Earlier quoted context omitted.
What exactly is mindfulness in simple terms? How is different from concentration?
Mindfulness is being fully in the moment, while concentration is eschewing the moment.
Unless you practice mindful concentration.
Zen Buddhism and Alan Watts
101–110 of 154 posts
Re: Zen Buddhism and Alan Watts
#102Earlier quoted context omitted.
I would add the free, short, book "Mindfulness in Plain English". It changed my life. Here is the PDF: http://www.urbandharma.org/pdf2/Mindfulness%20in%20Plain%20E...
What exactly is mindfulness in simple terms? How is different from concentration?
Self awareness. At first, you just sit and let thoughts go through your mind, acknowledging each one. "I am breathing. I feel a little more tired than usual today. My dog is barking again." You just acknowledge and move on. Let your thoughts come and leave. Most of the time you don't have a big revelation, it's just kind of relaxing. You learn to be more balanced, less dramatic in how you react to things. But sometimes you do make an important observation. You think of a coworker, and you feel anxiety, and because you have developed your self awareness, you recognize that this coworker causes you anxiety, and now you can address that issue and improve your life. Most people go through life unaware, and do not address a lot of issues that happen to them everyday. But those stresses in life that go unaddressed have a consequence. People go home and argue with their spouse, unaware that they are actually stressed from work, and end with a major life disaster like divorce or health problems or worse. Sometimes all of that could have been avoided if they had spent 10 minutes a day reflecting on what their mind and body was experiencing.
Re: Zen Buddhism and Alan Watts
#103Earlier quoted context omitted.
I cringed every time he referenced Physics. It's something I've seen other philosophers do in an attempt to legitimize their beliefs by implying that they codify the natural order. In truth, dynamic emptiness has absolutely nothing to do with quantum froth, which could be described using any objects and still make sense. This concept of some unseen physical manifestation of the model arises because of the terms a the…
Truth is not to be found by picking everything to pieces like a spoilt child. -from this very article
A child who knows his toys well might find it tough to ignore liberties taken in discussing them.
As someone interested in mindfulness for its own pursuits, I want to learn what's in my teacher's head, rather than listen to them try unsuccessfully to tie that to what's firmly in mine. I'm sorry to say it's distracting :)
Re: Zen Buddhism and Alan Watts
#104Earlier quoted context omitted.
What exactly is mindfulness in simple terms? How is different from concentration?
Mindfulness is awareness. When eating you're aware that you are eating. When seeing something you are aware that you are seeing something. When enjoying the sunset you're aware you're enjoying the sunset. When thinking you're aware that you are thinking. When selfish you are aware of that. When sad you are aware that you are sad... And so on. On some level it's like "seeing the matrix". Everything is clear, no longer…
For me at least, it's also about being in touch the true underlying reasons I exhibit certain behaviors. The easiest examples is in conversation. Much of social relations is about signaling, not to mention playing games.
A few years ago I started to notice the underlying emotions when I said something that was designed to either a) impress or b) hurt the other person. Neither case felt pleasant. In the latter case self-righteousness can have a drug-like high, but there is often a hangover too (regret, guilt, shame etc).
So I started becoming more mindful of what I say. I strive only to say things that I believe at my core.
Occasionally I still catch myself saying or doing something that's about trying to impress or hurt the other person, but it's much less common now, and I feel like I move through my day lightly even under significant work stress.
Humor is a special case. I can "lie" by saying something absurd or snarky, but the underlying feeling is one of laughter. However, I try to avoid snide putdowns or Gawker-style schadenfreude. Most people, even those at "the top" (however defined) are struggling with something. Consider for example Elon Musk's apparent difficulty with relationships. I feel for the guy and don't see much humor in pouring salt in the wounds.
Re: Zen Buddhism and Alan Watts
#105Earlier quoted context omitted.
I apologize if this is a rude question. But what do you get out of doing all this? I went to a zen Buddhism workshop a few years ago and it all felt very strangely ritualistic and bizarre. I just didn't see the point of it. Why should I be doing zen or any other form of meditation?
The strange ritualistic culture is merely a means by which Zen propagates itself (forward momentum in time) and not the "thing" itself. In my own words you should meditate because with practice one builds a refuge within stillness. Knowledge of this refuge changes the way you feel about circumstances and mental phenomena (motion). The change just feels right, like a lessening of burden, but it takes practice, that's…
Just as a thought experiment: if you could take a pill that did all this for you, would you still do the practice?
Re: Zen Buddhism and Alan Watts
#106Earlier quoted context omitted.
> I don't understand the need for constantly interspersing > an otherwise flowing article with references to science. It's just that that was what sold spirituality back in the day. Even though it seems tired and forced now, it was a very easy path to popularity.
One should take into account the fact that Watts was presenting his material to an audience of western intellectuals who had been so deeply indoctrinated into "scientific orthodoxy" that one really had no chance of getting anything across if one did not choose to invoke science. I don't see this as any different than the Buddha choosing to give teachings using concepts familiar to the brahmins of his time.
It's not just Watts. It was fashionable back then.
Re: Zen Buddhism and Alan Watts
#107Earlier quoted context omitted.
Truth is not to be found by picking everything to pieces like a spoilt child. -from this very article
Why not? Picking everything to pieces is exactly what those people (theoretical and practical scientists) who seem to have the most success in approximating truth do. These are the methods that best produce accurate predictions about the future and best produce designs for new technologies that actually work.
That's not "truth" though, that's "reality" or "the physical world" and the two notions are quite different.
Re: Zen Buddhism and Alan Watts
#108Earlier quoted context omitted.
Yes his criticism just boils down to appeal to authority.
Exactly. Practitioners of Zen Buddhism believe that enlightenment is transmitted from one who is enlightened to one who is not. With only very rare exceptions, it requires an authority to transmit. People who think they're practicing Zen without a trained instructor are just deluding themselves.
Who transmitted to Sidhatta Gotama?
Re: Zen Buddhism and Alan Watts
#109Earlier quoted context omitted.
What exactly is mindfulness in simple terms? How is different from concentration?
Mindfulness is awareness. When eating you're aware that you are eating. When seeing something you are aware that you are seeing something. When enjoying the sunset you're aware you're enjoying the sunset. When thinking you're aware that you are thinking. When selfish you are aware of that. When sad you are aware that you are sad... And so on. On some level it's like "seeing the matrix". Everything is clear, no longer…
Well said. I would also add that mindfulness to me includes being intentional in your actions.
For example it's fine to watch TV if your intention is to relax and enjoy a show. But if you turn on the TV without intention and mindlessly channel surf with no set timeframe, that is not a very mindful practice.
Re: Zen Buddhism and Alan Watts
#110Earlier quoted context omitted.
> It needs to be stated that most practitioners of Zen Buddhism, in both the east and the west, consider Alan Watts to be misinformed about Zen. Some might even call him a charlatan. Citation needed please. Watts certainly has his flaws, one of which was that he simply wrote and spoke so much that I think some of the material suffers and becomes repetitive. He always took more of a wide view of religions (east and we…
Alan Watts is regularly given as the prototypical example of 'beat zen' which is recognized as a debased form of Zen. This is discussed in the book I reference above by Wong Kiew Kit. This is not my opinion per se. It is the opinion of many Zen masters. Just look at the criticisms section in Alan Watt's Wikipedia article. D. T. Suzuki being one of them. However, having said all that, I still think the world is a bett…
Zen concepts? That's missing the entire point of Zen.