LightSun
Well-known member
- Joined
- Aug 9, 2009
- Messages
- 1,106
- MBTI Type
- INFP
- Enneagram
- #9
“A number of disciples went to the Buddha and said, Sir, there are living here in Savatthi many wandering hermits and scholars who indulge in constant dispute, some saying that the world is infinite and eternal and others that it is finite and not eternal, some saying that the soul dies with the body and others that it lives on forever, and so forth. What sir, would you say concerning them?"
The Buddha answered, "once upon a time there was a certain raja that called to his servant and said, 'Come, good fellow, go and gather together in one place all the men of Savatthi who were born blind and show them an elephant.' 'Very good sire, ' replied the servant, and he did as he was told.
He said to the blind men assembled there, 'Here is an elephant,' and to one man he presented the head of the elephant, to another it's ears, to another a tusk, to another the trunk, the foot, back, tail, and tuft of the tail, saying to each one that that was the elephant. When the blind men had felt the elephant, the raja went to each, 'Well, blind man, have you seen the elephant? Tell me, what sort of thing is an elephant?" "Thereupon the men who were presented with the head answered, 'Sire, an elephant is like a pot.
And the men who had observed the ear replied, 'An elephant is like a winnowing basket.' Those who had been presented with a task said it was a ploughshare. Those who knew only the trunk said it was a plough; others said the body was a granary; the foot, a pillar; the back a mortar; the tail, a pestle, the tuft of the tail, a brush.
"Then they began to quarrel, shouting, 'Yes it is!' 'No, it is not!' 'An elephant is not like that!' 'Yes, it's like that!' And so on, till the came to blows over the matter. "Brethren, the raja was delighted with the scene.†Just so are these preachers and scholars holding views blind and unseeing. In their ignorance they are by nature quarrelsome, wrangling, and disputatious, each maintaining reality I thus and thus."
Then the Exalted One rendered this meaning by uttering this verse of uplift, O how they cling and wrangle, some who claim for preacher and monk the honored name! For, quarreling, each to his view they cling. Such folk see only one side of a thing. Jainism and Buddhism. Udana 68-69: Parable of the Blind Men and the Elephant
We all have within our root system a bunch of convoluted fantasies or beliefs of that which is called reality. We have a belief system riddled with at most half-truths. We need to undertake a journey called self-discovery is assessing these fallacies and be willing to change, thus to grow. He / she who are rooted in the past beliefs are a hindrance with social progress.
The story of the elephant just goes to show that we can only see part of the truth. Truth manifests as a veil or a cloud, or following 'The Willow the Wisp." It is there; but always seemingly beyond a practical, handy reach. It is lessons in life that give us deeper, plus the deepest of these wisdoms. We apparently need each other to help balance out our blind spots. It is my premise that we all have blind spots.
I will in a sublime fashion stipulate: (NF) are my closest kin. (NT"s) I have always admired. It is seeking balance; one is of intuitive feeler; and thus other intuitive thinker. I search mightily of secrets that are before our eyes. But because of the blindness of the world are hard in the deciphering. I search mightily of secrets that are before our eyes.
But because of the blindness of the world are hard in the deciphering. The truth is always present. What to me has cause of concern: If I am blind in an area, I won't know it. It will be a complete gaping hole in my awareness. Therefore I may act irrationally defending a point with verbal and perhaps physical violence, to defend my "truth."
I have a fail-safe. I have the analogy of the warning engine light. If I have a negative emotion, and my body is not directly being affected, then I am thinking distortedly. The negative emotion and the warning engine light are synonymous. I have a negative emotion, and then there is an internal problem. I have had my bind spot triggered. A fear or my ego has been triggered, & I am experiencing a negative emotion. Rather than acting out against reality like the blind men, look within and correct your reasoning. Correct the distorted thoughts, and deal with the external situation with reason and compassion. Thus one grows and stays on the path of self-actualization.
