Kill the SELF
If any Buddhism sect or their instructor told about “Self denial” or “Kill the Self” kind, they are a sham. It was not what Lord Buddha taught 2500 years ago.
(Lord Buddha taught “Selfless” through the practice though, as he didn’t explain the meaning or its intension, it was not necessarily understood by the followers. — Because of the SELF and its notion was not exists, it was not possible to explain. = Can you explain “Self is not exist” without using the word “Self” ? 😀 )
In this situation, could anybody describe what about or significance of the teachings, or the meaning of practice which taught Selfless. = Hence, no description even in Agama. Because the matter was not to understand what the meaning of the word “Selfless” but become able to do the practice without thinking without emotion. ( = completely detouched, which mean without EGO ! )
There are many stories of Buddha’s silence or No-answer. All those questions which was ignored were about the imaginary things, such as infinity, eternal, after a death, perpetual soul kind. Because all those are the imaginary things = deluded by the “Self” which is not even exists. Why bother answer it. In fact, Lord Buddha’s silence = stop talking meant to be a message as strong as to kill the person.
Have you heard a very lucrative investment scheme of the Poca-pinta (10 poca-pinta is about $1) in the Pintaland, where you can buy 1 Kg of Gold for 1,000 Poca-pinta. But to make a deal, you have to send $1000 into a Net Account first. = I don’t think you ever did because no Pintaland exists nor Poca-pinta. Naturally nobody uttered even a word Pintaland = because even the word “Pintaland” is not exists. —– Same as this, When the subject is not exists, no Lord Buddha ever talked about, let alone gave any answer related to it.
By the way, were you aware to be the person who read this stories of Poca-pinta here. Was that YOU ? And did you know the reading was done by your eyes. In FACT, everything has been carried-out without you noticing it = “without noticing” ? So, WHO read those ? —– Since when you were small, you’ve read the texts millions of times and now you can do it with no intentional intent. You can capture a flashing message without reading it but just from its overall pattern. Since, you DO it automatic, without conscious. When you became Self-conscious, because of your EGO, “Me me me” you try to assert YOU and it IS only the situation you try to be Yourself.= Otherwise, in a normal condition, YOU/SELF is not exists. And to read this, you don’t need to have your SELF. Likewise, you can live your life without SELF. It’s mean without having the ugly conflict of the EGO against EGO.
In the first place, Self wasn’t there unless you intentionally made-up. Since, Dharma itself has no Self.
“The person” fist created “SELF” then clung to it = because of own EGO, Me me me, — and made the life awkward. Then try to kill it because it IS too awkward to live with. (How silly.)
Aren’t you doing the same ? (You don’t need to pay an effort to kill the SELF, simply just live in a natural flow, there isn’t any SELF there as Dharma hasn’t one. —– It’s mean, You don’t need to struggle even with this blog = just read like as a casual gossip, though 100 times = if there is any truth, your intuitive wisdom will find it out. If not just forget.) 😀
.
PS : One point shouldn’t be forgotten,— to give up a drink, woman etc and become a follower of the Dharma. — You may see it is a sacrifice and the denial of the happiness and pleasure of the SELF / Me. Or, to get the excitement of a sports and a health, spend the time and money for the training — wasn’t that a price to pay, or a sacrifice, denial to the Self ? . The matter IS which you value positive ?
.
Self-sacrifice — is it same to Selfless ? ? ?
Time to time, a search-term “Self-sacrifice” came to here. = It seems, the Self
is the main issue of Buddhism, Self-sacrifice and Self-denial is always taking
quite an attention. And in deed I myself talked about this in the past.
= I wrote that to reach Zen or Buddhism understanding, it is necessary to
have a self-denial or a self-sacrifice in a certain stage of
the pathway to see who the own Self is.
Though, the Aim of Buddhism is not “Wrestling with the SELF”= try to
eliminate and struggle. But Being Buddhist is simply being selfless,
since the Self is not exists in the first place.
[]
—– You might be confused. This is the same situation like a “Disease”
= say XYZ syndrome. People may talk about what that syndrome is,
how to treat or eradicate it. Though the teaching of
Lord Buddha didn’t mention the existence of such disease. Such disease exists
only in one’s mind = NOT exist mean no point to know about alleged symptom,
let alone how to deny or eradicate it. = In other words, to think Self-denial or
Self-sacrifice as if it was the essence of Buddhism is, utterly a misunderstanding
= Here is a man trying to find and use a fire-extinguisher —– shame, there
wasn’t a fire, he only thought it was.
Don’t mix-up “to know, Fire is not exists” with extinguish a Fire.
