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Hypothetical question
Bunks
Australia Veteran
If science proved that the Blessed ones teachings on rebirth and the results of karma were true I.e. past and future lives were true and were determined by our karma, would you actually change your behaviour? Would you be more motivated to change your behaviour?
3
Comments
No.....and no.....
The real name of the game is enlightenment, is it not? We do whatever we can in search of enlightenment, we search through meditation, we search through the paramita's, we search through expanding our knowledge of the world as it is.
It could happen at any time, a sudden experience like a thunderbolt. The question is, would we be ready? People who have talked about their enlightenment say it is a moment where the old you ceases to exist, but are we ready to let go of it? After all the work we have done on our inner selves, would we be prepared to take such a radical step?
The thing is, what would rebirth change? I think memory would get a lot more attention - it would become more urgent to see what you could remember across lives, what knowledge you could preserve.
Although the Buddha teaches much on re-birth and Kamma. they are still topics of controversy, but having seen for myself how profound and accurate the Buddha's teachings have been, and how they have impacted my life, I'm erring on the side of taking his word for it....
I try to remember HHDL's take on it:
"If you wish to see who you were, look at your body, now;
If you wish to see who you will be, look at your Mind, now."
From purely my perspective, that's a damn good caveat, right there.
Being ready is the key.
And I really like this:
"If you wish to see who you were, look at your body, now;
If you wish to see who you will be, look at your Mind, now."
I actually think, as sincere as we are in our practise and intentions, of course we would change our behavior. It would definitely be more of an incentive to be more diligent.
And that's not a bad thing either.
I feel the same way @federica!
Changing behavior (or anything else) is not a matter of will (or incentive, desire, etc.). Else, everyone would be a saint. Many factors - our efforts, circumstances, luck, karma, etc. - have to come together for changes on any level to occur.
A big part of changing behaviour is insight. If you can see why you should alter your behaviour, then often actually doing it is made much easier.
Unless you have some other attachment to that pattern of doing things, like an addiction or a deep seated psychological problem.
Uncovering the ground of the real human being, the person you would have originally been if you had been brought up in a primitive society with a policy of strict non-interference and only nurturing, is not easy. Many things distort us during our time on earth... parents beliefs, teachers, society around us, the media. To cut through all that to see all the things you should let go of, and what is naturally you, is quite difficult.
And then beyond, to absorb and process the lessons of Buddhism so that you can approach what is most relevant for you on the path, is also a long study.
I hope so. I make it a point of emphasis in my life to acknowledge new information and use it to actually change my beliefs, which should change my behavior.
Wow @Bunks, good question, it really made me think
Personally, I would
This is not to say that I don't believe it now so I'm not trying my best. rebirth and karma are something that I have believed in even before I started practicing Buddhism. I see myself as a fair, honest and kind person but there is always things I can change about myself and probably quicker. It's an interesting question because by saying "I would" makes me feel like there is more I can do that I'm not doing just because it hasn't been scientifically proven and I am at a loss for words to prove otherwise.
I will never be perfect, and that's perfect with me
I'm stumped here
If one would be willing to change their behaviour if science were to prove beyond any doubt....What's stopping one from 'changing' one's behaviour for the better "NOW" ?
My answer "No and no" means my behaviour is and as always been changing, and there no need for me to try and change....and the deeper one delves into the Buddha Dharma, the more changes will 'naturally' occur.....
As they say "Change is inevitable suffering is optional"
I guess after a while of seeing for oneself, the rest becomes a matter of 'faith'....
I agree @Shoshin - if one continues to follow this path, change comes naturally.
Renunciation shouldn't be painful.
The Blessed One? (PBUH?)
Hyper mythical questions whilst fun for those who like to contemplate how many angels can dance on the head of a pin are what is the phrase? mmm ...
... a gaggle of Gurudas ... ?
I have enough to contemplate how my kitchen appliances are going to be reborn, without worrying about what happens to a mind I don't have as a continuity ...
http://www.viewonbuddhism.org/mind.html
(see 'dependent origination' for details)
Yep. Well said. That'll do for me ... and the awakened too no doubt ...
It might become more of a consideration or regularly occurring thought but I'm not sure how much it would change my behavior. I just am not good at long term goals, lol. I prefer to work on right now, whether we are talking my Buddhist practice, my yoga, my running, or whatever than to look 50 years down the road. Of course I hope my work now pays off then, too, but I can't even comprehend that far away! I think I would get drawn into to wanting to know past lives, as @Kerome mentioned, but I think for me that wouldn't be a good thing. I thin I would lose my focus drastically. I'm not sure knowing the truth of that would help me as a result.
That is probably why we don't know about past lives @karasti ... it's the questions of this life that we should focus on, not necessarily our past lives. Perhaps it is only something that should be revealed to advanced practitioners.
@Kerome yep, I totally agree.
I know a path is open to me now to enlightenment, and yet I do not practice as though my hair were on fire.....I probably wouldn't change behavior as much as awareness....