--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "WillyTex" <willy...@...> wrote: > > > > Judy: > > Barry was taken aback when, in commenting on his > > mention of Buddhists... > > > Barry likes to 'talk the talk', but it would seem that > he is unable to 'walk the walk'. He get really mixed up > sometimes. Thanks for trying to *correct* him, Judy! > > Traditionally Buddhists throughout the Buddhist world > consider that the universe contains more beings in it > than are normally visible to humans. Buddhists have no > objection to the existence of the Hindu 'Gods', to > 'spirits', or to other beings that might populate the > spiritual world. > > > who, he claims, believe it's more important to help > > others than to seek personal enlightenment, I cited > > the Bodhisattva Vow, which expresses the intention > > to attain Buddhahood for the benefit of all sentient > > beings. He'd either forgotten about it, or decided it > > wouldn't help his case against the TMO. > > > Which in fact, is a 'sine qua non' of the Buddhist > *enlightenment* tradition! > > The 'Bodhisttva Path' is an indispensable and essential > action, condition, or ingredient of Mahayana Buddhism. > > > That's why he forbids any citation of "authority." > > He doesn't want anybody to be reminded that he > > failed to acknowledge that the Buddhists who take > > the Bodhisattva Vow believe, as the TMO does, that > > enlightened beings have a more positive effect on > > the world than those who are not enlightened. > > > Any reference to verbal authority is verboten and > suspect by these kinds of individuals, such as Barry, > Curtis, or Joe. They don't think it's important to > know what first hand sources have to say - their > *opinion* is all that counts for them. > > Nevertheless, Buddhists can't take refuge in the > gods because the gods are not Buddha. That is, they > are not enlightened. All the Hindu gods, for all > their power, are not the final truth of things. > > Power does not necessarily entail insight, and for > Buddhist the gods do not have the liberating insight. > But none of this entails that the gods do not exist > or that the gods cannot except a powerful influence > over our lives. > > Thus, most Buddhist have no problem with the 'gods' > or with the spirit of enlightenment - unlike the > pseudo-Buddhist, the 'Turquoise Be'! > > LOL!!!
BINGO ! > > References: > > 'Buddhist Thought' > by Paul Williams > Routledge, 2000 > > 'Buddhism in Practice' > ed. Donald S. Lopez, Jr. > Princeton Readings in Religion, 1995 >
