‘buddhism’ Articles
Written by Damian Hospital on 15 June 2009
Ben, 7, had a bad temper and his family would get frustrated with his tantrums. Ben was an obedient child, but was prone to outbursts of anger. So one day his grandfather gave him a bag of nails and told him that every time he lost his temper, he should hammer a nail in the fence in their backyard.
Day One: Ben had driven 37 nails into the fence.
Eventually, the number of nails he hammered each day decreased.
Yes, it’s true; Ben actually realized that it was easier to hold his temper than to hammer all of those nails into the fence.
After seven months, the day finally came when Ben didn’t lose his temper at all. So he proudly told his grandfather about it, and he nodded his head and suggested that from now on Ben should pull out one nail for each day that he was able to hold his temper.
Months later, Ben ran to his grandfather, and exclaimed that all of the nails were gone! So the grandfather took Ben by the hand and led him to the fence in the back of their house.
“You have done well, Ben; I am proud of you; but look at the holes in the fence. This fence will never be the same. When you say things in anger, they leave a scar just like this one. You can put a knife in a man and draw it out, it won’t matter how many times you say ‘I’m sorry’, the wound is still there.”
Ben’s face got red, and the power of the old man’s words hit him like a tone of bricks.
Ben would remember that day, and thanks to his lesson, he passed that story to his own son.
***
Let’s discuss some themes in this story, which I rewrote/remixed from an old Buddhist parable.
Why is anger wrong?
Anger leads to being SKEWED. It results in bigotry, hatred, violence, hurtful language, and even murder (do happy people murder others?). If we get into a pattern of getting frustrated easily and are angry at people or things we can’t control, we lash out at “THEM”, and feel miserable. Being angry is not a nice feeling. It’s like saying you enjoy cutting your fingers off.
When we are angry we exaggerate, paint ourselves as victims, and can justify any action, including hateful language and physical violence. We stay miserable. Our attitude of ourselves, other people, and society become skewed. Life is no longer a fun place. We become attached to the feeling of being an outcast or being right or expecting people to act in according to your wishes. Anger is a strong root of suffering in this world.
**
If there is an injustice, can there be “righteous anger”? Well, can there be “righteous cancer”? It’s a disease, it really is. Can there be “justifiable anger”? I personally think as long as you invite the feeling over for a cup of tea, listen to what it is saying, and when wish it well on the way out, you should be set. In other words, be aware of anger’s presence, the reasons why you feel angry, but just let it go, dude. And don’t get tricked in thinking it left, either, because it can plant seeds of negativity in your mind.
We lack the perception to see the world as it really is. If we existed in the sky and looked down upon the Earth since the dawn of time, we would see how insignificant “injustice” is. If we could see how we continue to be reborn into other life forms, we would see how our sense of self- the ego- is NOT a permanent thing; we wouldn’t be attached to it. We would not be afraid of death. We would be free.
Instead we let people, opinions, and injustices get to us…they change our mentality and ruin our days. Most of the time it’s subconscious. Some people I know tell me that they never get angry! Sounds like denial, a lack of awareness, or shame, if you ask me. The same people that tell me they don’t get angry are the ones shouting at their daughter over the phone for getting a flat tire again.
Hurtful language is not forgotten. Violence forgotten. You can try to make reparations, try to do the right thing, but it still happened. You have to move on, and try not not let it happen again. Abstaining from things that lead to anger helps.
If this all sounds like common sense to you, let’s avoid getting angry. Practice patience. Practice Acceptance ™.
The first step is to meditate.
Posted in buddhism | No Comments »
Written by Damian Hospital on 08 January 2008
What is Forgiveness? 
“Damian, in your own words, tell me what forgiveness is.”
Forgiveness is not harboring anger or pain to someone even if he or she was truly wrong and hurt you. It is perhaps the hardest emotion for people to accept. You don’t want to feel and become a victim for the rest of your life. It’s the high road, and actually telling someone that he or she is forgiven puts the ball back in their court, and off your chest. You have to have faith that the cosmic justice, like karma, will take care of the any injustices that the person did. After all, as Gandhi said: an eye-for-eye would make the world blind.
“Thank you…as always, a great perspective. The best definition I have seen/heard yet.”
Posted in buddhism, help | 3 Comments »
Written by Damian Hospital on 29 December 2007
Spinning the wheel of bad karma
Former Yankees World Champion Jim Leyritz (backup catcher) killed Fredia Ann Veitch, who was an ordinary citizen like you and I, working night shift. He was DUI, and he drove his car fast and blew threw a red light down here in Broward County (she was driving home from Fort Lauderdale to Plantation.)
