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Buddhism and the cause of suffering

Gompo (152 posts) • 0

neddy, at beginning u use a singular, buddhism.
myself, i tend to think there are different buddhisms, at plural. for instance theravada is quite different from tantra. in tibetan tantra, desire if often valued. for instance, lamas may marry

Quester (233 posts) • 0

I would be the first to acknowledge my understanding of Buddhism was superficial. It is a little less so now, thanks to those here who gave some explanantions. And comparison with other Asian religions. I wonder where Atheism started, is it one of the first major Western-founded belief systems?

Magnifico (1981 posts) • 0

Ok, I have a joke.

The DL walks into a pizza shop and he says .... can you make me one with everything?

Geezer (1953 posts) • 0

@Alien: Prior to 1959, Tibet was essentially a secular feudal serfdom. The Tibetan government employed mutilation until as late as 1949. Mutilations were carried out by untouchables (ragyaba).

What part of mutilations, gouging out of eyes, cutting off of ears, arms and legs by untouchables do you not consider 'barbaric?'

Some here exalt culture. Some decry the Han efforts to eliminate other cultures, I am one of them. But sometimes there are cultural components that really suck and ought to be eliminated.

Alien (3819 posts) • 0

@Geezer, OK, I'l accept that, but tell us about 'totalitarian'.
But I think it's hard to lay the organization of a theocratic state in Tibet at the door of Buddhism per se.
The idea that atheism is a single belief system: it is not a Western-founded belief system, there are plenty of ideas about the non-existence of gods etc. in belief systems around the world, including within Buddhist and Hindu philosophical traditions. Atheism does not make a Nietzschean into a Communist. But I will agree that the modern western towards an atheism 'proved' by evolutionary theory is a major Western-founded belief system, although this does not invalidate either evolutionary theory or the value of various religious answers to existential questions like the 'existence' of God.

Geezer (1953 posts) • 0

@Alien: Tibet was a feudal serfdom before conversion to Buddhism. In as much as a theocratic state has at it's core a god or deity it is improbable Buddhism, which has neither a god or deity, could organize one.

I didn't address atheism at all. Also, I can't follow your points on atheism. I am not an atheist although I don't concern myself about whether there is or isn't a god or gods.

The Buddha did not address the issue of god in any way. Hinduism, on the other hand, is polytheistic to the max. Neither postulates atheism.

I am not sure what is proved by evolution theory as it backasswards to think an unproven theory could prove anything.

As for Creation, perhaps some of our Christian friends can tell us how long, in terms of how we measure time, is a day in the life of the Christian God?

Interestingly, The Big Bang Theory was originated by a Jesuit priest. Galileo must be enjoying that one.

GoK Moderator (5096 posts) • 0

Why Isn't Evolution Considered a Law? From the Web.

This is an issue which often confuses the general public, as the two words, theory and law, have very different common meanings. But in science, their meanings are very similar. A theory is an explanation which is backed by "a considerable body of evidence," while a law is a set of regularities expressed in a "mathematical statement." This is why Newton's Laws of Motion are referred to as laws and not theories. They are expressed with simple equations (like f = ma for his 2nd Law of Motion). Evolution, and most of Biology, cannot be expressed in a concise mathematical equation, so it is referred to as a theory. A scientific law is not "better" or "more accurate" than a scientific theory. A law explains what will happen under certain circumstances, while a theory explains how it happens.

Alien (3819 posts) • 0

High Buddhist thought doesn't have gods or deities, and if you wish to ignore much actually practice and belief that goes by the name of Buddhism, then you can say that 'Buddhism' has neither gods nor deities.
In place of 'Hinduism', an even vaguer term, I'll say Indian metaphysicians long ago developed schools of thought that denied any god or deity, and it's hard to say they weren't 'Hindus'.
And I still say totalitarianism is a misleading term for Tibet at any stage of its development, at least on a territory-wide scale.

Geezer (1953 posts) • 0

My problem is with the logic in "an atheism 'proved' by evolutionary theory is a major Western-founded belief system..."

Atheism, defined as the doctrine or belief that there is no God, or, disbelief in the existence of a supreme being or beings, is about as provable as the existence of God. I do not believe it is possible to prove that God exists or doesn't exist. In other words, if there was a way, someone a lot smarter than me would have done it by now.

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