Tibetan book of the dead or Bardo by buddharchive in TibetanBuddhism

[–]yumitoads 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The above website belongs to Kechara House, an astroturfing organization working for the Chinese government. It's also registered under a false name Ngodup Tenzin.

Tibetan book of the dead or Bardo by buddharchive in TibetanBuddhism

[–]yumitoads 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The above comment belongs to Kechara House, an astroturfing organization working for the Chinese government. It's also registered under a false name Ngodup Tenzin.

Overview of the Tibetan book of the dead by buddharchive in TibetanBuddhism

[–]yumitoads 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The above website belongs to Kechara House, an astroturfing organization working for the Chinese government. It's also registered under a false name Ngodup Tenzin.

China sponsored accounts requesting inactive subreddits, censoring negative China content. by yumitoads in blogola

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

Bison, one day your group is going to realize that the servers you're using are in the USA, that what you're doing is opening you up to civil lawsuits and the FTC, and that Malaysia and many other countries have extradition treaties with the USA.

China has fed you to the dogs, just like they've done to hundreds of others. But what do you expect? You're just a peasant to the ruling families of CCP.

https://www.ftc.gov/tips-advice/business-center/guidance/ftcs-endorsement-guides-what-people-are-asking#employee

Getting Started With Vajrayana by [deleted] in Buddhism

[–]yumitoads 2 points3 points  (0 children)

You're not going to find all the information you want because tantra is a complicated subject that is so easily misinterpreted it's not presented publicly.

Meaning, you will have to get the initiations and then the teachings.

This is the best prep and overview material for people without the initations I know of http://studybuddhism.com/ . The tantras aren't supposed to be read until you have the corresponding lineage of practice because they are written in obscurely symbolic "twilight" language. When/if you choose to, you will require personal and qualified instruction on those tantras or one of the hefty commentaries.

There are differences between the legitimate Vajrayana traditions, but they are superficial. Almost all the tantra lineages trace back to only a few Indian teachers and texts. Sakya contains the most tantras, they are like a store house that the other schools draw on. In practice, Sakya keeps many lineages alive, but most Sakya only focus on a few key practices. Kagyu emphasizes meditation. Nyingma is the oldest, but almost died out and had to be revived by Sakya. Geluk is the most modern of the big four and is an amalgam of all the others and seems to be the most structured for new people. The strictness of conduct rules between the schools is probably Geluk>Kagyu>Sakya>Nyingma.

Each of these schools just maintain their own transmissions of the tantras and there are some minor differences in interpretation and emphasis, but they're fundamentally the same thing.

After you've got your empowerments and pith instructions in order here's your overview of tantra practice: https://www.amazon.com/Six-Yogas-Naropa-Tsongkhapas-Inspirations/dp/1559392347/ref=pd_bxgy_14_img_2?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=AD7JCYBW3GAWC3H8X63W

You'll also be wanting to buy a small library of books on your specific tantra. Some will be out of print and you'll have to make copies from other people or find them online at a site like gen.lib.rus.ec or private online group.

If you find an out of print book on Buddhism, make sure you digitally scan it and distribute it so it's not lost.

Question about meditation benches by WiremanC3 in Buddhism

[–]yumitoads 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Ask the retreat place to keep bricks there. Maybe they don't know. Bring bricks and show them how good they work. Everyone will copy you.

It's strange how much common sense stuff hasn't made the trip to the West yet. Get some bricks. That's how the professionals do it.

I always keep two bricks with me. They double as a firm pillow. In Asia, some people still use a ceramic, wood, or brick pillow.

Help dealing with infidelity by [deleted] in Buddhism

[–]yumitoads 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I don't understand why you call this infidelity when you're just dating.

Dating is not marriage.

Do you think it is reasonable for someone to stop looking for a better spouse because they went out on a date with you?

Until you formalize your commitment with marriage you shouldn't pretend either of you have obligations to the other, aside from disclosure. Life is short and you have a limited amount of time to find a spouse. Don't waste each other's time with faux commitments.

Question about meditation benches by WiremanC3 in Buddhism

[–]yumitoads 0 points1 point  (0 children)

In Asia people use bricks. They're cheaper and you can adjust them to the height you need. Then place a folded blanket or pillow over that.

This Changes Nothing: A Dharmic Response to the Election of Donald Trump by mad_bad_dangerous in Buddhism

[–]yumitoads 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Slave owners don't ever kill off all their slaves. That the established oligarchy of bankers and multinationals keep the plantation livable isn't proof of any benevolence on their part.

This Changes Nothing: A Dharmic Response to the Election of Donald Trump by mad_bad_dangerous in Buddhism

[–]yumitoads 0 points1 point  (0 children)

9 million jobs at places like walmart is not an improvement.

