Opinions!

[firecat]

I did this on Usenet once and got some interesting answers. If I can find the thread in Gooja I will post it in a couple of days.
ETA: I made a comment in this post about what happened on Usenet.

I have had the following in my quote file for a long time. I don't know whether it is an accurate quote or not, but I like it.

Joshu is my favorite Zen Master. It is said that a monk once asked him, To be holy -- what is it like?" Joshu replied, "To dump a mountain of shit on a clean plain." -- Dick Sutphen

What do you think Joshu means?

(X-posted to buddhists)

Comments

[starcat-jewel.livejournal.com]

At this point we're going to have to agree to disagree, then. I am convinced that there people who are genuinely evil, some by birth (the true sociopath, which is fortunately quite rare) and most by choice (such as those I mentioned above). I also believe that once a person has chosen to dedicate their life to the dark path, genuine repentance (as opposed to "finding God" as a way to get out of prison) is so rare that it should not be considered a real possibility in our treatment of these people.

define: evil

[pir-anha.livejournal.com]

or maybe you need to define your terms first; for all i can tell you're not even talking about the same thing

i always wonder what people mean by "evil". especially those don't follow a religion where evil is an active force in opposition to god. when i lost my faith, i had to rethink a whole lot of terminology (and the reasoning behind it).

Re: define: evil

[kmd.livejournal.com]

This is where my brain was going. What is the use of the term "evil?" Why do we need it? Why do we use it?

For me, it is a purely religious term. And I was all ready to post a link to the very best book I ever read about evil, Raging With Compassion by John Swinton. But then I realized that book is completely immersed in Christian theology and terminology. The author's explanations and discussions are impossible to separate from his theology.

So I began to wonder what is the secular use of the word. What good is gained, what need answered, by calling a person or an act "evil?"

I don't know.