Just to add another thing. In the most extreme forms, a monk may meditate in a remote cave in the Himalayas for decades, even an entire lifetime.
You might think that is cutting yourself off from the world. But it isn't necessarily.
If the monk uses that time to construct an imaginary world or to bliss out, and try to generate as much pleasure as possible or some such - that would be cutting themselves off from the world. But hopefully they have good teachers from a reasonable lineage and avoid traps like that.
Instead - they relate to everything that arises, good or bad. And Buddhists think that everything is connected. You don't have to be in the same room as someone to be in the same world as them.
In obvious ways first - that e.g. the monk's food, clothes, etc are provided by others. Either as donations in traditional societies or bought, doesn't matter, is this connection.
But the world they live in also - the stark world that has avalanches, illnesses, wolves, cold and damp conditions, needing to fetch water from a stream or whatever it is. That's the same world we all live in. We don't experience the cold of a mountain cave in winter with snow avalanches outside as the first ever fully ordained Western Tibetan nun Tenzin Palmo did during the twelve years she spent in a cave.
Instead we encounter the business of modern life with the internet, movies, crowds, jobs etc.
But the world is the same. We could visit her cave if we wanted to. We could do the same thing that she did if we had the motivation to do such a long retreat.
It's a similar idea to the prayer flags
Prayer Flags | Forums
which carry blessings everywhere the wind goes that blows over them.
So in same way just by meditating in the same world as us, the monks in their caves are bringing a blessing connection with the meditation that they do to everyone.
Many Buddhist meditators are meditating not for themselves at all, but for all beings. They feel that by meditating for years in these caves - that that they are helping to make a connection, a space for a connection to truth, and to freedom from suffering, and happiness, for all beings. Not just now. Not just here in this world. But in a vast way spreading throughout time and space.
And - it's in the context of the idea of reincarnation of course - that we have spent countless lifetimes doing the things we normally do - and look where it got us?
So - perhaps it's not such a bad thing to give a little bit of a space for once and not just rush on to the next job or next task and do it as quickly as we can as is so often the way we do things here in the West. And - the idea - that by meditating they are making a connection to this possibility of a bit of space - for everyone.
But actually we can all create a bit of space in our daily lives. You don't have to meditate for years to do that.
Just a moment of reflection, can turn around the mind. For instance, to just think for a moment - "may what I am doing be of benefit to all beings, that they are freed from suffering and find whatever counts as true happiness for them" - that's the wish of a bodhisattva. Tend to think that a boddhisattva is some extraordinary person radiating lights, and able to work magic perhaps. But - just to have that wish - just for a moment, to sincerely wish that whatever you are doing is of benefit to all beings - then in that moment you are an aspiring bodhisattva.
It's thought to be a wonderful thing, in Mahayana Buddhism to do that. Of course soon after you might qualify your thought "well - everyone except my neighbour Joe Bloggs" or whatever - someone who irritates you - get into a long internal diatribe about how awful someone or other is and foget the wish totally - but for that moment you can have that wish and aspire to it and be inspired by the people one has heard of whoever they are, who are able to be truly compassionate.
I think sometimes Westerners tend to be a bit heavy about these things. You aren't expected to turn around and become a compassionate, loving, wise person who never thinks any harmful thoughts about anyone in an instant. It's just a matter of lightly touching on that thought at times when it inspires you, helps to turn your mind around. As soon as it becomes heavy, you've gone over-board and turned it into yet another samsaric project :).
Many other practices of mindfulness you can do, simple ones, just ways of turning your mind slightly, in a light gentle way.
So for many of us Buddhists, that's all we may do, maybe a bit of meditation also - in many Buddhist countries most people don't meditate either. You don't have to.
But whatever you do, whether meditating, mindfulness, moments of prayer, moments just aware of the world around you and appreciating it - moments when you are really in tune with your work - whatever it is - and of course this is not at all limited to Buddhists - still - it's creating space in our lives, it's our way of connecting to that possibility, and it is as valuable, in its way, as those years of meditation that some meditators do in caves in the Himalayas. Is doing the same thing really.
Cave in the Snow: A Western Woman's Quest for Enlightenment by Robert Walker on Some ideas about Buddhist teachings
You might think that is cutting yourself off from the world. But it isn't necessarily.
