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In conversation with other friends it was revealed that she was regularly helping herself to other people's things (including mine) and when questioned she would argue that we were the ones who had an issue with attachment to their material possessions.
That is a standard mind screw used by crooks who know just enough about Buddhism and sincere practitioners to pervert the teachings for their own sordid purposes.
Ha. Wonder how this girl would have felt if someone had taken her prized possessions away from her?
No one can presume to know enough about other people's minds and hearts to dare suggest they are at fault for taking offense at being stolen from.
Thats the reasoning of a street thug who has discovered ways to pervert religion--any religion--to exploit honest people from whom that thief has stolen.
Con artists and crooks identify the methods of religion and thought that exist in the community. In the old days, Christianity was dominent, so thieves would have found ways to exploit Christianity to justify thier actions.
In the peace movement, I have seen crooks use marxism to justify theft.
Now that Buddhism and Hinduism are becoming popular, crooks like this girl have found out how to turn your own practice against you if you dislike them stealing from you.
Years ago, Lawrence Shainberg, a Zen practitioner, told in his memoir, Ambivalent Zen, how someone played loud music past 10 pm, and when Shainberg asked the guy to turn it down so he could sleep, the guy replied, "You should use this as a practice opportunity." --turning the focus from his own violation of neighborly courtesy and local noise ordinanances and putting the focus on Shainberg.
This is a classic method of evasion--do a turn around so that its all put back on you. The crook will find anything about you, anything, even a tremor in your voice, and turn the focus of conversation onto you, guaranteeing you forget about the real issue--that someone stole your stuff.
If the thief is at a Buddhist center, he or she will learn enough of the jargon to flip your Buddhist practice against you. But anything will do.
A true Buddhist center would refuse to harbour such people.
Here is an example from Len Oakes, author of
Prophetic Charisma.
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A common manipulative strategy used by the leaders in this study was an argumentative style that was calculated to subtly shift the ground of any discussion from whatever matter was being talked about toward some area of an opponent's personal insecurity.
In this technique, the leader observed the process of an opponent's conversation and identified some point of hesitency or uncertainty. This was not always a flaw of logic or an error of fact; the conversation may have been on some topic about which the leader knew little and would ahve been unable to detect such a mistake.
Rather, it was more likely to be some personal unsureness on the part of the opponent that the leaders/recruiter's exquisite social perception targeted.
In some way, often by metacommenting (Oakes means commenting about your manner of saying something, rather than responding to what you have said--my note), the meaning of whatever insecurity involved was exposed.
Typically what was said was an observation that the opponent seemed "a bit steamed up about this" or was "finding it hard to say what all this is about."
In this way, the opponent was invited, sympathetically and seducatively to expand upon the very point of weakness. Or the leader(recruiter) claimed not to understand what was meant at a particular point, perhaps even saying the opponent was not making sense. This usually led to a further exposure (confessional of personal weakness or perplexity-my note) until the opponent stumbled over his words and began to look uncomfortable. At this point, a well timed, dismissive glance from the leader was all that was needed to intimidate...'
(Oakes pp 89-90)
Corboy note: You have to be a psychopath not to be steamed up or stammer in such a situation. If you do stay calm and articulate,a crook may pretend you are not making sense. Or if you still refuse to cave in, you may be accused of being cold, or that you are prejudiced against the group that the crook belongs to. If you are female and refuse to be fooled and stand firm, you will be accused of being without compassion or accused of being a b**** or a s***. If you are female, take this as a compliment that you are savvy and cannot be manipulated)Never allow your dharma practice to be used against you in such a vile manner. Anyone who does this isnt practicing the dharma. They're verbally sophisticated thugs.
Whoever steals has ceased, in that instant, to be a practitioner.
Except a practitioner of crime for self gain.
A thief puts poison into the larger community.
The energy needed to maintain alertness and guard ones possessions when a thief is known to be at work is energy not available for practice.
One's mind and body and emotions get more tense when one has to keep extra watch on one's belongings.
And, I am partly of Eastern European background. I can appreciate the pleasures of being in a group of fellow countrymen/women.
But this isnt what Dharma is about.
Support a Polish Cultural Centre or a Sikorsky Society. But one should not let a dharma center be turned into a clubhouse.
And its serious business for a credit card to be stolen. It not only can be used for illicit purchases, but that information can be sold to criminal elements.