A Jack Mormon Confession (satire)

Since June I personally have refrained from hot drinks, alcohol, illegal drugs and tobacco. As well, I am celibate.

Between myself and God, I am repenting my past sins in private. On Friday, August 29, I am to be baptized as a Mormon.

So all that talk of remaining a Jack Mormon is pure satire. My epiphany came when I read the anti-Mormon views on the interviews preceding baptism: they gave me the wrong impression.

Nobody in the hierarchy asks you to confess your darkest sins to them, for that isn't supposed to be shared with another mortal soul.

While I am still going to be liberal and still write about Buddhism, politics and other topics that I am interested in, I am also going to write about Mormonism as objectively as I am able. Though the anti-Mormon propaganda will no longer be of interest to me, except perhaps to provide inspiration for commentary.

For now, this post will provide me with the opportunity to explain simply why I decided to be baptized as a Mormon.

With eyes open and an open heart, I attended all the instruction hours since the end of May until now and will continue to do so.

While I am convinced that Joseph Smith Jr was inspired by God to write the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price, the Testimony of the Three Witnesses only convinces me of his inspiration. However, I will go along with the cover story that the angel Moroni took those brass plates back to wherever he went.

My own statement above is not a confession of doubt but is made because I have never been shown the original literature by the angel Moroni.

As well, the Egyptian hieroglyphics which inspired Joe Smith to write the Book of Abraham do not translate as that book. Even so, I would consider Mr Smith as inspired by God to write all the scriptures specific to Mormonism and consider him a Mormon prophet.

Nothing I have written so far will fully explain why I became a Mormon. I am sure that it's because I am a people pleaser.

Also, the fact that this local Mormon community is the least judgmental of all Christian denominations has also convinced me that my choice is the best one to make out of all the choices that I faced.

For I could have rejected Mormonism and dealt with being a Buddhist whose spirituality accepted that there is a God and even allowed for the Christ. On closely examining my sarcastic statement that "my Christ is the Buddha", I realize that the statement is considered a religious one by Christians of other denomination.

So my explanation for becoming a Mormon is actually summed up by the concept of the Buddha as my Christ, due to the religious pluralism that I have been quietly practising since 1990. This has been confirmed for me by the Mormon cosmology regarding the souls of pre-mortal times to today's current incarnation on Earth and to the Afterlife. Even Spirit World and Spirit Prison fit into my Buddhist worldview, though the Celestial, Terrestrial and Telestial Kingdoms would become similar to Buddhist heavens.

Of course, at first glance, the Mormon cosmology is in my eyes more like a rough draft of the more complex Buddhist cosmology. Though it is more likely that I am not going to revert to Buddhism because of this revelation.

Another reason why I became Mormon because I like the fact that the Mormon literature has had articles on Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism written without critique of each religion.

It is that religious pluralism which confirms my belief that Mormonism is going to be the most wonderful part of my spiritual journey.

Even so, everyone who thinks I have gotten sucked into a cult have no idea at all because they might keep forgetting that I have become Mormon with my eyes open and my heart open to the Church of Jesus Christ and Latter Day Saints. That does not mean I am going to forget my roots as a Buddhist. Instead, Mormonism will take what I have learned about Buddhism to a new level.

Because this blog is semi-private, I will only refer to the Elders and the wonderful brothers and sisters of my local Mormon ward without specifically identifying anyone.

Thank you too to the brothers and sisters, and especially Elder M and Sister M who all served as hosts for dinner - three wonderful dinners that led from uncertainty to confusion and finally to understanding.

However, my thanks goes out to Elder L who invited me to church, Elder M who patiently instructed me, Elder F who knows his wushu very well, and Elder T, whose words impress me the most. Also thanks to Brother C for his sponsorship.

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A poem on My Baptism (which I plan to read after baptism): http://gandhara.blogspot.com/2014/08/my-baptism-poem.html

Happiness is Peace of Mind (satire)

It is said in Buddhism that seeking happiness, which comes and goes with a person's mood, is desire which may distract the devout from Nirvana and thus lead to rebirth in the Six Realms of Desire.

In order to escape suffering in the Six Realms, I would need to extinguish the desire to be happy so that true happiness arises.

