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salyed
12/14/2005 2:09 PM
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I decided to split one of my comments off to see if it is of interest for a new thread.
"I think they are just different formats to achieve the same thing. In Buddhism, there is a similar dichotomy between zazen or Insight meditation practice and the more formalized sutra chanting services found among practitioners of the Pure Land (such as Jodo Shinshu or Jodo Shu) or Nichiren (such as Nichiren Shu, Reiyukai or Rissho Kosei Kai) sects of Buddhism. All of them are just various ways ("expedient means") to connect or "commune" with the interdependent forces of the Universe (obviously probably all subjective and "psychological" in nature - what matters is the difference it helps make in your life) whether referred to as the Inward Light, Dharmakaya, Amida Buddha or God."
What "expedient means" do any of you out there find useful for you to connect or "commune" with the interdependent forces of the Universe (obviously probably all subjective and "psychological" in nature - what matters is the difference it helps make in your life) whether referred to as the Inward Light, Dharmakaya, Amida Buddha or "God"? I know that we have discussed rituals before, but there has to be more to it than it.
And is it difficult for you to see how an "expedient mean" (whether a ritual, ceremony, meditation, mythos structure or label) can work for someone else? In other words, what do you do to work through your own bias? For example, I had a bias (and knee-jerk reaction) against conservative forms of Christianity. How could you change your perspective about those groups and see the commonalities behind their lingo? (And thus engaging in peace-building.)
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cheesefeet
12/15/2005 6:19 AM
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I may be reading your questions wrong but here are my thoughts this morning.
Expedient means that I take...using the work I am involved with and my living situation to "connect". I work in a library, so I try to stay aware of how people use language to communicate, and how books speak across cultures, generations etc to share ideas. I see my part in this distribution of ideas. Libraries are a sacred resource.
I use my work with my livestock to remind me of my own ultimate dependance upon the universe and the lives of other organisms.
I tune into the wild growing things around me, and take notice of my landscape and the relationships I have formed with my surroundings.
Over the years, countless experiences and rituals have transformed my "yard" into a sacred space, for myself and others who attend.
I don't worry too much over trying to understand how other people relate to their faith. Dealing with my own is challenge enough for me. I like to discuss faith issues with others. Maybe that is how I handle it.
I don't really believe in "secret knowledge" or "secret keys to understanding". So I don't see any particular value, in and of itself, to study everyone else's religions and try to find some common thread. I don't particularly believe that "all paths lead to the same place" or that somewhere, some faith has "the answer".
Those are ideas I run into regularly in my discussions with others.
I used to study religions rabidly, but reading about them only gave me a false sense of security or superiority. I felt smug to "know" how others believed, but I was hollow inside. It was easier to learn about everyone else's faith than to practice my own. It was easier to sling facts than to open my own soul.
It was really easy to fall into the intellectual trap of thinking I knew more about their faith than they did, and be able to point out their hypocrisy and incosistency, and how they weren't "doing it right". What a pompous religious ass I was!
Now I am less knowledgable but more honest. What is expedient for me now is to practice my own faith, and let others explain their faith to me. I try hard to practice only speaking for myself and my beliefs.
cheesefeet
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salyed
12/15/2005 8:41 AM
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Well, yes and no. Expedient means is a term that comes from Buddhism to indicate "techniques" used to attain enlightenment. In the Lotus Sutra, it is stated that sometimes the Buddha deliberately "misleads" people to get them to the state of becoming enlightened
The details or cosmology of various religions are certainly not the same; however, the psychological and social needs met by the functions of that belief system or paradigm ARE. So it is not a matter of defining their belief system for them (which would be arrogant), it is a matter of discerning what their belief system DOES for them. You don't look at truth claims - you focus on the outcomes.
When I got my first Master's degree (in the anthropological and comparative study of religion), this was my focus. So let me give some examples of expedient means -
In Buddhism this may include zazen or sutra chanting or images of the Buddha on the butsudan or the physical offerings (rice, water, flowers) at the shrine. None of them are "necessary" or "required", but they are helpful for some people in reaching that goal. A competent Buddhist teacher would tell you to find the expedient means that work for you OR to learn to see the function/purpose underneath the ritualized activity (for example, rhythymic sutra chanting is a great device to focus concentration and still the mind).
In Quakerism, the Silent Meeting would be an expedient mean. Catholic mystics would argue that the ritualized functions and postures of the Mass are expedient means to bring the worshipper to a certain mindset of submission and devotion to God - thus preparing the worshipper for Communion in the proper spiritual frame. In the LDS Church, the numerous ordinances of that religion serve the same purpose. The same can be said for salat in Islam as well as the Baha'i Faith.
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salyed
12/15/2005 8:44 AM
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And cheesefeet, I would agree with you on "secret knowledge". The postulation of that itself is also an expedient mean - this does not imply "truth" to it, it's the outcome (Does it get you where you want to go? Sometimes we can get there without being fully aware of the process.)
So how does language and labels serve as expedient means?
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