DiscussWorldIssues - Socio-Economic Religion and Political Uncensored Debate - View Single Post - In Which Alexander Berzin Calls the Buddha's Liberative Teachings "Dharma Lite"

**ArrichMer** · 06-22-2010, 01:31 AM

If you say that the benefit of dhamma is in life, you must explain what exactly that means to you.

Are you *kidding*? It means that I have tools at my disposal that help me to live well and to cope with circumstances in life that had previously caused me a great deal of misery. It means that I can look at things that happen in this life in an enlightened way, so that I am not compelled though ignorance to become angry, upset, miserable, or anything else over them. It means that I do not have to be dragged through life by the nose, attached to emotion and craving for this-or-that thing or experience or illusion of status or ownership. It means that I can live life intelligently, and not be sucked in by shiny mental objects, that I can go against the stream and not be enslaved by the cult of television or political bullshit and all the other garbage that goes on there. It means that I can deal with what goes on in my life without my judgment being clouded by inappropriate emotions like anger and greed. It means that I do not have to rely on superstition and fear to correct unskillful impulses that may arise, that I have an unshakable ethics of reciprocity to refer to and guide me that is not based in superstition and nonsense. And that's just the *start* of it. The Buddha's own liberative doctrine teaches all of that and so much more, and all of these are benefits that one can enjoy here and now.

I can't believe you even ask the question, and that you cannot see any benefit of the Dhamma in this life, I find that to be shockingly absurd.

06-22-2010, 01:31 AM	#27
ArrichMer Join Date Oct 2005 Posts 570 Senior Member	If you say that the benefit of dhamma is in life, you must explain what exactly that means to you. Are you kidding? It means that I have tools at my disposal that help me to live well and to cope with circumstances in life that had previously caused me a great deal of misery. It means that I can look at things that happen in this life in an enlightened way, so that I am not compelled though ignorance to become angry, upset, miserable, or anything else over them. It means that I do not have to be dragged through life by the nose, attached to emotion and craving for this-or-that thing or experience or illusion of status or ownership. It means that I can live life intelligently, and not be sucked in by shiny mental objects, that I can go against the stream and not be enslaved by the cult of television or political bullshit and all the other garbage that goes on there. It means that I can deal with what goes on in my life without my judgment being clouded by inappropriate emotions like anger and greed. It means that I do not have to rely on superstition and fear to correct unskillful impulses that may arise, that I have an unshakable ethics of reciprocity to refer to and guide me that is not based in superstition and nonsense. And that's just the start of it. The Buddha's own liberative doctrine teaches all of that and so much more, and all of these are benefits that one can enjoy here and now. I can't believe you even ask the question, and that you cannot see any benefit of the Dhamma in this life, I find that to be shockingly absurd.
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