Thanks to all who congratulated me on my change of status. Did my status really change? I am a little more sure of my status than I was a week ago. So I guess my status did change.
We have a sloppy language when it comes to marriage. My wife and I got married by making a life together over 41+ years. My daughter is getting married in May, but will she then be married? To what extent is someone married when they get married.
Then there is the issue of truth being a construct of what we believe. We believe our experiences. But when we go to a magic show and see the beautiful nymph sawed in half do we believe that? No. Is that an exception? Can we trust experience? I was suspicious last week that my experience of being married was not proof that I was married.
We have friends who say they like us? Do we believe them? We see a sticker on a car that it will go 31 mpg. Do we believe that? Some are told that when they die we'll have access to 27 virgins? Do even the most devout really believe that?
We live in a world that is in our head. Yet be operate as if the world is "out there." We drive into a tree and we don't stop in time. What did we hit? A tree? Some particles that congregate to form the illusion of a tree in our mind. Maybe.
If the county really wanted to know if I was married what could they say or do? And what happens to all those licenses when someone gets divorced. Do they stamp them "ceased to exist?"
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Reflections on Talks on Buddha's Lists
During a recent Appamada Intensive our students gave talks on Buddha's lists. Here are my reflections on their talks.
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Rhinoceros Fan (an infamous koan) One day Yanguan called to his attendant, "Bring me the rhinoceros fan." The attendant said, ...
4 comments:
I believe there is a Absolute Truth that trancends all cultures, in all places at all times...The Postmodern Relativism rhetoric wouldn't tolerate this view, yet they teach tolerance...People can have standards or convictions to live by without making them equal to everyone else's beliefs...
For all of us married men, lets go have affairs, lets cause pain to our families because who knows what Truth is?
One's personal experience and geography may play a role in ones Identity, but we are not helpless and hopeless to our situation...This "all truth is relative", and that any "written text" can not be trusted as true because it has been tainted by the author's experiences...etc was a worldview forced down the Art Students Throats in LA, Cal. since the early 90's. Art that has a social political agenda doesn't get my attention much. But, I do believe no matter what an artist creates, his/her work will always reveal their worlview...usually in their body of work.
Just some thoughts Kim.
Can we trust our experiences? --- Mr. Kim
Kate: Mel, wake up. There's voices coming from your computer. You forgot to turn it off.
Mel: No girl. There’s no voices. Go back to bed.
Kate: Get up and turn off your computer. The voices are keeping me awake.
Mel: I don’t hear any voices.
Kate (in an angered tone): Are you telling me that I’m imagining voices?
Mel: Fine. I’ll go check the computer. (Gets out of bed and shuffles toward the bedroom door.) This sleepwalking shit is getting old, girl.
Let's get the 27 virgin thing out of the way, why would some one desire that? One woman that desires to please you from her heart that would be a gift. Also I don't know anyone that keeps one woman happy all the time, and they want twenty-seven....wait was it sixty-six? Maybe it would just seem that way!
It is 72 virgins and 80000 servants. What a management challenge! Anyway it is not in the Koran: see http://tinyurl.com/virgins72
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