Not Mine, Not I, Not Myself and MORE NEWS

[@vinod.10]

It is helpful for me❤

[@emilsteensen7481]

Great job at explaining the differences - I've thought about it a lot... Thanks, Doug!

[@DougsDharma]

Glad it was helpful Emil!

[@nimeshaperera8819]

Thank you 🙏🙏🙏

[@DougsDharma]

You're most welcome!

[@gunndlewittlebaum]

Great talk! Good luck with the course. I'm going to look into it the evening!

[@DougsDharma]

Thanks Gunndle! I'm very happy with how it turned out. Let me know what you think! 🙏

[@xiaomaozen]

"Not mine, not I, not Myself" as a refrain to keep in mind - that's a very useful practice. 😳😊🙏🏻

[@DougsDharma]

Yes it's difficult to really keep it in mind I think, but it is very useful!

[@sarithabeysirigunawardena121]

This is really helpful to the people who doesn't know pali or sinhala.in buddhism we never talk about our body when we got to the deep side. Good luck with your understanding.may obtain nirvana

[@DougsDharma]

Thank you very much Sarith! You as well. 🙏

[@zinakan]

Great video Doug.

[@DougsDharma]

Thanks zinakan! 🙏

[@samthehuman]

what a joy to have found your channel ❤️

[@DougsDharma]

Thanks so much Samuel. Glad you are enjoying it! 🙏

[@mael-strom9707]

I realized from a young age (about 12) the impermanent nature of all phenomena ...second law of thermodynamics. I treated world religions with great suspicion and those practicing them with even more suspicion. At a tender young age I had to dumb myself down just to navigate and try to fit in somehow with the primitive education system I found myself in. I had an early understanding that this is not the true self of me, not this am I. All that I am is an emanation from the quantum field of mind. I hadn't even heard of Buddhism at that time but it certainly would have sped my growth up a little I believe. ...lol. Best wishes with your course!

[@DougsDharma]

Thanks Mael-Strom! 🙏

[@seescafedeu]

Thanks, Doug.

[@DougsDharma]

You're very welcome Glória. 🙏

[@mertefe4345]

From the way you described what you're trying to do, and from my own personal experiences in Depersonalization, Derealization and Dissociation. This is basically, in simple terms, creating Depersonalization. That's how you feel in Depersonalization, Not Me, Not Mine, Not I.

[@DougsDharma]

Yes. I think for it to work properly and in a skillful way though it has to be done in the context of a healthy ego already in place: this is what we see with the Buddha himself for example. Either that or it has to be done with a very accomplished meditation teacher who can lead you through the pitfalls. If it doesn't work for you at this point in your journey then leave it aside, or consider it as a teaching against greed and hatred.

[@anattasunnata3498]

No, this is totally different from DP. I suffered this condition for a while after smoking marihuana a few years ago, and it was horrible. Life felt like a movie and everything felt so surreal. It wasn't a good feeling at all. On the other hand, the results of the buddhist training are totally different. Feelings "feel the same", but the perception and interpretation of those feelings is radically different, because you don't get attached to the deeds "you" do, to "your" physical appearence, or to the contents of "your" mind. Instead "my feelings", they are seen as just "feelings", without the need of "my". This process is gradual and effective, and as a result, suffering and stress is considerably reduced in daily life. Kind regards!

[@DougsDharma]

Good point Anattā Suññata. I have heard though that some people suffer depersonalization experiences when learning about or meditating on non-self. I haven't experienced such things personally so can only go on the reports of others. My suggestion is that if that's happening to you then you're approaching non-self from the wrong angle and it's probably best to step back from it for awhile and come to it later. Also you can read the chapter on The Self in the Dhammapada. It gives a robust notion of a (conventional) self: suttacentral.net/dhp157-166/en/buddharakkhita

[@mertefe4345]

@@DougsDharma That's a great paradox over there? While preaching self and preserving self some of the time, on the other hand trying to dissect the self, or saying there's no self, or not giving any value to self by and many other things that goes against what we give worth as individual self. Buddhism is very paradoxical in its views in some cases.

[@DougsDharma]

Well it's a deeply nuanced view of the self. I tried to get some of the nuance across on my earlier video on non-self. 🙏

[@iallalli5223]

Not mine, not me, not myself is saying about subject object divided. You Doug can't be any divided. As like Shuraedinger's box whatever divided is entangled Nirvana, Tathagatha Doug Self. Have nice day.

[@videomaster8580]

Doug, a hard question for you! How do we know what our true feelings are? The reason I ask is, today I felt very angry and empty inside. I couldn't really identify a reason, or reasons for it - although I did have some ideas of what might be causing it. As you know, how we feel is not only of the mind, but the bio-chemical nature of the body. I figured these feelings I had were partly of that nature, and nothing to do with me per se. I recited for half an hour This feeling is not me This feeling is not mine This feeling is not I I felt calmer afterwards, but the effect is short lived. Is this a correct use of these 3 phrases. It seems very hard to understand feelings/emotions as they are so motive, transient, and shifting. Thanks!

