A buddhist's guide to happiness, through the krys-filter

[shodoshan]

Someone posted a very cynical "buddhist's guide to happiness", with a challenge for apologists to step up and explain it away. I feel like the people commenting on his entry did a good job of clarifying his misunderstanding of the philosophy, but it got me thinking

Comments

[garwalf]

So much great stuff I spent lots of time reading, stayed up past my bed time, don't want to spend lots of time writing, and have forgotten much of what I was thinking. So a quick 2 cents.
Jo, your original post reminded me of some subtleties and problems I've run into. A simplistic interpretation of detachment really is a cop out. The more detailed view involves things like detachment from the fruits of your action. You can't control everything, so don't be too hard on yourself about unexpected results or paralyze yourself with anxiety, just "do it".
Compassion is very important, including compassion for yourself, i.e. don't be a doormat because your not being compassionate towards yourself. Ignoring yourself is a cop out form of compassion.
On a related note, tied to personal experience, 7 (take refuge) and 10 (it's ok to suffer) should be closely tied. I've found I can logic away my unhappiness in such a fast, knee jerk way that I don't acknowledge my own suffering or notice where it's coming from. Part of being present is realizing that right now you could go off on a long rambling tangent because you're sleep deprived and should really head off to bed instead. G'night!

[shodoshan]

well said!