True happiness is found in the freedom from desire itself. This implies mastering my passions by behaving more compassionately towards other people who have grown to care for.

Buddhism does not advocate the neglect of family life. Rather, Buddhists are urged to act mindfully while keeping the Five Precepts (no killing, no stealing, no sexual misconduct, no false speech and no intoxicants such as coffee, tea, alcohol, dangerous drugs, and tobacco).

Even so, I like feeling happy once in a while, and associate that feeling with peace of mind. Deep down though, such fleeting happiness is due to the work of unconditional love.

However, the pursuit of happiness is indeed potentially the pursuit of suffering when a person desires to sustain it to the exclusion of the main goal in life, which is to fulfill your spiritual journey through life.

In escaping suffering, the Buddhist does so by reflecting on the Four Noble Truths (life is suffering, suffering is due to endless craving (desire), relieve desire, and embark on the Eightfold Path to aid in that relief).

It is through meditation that the spiritual journey begins by first relieving suffering by accepting the Four Noble Truths.

When my mind is calmed, I go on to meditate more deeply on the fleetingness of happiness. With my desire thus quenched, it is possible to develop peace of mind so that true happiness may arise.

Happiness is indeed peace of mind. Be ever watchful and strive for it!

A House On Fire (satire)

Life in this world is like people living in a house that is on fire.

That fire is our passions and desires for worldly things, even if it is peace of mind. If for one minute we follow even one passion, then we are lost as our heart is aflame in desire.

If we cling to this world as reality and ignore cultivating the spiritual aspect of our lives, then truly are we worldly. In becoming fans of the world, we forget that the world is only a reflection of the society it reflects.

Thus life is like a house on fire.

People take this world as reality pursuing worldly projects and pleasures without realizing that the house is on fire and will soon burn down (due to the inevitability of death).

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Bodhisattva - the Bodhisattva ideal: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodhisattva#Bodhisattva_ideal

Free from Karmic Destiny (poem)

Free, free, free are we
when Awakened &mdash free to be
unborn like a babe.
The Tathatagharbha is
Ultimate Reality,
a metaphysical womb
into which we are reborn,
free to travel to
an almost infinite number
of Pure Lands as Buddha.
as immaculate as the Unborn.
Having Awakened from Ego,
Nirvana is where anything
can happen, but few of us
can experience this freedom
due to karmic destiny.

The True Essence of Mindfulness (poem)

All sentient beings are in slumber,
dreaming the dream called "Ego",
lost in the fantasy of selfishness,
knowing only all concept of "me" and "mine."
Through shamatha, the mind is becalmed.
In this calm state of mind, who is it
that observes carefully each moment?
Thinking "I observe", we are asleep
and are caught in the dream of Ego.
When carefully observing the stream
of consciousness, all thought of "I"
is gone, gone, gone — all that is
left behind is Bodhi Mind, aspiring
for the samadhi of Awakened Mind.
For the Awakened Mind lacks Ego,
and this Egolessness is empty of Ego.
Awaken to Mindfulness, and truly see
the splendor of the Awakened Mind.
Let go of all concept of me and mine!
Be embraced by Emptiness —
Awakened Mind is Bodhi Mind,
Bodhi Mind is mindful only of Awakening.
Abide in Awakening, and be free to be.
For this is the true essence of Mindfulness.

Awake and Asleep (poem)

Awaken from all concept of "me",
and you are truly awake.
If ego grasps onto "awakening",
then you are still asleep.
When awakened, the ego is gone;
when asleep, only the self remains.
Sadly, he who says, "I am awake!"
has yet to awaken from the dream
called Ego — for the awakened
have forgotten about the self.
When you are truly awake,
it would be best to be humble
and abide in awakening.

Dharma That Is Experienced

The dharma that is taught and the dharma that is experienced are descriptions of how to live, how to use your life to wake you up rather than put you to sleep. And if you choose to spend the rest of your life trying to find out what awake means and what asleep means, I think you might attain enlightenment.

-Pema Chödrön, "Wisdom of No Escape"

"Dharma" refers to teachings and disciplines related to Buddhist. It also refers to phenomena that is either physically experienced (local events that happen in the world) or mentally experienced such as thoughts.

