A few years ago, I wrote a somewhat comprehensive series on the so-called Four Noble Truths as supposedly propounded by Mr Siddharth Gautam, or the Sakyamuni Buddha, circa 2500 BC.
In light of the current human understanding, a better title for those four "truths" might be: The Four Tenets about Suffering. Those tenets are neither true, nor very noble. They are of course the foundation of the religion of Buddhism, and as such derive a certain nobility due to their scriptural status.
To clarify, I have absolutely no problem with someone who chooses to follow the moral precepts of a religion. Most religions posit moral tenets which are quite in line with being a good human being, and for the vast majority of religious people, religion is essentially a force of conscience, morality, community and culture. It is only for the philosopher/monk that this series of articles is intended, not for a lay practitioner of Buddhism. A lay practitioner will probably find himself in more trouble if he discards his religious beliefs and tries to find meaning elsewhere.
In light of the current human understanding, a better title for those four "truths" might be: The Four Tenets about Suffering. Those tenets are neither true, nor very noble. They are of course the foundation of the religion of Buddhism, and as such derive a certain nobility due to their scriptural status.
To clarify, I have absolutely no problem with someone who chooses to follow the moral precepts of a religion. Most religions posit moral tenets which are quite in line with being a good human being, and for the vast majority of religious people, religion is essentially a force of conscience, morality, community and culture. It is only for the philosopher/monk that this series of articles is intended, not for a lay practitioner of Buddhism. A lay practitioner will probably find himself in more trouble if he discards his religious beliefs and tries to find meaning elsewhere.
- Part I: Introduction, The First Noble Truth
- Part II: The Second Noble Truth
- Part III: The Second Noble Truth, continued
- Part IV: The Third Noble Truth
The Fourth Noble Truth: The Eight-fold Path - Part V: Right View
- Part VI: Right Intention
- Part VII: Right Speech
- Part VIII: Right Action
- Part IX: Right Livelihood
- Part X: Right Effort, Right Mindfulness, Right Concentration
- Part XI: Epilogue
1 comment:
There are two main types of truth.
Certain logical truths stand impregnable to philosophical challenges that scientific “facts” face. There is one empirical truth we know for certain—that it exist. We know this because we experience consciousness.
Post a Comment