07-16-2010, 12:03 AM
Not being a great lecturer, forgive me to just throw from time to time in this very interesting discussion a few of my thoughts.
About the difficulty to understand Nagarjuna, Tiff, in the previous post, just gave the clue to understand him. He is definetly easier to understand once we can see that what he's doing is simply to demonstrate that a binary/dualistic (Aristotle legacy to the West?) way of trying to realize the truth is doomed to failure and would be a neverending process, a bit like a dog trying to catch its tail. In my understanding of Nagarjuna, i see him as having gone in a successful way to the complete exhaustion of binary/dualistic thinking.
My suggestion to complete a reading of Nagarjuna would be the study of the Vimalakirti Sutra.
Gonzo said : "What we begin to approach is the age-old question of purpose. That is, why are we here? Which will also ask, what/who are we, really?"
Yes, "who am I?", THE question! That should in my opinion come before the question of purpose. Finding the answer to this question – if there is an answer – cancel inevitably the question of purpose, which to my knowledge and understanding is not adressed in the buddhadharma where no creator can be found anywhere and where everything is described as just the magical display of Mind (at least in Mahayana – for a study of this, try the Lankavatara Sutra).
About the difficulty to understand Nagarjuna, Tiff, in the previous post, just gave the clue to understand him. He is definetly easier to understand once we can see that what he's doing is simply to demonstrate that a binary/dualistic (Aristotle legacy to the West?) way of trying to realize the truth is doomed to failure and would be a neverending process, a bit like a dog trying to catch its tail. In my understanding of Nagarjuna, i see him as having gone in a successful way to the complete exhaustion of binary/dualistic thinking.
My suggestion to complete a reading of Nagarjuna would be the study of the Vimalakirti Sutra.
Gonzo said : "What we begin to approach is the age-old question of purpose. That is, why are we here? Which will also ask, what/who are we, really?"
Yes, "who am I?", THE question! That should in my opinion come before the question of purpose. Finding the answer to this question – if there is an answer – cancel inevitably the question of purpose, which to my knowledge and understanding is not adressed in the buddhadharma where no creator can be found anywhere and where everything is described as just the magical display of Mind (at least in Mahayana – for a study of this, try the Lankavatara Sutra).