Belief in Kannon (Documentary)

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Kim O'Hara
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Re: Belief in Kannon (Documentary)

Post by Kim O'Hara »

Support for your position comes from unexpected quarters, rory - would you believe, a neuroscientist quoted in Business Insider? :smile:

http://www.businessinsider.com/a-neuros ... son-2015-9
Sometimes it doesn't feel like your brain wants you to be happy. You may feel guilty or shameful. Why?

Believe it or not, guilt and shame activate the brain's reward center.

Via The Upward Spiral:

Despite their differences, pride, shame, and guilt all activate similar neural circuits, including the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex, amygdala, insula, and the nucleus accumbens. Interestingly, pride is the most powerful of these emotions at triggering activity in these regions — except in the nucleus accumbens, where guilt and shame win out. This explains why it can be so appealing to heap guilt and shame on ourselves — they're activating the brain's reward center.

And you worry a lot, too. Why? In the short term, worrying makes your brain feel a little better — at least you're doing something about your problems.

Via The Upward Spiral:

In fact, worrying can help calm the limbic system by increasing activity in the medial prefrontal cortex and decreasing activity in the amygdala. That might seem counterintuitive, but it just goes to show that if you're feeling anxiety, doing something about it — even worrying — is better than doing nothing.

But guilt, shame, and worry are horrible, long-term solutions. So what do neuroscientists say you should do? Ask yourself this question:

What am I grateful for?

Yeah, gratitude is awesome … but does it really affect your brain at the biological level? Yup.

You know what the antidepressant Wellbutrin does? Boosts the neurotransmitter dopamine. So does gratitude.

Via The Upward Spiral:

The benefits of gratitude start with the dopamine system, because feeling grateful activates the brain stem region that produces dopamine. Additionally, gratitude toward others increases activity in social dopamine circuits, which makes social interactions more enjoyable …

Know what Prozac does? Boosts the neurotransmitter serotonin. So does gratitude.

Via The Upward Spiral:

One powerful effect of gratitude is that it can boost serotonin. Trying to think of things you are grateful for forces you to focus on the positive aspects of your life. This simple act increases serotonin production in the anterior cingulate cortex.

I know, sometimes life lands a really mean punch in the gut and it feels like there's nothing to be grateful for. Guess what?

Doesn't matter. You don't have to find anything. It's the searching that counts.

Via The Upward Spiral:

It's not finding gratitude that matters most; it's remembering to look in the first place. Remembering to be grateful is a form of emotional intelligence. One study found that it actually affected neuron density in both the ventromedial and lateral prefrontal cortex. These density changes suggest that as emotional intelligence increases, the neurons in these areas become more efficient. With higher emotional intelligence, it simply takes less effort to be grateful.

And gratitude doesn't just make your brain happy — it can also create a positive feedback loop in your relationships. So express that gratitude to the people you care about. ...
It's better formatted and has lots of links in the original, and more suggestions to reduce suffering, but this is their top one and ties directly to devotional practice: if we know Kannon (or Amida or whoever) is looking out for us, we will be grateful and express that gratitude in devotion - which reinforces the practice of feeling gratitude, regardless of immediate circumstances.

:meditate:
Kim
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Luke
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Re: Belief in Kannon (Documentary)

Post by Luke »

