Dealing with the 'and then?' problem

[gumpzilla]

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Gild said something to this effect earlier...

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Finding out what I actually want to do in a world full of limitless choice is incredibly scary and confusing and basically not a happy thing to think about.

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See, i completely disagree. I love going out and doing simple things. Getting a milkshake. Posting on 2p2. Kissing my gf. All of them make me happy, really and truly.

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Sure. How old are you, if you don't mind me asking? I don't think Gildwulf is complaining about not being able to find any happiness in the mundane day-to-day activities you describe. Rather, I think he's saying that he's not sure what he wants in terms of a big picture life. I didn't really start worrying about that one until a couple of years out of college. I realize the OP was about finding "meaning" - which I tend to agree is a silly pursuit - but I think Daver nailed it when he said this is really about Gildwulf figuring out what he wants in this longer sense. For many people, that might also be a trivially easy question, but it isn't for me.

[Temp Hutter]

60 some posts and very little mention of God with a capital "G". Even if you are a devout atheist you have to know that millions of people in this world find the answer to the meaning of life question through God. Maybe there is something there that you should explore.

[amplify]

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Amp,

Are you buddhist?

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I use Buddhist maps. If I wanted to get to Ecuador, I would get a map. That doesn't make me a Rand McNallyist. I could still check with people I met along the way, maybe buy another map or make a post about it. But the map is not the territory, which is the fundamental error that many religious or spiritual people make, thinking or pretending that things are actually are as described in literature, sacred or not.

At the same time, you'd be foolish not to explore the experiences of people in cultures who have spent thousands of years studying consciousness, if that's your interest. The danger is that along with brilliant insight into psychology and being, you get a lot of claptrap. With Buddhism you have a lot of ritual, which is useless, and a lot of beliefs that don't help, such as rebirth. I have no reason to accept rebirth and no reason to reject it, so I just ignore it. Everyone in India 2500 years ago just accepted the doctrine of reincarnation (dependent origination) as probably most still do, seeing that it is in Hinduism as well, being as I said, cultural and not scientific.

Then one is free to accept the best of multiple traditions. We can look to Jesus for an example of unconditional love and how to be compassionate and forgiving. We can look to Socrates for logic and a commitment to keep questioning everything. From Lao Tzu we can learn equanimity and the realization that naming things does not make them so. And so on.

tl;dr - no

[DING-DONG YO]

more BBV4L, less EDF. prob solved. Ship teh chedda. My buuhole is sweaty.

srsly gild, you need to take a step back and chill. you sound extremely high strung.

[Subfallen]

I'm not sure what existentialists you're reading. (If it's Jaspers then God help you.) But I am sure you're missing the point if you equate the "Dionysian life" with "kind of doing whatever." That's pretty much...well, the exact opposite of how Nietzsche used the term.

(Edit.) E.g. Ecce Homo II, 10: "My formula for greatness in a human being is amor fati: that one wants nothing to be different, not forward, not backward, not in all eternity. Not merely to bear what is necessary, still less conceal it---all idealism is mendaciousness in the face of what is necessary---but love it."

Or one thinks of Kierkegaard: "...all existence, if one becomes conscious of it, involves passion." (Not sure what book.)

[NHFunkii]

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Irie,

I'm pretty chill except when I go all meal eagerly waiting in anticipation of my fortune and then get some f'ing saying, or even worse, just some f'ing lotto numbers.

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I haven't gotten a legitimate fortune since I was a kid, and it pisses me off every single time. Am I imagining this, or did they used to have real fortunes? I swear they did.

[BearHustler]

[censored], I like to drink wine and smoke cigarettes. Seriously. I love it. It's been a constant all through the last ten years of my life. I wish it wouldn't kill me, because I'd love to do more of it. I'd love a cigarette so much right now. But I don't have any.

I'm 28 now. I graduated at 27 as an industrial engineer. Dropped out of college for a few years before that. Did nothing but smoke weed and drink a lot.
Some 38 yr old said something like: enjoy it while you are young, because you'll only realise what you've missed out on when you're my age (IIRC)

Well, I'm realising now. But I've just bought a house and spending a lot of money on it, and I'll continue to for quite some time. I'd also like some kids and I have a great girlfriend I'm not about to leave. So traveling lots isn't really an option for me, but that's allright too.

I just wanna enjoy life as much as I can. I don't even remember most of what I've written above (except the bit about drinking lots of wine, santé).

[amplify]

blueman,

What the Buddha Taught by Walpola Rahula
- Basic Theravada Buddhism in a nutshell. Recommended to everyone interested in learning about what Buddhism really is. Most people have been more familiar with Mahayana Buddhism but Theravada is definitely growing in influence.

It totally depends on the person what second book I would recommend, but just from your posts I am going to recommend to you:

Hardcore Zen: Punk Rock, Monster Movies, & the Truth about Reality by Brad Warner
- strips a lot of the bullshtt out of people's perceptions of Zen and Buddhism, is a fun read, and Brad doesn't hold back on his opinions.

These are just two general recommendations from the Buddhist end of things, and two very short books. If you have some specific area that you are interested in studying in depth let me know.

Also, get either the Zencast podcast or Audio Dharma, it has a variety of speakers giving Dhamma talks on every topic you might care to hear about.

[amplify]

Gild, sorry about effing up your thread with my garbage.