Re: Is it possible for practising Buddhists to have fun?
Posted: Sun Mar 17, 2013 11:29 pm
depends which monastery or retreat you go to.
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That was meant to be a joke, retro... Sorry, my bad. I even tried to put a smiley at the end of it, but...retrofuturist wrote:Greetings,
This ad-hominem red herring that those who aren't interested in brothelizing the Dhamma (and Vinaya) are somehow dour-faced, is wearing a bit thin now.
Metta,
Retro.
tiltbillings wrote:So, when teaching, no funny stories, and no lightness in one's personal interactions?
Funny stories and wit maybe useful if they help to make listeners understand Dhamma and arouse wholesome states of mind.polarbuddha101 wrote:I wouldn't go that far, the Buddha was known to poke fun and use wit himself on occasion.
I agree, manas.manas wrote:...
No one is advocating dour face but bright and serene face.Dan74 wrote: ... dour faces ...
Sure, and he used poking fun to great effect.polarbuddha101 wrote:I wouldn't go that far, the Buddha was known to poke fun and use wit himself on occasion.tiltbillings wrote:So, when teaching, no funny stories, and no lightness in one's personal interactions?
Edit: However, the Buddha used his wit to teach dhamma not just for the sake of being funny.
It was a good and plainly obvious joke; humor can be touchy thing, obviously.Dan74 wrote:That was meant to be a joke, retro... Sorry, my bad. I even tried to put a smiley at the end of it, but...retrofuturist wrote:Greetings,
This ad-hominem red herring that those who aren't interested in brothelizing the Dhamma (and Vinaya) are somehow dour-faced, is wearing a bit thin now.
Metta,
Retro.
Bhante, so, if it is not an another's judgment that really matters, which we can then probably ignore if the humor is not really directed at anyone, it is one's own judgment that really matters whether or not what we post in the lounge, for example, is being childish or childlike, which is a distinction that Benedictine nuns that taught me in grade school used to harp upon.Bhikkhu Pesala wrote:Pay attention to your own mental states when playing with your friend's dog. You will then know whether you're being childish or just innocent and child-like.Aloka wrote:Sorry but I'm a bit confused, Bhikkhu Pesala. If I'm having fun playing with and talking in silly girlie voices to a friend's dog, is that childish or child - like ?
... and here we go again.tiltbillings wrote:It was a good and plainly obvious joke; humor can be touchy thing, obviously.
I was just making an observation, and you now make my point that that humor can, indeed, be a touchy thing and very individual. That is simply a matter of fact which is neither good nor bad. As for the "red herring":retrofuturist wrote:Greetings,
... and here we go again.tiltbillings wrote:It was a good and plainly obvious joke; humor can be touchy thing, obviously.
Metta,
Retro.
There are tons of recordings by tons of different Dhamma teachers out there, among all of that I am sure you can find teachers who do use humor rather well. I am not talking about doing stand-up comic routines, but I am talking about seeing that life can be an occasion for lightness of spirit.SamKR wrote:tiltbillings wrote:So, when teaching, no funny stories, and no lightness in one's personal interactions?Funny stories and wit maybe useful if they help to make listeners understand Dhamma and arouse wholesome states of mind.polarbuddha101 wrote:I wouldn't go that far, the Buddha was known to poke fun and use wit himself on occasion.
But I am not sure about how far a Dhamma-teacher should go about using them. I believe a good teacher knows how to use them appropriately.
Well, that is definition, and it certainly looks that you are not using it correctly.retrofuturist wrote:Greetings,
= "Red herring is an English-language idiom that commonly refers to a logical fallacy that misleads or detracts from the actual issue. It is also a literary device employed by writers that leads readers or characters towards a false conclusion, often used in mystery or detective fiction." (Wikipedia)
Metta,
Retro.
Yes, well, Dan's post, in my opinion, was not saying that at all. He was, I would say, just poking fun at the idea of "dour-faced." He was not saying that anyone was such, but then you'll have to ask him what his intent was.retrofuturist wrote:Greetings,
Yes I am.
A false premise is being established that those who aren't interested in brothelizing the Dhamma (and Vinaya) are somehow dour-faced puritans, incapable of "fun" (i.e. false conclusion
And SamKR's post wasn't saying what you thought either. But that didn't stop you taking it as implying lack of humour. And neither was anyone who had this applied to them in the other topic yet you and others thought it appropriatetiltbillings wrote:Yes, well, Dan's post, in my opinion, was not saying that at all. He was, I would say, just poking fun at the idea of "dour-faced." He was not saying that anyone was such, but then you'll have to ask him what his intent was.retrofuturist wrote:Greetings,
Yes I am.
A false premise is being established that those who aren't interested in brothelizing the Dhamma (and Vinaya) are somehow dour-faced puritans, incapable of "fun" (i.e. false conclusion