All posts by brian@brianschell.com

Daily Buddhism, Ethics

Genetic Enhancements, Abortion, and Buddhist Ethics

5 Comments

14-1(22)About a year ago, I was asked to do a short email interview concerning the Buddhist viewpoint on genetic manipulation and PGD (Pre-Implantation Genetic Diagnosis). Essentially, this is a process that involves artificially fertilizing a number of human eggs, taking out a few cells and checking them for abnormalities, and then implanting the best ones. This removes the chance of a “bad egg” (pun intended). The very idea opens up a can of ethical worms. Here are the rapid-fire Questions and my Answers. I don’t pretend to be an expert on the science behind it, but I have to say it’s a fascinating topic. What do YOU think? Comment below:

 

Q. According to Buddhism, is it moral to have a baby to provide for the medical needs of an already existing child?

A. Probably not, but it really depends on whether or not the second child suffers.  All of Buddhism revolves around relieving suffering, and if the new baby will suffer to fulfill the role of “spare part donor,” then that’s not going to work out. If you mean the second child will be a caregiver of some sort, that’s not necessarily suffering in itself; a lot of good comes from helping others, both in this world and in the realm of karma. 

Q. According to Buddhism, is it moral to attempt to have a child when genetic factors make it likely that the child may be mentally or physically handicapped?

A. Doesn’t really matter. All life is sacred, even mentally or physically handicapped people.
Q. According to Buddhism , is it moral to try to select the sex of one’s baby?

A. Doesn’t apply; the majority of scientific and medical advances are embraced by Buddhists.  If they are used to relieve suffering, they are considered overall a good thing.
Q. According to Buddhism, is it moral to abort a foetus if it prone to obesity of a chronic medical condition?

A. Generally, most Buddhists are against abortion, but it does depend on the situation. Your case would probably not be acceptable if there were no other extenuating circumstances.
Q. According to Buddhism, what is the moral worth of an embryo?

A. That, just like with any other religion, depends on whether you consider an embryo a “person” or not.  Buddhists arguer over this just like everyone else. Generally speaking, it’s probably safer to assume an embryo is a person, or at least a potential person. This leads to the whole abortion discussion, which isn’t what you’re looking for here.
Q. According to Buddhism, who should determine the genes of a person- doctors, parents, or God?

A. Buddhists do not have a God.  Karma perhaps, but many would just attribute this to random luck beyond whatever the parents bring to the genetic table. 
Q. What perspective does Buddhism take on the use of PGD treatment, for both medical use and the enhancement of genes? Has the view on medical treatment changed amongst Buddhists or has certain ideologies continued since the foundation of Buddhism (particularly on the issue of genetic enhancements and PGD treatment)?

A. Many say that the original Buddha was a doctor.  Medicine that relieves suffering is a great thing and is always good.  Medicine that causes suffering, addiction, grasping at a life that may be unnaturally long, and other “wrong” uses are not acceptable.  PGD, like any of these other things, really depends on the motives and reasoning behind their use,
Q. Why do you think religious groups accept the use of gene therapies and even the use of genetic modification for medical reasons but reject use for physical attributes only?

A. With Buddhists, fixing a medical problem would be relieving suffering, while choosing genes to have a prettier nose is simply vanity, which is unhealthy.

Q. In your opinion, do you think religion and science can ever complement each other? Or are they constantly conflicting each other?

A. When science contradicts religion, religion must bend and adapt, according to the Dalai Lama. Some religions go kicking and screaming into the future. You know who I mean.

Q. Do you agree to dealing with prejudices (such as skin and eye colour) by biomedical fixes as a way of solving our social problems?

A. No. If everyone were the same color, we’d find something else to hate people over. Racism aside, I think most people recognize that there really is strength in diversity,

Q. If PGD treatment becomes increasingly popular, what do you think the consequences will be on society AND on the relationship between science and religion?

