Question: Isn’t this a bit pessimistic?
ANSWER: The dictionary defines pessimism as ‘the habit of thinking that whatever will happen will be bad,’ or ‘the belief that evil is more powerful than good.’ Buddhism reaches neither of these ideas. Nor does it deny that happiness exists. It simply says that to live is to experience physical and psychological suffering which is a statement so true and so obvious that it cannot be denied. l3uddhism starts with an experience, an irrefutable fact, a thing that all know, that all have experienced and that all are trying to avoid. Thus, Buddhism starts by going straight to the core of every individual human beings’ concern — suffering and how to avoid it.
ANSWER: The dictionary defines pessimism as ‘the habit of thinking that whatever will happen will be bad,’ or ‘the belief that evil is more powerful than good.’ Buddhism reaches neither of these ideas. Nor does it deny that happiness exists. It simply says that to live is to experience physical and psychological suffering which is a statement so true and so obvious that it cannot be denied. l3uddhism starts with an experience, an irrefutable fact, a thing that all know, that all have experienced and that all are trying to avoid. Thus, Buddhism starts by going straight to the core of every individual human beings’ concern — suffering and how to avoid it.
No comments:
Post a Comment