Queequeg wrote: Funny. Westerners who get all judgy about what Buddhism actually is annoy me. :shrug:
That's understandable, I guess.
Queequeg wrote:Actually, not really. The thought is too taxing. Like getting worked up over a blow fly.
Oh, I have no doubt whatsoever that many Asian Buddhists find the opinions of white Buddhists completely worthless.
Kim O'Hara wrote: You might find it worthwhile to think about just why you you find them 'annoying'.
Yes, it is indeed worth thinking about. One reason certainly is my disdain for anything which reminds me of Christianity. And a person praying to a bodhisattva as though it were some god-like figure in order to get some material benefits from it does seem very reminiscent of Christianity to me.
rory wrote: Listen I totally get what you are saying as I believed and said the very same things for approx 15 years (I was a Buddhist at 16) then facing up to the hard truth that I wasn't getting anywhere and worrying about my birth I entered the Pure Land gate and went to a Jodo Shinshu temple. I then immersed myself in reading the classic Pure Land works by Chih-I and Ou-Yi and ones written by modern Vietnamese monks such as Buddhism of Wisdom and Faiththat were made available from the YMBA. Was I humbled realizing how wrong and arrogant I had been.
Thanks, Rory. I started reading Buddhism of Wisdom and Faith a long time ago, but never finished it. Maybe I should take a second look at it.
rory wrote:One more thing the idea that we Buddhists shouldn't pray for worldly benefits is terribly Christian,
Oh my! If you are correct, then I am quite embarrassed because being anything like a Christian is something I always try hard to avoid... lol
rory wrote:I suggest you read the excellent book : Practically Religious University of Hawa'ii Press, Tanabe, Reader
Hmm, it looks interesting. It does seem to deal with exactly my concerns:
"the practice [of praying for practical benefits] has been virtually ignored in academic studies or relegated to the margins as a product of superstition or an aberration from the true dynamics of religion"

I do get exactly suspicious like that about which practices are justifiably Buddhism and which are just local folk superstitions, so thanks for recommending the book
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Re: Belief in Kannon (Documentary)

Post by Luke »

Thinking about all of this stuff more, I think that part of the reason for the big divide between western Buddhists and Asian Buddhists is that very few Buddhist books in English explain how most Asian Buddhist laypeople actually practice Buddhism or the significance of many different rituals and practices.

Because a typical western Buddhist like me who has read introductory Tibetan Buddhism books, introductory Zen books, the Diamond Sutra, the Jewel Ornament of Liberation, and the Dhammapada, stills knows next to nothing at all about the day-to-day life and rituals of most Asian Buddhists.

And I can also understand how the typical obsessed white western Buddhists who want to meditate like monks and nuns without actually being monks and nuns might seem very strange to many Asian Buddhists.
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Re: Belief in Kannon (Documentary)

Post by Admin_PC »

Well, while I don't have a good resource for common lay-practices of Theravada in asian countries (most of what I know is from first hand observation), rory gives a good start for understanding common lay-practices of mainland Asian forms of Mahayana (China, Korea, Vietnam - Taiwan too). The author of Buddhism of Wisdom & Faith, Thich Thien Tam - has a variety of books available discussing these practices. You can also find similar resources from luminaries like Ven Hsuan Hua, Ven Sheng Yen, Ven Ching Kung (and his disciple Ven Wu Ling), and Ven Hsing Yun/Fo Guang Shan. For Japan, each of the major schools has their own lay-oriented teachings & writings.
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Kim O'Hara
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Re: Belief in Kannon (Documentary)

Post by Kim O'Hara »

Luke wrote:Thinking about all of this stuff more, I think that part of the reason for the big divide between western Buddhists and Asian Buddhists is that very few Buddhist books in English explain how most Asian Buddhist laypeople actually practice Buddhism or the significance of many different rituals and practices.

Because a typical western Buddhist like me who has read introductory Tibetan Buddhism books, introductory Zen books, the Diamond Sutra, the Jewel Ornament of Liberation, and the Dhammapada, stills knows next to nothing at all about the day-to-day life and rituals of most Asian Buddhists.
The most convenient, comprehensible comparison I can make is one you probably won't like much (sorry!) and that is that the practice of lay Buddhists in Buddhist countries is awfully close in form and intensity to that of lay Catholics in traditionally Catholic countries. That is, they go to temple occasionally (usually in 'best' clothes and most often on holy days), occasionally read the scriptures, sometimes pray for guidance or help, often maintain (and respect) a small shrine or holy picture or two at home, and try to be good people.
(Just to be quite clear, I believe a practice like that is enough to make people better and happier (on average) than materialism, consumerism and hedonism (i.e., the common western alternative) is likely to do. And I don't even care whether their religion is Christianity, Buddhism, Islam, Sikhism, Daoism or any other -ism which encourages good moral values.)
And I can also understand how the typical obsessed white western Buddhists who want to meditate like monks and nuns without actually being monks and nuns might seem very strange to many Asian Buddhists.
Indeed. It's an ambition which leads to all sorts of complications, starting (IMO) with the fact that you can't develop a good, productive meditational practice without putting strong ethical foundations under your daily life - all that 'being a good person' stuff is not an optional extra but integral to the path.

