[Buddha-l] Re: Magic

[Richard Hayes]

On Thursday 21 June 2007 07:44, curt wrote:

> Excellent point. Although from another perspective it's just as (and
> possibly even more) difficult to imagine consciousness arising from
> anything purely physical. Actually it's very hard to imagine - and
> impossible to convincingly demonstrate - either way.

I agree. In a previous kalpa, when I was an undergraduate, I took a course in 
philosophy of mind. It completely fascinated me, because I love problems that 
have no obvious solution. The way that "mind" (if there is such a thing) 
and "body" (repeat same disclaimer) are related is perhaps one of the most 
persistently interesting and insoluble problems in all of philosophy (and 
science). The field of philosophy of mind has grown enormously since I was an 
undergraduate, to such an extent that it is impossible to read more than a 
fraction of the excellent material that comes out every year.

As Buddhists we might do well to recall that the business of Buddhism is not 
at all the same as the business of science and philosophy. Our task is not to 
explain how the world works--indeed, the Buddha warned against that 
temptation. Rather, our task as Buddhists is to reduce (even eliminate, if 
one feels especially heroic) pain and turmoil. Fortunately, one need not 
solve the mind-body problem to do that. One need not even restrict oneself to 
one system of mythology or symbolism. The issue of rebirth, from a Buddhist 
perspective, is pretty easy to deal with. If talking of rebirth helps a 
particular individual reduce distress, then talk rebirth. If it doesn't, then 
talk something else. 

So, for example, whenever some earnest neophyte asks me "If there is no 
enduring soul, how can there be rebirth?" I usually respond with something 
like "Do you like the Dixie Chicks? Or are you more of a Brooks and Dunn 
fan?" If he likes Brooks and Dunn, I know he is a Republican and therefore 
can't possibly understand anything about Buddhism, so I invite him out for a 
beer. If he likes the Dixie Chicks, I ask him what he thinks of their latest 
CD, and before you know it, he has forgotten all about rebirth and has been 
distracted from his suffering--especially the suffering caused by being 
puzzled by rebirth. This technique is known as upaya. I recommend it.

> A third possibility is to imagine, as long as we're imagining, that
> there is some kind of "special stuff" that is associated with
> consciousness, and this "stuff" survives death.

The reason I have such a fluffy beard is that I lent my razor to a fellow 
named Ockham a few centuries ago. When he returned it, the blade was so dull 
that it would not cut hair. Heaven knows what he used it for, but whatever it 
was, it played hell on my razor.

-- 
Richard Hayes
Department of Philosophy
University of New Mexico