What is unique in human compare to animal?

A discussion on all aspects of Theravāda Buddhism
santa100
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Re: What is unique in human compare to animal?

Post by santa100 »

SarathW wrote: Hi Santa
I see your point. What I am looking for is whether there are any characteristics which find only in human.
Why did Buddha say that human life is so rare and important?
There're quite a few things as already mentioned in the other posts. One obvious one is that our level of intelligence is quite unique. We're the only species so far on earth that can build spaceships and put men on the moon and at the same time build nuclear weapons that can destroy everything.

Your second question has 2 parts: rarity and importance of human life. Rarity because it's a matter of probability: the odds of being born human is 1 divided by the sum of all species within the animal realm (~ 8.7 millions and growing) plus all classes of beings in the hell, hungry ghosts, asuras, and deva realms. Needless to say, that's a very very tiny number. Importance because humans have about the right mix of suffering and blessing. Too much blessing like the devas and you won't have any need to practice the Dhamma. Too much suffering and you won't have any energy left for the Dhamma..
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Mkoll
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Re: What is unique in human compare to animal?

Post by Mkoll »

SarathW wrote:Why did Buddha say that human life is so rare and important?
Dear Sarath,

From a scientific perspective, there is what is called the Rare Earth hypothesis. Basically, it says that the odds of intelligent life like ourselves arising in the universe requires a precise confluence of factors and the probability of this is astronomically tiny.

Here are just a tiny sample of factors: you have to have an environment supportive of simple lifeforms, that simple life has to evolve into more complex lifeforms, the more complex life has to develop greater intelligence, that smarter complex life has to become self-aware, those self-aware lifeforms have to survive and develop morality and technology and not wipe themselves out, and all the while this is happening the environment can't be subjected to huge catastrophes.

If that asteroid didn't hit the earth, the dinosaurs would probably still be ruling it and the largest mammals would be the size of dogs. Or if a bigger asteroid hit, only single-celled organisms might have survived, if that. Or a gamma ray burst could hit the earth and wipe out our atmosphere and all life. Heck, it could happen today and we'd have no warning of it.

Space is a dangerous place.

:anjali:
Namo tassa bhagavato arahato samma sambuddhassa
Namo tassa bhagavato arahato samma sambuddhassa
Namo tassa bhagavato arahato samma sambuddhassa
SarathW
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Re: What is unique in human compare to animal?

Post by SarathW »

Thanks Mkoll
I think in a given moment every thing (not only human life) is a rare moment . It is highly unlikely it will repeat again.

You did not say why human life is so important.


:)
“As the lamp consumes oil, the path realises Nibbana”
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Mkoll
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Re: What is unique in human compare to animal?

Post by Mkoll »

SarathW wrote:Thanks Mkoll
I think in a given moment every thing (not only human life) is a rare moment . It is highly unlikely it will repeat again.

You did not say why human life is so important.


:)
Dear SarathW,

You're right, I didn't. But I think you've said it quite nicely: it's rare.

:anjali:
Namo tassa bhagavato arahato samma sambuddhassa
Namo tassa bhagavato arahato samma sambuddhassa
Namo tassa bhagavato arahato samma sambuddhassa
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DNS
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Re: What is unique in human compare to animal?

Post by DNS »

Image
SarathW
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Re: What is unique in human compare to animal?

Post by SarathW »

Hi David
Good picture.
I think Buddhism does not teach (accept) theory of evolution.
:shrug:
“As the lamp consumes oil, the path realises Nibbana”
chownah
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Re: What is unique in human compare to animal?

Post by chownah »

Fire is the difference.
chownah
daverupa
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Re: What is unique in human compare to animal?

Post by daverupa »

chownah wrote:Fire is the difference.
chownah
Hmm... except that Neanderthals and Denisovans had fire as well as proto-Humans, and also they were all interbreeding with each other.

It's possible that H. erectus had fire, but they don't seem to have used it for cooking; so, maybe modern humans et al are set apart since they cook their food... but it gets complicated when trying to find this or that feature.

Modern humans are set apart from other animals the same way that a given animal X is set apart from other animals - it's a different animal.

:shrug:

But on the other DW I mentioned that anthills were just as natural as cities, and there was some disagreement on that point, which I simply don't understand.
  • "And how is it, bhikkhus, that by protecting oneself one protects others? By the pursuit, development, and cultivation of the four establishments of mindfulness. It is in such a way that by protecting oneself one protects others.

    "And how is it, bhikkhus, that by protecting others one protects oneself? By patience, harmlessness, goodwill, and sympathy. It is in such a way that by protecting others one protects oneself.

- Sedaka Sutta [SN 47.19]
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Re: What is unique in human compare to animal?

