Caring But Not Getting Caught Up

[@Snowchapel]

So refreshing to hear a couple of voices who haven’t completely fallen off of the middle path. Thank you for a breath of sanity.

[@LONDONFIELDS2001]

It’s easy just to tune yourself out if your material situation is unaffected. Tell the people who are fighting to keep their heads above the water and are one pay check from ruin to go meditate in the mountains.

[@Smoggyrob1]

A good conversation, thanks. My friend Judy has a saying that I like: "caring without carrying".

[@zenconfidential25]

I like that a lot.

[@paulengel4925]

what a brilliant idea to have my two favorite Zentertainers on at the same time ! I'm having a Zengasm! This has to be a regular thing! Great conversation guys! 😊

[@marc10844]

Excellent dialogue. Thank you. I concur completely. Glad to hear clear and balanced voices in American Zen.

[@zenstreamz]

It would be very very very awesome if you two did a live show together on the regular.

[@The_New_UG]

agreed

[@Being_Joe]

I thought GW Bush was the devil, and I was fine. When Trump first went into office I remember a younger coworker putting his life on hold because, you know, Trump. I was fine during the Trump years, and thrived, because I took responsibility for my own life. Really, if Trump winning is the worst thing in someone's life, they have a much better life than they realize.

[@evoshroom]

"Religious people tend to be conservatives..." Vast oversimplification and not true to origins. Ryan: Very very briefly did Gutama Buddha advocate for the liberal policy of rejecting the Indian caste system? ChatGPT: Yes, Gautama Buddha rejected the rigid social hierarchy of the Indian caste system, promoting the idea that all people, regardless of caste, could attain enlightenment through spiritual practice.

[@gunterappoldt3037]

It's the Yasukuni-shrine, a kind of Shintoist “all-souls“ memorial. So at least theologically it makes some sense to honour all ancestors, regardless of gender, age, merits and so on, and so forth. Shintoists honour nature, and nature “is“. Well, old master Baruch Spinoza would further differentiate into “natured nature“ and “naturing nature“, but that's another story.

[@skrrskrr99]

My dog lost his mind when ziggy was barking. 🐕

[@ZenMaster-WanHungLo]

Your guitar needs a haircut.

[@ceeemm1901]

BB King's guitar was called "Lucille. Alvin Lee's was "Big Red". Willie Nelson's is "Trigger"...and Brad's is called "Cousin Itt"...

[@Deanne-zd2bc]

There is something else going on! Agreed. We are breaking down our old systems, including the cult of celebrity. And my take is, if I can’t do anything about it, I give it little attention. I am a little confused about spiritual leaders buying into the fear. I am trying to not do fear these days.

[@zensukai]

Great conversation you two -- I totally agree. Practice is about practice, nothing else. There is an old saying, "Never mix church and state". This is for a reason. Drop all you political, social, economic, personal views at the door and just shut up and sit. But sadly in the West, a lot of Buddhist practitioners are not practicing because they are so caught up in their own ego and how that ego needs to be seen and accepted in the world (i.e. virtue signaling). Also, politicians are politicians regardless of what side they are on. They will do some things they say and not do some things they say -- this has always been the case. The dems should really look into the moral compass of Obama before they strow stones at Trump.

[@RedZambala]

Religion should be spread, beings should be actively saved, that's a Bodhisattva path, not virtue signalling.

[@winwinnington1647]

Isn’t becoming terribly bothered by so-called Buddhist teachers stating political preferences the same as these teachers becoming terribly bothered by Trump?

[@Larcey]

I was also sure in the 80s that we would all die in a nuclear war. It seemed like our fate was already decided.

[@John-uw7wd]

This is great, hope you do more of these conversations with Shozan in the future

[@DavidFerguson62]

Great conversation. More please.

[@WunjoDojo]

Great convo! Reminds me of Naropa University. Dropped out halfway through junior year to be a Stay at home dad. Wanted to return and finish a few tears ago but school had gone so woke I just couldn't do it. Which is a bummer because I wanted to complete my masters of divinity as well.

[@NigelRBlack]

Great to see this, thank you both ♥️🙏🌺

[@Jigokucake-lg1xj]

While scriptural texts like the Golden Light and Benevolent King Sutras advocate for rulers to embrace the Buddha-dharma, they don't lay out a prescription as far as governmental structure or policies. That doesn't mean that Buddhism hasn't been directly involved in matters of government before, but if we're to use historical examples as a guide, we'd all be Monarchists lol. I understand why Buddhists could vary a lot in their political positions, but it bothers me when Buddhist priests try to leverage their position as spiritual guides a way to benefit a political candidate or party.