[@DougsDharma]

That's a hard one VM, we don't always know what our true feelings are. That's one thing that makes mindfulness practice so essential: calm the mind so we can see more clearly. We may need to sit with it for a long time to see what it really is. The only thing I'd caution you about is not pushing away feelings you don't like, or that you don't find skillful. Yes, you may decide it's best not to act on them, but aversion to them only compounds the problem longer term. That said, sure the non-self practice you mention can be a good one, as can a lovingkindness practice. But I'd say first try mindfulness to see what's really going on in the mind and body. Hope that helps!

[@videomaster8580]

@@DougsDharma Thanks Doug, wise advice. Its hard to know if I am pushing away, or taking positive action to change my state of mind. Thanks.

[@phyzix_phyzix]

The truth is there was a feeling of anger that arose. Perhaps the perception of a self arose as well. You should be aware of each of these and observe them until they disappear. After doing this enough times your mind will no longer create the perception of self in regards to the anger.

[@sarithabeysirigunawardena121]

@@videomaster8580 lord buddha might answer your question like this.feelings are known as SITH in pali.and there are six place catch out the outer world. Such as eye(ASA).ear(KANA ).nose(NASAYA)tounge (DIVA).body(SHAREERAYA )and your mind(MANASA).AND there are six thing particular things that you catch from those six doors such as picture from your eye.noise from your ear and .....at last imaginary thing from your mind.like that .lord buddha says that are every second the SITHA borns and then dies in those six doors as you catch thing from the outer world (your own body is also considered as outer world)so that's why lord buddha said that we are dying every second and there is nothing we can consider ones self.thats why lord buddha told that this is ANATHMA .(selfless or non self). Excuse my language.cuz I'm sinhalese and we learn damma from sinhale and pali.and it's really hard to convert it into english as sometimes there aren't words for the exact meaning in english

[@fairytalejediftj7041]

I don't know about that Buddha guy, but I like the professor's Gen X style wardrobe. That's my kind of classroom. 😇 I look forward to enjoying the fruits of your labor. Thank you. 🙏

[@DougsDharma]

😆 Thanks fairytalejedi!

[@meditemoscl5019]

Hi Doug. It’s Jorge from Chile. I don’t understand very well how the activity of “Conceit” as equal to others could be a problem. Does the problem rise when I consider myself equal to SOME others instead of equal to ALL others?

[@DougsDharma]

Yes, it's the same problem. The idea is that to compare yourself to others you have to have a 'view of self' both of yourself and of other selves. This 'view of self' is mistaken and not helpful in almost all cases. There is an exception though mentioned in the early texts that I did a video about here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/kIXUmpWCgr5kgq8 🙂

[@localnugget]

Doug, what would you say is the downside of viewing ones self as an eternal soul? Or an impermanent soul?

[@DougsDharma]

As to the first, lots of them, but they boil down to clinging to ideas of the self as permanent and immutable. The second as well could be understood that way if we think that the soul has a particular essence that is unchanging. I deal with a bit of that in this video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/qpLdZmiDmLl9bqc

[@vikram2pancholi]

Sir, It is nice to know that you are offering Buddha's teachings that can lead us towards Wisdom, Kindness and Calm living. However, in a previous video, I see that Buddha addresses 'Foolish man' to Sati. And now at 7.59 timestamp, you explain 'Conceit' as 'thinking ourselves better than others'.. So, what does it indicate?

[@DougsDharma]

Good question Vikram. It indicates that one can hold that a claim is false and foolish without conceit.

[@vikram2pancholi]

@@DougsDharma Great sense of humour..!!

[@kevanstannard]

Hi Doug, you often use the phrase "in early Buddhism" (such as conceit in this video) rather than just saying "in Buddhism". Is this just to clarify the difference between teachings from early Buddhism and teachings that were developed later? Many thanks.

[@DougsDharma]

That's right Kevan. Buddhism is a very large and diverse suite of beliefs and practices developed over many centuries and millennia.

[@anattasunnata3498]

Also, the main source of information for this videos seem to come from the Pāli Canon, which is considered by a lot of scholars as the closest we can get to early buddhism and to the Buddha himself. Kind regards!

[@dudeonthasopha]

Hi doug, not really a secular question but do you know what the rationale is for certain buddhists to claim behavior and tendencies carry over lives if their is no self? Was this actually an idea the buddha taught, or was the theory built out of the buddhist cosmology surrounding rebirth?

[@DougsDharma]

It's a teaching that goes back to the Buddha. "No self" doesn't mean there is for example no continuity of memory within a lifetime; it just means there is no permanence, no essential self basically. Like many other people in his day he believed that there was rebirth, and that this causal continuity of mental events continued between lifetimes as well. That said, it's up to us to decide if that makes sense of our lives or not.

