway.
So in your opinion, only people who are as flexible as gymnasts should do retreats? Because for them, sitting cross-legged is easy and the word "trouble" has never crossed their minds in relation to it.
User avatar
Kaccāni
Posts: 1083
Joined: Tue Mar 25, 2014 1:03 pm
Location: Germany
Contact:

Re: What does Buddhism say about success?

Post by Kaccāni »

Luke wrote: So in your opinion, only people who are as flexible as gymnasts should do retreats? Because for them, sitting cross-legged is easy and the word "trouble" has never crossed their minds in relation to it.
No. But now at least I know what you mean with "trouble". Maybe chairs would really be better.
Shush! I'm doing nose-picking practice!
Andrew108
Posts: 1502
Joined: Sun Sep 11, 2011 7:41 pm

Re: What does Buddhism say about success?

Post by Andrew108 »

Institutional Buddhism would say - "give us some money so that your success will continue."
An honest teacher might say - "use your success to benefit others."
A yogi might say - "Even though it seems I have nothing I am in fact rich enough. Whereas you only think you have success. Your success is just temporary!"
The Blessed One said:

"What is the All? Simply the eye & forms, ear & sounds, nose & aromas, tongue & flavors, body & tactile sensations, intellect & ideas. This, monks, is called the All. Anyone who would say, 'Repudiating this All, I will describe another,' if questioned on what exactly might be the grounds for his statement, would be unable to explain, and furthermore, would be put to grief. Why? Because it lies beyond range." Sabba Sutta.
User avatar
Zhen Li
Posts: 2749
Joined: Sun Apr 07, 2013 8:15 am
Location: Tokyo
Contact:

Re: What does Buddhism say about success?

Post by Zhen Li »

Gwenn Dana wrote:
Luke wrote: So in your opinion, only people who are as flexible as gymnasts should do retreats? Because for them, sitting cross-legged is easy and the word "trouble" has never crossed their minds in relation to it.
No. But now at least I know what you mean with "trouble". Maybe chairs would really be better.
I actually think that for a lot of meditators, the "posing" can cause mental distraction, and too much thinking about meditating rather than actually meditation. Personally, my best meditations have been lying down, because I have a curved spine, so when I am really relaxed sitting it causes me to fall over.
User avatar
Lindama
Posts: 685
Joined: Tue Sep 18, 2012 4:26 pm
Location: Forestville, CA usa

Re: What does Buddhism say about success?

Post by Lindama »

Buddhism has nothing to do with success or failure.
Not last night,
not this morning,
melon flowers bloomed.
~ Bassho
dude
Posts: 789
Joined: Tue Jan 01, 2013 3:38 am

Re: What does Buddhism say about success?

Post by dude »

of course it does
User avatar
Zhen Li
Posts: 2749
Joined: Sun Apr 07, 2013 8:15 am
Location: Tokyo
Contact:

Re: What does Buddhism say about success?

Post by Zhen Li »

Neither success, nor failure, nor both, nor neither.
User avatar
Kaccāni
Posts: 1083
Joined: Tue Mar 25, 2014 1:03 pm
Location: Germany
Contact:

Re: What does Buddhism say about success?

Post by Kaccāni »

If you´re only aware that you´re aware there´s nothing left to "achieve". Do you call that "success"?

Sure, you can go on to explore the world, explore phenomena, be that inner fire, extend that to meridians, practice an art, just be, meet people, basically whatever you want, with "want" being more like "see what comes".

But how do you want to define success, when there is nothing left to "achieve", but you´re only exploring?
Shush! I'm doing nose-picking practice!
Locked

Return to “Help Required”