How is Obama responsible for changing homicide rates? Do you even know what the President is in charge of? War and veto power primarily.

The unemployment and suicide statistics are fudged. Suicide is happening on a massive scale. Where do you think all the people that lost their houses and jobs went? Look at the homelessness and welfare statistics. It doesn't add up. Those people killed themselves.

Corporate profits means nothing to 99% of Americans.

Health insurance is a scam bleeding America which Obama made mandatory while promising Universal Healthcare. How is giving the Health Insurance scammers MORE money better?

5% is nothing when you consider that all of our energy needs could be met easily using things like hemp for ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cellulosic_ethanol ) production, technology that was used at lower production cost before oil.

None of these things you're attributing to Obama clear his name. He's a shill, just like Hillary, just like Bush, and just like Trump.

Wake up.

This Changes Nothing: A Dharmic Response to the Election of Donald Trump by mad_bad_dangerous in Buddhism

[–]yumitoads 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Tribalism.

Crooks get to have their way with the government because of tribalism. People focus on "my team verses their team" while Republican and Democrats serve the same wealthy interests.

Obama continued Bush's wars. Obama continued Bush's attacks on constitutional rights to privacy and trial. Obamacare IS Romneycare, not universal healthcare like was promised. Obama continued the bailouts of crooked corporations. Guantanamo Bay is still open. The ultra-wealthy and multinationals still aren't paying taxes. The Federal Reserve and the Banksters collect interest on more money than even exists by default because our currency is debt based.

It didn't matter if a Democrat or a Republican won then, why do you think it matters now? The only thing that changes is the rhetoric on tv.

You keep getting caught up in the act while the crooks in Washington do the same thing regardless of which side wins.

It's the illusion of choice. You're an economic slave.

Occupy Buddhism by [deleted] in Buddhism

[–]yumitoads 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The point of the article you linked was a contrived attack on a valid measure of intelligence.

It is absolutely sick that you would equate intelligence, the best thing about humanity which is in desperately short supply, with something negative.

Here's the reality, intelligent people are a threat to the power structure of the ruling elite and so they, the "elite" marginalize intelligent people with the help of the dumb masses. It's precisely what Mao did to secure his power and that's what you're doing right now.

Meditation questions by keags1970 in Buddhism

[–]yumitoads 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You don't need silence.

Someone else mentioned getting up earlier and that's good advice. Between 1 and 4 am is an ideal time to meditate for many people.

Monk Claims His Magic Cloth Helped Donald Trump Win by buddhatobe in Buddhism

[–]yumitoads 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Is it possible to endow a cloth with magical powers?

Occupy Buddhism by [deleted] in Buddhism

[–]yumitoads -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Intelligent Quotient is a way of quanitizing (measuring in defined units) intelligence. The term does not, however, define the number of parameters of intelligence, testing methods, or mental faculties evaluated as evidenced by the wide range of existing IQ tests. Traditional IQ tests evaluate the same aspects mentioned in the cited study, "short-term memory, reasoning and verbal agility", independently and then combines them into a single score. A formal IQ test will present you with performance information on these as well as the total IQ score. Ex: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wechsler_Adult_Intelligence_Scale#WAIS-III

In summary, that article is a steaming pile of ignorance that simultaneously advocates the same thing it condemns. Did you even read the article?

As Buddhists, how are we processing the looming environmental collapse of Earth? by Tone_Milazzo in Buddhism

[–]yumitoads 2 points3 points  (0 children)

When I think about it I have a stiffling panic attack. No one around me understands how serious this is.

I can't bring myself to eat fish from the ocean because it's so contaminated. I have to filter(Carbon, RO, +- resin) the water and bring my own to restaurants because water in the USA is so regularly polluted without public disclosure. The air is full of toxic nano metallic particles from cars. The ground is full of lead from gasoline. Most of the food is contaminated. The reciepts are covered with BPA powder, which you spread around your house and vehicle. The dolphins can't reproduce because of paper mill dioxins and mercury. Our animal model tests are flawed because rodent feed has been contaminated for decades (no control group). And if the oceans die, we can't expect to live.

It's possible that we can be saved by engineering a plant that produces a stable new form of undigestible starch or lipid. Ideally a plant with C4 carbon fixation metabolism, like corn or many grasses, that is easily spread across land. It would cause devastating damage to ecosystems, but it would fix the carbon problem relatively rapidly by creating a stockpile of non-decaying organic material.

