[Buddha-l] RE: Article of possible interest--correction

[Erik Hoogcarspel]

Joy Vriens schreef:
> Joanna wrote:
>   
> >Karma, War and Inequality in Twentieth Century Japan
> >
> >By Brian Victoria
> >
> >HYPERLINK
> >"http://japanfocus.org/products/details/2421"http://japanfocus.org/products/ 
>
> >details/2421
>
> The same attitude can be found in Tibetan Buddhism.
>
> Extract from Thrangu Rinpoche's book King of Samadhi:
>
> "STUDENT: Some of my students are not necessarily Buddhist and they 
> think the idea of accumulating merit is very strange. They ask me, 
> "Why should the acts of making offerings, doing circumambulations, and 
> so on create anything at all?" I don't feel that I answer them well. 
> They also say, "It is it even stranger to think Chat, having done 
> these things, you can give the merit away." Even though I personally 
> feel this is a funny question, I would like it if you would explain in 
> detail how it works, in a way that I can explain to my students.
>
> RINPOCHE: First of all, you cannot really blame others for not 
> understanding. They haven't studied or tried to understand the cause 
> and effect of karmic deeds, and therefore don't understand the 
> principle of gathering or creating merit. You should start with 
> explaining the ripening of karmic actions, the different types of 
> cause and effect of karma. The effect of some karmic actions ripen in 
> the same life, while others manifest only in a future life.
> Take the example of Prince Charles, who was born as Queen Elizabeth's 
> son. Why was he born as her son? It was only possible through his own 
> good karma. There is no one who issued the decree, "He is allowed to 
> be the Prince of England and you are not allowed to be born in that 
> position." No one makes this decision. It is the automatic result of 
> people's individual karmic accumulation created from the past. He had 
> somehow gathered the merit to become Prince of England while other 
> people did not. In the same way, when we see children dying of 
> starvation in Africa, it raises the question, "Why were they born in 
> Africa? Why do they have to suffer this way?" It is because they were 
> reborn as human beings at this particular time and place in Africa. 
> Did anyone force them to be reborn there? Did someone say, "Now you 
> must be reborn in a place in Africa where you will starve to death"? 
> No, no one forces living beings to be reborn in this way. The fact 
> that people are born into such circumstances is because of lacking 
> merit. From that standpoint, it is definitely very important to 
> accumulate merit. Having merit, one can be born the Prince of England; 
> lacking merit, one may be born as a starving child in Africa. Think 
> about this and see that there is a definite need to create merit."
We have obviously a person here who has learned to read and to listen, 
but never learned to think and has a very peculiar view of the world. I 
wonder if Rche would be able to pass a highschoolexam. Still he imposes 
his quotes of wholy book on the mass of believers. Reminds me of some 
politicians and of course the Pope.

Erik


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