This or that
One day, the Buddha was sitting under a tree. One man possibly named Heidegger (it is impossible to ascertain) came to the Buddha and said, "Is there life after death? Are the soul and the body separate entities or are they one? Is the world eternal or does it have a finite life? If you don’t know the answers to these questions, then why should we all follow you in the quest for salvation?
The Buddha told this man, now look here Heidegger (really, his name is very difficult to know for sure). Did I ever promise to ascertain whether there is life after death? Did I ever tell you that I would answer the question if the body and soul are separate? Did I tell you that I would know the answer to whether the world is eternal or not? Your question reminds me of a man who was pierced by a poisonous arrow. Now would this person, ever stop to say, “Before you cure me doctor, or give me that antidote, I must know whether the person who shot the arrow was short or tall. Was he dark or fair? Was he from an upper caste or lower caste? All that I promised to show you was that suffering is eternal and there is a way to escape it.
This story has great value for society in the modern age. Many of us have very definite views on centrally held beliefs such as nuclear weapons, abortion, the benefits of capitalism vis a vis socialism, etc. The media exploits this fact. The conservative papers tow one line, while the liberal publications the complete opposite. Pages after pages are filled with opinion pieces containing arguments based on “unshakable” facts that are set in stone. I am not disputing that these facts are true. However, the article rings true not because of the truths it contains, but because of the information it omits.
This might not necessarily be due to the bad intentions of the journalist (at least some of the times this is true), but because of the very fact that the world is a large, complex place.
One cannot hear every butterfly flap its wings in far away Alaska.
One day, the Buddha was sitting under a tree. One man possibly named Heidegger (it is impossible to ascertain) came to the Buddha and said, "Is there life after death? Are the soul and the body separate entities or are they one? Is the world eternal or does it have a finite life? If you don’t know the answers to these questions, then why should we all follow you in the quest for salvation?
The Buddha told this man, now look here Heidegger (really, his name is very difficult to know for sure). Did I ever promise to ascertain whether there is life after death? Did I ever tell you that I would answer the question if the body and soul are separate? Did I tell you that I would know the answer to whether the world is eternal or not? Your question reminds me of a man who was pierced by a poisonous arrow. Now would this person, ever stop to say, “Before you cure me doctor, or give me that antidote, I must know whether the person who shot the arrow was short or tall. Was he dark or fair? Was he from an upper caste or lower caste? All that I promised to show you was that suffering is eternal and there is a way to escape it.
This story has great value for society in the modern age. Many of us have very definite views on centrally held beliefs such as nuclear weapons, abortion, the benefits of capitalism vis a vis socialism, etc. The media exploits this fact. The conservative papers tow one line, while the liberal publications the complete opposite. Pages after pages are filled with opinion pieces containing arguments based on “unshakable” facts that are set in stone. I am not disputing that these facts are true. However, the article rings true not because of the truths it contains, but because of the information it omits.
This might not necessarily be due to the bad intentions of the journalist (at least some of the times this is true), but because of the very fact that the world is a large, complex place.
One cannot hear every butterfly flap its wings in far away Alaska.
For the innocent person in jail
Welcome to part two of the Gandhi blog. This is written with a slightly different slant than the prior version. This is not to say that this installment is better or worse.
The two versions can be compared as one would compare a very hot summer and a very cold winter.
They are just different.
Somewhere in the world today, there is an innocent person in jail who goes to bed knowing that the next thirty years of his or her life are washed away needlessly. This person might have grown up like you and me, slaving through school, a career and at every step building up ambitions and aspirations. Suddenly, for no fault, he or she is sent to jail. Can you imagine the frustration and bitterness present in such a person?
What use is it to take a book on non-violence or religion and preach to such a person? Is it not better to occupy the mind of this person through stories, equations, feats and instances which inspire wonder in the universe we live in. A mind bending exercise that will occupy the navigational powers of most minds, even in the smallest of cells? And inspire a feeling of admiration, awe and love for all of creation?
This, after all, is the true essence of non-violence.
Welcome to part two of the Gandhi blog. This is written with a slightly different slant than the prior version. This is not to say that this installment is better or worse.
The two versions can be compared as one would compare a very hot summer and a very cold winter.
They are just different.
Somewhere in the world today, there is an innocent person in jail who goes to bed knowing that the next thirty years of his or her life are washed away needlessly. This person might have grown up like you and me, slaving through school, a career and at every step building up ambitions and aspirations. Suddenly, for no fault, he or she is sent to jail. Can you imagine the frustration and bitterness present in such a person?
What use is it to take a book on non-violence or religion and preach to such a person? Is it not better to occupy the mind of this person through stories, equations, feats and instances which inspire wonder in the universe we live in. A mind bending exercise that will occupy the navigational powers of most minds, even in the smallest of cells? And inspire a feeling of admiration, awe and love for all of creation?
This, after all, is the true essence of non-violence.
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