Terry, it doesn't surprise me you think it's mumbo jumbo. The way your brain works isn't a good match with eastern spiritualism. And I'm not trying to demean you. To each their own.
Yep, my brain works.
T.
Any Buddhists here? My sister is interested...trying to get info
by Eyebrow2 35 Replies latest jw friends
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Terry
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EvilForce
Terry I used to be like you thinking eastern religion was circular b.s. But after I dug into it, well it made alot more sense. You don't understand it...fine so be it. I honestly think if you'd spend time throwing off your preconceived notions you'd might find some applicable info. But as I said before...to each their own.
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EvilForce
No Terry...you rely on your intellect too much IMHO. As Ayn Rand proved....just because you may be an intellectual giant does not mean you are a well adjusted, happy, human being. You've been burned by the Dubs and won't allow yourself to suspend your doubts for a mere moment to consider other paths. As I've said...I'm not trying to demean you. But in your posts you have indicated your struggle in achieving happiness. I'm just pointing out something I see. That's all.
Respectfully,
EvilForce -
Satanus
Buddhism, in
its teaching of “Anatman”, which means we have no self, no spirit, no soul, but are merely biological machines composed of five “skandas” nothing more.
Basically less than athiest, at least originally.
See Jehovah unmasked.
S
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Terry
I challenge any Buddhist here to copy and paste JUST ONE PARAGRAPH of Budhist philosophy that makes any sense whatsoever. The nouns, verbs and adjectives are like butterflies flitting about gleefully. Chase after them at your mind's peril.
I'm serious.
T.
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talesin
The world headquarters for one branch of Buddhism is in my city. You know the "shaolin" stuff on the old Kung Fu show? Well, that's it.
When people get deeply involved in this religion,,, they tend to get very inner-directed and spacey. It's like they are not living in the world 'with' us,,, they are just 'here', but not a part of the action. The philosophies are interesting, though, and the meditation techniques can be really calming.
For a quick read on Taoism,,, try the "Tao of Pooh" and the "Te of Piglet". Easy to comprehend, and well-rounded books.
xo
tal
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Pole
The emotional replies to Terry's post amaze me beyond belief. "Pompous asshole", "unhappy person"? Wow, I'm impressed with the relevance of these arguments.
What's wrong with you people? The guy just stated what he thinks about buddhism. He said that buddhist teachings boil down to sets of unverifiable metaphors. This is true of all codified religions. Buddhism may be better or worse than other religions in terms of how it influences people's lives, but it's simply another example of religious philosophy. Christian mysticism, buddhist mysticism, different metaphors same mechanism. We don't know how we know. I love Western philosophy for its respect for epistemology.
I'm eager to see how people respond to Terry's challenge. For now I have to say I'm pretty much in agreement with Terry's view on buddhism (at the teoretical level at least). Now you can call me a pompous unhappy asshole. This will certainly help me understand the beauty of buddhism.
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logansrun
He said that buddhist teachings boil down to sets of unverifiable metaphors.
As opposed to a verifiable metaphor? Since all metaphors are an "application of a word or phrase to an opject or concept which it does not literally denote" they are, by definition, unverifiiable. (Websters)
Or perhaps you have a problem with metaphoric language en toto. If so, then we must eliminate all poetry, large portions of literature, much of philosophy. Hell, lets burn all the paintings, tear down all the sculptures and forbid the playing of music while we're at it!
B.
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Pole
logansrun,
If the Webster's dictionary is the basic source of what you know about human cognition and western philosophy, then I begin to understand why you are quick to call people pompous assholes.
You have a lot to learn, dude. Are you ready? ;-)
(I hope you appreciate my argumentation style).
Peace,
Pole -
logansrun
Terry,
First off, you're argument regarding poverty in Buddhist countries is a poor one. Why blame their belief system when there are other factors to consider, such as the extreme enviornment, political considerations, European imperialism, etc.? We've done objectively much better in the West from an economic and technological standpoint. Are you going to give credit to Christianity for that?
As for explaining the nebulousness of Buddhist concepts -- and bear in mind that I agree that many Buddhist concepts are metaphysical gobledy gook -- let me try and explain the most important one: The Four Noble Truths.
The First Noble Truth is that all life is suffering in the sense that there is much pain in life and it is unavoidable. We all grow old, get sick and die. Even the pleasurable things in life contain their germ of pain because we know all too well that the pleasure must indubitably end.
The Second Noble Truth is that this suffering is caused by attachment, or selfish craving. We want things to be permanent, even life itself. This is where Buddhism is at odds with the Judeo-Christian tradition in spades. We demand, in a sense, that our bodies not get old, that the situations we enjoy in life not change, etc. But this is pointless and the root of our psychological disturbance.
The Third Noble Truth is that there is a way out of this and that is through the cessation of selfish craving or attachment.
The Fourth Noble Truth is that the way to detach from our desires is throught the Noble Eightfold Path which is a very practical, down-to-earth set of ethical principles by which we can obtain a happier condition in life and live in peace with others.
There, was that so hard? Now, this is not to say that Buddhism, or even the concept of the Four Noble Truths does not have it's flaws. Taken literally to detach from life would mean not being bothered by the bad and not being attracted to the pleasures in life. Taken to it's logical extreme it is the biggest So What? in the universe. But taken in a more subtle way it provides a possible state of mind by which we are able to better handle losses in life. Later Buddhist thought would speculate how we can both enjoy life and not be so attached to this enjoyment that we cause ourselves to be disturbed. This could be exemplified in the phrase, "Hold on....lightly."
Enough. My point is not that Buddhism is the "right religion" or that it does not contain heavy amounts of bullshit in it. It does. I simply feel that Buddhism has added quite a bit to the rich dialogue of philosophy through the ages. Einstein once commented that it was possibly the type of religion we need for our modern times. Perhaps.
B.