Technically, I must call myself a Buddha.
No, I'm serious.
If I'm right generally and I obviously think I am right, then... Yes, I actually do consider myself a Buddha. I make this admission publicly to invite criticism and debate, or as the scientists would put it, public oversight or peer review.
This does not mean I think myself a God, or that I'm some new age mystic sitting cross legged with incense burning in the back ground thinking I was Genghis Khan or Ramses II in a past life. Or that i have some masochistic compulsion to deny myself good food sex and comfy sleep wear. What it does mean is explained below, but first a little citation.
According to the Eastern Religion wiki...
Buddhism teaches that someone who becomes enlightened without instruction is a Buddha The primary goal of Buddhism is the liberation of the practitioner from samsara.
Now, Samsara, according to its wiki ...
...refers to the cycle of reincarnation or rebirth in Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and other related religions.
The karmic balance at the time of death is inherited via the state at which a person is reborn. Through an undetermined amount of lives one can spiral upwards to become one of the gods. As a deity, one exercises divine powers until the good merit is exhausted. If one lives in evil ways, one is reborn as an animal.
Put more specifically in the Buddhism wiki...
In Theravada Buddhism, any person who has awakened from the "sleep of ignorance" (by directly realizing the true nature of reality), without instruction, and who has reached the end of the compulsive cycle of rebirths (as human, animal, ghost, etc.) after numerous lifetimes of spiritual striving, and who teaches this Path to Awakening to others is called a Buddha.
So, the requirements and how I meet them are as follows. Obviously the Dali Lama would object to my claim given my distaste for dogma and chanting, but I do believe that reality teaches the same lessons over and over, and I do tend to repeat myself, but there is a subtle difference.
Anyway.
Directly realizing the true nature of reality, enlightenment.
Who has reached the end of the compulsive cycle of rebirths or liberation of the practitioner from samsara.
After numerous lifetimes of spiritual striving.
Who teaches this Path to Awakening to others.
Reality is a paradox, an illusion of separateness, a nothing with form. I mean each of these literally. Reality is a self reference, a construct apparently built from the outside with no outside, holding itself up by attaching to itself, falling without moving towards nowhere, never and always. It exists relative to that which cannot exist to provide reference, namely non-existence. Reality contains statements which are both true and unprovable, so if we prove everything, then reality becomes incomplete. You've heard that before but not applied to reality as whole in this context. To find reality one must blend the how and the why, the science and the religion, the truth and the fact, these things need not fight any more than yin yang. They are different.
An illusion of separateness, there is no barrier between you an Andromeda There is a gradient of matter energy space time gravity etc between you and there. It is as much a part of you as your finger or your memories. It physically is you. The only way it cannot me is with an imaginary line defined by definition. What is, “is”? Ok, so your flesh stops at your skin, but what makes the air just above your skin any less yours? We are all one organism/reality We are built on the physical laws, there is no fundamental difference between living and dead matter. We are one. There is only one path and you are taking it. Choice is an illusion along with fear, guilt, rage, control, virtue, suffering. These are consequences of deception, of lies based on separateness and division. There is no judge. You are what you are, or put more Zen like.
You are
I figured all of this out by myself, and if I'm right, well, you judge for yourself the consequences. I was not given it by rote.
Who has reached the end of the compulsive cycle of rebirths or liberation of the practitioner from samsara. Now I can't speak to the soul, but if reality has will, clearly it wants me to ignore the matter, else it would provide evidence. But I do consider death and pain my chief enemies. And I will kill them or die trying. I can't speak to the progress of my soul with any objective conviction. But I do not plan to die. I quite seriously live my life as if I will life for the next trillion years so long as I take moderate care of myself, keep an open mind, adapt and expand myself when required, and avoid fear. The fight against death goes well. Each day steps are made towards any of the numerous ways we can annihilate death as we know it. This is actually the easiest one and only takes a bit of luck. I really do plan and expect to live for centuries more, and from there, who knows. If all goes well I'll never have need or desire to end my existence.
After numerous lifetimes of spiritual striving. The material that makes up your body changes from year to year decades to decade. You are not who you were when you were 5, that person is your ancestor. So how old are you? When did that person die? Never? Instantly? Depends on how you look at it. But clearly multiple lives are there metaphorically in some ways, literally in others. I've spent all mine asking questions and answering them searching for the truth, and the fact. I think I have it, because in typical paradoxical fashion I now know conclusively that as I am I cannot know. You've heard that before as well.
Who teaches this Path to Awakening to others. My whole adult life has been spent, trying to get the nature of reality recognized. I've always felt it was my duty to share the world as I see it with others. It's been the driving force of my life to bring myself closer to the fellows of my species by sharing with them these truths. Self expression is a scared and important thing, especially on matters of death, pain, survival, and pleasure.
The temptation is there to play off your ego, to ask if any of this sounds familiar, to ask if you are scoffing and saying to yourself “hell this could be anyone”, and try to make you feel like a Buddha also, claim that was my point, imply that we are all there, hide what I think I am. I wish that were true, but I know it probably isn't. While I know I'm not alone, I also know I'm rare.
Many people are simply handed their world view and accept them without question. Many people are robots effectively. Now they have no more choice in this matter than I had. It is not for us to control. But again paradoxically this gives us even greater responsibility. I know I'm just following orders but that does not absolve me. I still am defined by what I do, what I think, what I feel. I am.
So all things considered. Yes, I know I'm right. I know I have the solution, I know I see it. I know I know. I know nothing, so I know everything's nature.