A. I have no idea, but I think we’d all adapt.

Comments? Agree or disagree with me? There’s a lot of room for discussion on this topic, and I’d love to hear your thoughts. Comment below:

Daily Buddhism

Frustration, Anger, and Buddha

1 Comment

A reader writes:

I have been living in China for three years now. I was raised a Jehovah’s Witness and Non-denominational Religions and do not believe in the whole deity being god thing.  Not that I do not believe in the concept of a divine creator but something is out there. So I am in China and visit the temples, take photos and stuff and have become interested in the philosophy.  Am I correct that Buddha is not a God? Buddhism is a philosophy?

I have read a few web pages and see this may be a way to help me curb my anger issues; my anger manifests as frustration. Why frustration?  Because I am trying to find out information and others do not understand or I do not understand. So why the anger?  Because I did not step back to figure out with Understanding or Enlightenment.  I did not know what the real issue was to start with, that it was me not understanding all the variables  of communication, others not understanding, and so on. So am I on the right path of choices to understanding to go forward?

My Response:

There are a couple of different questions here. First, Buddha is no god, just a very smart/wise man who lived around 2,500 years ago. He came up with a few very simple, yet profound ideas that some call a philosophy, and others do, in fact, treat as a very elaborate religion. You can go either way with it. Read more about Buddha and these ideas here on the site, or download the 60+ episodes of the podcast and start from the beginning. (There’s also a book, which I’m trying very hard not to mention in every single post, but it’s called “The Five-Minute Buddhist” written by me and is available at the link above).

It sounds like you’ve given the second part of your question a great deal of thought. Yes, anger does often come from frustration, and frustration can come from miscommunication, inability to express oneself, and simply not knowing things you are expected to know by their society. After living in Japan for a time, I know well how frustrating it can be.

Meditation can help with anger issues, regardless of the cause. Also, as you say, simply understanding the root causes of the frustration can help. You know now that the anger comes from not understanding, and the best way to resolve that anger is by learning. Realizing how much you don’t know, and making positive strides to learn can make all the difference. To answer your final question, yes, it sounds like you are indeed on the right path now.

 

 

Daily Buddhism, Meditation

Guest Post: What Does Meditation Do?

And now we have our first guest post in ages. This one is by Dr. Douglas Gentile, who writes the American Buddhist blog at usbuddhist.blogspot.com.  He has been training in multiple Buddhist traditions since about 1989.  In his professional life he is an award-winning researcher, author, and university professor.

What Does Meditation Do?

By Douglas Gentile

Western stereotypes about meditation are interesting.  People often initially come to meditation because they believe it will bring them bliss, or bring sudden enlightenment, or at least be a relaxing break from the stresses of the day. Yet, instead, it often feels really bad, and people then believe they’re doing it wrong or that it doesn’t work.  But what does meditation actually do?

There are many answers to this, at many different levels of analysis, but at least in the beginning stages for most new meditators, it allows us to see how the mind works.  It is constantly jumping — emotions follow thoughts which follow emotions which follow thoughts and on and on ad nauseum.  Sometimes this is called “monkey mind,” although I personally think that’s somewhat unfair to monkeys.  By recognizing how easy it is to get trapped into this pattern of chasing every thought and feeling to the next, and how difficult it is to slow that pattern, it teaches us that we don’t need to put quite so much faith in our thoughts and feelings.  They will all change, even if we try to hold on to them.

This can allow us to not react when under their influence.  We can refrain from automatically reacting.  We can pause briefly and add some space, and perhaps even relax to see what will happen naturally.  This can allow for a much gentler approach both to oneself and to others.

As an example, my girlfriend once told me that she didn’t trust me entirely.  She wasn’t being unkind or attacking me – it was simply true.  My immediate reaction was to feel hurt and I immediately thought of all sorts of angry things I could say in response or to make a pronouncement about how we couldn’t be together then.  But it was bedtime, so instead I lay in bed and let my thoughts and feelings flow as they would until I finally slept (not particularly well).  The next day I was able to express my disappointment with her lack of complete trust, but I could also see how my behaviors had caused it.  She was right not to entirely trust me – I had told her not to in several small ways.  My disappointment was, in fact, equal to hers.  She was disappointed that she wasn’t able to trust me completely and to always be feeling as though she might lose this relationship soon.

