OUR Country is great because we have GOD on our side..,

all they have are the wooden idols which the bible is clearly against.

The white race should unite and prevent the contamination of the pure religion.

We cannot be tolerant of these dotheads or chinks.

WE NEED TO SPREAD THE HATE!!!

I have always perceived it as a bit of human ego (greed, jealousy, etc) on the part of those doing the destruction.

The Tibetan Buddhists realize that this is not the end of their world, and that they are learning from the destructive experiences surrounding them.

These experiences are happening for some reason, and we need to trust that it is for the highest good of all.

That does not mean that we should not do what we can to help out (don't buy products imported from China, etc..) but trust that in the end it is for the best.

Already, many, many, many more people have become aware of Tibet's belief system because of the turmoil over there.. the dharma wheels are spinning world wide! :)

otherwise you are maintaining a supposition of buddhism that really does not exist.

Another words are you creating you own form of BUDDHISM and then you are criticizing it.

Are you saying that each one of those people in Tibet had the same karma in order to have China occupy and oppress Tibet?

Each of them have fears, greed, hate, just like other people in other nations of this world.

The point is that there are Tibetans who devoutly practice and there are tibetans who don�t.

In Tibet there was this Gesha that feared death so greatly that he was pleading for his life.

Having said this why are you contradicting the DHAMAPADDA to make a point?

CHRISTIANITY the only thru religion because thru christ can one see your way to heaven.

The truth is the pudding.

The greatest nation on this earth is THE UNITED STATES

Other Countries could ever hope to emulate it.

It is great because it is a GOD-FEARING nation.

There is no other country that can compare to it economic stability and it military might.

�We owe a lot to Indians, who taught us how to count, without which no worthwhile scientific discovery could have been made.� Albert Einstein.

If the infidels in TIBET failed their country what country are you a proponent off...

what country do you support that its religion has saved their nation?

Tell me so i could get a good laugh!!!

if you, have read the bible you would know that the end times are near.

The problem is how many more false prophets the likes of Vijai will take with him, to damnation.

Already god�s chosen nation, the israelites are in place, the false prophets are in abundance�.CAN�T YOU READ THE WRITING ON WALL?

Vijai I am still waiting�.

what country are you in agreement with and what religion do you believe have helped this country.

"The advance of western civilization has been partly a story of gradual victory over oppressive religion, and these brilliant doubters were men and women who didn't pray, didn't kneel before altars, didn't make pilgrimages, didn't recite creeds." James A. Haught - "2000 years of Disbelief".

I bet vijai you are in the UNITED STATES And you don�t want to leave�.

meanwhile you want to spread the pollution that is your religion

America should not be so lax on their acceptance of religion�

there is inherent evil in religious tolerance.

Because there is suffering as an individual or as a nation, this does not mean the suffering is deserved.

Those that cannot rise above their suffering will continue, whether they are rich or poor, male or female, black, white, red, yellow, green or blue.

If we were to journey to some of those monasteries in Tibet, I think we would find the monks (for the most part--for monasticism doesn't guarantee freedom from suffering) are not suffering.

The Dalhi Lama does not seem like a person who is suffering.

Therein lies the path of Buddhism: to acknowledge that there is suffering, and to take the steps that lead you from the life of a sufferer.

Tibet is a much safer and more peaceful place to be than in either of their own minds.

The higher reward for this truth is enlightenment, or the extinguishing of the cycle of suffering.

At the point that you reach Nibbana, Nirvana, Enlightenment-

I don't understand your question of "why weren't all born rich or poor, black or white?"

After one has reached the state of enlightenment, they will still live in this world until their own death, but they will not be attached to it as we all are.

There is no one to answer to except one's self, and their own release from suffering is their sole responsibility.

So the first step is to calm the mind. Then, the work of breaking down the constant grasping after anything and everything can begin.

God does not share space with junk, and neither does enlightenment.

Only sharing and enlivening our experiences together serves our Enlightenment. Let's do that.

