Hi Ray, if you take a look at my posts here on FB, you will be able to patch together a pretty good dialog on what you write, however, I will start again here.
I first had the great good fortune to meet Suzuki Roshi at UC Santa Cruz in the mid-60's (as Uranus met Pluto in my first house) and he was my teacher for a few years until I was called to Viet Nam with the Navy. Later returning to the U.S. and with Suzuki's passing, I met Baba Hari Dass and studied Ashtanga Yoga with him for about 50 years. It was only after Babaji's passing and some Nonduality studies that I came to see the amazing depth of Thich Nhat Hanh's meaning of the Ultimate Dimension and Deep Peace. He says in his book NO DEATH NO FEAR, that there are three parts of Buddhism without which it cannot be called Buddhism: Impermanence, No Self, and Nirvana.
The primary Key is Radical Impermanence which I think qualifies Buddha as an early scientist. I see this as saying the bottom line of reality is total change or more precisely Continual Transformation. Yes, all apparent "things" are One and not separate (thanks for reminding me of Indra's Net) but they are also continually changing. No two microseconds are the same, so they never come to be permanent separate fixed solid things. Hence there is no separate self or Self. Actually no separate anything, hence Sunyata or Emptiness.
To me the Buddha, once again as a good scientist, wants to go beyond delusion. In this case the delusion of a mystical solid self to give us some semblance of permanence.
Excellent. Many years ago I saw across spacetime and knew we were all part of an infinite field of Light, each of us unique but also inextricably within the field which extended into "beyond." Each of us were "merest specks in the ocean of Light" with some Lights brighter than others.
As you know, we are Eternals having a temporary human experience, one of many such incarnated experiences learning to deal with matter, feelings, and the five senses and the mind. It would be as impossible to kill out our Higher Self as it would be for us to extinguish the universe, because the Higher Self never dies. It is who we ARE, regardless of the external changes.
We reincarnate with a chart indicating the skandas (traits) we generated in the past coupled with the virtues which show our possibilities. We cannot reincarnate with a set of traits we didn't earn through prior skills and misfires. So in that sense, Ray, no, you cannot incarnate with the traits of Hitler or Stalin, as you have not cultivated those skandas and the karmas attached to them.
This reminded me of when I was invited to attend a private intimate class with HHDL he was conducting for Tibetans in New York. I was with a friend who knew Tibetan who whispered a translation to me. At one point he said something matter of factly and the entire group became highly agitated.
It turned out he told them that contrary to the doctrine of "no self," he believed there is something subtle of a higher nature which persists and reincarnates forever in one or another form. Coming from a guy who embodies 600 years of reincarnated unbroken awareness, I'm sure his opinion comes from his experience. But his students were definitely agitated.
Hi Ray, if you take a look at my posts here on FB, you will be able to patch together a pretty good dialog on what you write, however, I will start again here.
I first had the great good fortune to meet Suzuki Roshi at UC Santa Cruz in the mid-60's (as Uranus met Pluto in my first house) and he was my teacher for a few years until I was called to Viet Nam with the Navy. Later returning to the U.S. and with Suzuki's passing, I met Baba Hari Dass and studied Ashtanga Yoga with him for about 50 years. It was only after Babaji's passing and some Nonduality studies that I came to see the amazing depth of Thich Nhat Hanh's meaning of the Ultimate Dimension and Deep Peace. He says in his book NO DEATH NO FEAR, that there are three parts of Buddhism without which it cannot be called Buddhism: Impermanence, No Self, and Nirvana.
The primary Key is Radical Impermanence which I think qualifies Buddha as an early scientist. I see this as saying the bottom line of reality is total change or more precisely Continual Transformation. Yes, all apparent "things" are One and not separate (thanks for reminding me of Indra's Net) but they are also continually changing. No two microseconds are the same, so they never come to be permanent separate fixed solid things. Hence there is no separate self or Self. Actually no separate anything, hence Sunyata or Emptiness.
To me the Buddha, once again as a good scientist, wants to go beyond delusion. In this case the delusion of a mystical solid self to give us some semblance of permanence.
That leaves Nirvana for another discussion. Ha!
Thanks for your input, Rico.
Excellent. Many years ago I saw across spacetime and knew we were all part of an infinite field of Light, each of us unique but also inextricably within the field which extended into "beyond." Each of us were "merest specks in the ocean of Light" with some Lights brighter than others.
As you know, we are Eternals having a temporary human experience, one of many such incarnated experiences learning to deal with matter, feelings, and the five senses and the mind. It would be as impossible to kill out our Higher Self as it would be for us to extinguish the universe, because the Higher Self never dies. It is who we ARE, regardless of the external changes.
We reincarnate with a chart indicating the skandas (traits) we generated in the past coupled with the virtues which show our possibilities. We cannot reincarnate with a set of traits we didn't earn through prior skills and misfires. So in that sense, Ray, no, you cannot incarnate with the traits of Hitler or Stalin, as you have not cultivated those skandas and the karmas attached to them.
This reminded me of when I was invited to attend a private intimate class with HHDL he was conducting for Tibetans in New York. I was with a friend who knew Tibetan who whispered a translation to me. At one point he said something matter of factly and the entire group became highly agitated.
It turned out he told them that contrary to the doctrine of "no self," he believed there is something subtle of a higher nature which persists and reincarnates forever in one or another form. Coming from a guy who embodies 600 years of reincarnated unbroken awareness, I'm sure his opinion comes from his experience. But his students were definitely agitated.