Great thread. Great premise. Something to think about and to keep in mind every day. Still will get mad at all the horrible drivers clogging the left lanes though. No amount of "trying to put myself in their shoes" will help me understand how oblvious the majority of drivers on our roads are.

Originally posted by kacou

edit on 11-8-2011 by kacou because: (no reason given)

Get your history straight > Mohammed penned the Quran, even if he was 'unlettered' before that .

And as for quoting the Quran without the source > not even I can do that : I dont disregard facts, or the fact that people abuse the truth.

And I never forget children. The story may make the Buddha look great > but there is not one iota of justice for children in it . It gained him converts supposedly > so what ?

Of course anger is a natural emotion, that is not the argument. The entire point is proper understanding of the nature of self through discipline to transcend irrational bursts of temper, anger, and rage which serves the benefit no one. There are plenty examples of the Buddha disagreeing and rebuking others. However, he did so in constructive, non-aggressive, and non-violent ways.

edit on 8/11/11 by Sahabi because: (no reason given)

You are equating deconstructive behaviour, aggression and violence with anger.

We need to know what it is and what it is not. None of these are anger . And the Buddha cannot be 'quoted# you have to admit that. My premise is therefore not wrong

thank you. i needed to be reminded of this. i once switch paths, left the path of my self destructive behavior and began walking on the path of truth... now however i am losing sight of that path and become what i left behind 3 years ago.. one thing is for certain i was the person who i wanted to be when i was on that path .. looking in hindsight i was the happiest i had ever been and at that moment i remember i was not happy, sad, angry, etc no emotion registered on an emotional scale.. it is hard to explain but i do thank you OP for posting this tid bit.

Originally posted by pikypiky
That fat bastard is and has been laughing at people. Buddha represents a pacifist, much like the Virgin Mother. Oh, everything will be okay. Don't fight back. God will come back in thousands of years. And by then those angry people will have died without justice. You see, without anger, people would be living in ignorance, denial, fear and the dark basically. I really don't like these outmoded thoughts. Get real people!

That "fat bastard" was not Buddha but Bodhidharma. But he was very wise too, that is why he always laughed, .

You are misidentifying something about anger though, it arises out of ignorance and fear. Transcend ignorance and fear, and transcend anger, simple. This innocent mistake must have been ruining your life!

I do not think it is us who need to "get real", maybe it is you though. It is understandable why you would want to justify anger as something useful, because you are angry right now! And who is willing to admit they are wrong? Only a wise person of course.

Peace.

Originally posted by LifeIsEnergy

Originally posted by pikypiky
That fat bastard is and has been laughing at people. Buddha represents a pacifist, much like the Virgin Mother. Oh, everything will be okay. Don't fight back. God will come back in thousands of years. And by then those angry people will have died without justice. You see, without anger, people would be living in ignorance, denial, fear and the dark basically. I really don't like these outmoded thoughts. Get real people!

That "fat bastard" was not Buddha but Bodhidharma. But he was very wise too, that is why he always laughed, .

You are misidentifying something about anger though, it arises out of ignorance and fear. Transcend ignorance and fear, and transcend anger, simple. This innocent mistake must have been ruining your life!

I do not think it is us who need to "get real", maybe it is you though. It is understandable why you would want to justify anger as something useful, because you are angry right now! And who is willing to admit they are wrong? Only a wise person of course.

Peace.

No he is right, and your response is way below the belt > you touch children wrongly you are going to get rammed down a hole and shot there > dead .

thank you for this thread, it reminded me of why i started studying buddhism in the first place

ive read thru some of the posts made by people in this thread who are obviously christian or islamic and it still feeds my theory on the topic of "monotheisic religions/beliefs dont mix well with buddhist/hinduist beliefs". While this is absolutely ok (im not making any kind of insults by saying any of this), it is always somewhat disappointing to see people refer to the buddha as a pessimist of some sort. he was not a pessimist, he was just fully enlightened and realized that alot of human emotion is wasted energy when utilized. anger is such a common factor in todays society that we dont even begin to think twice about the energy we expel when we gripe at someone for not changing lanes while using a turn signal, or talk sh*t about someone because they dont agree with something they did. anger begets anger. while it is a natural human emotion, it is an emotion that can be controlled and not used to create waste when identified and fully understood.

the middle path is what every human walks. we stray from that path every so often and our karma helps us realize the path once again. the human condition is that of suffering, and its only until pure enlightenment is reached that we will continue down that middle path with joy and suffering in our lives.

