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federicaSeeker of the clear blue sky...Its better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to speak out and remove all doubtModerator
@Tony72, I took the liberty of editing your posts for you to differentiate between your comments and the quoted comments of other members.
I would say this:
While I totally understand where your concerns and curiosity lie, remember that the Buddha explained one thing: That he came to teach how suffering arises, and how we can transcend suffering.
That word covers "a multitude of sins" and realy, the best place to start is at the beginning....
I sympathise with your SA origins, and understand the inbuilt trepidation regarding violence, but just as Buddhism requires you observe your Mind and how it works, be assured that such consideration need not be a priority, so answers will come in time.
Hopefully, you have gained something here, to help you make progress....
@Tony72 said:
Various disjointed ideas about violence and self defence coalesced into a question when I saw the footage of the monk slapping a tourist. That is why it formed part of my question.
Okay, but hopefully it has been made clear to you that no Buddhist scripture will endorse that monk's behaviour.
It is simply a bad monk, unrepresentative of the robe he should carry with dignity, acting in an unskillful way.
If you came up with ten such footages it would still be wrong, it would still be not Buddhist, it would still be bad.
Tilopa hit Naropa on the forehead with a sandal. Naropa attained enlightment immediately.
I doubt that Tilopa's reasons were the same as this other monk's.
Just sayin...
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federicaSeeker of the clear blue sky...Its better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to speak out and remove all doubtModerator
Yes, as we are fond of saying, it's all in the 'Intention'.
On a similar stream to @Chaz's comment:
When a person is Confirmed into the Catholic faith, the officiating priest symbolically 'slaps' the person to make them understand that Life may bring many hardships and moments of strife and discord, but that in the Act of being Confirmed, the person is blooming into RC Adulthood, and as such must exercise adult common sense, fortitude and resolve, in order to face what Life may slap them in the face with.
The person then 'turns the other cheek'.
This is not meek submission, and a religious chaste unwillingness to fight, or an invitation to permit the oppressor to dominate, as has been mistakenly often thought.
This, rather, is actually a gesture of Passive Defiance, a "Come what may, I will not be conquered".
Somewhat different to an angry blow from someone who is malicious, spiteful and uses physical violence to convey their opinion.
Utterly unacceptable, and in this case, and only if the need presents itself, a self-defensive act is acceptable.
But 99.99 times out of ten, a non-retaliatory attitude, with words of Compassion, might actually cut the mustard better....
Comments
@Tony72, I took the liberty of editing your posts for you to differentiate between your comments and the quoted comments of other members.
I would say this:
While I totally understand where your concerns and curiosity lie, remember that the Buddha explained one thing: That he came to teach how suffering arises, and how we can transcend suffering.
That word covers "a multitude of sins" and realy, the best place to start is at the beginning....
I sympathise with your SA origins, and understand the inbuilt trepidation regarding violence, but just as Buddhism requires you observe your Mind and how it works, be assured that such consideration need not be a priority, so answers will come in time.
Hopefully, you have gained something here, to help you make progress....
Okay, but hopefully it has been made clear to you that no Buddhist scripture will endorse that monk's behaviour.
It is simply a bad monk, unrepresentative of the robe he should carry with dignity, acting in an unskillful way.
If you came up with ten such footages it would still be wrong, it would still be not Buddhist, it would still be bad.
Tilopa hit Naropa on the forehead with a sandal. Naropa attained enlightment immediately.
I doubt that Tilopa's reasons were the same as this other monk's.
Just sayin...
Yes, as we are fond of saying, it's all in the 'Intention'.
On a similar stream to @Chaz's comment:
When a person is Confirmed into the Catholic faith, the officiating priest symbolically 'slaps' the person to make them understand that Life may bring many hardships and moments of strife and discord, but that in the Act of being Confirmed, the person is blooming into RC Adulthood, and as such must exercise adult common sense, fortitude and resolve, in order to face what Life may slap them in the face with.
The person then 'turns the other cheek'.
This is not meek submission, and a religious chaste unwillingness to fight, or an invitation to permit the oppressor to dominate, as has been mistakenly often thought.
This, rather, is actually a gesture of Passive Defiance, a "Come what may, I will not be conquered".
Somewhat different to an angry blow from someone who is malicious, spiteful and uses physical violence to convey their opinion.
Utterly unacceptable, and in this case, and only if the need presents itself, a self-defensive act is acceptable.
But 99.99 times out of ten, a non-retaliatory attitude, with words of Compassion, might actually cut the mustard better....