[@vx3281]

Dear Sir: I have a question with regard to the "Not I," which you describe as arising from conceit and resulting in the comparing of oneself with others: Imagine that you are one of several members of a black family, living in Detroit, MI during COVID-19, and that your water has been turned off because you can no longer afford to pay. And yes, this is both common and real. Additionally, the same is still occurring in Flint, MI, home of the worst water crisis in modern American history. The former white governor of Michigan, in a move that showed no value for these majority-black communities, switched our water source from a good one to a cheaper, polluted one. Now that you have the context, how would you suggest that black people not think: I am "equal," or even "I am worse?" And for those of us fighting this... perceived... injustice, how should we think of ourselves if not as victims or freedom fighters or members of an oppressed group? I realize that to answer this might require a book, as opposed to a post, but I can't help but be curious regarding your thoughts, or if you would even be willing to admit seeing this as it is several months after you posted this. With metta...

[@DougsDharma]

This is a wonderful and very deep question Vivien. I think you’re right that it would take a book or a lifetime to answer properly. Yes, I’m sadly aware of the terrible structural racism in this country. When considering the Buddha’s message, I think one has to take account of his very different cultural background. He did know of a kind of mild oppression, that of the Brahmin caste, though it was really nothing much like what we see nowadays. My sense is that he was not denying that such comparisons might be true. For example, he knew that he was no worse than a Brahmin in many things, and indeed held himself as morally superior to them. So it was not a matter of denying the facts, but rather of not placing the mind where it was likely to create unskillful states of greed and hatred. Another way to put this is that these are practices for us, they are not meant to absolve anyone else of their misbehavior. (We are all heirs to our own karma). These practices should go hand-in-hand with work towards greater societal change. But these are just some preliminary thoughts on my part, and I would be interested in your thoughts as well since I am not as directly knowledgeable about many of the conditions you mention and so may not be seeing the best way forward with skillful practice. 🙏

[@vx3281]

@@DougsDharma I cannot tell you how deeply I appreciate the candor, insight, and quickness of your response. I have a Buddhist practice, but currently no immediate sangha, and have been struggling to come to resolution regarding some of these matters. During this time of COVID-19 and being suddenly unemployed, I came to realize that despite all of the accompanying stressors, there are many wonderful opportunities, as well. I am looking at refining my meditation practice. I am trying to deal, head on, with the prospects of either living or dying, with mindfulness. I am trying to prepare to both live a better life, as well as to prepare, as much as possible, for the right state of mind with regard to that "last thought." Truly, it took a pandemic for me to realize that "meditating on death" is not simply morbid. It provides context for the path. Every day, now, I wake up realizing that I have, perhaps, another opportunity to know cessation. I also realize that I have much to forgive with regard to both myself and others. I've listened, repeatedly, to two of your talks on non-self and found them so helpful. Yet, it isn't easy. I just keep reminding myself that "You yourself must strive. The Buddhas only point the way." I will definitely listen to your COVID-19 talks, as well. I only discovered your site a few days ago. What you have just written has also been immensely helpful, particularly the parts about not having to deny truth and keeping in mind that these practices are "for us" and "not to absolve anyone else of their misbehavior." That's powerful. And despite your inexperience with these situations, you have a type experience and wisdom that cannot be limited or defined by such artificial constructs as "race." Nonetheless, it's sometimes difficult to remember this despite knowing it... You have honored me with your kindness. Thank you, again, for your time, candor, and wisdom. With my deepest respect, Vivien

[@DougsDharma]

You are very kind Vivien. I’m so sorry to hear about the loss of your job and hope that, as you say, it presents you new opportunities. But yes, the path isn’t easy. It’s long, and it takes work. Each of us has to walk it in our own way, but we do have help. We are all subject to the first Noble Truth that life is suffering, that it is unsatisfactory. This means that we can understand one another’s pains as our own and help illuminate the road ahead. Be well! I hope you continue to enjoy the videos, and keep in touch with other questions and concerns. I am always glad to have new, wise perspectives. 🙏🙂

[@sarithabeysirigunawardena121]

There is a monk called Meemure Dammavansa .in sri lanka.if you can translate the language into yours.it would be great😍.

[@7cTube]

I'm slightly concerned about your course. Any thoughts on AN 5.159: "[4] The Dhamma should be taught with the thought, 'I will speak not for the purpose of material reward.'

[@DougsDharma]

This is something I've thought a lot about Egod. It's just a fact of living in a lay society that dharma teachers -- all of us who are not monastics -- have to be supported somehow. Every one of us who sells dharma books, gives dharma classes, or dharma retreats, is in the same boat. We need to make a living somehow, and deserve honest payment for honest work. That said, I will continue to do my ongoing free KZbin videos as well. 🙏

[@mertefe4345]

@@DougsDharma Don't care about those people who don't understand a man gotta do what he gotta do to earn living Doug. Whether sharing Ancient Dhamma or not. You deserve to get paid for the work you do! :)