[Buddha-l] Query about Francisco Varela

[Joy Vriens]

Hi Pedro, 
  
>(3) "I wonder whether this cocktail of "things that exist", "happiness" and "use" would >perhaps be the most efficient recipe for a good and happy life?"  
>  
>Seeing how I have no clue what the secret for a good and happy life is, the answer is, yeah, maybe ;)  

Perhaps it is because a good and happy life doesn’t exist
 ;-) 

>  
>I'm currently rereading Seneca and Epictetus and they have a lot to say about the qualities necessary for a good and happy life. Just to add the necessary Buddhist content to this message, I see a fair amount of likeness between what the Stoics propose in terms of controlling the mind, and Buddhism.  

Yes I agree. I am currently reading about Bergson (La philosophie religieuse de Bergson, by Lydie Adolphe, prefaced by Emile Béhier). To refer to a previous discussion on this list, Mademoiselle (as Bréhier calls her) Adolphe links Bergson to Plotinus and more audaciously to the Hindu tradition (the book was written in 1946) and Taoism. Probably partly, because her protector Emile Bréhier had a theory that the system of Plotinus was very ungreek and probably came from the East. She also mentions that P.Masson-Oursel insisted on a strong ressemblance between the doctrines of Bergson and Chuangtsu. Other more contemporary writers have written about similarities between Bergson and Zen/Ch’an (e.g. Michel Larroque) as far as ideas go. And I can see their point, because I feel in known territory while reading (about) Bergson. But I better stop here, before I will get accused of perineal philosophy or wrong spelling.


>I would be happy to answer off-list any other questions concerning my research, but I do not think it would be appropriate to bore the list readers with the details of my work. My work can also be accessed through the National Library of Medicine's website, using a Pubmed search.  

I wouldn’t understand much of it, but just out of interest could you paste a link ? 

Joy