Getting back to Kannon ... I found 'Bodhisattva of Compassion: the mystical tradition of Kuan Yin' by John Blofeld on a friend's bookshelf a few years ago and thoroughly enjoyed it ... somewhat to my surprise, since Blofeld is a devotee and I don't think of myself as a devotional kind of person. It's a personal book rather than a scholarly one, and I think it's the personal element that made it so engaging. You (and others reading this thread) may like to check it out.

:namaste:
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Re: Belief in Kannon (Documentary)

Post by Queequeg »

Western attitudes toward Asian lay practices to me seems naive.

It's indicative of people who have barely scratched the surface of actually trying to cultivate right views. This task is incredibly difficult, far beyond even daily sessions on a mat. Devotional practices adorn the environment with symbols of Dharma and establish and reinforce correct views in daily life through practice - we can call them mudra in a general sense.

I would suggest immersing in a Buddhist culture for a period, leaving presumptions aside, and seeing what it does to you. Walking down a street dotted with shrines and temples; prayer wheels, etc. The entire environment is communally constructed to maintain mindfulness of Dharma.
There is no suffering to be severed. Ignorance and klesas are indivisible from bodhi. There is no cause of suffering to be abandoned. Since extremes and the false are the Middle and genuine, there is no path to be practiced. Samsara is nirvana. No severance achieved. No suffering nor its cause. No path, no end. There is no transcendent realm; there is only the one true aspect. There is nothing separate from the true aspect.
-Guanding, Perfect and Sudden Contemplation,
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Re: Belief in Kannon (Documentary)

Post by Luke »

Kim O'Hara wrote: The most convenient, comprehensible comparison I can make is one you probably won't like much (sorry!) and that is that the practice of lay Buddhists in Buddhist countries is awfully close in form and intensity to that of lay Catholics in traditionally Catholic countries. That is, they go to temple occasionally (usually in 'best' clothes and most often on holy days), occasionally read the scriptures, sometimes pray for guidance or help, often maintain (and respect) a small shrine or holy picture or two at home, and try to be good people.
...And the fact the practices of these Asian lay Buddhists seem like the practices of laypeople of any other religion is exactly what I find problematic. I think the whole point of Buddhism is its unique view of impermanence, non-self, and nirvana. People who outwardly look like they are worshipping idols in a simple-minded way give ammunition to other Buddhists who are critical of Mahayana Buddhism to begin with. But Mahayana Buddhism CAN of course display itself in really deep and sophisticated ways: the Diamond Sutra, Nagarjuna's writings, Zen masters' writings, Shingon rituals, etc.

I guess my question is "What is the point of the word 'Buddhist' if one just worships idols with a viewpoint which is very similar to those of Catholics and Hindus?" This seems like exactly what the historical Buddha wanted to avoid and becomes more a matter of cultural identity than of religious viewpoints.
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Re: Belief in Kannon (Documentary)

Post by Admin_PC »

Worshipping idols is a horrible way to describe it. There is nothing inherent in the statue or image that they are worshipping. Your choice of words here screams a Levantine (Judaism, Christianity, Islam) background and associated baggage (in this case, particularly Protestant Christianity). What they are paying homage to are ideals. There are literally hundreds of different ways to represent Avalokitesvara, it's the fact that it's the Bodhisattva of Infinite Compassion (stress on the infinite compassion) that garners the respect & devotion. Even the 32 marks of the Buddha are more about the attributes that lead to the marks rather than the physical attributes themselves.

