Comments on: Hard Questions http://www.swaroopch.com/blog/hard-questions/ Conning people into thinking I'm intelligent. Since 1982. Fri, 21 Nov 2008 03:42:54 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.3 By: Pradeep Gowda http://www.swaroopch.com/blog/hard-questions/#comment-2122 Pradeep Gowda Tue, 10 Oct 2006 05:37:50 +0000 http://www.swaroopch.info/archives/2006/09/28/hard-questions/#comment-2122 <p>@Sridhar, Thanks for that lucid explanation. I've been following your fascination(?) with Zen Bhuddism for some time now.</p> <p>More power to you :)</p> @Sridhar, Thanks for that lucid explanation. I’ve been following your fascination(?) with Zen Bhuddism for some time now.

More power to you :)

]]> By: Sridhar Ratna http://www.swaroopch.com/blog/hard-questions/#comment-2121 Sridhar Ratna Tue, 10 Oct 2006 04:09:14 +0000 http://www.swaroopch.info/archives/2006/09/28/hard-questions/#comment-2121 <p><em>Does it mean that humans should just “take life as it goes� and not bother about anything? Won’t life be more difficult that way?</em></p> <p>No.</p> <p><em>Can you please detail on Siddhartha’s way of living?</em></p> <p>That's difficult, but I try ...</p> <p>After diligent meditation, he attained enlightenment. He said, life is suffering. And suffering is due to craving -- getting attached to our own habitual patterns of living. Any pattern creates friction with reality which is changing all the time. By breaking those patterns or letting go of craving, suffering can be ended. A well-defined path to reach this state is the <a href="http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/bodhi/waytoend.html" rel="nofollow">noble eightfold path</a>.</p> <p>This doesn't mean that we should "take life as it goes" or not bother about anything. It means we should let go of our patterns (good and bad, etc.. and all such dualities) and <a href="http://www.fwbo.org/sangharakshita/reactivecreative.html" rel="nofollow">be creative than reactive</a>. </p> <p>Leading such a life is very difficult. Trying to live life the creative way in spite of long-accumulated habitual reactions is like swimming against the strong ocean currents.</p> <p>The noble eightfold path is very superficial in explaining the way. I recommend reading <a href="http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/index.php?term=pto-20060828-000001&print=1" rel="nofollow">these</a> <a href="http://shinzen.org/shinsub3/artHow.htm" rel="nofollow">two</a> articles instead.</p> <p>If you're interested, watch this 1 hour video by Alan Wallace: <a href="http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=983112177262602885&q=techtalks" rel="nofollow">Toward the First Revolution in the Mind Sciences</a></p> Does it mean that humans should just “take life as it goes� and not bother about anything? Won’t life be more difficult that way?

No.

Can you please detail on Siddhartha’s way of living?

That’s difficult, but I try …

After diligent meditation, he attained enlightenment. He said, life is suffering. And suffering is due to craving — getting attached to our own habitual patterns of living. Any pattern creates friction with reality which is changing all the time. By breaking those patterns or letting go of craving, suffering can be ended. A well-defined path to reach this state is the noble eightfold path.

This doesn’t mean that we should “take life as it goes” or not bother about anything. It means we should let go of our patterns (good and bad, etc.. and all such dualities) and be creative than reactive.

Leading such a life is very difficult. Trying to live life the creative way in spite of long-accumulated habitual reactions is like swimming against the strong ocean currents.

The noble eightfold path is very superficial in explaining the way. I recommend reading these two articles instead.

If you’re interested, watch this 1 hour video by Alan Wallace: Toward the First Revolution in the Mind Sciences

]]> By: Swaroop http://www.swaroopch.com/blog/hard-questions/#comment-2120 Swaroop Tue, 10 Oct 2006 03:40:22 +0000 http://www.swaroopch.info/archives/2006/09/28/hard-questions/#comment-2120 <p>@Sridhar : Does it mean that humans should just "take life as it goes" and not bother about anything? Won't life be more difficult that way?</p> <p>Can you please detail on Siddhartha's way of living?</p> @Sridhar : Does it mean that humans should just “take life as it goes” and not bother about anything? Won’t life be more difficult that way?

Can you please detail on Siddhartha’s way of living?

