Jinzang wrote:When you find yourself in an unpleasant situation caused by other people, by all means get out of it if you can. But when you can't, it doesn't help to get angry and slander the people who are causing you problems. You are only creating more suffering for yourself, now and later. Instead, if you contemplate that your problem that it is the result of previous bad karma or use it to develop compassion for others who also suffer, or even better, for the people who are causing you problems, you can turn a problem into an asset. That's what the Mind Training teachings are about, using the many difficulties we all face as a source of spiritual benefit instead of harm.
Whoa! Slow down. Slander? When did I slander anybody?
Let's imagine you're walking down the street and a group of Buddhists attacks you. They begin punching and kicking you and calling you by someone else's name. "Bill," maybe. At first you tell them you're not Bill. Liar! they scream, and hit you harder. Then you beg them to stop, and they beat you even more mercilessly. Then you go into a state of equanimity and just accept that you're going to get hurt. But as soon as they note you've stopped caring about the beating, they turn on the friends who were with you, and begin beating
them. When you realize this, you start insulting them in order to draw the attention back to yourself. Later on, the Buddhist group claims that your harsh language proves you deserved the beating, even though they admit you weren't this "Bill" character.
That's not just a metaphor. It's the reality of what happened. And I didn't just get beaten up. I almost got killed by nervous federal agents armed with automatic weapons in my own home.
Wake up, man. This Lojong thing was used as mind control by the Tibetan feudal elite -- no different than the "love thy neighbor" talk of feudal Christianity. It's a crude theory of karma. Really, in my view, it's not even Buddhist.
