Taking Praise & Blame with Wisdom

[Jundo]

Catching up on some back issues of the Buddhist mags, I came across this very insightful little essay by a Teacher in Trungpa's lineage ... on taking personal blame or praise with Wisdom ...

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Love Me, Hate Me
Thursday, February 3, 2011 At 1:17PM
Praise and blame are like echoes that don’t ultimately exist, explains Rose Taylor. But we still have to know how to work with it.

If you know that all the many utterances of praise and blame
Are sound-emptiness, unborn,
Like the sounds of guitars, echoes, and thunder in the sky
Then all attachment and aversion to these sounds of praise and blame
Will be completely pacified.

—Unchanging Sky’s Beautiful Melody, Khenpo Tsültrim Gyamtso Rinpoche

As conveyed in this verse, the Buddhist teachings on genuine reality tell us how praise and blame are merely empty sounds with no true existence. In essence, they are no different. We are able to distinguish the concepts of praise and blame only by contrasting each with its opposite—each depends on its opposite for its own definition. They do not have any independent identity in themselves. These sounds of praise and blame are merely unborn sounds, like echoes reverberating or thunder rumbling in the sky.

This can be quite difficult to remember when we are faced with praise or blame. Our minds are easily carried away with the alluring sounds of praise and disturbed by the harsh sounds of blame. So it is useful to examine the relationship between them, develop skillful methods for working with them, and investigate their ultimate natures.

more here ...

http://www.thebuddhadharma.com/web-archive/2011/2/3/love-me-hate-me.html

[Juki]

Thank you. This is something I still (and probably always will) need to work on.

gassho,
William

[Mp]

Praise & blame ... opposite, yet the same. Thank you Jundo.

Gassho
Shingen

[Yugen]

This is worth reflecting on. I have saved it to return to. Thank you.

Deep bows
Yugen

[Myosha]

Thank you.

Gassho,
Edward

[Joyo]

I have always struggled with being a people pleaser. I've focused a lot on stopping this by being mindful of similar words that you posted. Having attachment to praise or criticism is really not living a peaceful life. And, in fact, I find that with letting that go and not caring, acts of kindness are just acts of kindness, not with the intention of getting something in return. As for criticism, it's going to happen, no matter what you do, and the more one can let that go, the more you will be able to live a pure and peaceful life, listening to your own heart, and not the opinions of others.

Gassho,
Treena

[Shokai]

Jundo; Thank you for this opportunity to take you back to an era when it became socially acceptable to look at Jesus and his followers, as historically real people; as portrayed in the 1973 hit Jesus Christ Superstar. As far as we surmise, Buddhism was able to do this from a very early stage as we are led to believe that the Buddha asked this of us himself. Just imagine what the world would be like today if that were so with the beginnings of Christianity.
I just love the expression of human longings portrayed in this out-take around the Last Supper; right down to the apostle's idle drunken thoughts of immortality in the gossamer twilight of Gethsemane:

Jesus
The end...is just a little harder, when brought about by friends.
For all you care, this wine could be my blood.
For all you care, this bread could be my body.
The end! This is my blood you drink.
This is my body you eat.
If you would remember me when you eat and drink.
I must be mad thinking I'll be remembered.
Yes, I must be out of my head.
Look at your blank faces. My name will mean nothing
Ten minutes after I'm dead.
One of you denies me.
One of you betrays me.

Apostles
No! Who would?! Impossible!
Jesus
Get out they're waiting! Get out!
They're waiting, Oh, they are waiting for you!

Judas
Every time I look at you I don't understand
Why you let the things you did get so out of hand.
You'd have managed better if you had it planned...
Oh....

Apostles
Look at all my trials and tribulations
Sinking in a gentle pool of wine.
What's that in the bread? It's gone to my head,
'Till this morning is this evening, life is fine.
Always hoped that I'd be an apostle.
Knew that I would make it if I tried.
Then when we retire, we can write the Gospels,
So they'll still talk about us when we've died.

Jesus
Will no one stay awake with me?
Peter, John, James?
Will none of you wait with me?
Peter, John, James?

OR, something like that

gassho,

[Joyo]

Shokai, have you read the two books TNH has written on Jesus? I own one of them, I've never read the entire thing. What I have read, however, portrays Jesus so different from modern Christianity. After practicing Christianity for 36 years, I have to say, his book was the first time I actually liked Jesus.

Gassho,
Treena

[Shokai]

I have his "Going Home" and I know whereof you speak, lol

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[Heion]

I love it! Especially in such a critical field as music. It was good for me to read this.

[Joyo]

I have his "Going Home" and I know whereof you speak, lol

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That is the book I have also.

[alan.r]

I've been thinking this over a few days and keep returning to this: praise and blame are difficult, I think, because they both seem to refer to a self, they both seem to reinforce a self, this constant thing, that has either done a good job or has messed up. And if we've done a good job, we like to think it was something in us that caused the praise, something in our constant self, and if we get blamed or criticized, we still look at ourself and think that there's something faulty in us that we have to change.

Thank you for sharing this with us. I really liked reading it.

Gassho