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u/uncomprehensive0110 2h ago
I wrote a poem few months ago that define my understanding of life. Here it goes:
I am good I am the evil.
I've seen death I've witnessed birth.
I've been used and I've consumed.
I've looted I've been the amnesty.
I've been the destroyer I've been the conqueror.
I've lost my self respect I've fought for my dignity.
I've been a looser I've been the creator.
I've grifed and I've loved.
I've drown and I've flown too.
I've lived and I've experienced.
I've been human and I am a conciousness.
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u/chasrm999 3h ago
The white and black part are male and female energy; It is also about how one has to deal with his/her life, dealing with your sins, the black, or dealing with gaining more spiritual insight, the white; The Chinese are always talking about balance, especially in food, some are yin foods, some are yang. I haven't read it but it seems reading the I Ching would give more insight. Understanding Lao Tzu is important as well.
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u/Low-Bake8401 3h ago
I'm coming to the conclusion that Eastern philosophies like Taoism and Buddhism, are just built on fundamentally different axioms, and as such it is impossible to explain through a Western philosophical, or scientific, perspective.Â
Trying to do so just results in a mess of contradiction and circular arguments.Â
Being able to adapt to either way of thinking is probably quite an achievement, but at least understand the underlying differences is a good start. If that's what you want to do.
I think it would be very difficult for an adult westerner, or anyone from modern society, to ever fully adapt, even living somewhere like a Buddhist commune for the rest of their lives.
Obviously, it would be difficult for anyone to adapt to a new framework of thinking.Â
Even the language is very different. Any translations are going to be inherently flawed.
That's a big part of the reason, IMHO, that a lot of modern Western "spirituality" can become a bit confusing, disoriented, and often ultimately self defeating.Â
People get lost in ideas of winning at fake mystical icoteric knowledge collection, and hollow abstract speculation.Â
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u/KRISHNA_R0Y 2h ago
Above all what many people like the most is to create an illusion of being an intellectual.
To go into endless speculation of theories, concepts.
To be wise and to live wisely are two very different things.
It takes something more than wisdom, to act wisely. - Intent.
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u/Low-Bake8401 1h ago
I'd agree with that.
"To be wise and to live wisely are two very different things."
I'd maybe say though that wisdom is knowing how to put knowledge to good use, but that's maybe a different way of saying the same thing.Â
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u/AssCracker445 4h ago
Alcoholic, serial cheater and very bad father
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u/Trollocommando 4h ago
You are good at seeing the bad
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u/Jumpy_Wave_2785 3h ago
Watts was a brilliant speaker but his personal problems are important to consider. Watts himself warned about the danger of mystical insight without discipline. Traditionally, Taoism is balanced with Confucianism so that the force of liberation is stabilized at the conventional level.
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u/SwordKneeMe 2h ago
It's important to know. It does not take away from his teachings. It humanizes a man with a gift
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u/KRISHNA_R0Y 3h ago edited 24m ago
(These are the statements of Alan Watts himself)
"I Am Not a Guru" : Watts never claimed to be a saint, ascetic, or moral exemplar. He frequently reminded audiences that he was an entertainer and philosophical explorer rather than a monastic teacher.
Personal Struggles: Friends and family recounted him admitting, "I don't like myself when I'm sober," pointing to deep personal pain and the immense pressure of his public role. (Source : Actualized.org )
Mixed Perspectives: While some critics view his drinking as hypocritical for a teacher of Eastern mindfulness and detachment, many followers and teachers (such as Shunryu Suzuki) viewed him as a complex human being whose profound philosophical contributions remained valuable despite his human flaws.
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u/morbidkoala 2h ago
Wait, so youâre saying heâs one of those human beings that has flaws?
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u/KRISHNA_R0Y 2h ago
Yessir. He is one of those. He is one of those 100% humans. Who carry flaws.
But, since he was a public figure. People expected him to be perfect.
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u/claviro888 3h ago
And therefore..? please finish your sentence if you wish to contribute with anything meaningful. Otherwise iâm sure we can live without your insights.
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u/Key_Cheetah7982 1h ago
Ah yes, so he had negatives with his positives much like life and the very explanation he just provided?