[@AnthonyL0401]

Brad -- great stuff. What is the citation for "Look at hated information"? I couldn't quite make out who your guest said said it. Around 33:30.

[@mattrkelly]

my soundbite is always 'you also have to not care' 😅

[@WorldCrafterPrime]

I live 30 min from Okamura Roshi's. On their website, they require the Jab to attend any event, and I emailed them in 2023 to see if that policy had lapsed, and it did not. The small town they are in is a college town that voted 65% D in a 80% R state. They are doing the resistance thing like everyone else, MUCH to my dismay, I was very excited to learn from him and that Sangha

[@whoisthegaucho]

None of this is going to be so easy to quit right? You guys could be talking about anything.. But we want to scare ourselves or reassure ourselves, depending on who we like to think we are.

[@bookswithbjorn]

*sigh* more politics? You are better than this Brad.

[@HardcoreZen]

@@bookswithbjorn obviously not!

[@george221999]

This discussion augurs poorly for Buddhism-you guys are discussing how detached one is permitted to be. Well, you can be very detached, duh. Ok,how detached must you be? I guess, probably more than you guys

[@mikewright3633]

Like a lot of peeps outside the USA I could not give a flying fuck about your elections but I’m so very pleased with my two fave interwebs zen dude mash up 🙂

[@evoshroom]

Can you briefly summarize the main points of Psychology and National Problems by Carl Jung? ChatGPT: “Psychology and National Problems” by Carl Jung explores how collective psychological factors influence national identity, societal behavior, and political movements. Jung emphasizes the role of the collective unconscious in shaping national characteristics and warns of the dangers of mass movements driven by archetypal forces. He discusses how unrecognized psychological factors, such as shadow projections and repressed content, can manifest in nationalism, racism, and authoritarianism. Jung highlights the importance of individual self-awareness and responsibility in mitigating these unconscious forces to prevent societal conflict and totalitarian regimes.

[@badlaamaurukehu]

A hornet's nest of self-obsessed narcs. They tell on themselves.

[@marilynsullivan7549]

I’m hoping you will stop with the political stuff and provide actual Buddhist content.

[@ronmcbee4743]

I don’t know when you guys videotape this but if it was after Trump‘s initial appointments, RFK to HHS, Tulsa, Garber gates, justice, etc., and you think everything is going to be OK. I find both of you extremely naïve and ignorant and then the teaching is we are not supposed to have an opinion for against and that’s all you seem to be talking about is opinions, absolutely knowledge extremely sad and disappointing

[@HardcoreZen]

Interesting. So you'd prefer us to do a video where we freak out and talk about how we're all doomed? You can find plenty of those videos elsewhere if you like them!

[@zensukai]

How are they naive? Show me proof that what you are saying about Trump is going to happen. He did not do ANY of it when he was elected before, so I don't know where you get this fear mongering narrative. I think you my friend need to maybe look at your own naivety.

[@zenconfidential25]

Define “ok.” Also, I wouldn’t disagree with the naive or ignorant charge. And finally I know of no credible teaching that says you are not supposed to have an opinion for or against anything. I was taught that you’re not supposed to be attached to your opinions. In my own experience, there’s a big difference. You know?

[@AnthonyScibelli]

@@HardcoreZen I do appreciate how even-keeled and frequently nuanced your videos have been, but I notice that you never examine or dissect the right as much as you do the left (or at all). Is it because you tend to deal with more lefty types in American Zen spaces? Also I don't know if I agree that the left and right need to fight each other in order to reinforce their own identity. The left does that good enough fighting itself

[@HardcoreZen]

@@zenconfidential25 Better answer than mine!

[@evoshroom]

"Religious people tend to be conservatives..." Vast oversimplification and not true to origins. Consider Jesus flipping the moneychanger's table or his revolution against authoritarianism. ChatGPT: ...hierarchical systems have historically altered religious teachings to align with their own views, often leading to more conservative beliefs and practices. This can result in followers adhering to a version of the religion that deviates from its original teachings. Ryan: Very briefly do the original versions of the religions tend to be more liberal? ChatGPT: Yes, original versions of many religions often emphasize more progressive, inclusive, or liberating principles compared to the conservative structures imposed later by hierarchical systems.

[@kevinkheroux3438]

Shozan Jack (tbh not sure of his name) had a huge meltdown about the election results in his video. tbh I was disgusted and also glad to not be an American Buddhist.

[@whoisthegaucho]

I watched it and didn't get that same impression. I guess you see what you want to see.