ASD and non-sectarian Buddhism

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I found a copy of The Tibetan Book of the Dead. I'd be curious if you could elaborate on some of the things in there such as Reincarnation or the 6 Realms.

For example many of our human politicians might be close to the Jealous Gods realm. The people on the TV show about Hoarders are probably close to the Hungry Ghost realm.

I guess one other detail I find interesting is these realms, even "Hell", are not permanent. That maybe eventually one will perish even in Hell and reincarnate.

Hello Videodrome,

I can't really comment on the Book of the Dead.

It's outside of my authorisation. What I can say in general is that cosmology in Buddhism is connected to states of mind.

Further in Buddhism the understanding of life and continuity is an interesting subject.

For example if one candle has a flame and lights another candle, then the same energy, via cause and condition, continues in a new form. But we could not say the two candles are the same nor that the flames are independant, again through causes and conditions. Interbeing through interdependence of phenomena may explain some presentations of Buddhist incarnation.

All the very best!

That is a reading of those concepts that I have considered before. It works.

http://considerthefuture.com/Faith/Fait ... ealms.html



Yes, and even existing in a state of Nibbana is (apparently) finite.

Preliminary to the Teachings found in the Tibetan Book of the Dead, within the tradition, is the practice of investigative meditation acording to the Madhyamaka.

In terms of the Madhyamaka I can explain.

That in meditation we come to know the moments of verbal thinking.

In this process we use;

1. The logical investigation of an event, it's cause, the event itself and its effect.
2. Further we investigate a moment of verbal thought, its arising, abiding and ceasing.

To develop, 'Knowing', within our experience.

This is used to discover what lays beyond the process of imagining [shapes and colours] and moments of verbal thinking.

The Book of the Dead, talks about the methods of Liberation in the Bardo's and rightfully belongs to the Natural Great Perfection [Dzogchen] tradition. This requires an experienced Teacher-Yogi to impart and instruct accordingly, via a personal relationship.

The link that Moog kindly offered is a wonderful start. It outlines the general interpretation of the Six Realms.

Health and every good wish!

Grant

The most important thing is human development.

Development and adaption. In terms of the Buddhist approach we start from the perspective of original purity. The nature of mind is stainless, only thoughts and attitudes mask the purity within.

This purity is wisdom and compassion. From the Buddhist perspective this wisdom and compassion is beyond imputation and so beyond the sectarian nature of religion.

Buddhists in Tibet do not called themselves Buddhist, per se, this is a modern Euro-centric convention, they just refer to themselves simply as insiders [Tib: Nangpa].

The correct view of the Madhyamaka [Middle Way] is to not hold a view.

The stainless nature of mind which is both wisdom and compassion is the natural inheritance of human sentience. It is the treasury within.

This is the essence of what the Radiant Buddha taught.

OM MANI PADMA HUM!

Homage to the Jewel-like Heart-essence of the Buddha-nature within!

When negative ideation arises we can just replace it with this mind-protection [Mantra].

We can repeat this on our breath, to relax and release.
And re-balance our energy.

Health and every good wish!

Grant South

Hello Everyone,

I thought I would post again.

I hope you are all well.

Historically the Buddha taught three turnings of the wheel of Dharma. Although the Buddha also taught that all three can be practiced as Ekayana or One Path.

It is said even two lines of the Buddha's teaching will bring benefits.

What is happiness?

This is a question in life that requires same work and possibly some personal adjustment.

The Buddha suggested that a mind that is virtuous and free of negative judgement is the basis for happiness. Again this may be a matter of personal choice.

What I have found with my Asperger's is that adaptation is an ongoing process, in this sense adaptation is a lifepath or personal journey. Buddhism provides many benefits. Various therapeutic modalities now recognise the importance of mindfulness to calm the mind.

Also empathy and later compassion, via meditation, can be a great learning.

I would like to hear your thoughts on this.

Health and every good wish!

Grant South

Hello Grant.........it is nice to hear from you.

This time of the year I generally struggle with negative thoughts and depression. It is like my negative thinking conspires against my deeper self without even it's consent........it is a very powerful pull into a depressive mindset, so I am pleased to hear from you as your posts are very nourishing and uplifting.

