WanderingLands wrote:
1. How to counter suffering came about starting when philosophies such as Buddhism, Cynicism, Stoicism, Existentialism, and other forms of aestheticism came about,
Those philosophies didn't "come about": they were invented by sophisticated civilized humans - at different times and in different places.
None of them "counter" suffering: they attempt various explanations and excuses for it.
which did, I believe, help people cope with the whatever type of suffering there it.
Whatever kind of suffering there is?
A few developed a taste for self-flagellation; more exaggerated their little psychological twinges into a drama, starring them. But neither suffering nor people were reduced and the desire for pain never really caught on.
The numbers have still not really increased in terms of the majority of the world population, but then again most people don't look at philosophy or spirituality for answers.
Really? 2.1 billion Christians, 1.6 billion Muslims, 1 billion Hindus, +/_500 million Buddhists, 600,000 Rastafarians, 23 million Sikhs, 14 million Jews, their various deities know how many native practitioners of how many religions in Africa and the Americas, not to mention
15 million who identify as Spiritualist.
3. The reason why people tend to abhor it is because of the amount of weight they feel that they're carrying, and also the fact that the often have no clue of how to cope with and not let it wreck them. People naturally do not want bad luck happening it to them, and yet every individual on this planet (including you and me) just unfortunately end up in that spot.
But why do elk and octopuses avoid it? How did it start? If pain was good, why did all per-human creatures turn against it?
For me, suffering comes about when people mainly want things, ad they try to reach it and they crave it so much that when they never reach it, they fall into despair.
What, like a cup of water? They haven't given you any for three days and then put the cup just beyond your reach. Learning to love that would take some fancy philosophizing!
Anyways, the reason why it is good is not because it is desirable, but because it is a test,
and all tests are good by definition. If you Fail, that's good, because it gives you the chance to suffer some more.
Once you diminish the emotional reaction of suffering, you can look at it objectively
I'm guessing you wouldn't get a standing ovation in Stretcher Bay 2 - not least because the patients are mostly unable to stand. Even if they could, most terminal cancer patients wouldn't buy this:
so that thenect time abadfeeling comes along, you'd be able to try and identify it.
Some people can manage pain with self-hypnosis and similar brain tricks. If you know how to do that and can teach it, by all means, do.
But it won't work on a harpooned whale or a whipped horse.
Even in humans who speak your same language, it's useless against malnutrition, dehydration, exsanguination, necrosis and hypothermia.
This is not to say that you won't go through a demise; just not something that can result in anything serious such as death or some other mishap.
That, right there, is my quote for the week!
4. People have always knew and have been conscious about the progressing deccadence of civilization and the masses in them, and they've tried to resist and convince others to resist the evermore amounting onslaught of humanity by ill willed men. They've died, and/or have suffered torture and prisons because of this, which are forms of suffering by the way.
No kidding! I suspect most of the martyrs weren't opposing soft ice cream or X-boxes. They were mostly killed, will-power or not. They're being killed right now. So are their followers, most of whom may not even understand the cause, and a whole lot of bystanders who don't even know there is a cause.
6. What do you mean by "yogi solution"? You mean what I've said about the material world?
Yeah, all that guff about rising above material desire; you'll be all better if only you stop wanting things. Lots of people get over their dark teatime by wanting and doing something positive. Many say hi-bye and keep truckin'. Many don't have it at all.