Posted on 07/11/2010 9:09:05 PM PDT by Lorianne
The Dalai Lama has sent a message of support for Armed Forces Day, which is next Saturday. In it, he writes of his admiration for the military. That is perhaps not so surprising. As he explains, there are many parallels between being a monk and being a soldier – the need for discipline, companionship, and inner strength.
But his support will take some of his western admirers by surprise, not least when it comes to his thoughts on non-violence.
Attitudes towards violence in Buddhism are enormously complex. There are some traditions that argue aggression, and killing in particular, is always wrong. But there are others which argue that killing can be good, when executed by a spiritually skilled practitioner who can do so with the right motivation. Tibetan Buddhism falls squarely into the latter tradition, and previous incarnations of the Dalai Lama have been such practitioners. The 13th, for example, modernised the Tibetan army.
What the present Dalai Lama argues, in his message of support, is that violence and non-violence are not always what they seem. "Sweet words" can be violent, he explains, when they intend harm. Conversely, "harsh and tough action" can be non-violent when it aims at the wellbeing of others. In short, violence – "harsh and tough action" – can be attitudinally non-violent. So what should we make of that?
(Excerpt) Read more at guardian.co.uk ...
Heh, well okay, no more talk about the Dalai Lama... That works for me... Do your own thing - of course that could be very negative ya know... Just what stops you from doing bad things?
Heh... You may have a point...
The certainty that the consequences will be bad and inevitable. That informs my choices.
Well, that means that you believe in something other than Buddhism and the Dalai Lama doesn’t it? You are making my point with every post...
I think “Do your own thing.” is not an accurate description of buddhist philosophy.
Like a previous poster, buddhism was the beginning of my way to becoming a Christian. I think it’s not too great a stretch to compare the buddhist world view with the Christian concept of Natural Law.
While I understand what you are saying... Buddhism and Christianity are not mixable... Actually, they seem to be contrary to each other... Not sure how you came to God through Buddhism, but I guess maybe that was just a stepping stone to reality...
That is Buddhism. I already said what I thought about the Dalai Lama.
Okay... You will not admit the obvious...so I will quit.
You have yet to say what your point is.
What would the obvious be? Do you have trouble just saying what you think?
Well, I do not like to state obvious things...
You were born with the decisions between right and wrong. You know that it was inherent that (some feeling) the right thing to do was somehow programed in you and you probably did that most of the time. When you did something wrong, you not only knew it, but felt bad about it. That is called a conscience and it comes from God. That has no relation to the Buddhism or the man behind that cause (Mr. whoever at the time).
You could only come to your conclusions by internal discussions between yourself and you maker...thus, Buddhism had nothing to do with it except bring you closer to your internal beliefs that are there.
I’m sure I am not putting this into a reasonable structure, but I think you will get the idea...
The Golden Rule is more than enough to make moral decisions one would be confronted with. It has nothing to do with any religion.
I tried that for 39 years and it never worked.
Honestly, not much to me. Check with Richard Gere for someone who cares.
I’m not a syncretist, but there are similarities among major religions. Those who look in the same direction find similar things.
IMHO, among the other religions, buddhism the closest to Christianity in many ways.
I am Christian not Buddhist now. “Mixable”? No. But much of what I learned during my time in buddhism has been valuable in my spiritual, hopefully, growth as a Christian.
Then why bother with the Golden Rule? It would make no difference to you!
What do you mean?
Well, I suggest you keep trying - Your just not getting through...
That is too bad. The consequences of that is to leave others in confusion.
I have been doing fine since I started practicing the Dharma. 39 years of trying without progress was enough for me.
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