I know my
blog is most often negative. I tend to
post about the things that bother me, mainly the shortcomings of the human
race. I also sometimes post about my No
Bullshit Buddhism – the philosophy of living that I try to adhere to, but not
well.
Buddhism and
a negative outlook may seem incompatible; but in my perspective of No Bullshit Buddhism,
it is reasonable.
All the supposed sayings attributed to the
Buddha are just as much bullshit as the red print in the Christian Bible – supposedly
said by Jesus.
Organized
Buddhism, like all organized religions, has lost the concept of the Buddha. All its
bells and whistles, its tomes and volumes of creeds, its ceremonies robes and
trappings have moved away from the basic concept the Buddha supposedly discovered
as he meditated near death under the bodhi tree, and was brought a bowl of
rice and a cup of cool water by a beautiful young girl.
In basic Buddhism
under the bodhi tree, the Buddha never promised happiness; he never promised a utopia, he never promised freedom from death or a life after. The Buddha just proclaimed that life is full
of strife; but life is also a gift and we should live it and appreciate it the
best we can in each moment.
Right now, our
country is in chaos. Violence and
anarchy are the herald of the news. A
virus pandemic threatens our lives and the lives of the people we love. Every
moment discontent is fermented by the people around us; and in reality, there
is nothing we can do in the moment to mediate the mayhem.
I am living in my
eighth decade and my future is finite. I am past my sell-by date, so I don’t
have time to rage and rant against the insanity of the human race. It has always been here and will always be
here until it extinguishes itself.
This morning
it is snowing. Beautiful, large soft
white flakes are drifting down from a grey sky.
My wife, who I love dearly, is sitting in the room with me, and soon we
will be contemplating breakfast.
the Ol’Buzzard
Your last sentence describes pretty well the best of life.
ReplyDeleteEvery organized religion is about power and control, not about the teachings of its founder. Buddhism included, I agree. I like your No Bullshit Buddhist approach!
ReplyDeleteOrganized Buddhism sounds much like any organized religion. Still, your ending paragraph sounds as though you have a good grip on good life.
ReplyDeleteI don't know a lot about Buddhism... but I guess I never considered it an organized religion - but I guess it is. I do find the Buddhist philosophy uplifting and real for the most part. And I do believe life is what you make it. You seem to know that.
ReplyDeleteWhen I read history - and live through it - I sometimes think about all the shitty things that will happen after I die, and I won't have to live through it. A dark comfort, but there you are.
ReplyDeleteBon appetit!,from chilly Quebec.
ReplyDeleteas a pagan my goddess doesn't ask anything more than to do no harm...wanna fuck up your life..up to you..but don't think it's not going to end well for you.ha
ReplyDelete