By recognizing that my immediate thoughts and feelings were not “truth,” and indeed were limiting my view as long as I focused on them, I was able to not be trapped into believing I had to act on them at the minute I was thinking/feeling them.  Adding a pause allowed for a better view on the situation, and ultimately meant that we didn’t even argue at all – instead, we had a good conversation and a better understanding of each other because of it.

If we consider the stereotypes about the outcomes of meditation, this example doesn’t fit any of them.  At no point in this experience did it feel blissful, enlightened, or relaxing to me.  But meditation had allowed me to see the nature of mind, so that the thoughts and feelings didn’t feel so solid or overwhelming that I had to do something at the minute I was caught in them.  If I had, it would invariably have been less than skillful and would likely have made the situation worse rather than using the opportunity to make our relationship better.

Comment here, or on the original post at http://usbuddhist.blogspot.com/
Daily Buddhism, Meditation

Schizophrenia and Buddhism

1 Comment

A Reader Wrote In: 

Hello, I’ve just found your website and podcasts. I’ve wanted to start studying Buddhist philosophy since 2008 when I was volunteering in Nepal, but only now I feel like I have the dedication to really pursue it.

Right now I’m listening to podcast 46, and there was a part that I wanted to address. In the podcast, you briefly talk about addiction and mind-altering substances, and how they can make the mind less clear and so on. I do understand this perfectly clear, it makes sense, but I was just wandering what would a buddhist say about psychiatric disorders? I myself am schizophrenic and more or less I understand that most “heavier” drugs imitate the effects of schizophrenia. That’s why it sort of sprung to my mind. What’s also interesting is that I’ve been told that intense meditation can actually be harmful for schizophrenics, that it may trigger hallucinations. Are there some precautions I should take before taking on meditation?

So what would be your Buddhist view on schizophrenia and the like? I’m sorry if this has been answered somewhere on the site before, but I just felt like asking it myself. I’ve often wondered why I am schizophrenic and what kind of attitude I should have about the whole thing. I’m not anywhere near finding my own answer, most of the time I just dismiss the question and try not to think about it. I hope you could give me some insight into how Buddhism sees my disorder as. Maybe I then can find a new way of looking at the whole situation of my sickness.

Best regards!
J. from Finland

And my Response:

Just last week, I put up a post “Magic Mushrooms” which revisited the topic of drugs and addictions. Generally speaking, most Buddhists see mind-altering drugs as bad, but there are limitations on that. I don’t know the specifics of your case, but since you are on these medications based on your doctor’s prescriptions, I would assume that you would suffer more without the drugs calming your mind than if you did without.

From the Buddhist perspective, having a clear mind is very important to successful meditation, and good meditation is necessary to attaining Enlightenment. Depending on the symptoms or effects of your schizophrenia, you probably have a hard time meditating on your own. The drugs may actually be beneficial in your case. It’s unfair and a unfortunate that you have this condition, but there isn’t much you can do about it on your own, at least so doctors would tell us. If current science says drug X will help you, then by all means use it until something else comes around. Some drugs have side effects, and only you and your doctor can judge whether those effects (hallucinations in your case) are bad enough to merit changing prescriptions.

Either way, you are going to have a hard time of it. Do your best, keeping in mind the rules of karma, make the best of the hand you’ve been dealt and live as an example for others.

 

 

Daily Buddhism, Koans

Koan: Midnight Excursion

Koan: Midnight Excursion

Many Zen pupils were studying meditation under the Zen master Sengai. One of them used to arise at night, climb over the temple wall, and go to town on a pleasure jaunt.

Sengai, inspecting the dormitory quarters, found this pupil missing one night and also discovered the high stool he had used to scale the well. Sengai removed the stool and stood there in its place.

When the wanderer returned, not knowing that Sengai was the stool, he put his feet on the master’s head and jumped down into the grounds. Discovering what he had done, he was aghast.

Sengai said: “It is very chilly in the early morning. Do be careful not to catch cold yourself.”

The pupil never went out at night again.