We are all part of a giant crystal or diamond. Call it the eye of Odin, Odin's eye or God's eyes. We need to pool our resources and capabilities into a cohesive whole in order getting rid of distortions, which we all have. None of us can see the Truth. We can catch only glimmers of it out of the corner of our eye. It is as if the life mission to cut away at illogical untruth. Each of us is different with different capabilities, as well as different attributes & a different life mission. It is all part of the whole. Perhaps the most successful will be those they can see other people's world view and synchronize. But one must know self-first or at least a preliminary knowledge.†LightSun ☼
“If i have blind spots: i wish in sincerity for me to find a part in my lenses of perception so that i could correct.†LightSun
The Buddha answered, "once upon a time there was a certain raja that called to his servant and said, 'Come, good fellow, go and gather together in one place all the men of Savatthi who were born blind and show them an elephant.' 'Very good sire, ' replied the servant, and he did as he was told.
He said to the blind men assembled there, 'Here is an elephant,' and to one man he presented the head of the elephant, to another it's ears, to another a tusk, to another the trunk, the foot, back, tail, and tuft of the tail, saying to each one that that was the elephant. When the blind men had felt the elephant, the raja went to each, 'Well, blind man, have you seen the elephant? Tell me, what sort of thing is an elephant?" "Thereupon the men who were presented with the head answered, 'Sire, an elephant is like a pot.
And the men who had observed the ear replied, 'An elephant is like a winnowing basket.' Those who had been presented with a task said it was a ploughshare. Those who knew only the trunk said it was a plough; others said the body was a granary; the foot, a pillar; the back a mortar; the tail, a pestle, the tuft of the tail, a brush.
"Then they began to quarrel, shouting, 'Yes it is!' 'No, it is not!' 'An elephant is not like that!' 'Yes, it's like that!' And so on, till the came to blows over the matter. "Brethren, the raja was delighted with the scene.†Just so are these preachers and scholars holding views blind and unseeing. In their ignorance they are by nature quarrelsome, wrangling, and disputatious, each maintaining reality I thus and thus."
Then the Exalted One rendered this meaning by uttering this verse of uplift, O how they cling and wrangle, some who claim for preacher and monk the honored name! For, quarreling, each to his view they cling. Such folk see only one side of a thing. Jainism and Buddhism. Udana 68-69: Parable of the Blind Men and the Elephant
We all have within our root system a bunch of convoluted fantasies or beliefs of that which is called reality. We have a belief system riddled with at most half-truths. We need to undertake a journey called self-discovery is assessing these fallacies and be willing to change, thus to grow. He / she who are rooted in the past beliefs are a hindrance with social progress.
The story of the elephant just goes to show that we can only see part of the truth. Truth manifests as a veil or a cloud, or following 'The Willow the Wisp." It is there; but always seemingly beyond a practical, handy reach. It is lessons in life that give us deeper, plus the deepest of these wisdoms. We apparently need each other to help balance out our blind spots. It is my premise that we all have blind spots.
I will in a sublime fashion stipulate: (NF) are my closest kin. (NT"s) I have always admired. It is seeking balance; one is of intuitive feeler; and thus other intuitive thinker. I search mightily of secrets that are before our eyes. But because of the blindness of the world are hard in the deciphering. I search mightily of secrets that are before our eyes.
But because of the blindness of the world are hard in the deciphering. The truth is always present. What to me has cause of concern: If I am blind in an area, I won't know it. It will be a complete gaping hole in my awareness. Therefore I may act irrationally defending a point with verbal and perhaps physical violence, to defend my "truth."
I have a fail-safe. I have the analogy of the warning engine light. If I have a negative emotion, and my body is not directly being affected, then I am thinking distortedly. The negative emotion and the warning engine light are synonymous. I have a negative emotion, and then there is an internal problem. I have had my bind spot triggered. A fear or my ego has been triggered, & I am experiencing a negative emotion. Rather than acting out against reality like the blind men, look within and correct your reasoning. Correct the distorted thoughts, and deal with the external situation with reason and compassion. Thus one grows and stays on the path of self-actualization.
We are all part of a giant crystal or diamond. Call it the eye of Odin, Odin's eye or God's eyes. We need to pool our resources and capabilities into a cohesive whole in order getting rid of distortions, which we all have. None of us can see the Truth. We can catch only glimmers of it out of the corner of our eye. It is as if the life mission to cut away at illogical untruth. Each of us is different with different capabilities, as well as different attributes & a different life mission. It is all part of the whole. Perhaps the most successful will be those they can see other people's world view and synchronize. But one must know self-first or at least a preliminary knowledge.†LightSun ☼
“If i have blind spots: i wish in sincerity for me to find a part in my lenses of perception so that i could correct.†LightSun
