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tariki On September 16, 2012

Deleted



, United Kingdom
#1New Post! Oct 31, 2011 @ 11:41:44
I thought I would start a thread on my own particular "path", which is Pure Land Buddhism.

In fact, to just use the term "Pure Land" is a simplification, as there are many expressions, and Pure Land itself is just one of various expressions of Mahayana Buddhism, which is itself just one of the various expressions of Buddhism itself. And "Buddhism" itself is really just a "western" term stuck onto the Buddhadharma (The way of the Buddha). The West loves its "isms" and "ologies", even its "ainities"......

What is it that attracts me?


I find in many Pure Land writings an identification with an honest admission of failure, a recognition that we cannot - and will not - make it alone, yet all embraced by Infinite Compassion. It is this dual perspective, its existential reality, that draws me to the Pure Land! Darkness "illuminates" light, light illuminates darkness. This all - for me - revolves around "acceptance", acceptance of ourselves and acceptance of others.

Perhaps to illuminate my own words, and to expand upon them, I would really need to tell my auto-biography. Each of us is a unique individual, and possibly what would draw one towards a particular expression of the Universal would repel another - as Jung has said "there is absolutely no truth that does not spell salvation to one person and damnation to another. All universalisms get stuck in this terrible dilemma." My own path weaved through Fundamentalist Christianity, Atheism and then a very liberal Christianity, then Theravada Buddhism (when I began meditating following a two year bout of severe depression) - and these are only the main sign-posts. Yet there came a point where the questions posed by my own "individuality" seemed to demand another course. I remember at one time posting on the Buddhist forum that I had a growing disatisfaction with certain Theravada teachings, basically because in my eyes it was fundamentally monastic in origin and therefore, at heart, had very little to say to lay people and the lives they lived from day to day. Someone responded at that time, telling me a lot about the Theravada teachings for lay people, and advising me to look them up. I only found out later that this poster was in fact a "Pure Lander", and I found this deeply moving, that he had seen my questions not as an opportunity to "push" his own choice and preference, but had answered instead according to what he understood to be my own need. Anyway, gradually I learned more and more concerning the Pure Land path and found that, being fundamentally lay based and also totally egalitarian (I've always had a hang up concerning so called "masters" and the "need" for them in Buddhism) it spoke to me.

I suppose for me the Pure Land way combines certain Christian teachings concerning the efficacy of "grace" and "other power" with all that I have found illuminating in the Dharma. It also explicitly teaches a "universal" salvation with no "double destiny". Again, it understands enlightenment in such a way as to be illuminated itself by the experience of many Christian mystics such as Meister Eckhart and St John of the Cross.............I suppose this appeals to my own heart-felt desire for unity and peace between the Faiths.

To become even more personal, about four years ago I identified the need for "trust" in my life. The words of Shinran ( one of the "founding fathers" of Pure Land Buddhism) where he spoke of "self-power" practices as being obstructions to true surrender seemed to make a great deal of sense. As an experiment - and with a great deal of trepidation -I ceased meditation, and began to say the nembutsu. The rest is silence! (I would just say that now I find that my reading is often a "meditation" in itself - some sort of "compensation mechanism". Often a word, or a short phrase, will initiate a long period of contemplation where the intent of the words sinks in and finds its rest within)

Anyway, enough for now. If this is of interest to anyone, so be it. If not, so be it. I will continue to post bits and pieces.
tariki On September 16, 2012

Deleted



, United Kingdom
#2New Post! Oct 31, 2011 @ 11:52:45
One thing I have come to love is the reliance , not upon the words of a "sacred" text, but on the various anecdotes of devotees.

Like the following.......

Great compassion awaits us with open arms. Namu-Amida-Butsu is the beckoning call, "Come, just as you are.

This openhearted welcome is quietly described by Koshin Ogui in an article carried in the Cleveland Buddhist Temple Newsletter. He relates an experience he once had of returning home from a trip. In his absence the answering machine had recorded four phone calls from the same person. The message was, "Jesus is the only saviour. Believe in him and you'll be saved. Love him and you'll be loved. Anyone who does not believe in him will go to hell." Ogui comments.....