Daily Buddhism

Magic Mushrooms and Psychedelics

3 Comments

A reader writes:

First of all: thank you for the podcast and website.  It has been extremely educational.

I am very new to Buddhism, I don’t really consider myself a Buddhist yet, but I am soaking up all the ideas like a curious child.  I came drawn to it through the desire to practice meditation and naturally started doing my research.

My question is this:  I know now that it is Buddhist practice to refrain from alcohol and drugs in order to keep a clear mind and so as not to do harm to others, but in the past I have taken mind altering substances such as magic mushrooms, and feel they have opened up my mind and allowed me to look at things from a more spiritual point of view.  Many cultures in the world embrace various “teacher plants” as a path towards spiritual enlightenment.  I honestly feel that some of the revelations I’ve had while on mushrooms have taught me some of the truths of Buddhism before I even heard of them as such.  How can something so spiritually powerful be a negative thing to one’s enlightenment and education?

Thanks so much

My Response:

Because it’s not real. The prohibition against alcohol and drugs are not solely for the purpose of avoiding doing harm to others as you say; they are there because they cloud your judgement and make meditation more difficult. Those other cultures that you speak of don’t place the same emphasis on meditation and reaching Enlightenment as Buddhism does.

A Buddhist wants a clear mind (Right Mindfulness and Right Concentration) and one of the goals of all that meditation is to learn mental control and achieve mental clarity. You cannot reach that state artificially; it might seem like a good idea, but it’s not.

Some kinds of drugs lead to addiction. I shouldn’t have to point out the problems with that kind of attachment. Another point to consider is long-term effects and flashbacks. I’m no doctor, but I have heard that drugs such as LSD can cause flashbacks and hallucinations years after ingestion. That kind of lack of self-control is not something with which a Buddhist would want to deal.

I’m curious as to what those revelations were about, drop me a note!

Daily Buddhism

Breaking Up Is Hard to Do

1 Comment

A reader write in and asked:

First of all, I’d like to thank you for the wisdom and honesty you show your listeners with answering all these questions and giving insight into the fundamentals of Buddhism. I am relatively new to Buddhism, mediation (and yoga), so you podcasts and articles are very welcome indeed. With the growing audience you probably have received a question like mine before, but I’ll give a try nevertheless.

Right now I am going through a difficult time as a result of the breakup of my relationship. You can say that by attaching too much to my loved one, I face a lot of suffering now that the relationship is over. I am wondering how to find a good way to love someone with all your heart and soul (girlfriend and stepchild in my case) but not to get too much attached. I know that Buddhism won’t tell you not to love anyone but have you or other people thoughts to help me with this dilemma?

My Response:

You say you are suffering, and that’s always bad, but it’s normal and to be expected during a time of loss, even for a Buddhist.

You are absolutely right that there is a little bit of a conflict there. You aren’t supposed to get too attached to people or things, yet you are allowed (strongly encouraged even) to love others. Buddhists believe that the problem is not the attachment to others in itself, the problem is grasping too hard to hold on to these things, and suffering over the fear that you will lose them.

Death, divorce, breakups, or even just growing apart, happen to couples all the time. Sooner or later all relationships come to an end, and most of those endings will be painful to some extent. What can you do? Expect it. Plan for it. Don’t become attached to the idea that you can control it or stop it; you can’t. Sometimes you can hold back a breakup or keep the relationship going with effort, but even then, sooner or later, you will be parted. Know this, and when the time comes, accept it. After the separation comes, don’t dwell on it or become attached to the way things used to be. Look to the future; look to new relationships.

 

 

Daily Buddhism

Temple Time

hawaii-byodo-in-buddhist-temple1A reader wrote in:

Buddhism has helped me find my path from and out of suffering. Recently I joined a Mayahana temple, I would like to know, can I stop by any temple daytime to meditate in the temple hall, or just bow? What are usually the norms, because I would like to stop by and meditate and respect the Buddha for 20 minutes after my work day, as it is on my way home, and the atmosphere would further my daily path.

I would like to know really, what are the “during the day” procedures for most temples. And what as a patron are you expected to generally follow, and what are the traditions for burning incense for example.

