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Inspiring someone to seek out a certain path is different from being unflawed yourself. If you bash an idea or philosophy because the person who holds it is wea

by magpi3 5y ago

Inspiring someone to seek out a certain path is different from being unflawed yourself. If you bash an idea or philosophy because the person who holds it is weak and susceptible to morale or spiritual failures, then you need to bash all ideas and philosophies because that's the human condition. When I was a dedicated yogi, I inspired several people to practice yoga, some of whom went to become teachers. I myself have fallen off the wagon and haven't had a regular practice in over two years. So it goes.

kragen 5y ago
Yes, I agree. My intention wasn't to bash Buddhism, more to say that Kerouac and Watts shouldn't be considered experts on it, any more than James Burke should be considered an expert on physics; and to point out the difficult problem of bootstrapping your knowledge of a skill one doesn't have. If you want to build houses, you're usually better off following the advice of someone who has successfully built houses than someone who has read about building houses, watched builders, or written eloquently about building. That is, there may be some value in the advice of the last three people, but there is usually more value in the advice of the first. If you want to machine pistons, you're usually better off following the advice of someone who has successfully machined pistons than someone who has read about machining pistons, watched machinists, or written eloquently about machining. If you want to paint beautiful paintings, you're usually better off following the advice of someone who has successfully painted beautiful paintings than someone who has read about painting, watched painters, or written eloquently about painting. In the same way, I think that if you want to reduce the suffering in your life, you'll probably be better off following the advice of someone who has successfully reduced the suffering in their life than someone who has read about reducing suffering, watched others reduce their suffering, or written eloquently about reducing suffering. But what do you do if you cannot tell if a house has fallen down, a piston leaks, a painting is ugly, or a guru is dwelling in their own private self-created hell?

by magpi3 5y ago

kragen 5y ago

Yes, I agree. My intention wasn't to bash Buddhism, more to say that Kerouac and Watts shouldn't be considered experts on it, any more than James Burke should be considered an expert on physics; and to point out the difficult problem of bootstrapping your knowledge of a skill one doesn't have. If you want to build houses, you're usually better off following the advice of someone who has successfully built houses than someone who has read about building houses, watched builders, or written eloquently about building. That is, there may be some value in the advice of the last three people, but there is usually more value in the advice of the first. If you want to machine pistons, you're usually better off following the advice of someone who has successfully machined pistons than someone who has read about machining pistons, watched machinists, or written eloquently about machining. If you want to paint beautiful paintings, you're usually better off following the advice of someone who has successfully painted beautiful paintings than someone who has read about painting, watched painters, or written eloquently about painting. In the same way, I think that if you want to reduce the suffering in your life, you'll probably be better off following the advice of someone who has successfully reduced the suffering in their life than someone who has read about reducing suffering, watched others reduce their suffering, or written eloquently about reducing suffering. But what do you do if you cannot tell if a house has fallen down, a piston leaks, a painting is ugly, or a guru is dwelling in their own private self-created hell?