What do you say about this message? I don't know why, but then I recalled meeting with my mother on my recent trip to Japan. I hadn't seen her for five years. As soon as I opened the door to the house where I was born, there she was standing right in front of me. She didn't say anything much, but she held my hand and with tears in her eyes, she said, "You came home." Isn't that nice, to be welcomed without any justification, whether I believe in her or not. I realize that I have always been living in her love. I am grateful. Namu-Amida-Butsu.
MadCornishBiker On January 14, 2014

Banned



St Columb Road, United Kingdom
#3New Post! Oct 31, 2011 @ 12:22:19
@tariki Said

One thing I have come to love is the reliance , not upon the words of a "sacred" text, but on the various anecdotes of devotees.

Like the following.......

Great compassion awaits us with open arms. Namu-Amida-Butsu is the beckoning call, "Come, just as you are.

This openhearted welcome is quietly described by Koshin Ogui in an article carried in the Cleveland Buddhist Temple Newsletter. He relates an experience he once had of returning home from a trip. In his absence the answering machine had recorded four phone calls from the same person. The message was, "Jesus is the only saviour. Believe in him and you'll be saved. Love him and you'll be loved. Anyone who does not believe in him will go to hell." Ogui comments.....

What do you say about this message? I don't know why, but then I recalled meeting with my mother on my recent trip to Japan. I hadn't seen her for five years. As soon as I opened the door to the house where I was born, there she was standing right in front of me. She didn't say anything much, but she held my hand and with tears in her eyes, she said, "You came home." Isn't that nice, to be welcomed without any justification, whether I believe in her or not. I realize that I have always been living in her love. I am grateful. Namu-Amida-Butsu.


Yes, anecdotes can strengthen you as well can't they, and whilst I obviously don't rely on them I have a marvellous collection, mostly in my memory of the experiences of others that have reinforced my belief in the activity of The Holy Spirit in supporting God's people on the earth today, some are Bethel Service anecdotes, from people who have dedicated their lives to God full time, some of whom have no home of their own, as was, of course the case with Christ, and who live from home to home throughout their circuit or district travelling and encouraging the congregations, as Paul and the Apostles did in the early days before the Apostacy. These are men usually married, but with the full support of their wives, who accompany them in their travels, giving up any thought of children or a "normal" life, owning nothing but the love of the congregations they serve. Whilst in each area they stay with a congregation member who has offered them a room for a week.Are they paid? Well sort of. They get about £40 a month "pocket money", or at least that was what it was in the 80s and 90s. I doubt if it's much more now, but all that matters to them is their service to God and Christ.

Other stories come from missionaries who are assigned to various parts of the world. Again, "homeless" people who live in the local Bethel Home for the duration of their assignment and at times share the huts those they serve live in while away from the home. Like the Circuit and District Overseers described above, they only care about their service to God, and usually have a fund of beautiful stories about their experiences from all over the world.

Of course there are also the "second hand" experiences that come through in the magazines, some from the German Concentration camps in the war, some about the "underground" work the brothers did at that time, and even in modern times when teh work is banned.
tariki On September 16, 2012

Deleted



, United Kingdom
#4New Post! Oct 31, 2011 @ 13:47:17
Just a little more and I shall retire for the day.

First, a repeat of what has been posted before, an excerpt from a essay entitled "Shinran's Vision of Absolute Compassion". The excerpt gives a simple overview of the Pure Land understanding of Reality-as-is (Amida), of the nature of grace, and the nature of the "religious" life.

According to Shinran, salvation is entirely a matter of the Vow (Grace). It does not hang on events and conditions of time and space, or the imposition of man and society. Salvation cannot rest on chance factors. Shinran makes it clear that the reality of Grace requires nothing from the side of man, including the act of faith, as the causal basis for birth in the Pure Land. Otherwise the emphasis on the Vow (Grace) would be devoid of meaning and significance. Our residual karmic bondage may influence the point in our experience when we become aware of Amida's compassion, but it is not a factor in determining whether or not we actually receive that compassion.

