$h*T happens (page 2)

jaguarbass

Being a witness can really mess up ones thinking.

Bodhisattva1320

With all due respect to Buddah and our gentle posters, I think I'll take "suffering".

it doesnt seem that we have much choice about it does it ;) - just how we handle the suffering i suppose

my main point is that the WTS sets it believers up with unrealistic expectations. so the desire to fulfill these is the true problem IMHO

:)

daystar

I studied Buddhism for a while. But something occurred to me as I studied certain other subjects as well.

What you direct the focus of your mind to will tend to gain prominence in your life.

By the buddhist focus upon suffering and upon suppression of natural emotional responses they are, IMO, suggesting deadening ourselves rather than addressing the issues, inner or otherwise... It's like the religious version of using anti-depressants to hide oneself from the realities of life. (FWIW, I have nothing against using anti-depressants at all, within reason.)

Birth is suffering, aging is suffering, illness is suffering, death is suffering; union with what is displeasing is suffering; separation from what is pleasing is suffering; not to get what one wants is suffering; in brief, the five aggregates subject to clinging are suffering.

I mean, how depressing is that? To equate all life, all existence purely as suffering? Keep in mind that these ideas were formulated by a Princewho, pampered to the extreme his entire life, never seeing how the rest of the world lived, was shocked leaving his little garden of eden to find a slum outside. (Or that's how the story goes.)

Why should all the items listed above be about suffering?

No doubt buddhist masters gain some amount of practical results. I acknowledge that, I respect that. But I spent too much time with Christianity telling me all life is sinful to spend much in another religion that makes basically the same philosophical claim of the nature of existence.

That being said, my favorite old Buddhist saying, "If you meet the Buddha on the road, kill him."

Makena1

This tee shirt sums things up well www.evolvefish.com/fish/media/T-Religions2.jpg

daystar

The way I try to deal with hardships now is to try to recognize that some of the most tragic events in my life set the stage for some very wonderful things to happen.

I recognize that the way things are, right now, for me, is exactly the way they should be. It is as if the entire Universe, all previous events, came together to cause this moment in time to exist just as it does. This makes, to me, every single moment in time precious. Any suffering I experience today is paving the way for who I am to be tomorrow.

If I had not experienced the hardships I have in my life, I would not be the person I am today. And I quite like who I am. So, in a sense, I can do nothing but celebrate them at least as much as the positive experiences.

Wasanelder Once

"A roaring lion" my ass. Cause and effect. Become a religious fanatic and you'll reap the hatred of more stable people. Don't put air in your tires, suffer bad milage. Walk down the street minding your own business and a gang banger shoots you from his car. Its all cause and effect. It just happens to be that we didn't know we were walking in the middle of a gang territory with the wrong color shirt. The cause is there, we just happen to be ignorant. The effect could have been expected if we were informed. We just aren't always informed. Often its the survivors who are informed.

Sad but true. Satan? Not a problem...... Satan makes Jehoover valid.

W.Once

Gopher

Something unusual happens!!!!!!

A JW is taught that this MUST be the intervention of either Satan or Jehovah in your life.

Because as a JW, you (and fellow JW's) are the focal point of the great spiritual battle occurring between Satan and his forces, and Jehovah and his forces.

This is a branch of the 'universal sovereignty' issue, and it is particularly useful to the WT Society because it makes their adherents believe that any little thing that happens in their life is because of the Kingdom / Universal Sovereignty issue. It reminds them how faithful they must be to their great idol, the WT Bible and Tract Society.

It all seems very superstitious, looking back.

Like Stevie Wonder's song said, when you believe in things you don't understand, it's superstition!

Bodhisattva1320

No doubt buddhist masters gain some amount of practical results. I acknowledge that, I respect that. But I spent too much time with Christianity telling me all life is sinful to spend much in another religion that makes basically the same philosophical claim of the nature of existence

agreed i feel the same - i personally find these teaching extremely practical and liberating. i am not part of the religion. and as far as i know buddhists don't have a concept of sin(?) not sure, as i am more interested and have read more info about the mystical buddhist (tibetan) and not the conventional.

it seems that many people turn to religions in order to cope with the suffering that IS just a part of life. i like the realistic approach of yea 'shit' happens- how you deal with it, how you let it affect you is what will be the defining factors- NOT the approach of 'what did i do wrong or why is god punishing me.'

so the basic idealogy of being non attached to your desires (expectations, internal OR external) can be quite liberating as in our western culture we identify so heavily on 'how our life has turned out' or 'these bad things happening to me' meaning a lot of self judgement.

k im done LOL :) thanks everyone !

Bodhisattva1320

Purp, during the time I was a jw, I could not understand why things never seemed to work out right. Or the way I expected.
All the stress and anger I had, got even worse when the elders interfered in my marriage. All said and done it ended in divorce and me df'd.
I felt I had to see a psychologist and after our first visit, he hands me a small book on psychology that states plainly right up front , that LIFE IS DIFFICULT.
I read the whole damned book in one week. The next visit he talks about my life and asks questions about the jw's and their requirements. Then he described just how this cult increased the demand of almost every aspect of my life.
Then he talked about the mental confusion "dissonance" that happens when what is claimed to be truth by an important "in our mind" source, does not agree with what we see in real life, but we aren't aware enough, to place the blame where it belongs.
After this is where I began to "change me", to fit into the reality of life and not the lies of the wbts.
Outoftheorg
Oddly enough Years later I had a conversation with a local religious minister and the subject of psychology came up. Then during our visit he made this statement. "You know that psychology can destroy ones spirituality." I felt like saying "yeah, that's why I love it". But I didn't.

i love your entire post!!!!!

Seeker4

Bodhisattava,

Been reading a lot of your posts since you came on here. You're very bright. I like how you think.

S4

$h*T happens

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