http://www-personal.umich.edu/~draqon/sciforums/Empty_empty___by_loganart.jpg

What steps do I need to take to be at peace with oneself and people surrounding me no matter how loving or hatefull they are?

What steps do I need to reach the peace of a buddhist mind?

How can I attain nirvana, without drugs and such?

[IMG]What steps do I need to take to be at peace with oneself and people surrounding me no matter how loving or hatefull they are?

When your emotions go out of control, try to watch them. Imagine yourself as a rock unaffected by roaring stream of water passing by.

When your emotions go out of control, try to watch them.

my emotions do not go out of control, i lock the hate inside me. And thats what I want to halt...the hate to others that I have, their happiness, their constant smiles, their laughter, their lifes full of joy and future that I am so far away from.

Imagine yourself as a rock unaffected by roaring stream of water passing by..

I will try.

What steps do I need to take to be at peace with oneself and people surrounding me no matter how loving or hatefull they are?

Well to accomplish that you would have to eliminate all insecurities (or impressions) within you...then no one can really harm you, you'll become fearless, free from all anger, enjoying every infinitismal moment


What steps do I need to reach the peace of a buddhist mind?

You should read up Buddhist scriptures and follow Buddha's teachings, read many many Buddhist scriptures, the pali canons...

You can achieve peace, but peace is nothing compared to the highest degree of happiness


How can I attain nirvana, without drugs and such?
Whoever said you need drugs? Just meditate, control your mind, practice exercises, etc.....

http://www.lioncity.net/buddhism/index.php
Good on-line resource for the basics.

We are all already buddhists whether we realise it or not...that is if one subscribes to the notion that Buddhism is a 'science of the mind'.

There are many styles of Buddhism - personally I find the zen flavour most suited to the post-modern lifestyle.

the hate to others that I have, their happiness, their constant smiles, their laughter, their lifes full of joy and future that I am so far away from.

Why would you hate someone for their happiness?

Why would you hate someone for their happiness?

because I am on the same level as they are yet I cannot enjoy and be happy as they are.

Lots of people have attained what you want without calling themselves Buddhists. Buddhist is just a word assigned to certain ideals by some asian cultures.

I believe its just like being a musician in that there are physical and mental pre-conditions. You cant create music without a certain amount of manual dexterity and some knowledge of theory.

And so it is with meditation - the driving wheel of enlightenment.

because I am on the same level as they are yet I cannot enjoy and be happy as they are.

What level is that?

Maybe you are unhappy because you are denying yourself some of the many pleasures that most people regard as normal. Sexual frustration is one of the greatest downers known to man and is totally unnatural. At 20 years old, you should be at your sexual peak, easily having sex at least 1-4 times a day. The mind also needs a shake up from time to time and though I don't condone chronic or heavy use of alcohol and drugs, I do believe that some things should be tried ocassionally at least for the experience.

Ok, forget the booze and drugs, they're not absolutely necessary, at least not for everyone, but you still need to get yourself out of your staid, stoical, pious, moralistic rut. Get out in the big wild world and have some adventures. Go biking, canoeing, mountain climbing. Maybe that's too tough. Ok, go out bowling with a bunch of friends, have a beer or two and a laugh. Go to gym; do martial arts; do sports; learn a musical unstrument and play with other people. The key here is to involve yourself with other real live people.

Buddhism is all very well, but before you consider giving up the physical world for a more spiritual existence / non-existence, you should at least get a taste of what you intend to give up.

http://www-personal.umich.edu/~draqon/sciforums/Empty_empty___by_loganart.jpg

What steps do I need to take to be at peace with oneself and people surrounding me no matter how loving or hatefull they are?

What steps do I need to reach the peace of a buddhist mind?

How can I attain nirvana, without drugs and such?

If this is how you see yourself, you have to seriously get to the roots of your problem and cut them out of your life.

http://www.lioncity.net/buddhism/index.php
Good on-line resource for the basics.

recommended by me too

We are all already buddhists whether we realise it or not...that is if one subscribes to the notion that Buddhism is a 'science of the mind'.

There are many styles of Buddhism - personally I find the zen flavour most suited to the post-modern lifestyle.
You can say the same about any religion...or make any religion appear that way also...

I'm not sure that all religions translate well to the West (or vice versa)...and I dispute that the style of zen buddhism I practise is religious...it is a cosmological science and art.

because I am on the same level as they are yet I cannot enjoy and be happy as they are.

The first truth expounded by Siddhartha loosely translates to "Life is unsatisfactory".

I apologize for the paraphrasing - the word is "dukkha" which is variously translated as "pain", "suffering", "misery" and "dissatisfaction". I find the word "unsatisfactory" to be the least-loaded of these English terms, and it seems to compass all the others.

