RE: virus: Buddhism
Robin Faichney (r.j.faichney@stir.ac.uk)
Sun, 19 Oct 1997 19:51:06 +0100
> From: Eric Boyd[SMTP:6ceb3@qlink.queensu.ca]
>
...an actual school ("Mahayana") broke away from what I
> considered Buddhism to be. They thought that worshiping the Buddha
> (and
> dead Bodhisattva's) could somehow cause them to be reborn in heaven,
> rather than here on earth again.
>
That's not Mahayana Buddhism. Sounds like Pure Land,
which is one of many, many varieties of MB, some of
which are much *less* supersititious than many
Therevadins -- eg, Zen is usually classed as MB. Then
there's Tibetan, which encompasses all levels from the
most culture-bound to the "purest", and is classed by
some as MB, and others as a third variety, Vajrayana.
The commonest characterisation of MB among
MBuddhists, however, is that it is morally superior to
Therevada, being less selfish, more other-oriented.
I really don't think many MB's "worship" anything.
> The only reason Theravada Buddhism survived at all is because of the
> effect of <Authority>... what the Buddha said still matters!
>
This, again, seems somewhat slanderous. How can
you say that was "the only reason"? Has it nothing
else going for it?
Robin