Thus the purpose of the dharma that is taught is to awaken you spiritually so that you are mindfully aware of the dharma that is experienced.

Even taking shower becomes alive in mindfulness.

When I chose to become mindfully aware almost 25 years ago, I wanted to find out what mindfulness means. It means the same as being truly awake.

I also realize what asleep means: remaining oblivious to the beauty discovered while on the journey of spiritual awareness and, due to craving, fearing the imagined loss of the egocentric existence.

When once he slept unaware of the richness in life found through meditation, more and more a fool such as myself is awakening to that richness.

For this, I am grateful to the Buddha, the Dharma and the Sangha!

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Originally published: January 1, 2006 2348H
Updated edited: February 26, 2013 2057H

Emptiness (poem)

All reality truly is
Empty of inherent existence,
Separate and permanent.
Awakening to this realization of
The Self Nature of true reality
Bodhisattvas return to help
All sentient beings who cling
Needlessly to the world,
Narcotized by the vain grasping
Of worldliness known as
Reality as it is supposed to be.
Rare is the one awakened to
Self Nature True Mind,
The Bodhi Mind That realizes
Buddhist Emptiness is
Neither mysterious nor unique.

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The `No-Self' Nature of People and Things: http://www.sacred-texts.com/bud/tib/singer.htm
Madhyamika: http://encyclopedia.thefreedictionary.com/Madhyamika
Ordinary Mind, Original Nature and Self Nature: http://gandhara.blogspot.com/2013/01/ordinary-mind-original-nature-and-self.html
Pure Mind is True Mind: http://gandhara.blogspot.com/2006/01/pure-mind-is-true-mind-true-mind-is.html
Emptiness as Everything and Nothing: http://gandhara.blogspot.com/2013/01/emptiness-as-everything-and-nothing-poem.html

Caught on the Endless Wheel

All states that can be returned to external causes are obviously not you, but that which cannot be returned to anywhere, if it is not you, what is it? Therefore, you should know that your mind is fundamentally wonderful, bright, and pure and that because of your involvement with the things of the world you have covered it up and lost it. In this way you are caught on the endless wheel of becoming this or that, sinking and floating in that sea of endless becoming. Awaken yourself now to your own bright mind.

— Surangama Sutra

External causes refer to worldliness and the risk of evil karma.

The mind that is "fundamentally wonderful, bright, and pure" is the mind aware of Buddha Nature, being Bodhi Mind.

By getting involved with the world, the Buddhist covers up her Buddha Nature, and her Bodhi Mind is lost.

"The endless wheel of becoming this or that" is Samsara, this world of birth-life-death.
"That sea of endless becoming" too is Samsara.

"Awaken" refers to mindful practice that develops wisdom and compassion for all sentient beings, including being of service to others.

"Your own bright mind" is Bodhi Mind.

To awaken the mind to Bodhi Mind, meditation with Buddha Recitation will develop wisdom and compassion.

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Originally posted: March 11, 2006 at 1524H
Updated: February 7, 2013 0051H

Meditation on Gender, Western and Eastern Cultures, and Psychotherapy

May everyone be at peace with themselves.
May everyone progress in their spiritual journey.
May everyone endeavor to perfect their minds.
With peaceful heart, may this one walk the path
towards the moment of putting out the fire,
and thus passing onto a higher plane.

Analysis of meditation

"Be at peace" implies a peaceful heart.

"Progress" accepts that not all people who desire a perfect mind have a perfect body.
However, with more effort the dedicated practitioner achieves more peace and calm.

"Endeavor" implies that all one needs to do is act to perfect your mind. Perfection of a mind implies that one learn to meditate. It does not happen right now; yet even after the first week, meditation will lead one to a perfect mind.

With peace comes satisfaction. This is a given. In walking the path, this one encounter less obstacle to reach the goal all Buddhists desire: Nirvana. This desire is not tainted by desire for fame or gain, because that desire corrupts the mind.

Thus one needs to put out the fire of desire, so that one may pass onto a higher plane of existence. This higher plane does not make the earnest practitioner above it all. Rather, she sees no difference between herself and another person with regard to the mind.