We are suggesting that from the standpoint of Grace (the Vow) all are equally saved even now, despite the presence or absence of the experience of faith itself. The reason for this is that salvation depends on Grace and not on any finite condition.

Someone may ask then what is the point of being religious, if we are saved in any case? This is an important question. However, it reflects the virtually universal notion that religion is a means to an end. We get the benefit of salvation from being religious. For Shinran, however, religion becomes the way to express gratitude for the compassion that supports all our life. It is not a tool for ego advancement or gaining benefits.

The point of being religious for Shinran is that when we come to have faith in the Original Vow (Grace) and live in its light, we truly become free to live a full and meaningful existence in this life.

Shinran's perspective permits a person to see deeply into his life to detect the springs of compassion which sustain it; it allows them to participate and associate with all types of people despite their unattractiveness or difficulty because they understand the potentiality that works in their very being. In perceiving the compassion that embraces all life, the person of faith can themselves become an expression of that compassion touching the lives of others.


(From "Shinran's Vision of Absolute Compassion" by Alfred Bloom, contained within "Living Within Amida's Universal Vow" )

Such words explain from a Pure Land perspective why an "act of faith" - or a choice to "believe" - is seen to be an act of self-power, if such act is considered to be decisive for "salvation"......if seen as initiating a transition from "lost" to "saved".....if seen as determining the attitude of the "divine" towards us in any way.........if seen as transforming such an attitude from "wrath" to "love and acceptance".......etc etc etc.


And just to illuminate the words further, the following....

......again from the pen of Shinran, from "Hymns of the Pure Land Masters", verse 95......

My eyes being hindered by blind passions,
I cannot perceive the light that grasps me;
Yet the great compassion, without tiring,
Illumines me always


And for my Christian friends, from Julian of Norwich on the same theme......

If there be anywhere on earth a lover of God who is always kept safe, I know nothing of it, for it was not shown to me. But this was shown: that in falling and rising again we are always kept in that same precious love.


(P.S. "The Vow" can be understood as the Primal Will of Reality-as-is that ALL will come to enlightenment, and of the tireless working within each unique human heart within space and time of that will, to bring it to fruition)
tariki On September 16, 2012

Deleted



, United Kingdom
#5New Post! Nov 01, 2011 @ 11:28:27
To carry on................

As I have implied, the Pure Land way is the way of "realising" the efficacy of Grace as we live our lives each day. The events of the day are the means. Such a way is testified to by many Pure Landers, one of them the Japanese author Hiroyuki Itsuki, who said that he had read many books, and sampled difficult philosophies and engaged many of the great thinkers of the past......but I have gained more from my father's sigh, his wasted later years, and my mother's unexpected death, than from any of these.

This is in part what I seek to say when I speak of the Living Word, as being a Person, not a book.....when I seek to communicate with my Christian friends. That we learn through life, not a text - that "truth" is alive, that it is not a doctrine or an accumulation of facts.


Here is a poem written by a woman who was caring for her husband, who had Alzheimers....

Assumptions and expectations
Of what I can and should do
Must be erased from my mind.
An inner voice reminds me,
"Be more sensitive and understanding."

His trousers, T-shirt and long-sleeved flannel shirt
Are placed side by side on top of the bed.
He turns them around and around,
Examining them closely.

Not knowing the difference
Between front and back,
He wears his T-shirt reversed,
And inside out at times.
When buttoning his flannel shirt
The buttons are not in alignment
With the button holes.

While cooking breakfast,
I look towards the hallway.
He has walked out of the bedroom
Through the hallway to the dining room.

He is standing beside the chair
Wearing the shirts and boxer shorts only,
Thinking he is properly dressed
To sit at the table to eat his meal.

He looks like a little boy.
His innocence is so revealing
It warms my heart.
I smile and tell him
What he has forgotten to wear;
He looks at my face and chuckles
As a glimmer of awareness dawns.