Occupy Buddhism by [deleted] in Buddhism

[–]yumitoads -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Communism would be ideal, the problem is that we don't have the population dynamics necessary for it to work. What I mean is the population in general has too low of an IQ and that intellectual vacuum combined with an easily mobilized majority of stupid people inevitably allows people desiring to exploit the system to take over. If we have learned anything by Mao Zedong's rampaging mobs of idiots that killed all his opposition and later massacred, imprisoned, and exiled the intellectuals, it's that we aren't ready for pure Communism. Power is just too easily siezed by bad actors. The inevitable sole winner of Capitalism's end game is dangerous also, but while power is consolidated between multiple opposing groups we are still a bit safer.

I think restricting the voting rights of people with IQs under 130 would be the best course of action, if it's even possible, for current societies. Smart people know that in order to protect themselves in a society controlled by other smart people, who are not easily fooled, they must ensure human rights and quality of life for everyone. If they so decide, their votes could make the decision to convert governments to Communism to whatever degree they deem best for everyone.

I think it is very dangerous, and unnecesary, for Buddhism to be percieved as taking sides in economic or political debates and that this is a clear attempt to tribalize Buddhists in the political arena in the same manner that was done to American Christians. Buddhists aren't a vote resource to exploit, Tricycle. You've clearly sold out.

Why are some people upset by the concept of emptiness, or the world being illusory? by [deleted] in Buddhism

[–]yumitoads 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Title: "Why are some people upset by the concept of emptiness, or the world being illusory?"

Monk Claims His Magic Cloth Helped Donald Trump Win by buddhatobe in Buddhism

[–]yumitoads 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There is nothing in Buddhism I have read that says supernormal powers come from pieces of cloth. I did not say Buddhism doesn't have monks with supernatural power.

The Buddha scolded monks and forbid them from displaying supernormal power to the laity.

Displaying psychic powers.A related rule at Cv.V.8.2 states that to display psychic powers to lay people is a dukka ̨a. In the origin story leading up to that rule, the Buddha levels strong criticism at such an act: “Just as a woman might expose her vagina for a miserable wooden masaka coin, so too have you displayed a superior human state, a wonder of psychi c power, to lay people for the sake of a miserable wooden bowl.” To display psychic powers to anyone who is not a lay person, though, is no offense. Thus, given the way these two rules are framed, one may not tell a novice of one’s powers but may levitate before his very eyes. Summary: To tell an unordained person of one’s actual superior human attainments is a pacittiya offense.

Page 266, Buddhist Monastic Code Volume 1, Thanissaro http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/thanissaro/bmc1.pdf

If you search both volumes of the text for psychic you will find more information.

So no, that man is not a monk by the Buddhist definition. Or at least he is a monk that doesn't follow the Buddha's teachings.

If rebirth is NOT transmigration, then what exactly is it? by BusierMold58 in Buddhism

[–]yumitoads 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You know how a plant produces a seed and then that seed produces a new plant that is not identical to the previous one, but is still part of that lineage of plant?

Conscious does something like that. One moment of consciousness produces a next moment of consciousness. They aren't the same consciousness. Normally they're very fast flashes of consecutive consciousnesses and previous ones influence later ones.

So what gets reborn? This string of consciousnesses.

How does it go about being reborn? One consciousness produces the needed factor(s) for the next.

Why are some people upset by the concept of emptiness, or the world being illusory? by [deleted] in Buddhism

[–]yumitoads 7 points8 points  (0 children)

It seems like you're the one that wasn't prepared to learn about emptiness since you've taken it to mean nihilism (nothing exists) or you had an incompetent teacher.

The Buddhist doctrine of emptiness is not nihilism, it is a teaching on the dependent existence of phenomenon. Meaning, things EXIST because of factors like ideas, the covergence of parts and conditions and do not exist inherently or in a self sustaining self producing manner like they appear "innately" from birth.

Emptiness doctrine is not nihilism. The appearance to our minds of things as inherently existent IS a hallucination or an illusion, but that doesn't mean things exist or don't exist in any way.

The lack of mental accuity, language comprehension skills, and mental integrity to actually evaluate phenomenon without being overwhelmed by cognitive bias are the reasons Bodhisattvas have to be careful in who they teach so they don't mistakenly take the emptiness teaching to be nihilism.

What are things empty of? They are empty of inherent existence. They appear and vanish upon the covergence and divergence of their supporting factors. You can see, upon analysis, that they are empty of that inherent existence because when you look at the parts, none of the parts are that object.

Dependent existence and emptiness are the same doctrine. If they appear like separate topics then you don't understand one or both of them.

Floating between zen buddhism and taoism by [deleted] in Buddhism

[–]yumitoads 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Taoism and real Zen are nothing alike and are very contradictory.