27 Jan 2012 Comments Off
Negative Emotions
Buddhism itself, is a skill set that deliberately (from the get go 2500 years ago), teaches you to fish so you can go get your own food supply. It’s an Okie’s survivalist’s Dream.
Go watch the short video on negative emotions from Ringu Tulku. They are cutting off our food supply. We worked on this in class. In this video, Ringu Tulku teaches teaching you to fish and feed yourself with Shantideva’s text.
(Please note that bodhicharya.org is a great resource for videos, plus they have versions for the iPad)
This is Chapter 4, verses 28-32 in the book The Way of the Bodhisattva. Remember, Shantideva wrote for the guy working the Pepsi assembly line, so it’s easy to change yourself with some reflection on this particular video message.
Ringu Tulku’s video update on is pretty powerful release from being a willing abuse victim of one’s own anger. Shantideva is saying, anger comes, and we just sit there like victims; passively and let it abuse us. Without any protest at all, we allow the anger that comes in us, to create our lives into a hell as people react to us. This anger has nothing, no legs, no limbs, no power in itself…but here we go passively along with what it wants.
Ringu Tulku makes clear in a Western sense; Be self sufficient and realize you are not marginalized at all; YOU are in the party. Get with it. Get a life! Survive with all beings as a strong loving giving person; do not hate. It’s the enemy! It’s controlling you and making you fail. Wake up and realize this.
Go listen to this very short video. They were made short because we are busy. It doesn’t get better than this.
Don’t rely on a politician to get you your next meal. It ain’t happenin’ anytime soon. And anger is not going to get you your next job. No matter if you haven’t read the rest of the book. No problem. We are all busy, so just enjoy what you can. We enjoy being non-perfect students at Bodhicharya Oklahoma. We enjoy doing things out of order and we get the job done. We have families and many jobs; problems and crises. So this is the BEST use of Buddhist training! If it doesn’t work here, it doesn’t work. And….it works.
