The True Hero

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Kusala
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The True Hero

Post by Kusala »

‘The hero acts alone, without encouragement, relying on conviction and his own inner resources. Shame does not discourage him; neither does obloquy. Indifferent to approval, reputation, wealth, love, he cherishes only his personal sense of honor, which he permits no one else to judge…Guided by an inner gyroscope, he peruses his vision single-mindedly, undiscouraged by rejection, defeat, or even the prospect of imminent death. Few men can even comprehend such fortitude. Virtually all crave some external incentive: the appreciation of peers, the possibility of exculpation, the promise of retroactive affection, the hope of rewards, applause, decorations – of emotional reparations in some form. Because these longings are completely normal, only a man of towering strength of character can suppress them.’

"This perhaps gives some idea of what might have been going on in the Bodhisattva’s mind when he renounced his wife and child and when he drove himself with deprivations and austerities. And in this sense Siddhattha Gotama and Magellan were similar – they were both determined to go where no one had even been before, one spiritual the other terrestrial. And I imagine this is the reason why one of the epitaph the early Buddhists gave the Buddha was Great Hero (Mahavira, e.g. S.I,110; 193; III,83).
"


https://sdhammika.blogspot.com/2010/11/true-hero.html
"He, the Blessed One, is indeed the Noble Lord, the Perfectly Enlightened One;
He is impeccable in conduct and understanding, the Serene One, the Knower of the Worlds;
He trains perfectly those who wish to be trained; he is Teacher of gods and men; he is Awake and Holy. "

--------------------------------------------
"The Dhamma is well-expounded by the Blessed One,
Apparent here and now, timeless, encouraging investigation,
Leading to liberation, to be experienced individually by the wise. "
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NotMe
Posts: 455
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Re: The True Hero

Post by NotMe »

Kusala wrote: Sun Jun 26, 2022 10:34 am ‘The hero acts alone, without encouragement, relying on conviction and his own inner resources. Shame does not discourage him; neither does obloquy. Indifferent to approval, reputation, wealth, love, he cherishes only his personal sense of honor, which he permits no one else to judge…Guided by an inner gyroscope, he peruses his vision single-mindedly, undiscouraged by rejection, defeat, or even the prospect of imminent death. Few men can even comprehend such fortitude. Virtually all crave some external incentive: the appreciation of peers, the possibility of exculpation, the promise of retroactive affection, the hope of rewards, applause, decorations – of emotional reparations in some form. Because these longings are completely normal, only a man of towering strength of character can suppress them.’

"This perhaps gives some idea of what might have been going on in the Bodhisattva’s mind when he renounced his wife and child and when he drove himself with deprivations and austerities. And in this sense Siddhattha Gotama and Magellan were similar – they were both determined to go where no one had even been before, one spiritual the other terrestrial. And I imagine this is the reason why one of the epitaph the early Buddhists gave the Buddha was Great Hero (Mahavira, e.g. S.I,110; 193; III,83).
"


https://sdhammika.blogspot.com/2010/11/true-hero.html
Very interesting. First time to visit your blog. 32 years in the robes! Kudos! You describe yourself: "I am not a stream enterer (at least I don't feel like one)". I have wondered far too long a time what this may feel like. I think unbounded joy on one hand - 7 more lifetimes of suffering on the other.

You reply to a comment ".. indeed much of his book [A World Lit Only By Fire,] is about Catholics and Protestants tearing each other to pieces over minor theological differences, ..."

I am sure glad we Buddhists have none of the characteristics of those heathens!

Anyone ever labeled 'brave' knows that word never enters the mind - auto-pilot takes over and one just does what one has to. Any Noble Disciple fits the great hero category - the Greatest being reserved for the Buddha.

