[Buddha-l] Dependent arising variants

[Dan Lusthaus]

Stephen,

> Well, take two nidanas at random.  Old age and death are said to arise in
> dependence upon birth.  Obviously, one will not get old and die without
> having been born, but for me it sounds rather odd to say that birth causes
> old age and death.  There is no causality here in the scientific, or even
> everyday, sense.

So you are disputing that birth is both a necessary and sufficient cause of
death? Does anything that hasn't been born die? Does anything that is born
not die (much as many hope)? So, rather than cancer, war, cardiovascular
conditions, car accidents, and whatever other thing one can point to,
"birth" is indeed the number one cause of death. Death follows birth
ineluctably and necessarily. Even Mark Twain admitted that.

cheers,
Dan