[QUOTE=Tyler Zambori;10045]yes, often, since it’s hardly a hard and rigid system.[/QUOTE]
in my opinion this is the difference
Buhda sought the truth and found it within, following his own path
Some buhdists are trying to retrace buhdas path so to speak to find what buhda found. It seems some people seek God in buhda, it seems buhda sought God inside himself. when you look to follow someone elses path it may distract from looking within
just my thoughts
seeker
[quote=tubeseeker;10048]in my opinion this is the difference
Buhda sought the truth and found it within, following his own path
Some buhdists are trying to retrace buhdas path so to speak to find what buhda found. It seems some people seek God in buhda, it seems buhda sought God inside himself. when you look to follow someone elses path it may distract from looking within
just my thoughts
seeker[/quote]
Hmm. Ok thanks for your advice.
Vedanta vs. Buddhism
do you really know what Vedanta means ?
[quote=PatR;10061]Vedanta vs. Buddhism
do you really know what Vedanta means ?[/quote]
Did I claim that I did? Why do you think I’m trying to
educate myself more about it?
Well, in that case I will post my reading list, because I think these
books look pretty good:
Vedanta: Heart of Hinduism by [COLOR=DarkSlateGray]Hans Torwestern
Common Sense about Uncommon Wisdom: Ancient Teachings of Vedanta
by Dhruv S. Kaji
Vedanta for the Western World by Christopher Isherwood [/COLOR]
But these are not for the purpose of getting a good grounding of how
to actually calm the mind down focus and meditate, which was my issue
at the start. Is ok, I solved it…
The new Yoga Sutra commentaries I got are:
THE STUDY AND PRACTICE OF YOGA/Volume 1 and 2
by Swami Krishnananda
and
Yoga Philosophy of Patanjali: Containing His Yoga Aphorisms with Vyasa’s Commentary in Sanskrit and a Translation with Annotations Including Many Suggestions for the Practice of Yoga
by Swami Hariharananda Aranya
Which I got also for the purpose of philosophy and theory, since it is
not meant to be understood all at once.
That should really do it. I already read Baghavad Gita enough times.
Once I got a complete set of books on the history of philosophy in
India, but couldn’t really get into it. I really just needed something
more simple.
Oh I also got another one by krishnanda, just because he seems to be
a fairly good and clear writer:
In the Light of Wisdom: The Psychology, Philosophy and Practice of Yoga
by Krishnananda (this is not about asanas)
So I really got my reading cut out for me for the rest of the year.
Books are always not a reliable source. Translations can be adjusted to suit the specific interests. Anything written in an archaic form of Sanskrit can be easily misinterpreted. 
Anyway, interpretations are subjective. Perhaps this is the reason we have Samkhya, Mimamsa, Advaita, Gaudiya & many other forms of Vedanta, with Vedanta vs. Buddhism what form of Vedanta were you comparing with Buddhism ?
Can you explain why Buddhism is not a form of Vedanta & so the two can be compared 
[quote=PatR;10073]Books are always not a reliable source. Translations can be adjusted to suit the specific interests. Anything written in an archaic form of Sanskrit can be easily misinterpreted.
Anyway, interpretations are subjective. Perhaps this is the reason we have Samkhya, Mimamsa, Advaita, Gaudiya & many other forms of Vedanta, with Vedanta vs. Buddhism what form of Vedanta were you comparing with Buddhism ?
Can you explain why Buddhism is not a form of Vedanta & so the two can be compared :D[/quote]
No, I can’t and that is not what I want to get into. My purpose in starting this thread was more about my personal practice than about getting
into any kind of philosophical chain-yanking. There’s a guy named Caritas
over on the E-sangha Buddhist forum who I’m sure would be glad to
get into it with you though.
Really, if you’ve got an agenda here, I’m not interested sorry.
Yes, I shouldn’t have judged the thread by its title. I’m sorry if I’ve bothered you
so tyler,
what are you searching for?
seeker
For INNER PEACE:D
hi all,
another update here: I stopped with the “awareness watching awareness” because
I realized something: even that is not a good place to start, because it’s too easy
to get caught up in your own thoughts. I learned that there’s a good reason the
buddhists have you start with just focusing on your breath.
I think that guy came up with this idea many years after he had started, and he
probably forgot that beginners tend to have this problem, because he had got
past it himself.
At any rate, I’m going to semi-admit something, without going into too many
specifics because skepticism is rather natural: my teacher won’t let me do
anything but his meditation anyway, at least right now. What I’m saying
is that even though he doesn’t talk to me, he is still teaching me by other means,
since it seems the link between us is strong enough now that this could happen.
I’d rather not to get more specific than that, except to say I expect I could stop
it all if I really wanted to, if I wrote to him and said really stop it and let me go,
but that isn’t what I really want either.
So anyway, he’s not letting me have any buddhism right now, but at least he is
really helping me with getting over holding grudges. It isn’t always very much
fun, but it makes me aware of when I do it.
it still keeps coming back to me, what that guy said about “the real addiction being
the way I condition my mind by my reaction to what my teacher says.” It is
still true, and still very hard for me to get past. I guess I have to just keep
coming back to contemplate it from time to time. But it seems I’m getting help
with it too, ugh.
Anyway, this Theravada meditation is interesting, but I can’t do it right now.
Maybe later.
PS: maybe I would be able to have Buddhism, if I could get over thinking how
much better it is, even though I know it is probably only better on the beginning
levels just because the instructions are explained better, and are more complete.
I can’t do it, so I have to put it down. maybe later.