A Meditation on gender

For the only difference between man and woman is physical. Our description about the human condition is gender neutral. Likewise, gender is actually unimportant.

In denying women access to the tools of Buddhism such as meditation and the breathing exercises, the Theravada form is sexist to Westerners whose culture is highly sensitive to women's rights. Yet the Theravada form is fostered in a culture where sensitivity to women's rights is fine in politics, but not in religion.

Thus, the apparent sexism is designed to help women understand their place in that culture, which is called Eastern.

Eastern and Western Cultures

Were I to blend the two cultures, it is possible to have a broader understanding of both cultures so that Westerners may understand Eastern culture.

As well, to criticize Theravada Buddhism effectively, the practitioner needs to understand his culture and its effect on Buddhism.

For why is it that Zen is favored over other forms of Buddhism. Shingon Buddhism may
look like a mix of mysticism and symbolism, but it works for a Shingon practitioner.

Psychotherapy and Buddhism

Yet Buddhism is practical for anyone to use, and the breathing exercises of meditation have been incorporated in cognitive behavior therapy.

Thus a psychotherapy that incorporates meditation as its therapeutic tool only uses it to achieve a calm mind. By separating the spiritual part of meditation from the physical part of breathing and posture, such a psychotherapy is devoid of spiritual development.

In this way, anyone can use such therapy to reduce the effects of stress so that one can do anything. Yet there are few statistics on how meditation relieves stress.

Final Meditation

May all who read this know that this person who wrote these words that the spiritual journey is a sacred one, yet it is also a personal journey of self-discovery.

May all know that "self" in context of the spiritual journey is not the ego, that part of a person's psyché that motivates one to seek comfort and satisfaction.

For the "self" this person speaks of is the higher self on that higher spiritual plane which few people achieve except for the greatest of practitioners.

May all also know that "this person" refers to the author of this meditation.

May all who read this discover happiness to be not a goal but a state of mind that is fleeting.

May all who achieve this state of mind of happiness be satisfied with their lot.

For to desire happiness is unwise; it would be better to enjoy the moment.

May all who achieve happiness know that meditation is more fun when you are happy.

May all who realize how fun meditation is, focus on their breath.

This person respects Amida Buddha, the Buddha of Infinite Light of loving-kindness and also the Buddha of Infinite Life of compassion.
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The above is an example of how I explore Buddhist meditation. I don't just sit on my ass gazing at my navel.

Since meditation helps me to think even though my body is tired, it is in my best interest to use the tools before me to put my thought down.

My mind requires self expression, yet in this blog entry, that expression is done so that the gentle reader may understand where I am coming from.

As well, there is a minor catharsis occurring when I express myself. Even though my writing is not sophisticated and tempered by academic training, its topic at the moment is religion but not the religion most people are adverse to.

Self-Disclosure as Therapy

Writing about my life is therapeutic.

In my family of origin, I was deemed the problem child.

At the root of it was the shame my mother experienced when it was learned I was born with two birth defects. Much of this shame was due to her mother-in-law and my father, despite the fact that his brother was born with epilepsy and died of it.

In reaction to being shamed, my mother developed anxiety about it and passed that onto me. I recall being shamed by her, too. Also, my father used to shame me, too.

I remember one incident of being told by my father to straighten out my arms, and being made to feel as though it was abnormal not to have my right arm be straight.

In reporting this, by exposing this hurt to light, it will be impossible to feel ashamed for being born less than perfect.

For I know it to be true that no one thinks of himself as being perfect, for we are all human and prone to error.

Yet there is still room for spiritual healing to help me recover from the childhood years of neglect and abuse, and especially to remain forgiving towards my parents.

My Spiritual Hierarchy of Jesus, God and the Buddha

Introduction

In this article I begin with the declaration that the ego is a social fabrication, introduce the patriarchal sexist myth of the male ego, and contrast the ego to its Christian counterpart, self-will.

Then the Buddhist view of the ego will be discussed, followed by a short discussion of the healthy ego with respect to individual needs and continuing on with the view of personal spirituality as self-actualization.