Together, we put on his khaki trousers,
Embraced in the centerless circle
Of Boundless Life


This lady saw all her efforts, all her frustrations, all the experience of her caring, as being held within "boundless life", and I am able to identify with her. I spent three years caring for my own mother as she degenerated with Alzheimers. My own experience at the time was far less placid and "accepting", and I can indentify even more with some further words....

Anger, resentment and frustrations
Explode like an erupting volcano.

Knowing that dementia has robbed my husband
Of his keen memory, his thinking capacity,
Does not help.

Caring for him day after day,
Love, compassion and understanding
Disappear into thin air.

Sitting quietly,
Facing the Buddha altar,
I meditate on my Reality.

My human frailties and limitations
Allow Unhindered Light and Eternal Life
To constantly illuminate and affirm my total being.

With palms together,
I bow in gratitude


So again, it is this dual seeing that I find illuminating, the deep recognition of our own reality and failings - yet it is Infinite Compassion that reveals this to us, not the "judgement" of a Lawmaker. My experience is that it is seeing/experiencing both simultaneously that becomes the catalyst for genuine transformation, a transformation that is not of our own making, but is a "given". Gift.

With palms together,
I bow in gratitude.
tariki On September 16, 2012

Deleted



, United Kingdom
#6New Post! Nov 01, 2011 @ 16:30:37
I will plod on.....


It does seem easy to by-pass the "shadow", not to recognise the darkness and the "passions". In Pure Land the defiled "I" is revealed by the working of Infinite Compassion. The defiled "I" is an essential part of oneself, "both the pure 'I' and the defiled 'I' are necessary for a person to attain wholeness. When both are brought to full awareness, we have an awakened authentic human being" (Unno)

Just a little more on "self-power" and "other-power", more to illuminate my own mind, which often appears as a very tangled web of conflict. The reliance on "Other Power" (Tariki) does not mean that no effort is required to progress on the path of awakening. Again from Unno........

Self-cultivation is the driving force in a persons attempt to live the highest ethical life..................it is at the core of the quest for authenticity as a human being. In all such strivings inevitably one is made aware of human finitude, of our reality as a karmic being - limited, imperfect, mortal. This experiential process is at the heart of Shin (Pure Land) Buddhism

The point is that such "strivings" are made in the total dojo (training ground) of lay life, as lived and experienced each moment, each day.

Therefore self-power, contrasted with Other Power, should not be thought of as negating self-reliance. But as Unno again states, it is in the realm of the religious quest that self-power becomes a problem.

Self-power becomes manifest whenever one is conscious of "doing good". Unaware of the hidden, ego-centered agenda, a person becomes self-righteous, passing judgements on others as good or bad.

Again, one can become prideful in the ability to know oneself, including the claim to fully recognise the limitation, imperfection, and fallibility of oneself through the power of rational self-reflection alone.

Self-power is the effort.......or endeavour, to make yourself worthy through amending the confusion in your acts, words and thoughts, confident of your own powers and guided by your own calculation. (Shinran)

Other-Power should not be understood as a relative term used in simple contrast with "self" to denote a different origin of practice, for Other Power refers to Great Compassion that transcends the duality of self and other.......Other Power works constantly to bring every sentient being to the realization of True Entrusting (shinjin/faith), but those who cling to their own efforts and virtues - possessed of the self-attachment termed the "mind of self-power" - block its working. Where the mind of self-power is made to disappear, however, the realization of True Entrusting that is Other Power comes about. The disappearance of the mind of self-power and the realization of trust/faith/shinjin that is Other Power.............are aspects of a single religious awakening. In the realization of Shinjin/faith the practicer becomes free of the mind of self-power, and this very freedom from self-attachment and calculation is Other Power. In Shinran's words, "Other Power means to be free of any form of calculation," it "means that no working is true working." (drawn from a Glossary of Shin Buddhist Terms, volume 2 of the Collected works of Shinran)
MadCornishBiker On January 14, 2014

Banned



St Columb Road, United Kingdom
#7New Post! Nov 01, 2011 @ 17:00:24
@tariki Said

I will plod on.....


