From: Arlo J. Bensinger (ajb102@psu.edu)
Date: Fri Oct 29 2004 - 06:59:26 BST
Scott wrote:
> Within Buddhism as practiced, you will find as much if not more
> superstition as in theistic religions. But in the West, we have been mostly
> exposed to a fourth level version of Buddhism. Well, there is a fourth
> level version of Christianity as well.
>
> This is not to deny that for many, if not most, adult theists, as well as
> non-theists, a lot of third level over-simplification is still the rule,
> and unfortunately, it is this kind of religion that gets into the news in
> the US. But there is more to it than that.
My understanding of ZMM was that it showed that on the fourth-level (as you call
it) the distinctions between religions and Quality blurred, if not disappeared
entirely as was the case with Buddhism.
This is the case, I feel, because we no longer deal with social or biological
patterns (such as Jesus, Mohammad, or White Buffalo Calf Woman) but instead
deal with Intellectual patterns (do not kill, do no harm, do right by your
neighbors). If all religious people strove for this high-country, I do not
think we'd be having any contrarian dialogue. The trouble arises (as I'm sure
everyone knows) when individuals want it both ways; they want to talk about the
Intellectual level of their religion while keeping the social (cultural
patterns practiced) and biological (individual messiahs, etc). This leads to
the ridiculous situation of individuals killing each other over who said "thou
shall not kill".
In America today, I sadly see a de-enlightenment occuring, in which religion is
losing all touch with theology, and becoming a caricature of sunday-school
lessons (this is happening in political discourse as well, and Pirsig talks
about how it is occuring in the school of philosophy- or philosophology). More
and more "christians" are embracing the "kill 'em for jesus" attitude every
day. Newsweek shows a picture of a student wearing a "God Speaks Through a Bush
Again" t-shirt. How frightening and sad. The whole flag-burning amendment
nonsense was another example of social and biological-- and inorganic!--
pattterns being given more value that the Intellectual patterns they supposedly
represent.
I am not arguing for any embracing of religion, mind you. Absolutely not! I
think many avenues lead to the same Intellectual level patterns as theology
(Buddhist, Christian, Pagan, Muslim, whatever). I simply believe, as you seem
to indicate, that on the upper-level there is much similarity (if not complete)
between religions and Intellectual-level Quality patterns. Once one sees this,
the individual social-cultural and biological patterns that are part of the
religion become pretty meaningless. Joseph Campbell argued this somewhat in his
description of the monomyth. Then you could talk about particular cultural
historical rituals and practices for what they are, and not conflate them with
the Intellectual. Christians could talk freely about how many of their cultural
practices, and Intellectual roots, were adapted from the Mithraic Mysteries, as
well as other instantiated cultural practices in the region, without it
negating the Intellectual doctrines they profess to hold.
Finally, you mention Buddhists have a second and third level that is simply
invisible to us. Perhaps, perhaps. But I am always amazed that no one has ever
been killed for Buddha (killed for believing in Buddha, yes, but a Buddhist
killing someone who was not "of the faith", dare I say never?).
Sorry if this is a little rambling, its waaaay past my bedtime :-)
Arlo
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