tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7465006.post3886672725190351814..comments2023-07-22T04:42:16.226-04:00Comments on Going For Refuge: Many Dharma DoorsS. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03516395371482701736noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7465006.post-19133215410303287042015-06-23T06:57:58.903-04:002015-06-23T06:57:58.903-04:00I suppose I intellectually knew "neither mona...I suppose I intellectually knew "neither monastic nor lay" but somehow this imagining of Yashodra, which as you point out is probably more mythology than reality, helped me to see that there are many dharma doors.<br /><br />I appreciate your comments on individuality and your desire for a historical sense of Buddhism.S. Bellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03516395371482701736noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7465006.post-80322240465290822142015-06-21T05:11:33.495-04:002015-06-21T05:11:33.495-04:00The idea that we don't have to be monks is not...The idea that we don't have to be monks is not modern by any means. Lay followers were *always* a feature of Buddhism. The Buddha is not saying anything because he died 2400 years ago. In the words of Reggie Hunter, "He dead." But again innovation and change have *always* been a feature of Buddhism. Sometimes very major changes. <br /><br />Yahsodara is clearly a made up character - she does not appear in the more primitive biogs. Don't take her literally. <br /><br />The individualistic approach *is* a modern feature of Buddhism. As far as I know this is not unprecedented, but it is considerably more rare. One thinks of 9th century Japan and SaichÅ for example. We ought to give more thought to the historical events and circumstances that fostered innovation, the times when Buddhists decided that innovation was necessary? Under what circumstances do disciples quietly reject their teachers and decide that they have to find their own way. Under what circumstances did the Buddha do this (in the stories)? We might not always like the answer to this. <br /><br />If I had one wish it would be that Buddhists understand more of our own history, so we stop seeing ourselves as separate from it.Jayaravahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13783922534271559030noreply@blogger.com