If you think the sutras that encourage some of these lay-practices are totally separate & based on significantly different doctrine than the sutras/teachings you listed, then you're sorely mistaken. Nagarjuna wrote about Amitabha & aspired for birth in Sukhavati. The Prajnaparamita sutras have mentions of Mindfulness of the Buddha practice, other Buddhas besides Shakyamuni, and Buddhafields. Zen masters? You mean like Chan master Yongming Yanshou (to name just one of many), who advocated both Chan and Pure Land practice? Shingon rituals are hardly separate, as some of their rituals are particularly centered around Amitabha. Have you even seen a Shingon daily service?

I don't mean to be rude, but I really suggest you get beyond "Intro" books written by westerners and actually start researching some of these schools in depth before making comments like you just did.
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Re: Belief in Kannon (Documentary)

Post by Sentient Light »

Luke wrote:
I guess my question is "What is the point of the word 'Buddhist' if one just worships idols with a viewpoint which is very similar to those of Catholics and Hindus?" This seems like exactly what the historical Buddha wanted to avoid and becomes more a matter of cultural identity than of religious viewpoints.
But the viewpoint isn't similar to Catholicism or even Hinduism. The appearance may be similar. The superficial aspects may be similar, but the viewpoint possessed by Asian laity is quite different. Sure, we "pray" for things, but we aren't worshipping idols (that language itself is disgustingly Judeo-Christian to begin with), we are offering prayers, we are offering reverence, we are offering the practice sustained in our lives as a practice of alms-giving, of charity, of regarding our thoughts and actions as not-self. The 'best clothes' comment above I think is pretty inaccurate too--Asian laity either wear simple and plain clothes to the temple, or their lay robes. Our practice is never just about mere worship or submission. There is no view of some great divinity. There is the view of the Buddha, who has attained all the perfections, who taught and established the Dharma, and there is humility in the face of that. So we revere the Buddha, and there is karmic merit in this, just as we revere our parents, and there is karmic merit in that, because we practice with a view of sublimating the ego and recognizing that our attachments to things that are not-Dharma are the cause of suffering.

Most people are not ready for the monastic life, but we can all practice toward calmer minds, closer and closer in emulation of the Buddha, throughout our lives and throughout the next lives. And this means simply that we live our lives, maintaining mindfulness of the dharma. If we achieve, we achieve for the sake of others, because we recognize there is no self for whom to achieve. If we achieve little, then that is fine too and we attempt to find peace of mind with the conditions of our lives through practice of the dharma.

I think this whole focus on meditation, without understanding the dharma or how the dharma is incorporated into one's actual life is a huge obstacle for western practitioners. That's why we see so many people meditating and meditating and not making any progress and getting frustrated by not making any progress, or chasing after experiences because that's the only way they can gauge if anything is happening at all. I think by focusing too heavily on meditation, you lose sight of the Dharma. That isn't to say that meditation isn't important--it certainly is, as is the philosophical component and abhidharma. But if you don't practice the fundamentals, what do you get out of it? If you fail to understand the most basic of our practices--like lighting a stick of incense as an offering--then who are you practicing for? You just practice for yourself, but the daily rituals and these "crazy backwards things" that we Asian folk participate in is what is supposed to train your mind to direct all practice toward others. Because you don't offer a prayer for yourself; you don't light incense for yourself; you don't offer fruit and flowers to yourself--the whole of your practice, at all times, is directed to others, to the Buddhas, to the bodhisattvas, to the devas and yakshas and hungry ghosts and animals and hell beings and humans everywhere. This is the path to the awakening of bodhicitta.
:buddha1: Nam mô A di đà Phật :buddha1:
:bow: Nam mô Quan Thế Âm Bồ tát :bow:
:bow: Nam mô Đại Thế Chi Bồ Tát :bow:

:buddha1: Nam mô Bổn sư Thích ca mâu ni Phật :buddha1:
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Re: Belief in Kannon (Documentary)

Post by Queequeg »

