I am sure there is a lesson in this somewhere

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lament
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Re: I am sure there is a lesson in this somewhere

Post by lament »

The lesson I took from that is that an animal's life is incredibly unpleasant at times.
danieLion
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Re: I am sure there is a lesson in this somewhere

Post by danieLion »

Lesson?:
What is one?
All beings subsist on food.
-Kuddakapatha 4
danieLion
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Re: I am sure there is a lesson in this somewhere

Post by danieLion »

Or:
Don't go down dark tunnels?
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manas
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Re: I am sure there is a lesson in this somewhere

Post by manas »

I felt a sense of horror while looking at it. But if it had been the other way around - ie, a rodent eating a toad - it would not have had as much emotional impact, because the little rat-like creature is cute, and the toad is,,,horrible and ugly.

The lesson? Try to avoid being reborn as an animal, where this kind of miserable end is commonplace, maybe?

:anjali:
To the Buddha-refuge i go; to the Dhamma-refuge i go; to the Sangha-refuge i go.
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tiltbillings
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Re: I am sure there is a lesson in this somewhere

Post by tiltbillings »

danieLion wrote:Or:
Don't go down dark tunnels?
Isn't that an admonition for male celibacy?
>> Do you see a man wise [enlightened/ariya] in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.<< -- Proverbs 26:12

This being is bound to samsara, kamma is his means for going beyond. -- SN I, 38.

“Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?” HPatDH p.723
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Ytrog
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Re: I am sure there is a lesson in this somewhere

Post by Ytrog »

Travel by toad is uncomfortable? :?
Suffering is asking from life what it can never give you.
mindfulness, bliss and beyond (page 8) wrote:Do not linger on the past. Do not keep carrying around coffins full of dead moments
If you see any unskillful speech (or other action) from me let me know, so I can learn from it.
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Kim OHara
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Re: I am sure there is a lesson in this somewhere

Post by Kim OHara »

Once I could see the picture (!) I could see a few lessons in it. Here's one that seems to have been overlooked.
manas wrote: the little rat-like creature is cute, and the toad is,,,horrible and ugly.
I think a lot of us would respond along those lines but we really should realise that such a response is (to use a Pratchettism) speciesist. To toads, toads are beautiful and anything furry is probably sort of yucky. A hypothetical intelligent reptile would probably congratulate the toad here as we would congratulate a cat which had managed to catch a lizard. And so on.
Our responses are learned, to some extent, but we typically side with creatures more like us against creatures less like us - mammals ahead of reptiles and amphibia, reptiles ahead of insects ... and people with our own skin colour ahead of people with different skin colour. Sigh.
Ideally, of course, our attitude to all sentient beings would be the same.

:namaste:
Kim
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Sam Vara
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Re: I am sure there is a lesson in this somewhere

Post by Sam Vara »

Ah, yes, the Patagonian Metta-Frog.

So-called because he selflessly carries around furred animals in his mouth if they are bothered by the rain, or if they get tired. Some have been known to sacrifice their lives in the service of their furry little "friends" in this way.

Thanks for such an uplifting picture, Tilt. It has redoubled my intention to develop my Metta.
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imagemarie
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Re: I am sure there is a lesson in this somewhere

Post by imagemarie »

tiltbillings wrote:For those who could not see the picture and now wish they hadn't:
Image

Move towards the difficult, the unpleasant. Hello toad. Hello mouse.

(thinks..maybe I should reactivate my Facebook account :smile: )

:anjali:
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Dan74
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Re: I am sure there is a lesson in this somewhere

Post by Dan74 »

Sam Vega wrote:Ah, yes, the Patagonian Metta-Frog.

So-called because he selflessly carries around furred animals in his mouth if they are bothered by the rain, or if they get tired. Some have been known to sacrifice their lives in the service of their furry little "friends" in this way.