It does seem easy to by-pass the "shadow", not to recognise the darkness and the "passions". In Pure Land the defiled "I" is revealed by the working of Infinite Compassion. The defiled "I" is an essential part of oneself, "both the pure 'I' and the defiled 'I' are necessary for a person to attain wholeness. When both are brought to full awareness, we have an awakened authentic human being" (Unno)

Just a little more on "self-power" and "other-power", more to illuminate my own mind, which often appears as a very tangled web of conflict. The reliance on "Other Power" (Tariki) does not mean that no effort is required to progress on the path of awakening. Again from Unno........

Self-cultivation is the driving force in a persons attempt to live the highest ethical life..................it is at the core of the quest for authenticity as a human being. In all such strivings inevitably one is made aware of human finitude, of our reality as a karmic being - limited, imperfect, mortal. This experiential process is at the heart of Shin (Pure Land) Buddhism

The point is that such "strivings" are made in the total dojo (training ground) of lay life, as lived and experienced each moment, each day.

Therefore self-power, contrasted with Other Power, should not be thought of as negating self-reliance. But as Unno again states, it is in the realm of the religious quest that self-power becomes a problem.

Self-power becomes manifest whenever one is conscious of "doing good". Unaware of the hidden, ego-centered agenda, a person becomes self-righteous, passing judgements on others as good or bad.

Again, one can become prideful in the ability to know oneself, including the claim to fully recognise the limitation, imperfection, and fallibility of oneself through the power of rational self-reflection alone.

Self-power is the effort.......or endeavour, to make yourself worthy through amending the confusion in your acts, words and thoughts, confident of your own powers and guided by your own calculation. (Shinran)

Other-Power should not be understood as a relative term used in simple contrast with "self" to denote a different origin of practice, for Other Power refers to Great Compassion that transcends the duality of self and other.......Other Power works constantly to bring every sentient being to the realization of True Entrusting (shinjin/faith), but those who cling to their own efforts and virtues - possessed of the self-attachment termed the "mind of self-power" - block its working. Where the mind of self-power is made to disappear, however, the realization of True Entrusting that is Other Power comes about. The disappearance of the mind of self-power and the realization of trust/faith/shinjin that is Other Power.............are aspects of a single religious awakening. In the realization of Shinjin/faith the practicer becomes free of the mind of self-power, and this very freedom from self-attachment and calculation is Other Power. In Shinran's words, "Other Power means to be free of any form of calculation," it "means that no working is true working." (drawn from a Glossary of Shin Buddhist Terms, volume 2 of the Collected works of Shinran)


Glad you are enjoying the mystical monologue, lol. At least someone is.
tariki On September 16, 2012

Deleted



, United Kingdom
#8New Post! Nov 01, 2011 @ 20:05:52
Just a quiet word to the Biker, as far as his contributions to this thread are concerned.

As far as anecdotes are concerned, I would say that to broaden our hearts it would be wise to hear and reflect upon the stories and experiences of people of all races, colours and creeds. There are many who have suffered, and do still suffer, for their faith. An example at the moment is the persecution of those of the Baha'i faith in Iran. Again, their are many stories of self sacrifice, sacrifice made for the sake of others, irrespective of their beliefs. I think to draw inspiration only from the sacrifice and suffering of those who share our OWN creed has the potential to actually diminishe us as human beings.

As far as your use of the word mystical, perhaps we do not share the same definition? To be acquainted with the mystical literature of the world is to be informed of those human beings who have sought - and often found - the actual experience of the Living God, or of "reality", and who, by such experience, have known a greater love for their fellow human beings.

I suspect, Biker, you use the word "mystical" to infer "smoke and mirrors" and unnecessary complexity? As I said to Aquine, who implied the self same thing, often it is the most simple of things that take the most words to make explicable. Take your own efforts, for instance, when seeking to show how "simple" it was to "refute" the Trinity teaching of "apostate" Christianity........was it two yards of turgid type, or perhaps three that you quoted? Anyway, whatever, yes, "mystical" as far as a true experience of reality is concerned.