Post by DNS »

SarathW wrote:Hi David
Good picture.
I think Buddhism does not teach (accept) theory of evolution.
:shrug:
I disagree. I think the Aganna Sutta and Brahmajala Sutta are at least compatible with biological evolution. No, I don't think they describe evolution the way Darwin or a scientist would, but it basically states that beings were rudimentary and evolved out of craving and gradually became what we have now. The Buddha-Dhamma acknowledges animals in the cosmology, that a human could be reborn an animal and an animal could be reborn as a human; which is certainly different than many other religions where only humans have a "soul."
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Kim OHara
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Re: What is unique in human compare to animal?

Post by Kim OHara »

In case anyone was thinking that working out how to get high was uniquely human ... http://www.independent.co.uk/environmen ... 30126.html

:rolleye:
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SarathW
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Re: What is unique in human compare to animal?

Post by SarathW »

chownah wrote:Fire is the difference.
chownah
How about the fire bird which is using fire, to catch animals?
“As the lamp consumes oil, the path realises Nibbana”
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Mkoll
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Re: What is unique in human compare to animal?

Post by Mkoll »

Dear friends,

There is also the "Stoned Ape Theory" put forth by Terence Mckenna which basically argues that our use of psilocybin mushrooms, ie magic mushrooms, helped us evolve.

:anjali:
Namo tassa bhagavato arahato samma sambuddhassa
Namo tassa bhagavato arahato samma sambuddhassa
Namo tassa bhagavato arahato samma sambuddhassa
SarathW
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Re: What is unique in human compare to animal?

Post by SarathW »

David N. Snyder wrote:
SarathW wrote:Hi David
Good picture.
I think Buddhism does not teach (accept) theory of evolution.
:shrug:
I disagree. I think the Aganna Sutta and Brahmajala Sutta are at least compatible with biological evolution. No, I don't think they describe evolution the way Darwin or a scientist would, but it basically states that beings were rudimentary and evolved out of craving and gradually became what we have now. The Buddha-Dhamma acknowledges animals in the cosmology, that a human could be reborn an animal and an animal could be reborn as a human; which is certainly different than many other religions where only humans have a "soul."
Thanks David. I think theory of evolution is about the evolution of the species not individuals.
See below.

7. Tiracchàna = tiro, across; acchàna, going. Animals
are so called because as a rule quadrupeds walk horizontally.
Buddhist belief is that beings are born as animals
on account of evil Kamma. There is, however, the possibility
for animals to be born as human beings. Strictly speaking,
it should be said that an animal may manifest itself in
the form of a human being, or vice versa just as an electric
current can be manifested in the forms of light, heat, and
motion successively—one not necessarily being evolved
from the other. An animal may be born in a blissful state
as a result of the good Kamma accumulated in the past.
There are at times certain animals, particularly dogs and
cats, who live a more comfortable life than even human
beings. It is also due to their past good Kamma.
It is one’s Kamma that determines the nature of one’s
material form which varies according to the skill or unskilfulness
of one’s actions. And this again depends entirely on
the evolution of one’s understanding of reality.
Page 270
http://www.buddhanet.net/pdf_file/abhidhamma.pdf

============
Please also see my post:

http://www.dhammawheel.com/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=16067
:shrug:
l
“As the lamp consumes oil, the path realises Nibbana”
chownah
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Re: What is unique in human compare to animal?

Post by chownah »

daverupa wrote:
chownah wrote:Fire is the difference.
chownah
Hmm... except that Neanderthals and Denisovans had fire as well as proto-Humans, and also they were all interbreeding with each other.

It's possible that H. erectus had fire, but they don't seem to have used it for cooking; so, maybe modern humans et al are set apart since they cook their food... but it gets complicated when trying to find this or that feature.

Modern humans are set apart from other animals the same way that a given animal X is set apart from other animals - it's a different animal.

:shrug:

But on the other DW I mentioned that anthills were just as natural as cities, and there was some disagreement on that point, which I simply don't understand.
Are you insinuating that those raw foods people are Neanderthals and that they interbreed?
Also, don't most modern humans cook with electricity....not fire?......so are they posto-humans?
Your assertion on the equality of naturalesqueness of cities and anthills is well taken......perhaps many can not follow this in that they see how anthills are so much better planned than most cities and thus have difficulty in admitting to any similarities much less congruence in some aspect.
chownah
binocular
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Re: What is unique in human compare to animal?

Post by binocular »

David N. Snyder wrote:
SarathW wrote:Hi David
Good picture.
I think Buddhism does not teach (accept) theory of evolution.
:shrug:
I disagree. I think the Aganna Sutta and Brahmajala Sutta are at least compatible with biological evolution. No, I don't think they describe evolution the way Darwin or a scientist would, but it basically states that beings were rudimentary and evolved out of craving and gradually became what we have now. The Buddha-Dhamma acknowledges animals in the cosmology, that a human could be reborn an animal and an animal could be reborn as a human; which is certainly different than many other religions where only humans have a "soul."
How do Buddhist notions of rebirth and the idea of time being cyclical fit in with the Theory of Evolution?
Hic Rhodus, hic salta!
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