Thanks for such an uplifting picture, Tilt. It has redoubled my intention to develop my Metta.
:clap:

when a saint is projecting... :D

PS My response to the picture was "poor mouse!' and 'life is fragile and short and it's gonna be even more fragile and even shorter if I don't apply myself correctly this time around!'
_/|\_
daverupa
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Re: I am sure there is a lesson in this somewhere

Post by daverupa »

tiltbillings wrote:Image
This is what I saw, originally. I thought the lesson related to broken links & anicca. :shrug:

Wild stuff.
  • "And how is it, bhikkhus, that by protecting oneself one protects others? By the pursuit, development, and cultivation of the four establishments of mindfulness. It is in such a way that by protecting oneself one protects others.

    "And how is it, bhikkhus, that by protecting others one protects oneself? By patience, harmlessness, goodwill, and sympathy. It is in such a way that by protecting others one protects oneself.

- Sedaka Sutta [SN 47.19]
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DNS
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Re: I am sure there is a lesson in this somewhere

Post by DNS »

I think some were not seeing the image due to connectivity speed. I had no problem seeing the image at my business where the connection is very good and fast, but at home a couple of times I did not see it.
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Ytrog
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Re: I am sure there is a lesson in this somewhere

Post by Ytrog »

David N. Snyder wrote:I think some were not seeing the image due to connectivity speed. I had no problem seeing the image at my business where the connection is very good and fast, but at home a couple of times I did not see it.
That is not the problem as I had it on my 25Mb/s line at home. If I try to open the image (in the original post) in an new tab it says that the attachment is removed.
Suffering is asking from life what it can never give you.
mindfulness, bliss and beyond (page 8) wrote:Do not linger on the past. Do not keep carrying around coffins full of dead moments
If you see any unskillful speech (or other action) from me let me know, so I can learn from it.
pegembara
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Re: I am sure there is a lesson in this somewhere

Post by pegembara »

"Here now, Malunkyaputta: What will I say to the young monks when you — aged, old, elderly, along in years, come to the last stage of life — ask for an admonition in brief?"



"What do you think, Malunkyaputta: the forms cognizable via the eye that are unseen by you — that you have never before seen, that you don't see, and that are not to be seen by you: Do you have any desire or passion or love there?"

"No, lord."

"The sounds cognizable via the ear...

"The aromas cognizable via the nose...

"The flavors cognizable via the tongue...

"The tactile sensations cognizable via the body...

"The ideas cognizable via the intellect that are uncognized by you — that you have never before cognized, that you don't cognize, and that are not to be cognized by you: Do you have any desire or passion or love there?"

"No, lord."




Seeing a form
— mindfulness lapsed —
attending
to the theme of 'endearing,'
impassioned in mind,
one feels
and remains fastened there.
One's feelings, born of the form,
grow numerous,
Greed & annoyance
injure one's mind.
Thus amassing stress,
one is said to be far from Unbinding.

Hearing a sound...
Smelling an aroma...
Tasting a flavor...
Touching a tactile sensation...

Knowing an idea
— mindfulness lapsed —
attending
to the theme of 'endearing,'
impassioned in mind,
one feels
and remains fastened there.
One's feelings, born of the idea,
grow numerous,
Greed & annoyance
injure one's mind.
Thus amassing stress,
one is said to be far from Unbinding.

Not impassioned with forms
— seeing a form with mindfulness firm —
dispassioned in mind,
one knows
and doesn't remain fastened there.
While one is seeing a form
— and even experiencing feeling —
it falls away and doesn't accumulate.
Thus one fares mindfully.
Thus not amassing stress,
one is said to be
in the presence of Unbinding.

http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka ... .than.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
And what is right speech? Abstaining from lying, from divisive speech, from abusive speech, & from idle chatter: This is called right speech.
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yawares
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Re: I am sure there is a lesson in this somewhere

Post by yawares »

tiltbillings wrote:Image
Dear "tiltbillings",

I think the lesson is CURIOSITY CAN KILL MANY MANY CATS... OR it is the picture of THE LOST WORLD starring Jeff Goldblum:

http://images.search.yahoo.com/search/i ... f+goldblum" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Am I right??
yawares
:tongue:
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