I question if it is at all humanly possible to be free of negative thinking, but know that I can get closest to this state when I can observe compassionately my inner-critic. In other words, I may be bombarded by all sorts of negative thoughts, but I don't have to suffer from them.

My deeper self does not judge the judge.

I am generally happiest when I do not question weather I am happy or not.

The more I reflect on the teachings of the Buddha, the more I see how positive thinking had little to do with his teachings, yet Mindfulness of suffering and joy central to his message.

Wishing you well from a cold London park whilst watching the birds.

Hello Quaker,


I wrote a big email, but I lost it.

In essence what I wanted to say was that the Buddha taught that positive thoughts are OK and are better than negative thoughts but the nature of mind is beyond thought, the transparent nature of awareness which is the luminosity of sentience.

This stainless awareness is not conditioned by thought, emotions, sensations, etc. These are secondary, the primacy being the sub-stratum of mind, its intrinsic nature. So positive thoughts, although provisional, are born from natural virtue, whereas negative thoughts are just our internal suffering- dukka. Being the ignorance of our treasury already within.

When we see the birds at play, their play echo's back to us our own nature being the purity of awareness, beyond thought. They play freely within the sphere of our field of perception.

This awareness is effortless and always working for our benefit 24 hours a day. Even in our dream state we may have the awareness of being in a dream when we are dreaming.

On a personal note I lose my practice and then I regain it, throughout the day, same days are better than others.
But there is improvement. Because we are habitual we can train.

Everything is in a state of flux, and so logically things can change. A very famous teaching is, the past is gone forever, and the future is yet unborn, we only have the present.......

Will it snow in London?

I have never seen snow.

We have had a few days of much needed rain.

Health and every good wish!

Grant

Happy New Year to everyone!

I hope your year will be both safe and rewarding.

Many of us feel deeply about issues such as World Peace, social equity and equal opportunity.

These social issues today are the same as those in the times of the Buddha in northern India, 2500 years ago.

The non-sectarian view is the knowledge that people will naturally have an interest in a path which makes sense to them. To disparage another's inward approach is considered by some to be a root downfall of practice.

Thus non-sectarianism opens the way for meaningful dialogue on the issues of being human.
Being Humane to ourselves and others.

May all of us together be motivated by the radiance within!

All the best to you for 2012!

Grant

Thank you Grant.

In gratitude.

Chris

Just saying hello. Since esangha went under I haven't really interacted much with buddhists. I consider myself on the buddhist path, but I don't know if I'm a buddhist nor whether it matters.

My inspirations: Dalai Lama, Thich Nhat Than, Jon Kabat-Zinn, Cesar Millan (yes it's true, listen to what he says about thinking, awareness and human nature).

Hello LipstickKiller,

A warm welcome to the Buddhist associated corner of Wrong Planet. We are the bodhi-foresters of the spectrum. The 'Autisattva's', of our virtual Global Village.

Cesar Millan saves lives. he is great!

All my very best to you!

Grant South.

Viva la- 'Autisattva, Bodhisattva, Mahasattva'.

Thank you for your kindness. I hope to have some interesting discussions on the things what matter in life.

Hi,

That's my pleasure.

I read some of your blog, which I can relate too.

For more discussion I think we could prompt each other with Buddhist study questions, etc.

For example; How do you find meditation helps you on the spectrum?

This is one of my personal interests and will be the subject of my PhD.

I hope to provide our community with meaningful information regarding the personal benefits of meditative intervention.

All the very best!

Grant.

Is this emptiness?

I have tried classic meditation with moderate success. Since I also have ADHD it's quite a strain on me. That being said I'm sure it's good for me, but I'm less sure it serves the intended purpose. I find mindfulness in motion, so to say, to be better. Yoga was very beneficial for me, but unfortunately there is some risk of injury, since I'm double-jointed and can push too far without pain. Right now, my best form of meditation is walking in the woods. I keep the pacec up and focus on my breathing and the physical sensations. That does wonders.

I'm in CBT right now, and mindfulness exercises play nicely into a more meditative lifestyle. I'm still looking for a strategy to calm my ever-worrying mind.