3bob

99.9999999...% of the whole of mankind is with karma. and yes the Holy Spirit works in spite of man made or compromised institutions

"emptiness" is a poor word in that its meaning is often misunderstood...

true Self is everywhere, and mostly forgotten everywhere.

Original sin doesn't add up for one thing, along with thousands of other items from the often automatically like accepted "Abrahamic" viewpoints. I'm all for finding some common ground among various paths but there comes a point where I feel that we can't roll everything into one big ball. (when such is not so)

The "first noble truth" is enlightenment, since that is truth, or "Wonder of wonders".

still why didn't the Buddha start with the bottom line instead of with dualistic suffering?

who started karma or "we didn't start the fire"

Hello Chegg, I'm very familiar with the reasoning you've mentioned but after all these years it doesn't really add up...

Righto, btw is it really cake or pie?

I'm not ready to give up or believe that about French style cheesecake but I will give up New York style just in case...

Link to Hindu website (Aspects of Lord Siva) below: http://www.hinduwebsite.com/siva/sivaindex.asp

You are welcome, Om

The Self knows the Self by the Self, nothing else is complete and final satisfaction.

I'll trade you 100,000 tons of speculative scholarship for an quarter ounce of spiritual fact...

Jesus is alive and more than well. PHD's (of any kind) are more or less meaningless for qualification to know whether or not Jesus existed. When or if you meet Him then you will know, until then all is speculation of one sort or another. (and imo should be of an agnostic type speculation at that if one really wants to claim a "reasonable" position) Om

every individual soul is unique and thus "special" in that sense or way but the universal spirit that powers every soul is the same, not unlike the simple fact that every tree in a forest has its own life at a certain level yet all are powered by the sun.

(Suggestion: don't get hung up on the pronoun or what might be taken as anthropomorphic) " Although Yu-huang is the High God, there are other abstract deities above him. He rules; they simply exist and instruct. First and foremost is Yuan-shih T'ien-tsun - the First Principal. He has no beginning and no end. He existed "before the void and the silence, before primordial chaos." He is self-existing, changeless, limitless, invisible, contains all virtues, is present in all places and is the source of all truth." My correlation would include 'present in all beings' which goes along with "present in all places"... I'm not sure if such is related to the original intention and translation of the saying but that is the way I take it. Om

Imo that is the dualistic viewpoint Flolflil, one can keep splitting hairs into smaller and smaller parts but never get down to the un-splitable.

...although one could also say that only That can understand That, thus in the context of the mental realm "That" is abstract to same since mental forces can never reach It.

Wow, that is a long one... I'll have to get a big cup of coffee or tea and ponder over it! Thank you.

MH, I's say we've touched on some aspects so far without going nuts, or being in need of hospitalization...(of one kind or another) Ralis, That's great news for the Buckeyes! Mum so far on my college team but my NFL team is the Broncos. (Btw,your handle always reminds me of 'rails', no insult intended)

Dogs can teach us a great deal! (and remain buddies)

What, no fans of Ecclesiastes?

Such understanding/knowing is part of such enlightenment that is being alluded to... I had some very minor suffering when my college football team lost this weekend, it was a little more serious when my wife chewed me out... but those are small potatoes compared to past (types of) sufferings of once being a young man. I imagine you know what I'm talking about?

MH, well I'd say to include the understanding of suffering but not the condition of it...