Caring for another human being with dementia has nothing to do with smoke and mirrors, nor unnecessary complexity. The reality was wiping my mother clean every time she went to the toilet, clipping her toe-nails, hearing her speak to me in the voice of a six year old, calling me her "sister". I was seeking to speak about such experiences - my own and of others who wrote the poems - and of how a human being can cope in the midst of them without despair, but instead opening to the reality of compassion and even love.

As far as who may or may not be "enjoying" it, I have no say over that. I do know that I have run much the same sort of threads on other forums, and the result has been some good dialogue with people of various faiths who have shared such experiences. I would like the same here, but if not, so be it. Like you Biker, I feel compelled to write concerning my own faith, and whether others are interested or not or respond at all is not for me to determine.

One thing I would like to make clear, this to anyone who is interested. Pure Land Buddhism is the faith of the "common-or-garden" people in the East, it is for lay people, not monastics, egalitarian, having nothing to do with "masters" and such like. In the West it is largely derided, not even recognised as "true" Buddhism by those who would insist that "true" Buddhism involves deep study of the Theravada or Mahayana texts, coupled with hours of meditation "on the cushion". To say one is a Pure Lander on most Buddhist Forums is to invite being patronised - this known from first hand experience.

Anyway, I will continue as and when, monologue or not.

MadCornishBiker On January 14, 2014

Banned



St Columb Road, United Kingdom
#9New Post! Nov 01, 2011 @ 22:43:23
@tariki Said

Just a quiet word to the Biker, as far as his contributions to this thread are concerned.

As far as anecdotes are concerned, I would say that to broaden our hearts it would be wise to hear and reflect upon the stories and experiences of people of all races, colours and creeds. There are many who have suffered, and do still suffer, for their faith. An example at the moment is the persecution of those of the Baha'i faith in Iran. Again, their are many stories of self sacrifice, sacrifice made for the sake of others, irrespective of their beliefs. I think to draw inspiration only from the sacrifice and suffering of those who share our OWN creed has the potential to actually diminishe us as human beings.


Why do you assume that I haven't spoken with many of different cultures and creeds. I have, and I have also spoken to many who once were of different cultures and creed. You cannot spend much time in the ministry in places like Easton and St Paul's in Bristol without meeting all sorts of cultures. I have spent many a happy hour trying to avoid breathing in the smoke from a spliff talking with a Rasta, or sharing discussion comparing the Q'ran to the bible with a Muslim. My first congregation when I was in the truth in the mid 80's was Easton in Bristol, and the one I was happiest in if I am honest. I have talked with prostitutes on the ministry, and compared scriptures with a "high ranking" Layman in the RC church (well he said he was and he sure knew Catholic doctrine), and many shades in between.

You really do know so little about me, or what I do or don't comprehend, but then why should you, it might dent your treasured opinion of me.

One thing is for sure. One of us has little or no spiritual comprehension, and with the help I get from Yehowah's Spirit I somehow don't think it's me.
Glenn On January 10, 2013
Average Jet Pilot


Deleted
Banned



Meridian, Mississippi
#10New Post! Nov 02, 2011 @ 02:08:38
Ya know Tariki ... I can still live in your world ... And believe everything that I currently believe ... And now that I think about everyone can believe ...uh... Whatever they want and according to what you teach they will ALL be okay ... So you rock on ... I can only that you are right.

If I am right you are gonna have a little trouble potentially ... Without Jesus and all
tariki On September 16, 2012

Deleted



, United Kingdom
#11New Post! Nov 02, 2011 @ 05:33:25
@MadCornishBiker Said

Why do you assume that I haven't spoken with many of different cultures and creeds. I have, and I have also spoken to many who once were of different cultures and creed. You cannot spend much time in the ministry in places like Easton and St Paul's in Bristol without meeting all sorts of cultures. I have spent many a happy hour trying to avoid breathing in the smoke from a spliff talking with a Rasta, or sharing discussion comparing the Q'ran to the bible with a Muslim. My first congregation when I was in the truth in the mid 80's was Easton in Bristol, and the one I was happiest in if I am honest. I have talked with prostitutes on the ministry, and compared scriptures with a "high ranking" Layman in the RC church (well he said he was and he sure knew Catholic doctrine), and many shades in between.

