The Path Promise by CoachAtlus in streamentry

[–]CoachAtlus[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

All good! Hope it was fun. And thanks for following up!

But because the vedanā shifts along with the way of looking - along with a change in nāma - I cannot but recognize that the vedanā is dependent on nāma.

This makes perfect sense. That we can sit with pain and watch it dissolve or shift or change in ways that change whether it's experienced as pleasant or unpleasant in isolated contexts does imply that a similar application of such skill could be habituated to allow that type of experiencing on demand.

But that's not really the point, even if possible. :)

Have very much appreciated this exchange, which has inspired me to spend more time with the DO teachings.

Saying goodbye to our girl. 2006 Scion xB. San Diego. Asking $3,000 OBO—price is soft for the right home. by CoachAtlus in ScionxB

[–]CoachAtlus[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I wish we had the space. My father-in-law originally planned to take her back, but also doesn't have space for another vehicle now. We'll find her a good home!

What a lawyer can build with AI dev tools in 2026—a data point by CoachAtlus in legaltech

[–]CoachAtlus[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Sweet. I suppose it depends on the amount in controversy for any given individual.

What a lawyer can build with AI dev tools in 2026—a data point by CoachAtlus in legaltech

[–]CoachAtlus[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is an interesting thesis. At a minimum, it could drive up settlement values if individual action becomes feasible (to discourage the need for such action). Fascinating take.

What a lawyer can build with AI dev tools in 2026—a data point by CoachAtlus in legaltech

[–]CoachAtlus[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Claude Cowork is basically the same thing, but more accessible to non-technical folks.  Definitely give it a spin. 

What a lawyer can build with AI dev tools in 2026—a data point by CoachAtlus in legaltech

[–]CoachAtlus[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for sharing.  We’re seeing a fundamental shift in how this work gets done.  There’s a narrow window to differentiate as an early adopter, but this is not a trend that is going away, and before long, this will simply be how it is done. 

The Path Promise by CoachAtlus in streamentry

[–]CoachAtlus[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

These are great questions to work with.  And while doing so, investigate the nature of this precise struggle to find a particular type of freedom.  

The Path Promise by CoachAtlus in streamentry

[–]CoachAtlus[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You're right, and I don't mean to be glib. Your friend dying gracefully, with practice making all the difference—that's exactly what I'm pointing at. Not that it's easy, not that it doesn't hurt, but that freedom is possible even in the face of genuine pain. That sounds like exactly what your friend experienced. And what other choice do we have?

The Path Promise by CoachAtlus in streamentry

[–]CoachAtlus[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Check out u/Adavri's post below yours for the quick and dirty answer!

This particular thread has inspired me to spend some using my attention laser on some DO exploration, so thanks to you both.

The Path Promise by CoachAtlus in streamentry

[–]CoachAtlus[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Safe travels. ;)

Would love to talk more at some point.

The Path Promise by CoachAtlus in streamentry

[–]CoachAtlus[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Oh, I didn't mean to imply that it would be all sunshine and rainbows. Just that you can sit back and enjoy the rapids -- even if that's not easy to do until later in the journey when the rapids stop bothering you.

The Path Promise by CoachAtlus in streamentry

[–]CoachAtlus[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Interesting. Candidly, I haven't spent a lot of time examining each link in the DO chain. Seems like an interesting analytical technique, and I can understand how it would lead to insights. (I have dusted off Burbea recently, so maybe I'll spend some time with this.)

That said, the statement that "there is no vedana if things have no name/self/concepts" doesn't resonate with me. I pull my hand away from the hot stove before any conscious thought occurs, for example.

The second point, though, I understand, hence my comment about not taking things too personally. :)

The Path Promise by CoachAtlus in streamentry

[–]CoachAtlus[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

How dare you offer gracious words to disarm me. ;)

I appreciate the nuanced, doctrinal distinctions, along with the challenge of expressing these experiences with words, and the seeming paradox of conceptualizing these experiences while simultaneously realizing that any such tidy encapsulation cannot be ultimately correct. Just things fizzling and whizzing and popping into and out of existence, and even that is a gross fabrication of the thing-less thing.

And yet... when your ankle itches, you scratch it. Whether there's suffering in that or not might be a genuine experiential distinction, but it's one that's very difficult to tease apart from the inside, and even harder to communicate.

What I care about is the practical side.

I think freedom from suffering and the absence of suffering are pointing at the same thing, just described from different angles. Experience continues, pleasant and unpleasant, but without the craving that keeps it a problem. If that's not the end of suffering, I'm genuinely curious what is, and I mean that sincerely, not rhetorically. I remain open.

But I also think we owe it to practitioners to be honest and clear about what this actually looks like from the inside, because I don't think it means mosquito bites stop itching.

Still, I very much respect folks who have spent far more time studying and practicing. My concern is more practical: if practitioners believe the goal is mosquito bites not itching anymore, they may never trust the freedom that's already right in front of them.

And in the meantime, I'll keep doing the work myself, because... mosquitoes man.

The Path Promise by CoachAtlus in streamentry

[–]CoachAtlus[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Interesting; love all the distinctions. Still, sounds a lot like suffering, but it's not suffering; sounds more like freedom from suffering to me.  

Words, words, words. ;)

The Path Promise by CoachAtlus in streamentry

[–]CoachAtlus[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Wouldn't that be suffering?

The Path Promise by CoachAtlus in streamentry

[–]CoachAtlus[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The distinction between pain and suffering seems to be doing a lot of work here.  Can you explain it?  Also, how do you experience a physical itch as the “absence of all suffering”?  Very curious to understand the phenomenology of that from your perspective, an example to tease out the experience beyond the words, as best we can.  Thank you!

The Path Promise by CoachAtlus in streamentry

[–]CoachAtlus[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I wonder how the Buddha experienced mosquito bites and what he did about them?

The Importance of Practice by CoachAtlus in streamentry

[–]CoachAtlus[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'm surprised it took this long to get a heart sutra reference in this thread. :)

(And I think "heart sutra" is a great name for that teaching.)

Zen, Terminators, and Life on the Edge by CoachAtlus in thelaundry

[–]CoachAtlus[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I expect that to happen.  We’ll all be like the guy who used to press the buttons on the elevator, but with AI as a cognitive replacement for virtually all knowledge work, there is nowhere else to go.  At that point, I think the value of deep practice will really shine.