[Buddha-l] buddhism and brain studies

[Richard Hayes]

On Fri, 2008-11-14 at 10:08 +0800, [DPD Web] Shen Shi'an wrote:

> Because we have endless rebirths to get it right, 
> rebirth can be an infinite "blessing".

It would be more of a blessing if we could remember in the next life
what we had learned in the previous one. Starting all over with every
life is very bad news. Just think of all the times I must have had to
learn my Sanskrit verb paradigms over the millennia! 

> So what is rebirth? Good or bad?

A silly story, mostly, fit for scaring infants into abject obedience.

> Intrinsically empty of any fixed characteristics... (as usual) :-]

Surely nothing is INTRINSICALLY empty. I should think that at best
things are adventitiously empty (if there are any things at all).

Well, as Jesus almost said, "Sufficient unto the day is the emptiness
thereof." Que se sueña con los angelitos.

-- 
Richard Hayes
Department of Philosophy
University of New Mexico