i already posted this in the Jesus thread, but i guess that might be the wrong place to put it... i just want to explain what i believe in, and its not necessairly buddhism itself... like i said before, a mix.. i believe in the similarities of the religions. anything any religions have in common, i believe that...
Aha, here could I have found the answers on my questions in the Analysis Thread! I do tell white lies; it's a way of self protection as I don't want strangers to know too much info about me as you can never 100% tell who's a good person and who not. My pride prevents me of telling real lies or lies about others to make them look bad. The same pride is also standing in my way to ever achieve Nirvana I'm afraid. --unsure
Whoops! Perhaps I should add something on Karma too.. Here it is, taken from Concept of Reincarnation thread Now that you've got a clearer idea on Karma, who knows, maybe your 'good karma' level already exceeds mine, and you have a higher chance of attaining Nirvana than I do.. -boat
And since this is very much related to Buddhism teachings, and the theories explained, I shall post this here too. http://evolutionspace.wordpress.com/tag/buddhism/ Question 2 Concept of Personal God Here comes question 3. This is a good question that can be asked of all major religions, Christianity, Islam and the like - what provisions do the religions provide before they come on to scene? Question 4 Question 5 Question 6 mirrors a question that I would love to ask Jesus or God if I could - how would he feel about all these Christian denominations such as Catholicism, Orthodox, Anglicanism, Methodism and so on and on and on… Question 7 Question 8 Question 9 Final Question
I dunno how to explain...I'm in a sort of semi-believing state I guess! Sometimes I do believe it's someone's bad karma paying back when I know that a person has been behaving really greedy and prefers money over family ties and is shortly diagnosed with cancer. The true Atheist side in me says there is no such thing as reincarnation. So I dunno at the moment.
Oh, like I said, believe at your own will and own pace. -lol For all you know, the part on reincarnation might be incorrect. The main Buddhism teachings are the Four Noble Truths and the Middle Way. If you can practice that in your everyday living, you are already a Buddhist -^_^ Like the article I have quoted, one of them which makes good sense is this "faith implies that you cannot be fully certain. Where you are uncertain, and prepared to live in the shelter of your faith, all of the Awakened ones rest in the certainty of boundless freedom." Which is very true, for I am never certain that reincarnation exists. It is my own faith, and cannot be proven. Thus, you can choose to believe in your own ways too. And in time, if you wish, you can always do more reading on the subjects that you wish to explore. No harm done to seek more spiritual knowledge, as long as you feel you are ready and in the mood for it.
I might be wrong but this reminds me of the ideas of Greek philosopher Epicurus. "Epicurus believed that the greatest good was to seek modest pleasures in order to attain a state of tranquility and freedom from fear (ataraxia) as well as absence of bodily pain (aponia) through knowledge of the workings of the world and the limits of our desires. The combination of these two states is supposed to constitute happiness in its highest form. Although Epicureanism is a form of hedonism, insofar as it declares pleasure as the sole intrinsic good, its conception of absence of pain as the greatest pleasure and its advocacy of a simple life make it quite different from "hedonism" as it is commonly understood. For Epicurus, the highest pleasure (tranquility and freedom from fear) was obtained by knowledge, friendship, and living a virtuous and temperate life. He lauded the enjoyment of simple pleasures, by which he meant abstaining from bodily desires, such as sex and appetites, verging on asceticism. He argued that when eating, one should not eat too richly, for it could lead to dissatisfaction later, such as the grim realization that one could not afford such delicacies in the future. Likewise, sex could lead to increased lust and dissatisfaction with the sexual partner. Epicurus did not articulate a broad system of social ethics that has survived." From wikipedia
I've hijacked this from another thread: Dann...and you consider yourself a Buddhist? <_< (number 7 of the Holy Eightfold Path: Right Mindfulness) -lol
@Tax: It is not surprising that the Greek philosopher has his views similar to Buddhism. In fact, Buddhism is often said to have a strong philosophical component. Even Buddha said: Do not accept anything by mere tradition ... Do not accept anything just because it accords with your scriptures ... Do not accept anything merely because it agrees with your pre-conceived notions ... But when you know for yourselves — these things are moral, these things are blameless, these things are praised by the wise, these things, when performed and undertaken, conduce to well-being and happiness — then do you live acting accordingly. -- the Kalama Sutta, Anguttara Nikaya III.65 According to wiki http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhist_philosophy#Comparison_with_other_philosophies Comparison with other philosophies Baruch Spinoza, though he argued for the existence of a permanent reality, asserts that all phenomenal existence is transitory. In his opinion sorrow is conquered "by finding an object of knowledge which is not transient, not ephemeral, but is immutable, permanent, everlasting." Buddhism teaches that such a quest is bound to fail. David Hume, after a relentless analysis of the mind, concluded that consciousness consists of fleeting mental states. Hume's Bundle theory is a very similar concept to anatta. Arthur Schopenhauer's philosophy was very similar to Buddhism. Ludwig Wittgenstein's "word games" map closely to the warning of intellectual speculation as a red herring to understanding, such as the Parable of the Poison Arrow. Friedrich Nietzsche, although himself dismissive of Buddhism as yet another nihilism, developed his philosophy of accepting life-as-it-exists and self-cultivation as extremely similar to Buddhism as better understood in the West today http://www.friesian.com/buddhism.htm#basic
LOL buddy.. being a total monk all the time is no fun.. gotta bump it up a notch! and plus. having right mindfulness at the correct time is the important part -innocent2 not much similar than having my organs raped from the twins -lol
^Be careful, Dann <_< Our dear Tax here might just be the next Buddhist representative when I am gone... haha. She's in a semi-believing state but she seems to be a fast learner, and may know more than you and I soon. Shame on you
In the end, is Buddhism about tolerance and being yourself as long you strive to be a 'good person' with compassion and without selfishness ?
Wow, you summarize it nicely Buddhism is about tolerance indeed. Also, modesty and humility. Buddha does not like to show off or encourage us to talk about His 'miracles'. Instead, He tells us that each one of us are able to perform our own miracles. It's also about self spiritual advancement, you advance for yourself and not for anyone else (or Being).-innocent
