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A Neuroscientists POV of Buddhism

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A Neuroscientists POV of Buddhism (#p57663)

bymudraThuSep22,20118:45am

Though obviously a modern empiricist's POV, nonetheless interesting

http://seedmagazine.com/content/print/buddhism_and_the_brain/
(http://seedmagazine.com/content/print/buddhism_and_the_brain/)

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Re: A Neuroscientists POV of Buddhism (#p57708)

bydeepbluehumThuSep22,20114:17pm

The meditative insight into emptiness is not a rapture or a revelation, but a direct
perception. There is much proof of reincarnation, all the children born who remember their
past lives. The Dalai Lama chosing his successor is because he wants to prevent the Chinese
from interfering.
Reincarnation is a central Buddhist doctrine. Without it, one would have "wrong view." This is
because without it, contemplating karma, avoiding bad deeds and doing good deeds has no
value, and the six realms of samsara would not exist either.
First, karma is real. Good karma results in pleasure. Bad karma results in pain. We know this
because positive karma, especially the unshakable karma of meditative absorption results in
almost immediate pleasure. Negative karma like a temper tantrum results in almost
immediate suffering. That causes and effects can be separated by time is not much of a leap,
and can also be seen in direct experience.
Rebirth is real. Due to the composite nature of existence, every moment is the rebirth of the
previous. Every changing composite mindstream is alike a river that doesn't cease until it is
liberated in vipashyana. It is an illusion to think we are all so different and unique. Actually
we all share amazing resemblances. Science already ascribes to the reasoning that we must
live in a heavily populated universe. The continuity of the mindstream is not dependent on
space or time. The river continues when a mind is born with the potential to sustain the
previous continuity. There are many different ways of explaining rebirth.
Science will probably have to admit someday that Buddhism got rebirth right too.
The six realms of samsara are natural result of the six defilements. Like karma the realms
can be seen in direct perception in the human realm and animal realms when you have a
discriminating eye. You can see divisions of six subcultures in both animal and human realms.
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14/10/2558

DharmaWheelViewtopicANeuroscientistsPOVofBuddhism

That a hateful life renders a hellish circumstance is easy to see, and so forth. Now we get to
a "take my word for it," because seeing the six realms in direct perception only happens for
those with purified sense organs, and that only happens for those on the path.
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Re: A Neuroscientists POV of Buddhism (#p57797)

bymudraThuSep22,201111:58pm

Actually it would be interesting if you posted that as a letter to the editors of the article.
I was just curious to see how far a neuroscientist would go on an empirical level. There are
others, quantum scientists too, who have gone further but have left the strictly "objective
empirical" pov realising that the "act of observation" actually does have an effect on the
outcome on the result of the observation (or even the outcome of the 'event' observed).
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