Spiritually, all we can do is rely upon our own common sense and good judgement, and live this life as well as we can:

Therefore, I will leave you to apply your common sense to the questions that you have posed.

I will leave you with this final thought: Meditation is not for the "well," it is exactly for the "sick" parts of all of us, whether our ills be physical, mental, or spiritual.

You don't give a healthy (enlightened) person medication--you administer to the sick.

I'm not doing anyone including myself any good by getting caught up in debate!

I see that you think all the answers lie in the Veda

same story, different religion.

By the way, bet you'd never have guessed that I've done quite extensive research on Colonel Olcott and the "Old Horse" Mme. B.

What a clever couple of table rappers they were, eh?

Just the two that you'd want endorsing your spiritual leader!

"He who attains true knowledge of Dharma or righteousness throught the Vedas, attains a steady position. He does not waver." Sutta Nipata 292

I really have had fun here with you, but your inane questions are beginning to wear on me-

I can't continue to address illogical queries with logical answers, expecting to make any headway, so I will have to leave off

I Hope your sarcasm, anger, and inability to engage in constructive conversation serves you well. Bye

Inner Peace will surely bring to you its own rewards!

"When the time of destruction is at hand the intellect becomes perverted." Vridha Chan. 16:17. ...and I find the converse of that to be an abSOULute truth. :-)

Hello Angi667 - May 01, 1999
Vijai: No matter what religion we are - Christian, Buddhist, Muslim, Athiest - we all believe that our religion is right. We all believe that our proof is true. Yes, I am Catholic, and I believe that our Bible is true.

What religion you believe should be whatever you find happiness and peace in.

We won't know what the true religion is until the one true God, whoever He She or They may be, chooses to tell us.

The true religion, while you're on earth, is in your heart.

Good luck in your search, and I hope you find peace in whatever religion you choose.

First of all, I think you are either lost in your philosophical trap or in your anger of something.

I don't want to argue, but I love to discuss so that I can have more knowledge and understanding.

Happiness is a state of mind. It can exist in a leper or a rich man. Have you ever seen a beggar smile in India? Have you ever seen a wealthy man cry?

Buddha taught people how to have an steady and infinite happiness, basing on cultivating their own minds.

Many Tibetans are unhappy, but not all of them.

Secondly, Tibet was weak and could not fight back China because the people are not warriors

They did not follow the entire teaching of Buddha.

So, whose fault is it? Buddha or his followers?

Buddhism teaches many things and most of the teachings are provisional. That is, they are intended to help the aspirant to "buy time" in a sense.

However, to reach the goal of liberation, one has to attend to the definitive teachings which reveal that all concepts are bogus -- including the concept of liberation itself.

It is well stated in canonical Buddhist texts that this ultimate level of knowledge/truth is not the property of any religion and is perpetually available to all life-forms.

It is purely for practical reasons that one follows the Buddhist path as it has a very favorable historical track-record regarding bringing practitioners to the gate of liberation.

To go through the gate, however, one has to give up the idea of being a Buddhist (or anything else for that matter).

But this subtly is also part of the Buddhist teaching, so it would appear that Buddhism may be the only religion that has a built-in self-destruct mechanism.

It should be well understood however that if one is really practicing Buddhism properly, premature ejection of the concept of Buddhism might be very unwise in the same way that it might be a mistake to jump out of your boat before it reached the other shore.

Hostility is a symptom uncertainty

Your question concerning how to be liberated if a religion can self-destruct (and all the other questions, if you want to call them that) is very easily explained but one has to be more interested in communication than in merely spouting off remarks as though engaged in a grade school debate.

Even in that forum name calling is considered not only bad form but a clear sign of substance deficit.

I wish you the best

and I hope your study of the Vedas is more sincere than your dialogue with me.

Even so, they certainly don't hamper me.

They merely reflect the level of their author.