The second was "The sense of unsatisfactoriness is caused by craving".

It might be useful for you to consider your unhappiness in terms of what you are craving - what you wish to be yours as well as those things you wish to put as far from you as possible.

I don't agree with Buddha's first noble truth.
Life is not unsatisfactory or full of suffering if it isn't full of suffering. Millions of people who are not meditating are not suffering.

If, however, you define "Life is suffering" by the lack of a constant sense of content of happiness, then yes, it would be correct.

Suffering, of course, is wholly relative.

The wealthiest, most privileged people in the world are often suffering, although people have a tendency not to take that suffering seriously.

And there are billions of people who suffer agonies that most of us can never possibly imagine, and I would never suggest that they should or could lessen their pain only be eliminating craving.

There is, though, some profit in sonsidering the kinds of unsatisfactoriness we commonly experience and look at the cravings that may be producing them.

Pleasure/pain principle?

You could try inserting your head up your ass. :D

Sexual frustration is one of the greatest downers known to man and is totally unnatural.

Totally unnatural in the sense that it shouldn't be there period, or shouldn't be there because naturally one should be having a certain amount of sex by that time?

Buddhism may certainly help you eliminate the negative feelings you possess. I guess just be careful of looking for the answer in some external place like a religion. If you bottle up the anger so much, I think you should begin by examining why you hold it back in the first place. Also, why do you allow people who cause negative feelings in your life?

I don't agree with Buddha's first noble truth.
Life is not unsatisfactory or full of suffering if it isn't full of suffering. Millions of people who are not meditating are not suffering.

If, however, you define "Life is suffering" by the lack of a constant sense of content of happiness, then yes, it would be correct.

But Life is suffering, in life you are destined to suffer at one moment or the next, in other words all happiness is temporary and transient, even on a daily basis you suffer to a certain extent...

You could try inserting your head up your ass. :D

Ah...the old See Pu technique...

Self analysis / destruction.
To attain the buddhist state, follow the path. Pick up a book by one of them
?

Buddhism is a refuge, not an excuse.

Buddhism is a refuge, not an excuse.

which means...

which means...

this:

http://www.sciforums.com/showthread.php?p=1281018#post1281018

this:

http://www.sciforums.com/showthread.php?p=1281018#post1281018

wow you totally believe in reincarnation it seems...

Is it not a fact that your body cells die and grow again, continually?

It is also a demonstrable fact that meditation affects the brain structure, measurably.

draqon -

Introspection is probably the best thing for you.
Instead of the traditional methods of meditation, where you concentrate on one thing and try to block out the world, close your eyes and simply monitor your thoughts.

After a couple minutes, stop and recount how your thoughts flowed from one topic to another. You can write about what you thought, but you want to focus on how you think. Focus on how your thoughts move from one to the other. If you want, post your logs or journals here and we could help you out.

Ah...the old See Pu technique...

Haha, good one:D

seeking to "be" something (a Buddhist) is the wrong step.

instead, seek to be nothing. no label.

to say "I'm a Buddhist" implies that your not something else, it gives you a boundary.

Having said that, can i suggest one of the books that started me on my path, the Dharmapada (Eknath Easwaran). Feel free to PM me. :)

----
Our life is shaped by our mind, for we become what we think

you need a positive outlet, to start with emotions will effect you alot. you have to start slowly but as a normal guy emotions will make you upset, angry and frustrated at things that dont matter,

it is a difficult path to follow, i know alot of different buddhists they constantly practice to better themselves. it is not a part time dedication its full time,

to begin with start with the wave technique, imagine you are a sea, when a negative emotion effects you visualise it in your mind and focus, the bigger the negative emotion the bigger the wave/ripple it will create, then focus on making the wave/ripple decrease in size with steady breathing. whe the sea is calm in your mind and motionless you should feel calmer,

use a physical outles to counter the mental training also, like martial arts. seek a shaolin temple to practice zen buddhism alongside martial training, if that is impossible then seek seperate zen teachers and seperate martial arts training to accompany.


peace.

http://www-personal.umich.edu/~draqon/sciforums/Empty_empty___by_loganart.jpg

What steps do I need to take to be at peace with oneself and people surrounding me no matter how loving or hatefull they are?

What steps do I need to reach the peace of a buddhist mind?

How can I attain nirvana, without drugs and such?

Don’t concern yourself with other people’s business. Don’t interfere in things that do not concern you.

Don’t hold grudges or bad feelings against anyone. You have to just try and let it go.

Don’t let the bad actions of others change your perception of what is wrong or right. Don’t let the bad actions of others influence your own actions.

Once you accept that people will not always agree with you and see things in the same way as you, when you respect that, you should feel a lot better.

understand the four noble truths is a good starter aswell,

suffering.

peace.