1. Buddhism only values 'self-awareness' insofar as it cultivates humility and compassion.
2. It is not necessary to create a 'self' before you abandon it.
4. The idea of 'interbeing' was not taught by Buddha.
5. 'Oneness' and 'interdependency' are mutually contradictory ideas and neither is central to Buddhism.
6. Nothing is indivisibly singular.
7. Spiritual maturity requires a sense of separation.
8. Peace in the world will not be achieved by all becoming the same.
9. Buddha taught mostly by the skilful use of words. The idea that the Dharma cannot be conveyed in words would disqualify Buddha himself.
10. Buddhism encourages clear, critical investigation and thought.
11. It is not necessary to 'love oneself' before one can be loving toward others. As Dogen says, 'First save others before you attempt to save yourself.'
12. Nonduality is a dualistic theory.
13. Harmony is not a primary value in Buddhism. Buddha did not advocate 'going with the flow' but more often spoke of 'cutting across the stream'.
14. Trying to find your true self is a waste of time.
15. Enlightenment is not a 'state of mind'.
16. As Takuan said 'You can't make a Buddha by meditating'.
17. There is no technique or protocol that can guarantee enlightenment.
18. When something is completely known, it passes into the unconscious and becomes a fully integrated part of the person. Consciousness is a transitional phase in the learning process. The cultivation of consciousness per se is not a correct goal of the spiritual life.
19. It is important to be mindful of past learning and experience and of the future high purpose of life in order that one not become lost merely in the present.
20. It is self-evident that in no empirical respect are any two human beings born equal.
21. All needs are relative to a purpose. There are no 'absolute' needs. One does not need to go on living unless one has some worthwhile purpose in doing so.
22. In nature, we have no rights. Rights are human conventions that only hold within the bounds of the culture that asserts them. (Nobody has a 'right' to exemption from disease, old age, death, nor natural calamity.)
23. The fact that in a free society each person has a social right to their own opinion does not mean that all opinions are equally valid. Most people hold to a mixture of views that includes substantial elements of self-contradiction.
24. There is no basic reason to believe that a majority is going to be more right than a minority. Most advances start as minority concerns.
25. No action of a deluded mind can generate an enlightened one. Therefore, Buddhism is not a matter of accumulating self-development.
26. Karma is inexorable, even for Buddhas.
27. Dukkha is a truth for 'noble ones', not something that can be eliminated.
28. Buddha did not get enlightened by following the 'eightfold path' - he discovered the eightfold path by getting enlightened.
Replies
Buddhism is fundamentally about being beyond good and bad, but good must still be better than bad :-)
I posted a discussion on personal development in the poetry section, though I realise this is a controversial subject in Buddhism, hence "25. No action of a deluded mind can generate an enlightened one. Therefore, Buddhism is not a matter of accumulating self-development.". I guess that does not mean that self-development is bad?
Thanks, Carol. I incline to the view of Winston Churchil that "Democracy is the worst form of government... apart from the alternatives." No form is ideal. Democracy is often the best one can do. However, I do think that it is important not to think of democracy in too ideal terms. An awful lot of blood has been spilt in the last hundred years in the name of imposing democracy. Recent examples are Iraq and Libya. The alternative was not great either, but there were probably other ways of advancing the situation. Also, there are situations, such as strongly tribal countries, where democracy simply does not work. Even in a country like Belgium people vote more on tribal lines than ideological or interest ones. For democracy to work reasonably well one needs a country where there is at least a moderate level of trust between the vaqrious sub-communities that make up the country. Of course there are then many issues about detail. When democracy is imposed from outside it is often in the form of a so-called government of national unity in which all factions are represented in the government. This seldom works and the countries that impose it would very rarely and never for long adopt it back home. The quick answer, in my view, is that there is no perfect government and what is best has to be locally adapted, so this is an appeal against over-idealisation. Athens was the most democratic of the Greek states and also the most imperialistic.
Interesting. Certainly something to reflect on.
24. There is no basic reason to believe that a majority is going to be more right than a minority. Most advances start as minority concerns.
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25. No action of a deluded mind can generate an enlightened one.
Aren't points 23,24, and 25 arguments against democracy? Do we have any alternatives given that few are enlightened and even those, as human manifestations, have a finite view. But that begs the question of alternatives... Hubris to get imagine we can get decision making, ethics, and government right...?
I like your spicy quotes... :-)