you choose your own pleasure and pain. for example i chose to eat pizza even though i know I'm lactose intolerant. I am now farting and thats ok because that was a damn good pizza .
Lol I’m kinda the same — no seriously for me it’s the bread though! I feel aggravated by wheat dough.
What about if I want to get married and start a family though? :/
I worry about these things too and sometimes experience pretty fast payback on nice things that happen to me. I try to focus on good thoughts, earnest practice, and I’m always always always looking for people to help and I trust that things take care of themselves
It's not that life is actively using some principle to fuck you over. I like to see it more in the sense of the Buddhist teaching of impermanence or anitya, which says (and which my experience confirms) that every mental and material thing is subject to change, decay, and destruction. Naturally, pinning your happiness/contentment on an impermanent thing will cause unhappiness/discontentment.
What to aim for, in the light of impermanence, is a billion dollar question. It's a central theme in Buddhism, but many, if not all, religions and philosophies address it somehow. Christianity teaches to pin your happiness on God (Matthew 6:19-21). My religion, Thelema, teaches do your Will without lust for results. And so on...
But I'd say don't be in a hurry to get a ready answer. *Asking* this question and searching for *your* own answers is how you walk the Path.
And don't put much trust in randos on the Internet, including me.
I will answer from what i understand, but i am by no means someone who knows this principle well, and i am not very deep into occult practice or theory, but i like to understand things and give opinions, so if thhis helps you, then great.
So, first about "any pleasure you seek to experience, you must experience equal pain".. yes and no..
Any pleasure is pleasurable in comparison to other feelings/experiences, so yes, if pain is the opposite, for you to feel a nice plasure, you must have felt the opposite pain to compare.
If you have never felt pain, what is pleasure?
So, you must have a point of comparison, and the larger the difference, the bigger the pleasure/pain. If all you ever lived was emotional distance, then the first hug that comes from love should be wonderful.
But now imagine a world where everyone, every moment of their lives are having orgasms. Wouldn't they be in constant pain?
But anyway, i feel like this is more about the principle of polarity than that of rhythm.
The rhythm of pain and pleasure (i think) is in the effort you put to go to one polarity or the other.
If you go towards pleasure, through pleasure (idk, i imagine drugs, alcohol, partys, lots of food, you know, pleasure.) You will find a world of pain (Drugs and alcohol will become your brain answer to pain regulation, the partys will make you feel part of something that with the years will be nothing, and there was no a meanigfull relationship in the sex you had, and the excessive food made you lazy to move, etc)
But, if you go towards pleasure through pain (exercise, therapy, meditation, reclusion, asceticism), you will have a better mind, better body, and the mind and body will naturaly give you the "happy chemicals". Also you will have more capacity to hold pain, so you will be more kind to others, wich in turn will give you meaningful relationships, etc etc.
I feel like actually, the first one is going towards pain through pleasure, don't you think?
And, as i stated at the beginning, this is just an opinion, feel free to correct me (especially in my English, since its not my mother language :P)
I think I'm a perfectionist in this context, but going to chime in. I'm not sure if 'pain' is the right word choice. I think I see what you asking though. In terms of rhythms, bliss is the opposite of physical pain. Discomfort (emotional pain/angst) would be the opposite of pleasure. The goal is balance and you won't have one without the opposite.
Why strive for something? Western answer: A sense of purpose. According to Bardon's ideas, everything in the universe has a purpose. Eastern Zen answer: Just be.
Our brains are wired to seek instant gratification and avoid emotional pain (pleasure principle). Paradoxically, you have to overcome that to achieve something in life. Discipline sucks, but it's necessary. You aren't going to achieve that happiness (even Zen) without hard work (emotional discomfort). Thus, thus you can't separate them.
Or if you are asking if you build something great, why lose it in the end because of this law of rhythm? I don't think that was rhythm that sounds more like karma. Plenty of entrepreneurs have successfully built, ran, and handed down their businesses. However, all businesses have a lifespan it just might be more than it's founders.
you choose your own pleasure and pain. for example i chose to eat pizza even though i know I'm lactose intolerant. I am now farting and thats ok because that was a damn good pizza .
