Philosophy Now Forum

lancek4 wrote:I am astonished and relieved.
But that is your rhetoric, and I will leave it to you.

What do you mean?

Hi Sanjay The ultimate objective of the spirituality to keep the mind firm on its feet in this flow and to enabling it in conceiving a look at this state of flux from outside as a third person. Let the world, and even your mind, flow before you. In simple terms, this is Yog or enlightenment. YES! If...

Hi Lance, The problem, I feel, is when you put it into a "spiritual" scheme, you deny the significance of what u r attempting to indicate by using the term 'spiritual'. Since once you use this term, a bets are off. The conscious individual is left with some sort of 'two worlds'. I agree wi...

Hi Sanjay, Thanks for your message, I'm sorry I didn't reply sooner but I have my parents staying with me at the moment and it is hard to find the time to concentrate! I think that we have something to share with each other. Just have a look at this thread. I've been reading your posts and I agree t...

Hi arising Get out! What're the Eightfold Path and the Four Noble Truths then? He even chucks in some enlightenment techniques. He did, and the whole time he was saying this isn't it, this is just a finger pointing at the moon - a raft to be discarded. And alongside the eightfold path and the four n...

Hi Arising, I'm not saying reject the theory, as why would one do this if it is accurate? But at heart Buddhism is acts not thoughts. I think this 'many paths' idea is pretty much used as a cop-out for many from acting as the Buddha did. Buddhism, at its heart, is neither actions nor thoughts. Any a...

Hi Typist Right. If I burn my hand on the stove, and truly see the reality of the stove, there is no discipline involved in not touching the hot stove again. Once I see it, it's done. Yes, your experience with the stove has completely changed your behaviour. I suggest that intellectual experiences s...

Hi EH, Articulate, yes, but I'm questioning the perspective, which seems driven by something outside of what observation will attest to. I have presented jnana yoga, or philosophical scepticism, as a path to the doorstep of a state of mind that I have equated with religious salvation. I've made clea...

Hi Lance, I'm sorry you've been ignored, please don't take it personally. The trouble for me is that I don't seem to understand what you are saying. If I reply then it will probably be clear that I haven't understood you and then there will be a lot of effort trying to untangle all the knots. I only...

Hi Typist, A key difference I see is that you seem to be seeking a permanent transformation, whereas I am contenting myself with day to day management. The kid who say his parents placing the tree might still find himself getting caught up in the Santa Claus things, especially when he's playing with...

To see a division indicated at all reveals one as subject to the 'illusion', samsara, I think it is called. In that I might be a soldier who's job it is to kill people, I am exactly being true, in yoga, in union with existance. One might recall the Mahabarata (sp?): Arjuna and Krishna overlooking t...

Hi typist, When i described the spiritual as beyond analysis I was speaking from 'beyond' the yogi's path, as it were. Ok, you seem to be addressing my question here, but I'm not getting it yet. If it interests you, could you try again please? The jnana yogi's path is a thought based enterprise, whe...

Hi Typist, Hmm... Jnana yoga suggests we use reason to skeptically analyze everything, until we arrive at the logical end point of that process. How are we to conduct the analysis if the subject under study is declared to be beyond analysis? Yes, I see your point. But from the standpoint of the jnan...

Hi Typist Well, I dunno. Our ideas about enlightenment come from those who claim to have it. Yes and no. Speaking personally I had experiences as a child, and a strong experience at university that left an impression and I often felt I was searching them out again. It was only several years later an...

Hi typist, Hopefully it's reasonable to state we are discussing what some people call "enlightenment". Please suggest another word if you have a better one. I think the term is fine, as long as we understand that enlightenment is a process and not some radical qualitative shift in awarenes...