Anders wrote:We probably need to change ourselves first. Why? Because the whole world is a lie. This means that our minds are a result of a total lie. To use our misguided minds to try to change a delusional world, that will only make an even bigger mess. The difficulty is not trying to think about solutions. The difficulty is to stop using our minds altogether.
Our perception of the world is an illusion. Always was and how perfect we create the future it always will be.
Our minds are misguided yes, but we let it. There are ways to train the mind to see through the illusions.
Stopping the mind all together? Seems like trying to stop the lungs from exchanging oxygen and carbon-dioxide. It will be possible I guess to do it for a while, but the results of that will be detrimental to say it mildly..
Anders wrote:
Our current minds are caterpillars and the world is like a bigger caterpillar. To become a butterfly the caterpillar has to be dissolved. If we just continue to use our caterpillar minds, we will remain being caterpillars. Not good. We need to stop thinking so that a new mind forms within us. How to stop thinking? A simple method in theory, difficult in practice, is mindfulness practice. Not the usual mindfulness practice where thoughts are observed and accepted, but a new form of mindfulness practice where thoughts are observed and REJECTED. It's even possible to stop all thinking by moving our conscious attention into feeling the body. So rejecting thoughts can be done by moving our attention into feeling the body.
I'd like to propose an additional step. Observe the thoughts, reject the bad ones, but in addition cultivate the good ones.
The word for mindfulness in Pali also means to keep something in memory.
The popular mindfulness training in a lot of ways does not teach people the whole story. When meditating or doing some form of mindfulness practice one has to observe, That is a good first step, but then one has to take what is observed and analyze it. Which observation will lead to happiness, which ones don't. Then train yourself to act on the ones you discerned where good. And train yourself to reject the ones you felt/discerned where not skillful.
I hate to say this, but that is exactly what the Buddha was trying to teach people.
The noble 8-fold path is build around 3 themes. Sila, which is often translated as morality and is probably the biggest of the 3 trainings deals with everything that you do in the world. How does one conduct himself in such a way that True happiness becomes a possibility. Its the pillar that deals with skillful speech
skillful action
skillful livelihood.
The similie often used is that of a murderer trying to meditate.
It is doable, but makes it extra hard to come to peace after a day of killing.
Then there is the Theme of concentration.
Skillful effort
Skillful mindfulness
Skillful concentration.
This Pillar tries to teach ways in which we can tame the mind, to make it a useful tool to aid us in our quest for wisdom.
As you can see the effort part means that we have to do something with the mindfulness practice.
Finally there's the Pillar of Wisdom
Skillful view
Skillful Intention
Again something we do actively. See through the delusions and set our intentions in ways that will yield the desired results.
The Buddha does talk about desires. Some desires are needed to walk the path to freedom. The desire to reach that destination would be one of those.
Unless we set our intention actively to find our freedom and use our mindfulness(keep in mind that intention) we use our abilities to see the delusion, we act in a way that helps our intention further. We concentrate our minds so we don't get too distracted etc etc..
I'm not trying to convince anybody to walk the path so to speak, but I wanted to let you know that what you propose above is exactly what the Buddha talked about. So you can use it to your benefit should you so desire.
With Love
Eelco
