Jeff Ragan’s Reviews > Buddhism > Status Update

"The universality of the principle of enlightenment & the boundlessness of the Enlightened One who has surpassed the limits of individuality, who is deep & immeasurable like the ocean - this universality is expressed in the cosmic symbolism of the stupa. Its main element, the cupola, in fact, imitates the infinite dome of the all embracing sky which includes both, destruction & creation, death & rebirth" (235).

"For centuries the Buddhist laity traditionally regarded the Sangha as the only Buddhist organization. But with the advent of modern technological changes, secular trends, and Western ideological challenges in society, Buddhist followers have established various Buddhist lay societies and associations...they generally adopted the form and procedures of Western civic organizations" (226).

"The good of his subjects is the first care of a king, and the way leading to it tends to the happiness of both (his subjects and himself). And this end will be attained, if the king loves righteousness; for people like to follow the conduct of their ruler" (220).

"In a society whose motive force is the acquisition of wealth by fair means or foul, the incidence of violence, crime, drunkenness & gambling is not a matter for surprise...when the motive force of society is altered, the attendant evils will diminish & disappear. Till that major revolution in social thinking takes place, only piecemeal & temporary remedies for various particular ills can be suggested" (213-4).

"...true Buddhism can only be found in persistent, profound, and uncompromising meditation. Without actual meditation there is no realization, without realization there is no enlightenment, without enlightenment there is no Buddhism" (202).

"'A day of no work is a day of no eating' is the literal rendering of the first rule of the monastery life...However high and soaring to the sky our ideas may be, we are firmly fixed to the earth; there is no way of escaping this physical existence. Whatever thoughts we may have, they must definitely be related to our body, if they are to have the power to influence life in any way" (187-8).

"Within a few weeks after the Kathin ceremony, perhaps a third of those in the yellow robes will decide to leave the Sangha. Most of them in Wat Mahadhatu will be government officials who have been granted special leave with pay, not exceeding 120 days, in order to serve in the Sangha as male Thai according to the cultural tradition" (185).

"...Buddhism has provided a meaning and a way of life for both Sangha and laity through the centuries in which monasticism has been the primary example, source of authority, and stabilizing influence. Today, however, Buddhist monasticism is subject to change" (168).

"Just as a palmyra tree, the top of which has been cut off, can never sprout again, so a priest who, with evil intent and for sake of gain, untruly and falsely has laid claim to more than human perfection, ceases to be a priest, or to be a son of Sakya. This is to be avoided so long as life shall last" (166).

"This last perfection makes us see Reality as it is. It abolishes the formidable superstitions in existence and non-existence, it liberates us from the philosophical systems of realism and mentalism (usually confused with and presented as idealism), and leads us beyond monism and pluralism" (150).