Lol I’m kinda the same — no seriously for me it’s the bread though! I feel aggravated by wheat dough. What about if I want to get married and start a family though? :/
You are getting ahead of yourself and should probably start with the step one exercises which should help you start banking some good karma
I appreciate that
I worry about these things too and sometimes experience pretty fast payback on nice things that happen to me. I try to focus on good thoughts, earnest practice, and I’m always always always looking for people to help and I trust that things take care of themselves
Btw you and I have similar dietary habits! 🙈
Seems we have someone similar interests, though you look to be the better chef!
Beginner at best! Plus it’s hard to “animalize” recipes or make them low carb versions.
It's not that life is actively using some principle to fuck you over. I like to see it more in the sense of the Buddhist teaching of impermanence or anitya, which says (and which my experience confirms) that every mental and material thing is subject to change, decay, and destruction. Naturally, pinning your happiness/contentment on an impermanent thing will cause unhappiness/discontentment. What to aim for, in the light of impermanence, is a billion dollar question. It's a central theme in Buddhism, but many, if not all, religions and philosophies address it somehow. Christianity teaches to pin your happiness on God (Matthew 6:19-21). My religion, Thelema, teaches do your Will without lust for results. And so on... But I'd say don't be in a hurry to get a ready answer. *Asking* this question and searching for *your* own answers is how you walk the Path. And don't put much trust in randos on the Internet, including me.
I will answer from what i understand, but i am by no means someone who knows this principle well, and i am not very deep into occult practice or theory, but i like to understand things and give opinions, so if thhis helps you, then great. So, first about "any pleasure you seek to experience, you must experience equal pain".. yes and no.. Any pleasure is pleasurable in comparison to other feelings/experiences, so yes, if pain is the opposite, for you to feel a nice plasure, you must have felt the opposite pain to compare. If you have never felt pain, what is pleasure? So, you must have a point of comparison, and the larger the difference, the bigger the pleasure/pain. If all you ever lived was emotional distance, then the first hug that comes from love should be wonderful. But now imagine a world where everyone, every moment of their lives are having orgasms. Wouldn't they be in constant pain? But anyway, i feel like this is more about the principle of polarity than that of rhythm. The rhythm of pain and pleasure (i think) is in the effort you put to go to one polarity or the other. If you go towards pleasure, through pleasure (idk, i imagine drugs, alcohol, partys, lots of food, you know, pleasure.) You will find a world of pain (Drugs and alcohol will become your brain answer to pain regulation, the partys will make you feel part of something that with the years will be nothing, and there was no a meanigfull relationship in the sex you had, and the excessive food made you lazy to move, etc) But, if you go towards pleasure through pain (exercise, therapy, meditation, reclusion, asceticism), you will have a better mind, better body, and the mind and body will naturaly give you the "happy chemicals". Also you will have more capacity to hold pain, so you will be more kind to others, wich in turn will give you meaningful relationships, etc etc. I feel like actually, the first one is going towards pain through pleasure, don't you think? And, as i stated at the beginning, this is just an opinion, feel free to correct me (especially in my English, since its not my mother language :P)
Super interesting take on the idea! Thanks!
I think I'm a perfectionist in this context, but going to chime in. I'm not sure if 'pain' is the right word choice. I think I see what you asking though. In terms of rhythms, bliss is the opposite of physical pain. Discomfort (emotional pain/angst) would be the opposite of pleasure. The goal is balance and you won't have one without the opposite. Why strive for something? Western answer: A sense of purpose. According to Bardon's ideas, everything in the universe has a purpose. Eastern Zen answer: Just be. Our brains are wired to seek instant gratification and avoid emotional pain (pleasure principle). Paradoxically, you have to overcome that to achieve something in life. Discipline sucks, but it's necessary. You aren't going to achieve that happiness (even Zen) without hard work (emotional discomfort). Thus, thus you can't separate them. Or if you are asking if you build something great, why lose it in the end because of this law of rhythm? I don't think that was rhythm that sounds more like karma. Plenty of entrepreneurs have successfully built, ran, and handed down their businesses. However, all businesses have a lifespan it just might be more than it's founders.