Do you believe that Buddha is infinitely good and gentle?

Exploring Theravāda's connections to other paths - what can we learn from other traditions, religions and philosophies?
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Ervin
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Do you believe that Buddha is infinitely good and gentle?

Post by Ervin »

Like I said in one of the other threads that the way I see the truth as it is, is that there is an infinitely good and infinitely gentle Source of everything that exists.

But, do you as a Buddhist believe that Buddha is infinitely good and infinitely gentle?

Thanks
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LonesomeYogurt
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Re: Do you believe that Buddha is infinitely good and gentle?

Post by LonesomeYogurt »

Siddhattha Gotama, the historical Buddha, was filled with endless compassion, kindness, joy, and equanimity. He could be said to be "infinitely good," although any metaphysical extrapolation from that into a universal base of things is suspect.
Gain and loss, status and disgrace,
censure and praise, pleasure and pain:
these conditions among human beings are inconstant,
impermanent, subject to change.

Knowing this, the wise person, mindful,
ponders these changing conditions.
Desirable things don’t charm the mind,
undesirable ones bring no resistance.

His welcoming and rebelling are scattered,
gone to their end,
do not exist.
- Lokavipatti Sutta

Stuff I write about things.
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m0rl0ck
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Re: Do you believe that Buddha is infinitely good and gentle?

Post by m0rl0ck »

Ervin wrote:Like I said in one of the other threads that the way I see the truth as it is, is that there is an infinitely good and infinitely gentle Source of everything that exists.

But, do you as a Buddhist believe that Buddha is infinitely good and infinitely gentle?

Thanks



Judging from this and other posts of yours, and forgive me if im wrong, you seem to be looking at buddhism with ideas brought from other religious traditions. It might be better to start with a clean slate from The Four Noble Truths, The Fourteen Unanswerable Questions and a few minutes of meditation practice everyday.
“The truth knocks on the door and you say, "Go away, I'm looking for the truth," and so it goes away. Puzzling.” ― Robert M. Pirsig
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Cittasanto
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Re: Do you believe that Buddha is infinitely good and gentle?

Post by Cittasanto »

Ervin wrote:Like I said in one of the other threads that the way I see the truth as it is, is that there is an infinitely good and infinitely gentle Source of everything that exists.

But, do you as a Buddhist believe that Buddha is infinitely good and infinitely gentle?

Thanks
it would depend on how you define good, and gentle!
Blog, Suttas, Aj Chah, Facebook.

He who knows only his own side of the case knows little of that. His reasons may be good, and no one may have been able to refute them.
But if he is equally unable to refute the reasons on the opposite side, if he does not so much as know what they are, he has no ground for preferring either opinion …
...
He must be able to hear them from persons who actually believe them … he must know them in their most plausible and persuasive form.
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perkele
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Re: Do you believe that Buddha is infinitely good and gentle?

Post by perkele »

Infinitely good and gentle - I would not disagree with that, although those terms are maybe not very clear.
But source of everyhing? No, that's not right.
The source of everything is in your heart. It is not infinitely good and gentle. There is good and bad, knowing and misunderstanding, greed, hatred, delusion, compassion, friendliness, and a lot of stuff all mixed together. To sort that all out completely and understand it and let go of it, that is what the Buddha taught.
:buddha1:
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Kamran
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Re: Do you believe that Buddha is infinitely good and gentle?

Post by Kamran »

There are no good and bad people.

Buddhism is a completely different paradigm.

There is only skillful and unskillful.

The Buddha was just a man who developed skills for dealing with emotions like anger, greed, and lust, and he created a training program so that others could develop the skills required to achieve a lasting happiness that does not depend on outside sources.
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ground
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Re: Do you believe that Buddha is infinitely good and gentle?

Post by ground »

Ervin wrote:Like I said in one of the other threads that the way I see the truth as it is, is that there is an infinitely good and infinitely gentle Source of everything that exists.
That is an idea which - when cultivated - may entail the effects known from metta meditation.
Ervin wrote: But, do you as a Buddhist believe that Buddha is infinitely good and infinitely gentle?
Hmh .... "I" is a consciousness, "buddhist" is a consciousness and "buddha" is a consciousness and everything that can be thought of is a consciousness. So what's the point of asking "Do you believe ...?"
Ervin
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Re: Do you believe that Buddha is infinitely good and gentle?

Post by Ervin »

Following is a part of post posted by keithBC from a different Buddhist forum:

by KeithBC » Tue Oct 23, 2012 6:12 pm

As any parent or pet owner knows, sometimes being good means a firm and perhaps forceful "No!" So good, yes. Gentle, no

I would like to explain how you are also infinitely gentle, which is infinitely good:

If you were in a so called nirvana( nirvana is what I believe the peace of the Source is like or similar) you wouldn't have to let's say partake in saying no when someone asks you for something. But on a so called "planet earth" as a human we might say no because it might be a more compassionate choice than saying yes.

So by being gentle, good and reasonable in this circumstance on "planet earth" than that's infinitely good and gentle. You should look at the circumstance you are in before you decide how good you are. You are allowed to give yourself reasons for doing what you do. Reasons are sometimes called excuses.

Thanks
nem
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Re: Do you believe that Buddha is infinitely good and gentle?

Post by nem »

You should check out the Cula Malunkyovada Sutta. Basically, it explains, why you should learn what there is to be learned, and determine whether the teachings help you, rather than worrying about the details. The simile is to that of being shot by an arrow. Would you ask for the details of the man who shot you, or of the arrow, or who will extract it, or simply accept that someone has shot you, and someone will extract it. Whether the person who extracts it is infinitely good and gentle, is not very important.

http://buddhasutra.com/files/cula_malun ... _sutta.htm
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DAWN
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Re: Do you believe that Buddha is infinitely good and gentle?

Post by DAWN »

The word "fools" is often prononced by The Blessed One.
Sabbe dhamma anatta
We are not concurents...
I'am sorry for my english
Ervin
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Re: Do you believe that Buddha is infinitely good and gentle?

Post by Ervin »

Like I said, you need to look into the circumstances before you evaluate. Just being normal nice on a so called planet Earth is infinitely gentle in a sense.
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