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[personal profile] dotinthesky
What is the simplest way to say that I am a Buddhist?

Please refrain from reading this with cynicism.

If you contaminated yourself, then passed on that disease to a loved on... well, I'm not going to blame you anymore. You are a victim too. And if you said something horrible, or I said something horrible, then I want you to know that I am sitting here now, alone, trying to find a way to dispel that negative energy and not let my emotions engage with what doesn't exist. If you found a cave and it was warm enough to live in, maybe you could invite me over some day.

Have you ever met a Buddhist guru? I wonder what they would say to me. All the fortune-tellers have taken my hands, or laid down the cards, and said wonderful things. But scary things too. I wish sometimes that someone would come along and shatter my ego. The Kirlian photograph I took many years ago showed my aura to be very white - the sign of a large ego.

Please destroy my ego. I think I can take it. Or I'll try to bounce it off, like a mirror in a fun house. Like one of the mirrors in the Hayward Gallery fuckingpieceof9poundswastedshitsundaysaturdaywasteddaycrapradio ok you get the point.

A woman was meditating in silence for days, in a retreat. She couldn't talk and slowly her other senses took over the space her mouth had left behind. She noticed the birds outside, their individual faces and the relationships they had with each other. I see this sometimes, but very briefly, and it never occured to me that it might be special. Nature, for some people, is a factory of battery chicken.

I might try to become a vegetarian again, like I was in Montreal. Cows are pretty. And chickens are cuddly.

ollie yollie yollie

on 2004-10-18 06:12 pm (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] i-am-scowling.livejournal.com
"You take yourself too seriously," [don Juan] said slowly. "You are too damn important in your own mind."

Have you read Journey to Ixtlan? If not, then you really should. I think it would help you clear out the ego issue. Dropping the ego is definitely the hardest thing for us humans...I didn't realize it would be that difficult to stop putting importance on the self.


And come back to vegetarians! I could send you a PETA video that may convince you ;)

<3

Re: ollie yollie yollie

on 2004-10-19 02:16 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
Thank you for the suggestion! I just finished my book on Tibetan Buddhism so I'll look for the one you mentioned. :)

I spoke to my housemate last night and we decided to give vegetarianism a go - see what happens.

Re: ollie yollie yollie

on 2004-10-19 04:46 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] i-am-scowling.livejournal.com
oooh, what book on tibetan buddhism?

Re: ollie yollie yollie

on 2004-10-19 05:08 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
It's this one (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0393019683/qid=1098187580/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/104-5167856-3071137?v=glance&s=books)

It's a story of Tibetan Buddhism in the 20th century, but specially seen through key Buddhists that fled Tibet and those in America or Europe. The stories are just incredible, but there's also a lot of the religion's meaning that comes through the way their lives turned out. Actually, it's not even a religion but more of a type of spiritual way of living.

Re: ollie yollie yollie

on 2004-10-19 05:17 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] i-am-scowling.livejournal.com
i'm going to have to check that out.


i think that's why i like buddhism: rather than being an institution, like religion, it's this tradition of living spiritually, it's light like air.

Re: ollie yollie yollie

on 2004-10-19 05:21 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
It is... I have this big-headed feeling that it's actually the religion or spiritual path closest to the truth. It's so simple and yet it doesn't leave out any aspect of life. I even like what the Dalai Lama had to say about gays: "if two people love each other and aren't doing harm to each other, what's wrong with it?" The Pope, for example, would never be big enough to recognize that simple truth.

Re: ollie yollie yollie

on 2004-10-19 06:30 pm (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] i-am-scowling.livejournal.com
HAHA you are so right; it's simple truths that are not colored by out current preconcieved notions, tainted by our constructed society.

Re: ollie yollie yollie

on 2004-10-20 02:19 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
or by the current political point of view.

on 2004-10-19 06:41 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] vilia64.livejournal.com
You are the first person I have talked to in a long time who even knew what Tibetan Buddhism was! *sigh* (of relief) My father was a Rinpoche here in California (haha, an Italian Buddhist monk-) and most of my family was raised to be Buddhist. We a lot of friends in Buddhist circles and I've even had the honor of meeting His Holiness the Dalai Lama with my brother who's head of the San Francisco chapter of Bay Area Friends of Tibet. Haha- if you ever want to talk, let me know. :)

on 2004-10-19 06:56 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
That is so great! I've fallen in love with the Tibetan form of Buddhism, so anything you can tell me about it would be awesome. Maybe write a post about your experiences? I'm impressed that you met the Dalai Lama. What did you talk about?

Also, what books can you recommend?

on 2004-10-19 07:27 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] vilia64.livejournal.com
Well anything by the Dalai Lama, like "The Art of Happiness"- to be able to write books like he has about happiness, prosperity, and compassion is an enormous feat considering his country has been occupied by Chinese committing mass genocide and murdering Tibetan monks. For the most, he is a happy, an jovial man. He is very sweet and was very impressed by my brother's organization.

He said that sometimes it is the non-Tibetans that do more for the cause of his people. Because they can do more- my brother's wife's family escaped from Tibet after the occupation and like the Dalai Lama lived in India in exile. Haha, we also talked about old movies. He's a funny guy- if you've ever seen "Seven Years In Tibet", you'd see the story of the Dalai Lama and Heinrich Harrer who are still friends (Brad Pitt played Heinrich) also Kundun, and Little Buddha. Good films.