Luke wrote: People who outwardly look like they are worshipping idols in a simple-minded way give ammunition to other Buddhists who are critical of Mahayana Buddhism to begin with.
Have you been to a Theravada society?!
But Mahayana Buddhism CAN of course display itself in really deep and sophisticated ways: the Diamond Sutra, Nagarjuna's writings, Zen masters' writings, Shingon rituals, etc.
Have you attended Shingon rituals?
I guess my question is "What is the point of the word 'Buddhist' if one just worships idols with a viewpoint which is very similar to those of Catholics and Hindus?" This seems like exactly what the historical Buddha wanted to avoid and becomes more a matter of cultural identity than of religious viewpoints.
You might want to start by examining your presumptions about what you think is happening.
There is no suffering to be severed. Ignorance and klesas are indivisible from bodhi. There is no cause of suffering to be abandoned. Since extremes and the false are the Middle and genuine, there is no path to be practiced. Samsara is nirvana. No severance achieved. No suffering nor its cause. No path, no end. There is no transcendent realm; there is only the one true aspect. There is nothing separate from the true aspect.
-Guanding, Perfect and Sudden Contemplation,
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Re: Belief in Kannon (Documentary)

Post by Johnny Dangerous »

Luke wrote: ...And the fact the practices of these Asian lay Buddhists seem like the practices of laypeople of any other religion is exactly what I find problematic. I think the whole point of Buddhism is its unique view of impermanence, non-self, and nirvana. People who outwardly look like they are worshipping idols in a simple-minded way give ammunition to other Buddhists who are critical of Mahayana Buddhism to begin with. But Mahayana Buddhism CAN of course display itself in really deep and sophisticated ways: the Diamond Sutra, Nagarjuna's writings, Zen masters' writings, Shingon rituals, etc.
This is a deeply elitist attitude, with an undercurrent of "enlightened" modern society knowing better than the poor rabble. In some lives, this sort of practice is exactly what's needed, your own bias for "deeply sophisticated ways" is totally meaningless, that kind of belief reflects our own limitations as much as others. It's instructive that I've known a couple lay practitioners who practice this "simple" way who seem to have much better results than some of us "sophisticated" practitioners. 84000 doors and all that.

Far the people who are critical of Mahayana to begin with, I don't care what they think, they can believe what they like.
I guess my question is "What is the point of the word 'Buddhist' if one just worships idols with a viewpoint which is very similar to those of Catholics and Hindus?" This seems like exactly what the historical Buddha wanted to avoid and becomes more a matter of cultural identity than of religious viewpoints.
Worships idols? Is that really your viewpoint on what's going on? Geez...where to even begin.

While it may look externally similar, as long as practitioners understand that they are worshipping in order to pay homage to and embody the values of given Bodhisattvas etc. so that all beings can be free, that is enough to make it distinct from the soteriology of other religions. Beyond that..why should anyone care if we look similar to other religions etc.? The more important thing is that people are having fruitful practice..not how they "look" to people outside Dharma, why on earth should anyone be concerned with that?

As Queeqeg mentioned, a lot of times people miss the forest for the trees, all the art and statues aren't for nothing, they are a practice of and within themselves, and reflect all the things you talked about. It is usually our protestant, anti-iconography attitudes that blind us to this. The weird thing is, in this day and age protestant iconoclasm has actually merged with materialism in many people's worldview. So we are supposed to have some stripped-down, bare bones version of Dharma that both doesn't include those silly "idols" but is also essentially materialistic in that it limits the scope of Buddhist practice.
Meditate upon Bodhicitta when afflicted by disease

Meditate upon Bodhicitta when sad

Meditate upon Bodhicitta when suffering occurs

Meditate upon Bodhicitta when you are scared

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Re: Belief in Kannon (Documentary)

Post by Caoimhghín »

Luke wrote:I guess my question is "What is the point of the word 'Buddhist' if one just worships idols with a viewpoint which is very similar to those of Catholics and Hindus?" This seems like exactly what the historical Buddha wanted to avoid and becomes more a matter of cultural identity than of religious viewpoints.
Can you give me an example of any cultural or religious movement that has no idols? I don't think such a thing exists. Abrahamic taboos against idols are taboos against false idols, not idols. Every Abrahamic religion utilizes visually representative and tactile semiotic expressions of the sacred in order to facilitate worship and generate the appropriate mindset for that worship.

