responses invited

[Guest guest]

A quote I read somewhere was on the order that:

The only thing that remains after death is one's spiritual

practice.

 

I told a friend of mine that some months ago after having read it

somewhere; it sounded very nice. She is a Christian and 12-stepper

and she told me afterwards that it meant a lot to her. Now I feel

guilty because I hardly remember saying it to her; I'm not sure if it

is " true. " Maybe it will be true for her but not for " me " ?--as I am

drawn to Nisargadatta and Ramesh's concepts which would obviate

any " one " doing any spiritual practice. Of course, I'm not about to

tell her my thoughts about this. I believe in finding any comfort

and meaning wherever they can be found!

(And, please, someone don't ask " who is 'believing' or who

is 'feeling guilty' " ! as I'm still entangled in the body-mind

illusion--yes, yes, " I " admit it!!!)

It feels as if reading Nisargadatta's words is like being in one

reality, and then looking up and being with everyone else around me

is the usual, suffering one. Oops--am mixing several topics together

here. Or, maybe, the one topic is just that there is a widening

split between what I read and am drawn to and what everyone else

around me thinks. Ah, conflict, conflict....

a.m.

[Guest guest]

I agree that a person should find what comfort they can,

from whatever beliefs work for them, as long as those beliefs are

not harmful.

I have no idea what happens after death. I know that most

of the stories about what happens must be wrong, since they are all

different. I also know that death really scares people, and that

all the different myths give comfort. Maybe one of them is even

correct.

There is some relief from the fear of death when a person

has certain transcendent experiences. These are called " No self "

experience in some Buddhist traditions. The experiences have a

hundred different names, and the names aren't important. If you

are posting here you probably know what I am talking about.

Anyway, when a person has " no self " experiences, there is

less fear of death, since there is a glimpse of the truth that

there is nothing to die. It doesn't do any good just to talk about

this though. A person has to have the experience.

So I say, let a person use whatever myth or story of symbol

that gives comfort from the fear of death.