Buddha was an Ascended Master, Jesus was the MOST important Ascended Master to ever live. We have had many Initiate's since, but in my opinion Jesus Christ's purpose far exceeds them all. I'm not a christian, just informed.

Originally posted by athenegoddess
Buddha was an Ascended Master, Jesus was the MOST important Ascended Master to ever live. We have had many Initiate's since, but in my opinion Jesus Christ's purpose far exceeds them all. I'm not a christian, just informed.

edit on 8/11/2011 by athenegoddess because: (no reason given)

jesus was not an ascended master. like buddha, jesus was not human. at least, not entirely. though, jesus DID study under buddhist monks for a bit as he was fascinated with their teachings.

i personally believe that the main lesson taught in ALL religions the world over is so greatly missed anymore. that is the lesson of "acceptance". we are all guilty of it. there are so many people out there who are taught that their religion is the one path and is the only path that everyone must follow, and those who dont follow it are damned to an afterlife of eternal pain and suffering. if only the majority could see past that and accept that everyone walks their own path in life, this race we call "human beings" would be a much better one. imagine people accepting one another for what they are, instead of arguing for what they are not. imagine all the wars that could have been averted, even in current day. imagine the level of "enlightenment" our race could reach if greed, power and judgement of others based on appearance, social standard, race or gender could be overlooked and accepted. but, i dont see that happening for a very, very long time.

we all have "buddha" in all of us. we are capable of becoming "the buddha", it just takes many lifetimes. i myself have met very few people in life who i truly believe are very close to becoming "the buddha". and i am VERY thankful to have met and been around those people as they help me push to become more enlightened through my own life.

I get angry. Regularly. In fact, sometimes I think that anger is somehow a "touchstone" for me.

Perhaps if I was enlightened, things would be different.

So "why" am I angry so often?

Here's the answer that comes to me, as delusional as it probably sounds.

I'm a rebel. In rebellion against the sheer injustice of our short and brutal undignified existence.

Example? (Warning, pessimist alert!)

Being a bit older than most on ATS, I do battle with the failing body. I said, BATTLE. Daytime, nighttime, the prison cell that is my body is a constant reminder that there is no justice.

Of course, it's probably foolish to focus on this thing that we all have to put up with, most seem to accept that this is just the way it is. Obviously, the end is the grave anyway, so fighting this battle seems a bit futile.

But I take pleasure in the battle! My health is actually not so bad, compared to others. No, I'm hardly in a wheelchair. But there's a principle involved!

At one time, I was young also. I know how things were, and how they are now, and I also know that the future is only going to be worse. And yet, I also "know" somehow that things "should" instead be better, not worse.

Why should such a situation make me happy? I could put it the opposite way, which is to say, shouldn't I be angry?

I actually think we should all be "angry" at some level at this outrage that we call "life". No, it's not all bad, otherwise I'm pretty sure our ancestors would have committed suicide long before we got here. But, whether we count ourselves the "optimist", or something less so, it's clear there is plenty for the rational thinking person to "complain" about.

I see some posting here saying that anger is "unhealthy". Sure, about as unhealthy as not having anger! It's a natural emotion, so it must have a proper function beyond making a person ill. Common sense.

Can it be "healthy"? As someone already mentioned, it's helpful in motivating us when we see injustice. It's not all bad!

For me personally, my "anger" helps get me off the couch so-to-speak. I exercise more, I eat better than I would otherwise, by allowing my anger to push me and motivate me. In my mind, I fight the good fight! Plus, if you're as pissed off as I am, you really do need to expend some energy, or else the people around you pick up that vibe too easy. Not the best for business!

OK, so that's just the body! I won't even get into the greater injustices we are immersed in, from cradle to grave.

In my own life, anger has been a touchstone. It has been there to push me beyond complacency. I feel like I am a better "me", as a result.

Will I one day become more "accepting", and less angry, like the legion of ATS enlightened? Well, maybe the process is starting.

The problem for me is the conundrum of the "good" thing simultaneously being the "bad" thing. By the time you are wishing for the grave, accepting of death, should we call this "success", or ultimate failure?

JR