Even Theravada Buddhism, since Theravada unfortunately seems to attract many converts (on account of the misleading narrative that is sometimes peddled that Theravada Buddhism is identical to "Original" Buddhism) who are highly attached to Protestant polemics against Catholic and Orthodox devotional practices, idols/icons, rituals, etc. The unwarranted assumption being that these practices are necessarily arbitrary and in no way originate from the source material of the religion.

You are actually making unwarranted assumptions when you pre-determine that these practices that are more popular in Asian countries are necessarily at odds with Buddhadharma, contradict the Buddhadharma, or are understood as being predominantly "cultural" rather than emerging seamlessly out of the lived devotional lives of Buddhadharma practitioners, lay or monastic.
Then, the monks uttered this gāthā:

These bodies are like foam.
Them being frail, who can rejoice in them?
The Buddha attained the vajra-body.
Still, it becomes inconstant and ruined.
The many Buddhas are vajra-entities.
All are also subject to inconstancy.
Quickly ended, like melting snow --
how could things be different?

The Buddha passed into parinirvāṇa afterward.
(T1.27b10 Mahāparinirvāṇasūtra DĀ 2)
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Re: Belief in Kannon (Documentary)

Post by sillyrabbit »

Since enough people have addressed Luke ( :lol: ), I will add that I think the western view is hindered by the Judeo-Christian tradition in that we're just so used to being terrified into submission to a religion. Like when they say "the gods don't matter". If the gods, or Buddhas, or Bodhisattvas don't scare you, then why worship them?? So we really have a hard time understanding "the point" when we have this view, especially if we reject the concept of karmic merit.

I'm not sure if the folk Catholicism analogy works, because they are still afraid of being "struck down" and sent to hell.
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Re: Belief in Kannon (Documentary)

Post by Kim O'Hara »

sillyrabbit wrote:I'm not sure if the folk Catholicism analogy works, because they are still afraid of being "struck down" and sent to hell.
I suggested it primarily for the outward similarities.
This difference is just beneath the surface. Even so, it would be possible to see a parallels between 'divine justice' and 'hell', on the one hand, and 'karma' and 'unfortunate rebirth' on the other. I don't want to make too much of it, of course - the differences are important - but I think the similarities are useful in explaining Buddhist societies to those os us who have grown up in Christian societies.

Sentient Light did a great job of explaining the differences a little while ago:
But the viewpoint isn't similar to Catholicism or even Hinduism. The appearance may be similar. The superficial aspects may be similar, but the viewpoint possessed by Asian laity is quite different. Sure, we "pray" for things, but we aren't worshipping idols (that language itself is disgustingly Judeo-Christian to begin with), we are offering prayers, we are offering reverence, we are offering the practice sustained in our lives as a practice of alms-giving, of charity, of regarding our thoughts and actions as not-self. The 'best clothes' comment above I think is pretty inaccurate too--Asian laity either wear simple and plain clothes to the temple, or their lay robes. Our practice is never just about mere worship or submission. There is no view of some great divinity. There is the view of the Buddha, who has attained all the perfections, who taught and established the Dharma, and there is humility in the face of that. So we revere the Buddha, and there is karmic merit in this, just as we revere our parents, and there is karmic merit in that, because we practice with a view of sublimating the ego and recognizing that our attachments to things that are not-Dharma are the cause of suffering.

Most people are not ready for the monastic life, but we can all practice toward calmer minds, closer and closer in emulation of the Buddha, throughout our lives and throughout the next lives. And this means simply that we live our lives, maintaining mindfulness of the dharma. If we achieve, we achieve for the sake of others, because we recognize there is no self for whom to achieve. If we achieve little, then that is fine too and we attempt to find peace of mind with the conditions of our lives through practice of the dharma.

