Andrew Furst's Blog, page 81
January 19, 2016
David Bowie Tribute
This tribute to David Bowie by Choir!Choir!Choir is pretty awesome.
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No Fighting? – Say What?
Say What? is an ongoing series of laconic exchanges on Buddhism in the format of a comic strip.
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The Snowman by Wallace Stevens – Compass Songs
One must have a mind of winter
To regard the frost and the boughs
Of the pine-trees crusted with snow;
And have been cold a long time
To behold the junipers shagged with ice,
The spruces rough in the distant glitter
Of the January sun; and not to think
Of any misery in the sound of the wind,
In the sound of a few leaves,
Which is the sound of the land
Full of the same wind
That is blowing in the same bare place
For the listener, who listens in the snow,
And, nothing himself, beholds
Nothing that is not there and the nothing that is.
Compass Songs is an ongoing series of works by poets that I enjoy. Poetry, as the Zen Masters have said, is like a finger pointing to the moon. It speaks the unspeakable.
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January 18, 2016
Power and Contempt
Quotes -The path to right view is an arduous walk through fields of manure.
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Buddhist Atheists? – Dialectic Two-Step
Question: There is a hip new phenomenon of Buddhist atheists, headed by Stephen Batchelor, who seem to be rejecting articles of Buddhist faith like karma and rebirth. Many think it’s disingenuous and converts our religion into a mere shell of its original self. What do you think?
Response: I have to say I’m sympathetic to Batchelor’s stance. I think he also makes an even stronger case in his new book, After Buddhism: Rethinking the Dharma for a Secular Age, that even during the Buddha’s lifetime, the Dharma started slipping into the sea of the metaphysics. This shift led to a need for a whole lot of explaining. That’s rarely a good thing.
Batchelor hypothesizes and provides a rational case for this early shift in the Dharma. It moved from a highly pragmatic system of ethics, to an ontological and epistemological system of truths. In the former, Nirvana is respite from suffering that arises from greed, hatred, and delusion. In the latter Nirvana evolves into a privileged view of reality, a special metaphysical insight. Enlightenment changed from a radical acceptance of everyday life as it is, to being and altered state of being. Eightfold path practitioners not only permanently eliminate suffering (somehow bypassing dependent arising), but they could now expect clairvoyance, ability to see past lives, etc.
Perhaps there is a split here developing (not unlike the one ascribed to the Mahasiddhis). Perhaps it’s a warping of the Buddha’s view; perhaps it’s a return to the original teachings. I think it’s safe to say, we’ll never know.
I don’t see Batchelor as being right or having the final say here, but I do prefer his “I’m from Missouri” stance over accepting doctrine because it’s the way it’s been for a long time.
From a Pureland, Other Power perspective, I do not know how or why Amitabha saves me. I don’t see any benefit to knowing and I don’t see any way to answer the question how Amitabha saves me. I have faith in Amitabha. I do not have faith in religion. I have not been instructed to have faith in karma and rebirth. Perseverating on that seems to be in the realm self-power. It seems distracting and prone to lead to more suffering.
As I often like to say, tongue in cheek, “I’m a Buddhist. I’m not interested in matters of metaphysics, but since we’re at the game, I’m cheering for the non-metaphysicians.”
Dialectic Two-Step is an ongoing series of my thoughts on questions that come my way.
Wisdom lies neither in fixity nor in change, but in the dialectic between the two. - Octavio
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January 17, 2016
A Few More Friends Needed For The Post Card Art Project
I need three or four more friends willing to participate in my post card art project. No age or experience restrictions. Just a willingness to put medium to post card.
Whether you’ve been hemming and hawing on this or reading about this for the first time, now is the time, sign up here.
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Swirling Clouds – A Two Minute Meditation
A beautiful time lapse taken at the edge of Grafton Notch Park in Newry, Maine. The video captures multiple cloud systems twisting around the mountains north of the White Mountain National Park.
These Meditation Videos Are Best Viewed In Full Screen
One Minute Meditations is an ongoing series of short videos, poems, and commentary intended as a meditation. Offered as an opportunity to step back from your cyber routine and settle into a more natural rhythm, if only for a minute.
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These videos are produced for those of us who spend an inordinately large amount of time in the cyber-world. They are not a substitute for unplugging from your devices and taking a stroll near trees, water, or a patch of unkempt grass. Getting out into the world - touching, smelling, hearing, and seeing nature is the best way to reconnect with our prime purpose.
What is our prime purpose? We are feeling and sensing machines. We are the universe looking back on itself. We are witness to the wonders and dangers of living in this corner of the cosmos. We are the seekers looking for connection a little further beyond yesterday's borders and boundaries.
But sitting and staring at the screen robs us of the sustenance that we rely upon for wonder and sanity. These videos are an opportunity to bring the sensations of nature to you, while you're in the cyber-world. Its an opportunity to relax your gaze, resettle your posture, and regain some depth in your breath. Listen and watch the video and allow your self to open up and recharge.
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Sunday Morning Coming Down – MLK by U2
Sunday Morning Coming Down is an ongoing music video series. The songs fit my definition of music for a lazy couch bound Sunday morning.
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MLK by U2
Sleep
Sleep tonight
And may your dreams
Be realized
If the thundercloud
Passes rain
So let it rain
Rain down on him
Hmm-mmm-mm
So let it be
Hmm-mmm-mm
So let it be
Sleep
Sleep tonight
And may your dreams
Be realized
If the thundercloud
Passes rain
So let it rain
Let it rain
Rain on him
Rain on him
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January 16, 2016
I Think Therefore? – Say What?
Say What? is an ongoing series of laconic exchanges on Buddhism in the format of a comic strip.
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Acadia – Tiny Drops (Photography)
Click on an image below to view in the lightbox
Eagle Lake
newry pano
sand beach pano
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