Cugetari din Dharma

[florin.oltean75]

"There is a twofold division of feelings from the point of view of their uncommon dominant condition:
1.Bodily feelings
2.Mental feelings

Bodily feelings are feelings associated with the five sense consciousnesses.

They are generated in dependence upon a sense power possessing form.

Mental feelings are feelings associated with mental consciousness, which arise in dependence upon a mental power."

[florin.oltean75]

"There is a twofold division of feelings from the point of view of their nature:
1.Contaminated feelings
2.Uncontaminated feelings

Contaminated feelings are feelings conjoined with self-grasp*ing, and uncontaminated feelings are feelings conjoined with wisdom directly realizing emptiness.

Until we attain the path of seeing, most of our feelings are contaminated feelings."

[florin.oltean75]

"It is easy to generate a wish to abandon unpleasant feelings, but to generate a wish to abandon contaminated pleasant and neutral feelings we need a very good understanding of the nature of samsara.

Both contaminated feelings and contaminated discriminations are key links in the chain that binds us to samsara.

Contaminated discriminations identify objects as pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral; and contaminated feelings experience them in these ways.

Contaminated feelings then give rise to the three poisons, which in turn lead us to perform contaminated actions, the principal causes of rebirth in samsara.

As mentioned earlier, it is because feelings and discriminations are so import*ant that when Buddha explained the five aggregates he selected them from among the 51 mental factors and designated them each as a separate aggregate."

[florin.oltean75]

"According to Dharma, laziness is any mind that is disinclined to engage in virtuous activities, not just attachment to physical ease and sleep.

There is no more important spiritual task than to eliminate laziness.

Suppleness is the direct opponent to laziness.

With suppleness, virtuous activities such as contemplation or meditation become a pleasure and there is no reluctance to engage in them.


The serviceability of the mind, which is called 'suppleness', is one of the main benefits that come from concentration.

Although at present we have a certain degree of concentration when we meditate, it is relatively weak and short-lived, and so the suppleness it produces is subtle and difficult to recognize; but as our concentration becomes stronger and more stable our suppleness will also improve.


It is not just the intensity of suppleness that is important, for suppleness must also be firm and long-lasting.

If we have suppleness that lasts for twenty-four hours a day we shall always find it easy to engage in virtuous actions because we shall never become physically or mentally tired; and we shall always be delighted to listen to, contemplate, and meditate on Dharma teachings.

With this joy in Dharma practice we shall find no difficulty in accomplishing the five paths, the ten grounds, and the realizations of the two stages of Tantra."

[florin.oltean75]

"Fericiti facatorii de pace caci ei vor mosteni imparatia cerurilor."

Pacea adevarata poate fi "facuta" doar atunci cand este eliminata orice tensiune in procesul cognitiei, cand cele 'trei sfere ale cunoasterii' sunt eliberate prin realizarea directa a naturii lor: subiect, obiect, proces cognitiv.

[florin.oltean75]

"Non-hatred

The definition of non-hatred is a mental factor that functions as the direct opponent of hatred.

In Guide to the Bodhisattva's Way of Life Shantideva says:

There is no evil greater than anger,

And no virtue greater than patience.

Hatred, or anger, is the most destructive of all non-virtuous minds.

It has the power to destroy our Dharma experiences and the merit we have accumulated in the past.

-----

There are three types of non-hatred:

1 Non-hatred towards those who harm us

2 Non-hatred towards inanimate objects that cause us suffering

3 Non-hatred towards resultant suffering

The first type is the same as the patience of not-retaliating.

If someone attacks us, insults us, or causes us harm in some other way, and we manage to stop ourself getting angry with them, it is the first type of non-hatred that prevents the anger from arising.

There are many inanimate objects with which we get angry.

For example, we may get angry with the weather if it is too hot or too cold, with our car if it will not start, or with a piece of furniture if it falls on our foot.

Some people are angered by the existence of nuclear weapons or pollution, while others become upset if their food is not to their liking.

Whenever we encounter inanimate objects that cause us suffering we should remember the futility of getting angry with such things and prevent anger by practising the second type of non-hatred.

The third type of non-hatred, non-hatred towards resultant suffering, is the patience of voluntarily enduring suffering."

[florin.oltean75]

" Modern Bodhisattva’s Way of Life: Becoming the living, loving Dharmakaya


(3.21) Just like the great elements such as earth,
And like eternal space,
May I become the basis from which everything arises
For sustaining the life of countless living beings;

(3.22) And, until they have passed beyond sorrow,
May I sustain all forms of life
Throughout the realms of living beings
That reach to the ends of space.

If we’re practicing giving like Shantideva then we have a wish to be whatever others need, not simply to do what others want.

We want to be what they need.

We think, “if others want me to be someone other, I’ll be that person for them.”

With total faith and a loving heart like Shantideva, we offer ourself to others pledging to become whatever we need to become for them to be able to provide them both temporary and ultimate benefit.

We have an attitude that is ready to endure whatever we need to endure.

We are ready to go through whatever we need to go through.

For me, the easiest way to do this is to view my ordinary self as like a karmic reflection or echo or synthesis of all the delusions and negative karma of those I love that I have taken upon myself through my previous practice of taking.

When suffering arises within our body, delusions emerge within our mind or negative karma ripens in our life, we strongly believe that this is the suffering, delusions and negative karma of all living beings that we have previously taken upon ourselves.

We then believe that – like Jesus – we work through these things for living beings so that they don’t have to. What do living beings need? They need somebody to do this for them.

This is why Jesus is so powerful in this world – he meets this need.

But so can we, if we train diligently in correct methods for long enough.

With these verses, Shantideva reveals how the truth body Dharmakaya of a Buddha is of the same nature as his emanation body.

Normally we speak of a Buddha’s emanations, as if they are a multitude of individual emanations.

But in truth, all of conventional reality is a fully integrated blanket of emanations functioning as a whole to liberate living beings.

It is only due to our ignorance that we see conventional reality as a samsara instead of as the unfolding of Buddha’s emanations in this world.

The pure conventional nature of all things is a Buddha’s form body, and the pure ultimate nature is a Buddha’s truth body. These two are inseparable, like gold from its coin." Kadampa Working Dad - Ryan