Vj - I see it as a clear form of courage, for those who brave it in search of truth.
You may claim courage all you want but you have not been courageous with me.

You have been pedantic.

It is not sensible to wish the wise the best, when you are languishing in misery.
Your arrogance may consume you.

You should be careful lest you become a god yourself and thereby ruin a perfectly good life

All beings would surely benefit from your sincerity.

If the spirit of Buddhism is practiced as much as the full points of the law....then there would be greater peace but that cannot be guaranteed if one side elects to raise arms against another.

Your original point relates to Buddhism inherently being a false religion which is certainly not true for millions of people.

If it has been twisted or reinterpreted then that may be a falsehood which has come about in a certain region and/or amongst a certain group but this in no way negates the value of that religion - or the respect it deserves.

Differences of opinion do not create falsehood, neither do differences of practise.

Whatever the groups in Tibet may do or have done they cannot lay claim to being the greatest form of Buddhist practice - which Westerners often expect them to be.

There are many forms and styles and none is greater than the other.

If you follow your personal quest you can gain your own insight.

It is not necessary to assume that the greatest form has already been discovered.

If you make too many assumptions and give excess credit too soon, you will certainly feel bitter and disappointed when something doesn�t live up to your expectations.

Buddhism is not inherently the guiding principle of communist China although elements of it may well exist within rural communities.

A national religion of a country is not guaranteed to be its ethical guide on all matters of territorial ownership nor of political greed.

I think you need to be a little less sweeping in your assumptions and accept that there is more to these issues than just a religious base.

Your belief system, like all other theistic doctrines,

can not reconcile ultimate reality without resorting to the fanciful concept of a God.

Not only do you naively accept personal and worldly events to be either the reward or retribution of a fictional God,

you simmer with gloating self-satisfaction at the idea of someone receiving this fictional retribution.

You even imagine yourself as that God, passing judgment on others.

This kind of ignorant thinking and believing that derives from theism, be it Hinduism, Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Zoroastrianism, Shinto, VEDAism or whatever, is one of the chief causes of bigotry, social discord and war.

This is because fanatics like you begin to believe your own bullshit

and, if given the opportunity, you self-appoint yourself as either the messenger of your imaginary God, the henchman of your imaginary God or even the personification of that imaginary God.

No doubt, you yourself were previously contaminated by just such a person.

Even so, if people like you would just confine yourself to self-development, self-purification, self-liberation, etc., and stop marketing your ideas, you would be tolerable and perhaps even likable.

And just so there will be no misunderstanding, this applies equally to Buddhists (who, as a world group, are certainly not exempt from either theistic views, fanaticism or marketing)

I have also studied the Buddhist teachings for the same length of time.

Vj ~ Is the judicial system of our world, with a judge who dispenses justice, also a "fanciful concept�?
Yes it is. But this is Karma. The difference however, is that Karma is a law whose venue is not absolute.

Vj - If it is not, then what answer to you have for these worldly events? In Buddhism the concept of reincarnation must also be based on some merits or demerits, otherwise anyone can qualify to become the Dalai Lama."
God does not determine these things. They are determined by the self-regulating karmic reactions of each individual's basic state.

It is like eating different foods. When you eat good food your body is nourished and thrives; when you eat poison you vomit. Karma is the same. God does not play a role in that.

As a matter of fact, God is also subject to Karma since he himself abides in the delusional state of believing in a Self.

"Vj-"Nothing can be made without a maker." Vedanta.
Neither you nor anyone else can actually identify anything whatsoever that has been made.

So, it is ignorant to search for a maker.

"Vj-China is not theist and so is Tibet, but they at war."
China and Tibet are not at war. Tibet is not capable of participating in a war. China annexed Tibet.

"Vj-Isn't your Dalai Lama an imaginary Buddha also?"
YES, that is correct!

"It seems you have a bigger problem, since he is on the run."
He is not on the run, he is in exile.

However, either way, it poses no problem to me. I am not a follower of the Dalai Lama. I do, however, respect him.

