Every so often i get a really good question emailed to me… Here’s the latest… Hope it helps and pleas keep them coming….(james@ibphilosophy.org)
You know the five skhandas are they there the Buddha’s way of proving there is no self and that the the five skandas are things which people argue make you who you are and the Buddha is saying that is rubbish in his own holy buddhist way?
And here’s the reply:
Ye you’ve nailed it. The skhandas are five of the things that the Buddha thought most people wud say make as the same over time. But all five are IMPERMANENT and so cannot be the thing in me that’s the same today and tomorrow. Because of this, he thinks that people who believe in a permanent self have got it wrong.
The worst thing about this is that belief in the self leads to some pretty strange behaviour and usually increased DUKKHA suffering. Hatred, greed and delusion usually all stem from not just believing in a self but that ‘I’ am better/more deserving of things than other people.
Hope your having a good weekend, in the quiz the other day you knew loads so you’ll be totally fine…
See ya Monday
Hiyaaa and good luck for tomorrow’s exam. I’m sure you’re all going to do wonderfully. I was just doing a final check through the SQA arrangement documents (click for link) and I’ve included the bits you need to know here. You should find this list of outcomes pretty reassuring as we have covered far more than the minimum necessary.
