Over-reacting & Suffering

     When we're betrayed by someone we assumed loved us, doesn't it feel as if we've physically been "stabbed in the back"? When we're "heart-broken" doesn't it feel physically real? And there are many other examples of emotional trauma feeling as if someone had actually tried to kill us, leaving us mortally wounded.
     Threats to our sense of self are interpreted, & thus feel very much like attempts on our life. That is why we feel them and react to them so powerfully, so viscerally. We unknowingly conflate our ego (self-concept, reputation, plans, etc) with our very life.

     So we take many things way too seriously, way too personally. We over-react and therefore suffer & cause others to suffer. An insult is NOT attempted murder (even though it can feel like it).

     “Until we have developed the wisdom to see what is necessary or not necessary for our survival, we will continue to suffer. From the wisdom that we develop, a moral standard will emerge that can be the guiding principle by which we can measure all of our actions. This is a principle that is not conditioned by concepts or conceits but is one of the very principles of nature itself and can form the way in which we conduct our lives. This is right action.”
     Sayadaw U Tejaniya. “Where Awareness Becomes Natural. A Guide to Cultivating Mindfulness in Daily Life.” Shambhala, 2016.

 

Katie Hoffman      "Swimming in a River of Shit"      www.katiehoffman.com

Wrong Concentration during Meditation

     "there can actually be wrong concentration, which has nothing to do with samatha or vipassanā, because both of these have right concentration. 
     Wrong concentration happens to a lot of yogis. They use too much energy to focus because of greed, because they are trying to get something; so they develop this heavy concentration. That can be dangerous. Because it’s wrong concentration, of course it’s dangerous. The motivation behind that kind of concentration is greed actually. They want something so badly they use a lot of energy to focus, thinking that’s how they’ll get it, and sometimes that energy builds up to a level that they themselves cannot control. That’s because there is a combination of the power of focusing and the power of the defilements. So it is really very out of control. Double trouble."          Sayadaw U Tejaniya

       Destined to Teach. Āyasmā Kumāra interviews Sayadaw U Tejaniya, 1996
       http://sayadawutejaniya.org/teachings/
 

Vatican Modern Art Collection

Transformative Learning

     Transformative learning can be achieved in three stages: 1) reflecting, 2) directly experiencing, and 3) knowing. Reflecting involves critically examining a statement to see if it makes sense. When you intellectually know that a statement is at least logical and theoretically possible, then you go to step 2. Directly experiencing is immersing yourself in the statement. Through mindful compassionate awareness, see if the experience is valid for you personally – in your body – as a felt experience. Here theory becomes a living wisdom rather than a philosophy. Step 3 is knowing – mindfully integrating what you have just learned and felt into your daily life. In scientific terms, this is referred to as “knowledge translation / utilization”. Without this crucial last step, you return to old habits ie there is no real benefit.

       Moffitt P. Dancing with life. Buddhist insights for finding meaning and joy in the face of suffering. Rodale, 2008.

     "There are three kinds of wisdom: Sutamayā paññā, cintāmayā paññā, and bhāvanāmayā paññā. Sutamayā paññā is information you get from reading, from listening to Dhamma discourses, or from discussions with teachers. Cintāmayā paññā is intelligence or knowledge acquired through thinking, reasoning, or intellectual analysis. Bhāvanāmayā paññā is insight or wisdom gained through direct experience. In short, we refer to them as information, intelligence, and insight."

       Ashin Tejaniya "Dhamma Everywhere: Welcoming Each Moment with Awareness+Wisdom."

http://sayadawutejaniya.org/teachings/

Photo: Geza Radics   flickr.com/radicsge