If so, nirvana can only be arrived at by accident and not deliberately. We have to stumble upon it via random walks instead of arriving at it with the aid of a well laid out strategem. — Agent Smith
Perhaps there's a sense in which liberation cannot be attained by a deliberate strategy — Wayfarer
If so, nirvana can only be arrived at by accident and not deliberately. We have to stumble upon it via random walks instead of arriving at it with the aid of a well laid out strategem. The level of mindfulness (recommended buddhist practice) required to pull this off is clearly too great for description. It would require complete awareness (self/other) 24/7 — Agent Smith
If someone, seeing beauty well-represented in a face, is transported into the intelligible region, would such a person be so sluggish and immobile of mind that when he sees all the beauties of the sensible world, he will fail to say 'What things are these and whence are they?' (Ennead 2.9(33)16, 49).
Consider it by removing, or rather let the one who is removing see himself and he will feel confident that he is immortal, when he beholds himself as one who has come to be in the intelligible and the pure. For he will see an intellect (nous), which sees no sensible thing nor any of these mortal things, but which grasps the eternal by the eternal, and all the things in the intelligible world, having become himself an intelligible universe and shining, illuminated by the truth from the Good [a.k.a. "the One", the source of all knowledge and truth], which makes truth shine upon all the intelligibles (Enn. 4.7.10.30-37).
If so, nirvana can only be arrived at by accident and not deliberately. — Agent Smith
All human activity can be viewed as an interplay between two contrary but equally essential factors -- vision and repetitive routine. Vision is the creative element in activity, whose presence ensures that over and above the settled conditions pressing down upon us from the past we still enjoy a margin of openness to the future, a freedom to discern more meaningful ends and to discover more efficient ways to achieve them. Repetitive routine, in contrast, provides the conservative element in activity. It is the principle that accounts for the persistence of the past in the present, and it enables the successful achievements of the present to be preserved intact and faithfully transmitted to the future.
If so, nirvana can only be arrived at by accident and not deliberately.
— Agent Smith
No wonder most people don't even try. — baker
To be enlightened is to have discovered that you know nothing without the application of philosophy. — Garrett Travers
Enlightenment is waking up from the somnabulatory state cluelessness. — Garrett Travers
I'll sit with that for a bit. — Tom Storm
Obviously, the vast majority of mankind just want to get on with their daily life and have no time for anything of this sort. And even from among the small minority who take an interest in these things and try their best to have a realization of them, very few actually succeed. — Apollodorus
The most fundamental awareness in philosophy is awareness of one's limited capacity and wealth of knowledge. — Garrett Travers
The Pragmatic Buddhists eschew the very notion of enlightenment as a dangerous fantasy or pitfall, instead focusing on a gradualistic increase in self- and world-awareness. Or, say, a gradualistic decrease in ego-illusion. — ZzzoneiroCosm
The Pragmatic Buddhists eschew the very notion of enlightenment as a dangerous fantasy or pitfall, instead focusing on a gradualistic increase in self- and world-awareness. Or, say, a gradualistic decrease in ego-illusion.
Worth mentioning. — ZzzoneiroCosm
Both of these are completely different from the Enlightenment of 17th-18th century Europe which occurs in a very different cultural and historical context. — Wayfarer
Do you think the 'spiritual' use of the word enlightenment is useful? — Tom Storm
The Universe is, according to philosophers who base their beliefs on idealism, a place of the spirit. Other philosophers whose beliefs are based on a materialistic view, say that the Universe is composed of the matter we see in front of our eyes.
Buddhist philosophy takes a view which is neither idealistic nor materialistic; Buddhists do not believe that the Universe is composed of only matter. They believe that there is something else other than matter. But there is a difficulty here; if we use a concept like 'spirit' to describe that 'something else other than matter', people are prone to interpret Buddhism as some form of spiritualistic religion and think that Buddhists must therefore believe in the actual existence of spirit. So it becomes very important to understand the Buddhist view of the concept 'spirit'. I am careful to refer to spirit as a concept here because in fact Buddhism does not believe in the actual existence of spirit.
So what is this something else other than matter which exists in this Universe? If we think that there is a something which actually exists other than matter, our understanding will not be correct; nothing physical exists outside of matter....Some people explain the Universe as a universe based on matter. But there also exists something which we call value or meaning. A Universe consisting only of matter leaves no room for value or meaning in civilizations and cultures. Matter alone has no value. We can say that the Universe is constructed with matter, but we must also say that matter works for some purpose. So in our understanding of the Universe we should recognize the existence of something other than matter. We can call that something spirit, but if we do we should remember that in Buddhism, the word 'spirit' is a figurative expression for value or meaning. We do not say that spirit exists in reality; we use the concept only figuratively.
Some people explain the Universe as a universe based on matter. But there also exists something which we call value or meaning. A Universe consisting only of matter leaves no room for value or meaning in civilizations and cultures.
What is real is much greater than what exists. Hard idea to get. — Wayfarer
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