Deny the Self is not close or same to the Selfless. Deny mean, the Self has been
defined and confirmed of its existence ! = Wrong direction to start.
[]
In our daily life, fundamentally there isn’t a conscious of Self,
hence things were done Selflessly.
So that, while reading this blog, have you been aware that your eyes are tracing
the line, not mention that YOU ARE reading this. YOU are in deed, doing all those
unconsciously. = Since you were alerted, now you became conscious of YOU.
Otherwise you didn’t need to become conscious of yourself to read this — in fact to
do anything or to live. Ironically, human got over-sized brain and so-called Mind,
even worse got Selfish Ego and Greed kind. When ever you were alerted and
became conscious about your “right” or “gain or loss” this kind of “Mind” often gave
us the interruption — “Hey, it’s a chance” or “Don’t loose” kind. 🙂
Lord Buddha found that this “Imaginary products” is the cause of all the troubles
even though, we can have a life without it. And found that the idea of SELF, the
generator of all those Mind is the root cause, despite it is nothing but an illusion.
So, he taught to have “Clear eyes and the Mind” to distinguish the illusion or delusion
and the Truth. —– Yet still, we poor human tend to cling own Self and accompanying
sense of Self-loving Emotion, so that, when we do something for ourselves, we can not
handle it in the detached clear eyes and the mind. The emotion which bound
the integration of Self is always there.
[]
In contrast, when we needed to do something for somebody else, not all of us are
very keen = We just do it as an extra task = often with quite detached mind, no
pleasure, even no Self conviction there.
(Let the hands do the work. The mind is somewhere else. 🙂 )
You can see that to do something for others, we do it detached, Selfless manner.
When you do, you do it dispassionate as it was seen objectively in quite rational
manner. = Because, it belong to the others, there is no attachment, still has to do
the job, job would be handled dispassionately as a given task. —– this situation
can be seen as the Self-sacrifice. And the dispassionate detached mind was
mixed-up with the selflessness.
= This was how and why the misinterpretation has occurred.
—– Self-denial or Self-sacrifice is not an idea of Buddhism. Still, if there was a
situation to DO, real Buddhist would just DO without any question, since
there was no Self, therefore no wrangling Mind but the Karma put him to DO.
Though, by the eyes of others, it could be seen as if it was a self-sacrifice because
of it was not his own needs, and it was interpreted that he was forced to obey the
situation while denying his own will, himself.
[]
But, to see “Do something to others” only in the view of Self-denial or Self-sacrifice
is in deed the most Un-Buddhist like view.
It is nothing but an Egotistic, stingy, small “mind”. —– Do something could be
a good exercise, do somebody’s work could be new experience — etc etc.
Don’t waste the time clinging with useless mind. Just DO.
___/\___
[]
Self Denial — Self Sacrifice — Duty of Charity — MUSHIN ???
Self Denial – Self Sacrifice – Duty of Charity – MUSHIN ???
This is one of the most misconceived area in the Buddhist’s practice, hence I’ve been asked a
question again and again about the distinction.
Such as like a practice of one of the Buddhist’s sect in Japan, Ittou-en which I had mentioned some post ago,
which member is going around the town, asking household to let them clean their toilet.
This is the practice to learn Self Denial and the Self Sacrifice, and make people’s toilet clean may
seemed it is an act for other’s benefit hence it must be a charity. ( Though it seems quite patronizing )
I can see their point though, in the same time I would rather feel the intention with a pinch of salt.
If a practice to clean somebody else’s faeces could make a person humble and enlightened, the
people in India where particular job has been assigned to one particular cast ( or former cast ) should
have created thousands of enlightened holy man there. ( Never heard of it 😀 )
I’m sure, to clean somebody else’s faeces could destroy the person’s dignity still, not necessary it
destroys the person’s Ego. ( Ego is not dependent on the profession. Arrogance may be )
The more the required practice was dreadful, the more strong will and the determination is needed.
Unfortunately, this strong will, a belief of “ This practice should make ME higher noble person “
and “ I WANT to achieve it, I WANT TO ACHIEVE IT “ is nothing but an obsessive thinking.
Far from it, what Buddha taught was to DO the things without thinking, i.e; in Mushin.
The so-called practice is its formalized form of each sect.—– As everybody has unique grown-up and own
life history, even in the way of learning the same Buddhism, everybody takes different pathway and
as I described, there are three distinctive aspects how people related to the Buddhism, hence to learn
the Mushin, each person would take different approach and the steps.
Hence different expression, explanation were come up, such as Self Denial.
