Winter Skies for December 2007

The sun peers through the winter storm, the black sky, the fast-moving clouds

It shines that special light on the trees that makes you wince with pleasure at its beauty.

Buddhism and Existentialism - Unresolved Conflict

I like to explore what others say about Buddhist thought compared to existentialist thought. Since the both of these areas of practice and perspective have shaped my ideas since the late 60s, I continue to explore them in my everyday life.

Today I found an interesting comparison of Buddhism with existentialism - based on views of Nietzsche in the 20th century. Author Omar Moad says Nietzsche dissed Buddhim because he did not understand what was meant by nirvana.

Moad writes: By interpreting the Buddhist conception of inaction as a cessation of all action, Nietzsche presented Buddhism as an escapist, and 'weary' ideology. Rightly understood, however, the Buddhist ideal of kamma-niradha actually comes closer to Nietzsche's ideal - being, in his own words, action that is 'beyond good and evil', or outside the moral categories of a dogma. Now that it has become clearer that Buddhism does not involve a retreat simply from pain, and that it does not prescribe complete inertness, we must ask ourselves about the goal toward which its genuine recommendations are directed. Just click the link above to read more.

There are a bunch of people who express their ideas on this subject, and many want to prove why Buddhism is not anything like existentialism.

Another interesting discussion is about Zen compared to existentialism. I am not sure who authored this, but it is interesting: To the degree that all major religions focus on the problem involved with being human, they are all existential. Thus whether one sees humanity in a Western fashion as a sinner or in an eastern fashion as a sufferer, being human involves an existential dilemma. Using this definition Zen certainly is a form of religious existentialism.

Associating Zen too closely with western existentialism is also problematic because in western existentialism human existence is subjected to an inherent anxiety (angst). This is the result of being absolutely alienated from God by sin in religious existentialism or from the world by self-consciousness in atheistic existentialism. In the religious form this anxiety and its alienation can be greatly ameliorated by receiving God’s grace, but man remains a sinner. In the atheistic form no such amelioration is possible. Zen, especially Rinzai, also acknowledges a certain form of anxiety or alienation, but this is neither inherent nor absolute. This is because Zen teaches that through the process of enlightenment an individual can loss any sense of anxiety or alienation he may have and feel himself completely an innocent child of the universe.

Boredom: More than This

I was interested in this story in Scientific American, but it was too scientific and not philosophical enough for me - seeing as the angst I suffer over finding the right way to explore so much.

Most people blame boredom on the circumstances, but psychologists say this emotion is highly subjective and rooted in aspects of consciousness—and that levels of boredom vary among people. Some individuals are less—and others considerably more—likely to be bored than others.

Boredom is not a unified concept but may comprise several varieties, including the transient type that occurs while waiting in line and so-called existential boredom that accompanies a profound dissatisfaction with life.

Boredom is linked to both emotional factors and personality traits. Problems with attention also play a role, and thus techniques that improve a person’s ability to focus may diminish boredom.

How Stuff Works Covers Time Travel - You Do It Everyday

I am always interested in the concept of time travel and I came across a lesson on How Stuff Works - and it was so interesting so I am sharing the web site description but you can click and read a lot more!

"There may be no other concept that captures the imagination more than the idea of time travel - the ability to travel to any point in the past or future. What could be cooler? You could jump into your time machine to go back and see major events in history and talk to the people who were there! Who would you travel back to see? Julius Caesar? Leonardo da Vinci? Elvis? You could go back and meet yourself at an earlier age, go forward and see how you look in the future... It's these possibilities that have made time travel the subject of so many science fiction books and movies. It turns out that, in some sense, we are all time travelers. As you sit at your desk, doing nothing more than clicking your mouse, time is traveling around you. The future is constantly being transformed into the past with the present only lasting for a fleeting moment. Everything that you are doing right now is quickly moving into the past, which means we continue to move through time. Ideas of time travel have existed for centuries, but when Albert Einstein released his theory of special relativity, he laid the foundation for the theoretical possibility of time travel. As we all know, no one has successfully demonstrated time travel, but no one has been able to rule it out either."

His Holiness the Dalai Lama Talks Dharma

His Holiness the Dalai Lama spoke at Emory today, and I was pleased to be present. You can learn more about him and his teachings, here is an excerpt from his web site:

Question: About you being the incarnation of the bodhisattva of infinite compassion, Avalokiteshvara. How do you personally feel about this? Is it something you have an unequivocal view of one way or another?

Answer: It is difficult for me to say definitely. Unless I am engaged in a meditative effort, such as following my life back, breath by breath, I couldn’t say exactly. We believe that there are four types of rebirth. One is the common type wherein, a being is helpless to determine his or her rebirth, but only reincarnates in dependence on the nature of past actions. The opposite is that of an entirely enlightened Buddha, who simply manifests a physical form to help others. In this case, it is clear that the person is Buddha. A third is one who, due to past spiritual attainment, can choose, or at least influence, the place and situation of rebirth. The fourth is called a blessed manifestation. In this the person is blessed beyond his normal capacity to perform helpful functions, such as teaching religion. For this last type of birth, the person’s wishes in previous lives to help others must have been very strong. They obtain such empowerment. Though some seem more likely than others, I cannot definitely say which I am.

Question: About you being the incarnation of the bodhisattva of infinite compassion, Avalokiteshvara. How do you personally feel about this? Is it something you have an unequivocal view of one way or another?

Answer: It is difficult for me to say definitely. Unless I am engaged in a meditative effort, such as following my life back, breath by breath, I couldn’t say exactly. We believe that there are four types of rebirth. One is the common type wherein, a being is helpless to determine his or her rebirth, but only reincarnates in dependence on the nature of past actions. The opposite is that of an entirely enlightened Buddha, who simply manifests a physical form to help others. In this case, it is clear that the person is Buddha. A third is one who, due to past spiritual attainment, can choose, or at least influence, the place and situation of rebirth. The fourth is called a blessed manifestation. In this the person is blessed beyond his normal capacity to perform helpful functions, such as teaching religion. For this last type of birth, the person’s wishes in previous lives to help others must have been very strong. They obtain such empowerment. Though some seem more likely than others, I cannot definitely say which I am.