View Single Post
Old 06-17-2011, 05:30 PM   #15
sydramySweame

Join Date
Oct 2005
Posts
422
Senior Member
Default
The Tibetans talk about people attaining to rainbow bodies after becoming enlightened
Sure - but 'rainbow body' is something which was said to happen sometimes to practitioners in Tibet (the body dissolving into light). However we ourselves haven't seen evidence of that, have we? - so it just becomes belief rather than something we can understand on a practical level. ....and its not mentioned in Theravada (or possibly other traditions such as Zen either)

So too the Buddha didn't die - he was beyond death - he simply exists in another form (or should I say formless) body, which is said to be in paranirvana.
Well that's not something one can verify for oneself though. 'Beliefs' don't help us overcome dukkha (unsatisfactoriness, discontent, conflict, suffering) on a practical day-to -day level.

Returning to dialogue with f13ticket again, here's an excerpt from "Looking at Buddhism" by Ajahn Buddhadasa which you might find helpful:



To attain liberation, we first have to examine things closely in order to come to know and understand their true nature. Then we have to behave in a way appropriate to that true nature. This is the Buddhist teaching; this we must know and bear in mind.

Buddhism has nothing to do with prostrating oneself and deferring to awesome things. It sets no store by rites and ceremonies such as making libations of holy water, or any externals whatsoever, spirits and celestial being included. On the contrary, it depends on reason and insight. Buddhism does not demand conjecture or supposition; it demands that we act in accordance with what our own insight reveals and not take anyone else's word for anything.

If someone comes and tells us something, we must not believe him without question. We must listen to his statement and examine it. Then if we find it reasonable, we may accept it provisionally and set about trying to verify it for ourselves. This is a key feature of Buddhism, which distinguishes it sharply from other world religions.


http://www.buddhanet.net/budasa4.htm

sydramySweame is offline


 

All times are GMT +1. The time now is 07:03 AM.
Copyright ©2000 - 2012, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Design & Developed by Amodity.com
Copyright© Amodity