How do you meditate??

Discussion in 'Eastern Philosophy' started by Wisdom_Seeker, Jun 22, 2007.

  1. Carcano Valued Senior Member

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    Are you aware that the Shaolin school's emphasis is no longer on Buddhism, but on the martial arts.

    Buddism does not have many diferent objectives. It has only one objective.

    In the martial arts there are hundreds of possible objectives.

    There are a number of practises in Chan Buddhism which are sometimes called meditation but are not. Chanting and prayer are good examples. There is also the additional confusion between what is meditation and what is enlightenment.

    In traditional buddhism they are distinct (although related) principles, but nowadays people are always using them interchangeably, as if they mean exactly the same thing.
     
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  3. EmptyForceOfChi Banned Banned

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    i do not belong to a modern shaolin school/academy, i go to a shaolin temple wich teaches buddhism as much as martial arts. if you look on the link you will see. there are monks there that do not fight, my master shi yanzi studies chan buddhism.


    enlightenment is not meditation i cant see how the 2 words can even be slightly confused with one another.

    not all buddhism is the same, i learn about zen buddhism at the temple closed door with the abbot. and zen buddhism is different to alot of other sects and teachings, not all buddhists experience the same things or lead the same lives. there are differences in different buddhist ways,


    peace.
     
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  5. Carcano Valued Senior Member

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    Thats certainly true.

    For example the words Chan and Zen are just the Chinese and Japanese words for meditation.

    It is called the 'meditation school' of Buddhism because the emphasis is on meditation.

    The Buddhism practised in Thailand or Tibet has a different emphasis.

    The thing is, you have ask yourself - What is true Buddhism, as it was orginally intended by the founder.

    And to what extent has this vision become obscured by many centuries of cultural adaptation.
     
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  7. EmptyForceOfChi Banned Banned

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    its interesting you say that. because alot of people say to me that i dont understand buddhism properly. wich in many cases i dont. im still learning alot about buddhism. im a daoist personaly but i do practice zen budhism at the temple,


    there is still alot about buddhism that i do not know. mainly the doctrines and teachings of buddha. but the most important part of buddhism so far to me is meditation, understanding the true nature of things and myself. i am learning about the four noble truths at the moment.


    many things can be obscured, but if we strip away the fluff from anything and start again with our minds we can understand.


    peace.
     
  8. TruthSeeker Fancy Virtual Reality Monkey Valued Senior Member

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    You cannot be taught zen buddhism.
     
  9. EmptyForceOfChi Banned Banned

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    you can be taught methods to use to help you with zen buddhism, you can also be taught things to help enable you to reach higher levels within zen buddhism. if a child was told nothing about zen buddhism he might not get very far with it.


    you obviously have to be taught some things to help you along the way. but ofcourse its about teaching yourself and advancing yourself. but we all need a little help at first.

    peace.
     
  10. TruthSeeker Fancy Virtual Reality Monkey Valued Senior Member

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    Unfortunately, Zen Buddhism can only be learn through the communion with the universe. Words are not enough to describe it.
     
  11. EmptyForceOfChi Banned Banned

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    lol i guess you came across zen buddhism through divine intuition and not through educated text or word.

    peace.
     
  12. TruthSeeker Fancy Virtual Reality Monkey Valued Senior Member

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    I guess. Altough I didn't have a name for it...
     
  13. EmptyForceOfChi Banned Banned

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    but now you do, and with the help and guidence of others you can accomplish more on your own path.

    its like anything. the more knowledge you have about things the better you will achieve. society advances on the foundation of generations of knowledge built up from a starting point.

    the same applies to zen, ofcourse you have to do it alone thats what its all about. but the more understanding you have of everything the more you will gain. we all need the guiding hand of an "abbot" but we alone can walk through the doors, we still need to be shown where the door is sometimes.



    peace.
     
  14. Sci-Phenomena Reality is in the Minds Eye Registered Senior Member

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    Sit down and start wasting time. thats meditation
     
  15. Wisdom_Seeker Speaker of my truth Valued Senior Member

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    way to stay on-topic
     
  16. Carcano Valued Senior Member

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    Interestingly, in China, Korea and Japan, Zen masters created a whole system of questions designed to discover how much their students DONT know about Buddhism.

    The questions are called koans in Japanese.

    The questions dont appear to make any sense, but if a student responds with an intellectual answer gleaned from studying Buddhist doctrine...he will be failed by the master.

    Here are some examples of koans:

    1. The snowflakes do not fall in any particular place...what does this mean?

    2. A ox passes through a window frame. The head, horns, and the legs have passed...why cant the tail go through?

    3. How can a man walk in daylight without stepping on his shadow?
     
  17. darksidZz Valued Senior Member

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    woot wooot woot woot wot woooot?!
     
  18. MetaKron Registered Senior Member

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    1. The rolling stone gathers no nuts for the winter.

    2. I seem to have missed the body of the question.

    3. The sun even shines up a dog's ass sometimes.
     
  19. TruthSeeker Fancy Virtual Reality Monkey Valued Senior Member

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    Good olde koans......

    Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!




    ...wait a minute.....

    Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!

     
  20. Carcano Valued Senior Member

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    I dont think the last two would be accepted, but the first response might.

    Youve done far better than most who encounter koans for the first time...and you didnt just google em either.

    The correct answer isnt even neccessarily an answer, its better described as a 'response'...which can even take the form of physical action, with no words spoken.
     
    Last edited: Jul 12, 2007
  21. TruthSeeker Fancy Virtual Reality Monkey Valued Senior Member

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    Or no response at all.

    Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!

     
  22. Carcano Valued Senior Member

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    There has to be some response, most of them being very strange indeed.

    Theres even a book written by a modern Japanese master called..."You have to say something!"
     
  23. MetaKron Registered Senior Member

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    Thank you. I just aimed for ironic and sort of koan-like responses.

    It's not the first time that I have ever encountered them, and I do get the point. It's a Rorschach test. The correct answer comes from your soul. The point is whether you have made a connection with your true self, as I am sure is actually explained in class over and over again in many ways, all attempts to get past mental barriers, both self-imposed and societal.
     

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