As a matter of fact, Buddha didn’t teach such things at all. What he taught was “ Self is not exist
from the beginning “ ( Since he took a stance against the Vedic idea of Atoman —– he saw it is the cause
of the trouble, as it is the delusion. That is why, he taught the MUSHIN / Mind of No-mind) —– though,
this is one of the hardest part in the Buddhism to understand. ( If anybody has able to achieve
the MUSHIN, it is almost the completion of the enlightenment. )
—–
History of the Buddhism clearly showed this fact, that even Buddha’s immediate disciples are not
necessary understood this. Hence the first few hundreds years, Buddhism have had the time
of Hinayana to Suppress the Self = Denial of the Self = Superficial mimicry of the MUSHIN.
To be in MUSHIN, of cause there is no SELF hence no EGO or Arrogance, Greed.
But try to achieve it from other way round, suppress the SELF first, not necessary works, because of
a thinking of “Deny the self, deny the ego” is there.
———- As you are reading this, only your visual cortex and the brain to configure the word and
their meanings are working = you are not aware the existence of your eyes and
the conscious “I am READING this”. ——- You are reading this in your MUSHIN ! ! !
Buddha also against the practice to torture the mind and the body, therefore the Self Sacrifice is
not in his teachings. It was not the Self Sacrifice but as the ( Enlightened ) person doesn’t have
the Self, the person just react to the situation in the best way or necessary way —– it only happen to
be seen “ the person has sacrificed himself “—– but the person himself was Just Doing It, that’s all.
Same applies to a Charitable act —– “If the one is doing it with a conscious of I’m doing the
Charity, it is not the Charity “ —– so as the Enlightenment. Which occur only in Mushin.
This is the reason why, in the Mahayana Sutras, there are typical expression like “ Exists as not exist “
“Do as not do” hence, do the charity (or help others) without having the conscious of helpingothers.
Without conscious mean, without thinking, without having the
conscious of the Self = DO IT SUBCONSCIOUSLY / SPONTANEOUSLY.
—–
To re-discover the Buddha’s original teachings, Buddhists spent another five hundreds years until
the Mahayana was introduced. And with its new ( or original ) understandings, sacrifice the life
to get Enlightenment as an Arakan ( Arahat ) was rejected, since the matter is not a posture but to
be in MUSHIN, and to be in MUSHIN, anyone and any life-form can get enlightenment as the
Dharma itself is, in its nature. —– But the reason why Buddha remained as a Bhikku ( begger) was
very simple. He was not trained to be a farmer nor any profession, there was no way else to get food.
To have a simple humble life go round the town begging the food was enough for him (and to his followers
together ). It was his simple easiest life style. To live as a Bhikku he didn’t need to think neither. He just lived.
Therefore, to be a Bhikku is not a precondition to get enlightenment, it was just happened to be.
Buddha never accused to be wealthy and had no hesitation to receive their giving of good food and
he ate any food. A funny description in the Vimalakirti Sutra “ You have to mind to receive it from
the poor people as well, in order to give the same opportunity for them to offer the food ( Hence
let them to practice good deed —– for them to attain their Nirvana ) show the situation well. 😀
Buddha’s teaching to those wealthy people to stay modest ( Middle Way ) and the way of giving
in Mushin would lead them to have Nirvana without any danger to reborn to be animal ( Since no such things
of perpetual soul exist ) must be well received by them.
As it was the historical fact, the Buddhism spread and did grow having with the wide support of
the ordinary people. It is impossible to imagine that Buddha asked those people to endure a kind
of practice to sacrifice their life, let alone to clean the faeces in order for them to reach Nirvana,
as Buddha himself rejected the practice to torture the mind and the body.
Simply because Buddha knew, anything can be done in Mushin, and the Mushin has no Ego.
Anything can be done mean, the practice can be anything, hence it doesn’t need to be torturing practice nor
heavy self-denying act. Mushin can be achieved Not What the Practice IS or how to understand it,
but by the Mind-Set = Mind of Just Do It.
—
It is the easy practice, as easy as some late Masters described it as Dog Shit. And as difficult as
non of Buddha’s disciple could understand .
It seemed that Buddha did know the situation, hence he needed to order his disciples “Think yourself,
not just believe what you were taught” in his death-bed.
Its meaning of thinking is, not what the answer they would get, but the process and the effects of
thinking (and effort to figure out in practice) —– “Mushin has no Self, no Ego” was what they had
been taught. And they must have shown well copied practice what they learned from
Buddha. But it was just a copy of the movement, not necessary in Mushin. Buddha must be aware of this.
That was why he needed to give an order to his disciples. —– It was an inherent short-coming of
having the master near you. You can get the explanation easily from him, then you satisfied as you
could understand it (intellectually). The trouble of Mushin is —– you can’t get it with an
understandings or any thinkings. You have to DO it to discover.
