Reasons you will hate me

eat em

I've been looking into them - I think they'd brush them onto a piece of paper then put them outside...?

Wouldn't that be an awful lot of picking and brushing? I'm intrigued.

At one stage, not one, not two but all three of el prima's kids had nits - and worse - THEY GAVE THEM TO ME!! iiiiiiihhh!

And let me tell you, for all my hippy / vegetarian tendencies, I was ready to break out the DDT. Death to all vermin etc...

For a while there, pesticide hair-combing saturdays became a significant part of our family weekend routine. Buddhist or no, picking and brushing was our tiresome way of life.

Thankfully we then invested in a electric comb device by which we could exact the death penalty on all and any bugs that ventured onto our heads. ha ha ha ZAP! DIE EVIL BEASTS!!

The only thing worse than getting a paranoidly itchy head whenever you think about nits, is having the nitcomb vindicate your suspicions.

A lot of Buddhists eat meat. Lao, Thai and Vietnamese buddhists always tell you that they are 'not good buddhists' before tucking into some flesh.

The strict ones would probably take the time consuming option, or possibly simply ignore the nits.

BTW - Does this mean that your mother was right? You seem to have stayed preoccupied with nits...

ms fits has nits...

They call them crabs.

On a slightly different topic:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200605/s1643313.htm

Mt Gabi!

Yeah, Cristy's right. The Dalai Lama loves tucking into roast lamb.

Not that the bald ones would have nits.

Tathagata Buddha, the father Buddha said, 'Eat not the nits lest ye eat the souls of dead Koala suited charity workers who just need a good roast dinner. Pubic lice however you can do what you want to, for they are the souls of dead young Liberals from Surrey Hills'.

I'm serious.

The Dalai Lama had lunch at The Press Club in Canberra once (don't know if he was speaking or just a guest), and was given a meal including slices of roast meat. The person sitting next to him said to the waiter, "You can't give him that! He's the Dalai Lama, he doesn't eat meat!" and the Dalai Lama said "No, this is the meal prepared for me. Thank you."

I guess it is part of being a Buddhist to be grateful.

yes on another topic... i found a mini bottle of jagermeister in my bag today. did your night get that far?

The Dalai Lama story sounds quite appropriate. It's the humility thing that the Buddha tried to teach. One should not presume to be important enough to kill an animal for their own food, but equally, one should not presume oneself so important as to refuse an offer of goodwill.

The interesting thing is, and this will probably creep people out, we eat thousands, if not millions, of tiny microscopic insects every year. They are all over our skin, on our food, on our furniture. Does knowing they exist make someone a bad Buddhist?

The electronic comb only works on Lice not the nits. We are rid of lice but can't get rid of the friggin nits.

Mt Gabi!

Don't mind if I do!

(boom boom!)

Many Buddhists have nits without even knowing. I too have been afflicted (Sundays has been nit bombing day round our place*)and in the course of my research on how the eradicate the fuckers discovered that not all people feel itchy when they have them. When you also consider that headlice are pretty much universally considered to pose no harm to human health, the Buddha's advice to 'do nothing' seems to be as good as anything else.

* it was the day all sheets and pillowcases were washed and we all rubbed 'nads into our hair. Note: not actually gonads.

I had to look up what nits are, being American and all. Now I have no time to post a meaningful comment, even though I'm Buddhist.

The really good Buddhists, ie the monks and nuns, shave their heads so it's not a problem. My Dad is a Buddhist and my Mum is a herbalist, when Dad got nits (probably from me as a child) Mum treated them with a potent blend of rosemary and sassafrass essential oils. Yes, it does work, and yes it smells.

x

teaspoon

The Dalai Lama did attempt vegetarianism when he came into exile (vegetarianism is virtually impossible in Tibet as it is such a harsh environment) He became very ill and was told by doctors that he is someone who's body simply cant cope with vegetarianism. He has often been heard to say that he would like to be vegetarian,and that it is a postive thing for Buddhists to do.

As someone who considers herself a Buddhist,and is a vegetarian, there have been times that I have been in situations where i have killed animals....fleas on my dogs for example. And as someone else already mentioned, its impossible not to kill small insects etc everyday without even knowing it. I try to say prayers everyday for all beings, including those insects.....

its a tricky subject....

peace,
spiral

I don't eat meat, but happily wish death upon all of those gross insect-y creatures, most especially cockroaches who scare me half to death. They can die, I don't care, as long as i don't have to EAT them, it doesn't bother me a bit.

"Does knowing they exist make someone a bad Buddhist?"

No, but using the power of regret you can lesson the accumulation of negative karma.

I live in a Buddhist community center, and unfortunatly I probably inadvertantly kill a number of ants and other creatures daily.

As for the nits thing, tricky situation. I would probably make an attempt to comb them out with one of those horrible combs.

I HAD NO IDEA SO MANY BUDDHISTS READ MY BLOG.



Can I keep asking you guys spiritual advice and so forth please?

in india i visited a jain temple. apparently these guys, or at least the truly devout among them, walk bent over with a brush, sweeping the earth in front of them so as not to step on any living thing. what do they do when they get nits? what do they do when they get crabs?

Can I keep asking you guys spiritual advice and so forth please?

what, suddenly my heathen, uninformed advice ain't good enough for you?

Nobody has ever said Buddhist monks can't be practical maybe that's where the shaved head idea came from.

Cashier: "That'll be $9.50"
Buddha hands him a ten. Waits. Waits. He says, "Where's my change?"
Cashier replies, "Change must come from within"


Saw this here

It's based on intent - if you're not intending to kill them then it's not 'as bad' (ie, walking the monastary and meditating and unintentionally squishing bugs in the process)... you jus gotta be mindful.

That said too - I believe that the vego thing is baesd on the fact that it's ok if there's nothing else or it's prepared for you - if you're a monk living on alms, you're hardly gonna knock back the last bit of yak if that's all that's available. Same thing for the Dalai Lama in Canberra - if he didn't eat it, it would have gone to waste (which is worse!)

guy walks up to a burger cart and asks the seller for a zen burger.

seller: 'what's that'?

guy: 'one with everything'.

"Can I keep asking you guys spiritual advice and so forth please?"

What sort of Buddhist would I be if I said no?

What's a nit?