u/Blackmoth49

Hello everyone,

I hope you're all having a wonderful weekend and are well! I'm reaching out to this insightful community with some thoughts and questions that have been on my mind, stemming from both online Buddhist sources and some very personal experiences.

One of the things I deeply appreciate about Buddhism is its emphasis on questioning and logical inquiry. It's not about blind faith, but about understanding and seeing things for ourselves, which truly resonates with me. However, there are some concepts that, while fascinating, can be a bit challenging to fully grasp or apply in a straightforward way.

Recently, I've come across discussions, particularly in some Buddhist corners of the internet, suggesting that as people approach the end of their lives, or even during severe illness, they sometimes perceive various entities around them. The idea is that these entities might be connected to us through karmic ties – perhaps those we've wronged in past lives, appearing to us before our passing. What makes this concept even more intriguing (and a little unsettling) is the notion that these entities might sometimes appear disguised as beloved relatives who have already passed, seemingly coming to "take us away," when in reality, they could be those with whom we have unresolved karmic debts.

Initially, I was quite skeptical about this. It sounded like something out of a story. But then, I started reflecting on experiences within my own family, and suddenly, these ideas took on a whole new weight.

My grandfather, shortly before he passed away, would often ask us, "What are all these people standing around our house for?" He'd usually say this around sunset, 6:15 PM or 7:00 PM, and would insistently ask our caretaker to tell them to leave. He saw them everywhere in the room. Later, when he was in the hospital, he vividly described a "Filipino guy sitting in that corner talking loudly on the phone" and asked my father to tell him to be quiet so he could sleep. My father saw no one, but my grandfather was very clear and insisted he was seeing him. He wasn't delusional; he was just seeing something we couldn't.

Now, my grandmother is experiencing something very similar, reacting in the exact same way. And it doesn't stop there. My wife's uncle was in a coma after a motorbike accident – a kind of near-death experience. He recounted that many "people" came to him, telling him it was "time to go." He said he refused and began reciting Amitabha Buddha, and eventually, these figures left him alone. He recovered over the next few days and never saw them again. My best friend's father also had similar experiences shortly before his passing, mentioning many people waiting for him at the hospital.

It seems this is a more common phenomenon than I ever realized. While there's so much we don't understand, the karmic explanation I encountered online seems to offer a potential framework for these experiences.

So, my questions to this knowledgeable community are:

1. Does the Buddha ever mention or discuss the phenomenon of people seeing entities or figures that others cannot perceive, particularly as they approach death or during significant illness? I'm asking with the utmost respect and a genuine desire to learn and understand if this is a recognized concept within Buddhist teachings.
2. If such entities are indeed connected to karmic ties, would practices like reciting Amitabha Buddha or the Great Compassion Mantra by Avalokiteshvara offer protection or guidance from these beings? Is there a traditional understanding of how these powerful recitations might interact with such situations?

Thank you all for taking the time to read my post. I truly appreciate any insights, teachings, or perspectives you can share on these profound and intriguing experiences.

Metta,

Moth

Hello everyone, I hope you are doing well. I would really appreciate any advice or perspective from people working in transmission planning at consulting firms, utilities, generation/transmission developers, or ISO/RTO organizations.

I have been working as a power-system consultant for about 3.5 years, primarily in transmission planning. My work includes steady-state power-flow analysis in PSS/E, short-circuit studies in ASPEN, and contingency/simulation work using PowerGEM TARA. I also work on transient-stability/dynamics studies, voltage ride-through (VRT) evaluations, and NERC transmission-planning contingency assessments—such as evaluating thermal loading, voltage performance, stability, and potential generator tripping under applicable contingency categories. NERC’s transmission-planning requirements include assessing system performance across defined planning events and considering voltage/ride-through limitations where applicable.

Over the past few years, I have spoken with many current and former coworkers. A common piece of advice I hear is: if possible, leave consulting eventually and move to a utility, developer, or ISO/RTO such as ERCOT, MISO, WECC, etc. Several people who left my company went to other consulting firms or competitors first, but many still told me that their long-term goal was utility or ISO/RTO work.

Last year, several people joined our consulting firm but were let go only a few months later. One of our managers said that consulting may simply not have been a good fit for them.

A few months later, I joined a new consulting firm, where we hired someone who had previously worked at MISO. Our manager was surprised that he chose to move into consulting because, in their view, consulting is generally more intense and stressful than working at an ISO/RTO. The former MISO employee shared a similar perspective and said his previous role was comparatively more relaxed. That made me wonder why someone would choose to move from an ISO/RTO into consulting in the first place.

The biggest challenge for me is the consulting model and billable-hour pressure. I often work close to 12 hours per day, including some weekends, just to keep up with project work and billable utilization. I am grateful that my current company allows remote work and flexible scheduling, especially because I am also studying for another degree. However, the flexibility can sometimes make it easier to keep working late at night or on weekends when projects are behind schedule or over budget.

I have also heard concerning stories from people in consulting about long hours affecting their health. I know every company and team is different, but I am starting to feel burnout myself and want to make a thoughtful career decision before it gets worse.

My questions are:

For those working at utilities, developers, or ISO/RTOs: is the workload generally less stressful than transmission-planning consulting?

Do those roles usually involve little or no billable-hour tracking, or is there a similar form of utilization, budget, and deadline pressure?

How common are long hours, weekend work, and burnout in utility, developer, or ISO/RTO planning roles?

Are hybrid or remote arrangements realistic in these sectors, especially for transmission-planning engineers? I have heard different things about ERCOT, although ERCOT publicly describes flexible in-office/out-of-office work options for eligible employees.

Is consulting often viewed as a place to build broad technical experience quickly before transitioning to a utility, developer, or ISO/RTO?

