Introductions

[piedwagtail91]

thanks for the feedback - gobsmacked!!

[JonW]

Thanks BioSattva.
That's very helpful. Much appreciated. Just finding my way around it all at the moment in my own sweet time. It's a big, fascinating forest.
All good things, Jon

[JonW]

Hope to see more of you on here, piedwagtail91. All best, Jon

[BioSattva]

Thanks BioSattva.
That's very helpful. Much appreciated. Just finding my way around it all at the moment in my own sweet time. It's a big, fascinating forest.
All good things, Jon

Indeed - I've been inspired to start a forum thread about the dangers of getting sucked into Buddhism, actually. I started out on my 'path' by looking into Daoist and Zen philosophy and then got sucked into Buddhism, only to have become quite disillusioned with it due to all the rebirth, chakras, qi, psychic transmission, etc., nonsense, and finally finding a true refuge within secular Mindfulness. I've seen people go on an MBSR course only to attribute the 'miraculous' change in their life to some unseen forces and then go on a spiritual quest into the esoteric and mysterious side of Buddhism. My opinion is that such a 'descent' can only end in confusion and additional stress - it replaces the fear of any Judic notions of God with the fear of an unfavourable rebirth. Being motivated by fear is counter-productive to MBSR.

Anyway, again I'll leave it for another thread.

[FeeHutch]

I will be very interested to read that thread.

I investigated Buddhism around the same time as I discovered mindfulness. I was drawn to the secular Buddhist movement and have read a little around the subject.

[BioSattva]

I will be very interested to read that thread.

I investigated Buddhism around the same time as I discovered mindfulness. I was drawn to the secular Buddhist movement and have read a little around the subject.

Great - I'll get it going as soon as I can.

I'm aware of the potential controversial nature of the situation, since the likes of JKZ and books like 'Mindfulness in Plain English' state there is no essential difference between Buddhism and Secular Mindfulness, and yet it seems there come points where the path forks - depending on various schools of Buddhism. I've practiced with Tibetan Vajrayana Buddhists, Japanese Soto Zen Buddhists, Vietnamese Zen Buddhists, Theravada Buddhists, and Chinese Chan and 'Mind Only' Buddhists. Very quickly I became aware of mystical undertones unique to each tradition in some ways.

I think within this emerging Mindfulness paradigm in the West there is a feeling of relief as well as loneliness which draws people to want to share their experiences with like-minded others and feel they belong to a community. If forums like this don't provide alternatives then such people will often be drawn to the more esoteric mindfulness groups, which would be a shame in my opinion. Those more esoteric traditions are most often stragnant, caught in outmoded rituals, wrestling with internal power hierarchies, and preoccupied with mystical fascinations. That is not in harmony with the spirit of the fluidity and simplicity required for mindfulness practice - a lot of time gets wasted imo.

[JonW]

I too would be very interested in reading that, BioSattva.

[LucidMind]

Hello all!

Just thought i'd give a quick introduction to myself. Mindfulness is becoming an ever-increasing positive force in my life, and I plan on being on these boards much more often (I'm so glad to find a place like this!). I am in my early twenties and I live in California. I am attending graduate school in the Fall for my PhD in clinical psychology, and I actually plan on doing my research dissertation on applying mindfulness as an intervention to help various mental health disorders.

I have been practicing mindfulness meditation for a few months. I have read Mindfulness In Plain English, The Mindful Way Through Anxiety, and Insight Meditation: The practice of Freedom (one of my favorites!). I am also signed up to do an 8 week MBSR course in May (I couldn't be more excited!!). Looking back on it, it's hard for me to remember exactly why I decided to become more mindful...I think it had to do with having a powerful and visceral feeling inside of me, urging me that there was way to live a much more fulfilled and meaningful life. In Mindfulness in Plain English, Bhante Gunaratana mentions how we are always trying to get out of negative situations, hold on to positive situations, and ignore neutral situations. He wrote how we are never truly happy, because there was always "more". That really struck a chord with me, and since then I have been determined to find a more wholesome way to live my life

[BioSattva]

Hello all!

Hi LucidMind

I am also signed up to do an 8 week MBSR course in May (I couldn't be more excited!!).

I hope the excitement reduces somewhat before you start the course

[BioSattva]

I will be very interested to read that thread.

I too would be very interested in reading that, BioSattva.

Here you go: MBSR vs Traditional Buddhism.