If the monk uses that time to construct an imaginary world or to bliss out, and try to generate as much pleasure as possible or some such - that would be cutting themselves off from the world. But hopefully they have good teachers from a reasonable lineage and avoid traps like that.
Instead - they relate to everything that arises, good or bad. And Buddhists think that everything is connected. You don't have to be in the same room as someone to be in the same world as them.
In obvious ways first - that e.g. the monk's food, clothes, etc are provided by others. Either as donations in traditional societies or bought, doesn't matter, is this connection.
But the world they live in also - the stark world that has avalanches, illnesses, wolves, cold and damp conditions, needing to fetch water from a stream or whatever it is. That's the same world we all live in. We don't experience the cold of a mountain cave in winter with snow avalanches outside as the first ever fully ordained Western Tibetan nun Tenzin Palmo did during the twelve years she spent in a cave.
Instead we encounter the business of modern life with the internet, movies, crowds, jobs etc.
But the world is the same. We could visit her cave if we wanted to. We could do the same thing that she did if we had the motivation to do such a long retreat.
It's a similar idea to the prayer flags
which carry blessings everywhere the wind goes that blows over them.
So in same way just by meditating in the same world as us, the monks in their caves are bringing a blessing connection with the meditation that they do to everyone.
Many Buddhist meditators are meditating not for themselves at all, but for all beings. They feel that by meditating for years in these caves - that that they are helping to make a connection, a space for a connection to truth, and to freedom from suffering, and happiness, for all beings. Not just now. Not just here in this world. But in a vast way spreading throughout time and space.
And - it's in the context of the idea of reincarnation of course - that we have spent countless lifetimes doing the things we normally do - and look where it got us?
So - perhaps it's not such a bad thing to give a little bit of a space for once and not just rush on to the next job or next task and do it as quickly as we can as is so often the way we do things here in the West. And - the idea - that by meditating they are making a connection to this possibility of a bit of space - for everyone.
But actually we can all create a bit of space in our daily lives. You don't have to meditate for years to do that.
Just a moment of reflection, can turn around the mind. For instance, to just think for a moment - "may what I am doing be of benefit to all beings, that they are freed from suffering and find whatever counts as true happiness for them" - that's the wish of a bodhisattva. Tend to think that a boddhisattva is some extraordinary person radiating lights, and able to work magic perhaps. But - just to have that wish - just for a moment, to sincerely wish that whatever you are doing is of benefit to all beings - then in that moment you are an aspiring bodhisattva.
It's thought to be a wonderful thing, in Mahayana Buddhism to do that. Of course soon after you might qualify your thought "well - everyone except my neighbour Joe Bloggs" or whatever - someone who irritates you - get into a long internal diatribe about how awful someone or other is and foget the wish totally - but for that moment you can have that wish and aspire to it and be inspired by the people one has heard of whoever they are, who are able to be truly compassionate.
I think sometimes Westerners tend to be a bit heavy about these things. You aren't expected to turn around and become a compassionate, loving, wise person who never thinks any harmful thoughts about anyone in an instant. It's just a matter of lightly touching on that thought at times when it inspires you, helps to turn your mind around. As soon as it becomes heavy, you've gone over-board and turned it into yet another samsaric project :).
Many other practices of mindfulness you can do, simple ones, just ways of turning your mind slightly, in a light gentle way.
So for many of us Buddhists, that's all we may do, maybe a bit of meditation also - in many Buddhist countries most people don't meditate either. You don't have to.
But whatever you do, whether meditating, mindfulness, moments of prayer, moments just aware of the world around you and appreciating it - moments when you are really in tune with your work - whatever it is - and of course this is not at all limited to Buddhists - still - it's creating space in our lives, it's our way of connecting to that possibility, and it is as valuable, in its way, as those years of meditation that some meditators do in caves in the Himalayas. Is doing the same thing really.
Cave in the Snow: A Western Woman's Quest for Enlightenment by Robert Walker on Some ideas about Buddhist teachings
About the Author
Robert Walker
Writer of articles on Mars and Space issues - Software Developer of Tune Smithy, Bounce Metronome etc.Studied at Wolfson College, Oxford
Lives in Isle of Mull
4.8m answer views110.4k this month
Top Writer2017, 2016, and 2015
Published WriterHuffPost, Slate, and 4 moreHuffPost, Slate, Forbes, Newsweek, Business Insider, and Science 2.0