GrandTrinity Posted September 18, 2006 (edited) http://p087.ezboard.com/fqigonginstitutefr...picID=316.topic I wish I could print this out and distribute it to everyone at the Tibetan/Columbia Med School conference I am about to attend, including the Dalai Lama. The conference is on longevity research. If all the money for this conference were channeled into researching a large population of properly trained wu dang yang sheng practitioners... Buddhist longevity? BUddhists dont care about longevity! They think they are dead (give up their attachment to life...)! Taoists know about longevity...! When was the last time you heard of Buddhist live long? They all die at like 65. Of course, I heard rumors the original Buddha is still living. Who knows? But seriously! I need to do some research for college, and this is an important topic. The government spends billions to research fake drugs which kill people and make them rich. They are open to more integrative methods, however. Edited September 18, 2006 by GrandTrinity Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lozen Posted September 18, 2006 I don't know anything about Buddhist or Taoist longevity, but check out Art De Vany's website or google intermittent fasting on pubmed if you want to learn about the newest longevity research. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
minimoke Posted September 18, 2006 http://p087.ezboard.com/fqigonginstitutefr...picID=316.topic Buddhist longevity? BUddhists dont care about longevity! They think they are dead (give up their attachment to life...)! I'm curious, unless this is also a joke of course. You probably know alot more than myself, but I think "give up their attachment to life" is not the same as "being dead". As a side note, what you "think" is unimportant anyway, because it is just an illusion. Thoughts are not real. I know a Zen Priest living in the mountains of New Mexico who was shot in the head during the VietNam war. He survived and is currently 54 years old and is as lucid as any 54 year old I know. I believe he is well onto his way to outlive most of us probably "due" to his un-attachment to life. This brings up another issue. What is longevity? What is the quality of your life? What constitutes life? A heart beat? Is leading a sedimentary evil existence the same as being a contributing member of society who is always happy with a smile on his/her face? Do the 2 equate? So many issues here. Bruce Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Pero Posted September 20, 2006 I think you are generalizing. Tibetan Buddhist have long life practices as well, I don`t know what they consist of yet though. Buddhists care about longevity, but in the sense that if they live a longer life, it will be more possible for them to achieve some realization in their current life. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
nutting Posted September 29, 2006 (edited) Grand Trinity got it absolutely right about Buddhists ! Buddhists believe in reincarnation which contradicts any need for Physical Immortality. Ultimately after many progressive cycles of birth and death, they hope to reach Nirvana. Nirvarna is NON-EXISTENCE, when the 3 flames are extinguished. This is consistent with Buddhist doctrine that " Life is Suffering" Hence it makes sense for them to want to escape from this life. Buddhist look forward to death, because they want to be reborned into a "higher" lifeform ASAP. Many people equate Nirvarna with Paradise . But Paradise to a Buddhist means non existence, it doesn't mean pearly gates and heaven as many in the West would assume. A Taoist on the other hand believes in the following: Life is neither good or bad If you work with the Tao, life will be rewarding. If you don't move with the Tao, life will be suffering. Heaven , to a Taoist, is a place on earth...here and now, not in any "afterlife" By your lifestyle choices , you decide if earth is heaven or hell to you. There is only one life. If you die, you return to the earth as dust , your spirit fades into non existence as "shen" energy dissipates. This is why Taoist are focussed on longevity, immortality, because they have only ONE life, so they better protect it with Internal Martial Arts, Qigong, Herbs and Acupuncture, all of which were off shoot discoveries Taoist natural scientist made in the search for Immortality via Internal Alchemy and other pursuits. I'm sure many of you already know what I say, but I'm just stating it clearly for any newbies....hope it helps. Yes some branches of Taoism mix with Buddhist ideas ....Zen ( Chan) is an example...and they accept reincarnation. And this is where the source of confusion starts! Pure - original Taoism does not accept reincarnation concepts. Also Buddhist detachment and Taoist detachment are a bit different. Buddhist wish to detach from life ( as stated so well by someone else in this thread) Buddhist deny their bodies. Taoists want to detach themseves from illusions and any activity that consume their Jing, Qi and Shen....the 3 Treasures which they guard in order to extend physical life. They minimise desires, this is a similiarity with Buddhism. They do not deny the body. They protect the body and avoid doing anything "unnatural" like taking preservative laden foods or using too much unnatural technology ( non wu-wei). Also Buddhist monks are expected to beg for food ( alms) ( This seems a contradiction, they shun society but depend on society to support them!) Taoist are self sufficient and do not rely on charity. Many Taoists live in society and work in government ( Eg. Sun Tzu, The Art of WAr, was a military advisor, Lao Tzu was a royal archivist in the Emperor's library) Only 1 or 2 Buddhist groups, Nyngma ( spelling ?) believe in immortality. It is Tibetan in origin. It differs sharply from mainstream Buddhism ( Theravada and Mahayana streams) Edited September 29, 2006 by nutting Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Uncle Fester Posted September 29, 2006 (edited) . Edited September 20, 2021 by darebak Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
nutting Posted September 30, 2006 (edited) The black and white or "vs" perspective is just so...western. There are so many permutations of Taoism and Buddhism that it is impossible to compare. And I don't think anyone alive can truly say what "Pure-Original Taoism" is. This type of generalization and comparison just seems like an exercize in futillity to me. You are right that there are many permutations of Taoism and Buddhism. However, we can compare fundamental tenets of each system.In this thread we are comparing on the basis of Immortality and Longevity practices. The primary goal of early Taoist was longevity and physical immortality. The primary goal of Buddha was spiritual enlightenment. And there lies the most vivid difference. Also about Pure - Original Taoism, yeah you may have a point that we may not know what it is. However we can certainly say what it is NOT. Pure Taoism does not accept concepts of Reincarnation. In fact if one was to stick closely to the writings of Lao Tzu ( Dao De Ching and Hua Hu Ching) etc as well as writings of the Yellow Emperor.....that would be fairly close to what " Pure -Original" Taoism. Bear in mind Taosim goes back 3-4000 years, whereas Buddhism is only 2500 years old. Bear in mind that Buddhism has many ideas stemming from Hinduism, Buddha being Hindu first. Unfortunately many people subscribe to the belief of mix 'n match, the more paths the better. There is only one WAY and that way is Tao. Edited September 30, 2006 by nutting Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sean Posted September 30, 2006 Unfortunately many people subscribe to the belief of mix 'n match, the more paths the better. There is only one WAY and that way is Tao. IMO there is really no other choice but to "mix 'n match" because "you" and your thoughts and beliefs are an alchemy of the moment you are in; your history, your culture, your memories, your attitude, the philosophies you've been exposed to, your genes, etc. We are more of a melting pot now so it's more apparent. But ancient practices likewise. Including so-called "pure practices". The Tao Teh Ching did not just jump out of a vacuum. Taoism was mixing and matching elements of Chinese shamanism from the start. Should we try to tease that out? And we could go further back. This gets fun. Trying to find the pure essence of a form. But ultimately you are turned inside out in your search ... for true essence is Nameless, no? Sean Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
freeform Posted September 30, 2006 IMO there is really no other choice but to "mix 'n match" because "you" and your thoughts and beliefs are an alchemy of the moment you are in Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
