@coluber2001,
coluber2001 wrote:
Here's the problem with second-hand religion:
Heinrich Robert Zimmer
“Via Joseph Campbell: My friend Heinrich Zimmer of years ago used to say, "The best things can't be told," because they transcend thought. "The second best are misunderstood," because those are the thoughts that are supposed to refer to that which can't be thought about, and one gets stuck in the thoughts."The third best are what we talk about.
Sombody has a religious experience and tries to explain it to another person. You can only relate religious experience in metaphor. It's like poetry; if you try to interpret it literally it misses the point totally. "My heart is an eagle soaring above the clouds." Literally, it's nonsense. The virgin birth. Literally, it's nonsense. You have to get beyond the metaphor or you crash into science. That's what happened to the mass religions: they didn't keep up with science, and now they've built wall against it. They've fought science, and the young people have to choose between science or religion. Guess what? They dump religion and spend their lives either searching for it or avoiding it.
There is only one religion that embraces and stays up with science, Buddhism. The core aspect of Buddhist thought is about the mind. Its philosphy of developing the mind until it is fully grapsed. It stresses examination of self, other and the aspects of mind. Sure some dogma can be found but this is due to Buddhism having a hands off approach with other ideas. Rather than battle ideas Buddhism will reveal their validity or lack of validity once you take up the examination of mind.
The Buddha suggests to examine everything and not blindly accept something just because a person claims it's true.