I’ve followed Leyritz’s career since he came up in 1990. I thought he was a great hitting catcher, pinch-hitter, and part-time designated hitter for the Yanks. But according to many baseball history books and autobiograpies I have read, he dubbed himself “King” and wanted to be a full-time player. Eventually, managers Buck Showalter and later Joe Torre grew to dislike Jim.
Jim is highly charismatic, cocky, arrogant, and a joker. Quite honestyly, if he was an African-American player, he would have been labeled a “clubhouse cancer” in 1990. Instead, the MEDIA always referred to him as “clutch”, a “New York Icon”, and “scrappy”. Nice double-standard. The MEDIA and announcers never told us the bad things about “The King”, so fans such as myself and my family couldn’t help but like him, and awe at his sheer “determination”.
After Jim finally retired after making a few failed comebacks (and bouncing from team to team) he got an announcing gig for MLB.com, and still continued to give quotes to radio shows and newspapers to run is mouth off. See, Jim was bitter and was opinionated about a lot of things. He’d like to say things against his former teammates and managers.
He also said he admitting taking HGH or steroids during his great 1995/1996 clutch pinch-hitting campaigns, in which he saved the Yankees’ post-season dreams. He also admitted being drunk a lot while playing.
Unfortunately, his wild baseball antics spilled over into real life. Frieda Ann Veitch was a mother of two, just trying to make ends meat, by working in a steakhouse in Broward County. Her friends told her to switch her shift or to get another job; she was all set to switch- starting in the new year. So here is Frieda, driving home after a rough week, having never achieved the fame and fortune as Jimmy “The King” Leyritz. She goes through the green light, like you’re supposed to, but here comes Jim blasting through the red light.
It’s a shame that there are questions about if Jim will serve any prison time. I guess because he is a millionaire he can afford an attorney-at-law who will somehow get his client off with probation or timed served, even though he is guilty as sin.
For those of you who do not know about Broward County, Florida- it is one of the worst places to drive in the world. People like Jim Leyritz have taken over the roads and highways. That’s why I’m at home bloggin’, folks.
Posted in Crime, LME, MEDIA, baseball, betrayed, buddhism, cowards, deaths, florida, society | 7 Comments »
Written by Damian Hospital on 16 December 2007
Our Straight Edge Public Service Announcement
By Damian Hospital
Following these eight perspectives would be beneficial to you:
1) Understand that there is pain and suffering this the world (including your own) but that we have control over how we deal with it, and our perceptions can alleviate it. Know that your own delusions, attachments, and desires lead to your own stress and unrest. Realize that nothing is permanent, everything is temporary, and everything changes. Nothing lasts forever, so don’t expect it to be. Accepting this is the first and hardest step.
2) Have good and productive intentions: make sure your true motivations are not selfish, harmful, or wishing ill-will, no matter who or the person is or what the thing is.
3) Lying, deceiving, misleading, taunting, insulting, demeaning, gossiping, and using speech to break people apart, or cause discord will lead to more trouble and suffering for everyone involved. Use words that are meaningful, peaceful, and healing.
4) Have a strong ethical code, which includes taking right actions and having correct moral conduct. Refrain from killing living things, stealing, sexual misconduct, lying, and clouding your mind with drugs or overindulging with alcohol.
5) Avoid having a job that directly or indirectly results in harm to other living beings or ecosystems. Such occupations include arms dealing, drug dealing, polluting, slavery (including prostitution or taking advantage of unfortunate people), killing living things, cheating, and other dishonest means of gaining wealth, such as scams.
6) Your actions and thoughts should prevent unwholesome (bad) things from happening to you or others, and to stop them if they do occur. You should put a focused effort into producing wholesome things, and to cultivate them and follow through with them once they have occurred.
7) Frequent meditation helps to keep the mind trained to remain in the present- open, quiet, and alert, contemplating the present event. This helps to avoid judgments and interpretations. Even if they do occur, having this correct mindfulness will allow these wrong judgments to be registered and dropped.
Keep focused and concentrated on whatever you are doing, but have the awareness of the first 7 points. Sensuality, laziness, worrying, anger, hatred, frustration, attachment, and craving get in the way of focusing on the bigger picture in life. It is difficult to see the true reality with all of these hinderances. Once the mind achieves a complete one-pointedness, nothing can distract the individual from the object of contemplation.
For more information about this lifestyle and belief system, click here.
Posted in PSA, buddhism | No Comments »