I found out that before entering the big hall with the Buddhas you ned to take off your shoes, you need to remain as silent as possible while in the temple, Etc.

This would be of some interest to beginners I believe.

Wishing you peace and wisdom.

My Response:

The problem with this topic is that every temple has different rules.  I could tell you about the temples around here, but they certainly won’t be the same where you live. Your best bet is to simply give them a call and ask what hours they are open. Some temples and centers in America are not very busy and may have very limited hours, while others are thriving and open 24/7… it just depends on them.

The ones here in Dayton, for example, are only open a few hours on Saturday and Sunday, while they are closed throughout the week except for special events. I suspect this is the norm unless you are in a very large or very diverse city.

Good luck

Daily Buddhism

Buddha: Evil Spirit Repository

2 Comments

A reader wrote:

I’ve been studying Buddhism and meditating.  A Christian friend (7th-Day Adventist) told me that quoting Buddha on Facebook is evil because he has a hole in his back that they put evil spirits into.  Has anyone else ever heard this ridiculous belief?  I just don’t know how to respond to her because I’m new to all of this, and I don’t want to offend her.  I didn’t answer her at all.  Maybe that’s best anyway.

My Response:

Wow. That’s a new one to me. Never heard that before.

It’s got the ring of truth to it, so I wouldn’t say there’s absolutely nothing to it. I suspect there’s probably some group out there that has some tradition or ceremony where they write down their troubles on a note and drop them into a hole in his back. I can imagine that being a tradition somewhere, sure. Is it an accepted thing among Buddhists in General? No, of course not. There’s not a thing I have ever seen in any historical text that comes anywhere close to this story.

It’s probably similar to a non-Christian assuming that all Christians handle snakes. Yes, some do it, but it’s absolutely not typical. This is probably the way I’d try to explain it to your friend. The world is a big place, it’s dangerous to make assumptions and generalizations.

 

Announcements, Daily Buddhism

Returning

3 Comments

A reader wrote (Back in 2010):

I listened to all 60 of your podcasts about a year ago and just recently started listening to the ones still available on itunes again. I feel I’ve learned more from your podcasts than any other website or book about buddhism. Is there any chance you would resume the dailybuddhism.com podcasts?

My response:

Yes and no.

It’s been four years since the site was really active, other than the occasional poster adding to the comment sections of many of the posts. As you may know, I revisited, re-read, and collected most of the old topics into my recent book, “The Five-Minute Buddhist” just recently. It really got me back in the mood and the mindset to return to things.

I had to give up writing for the site because of my job, and I’m still working, but I’ve been doing it long enough now that I think I can manage doing that and still find time to run a website or two, so I think it’s high time to get back to Daily Buddhism. I’m back!

That being said, there are a few things I’m going to do differently this time around.

First, I still get a request probably every week about bringing back the podcast. The podcast, to be honest, was one of the things that drove me away from the site before. I never much enjoyed making the recordings, audio editing, and all that stuff; I’m a writer, not a “radio personality.” So my answer is no, the podcast isn’t coming back. I won’t say never again, but I have no plans for it. All the old podcasts are still available on the site, and always will be.

I’m also not going to do the email list again, at least not right away. This one isn’t entirely my choice. I always liked getting the daily bits of Buddhism into people’s email boxes, but my mailing list is four years old. If I started sending stuff out now, I just know there’d be problems. Maybe I’ll start that from scratch sometime; let me know what you think.

Which leaves what? This website. I can still post articles and information here just like I always did, and the improvements in RSS technology over the past couple of years makes it easier for you to get the updates as I post them. It’s not perfect, but it’s a good place to restart.

Over the years since I stopped writing for the site, people have still been sending me emails with questions. I’ve answered most of them privately by email, but I’ve also saved them for eventual posting here. I’ve got material for close to a month, but after that, it’ll be up to you guys to submit new questions and topic requests. Wanna see me cover it? Let me know!

So get those questions coming in, and I’ll get on the answers.

as always, dailybuddhism@gmail.com