If you moved from consulting into another sector, what changed most: workload, technical depth, project ownership, compensation, schedule flexibility, or work-life balance?

Are there particular job titles, groups, or organizations I should look into if I want to continue doing power flow, dynamics, short circuit, interconnection, and transmission-planning work—but in a more sustainable environment?

I completely understand that no job is stress-free, and I do not expect an easy role. I am mainly trying to understand whether there are career paths where I can keep building technical expertise in transmission planning without the constant billable-hours pressure.

Thank you very much for any advice or personal experiences you are willing to share.

Hello everyone, I hope you are doing well. I would really appreciate any advice or perspective from people working in transmission planning at consulting firms, utilities, generation/transmission developers, or ISO/RTO organizations.

I have been working as a power-system consultant for about 3.5 years, primarily in transmission planning. My work includes steady-state power-flow analysis in PSS/E, short-circuit studies in ASPEN, and contingency/simulation work using PowerGEM TARA. I also work on transient-stability/dynamics studies, voltage ride-through (VRT) evaluations, and NERC transmission-planning contingency assessments—such as evaluating thermal loading, voltage performance, stability, and potential generator tripping under applicable contingency categories. NERC’s transmission-planning requirements include assessing system performance across defined planning events and considering voltage/ride-through limitations where applicable.

Over the past few years, I have spoken with many current and former coworkers. A common piece of advice I hear is: if possible, leave consulting eventually and move to a utility, developer, or ISO/RTO such as ERCOT, MISO, WECC, etc. Several people who left my company went to other consulting firms or competitors first, but many still told me that their long-term goal was utility or ISO/RTO work.

Last year, several people joined our consulting firm but were let go only a few months later. One of our managers said that consulting may simply not have been a good fit for them.

A few months later, I joined a new consulting firm, where we hired someone who had previously worked at MISO. Our manager was surprised that he chose to move into consulting because, in their view, consulting is generally more intense and stressful than working at an ISO/RTO. The former MISO employee shared a similar perspective and said his previous role was comparatively more relaxed. That made me wonder why someone would choose to move from an ISO/RTO into consulting in the first place.

The biggest challenge for me is the consulting model and billable-hour pressure. I often work close to 12 hours per day, including some weekends, just to keep up with project work and billable utilization. I am grateful that my current company allows remote work and flexible scheduling, especially because I am also studying for another degree. However, the flexibility can sometimes make it easier to keep working late at night or on weekends when projects are behind schedule or over budget.

I have also heard concerning stories from people in consulting about long hours affecting their health. I know every company and team is different, but I am starting to feel burnout myself and want to make a thoughtful career decision before it gets worse.

My questions are:

For those working at utilities, developers, or ISO/RTOs: is the workload generally less stressful than transmission-planning consulting?

Do those roles usually involve little or no billable-hour tracking, or is there a similar form of utilization, budget, and deadline pressure?

How common are long hours, weekend work, and burnout in utility, developer, or ISO/RTO planning roles?

Are hybrid or remote arrangements realistic in these sectors, especially for transmission-planning engineers? I have heard different things about ERCOT, although ERCOT publicly describes flexible in-office/out-of-office work options for eligible employees.

Is consulting often viewed as a place to build broad technical experience quickly before transitioning to a utility, developer, or ISO/RTO?

If you moved from consulting into another sector, what changed most: workload, technical depth, project ownership, compensation, schedule flexibility, or work-life balance?

Are there particular job titles, groups, or organizations I should look into if I want to continue doing power flow, dynamics, short circuit, interconnection, and transmission-planning work—but in a more sustainable environment?

I completely understand that no job is stress-free, and I do not expect an easy role. I am mainly trying to understand whether there are career paths where I can keep building technical expertise in transmission planning without the constant billable-hours pressure.

Thank you very much for any advice or personal experiences you are willing to share.

Hello everyone,

I ask this question with the utmost respect, and I sincerely appreciate any guidance or insight you may share. I’m asking from a place of genuine curiosity and humility, not from disagreement.

From my understanding, Buddhism teaches that suffering is deeply connected to ignorance, craving, and attachment, and that the Four Noble Truths, the Eightfold Path, impermanence, emptiness, and non-self help us understand the nature of reality and the mind. It seems like these teachings mainly help us “diagnose” the way we perceive, think, and respond to the world.

But I was wondering whether the Buddha or Buddhist teachings also take into account things that are not fully under our conscious control, such as chemical imbalance, OCD, anxiety, panic attacks, depression, or other biological or neurological conditions. In other words, does Buddhism also address the “hardware” side of suffering, not only the “software” of the mind?

I ask because sadness, anger, fear, and anxiety can sometimes arise in ways that feel outside of our direct control, even when we understand the teachings well. So I’m curious whether Buddhism has room for the idea that suffering can also come from bodily or biological conditions, not only from ignorance or wrong views.

Thank you very much for your time and any thoughts you may share.

Hello everyone, I hope you are all having a wonderful day.

I have a sincere question and would really appreciate your guidance. In some traditions, I’ve heard of people praying to Green Tara, Avalokiteshvara (Guanyin), or Ksitigarbha with the wish to conceive children.

I was wondering if this is considered a normal or appropriate practice in Buddhism? Is this something commonly done, or does it depend on specific traditions or cultures?

Thank you very much for your time and insight 🙏

Hello everyone,

I would like to respectfully ask about your Pure Land practice. Do you recite Amitabha Buddha’s name throughout your daily life, or do you set aside specific times for it?

Do you also include other practices, such as reading sutras or meditation?

If you feel comfortable sharing, have you noticed any changes in your mind or life over time through this practice? I understand this can be personal, so please only share what you wish.

If anyone is open to it, I would be very grateful to respectfully connect through private message as well.

Thank you all for your kindness and guidance.

Namo Amitabha Buddha.