Question Authority
“ What is accepted
by the majority of people -
does not mean it is Real ”
BUDDHA said: "Believe Nothing"
on the Faith of 'Traditions' –
Even though they have been
held in high honor
for many
generations and in sacred places of pilgrimage.
Do not believe a
thing because many people speak of it.
Do not believe in
the 'Faith' of the prophets of the past.
Do not believe what
you yourself have only 'imagined' -
persuading yourself that an 'entity' or a 'god' inspires you.
Believe nothing on
sole authority of your elders or priests.
After careful experiential examination
- Know what you yourself have tested and found to be
rational and reasonable, and only then conform your careful choice of conduct thereto."
~ Gautama The Buddha ~ 5th
century B.C. ( short Kalama Sutra version ) is probably one of the most famous of Buddha's sutra quotes -- given that the historical Buddha was an atheist and Buddhism has no god to offer to worship, unless you conjure one in your own imagination of mind for personal support.
Respect ‘authority’--
since you are not
the ultimate authority
Question ‘authority’--
since You are to be the ultimate authority.
Always find the ‘Middle Path’ in between.
~
Stonepeace
"If we don't
question what we ‘believe’,
we're destined to live it out." ~ Byron Katie
pictue
The Buddhist Holy Ground Zero
The holiest place in all of Buddhism
is simply sitting quietly, calmly directly
under this ancient beloved Bodhi Tree
where a noble prince, Siddhartha
who was the 'Buddha-to-be' –
sat that momentous full moon night
in May around 500 BC, some 2500
short years ago – and by morning
he Awakened to Enlightenment
as his contribution to the benefit
of all living beings.
That giant tree still stands
at a bend in the dry river in the
small desert village of Bodh Gaya,
Northeast India on the Varanasi-side.
This most holy of Buddhist places,
Buddha'gaya / Bodhgaya
Buddha'gaya / Bodhgaya
is Buddhism's Mecca or Jerusalem.
"Gautama The Buddha Shakyamuni"
A 'prophet' of sorts, not a
God. Definitely
a 'heretic'.
The former Prince Siddhartha Gautama (Gotama) of the Shakya Tribal Clan in Nepal - North India Birthplace: Kapilvastu, Nepal 563 BC Awakened: Uruwala,North India , 528 BC at a small oasis that became Bodhgaya.
Died@80: Kusinara, 483 BC
Never to be re-incarnated or
resurrected again. Done. Gone.
Job-commission fully completed.
'Para-Nirvana' fully blown away
Nibbana: 'to blow out' like a flame
We do have his Maha Dharma
to use for Practice. Use it well.
The Maha Bodhi Maha Vihara An ancient single stone temple tower sits to the East of the foot of The Sacred Bodhi Tree under whose arms Siddhartha Gautama the 'Buddha-to-be' sat vowing to remain there till Enlightenment occurred
______________________________________________________
♦ 'The Buddha' ( from Budhi / Bodhi: to Awaken in classical Sanskrit ) a Buddha is only the 'Way-Pointer', a self-evolved 'human model', the
founding-teacher. Now gone 2500 plus years. An
intelligent, savvy, compassionate, pioneering man dedicated to a 'Humanist' view of life and all existence.______________________________________________________
"Buddha's advanced spiritual
practice is not a search for God or
the Divine." It is a totally 'humanistic' path
– totally in one's own hands, head and heart.
With the Buddha's Enlightenment, a great 'spiritual-revolutionary'
awakened !He became an authentically
free person entirely through his very own efforts. ~ Henri Van Zeyst
The mantra I continuously say to myself is –
"I Will Stop
Searching Outside."
~ Sri Ramana Maharshi 1879-1950
"It is the experience of truly advanced yogis
who no longer perceive things 'dualistically' -
And even for them –
That 'Things' simply do 'manifest', 'appear'
without 'truly existing' - is still so amazing,
that they burst out in laughter"
--and--
"Since everything is but an
'Apparition',
Perfect in just being 'What It Is' ~ As It Is.
Having nothing to do with
'good' or 'bad',
'acceptance' or
'rejection' – or with ME.
Again, you might as
well
just burst out laughing!"
just burst out laughing!"
~
Longchenpa (1308-1369 AD) from The Choying Dzod
A Sweet Little Asian Legend
Hey -it's
just a legend- a fairy tale
They say, when
the Buddha was born,
he sprang
easily out of his mother's hip,
walked seven
steps, on seven lotus pads
that appeared
instantly under his Holy feet.
He pointed to
the sky with one arm raised -
and the other
arm pointed to the ground
-- and he said:
-- and he said:
"Heaven
above, Earth below --
I am in between them - but not of them -
I am
completely, truly Awakened."
Can we too –
‘Be Between’ and ‘Not of Them’ ?
‘Be Between’ and ‘Not of Them’ ?
Are Buddha and
You the Same or Different?
~
Zenmaster Seung Sahn – Soen Sah Nim
_______________________
A new student
asked The Buddha
-------------------------------------------asked The Buddha
Are you The Messiah ?
"No",
answered The Buddha.
Are you a Deva-Deity-God ?
"No",
responded Buddha.
Then are you a mystic ?
Then are you a mystic ?
"No", Buddha replied.
Then are you a healer ?
the student persisted.
"No, I am not a healer."
Then what are you ?
he asked, exasperated.
"I am Awake", Buddha replied.
___________________________
"An common unconscious mistake
is to think that 'your' reality, is THE Reality –
You must always
be prepared to leave
your reality for a greater one."
~ Amaji Meera
___________________________
Siddhartha Gautama in
Sanskrit, or Gotama in Pali, was
a spiritual teacher from ancient India and the founder of Buddhism. He is
recognized by Buddhists as the Supreme Buddha ( Samma-sambuddha ) of our age.
The precise nature of such a supreme Buddha whether "merely" human or
a transcendental, immortal, god-transcending being - is differently
construed in Theravada and Mahayana
Buddhism. Theravada tends to view him as a super-human personage
of supreme teaching skill & wisdom (uncontactable after his physical
death), whereas Mahayana
Buddhism goes further and tends to see him as a projection of an eternal, ultimate
principle of Buddhahood(see Dharmakaya), present in all phenomea, immortal and
transcendent.
Gautama, also known as Shakyamuni literally means “silent sage of the Shakya
clan” – is the key figure in Buddhism, and accounts of his life, discourses,
and monastic rules were said to have been summarized after his death and
memorized by the monastic Sangha. Passed down by oral tradition, the Tipitaka,
the collection of teachings attributed to Gotama, was committed to writing some
centuries later. The commentaries to the Tipitaka tell the story of Siddharta
Gautama, Prince of Kapilavastu, who lived during 6th cen-tury B.C. He was born
on Vaisakha Poornima. The history of his family - The Ikshvaku Dynasty is
traceableway back to pre-Ramayana times. Renouncing the life and responsibility
of a king, Siddhartha Gautama sought a solution to human misery. Ever in the
midst of the great Indian religious and spiritual traditions, he again noticed
what was most needed by all people – Dharma teachings and Non-violence.
He sought a direct path to salvation. He was a lone pathfinder who
inspired the religions that eventually spread to China, Japan, and to the
United States and Europe as late as the 20th Century.
Read more at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siddharta_Gautama