[Buddha-l] Re: Greetings from Oviedo

[Benito Carral]

On Thursday, October 6, 2005, Joy Vriens wrote:

>> Today  I was talking with a friend for some hours. I
>> explained him my view on Western society and why I'm
>> leaving  Oviedo  in some months to live a completely
>> different life that he doesn't understand.

> You  are  referring  to  your Conversion project, you
> mentioned a while ago?

   Yes,  it  has  much  to do with it, although that is
just  a  short-term  goal  included  in  a broader life
strategy.


>> So  I  think  that not losing oneself in impermanent
>> amusements  is  not  to be a pessimist but a realist
>> guy.

> If  I  could lose myself in impermanent amusements, I
> would  be  amusing  myself all the time. But I am too
> much  of  a natural Jansenist, to be able to do that.
> We Buddhists are second category humans, we shouldn't
> forget  that.  It  is  those who can amuse themselves
> that are superior human beings, not us.

   I  have  enjoyed  your  way  of expressing it. :-) I
can't lose myself in such entertainment, either. I have
always  been  unable  to  do  it.  Maybe  the Old Guy's
teachings  are  just  a  smart  way of dealing with the
innate  incapacity  of  some of us to lose ourselves in
impermanent  amusements.  You are right, I suppose that
we are nonfunctional westerners.


> Frankly,  I don't know what *his* general message is.
> But  end  of  dukkha  is  an  excellent lowest common
> denominator of Buddhism in general.

   I  agree.  But  I  tend to take the Old Indian Guy's
word  and  believe  that  his  only goal was the end of
dukkha.


>> The other one said that happiness is not feeling bad
>> and  feeling  good  sometimes,  and  a  good  way to
>> achieve it, she said, is to be entertained.

> I agree with her, if by being entertained she doesn't
> necessarily mean superficial amusement.

   That  rises  the  interesting  question  of  what  a
"superficial amusement" is.

> Anyway,  the construction of our life, the weaving of
> all  the threads that constitutes our life is nothing
> else  than  entertainment,  a sort of escape from the
> nothingness.

   We  could  even  redefine Buddhist meditation as the
art  of  being  entertained not matter how bad the show
is.


> You probably know the famous quote

> "There  is,  O  monks,  an  unborn,  an  unbecome, an
> unmade, an unconditioned; [...]

   I  know.  :-) We are dealing here with a controversy
that has lasted more than two millennia now, so I would
only say that, as far as I'm concerned, the Old Guy was
just  looking  for  the  ultimate  way  out.

   It's  quite  interesting  that the Cosmic Award (TM)
for  being a non-attached, peaceful and wise individual
is  final extinction (khandhaparinibbaana). (That's why
if one is a Buddhist and doesn't believe in rebirth, he
could  come  to  think  that killing others is the best
bodhisattvic endeavor, but I'm digressing here.)

   Best wishes,

   Beni