RE: Any Buddhists in the lifestyle?

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RE: Any Buddhists in the lifestyle? - 12/15/2006 4:39:02 PM

topcat

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Wow- who dug this one up?

The four noble truths, by themselves, have formed a sort of a koan for me, in considering their various translations. The first translation I learned was simply:

Life is suffering
Suffering is caused by desire
Enlightenment can end desire
Enlightenmentis found in the eigthfold path

Some other verisions include:

The truth about suffering is that it exists. Life is suffering. Birth, aging and dying is suffering.

Our reaching into the world of dreams, our desire to fulfill what cannot be fulfilled is what brings us our suffering.

Only when we have broken the mirrors of illusion can we end our suffering, and

the Eight-Fold Path can help us to break our habits of suffering.

or:

Life means suffering
Attachment Causes suffering
the cessation of suffering is attainable
the eigthfold path is the end of suffering

Much of this stuff is about a certain mental state that can not be expressed verbally, but considering different ways of trying to express it may lead to getting a glimpse of it.

Stay warm,
Lawrence

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RE: Any Buddhists in the lifestyle? - 12/15/2006 5:16:16 PM

Zensee

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OK masochists, if desire is the root of all suffering what is the desire for suffering the root of?

Personally I believe that BDSM reveals the most enjoyable answer to the kaon, what is the sound of one hand clapping? Bend over girl and I will demonstrate.

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RE: Any Buddhists in the lifestyle? - 12/15/2006 5:23:01 PM

Mysia

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Well said.

As for "desire," well you might try looking at it in a non-North American fashion. Desire is a want. It's not sexual but it can be. It's generally considered to be a strong want. It's not a need. Attachments are said to cause suffering, so when you "desire" something you've formed an attachment. Usually the wanting but not having is the most common type of suffering in Western cultures. We're highly materialistic. :)

As for how that relates to my Ds life, I've yet to decide. However, you might find some answers from other people on the sangha forums, as there are a few threads about Buddhism and BDSM relationships. http://www.lioncity.net/buddhism/

Sorry to hear of the experience, Kasha. I've heard similar about people from quiet a few religions. Seems jerks love the use of religion and/or spirituality for their own justifications.

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RE: Any Buddhists in the lifestyle? - 12/16/2006 4:20:19 AM

slavejali

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Ive taken part in the 4 day kala chakra initition and met the Dalai Lama personally. You can't be in a room with him wihtout your face hurting for days after from smiling so much. It's nothing he does or says, its his presence. I've actualy met some amazing people in my life and feel very blessed. Am I Buddhist? I don't know, it seems whatever I have explored and experienced the same atmosphere inside me greets it..somewhere admist it all, inside me, it all meets together, no matter where the philosophy or way has come from.

mgdartist: I could attempt to explain "Desire is the cause of all suffering"...it very simply means.... our desires attach to outcomes, good and bad...and because everything in this world is transient, (everything comes and goes), to invest ourselves in our desires will lead to suffering....no matter if we percieve those desires as beneficial or derogatory to our well-being.

Addition:
I could talk about this till the cows come home.

The thing with desire is though, we cannot be in this world and not have desire. Desire at its root meaning just means "movement"....its "action". The "desire" is the cause of all suffering actually comes from a Hindu teaching of the Gunas (three laws of material nature) (the laws that govern this world).

The thing we can do though is not invest our identity in our desires, practice not thinking "this thing makes me feel bad and this things makes me feel good". Just practice being in life, applying some general principles and get to know our real selves that is beyond the transient things.

< Message edited by slavejali -- 12/16/2006 4:38:28 AM >

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RE: Any Buddhists in the lifestyle? - 12/17/2006 2:59:15 AM

czero

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i am not a Buddhist, but i play one online...

i did actually attend a Buddhist center for awhile when i was younger. As a recovering Catholic, i felt that Buddhism offered a very practical, experiential form of spirituality without invoking any deities, and this appealed to me. The guided meditations did wonders for my peace of mind, as evidenced by a significant drop in my chronically high blood pressure. But even Buddhism required that one accept certain things on faith--samsara and reincarnation, for example. And i just can't accept anything on blind faith alone. These days, i regard myself as an atheist--but that's definitely not to say my life lacks in spirituality.

i still wear my om-mani-padme-hum ring, as it serves as a continual reminder to strive always to be empathic and compassionate and respect the connectedness and inherent worth of all living beings. :-)

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RE: Any Buddhists in the lifestyle? - 12/17/2006 10:51:18 AM

pollux

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quote:

ORIGINAL: mgdartist

Not Buddhist, but a Buddhist proverb a sub once quoted me I would like explained by a real Buddhist,
especially how of if applicable to the lifestyle, and also relative to life in general :

"Desire is the root of all suffering"

i thought it was fairly self-explainatory for a while, but the longer I ponder it, the less it seems so.
Thanks for any insight.
MGD

That's one of the quotes attributed to the historical Buddha, and it is a core Buddhist principle. I've read that part of the problem in understanding this is due to language. I've seen this statement translated as:

"Selfish desire (attachment, craving, clinging) is the root of all suffering"

"Desire" is not quite the right word to convey what's in the original text -- at least that's what I understand. What the Buddha is getting it, is this idea of the first of the "three poisons" of the mind (the other two are hatred and delusion), which is:

All things are transient. All things change. Therefore, it's folly to cling to them, expecting them never to change, to bring you pleasure in the way that they have in the past. If you do that, you will suffer. Because things change

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RE: Any Buddhists in the lifestyle? - 12/17/2006 12:14:13 PM

Level

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And for those curious about the eightfold path:

http://www.thebigview.com/buddhism/eightfoldpath.html

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RE: Any Buddhists in the lifestyle? - 12/17/2006 12:47:45 PM

mgdartist

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Thank you. ALL.

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RE: Any Buddhists in the lifestyle? - 12/17/2006 11:26:04 PM

UtopianRanger

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quote:

Any Buddhists in the lifestyle?

Assalaamu laykum, brother...... La illahah illalah.....

- R

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