Conceiving, a disease

The Watercooler
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I believe the Buddha in essence :blush: is only making clear that we must stop thinking we can know and understand and grasp Dhamma and reality by conceiving.

Also, all these thoughts about atta, essence, substance, exist, not exist, both etc are merely the products of a conceiving mind. But what do the suttas say about conceiving?

-By conceiving we are bound by Mara. By not conceiving one is freed from the Evil; One (SN22.64)
-Conceiving is a disease in the discipline of the Buddha, One must train in a mind without conceiving (SN35.248)
-SN35.30 and SN35.31, SN35.32 teaches the appropriate way for uprooting all conceivings.

So, all this conceiving that is really not the training. That is not the Path to come to understand Dhamma and reality. It is a disease in the discipline of the Buddha.

But what is the honest and naked truth?

*We are fond and strongly in love with conceiving. We cannot stop it.
The worlds turns around conceiving.

It is not a quality. It is more like an obsession. If you look in all honesty how easily the mind inclines to conceiving, then you see it is such a strong addiction.
It is quit easy to abandon smoking compared to the addictive power behind conceiving.

There is such a strong natural habit to become involved in ideas, views, thinking, reasoning, conceiving while also this is not seen as appropriate.
It is hard to maintain presence for 5 seconds, i feel, because the mind is again lost in conceivings.

This is the naked and honest truth, i feel.

All these ideas about atta, substance, essence, opposites, existence and non-existence, both, nor…it are all products of the slavery of conceiving. It is only imprisonment of the heart. It is no richness.

I feel it is only good to see how strong this addiction is.

Meanwhile, the world is becoming more and more involved in conceiving.

This has reached such a point that people do not even notice anymore that dimension free from conceiving. The more we are involved in conceiving the less we are really in touch with Dhamma, with reality, with truth.

It is quit worrying. Asankhata, that domein without conceiving and conceit works stabilizing but conceiving works polarizing. That is what is happening.
People have no idea of a common ground. Their identity is fully determined by conceiving and conceit. I feel this is also only getting worse.

To be honest, i do not know if this is merely caused by our way of living or is there something else going on?

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If people did not create mental formations, words and utterances about the Path through the utilisation of language,
How would you or I ever come to know about it?

Maybe a ceaseless habitual conceiving or conceptualisating rooted in ignorance is what is to be let go?

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I also believe that things like conceiving, thinking, me and mine making do not become inabilities, but are freed. They are not a fetter anymore. Indeed as habitual inclinations they cease. That is what i believe. But i believe a Buddha can still conceive, think, and has still a functional me and mine making. But not as fetters.

The main issue with conceiving , i believe, is that it is such a strong tendency. One is just 1 minute observing the breath and suddenly one finds oneself in a state of conceiving. And think about meeting other people. Probably one is immediately absorbed in conceivings. And what happens is that this cinematic story like mental world that becomes our reality. And it is experiences as true, substantial. Certainly not as empty formations, certainly not as anicca, dukkha and anatta. Not like foam, without substance. No, for us conceiving is very substantial! Oh it is so important. Because most the the time it is our world.

What a world of difference it is to be absorbed in conceiving or just be present. And how easily the mind becomes involved in conceivings, right?

It is also amazing i feel that one can circle around in conceiving and believe that is all true, reality, as it is, but one can also step out of it, as if it has no meaning at all but the meaning one gives it by feeding this constant loupe of conceiving.