Afterlife (Introduction)

by xeno6696 , Sonoran Desert, Saturday, December 03, 2011, 14:58 (4717 days ago) @ dhw

dhw,

I must admit that I'm taken aback... obviously my knowledge of the Llama's thought is limited to the 2 books and one forward...

The only conclusion that I can draw is this: There is a principle for Buddhist teachers to only teach what isn't too difficult for the student. When talking to western audiences, he probably doesn't talk about those parts of his religion that would be difficult for us to digest.

The tradition I'm more formally trained in is Soto Zen, which is based in Japan, but has a lineage tracing through Korea, Vietnam, to China. (Nowhere near Tibet.)

I saw quite a few parallels in both Hanh's writings and the Llama's and I thought that Tibetan Buddhism had given up its mystical bent some time ago--clearly I was mistaken. From now on I'll try to keep my words to the areas I know well. Hanh has a long history of peaceful disobedience, so the concept of "live in the now, do in the now" makes perfect sense for someone who is in political asylum. But his words ring true with Soto Zen. "When sitting, just sit. When walking, just walk."

For the Buddha... I do think he really did believe in Karma in the Hindu sense... remember that he was originally training to become a Brahmin. But the understanding of his words have clearly been transformed to mean different things to different people... and these things are all also true. The history of Buddhism parallels many other religions, in that there have been several breaks and schisms required as times change and the religion is forced to adapt to new conditions. Thankfully, it was built with adaptation in mind...

--
\"Why is it, Master, that ascetics fight with ascetics?\"

\"It is, brahmin, because of attachment to views, adherence to views, fixation on views, addiction to views, obsession with views, holding firmly to views that ascetics fight with ascetics.\"