Greylorn Ell wrote: ↑Tue Nov 20, 2018 8:39 pmAtla,
Thanks for the comeback. Your comment about Beon Theory is correct, but analogous to describing an iceberg from the perspective of a boat.
Would you please save me a few mouse clicks by providing a URL to what you found?
I understand the difficulty of explaining things. I can explain B.T. in about 50 words to a physicist who is well versed in the principles of mathematics and can still recall Newton's Fundamental Theorem of Calculus, but explaining to anyone requires some preliminary concepts that few are likely to comprehend. That's why I've written two books on the subject and am trying for another before I get out of here.
Yes, I understand that it must be an iceberg. I just did a few minutes of random reading on this forum, like in this topic:
viewtopic.php?f=10&t=14068&start=150
I have enough familiarity with Buddhism to have explained to a local mountain-top guru who's hobnobbed with "enlightened ones" in India, and who taught a weekly class to students dumb enough to make a pilgrimage from their monastery down the road, that he was completely unaware of S.G'.s fundamental "theorem." He did not believe me, so I borrowed one of his many books and found the information in it. He's not liked me much since.
I spent a couple of weeks in Bangkok way back when, a few overnights with a high government official who worked as a liaison bureaucrat between the Buddhist church and the Thai government, but learned nothing about the religion. Visited a sacred temple and came away with an illegal photo of the "Jade Buddha," but no insights. I gave up on Buddhism upon realizing that it can morph into any other religion at the drop of a nickel.
Naturally I'd be curious to see your take on the Buddha's fundamental belief.
When I'm talking about nondualism, I'm really only talking about a single aspect common to Buddhism, Advaita, Taoism etc. I'm unconcerned with all the other teachings of these philosophies/religions, and their many schools/branches. It's largely just how they dress up the same simple view again and again.
Nondualism is a.. way of thinking, way of being, way of looking at the world. The "natural", default view, the one we had early on in life, before we fell into the dualistic illusions.
It's about realizing how things actually are, realizing what we are. Some would call it awakening, waking up etc. Some find it dreadful or boring etc.
It's infinitely simple, so it's probably (but of course not certainly) the "correct" philosophy.
You seem to dislike dualism. Yet you live in a universe in which events are caused by the interaction of two opposing forces.
I tried looking at Zen stuff but failed to understand the value of it. I didn't learn jack shit about repairing my motorcycle from "Zen and the Art..." and found the factory service manual more useful, though the book was more entertaining. I noticed that every component of my cycle , like every functioning mechanical or biological machine, was in an interactive force-counterforce relationship with at least one other component.
Given that you cannot pick your nose without the benefit of complex dualistic interactions between bones, tendons, muscles and nerves--- plus the mysterious "will" to stick your finger up there and the wit to make sure that nobody you care about is watching--- what is your complaint with the obvious reality of dualism?
But I don't live in a universe in which events are caused by the interaction of two opposing forces.
The idea of "interaction" is outdated magical thinking anyway, since there are no separate things to interact, and the entire universe is the only "event". But the main problem is: all such dualisms are made up. Upon closer inspection we find that they are illusions of the human mind, nothing more.
There are naturally occuring pairs in the "realm" of subatomic particles etc., but that has almost nothing to do with our everyday life.
If you care to run that question a little deeper--- do you think that you would be conscious and self-aware without the feedback from other conscious beings?
Greylorn
Well that depends. Most adult humans are conscious and self-aware (although I'm not sure how you use these words) in today's culture.
If we isolate humans all their lives, they may or may not spontanously reach such higher states of mind. But if they are given enough input, like for example they get to watch movies about humanity, get access to computers etc., if they are put into a proper simulated environment, even though technically they never encounter another human, they will probably develop self-awareness.