[Buddha-l] The arrow: its removal and examination

[Jackhat1 at aol.com]

In a message dated 6/26/2007 1:03:00 P.M. Central Daylight Time,  
rhayes at unm.edu writes:


>  If I remember correctly, the Buddha suggested that his teachings should  
be:
> (1) the wording of the doctrine be studied and learned  (pariyatti), (2) the
> doctrine should be converted into a practice  (patipatti) and (3) the
> teaching should be penetrated or realized  (pativedha). It would seem that
> this  implies a difference  between study and practice.

No one denied that there is a difference  between study and practice. What I 
hinted at is that study and practice do  not form a dichotomy such that doing 
one means not doing the  other.
=====
I was adding to what you had said about the dichotomy and not rebutting  your 
point.


[snip]

> My question  
> of this list is what  is your definition of Buddhist practice and  do you
> have a daily  meditation practice?

As for how practice (carya, abhyaasa) is defined,  I'm afraid I can only give 
stock answers. At the very least it consists in  s'iila (good habits of 
thought, word and deed), samaadhi defined as  kus'ala-cittasya ekaagrataa 
(concentration defined as single-pointed focus  of a healthy mind), and 
praj~naa defined as dharma-pravicaya (wisdom  defined as investigation of 
phenomena).

I can't imagine what  possible relevance my own life has to you or anyone 
else 
on this list. But  you asked how I spend my days. Very few moments of any day 
go by that I do  not observe my mentality and external behaviour, reflect on 
these  observations, think about how mentality and external behaviour might 
be  
improved, and strive to make those improvements. I leave it to bureaucrats  
to 
decide whether that counts as a dailty meditation  practice.
===
I haven't reached that point which you seemed to have reached. I have had a  
meditative practice for over 35 years and still am unable to keep that  
investigative attitude constantly throughout the day. I still need that daily  
formal meditation practice to hone my skills.
 
Jack



-- 






************************************** See what's free at http://www.aol.com.