Here you had a good chance to reflect and backtrack. But no, he's quite a junior monk to be running his own website. Well, I'm not even a monk and run my own website, how about that?
He seems so full of hate and preconceptions that it almost sounds like a troll.
Also who calls himself a monk and spends time on social media? Not that it’s supposed to be forbidden but social media is basically the death of attention…
Not me. Teachers are like anyone else; they come in all shapes and sizes. They have personalities, passions and emotions, just like everyone.
I’m not teacher, but my interpretation of Buddhism isn’t to not say “damn!” When you stub your toe. But rather to question why you said “damn!” When you stubbed your toe.
Thread OP is a real treat of an HN moment. From the guns blazing to the HNer-cum-religion-expert to the pedigree mocking to the “Not a real X >:(“ all from going ballistic over “university” appearing in a title on a helpful website.
The perception that monks can never exhibit emotion or should always be relaxed is a purely American idea and a stereotype.
https://digitalcommons.unomaha.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?artic...
Probably every culture has something to say about pretentiousness, false prophets, stolen valor, etc.
I think this is just a case of friendly fire.
u/esbeeb got fluffed up, commented in public, and is now in a public food fight.
Better would have been to keep this private. Now his best PR/diplomatic move would be to say he'll confer with the "chief librarian" offline and he's sorry for all the fuss.
We've all been there.
PS- Yes, I know, this koan is most often interpreted to mean one should tackle one's own preconceptions. I'm making a point. Before getting dramatic, first get curious.
Secondly, Buddhism isn't a corporate ladder with annual promotions, it's a set of understandings. 10 years or 10 hours, it's not the time that matters, it's the understanding. Maybe examine why you're really putting down this guy's effort? Is it really about him, or is it about how you feel about yourself?
Also: don't allow yourself to be goaded by this comment, or by this situation, everyone's intentions here are positive. If they are wrong, let them be wrong. With that in mind, my final word: Give yourself the validation you need, or give up on the need entirely.
Don't harsh my mellow.
Do marsh my mallow.
Apparently there are different schools of Buddhism, some focuses more on "corporate ladder" than others... So...
If you were considering enrolling in a university, would you look into the reputation of that university? I'll bet you would. You'd want to know what it's reputation is like. Well, I'm offering insights into that, and yes his seniority got pulled into that description. He's quite a junior monk to be running his own website. In the Theravada world, this would be almost universally discouraged (it isn't just me who feels this way): trying to run a website while still quite a junior monk. There's no way my own teacher would have approved of it. Theravada culture is conservative - guilty as charged there.
As to his wisdom: I've never actually lived with him, so I can't comment on what he's like. He seems astute enough from my dealings with him. No complaints from me, other than that choice of the word "university". These sorts of things - someone's wisdom - can only be seen with time. As to his choices of what he curates on his website: I agree there's a lot of great resources listed there. My tastes and his are a little different - which is to be expected - and I wouldn't say there are any "red flags" to speak of. It's a solid website. Please don't be discouraged from checking it out. I'm not trying to stop anyone from going explore it. Thanks for taking the time to check out Theravada Buddhism. :)
PS: I have a personal little indie website here: https://bhikkhu.ca/ ...but I don't go so far as to call it a "university". It's a personal website, which doesn't make itself out to be anything more than that.