[Buddha-l] The words of the Buddha

[Bob Zeuschner]

Thanks for a very nice reply.
To expand, I do not find any reason whatsoever to accept claims of 
rebirth, and the so-called "law of karma" seems highly doubtful.
How could one empirically test these apparently metaphysical claims?

[DPD Web] Shen Shi'an wrote:
> It doesn't take faith to be agreeable with what already makes sense. At
> the end of the day, the Buddha expects us "to empirically test his
> teachings" before blindly abiding by any - this teaching itself is easy
> to have "faith" in - for its sensibility. 
> 
> The Buddha's teachings are thus doubly "insured" with the Kalama spirit
> - we can agree to disagree with the Buddha's teachings - including this
> teaching about agreeing to disagree. Neat! 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Bob Zeuschner [mailto:rbzeuschner at adelphia.net] 
> Sent: Monday, 14 May, 2007 1:49 PM
> To: Buddhist discussion forum
> Subject: Re: [Buddha-l] The words of the Buddha
> 
> It seems to me that if I accept something as true simply because the 
> Buddha is supposed to have said it, then I have faith in the Buddhist 
> religion.
> 
> [DPD Web] Shen Shi'an wrote:
>> Unacademically but spiritually speaking, Buddhists are supposed to
>> believe the Buddha taught that truth should be accepted wherever it is
>> found. 
> 
> On the other hand, if I accept the claim only after having empirically 
> tested it and found it correct (Kalamas), then am I a philosopher?
> In this case I do not have faith in the Buddha's words simply because 
> the Buddha said so.
> 
> It is for this reason that I am not a Buddhist. I do not have blind 
> faith ... in fact I can't abide blind faith.
> I think of myself as a Buddhologist.
> 
> Bob
> Dept. of Philosophy
>