Next, I will illustrate how my spiritual hierarchy of God, Jesus and the Buddha cuts through the fallacy of false dilemma.

Following that thought is the discussion of how beliefs outside the spiritual life affect myself and others.

Finally in the conclusion, I will try to show how the spiritual life has a common ground in all faiths.

Ego as a Social Fabrication

Ego is a social fabrication; the proof of this is in the media. The term "ego" is used to describe the whole psychic apparatus defined in Freud's structural model of the psyche, which he divided into three parts as id, ego and super-ego.

Examples of the ego in action in popular culture occur regularly in the media regarding not just politicians, religious icons, scientists, and sports idols, but also local celebrities and famous pop icons.

Although it isn't commonly talked about, the Western social consensus is that the ego exists.

Because ego is a social fabrication, it requires daily exercise through self-expression. The ideal of a wholesome life implies that the healthy ego needs expression in the community in socially acceptable ways.

In contrast, the unwholesome life leads to social isolation and its impact on the ego. Without self-expression in socially acceptable ways, the individual is susceptible to depression and anxiety. As a result, the ego may become the focus of one's life. Thus he becomes ego-centered, and much of his misery in life is due to his egocentricity.

The Patriarchal Sexist Myth of the Male Ego

In the minds of many people, a patriarchal sexist myth about the ego may be commonplace. In this myth, the male ego is the only thing that exists.

This does not mean that the female ego is non-existent; it just is not talked about.

This is not the true picture of the ego at all but a false view of it, which is defined by how the male ego is vilified whilst pretending women do not have one.

Yet this myth about the ego arises in the male-dominated patriarchal society for many reasons which are political and social.

While the male ego is sometimes associated with God, the female ego kept hidden, to be discussed behind closed doors between women.

However, this sexist myth about the ego is counterproductive to inner change.

Ego and Its Christian Counterpart, Self-Will

In reality, the ego exists from birth to death for everyone, young and old, male and female.

It is also known in Western religious circles as self-will, which consists of resolute adherence to your own ideas or desires and the trait of resolutely controlling your own behavior.

Self-will has the negative qualities of stubbornness, bullheadedness, obstinacy, obstinance, and pigheadedness, and the positive qualities of self-control, self-possession, possession, willpower, will power, and self-command.

Buddhist View of Ego

According to Buddhism, all people have an ego which arises from the moment of birth. The Buddhist concept of dependent arising explains in detail how the ego arises from birth until death. Indeed, the ego arises after ignorance as one of the many fabrications of the mind.

In the Four Noble Truths,

1. human suffering is first identified in fine detail as misery, pain and unhappiness.
   
2. The origin of suffering is revealed to be unwholesome desire or craving.
   
3. Relief from suffering consists of ending suffering by allowing craving to fade away and stop, by giving up and letting go of the unwholesome desire, being free of sensual pleasures, and not relying on such existence. In this way is the ego appeased.
   
4. Finally, the means to appease the ego by promoting equanimity is given as the Noble Eightfold Path:
   
   1. right view,
      
   2. right intention,
      
   3. right speech,
      
   4. right action,
      
   5. right livelihood,
      
   6. right effort,
      
   7. right mindfulness, and
      
   8. right concentration

Divided into three parts, the Eightfold Path consists of:

• wisdom (right view, right intention),
  
• ethical conduct (right speech, right action, right livelihood), and
  
• mental discipline, concentration and meditation (right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration).

As a result of following the Eightfold Path, specifically breath and insight meditation, the Buddhist practitioner acquires right knowledge (seeing things as they really are) which results in right liberation.

Ego with Respect to the Individual Needs

For the average person, the healthy ego requires the basic needs consisting of Maslow's hierarchy of needs:

• the physiological needs (breathing, food, sex, water, sleep, metabolic equilibrium, and excretion),
  
• safety needs (personal security, financial security, health and well-being, and a safety net against accidents and illness, and their adverse impacts),
  
• love and belonging(social needs which involve feelings of belongingness, and especially emotionally based relationships such as friendship, intimacy and family),
  
• esteem need (which consist of two parts:
  
  • 1) respect for others, the need for status, recognition, fame, prestige, and attention, and
    
  • 2) self-respect, the need for strength, competence, mastery, self-confidence, independence and freedom),
  and
• self-actualization (self-mastery).

