111–120 of 173 posts
"We thought of life by analogy with a journey, a pilgrimage, which had a serious purpose at the end, and the thing was to get to that end, success or whatever it is, maybe heaven after you're dead. But we missed the point the whole way along. It was a musical thing and you were supposed to sing or to dance while the music was being played." Allan Watts
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Yes, but as long as you don't realize you're wearing a mask the suffering seems very real. It seems to me there remains a reality to that suffering even when the ego self that suffered ceases to exist and it's unjust to discount it.
But when the ego self ceases to exist, to whom is it unjust then?
In your view (or the view you are defending) is there any reason to be compassionate towards other beings ? If the answer is yes than that compassion should have extended to avoiding all manifestation so as to prevent their suffering.
If the answer is no, because they are just like characters in a novel, then there seems to be a very fundamental difference in morality between this view and most other spiritual teachings, which do teach compassion.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
But when the ego self ceases to exist, to whom is it unjust then?
I'm not sure why the order of this thread seems to have gotten screwed up. In your view (or the view you are defending) is there any reason to be compassionate towards other beings ? If the answer is yes than that compassion should have extended to avoiding all manifestation so as to prevent their suffering. If the answer is no, because they are just like characters in a novel, then there seems to be a very fundament…
The idea that all manifestation should have been prevented to prevent suffering seems to take for granted, that the joys of life are not worth the suffering. I would disagree about that.
The rational answer is, of course, that ultimately there is no point. However, there’s also no rational reason why this question should bother you - that is an emotion. In a normal hormonally balanced brain, endorphins encourage you not to dwell on such questions emotionally. If you find yourself consumed by it, then you might want to look into why you are feeling that way. It’s possible that you are suffering from m…
This also means no one else can tell what is the meaning of YOUR life, you have to pick it yourself, or not, also your choice.
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yes, let's create even more people to suffer through life. what a selfish thought.
Believe it or not, some people actually enjoy life.
Many people are hypocrites in that sense.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm not sure why the order of this thread seems to have gotten screwed up. In your view (or the view you are defending) is there any reason to be compassionate towards other beings ? If the answer is yes than that compassion should have extended to avoiding all manifestation so as to prevent their suffering. If the answer is no, because they are just like characters in a novel, then there seems to be a very fundament…
In the view I am defending there is a reason to be compassionate towards other beings. It is the natural reaction after having realized that you are in essence the same, god in disguise. The idea that all manifestation should have been prevented to prevent suffering seems to take for granted, that the joys of life are not worth the suffering. I would disagree about that.
Yes, because that has always been my experience. I have never experienced a state of joy or happiness that seemed so good that I could see it as justifying suffering. I have however in the past experienced states of suffering so horrible that I would have given anything for them to end.