One of the recommendations Buddha purportedly made to his followers was to never blindly accept any truth, but rather to only accept that which you personally experience and come to know first hand.
I think it’s good advice, though it also plays a big part in the reason I don’t consider myself a Buddhist: I’ve never experienced reincarnation first hand, so I don’t accept that the reason we should cultivate compassion and loving kindness is to advance on the “wheel of lives.” I prefer to work on these traits because they give me a sense of satisfaction in this life, and what ever success I achieve improves rather than diminishes the lives of those around me.
But I find it puzzling how many people do blindly accept the views or teachings of others. Not just in religion, but in politics, medicine — you name it, hearsay and opinion trump the facts over and over again.
I remember in college reading about a study that seemed to indicate just how malleable and spineless we humans are in our beliefs. I don’t remember the exact details, but the experimenters basically planted about 15 people in a red room, and had them all agree to pretend it was a green room. When unknowing subjects were brought into the room one by one and the group was asked to declare the color of the room, almost all of the subjects went along with the planted subjects and declared that the room was green rather than trust their own observations of an obviously red room.
Biologically there is likely some value to this tendency: We can save a lot of time and grief by following the example and teachings of others rather than trying to evaluate the merits or truth of all that we encounter in our daily existence. But we also set ourselves up for collective failure and hardship if we aren’t willing to question those truths, and as Buddha suggested, discount that which isn’t real to us.
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November 25th, 2009
Blind faith is something I have never been able to subscribe to either.
November 29th, 2009
“Believe nothing, no matter where you read it, or who said it, no matter if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense.” ~ Buddha
That appears to be the meaning of the saying, “If you meet a Buddha on the road, kill him.” A similar exhortation to “test everything” exists in all our wisdom traditions. Sounds like a plan.
November 30th, 2009
When I was in school I remember a study that for its thesis stated those ‘good at lying’ made better leaders. They in fact did prove this true to my surprise in the sense leaders influence and persuade these deceivers excelled at it. They could convince others they were telling the truth the room is red for example when it was not. The Peaceful Dragon of course is actively raising up leaders and of course teaching them how to know and deal with truth is prerequisite to leadership. Dealing with distortions of truth or the subjection of it is a high concern for all who teach or instruct.
I too marvel at how easily people subscribe to fables like evolution, global warming or the ever-emerging relative truth. To believe or have faith we came from goo that just happened to make life like a puzzle thrown across the room assembled itself requires more faith than I have. I remember seeing folks claiming they would no longer have to buy food or pay mortgage since Obama won. We can believe a lot of things so separating truth from falsehoods requires diligence. Regan once said trust but verify and we do indeed need to verify claims every now and again.
December 3rd, 2009
I don’t see truth as relative either, but when we as mere mortals think we know the truth we indeed subscribe to fables. At best we can only choose the fable that rings most true to us. Occasionally we can verify elements of truth, but these elements aren’t static and so can become false at any time. And the whole truth is clearly never clear to us.
December 4th, 2009
Me..subscribe to fables? Ha. You are correct & make an excellent point here, we gravitate toward things making sense to us.. An old adage in Bible study if it makes plain sense seek no other sense. I concede to your point also sifu, elements of truth aren’t static ( at least on a subjective level.) When new martial artists start some begin with the truth for them to learn how to fight. However, later the truth should become I do not need to fight. The goal in our study as I understand it is to grow and help each other it is not only self serving.
Moreover, I recently came across a Chinese saying that’s driving me nuts. “A Day as a Teacher is equivalent to a Lifetime as a Father (parent).” I’ve been pondering this proverb for a about a week with no conclusion. The reason: my mind says no but my heart says otherwise. A 24hr day is not equivalent to a lifetime, also a teacher has a different scope of practice than a parent. Logically this statement is false and should be dismissed as a ‘fable’. But, then if one applies the heart, I find an irresistible proof that it is true nonetheless. Oh if the right determination should fall on my lap just now!
Thank you sifu and others for your insight. Namaste