Personal Spirituality as Self-Actualization

Once these needs are satisfied, self-actualization also consists of meeting my spiritual needs, which is satisfied by maintaining a spiritual life. Within the context of spirituality, the ego refers to a "sense of doership" or sense of individual existence. The ego-centered life is the life where the illusion of such existence prevails. As a result of that illusion, I may believe myself to be a human being and that I must fight for my rights to make it in this world. Yet, throughout it all, I remain unaware and unconscious of my true nature until a series of spiritual experiences show me that the God-centered life is essential to my spiritual well-being Within context of a God-centered life, it is a fallacy to believe that the social conventions of pronouns (I, me, my, mine) reflect the ego-centered life. Rather, by focusing on God from the start of every day to its very end, the use of pronouns just make the God-centered life more personal.

My Spiritual Hierarchy Cuts Through Fallacy of False Dilemma

To a person who sees the world through the fallacy of either as God-centered or Buddha-centered, the following statements would seem complicated and unwieldy. Such a false dilemma overlooks the fact that both God and Buddha are manifestations of the Higher Power, which is God as each of us knows Him to be. Does the God-centered life conflict with my belief in Buddhism? No, since both God and the Buddha are different aspect of the Higher Power, and since God, being Creator, made the historical Buddha to realize His mysterious works, I do not see any conflict between my faith in God and my belief in the Buddha. For God is at the core of my hierarchy of the spiritual life, with my belief that Jesus died on the cross for us as coming second, and then the Buddhist principles defined by the Eightfold Path. Outside of these three core beliefs are the multitude of beliefs we hold about life and ourselves.

Beliefs and Its Relationship to Self and Other

These other beliefs which lie outside the spiritual life are still a vital part of it, because they subtly influence how I view my hierarchy of core beliefs about God, Jesus and the Buddha. Yet how I view God, Jesus and the Buddha reflect my spiritual views, which influence how I see life and its effect in my daily existence, and how other people see me. With my heart focused on God as the center of my spiritual life, my faith in Him is validated by my belief that Jesus died for our sins, and is tempered by the underlying Buddhist principles of dependent arising, the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path. By making God the core of my spiritual beliefs, the ego becomes healthy because my growing reliance on God depends on fellowship with like-minded people. By relying on God, I develop a need for Him which deflates my ego, leading me to practice humility. With prayer and meditation, it is possible for me to moderate my life, encouraged by the fact that salvation is the free gift of God, the belief that Jesus died for our sins, and a growing faith in God inculcated by reading the Bible.

Conclusion: The Spiritual Life as Common Ground Between All Faiths

Thus I see the common ground between Buddhism and Christianity since each faith help to enrich a person's spiritual life. Indeed, both faiths continue to enrich my life through my willingness to practice a form of spiritual plurality. Rather than water down Buddhism and Christianity, spiritual plurality helps me to maintain a balanced view of both faiths. Using what I know of Buddhist meditation to moderate my behavior (thought, speech and action), I am able to apply its use to seek God through careful prayer and meditation. As well, the spiritual insights gained by reading the Bible can also help me see Buddhism in a refreshing new light. As an example of such insight, both Christianity and Buddhism emphasize loving-kindness but use it differently. In Christianity, a loving God sacrificed His Son, Jesus Christ, so that all Christians are saved by faith in Him, with salvation freely given by God's grace. Salvation in Buddhism starts with a mytho-poetic Buddha named Amida of a Buddhist "heaven" (the Pure Land of Bliss) who is reborn from an angelic Bodhisattva (Dharmakāra) who was once the king of a mythical land. Inspired by a Buddha of a previous age, this former king made a series of vows of which the most important vow allows all Buddhists who revere that Buddha to be reborn in that Pure Land as "angels" so that they may listen to the Buddha preach before being reborn in the earthly realm to help other people come to know the Buddha. In this way Buddhism enriches my spiritual life as much as Christianity does, and my faith in God is complemented by my belief that Jesus died for my sins and my belief in what the Buddha taught! For the spiritual life is the common ground that all faiths share.

