We can not trust our hearts and minds

Merry Terry · Mar 16, 2020

I was watching this video this morning, and the part starting from 13:00 - and more specifically 14:53, if you don't have a lot of patience - is very inspirational for a NoFap path too.

We can not trust our hearts or our gut feelings on what is right, because it is our hearts and gut feelings that got us into the mess we're in. We have to dilligently stick to what we know what's right, even if it doesn't always feel pleasant or even doable.

Deleted Account · Jun 29, 2020

This guy is great. I've watched quite a few of his videos.

Awedouble · Jun 29, 2020

Sorry, but he is wrong about not listening to your gut feeling. Listening does not mean follow, this is an important distinction. People who study trauma know this, there is a whole field of somatic psychology for this reason. To write it off completely by just saying there is no reason to listen to the intestines would seem to indicate he is not aware of this.

It's not a matter of trusting, it's a matter of how you interpret the information, which doesn't have to involve motivation. I started listening at 13:00 and though he poses the question of how do we know what is right, I don't recall him actually answering it.

The simple truth is someone may not honestly know what is right in a given situation, but then they can investigate. That's what a therapist would do by listening to people, which includes observing the body if they are trained for it.

Awedouble · Jun 29, 2020

Kind of ironic that one of the people that liked the OP was named shadowintegrator, because this information can easily be interpreted as denying and ignoring the shadow.

My general concern about monastics giving teachings and relating it to these issues, whether explicitly by themselves or a general teaching like this implicitly being tied in to an issue like PMO by other people when they were not specifically teaching about it is they are not in the same life situation as lay people and householders. While some may have the same types of life experience before becoming a monastic, there is some question as to whether they are out of touch with the realities we deal with. We can respect their scholarship and practice, but there's a real issue of whether they understand the experience. A simple question and answer is completely insufficient to understand the entire life context of people if the other person isn't in the same situation. My perspective is that a socially engaged, relational approach of teaching is best. This is why people appreciate stories of life experience when it comes to recovery.

This video is less about PMO but basically makes this point, and coming from a monastic at that:

Merry Terry · Jun 29, 2020

Well, the way I interpret is that he does mean 'listening to your gut' as in 'doing what your gut tells you to do'. Because that's what is meant when people use that phrase.

For example in my case, when I'm anxious and stressed out, my gut or my instinct or however you want to call it tells me that I should go to the internet, look up some P and M to it. So I shouldn't listen to that.

Of course that doesn't mean that I should not observe it. Of course I should study what it is that my gut is telling me and research, why is it telling me that, where does it comes from? But I should definitely not do what it tells me to do.

Finally, I get your point about monastics, but Yuttadhammo Bhikkhu grew up as a worldly guy in Canada, so it does not apply to him.

WalktheLine · Jul 10, 2021

Awedouble said: ↑

Kind of ironic that one of the people that liked the OP was named shadowintegrator, because this information can easily be interpreted as denying and ignoring the shadow.

My general concern about monastics giving teachings and relating it to these issues, whether explicitly by themselves or a general teaching like this implicitly being tied in to an issue like PMO by other people when they were not specifically teaching about it is they are not in the same life situation as lay people and householders. While some may have the same types of life experience before becoming a monastic, there is some question as to whether they are out of touch with the realities we deal with. We can respect their scholarship and practice, but there's a real issue of whether they understand the experience. A simple question and answer is completely insufficient to understand the entire life context of people if the other person isn't in the same situation. My perspective is that a socially engaged, relational approach of teaching is best. This is why people appreciate stories of life experience when it comes to recovery.

This video is less about PMO but basically makes this point, and coming from a monastic at that:

Click to expand...

Good Video Thank you....
Dzongsar Rinpoche is Great....
Are you still around the Buddhist Forum...?
Is anyone around the Buddhist forum?
hehe...
Namaste and Peace

Log in

We can not trust our hearts and minds

Merry Terry Fapstronaut

Deleted Account Guest

Awedouble Fapstronaut

Awedouble Fapstronaut

Merry Terry Fapstronaut

WalktheLine Fapstronaut

Share This Page