—– therefore, many hundreds of years Buddhists monks just argued the definition of Dharma or try to prove
whether the Self is exists or not.
But the situation like this provoked the mind of free-thinker. “What a hell, what are they talking
about ?” which made them aware, that the matter is not whether the Self is exists or not, but it lies
in the phenomenon, that we can do the things without the conscious of the Self, and it can be
done by anybody. ( hence Mahayana ) ! ! ! ” This must be the core, what Buddha had taught.”
This kind of observations never came from the monks who is just sitting and thinking, but from the monks who
are under-taking the chores in the monastery or low-ranking monks walking and begging the food by himself.
That was the reason why, such observation became a noted idea and written-down to the Sutra took long time.
Yet still, they couldn’t go further than the description
of “Do the Charity without having the conscious of Charity” or “Do as not Do”.
Mahayana Buddhists only thought about the DOING side, not knowing how DO changes the mind.
And how this DO came out of one’s brain was completely out of their sight.
—–
To decipher what was the mechanism in the brain / to see the roles of the subconsciousness, took
another 2000 years. ( Until here )
I am well aware and confident, for you to read this post, this 10 minutes opened your eyes to
reach your enlightenment. ( You only need to open your eyes and the mind 🙂 )
___/\___
—–
Third Aspect in Buddhism / in ZEN
If anybody has read my blog all through from the beginning ( thank you very much ) may found
something different tone around the posts about Kisa Gotami and some posts following it.
You are absolutely right. The posts around Kisa Gotami are about one of the main aspect of
the Buddhism —– Buddhism as a Religion. Religion to save the tormented soul. (And also
about the Intellectual snobbism / Philosophy —– this is the Second aspect )
———- Though, I’ve been talking a lot something different, especially in my early posts.
Yes, they are about the Third aspect of the Buddhism especially strongly in the Zen. —– It is the
aspect of the Mind Engineering, and in this aspect, so-called burden, the Self Denial having different
treatment —– since it is not for a salvation of a man but more for the achievement of the person.
—
Third aspect in the Zen is, as the word Engineering suggests, it may remote from the religion
hence it may seem Atheism, hence the person may not end up in the Heaven though, don’t worry
no such things over there. And even if you were reborn to a dog, there shouldn’t be any trouble as
no dog remember the former life or the name. ( I never met any dog telling me his former life, so far 😀 )
To deny such deluded idea of the Perpetual Soul, therefore to deny the same person can be reborn
to a dog, was the starting point of Buddha.
Anyhow, before talking about after a death, to regain the sanity out of tormented mind is the way to
save one’s miserable life —– that is Buddha’s approach.
When a part of a machine was twisted and jammed, whole machine wouldn’t work properly.
So that before imagining what dreamy product the machine could make, repair the parts and
adjust each part of the movement and make it works perfect, is the first thing to do.
Same to this, to re-construct one’s life out of misery, has to start from a part to part, step by step.
Re-adjust the way to operate and the way to carry out the daily life —– and on the process,
to learn the way to see the mechanism, how they work together, in what principle. —– and as
the result, one can operates their machine or life perfect, therefore
able to create perfect product / LIFE.
This pragmatic approach IS the Teaching of BUDDHA.
Hence, in the Buddhism the practice is inseparable as it is the way to learn how to see and
to know the principle operating in there. This principle is the Dharma.
———- So that, the Buddhism’s structured approach to the practice having the most effective
way and the wisdom to DO the Things and achieve the highest standard. ( To see the proof,
have look the Japanese products 😀 —– But don’t ask me why the products from other
Buddhist’s country are not necessary so. —– it’s really a good question 😀 )
—-
To see the way how the approach of the Buddhism ( or Zen ) can solve the question in a field of
to DO something, is the Third aspect in the Buddhism. In here, there is not necessary
tormented soul or miserable life, the precondition of Self Denial having different aspect too.
Such as a case of a sportsman is the best sample, in there, it is the fight against the Oneself.
And its effect or the result doesn’t appear anywhere other than in practice, it got
not much use for an intellectual interest. ” As long as you are thinking, you can’t do it “
—
On the end, the key element in all aspects of the Buddhism is the MUSHIN, mind of no-mind.
