[Buddha-l] Moment of individuation

[Richard P. Hayes]

On Wed, 2005-04-20 at 20:37 -0400, Stanley J. Ziobro II wrote:

> Richard, in your judgment, could differences in interpretation be
> understood as something other than problems?

Of course. I have no problem at all with differences of interpretation.
The only time when differences of interpretation might be a problem is
for someone would be if the person had become attached to a particular
interpretation to the exclusion of others. For example, if one were to
fall prey to the temptation to speak of one's interpretation as the
truth or as a fact, then differing interpretations or opinions might
pose a problem. 

You sited alleged visitations from people who had passed on to another
realm. I merely responded to that by saying that interpreting
experiences as visitations from another realm is one of many possible
interpretations of experiences and can therefore not be adduced as
evidence. If you have no problem with that, then neither of us sees a
problem here.

> I think we are dealing with judgments upon insight(s) into given data. 

That's what I said. We are dealing entirely with interpretations of
experiences and opinions as to what those experiences mean.

>  One may speak of frames of reference and be
> engaged in understanding the matter at hand (responding to the question
> "What is it?"), but sooner or later, if one is to say whether or not that
> something is what it seems to be, then, one must make a judgment.  Without
> that judgment one does not know; one simply surmises.  Opinions donot meet
> this point.

When one thinks one knows and has left surmising behind, then one has
stopped being wise and started being a fool.

> I don't know that I'd agree that we operate entirely on faith, but I can
> agree that we take many things on some form of faith initially.

When we think we know, what we are really doing is having faith in our
faith---or in someone else's, whom we assume to be an authority.

-- 
Richard Hayes
Department of Philosophy
University of New Mexico