Question & Answer #142: from the Buddhist Flat Earth to the Feelings of Arahants

Questions include: a Buddhist flat earth map; astral projection; the agony of heartbreak; beaming metta; shikantaza; javelin throwing; Sisyphean affective response; facing old age and death; suttas on facing old age and death; self-immolation; continuity of practice; Burmese greetings; villagers who gave the best alms food; the best way to ordain in 2025; what I miss about being a monk; infinite regression; synchronicities; the Wa of Burma; Buddhist movies; obscure movies; propaganda; the philosophy of Kafka; Arthur C. Clarke; birthday presents; my latest book; reading philosophy; too much reading philosophy; underrated philosophers; “heretics”; converting people to Buddhism through violence; exploded giant Buddhas in Afghanistan; blaming leftists; Pure Land Buddhism; Tibetan Buddhism; and the feelings of Arahants