--- In [email protected], "llundrub" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > Buddhists don't beleive in God and yet they are happy. > They cannot therefore be controlled.
That's actually a pretty insightful remark. Back in Buddha's time, the Hindu priests ruled (and profited, and controlled) mainly through super- stition. The rites and rituals that the rabble paid for were to *propitiate the gods*, to make them look benevolently on the person forking over the cash, and *not* look malevolently on them. Take away that fear of God or the gods, and as you say you no longer have a populace that can easily be controlled by saying, "If you don't do what we say Shiva will smite the shit out of you" or "If you don't pay for this yagya bad things will happen to you." In a way it's exactly what got the Cathars per- secuted back in medieval times. They rejected the need for the intercession of priests, and rejected the need to pay those priests for ceremonies and rites performed in their name. Thus they too cut into the income of the established religion. As a challenger of the income of the predominant religion, Buddha got off pretty easy; the Roman Church killed all the Cathars. > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "TurquoiseB" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > To: <[email protected]> > Sent: Tuesday, January 23, 2007 3:37 AM > Subject: [FairfieldLife] Re: 'The Happiest Man in the World' > > > > Just a general comment on the kneejerk posts by Sparaig > > and Nablus in reaction to the mention of the Dalai Lama > > and other Buddhists today. > > > > Isn't it fascinating how THREATENED TMers are by > > Buddhists and Buddhism? I mean, it's like they're still > > acting out the way that Hindus were threatened by him > > and dissed him when he first appeared. Weird, if you > > ask me... > > > > > > --- In [email protected], "sparaig" <sparaig@> wrote: > >> > >> --- In [email protected], "sparaig" <sparaig@> wrote: > >> > > >> > So much for the tradition of balance (middle way) in Buddhism. > >> > > >> > --- In [email protected], Robert Gimbel <babajii_99@> > > wrote: > >> > > > >> > > The happiest man in the world? ... and you can learn how he > > does it, says academic- > >> > turned-Buddhist monk By Anthony Barnes Published: 21 January > > 2007 > >> > >> More to the point, where's teh accusation that someone who spends > > 10,000 hours of happy > >> time isn't addicted to happy time (bliss)? > >> > >> I mean, if someone told you that they spend many hours per day doing > > something just so > >> they can be happy (not so they can produce something, or fulfill a > > dream or perfect a skill or > >> even attain world peace or enlightenment--just "be happy"), you > > would start to wonder > >> whether or not there's a psychological issue there. > >> > > > > > > > > > > To subscribe, send a message to: > > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > > > Or go to: > > http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ > > and click 'Join This Group!' > > Yahoo! Groups Links > > > > > > >