I think this whole focus on meditation, without understanding the dharma or how the dharma is incorporated into one's actual life is a huge obstacle for western practitioners. That's why we see so many people meditating and meditating and not making any progress and getting frustrated by not making any progress, or chasing after experiences because that's the only way they can gauge if anything is happening at all. I think by focusing too heavily on meditation, you lose sight of the Dharma. That isn't to say that meditation isn't important--it certainly is, as is the philosophical component and abhidharma. But if you don't practice the fundamentals, what do you get out of it? If you fail to understand the most basic of our practices--like lighting a stick of incense as an offering--then who are you practicing for? You just practice for yourself, but the daily rituals and these "crazy backwards things" that we Asian folk participate in is what is supposed to train your mind to direct all practice toward others. Because you don't offer a prayer for yourself; you don't light incense for yourself; you don't offer fruit and flowers to yourself--the whole of your practice, at all times, is directed to others, to the Buddhas, to the bodhisattvas, to the devas and yakshas and hungry ghosts and animals and hell beings and humans everywhere. This is the path to the awakening of bodhicitta.
:namaste:
Kim
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Re: Belief in Kannon (Documentary)

Post by AlexMcLeod »

Image
Just to try and bring the topic back on course, when I found out about her, I went literally my next day off.
Relax! Smile From The Heart!
There is a difference between the Mundane and the Transcendental. If you purposefully confuse them, I will ignore you, you nihilist.
There is no Emotion, there is Peace. There is no Ignorance, there is Knowledge. There is no Passion, there is Serenity. There is no Death, there is the Force.
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Re: Belief in Kannon (Documentary)

Post by Admin_PC »

Nice picture!
I enjoy visiting the one at my temple too:
Image
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Re: Belief in Kannon (Documentary)

Post by AlexMcLeod »

I wish I could visit as frequently as I do the local Thai temple, but she's a two hour drive from my house.

Also, she's not at a temple, but at a training monastery, and I prefer not to intrude on the monks in training just to visit her.
Relax! Smile From The Heart!
There is a difference between the Mundane and the Transcendental. If you purposefully confuse them, I will ignore you, you nihilist.
There is no Emotion, there is Peace. There is no Ignorance, there is Knowledge. There is no Passion, there is Serenity. There is no Death, there is the Force.
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Re: Belief in Kannon (Documentary)

Post by Admin_PC »

I guess I'm lucky. The image I posted is from the closest Dharma center to my house and the temple I usually go to. I gotta say, it was a lot easier to visit before. I moved away 3 years ago and just moved back to the area in July. In that time they changed the English services from 6:30pm to 12:30pm on Sundays and I have a very hard time going anymore.
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Re: Belief in Kannon (Documentary)

Post by AlexMcLeod »

I "lucked" into a 2ft resin statue that now has her own room, which has become almost equivalent in energy to entering the inner shrine in the Thai temple. A bit different because of her personality vs the Buddha's, but more than good enough for my personal practice.
Relax! Smile From The Heart!
There is a difference between the Mundane and the Transcendental. If you purposefully confuse them, I will ignore you, you nihilist.
There is no Emotion, there is Peace. There is no Ignorance, there is Knowledge. There is no Passion, there is Serenity. There is no Death, there is the Force.
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Re: Belief in Kannon (Documentary)

Post by Luke »

Admin_PC wrote: I don't mean to be rude, but I really suggest you get beyond "Intro" books written by westerners and actually start researching some of these schools in depth before making comments like you just did.
No, that's fine. I thank you and the others who submitted replies for giving me lots of new information to think about. :namaste:

I need to read about some of the stuff mentioned in this read, as well as read about the historical development of Mahayana and do some deep thinking on my own.

As another member suggested, I should also spend more time around practicing Buddhists again, because I have isolated myself from them for a long time until recently.

And I would indeed like to make my life more in harmony with the dharma. :buddha2:
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