Happy Bodhi Day!

The Associated Press tells me it's Bodhi Day. The day we celebrate the Buddha's enlightenment.

I don't know much about enlightenment, I've said here how I know I'm not enlightened. Maybe I've had glimpses of the approach to enlightenment. The path is worth it to me just to move towards enlightenment. Maybe there's a bit of a faith element that it's worth it, or that something I don't really understand is the goal. I've heard people say that even though they don't know anything about it, they're OK with the path. It's an odd epistemological situation. Usually you hear more annoying questions on Reddit about what gets reincarnated, questions about karma with weird assumptions, and no self and no desire misunderstandings. You don't get a lot of questions about what enlightenment is, but there must be some. Reddit does have the question 3 years ago with some good answers.

I'm sure answers will include breaking the 10 fetters. Ending greed hatred and delusion. Nirvana over samsara. And of course the variety of sects in Buddhism won't agree on the exact answer. One of the great things about fellowship with other sanghas is that you learn about the amazing variety of ways of being a Buddhist. 

I'd say the glimpses of health, mindfulness and serenity were quit shocking to me, and for me in anapanasati I deal with the fear of enlightenment in the 15th stage, the niroda stage. Anapanasati is a robust meditation that comes down to us from the Buddha. After 3 months of intense meditation, he felt that it was such a good retreat, that he would teach the meditation for an extra month. Other meditation mentioned in the Pali Canon more than Anapanasati include metta, which the Buddha didn't invent, that was in the culture already. Perhaps his twist on it, he tailored it to the insights of the Dharma he came to understand. Impermanence and no permanent self meditation were mentioned more. And a not beauty meditation, which I think could be about conquering lust is also mentioned more than anapanasati.

I'm not a lineage holder or a teacher of any sect of Buddhism, so I'm free to develop my own take on things, and I could be wrong.

Anyway, today is Bodhi Day, the day we celebrate the Buddha's enlightenment.

Bodhi Day December 8th 2020

The day before Bodhi Day, I meditated metta (universal lovingkindness). I realized (again and again and again) the hard one was neutral. I spin off quite easily. But recently I'd seen that a 16 year old never went to online class without his infant sibling on their lap. I thought of all the teenagers who the weight of responsibility has shifted to, because of the circumstances of Covid.

For me, the enemy is usually my shadow, the pervert, liar, power mode instead of love mode, exploiter, insensitive, unempathetic, stupid. I hate in others traits that I have in myself. I wrote a friend who I'd complains and complained about Trump, how I was like him.

Life happened slower with the Buddha. There were fewer screens. He had very different circumstances. But we can do what he did. We can meditate to gain insight into our own suffering and work to transcend the normal. 

The Buddha became enlightened. December 8th we celebrate that. May all being be happy may all being be well.

I listened to a talk by Bob Thurman on abuses, and thought it was a really good talk.

Links:

NPR with Takashi Miyaji: Miyaji is a Shin Buddhist Professor. They have a special service in Shin Buddhism, where they chant. He chants on the 6 minute interview.