Even Buddhists recognize that there is a higher authority. You know, the fat guy.
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The thrust of Buddhism is to enlighten the individual, thereby supporting Brahman [Great Spirit].
The fat smiling figure represents happiness and plenitude. He often holds a Lotus blossom. The Lotus fruits and flowers at the same time, evoking the necessary yin-yang balance in the devotees' meditations.
Jesus may have been born enlightened, but the Buddha shows us that even mere mortals may achieve Enlightenment if we try.
WRONG WRONG WRONG WRONG....
WRONG WRONG WRONG WRONG....
YOUR WRONG...
YOUR WRONG...
YOUR WRONG...
That's not actually the -real- Buddha.
Look at the Buddha statues in Nepal or somewhere, to see the actual depiction.
In addiction to what everyone else said, Buddha isn't "a higher authority", you jackass. Then again, you probably think they literally worship him as a deity.
And another thing, not all depictions of the Buddha are fat either.
Since most of the people here have already pointed out just about everything that's wring with this.
There are different representations of Buddha, just as there are different strains of buddhism, like any other religion. From what I gather, the Boddisatva Sidharta (the historical figure known as the Buddha, it's a title) was a philosopher that thought both philosophies about how to achieve happiness were flawed.
At the time, the debate was basically between those that tried to achieve happiness by the pleasures of the flesh, and the ascetes that tried to achieve happiness through contemplation and the mortification of the flesh. Sidharta thought both approaches lacked a certain something, and came up with his "way of the middle" that focussed on avoiding excess in everything, and getting rid of the need for that you can't have through meditation.
It is to note that when one of his disciples asked wether there was a god, wether the universe was finite or not, and what happened after death, his answer was along the lines of "I don't know and I don't care, I'm trying to find happiness here and now and help you find it too"
>>Even Buddhists recognize that there is a higher authority. You know, the fat guy.<<
You mean Budai? He's a folkloric amalgamation of various Zen Buddhist monks. Asserting that he is "a higher authority" might be equivalent to saying that Santa Claus is "a higher authority" in Christianity.
And, to understand the level of iconoclasm in some forms of Buddhism, consider this quote from the Chinese Zen teacher Linji:
"If you meet a buddha, kill the buddha."
Oy, stop picking on Buddhists. They do not consider Buddha to be a deity-like being, but a wise philosopher worth seeking advice and happiness from.
Second, stop picking on Buddhists. I've never opened my door at 8 in the morning to be greeting by Buddhists trying to shove the Buddha-book down my throat.
(My apologies if 'Buddha-book' sounded offensive to anyone. I don't know what the text is actually called, or if there even is one. )
You fail. I would go on, as an ex-Buddhist(who plans to sit down someday and spend a long time studying every aspect of the philosophy--when he has time to do so), but everyone else here has already done an excellent job of it themselves.
@ Renon --
Well, a number of schools of Buddhism do have a large number of deities; in some of them, the Buddha (or the various Buddhas) is among or (more often) superior to said deities. I don't know of any branches of Buddhism, though, where Budai (a.k.a. "the fat guy") is the supreme being.
Erm, no. "The fat guy" is not a higher authority. He was a philosopher.
Or are you talking about your higher authority, as you probably think He is the only one.
What would your chums say if they heard you talk about God as "the fat guy"?
Even Buddhists recognize that there is a higher authority.
This is a strong hint on "Badfish"'s (and other fundies) psychological traits. He is probably an "authoritarian personality", hiding behind an abstract concept of a "higher authority", in order to satisfy his thirst to exercise power over other people:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Authoritarian_personality
Quote:
"linking the "will to power over others" as a central neurotic trait, usually emerging as aggressive over-compensation for felt and dreaded feelings of inferiority and insignificance. According to this view, the authoritarian needs to maintain control and prove superiority over others is rooted in a worldview populated by enemies and empty of equality, empathy, and mutual benefit."
"there is a higher authority. You know, the fat guy."
Well, the notion that your 'God' is a lard-arse of a deity (gorged on 'Glory', a la 'Mr. Creosote' in "Monty Python's The Meaning Of Life") who can't even move (PROTIP: "Star Wars"' Jabba the Hutt can ) certainly explains why he can't so much as have the decency to make an appearance in front of his creation; it's not that he can't be arsed - he can't . Period.
Having seen in documentaries how hyper-obese people, in getting them removed from their homes for potential treatment/surgery, doors, nay entire walls have to be cut away, how many dimensions, nay multiverses, will have to be removed, just to enable your blubberbag 'Jehovah' to show himself eh, badfish?
...now, why do I have in mind an image of Jesus as one of the Mega-City One 'Fatties' in "Judge Dredd", gorging on 5000 loaves & 2000 fish; beliwheel (under his robe) and all...?!
[/"2000 AD" nerd]
Confused?
So were we! You can find all of this, and more, on Fundies Say the Darndest Things!
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