--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, Jason <jedi_sp...@...> wrote: > > Try telling this to people caught in Nazi holocaust, Partition riots, > Khemer rouge genocide in Cambodia, Stalinist purge in Soviet Union, Cancer > patients, children suffering from mal-nutrition in third world countries etc > etc. > > Life is not exactly "cool" for them. eh.?? > > --- On Sat, 1/2/10, TurquoiseB <no_re...@yahoogroups.com> wrote: > Subject: [FairfieldLife] Self is just self capitalized > Date: Saturday, January 2, 2010, 4:14 AM > > For all I know I may be the only person on this forum who > thinks this is REEEALLY REEEALLY STOOOPID. But then > I believe that that First Noble Truth indicates that Buddha > was somewhat of a Wuss. "Life is suffering" as the basis of > all of his teachings? Give me a fuckin' break.
I think the quote is not "Life is Suffering" but "Suffering is inevitable", one being as pessimistic and imbalanced (yes even really stupid) as it sounds, the other stating an unavoidable reality, as Buddha seems, in that well known story (even if hagiographic or apocryphal), to have noticed that without exception we all will age and die, and watch our loved ones age and die as that is inevitable, and quite appropriately none of us laugh about that, mixed with other more wondrous or awe inspiring experiences. As to those more horrific events which we are at risk to experiencing, that is why one of my favorite summaries of advaita is "sticks and stones can break my bones but names will never hurt me." Mamma was right, the error of superimposition is the root of much unnecessary mental anguish. But realizing that does not neuter the other reality, that sticks and stones can break my bones. Buddha, for what its worth, did there draw a line in the sand and part with magical thinking.
