Comments on: Identity, Self, Karma, Buddhism, Survival of Death, Etc…. http://blog.paradigm-sys.com/archives/286 Sat, 04 Feb 2012 23:15:15 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 By: Rocket http://blog.paradigm-sys.com/archives/286/comment-page-1#comment-17562 Rocket Thu, 28 Jan 2010 16:07:51 +0000 http://blog.paradigm-sys.com/?p=286#comment-17562 I've never been good with theoretical understandings of subtleties of consciousness. Compared to direct experience it seems more like clutter that obscures even impedes, if it replaces direct experience ... though we are all different. It took considerable diligence and careful application of a deceptively simple technique ... we westerners may start with a giant deficit in that department, I sure did. Simple was hard for me to get. From the instant our eyes pop open in the morning until they close at night incessant mental chatter obscures things. We are working overtime. It's exhausting. Below is a link to a discussion of Vedic and Buddhist philosophy and practice plus research indicating application these practices correlates with increased PSI function. It did / does for me and I've been amazed and delighted (astonished and blown away) at what is possible with doing less instead of more. A small bit of achievement with "quiescense" ie Shamatha seems to have opened realms that could fill/ fulfill the remainder of this life.... http://www.brainwaving.com/2010/01/03/shifting-consciousness-six-years-with-yogis-and-tibetan-buddhists/ I’ve never been good with theoretical understandings of subtleties of consciousness. Compared to direct experience it seems more like clutter that obscures even impedes, if it replaces direct experience … though we are all different. It took considerable diligence and careful application of a deceptively simple technique … we westerners may start with a giant deficit in that department, I sure did. Simple was hard for me to get. From the instant our eyes pop open in the morning until they close at night incessant mental chatter obscures things. We are working overtime. It’s exhausting.

Below is a link to a discussion of Vedic and Buddhist philosophy and practice plus research indicating application these practices correlates with increased PSI function. It did / does for me and I’ve been amazed and delighted (astonished and blown away) at what is possible with doing less instead of more. A small bit of achievement with “quiescense” ie Shamatha seems to have opened realms that could fill/ fulfill the remainder of this life….

http://www.brainwaving.com/201.....-six-years -with-yogis-and-tibetan-buddhists/

]]> By: Tor http://blog.paradigm-sys.com/archives/286/comment-page-1#comment-17561 Tor Tue, 26 Jan 2010 08:50:04 +0000 http://blog.paradigm-sys.com/?p=286#comment-17561 I'm not sure I can help you to good conclusion, but one thing came to mind when I read about the absence of a permanent self. I am no Buddhist, and know little about Buddhist views, but I do practice Qigong, and my experience here leads me to agree with some of the insights claimed by Buddhist mediators. If they by no permanent self mean that there is nothing permanent inside us, I think I disagree. If they mean no "real" personality, then I agree. What little insights I've gained from seeing what goes on in my body/mind, is that there are a lot of fluctuating processes (emotions, thoughts, lines of behaviour, little programs etc.) going on all the time. None of them are real as in permanent. They are transitory. Much of these processes is what we use to create the identity of personality. So this again means our personality is always changing and of a transitory nature. What is left if all those processes stop? Awareness. Can awareness have a personality? No, I don't think so. So as far as my own experience goes, I'd say awareness is the only permanent thing in us. It isn't a typical watcher though, as a homunculus in the head. I don't know what I will find out if I manage to completely still the mind and go deeper. I also remember an interview of Alan Wallace over at skeptiko.com. This issue of no-self came up, and he pointed out that there was a lot of misunderstanding about this concept. He referred to the Buddha who had him self said something like "I do not say there is no self, nor do I say that there is a self", and this then should lead to a discussion about what people meant when they use the word "self". I’m not sure I can help you to good conclusion, but one thing came to mind when I read about the absence of a permanent self. I am no Buddhist, and know little about Buddhist views, but I do practice Qigong, and my experience here leads me to agree with some of the insights claimed by Buddhist mediators.

If they by no permanent self mean that there is nothing permanent inside us, I think I disagree. If they mean no “real” personality, then I agree. What little insights I’ve gained from seeing what goes on in my body/mind, is that there are a lot of fluctuating processes (emotions, thoughts, lines of behaviour, little programs etc.) going on all the time. None of them are real as in permanent. They are transitory. Much of these processes is what we use to create the identity of personality. So this again means our personality is always changing and of a transitory nature. What is left if all those processes stop? Awareness. Can awareness have a personality? No, I don’t think so. So as far as my own experience goes, I’d say awareness is the only permanent thing in us. It isn’t a typical watcher though, as a homunculus in the head. I don’t know what I will find out if I manage to completely still the mind and go deeper.

I also remember an interview of Alan Wallace over at skeptiko.com. This issue of no-self came up, and he pointed out that there was a lot of misunderstanding about this concept. He referred to the Buddha who had him self said something like “I do not say there is no self, nor do I say that there is a self”, and this then should lead to a discussion about what people meant when they use the word “self”.

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