Metta

:anjali:
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DNS
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Re: The True Hero

Post by DNS »

NotMe wrote: Mon Jun 27, 2022 3:52 pm
Very interesting. First time to visit your blog. 32 years in the robes! Kudos! You describe yourself: "I am not a stream enterer (at least I don't feel like one)". I have wondered far too long a time what this may feel like. I think unbounded joy on one hand - 7 more lifetimes of suffering on the other.
Just a clarification: user: Kusala is not Ven. Dhammika. Ven. Dhammika is the author of that blog and numerous other books, but he doesn't post at DW.

https://www.dhammawiki.com/index.php?ti ... i_Dhammika
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NotMe
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Re: The True Hero

Post by NotMe »

DNS wrote: Mon Jun 27, 2022 5:24 pm
NotMe wrote: Mon Jun 27, 2022 3:52 pm
Very interesting. First time to visit your blog. 32 years in the robes! Kudos! You describe yourself: "I am not a stream enterer (at least I don't feel like one)". I have wondered far too long a time what this may feel like. I think unbounded joy on one hand - 7 more lifetimes of suffering on the other.
Just a clarification: user: Kusala is not Ven. Dhammika. Ven. Dhammika is the author of that blog and numerous other books, but he doesn't post at DW.

https://www.dhammawiki.com/index.php?ti ... i_Dhammika
My ignorance dispelled. Gratitude!

Metta

:anjali:
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Kusala
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Re: The True Hero

Post by Kusala »

NotMe wrote: Mon Jun 27, 2022 3:52 pm
Kusala wrote: Sun Jun 26, 2022 10:34 am ‘The hero acts alone, without encouragement, relying on conviction and his own inner resources. Shame does not discourage him; neither does obloquy. Indifferent to approval, reputation, wealth, love, he cherishes only his personal sense of honor, which he permits no one else to judge…Guided by an inner gyroscope, he peruses his vision single-mindedly, undiscouraged by rejection, defeat, or even the prospect of imminent death. Few men can even comprehend such fortitude. Virtually all crave some external incentive: the appreciation of peers, the possibility of exculpation, the promise of retroactive affection, the hope of rewards, applause, decorations – of emotional reparations in some form. Because these longings are completely normal, only a man of towering strength of character can suppress them.’

"This perhaps gives some idea of what might have been going on in the Bodhisattva’s mind when he renounced his wife and child and when he drove himself with deprivations and austerities. And in this sense Siddhattha Gotama and Magellan were similar – they were both determined to go where no one had even been before, one spiritual the other terrestrial. And I imagine this is the reason why one of the epitaph the early Buddhists gave the Buddha was Great Hero (Mahavira, e.g. S.I,110; 193; III,83).
"


https://sdhammika.blogspot.com/2010/11/true-hero.html
Very interesting. First time to visit your blog. 32 years in the robes! Kudos! You describe yourself: "I am not a stream enterer (at least I don't feel like one)". I have wondered far too long a time what this may feel like. I think unbounded joy on one hand - 7 more lifetimes of suffering on the other.

You reply to a comment ".. indeed much of his book [A World Lit Only By Fire,] is about Catholics and Protestants tearing each other to pieces over minor theological differences, ..."

I am sure glad we Buddhists have none of the characteristics of those heathens!

Anyone ever labeled 'brave' knows that word never enters the mind - auto-pilot takes over and one just does what one has to. Any Noble Disciple fits the great hero category - the Greatest being reserved for the Buddha.

Metta

:anjali:
I'm not Ven. Dhammika (as David pointed out). I like sharing Ven. Dhammika's blog posts every now and then...
"He, the Blessed One, is indeed the Noble Lord, the Perfectly Enlightened One;
He is impeccable in conduct and understanding, the Serene One, the Knower of the Worlds;
He trains perfectly those who wish to be trained; he is Teacher of gods and men; he is Awake and Holy. "

--------------------------------------------
"The Dhamma is well-expounded by the Blessed One,
Apparent here and now, timeless, encouraging investigation,
Leading to liberation, to be experienced individually by the wise. "
maniture_85
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Re: The True Hero

Post by maniture_85 »

Useful post, thank you.
wenjaforever
Posts: 390
Joined: Tue May 24, 2022 4:44 am

Re: The True Hero

Post by wenjaforever »

Indeed a very useful post :smile:
money is worthless toilet paper • the tongue has no bone (a person might say one thing but it cannot be further from the truth) • you cannot teach a goat math as in you cannot teach the dhamma to a dumb person
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