[Buddha-l] Re: on eating meat

[Hugo]

Hello Mike,

On 10/25/05, Mike Austin <mike at lamrim.org.uk> wrote:
> Of course, every Buddhist practitioner reflects on such things.

I wouldn't be so sure about that.


>  And yet
> we live from day to day. We do our shopping for the evening meal because
> we expect to be around to eat. That is the way it is for us because that
> is the way we currently see things.  We have to start from where we are,
> with the views and experiences we have, and gradually change it around.

I agree.



> >If you try to be something, be either the best person, or the worse
> >person, dukkha will arise.
>
> If you do nothing to stop dukkha, dukkha will arise. Our habits are more
> often the cause of dukkha than of happiness. They need to be changed.

You have to do something but in a skilfull way.

If you see that somebody is doing harm to himself and you want to help
him you need to find a skilfull way to do it otherwise it may be
worse.

Sometimes it is precisely the wanting to stop dukkha what makes dukkha
arise.  There I would say it is an unskilfull wanting.

Let me give you a real-life example......I am reading a book (from
Ajahn Buddhadasa), why? because I want to stop dukkha..........people
are making noise........I can't concentrate.....I can't read.....I get
angry.......  huh?

Why do I get angry?

Because I can't read the book.

I can't read the book, so what?, well, I believe that if I don't read
the book I will not be helping in my attaining of Nibbana, but now I
am angry! which is 180 degrees opposite to the reason why I am reading
the book!

I stopped reading and started contemplating the anger, the noise,
etc.....then peace arose.....do I need to read that book now?  no.



> >Why does something dies? because it was born, ergo when  "a good
> >person" is born, it will get sick, old and die, which is not a path to
> >the Deathless.
>
> Birth, sickness, old age, death, can be accompanied by different levels
> of dukkha according to the mental state of the individual.

You didn't get the point I was making.

Let's try with Ajahn Chah:

One person asked Ajahn Chah what was better to try to become a
Bodhisatva or an Arahant.  His reply "Don't become anything".


> Quite. That is why I said it is a critical balance. Sitting on one's bum
> 'in the moment' without purpose or effort, one would never reach Nirvana
> either.

With "no purpose or effort" I agree.  But it has to be a skilfull
purpose and effort.


> >I think it was Luang Po Atulo who was asked "Which defilement should I
> >get rid of first?", his reply: "the one that appears first".
>
> That is because it is the strongest one - at that moment.

No, that is because stopping the defilement immediately will prevent
other defilements to arise.


--
Hugo