What happens if earth dies?

to_be

I believe that it is possible that due to global warming or nuclear war humans may face extinction, or at least something close to that. Do Buddhists agree with this view? Where will beings with good karma go if this happens?

Quiet_witness

On a big enough time scale all galaxies and known universes will expire. What will happen no one knows. The Buddha teaches us to not ponder the unponderable, this question fits in there. One thing a teacher once told me is that the likelihood of the roof falling on our heads is vastly more possible than the sun exploding, so why stress over the universe? I say live for the moment as you don't know if you will be alive by the end of the week.

federica

If you have a problem, and there is a solution, what's the point of worrying?
If you have a problem, and there is no solution, what's the use of worrying?

Transmetaphysical

In Buddhism, everything changes, nothing is permanent. But at the same time, nothing is lost or destroyed, only transformed.

All in all, this doesn't matter. Only now exists.

.

TheFound

LOL as if there aren't a billion trillion quantum parallel realities where EARTH doesn't die.:D
im kidding I don't know that's a fact.
but in Buddhism we do say there are other worlds to be reborn into, and the D.L says theres angels and crazy shit out there..so earth might not be the only "human/buddha-achieving" realm to be reborn into,

think about it the universe is SICK HUGE... if you tell me how much you imagine it to be huge..i will have to tell you it's a trillion times that huge..
imagine the possibilities..
some mathematicians and philosophers say that ODDS, indicate life on other planets... so wtf

Mountains

To quote a phrase I heard often in the military, but in a slightly different context here, "I just doesn't matter! It just doesn't matter! It just doesn't matter!"

Truly, as Federica pointed out, if you can't do anything about it, why worry? And if you can, why worry?

On a slightly less philosophical note, here's the way I see it: the earth is but one of countless small green and blue planets in a countless number of solar systems in a countless number of galaxies, quite possibly in a countless number of universes. We're surely not the first sentient beings in the history of time, and we're surely not going to be the last. I look at it as an adventure. Who knows where and when we'll be reborn??



Mtns

Mani

First off, I agree with what Federica suggests. But, to give a perspective to the actual question, this paragraph of an except from Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche may be fitting here...

"The entire universe is first created, it remains, it disintegrates, and becomes void. Everything that comes into being—mountains, plants, trees, flowers, sentient or insentient —is impermanent; there is nothing that lasts. Everything is impermanent; that is a fact. The Tibetan word for impermanence, mitagpa, ‘not lasting,’ means subject to change, perishable, fleeting, passing—like a bubble on the water. The Buddha said that when we look at a bubble in the water it looks like it is there, like it exists, but then the next moment it is gone. Everything is like that; every single moment is changing."

here is the url for the whole teaching...

http://www.gomdeusa.org/lineage-meditation.html

Though I agree that it is not useful to dwell on these things, it can be helpful in terms of motivation for one's ongoing practice, by realizing the fortunate situation and conditions we have, and by then trying to gain some essence from it through our cultivation.



Mani

to_be

Thanks for the responces. My concern was that some buddhist ideas could be proven false if everyone on earth died, because I was thiinking only humans on earth could really be enlightened. But duh theirs the whole universe with many other human like life forms I suppose

Anyway, I agree with what your all saying 100%. Ty

upekka

Transmetaphysical wrote: »

In Buddhism, everything changes, nothing is permanent. But at the same time, nothing is lost or destroyed, only transformed.

All in all, this doesn't matter. Only now exists.


.

in Lord Buddha's Teaching :
nothing will stay as we expect
know it and face this truth
let go of whatever we feel we want
that will reduce suffering (suffering of we do not get what we want, suffering of we get what we do not want, suffering of departure of our loved ones, .... in short, five clinging aggregate itself suffering)

we have to let go of clinging to things
not let go of things

Daozen

We're kidding ourselves if we think we can destroy earth.

A lot of the creatures on it, sure, but this rock is one tough mama.

She'll be round long after us.

Deshy

Daozen wrote: »

... but this rock is one tough mama.

tony67

I think one of the problems with Buddhism is people who say it doesn't matter. I do not think this is what Buddha taught, everything was about compassion. I think it is important to see every action on the scale of suffering of one being.
to_be once parts of you were produced by explosion of a giant star 10 billion years ago, what you are now will be that again. There is no point speculating what can be, if you have worries about these things you can begin to take direction action about them, here and now.

Theswingisyellow

tony67 wrote: »

I think one of the problems with Buddhism is people who say it doesn't matter. I do not think this is what Buddha taught, everything was about compassion. I think it is important to see every action on the scale of suffering of one being.
to_be once parts of you were produced by explosion of a giant star 10 billion years ago, what you are now will be that again. There is no point speculating what can be, if you have worries about these things you can begin to take direction action about them, here and now.

Things do matter and I don't think Buddhist as a whole would suggest that they do not, unless you are a stone Buddha. Attachments and clinging really don't matter. When we as Buddhist see a problem we can help with, or a sentinent being in need, it is our job to help in whatever way we can. Having the knowledge of impermanence, selflessness and suffering, is one thing, but this knowledge is pointless if one does not use it to compassionately help all sentient being.
Yours in the Dharma,
Todd

Stephen

to_be wrote: »

I believe that it is possible that due to global warming or nuclear war humans may face extinction, or at least something close to that. Do Buddhists agree with this view? Where will beings with good karma go if this happens?

The Earth is impermanent, as are all things. That answers your first question.

As to your second, you make two assumptions. Firstly you assume rebirth as literal (not all Buddhists do); secondly you assume that this literal rebirth has been happening for us on Earth only and not other worlds and planes of existence. Such a question has no easy answer nor would there be a consensus found.

PietroPumokin

TheFound wrote: »

LOL as if there aren't a billion trillion quantum parallel realities where EARTH doesn't die.:D
im kidding I don't know that's a fact.
but in Buddhism we do say there are other worlds to be reborn into, and the D.L says theres angels and crazy shit out there..so earth might not be the only "human/buddha-achieving" realm to be reborn into,

think about it the universe is SICK HUGE... if you tell me how much you imagine it to be huge..i will have to tell you it's a trillion times that huge..
imagine the possibilities..
some mathematicians and philosophers say that ODDS, indicate life on other planets... so wtf

:usflag::cheer::canflag: