Sample Header Ad - 728x90

Where can I get Buddha's teachings of the Dharma practice?

3 votes
4 answers
255 views
I've tried several Buddhist traditions (Zen, Diamond Way) and none of it really worked for me. So now I intend to give it another try, but in a way, which is tailored to my personality. This time I want to do it * on my own (working with teachers or mentors did more harm than good for me, both in spiritual and in professional spheres) and * without things that I don't need, especially without the idea that the purpose of Buddhist practice is to achieve enlightenment (the reason for me to practice is to reduce my suffering in this life; I don't care about enlightenment or rebirths or Karma) and without communicating with other people (again, experience shows that this doesn't help me at all). Is there a way to obtain **Buddha's description of the practice** in English, German or Russian? If yes, where? Note that I'm not interested in later interpretations of his words. I want to learn what he himself said about how to practice (what exercises, rituals etc. he recommend, i. e. something you can do). I'm also not interested in philosophical stuff. I want to * take his original texts (those parts, which most likely come from Siddhartha Gautama himself, not later additions), * devise a set of "procedures" (e. g. meditations of different kinds, exercises) and metrics, * regularly estimate the quality of my practice (the better my practice, the less suffering there is in my life), and * modify my practice (the procedures and intensity of doing them) so that the quality increases with time. I cannot measure the amount of suffering directly, but I can estimate it. For example, the happier I am, the harder and more effectively I work (my experience is that I can't be really sad or euphoric, when I'm immersed in certain kinds of work). The latter two parameters (amount of productive work per week, number of tasks of comparable size completed per week) can be measured using timetracking and project management software. Both of them are estimates of the amount of suffering in my life.
Asked by user10111
Sep 28, 2016, 10:38 AM
Last activity: Sep 30, 2016, 06:48 PM