this post was submitted on 17 Sep 2023
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Showerthoughts
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A "Showerthought" is a simple term used to describe the thoughts that pop into your head while you're doing everyday things like taking a shower, driving, or just daydreaming. A showerthought should offer a unique perspective on an ordinary part of life.
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Let’s say you break your leg. Your first reaction is usually “HOLY FUCK FUCK FUCK THAT HURTS” and your mind will do anything to try to escape it. But if you turn your attention towards it and focus on it directly, you can start to slightly diminish it by picking it apart. Is it a throbby or stabby pain? Is there an underlying itchy sensation? If you accept the pain and embrace it, it helps reduce it by seeing it for what it is and, more importantly, is not: You are not dying, even though your brain is reacting like you are.
The Buddhist mindset is kind of like that, but for all of your reality. The zen doesn’t come from running away, it comes from seeing and accepting everything as it is and understanding that the only thing you can control is your mind’s reaction to it.
Signed, Someone who’s broken a lot of bones and done a lot of meditation (still a shit Buddhist though)
Yeah, it seems Buddists are more focused on mindfulness and being fully in the moment, which is kind of the opposite of escapism. Also understanding duhkha, sometimes translated as unease due to "not having what one wants" or "having what one doesn't want" and accepting it and living with it rather than striving to eliminate duhkha.
...and of course Buddhists have been known to kill other Buddhists for being the wrong kind of Buddhists, so ymmv
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhism_and_violence
Dukkha is translated as “attachment” because it’s not about what’s going on and whether you want it; it’s about how you relate to what’s going on. It’s about whether you bet all your energy on each thought and action, or whether you can have a light touch and only invest what is needed.