Re:My mindfulness practice led me to meltdown
by amanaplanacanal on Tuesday July 20, 2021 @05:18PM
(#27899489)
He may have a good grasp of what Catholicism is about, but his grasp of Buddhism seems pretty shallow. I would not take this article on faith.
Re:My mindfulness practice led me to meltdown
by bencollier49 on Wednesday July 21, 2021 @03:44AM
(#27903471)
I'm inclined to agree with you. The comparison being made between the two states seems almost like a way for this particular Buddhist to cast shade on the Christian mystical tradition. "Oh yes, we know about that; that's when you're not doing it properly".
Re:My mindfulness practice led me to meltdown
by gbuk2013 on Wednesday July 21, 2021 @03:42AM
(#27903456)
I will assume in good faith that the person you are quoting simply doesn’t not have sufficient understanding of Buddhist philosophy.
Enlightenment is the same regardless of the path you take to get there. When “this” and “that” are gone what is there?
Selected quotes:
"The ultimate end of man for Christians is union with God, while for Buddhists it is Nirvana (complete detachment, or a state of nothingness)."
"For Buddhists, salvation is a privation of individual consciousness; for Catholics salvation is an eternally fulfilling relationship with a loving Creator."
"For both Buddhists and Catholics “detachment” is important, but for Catholics detachment is not an end in itself. St. Francis de Sales preached that man must desire to “possess his soul” rather than allow it to be possessed by worldly things. Catholics pursue this for the purpose of elevating their soul by offering it back to Christ. So detachment is a means to a rich and meaningful “higher awareness” (if you will) that reaches its culmination in seeing God face to face."
So this (temporary) dark night of the soul ultimately leads to a deeper, perhaps more mystical relationship with God.
[0] https://www.catholicculture.org/commentary/catholicism-and-b...