Though, anyone who wants to be saved out of misery, needs to get rid of the Ego,
hence needs to have Self Denial first. ( One small sect of Buddhists in Japan, Ittou-en going around and
asking the household to let them clean their toilet in order to have one’s Ego to be denied —– though, the
toilet is a genitals of a house, not open to the public —– it might be better them picking dog shit on the street
than invading somebody else’s privacy, in the name of religion —– still it’s their practice)
To a tormented soul, as the person’s mind had been through the torment and its Ego had been
defeated already, and as long as the person can see the Karma straight ( without twisted view, misdirected
grudge etc which is caused by an arrogance —– so that it need to have personal consultation ) the process
of Self Denial has been done.— Hence the person can go to the next stage while having proper direction.
—
Yet, the one who doesn’t care end up in the hell ( 😀 ) but still aiming highly tuned life and the
freedom of creativity and actuary want to Do it —– gain the Mushin by doing it as a practice.
This is so-called a technique of the mindfulness —– to eliminate any thinking in the brain, even the subject.
It is the process to re-program your subconscious, hence Mind Engineering.
You may find the explanation for each sample and others, in my old post somewhere.
( I should make the Key-word index —– for a moment, seek is your part of practice. Just Do It 😀 )
___/\___
—
Hidden burden in BUDDHISM
Hidden is not necessary appropriate word. To the people who is aware of it, it is nothing new but
because of it is not convenient or sound nice, it has been stashed away or intentionally ignored, hence
it was rarely talked about, —– YET, it is the most crucial element and the steps of which
a Buddhist had to take once in their pathway.
—–
Go back to the Kisa Gotami story, —– What was her Contemplation ?
Was that just an acceptance of the life’s reality and the surrender to a force of the Dharma ?.
What was the meaning “Surrender” to the Dharma ? —– obviously, it is silly to stand against the Dharma,
therefore, it is no point to talk about the general condition of human existence, as man’s
existence is a minute from the beginning.
Superficially the teaching in the story of Kisa Gotami is an acceptance of the life’s undeniable reality= Dharma.
Yet hidden in the story, was her Self Denial —– not just accept the Dharma, but there was much more
personal, strong feeling of the failure, as a mother and a wife.
In fact, it was a rigid patriarchal society where a wife’s role and the duty was to bear a son.
A woman can assert her status only as the mother of the heir. Having her son’s death, she was
facing not only the grief of her loved child but a crisis to be branded as a woman of failure.
—– To accept the emotional trauma of both grief and the feeling of failure in fully minded
depth was, in deed her contemplation.
Discovering the harsh reality and found no possibility to find the seeds to revive her dead child,
psychologically she was stripped naked, left alone in the void of blank space —– she became
a clean blank sheet of paper, well prepared to listen the teaching of Buddha.
And Buddha knew she will reach to this state of mind when she come back. ( That’s why he sent
her out for a journey ) So that, when Buddha saw her come back without carrying heavily deluded
expectation and clean calmed face, he gave her kind consolation and the words of wisdom.
—-
Often forgotten or rather intentionally ignored fact of the Buddha’s life is that,
once Buddha was a renegade of the ascetic holy man’s lank.
In order to soften the blow, this story was changed to rather positive description of that
Buddha found the better way to reach the truth, other than torturing the body and the mind —– though,
the eyes of the society then and to the mind of himself, he knew he was a renegade until
Buddha found his own answer —– real truth and the way to reach there.
In the man’s life, anything has happened was, in fact placed there to be happened.
Same apply to the Buddha’s life as well. —– If he didn’t join the holy man’s lank and learned among them
and then abandon its practice, the Buddhism today is not exists.
In other words, the elements and the experiences Buddha gained while he spent a time among
the ascetics, and above all, the contemplation he got when he became a renegade was a key
to reach the Buddhism.
When Buddha abandon and let such practice go, he was literally a broke. no margin to retain
any ego or arrogance left, and having the deep blank space in his mind —– the mind was
completely open. Buddha was ready to configure his understanding from the deep depth of
his subconsciousness. ——————-> (read again and have enough time to visualize those words)
And Buddha’s blank space in his mind, completely open subconscious inspiration was
able to see the invisible rules of the Dharma which we call Panya Paramita.
Here the Buddhism was born.
—–
It must be clear, it sound not very pretty though, a defeated completely lost mind, or utterly
desperate feeling of failure, —– utterly denied and hopeless ego, utterly powerless feeling
and so on, —– is the key to gain a blank space or completely open humble mind.
Which can be bracketed as a Self Denial.
May be not, not pretty, but sound rather dreadful 😀
But this is the key step to start to receive the teachings. —– hidden and yet another unfortunate
aspect of the Buddhism.
Yet, even The Great Teacher Buddha went through this, how can we avoid to take this step ?
Sound too much ? —– OK, I leave the analysis to the next post 🙂
___/\___
—
Yoshizen's Blog 
leave a comment