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Reference:

Id, ego and super-ego: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Id,_ego,_and_super-ego
Ego as doer: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ego_%28spirituality%29
Higher Power: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Higher_Power
Maslow's hierarchy of needs: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maslow's_hierarchy_of_needs
Buddhism and Christianity: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhism_and_Christianity

Ego as Social Fabrication

The ego is not part of the true nature of human beings, but is a social fabrication, inculcated from birth.

Ignorance about our true nature results in us believing the ego is real until we find ourselves alone and socially isolated due to excess caused by our desires and passions.

Within the context of Buddhism, passions are considered a necessary evil. They are evil because when the ego holds sway over a person, the passions would eat us out of house and home.

Merely satisfying our material needs for clothing, food and shelter is not enough.

Without strong adherence to a moral code and the resultant ethical response of right and wrong, we could eat until we become obese, have more clothes than we could possibly wear, and never leave our homes.

Thus, the prudent and wise of us have learned to develop their spiritual yearning to the point where they have incorporated it into their lives, whether it is religious worship or a wholesome hobby.

For me, my hobbies consist of computers and writing: I use my computer to write in my journal, to create electronic music, and to learn about the world and myself.

As for religious worship, I try to spend at least every other day meditating, and reading Buddhist sutras to gain an understanding of the human mind and its essential nature.

Additionally I also read the Bible with an open mind, so as to round out my thirst for the living water of spiritually inspired works.

"God Have Mercy on Me A Sinner"

Each and every day I have had moments where a deep spiritual experience overpowers me for but a moment.

During that time, it is as though God is working through me. Yet I fear God with the obedient respect a Zen disciple pays to his master.

In this moment of clarity of mind, my words do not come easily. For I want to choose my words carefully to explain that I am going through a series of spiritual experiences, which are emotionally uplifting and awe-inspiring.

Years ago, I had this wrong-minded thought that God is part of a duality of good and evil.

Today, I admit that what made such a thought wrong was believing that the Author of good and evil was part of a duality. Instead, I believe God is Creator, and has the power to make things whole.

Since my faith in Him grows with each day, and although my mood may sometimes leave me in doubt, God will always be there for me.

This faith I have in God does not conflict with my Buddhist roots at all, for Buddhism has inculcated in me through meditation the clarity of mind to widen my faith to accept God into my life.

As a Buddhist, I do not worship the Buddha as a god but as the teacher of a useful skill called meditation to cut through spiritual delusion, and to develop the ability to have a strong and enduring faith to enrich my spiritual life.

My growing faith in God does not mean I reject Buddhism, but instead will enrich my spiritual life with a time-honoured tradition with roots extending to an ageless time.

This is not the case of serving two masters, but the opportunity to see that I am willing to let go and let God empower me to be worthy of His undying Love for me.

For God knows what is on my mind and what is in my heart. As a sinner, all I ask of Him is have mercy on me.

The Magic of Being

The Physics of Magic

Ordinary magic is the magic of being, free of calculation and liberated from various occult practices.

Only two complementary rules apply to the magic of being:

1) When you let it be, the magic of being works.

2) When you grasp for it, the magic of being will elude you.

One practises letting it be, abandons grasping for it, and thus allows the magic to work.

All meditations, prayers and spells merely serve as great inspiration calling forth the magic of being to fruitful action.

Indeed, such inspiration enhances creative visualization derived by the magic of being from intention to completion of the task.

When properly inspired a group of people will be able to effect the success of any endeavour.

*Freedom and liberation are activated by non-violent action. When performed with the awareness the cause (the ritual) becomes the effect (freedom).

The two main actions of being are meditation and prayer. Meditation leads to the liberation of ego from attachment. Prayer is the working of a higher power.

Both actions - meditation and prayer - require the full active participation of the person using them.

This is what discipline is: to follow through on an action.

When a person on the spiritual path carefully watches himself, he is a disciple, a follower of the spiritual path he has mindfully chosen.

Thus the magic of being is found in mindful participation by being true to oneself, conquering ego, and living a full life with the higher goal of freeing oneself from the ties that bind us to spiritual ignorance i.e. ‘everyday life’.