"Vj-Such contamination brings on misery and there is no greater example of that, than the religion of the Buddhist contaminating Tibet and wherever it is practiced."
This is a completely ignorant statement.

If the wise possess vanity they are not wise.

Vj- "A wise man's joy is to disseminate truth even among fools since even from them he can draw wisdom."
Only a fool would accept your dissemination as truth.

The fact that you seek to derive wisdom from those same fools is pitiful indeed.

Fools need friendship and kindness, not philosophy -- certainly not flawed philosophy.

"Vj-Buddhism, like other dogmas, is already a misuntunderstanding, but being a fool as you are, you would hardly or may never notice it."
Buddhism is not a dogma. It is not something to believe.

Buddhism teaches that there is nothing to believe in. Buddhism is a METHOD. It is just as illusory as the problems that we seek to solve.

However, the important difference is that it was not ignorantly constructed for mundane purposes.

It was constructed as a means for liberation.

It is like injecting some water into your ear in order to get the stuck water out. It will work if you do it correctly. Knowing how to do correctly is the key. But If the Buddhist water itself just gets stuck in your ear then one is no better off. It is important to get all the water out.

He is uneducated in all religions/philosophies/sciences including his own.

As far as the Vedas go he relies on the interpretations that he agrees with and discredits the ones that he doesn't like for no other reason than self-righteousness.

His knowledge on everything is prejudiced, biased, purely subjective, and poorly researched.

The only thing he has going for him is the ability to write moderately well on his web page (if it wasn't plagiarized).

His responses are abusive, amazingly contradictive, rarely consistent with what was brought up in the post he responds to, and commonly unintelligible.

His repeated claims that he is wise while anyone else who disagrees with him is an idiot, moron, monkey brain, etc is bordering on pathological, anti-social, narscissism (sp?).

It is not possible to actually "discuss" anything with him.

P.S.- Don't worry VJ you won't be seeing me again on any of your boards.

but I was disappointed when you seemed to come to the conclusion that your religion is the "one true religion" (as opposed to all the others of course).

There is no religion including Hinduism which has nothing valuable to say as well as which can not be seriously faulted in some aspects.

No criticism of Buddhism, the Bible or Q'uran will get you to the heart of what religion is most truly involved with as they are all removed from direct experience and mere abstractions.

If you had stopped before you got to the "I'm right and everybody else is wrong" bit those would have been a great

Hello Dewa - Monday 1-Jan-2001
Reasoning is subject to interpretation .

You cannot out philosophize a person that is " separate but one " .

difference is a debate or an agreement of ideals.

No complete truth is recognized of any religion now and forever that will come to pass

For all religions still question the interpretations of some of its contents.

As for Vijai my friend a wise man once told me "You cannot cure a headache by decapitation."&

Actually you could but what does it accomplish?

You said in your reply to Enlightened Muslim "Had you any brains you would have...". This is a very harsh reply to make to any human being -- it is decapitation.

To the Enlightened Muslim I am not saying you are indeed a "headache" just that this appears to be how Vijai perceived you.

Hello Dwain - Monday 22-May-2000
Your words are sharp! They are particularly useful/unuseful whichever the case may be to the arrogant and strong-willed.

Naturally there is a place in this wonderful Creation for this form of expression. I do not disregard it.

I may have been unclear but this initial statement was intended for "Enlightened Muslim's" article; very hard to read cumbersome but not incomprehensible.

My goodness your words are STRONG!

My friend if I had implied I was an expert on either of the topics at hand then my reply would have certainly been lengthier and more specific.

My sole purpose was simply to touch on the nature of human communication as an often "delicate" task.

For example basic human dignity and respect MUST proceed with patience in order for the United Nations in Switzerland to be at all effective.

There is a time for a lamb in the China-closet and there is a time for a Bull in the China-closet; chose either with fortitude.

The pace of my "consciousness" and "proper reasoning habits" will be dictated by me.