您們好

[Rin]

Hello everyone,

 

My name is Rin. I am twenty-four years old, and I am from Canada. I am a former University studen who was studying Japanese, Mandarin, and Buddhism. For as long as I can remember, I have liked to ask questions and sometimes that has landed me in trouble (both with myself and other people). A questioning nature usually leads to the metaphysical, and along that way I came to trap myself in a lot of words and descriptions. The Way has always been an influence in my life, so it helped a great deal when it came to dealing with the breaking up of those words and descriptions (which was a painful series of events).

 

I would like, perhaps, to one day become a Buddhist monk, but I'm not holding out on that dream any more. If it happens, it happens and that would be great. If it doesn't, then I won't be upset about it.

 

謝謝,

Rin

[footpad]

Hello everyone,

 

My name is Rin. I am twenty-four years old, and I am from Canada. I am a former University studen who was studying Japanese, Mandarin, and Buddhism. For as long as I can remember, I have liked to ask questions and sometimes that has landed me in trouble (both with myself and other people). A questioning nature usually leads to the metaphysical, and along that way I came to trap myself in a lot of words and descriptions. The Way has always been an influence in my life, so it helped a great deal when it came to dealing with the breaking up of those words and descriptions (which was a painful series of events).

 

I would like, perhaps, to one day become a Buddhist monk, but I'm not holding out on that dream any more. If it happens, it happens and that would be great. If it doesn't, then I won't be upset about it.

 

謝謝,

Rin

 

Hi fellow seeker named Rin. I too am new to this forum and I hope to learn

something here. Welcome to the forum.

 

Footpad

[freeform]

Hey Rin

 

Interesting stuff... You're running away from words, and it seems your intuition has brought you here - where we use words to help us embody what they imply. I know first hand that thinking philosophically and spiritually is highly rewarding, but Taoism (especially the type most of the Bums are fond of) involves dropping the words and getting back into your body... where all the questions are answered already...

 

anyway, welcome aboard!

[Rin]

Hi fellow seeker named Rin. I too am new to this forum and I hope to learn

something here. Welcome to the forum.

 

Footpad

Hello Footpad! Thank you for the welcome!

 

 

Hey Rin

 

Interesting stuff... You're running away from words, and it seems your intuition has brought you here - where we use words to help us embody what they imply. I know first hand that thinking philosophically and spiritually is highly rewarding, but Taoism (especially the type most of the Bums are fond of) involves dropping the words and getting back into your body... where all the questions are answered already...

 

anyway, welcome aboard!

 

Hoo! Hoo! Dropping the words and getting back into your body! That's precisely what I've been looking to do, and on my own it has not gone so well. Spent a bit too much time living in my head. o.O;

 

Anyway, thank you for the welcome!

[fatherpaul]

welcome,

interesting

 

words, (thought), have a strangle hold on the physical organism.

thoughts primary purpose is to continue itself.

the life force( Tao ) is never old.

thought knows it is mortal, but refuses to see this.

 

my .02 worth

[Rin]

Oh yes, I agree. Usually, it appears as though thinking is a never-ending-process, that there is a literal stream of thoughts. But when one becomes more familiar with meditation, one begins to notice that there are gaps between thoughts.

 

They arise, persist, and then subside. Like a movie projection twenty-four still images a second, the mind runs through its thoughts in a way that makes it appear as though we never stop thinking, but we do, so for some it begs the question, if "I think, therefore I am" then what am I between thoughts? Hoo! Hoo! It's such an exquisite answer, though a pity that it cannot really be spoken of or described. You just notice, in that fleeting moment of wakefulness, and that's it.

[sean]

Welcome Rin!

 

Finally motivated me to install my Asian language font pack on my new system, I was trying to figure out why you put so many question marks in your post at first. doh!

[Rin]

*chuckles*

 

Sorry about the Chinese. I try to use it when I can (without obscuring the general meaning of what I'm saying) so that I don't forget what I do know.

 

Thank you for the welcome!

[MASTERforge]

I used to live very cerebrally while at university. When I was creating reports I would delve so deep that I would find an answer. I would dig deeper and find a different answer. Then dig deeper and find no answer!

 

The deeper I studied the less answers I had! This was really painful as I had to produce reports with solid opinions. This meant I had to be bias or not cover the subject deep enough to be fair. Needless to say I became quickly dissolusioned with academics.

 

So I realised that the most profound experiences and knowledge are beyond words. You cannot explain them, others simply understand or not.

 

This is what brought me to the tao. Tao is beyond words.

[Rin]

Very well said!

[raymond]

Oh yes, I agree. Usually, it appears as though thinking is a never-ending-process, that there is a literal stream of thoughts. But when one becomes more familiar with meditation, one begins to notice that there are gaps between thoughts.

 

They arise, persist, and then subside. Like a movie projection twenty-four still images a second, the mind runs through its thoughts in a way that makes it appear as though we never stop thinking, but we do, so for some it begs the question, if "I think, therefore I am" then what am I between thoughts? Hoo! Hoo! It's such an exquisite answer, though a pity that it cannot really be spoken of or described. You just notice, in that fleeting moment of wakefulness, and that's it.

 

Hi Rin

 

Ni hao.

 

I think that the use of the term xin zhai 心齋 (mind fasting) by Zhuangzi indicates that there was some form of visceral/emotional alchemy applied to reduce the interior conversation.

 

As a result, the use of words continued at times, but the process was subordinated to intuition: As the neo-daoist said: zhu yi 主一 Make unity the ruler. Unity, the process of undifferentiated mind/body processing.

 

ciao,

raymond