In the end, self-knowledge is useful to the way of magic. When I know my limits both of body and of mind I work within those limits, and am free to apply knowledge when needed.

Thus am I free to be the spiritual being, and mindfully actualize the magic of being.

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Originally posted: June 25, 2005 at 1:34 AM
Edited and revised: Sept 4, 2010 at 1:40 PM

Lewis's Trilemma

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis%27s_Trilemma

"I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God. That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronising nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to. ... Now it seems to me obvious that He was neither a lunatic nor a fiend: and consequently, however strange or terrifying or unlikely it may seem, I have to accept the view that He was and is God." -- CS Lewis, Mere Christianity
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Given the brevity of Jesus' life, much of his teachings didn't reach their ultimate conclusion as it did for his ancestor Moses.

Rather, it plays out daily in our everyday lives without most of us being aware of it.

For it begins with humility and a reliance on a higher power...

Desire (poem)

Were I to suppress my desire,
I would sleep my life away,
lost in a dream.
For it is desire
which leads me to practice
mindfulness & awaken to
relief from my mind's unrest.
Without desire,
I would be lost to endless craving,
subject to addiction
with this crazy world.
Everyday I am driven
to practice mindfulness,
until ego is appeased.
Indeed, it is desire
which leads me to practice
mindfulness & awaken to
relief from my mind's unrest.

The World is Ephemeral (poem)

To the dreamer, the world is ephemeral,
both within and without the mind.
No one actually comprehends this truth,
except for the Awakened.

Yet who is this dreamer
that sees all yet is in all of us?
No one truly knows for certain,
except for the Awakened.

So let the dreamer sleep in peace,
lest the world dissolve into the Void.
No one certainly has tried,
except for the Awakened.

For the beauty of Awakening
from this dream is boundless joy
being at one with all,
unconditioned and free.

Many Buddhas Point the Way

Over 2500 years ago, on his deathbed, Gautama Buddha said, to his followers: "Work out your own salvation with diligence."

Afterwards, ancient followers of the Buddhadharma path worked out their salvation, each in their own way.

Influenced by Hindu scholars, the early Buddhist community graciously begged to differ many times, and evolved into three paths of today: the monastic path of Theravada; the bodhisattva path of Mahayana, salvation through one's own power and the other power of Buddhas, bodhisattvas and deities; and, Vajrayana, salvation through Mahayana Buddhist tantric ritual.

Salvation for a Buddhist means spiritual awakening, be it gradual or sudden. Since the Theravada path is not for everyone, the Mahayana path has as many Buddhas as there are schools of Buddhism. Though the Mahayana way has many Buddhas, bodhisattvas and dieties, all of them are symbolic of the Buddhadharma.

For, just as the moon reflects the light of the sun, so too do Buddhas point the way.

Reference:

Death of a Buddha: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parinirvana
Vajrayana: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vajrayana_Buddhism
Mahayana: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahayana
Hinayana: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hinayana
Theravada: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theravada

Buddha-Nature and the Pure Land

Since my goal in this life is not only to prepare for the Pure Land after death, but to affirm faith that Amida is Buddha, and that the Pure Land exists as both a psychological state of mind and as a spiritual place in the heartmind, for the Name-that-calls establishes faith that the Pure Land exists in the afterlife.

It would be spiritual delusion to pretend that a soul goes to the Pure Land.

Rather, in one sense, the spiritual essence, Buddha-nature, returns to the Absolute.

Actually, no returning occurs at all. For the physical body merely dies. Self-as-ego dies with the body. Yet the bodhisattva reborn in the Pure Land represents the karmic destiny of Buddha-nature which is erroneously mistaken for a soul.

For Buddha-nature is no-self.

Think of it this way: all my recitations of Nembutsu are like offerings to the bodhisattva representing my sincere desire to be reborn in the Pure Land. The more I recite and study the Pure Land sutras and commentaries, the greater is this bodhisattva's existence in the Pure Land.

If I were not to recite the Nembutsu, I would still be reborn near the Pure Land as a result of my desire to be reborn there.