1. Is it selfish to leave this world and go to 'heaven'?
What about the suffering people left behind?
For the Buddhist, there is Samsara, this world of suffering.
And there is Nirvana, which is free from suffering.
In Samsara, beings "wander through the impermanent and suffering-generating realms of desire..." (Nirvana)
Some Buddhists think that Samsara is a place, but, most see it as a process or state of mind..
So, it is not selfish to leave Samsara, if it is a state of mind.
Buddhists believe that we create our own individual worlds, and when we die we create a new world and move into it.
Many Buddhists see Nirvana not as a place, but as a state of mind.
2. Is there a creator God?
Buddha kept a noble silence on the question of God and on many other questions.
Buddha argued that "there is no apparent rational necessity for the existence of a creator god because everything ultimately is created by mind." (Buddhism and evolution - Wikipedia)
"In Buddhism, the universe comes into existence dependent upon the actions (karma) of its inhabitants. Buddhists posit neither an ultimate beginning or final end to the universe, but see the universe as something in flux, passing in and out of existence, parallel to an infinite number of other universes doing the same thing." (Religious cosmology - Wikipedia)
3. How do we achieve Nirvana?
It depends on effort.
It means getting rid of anger, greed, lust, delusion...
4. What is Nirvana like?
"It is outside of all conceivable experience." (Nirvana - Wikipedia)
"The consciousness is released, and the mind becomes aware..."
5. Nirvana seems different from Samsara?
The difference between Nirvana and Samsara is only accurate "on the conventional level."
"All phenomena are empty of an essential identity, and therefore suffering is never inherent in any situation." (Nirvana - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
4 comments:
"Is it selfish to leave this world and go to 'heaven'?
What about the suffering people left behind? "
It's not up to us though is it? When your time is up, it's time to go and there's not really anything you can do about it, apart from making sure you are ready to go.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GLsmvGwgyig
99% of your suffering is because of the woes of a personal you - and there isn't one. wu wei wu
at the end of the day even nirvana and samsara are concepts. the mind is never going to come to understanding. it has to be left behind. so who lands up in nirvana?
and is it right to take your own life? well i figure it is more right to take your own life thanto take anothers. mahivir an ancient sage said that ending the dream was a gift bestowed upon humans. it was a freedom we were given when the relentlessness just became too much.
but he said there was only one way to do this. so that it is not hasty and regretted one must do it slowly. so fast to death was his way. you probably detox in the first few days and feel a whole lot better. and if you still die you would have had those 40 in preparation to meet her.
sorry to go so verbose on you...... must be the eggnog.
Thanks Aang, very nice.
And thanks Su, also very nice.
An interesting post, a day after the death of writer Christopher Hitchens.
Not that it's big in the scheme of things. But Hitch asked some of the big questions, fought some of the big fights. If he flagged a bit, so do we all.
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