Buddhism and Apathy

Last night I had an unfortunate encounter with a Nihilist in the chat room. I doubt if he was a Buddhist. The Dalai Lama's teachings are quite at odds with his (I think) world view. Buddha taught a gentle way of compassion & seeking for oneness. There is no apathy or complacency in it. Sometimes I think Buddhism is the most misunderstood following in the world. Ok, then I watch the news & think it may be Islam.

Greetings..

Buddhism was the path Buddha followed.. what is YOUR path...

Be well..

Originally Posted by Muddler

The Dalai Lama's teachings are quite at odds with his (I think) world view. Buddha taught a gentle way of compassion & seeking for oneness. There is no apathy or complacency in it. Sometimes I think Buddhism is the most misunderstood following in the world.

Hiya Muddler,

I like to think I've got a good understanding of Buddhism (practicing it is a different story) and I feel The Dalai's a fantastic example.

And yeah, there is no apathy or complacency in the teachings of Buddha. I feel they are merely surface expressions of the physical form, therefore these surface expressions of apathy & complacency are of no real importance, they mean nothing. It's the spiritual acts, the Buddhist practices of gentle compassion & unity that matter the most. These practices can be done with or without emotion or complacency.

I don't believe the path can be practiced without emotion, emotion is a fundamental part of human existence and through them we can grow and eventually ascend to the point that emotions simply come and go like the ocean and we don't get dragged with them. I don't view emotion as something that is to be turned off, but to be accepted and to grow from. I guess this is the same thing we've been discussing continuously in this forum but i suppose our views on Buddhism are essentially different. This is how wars get started eh? I believe the way i'm interpreting Buddhism is correct, and you believe yours is correct, perhaps it's just different parts of the elephant we are feeling?
Cheers
Pathwalker

Originally Posted by Pathwalker

This is how wars get started eh? I believe the way i'm interpreting Buddhism is correct, and you believe yours is correct, perhaps it's just different parts of the elephant we are feeling?
Cheers
Pathwalker

Be whatever part of the elephant you want to be, we'll still be part of the same elephant. War is never the answer. You can have the victory here, I'm more inclined to do as the Dalai Lama and be exiled rather than fight a war. Peace out, it's all yours.

Angelicious, i think you'll find if you read my post again you'll find that i wasn't expressing a pro-war attitude, nor was i seeking any form of victory during this discussion. I was simply expressing that often wars get started over differing religious perspectives of the same scriptures. It's strange that you seem to believe that this is a war? and even stranger that you truly believe that you will be exiled if you do not participate in this thread. As for the elephant, i believe you misinterpreted my post, i was referring to the Buddhist metaphor of the path where we are all touching different parts of the same proverbial elephant - those touching the ears will liken it to large rubber leaves, whilst those touching the legs will liken it to oak trees etc... The point was that we are all essentially touching on varying aspects of the same truth a view which accomodates varying personal beliefs and contradictions which i was likening to our respective differences in opinion. The perspective expressed by myself was a call to unity, not a declaration of war.
Thank you
Pathwalker

Greetings..

Occasionally, i do sense a degree of apathy in the Buddhist beliefs.. many tend to feel they are destined to many recycles of this life until they "get it right".. this leads to a certain resignation, even if they are actively seeking to correct their journey.. "one mountain, many paths to the top".. the reality you create is the one you live, if your beliefs are solid and true.. so, for the aspiring Buddhist they will stay on the wheel until they change their beliefs or satisfy their believed conditions.. for the Christian, they will go to the heaven or hell of their own creation.. the Universe is not discriminating in that way, if that's what you really believe, it will make it so.. The choice is yours.. My own choices lead me to a path that is closely approximate to the basic Taoist philosophies, it just seems to work..

"Do not walk in the footsteps of others, seek what they sought.. on your own path"..

Be Well...

TzuJanLi,
I must say i agree with you there. There is certainly a sense of resignation when confronted with the idea of many, many more reincarnations to go before freedom from the karmic wheel. But in true Buddhist form, even this is an opportunity in which to let go of. As you said, the choice is ours, we can dwell in this resignation, or use it as fuel to take the next step on the path. I definitely agree with you about the universe not discriminating in terms of what we create. And we must choose from the highest wisdom within ourselves. However where does that leave one who has faith in many religions when they die, do they for example (a follower of christianity & buddhism) go to heaven (or hell) for a brief while before they are reincarnated?

I think my sadness is that there are proferred Buddhists who believe that, because they believe they have grasped Buddha's teachings, they are free from the cycle of rebirth. Buddhism (or any other spiritual pursuit) cannot be fulfilled cognitively. I ceratainly don't agree that resignation arises from the thought of many reincarnations. This is to miss the point of reincarnation.

Greetings..

The resignation is to the reincarnations themselves.. that they are bound to them.. freedom is a choice away, not lifetimes..

Be well..