Gautama Siddhartha

(the following is from the Metta Sutta)

This is what should be done
By one who is skilled in goodness,
And who knows the path of peace:
(be) Straightforward and gentle in speech,
Humble and not conceited
Peaceful and calm and wise and skillful,
Not proud or demanding in nature.
Freed from hatred and ill-will.
not holding to fixed views

very wise!

[sky]

Originally Posted by AbodhiSky

(the following is from the Metta Sutta)



very wise!

Extremely wise especially when you practice ' Metta Meditation ' as an accomplishment...

[sky]

Originally Posted by AbodhiSky

One should read why Buddha said those things. Buddha was repeating what the vain arrogant King and Queen said to him about themselves.

That was from the Rājan Sutta and about Buddha's interaction with two very egotistic and self loving powerful royals, the King and Queen Malikā.

Buddha listens to them proclaim their love of themselves, pure egotism and arrogant self importance, and the passage says:.

Lol, did you know that the King and Queen had become followers of the Buddha very early in His ministry and had remained loyal supporters until Buddha's death. Mallika, was recognised by the Buddha as a wise and religious Queen who was well versed in the Dharma and acted as a ' religious guide' on several occasions teaching Dharma to others.

Hardly the description of ' Arrogant/egoistic/ self loving vain Royals ' as you mistakenly misunderstood from the Sutta....

Very similar realizations in these quotes.

Man’s greatest problem is his ego, his consciousness of individuality. Paramhansa Yogananda

Overcome your ego, ego...prevent(s) the light of wisdom from growing, ...understand (if one is not enlightened) that your basic emotion is egocentricity." Lama Thubten Yeshe

We are too ego-centered. The ego-shell in which we live is the hardest thing to outgrow. Zen Master D.T. Suzuki

Then according to Nichiren Buddhism, ego corresponds to the mind of unenlightened being, the "small self" or delusional self.

Buddhism teaches, one with "great self", as worded in the early Buddhist Suttas, has a perception which is neither at the mercy of outside or inside (within) stimuli nor its own moods, neither scattered nor diffused, but imbued with self-control, and self-contained towards the single goal of nirvana, commonly interpreted as the extinction of the "three fires", or "three poisons", greed (raga), aversion (dvesha) and ignorance (moha). One without aversion is "empty" of reactionary thought and conditioning.

When these fires are extinguished, release from the cycle of rebirth (saṃsāra) is attained and also attained, attunement with our Buddha-Nature. "It" is lived and experienced directly as opposed to "believed."

An Arahat has a fully enlightened state of empirical self, one that lacks the "sense of both 'I am "this"' and 'this I am'", which are illusions that the Arahat has transcended. The Buddhist thought and salvation theory emphasizes a development of self towards a Selfless state not only with respect to oneself, but recognizing the lack of relational essence and Self in others, as "self is an illusion". A self that realizes a selfless state! I am fully here, but as what? That's the question.

I would say individual self is an illusion that is fully played out as real if one identifies as ego or the temporary thoughts and conditioning of this one life. Without ego, we are all the same. Points of light, points of conscious awareness that are projecting and experiencing whatever they are identifying with in any now moment in time.

Originally Posted by sky123

you mistakenly misunderstood

An egoless King or Queen is an interesting idea. A King or Queen who do not see themselves as above or better than others in some way. A King or Queen who clean and cook for themselves and don't have or use servants. A King or Queen who don't live in extravagant housing and who give their riches to the poor and hungry. Who use wooden plates and not gold ones!

I looked up Queen Mallikā and found this: Source here:

http://palikanon.com/english/pali_names/ma/mallikaa.htm

Reference is made to the arguments or fights Queen Mallikā had with her husband, the King, once on the question of conjugal rights so I assume one or both were sleeping with others and the other was not happy about it, and as a result of this fight they both sulked and had to be reconciled by the Buddha. (J.iv.437;)

then this (J.iii.20) it is said that until reconciled by the Buddha, The King ignored The Queens very existence, saying that "prosperity had turned her head."

[Miss Hepburn]

Originally Posted by AbodhiSky

-Man’s greatest problem is his ego, his consciousness of individuality. Paramhansa Yogananda
-Overcome your ego, ego...prevent(s) the light of wisdom from growing, ...understand (if one is not enlightened) that your basic emotion is egocentricity." Lama Thubten Yeshe
-We are too ego-centered. The ego-shell in which we live is the hardest thing to outgrow. Zen Master D.T. Suzuki

Thanks for the reminder!

[sky]

Originally Posted by AbodhiSky

An egoless King or Queen is an interesting idea. A King or Queen who do not see themselves as above or better than others

Yes there are some excellent Teachings amongst the ' Malika ' stories lol.

Originally Posted by Miss Hepburn

Thanks for the reminder!

I grew up in Encinitas so hung out at "Swami's beach" there below SRF. Very high vibrations!

[Miss Hepburn]

Originally Posted by AbodhiSky

I grew up in Encinitas so hung out at "Swami's beach" there below SRF. Very high vibrations!

I envy that.

don't envy me though I have terrible karma, or good if terrible is good or leads to good i suppose.