Turn on Your Lovelight (and leave it on): August 2007

Sex and Sin
So, I read the chapter entitled "Sex and Sin." Boy did I want to read this chapter... Just the sort of advice I was seeking! What I mean to say is that I'm not shipping off and becoming a celibate Buddhist monk any time soon, so I require some advice on how regular Buddhists deal with sex. Here's what Brad says:

The next-best option [to practicing total abstinence] for those who wish to refrain from abusing sex is having a long-term, faithful, monogamous relationship. Yeah, I know, that sounds really boring. But, as usual, the most boring option is usually the best one.

Duh.

Luckily, I've already decided to take the boring option...

More from Brad Warner... (page 75)

I think I should post Dogen's thoughts above my desk at work:

It's not good to overwhelm another person with argument even when he is wrong and you are right. Yet it is also not right to give up too easily, saying, 'I am wrong,' when you have every reason to believe you are right. The best way is to drop the argument naturally, without pressing the other person or falsely admitting that you are wrong. If you don't listen to his arguments and don't let them bother you, he will do the same and not become angry. This is something to watch carefully.

Then again, my boss already must think I'm a nut job... perhaps I could just keep this wisdom in mind.

Now's the part where I do a bunch of posts about "Sit Down and Shut Up"...

Excellent Adventure?
Really, I thought my boyfriend was the only one who quoted Bill & Ted in any kind of religious way, but apparently he's not. Brad Warner did it to, on page 51:

I have no idea how you should live beyond the advice that Bill and Ted gave the people of the future in their Bogus Journey: "Be excellent to each other." There's really nothing else I can offer.

About Retreats
I liked what Brad Warner has to say about meditation retreats. Of course, his column is at Suicide Girls, so you just might not want to read it at work...

http://suicidegirls.com/news/culture/22078/

Buddhism - Not Exactly the Path of a Good Night's Rest
On the path, one expects to wake up early -- think morning meditation. In order to meditate, I attempt to wake up before my children. (Admittedly, I only marginally succeed, and end up with children who are learning to leave mommy alone in the morning.) My long range goal involves getting my Buddhism on in the morning before I have to go getting them ready for school. Eventually I'll get there. But this is not the sleep deprivation of which I speak...

When I went to Karme Choling on retreat, I meditated for much of the day. I spent time on a cushion clearing my thoughts. This is a nice idea: meditating, swimming in the river, and eating veggie food. It goes along with sleeping well -- NOT.

I had two nearly sleepless nights while I was there because I processed at night. My mind totally shifted into overdrive as some sort of compensation for not really thinking all day. Weird, eh? Perhaps not strange, but not at all what I expected. It hasn't happened again in that way, but I also haven't been meditating ALL DAY since then. (Only for about 20-30 minutes every morning.) But, last night, I experienced Buddhist-related sleep disturbances again...

I'm reading this book, Sit Down and Shut Up by Brad Warner. I had planned to post on the book today, because I'm really enjoying it. (That might just be another post.) Clearly, the book is making me think about some (new to me) Zen concepts.

Last night I dreamed about this 13th century Zen teacher Dogen (or at least what he had to say). Then, I woke up, and had an "aha!" moment. It happened OVER AND OVER AGAIN. But it wasn't bad. I wish I remembered all of the insights of my dreams. They were good dreams. I hope they reside somewhere in my mind, and will be of use to me in future situations.

Who knew that sleep deprivation could feel so useful?