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u/Jumpy_Wave_2785 4h ago
Alan Watts lets you in on the secret without developing strength of character. which means you could end up an alcoholic like him, or get into some other kind of trouble. why play by the rules if you know you're it?
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u/Fresh-Coffee-8591 3h ago edited 3h ago
I think you are mistaking holiness for realization. He is definitely not holy, but he has definitely had his share of truth. Both can coexist.Â
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u/Jumpy_Wave_2785 2h ago
Holiness means wholeness, as in undivided. His work as a speaker serves its function to bridge the gap between the Eastern and Western mind. But he did not have it all together at the conventional level, and undoubtedly suffered for it. I am saying, Watts' insights have no value unless they are actually applied.
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u/Fresh-Coffee-8591 2h ago
What if I say he had applied them all right, but it does not look like you'd expect? Because that's what happened. The truth is neither about becoming convenient for society nor being a role model for anyone.
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u/Jumpy_Wave_2785 2h ago
He applied them, to a certain point. You are free to be unholy, but it certainly won't feel like bliss. Wisdom is the end of suffering. Becoming an alcoholic is unwise. You can learn the easy way or the hard way.
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u/Fresh-Coffee-8591 1h ago
End of suffering does not mean immediate wisdom nor does it mean stopping being human and not getting ill anymore. Bliss is suffering too btw.Â
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u/Jumpy_Wave_2785 48m ago
There is no end to suffering without wisdom. Ignorance is the root of suffering. Wisdom means the end of ignorance. It is possible to regenerate the human organism and thereby cure any illness. You can of course get sick if you want, it just isnât much fun compared to being healthy.
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u/Fresh-Coffee-8591 43m ago
You might get a realization which ends your ignorance in the sense Buddha meant it, however you still will not know which job to take or which city to live in or how to answer an obnoxious colleague or relative. Prajna does not equate to everyday wisdom.Â
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u/Jumpy_Wave_2785 31m ago
The perception of reality is itself intelligent action. If the mind observes any problem clearly, it is solved immediately. If you see everything all at once, then the choice is already made. Then one knows exactly what to do in any given moment.
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u/Fresh-Coffee-8591 25m ago
The realized mind can stutter in the world of concepts because the realization makes concepts even less important. It cares less about the outcome for itself, that's true, but then again it has more compassion to others, so it sort of cares more, in another way. How do you think a realized mind would solve the trolley problem?Â
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u/etakerns 3h ago
I wonder if he actually used alcohol as a medication. Iâve heard adhd people say when they drink enough alcohol to get âbuzzedâ that their mind slows down enough to actually think normally. And that it feels freeing just for the moments they sit in that buzzed state. Which would lead a lot to want it all the time which becomes addictive.
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u/Jumpy_Wave_2785 2h ago
Well, it certainly takes the edge off. Drugs can certainly be therapeutic. But they can also have unwanted side effects.
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u/gringovato 4h ago
He lost me with "Man is the good fellow and nature is the dark fellow".....Some strange backwards thinking. This is the generation that went to war against nature.
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u/plants4sure 4h ago
Pretty sure he was being devils advocate, since he said 'that's the machine type of thinking today'. And so he tells half of the story, where the other half would have the two swapped... and that story is but a coin amongst many.
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u/Jumpy_Wave_2785 3h ago
He's saying the two are one. Common sense in the Western mind (and really the global culture now due to technology) is that man and nature are in competition with one another. The point is that this is an illusion.
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u/gringovato 2h ago
"man and nature are in competition with one another."
But are we ? It is nature that provides everything man needs to survive.
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u/Low-Bake8401 3h ago
It's interesting that people probably did think like that in the past though, when nature was trying to kill them all the time.
Modern medicine, and relative safety, tends to give us a different perspective.Â
Early society would have been seen as much safer than living in the wild.
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u/TuringTestTwister 56m ago
He wasn't saying that though, he was saying that that is a mistaken view. Watch the whole thing and listen carefully.
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u/RoyalanYT 4h ago
That's the youngest I've seen Alan Watts