]]> By: Sridhar Ratna http://www.swaroopch.com/blog/hard-questions/#comment-2119 Sridhar Ratna Fri, 06 Oct 2006 07:04:04 +0000 http://www.swaroopch.info/archives/2006/09/28/hard-questions/#comment-2119 <p><em>If we consider ourselves as a ‘means’ of evolution, then isn’t our ‘end’/purpose to contribute towards that evolution?</em></p> <p>I cannot clearly conceive a beginning or an end for evolution. It <em>is</em> happening "irrespective" of whatever we do. If that is the case, I fail to see the applicability of word "towards" in your question.</p> <p>Even when considering a vehement phrase like 'survival of the fittest', I fail to see how the survived species become "holy" over the extinct ones.</p> <p>Swaroop, I definitely see these as very superficial questions, which means, they do not solve the fundamental problem. The human condition is worse. Suffering being our primal problem, I incline toward Siddhartha's way of living (and that I am finding darn difficult to follow!).</p> If we consider ourselves as a ‘means’ of evolution, then isn’t our ‘end’/purpose to contribute towards that evolution?

I cannot clearly conceive a beginning or an end for evolution. It is happening “irrespective” of whatever we do. If that is the case, I fail to see the applicability of word “towards” in your question.

Even when considering a vehement phrase like ’survival of the fittest’, I fail to see how the survived species become “holy” over the extinct ones.

Swaroop, I definitely see these as very superficial questions, which means, they do not solve the fundamental problem. The human condition is worse. Suffering being our primal problem, I incline toward Siddhartha’s way of living (and that I am finding darn difficult to follow!).

]]> By: Swaroop http://www.swaroopch.com/blog/hard-questions/#comment-2118 Swaroop Fri, 06 Oct 2006 06:51:52 +0000 http://www.swaroopch.info/archives/2006/09/28/hard-questions/#comment-2118 <p>@Sridhar : If we consider ourselves as a 'means' of evolution, then isn't our 'end'/purpose to contribute towards that evolution?</p> @Sridhar : If we consider ourselves as a ‘means’ of evolution, then isn’t our ‘end’/purpose to contribute towards that evolution?

]]> By: Pradeep Gowda http://www.swaroopch.com/blog/hard-questions/#comment-2117 Pradeep Gowda Tue, 03 Oct 2006 08:10:35 +0000 http://www.swaroopch.info/archives/2006/09/28/hard-questions/#comment-2117 <p>Smack!!</p> <p>Three pounds of flax</p> Smack!!

Three pounds of flax

]]> By: srikanth http://www.swaroopch.com/blog/hard-questions/#comment-2116 srikanth Fri, 29 Sep 2006 08:12:20 +0000 http://www.swaroopch.info/archives/2006/09/28/hard-questions/#comment-2116 <p>The zen quote was profound..</p> <p>I have reproduced it in my blog.. Let me know if you want me to remove it..</p> The zen quote was profound..

I have reproduced it in my blog.. Let me know if you want me to remove it..

]]> By: Life is like going into the sea knowing that the ship is going to sink in the middle! « srikanththunga http://www.swaroopch.com/blog/hard-questions/#comment-2115 Life is like going into the sea knowing that the ship is going to sink in the middle! « srikanththunga Fri, 29 Sep 2006 08:10:04 +0000 http://www.swaroopch.info/archives/2006/09/28/hard-questions/#comment-2115 <p>[...] from here: http://www.swaroopch.info/archives/2006/09/28/hard-questions/#comments [...]</p> [...] from here: http://www.swaroopch.info/archives/2006/09/28/hard-questions/#comments [...]

]]> By: Rk http://www.swaroopch.com/blog/hard-questions/#comment-2114 Rk Fri, 29 Sep 2006 05:19:39 +0000 http://www.swaroopch.info/archives/2006/09/28/hard-questions/#comment-2114 <p>Very tough questions, indeed. Thanks for the links.</p> Very tough questions, indeed. Thanks for the links.

]]> By: Sridhar Ratna http://www.swaroopch.com/blog/hard-questions/#comment-2113 Sridhar Ratna Thu, 28 Sep 2006 15:20:53 +0000 http://www.swaroopch.info/archives/2006/09/28/hard-questions/#comment-2113 <p>The species homo sapiens may become extinct in future to give way to more highly-evolved-beings (perhaps, one that has more control over their minds). The word 'purpose' denotes an end in itself, while biological evolution has no 'end' but only 'means'.</p> <p>I really don't have any concerns about the 'future'. Here, I am sitting in office, slacking off, reading some elisp code, chatting with #emacs fellas, etc.. :)</p> <p>A zen master once said, "Life is like going into the sea knowing that the ship is going to sink in the middle!"</p> <p>We 'create' such questions and delude ourself on the way ..</p> The species homo sapiens may become extinct in future to give way to more highly-evolved-beings (perhaps, one that has more control over their minds). The word ‘purpose’ denotes an end in itself, while biological evolution has no ‘end’ but only ‘means’.

I really don’t have any concerns about the ‘future’. Here, I am sitting in office, slacking off, reading some elisp code, chatting with #emacs fellas, etc.. :)

A zen master once said, “Life is like going into the sea knowing that the ship is going to sink in the middle!”

We ‘create’ such questions and delude ourself on the way ..

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