[Buddha-l] Where does authority for "true" Buddhism come from?

[Richard P. Hayes]

On Fri, 2006-01-27 at 23:22 +0100, Vicente Gonzalez wrote:

> yes, and Buddhism becomes Buddhology.

You have it backwards. The science of buddhology in the hands of the
selfish becomes Buddhism.

> If somebody thinks that reducing dukkha is the goal in Buddhism, for
> sure it's better injecting morphine injections time after time, until
> death. For such purposes, it is more effective and easy than
> meditations and difficult readings. 

Although I have no personal experience with this, I do have friends who
would dispute that claim. Addiction to opiates and to alcohol tends to
increase, not reduce one's afflictions.

> As very well suggest Benito (I celebrate if now he is victim of some
> satori) the goal of Buddhism is the end of ignorance, not dukkha.

This would come as a big surprise to just about every Buddhist I have
ever studied. The end of ignorance is always regarded as a means to
achieve the end of dukkha.

> The bizarre theory of non-rebirth is strange to human kind.

Attachment to any theory can cause a huge amount of unnecessary misery
and mischief. Being attached to denying rebirth is as pernicious, no no
more pernicious, than being attached to affirming it. That's why I keep
saying that probably the best thing is just to forget about it
altogether. If some people believe it, let them continue to do so. If
others deny it, let them continue to do so. But whether one believes it
or denies it, heaping contempt on those who disagree can only be a major
obstacle to Buddhist practice.

> In both cases, the problem never remains in claiming rebirth or
> non-rebirth. But the central point is the inoculation of the atman
> idea taking profit of  the subtile meaning of patticasamuppada.

Yes, this is just about exactly my point.

> However, until now the possibility in reading even two phrases of
> value in the fit of such nihilistic theory inside Buddhism is null.

I wouldn't know. I have never read any nihilistic interpretations of
Buddhism. Could you suggest a few, so that I can check them out for
myself?

-- 
Richard