RongzomFan Posted July 18, 2013 Buddhism is a Dharma, not a religion. Dharma is an Indian concept that westerners will never understand. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Apech Posted July 18, 2013 Buddhism is a Dharma, not a religion. Dharma is an Indian concept that westerners will never understand. never? that's a bit damning ... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jadespear Posted July 18, 2013 What is a religion then? Do Buddhists pray to Buddha? Do Buddhists hold any sort of concept about existence? Do Buddhists accept money for anything they do? The answer is of course yes to all these. "Westerners will never understand".... Could you put your intellectual self any higher ....? ... Geez. It's hilarious how you think terms themselves need to be understood, when I think the reality is what needs to be understood. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jadespear Posted July 18, 2013 What is a religion then? Do Buddhists pray to Buddha? Do Buddhists hold any sort of concept about existence? Do Buddhists accept money for anything they do? The answer is of course yes to all these. "Westerners will never understand".... Could you put your intellectual self any higher ....? ... Geez. It's hilarious how you think terms themselves need to be understood, when I think the reality is what needs to be understood. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
RongzomFan Posted July 18, 2013 You are not familiar with Madhyamaka are you? Existence is an extreme. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jadespear Posted July 18, 2013 I'm familiar with it. Things that are dependent are co arisen and therefore themselves have no actual identity or essence. Retarted philosophy. The planet depends on the sun for its survival. The universe is like a clock in my mind that has many parts that continue its being. Just because phenomena arise out of cause and effect scenarios doesn't mean those phenomena are nothing...it means they are simply the outcome of a cause and effect unique to its environment. Like the creation of new species...a new species is a unique thing as compared to all that which predated and caused it. "Existence is an extreme." - what does that even mean? ...existence is existence, that's the logical positivist point of view. Matters of extreme or not extreme or half extreme are all relative. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
RongzomFan Posted July 18, 2013 (edited) I'm familiar with it. Things that are dependent are co arisen and therefore themselves have no actual identity or essence. That's a bullshit Tsongkhapa take on things. The real essence of Madhyamaka is the "vajra sliver" reasoning. See Center of the Sunlit Sky. Edited July 18, 2013 by alwayson Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jadespear Posted July 18, 2013 Right on . I'll check it out. The book right? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