You really do know so little about me, or what I do or don't comprehend, but then why should you, it might dent your treasured opinion of me.

One thing is for sure. One of us has little or no spiritual comprehension, and with the help I get from Yehowah's Spirit I somehow don't think it's me.


Biker, I assume nothing about you. I made a point concerning the nature of the anecdotes that you spoke of, a point that still stands.

Your lack of comprehension is evident in your words.

And as far as I'm concerned, much "spiritual" comprehension consists purely of self-judgement, from which much else follows. From your own words, as posted on this forum, you appear incapable of any such thing.

All the best
MadCornishBiker On January 14, 2014

Banned



St Columb Road, United Kingdom
#12New Post! Nov 02, 2011 @ 10:43:03
@tariki Said

Biker, I assume nothing about you. I made a point concerning the nature of the anecdotes that you spoke of, a point that still stands.

Your lack of comprehension is evident in your words.

And as far as I'm concerned, much "spiritual" comprehension consists purely of self-judgement, from which much else follows. From your own words, as posted on this forum, you appear incapable of any such thing.

All the best



Tariki, you have made many statements about me that demonstrate your assumptions, including the one I replied yesterday, which elicited this response.

I am sure I am not the only one who can see that.
tariki On September 16, 2012

Deleted



, United Kingdom
#13New Post! Nov 02, 2011 @ 11:13:58
@MadCornishBiker Said

Tariki, you have made many statements about me that demonstrate your assumptions, including the one I replied yesterday, which elicited this response.

I am sure I am not the only one who can see that.


Biker, the main point I sought to make was made. I made others that, like the main point, you have chosen to avoid.

Instead of seeking to enter any meaningful dialogue, you chose instead to make a post virtually jeering at every word in the thread.

My "assumptions" were - and are - based upon that FACT.

I have no idea at all just what others may or may not see.

All the best
MadCornishBiker On January 14, 2014

Banned



St Columb Road, United Kingdom
#14New Post! Nov 02, 2011 @ 11:31:02
@tariki Said

Biker, the main point I sought to make was made. I made others that, like the main point, you have chosen to avoid.

Instead of seeking to enter any meaningful dialogue, you chose instead to make a post virtually jeering at every word in the thread.

My "assumptions" were - and are - based upon that FACT.

I have no idea at all just what others may or may not see.

All the best


I am not jeering at anyone or anything, merely pointing out the error of what was posted, according to scripture, though naturally you will say it is my interpretation which I deny entirely since the bible does indeed interpret itself under the influence of Holy Spirit. something you obviously have not experiencing or you couldn't argue the point.

I would be in dereliction of my duty if I did not point out the errors, as truth is the only thing that can save us, as Jesus himself said.
tariki On September 16, 2012

Deleted



, United Kingdom
#15New Post! Nov 02, 2011 @ 11:55:43
Anyway, after the comedy interlude, to continue......

There is a statue of Amida that stands outside one of the Pure Land (Shin) temples in Japan. It is called "Amida Looking Back." The statue shows Amida with her/his hands in the mudra's (hand positions) of "teaching" and "fear not". In other words, the call is to come and hear the teachings, and cease to fear. Yet Amida is shown turning her head, for her first thought is for those who do not, or cannot come, for whatever reason. The ones who will not "make it" without special favour and grace.

That is very much the heart of Shin.

Many speak of "practicing" Buddhism, and as Pure Land Buddhism speaks so much of "grace", it is asked, well, what is the Pure Land "practice"? The answer is the practice of compassion, to manifest compassion in our everyday life...........but when we really try to practice compassion, expressing care, concern and empathy, and love, all the while respecting the autonomy and dignity of the other, we encounter a huge obstacle. And that obstacle is never the other, bit our own self-centered ego. This awareness is the starting point of the Pure Land Buddhist path. (Unno, from "Bits of Rubble Turn Into Gold."

And this awareness itself is the first touch of Amida's compassion in our lives.
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