Zendo Calrissian:
So I've been pondering the purpose of insight practices and I have some questions.
Maybe I'm missing it, but I can't find anything in MCTB that suggests why you would want to embark on the path of insight.
For the same reason you picked up MCTB in the first place.
This may sound a bit facetious. What I mean by this is that the reason for reading books like MCTB, hanging out in places like this forum here, and so on, is in a weird, tail-chasing circular way both the reason for being fascinated with all this and the desire to get something out of it (or to get out of it, period).
Another way of framig it, which is less circular, is that you were bitten by the Spiritual Bug, contracted Insight Disease, and the known cure is, for the time being, more of it, until it heals off by itself. This is a bit tongue-in-cheek, but at least it has a discernible starting-point: the first time you crossed the A&P, and an end-point: Enlightenment.
Daniel mentions his life is immeasurably better in almost every way but what is the relation to insight practices? I guess what I'm asking is how does seeing rising and falling of sensations, impermanence, etc. translate to a better life? What specific knowledge have you attained through the path to insight that you can apply to your life to make it better?
Speaking for myself: it is not intellectual in nature, in the sense that I'd say to myself, "ok, I can find suffering in any sensation I care to look at, therefore X, therefore I feel better" for some insight X. Rather, consistently powering the process of insight by keeping up and balancing the mindfulness, concentration, investigation, confidence, and effort co-incided with some profound changes in my outlook on almost all aspects of my life. Nowadays I'd say it was well worth it, and that I'm better of (and looking forward to further goodness), than before these changes took place. It is hard to say whether these changes would have occurred anyway, or unfolded in a similar fashion. But, as it is, I like it a lot.
I've noticed on these forums and elsewhere when someone has a seemingly big experience they are asked to sit with it and then see if it has changed their outlook. Other than seeing that the nature of the universe isn't the way you may have thought it was, how does this translate to a more fulfilling, complete life?
Indirectly. Simplifying it a lot, here's an example: since the pressing, fundamental need to solve a piece of the Big Spiritual Puzzle has gone away, there are now all these resources which were previously tied up trying to solve this particular bit of the Puzzle.
Cheers,
Florian