I have several titles on my bookshelf which I'll write down and email you- (I'm at work right now, hahaha)

This is the Bay Area Friends of Tibet website- http://friends-of-tibet.org/index.html Both my brother and his Tibetan wife help to run the organization. http://friends-of-tibet.org/contacts.html you can see my brother Giovanni and his wife Tsering in that picture.

on 2004-10-19 07:36 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
That's brilliant! Now I feel like you came to my LJ friends' list for a reason... this one!

here's my email: olliefern @ yahoo. co. uk

on 2004-10-19 07:45 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] vilia64.livejournal.com
:)

muah! xoxo

I'll send you lists- :)

on 2004-10-19 07:47 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
thank you!

on 2004-10-19 08:50 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] violentlyhappy.livejournal.com
Eu gostaria de ser budista tambem...Agora sou catolico por cause dos meus pais, mas nao sou praticante - nao acredito-o, mas acredito na vida para alem da morte...

Que livro voce tem lido? Vou a comprar-o! =o) Ja tenho um livro sobre o Dalai Lama se quiser ler-o.

on 2004-10-19 09:00 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
Leia os outros comentarios neste post. Coloquei um link para o livro que acabei de ler. :)

Minha mae tem o livro do Dalai Lama... vou emprestar dela. Mas obrigado por oferecer.

on 2004-10-19 09:11 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] violentlyhappy.livejournal.com
Oooh sim, encontrei-o, obrigado! =o) Comprarei uma copia dele durante a semana =oD

E nao tem de que, se eu encontrasse mais livros que pode querer ler, di-lo-ei =o)

on 2004-10-19 09:13 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
Espero que goste tanto do livro quanto eu! Achei as estorias dentro dele muito maravilhosas.

on 2004-10-19 09:29 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] violentlyhappy.livejournal.com
Espero assim tambem! =o) esta religiao me fascinou ha sempre, gostaria mesmo de passar um par dos meses a viver em Tibet - que pais tao bonito! ♥ Poderia acostumar-se bem a cultura e aprender muito sobre a religiao.

Assistiu a reportagem sobre os himalayas domingo passado? Foram a Lhasa para ver os mosteiros... =o)

on 2004-10-20 02:14 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
Nao!!! Eu perdi... mas talvez haja uma reprise. Tambem gostaria muito de visitar o Tiber, ver suas montanhas lindas.

on 2004-10-19 09:34 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] suede.livejournal.com
Great you are going to be veggie again. :)
Well, or great that you think about it even in the case you wont do it at last.

on 2004-10-20 02:18 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
I was a vegetarian for a year and a half... so it wouldn't be so hard to get back into it. The only problem is that I love meat. :)

on 2004-10-20 07:27 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] suede.livejournal.com
Its all in your mind.
The other day I read something funny about it:

I am not a vegetarian because I love animals; I am a vegetarian because I hate plants.
A. Whitney Brown

:D

on 2004-10-20 08:20 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
That's very good! I think I'm going to start quoting that, together with this one:

- If people throw lemons at you, make a lemonade.
Mariah Carey.

on 2004-10-20 08:27 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] suede.livejournal.com
:D
I didnt mean that Whitney...

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0112944/

on 2004-10-20 08:29 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
Haha... ops!
(deleted comment)

on 2004-10-23 01:16 pm (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
Chickens eat spiders...
(deleted comment)

on 2004-10-23 05:19 pm (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
They won't eat pretty cows!
(deleted comment)

on 2004-10-24 02:54 pm (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
If that's their nature, then no. It's only evil when it goes against its nature. But don't quote me on this because I've still got a few million lives ahead of me before I reach enlightment.
(deleted comment)

on 2004-10-25 09:27 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
If you ignore your body for example and focus purely on your mind. Or if you fight your urges. See any Baptist or Born Again Christian for examples.
(deleted comment)

on 2004-10-26 04:39 pm (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
I don't think so. Nature doesn't have a mind of its own, for example. The mind is a purely human phenomenon and easily influenced by non-natural things such as machines and videogames.
(deleted comment)

on 2004-10-27 10:53 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
But are the contents of the mind natural? So, what you are saying is that there is nothing "unnatural" in the universe? I hope you are not implying that there is no EVIL?
(deleted comment)

on 2004-10-28 12:18 pm (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
That's very Jungian of you. I like that. ;)

I do agree with you. Evil itself has changed its definition over times - a definition that we create. Burning women for growing herbs seemed like a good thing to do centuries ago. Now, I'm not so sure.
(deleted comment)

on 2004-10-29 10:55 am (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
Burning them in the throes of passion, sure <--bad joke.

But getting them crispy only causes a stink. :P
(deleted comment)

on 2004-10-30 12:15 pm (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
We could make a reality show out of that. Every week we eject one into outer space.
(deleted comment)

on 2004-10-30 05:27 pm (UTC)
Posted by [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
We could send all those women from The View to outer space and let them eat each other. I bet the chinese one would be the first to be roasted.

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